Journey Through the Past- Chapter 16
Sara stared at the closed door and slowly turned to the clothing that was lying on the bed. She stripped down and donned the scrubs that Jones had left for her. She slipped on the rubber-soled shoes that he had also included with the scrubs. Sara wriggled her feet around. She had gone nearly three weeks without any shoes at all and now they seemed heavy and awkward on her feet. Running her fingers through her hair, she tried to smooth out as many tangles as she could and then tied her hair back with a hair band that Scott had given her when he had provided some toiletries.
When she was ready, she walked over to the door and knocked, signaling that she was ready to see Grissom. The door swung open, and Jones entered with Baker right behind him. "Sara, Sam here is going to cuff you for the walk over to the ward. Mallory doesn't want you to get any ideas about escaping. When we get to the other building, he'll take the cuffs off. Understand?" asked Jones.
Sara grimly nodded her head and took a step forward.
"Hold your hands out," instructed Sam Baker. Sara held out her hands and winced as the ex-convict fastened the handcuffs on a little too tightly.
Taking Sara by the arm, Ken Jones led her out into the hallway and out the iron door to the bright Nevada sunshine. Sara lifted her cuffed hands to her eyes and squinted against the brightness. The threesome strolled across the complex and entered a squat cinderblock building. As they entered the building, Sara observed a nurse emerging from a pair of swinging doors. The nurse took a clipboard out of the slot with Grissom's name on it and made some notes.
Looking up, she nodded her head and reported, "Dr. Jones, the patient has been bathed and has on the sweats that you ordered. He's resting comfortably as well as can be expected considering the withdrawal."
"Thanks, Ellen. We'll take it from here. Has the soup arrived from the kitchen?" asked Jones. Ellen nodded and pointed to a cart that was parked next to the nurses' station. Ellen glanced briefly at Sara in the orderly garb and the handcuffs on her wrists with a questioning look in her eyes.
"That will be all, Ellen. Please check on Charlie in Building A. He's been asking for you," Jones said with a grin. Ellen gave the doctor a small smile and left.
"Charlie has a crush on her. She keeps telling him the relationship would never work seeing how he's 90, and she's happily married with a two year old," said Jones trying to put Sara at ease. He watched Sam Baker take the handcuffs off Sara's wrist. Baker then joined his partner just inside the swinging doors.
"What did she mean "as well as can be expected considering the withdrawal?" queried Sara as she rubbed her wrists. "What have you guys done to him?"
Jones turned to Sara, "He's addicted to a combination of hallucinogenic, narcotic, and hypnotic drugs, a special concoction that Lucas dreamed up. He has amnesia in the sense that he can't remember the recent past. He remembers who is and the basics of his childhood, but he doesn't remember much beyond that. Right now, he's going through withdrawal and the physical and well as the psychological symptoms that entails. Seeing a familiar face might jar some of his memories."
"So what do you want me to do?" asked Sara, as she anxiously glanced toward the double-doors. "What do you want me to say if he remembers me?"
"Keep the talk minimal. You may tell him your first name if he asks, but beyond that, nothing. If he remembers you, tell him he's mistaken. He'll probably believe you," said Jones. "He may be uncommunicative, anyway. Lucas wants to see what he remembers and, frankly, so do I. I want to keep the damage that Lucas is planning to a minimum, but in order for me to do that, I need to know where he is at."
As he finished speaking, Mallory breezed through the entrance of the building. Looking at Sara with a sneer on his face, he asked his cousin, "Have you briefed her on what she is to do and what to say and not say?"
Jones sighed. "Yes, Lucas, she has been briefed, and she knows that if she doesn't follow to the letter our instructions, the consequences will be harsh for both her and Grissom."
Walking around the counter, Mallory seated himself in front of the set of monitors.
"Okay, then, let's get this show on the road. Remember, my pet, if you don't want Grissom to suffer any more than he has, don't do anything stupid," said Mallory with all seriousness.
Sara turned her head and simply stared at the door. She walked over to the cart and pushed it through the doors.
At first glance, she noticed that Grissom was the only patient in the ward. Sara looked up and took notice of where the cameras were placed. Two cameras were mounted in the upper wall opposite of Grissom's bed. They were able to observe Grissom fully, but, unless one turned to face the camera directly, only the back of anyone ministering to the patient would be seen. She paused momentarily to observe the man in the bed. Her stomach lurched at the sight of the man before her. The hospital bed had been adjusted so that Grissom was in a sitting position. Sara observed that leather restraints were attached to the bed, but, at the moment, were not being used. He looked considerably better than she had last seen him. Though his beard was neatly trimmed, courtesy of Ellen, and he was wearing clean clothing, Grissom still had a haggard appearance. The bruises about his face had faded, but dark circles had formed under his eyes. He had lost a considerable amount of weight, which gave him a gaunt appearance. Grissom did not turn to look at her when she entered the room. Instead, he sat in the bed with his eyes tightly closed and was nervously chewing on his lower lip. His arms were wrapped around himself as if he were literally trying to keep himself from falling apart at the seams. His hands were clenched so hard that his knuckles were white.
"Hey," she called softly, "I brought you something to eat."
When he didn't respond, she walked tentatively closer to the bed and moved the table tray to the bed. Grissom was breathing in slow measured breaths, keeping his eyes tightly closed. Anger started to rise in Sara, and it was all she could do not to rush to his side.
She tried again, a little louder. "Hey, there. I brought you something to eat," she repeated, touching him softly on his leg.
Grissom jumped slightly, startled both by Sara's touch and her voice. The tremors had started rather abruptly, and it was all he could do to stop them by holding himself tightly. The voice sounded vaguely familiar and he opened his eyes to see a slim brunette in orderly garb placing a covered tray in front of him on the tray table. She was staring at him intently, her brow wrinkled with concern. Their eyes locked momentarily as Grissom stared at her. I should know her. I've seen her before. Something..something important…something precious…
Grissom continued to stare at her as she removed the cover from the tray. He turned his attention to the soup and crackers that was placed before him. He realized he was hungry, but when he unwrapped his hands from his sides, the trembling took over.
"I…I… do I …could you…I don't think…," Grissom stammered, as he lifted his shaking right hand to try to grab the spoon, only to send it clattering to the floor. He sat back in defeat and embarrassment. Grissom resorted to going back to wrapping his arms about himself in a futile attempt to stop the shaking.
"Hey, it's okay. It's okay, really. I'll… I'll be back in a minute with a clean spoon and help you with the soup, all right?" said Sara, trying to reassure him. Grissom gave her a tight nod, and she bent down, picked up the spoon, and quickly left the room.
"You did well. I don't think that he quite remembers you; otherwise his reaction would have been more pronounced at seeing you. I think that next…," said a gleeful Mallory.
Jones interrupted in a worried tone, "The symptoms should not be this pronounced this soon. I want to give him another low dose to ease them off. Nausea and disorientation are probably starting to make him feel sick. He needs some real food in his system. Grissom isn't going to survive much longer just on IV's. He won't be able to keep anything down if it's allowed to get any worse."
Jones reached into the locked cabinet next to the nurses' station, pulled out a prepared syringe, and grabbed Grissom's chart. "I'll be back in a minute," the doctor said as he entered to ward to administer the dose to Grissom.
Defiantly, Sara reached for a clean spoon on a stand near the door. "I'm going back in there, and help him with the soup," said Sara in a low voice, daring Mallory to stop her.
Mallory grinned as he looked up from the monitors, "Fine, just wait a minute or two for Kenny to give him the dose. Then you can help him if that is your wish. Remember, Sara, no tricks. You don't want to make it any worse for him."
Sara gave Mallory a glare and glanced at the monitors, watching Jones administer the "meds" in Grissom's IV. She watched as the exhausted man slightly relax against his pillows. Sara turned and pushed her way through the doors. She grabbed a towel on her way to the bed, and announced to Grissom that she was back. He had pushed the table tray away and was still trying to controlling the trembling that was overtaking his body. Jones was taking his vitals, speaking to Grissom in a low voice.
"How's the stomach? Your heart rate is slowing down and your blood pressure is leveling out. How's the dizziness?" murmured Jones, jotting down notes on the clipboard.
Grissom had wrapped his arms around himself again, but was slowly relaxing as the tremors lessened. "Stomach's better, and so the dizziness," gasped Grissom softly.
Jones nodded and stepped back to allow Sara to get closer to the patient. Deciding that he was in good hands, the doctor gave Sara a slight nod of his head and left the ward.
"Let's see if you can keep anything down then, shall we?" Sara ventured forward with the spoon and towel. She continued, "I'll help you with the soup. It'll be cold by the time the tremors completely stop so let me help you get something to eat."
Grissom turned weary eyes to the young woman and nodded his assent. Sara gave him a tentative smile and spread the towel over Grissom's chest to catch any spillage. She dipped the spoon into the soup and proceeded to feed him. His eyes reflected a mixture of embarrassment and gratitude.
After several spoonfuls, Grissom held up his right hand to let her know that she could stop. "Thanks. I…I appreciate you helping me. I think that I can handle it now," whispered Grissom. To prove it, he lifted both hands to her to show her that there was only a slight shaking of his hands.
"Well, good then," Sara said with a bright smile, "It was my pleasure. It does look like you can handle it. I'll…um…I'll just go and I'll be back in few minutes to fetch the tray. Will that be okay?"
Grissom gave her a slight smile that did not quite reach his eyes. "Yes. Thanks again, he said in a quiet voice and then looked away in embarrassment.
As Sara turned away to leave in order to give him some privacy, Grissom turned and watched her as she left the ward. He didn't reach for the spoon but continued to stare at the doors through which Sara had gone.Bits of memory were filtering through and he tried to make sense of them. She never told me her name, but I know her name is Sara. She was a part of my life at one point, wasn't she? Then, for some strange reason, all of a sudden he knew. He didn't know how or why she was here. He didn't know why she was pretending to be an orderly here, but as sure as he knew that his name was Gil Grissom, she was not here as a willing participant.
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Ellen smiled at the young orderly and handed him the armful of dirty linens. She pointed to the laundry bins located near the closet. Scott nodded and proceeded to walk the few steps to the bins.
Ellen turned to a fellow nurse and commented, "Anyway, Dr. Jones came in with the mystery woman being held over in "C" building. There was one of the guards with them and she was in cuffs. Strange thing was that she was in scrubs instead of patient sweats. Then I passed that new doctor as I was leaving the building on my way to see Charlie." Ellen shook her head. "That new guy's a little weird, if you ask me. He's a doctor, and his only patient is that poor fellow in the hospital ward. You'd think that he'd help out Dr. Jones since Dr. Jones is the only doctor here."
The two nurses strolled down to the other end of the hall, continuing their conversation. Scott stared at them wanting to hear more of their conversation. Sometimes being "deaf" was pretty convenient. On the pretense of bringing fresh towels down to the other supply closet located at that end of the hall where the nurses were, Scott tried to look preoccupied in straightening the already neat shelves of supplies.
"…as I was saying, I don't know what's going on. It's unusual that we aren't involved with the daily care of both these two patients. Besides Dr. Jones and this Dr. Mallory, Arthur is the only one who has had contact with either of them. As far as I know, I've been the only one to see the patient in the infirmary, and the mystery woman hasn't any other care than Jones having Arthur bring toiletries and food to her. Arthur seems to be the only one Jones wants near the woman." Glancing behind her at Scott, she added, "..and he ain't talking."
Scott froze momentarily and then continued to "work" on the supplies, as the nurses left the building. He thoughtfully looked at the door, trying to decide what he should do. Questions. That's what Mother had taught him. Form questions to learn truth. If he really is a doctor, why doesn't "Uncle Mallory" help Jones with the other patients? What was Sara doing in scrubs over in the infirmary? She was in cuffs and under guard? What does she have to do with my father? Observation will often answer questions. He had a lot of observing to do.
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A/N: Another chapter up. Many, many thanks to all of you who have read and reviewed this story. The reviews keep me going. I hope that the story is not being overwritten and that's its pacing is okay. With the holidays coming up, future postings might be somewhat erratic. A Happy Thanksgiving to all of you out there! May you all count your blessings no matter what your circumstances.