Journey Through the Past- chapter 15
An angry young man with intense cerulean-blue eyes made his way to a carefully tended area of the clinic complex. The garden out here was a peaceful oasis in the otherwise desolate background of the Nevada desert. Scott's mother, Rachel, had convinced Jones to allow her to landscape and design this acre of paradise. In fact, Jones had provided everything she had requested, and the two of them, over the years, spent many hours working out here, clearing the land and tending to the plants. When Scott was old enough, he had spent numerous hours here learning botany and entomology. Now, Scott and Jones tended the garden where they worked together in memory of his mother.
Scott made his way to the small section of the land that had been reserved as a small graveyard for the patients who had died here but had no family to claim their bodies. There were only a handful of graves here, but one figured prominently among the few tombstones placed in the white fenced area. Running his hands through his short curly brown hair, Scott dropped to his knees before the white marble headstone that marked where his mother was buried. Tears slid down his cheeks as he tried to control his ragged breathing.
He stared at the engraved epitaph on her tombstone. Rachel Grissom Jones- May you find the peace that you couldn't find in this life.
Angrily he wiped the tears from his eyes. Scott sat back and wrapped his arms around his knees. He wasn't sure why he had come to his mother's gravesite. His memory of her seemed to grow dimmer with each passing year. She had died almost eight years before, but he still remembered the night that she had passed away. His mother spent many hours in the garden that she and Jones had built. Even though the work in the garden was hard and demanding, it seemed to be a kind of therapy for her. Scott remembered that she rarely smiled except for when she was alone with her son or when she was tending to the plants that made up this oasis. She would save the brightest smiles for him.
It was that way when she died that night after developing a high fever that had lasted several days. Jones had frantically tried every antibiotic and treatment that he knew but it was of no avail. She had drifted in and out of consciousness, sometimes coherent, sometimes not. In her delirium, she had spoken Grissom's name over and over, begging forgiveness. When the fever finally broke, Rachel had awakened with a calmness that Scott had never seen in her. She did not have to strength to recover from the infection that had invaded her body.
Rachel knew that she was dying, and Jones would not leave her side. Scott remembered sleeping in a cot close to her hospital bed, ironically, the same hospital bed Grissom was currently strapped down in. He had watched her writhe in pain and wished there was something he could do to give his mother relief. In the end, Rachel had held Jones' hand and made him promise to take care of "Arthur." Jones had readily agreed, having grown attached to the boy. The doctor who had reluctantly and resentfully taken this woman and child in some eleven and half years ago had fallen in love with them both. Though he couldn't hear what she whispered to Jones as he held her hand, Scott knew that his mother had asked Jones to allow her a few moments alone with her son. Jones had nodded and motioned for Scott to come sit at the edge of the bed next to his mother. The doctor then quietly left the room, leaving the dying mother alone with her child.
Scott, you know that I love you, right? she had signed to him.
The twelve-year old nodded with wide eyes. The brightest smile spread across her face as tears started to form in her eyes.
I don't want to leave you, you know that, don't you?
Again he nodded. You are going to be all right? Scott had signed back.
No, honey. I'm not going to be all right.
Scott violently shook his head. You have to be okay. You have to be. He signed emphatically.
Scott, honey, I need you to be brave. Jones will take care of you, but when you are old enough, find Grissom, your father. Rachel signed.
She drew a ragged breath and looked at Grissom's son. He was so much like his father in mind and temperament. She closed her eyes and could feel her meager strength waning. Rachel felt soft hands gently stroke her hair and face, and once more, she opened her eyes. Scott was staring at her with similar intense eyes she remembered from so long ago.
Carefully, she signed and spoke to him, knowing that he could hear her, "Remember all that I have taught you." Scott nodded slowly as he clutched her hands tightly. Rachel died later that night leaving behind a grieving child who depended solely upon her and a man who had fallen deeply in love with her.
Scott looked across the desert over his mother's tombstone. The first year or two after his mother's passing had been difficult. Jones had gone out of his way to comfort the boy, but Scott retreated within himself with every attempt the doctor made to try to reach out to him. Though Scott and Jones worked together regularly in the garden or had gone exploring the Nevada desert, Jones could not break through the protective wall the boy had built around himself. Scott knew that Jones deeply loved both him and his mother, but his mother had never returned Jones affections. She had eventually agreed to a "marriage" of sorts, but Scott knew that his mother's heart was not in the relationship. It had always been somewhere else.
Scott thought about the man who had raised him. While he respected Jones, Scott could not bring himself to truly accept Jones as the father that he never had. Perhaps it was because he knew how his mother felt about Jones. He didn't quite know. Scott's thoughts turned to the Grissom. It seemed that all that had been told to him by both Jones and "Uncle Mallory" was true about the man in the hospital ward. Scott had seen many patients who struggled with addiction and witnessed first hand the signs of denial and withdrawal. The Grissom that his mother described to him so many years ago didn't seem to fit the profile of the man currently going through withdrawal.
Scott wasn't sure what to do. He was gifted with a scientific mind that had been trained by a scientist early on. Rachel had taught him that he could learn much through forming questions and that keen observation, more often than not, would help him in answering those questions. Taking one last look at his mother's grave, he turned and walked through the gardens back to the clinic.
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Grissom was coming down from the latest dose from Mallory. As the drugs started to wear off, his body started to crave more of the drugs that had been constantly in his system as of late. Cramps and nausea descended upon him and all that he wished for was for the cramping to stop. Grissom broke out in a cold sweat and he started to shake uncontrollably. He arched his back in an effort to gain some kind of control over his convulsing body. Gasping for air, he strained against the restraints, heedless of his fractured ribs or broken left wrist. Clenching his teeth, he tried to not to scream in panic and only partially succeeded, letting out a loud moan instead.
Wildly looking around the hospital ward, Grissom saw one of the two guards leave and bring back Ken Jones.
"Please, make it stop," Grissom begged through clenched teeth.
Jones quickly inserted the syringe into Grissom's IV and watched as the patient's trembling gradually tapered off. He slowly relaxed as the cramping slowly eased off and the revolt in his stomach settled back into an uneasy rumbling.
Grissom gasped a weak, "Thank you."
"The dose I gave you will dissipate the worst of the withdrawal symptoms," Jones said. "Dr. Mallory would like to continue the work you two started together, but I must warn you that what you face won't be easy. That's why the guards are here and why you're still in restraints. Mallory would like to start slow and you just say the word, you can stop. I'd like to remove the restraints, Grissom, if that's all right."
Swallowing hard, Grissom slowly nodded his head in affirmation to the loosening of the leather straps wrapped around his wrists and across his chest and legs. As Jones stepped back, the guards stepped forward and proceeded to undo the straps holding Grissom.
The patient lifted his hands to rub his arms and found that his limbs had stiffened from being in the same position for so long. Jones put down the clipboard and file folder that he had brought in and gently massaged Grissom's arms until the man in the bed could move his arms a little easier. Reaching for the controls on the bed, he raised Grissom to a sitting position.
"Grissom, it has been a while since you have eaten. You should eat something before beginning. I will have an orderly bring in some food for you. I know that your stomach probably feels a little queasy right now, but trust me, you will feel better if you have some nourishment in your system.
Nodding, Grissom sighed and asked in a low voice, "How long was I out this time?"
"It was only a few hours, but your episodes are becoming less violent. That's a good thing. Umm…don't try to get out of bed. Let's wait until you've something to eat. You'll probably fall flat on your face if you try to get out of bed too soon. After you eat and rest a bit, I will have some clothing brought to you. Those hospital gowns aren't the most comfortable or fashionable things in the world," said Jones with a slight smile. "After, we'll get you up and see if you can get your sea legs," he added.
Jones nodded to the guards, indicating that the patient would be okay to be left just resting in bed; that they needn't worry about the restraints. Taking the clipboard and file folder, he made his way through the swinging double doors of the ward where his cousin was eagerly waiting to know how Grissom was faring.
Lucas smiled broadly at his cousin as Jones slid the clipboard in the slot that had Grissom's name taped.
"Lucas, he needs to eat something before you go in and start with him again. Let him gain a little strength. It seems he is pretty pliable right now. He is remembering that he is having "episodes." He's just not realizing they're drug-induced," said Jones, trying to buy Grissom a little time before the next session with his cousin.
"Sure, whatever you say, Kenny," Mallory said jovially. "I've waited this long for my revenge. What's a little while longer?"
"Good. I'll have some soup and crackers brought to him. Also, when Ellen brings the food, I'll have her also bring in some patient sweats for him. She'll need to also give him a sponge bath. I'll remove the catheter in a few minutes before she comes. I'm not sure that he is quite ready to be ambulatory, but the removal of the catheter should be a relief," said Jones as he made notes in Grissom's file..
"Hmm…Kenny, I'd like Sara to bring him his food. Ellen can do the rest, but I'd like to see what he remembers of the recent past. I'll instruct her in what she needs to do in order for to keep seeing him. She'll cooperate, I'm sure," said Mallory with a smirk. "I'll have some scrubs for her to wear so it will seem like she is an orderly here, instead of a "patient."
Jones raised his eyebrows. "Fine, do what you have to do. But remember Arthur stays out of it," muttered the doctor.
"Grissom's son is an important part of my plan, dear cousin," said Mallory, "but I promise that whatever he is feeling towards his father now, it will turn to hate when he finds out what a lowlife Grissom really is. That would be good for you. I know how attached you are to him, though I don't why. The kid is somewhat of a freak."
"No thanks to you, Lucas," countered Jones. "It's a wonder that he has any semblance of normalcy with all that has happened. He just better not get hurt with all this scheming," Jones said protectively.
Mallory just laughed, "You worry too much, cousin."
Thinking for a moment, Ken Jones turned to Mallory. "Why don't you let me prep Sara? She'll be more receptive to me than you at this point. I'm sure I can persuade her to cooperate fully. Otherwise, I think it might be a battle."
"Okay, Kenny. Whatever you say…just make sure she understands clearly that she is only taking Grissom his food and not giving him any information," said Mallory with a wide grin.
Jones rolled his eyes, sighed, and made his way back into the ward to remove the catheter from Grissom.
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Sara nervously paced the small room. She hadn't seen Scott since he had backed out of the room so upset. Sara wasn't sure what to say to Scott if he were to make his way back to her cell. The slim brunette turned when she heard the lock in the door turn. As far as Sara could tell, it wasn't time for her next meal, so she eyed the door warily.
Her curiosity was aroused when Jones entered the room carrying a set of surgical scrubs much like she had seen Scott wear. Behind him was Baker, dressed as a prison guard.
"Here. Put these on," said the doctor as he handed Sara the clothing. "Baker here is going to escort you to the hospital ward where you have the chance to see Grissom. He is awake, and he's feeling much better than the last time you saw him."
Glancing over his shoulder at Baker, Jones nodded his head and Baker stepped out of the room, leaving the doctor alone with Sara.
"Sara, there are some conditions to which you must follow or the circumstances could harm both you and him. Please play along with this," said Jones in a low voice.
"What if I don't want to play this game?" Sara hissed. "What will happen?"
"Lucas will probably want to drug you and your life won't be worth spit," said Jones. "If you cooperate, there might be a way out of this for both you and Grissom. But I can't make any promises right now."
"Why help us? What's in it for you? Why not just let us go now?"
"Because Arthur's life is at stake, and I can't risk that."
"Speaking of Arthur, he's Grissom's son, isn't he? Does Grissom know that he is alive? For that matter, what about his mother? Is Rachel somewhere around here too?" asked Sara angrily.
A shadow of pain passed over Ken Jones' face and he turned away from Sara. "Just…Just change into these scrubs and do what I tell you to do. There are closed-circuit monitors in the ward so we'll know if you don't follow the script. I'll be back in a few minutes so that you can change," said Jones in a tight voice.
A/N: Another chapter up. I think I'm on a roll now and the story is starting to flow a little easier. What do you all think? There are a few twists and turns yet to come. We'll just have to see how the characters want to play this out. Please review and big thanks to all who have reviewed. It really keeps me going.