Chapter Three

Coming Out of the Dark

The thing about coming out of a coma is that no one warns you how badly your head's going to hurt. Sure, it's great to be waking up….but the searing pain radiating between your temples is the torment of Biblical proportions, Jordan thought as she rubbed the sides of her head and tried to focus. She had been tested and questioned, poked and prodded to the point where she was quickly losing patience with Dr. Cruz and his assorted minions that occupied the intensive care unit. She had had enough, and was ready to tell everyone there in no uncertain terms where they could stick their blood pressure cup, when the door to her hospital room opened and a familiar form walked in, somewhat obscured by the afternoon sun gleaming through the mini-blinds and bouncing off the stark, white walls.

"Garret…" Jordan whispered. Unconsciously she held out her arms like a small child asking for a hug.

Which Garret obliged, holding her as closely as she would let him, mindful of her head, and thanking the powers that be that she was once again awake and talking. "How are you feeling?" he asked, knowing that was an inane question to be asking after two years.

"Killer headache."

He smiled at her and gently smoothed her long, chestnut hair off her shoulders. "Yeah. Most people have them after waking up from a coma."

"So they've told me."

"Has Dr. Cruz given you anything for it?"

"Supposedly there's some pain meds in this IV," she jiggled the clear, plastic line, "but if there are, I haven't felt them yet."

"You will, I'm sure."

"I just hope the drugs don't make me sleepy. I don't want to go back to sleep," she said nervously chewing her bottom lip. Garret caught the insinuation…if I go back to sleep, I might not wake up for a few more days….He lightly stroked her arm without the IV in it.

"Maybe they won't."

"Maybe….but other than the headache, I'm really tired….funny isn't it? I've been asleep for a few days and I'm still tired…"

Garret swallowed hard and looked away. Evidently Dr. Cruz still hadn't filled Jordan in on her marathon two-year nap. "Well…that's another side effect of a coma. Kind of ironic, isn't it?"

Jordan nodded, watching him carefully. "So….since I've been out, how's the Howell case going?"

Garret choked, but covered it with a cough. The case had gone to trial with Jordan's initial findings backed up by Bug's final ones. The man had been killed in his apartment and his body dumped in an alley. The murderer was convicted with the morgue's forensic evidence, with Jordan getting most of the credit. It was the last case she had signed off on before her accident. Garret still held the reports in his office, hoping against hope, one day she'd wake up and be able to fill out the final report herself. "It's going fine," he managed to get out.

"Where's it at? I mean, did Woody ever admit I was right? That the body had been dumped in the alley? That Peter Howell had been killed elsewhere and then placed in that alley?"

"Yeah…Woody did finally admit you were right…especially after Bug told him the same thing."

Jordan's lips turned up at the corners. Bug would have come to the same conclusion and not have given Woody an inch to argue. "Good. So where's my bad Bug at now?"

"He's working…"

"Tell him to come on by. From what Cruz has said, I'm going to have to stay here a few more days, even though I'm awake and ready to go on with my life. He can bring me up to speed on the case."

Garret could feel his palms grown moist and the sweat begin to pop out on his brow. He never was a good liar. At least not with her. Not with Jordan, who in the past had always never hesitated to let you know exactly what she thought…in no uncertain terms.

"Umm…Jordan, the case has been closed."

"Already? Damn, it must have been easy to solve….who killed Howell?"

"Would you believe his lover?"

"That's pretty typical…murders are generally crimes of passion…"

"Yeah, but this time his lover was Councilman Burrell…"

The magnitude of what Garret had just said hit Jordan like a ton of bricks. "Dear God…and to think I slept through that…" she chuckled until she caught Garret's expression. "What's the matter?" she asked. "Did I do something wrong with the case?"

"No…the work you did was thorough and near-perfect. As usual."

"Then when does the case go to trial?"

Oh, hell… he thought, as he looked down at his hand still holding hers for a second to get his bearings. Here it goes…. "It went to trial six months ago, Jordan." His eyes never left hers as he told her, gauging her reaction carefully.

"Six…six…months…ago…" her voice faltered as it begin to dawn on her what Garret was telling her. "Then I've been unconscious for six months? Why hasn't anyone said anything?"

Garret looked away for a minute and then caught her eyes again. "It's been a little longer than six months, he finally said, his hand still gripping hers tightly.

"Then…how….long?"

"Two years, Jor," he nearly whispered. "You've been in a coma for two years…."

Jordan felt the room begin to spin and reality begin to slip away again as the significance of Garret's words sank in…dimly she heard an alarm go off and saw a nurse push Garret out of her way. She tried to call out to him to stay, but her voice wouldn't work… her lips wouldn't obey her brain's commands. As a matter of fact, nothing was working…..

When Garret came back into her room later, Jordan was curled up on her side, away from the door, facing the window. "Hey," he said softly.

"Hey yourself," she answered, not turning over at the sound of his voice. He went around her bed so he could see her.

"Don't scare me like that again. You've scared me plenty over the past two years. It's got to stop." He gave her a tight smile as he sat on the side of her bed and took her hand once more.

"So how'd this happen to me, Gar? How'd I end up pulling a Rip Van Winkle?"

Taking a deep breath and vowing to keep it simple, Garret began. "You left the nineteenth precinct after discussing the Howell case with Woody and pulled into the path of an oncoming car. End of story."

Jordan's brow wrinkled as the fact slowly began to filter back through two years worth of fog. "I didn't see the other car coming. I remember that."

"Jordan, it was broad daylight and clear weather. Are you sure?"

She shook her head and closed her eyes. "I didn't see it coming because I had been crying."

"Crying?"

"Yeah." Her voice cracked at the memory. "Woody and I had been arguing over the Howell case. He finally told me, 'Screw your hunches, screw your conspiracy theories….screw you, Jordan'… And I just couldn't handle it. I left his office, crying…that's the last thing I remember until I heard the crunch of metal."

Garret had heard the story from Woody several times over the last two years. While he know Woody was truly sorry over what had happened and kicked himself in the ass repeatedly for his careless words, those facts did nothing to alleviate the anger he now felt hearing the story come from Jordan's halting lips. Especially when he saw the tears begin to gather in the corners of her eyes again and slowly slip down her face. While the rest of the world had moved on, for Jordan, it was still the day after Woody had kicked her out of his life again. The pain was still very fresh and very real to her.

Resolutely, she wiped the tears away with the back of the hand that wasn't attached to her IV. "So…two years," she began shakily. "Long time, no see….anyone. Get me caught up, Gar. Is everyone still at the morgue?"

Garret's smiled. "Pretty much. Bug and Nigel are still there. So is Lily and she's engaged to Matt."

Jordan's eyes widened. "Seely and Lily? Engaged?"

He nodded. "The wedding is this coming summer."

"Shit. It's a good thing I did wake up. I'd hate to miss that."

"And I'm sure she'd hate for her maid of honor to be brought down the aisle on gurney with an IV stuck in her arm."

"Would make the wedding dances kind of difficult…."

"And Slokum's dead."

"Jack Slokum is dead? Who killed him?" Jordan grinned.

"Did it to himself. He was arguing with the district attorney over some lab's incompetence and our slowness. And he had an aneurism in the middle of that heated debate."

"Oh my God. You're joking…."

"Seriously."

"Bet Renee' liked to lost it when he collapsed in front of her…"

Garret cleared his throat. "Renee's not the DA any longer. She went into private practice after the baby was born."

"Oh….what's she have?"

"Little girl. Cute as a button."

Jordan laughed. For all her seeming coldness, Jordan had been well-aware how much Renee' had longed for a baby. The fact that her ex impregnated her made no difference to Renee'… she was going to be a mother. "You two….?" Jordan let the question hang in the air.

"No. I mean, yes. Occasionally. But nothing serious or steady."

Silence followed the last comment as the unspoken question circled the room. Finally, in a soft voice, Jordan asked, "Woody?"

"He's still at the nineteenth. You'd never know he'd ever had been injured. The limp is almost gone…as are the nightmares, at least most nights, anyway. He's gotten a promotion…moved into a better apartment…and…." Garret faltered. He really didn't want to tell Jordan the rest, but knew he would rather have her hear it from him than through the gossip grapevine at the morgue.

"Moved on with his life."

Garret nodded and looked down at the floor.

"Do I know her?" Jordan finally asked, her voice quiet and resigned.

"Yeah, you do. Jenna Burgess. She…"

"Was the pretty blonde receptionist at Renee's office. I remember. She was hired about a month or so before …" Jordan still had trouble saying the words.

So Garret finished the sentence for her. "Before Woody's shooting…" Before he was a complete ass and kicked you out of his hospital room.

"Wow. A lot's happened in two years….and I slept right through it."

"Which means you have two years to make up for…"

"Garret….does Dad know…." Jordan swallowed hard….if her dad had come and went after her accident…or had passed away, she never knew it.

"Nigel tried to find him…but couldn't. Max hid too well. Nigel spent three weeks doing nothing but trying to locate your father…nothing."

Jordan sighed and looked away from Garret, staring at the fading rays of the afternoon sun filtering through the mini-blinds. So much had changed….Lily and Seely. Renee'. Garret.

Yet so much had stayed the same. Max and Woody still didn't want her…not even after she had been out of it for two years. Swallowing hard and fighting back the tears, she muttered under her breath, "Screw them."