Some lighter stuff now, after the resolution. This is the last chapter and it's a longer one! Thank you to all who followed/reviewed/favoured! It gave me a lot of encouragement! You guys are great!
Please review and let me know what you thought of this little experiment! If you see mistakes or anything that needs correcting (this was not beta'ed), feel free to review/PM me! ;-)
CHAPTER 7 - Spiderman
...
Who's voice—?
STRAUSS (voice over speakerphone): ... and it was good work, everyone. Agent Rossi will continue to be in charge until Agent Hotchner is back on his feet. Please let him know I'll try to stop by the hospital tomorrow, but I have to attend a meeting in a few minutes—
ROSSI: I'm giving everyone the morning off tomorrow: we've got to catch up on lost sleep!
STRAUSS (o.s.): Fine, I'll see you all tomorrow afternoon, then.
Hargh! A visit from Strauss—
Wait! Did she say 'meeting'? I was supposed to be at that meeting—if it's the one I'm thinking about— at 6:30 pm!
I was out all day?
GARCIA: Hotch!
Garcia. The whole team's here. Is it over?
REID: Hey! Look who's back! How are you feeling?
ROSSI: You just missed Strauss on the phone!
MORGAN: Lucky man! But you lose nothing for waiting: she's planning to stop by tomorrow. *chuckles*
"Nicholas? Carla? Did you find them?"
MORGAN: We did. They were on Cole's sailboat, stuffed in a dog cage barely big enough for a child, let alone an injured boy and his mother.
PRENTISS: And the creeps had them bound and tied to the cage, with tape over their mouths—
"Nicholas?"
REID: He's out of surgery. His blood loss was minimal. He's on antibiotics to break his fever and control his infection, and the doctors believe his condition will continue to improve over the next few days. He and his mother are suffering from exhaustion, dehydration, and mild exposure, but nothing too serious.
Thank God. They're okay. The boy is going to make it.
ROSSI: Once Morgan and Prentiss found them, I let Christoph van Blerk know his wife and son were safe. After that, it took van Blerk less than thirty seconds to disarm Paulie and shoot Cole! No more hostages were hurt.
REID: The two injured hostages have been released from the hospital already. Cole went through surgery and is recovering under heavy guard at Northern.
"Is that where Nicholas is?"
JJ: No, he's at Children's National. The van Blerks went through hell, but they'll be fine, especially with Nicholas' situation improving every hour.
Every hour...
"How long ago did it all end?"
ROSSI: Let me put it this way: we got back here before they brought this tray of food you see in front of you. This is not your lunch by the way, it's your dinner. And it's probably cold, now.
That nurse really knocked me out with her IV bag.
REID: You're looking at the new IV bag? The nurse hooked it up a few minutes ago. The doctor thought you might still not be up to eating solid foods, so they want to keep you on parenteral nourishment until you start eating.
They're not just keeping me on nourishment. I can feel the muscle relaxants kicking in.
My head does feel clearer, though! And I'm not so sleepy. It must be a lower dose than before.
"I was supposed to be at that meeting, tonight."
ROSSI: I'm sure Strauss and the others are not expecting you! She knows that your doctor wants to keep you in observation one more day, until you are able to eat on your own and sit up in a wheelchair—"
"What?"
REID: Don't worry, they expect a full recovery and no permanent sequelae of your injuries, but it will be a few days before your head, feet, and back are in any shape for you to stand up. You're lucky: it would have taken longer with bone fractures.
In a wheel chair, I can't go to work, and Jack still has to stay at Jessica's!
"What did you tell Jessica?"
ROSSI: She's already figured out how to work this out. She wants you to stay at her place for a few days: it's wheelchair accessible, you'll sleep in Jack's room, and Jack is already looking forward to riding on the chair with you!
"I'm guessing you're the one who suggested it."
ROSSI: Guilty! *laughs*
JJ: Jack and Jessica are on their way, they should be here any minute.
GARCIA: How are you feeling, sir? Looking forward to seeing Jack?
"I'm good. Would you help me get the head of this bed up?"
PRENTISS: Are you sure it's a good idea? Well, let me know when I should stop.
Hmm, I'm okay! As long as I don't try to move my head, I can sit up!
And have a better view!
"Stop. Thank you. Who ate my jell-o?"
MORGAN: Reid beat me to it, but I think we all wanted to jump on it.
*scoffs* Ouch. Don't laugh!
"Have you had dinner, yet?"
ROSSI: No. We were talking about grabbing something across the street and bringing it back here, but we thought the sight and smell of food might not agree with you, right now.
"It's okay, I don't mind. You can also get the rest of this food, if it's still eatable."
PRENTISS: It never was to begin with! But I'm sure we'll find someone to try it out, even cold!
REID: No, thanks. I'd be happy to take everyone's orders and bring back some food from the diner, though.
JJ: Why don't we wait until Jack and Jessica get here, then we can all head there together for a few minutes, to give them some private family time.
MORGAN: Let's do that.
PRENTISS: By the way, Carla also wants to stop by, later, or tomorrow. She wants to thank you herself for what you did for Nicholas. She was quite worried about you, when you all got separated: she thought they might kill you because you were an agent... but since they were sure you couldn't go anywhere—
REID: These men were obviously very desperate for money. They had this small window of opportunity and they went ahead with their plan despite everything that went wrong from the start.
ROSSI: In the end, they thought that they could use Carla, Nicholas, and you as leverage; they were trying to negotiate their way out of there!
REID: Very bold.
ROSSI: I kept stalling. Tried to buy you some time. And it worked!
GARCIA: Hotch, how are you, really? Have you been able to remember all that happened yesterday?
My memory is less of a shamble, but some pieces are still missing. I remember the old foundry now, but not how we got there, or waking up in that room. I don't remember when they separated us.
I remember walking in the streets in the dark, but not how I got started. Only the earlier part of the day is clear. Should I tell them the truth?
"It doesn't matter at this point, Penelope. You managed to find the boat and they were able to rescue Nicholas and his mother in time, and since the bank situation resolved without further loss of life, I feel grateful. Strauss was right, you all did great work!"
MORGAN: The cognitive interview wasn't really working, so how did you remember the name of the boat?
"..."
I'm not telling them that story.
ROSSI: Why are you smiling?
"No reason."
MORGAN: Oh, come on, man! We haven't eaten, we haven't slept! Give us something!
Huh.
Okay.
"I suddenly remembered my dream, last night, and 'The Swashbuckler' popped up in my mind."
REID: What dream?
Stupid dream, I'd rather come up with a fake story.
Mmmm. Brain is too slow.
Might as well—
"I dreamed about a sailboat, sailing on very rough seas, and—well, there was a tall grey wall on that ship; it was taking over the whole bridge. And sitting on top of it—"
Here we go.
"...was Errol Flynn, struggling to stay on top of that wall, on the ship, on the high waves, and that reminded me of the name of the boat."
GARCIA: Errol Flynn, the actor?
REID: The actor in 'The Adventures of Robin Hood' and 'Captain Blood'?"
ROSSI: 'Swashbuckler'! Of course! *laughs*
PRENTISS: Why not Johnny Depp?
*laughter*
I can't blame them for laughing, it's a ridiculous dream.
Yet, why are they all looking at me like they know something I don't?
MORGAN: Hotch, that wall on the ship, what did it look like?
Might as well make it fun for them!
"It looked like it was out of place!"
*laughter*
"I don't know. It was made of big concrete blocks, I guess, and as tall as the main-mast."
PRENTISS: Sounds familiar?
"Of course, it looked like the walls of the furnace room."
MORGAN: Yeah, but you don't look like Errol Flynn!
*laughter*
JJ: With your concussion, I guess trying to keep your balance up that wall must have felt like riding the high seas!
I wish I was in on the joke; it seems they're all having a great time at my expense!
"You're saying I got out through one of the windows?"
ROSSI: You don't remember?
PRENTISS: I don't blame you, I wouldn't want to remember doing something this crazy!
REID: I wouldn't even want to THINK about doing something this scary!
"I'm not buying it."
MORGAN: What?
"You're trying to pull my leg. The windows were too high to reach."
MORGAN: I know! I'd say they were twenty feet above the ground! And that's on the inside! On the outside, it was more like thirty feet!
"I found a rope?"
MORGAN: No—
PRENTISS: Actually, yes, but you didn't use it to climb the wall, it was way too short.
I wish I could remember the details—instead of wondering what they're all feeling so smug about.
Okay, lighten up! It's been a stressful couple of days for them, they're just relaxing! It's good that they're not feeling their fatigue right now. Keep playing along.
"I give up. "
MORGAN: Okay, okay! Maybe it will come back to you as we tell you what we think happened.
PRENTISS: Remember the discarded refuse that was scattered around the room? Cardboard boxes, old wood crates...?
"Hmm."
MORGAN: There was a wood table with a missing leg and a small chair with no seat?
"I don't remember, but go ahead."
MORGAN: Okay, well, you used the chair for the fourth leg of the table and set it against the wall, under the windows. It was almost leveled. Then you put two wood crates that were damaged, and set them up on the table. They were too big to fit on the table, but you attached them together with the piece of rope to stabilize them. On top of that, you put some big cardboard boxes, reinforced by doubling and tripling them with other boxes.
PRENTISS: We think you had to put three rows of boxes on that 'pyramid'. That reached up probably almost ten feet.
"How did I do that?"
ROSSI: You tell me!
PRENTISS: You probably used the five-foot ladder to add a couple of boxes, then climbed on the wood crates, grabbed the ladder and set it on one of the crates, climbed that, added the third box...
MORGAN: Then, as far as we can tell, you climbed on top of the cardboard boxes, carrying the ladder, which you then set on top of that top box with you, and you went up the ladder, probably stood on the top step, and were able to reach the window.
PRENTISS: You managed to open the window and climbed up the frame before the whole assembly came crashing down!
MORGAN: We found the ladder on the floor with one foot stuck in a box; it went through the top cardboard box—
REID: Do you remember any of this, Hotch?
I should.
I don't.
ROSSI: He's probably thinking: that's one stupid thing I did in my life that I don't have to remember!
*laughter*
Way too much fun at my expense!
At least, Morgan's not laughing.
MORGAN: Now, you were sitting perched up the window frame and had to figure out how to come down. Before climbing up, you had probably hoped the ground level was higher outside, so you could jump off.
PRENTISS: But the ground was lower outside the building. And paved.
MORGAN: Fortunately, the facade of the building was finished with bricks that were alternatively receding and protruding by about an inch into and out of the wall. Gave you something to grab and step on.
"I climbed down?"
PRENTISS: Yes! You removed your shoes and socks, and came down grabbing the facade of the building!
MORGAN: At least for a while. Then my guess is either you slipped, or your concussion made you dizzy, or faint...
REID: You didn't break any bone, so you must have been near the ground by then!
GARCIA: I don't know how you didn't break your neck trying something so dangerous!
"It sounds like I didn't have much choice —"
GARCIA: I know! I know! The boy was shot! You had to get help! But you wouldn't see any of us try to pull something like that!
"What about Morgan?"
MORGAN: Don't even think it!
GARCIA: My Greatest-American-Hero is too heavy and too bulked up at the top! He would need to train his fingers and toes to respond to the extra demands of vertical surface climbing! Not that you don't have your own perfectly toned top, sir!
Garcia— *sigh*
PRENTISS: JJ and I might be light enough, but we probably would have been too short to reach the window, and I don't think adding a fourth box would have worked!
JJ: You won't see me climbing down a thirty-foot wall any time soon, either!
"Reid, then?"
REID: Never! I'll leave the urban climbing to Hotch and the experts, like Alain Robert, the human spider!
JJ: Who?
REID: He climbs tall buildings around the world. You've heard of urban free solo? The climbing of urban structures without any help or device? Very famously, he's climbed the old Sears Tower, now called the Willis Tower, renamed in 2009—eh, yes, anyway. They call him 'the French Spiderman'!
JACK: Spiderman?
"Jack!"
JESSICA: Hi, everyone! Aaron!
ROSSI: Here, Jack, let me help you to the bed.
JACK: Dad, is it okay if I give you a hug?
"Of course!"
Great! At least I'm able to hug my son! My arms weigh a ton, though!
JESSICA: You look okay. I've brought you some homemade chicken soup, here. I thought hospital food might not be too appealing in your situation.
Homemade chicken soup. Her mom's recipe.
Haley used to make the same soup.
The last time I was in a hospital was the last time I saw Haley—
Damn.
JACK: Are you okay, Dad?
"Hmm-mm."
JACK: Why were you talking about Spiderman?
"I—What?"
JACK: Uncle Spencer, you were talking about Spiderman?
REID: Actually, I was talking about the 'French Spiderman', not the comic book hero.
JACK: Who's that?
REID: He's someone who climbs—
"REID!"
REID: What?
"Don't give my son stupid ideas!"
ROSSI: We don't want him to turn up like his dad!
*laughter*
JACK: Why not?
ROSSI: Because your dad ended up in the hospital after trying to act like Spiderman!
"Dave! What did I just say?"
JACK: I won't get stupid ideas, I promise, Dad!
Poor boy—
JACK: Did you catch the bad guys like Spiderman, Dad?
"Jack, do I have super powers like Spiderman?"
JACK: No. But did you hang down from a rope and hit something? Or jump off a roof?
"No!"
JACK: Did you fight with a bad guy?
"No, Jack—"
JACK: Did you—fall down, like when Spiderman runs out of spider web?
Shoot. Such an agile mind!
"Did aunt Jess tell you what happened?"
JACK: No. She just said you got hurt while trying to catch the bad men. She said you didn't get hurt bad, but the doctor wanted you to stay in the hospital anyway.
"That's true."
JACK: What did you do that was like Spiderman, Daddy?
He knows I don't want to tell him, and he knows that making his innocent-charming-pouty face won't work on me. So now he's adding his Oliver Twist-slash-Puss in Boots-eyes that break my heart, but I won't...
Hmm.
How do I say no to him? Haley, help me!
He IS getting older—
"I tried to climb down a wall."
JACK: Did you use suction cups?
"I'm sorry?"
JACK: I saw this guy on TV, he was sticking to the building with suction cups!
"No, no suction cups, buddy. But I never want you to try anything like that, you understand?"
JACK: Sure, I understand.
PRENTISS: Wow! This is interesting: I'll know what face to use on my boss next time I need time off, or anything!
*laughter*
Now, THAT deserves a glare!
PRENTISS: —Sir!