Author's Note:
Thank you for the reviews, followers and favourites.
Here's the next chapter… Enjoy!
...xxxxxxxx…
Lisbon watched as Jane was wheeled out of the OR. He looked pale, his lips trembled slightly and he had numerous IV lines attached to a main line that was in his jugular vein in his neck.
"How is he?" she asked the nurse as they headed to the ICU.
"The doctor will be by to speak with you shortly," the nurse said as they entered the ICU. "Please give us a few minutes to get him settled and to get the pain meds going."
"Of course." Lisbon said stepping back.
Jane… You will be okay.
You have to be okay.
Please God…
Twenty minutes later, the doctor arrived and showed Lisbon into Jane's room. He was settled in the sterile white bed, a nasal canula provided oxygen and various monitors beeped all around him. He looked so vulnerable and moaned softly.
Oh Jane. She just wanted to see his sparkling eyes and corky smile again.
"Agent Lisbon," the Doctor said as he did a quick visual examination of Jane. "All I can say is that your man, Mr. Jane here, was very lucky."
"Lucky?" Lisbon asked, looking at Jane.
"Yes, that arrow missed his spleen by a mere half of an inch."
Oh Jane. Thank God.
"The victim at the crime scene died as a result of an arrow hitting her spleen." She said.
"Oh." The Doctor said. "Well, Mr. Jane was also lucky the arrow pierced all the way out at his back. It made removing it a lot simpler. We just sawed off the end sticking out of his chest and withdraw the rest via his back."
Jane chose that moment to moan more loudly and Lisbon lightly touched his forehead and ran her fingers over his head, trying to comfort him.
Looking back at the doctor, she asked, "How much damage did that arrow cause?"
"In addition to the blood loss, there is a considerable amount of tissue and muscle damage. It is going to take time to heal."
"Will there be any permanent damage?" Lisbon dreaded asking this question.
Jane moaned again and moved his head on the pillow. He was restless and seemed to be in pain. Lisbon reached up and touched her cross and sent up a silent prayer for Jane to be okay. Simultaneously she caressed his head trying to sooth him, to let him know that she was there..
"Mr. Jane may experience difficulty using his left arm for the next few weeks and the pain is going to be an issue for a while. But all in all I believe he should make a full recovery."
"That's good news." Lisbon released the cross around her neck. "How long will you keep him in the ICU?
"A day or two. We want to get his blood pressure up and make sure there are no complications. He has a drainage tube in his chest to take care of any seeping fluids from the wound. This can sometimes lead to infection."
Jane sighed heavily and moved his head again, turning into Lisbon's touch, mumbling incoherently.
"We've had to strap Mr. Jane's arm to his chest to limit movement and to stabilize the fractured rib. The last thing we need is for the rib to snap completely and puncture his lung. But the strapping will limit the movement of his ribcage and lungs and could lead to respiratory concerns."
"Oh God, it sounds like a hundred things can go wrong." Lisbon sighed.
Jane moaned as if in agreement and Lisbon just continued caressing his head.
"Yes," The Doctor said. "Anything can happen, but let's not worry about all of that right now. Mr. Jane is stable and my main concern is pain and mobility management. We've hooked him up to a morphine pump to take care of the pain and I don't expect him to move around for the next 24 to 48 hours at least."
"Okay," Lisbon said. "When can I get the arrow you removed? I will need both halves for forensic analysis."
"A nurse will bring it to you shortly. I suspect you will be staying with Mr. Jane for the next few hours at least?
"Yes."
"Good. It will bring comfort to him when he awakes. Just remember to press the morphine pump if you think he is in pain and if he is not able to press it himself." The doctor said showing her that the pump was in Jane's hand under the blankets. She also realized that Jane was naked under the blankets.
"The morphine will make Mr. Jane delirious so moaning and mumbling is quiet normal. The pump administers a measured doze that releases at set intervals so there is no risk of overdose." The Doctor said.
"Okay," Lisbon said.
"I need to go and check on my other patients now. I will be back to check on Mr. Jane this evening."
"Thank you, Doctor." Lisbon said, turning her full attention to Jane now.
Oh Jane. I'm so sorry you got hurt.
I should never have left you alone with the body.
I should have protected you...
"Lis…bon… mmmm…" Jane murmured.
"I'm here, Jane." Lisbon leaned closer to his face.
"Lis… bon… hurts …" he whispered.
"Shhh, I know." She replied leaning closer and kissing his forehead while pressing the morphine pump. "You'll feel better in a few minutes."
"Lis… bon… mmmm…"
"I'm here, Jane. I'm not going anywhere."
"Mmmm, lo…ve you." Jane murmured as he slipped into a deep drug induced sleep.
"Oh Jane, I love you too." Lisbon whispered before kissing his forehead again. Then she pulled up a chair, sat down and took his right hand into hers, squeezing it gently.
A few hours later, a nurse entered the room and handed Lisbon the arrow.
"Oh, there is also a bouquet of flowers that was delivered for Mr. Jane. I've left it at the nurse's station as flowers are not allowed in the ICU. Here's the card that came with them." The nurse said handing it over to her.
"Flowers?" Jane whispered suddenly awake. "That's nice."
"Jane! How are you feeling?" Lisbon asked as the nurse left the room.
"Like … I'm floating… neither here … nor there. It's cool… no I mean… weird… no I mean cooooolll" Jane grinned.
"It's the morphine."
"Morphine… so I'm tripping?" Jane grinned and then looked up at her. "You are soooo beautiful."
"Jane…" Lisbon sighed. You will not remember any of this, but still it's nice to hear...
"Flowers… for me… who from?" Jane blinked as he tried to focus.
"Let's see," Lisbon said opening the card.
"Read it to me… please…" Jane asked nodding at the card in Lisbon's hand.
"Dearest Patrick,"
"Dearest Patrick?" Jane questioned, still smiling.
"Dearest Patrick. I was most distressed when I heard of your situation. I can't imagine who would try to hurt you like this," Lisbon's voice became serious.
"Hurt me?... Go… on…" Jane urged the smile slipping from his face.
"But I can assure you that I will find the fiend and make him regret his actions. After all, no one but I am allowed to play…"
"Play?" Jane looked at Lisbon quizzically.
"Play games with you. Get well soon, dear Patrick. We still have so much to explore together. With my best wishes," Lisbon's voice faltered.
"Red John… It's from Red John!" Jane whispered, his body tensed and pain sliced through his side. "Argh!" he gasped.
"Jane, calm down." Lisbon said, pressing the morphine pump.
"What is he … up to… now? Who tried … to hurt me?" Jane asked as the morphine sizzled through his veins robbing him of all his senses.
"I don't know, but I'm going to find out." Lisbon whispered, re-reading the card.
...xxxxxxxx…