Flameout – Chapter 11
Sunday Evening
During the night Frost had received text messages from Ace, Frankie, and Gen. Frankie and Gen had text to let him know that they had made it back to Boston safely. His phone was set on 'Do Not Disturb' from 11 PM to 5 AM while he was at the hospital but he had placed it vibrate while he was in Jane's room. He didn't want his phone disturbing her.
Being the last remaining BPD member in Syracuse, Frost was the designated point of contact for everyone to check in with. He wasn't asked to take on this role, he just did it. Jane was his best friend and he would do anything for her. He wanted to make sure everything went well for Jane. Even Colonel Noble and Detective Johnson checked in with Frost.
Monday Morning
Amelia
Amelia had woken up and looked at the clock, it was 4:50 AM. She knew that she wouldn't be able to go back to sleep as her alarm was sent to go off at 5:15 so she got up and decided to get ready for her day. She was thankful for the few hours of sleep that she was able to get thanks to Maura's generous offer.
Amelia decided her best course of action was to take a shower. The warmth of the water would soothe her aching muscles and help her body wake up. She admired the setup Maura had her in her office. It was almost like a studio apartment except that there was no kitchen. Although Maura had added a small refrigerator and a microwave and toaster oven.
Maura
Maura woke up around 5 AM and noticed that Jane had released her arm. She found Frost sitting up on his bed working on his computer. She quietly got up and went over to Frost. As she approached Frost greeted her, "Morning doc, how did you sleep?"
"Fine, although it was more of a nap. I need to go to my office and take a shower and get ready for work. I am happy that Jane did not wake up again with another nightmare. I shouldn't be more than an hour."
"Okay, take your time, I will be here." As soon as Maura left, Frost decided to go back to sleep. He saved the file he was working on and secured his laptop. He didn't want to drop it again. The IT department was lucky to fix it last time and he certainly did not want to return to Boston with another broken laptop.
He was computer savvy but falling asleep and letting your laptop fall onto the ground was not something he would ever want to live through again. He was still teased from time to time by some of the IT guys. Thankfully, Jane never found out or she would constantly tease him.
When Maura arrived back to her office, Amelia had already woken and was in the shower. This pleased Maura because she knew that Amelia was difficult to wake up at times. Maura took her time to select a new outfit for herself and then gathered her belongings that she would need to take home to get cleaned after her shift.
Amelia opened the bathroom door surprised to see Maura there. She hadn't expected Maura to be up already. "Hey." Amelia greeted her.
"Good morning, Amelia. I hope you slept okay." Maura stated as Amelia came out of the bathroom dressed for work.
A little groggy still Amelia replied, "Yes, you have a nice setup here. Thank you for allowing me to use it."
"Yes, one of the perks they offered to me when I accepted the position over seven years ago. They wanted me to be comfortable here and I must say, it is nicer than having to sleep in the on-call room." Maura said as she smiled at Amelia.
"Yes, maybe I need to have such an arrangement at the hospital I work with in California."
"I am going to take a shower and get ready for the day. I would love to discuss what the plans are for Jane." Maura stated as she picked up the outfit she had selected and started walking towards the bathroom.
"Did she have any more nightmares?" Amelia inquired.
Maura stopped walking and turned to look at Amelia and told her, "No, she stayed asleep after you left. Although her grip on my arm did not release for quite some time. I didn't want to remove my arm and possibly disturb her."
"That was nice of you. We can talk after your shower."
"Okay," Maura said as she retreated to her bathroom. Amelia sat at the desk and pulled up the internet, she had some research to do.
Jane
Jane woke up a little after six, it was still somewhat dark outside. She saw Frost sleeping his bed. She closed her eyes and just thought about how she wouldn't be able to drive her mustang or fly for the next three to four months. She felt free when she was flying and when she drove her mustang. Other people had their hobbies and such but for Jane it was the freedom of flying and driving her mustang that meant the most to her.
She was single, didn't have any children and to be honest she wasn't sure if she wanted any. Her mother always told her that she should get married and have children but Jane wasn't sure if that was the path that she was meant to take.
She wasn't sure how she would get through the next few months of not being able to do the things she loved most in life. Maybe that was why she had never had a successful relationship. She hadn't met someone that she felt like settling down with. Sure, she had been engaged to Nikki, but she often asked herself if she was really in love with Nikki or was she just settling because she felt that it was time. Before she had too much time to think about this, Frost woke up and they started talking.
Ace
Ace sent a text to Jane about 7 AM and let her know that he had a flight and would be gone for most of the day but he would check in with her when he got back to Syracuse. Jane replied back, 'Fly safe.'
'You know it' was his quick reply back to her. She loved the fact that he was a pilot for a small executive flight company. Whenever he had an overnight trip to Boston, he always stayed with her. Sometimes if the layover was long enough, they could go out clubbing. He always made sure he followed the pilot safety rules, no drinking eight hours before a flight and to get a good night's sleep.
He had been offered a job as a commercial pilot with a large airline but decided to stay with the smaller executive flight company. He didn't want to fly heavies for a living. He like small faster aircraft. He could fly the heavies and was certified to fly them, however once the twins were born, he discussed it with his wife and they decided it would be better for the family if he was around. Most of the executive flights were one-way quick flights. He would drop the clients off like a shuttle service and pickup additional clients for the trip home. Sometimes we would have a layover but not that often.
Amelia, Maura and Jane
While Maura was taking her shower, Amelia went to Jane's room. She needed to check on a few things so she could decide what would be the best course of action for Jane following the side effects of her nightmare.
Jane smiled at Amelia when she entered the room. Jane was laying there just enjoying the peace and quiet when she heard the door open and saw Amelia. "Good morning, Jane, how are you this morning?"
"Doing as well as can be expected considering. I guess you have to run some more tests today because of my nightmare?" Jane asked.
"Yes, I do. I need to do some memory tests and also just have a quick peek at your brain waves via an EEG." Amelia held up the electrodes so Jane could see them.
"That just sounds like so much fun."
"Good morning, Jane and Doctor Sheppard." Frost said as he rose to leave the room. Frost tried to always give Jane some privacy when her doctors came in. "I am going to go down to the cafeteria and have some breakfast while you two have fun with the EEG."
"Okay, Frost, see you in a little while."
"Good morning, Frost and please call me Amelia." Frost nodded in response and left the room.
Amelia was hooking up the electrodes when Maura walked in. "Good morning, Jane."
"Morning, doc."
"Are you going to do the EEG while she is awake?"
"Yes, I have a base line EEG from when I first arrived and I will be able to compare the results. As long as everything is within an acceptable range, we should still be able to release Jane for transport to Boston Memorial."
"Cool, so a Wednesday departure is still a possibility?"
"Yes Jane, it is." Jane gave Amelia the biggest smile. Amelia ran the EEG and then performed some memory tests with Jane. Jane checked out so she just needed to be observed for the next two nights as far as Amelia was concerned.
"Doctor Isles, how do my breaks affect my transfer?"
"You will be transported in an ambulance as you cannot sit for that long in a vehicle. You will meet with a physical therapist after lunch to go over some basic care instructions. Frost has already arranged for an electric wheel chair for you as he stated that you wouldn't want anyone pushing you around. He said that you are very independent."
"My BFF takes such great care of me. One thing he cannot do is help me bathe. How am I supposed to bathe with casts on my arm and leg?"
"One of the nurses will come in after your PT session today and go over that with you as they bathe you."
"I hope it is a female nurse. I don't want a male nurse to bathe me." Jane stated adamantly.
"I understand and you will have a female nurse bathe you and instruct you in how to bathe yourself once you are at home. Frost stated that you would not want your mother bathing you."
"See, he is such a great guy."
"He seems to care about you very much."
"He does, I still call him my partner even though we don't work cases like we use to. We do get to work some occasionally but that is more as an evaluator now. Although the guys in homicide do like to pick my brain and Gen has to reign me in once in a while. I love working cases. I guess she will let me possibly work some cold cases while I am riding the pine."
Maura looked puzzled and asked, "What is riding the pine?"
"Oh, sorry, it is riding the bench, you know side lined, not able to do my normal duties. Although I can still do all of my paperwork. I just won't be able to go out to an active crime scene until I am mobile again."
Jane and Maura talked for a few more minutes and then Frost came back in. Maura left to finish her rounds and then met up with Amelia to review the treatment plan for Jane. When Maura stepped out to the hallway, she received a phone call from Detective Johnson. "Good morning, detective, what can I do for you?" Maura said nervously.
"Morning Doctor Isles, the judge's schedule cleared up and he can see the four boys this afternoon at 2 PM. I just wanted to let you know so that you can clear your schedule."
"Thank you, I will make sure that Charlie and I are there."
"Thank you, Doctor Isles, I will see you at the courthouse." Maura hung up and went straight to her office. Her rounds could wait for a few minutes. She only had three patients right now and Jane was the most injured. She called Nina, she needed to talk to her.
Nikki
Nikki was awoken rather harshly by loud screaming from the other inmates. It was breakfast time and they wanted out of their cells. Nikki was starving but she wasn't sure if she wanted to make another trip to the chow hall. A guard came by and told her she had to leave her cell and go to the chow hall. She reluctantly left her cell and followed the other inmates to the chow hall.
She was surprised that nothing happened in the chow hall. She collected her breakfast and sat down at an empty table. As she began eating several inmates joined her. Not a word was spoken to her as she ate and she was fine with that. Nikki's lawyer, Brian, had dropped off an outfit for her to wear to court. She had a 9 AM court appearance and he wanted her to look her best.
Accident Investigation Team
Colonel John Riggers, Chief of the Accident Investigation Team had an 8 AM meeting with Colonel Noble. "Welcome Colonel Riggers," Colonel Noble greeted Colonel Riggers when he entered his office.
"Thank you, sir. As I told you on the phone, I wanted to discuss our preliminary findings with you before the report comes out."
"Yes, I very much appreciate the courtesy." Colonel Noble motioned for Colone Riggers to sit down. They both sat and then Colonel Riggers got right down to business.
"We have discovered the remains of a toy rocket in with the wreckage and the Syracuse Police Department is investigating how that rocket came in contact with the F-16. The area where Copper attempted to safely land was free of all debris prior to the crash. We have confirmed that with the gentleman who maintains the property. He had just cleaned the area about half an hour before the crash. According to Detective Johnson, the detective in charge of the investigation, a young man, Charlie, has come forward and claimed that he and three of his friends had shot off a rocket in the vicinity. They lost track of the rocket and immediately went home. The detective is going to interview the three other boys, he might have already. I have not touched base with him this morning."
"Wow, a toy rocket taking out a multi-million-dollar aircraft." Colonel Noble was a bit surprised.
"I know, we were surprised as well. We still have a few things to check out and I am planning on having our report completed by Friday. I wanted to share the pictures with you. The boys are very intelligent and their rockets far exceed what I think they should be capable of. But that is not the point of our meeting." They reviewed the pictures and talked for another twenty minutes before Colonel Riggers left and reported back to his make shift office in the hanger.
Stella
Stella sat in the back of the courtroom. She had donned a wig and wore glasses in an attempt to not be recognized in case Nikki glanced around the room. She wanted to see first-hand what was going to happen to Nikki.
Nikki
Nikki was ushered into court a few minutes before 9. She glanced around the room to see if she recognized anyone. She immediately spotted Frost, she knew he would be there so he could spy on her and report back to Jane. She didn't like him and she knew he didn't like her. She felt he was always saying bad things about her to Jane.
She had no idea that Stella was in the room. Stella didn't look like herself because of the wig and glasses. Stella sat there with a huge smile on her face. She just knew that Nikki would have to serve some time in jail because of her charges.
The judge entered the courtroom and the bailiff called the room to attention by saying, "All rise. The Court of General Sessions Fifth Judicial Circuit is now in session. The Honorable Courtney Rossi is presiding."
When the judge motioned back to the bailiff, he announced the case number. He then told everyone, "please be seated." He listed the charges and the judge asked Nikki, "How do you plead?"
Scott, Nikki's New York lawyer, and Nikki stood as Scott replied, "Not Guilty, your honor."
The judge turned to the prosecutor and asked, "What is the Prosecutions stance?"
"Your Honor, the defendant struck a police officer in front of more than ten other police officers while trying to escorted from the hospital where she was in violation of a restraining order. Prosecution requests that the defendant be held pending trial."
The judge reviews the documents in front of her and asked both the defense and prosecution a few questions and that stated, "The defendant will be reprimanded pending trial. Trial will beginning Monday morning at 9 AM."
Nikki screams, "No you can't hold me, I haven't done anything wrong. Jane is my fiancée and I have a right to see her. She is injured and needs me." The bailiff and two other Sheriff's deputies restrain Nikki and remove her from the courtroom.
Stella's smile had not left her face. She quickly exited the courtroom unnoticed by Frost and went home. She needed to finalize her plans to get to Jane.
Nina
Nina was at the hospital and after finishing up with her patient went to Maura's office. Maura explained about Detective Johnson calling and that she would need to have Charlie in court that afternoon. Nina sat with Maura as she called her lawyer and explained the situation and asked for his advice. He explained that he would need a little bit of time to research and would get back to her as soon as he could. He had never dealt with rockets and their destruction he needed to check the laws. He also knew that things would be different because Charlie was only ten years old.
Nina had comforted Maura enough that she could continue her rounds, having only three patients meant that she would be done quickly. She had already seen Jane so she just needed to check in on her other two patients and then meet with Amelia to go over Jane's treatment plan. That would keep her busy while she waited for her lawyer to call her back.
Maura hugged Nina as they both left her office. Maura for her rounds and Nina to catch up on her documentation for the patient's she had already seen prior to visiting Maura. At 10 AM Maura was meeting with Amelia. Amelia had reviewed Jane's prior EEG and compared it to her new EEG. There wasn't that much difference. "I will see if I can complete another EEG as Jane sleeps. I am pretty confident that her brain is functioning fine. I don't know why she had the nightmare but we will observe her for the next two nights just to make sure."
"That is good news, thank you Amelia."
"Right now, I would say that Jane's biggest obstacle is going to be her broken leg."
"Yes, and there is not one thing she can do to speed up the healing of her broken leg." They both smile at each other. They continue to talk and Maura told Amelia about Charlie having to see the judge that afternoon. While they are sitting there Maura's lawyer called her back. He told her he would be there with her and for her not to worry. He had talked with some lawyer friends of his and they were confident that Charlie would get community service and some sort of classes that he would have to attend. Maura hoped that was all that would receive, she didn't want him to have to spend time in juvenile hall.
Jane
At 10 AM Jane's physical therapist arrived. They went over some basic moves that Jane could do to keep her muscles moving. She was limited because of her broken leg however, they worked on transitioning from the bed to a wheelchair. The Syracuse PT had spoken with the Boston PT and worked out what was best for Jane. She couldn't use crutches as her wrist was broken. The PT was concerned about Jane wanting to get herself into a wheelchair but understood how independent she was. She had to be careful but working together they figured out a way that Jane could move herself from the bed to the wheelchair.
Frost had rented the same motorized wheelchair that he had purchased for her so that she could practice with that. Frankie had texted Frost earlier to let him know that the motorized wheelchair had arrived in Boston and was ready for Jane.
The PT modified a crutch to accommodate Jane's broken wrist and that would help her with the transition from the bed to the wheelchair. He could tell that Jane was very motivated not to be tied down to her bed. He firmly reminded her that she still needed to rest because her brain was still healing as well. Jane just smiled at him.
Frost entered the room after court and saw how happy Jane was with the motorized wheelchair. She was sitting in it when he walked through the door. The PT explained a few things to Frost before he left. He had another appointment soon so he left Jane in the wheelchair with Frost.
The nurse came in to give Jane her sponge bath and teach her how to bathe herself. The fact that she was in the wheelchair actually helped because that is how she would be at home. It didn't take long for the nurse to assist and teach Jane. Frost left the room while they were in the bathroom. He needed to check in with and update Gen on Jane's condition and also tell her about Nikki's court session. Gen was excited to hear that Nikki was remanded and would be in custody for the next week while Jane would be transitioned back to Boston. They did not need or want her interference.
"What about the other lady, Stella, I think her name was?" Gen asked. She was curious. Not that she cared about who Jane saw, I mean she did, but that was Jane's business.
"I have not seen or heard anything from her or about her. If we are lucky maybe she gave up already." Frost said and hoped.
"Knowing the little I heard about her, I don't think we could be that lucky. I hope that in the future Jane will meet a nice woman and won't have to deal with the likes of Nikki and Stella. Nikki changed so much since I first met her. I thought she was a nice woman but now, that doesn't seem to be the case."
"I know, I wish the same. So far, we are still on track for coming home on Wednesday."
"That is great, look Frost, I have a meeting I need to attend, thanks for the update and please give Jane my love and I look forward to seeing both of you on Wednesday."
"Will do." Frost said and ended the call. He was right outside the door and could hear that Jane was finished with her bath so he entered the room to Jane and the nurse laughing. He was happy to see Jane laughing again. He tried not to disturb them and went to the small table by the window and opened up his laptop to check on his email. Two more days and they would be on their way back to Boston, he couldn't wait.