Disclaimer: See initial chapter.
A/N: Extremely AU.
No Longer Alone
If anyone asked him what he'd been thinking when he'd agreed to the plan Epiphany had concocted to keep Johnny Zacchara safe, he didn't know if he'd be able to rightfully tell them. Everything after Epiphany's, as she insisted he call her, revelation was a blur to him.
On the plus side, he was no longer sitting in the uncomfortable, butt-numbing orange plastic chair. On the downside, he'd just agreed to keep a wanted man's identity a secret and could possibly, once again, be asked, and rightfully so, for his resignation. Epiphany, however, could be quite convincing and given the fact that Johnny had indeed been shot down like an animal, if his injuries were anything to be judged by, he agreed that the young man had more than likely been framed for the murder of his partner.
That is how he found himself half-dozing in a dimly lit hospital room in a slightly more comfortable armchair than he'd been afforded earlier, waiting for Johnny to be wheeled out of surgery rather than in his nice, comfortable bed in his nice, cozy apartment. Epiphany had ensured that Johnny would have a private room in which to recover, and she was determined that he would recover if she had to rain the wrath of god down upon his head herself.
Dante was woken from his half-sleep state as a plain white hospital bed was wheeled into the room accompanied by Patrick, Robin and Elizabeth. All three were speaking rapidly in hushed tones. The figure lying on the bed was silent and still. He was attached to far too many machines for Dante to actually see the man amidst all of the tubes and IVs.
"Officer Falconari," Patrick sounded startled to see him there, "our patient isn't up for any questioning just yet. The next few days will be crucial for determining his survival. If he makes it through the next couple of hours, his chances of surviving the week will increase greatly. He's in a medically induced coma and I won't be letting up on the meds for at least a week, provided that he survives that long. I'll give you a call when he's up for questioning." Patrick spoke dismissively, pointedly looking at the door. Great, apparently Epiphany hadn't let the rest of the players in on her brilliant plan.
Taking a deep breath, he rubbed a hand over his face in an effort to erase some of the weariness he felt. It had been a long night, and, if he followed Epiphany's plan, he was going to be facing a virtually never ending string of nights. She wanted him to be an unofficial guard for Johnny during his off-hours. She was going to see about securing someone else to watch over the wounded man while he worked. She didn't think it would be good to leave him without protection. She'd even offered to pay him something from her scant salary, but he'd refused the money.
"I know," Dante responded tiredly.
He just wanted a bed, any bed, to lie in at this point. Hell, he'd take one of the hospital pillows and a blanket and make a bed on the floor and be happy just as long as he secured a few hours of much needed sleep before he had to report to work later on that morning.
"Epiphany asked me to be our special John Doe's unofficial bodyguard in the evenings, and, sleep deprivation being the first and foremost among a host of reasons why, I've agreed."
"So, you know who our John Doe is then?" Robin asked skeptically. She didn't know how she was going to keep this from Mac, she'd feel guilty every time she saw him, and she couldn't imagine Dante being able to face his police chief daily, and keep this kind of information from the man.
"Yeah, I know," Dante answered on a sigh, "and I'm prepared to do everything I can to make sure that he comes to no harm during his stay, however long that may be, at the hospital."
"Why?" Elizabeth raised a single eyebrow as she questioned the rumpled looking officer.
She was going to have a difficult time keeping this a secret herself. She might not see Lucky on a daily basis, but she saw him often enough when he picked up the boys on their weekly visits.
Dante walked over to the hospital bed and looked down at the emaciated body adorning it. Johnny looked like a shell of his former self, and that wasn't even including the lethal wounds which pockmarked his body. There were dark bruises beneath his eyes and his skin was chalky white. Red marred the pristine, white bandages covering the bullet wounds and a large patch of his head was bald where he'd had to be shaved for the surgery Patrick had performed.
"Because," he answered, not looking at the three hovering just behind him.
He took a breath to finish his thought and came up empty. He shrugged. He'd agreed to watch over Johnny, just because. That was good enough for him and it would have to do for the others. The truth was that he didn't really understand why he'd agreed to Epiphany's plan. She was an indomitable force, but, that wasn't it entirely.
For some reason, looking at Johnny in his current state tugged at something in his gut. His heart and jaw clenched as he thought of how the man was being framed. Last he'd heard, Johnny had turned his life around, become one of the 'good' guys. He didn't deserve to be wasting away in a hospital bed, shot down like a dog in the street and then framed for the murder of his partner.
He brushed a stray hair from Johnny's forehead and tenderly traced a faint scar along the man's hairline which had come from an earlier injury. It looked like he'd been cut with a broken beer bottle or maybe a switchblade. Dante frowned as he contemplated how the young man had obtained the now healed, and possibly forgotten, injury.
Shaking himself from his thoughts, he turned to the others and let out a relieved breath as he saw acceptance and understanding mirrored on their faces. Something about the grievously wounded man in their midst had awakened a protective instinct in all of them. Johnny, completely unaware of his surroundings, was no longer alone. He had a force to be reckoned with on his side; all he had to do was make it through the night.