Chapter 17

The next morning, Jack entered the dining room and was surprised to see no one else was around. A tempting array of breakfast foods had been placed on the buffet behind the table. Jack poured himself a strong cup of Kona coffee and grabbed a pastry before settling down at the oak table to read the morning paper.

When he got to the Local section, his blue eyes widened and he cursed under his breath. Magnum's shooting had made the front page; Janet's name and picture were splashed on there, too. This was all she didn't need, he thought, and yet he couldn't stop looking at the pictures or reading the article. It didn't give him any new insight; he just didn't think he'd ever see Janet's face on the front page of a newspaper, involved in something like this, albeit not willingly.

When he heard tentative footsteps approaching, he swiftly folded the newspaper and tried to hide it behind his back, but Janet was too quick for him. After saying "good morning", she asked him what he was hiding behind his back.

"Nothing," he said, knowing he didn't sound very convincing.

She poured herself a cup of coffee and sat next to him at the table.

"If it's the Local section of the paper, you don't have to hide it. I've already seen it."

"You have?" Jack asked, surprised, as he returned the folded paper to the table.

Janet nodded after sipping her coffee. "I didn't sleep much. I've been up for hours."

"I wondered where you were when I woke up this morning, but I didn't know you had been gone for hours. You must be exhausted."

She shrugged. "I went for a morning swim. It helped. A little."

"You weren't by yourself, were you?" he asked, concerned.

"No," she said. Her heavy sigh sounded as though it had started from the soles of her feet. "Zeus and Apollo kept me company. Jonathan came out a little while later and worked on his garden."

Jack took a closer look at his friend and wondered how he had missed the dark circles underneath her eyes and how ragged and defeated she appeared. She looked as if she had the weight of the world on her shoulders. He desperately wanted to help her, but he didn't know if he could.

"Hey, Janet, I know you said you wanted to stay here, but maybe it would be better if we left."

"Not yet," she said, her resolve just as firm as it had been the previous night.

Jack nodded. He didn't want to press.

"Has there been any word about Magnum's condition?" he asked instead.

Janet wrapped her hands around the warm mug and took another long swallow before she answered.

"Terri called a little while ago. She said Thomas made it through the surgery, but he's still in a coma. They don't know when he's going to come out of it."

She set the mug on the placemat and rose from her chair. She headed for the double French doors, hugging herself at her waist. Jack watched her for a few moments and then slowly approached her. When he placed his hands on her shoulders from behind, she didn't move away. After a few seconds, she leaned back into his solid chest and allowed his gentle touch to soothe her.

"Look at that beautiful beach and sun-filled sky," she said, her voice filled with sadness.

"I see it," Jack said, realizing it was going to be another beautiful day in so-called paradise.

"How can it be so bright and gorgeous outside when I feel so empty and dark inside? I don't know, Jack. I see the sunshine. I just don't know if it will ever be able to warm me again."

Against his better judgment and knowing he was going against strict hospital rules, Dr. Ron Yamaguchi, Thomas' treating doctor, gave in and allowed his friend Terri to visit Thomas in ICU.

"Just for a few minutes," he cautioned, as he opened the door for her.

She nodded and smiled her thanks before entering the room.

Terri knew what to expect but that didn't stop her from reacting with a shudder and a frown when she saw the various tubes attached to Thomas' body and the machines surrounding his bed. Hearing the constant whir of those machines and the beeping of the heart monitor didn't help her nerves either.

She looked around the small confines and spotted a chair in the corner. She pulled it close to Thomas' bed and sat down. She stared at him as if willing him to open his eyes.

"Hey, there," she said, her voice soft and soothing. "You made it through the worst part. My friend, Dr. Ron, said you did great in surgery. They got the bullet out. Now, you just need to rest so you can come back to us."

She scooted closer to the edge of the chair so she could touch him. She just wanted him to know that someone was there with him. That he wasn't all alone. She placed her warm hand on top of his, careful not to disturb the IV in his arm.

"We're not giving up on you," she promised, as tears welled in her eyes. "And we're not giving up trying to find Lily either. You need her, Thomas. Now, more than ever."

Watching him lay motionless in the bed, she realized she would like nothing more than to be able to help find Thomas' beloved daughter and bring her to her father in his time of need.

Lt. Maggie Poole, a petite woman with red hair and blue eyes, who was a good friend of Magnum's, entered her superior officer's office on the Pearl Harbor Navy base and, without preamble, dropped the Local section of the newspaper on his desk.

"Did you see this, Colonel Green?" she asked, her jaw set and her tone grim.

Col. Buck Green, whose eyes were as steely as his voice and his posture, not to mention his personality, looked from the headline to the lieutenant he knew had a very personal interest in this particular story.

"Yes, I did," he answered, sitting back in his chair and steepling his fingers as he contemplated what Lt. Poole might say next.

"Don't you think it's time we told someone about Lily?" she nearly pleaded.

The officer, who had been Magnum's strongest nemesis when they both served in the Navy, straightened in his chair as his eyes bored into hers.

"No one mentions Lily," he ordered. "Do you understand me, Lieutenant?"

"Yes, but..." she said, helplessly gesturing to the article.

Col. Green picked it up and gave it a cursory glance.

"This says our good friend Magnum is in a coma."

He tossed the paper back onto his desk and relaxed, once more, against the back of his chair.

"What good would it do to tell him about his daughter? He's not even awake."

"But, sir," Maggie continued, trying not to be intimidated by the fierce and unmoving look on her commanding officer's face. "You know that tests have been done which show a person in a coma might be able to hear what people are saying. Maybe if we tell Thomas..."

Without warning, Col. Green rose from his chair and placed his hands on his desk as he leaned in and stared at the attractive woman he had come to respect and admire, despite her obvious fondness for someone he did not care for in the least.

"No one says anything to anyone about Lily," he commanded. "Is that understood, Lt. Poole?"

"Yes, sir," she said, saluting him before she turned and left his office, her insides a jumbled mess as her heart quietly began to break for her friend.

Col. Buck Green returned to his swivel chair and ran his hands over his face as he glanced at the article one more time.

"What have you gone and done now, Magnum?"

He shook off any semblance of concern he might have had as he tried to concentrate on the report in front of him. But a few moments later, he opened his desk drawer and pulled out a photograph of Lily. He looked from her picture to the one of her father.

"When the time is right," he said, returning Lily's picture to his drawer for safekeeping. "And not one second sooner."