ROOM 505
Room 505: Nurse Emily opened the door and entered the room.
"Good morning deputy Strate," she smiled. John Doe, the man her colleague Dolly thought being a criminal when he arrived in the I.C.U., two weeks before, revealed himself being a cop, and now he was 'deputy Strate' for everybody.
The man was looking outside the window, his eyes serious and his features tight; hearing the door opening, he turned to the nurse and smiled, "Good morning, Madam."
She approached the bed with the handcart, syringes and bandages on it, "Time for blood sample examination and for medication."
He had a deep sigh, "Doc Hunt told me I was bleeding to death when I was brought in the E.R., and I needed several blood transfusions, but now it seems you want to get that blood back from me, Madam."
The syringe in her hand after the draw blood, nurse Emily laughed, "Don't worry. You won't die for the lack of this small amount of blood. Come on, let me see the wound." She carefully disinfected the wound and she dressed it, from time to time glancing at him: he avoided any eye contact with her during her procedure, staring at the ceiling, the same serious look she noticed when she entered the room and several other times along the days after his waking up.
"Good," she undressed her gloves and she tried to ease his discomfort, "You are happy to go back home, next week, aren't you?"
"Of course," he nodded, smiling and finally looking at her.
"Your girlfriend is really happy you're recovering so quickly," she walked to the window and she drew the curtains aside, letting the sunlight filling the room. When she turned to him, she noticed he was blushing.
"Daisy…" he looked at the blankets, averting his eyes from her, "… she isn't my girlfriend, but just a close friend."
Emily walked to the handcart, "Really close, since she's visiting you every day and since…" she glanced at him "… she kept on repeating how much she loves you every time she stayed by your side in the I.C.U."
He opened wide his eyes and mouth, staring at her.
Smiling at his surprise, she walked away, leaving the room with her handcart. Along the days that man spent unconscious in the I.C.U. and then finally awake in that room, contiguous and dependent from the I.C.U., Emily came to these conclusions: Daisy Duke loved Enos Strate; the Dukes were close friends, like a family for him; he loved Daisy Duke and he was always shy when she was around him (and now she knew why: he loved Daisy Duke but he thought Daisy Duke didn't love him); he was the kind of man who hides his worrisome and pain behind his smiles and kindness, too proud to show his weakness; he had a childish and candid humor (and the pile of comics his friends brought him was a proof of it), and he had a sweet smile, but he could turn suddenly serious and secretive; and he loved vanilla pudding.
"How's Enos?" Cooter wiped his greasy hands in a cloth and sat on The General Lee'shood.
"He's fine," Bo rested against the car, his arms folded, "but he doesn't remember anything about the last two months, especially 'bout the night he was injured."
Cooter raised his hat's visor, whistling in surprise and shaking his head, "I guess he's confused and scared, poor Enos."
Luke shook his head, "You guess wrong. He looks calm, too much calm. Probably he hasn't realized what happened to him, yet."
Cooter scratched his head, "Or maybe he doesn't want to show his confusion to you. He woke up in a distant Hospital, after several days in coma, doctors telling him about how close to death he was because of a gunshot wound and a head trauma. He can't be so calm."
Bo nodded, "Enos is naïve but not stupid. I think you're right, Cooter. He's probably trying to remember but he's also scared of what he is goin' to remember."
Luke rested against the Garage's wall, his hands in his jeans' pockets, "And for sure he isn't goin' to share it with us so easily."
Cooter smiled, "Maybe he's goin' to talk to Daisy or uncle Jesse."
Luke shrugged, "I hope so. Keep your eyes open wide and warn us if you notice some stranger 'round or anything you feel strange, anyway."
Cooter grinned, "Don't worry. Enos is safe and sound 'til we keep an eye on him."
Bo patted Cooter's shoulder and smiled, then he got into the General, "Thanks for the car, Cooter."
Luke reached Bo inside the car, "Thanks Cooter. See you."
The General Lee left Cooter's Garage while a truck approached, stopping in front of it.
The man came out the truck and smiled at Cooter, "Hi Cooter, I have some problems with my truck's engine." He glanced at the General Lee going away, "What did the Dukes tell you? How's Enos? The town is so strange without him." Pretending indifference, he listened to Cooter talking about Enos' memory loss.
"Hi sugar," Daisy entered the room, a wide smile on her face, but her smile almost faded when she noticed Enos' blank eyes as he stared at a comic, half-sitting in his bed, his back resting against several pillows.
Enos moved his eyes from the comic in his hands to Daisy, the previous blankness turning into a calm happiness, "Hi Daisy." He closed the comic and he rested it on the night table, on the top of a pile of several comics.
Daisy recovered her smile, she rested a bag on the room's table and walked to the bed, sitting on it, "Is it funny?"
He opened his eyes in surprise, "Funny?"
She pointed at the comic, "The comic you're reading." She knew he wasn't reading but simply staring at the pages, his mind lost somewhere else, but she preferred to keep on that calming talk, not forcing him into something painful.
He turned his head to the comic and then again to her, "Uh… yeah… funny… though I confess I can't read, lately. I can't center on anything." He glanced at the door, "Where's uncle Jesse?"
Daisy stood up and took the bed tray table, placing it in front of him, "He's talking with Doc Hunt. He talks with Doc Hunt and nurse Emily every day," she walked to the table and took the bag from it, opening it and resting a small pot in front of Enos, "Vanilla pudding. We asked nurse Emily if you can eat something else beside Hospital's food, and it seems you can eat just some pudding, actually. Better than nothing."
Enos grinned, "Vanilla pudding, I love it! For sure better than broth they give me every day, but since my stomach is still upside down I should be content of it." He grabbed the spoon and he started to eat the pudding, slowly but with a great appetite.
"I'm glad you like it, sugar," she caressed his shoulder and she kept on smiling. Her hand slid from his shoulder, covered by the Hospital's thin gown, along his naked arm.
He rested the spoon on the tray table, the pot empty, and he blushed, gently moving away his arm from Daisy's touch, "Thanks for the pudding, Daisy." He stared at the blankets and then he looked into Daisy's eyes, "Daisy, may I ask you…" he shook his head, "it's something nurse Emily told me this morning, but I don't know if…"
"Good morning, Enos!" uncle Jesse came in, "Doc Hunt told me you'll come back home, next week. It's a good news."
"Really?" Daisy looked at uncle Jesse and then she turned to Enos, "I'm so happy 'bout it, sugar," she wrapped her arms around his shoulders and she kissed his cheek. "What are you telling 'bout nurse Emily, Enos?"
"Well… nurse Emily talked to me 'bout my coming back home," Enos smiled and blushed, "that's all."
Daisy and uncle Jesse glanced at each other; uncle Jesse reached the couch near the bed and sank into it, "Don't worry about it, Enos. We know you're still weak and you need time to recover, but you won't be alone. See, I talked with J.D.: he knows you can't go back to work so soon, so you'll have some time to rest, and Cletus will work by your side for awhile, until your full recover."
"Really? Cletus? I'm happy to work with him. We had a lot of fun when we shared the same patrol car," Enos had a brief laugh.
Uncle Jesse nodded, "Yeah, Cletus. Today is his new first day as deputy, so I guess Rosco is goin' to visit you, next days. Moreover, Daisy, the boys and I would be happy to have you at the farm 'til you'll be able to go back to the Boarding House."
Enos shook his head, "There's no need to be so worried for me. I'm fine, really. I can go back to work soon and live at the Boarding House as usual."
Daisy glanced at uncle Jesse, in their eyes no surprise for Enos' words but just their willing to win him over.
"It is Doc Hunt's order, Enos!" uncle Jesse's voice raised a bit, just enough to let Enos feel his authority, "Now, look into my eyes and tell me, honestly, that you're able to live at the Boarding House and to go back to work."
Enos looked into uncle Jesse's eyes and then he averted his look from the older man, "Well… in effect… since I left the I.C.U. I have been just able to reach the bathroom," he pointed at a door in the room, "and it hasn't been easy. I'm barely able to stand on my foot," his voice a whisper in admitting his weakness.
Daisy sighed in relief: having Enos at the farm for awhile and having Cletus by his side after his coming back to work meant he wasn't going to stay alone. The less he stayed alone, the less he risked to meet whoever hurt him.
"Did Rosco, Bo and Luke find out something 'bout what happened to me, exactly?"
Enos' abrupt question surprised both Daisy and uncle Jesse.
"No," uncle Jesse slowly shook his head, "they didn't find anything useful at the Boarding House. Neither in your reports at the Police Department."
Daisy swallowed against the lump in her throat, "Maybe he's someone from your past… like Scanlon," that name made her shiver, "someone you arrested when you were in L.A., maybe he thinks you are dead and now he is far away Hazzard." Her hope. "And in case he's coming back, well, we'll stop him the same way we stopped Scanlon."
"If only I could remember what happened," Enos covered his face with his right hand, "but I don't remember a single thing!"
"Don't worry, for sure you're goin' to remember something useful, so we'll find whoever hurt you." Daisy's hope.
Enos removed his hand from his face and nodded, "I hope so. I really hope so."
"Don't worry sugar, everything will be OK," Daisy wrapped her arms around Enos and she held him close while her worried eyes met uncle Jesse's thoughtful ones.