A/N: I am sorry for the long spell between posts, but after vacation things got crazy around here. I have two or three other chapters in the works already, so it shouldn't be too much of a break between posts. Also, I need to apologize for the scene switches...I have not found a way to delineate one from another...Everything I try to use gets cut off when the story actually posts, so if anyone has any ideas, please let me know! Thanks for the kind reviews, hope you're enjoying the story so far!
PART VI - It's Just My Heart -- Again
Jordan walked in to the morgue and made a beeline straight for the office of Jack Slocum, Acting Chief Medical Examiner. Haley was going to be late coming down to the morgue. She couldn't wait for him to get there and get her out. Maybe she could start sifting through the evidence in Garret's case while she waited. Now that it'd made the papers, she was sure the District Attorney's Office would call for a full investigation, and she wanted to be at least one step ahead of them.
She walked in to see Slocum sitting in a sweater -- on a hot, hazy day, of all things -- pouring over one of Garret's old autopsy cases. "I don't know why you're still on this witch hunt. Hasn't Garret suffered enough already?" she demanded. "Anyway….I'm here to take you up on your offer!" She tried to smile at him.
Slocum looked up from the report he was reviewing, which,he had foundmuch to his chagrin, appeared to be in perfect order. "Dr. Cavanaugh…Good morning to you too. It will be nice to have you join our mandatory morning meeting." His gaze did not waver as he watched her face for some show of rebellion. None was forthcoming. He would try provoking her, he thought, just to see if she was really going to let him. "Dr. Cavanaugh, I am merely after the truth. I thought that 'The Truth' was what you were all about. It seems that you're always in endless pursuit of the truth…. even when it gets you into a lot of unnecessary and unwelcome trouble," he pointed to her personnel file, behind him on top of a stack of others. "So…Exactly what offer are we talking about?"
"You said I could try to clear Garret - er, Doctor Macy," Jordan was direct. "If I could just review..."
Jack tried to hold back a grin, as if Jordan was a child asking the stupidly impossible. "Doctor Cavanaugh…After his voluntary disclosure the other day, I'd say the case is closed."
"What!" Jordan exploded. "You mean you're not even going to let me review the file?"
He looked at her evenly. "For what purpose? Dr. Macy confessed that he withheld material evidence in a case that turned out to be a homicide...I hardly think there's any merit in re-opening an investigation - at least not in this office."
"You don't know Garret Macy…" Jordan started.
"Oh, on the contrary, doctor…I do. Besides the fact that we were once colleagues, I also attended medical school with Dr. Macy - he graduated several years behind my class. I have to say, though, that I don't remember looking at him in quite the same light you do. He used his friendship with the former DA to get this position - a position he never should have gotten, considering his flimsy tenure. And let's not forget the fact that he helped cover up a murder, for God's sake!"
"But…"
"Look, Doctor Cavanaugh…The truth of the matter is that Dr. Macy grossly neglected his duties as a medical examiner and then went on to become the CME because of political associations…that's the truth!" he barked.
"If you believe that, you don't know the first thing about Garret Macy!" Jordan spat back.
"I don't need to know anything about him anymore. It was probably for the best that he turned in that evidence before it was discovered! It will at least save him the embarrassment of …"
"Are you going to use it against him if the DA investigates further?" Jordan interrupted.
"If? I think we're beyond that now, doctor…You know, there are some choice tidbits in your own personnel file that I'm sure the Governor would find more than interesting!" He paused, letting her think about things for a moment, almost laughing at her efforts to keep Garret up on that pedestal, then continued. "Don't you want the truth to come out once and for all…or can't you handle it?"
Jordan looked at him in disbelief. Was he going to dig up everything about everyone? "Not if it means destroying the morgue family and the people I love!"
"I would hardly call this group of motley employees a family…" Jack interrupted her, a small, tight smile on his face.
"You don't know anything about this place, about these people…We've been through a hell of a lot together! We survive because we have each other…"
"Dr. Cavanaugh, spare me the dramatics," Slocum said, waving her out. "May I remind you that this is a scientific institution -- You're just people who work together, for crying out loud. Get over it. What about the victim's family? Don't they deserve some modicum of justice!" Slocum demanded.
"Didn't they already get it?" Jordan shot back.
"No, they didn't...Not all of it. And they should - you know it and I know it."
Jordan knew he was right. She turned and stormed out of Slocum's office, scattering a dozen employees trying to look as though they'd heard nothing when, in truth, they'd heard it all. "Get back to work!" Slocum yelled from the doorway, seeing the mulling crowd. "It's not a suggestion. Go! Now!" He went back to his desk and slammed his fist on its surface in frustration as he watched Jordan stomp down the hall into her office and bang the door shut.
-----
"Detective Hoyt? I'm Doctor Roberts…How're you holding up?" He didn't wait for Woody's reply but continued. "Look…we have to get this infection under control before we attempt that second operation. Everything on your chart looks great today so far. I'm hoping we can operate in the next three days. What I need is for you to keep calm, no stressing or anything. So….On a scale of one to ten, how would you rate your pain?" the young doctor finally paused.
"Ten," Woody choked out. Not get stressed? Who was this man kidding? "Ten," he said again, clutching at his abdomen while a cough escaped.
"Let me get you something for the pain, then, hmm? Meanwhile, rest. No worrying. Your body needs time to fight the infection, rest your heart...Then we can operate and you'll be on the fast road to recovery." He smiled and Woody gave him a doubtful look. "Well, the physical therapy will be a challenge, but I'm guessing you trained for your job, right? It shouldn't be too much more difficult. Anyway, after the operation, you will determine how fast you get your life back to normal." The doctor reached over to quickly check Woody's vitals, scribbled hastily on his chart and started to leave. "I'll send a nurse in with something for the pain. Get some rest." With that, he was gone.
-----
"Ah, Doctor Jack Slocum, is it?" a little bald-headed man asked from the doorway.
Slocum raised his head slightly, only glancing up from the file momentarily. "And you are?"
"Howard Stiles. State psychologist." He held out his hand in greeting, but Slocum ignored it.
"What can I do for you? Are you here to see one of my MEs? A criminalist,forensic entomologist?" Jack tried pleasantly, frustrated at the interruption.
"Actually, I'm here to see you. By request of the Governor."
Jack's browns knit together in frustration. "Bob sent you to see me? That man's insane…."
Stiles grinned. "Don't worry, I'll overlook the pun."
"Is this some kind of joke? Look, I don't have time for this right now, Doctor Stiles. I have a morgue to run!"
Howard craned his neck to glance at the files behind Slocum, piled high on top of the credenza. "I see…You have quite a bit of paperwork to sift through -- Have there been that many bodies in the morgue within the last week? Is it an epidemic or something?" Stiles indicated the seemingly thousands of folders piled in the office. "Maybe I should have stayed in the Keys another week..." he mused.
"Of course there's no epidemic!" Jack sputtered.
"Then what's with all the folders?" Stiles picked one up, opened it and read. "Oh…I see Garret Macy was the medical examiner who signed off on this case…Seven years ago,huh. Is there new evidence? It says here Mr. Benner died of a heart attack seven years ago…" Stiles lowered the file briefly. "Hmmm. I like the chance to play detective once in a while…Did the wife poison him? Lots of insurance money involved?"
"I'm just reviewing a few of Dr. Macy's prior cases."
Stiles nodded. "So I see….For what purpose, may I ask?"
Slocum rubbed his temples, trying to ignore the man's persistent questions.
"Headache? Stress? Stress will do that to you…Cause pressure at your…"
"I'm well aware of what stress will do to me, doctor. Could we possibly reschedule this interview for another day? You can speak with my receptionist, Ms. Lebowski, on the way out." Jack waved him toward the door.
"Ms. Lebowski? I thought she was the Grief Counselor…Hmmm. Interesting. Anyway, you're due for your yearly evaluation."
Slocum finally cracked, slamming his fist hard on the desk for the second time that morning and causing some of the precariously positioned folders to topple. Papers scattered all over the floor. "I'm going to have to ask you to leave -- now!"
Howard bent to try to retrieve some of the papers. "You seem pretty angry for someone with a lucrative new position." He handed several files, paperwork jammed in, back to Slocum, who grabbed at them angrily.
"I repeat, get out now! I have a lot of work to do."
Stiles righted himself, abandoning the file he had started to gather up. "Suit yourself. Expect a call from the Governor though."
"I'm sure Bob has more important…
"Bob? Oh -- you mean the Governor. Well, if you remember my saying so, it was at his request that I showed up on your door. Don't shoot the messenger, you know!" Stiles grinned wickedly. "Maybe you'll feel better in a day or two and we can talk then!" he hastily left the room before Jack Slocum could say anything else.
-----
Garret was walking down the hall toward the hospital's elevators when he heard a familiar voice. "Hey, Garret." It was Lily, walking briskly to catch up with him.
He paused, not sure if he was ready to see any of the employees of his staff…His former staff, he reminded himself. But he turned toward her with a pleasant smile, as if nothing had changed so drastically in the last week. "Hi, Lily."
"I'm just, uh…"
"On your way to check on Woody? Me too. Jordan called and left a dozen messages within the last day or so, and since I don't have anything pressing going on…" he faltered. "I guess she's busy with work…"
"Garret, I'm so sorry - about the job…about us…about a lot of things. I just find it so hard to believe that you…" but the elevator doors opened and they moved apart to let several people out before they stepped into it. Lily pressed a button and waited for the doors to close before continuing. "I just…things are so - different - at the morgue now." Garret nodded, seeming to care less, but Lily called him on it. "Why, Garret? Why?" she half-demanded, half-pleaded. She needed an answer, he knew. He figured they all did, his employees, colleagues -- his friends.
He looked into her eyes. "It's -- complicated." The elevator stopped, and she didn't know what to say. He sensed her disappointment and frustration. "Look, we'll get coffee after…"
"Fine," she said shortly. She walked out of the elevator ahead of him and started down the hall toward Woody's room.
-----
"I found the results from Mr. Morales' stomach contents!" Sidney exclaimed, coming into the room where Nigel sat at his desk. "Not only that, but I tracked down the restaurant as well…It seems….Hey, you listening?"
Nigel was hoping to surprise Jordan by tracking down one elusive Calvin Coolidge Hoyt, but he was having no luck.
Sidney crept up behind Nigel, waving a paper in front of his nose. "Say it!" he commanded, but Nigel was glued to the screen in front of him, his fingers busily chipping away at the keyboard. Sidney attempted to get a rise out of Nigel once again. "C'mon, just say it! Admit it, I'm brilliant!"
"What was that?" he asked distractedly, finally looking up to see Sidney's perturbed countenance.
"Uh-uh…No way." Sidney held the paper just out of Nigel's reach and pulled it back slightly when Nigel reached for it.
Nigel snorted. "If I stretch, I can get it from you with no problem! C'mon, mate - what have we got?"
Sidney wouldn't let his moment of glory slip by. "Say 'Sidney, you are the man!' and it's all yours!" he tried.
"Look, mate…I've got pictures of one Doctor Sidney - what's your last name? - at the last Christmas party, pretty shnockered …"
"Nigel, everyone who works here was there - everyone already saw me drunk as a skunk -- a rarity, I might add -- ergo your blackmail has no effect…"
Nigel paused a moment. "Unless…" he posed.
"Unless what?"
"Unless I send those rather risqué photographs to one cute little nurse at Boston University Hospital…" Nigel threatened.
Sidney paled slightly. "Fine - spoil my fun!" He handed off the sheet to Nigel and stormed out of the room before Nigel had a chance to say anything further, his good mood ruined by Nigel's unwillingness to play his ego up a bit.
"Well, well…" Nigel whispered. "Sidney - you are the man!" he tried to call, but Sidney wasn't there to benefit from the praise. Nigel rose to go track down the acting CME.
It was lunch time and Jordan was more than a little frustrated at Haley. She was still stuck at the morgue, trying to hide out from Slocum in her office. She'd tried to finish up some paperwork before he confronted her about it - paperwork not being one of her strong points and one of the things that could really get her into trouble with Slocum, he was such a stickler for the rules.
She wondered if she should try visiting Woody, but he surely didn't need the stress that would bring. Garret had left a message on her office voice mail about his infection and about the heart damage. She laughed to herself, bitterly, thinking of how she'd once wanted to be a heart surgeon more than anything. She might have been the one assigned to his case now, monitoring his progress, not knowing anything about him at all except for what his chart said. It was funny how life could take a small turn and change everything…
God, where was Haley? She needed to get out of the morgue…
-----
Woody heard the door creak open and slowly opened his eyes. "Doc, Lily…hi," he said weakly. "I didn't expect company today."
"Hey, if you're too tired, we'll go - let you get your rest…" Lily said with concern.
"No…No. I'm actually a little -- bored." He clutched at his abdomen as he coughed. "It gets a little too quiet for me. So…What's new with both of you? How're things at the morgue?" he attempted.
Lily and Garret exchanged looks, not sure how much Woody remembered from the day or two prior to his being shot.
"Uh, we have an outbreak of Red Tide Algae on the New England Coast," Lily offered lamely.
Woody looked puzzled. "What's that?"
"Nothing important enough for you to worry about," Garret assured him. "Need anything?"
Yeah, I need my legs to work again, need to be back on the job...need to know why Jordan said all of those things…Woody thought, but he kept those thoughts to himself and just shook his head. "I'm fine for now…The nurse just gave me some pain medication and I'll probably be asleep and lousy company before you know it." He tried to grin, but grimaced with pain instead. Lily and Garret looked at each other, thinking that maybe they should just exit gracefully and come back a little later, Lily curious about what Garret had to say.
Garret cleared his throat. "Listen, we all care about you - me, Lily, Bug, Nigel, Jordan…"
"Jordan? Yeah, right!" Woody's voice dripped with venom, but his skin had paled considerably.
"Hey, you know Jordan cares about you," Lily began, but the young detective was shaking his head.
He carefully raised himself up to a sitting position, setting a pillow against his stomach to help ease the pain. "No…She doesn't," he said flatly. "I'm so tired of being just her friend, and now I definitely don't need - or want - her pity!" his voice was full of emotion.
Garret frowned at the young man. "She was here the whole time you were in surgery…I'm sure if she wasn't busy at work, she'd still be here…"
"She'll probably pop in after she and Agent Haley finish up," Lily added brightly. Garret looked at her in surprise, but held his tongue. He'd have to ask about Haley later…That name did bring back memories. Unpleasant ones mostly.
"No, she won't. She isn't coming back," he said, his voice void of the emotions that were playing across his face.
"Why would you think that?" Garret asked. "I know Jordan has her problems, but one thing she is -- and that's loyal to the people she cares about…She'll be back, if I know anything about her."
Woody swallowed. "I…I told her not to come back. I just can't deal with her rejection right now…Not when I might never walk again…It's just too much." He sighed and rested back on the pillows.
"Woody, the doctors have said you have more than a fifty percent chance of walking again," Garret reminded him. Woody didn't look very hopeful.
"Please…" Lily pleaded. "Please...You don't understand a lot of things about Jordan…about what's been going on," she shot Garret a meaningful look before she continued. "She trusts you…She loves you…"
Woody interrupted her, a frown spreading across his face. "Yeah, she was so in love with me that she was going on a date that Friday. A blind date you set her up with." He looked at Lily accusingly, then, unable to hold in his curiosity any longer, he blurted, "Well? Did she still go!" He choked out the words, followed by a cough, and gripped his abdomen, pain spreading across his face.
"What are you talking about? What date?" Lily was truly clueless. She and Garret exchanged glances. Garret shrugged.
Woody continued. "We were jogging and…You set her up on a blind date for the Patty Griffin concert…" he pointed at Lily.
Lily gave a rueful laugh. "I never set her up on any date, Woody. Jordan hasn't dated in a long time. She is-in-love-with-you…" Lily stressed each syllable, trying to let it sink in.
Garret nodded. "She cried the whole time you were in surgery. I've never seen her so…"
"How come she told me you set her up on a date when I asked her to the concert?" Woody interrupted, bolting upright in the bed and wincing in pain, trying to ignore what Doctor Macy was trying to say. He remembered Jordan's pleading with him as he was being rushed into surgery…All the words, the tears. He didn't need them to tell him that Jordan had been there. He didn't even wonder whether or not she'd said those words -- those pretty, wonderful things that still haunted him. It was why she had bothered that was tormenting him.
"Well, considering that you told her you wanted to move on…." Lily started.
"Hey!" Woody interrupted. "How did you know that!"
"She told me. She said you wanted to be friends…That you both should move on…Is that what you told her?" Woody looked down at the bed, his face canvassed with guilt. Lily continued. "Maybe I should have set her up with one of my friends. She could've used a break from work -- especially now. But, you know…I didn't. I really didn't. We all knew how she felt about you, even if she wasn't admitting it to herself." Lily gently touched Woody's arm.
"Hmmm…Maybe she told you that because she was trying to save face," Garret surmised. "Why? What does it matter now, Detective? Didn't you really want her to move on?" He eyed Woody, trying to gauge his response.
Woody looked down sheepishly, then turned to them both. "No," he said softly. "No, I didn't." His chest hurt, but it was not another heart attack. It was heart break...