Lisa woke up in the middle of the night. She often did, especially after hospital visits.
Shivering, she pulled her blankets around her as she looked at the clock. 2:28. Well, at least she didn't have to work for the next few days. Usually, she'd be up and cooking eggs for herself, but in the last few months, the mere thought of it sickened her. With her unsettled stomach, her meal would come up five minutes after it went down. She turned to roll on her back and saw something glittering in the shadows by her window.
"Up about a half-hour early for eggs, aren't you, Leese?"
Lisa backpedaled, rolling off the opposite side of her bed as the glittering objects formed into Jackson's clear blue eyes, illuminated by the moonlight streaming in through the window. She kneeled at the side of her bed, reaching around for a weapon of any sort underneath it, keeping her head above the mattress line to track Jackson's movements. He merely laughed at her.
"Moved 'em already, Leese," he taunted. "I learn quickly. You, though ... that's a different story." He stood from his sitting position in her chair in the corner of her room. The rest of his tall, slender figure became apparent the minute the blue-hued moonlight hit him. His skin took a grayish tone, his hair turned a dark ashy color, and his eyes ... well, his eyes were creepy anyway. But blue ... so blue.
Lisa felt for her small nightstand, feeling the knob on one of the drawers. Jackson clucked his tongue disapprovingly at her.
"Emptied that out, too. Lisa, I really am disappointed," h said, nearly laughing. He held his hands out at his sides, palms up, empty. At least he didn't have a weapon. "You're usually so ... what did I call you? Creative! And now you're grasping at straws."
Lisa pulled the drawer open, feeling from its weight that it was empty. But it was still heavy enough to hurt. With a scream, she flung the shoebox-sized drawer straight at his shoulder, and it hit with a satisfying crack.
She jumped up, and the sudden blood rush dizzied her, causing her to stagger. Next thing she knew, she was back in her bed, with a very enraged Jackson staring down at her, holding her wrists above her head with one hand, her jaw in the other.
"Well ..." he seethed, exhaling through his nose angrily. "I can see that I underestimated you ... again." Lisa stuggled against him, but found that he was easily holding her in place. "Don't even bother trying to fight me, Leese. You and I both know that you're in too- ... weak ... of a condition to be needing to fight me." Lisa narrowed her eyes at him.
"What's that supposed to mean?" she growled through clenched teeth. Jackson smirked, releasing her jaw and moving his now free hand to one of her wrists. He slid her hands down to rest on either side of her head, lacing his fingers through hers. Lisa frowned as he did so, wondering how an almost tender thought could find a place in his blackened heart. She yelped as his fingers suddenly tightened and pinned her hands to her mattress. So much for tender.
"Don't lie to me, Lisa!" he rasped. Lisa saw the anger burning in his crystalline eyes, and she was vaguely reminded of the Dueling Dragons rollercoaster ride she had ridden on her trip to Islands of Adventure in Orlando four years ago. One of the dragons was red, and burned with fire. The other was blue, and burned with ice. Jackson was the blue dragon incarnate. She half-wondered what she would do if he started snorting cold steam. Her thoughts were interrupted by the buzzing of his cell phone against her hip.
"Looks like you've got a call," she hissed. Jackson laughed.
"Like I'm going to let you go so I can answer my phone."
"Really?" she sneered. "What if it's work?"
Jackson resisted the temptation to headbutt her. Sure, it had worked last time, but he got a bloody forehead from it. Besides, she wasn't too bad at headbutting, herself. She might return the favor.
"It isn't work, it's an associate of mine, calling with an answer to a question I asked him a few hours ago. And before you ask ... yes, I'm sure it is." Lisa glared at him.
"What do you want from me, this time, Jackson?" He smirked.
"Same thing I've always wanted from you, Leese. The truth."
"What the hell do you mean by that? The truth about what?"
"About why you're at the hospital so much. About why you're so sick. About why I never see you eat more than a few bites before you thow it back up. Ringing any bells, Leese?" Lisa jerked her knee up against his thigh in an attempt to dislodge him. Jackson bit back a groan.
"Are you still stalking me!?" He released her hands, and she instantly felt his hands grip the back of her knees, shoving them apart as his body fell between her legs, his hips pressing lightly against hers.
"That's so I don't get a knee straight to the groin, because I wouldn't put that past you," he growled, releasing her knees and placing his hands on either side of her shoulders. Lisa rubbed her hands in an attempt to regain circulation. "And to answer your question, yes. I'm still watching you. Now that I've answered your question, I'm going to ask mine, one more time, and I better get an answer, or next time I won't ask so politely."
"My answer's the same as it was last time: my life is none of your business!" she hissed. "What is your obsession with me?!?"
"Obsession!?" Jackson growled. Lisa noted that he seemed to be doing a lot of that, now. Maybe it was the raspiness of his voice that made it seem like a growl. Or, maybe she was just pissing him off more. "Don't flatter yourself. And I'm not stalking, I'm watching. Like I told you during our last rendezvouz, I've got a personal interest."
"Yeah, that doesn't sound like stalking at all, you're right," she spat sarcastically. "You know, when I heard your testimony, I thought that maybe- ... just maybe ... something in you changed. That maybe you were starting to become a better person. But now-" she held his gaze for a moment, "now, maybe I'm beginning to think that you haven't changed. Not one single bit. Maybe you're as pathetic now as you were before. That ringing any bells for you, Jackson?"
"You're pathetic." She breathed, still panting from their recent struggle. Jackson glared at her, exhaling loudly and seething with anger, then threw her over the banister.
Silence fell between them for a few long moments. She watched his eyes, the way they flickered over her, analyzing her very existence. She knew she should feel uncomfortable under his gaze, but to her surprise, she was able to stare back at him defiantly.
Jackson rolled off of her, standing next to her bed. She raised herself up onto her elbows, still staring at him.
"Make things easier for yourself and just tell me the truth, Leese. Because when you don't tell me the truth, I have to go dig for it. And you're not going to like it when I go digging, Lisa. I can guarantee it." And with that, he left her room. A few seconds later, she heard the front door slam shut.
Lisa sighed and laid back on her back, her stomach churning. She jumped as she heard her window slide open.
"Don't forget to lock your doors and windows. You remember what happened last time someone got into your house," Jackson whispered, his hands leaving steamy prints on the glass panes. Then he slid the window back down, and disappeared.
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Three Weeks Later ...
Lisa sat in the waiting room, filling out paperwork. Her MP3 player was fully charged and she had brought her adapter, just in case. She was listening to her Blues category right now, and tapped her foot lightly along to the Stevie Ray Vaughan song that was in her Now Playing list. She looked up as a shadow fell over her.
"Ah, Lisa! I see you're back!" Lisa smiled at the elderly doctor standing in front of her. "Can't seem to keep you away from this place. People will start to think we're having an affair!" Lisa laughed at the silver-haired man's humor.
"What would your wife think?" she asked, filling in the dates on the various pieces of paper. Her doctor waited patiently.
"She'd think she's lucky to have a night away from me! After over fifty-three years of being married to me, wouldn't you be glad for a night off, too?" Lisa smirked at Doctor Harnassian and handed him the clipboard with the various forms and paperwork, all filled out neatly in her delicate penmanship.
"I've been visiting you for about a year now and I'm already tired of you," she joked back. She grabbed her purse and bag and followed him down the corridor. He flipped through the papers she had just finished filling out as they headed towards the elevator.
"Ooops, looks like you missed one here, Lisa." He handed it back to her, pointing to a blank signature line on the third page. Lisa caught sight of a man in a white coat walking past, and nearly dropped her pen. "Lisa? Are you alright?"
The man had dark brown hair, and walked past them at a leisurely gaze. Not him again! Not Jackson! Not now!
"Lisa?" She snapped out of her trance, and looked with wide eyes at Doctor Harnassian. "What is it?"
"It's him again! It's Jackson!" she hissed, nodding her head in the man's direction. Doctor Harnassian turned to the man who had passed. After a few seconds, he called out to him.
"Eric!" No answer. "Doctor Ortiz!" The man stopped suddenly, turning around. As he turned, Lisa felt her heart sink back down into her chest. The man definitely didn't have Jackson's sharp features. In fact, he had warm chocolate eyes, a well-kept beard, and wire-rimmed glasses. "Doctor Ortiz, I'd like you to meet a regular of mine. Lisa, this is Doctor Eric Ortiz; Eric, this is Lisa Reisert." The man held her gaze questioningly for a moment before breaking into a smile.
"Lisa Reisert! Of course! I remember going over your records not too long ago during my residency! Quite the miracle worker your cardiologist was, if I'm not mistaken. That was a ... what? Twelve-hour surgery? We had to watch the full twelve hours!" Lisa smiled and shook the hand he extended to her. Finally, someone who didn't automatically bring up the red eye event at the mention of her name.
"She seemed to think you looked like her attacker, Jackson Rippner." Leave it to Doctor Harnassian to blow it for her. She gave a polite blush and smiled.
"I just caught a glimpse of the back of your head and had a mini-panic attack," she joked. Doctor Ortiz smiled and scratched at his hair nervously.
"Just don't go alerting security to my presence. I'm only three months out of my residency. I didn't go through hell just to get kicked out of the hospital for looking like a criminal!" he joked back.
"Well, we need to get going, Lisa. See you later today for lunch, maybe dinner?" Doctor Harnassian asked of Eric. The other doctor nodded and broke into a trot as his beeper went off.
"Sounds good. Gotta go, I've got a head injury coming in. Talk to you later!"
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Jackson walked through the fifth floor lobby, heading toward the nurses' station. He wore a pair of dark-rimmed glasses, tennis shoes, scrubs, a stethoscope, and a white lab coat, with Doctor J. O'Kieran pinned just above the pocket. A nurse looked up as he approached.
"Evening, Miss ... Sharon," Jackson greeted, taking a quick glance at her name tag. "I was paged about a patient, a Lisa ..." he looked through Lisa's medical file folder in his hands, pretending to search for her surname. "Reisert? Could you tell me which room I could find her in?"
Nurse Sharon clicked away at the keyboard, pulling up Lisa's information. "Room 1067. It's down the hallway, second left, first right, down the end of that hallway, hang a left. Her room will be down that hallway on the left."
"Thanks. You ladies have a nice evening." Jackson nodded politely at the other nurses behind the counter and mentally filed away her directions. He headed down the hallway, looking at the signs hanging from the ceiling as he passed the first intersection of hallways.
MRI
EKG
CARDIOLOGY
He passed through the intersection, heading to the second.
ONCOLOGY
RADIOLOGY
SURGERY
Jackson had an unsettling feeling suddenly come over him, as if a black cloud had descended upon him. He knew exactly what was wrong with Lisa. And he was absolutedly pissed. How the fuck did she get pregnant? Camera feeds all over the goddamn house, and I never once saw a guy in there ... unless ... He snorted, then quickly looked around. Okay, no one saw him. That was good. It wouldn't be too good of a sight to see a "doctor" walking down the hallway, suddenly laughing to himself. They'd probably consider sending him straight to the psych ward, where they'd give him a different type of white jacket to wear. One a little less comfortable.
So, she was sleeping over at some other guy's house? No way. Stonewall Lisa wasn't the type of person to spend the night over at some random guy's house, having unprotected sex. But, yet, she managed to get pregnant somehow. Accident? Like she planned it, you fuckin' idiot! If she had, she'd have the ring on her finger and the white picket fence would be going up around the front yard already!
Jackson stopped as the full realization of what must've happened to her hit him. Not again.
"Someone do that to you?" He remembered how disgusted he had been in the bathroom on the airplane. Not at her, but at the man who had violated her. He told himself that if the job called for it, he'd be able to do the same thing, but when reality set in, he half-doubted himself. There was something so devastating about breaking someone in that fashion that brought bile to the back of his throat, just like when Lisa voiced the realization that Keefe's family would be with him in the hotel room when the assassination was to take place. The moment she said it, he had to swallow against the bitter taste threatening to rise up to his throat at the thought of an innocent wife and two innocent children being blown up so that one man could be taken out to "send a big, brash message". But, a job was a job, and he had been paid to take out Keefe, and if his family happened to be there with him, then there was nothing he could do about it.
He shook his head as he regained his original train of thought. Lisa was pregnant. He wanted to slit the man's throat that had knocked her up. She wouldn't have gotten pregnant voluntarily. Anger began bubbling in his chest. He was going to face Lisa tonight; let her know that he knew what was going on. See how she deals with him this time. He had given her plenty of opportunities, too many, to give him the truth, and she had refused, so he had done as he had promised he would: he went digging. Now, with her medical file under one arm, he headed to her room.
He took a left, heading to the next hallway. A new sign redirected him.
ONCOLOGY
RADIOLOGY
SURGERY
Hang a right, go down to the end of the hallway, head left. He headed right, down the next sterile, white hallway. A chill ran up his spine, and for some reason, that one scene from The Shining popped into his head. He imagined twin girls in dresses standing at the end of the hallway, and the trippy visual effect that used to confuse him when he was younger. He could never tell if the hallway looked like it was getting longer, or shorter.
He made his way down the hallway, one foot in front of the other. He couldn't help but peer into the rooms as he passed them. The first room was dark except for the blue glow from the television as the elderly patient flipped through the channels. The next few rooms had their blinds closed. The next five after that held a mixture of elderly and middle-aged patients, all either talking to someone or busying themselves in one way or another. What was Lisa doing in this section of the hospital?
He sighed and readjusted the stethoscope around his neck. As he looked up and peered into one of the rooms to his left, he saw a sight that he knew would haunt him for the rest of his life.
A child, probably no older than seven or eight, lay in bed, watching cartoons. Save for the few balloons surrounding her bed, the room was the same stark, sterile white as the rest of the hospital. She coughed lightly, then scratched at the back of her bald head. The action caused her stuffed animal to slide over the side of the bed and onto the floor. She saw the animal hit the floor and seemed to contemplate how to rescue it.
Jackson felt his heart break inside. In two quick strides, he was at her door, opening it and peeking his head in.
"Need some help?"he asked, plastering on his best 'good doctor' smile. The girl nodded, and Jackson entered the room and closed the door behind him.
"Rex fell," she explained simply. Jackson walked to her bedside, glancing quickly inside one of her Get Well Soon cards before stooping to reach the fallen stuffed ferret.
"Well, let's see if we can dust him off for you, Sarah," he offered, using the name from the inside of her card and brushing the dust off of her stuffed animal before handing it back to her. He gave a cautious glance around the room. "You uh ... here all by yourself?" he asked, shoving his hands into his pockets. She nodded.
"My mom and dad usually stay in a hotel close to the hospital the night before my chemo treatments," she responded. Jackson suddenly felt uneasy.
"Sorry to hear that." He gave her a nod and headed toward the door. "Get some rest." His hand was on the doorknob as her voice caught his attention again.
"You're new, aren't you?" she asked with a slight smile.
"Yeah, I'm Doctor O'Kieran," he answered, turning to face her.
"I'm Sarah. I've got lung cancer." She fiddled with her stuffed animal absentmindedly. "They said I got it because my mom and dad smoke. I think that's why they don't spend a lot of time in here. I think I make them feel guilty." Jackson was floored by her insight. For a kid, she was pretty intuitive.
"I can see how that would make them feel that way," he replied. Almost as an afterthought, "Do you blame them for your cancer?" She shrugged, her eyes fixated on her stuffed ferret.
"I don't know. Sometimes, I guess." She moved her gray eyes back to him. "I guess I've always heard that it's no one's fault if someone gets cancer, but then there's always a reason that it happens, you know?" She averted her eyes. "But sometimes, I blame them. I asked them to quit smoking a long time ago and they never did. I guess I felt like they decided smoking was more important than their own kid." Jackson grabbed a chair and spun it around backwards, taking a seat.
"Do you get a sense of vindiction when they see you like this?" he asked. Sarah frowned.
"What's fin-dish-in?" Jackson bit back a laugh, but cracked a smile.
"No, not 'fin-dish-in' ... vindiction. Do you feel like it serves them right? When they come in here and see their kid in a hospital bed, getting chemo treatments ... do you ever just want to go, 'See, I told you to quit smoking. Now look what you did to me.' and just kind of rub it in their faces?" The second he explained it, he realized how cold he had made her condition seem. He instantly wished he could reword it.
"All the time" she responded automatically. Jackson was surprised by her answer. "I know I'm not supposed to think that, but I do. But they don't come to see me very often. They only come every now and then for chemo treatments, and they never come for radiation treatments."
"They can't deal with the guilt," Jackson surmised. "Some people are weak like that." Sarah frowned at him. He immediately felt the need to explain his choice of words. "They don't mean to be weak, it's just that, sometimes ... people just have to suck it up and take what's coming to them. They have to learn responsibility for their actions." All was quiet except for the white noise emitted by the show on the TV. "Sarah, can I ask you something?" She looked up at him and nodded. "If you had one wish, what would it be?" She frowned and looked back down at her ferret.
"I wish I had someone who'd come visit me, other than my mom and dad. But they hardly ever come, as it is." Jackson gave a sad smile and stood as an idea seized him. He'd love to see Lisa worm her way out of this one.
"How does next Monday at 7 p.m. sound?" Her face lit up. "Me, you, a movie ... and if I can get her to come, I'll bring a friend." Sarah's face shone.
"What movie?" she asked excitedly. Jackson shrugged.
"What movie do you want to see?"
"Ice Age!" she exclaimed. Not a moment's hesitation from the young girl. Jackson smiled.
"Ice Age it is, then. I'll see you Monday at seven, then?" She laughed.
"I don't have anywhere else to go," she deadpanned. Jackson headed to the door and gave her a smile, one of the ones he reserved for when he really meant it.
"Until Monday then." Jackson closed the door and smiled as he continued down the hallway. Perfect! Force Lisa to come down here to visit an ill child, let the gravity of the girl's situation pull at her heartstrings for a while, then see how long it took before Lisa finally spilled her own sob story of how she had become pregnant. He was going to get to the bottom of this, one way or another.
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Jackson headed back to the end of the hallway and looked at the sign again. He knew he had followed the nurse's directions perfectly, so how had he ended up here?
ONCOLOGY
SURGERY
ELEVATORS
RESTROOMS
Apparently, the Oncology and Surgery departments took up a large section of this floor of the hospital. Where the hell is the pregnant chicks' section? He then noticed another sign, much smaller than the first, beneath the ward directory.
ROOMS 1041 - 1060
ROOMS 1061 - 1080
He hung a left, heading down to Room 1067, Lisa's room. Maybe he wasn't lost, after all. He counted the numbers on the left ... 1061 ... 1063 ... 1065 ... 1067. He stopped, taking a deep breath and glancing through her window. He saw her laying on her side, her fingers curled slightly on her pillow. She seemed to be resting, her hair tucked neatly behind her ear, except for a single strand that fell in front of her eyes, shaking every time she exhaled.
Jackson opened the door carefully, quietly. It closed behind him with a nearly inaudible click. He flipped the lock in place and grabbed the chart off the end of her bed. He started to flip through it, but decided it would be easier to read sitting down. Looking around, he saw a chair sitting next to her bed. No doubt Joe was sitting there earlier. He moved soundlessly to the chair and sat down, readjusting his glasses on the bridge of his nose. As he leaned back and started to read the chart, his arm knocked against an object on the table next to her bed. It was a worn old hardback. A Bible. He smiled at the adhesive tabs she had added to the pages, marking the different books. The tabs marking books in the Old Testament were on top, then, three-fourths of the way through the bible, the tabs were applied to the bottoms of the pages, marking the books of the New Testament. He reached for it and pulled it into his lap, opening the front cover. A piece of paper slid out and landed in his lap. A list of Bible verses were written neatly in Lisa's cursive penmanship.
Jeremiah 29:11-13
Romans 8:18-21
Psalm 46:1-3
Isaiah 41:10
Phillippians 4:6-7
Colossians 3:2-4
Colossians 3:8
Colossians 3:9
Colossians 3:12-16
Isaiah 40:29-31
2 Corinthians 12:8-10 ++
Psalm 73:21-26
++ 1 Peter 3:17 ++
Jackson gave Lisa a wary glance before carefully opening the book and thumbing through the pages to the first passage she had written down. Jeremiah 29:11-13. He saw that throughout the passage, she had underlined and highlighted certain areas of text.
"For I know of the plans I have for you," says the LORD. "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen. If you look for me in earnest, you will find me when you seek me."
Lisa stirred in her bed, her head moving slightly on the pillow. The strand of hair in her face now fell directly against her skin, and Jackson knew that if he didn't move it, it would irritate her when it vibrated with each breath she took, and she'd eventually wake. Gently, carefully, he reached forward and slid the strand back behind her ear. Satisfied, he flipped to Phillippians 4:6-7.
"Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. If you do this, you will experience God's peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus."
'Obviously going through some serious insecurity issues,' Jackson thought. Collossians 3:2-4. He decided to skip through the first few verses, down to verse 8, where the underlining and highlighting began again.
"But now is the time to get rid of anger, rage, malicious behavior, slander, and dirty language."
Then verse 9, which she had emphasized with a star.
"Don't lie to each other, for you have stripped off your old evil nature and all its wicked deeds."
Jackson smiled as he realized she must've been thinking about him when she starred it. He followed the verse numbers down to verse 12, where she had listed verses 12-16 on her piece of paper.
"Since God chose you to be the holy people whom he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. You must make allowance for each other's faults and forgive the person who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. And the most important piece of clothing you must wear is love. Love is what binds us all together in perfect harmony. And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are all called to live in peace. And always be thankful."
Jackson let that one digest for a moment. She was obviously on a roll with finding verses that related to their ... experience. Was she trying to forgive him? Or maybe her previous attacker? He shook his head in an effort to clear it and moved back to the New Testament to 2 Corinthians 12:8-10.
"Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, 'My gracious favor is all you need. My power works best in your weakness.' So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may work through me. Since I know it is all for Christ's good, I am quite content with my weaknesses and with insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamaties." Jackson stared at the last line, which Lisa had underlined three times. "For when I am weak, then I am strong." Jackson smiled at the irony of it all and moved back to Psalm 73:21-26.
"Then I realized-"
"Which one are you on?" Jackson jumped and the Bible slammed to the ground. His turquoise eyes turned on her as she gave him a sly smile that clearly let him know he was busted.
"If you must know-" He reached down and picked the Bible up from the floor, along with the piece of paper. He inspected it for a moment. "Psalm 73, verses 21-26." He opened the book again to the passage. "The one that says, 'Then I realized-"
"Then I realized how bitter I had become," Lisa interrupted, reciting from memory. "How pained I had been by all I had seen. I was so foolish and arrogant --- I must have seemed like a senseless animal to you. Yet I still belong to you; you are holding my right hand. You will keep on guiding me with your counsel, leading me to glorious destiny. Whom have I in heaven but you? I desire you more than anything on earth. My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; he is mine forever." Jackson scoffed as she finished.
"Given up Doctor Phil for God?" he asked, looking down at the paper. The last passage, 1 Peter 3:17, had been starred twice. "What's this last one on here? First Peter, chapter 3, verse 17? Must be a good one, since you've got that one starred twice," he remarked with a smirk. Lisa narrowed her eyes at him and recited that passage from memory, as well.
"Remember, it is better to suffer for doing good, if that is what God wants, than to suffer for doing wrong!" Her emerald eyes flashed venomously. "Call that one a motto, of sorts." Jackson laughed as he set the Bible and the paper back on her desk, then turned back to her medical chart.
"Really? I thought it was more along the lines of, 'Stab first, kick second, shoot third,'" he joked. Lisa yanked the clipboard out of his hands and clutched it to her chest.
"Why are you here, Jackson? It's been three weeks, this time. I take it you've deliberated long and hard on your answer for me?" Jackson gave her a questioning look. "I asked you last time I saw you here at the hospital why you risked everything to save my life, remember? Then you walked away without answering." Jackson smirked and folded his hands in his lap.
"Jury's still out on that one," he replied. "I've got about twenty different possible answers for that, and I'm not sure which one's the right one." Lisa opened her mouth to speak, but Jackson quickly cut her off. "Nice setup you've got going here. You're in here for what, again? Oh wait! That's right, your personal life is none of my business, right?"
"Until I can find a more polite way to say it, yes," she answered seriously. Jackson smirked.
"Oh, c'mon Leese ... surely you remember your Bible study ... 'Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.' That was how it went, right?" He threw her passages back in her face. Lisa seemed to be swallowing a jagged, bitter pill.
"Maybe I just don't want to tell you."
"Why not?" Jackson countered.
"Because I'm not looking for pity anymore. I've given up the role of the victim."
"Well, then, Leese, let's see what your medical file says you're a victim of this time, since you're hoarding your chart." Lisa paled as Jackson opened the file folder and stood, reading aloud. "Lisa H. Reisert. Hair: Red. Eyes: Green. Blah, blah, blah. Skip to the good part ... ah, the diagnosis! Patient-" He paused, color draining from his face. Lisa looked up, tears brimming her eyes.
"Go ahead and say it, Jackson," she hissed. "I've got cancer."
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Jackson felt his throat and mouth moving in an attempt to form words, but nothing came out. His throat had seemingly clenched into a tight, constricting knot, causing a burning pain that seared down through his chest and up through his head to a spot right behind his eyes.
"That was what you wanted, right," Lisa spat, her lips quivering, "to get rid of me? To finally 'finish the job'?" She snorted a laugh. "Well, looks like God's beaten you to the punch."
Jackson glanced up at her for a split second, but found that he couldn't hold her gaze and instead moved his eyes back to the diagnosis.
Patient currently at Stage 2. Chemo & RT advised.
CNCR FND N BRST/LMYPH NDS. CHMO + RAD THRPY BGN IMDTLY UNTL FRTHR TSTNG. BGN PTNT ON ANTI-EM MEDS 2 COUNTR NAUSEA.
The doctors' shorthanded notes blurred momentarily in front of Jackson. He looked at the date of the first notes on the previous page.
"Lisa ..." Lisa looked up as Jackson growled her name through clenched teeth. "What the fuck is this?" She steeled herself as he flipped the clipoard around, his finger pointing at the first line of chicken scratch. "Two days after the flight, Leese," he rasped. "Two. Fuckin'. DAYS!" She jumped as he flung it across the room, his hand shooting out to clench around her upper arm. White-hot bolts of pain seared down her arm.
"Let go, Jackson! You're hurting me!"
"You were diagnosed with cancer, two days after the flight, and said not a word about it? Huh?" He began to see red as he thought of everything he had been missing. What else didn't he know about her?
"Since when are you on my calling tree, Jack?" She hissed, yanking her arm free from his vice-like grip. "I don't remember you and me being all buddy-buddy on that plane, especially when you were throwing me around, and threatening me and my dad!" Jackson took a few steps back, turning away to thrust his hands angrily on his hips and begin pacing. "You'll forgive me if I hated you after those incidents!"
Jackson spun and opened his mouth to say something, but stopped. Lisa glared at him expectantly.
"What, Jackson? Huh? Where's your witty retort? Your burning reply, huh?" A few seconds passed, still nothing. "Answer me, Jackson!" He looked like a fish out of water, opening and closing his mouth. "ANSWER ME!" She screamed.
Jackson stood there helplessly, and turned, heading to the door. He opened it a few inches before turning. "This'll be the second time I walk out on you at the hospital without giving you an answer," he said softly. Jackson turned back and opened the door the rest of the way and exited, closing it softly behind him.
The last glance he gave her made Lisa feel for all the world like she had just kicked a puppy who was just trying to play.
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Jackson sat in his car, listening to the rain silently beating on the metal roof. This wasn't happening again. Not to her. Not like the other-
He shook his head and ran his hands roughly over his face a few times and then through his hair in an attempt to revitalize himself. Think, think, think ...
His cell phone suddenly buzzed, causing him to jump. He flipped it open without looking at the caller I.D.
"Rippner."
"I hear that you have been trying to schedule a meeting with me, to no avail." The heavily accented voice on the other end of the line made Jackson cringe.
"Yes, sir, I've been trying to get ahold of y-"
"You must forgive me, as things are quite ... delicate ... at the moment, as I am sure you are aware, no?"
"Yes, sir," Jackson replied. No need to elaborate.
"I talked to my assistant, and she has cleared a portion of one of the days on my calendar so that you and I may have a discussion." Jackson felt a slight shudder run down his spine as he thought of all the possible meanings that the word could have in their industry. "I will be in touch." And with that, the line went dead.
