Thanks to all who have read, and especially reviewed.
A special thanks goes out to my network of fellow writers who listen, review and advise. Lynnutte, Maria Rene, LadyNRA, and Kendralanora. You all have your specialties and are gracious to allow me to borrow your brains from time to time.
I hope that everyone enjoys.
The old man managed to get himself mostly put together before Pete and Myka came into his room. It took him so long just to get his pants on that he suspected Mrs. Frederic of stalling for him before letting his agents check on him.
"Should you be out of bed yet?" Myka asked; ever the rational one.
Pete chimed in, "Yeah Artie, why push it?" Artie shot them both a highly annoyed look at their comments and at Pete, who was poking around food on his tray, long forgotten. "You got it good here, free food." Pete jerked back and crinkled his nose at the bland and awful looking stuff.
Artie, moving slowly, mumbled, "I have to… check on Claudia and Joshua." He rubbed his forehead making his eyebrows stand straight up. His muddled mind was racing; considering all kinds of possibilities, not the least of which was the possible side effects of being trapped for 12 years in an inter-dimensional prison. "Joshua- he might, the compass… I just have to um-"Artie tried twice to get his out of the hospital shirt, but had to admit that his body just wasn't responding well quite yet. He held up his shirt to Pete. "Ah… would you…"
"Oh, sure thing." Pete stepped forward to help.
Myka averted her eyes. "I'm just going to… check on Joshua and Claudia… um- outside." She spun and promptly left.
A while later, a compromise was reached: Pete helped Artie get into his own shirt, but his legs were far from stable, so Pete found a wheel chair and managed to convince Artie that it was the best way to check on the Joshua and Claudia; and so it was that Pete was pushing Artie in a wheel chair down a hall way on the third floor of the hospital, looking for the Donovan siblings.
Artie was exceedingly grumpy at the arrangement, the hospital, his condition, and everything else he could think about; sulking and thinking as the rooms went by. He was consciously tuning out Pete's nervous attempt at conversation until the pace slowed. Myka walked up to them. Artie looked up and caught his breath. Beyond Myka, through the window in front of him, Artie saw Joshua sitting bedside and holding Claudia's hand.
Claudia, who had bravely suffered in her brother's absence, hunted down and kidnapped Artie. The girl that had pressured him until they rescued Joshua was unconscious in a hospital bed. Artie felt a fresh stab of the guilt that he managed to hold at bay assault him anew. He actually flinched at the pain. The old man's brown eyes and busy eyebrows held his burden. The girl was never as pale-white, frail and thin as she was in that moment. She laid in the hospital bed with tubes and machines hooked up to her. It was obvious by Joshua's nervousness and the way that he was watching her anxiously, that she was still very much in danger.
"I- I don't understand." Artie stammered quietly. "Mrs. Frederic said that…that she was…" Artie stopped, seeing a nurse enter Claudia's room. The male nurse wrote down some numbers on Claudia's chart and checked her fluids. He exchanged a few words with Joshua, then gave the young man a sad, sympathetic smile and left the room.
"Get him- the nurse." Artie said.
"Yeah." Pete flagged the nurse down and Myka started chatting to him, but just then they all heard Joshua call Claudia's name.
Artie's eyebrows arched in aching empathy, hoping more that he had dared to hope for anything in a very long time. Through the glass, Joshua leaned forward, delicately brushing a strand of hair from his little sister's face. Artie held his breath. The nurse's words were drowned out, nothing but unimportant white noise behind him as he focused all of his attention on Claudia's hurt face. Long seconds passed that were like torture to Artie, but then, Claudia stirred. Artie let out a whimper of excited hope. Joshua called to her again, and then, the girl opened her eyes.
Artie let out the breath that he had been holding. The old man could tell that Joshua was talking to Claudia. His eyebrows bunched and worry was held in his eyes until the brother choked back a sob and fell onto his sister's bed. Claudia's hand came up to hug Joshua. The simple motion of the siblings hugging caused relief to wash over Artie. The old man slumped at being released from the strain of worrying about Claudia. He put his head in his hand and breathed a sigh.
"The doctor will want to see know that she's awake. Excuse me." The nurse excused himself.
Pete smiled and cupped his hand on Artie's shoulder making him jump. "Looks like a happy ending all around, right boss?" Artie turned around just enough to give the man-child a withering glare. "I mean- Artie. I should have said Artie." Pete finished lamely.
Myka shot her partner an annoyed look, getting a boyish shrug in return.
Exhaustion settled over Artie. His body started to relax in the wheel chair, involuntarily succumbing to the stress and wear that he had been heaping on it lately. The old man closed his eyes and jerked against a pain pulsing in his temple, another sign that his body was still recovering. But, the Warehouse supervisor knew that he had to figure out what to do with Claudia and Joshua, no matter how he felt. Cutting the two kids loose, without a guardian, not prepared for the world, was plain irresponsible. One had literally missed the last twelve years and the other had experienced twelve years that he wished she could have missed. Artie didn't know what resources they had available, or even if they had somewhere to sleep at night. Claudia looked like she had spent more than one night on the streets. Artie's eye ticked as he thought. Joshua was simply too smart, too talented to just let go. He knew that he had to figure out some way to help them, and maybe even utilize Joshua's talents for the Warehouse.
"Mr. Nielsen? Mr. Nielsen!"
Pete and Myka turned around to find a doctor walking briskly towards them down the hallway. "Mr. Nielsen! You should not be out of your room!"
"We were just out for a little stroll to get some air." Pete tried, hoping that his charm would help them out.
"I need to be relocated to this floor." Artie suddenly told the doctor.
The man frowned. "Mr. Nielsen, the third floor is for infectious diseases and-"
"These two are under federal protection." Artie cut him off and motioned to Joshua and Claudia. Taken off guard, the doctor looked through the window. When he looked back to Artie, Myka had her badge out.
"Secret Service. I'd do as he says." She said, looking intimidating.
Artie looked up from his chair, grateful to have agents with him. Suddenly, he knew how to keep Joshua and Claudia in his sights. Access to Joshua was going to be through his sister. He said, "We need to have proximity to those two at all times. I need her room to be closer."
"What? Why?" The doctor asked.
"National security bub! That's why." Pete answered quickly, puffing his chest out a bit.
The doctor blinked three times rapidly, processing the request. Artie read the other man's body language and knew that was where he needed him to do what he wanted. "I would like to help, of course. I was notified about Mr. Nielsen's status, but I didn't realize that-let me talk to her attending physician. I'm sure that we can accommodate the government's needs."
The doctor gathered himself and said to Artie, "Federal agent or not I'm still your physician, and you're on bed rest."
In spite of himself, Artie knew that his body was barely holding up. "Fine." He motioned to the room next to Claudia's. "I'll take that one." He grabbed the wheels of his chair and started towards the room before Pete started pushing from behind.
"You can't just-" The doctor had to move his toe before Pete ran it over. "Hey!" The young man leaned down and put both hands on the arm rests, stopping the chair's motion. "You can't just take any room that you want! There are procedures that have to be followed, and paperwork."
Artie had to settle for scowling at the man in his face. His body was feeling weaker by the moment. He knew that the doctor could probably detect his deteriorating condition, as much as he was trying to hide it. Before Artie said anything Pete said, "Then you get started on it."
The doctor looked at Pete and Myka, then again at Artie. Staring down three federal agents, the young doctor sighed and stood upright. He said to Pete and Myka, "Get him into bed. No action, or- whatever you guys want to do. Strict bed rest." Pete nodded his agreement, so the young man stood aside, letting them pass.