The Remedy

The next thing Tyr Anasazi knew, he was lying in a hospital bed, the early morning New Zealand sun shining down on him. There was an IV running in his muscular forearm and oxygen in his nose. There were beeps happening around him that seemed to be in tune with his suddenly pounding heart. Also, a familiar head of hair was lying in his lap, her soft breaths warming his arm. Was it possible? Could his angel really be here? What happened? Why was she here? As much as he was glad to see her, she had to work. What was she doing here?

Suddenly the girl turned her head and looked up at him, staring at him blankly as if trying to register something, something very important. She jerked up in her seat, still staring at him as if she couldn't believe her eyes. Tyr grinned at her complete shock and she released the breath she'd been holding, a soft smile blooming on her face.

"Welcome back, Tyr."

"'Welcome back'? What does that mean? What are you doing here, Sunshine?" he asked, trying to sit up in the uncomfortable bed. Raina worked the controls at his bedside and suddenly the head of the bed was rising, sitting him up automatically.

"Ah, you're awake," Danny said in complete relief as he entered the room. He grinned mischievously. "I told everyone that you were too stubborn to die. Only your woman here believed me!"

"Die?" Tyr blinked, noting that the beeping in the room was going faster. "What the hell is going on?"

The two other occupants of the room exchanged glances. Then Raina spoke. "How much do you remember of the party last week, Tyr?"

"Last week? I-"

"Tyr," she said forcefully, covering his hand with her relatively smaller one. "We need to take this slowly. Breathe, before you pass out." She laid her head against his muscular chest and started deliberately breathing slowly. Tyr followed her lead, feeling himself relax a little. A week? What the hell could have happened to him? Once he'd calmed enough that the machines stopped edging towards alarming and bringing the staff running, she sat back up. "Do you remember the party?"

"The one Quinton Sheaths, our producer, organized when he was leaving the set?" Danny filled in. Tyr cast back in his memory and came up with a vague memory of being 'volun-told' to come. The only reason he did it was because he planned to inform the asshole that he was leaving production the next day. He'd already arranged everything with his lawyers.

"I was roped into attending; I didn't want to be there," he said carefully, not knowing how much he should say.

"Right. Have you ever heard of Rohypnol?" The man shook his head and she sighed. "It's the street name for the date rape drug. Some chick named Jennifer Langston slipped you the date rape drug during the party. You are deathly allergic to the date rape drug from all the evidence provided. From what I've been told and heard from that night, you swell up like a balloon and convulse. You know, after you stop breathing." The girl was breathing hard, her face contorted in rage for all that she sounded so calm. "Luckily, one of your friends had the presence of mind to pry the phone out of your hand and I was able to talk them through your emergency. Apparently, I'm good enough at my job to do phone consultations."

She gave a little half-smile before continuing. "I gave your pal Greg a crash course in real CPR - not that Hollywood BS - and he was able to save your life. You owe him a beer, by the way. I don't think I've ever heard someone sound that scared while doing anything before! The rest of the cast and crew were completely useless. I had to walk them through calling emergency services. I couldn't believe it; I'm continents and 18 hours away, and I'm teaching full-grown men and women to call the New Zealand equivalent of 9-1-1 and what to tell the operator afterward. But eventually, they got their shit together and saved your life."

"In our defense, none of us had ever experienced that sort of situation before," Danny pointed out.

"And wouldn't have, if your girl Jennifer hadn't decided to try and rape my man," the girl said furiously. Both men watched in awe as she visibly controlled herself.

"How is she enjoying prison?" Tyr asked cynically. He still couldn't understand how he'd ended up losing a week of time.

"Oh, she dead," Raina said flatly. After a beat to let this sink in, she continued her story. "Anyway, you apparently slipped into a coma from your extreme reaction to the drug and-"

"Wait. Dead?" Tyr gasped in shock.

"Oh, yeah. Apparently, while everyone was busy trying to save your life, that bitch broke into your trailer and slit her own throat. And the way she did it, she covered all of your stuff in her blood. She left a bullshit note about how she was sorry for everything and how she couldn't live without you, by the way."

"It doesn't do well to speak ill of the dead," Danny said with a nervous look around.

"You and the crew have been saying that since I got here, and you know what? It's bullshit!" Raina growled. "That bitch tried to poison my man for the express purpose of raping him! Then she murdered herself like a coward when her not-so-brilliant plan didn't work out the way she wanted! Fuck her! And with all the police involvement in this case, I haven't heard word one about where she got those filthy drugs in the first place. She shouldn't have had access to such powerful and malevolent medications to poison my man. Who sold them to her? How did she know how to get a hold of them? I also haven't heard about an arrest on that end. Flunitrazepam is a controlled substance and therefore illegal to distribute without a triplicate prescription."

"She's right," a new voice interrupted the young spitfire's ire. "Now that we have determined that Ms. Langston did in fact commit suicide and wasn't murdered by her dealer to cover up loose ends, we have turned our investigation to where she got her hands on the narcotics that nearly ended Mr. Anasazi's life. Welcome back, sir. My name is Detective Harry Wesler and I have been investigating your case since it started seven days ago. Is now a good time to ask a couple of questions?" Tyr noticed that his svelte lady was pacing angrily, obviously holding her tongue. They've spoken before, he thought with a grave nod.

"As long as you don't mind me dropping the occasional question myself. I'm still feeling a little confused with all this information," he said kindly to the older man. He settled himself more firmly against the bed and reached out for Lorraine's hand. The girl came over to him shyly, placing her hand in his. He pulled her close and kissed her softly, smiling against her lush lips when she crashed onto his bed where her legs gave out as he kissed her. "Hello, Sunshine," he said sweetly, staring deep into her beautiful brown eyes as he caressed her cheek. "If I'd known that death would bring you running, I would have arranged it much sooner." The girl growled and pulled away, but stayed on the bed to his delight.

"Don't even joke, Tyr! You were dead for something like 1 minute 45 seconds and I felt every single one of those 105 seconds! I wasn't even here when it happened! I was over a day away by plane. I had to drop everything to get here. And I'm pretty sure I was recognized on the long trek here, which means that my old life is effectively over! I-" He covered those sweet, plump lips of hers with his again to stop her panic. He tapered the kiss when she moaned softly against him.

"It's alright little one. We'll figure things out somehow." He arranged her against his chest, caressing her side and feeling her relax against him, before looking up to address the detective. "Your questions, detective?"

Wesler gawked at the couple on the bed for a little longer before pulling himself together. This was the most docile he'd seen Ms. Pince since they'd met. She'd been riding him hard since the case started, insisting that he stop worrying about 'that dead bitch' and focus on 'whoever poisoned my man' all week. He was actually here to announce the arrest of Jimmy 'Lawless' Ventnor, a well-known drug dealer in these parts, and ask if Tyr wanted to press charges.

"Sorry. *ahem* While you were… indisposed, an official investigation was started into the circumstances behind Ms. Langston's death and your allergic reaction. And while the former has been definitively ruled as a suicide, given the nature of your presence in our country, it seemed… prudent to stop production to do a more thorough investigation."

"You wanted to make sure that we weren't responsible for the drugs in my system that night given that we're a bunch of actors," Tyr interpreted easily, squeezing his girlfriend where she'd suddenly tensed, likely to protest. He was interested in what the detective had to say. The girl melted back into his embrace, laying her head on his shoulder.

The detective had the good grace to look embarrassed, his blue eyes darkened with his own ire. "You have to understand, this is the cleanest shoot I've ever seen. It had to be too good to be true."

"And now?"

"It isn't. No one was found holding. No one even turned up overly drunk at the party. I was surprised. Are you going to sue Ms. Langston's estate for damages? This little hospital visit is costing you a fortune."

"Yes," both of the people on the bed answered forcefully. The actor laughed his deep, rich laugh and squeezed her to his side. "I don't see why I should have to pay for my stay when I'm not responsible for it. Has the crime scene, my trailer, been released so that I can clean it?"

"Yes. But will you be returning to it?" Wesler asked slyly. "Through my investigation, I heard that you were going to be leaving the set based on Ms. Langston's unwanted sexual advances."

"I see no reason to leave now that she's gone," Tyr shrugged. "I planned to go through with a sexual harassment suit against her after leaving, which is still going to happen, but I now have cause and evidence to add attempted sexual assault to the list of her crimes. If we go through with the movie with Lizzy as the lead-"

"Um… Lizzy left the production after you slipped into a coma," Danny said delicately. "You don't remember her handing you the cup of spiked juice?"

"No," Tyr shrugged. "And even if I did, I wouldn't blame her. Jennifer had her crushed under her boot heel the whole production. She's a very talented actress who I wouldn't mind sharing a co-star credit with at all." The detective noticed that he wasn't looking at him anymore, but out the hospital door. Elizabeth ran into the room and around to the other side of the bed to throw herself into Tyr's arms. She was sobbing as if she'd been reprieved at the gallows. The man chuckled, holding the crying woman one-armed, as his girlfriend rubbed her back soothingly.

"I told you that Tyr wouldn't hold it against you," Raina said soothingly to the woman's back. "There's only one guilty party here, and that's Jennifer."

"B-but I handed you the cup that poisoned you," Lizzy blubbered. "I knew that there was something wrong with it, that she'd put something bad in it."

"Yes, but you didn't put that 'something bad' in the cup before you gave it to me," Tyr said smoothly. "I must admit that I would have been angrier if I hadn't witnessed first hand the abuse you suffered under her thumb. But I did. I don't blame you for anything. What do you say we make a movie?"

She looked up in shock and giggled at his encouraging nod. One quick look at his overprotective girlfriend's smile and nod, and she grinned and turned to the director. "I know that I signed those documents releasing me from the film, but…

"What documents?" Danny grinned a boyish grin. "Production has been halted for a week, I don't remember any documents." He made a mental note to destroy those documents, along with his own resignation now that Jennifer had taken herself out of the picture. He'd had a long conversation with Quinton a few nights ago, insisting that filming go on as soon as possible. The producer had been reluctant given that the whole purpose of the movie had been to promote Jennifer's acting talent, but had agreed in the end. Danny's next stop had been to go and convince Elizabeth to stay.

"So I take it that you will not be pressing charges against Ms. Grange?" Wesler smiled. Like the rest of the occupants of the room, he'd taken a real liking to the gentle, sweet woman. So much so that he'd actually been flirting with her more than he should have been since meeting her. The woman seemed to not take his flirtation awry. He noticed that the couple exchanged a look before comforting the crying woman some more.

"Last I checked, passing a friend a drink in a hot room isn't a crime, detective," Tyr smiled with a yawn. His woman nodded. The doctor cleared his throat in the doorway. "Now that that's all cleared up, I have a feeling that my doctor wants to talk to me. Was there anything else that you wanted to say, detective?"

"Just that the investigation is officially over and your production can continue any time. We caught the guy who sold Jennifer the drugs this morning. He's going away for a long time," the man smiled. "I have a feeling that you won't be requiring my services again. I'll be in touch with the official details of my investigation later. But for now…" Wesler bid them all goodbye and left without another word.

"Hello, Mr. Anasazi. My apologies for the delay. I'm Dr. Fairbanks and I would like to review your case with you if that's alright."

"Would you like us to step out of the room for confidentiality's sake?" Raina asked frankly, beginning to sit up in the bed.

It depends on how Mr. Anasazi feels about the situation. It's his information after all." Tyr looked around at the people in the room.

"If you all could just give us a minute…" Elizabeth, Daniel, and Lorraine all nodded and went to leave without a fuss. At the last moment, the man grabbed his girlfriend's hand and pulled her back onto the bed. "I need you here, Sunshine," he insisted softly. Lorraine looked at him carefully, giggling at what she saw, and settled into his embrace once more. Tyr started caressing her side again, turning to the doctor.

"Right. So, you obviously know that you fell into a coma a week ago. It was not unexpected given the severity of your reaction. The length of your unconsciousness was surprising, but you were fighting to wake up the whole time, so I had no doubt that you would make it eventually. While you were sleeping, we ran a number of tests on you. Obviously, we found large amounts of Rohypnol in your system, which is-"

"The date rape drug, I understand," Tyr said tiredly, snuggling his girlfriend closer.

"Yes. Given the severity of your reaction - as well as your chosen profession, I would suggest that you carry an epi-pen on you whenever possible, just in case. There were no other toxins in your blood. No disease indicators. No sexually transmitted diseases. Nothing. You basically had a clean bill of health, you just needed to wake up. Now that you are awake, I could discharge you from my care, but I would prefer to watch you for the rest of today to ensure that you aren't going to relapse and release you tomorrow morning first thing. What do you think?" The couple looked at each other and Tyr smiled at his lady.

"Your plan to keep him is a good one," Lorraine said for him. "It'll give us time to test out his motor reflexes and such in a safe environment before being kicked back out into the world." Tyr watched her speak, smiling at her hungrily afterward. The girl was blushing, her gaze steadily on the doctor. Walter Fairbanks was already impressed with the young woman sitting beside his patient. She'd arrived in New Zealand five days ago and immediately made her way to the hospital. During that time, she'd done extensive physiotherapy on him to keep his muscles firm and asked no questions as it would have been a breach of confidentiality for them to inform her. She wasn't his next of kin after all. Instead, she'd stayed faithfully by his side, even sleeping in the room. In that time she'd stopped a scorpion attack in his room, but other than that, she'd simply spent hours keeping him informed on the cast and crew, reading him the script, and working his muscles. So yes, 'impressed' was the right word to describe how he felt about her. He was glad that his patient seemed to appreciate her.

"Beauty. I'll start the paperwork for your discharge today, but I expect it will take until about noon tomorrow to get you out of here," Dr. Fairbanks said with a smile. "On a more personal note, I'd just like to say that your girlfriend is more than worth her weight in gold. She's the reason why you won't be feeling so stiff when you move around today and will be ready for discharge so soon after a whole week of not moving your muscles. She's been a treat to have around and a credit to her country's healthcare system. I and several of my colleagues would go to great lengths to kick your ass if you ever make her cry, got it, mate?" He was grinning as he said it, but neither Tyr nor Raina had any doubt that he was being perfectly serious about the situation as it stood with him.

"I'm just glad to have Lorraine Rutherford in my life again after all this time. I-"

"No shit! The Lorraine Rutherford? She told us that she was Leslie Pince. Wow, no wonder you call her 'Sunshine'! Oh, don't worry, Ms. Rutherford, your secret's safe with me, although I am going to have to insist on an autograph. I'm a huge fan of that movie." Tyr looked to his left and winced at the annoyed look on his girlfriend's face. She signed the man's prescription pad before he left to perform his other duties. Danny and Lizzy wandered back into the room, looking behind them in wonder.

"Damn, what did you say to that man, Leslie? He was positively giddy when he left."

"Tyr's gonna be discharged tomorrow," the girl said excitedly, casting a warning look at the patient. Tyr grinned at the two people, impressed that she'd managed to convince the entire cast and crew that she wasn't who they all thought she was; she was a very good actress.