by Arianna Hart
Other family members waited in tense silence for word of their loved ones. The room was filled with so much anxiety Jane felt suffocated by it. An elderly woman dressed in black had a string of rosary beads twined through her gnarled fingers. She rocked slowly in her chair as she mumbled prayer after prayer.
Jane had never been very religious, but right now she welcomed the faint hope that someone would listen to her pleas for Lex’s life. She clutched Lex’s medal in her fist and begged shamelessly. Intellectually, she knew that her prayers wouldn’t change anything, but dumping her worry in someone else’s lap for a while brought her a sense of comfort. She’d take what she could get right now.
The coffee she’d consumed had given her a headache and made her stomach roil with nausea. Her muscles ached in places she didn’t know she even had muscles and her neck throbbed with tension. Where the hell was Mac? Should she call him again?
A green-clad doctor stood in the doorway and everyone looked up expectantly.
“Mrs. D’Angelo?” he asked.
“Here,” Jane said lifting her hand. It felt funny answering to that but she was so worried about Lex she pushed it aside.
“I’m Dr. Moore. Your husband is going to be just fine,” he said without fanfare.
“Oh, thank God.” Jane sagged back into the chair as her legs refused to hold her weight. Relief made the blood rush in her ears.
“It was touch and go there for a little while. He lost a lot of blood, but we were lucky. The bullet wasn’t very powerful by the time it hit him so it didn’t do too much soft tissue damage.”
Jane stared at him blankly.
“It entered his torso, was deflected downward by a rib, nicked the small intestine and lodged in the pelvic girdle. Rifle wounds tend to do more damage than that after they penetrate, unless most of their velocity has been spent. If there had been more power behind the bullet it could have easily shattered his pelvis and lodged in his spine.”
“Dear God.” The enormity of the situation almost decimated her, but she held herself together so she could listen to the doctor.
“We’re not out of the woods yet. There’s still the risk of infection or a secondary injury, but overall I feel optimistic he’ll make a complete recovery.”
“When can I see him?”
“He’s in recovery now. You can take a quick look at him, but you won’t be able to stay. I’m keeping him heavily sedated for the next twelve hours. From here he’ll go to the Critical Care Unit. A nurse will let you know when they have a bed for him on the unit.”
“Thank you.” She followed Dr. Moore to the recovery room.
“He’s going to be groggy. We don’t want him to come out of sedation too suddenly and rip out his breathing tube or drains. He probably won’t even know you’re there, so don’t be alarmed if he doesn’t respond to you.”
Jane said nothing as he parted the curtain and motioned for her to go in. She didn’t even recognize Lex under all the tubes and wires. He moaned softly around a tube that was stuck down his throat and a nurse injected something into his IV line.
There was no place for Jane to touch him. She couldn’t hold his hand because he had something clipped to his finger and an IV in the back of his hand. One of the monitors showed a wavy line slowly bouncing up and down. Jane took comfort in watching his heart beat steadily.
“He’ll be here for a while if you’d like to get something to eat,” the nurse said helpfully as she adjusted one of the tubes going down to a bag on the side of the bed. “I’ll get you the minute he wakes up, I promise.”
“Thank you.” The last thing she felt like doing was eating right now, but she couldn’t stay here.
Bending down, she kissed Lex lightly on the forehead. “I’ll be here when you wake up. You rest and get stronger,” she whispered.
Jane followed the signs until she got back to the waiting room. She took one glance at all the tense faces in there and knew she couldn’t spend another minute in there. Even if she wasn’t hungry, she should probably try to choke down something to eat. Maybe she could find a place to wash up too. She’d cleaned her hands and face in the waiting room lav, but it would take a real shower to get all the shards of glass out of her hair.
Hopefully, by the time she was done Mac would be there. It would be nice to have someone else around who was as worried about Lex as she was.
Jane left word with the receptionist in the waiting room that she’d be in the cafeteria in case Lex woke up while she was gone. The woman made a note of Lex’s name and doctor and assured Jane she’d find her if anything changed. She handed her the laptop case that she’d held onto while Jane was with Lex and went back to her crossword puzzle.
The case was empty except for some power cords, but Jane didn’t get rid of it. When this was all over they might need those cords to get the information off the laptop. Besides, it might seem a little suspicious if she threw it in the nearest garbage can.
The cafeteria was almost deserted which suited Jane just fine. She didn’t want to fight for a seat or have to talk to anyone. Even though her appetite was non-existent, she bought a bowl of soup and a bottle of ice water. Maybe the watery chicken noodle would settle her stomach a bit.
Her sense of time was completely thrown off. She spied a large clock on the wall and was surprised to see it was only four in the afternoon. How long had she been here? What time had she called Mac? It felt like she’d been at the hospital for days but really it had only been a couple hours.
She’d had more adventure in the last twenty-four hours than in her entire thirty-three years. Of course, that wasn’t saying much. Her life up to this point hadn’t been that exciting.
Steam wafted up from the spoonful of soup and Jane thought about her life before this week. It was like watching a black and white movie. A boring, black and white movie. With the sound off.
Nothing like living on the edge to add a little color to one’s life. She could never go back to her washed out, emotionless world again. Once the genie was out of the bottle there was no stuffing it back in. She’d found strength she’d never known she possessed, and she wouldn’t get rid of it even if she could.
This week had changed her, and no matter what happened in the future between her and Lex, she couldn’t regret the change. That is, if Lex lived through it.
“Dr. Farmer?” A man in a pinstriped suit stopped at her table.
“Yes? Did Lex wake up?” She scrambled out of her chair and slipped the laptop case over her shoulder, ready to go to the recovery room.
“I don’t know. I haven’t been there yet. I’m Don from EIS.” He stuck out his hand for her to shake.
Jane took it automatically but warning bells went off in her head. “Isn’t Mac coming?” she asked, pulling her hand away.
“There was a complication and he sent me instead. Something about the police station and Alice. He told me to come down here and get you and the evidence to a safe house until he could get free.”
Danger! More bells blared.
She hadn’t seen this particular man at the compound before, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t one of Susie’s thugs. Jane scanned the cafeteria and realized she was almost totally alone except for a woman counting money at the register.
What would Lex do? He sure as hell wouldn’t be sitting here wringing his hands, he’d ask for ID.
“I’m sorry if this sounds terribly rude, but could I see some ID?”
“EIS agents don’t carry IDs. We’re private contractors, not federal agents.”
What now?
“Okay, well I’m sure you won’t mind if I call Mac and confirm he sent you.”
“I told you, he’s at the police station. He doesn’t have time to mess around. We need to get you and that laptop to safety before the Great Hope Ministry comes after you.”
Nerves made her hands shake. She’d thought this whole mess had ended when they escaped from the ministry, but she wasn’t willing to trust anyone yet. Mac had given her
very specific instructions when she’d spoken to him. If he really did have an emergency of some sort he’d have called the hospital. She wasn’t naïve enough to fall for this guy’s act.
“I’m not going anywhere until I hear from Mac.” Jane searched for a weapon but all she had was her plastic spoon and cardboard container of soup.
Steaming hot soup.
“Lady, you’re coming with me.” He reached for her arm.
Before he could get a grip on her, Jane grabbed her bowl of soup and threw it in his face. He screamed in agony as scorching noodles clung to his cheeks. Jane lashed out at his knee with the heel of her sneaker-clad foot. Don—or whatever his name was—stumbled and she gave him a little extra push for good measure.
As he fell, he reached out for her leg. Fear made the adrenaline pump in her veins and Jane jumped over him and ran for the door.
The cafeteria was on the ground floor, all she had to do was find the nearest door and she’d be free. She dared a look over her shoulder and saw Don limping his way through the empty cafeteria towards her. He barked orders into a cell phone.
If he was talking to someone on a cell phone, he obviously wasn’t alone. Brilliant deduction, Doctor. Instead of going outside, Jane ran for the stairway and bolted up the stairs.
The last thing she wanted was to be trapped outside away from any security guards. Her heart leapt into her throat as her foot slipped on one of the treads and she crashed to one knee on the hard cement.
Get up! Keep moving or die! A voice amazingly like Lex’s pushed her on.
She lost count of how many flights she’d gone up when she heard the door below her slam open. Don had found her.
“We’ve got this place surrounded, bitch. You might as well give up now.”
“Bite me,” she murmured to herself. She wouldn’t waste the energy it took to shout it at him. Besides, that would only pinpoint her location and she really didn’t want to give him any more help than absolutely necessary.
A red sign said “3” but what the heck was on the third floor? She pushed open the door and saw a mural of angels and storks.
Must be the maternity ward. She couldn’t lead this lunatic in there with all the babies. He could very well have a gun on him. She wouldn’t take that chance.
Jane let the door close behind her and flew up the next flight of stairs. Where was the psych ward? The psychiatric unit always had lots of nice, big, burly orderlies. If she could find that floor she’d be safe. Or safer, anyway.
Her mind ran as fast as her legs while she tried to remember if she’d seen a map or directory. She’d been so worried about Lex that she hadn’t thought about taking a tour of the hospital.
Think! She could hear Don climbing the stairs behind her, his longer legs making up for her head start. Guess she didn’t kick him as hard as she thought. Next time she’d go for his toes. He wouldn’t be gaining on her if he had two broken toes on his foot.
Next time? Was she insane? There would be no next time.
Her knee throbbed and her hands stung from her earlier fall but she kept going. How many floors did this place have anyway? A red sign said “Roof” with an arrow pointing upwards.
Well, that answered that question. She had to take this door or she’d end up on the roof. Getting into a wrestling match with someone Don’s size on the roof was not a good scenario.
Jane ripped through the last door, determined to find a security guard or orderly or even a janitor to help her. The sight of a glassed-in admissions desk and thick doors was the most beautiful thing she’d ever seen. Chances were this wasn’t Hospice.
“Please! Help me.” Jane begged the woman sitting behind a thick wall of unbreakable glass. “Someone is after me. He may be armed.”
The woman looked up and her eyes widened. She punched a button and alarms went off all over the place.
Oh great, she thought Jane was an escaped patient.
“I’m not crazy, someone really is after me. Please, let me in.”
The intercom blared overhead, “Dr. Strong to North Seven. Dr. Strong to North Seven.”
Jane knew from her internship that that message wasn’t paging a real doctor. It was a call to get security up here without panicking the hospital. Fine, she’d let them take her into a padded room if it meant she was safe from Donny-boy.
But would they get here in time?
The thunder of the stairwell door hitting the wall echoed down the hall. Don had won the race.
Jane ran to the doors to the ward and yanked on them hopelessly. There was nothing to hide behind up here, no chairs or plants or anything in the hallway. If Don had a gun she’d be a sitting duck.
“What’re you going to do now?” Don asked while he stalked her. “There’s no way out of here, everything is locked tight. It’s just me and you.”
“I’m not going with you. If you try to take me out of here someone will call the police. Security is already on their way.” She shot a look over her shoulder and saw the woman who’d been behind the desk had fled. Jane was on her own.
He didn’t reach for a gun. That was a good sign. Okay, so he was twice her size, she only had to hold on until security arrived. She could do that, right?
Damn right she could. Resolution straightened her spine and the shaking in her knees stopped. She was still scared spitless, but she could survive.
The first thing she needed to do was not let him corner her next to the door. Her only chance at staying alive was to stay out of his reach. Even if she had more than the basics of self-defense, he was still much bigger than her and she’d lost the element of surprise with her kick in the cafeteria.
Keep him off balance.
“What rock did Susie find you under? I thought she normally used women for her dirty work.” She slid away from the door, but stayed close to the desk. There was probably a camera there. If she couldn’t hold Don off and he did grab her, at least he’d be caught on film.
Great. She’d be dead but at least Mac would know who did it.
“Susie only uses women as snitches and mules. She uses men for the real work.”
“Oh really? Seems to me she doesn’t much care for men. You’re nothing more than an errand boy.” She had years of study in the human mind. It was about time she put them to use.
“Give it up. I’m not going to turn on my boss just because you’re throwing insults around.”
He held his hands wide and came towards her slowly. At least he wasn’t trying to rush her. He must still be smarting from the soup and the kick. Good.
“You have a chunk of carrot in your hair.” She crouched into a fighting stance and held her hands up in a guard position. If she survived this she was going to sign up for karate.
He growled low and came at her. Jane lashed her foot out at his sore knee but he blocked it. Pain smashed into her toes from the force of his block. She managed to bring her foot back before he latched onto it, but only just barely in time.
“Try again, sweetie. I’m wise to your tricks now.”
Oh goody. Where the hell was security? If she’d really been an escaped patient she’d have been long gone by now.
Don reached for her again, and she twisted out of the way. Right into the elbow he rammed into her mid-section. Air whooshed out of her lungs and half the contents of her stomach came up her esophagus.
He yanked her arms behind her while she retched helplessly. Oh God, she was going to die and there was nothing she could do about it.
Choking back another heave, she raked the sole of her shoe down Don’s shin and jerked her head back as hard as she could.
Right into his nose. Blood spattered everywhere but he still didn’t let go. What else could she do? Her head rang with the impact of hitting his face, her stomach hurt so badly she couldn’t stand up straight, how could she get out of here?
The toes! Break the toes. Desperation put extra muscle in her strike and she stomped hard on his loafer-clad foot. Something crunched under her heel as she s
lammed it down a second time.
Don let out an agonized scream and released her. Jane stumbled forward and fell to her knees. She kept moving anyway. She’d crawl down seven flights of stairs if that’s what it took to get her out of here.
Strong hands grabbed her and lifted her up. Jane screamed and struggled against them until she felt a needle jab her in the butt. She lifted her head to see several security guards and men in scrubs rushing through the locked doors of the ward.
She saw two men holding a bleeding, moaning Don while a security guard snapped handcuffs on his wrists. Relief rushed through her as her world went gray.
Chapter Eighteen
Jane swam through a mist. She could hear voices and beeps but they didn’t make any sense in her fuzzy state so she ignored them. Dream figures shifted and moved through the fog in her head.
James Robert stood behind a mile-high pulpit and brought down fire with his words. Susie’s head was atop a bloated spider’s body and she scuttled over an enormous web that held the bodies of beaten-down men and women.
She moaned and tried to run away from the images but they kept coming at her. Where was Lex? What happened to Lex? She could hear his voice in the fog but couldn’t find him. Was he dead? Had she killed him? Accusing voices surrounded her, dismembered fingers pointed at her, pushing her deeper into the darkness until she succumbed and dreamed no more.
Later, much later, she fought through the mist again. This time she managed to crack her eyes open slightly. Her vision was blurry so she blinked a few times until it cleared.
“Good morning, Lois. I’m Clark.” A tall, sandy haired man with the bluest eyes she’d ever seen loomed over her.
She tried to pull back but her arms were bound to the bed.
“Restraints?” she croaked. Her voice was raspy and her head throbbed with confusion. Where was she, and why was she tied down?
“A precaution I couldn’t talk them out of. Apparently you made quite an impression on the staff and they weren’t taking any chances.”
This must be Mac. Her fuzzy brain struggled to remember the events that led to her getting strapped down on a hospital bed. She had spoken to him on the phone. He’d told her not to go with anyone who didn’t give her the code words.