Chapter Fifteen
Restart: Part III
"Sit still! The sooner we finish with this the sooner you can get out of here." Zane scowled at the nurse standing at his elbow taking another blood and tissue sample. Truthfully, it was only the second one but it was still annoying.
How could he possibly sit still at a time like this? They didn't really expect him of all people to behave did they?
Zane waited impatiently on the infirmary bed—the real GD infirmary this time. They'd just shuffled him and the rest of the crew here and started a series of tests to ensure that they were stable and healthy given their month-long captivity. He was irritable as a result and not the best of patients.
There was security everywhere. More security than he could ever remember seeing in Eureka. Unlike him, most of the crew was sitting quietly and not giving the medical staff any trouble. There was a lot of confusion about what was going on, the situation being one of surprise for which they hadn't had time to prepare. Not that knowing beforehand would have made a difference. Zane was still pretty amazed at what had happened to them.
Allison was talking quietly with the senior doctor on her staff, no doubt conversing about the crew's treatment. Throughout all of this, she had remained so calm. Zane couldn't understand it at all. It seemed like nothing could shake her and the situation with the simulation had tested them all. Grace was sitting beside a silent and sullen Fargo. Carter had taken him aside during the helicopter ride back to Eureka and explained what he knew about Holly's death. As soon as they returned, Jo's security team informed them that her body had been recovered. Zane felt terrible for his friend and wished he knew the right words to help him. But right now he was too full of worry and agitation to be of much use to anyone, especially Fargo.
There was still no word on Jo.
Upon their departure, there had been strict instructions to secure the ship that had housed the crew and the simulation mainframe. A technician had taken over for Fargo in trying to decipher the status of the program. Fargo reported a complete collapse of the mainframe's systems; every aspect of the program contained fatal errors. But not knowing what had happened with Jo, he had contained the corrupted files and shut down the hardware. At the time, he'd seemed pretty fascinated by the intricacy and structure of the program. With every new detail he discovered, there was the curiosity of how it all worked, wondering if maybe they could adapt it to some non-nefarious purpose.
Zane wasn't interested though. After everything they'd been through, he would be happy to see that thing burn and he was sure Allison and Grace were in agreement. He absently wondered if Fargo felt the same after hearing about Holly's murder.
Instead of worrying about the program or checking in with the other crew members, Zane had spent the ride over in a short-tempered funk. He bothered the pilot and senior security officer so much during the relatively brief flight that they threatened to handcuff him to his seat if he didn't calm down. Finally Grace had come over to keep him company for the duration of the trip, mostly distracting him so he wouldn't get himself into trouble. She was struggling with her own fears about returning to their friends and loved ones. When she explained what had transpired at Henry's garage and how it had all ended once Jo arrived, Zane focused his energy on supporting his captain instead of railing about a situation over which he had no control.
But as soon as the helicopter landed on GD's rooftop, his anxiety returned. When they ushered everyone in the building, he craned his neck trying to catch a glimpse of anyone or anything that could ease the stress of not knowing whether Jo had escaped the Matrix or whether it had dragged her down to her death along with it.
Carter had gone off to find some answers as soon as they arrived, giving Allison a long kiss and a promise to pick up Kevin and Jenna on his way back. It was torture sitting here waiting for Carter to return or for someone to tell him what the hell was going on.
Hearing a disturbance across the room, Zane perked up and turned his attention to the source of the new activity. He hoped it was someone looking for a fight so he could vent his anxious aggression. A man in military uniform with an air of arrogant authority had joined Allison and the other doctor, Anna Slinska if he remembered correctly. They were having a heated discussion that was about to become a proper argument judging by the look of outrage on Dr. Slinska's face. In his experience, she had never been one to hold her tongue about anything. He swiveled around on his bed and listened as much as the distance allowed.
"I don't care what your superior told you, there is no way any of these people are going anywhere. They are officially under the care of this medical facility which is under my authority. If you have something different to say about it, well, too bad." Allison put a calming hand on the doctor's arm and then said something too soft for Zane to hear. He could tell from her expression that her words were even-toned but stern.
In response, the uniformed man raised his voice at the both of them. "With all due respect, this is turning into a major security calamity. We will do whatever necessary to remedy this breach."
Zane allowed his anger to catapult over the edge. He didn't know what this guy was about but it sounded like the usual D.O.D. assholery. They were always good for butting in at the worst times and stomping all over things that they didn't even bother trying to understand. He got that they funded GD and Eureka and that the scientists here were able to do a lot of cool stuff on their dime. He got that they could be a handful sometimes in their pursuit of innovation. That didn't give anyone the right to talk to them like they were children though. They had just gone through hell and this guy was trying to pull rank on them?
The trio continued arguing this time with more hushed voices. From what he could catch, the D.O.D wanted to transfer the crew to a more secure location for an official military debrief as soon as they were medically stable. Dr. Slinska was having none of it and although Allison was trying her best to mediate, it was clear that she wasn't thrilled about the idea either. It had only been a few hours since discovering that every terrible thing she'd experienced in the last month was a lie. Zane was sure all she wanted to do was run home and hug her kids.
Zane chanced a quick glance at Fargo sitting on the other side of the room with Grace and discovered that neither the director, nor the captain had even noticed the exchange, or if they had, they weren't acknowledging it. He was glad for that but the fact that this D.O.D. douchebag would insist on something so disrespectful after Fargo's loss and without consulting Grace made Zane even more furious.
Fortunately, it was the perfect excuse for Zane to finally release his frustration on someone.
He waved off the nurse and walked over to the three of them, bad attitude written all over his face. Allison scowled at him as he approached, knowing that he probably was not going to make the situation better. Maybe she was right and maybe she wasn't but he was certainly going to have his say.
"Is there a problem? Or do you have a really good reason for harassing these two fine doctors in front of a roomful of their patients?"
Before Allison could say anything, the D.O.D. asshat—Steinman his uniform indicated—cut her off. "Mr. Donovan is it?" His tone suggested that he knew exactly who Zane was. That annoyed Zane further. He hated unnecessary posturing. "I don't believe this discussion concerns you."
Zane crossed his arms, now fully pissed off. "Bullshit!" You come in here talking about whisking us away to some D.O.D. security compound without our consent? I think that's pretty much everybody's business in this room." A couple of the scientists nearby perked up at Zane's raised voice. If Zane had heard the D.O.D. representative's comments, then they surely had as well.
Allison put her hand up, attempting to stop Zane from making things worse it seemed. "Zane," she warned, "let's not get ahead of ourselves."
"You should listen to her," Steinman said. "We're not here to make things harder on you but we know what's best in these situations."
"If I recall, this whole 'situation' comes courtesy of someone from your house. Wen was on your team. This wasn't a Eureka breach, this was a D.C. breach; your home turf. There's no way we're trusting you to keep us safe even if we did have any intention of leaving here. Which we don't," he clarified. It felt good to stick it to this guy. Who the hell did he think he was walking in here and pretending he was running the show?
And Zane could tell that he'd hit a nerve with Steinman which made his venting feel that much better. "As I was telling Dr. Blake and Dr. Slinska, Eureka does not have the personnel to oversee a debrief of this caliber."
"Well then bring your experts here and work with the facility's security," Dr. Slinska offered. "My objection is to moving them away from my care and the familiar, unmatched resources of GD. Everything you've suggested can be done on-site." She was flustered and clearly angry at having her authority usurped. However, when Zane considered Allison, she looked upset as well but not nearly as worked up as any of them were.
He realized that Steinman had no idea who he was messing with in going against Dr. Allison Blake, former D.O.D. liaison and one-time head of Global Dynamics, both in this timeline and another one if he intuited correctly from Jo, Fargo and the others.
Steinham remained clueless though and directed his next bit of frustration on the doctors standing across from him. "I would beg to differ, Doctor. I do not know, nor have I ever interacted with the security personnel of this facility. In fact, the entire time I've been here, I have yet to meet the Chief of Security, this 'Jo Lupo,' wherever he is. Nor have I even been approached, much less briefed, by the highest-ranking law enforcement officer. I commend the staff here for its rescue of the missing Astraeus crew and for quickly recovering the rogue technology responsible. But as far as I am concerned, the safety and security of the United States government cannot be trusted to a security detail as blatantly derelict, unorthodox and disrespectful as what I've seen today.
That was enough for Zane to truly see red. The stare that penetrated Steinman from Zane could have cut holes into planets.
"I suggest you watch your mouth."
"Or?" Steinman challenged not bothering to hide his humor over Zane's demand.
Zane matched his condescension with a smirk of his own. "I'm sorry that the Chief of Security isn't here to hold your hand and clean up after your mess. She was too busy risking her life to bring us home. And for the record, G.I. Jackass, 'Jo Lupo' is a woman. She's exceptionally competent, very well-respected, and extremely good at what she does. Trust me, I should know given my disciplinary record that I'm sure you've reviewed."
Steinman opened his mouth to respond. Before he could butt in though, Zane added with a grin, "She's also smokin' hot and she's mine so you might want to show a little—no, a lot—more respect or I'm going to forget about that nice, shiny pardon the President just sent me." There was a sinister politeness to his warning that belied the face of his words.
"Is that a threat, Mr. Donovan?" The man was fuming. His cheeks had taken on a violent flush and his fists were clenched as if he wanted to punch Zane in the face. Zane considered this progress. Now they were both furious.
For several moments, the two men remained locked in a hostile stand-off. Zane just knew this guy was going to drive him to do something he would regret or at least something that Jo for damn sure wouldn't approve. He didn't even know if she was dead or alive and this guy was pouring salt in the wound by not having the decency to know the gender of the person he was disrespecting; the same special woman that had saved his life and the lives of half the people in this room.
Across from him, Allison was fighting a grin at Zane's dressing down of the D.O.D. official. Zane almost snapped at her too, wanting to ask if she was enjoying the show. But it seemed like turning on her would defeat the purpose of coming over to provide her and Dr. Slinska some backup.
"Gentlemen," Allison said, stepping in. "I don't think hostilities in the infirmary will be necessary." Turning to Steinman, she fixed him with a polite and slightly smug smile. "As I was about to explain to Mr. Steinman—"
"Colonel Steinman."
"Right, Colonel Steinman," she added. "I agree that the regulations regarding any potential breach as a result of espionage or treasonous activities is under the direct jurisdiction of the Departments of Defense and Justice. All investigations, interrogations and interviews are to be coordinated by a specially appointed officer. I assume that's why you're here?"
Steinman had calmed down somewhat, happy to hear that someone had finally listened to him and would perhaps agree with his call of the situation. "That's correct, Dr. Blake."
"But Allison—"
"Zane, there's nothing we can do about that. It's standard procedure." With a controlled expression she explained further. "Eureka, of course, has its own protocols established by its enabling legislation and they trump standard D.O.D. regulations in certain rare circumstances. These protocols state that when there is an outside security breach—meaning a breach by someone who is not a full-time resident of the town or facility—and it involves serious medical concerns or if it involves unstable, unauthorized or novel technology, all investigation must be coordinated in conjunction with GD security, local law enforcement and the mayor of Eureka for a minimum of forty-eight hours but up to three months. No personnel can be reassigned nor any equipment moved off-site within this preliminary time period. Additionally, all requests for any transaction of this nature must be approved by Global's government oversight committee." She tapped a few commands into her tablet, displayed a copy of the provision and handed it over to the uniformed officer.
Steinman no longer looked particularly grateful for her.
"Colonel, we have intercepted two such outside incursions in the past year, the previous breach of which I am intimately familiar. And if you've done your homework, you'll recall that during the attack on GD last year that resulted in the theft of the D.E.D device, General Mansfield deviated from this protocol against the director's orders and before he received approval from our GOC. That resulted in the theft of sensitive technology and led to significant and unnecessary property damage and injuries. While we were able to recover our technology, with the help of our highest local law enforcement officer, Sheriff Jack Carter, and our security chief Ms. Lupo, I'm sure I don't have to tell you that I haven't seen General Mansfield in Eureka since that incident.
Allison retrieved her tablet and shut it down before staring the Colonel directly in the eye leaving no question as to who was in control of this situation. "GD is the top scientific facility in the world. The information and technology we found with the Astraeus crew, not to mention the ship itself, is highly classified and unsafe at any other location. If you disagree, that's fine, but you're going to have to go through the proper channels to accomplish what you're suggesting."
All three of them stared at Allison in stunned silence. Zane was the first to grin. No, Allison Blake was not a woman to be messed with and she had just schooled this jerk in the most awesome way possible: with a taste of his own patronizing medicine.
Steinman was at a loss for words. Before he could put his foot in his mouth further, Thompson from Jo's security team walked in and headed straight for them. He didn't look happy.
"Colonel Steinman. It's good to finally meet you. I'm sure the communication I sent an hour ago with a full status summary and request that you contact me the moment you arrived was somehow misplaced by your assistant. That would certainly explain your presence here after strict instructions from Washington that the Astraeus crew would not be disturbed until they were cleared by GD's acting medical director." Dr. Slinska's smirk was almost blinding. "I'm assuming your conversations with Doctors Blake and Slinska is to acquire an ETA on the crew's medical status before reporting that information back to me?"
Thompson framed his inquiries to sound both respectful and threatening. Jo had trained him well. There were many choice words Zane could attribute to the guy but he had to admit, Thompson was coming off as kind of a badass—not as much of a badass as Allison, but impressive nonetheless. And just as Zane thought, the whole show from this guy was meaningless posturing; an attempt to throw his weight around and try to bypass what he knew was the correct course of action. It backfired beautifully. Zane thought that it served him right and shook his head in disgust.
Steinman pursed his lips but said nothing so Thompson took the opportunity to direct him out of the infirmary, turning back around to wink at Dr. Slinska. The gesture made both ladies chuckle.
"Nice work, Allison," Zane said, temper finally subsiding.
"I have my moments," she replied as her laughter died down. She and Dr. Slinska moved to Allison's desk at the center of the room to continue consulting about whatever issue they'd been discussing prior to Steinman's arrival.
Zane assessed the infirmary once more wondering if anyone had noticed the exchange. Those few personnel who had been listening before clearly heard the entire argument and were laughing discretely about it. Several others were looking in his direction with curiosity but had been too far to follow the conversation. It was probably for the best that they hadn't made too much of a scene. Like everyone didn't have enough to deal with right now.
And at least it had been a good distraction from his worrying over Jo. He frowned realizing that he should have asked Thompson about any news on her before he left. His anxiety returned full-force.
"I may regret saying this but you're kind of sexy when you're being an anti-authoritarian bad boy. I'll have to reward you later for defending my honor."
Zane's head whipped around at the sound of Jo's voice, her face bright and amused as she greeted him. He didn't even have time to react before she grabbed his face, none too gently, and kissed him with a terrific display of relief and joy and love.
His survival instincts were strong yet her belief in him kept making him stronger. There had been many moments today where he was so thankful to have Jo within reach: their reunion in the woods when he'd discovered she was his Jo and there was an escape from the hell he'd been living for the past month; the race from the Astraeus when the feel of her hand had urged him to run faster than he ever had in his life; those shared moments in the fake GD rotunda when he thought he was losing his mind and his life but let her steady gaze ground him into hanging on for each extra second. Having her arms around him right now blew all of that out of the water.
For each of those encounters, he thought he would never be more sure of her or more sure of what they could be together, and, damnit, she just kept proving him wrong. It would be annoying if he weren't so in love with her.
The momentum of Jo's embrace pushed him back against the nearby bed. Although still a bit shaky, he encircled Jo in his arms and returned her kisses, oblivious to their very public setting. And he gave back as good as she was giving. He held onto her even when they ran out of breath and stood smiling at each other, heads still pressed together. Instead of pulling away, he'd kiss her again and again, his lips against her cheek or lightly skimming her lips.
He couldn't get enough of her warmth or the solid feel of her in his arms. The waiting and wondering had been terrible but it was forgotten in the satisfaction of her presence here, fitting so perfectly along his body. He was overwhelmed by her and by the emotional reaction he was having to their reunion.
"We didn't know if you got out in time," Zane whispered to her. "I'm man enough to admit that I was scared out of my mind. I know it's only been a little over an hour but I missed you JoJo. So much."
Jo chuckled and stroked his cheek. "And I'm girly enough to get a little weak-kneed by that. I'm sorry. I didn't mean for you to worry." He squeezed her tighter and let his lips linger near hers, enticing her into an extra kiss.
It was irrational and silly and possibly paranoid but he didn't want to let her go.
After a few minutes, which seemed like mere seconds to Zane, he felt Jo pull away. Over her shoulder, he saw that Allison had approached with Carter not far behind. He hadn't even noticed Carter come in so focused on Jo was he. Allison had her hand on Jo's arm and an expression of happy relief on her face. Zane fought the irresistible desire to keep Jo to himself yet reluctantly released her so that the two women could embrace.
"Found her." the sheriff quipped. He was beaming next to Allison while carrying Jenna in one arm and ushering Kevin along at his other side.
They were joined by Grace who also gave Jo an enthusiastic hug before returning to stand with Henry. Zane noticed that the tension of their experience hadn't quite left Grace as she stood ill at ease next to her husband. No doubt she was happy that her crew was home but things were going to be much more complicated for her.
Fargo was the last to approach the group. He was still visibly upset but he was also happy that his friend had made it through alive. Jo didn't hesitate to hug him tightly and murmured something in his hear that Zane couldn't hear. Fargo nodded against her shoulder and tried his best to keep his emotions from spilling over.
When Jo let go of Fargo, they all stood together, no one saying a word, just looking at each other in an entirely new and grateful light. Each face held a different expression: relief, sadness, joy, fear, excitement, love. They had gone through something tragic and awful but also extraordinary. The possibilities of their experience both astounded and frightened them and it was difficult to say what direction they should turn to next.
But they could deal with that tomorrow. For the rest of the day, they would breathe.
TBC...
AN: Sorry about this tome of a chapter. I couldn't find a place to break it up so I left it as is so we can have a little resolution. One more chapter to go!
Thanks again for sticking with the story and for all the support, particularly for those of you I can't respond to personally. It's been a wild ride and I hope I can get a satisfying closer worked out for y'all (and get the ole brain thinking about whether any sequels are advisable if I can do them justice). I wouldn't mind a bit of happy while we commiserate over mourning the end of Eureka.