Chapter 16: Spaced Out
Callen had just closed his eyes, utterly exhausted after enduring the painful, twenty minute ice treatment to his broken wrist.
Sam, Kensi, and Deeks stood silently next to the bed. The three exchanged understanding looks and at that moment, the unspoken pact was made: Callen was to never know that they had met the vulnerable, frightened little boy.
Kensi's cheeks blushed slightly when she looked down and realized she was still holding on to Callen's foot through the covers. She removed her hand and made her way to the couch.
Marty felt mentally and physically drained. Having to assist in restraining his Team Leader earlier that morning, and then trying to console Callen by stepping into a role of an adult from his past – the day was only half over and already had been another emotional roller-coaster. Deeks let out a long breath and sat down beside his partner.
Sam tucked his phone back into the pocket of his jeans and then stood at Callen's side for a few more minutes. He had seen another glimpse as to why his partner was esteemed by other agents as one of the best in his field. Growing up, G's world was ever changing; He was placed in unfamiliar settings, encountered new people, and was faced with overwhelming challenges, virtually every day of his young life. The ability to quickly adapt and improvise were skills essential for his survival.
Sam had just taken a seat in the chair beside Kensi when Nurse Landon entered the room. After placing a lunch tray on the portable table, he paused for a few seconds to study his patient. "Is he asleep?"
"I think so," Sam responded.
"I know that was a rough twenty minutes." Landon approached the bedside and visually scanned Callen's injured arm. "But the upside is, it helped a little," He reported softly. "There's still quite a bit of edema, but nothing like before… We'll need to ice it again in about forty minutes."
The nurse did not see the frown, rolling of eyes, and the cringing face behind his back. But he suspected the three visitors were not happy at all with the prescribed remedy.
After checking the restraints on G's ankles and left wrist, Landon came back around to where Sam was seated. "Just keep an eye on him and make sure he keeps that arm elevated... And if he wakes up before I come back, please see if you can get him to eat something… or at least drink a little. He doesn't have the benefit of the IV right now."
"Will do," Sam stated firmly, accepting the mission.
When the nurse had left the room, Kensi handed Sam his bottle of water and Deeks a soft drink. Wordlessly, the three began to consume their snacks and drinks.
By the time Kensi had eaten her Cheetos, her partner had finished off a bag of chips, and a package of crackers. When Marty reached for the only remaining snack, a small bag of cookies, Kensi swatted his hand. "Keep your hands off."
"Oww! What was that for?"
"You've already had chips and crackers."
"But I'm hungry."
"Those aren't for you. I'm saving those for later," She taunted, removing the cookies from the table and tucking them in the cushion beside her for safe keeping.
"But they're mini, double chocolate chip," He whined, reaching again for the cookies.
"Deeks." Sam warned. "I'd listen to your partner, if I were you. You know how she gets when you try to get between her and her chocolate."
Kensi gave a victorious smile when Marty stopped, pulled his hand back, and pouted.
Twenty minutes later, Callen opened his eyes and looked groggily around the room. Turning his head to the right, he made brief eye contact with Deeks, and then Kensi.
Kensi stood and slowly approached the bedside. "Callen, how do you feel?"
He squinted up at her, not seeming to be in any distress or pain at the moment, but clearly not knowing what was going on.
Kensi stepped aside when she heard the portable table being rolled toward the bed. She smiled as she returned to her place on the couch, not at all surprised that Sam was wasting no time in carrying out the nurse's instructions to hydrate Callen.
Sam peeled the paper off of a straw and placed it in a glass of ice water that had come on the lunch tray.
G peered cautiously up at Sam then frowned down at the glass that was being held up close to his mouth.
Deeks popped up from the couch and went to the bedside. "Come on, G. You need to drink something," He persuaded gently.
Callen squinted up at the blonde with the same confused look he had given Kensi and Sam.
Marty shook his head, turned, and slowly returned to the couch. "Uncle Danny has apparently left the building."
Kensi commended her partner's efforts with a pat to his knee.
When Callen, again, refused to take a drink, Sam sat the glass on the tray, paused for a moment, then suddenly turned on his heel and exited the room.
Kensi and Deeks just looked at one other and shrugged.
Within minutes, Sam returned with a container of apple juice. He opened the top, emptied the contents into a small Styrofoam cup, and transferred the straw from the glass of water to the cup of juice.
This time, when the straw was held close to Callen's lips, he stretched his neck a little, looking down curiously at the juice. After a small test sip, he began slowly moving his shaky right hand toward the cup.
"Let me hold it," Sam instructed softly.
G carefully returned his hand to the pillow it had been resting on, and began drinking through the straw. When the cup was empty, he let out a breath, rested his head back down to the pillow, and gave Sam an appreciative glace.
Sam put down the empty cup and, without a word, hurried from the room like a man (SEAL) on a mission.
Deeks and Kensi didn't even try to minimize their smiles when Sam returned with three containers of apple juice.
Callen finished off the second container, and half of the next, before relaxing his head back and closing his eyes.
Sam raised the head of the bed a little higher, and tried, unsuccessfully, to get his partner to take a spoonful of soup. When G also refused the orange Jell-O, the big SEAL cocked his head to the side, pressed his lips together in disappointment, and let out a breath through his nose.
Without warning, Deeks reached across Kensi and snatched the package of cookies. "Here, Sam. Try these," He called out, tossing the coveted snack to Sam.
Kensi's mouth flew open in silent protest, but she really hoped the cookies would draw his interest; after all, her Senior Agent shared her love for junk food.
Sam opened the package, removed one of the small cookies, and broke it in two.
When the cookie piece was slid into Callen's mouth, he looked up at Sam in surprise, but then slowly chewed and swallowed it.
G took another sip of apple juice, but stubbornly pressed his lips together, refusing the other portion of the cookie.
Sam had just returned the package of cookies to Kensi when Deeks pulled out his phone. "Text from Hetty." He announced. "Says she about to finish up at FBI headquarters… Said the nurse called her a little while ago about a problem with Mr. Callen's arm… Wants to know if Sam has made it from the airport, and… Oh, this is a surprise." He stated flatly. "She wants another report on Callen." Deeks sat silently for a minute, keying in his "report," pressing send, and then waiting for a reply. "She says there's been a development in an old case… She'll fill us in when she gets here." Marty returned his phone to his pocket and noticed Callen was looking at him.
G lifted his head off the pillow and furrowed his brow before shifting his gaze to Kensi. He stared at her for a moment, the same way he had looked at Deeks, clearly no recognition in his eyes.
Sam folded his arms across his chest and smiled down at his partner. "Still trying to figure out who everyone is, aren't you?"
Callen briefly looked up at Sam before turning his head slowly back to midline. Staring vacantly straight ahead, he mumbled something too softly to distinguish the words.
"Was that even English?" Deeks asked.
"I don't think so." Kensi responded, quickly pulling out her phone and activating the video recorder.
Sam leaned just a little closer to Callen. "What was that, G?"
With that same distant look in his eyes, Callen turned his head and stared up at Sam. "Mne eto snitsya?"
Sam licked his lips. "English, G."
"Yesli ya splyu, kto-nibud', pozhaluysta, razbudi menya."
Sam leaned in even closer. "G, I don't know how to help you unless you talk to me in English."
Still gazing up at Sam, Callen's eyes filled with confusion. He opened his mouth to speak, but remained silent, seemingly unable to find the words he wanted to say. The confusion in his eyes transformed to mild distress. After several seconds, G seemed to wilt. He closed his mouth, and turned his head away, slowly shaking his head.
Sam stood up straight, looked toward the ceiling, and let out a breath. It troubled him to see his partner give up so easily.
Kensi placed one hand on Sam's upper arm, and held her phone up in front of him with the other. "I'll show this to Hetty when she gets here. She'll know what he's trying to tell us."
Callen's blank stare was directed toward the window when the nurse returned a little later. "So did the apple juice do the trick?" Landon asked, laying a fresh packet of ice on the table.
Sam backed away from the bed. "Almost three containers."
"Good. Did he eat anything?"
"Yeah." Deeks piped up from the corner of the room. "One of my partner's mini double chocolate chip cookies."
The nurse turned and looked at Sam with raised eyebrows.
Sam shrugged. "Wouldn't touch that stuff on the tray. And it was only half a cookie."
Grinning a little, Landon began examining Callen's injured wrist and hand. "Looking better. This may be the last time we have to ice it."
Sam let out a sigh of relief. "That's a good thing. He's sort of hard to reason with right now."
Landon stopped to study his patient who was still gazing over toward the window. "Still stuck as a kid?"
"Don't think so. He's just zoned out, like he doesn't know what's going on. I don't think he even understands what we're saying."
The nurse detected a trace of frustration in Sam's last comment. "That's probably the drug still messing with his brain functions. Dr. Lee expects he may continue to experience slowed cognitive processing and, maybe even more hallucinations, over the next few hours."
Sam pressed his lips together, and looked down at his partner. "So the restraints stay?"
"Afraid so."
Sam conceded with a single nod.
Landon checked his watch. "Let me get his vitals, and then I'm going to need a little help turning him on his side before we start the ice therapy."
Marty automatically stood to help. But when he took a step toward the bed, he was halted by a hand signal from Sam.
"I got this, Deeks," Sam said softly, and then moved to the other side of the bed.
Kensi went to the closet and pulled out the three spare pillows. She turned to hand one to Deeks, and noticed her confused Senior Agent's head was lifted off the pillow. He was frowning down at the blood pressure cuff that was being wrapped around his upper right arm. When the cuff began to tighten, his indignant stare lifted up to the nurse who was apparently invading his personal space.
Deeks and Kensi didn't miss the worried look in Sam's eyes when the cuff was removed from Callen's arm, exposing new bruises, some of them in the form of hand prints.
After recording the patient's vital signs, the nurse knelt down and unfastened the ties leading to Callen's right foot, leaving the restraint cuff secured around his ankle.
Sam followed the nurse's cue, and untied G's left ankle and wrist from the bedframe.
With his left arm now free, Callen slowly drew both arms in, crossing them over his chest, and closed his eyes in relief. But when the bedrails were lowered, his eyes suddenly blinked open and he took in a gasp of air.
Landon lowered the head of the bed and pulled down the covers. When he saw the distressed look on his patient's face, he paused to allow him time to process what was going on.
Sam rested his palm on his partner's shoulder. "We're going to turn you onto your side, G."
After studying Sam's face for several seconds, a hint of trust appeared in Callen's eyes, and his body visibly relaxed. Still cradling his injured hand against his chest, Callen was gently scooted to his right and rolled over onto his left side.
Landon examined Callen's back and upper hips for pressure areas, before positioning the pillows behind him, securing the left ankle restraint, and lifting the rail.
Sam stepped out of the way when the nurse came around to the side of the bed Callen was now facing. Landon laid the remaining pillow in front of the patient and carefully positioned the injured arm on it. He squatted down and located the restraint ties.
When G felt his left arm being pulled toward the edge of the bed, he jerked his hand in to his chest.
Sam shook his head, let out a breath, then reached beneath the pillow and grasped Callen's wrist. He tried to ignore the hurt look on his partner's face when his left arm was forced out straight.
Landon tied off the left wrist restraint, pulled the covers back up over his patient, and raised the side rail. Deeks handed him the icepack and he gently placed it on Callen's wrist. After nodding at Sam, and making brief eye contact with Kensi and Deeks, Landon picked up the virtually untouched lunch tray and left the room.
Kensi and Deeks watched apprehensively from the other side of the bed, hoping that this ice treatment would be less turbulent than the last. With Callen now facing away from them, they could not see his expression. But when he began to squirm after the first few minutes, it was apparent that the treatment was beginning to reach the uncomfortable range.
As a reminder to remain still, Sam placed his palm on Callen's elbow, applying just a little downward pressure each time he began to move.
With only five minutes to go, Callen stilled. Deeks and Kensi were puzzled when Sam looked up at them and smiled; that is, until they heard Callen's soft snoring.
Nurse Landon returned a few minutes later to remove the icepack. He had just looked up from examining the patient's wrist when his eyes grew wide. "Miss Lange," He said softly. "I didn't even see you come in."
Kensi and Deeks turned around, also surprised to see Hetty standing right behind them. Deeks shook his head and grinned. "She does have a way of sneaking up on people."
As expected, the stealthy Operations Manager got right to business. "Is he resting?"
Landon pulled the covers up over Callen's shoulder and came around to where Hetty was standing. "Yes. Either the pain is easing up or he's just exhausted."
Hetty nodded. "Any change in his condition?"
Landon glanced back at the patient before responding. "His wrist looks much better. We shouldn't have to ice it again. Dr. Lee wants to get another X-ray. I'm going to go put in the orders for them to send up a mobile unit." Before exiting the room, the nurse stopped, turned and gave one more set of instructions. "Oh, we have his left ankle secured from behind, and the left wrist from in front. That should keep him from going over the rail. But if he becomes combative, he could hurt himself without the other two restraints. Someone needs to watch him closely."
"I'll keep an eye on him," Sam answered quickly.
When the nurse had left, Hetty walked over an uncovered Callen's feet. "I gather by the fact the restraints have not been removed, that he's still disoriented?"
"Pfft. That's an understatement," Deeks said flatly. "Most of the morning, he still thought he was a kid. Now he just pretty much stares around the room."
Sam gripped the side rails with both hands. "He doesn't know which way's up. Doesn't know where he is or even who we are. G spaced out is even harder to deal with. At least he would talk to us when he was a scared little kid."
Hetty replaced the covers over Callen's feet. "He hasn't spoken at all?"
Kensi pulled out her phone. "Except for this. We couldn't understand what he was saying."
Hetty watched the short video. "It's Russian. I caught the word 'dream.' Miss Blye, could you play it for me again, with the volume increased a bit, please?"
As Hetty watched and listened, the second time, sadness filled her eyes. "He asks the question, 'Am I dreaming?... If I sleep,… someone please wake me up.'"
Kensi slowly put her phone away, and everyone stood, silently watching Callen for a few moments.
The quiet was interrupted by the buzzing of a cell phone. Hetty turned her head toward the couch. "Oh, that must be Miss Jones." She walked over to where her handbag was sitting, fished out her phone, and flipped it open. "Yes?... And you've verified the information… What time?... Thank you, Nell. Tell Eric I need to know the second his plane touches down." She closed her phone and dropped it back down in her bag.
"We have a case, Hetty?" Sam asked, keeping his voice low.
"Yes. We now have confirmation that Antonio Zamora has reentered the country."
Sam narrowed his eyes. "Zamora? His trail went cold more than a year ago."
"Yes. It's been fifteen months since he slipped out of the country, undetected."
Deeks looked at Kensi and then back at Hetty. "Who is this guy?"
"Antonio Zamora is a wealthy businessman who is suspected of bankrolling at least seven terrorist cells in the U.S. alone. He was spotted in Miami three days ago, under one of his aliases, Lorenzo Gutierrez. He and his entourage are scheduled to land in LA this evening."
The detective's blond eyebrows knitted together. "If we know he's coming, why don't we just arrest the guy?"
Just then, Callen's body jerked, and a soft, raspy moan followed.
Seeing Sam's features soften, as he looked down at his partner, it was obvious to the others that Callen had opened his eyes.
Sam tilted his head to the side. "Hey, G. You gonna sleep all day?"
Callen moved again, this time sliding his arm off the pillow and into his chest.
"Uh, uh, buddy. This has to stay up here. Doctor's orders," He said while gently placing G's arm back on the pillow.
Hetty paused for a moment, before continuing with her briefing on the case. "To answer your question, Mr. Deeks, our objective is to track his activity for several days. We need to determine if he has already established cell groups in our area."
Wordlessly, Hetty glided around to the other side of the bed, stepping into the space Sam had made for her, between him and the bed. "Zamora has booked a suite at the Elegante," She continued. "Currently, there are three VIP suits unoccupied. We are not certain which one the hotel will assign to him once they arrive, and we can't risk tipping off the hotel staff by asking questions. Zamora's pockets are deep. We just don't know how many people he has working for him."
Hetty reached up and touched the top of Callen's head, then lightly ran the backs of her fingers down his right temple. After returning her hand to her side, she let out a breath. "We have a team in place to run surveillance. But once he has checked into the hotel, I need the three of you to go undercover as hotel staff and set up the cameras and the audio."
Not surprising to anyone, Sam immediately protested. "Hetty."
"Mr. Hanna. I need you on the case. You and Miss Blye already know what the man looks like, how he operates. I have an agent in route. He will stay with Mr. Callen until the assignment is over. It will just be a matter of hours until you may return. I need my best team on this Op. And we are already a man down."
Sam stood up straight, crossed his arms, and huffed. "Hetty! I can't leave him. Not like this!"
Frightened by the sudden outburst from the large man standing over him, Callen jerked against the restraints. His body still tense, he pulled his injured arm into his chest and looked up at Sam with wide eyes.
Sam pressed his lips together, looking down at his partner with remorseful eyes. "Sorry, G… You're alright… I'm sorry."
Hetty waited until Callen had relaxed a little, and eased his arm back onto the pillow.
"We can do it," Deeks said rather timidly from the other side of the room. "I mean… me and Kensi. I'll get Eric to send me all the photos he has of these guys, and Kensi can fill me in on the rest. Sam's place is here with his partner. We can handle it."
With pursed lips, Hetty studied her injured agent. After a moment, she closed her eyes and let out a breath. "Very well, then. Agent Blye and Detective Deeks will set up the audio, visual, and tracking devices."
Sam visibly relaxed. He looked over at Deeks and gave him a single nod.
"Don't just stand there," Hetty ordered. "You two need to get going. Duty calls. Get with wardrobe so they can duplicate the appropriate hotel staff uniforms. I'll be there soon. Now shoo," She said, waving her hands toward the exit.
Before the female agent and the liaison were even out the door, the banter had ignited.
"Hey, Kenz. What about one of those sexy little French maids' uniforms."
"Good idea, Deeks. But I don't think you have time to shave your legs."
Hetty shook her head, gazing at the now closed door. "I must have lost my bloody mind."
Sam smiled. "They'll do fine, Hetty. They make a good team."
Hetty's lips parted and she tilted her head back a little. "As do you and Mr. Callen. Take good care of him, Sam."
"I will." The smile suddenly left Sam's face. "And Hetty?... Thank you."
After a nod of acknowledgement, the tired Operations Manager left the room.
