Hours later they moved John to a private room. Sam, Bailey, and George were sitting in his room, quietly discussing what they had left to do to close the case and get back to Georgia. When John groaned they stopped talking and looked in his direction. He opened his eyes and squinting at the bright overhead light that was hanging over him, he reached up and pushed it away. It hit his I.V. pole causing it to wobble from side to side. Sam moved quickly to his side and steadied it.
"Hey, hey...careful, don't pull anything out." She turned the light off and moved it to the other side of the pole. "Better?"
John nodded. "Thanks, Sam."
George stepped up to the side of the bed and put his hand on John's. "It's good to have you back, John. We uh...were worried there, for a moment."
"Me too, Georgie." John grinned and moved his hand to put it over George's. "Thanks." He shifted in the bed, groaned, and rubbed at his thigh.
"You okay, John?" Bailey put his hand on John's shoulder, concerned about the pain he saw flicker across John's face.
"I feel like I was hit by a truck...twice. Everything's sore...my thigh hurts the worst, though, it's throbbing." He winced.
"I could get a nurse." George offered.
"No, it's okay...it's not too bad." He shifted again and started to cough. The coughing lasted several minutes, when it stopped he was breathing heavily and holding his side. "Ow..damn that hurts."
"Easy, John," Bailey told him. "You have some bruised ribs to go with that cut, so coughing is not going to feel good for quite a while."
"The bad news is, you have pneumonia and you need to cough...it's the only way to get better...to get that junk out of your lung," Sam added. "So, don't try to hold it back...besides I'm sure that will make it hurt worse."
"So I'm damned if I do and damned if I don't...terrific."
Sam reached over and ruffled his hair. "Hey, you're never gonna get out of here with that attitude."
"I know." He said quietly. He looked around the room, just noticing that Grace wasn't there."Where's Grace? How's Jessie doing?"
"Grace is with Jessie. She's doing a lot better since they got her fever under control...they had to put her in an ice bath to do it, but it did the job."
"Ice bath? Jesus, she's okay now, though, right? Is she awake? I want to see her."
"John, relax...calm down, don't get all worked up and get yourself-" Bailey didn't bother to finish what he was going to say, because John brought the thought to life. He started to cough and he doubled over holding his side. "Easy, John, easy." He looked at Sam and George. "Sam, see if you can find Grace... he needs to know what's going on with Jessie. George, go get a nurse...he's needs something for pain." They left and his attention went back to John. He was on his side, curled up, his eyes squeezed shut from the pain his cough was causing. "Try to relax, John..." He rubbed John's back and shoulder. "If you relax, it'll stop."
"...hurts..." John managed to say through clenched teeth.
"I know, that's why you need to relax and stay calm."
George came back with a nurse, after checking the orders on John's chart, she gave him something for pain and a mild sedative to keep him calm and rested. She went through the routine of checking his temperature, his pulse and listening to his chest.
"I know it hurts Mr. Grant, but you'll have to cough to get that lung clear."
John cleared his throat. "So, I've heard." He said sarcastically.
The nurse smiled at him, understanding his sarcasm. "Can I get you something to eat...you slept through dinner but I can get you something. They will not be bringing you breakfast in the morning because you're scheduled for surgery at eleven."
"Surgery?"
"Yes, on your thigh. The doctor will be in to discuss the procedure with you a little later. So, would you like something? Something light...like soup?"
"Soup is fine...preferably chicken noodle."
"Chicken noodle it is. Is there anything else I could get you?"
"No. Thank you."
"Okay, I'll be back." The nurse smiled at both men and left.
"Feelin' any better?"
"A little...the pain has eased up, but I'm tired...I hate feelin' so damn weak."
"You've been through a lot, John...your body needs to heal...rest and you'll get stronger."
"I know, I know. Can you uh...get me some water?"
"Sure." Bailey poured him some water and gave it to him. "Look, John, I'm not saying it needs to be done right now, but we're going to need an account of what happened...from the time you were taken until the time we found you. We could wait a couple more days, but we need to close up this case as soon as possible. Boston and Georgia are both waiting for the reports."
"Okay. After my surgery...that okay?"
"That's fine."
John got quiet for several moments. He was absently pulling at the fuzz on the blanket that was lying across him. He looked up at Bailey, opened his mouth to say something, but changed his mind and looked back down at the blanket and his hands.
Bailey noticed he was struggling with something. "What is it, John?"
"Patrick's uh...was he...did they find him...where is he?" He glanced up at Bailey but went back to watching his hands.
"We found him not long after they...after they left him. Krieger called me and told us where to find him. Robert had him cremated. When you and Jessie are ready...there will be a service and he'll be buried with Carolyn and Travis."
John nodded. His hands looked blurry and he realized his eyes had welled up with tears. He wiped at them and went back to playing with the fuzz on the blanket. He felt Bailey's hand on his shoulder and his eyes welled up again. He drew in a quivering breath. "Thanks, Bailey."
"Hey, look who's awake." Grace was cheerfully loud when she and Sam walked into John's room. When she got closer to the bed she noticed the somber look on both men's faces. "Everything okay?"
John ignored the question and changed the subject. "Were you with Jessie? How is she?"
"Much better now that her fever is under control. She's on a new and very effective drug for the blood poisoning...which is working quite well. And, she's being treated for double pneumonia, which she is also doing well with. She's young John, once they give her immune system a kickstart, her recovery will be quick. She's been in an out of consciousness, but not enough to be aware of anything. Robert is with her, so don't worry, she's not alone."
"I want to see her."
"You can't right now...the doctor has limited her visitors to just us and Robert for the moment. Her immune system is still weak and they want to keep the room as clean and germ-free as possible...you're too sick to see her...maybe early next week. Besides, you're having surgery in the morning, you'll be restricted to your bed...it will be a few days before you could get up and move around."
"She'll want to see me when she wakes up," John said quietly.
"I know, honey...she'll understand why she can't. And, as I said, Robert is with her...he's definitely not going to leave her alone. I had to drag him out of the room just to get him to change his shirt, which by the way, was soaked in cold water..." She laughed. "That man can be very stubborn...if there wasn't a bathroom in her room he would probably use the bedpans."
The nurse came in and set up a tray in front of John. She placed his soup and a can of ginger ale down. "Can I get you anything else?"
"No." John gave her half a smile. "Thanks."
"No problem. Just give me a buzz if you need me." The nurse smiled at everyone and left.
"That doesn't look too bad." Sam nodded towards the soup.
"Help yourself. I'm not really hungry."
"John, you need to eat something, even if it's just half. When was the last time you ate?"
He smiled. "I had some Vienna sausages and a bag of chips when we were in the bunker."
"Yuck." George wrinkled up his nose and smiled.
"Yeah, that's what Jessie said...she ate twinkies."
"So, what?...you haven't really had anything since we all had pizza Monday night. C'mon John, you have to eat a little something else, okay? Please, for me." Grace played the 'do it for me' card knowing he could never say no.
"Okay." John gave in. He picked up the spoon and began eating. They talked, keeping the subjects light, to distract John and keep his mind off Jessie and what had happened to them. Before he knew it, he had eaten the entire bowl of soup. "I guess I was hungrier than I thought." He drank some ginger ale and sat back into his pillows.
"Good job," Grace said as she pushed the tray away from the bad and out of the way.
"Thanks, Mom." John grinned.
Grace put her hand on John's cheek and pinched it playfully. "Whatever it takes." He yawned and she patted his shoulder. "You should get some sleep."
"I'm okay...I'm not that tired."
Sam smiled, watching him as he blinked excessively to keep his eyes from closing. She reached out and gently touched his forehead. She ran her fingers, slowly back and forth and along with his temple. "Get some sleep, okay...we'll be here when you wake up."
John nodded sleepily. "Just for a minute." He closed his eyes and then opened them. "Bailey?" He mumbled, closing his eyes again.
"Yeah, John."
"You'll make sure they're alright...Jessie...Robert..."
"They're safe, John. You're all safe now, it's over."
"...'kay..."
They stood around him, quietly, for several minutes, waiting, to make sure he was asleep. After listening to his steady, deep breathing they stepped away from the bed and headed towards the door.
"Coffee sound good to everyone?" Grace whispered. Bailey, Sam, and George nodded in agreement, so they left John's room and went to the cafeteria.
Two days later...
Jessie is sitting in one of Sal's box seats at the racetrack. It's hot and she's drinking a blue raspberry Icee as she waits for the races to begin. Blue, one of Sal's horses, is racing today and she has bet on him, big, to win. She looks around and wonders why she is alone. Sal's box seats are usually filled with friends or men that work for him and Patrick, but it's just her. Not even Joey, her shadow, as Patrick calls him, is there and that's really weird. 'Maybe they went for beer and snacks.' She thinks and looks back down at the track. Then, she feels someone watching her and she looks behind her and sees Sal. She smiles at him, gets up and sits next to him. 'Where ya been? The race is about to start.' She looks around and it's just the two of them there. 'Where is everyone?'
'Hey.' Sal says, watching her as she scans the surrounding area for anyone else. 'Jessie...'
Jessie looks at him. She notices scars on his face that she doesn't remember seeing before. She shrugs it off. 'Want some?' She holds her Icee out to him. 'It's hot today.'
'No.' He answers and watches as she pulls it back and sits back in her seat, focusing on the racetrack. 'Jessie...'
'Yeah.' She answers but doesn't look at him. 'Hey, if Blue wins, you're buyin' dinner.'
'Jessie, look at me.'
She does. Looking hard at the scars on his face, it bothers her that she never noticed them before. 'Something wrong?' She asks, then reaches out, touches his face, and traces one of the scars with her finger. 'Sal, was this always here?'
Sal takes her hand and holds it in his. 'Jessie, I'm sorry you had to see me like that...that you had to find me that way.'
She smiles at him but looks at him like he has three heads. 'Saw you like what? What're you talkin' about?'
'She's dreaming Sal...she doesn't know...she doesn't want to know.' Patrick says from behind them. He walks over, kisses the top of Jessie's head and sits down next to her. 'Hey, Jess...how's my girl?'
'Dad, did you put money on Blue?' She asks him, it's as if he's been there the whole time. 'What the hell? The race should have started already.'
'There's not gonna be a race, Jess.' Sal still hasn't let go of her hand.
'Huh? How come?' She takes a long drink of the Icee and shakes her head at the brain-freeze it causes. 'Ow.' She laughs. 'If there's no race, could we go to Ray's? I'm hungry.'
'Jessie, this isn't real...you're dreaming...we're-'
'Leave it alone, Sal...she's not ready...'
'You guys are acting weird. What's up? Can we go get something to eat or what?'
'We should go...she shouldn't stay here long.' Patrick tells Sal.
'Where we going?'
Patrick runs his fingers across her cheek, leans forward and kisses her forehead. "Sal and I are going...you're gonna wake up...it'll be alright...Robert will be there. He'll take care of you.'
'Dad?' She's confused and she looks at both men for answers.
Patrick pulls her to him so their foreheads are touching. ' I love you...don't ever forget that.'
'I won't. Dad-' She stops when he moves away from her and stands up. She looks at Sal. Tears are rolling down his face and she hugs him. 'What's wrong?'
'I'm sorry...I'm so sorry...it's all my fault...everything...it's my fault.' He whispers, then pulls away from her and stands up. 'You're a good kid.' He tells her. 'You've always been a good kid...even when you weren't so good.' He smiles and put his hand on top of her head. 'I love you'
She smiles up at him. 'I know...I love you too.'
'Bye kid.' Sal walks around the seats, to where Patrick is waiting, and the two of them walk away from her.
'Wait! I want to come with you!' Jessie stands up. They keep walking as if they don't hear her. 'Hey! I want to go too!' She yells again but doesn't move. Somehow she knows she can't go with them. 'Dad! Sal!'
They both turn around. They're far away but she can hear Patrick as if he's standing next to her. 'We'll always be with you...when you need us, you just talk to us, okay? We'll hear you, I promise...and we could talk to you in your dreams, so no more nightmares, okay? You think about us and we'll talk...like now. When you're ready, we'll talk again. One way or another, Jessie, we will always be with you.' Patrick turns around and continues walking. Sal waves at her and then follows Patrick.
Jessie touches her face. Her cheeks are wet with tears. She watches as Patrick and Sal fade away. She wants to move, to follow them, but her legs won't cooperate. She wants to call out to them, but her throat is dry and sore. She remembers she's still holding the Icee and she takes a long drink. It soothes her throat, but the cold goes right to her chest and she starts to cough...
Tbc...
