Chapter 2B

My ascent back to the land of the living was a painful and stuttering one. My first conscious recollection was of the paramedics' face swimming into focus below me. I remember wondering why he was below me, then a bolt of pure white agony shot through me and I was slammed back into unconsciousness.

My next trip back to wakefulness was equally as brief. This time I was in an ambulance. I knew it was an ambulance because of the siren. The same paramedic was hovering over me with a look of concern on his face. Carol! What about Carol? How was she? I tried to lift my head to look over to where the second gurney would go but this only told me two things. First, I was strapped down and couldn't move my head, and second, the attempted manoeuvre caused another bolt of agony. I plunged back into unconsciousness.

My third attempt at regaining, and maintaining consciousness found me in the emergency room where I caught my first glimpse of a familiar face. Through the throng of scrub clad medical personnel swarming around my gurney, I caught a glimpse of Manny. He was pushed back against the wall, his ashen face wore a mixed look of rage and helplessness. Tears tracked down his cheeks. I tried to lift my arm to wave to him to let him know I was going to be okay. At the first hint of movement pain shot through me once again threatening to tip me off the lip of the abyss and sink me back into oblivion. I hung on grimly and gradually my vision cleared.

I could feel hands all over me then all of a sudden I felt a breeze and cool air sweep over my body. My clothing was being cut from me. On my right side a nurse hove into view and fumbled for a moment before I felt the sharp sting of the IV needle sliding into the vein on the back of my hand. The nurse looked up and seemed surprised when he locked eyes with me.

"He's awake!" He leaned in closer and said urgently, "Just hang on buddy and we'll have you fixed in no time."

Then everyone was talking at once. It was too much and I slid back into unconsciousness.

Beep... beep... beep...

I think it was this annoying noise that finally woke me. I became aware of light next but surprisingly there was no pain. I had complete recollection of what had happened and my first thought was for Carol. I needed to know what had happened to her. Trying to sit up was a big mistake. A low groan was ripped from me. Immediately I heard a scrambling noise from the other side of the room. A second later Manny's face loomed into view. He looked worried yet relieved to see I was awake.

"Jesus Glenn, you gave us a hell of a scare. Hang on and I'll get the doctor... be right back man. Don't go anywhere." With that he left the room at a quick trot leaving me wondering exactly where I was supposed to go. The pain was back. It was a living, breathing force that throbbed with every breath I took. It wasn't unmanageable but it was bad enough to warrant me craving some heavy-duty painkillers.

After what seemed like hours, but what in reality was probably only a matter of minutes, Manny re-entered the room with a small woman in a white coat in tow. She looked like everyone's idea of a favoured granny complete with silver hair and big round rimmed glasses. However the expression on her face was all business. Grabbing the chart hanging on the end of my bed she came around and stopped at the head of the bed.

"Good morning Mr. Barrett. I'm Dr. Lewis. I'm the surgeon who did the panel beating job on you. You are in the surgical suite at Saint Benedict's hospital." She referred to her chart for a few moments then looked up and carried on in a slow measured tone.

"You got pretty banged up yesterday Mr. Barrett. I removed one large calibre bullet from your shoulder, sewed up multiple gashes including a very sizeable flesh wound in your left arm, and set breaks in your nose and cheekbone. You are going to be okay although the shoulder wound is a bit worrying. It will take a bit of time until we know the extent if any of permanent damage to the shoulders functionality. The bullet missed the brachial plexus but there could still be a bit of nerve damage which could affect your arm movement." I cut her off at this point.

"What about Carol? Is she okay? Where is she?"

Manny spoke up. "She is okay man. She's down the hall in a private room like this one. She's sleeping at the moment but I'll bring her down when she wakes up okay?"

I felt like a huge weight had been lifted from my shoulders. Carol was safe... or was she?

"Manny can you get someone out to stand guard on her room?"

"I'm way ahead of you boss. Nick and Paul are on her door. On top of that the cops have got enough manpower surrounding this place to control a minor riot. Mike Abernethy is waiting to talk to you as well. I told him he would have to wait until the doc here okayed it."

Mike Abernethy was a detective on the local Major Crimes Unit. He was also a pretty good friend and was a regular visitor out at the house. Dr. Lewis was speaking again.

"You have a long list of people who want to see you. I'm going to examine you now and when I'm satisfied that you can live through the next ten minutes I'll allow your visitors one at a time. Manny here will be able to stay with you as long as you like. There are rules though. They are my rules and they are non-negotiable. You will not over exert yourself. You will not try to be a tough guy and forgo pain medication. It will slow down your recovery time. And you will tell me anything you may learn that could endanger you, my staff or any of my other patients. I might look like everyone's favourite dowager Aunty, but I can be a tough old buzzard when I need to be." With that said she bent to the task of examining me.

I looked up at Manny. He had something serious on his mind.

"Spit it out buddy. You look like you have something to say so just say it."

"Glenn I don't know how to say this gently so I'm just going to say it. Simon's dead. Our friend made a side trip back to the house after hosing us down and cut his throat. I found him out at the side of the house between the rose gardens. I don't think he knew what happened man. I'm sorry buddy." It was like a solid punch to the chest. Simon was a good friend as well as a valued member of our team. "Taglioni got away clean."

"You're sure it was Taglioni?" I managed to croak.

Wordlessly he nodded. His eyes were filled with sorrow and something deeper... something I was sure was mirrored in my own. Rage. If Taglioni was lucky the police would catch him before we did. If we got him first he was a dead man. Nothing more needed to be said between us. We were reading from the same page.

The rest of Dr. Lewis's examination was conducted in silence aside from a few grunts and groans of pain from me. When she had finished making her notations she turned to Manny and said, "Don't stress him any more than you have to." Then she turned and walked out. Manny moved over to the bed.

"Mike want's to talk. I'll bring him in first then you should see Carol okay? She has been going crazy since she came out of the ER. She's pretty worried about you and is blaming this whole thing on herself. No matter what I have said she thinks it's down to her."

"Is she okay Manny? Nobody has told me what happened to her. All I remember is seeing her face covered in blood and her flopping around like a rag doll." I swallowed a lump in my throat that was caused by the memory.

"Yeah Carol's fine Glenn. She got a cut just up from her hairline and a couple of broken ribs. She's got a few stitches and doesn't much feel like laughing, but she is going to be fine buddy. I think seeing you will do her the world of good. Anyway I better get Mike in here."

"Wait a minute Manny. Can you put him off for a few minutes and get Carol in here first? I have to talk to her before I see Mike."

He looked at me for a moment then nodded. "Okay man, but I can't put him off forever Glen. Leave it with me and I'll bring her down in a minute."

He left and I heard voices in the corridor. They continued at a low rumble for a while before I tuned them out and drifted off to sleep again. I don't know how long I slept but when I woke the room was a lot darker. Trying to move my head brought a moan from me. At this there was a sudden movement to my left, which I was wise enough not to try to follow with my head.

"Glenn?" It was Carol. She stood and moved over to the bedside. Bending, she kissed me softly but firmly. I could see she was flustered, wondering where to put her arms. I solved her problem by wrapping my good arm around her and pulling her as close as I could without causing me any more pain. She started sobbing. "I'm so sorry baby. This is all my fault Glenn."

"Whoa baby. Don't even go there honey. If I remember correctly I barged my way into this situation. You didn't come to me looking for a solution love, I offered our services. And I'd do the same again in a heartbeat. Carol the one who is to blame is your ex-husband. He is the one who caused this shit. He is the one who is gonna pay for it. You did nothing wrong Carol, nothing at all." She stared at me silently for a moment, then she spoke.

"I just fit myself perfectly into the helpless female stereotype didn't I? Truth is Glenn, when I woke up and found that you were badly hurt I kinda went to pieces for a while. I'm a lot tougher than that so you can expect no more tears or whimpering baby. Sorry for the display."

She smiled down at me and leaned in close to kiss me again. This kiss while still soft held the promise of passion to come. She looked lovely even with the large white dressing on her forehead, and the large bruise that extended down the left side of her cheek.

"I'm going to call Detective Abernethy in here. I've talked to him already and he knows the whole story. I told him everything Glenn... everything..." Her words trailed off and she seemed to be anxiously waiting for me to say something. She was waiting for my reaction to one of my friends knowing about her past.

I smiled at her and said, "Why don't you bring him in and we can talk to him together Carol. I have nothing to hide from Mike. He's a pretty decent sort of guy. If you decide to stick around and spend some time with me, you'll find that he is a good friend."

"If I decide to stick around?" She seemed shocked to find that the decision was up to her.

"Well I can't force you to stay but I sure would like it if you did. Without your help I'll never get an A on my English Lit paper." She laughed, poked her tongue out at me and headed out the door to get Mike. I had to admit she looked great in hospital pyjamas.

The door opened and in walked Mike and Carol accompanied by a nurse who was carrying a small stainless steel tray.

"Hello Mr. Barrett. Time for your meds, and your records. I'm going to take your blood pressure, temperature and pulse, and give you something to help with the pain. It should only take a couple of minutes, then I'll be out of your way." She was very efficient and was true to her word, leaving in a couple of minutes after establishing that I had great blood pressure, a good strong pulse, and a slight temperature. All this was recorded neatly on my chart before she left. Mike and Carol remained silent while she was in the room, just standing and observing. As the nurse left Mike turned on the light illuminating the steadily darkening room.

"God man! You look like shit. I've seen better heads on a mug of beer." He said with a grin. "How are you feeling buddy? You had this pretty lady here going out of her mind with worry. Is this some sort of new pick up technique you've discovered Glenn?"

"Eat shit Mike! Haven't you got storeowners to shake down or something? And where were you when we were battling the forces of evil? In Dunkin' Donuts filling your face no doubt. Bloody typical. There is never a cop around when you need one." Carol looked worried at my outburst until Mike and I both broke into laughter, a bad move on my part as it sent a bolt of pain through my damaged shoulder. Mike saw me wince and moved closer.

"You alright buddy? Can I get you anything?"

"No I should be okay Mike. The painkillers should kick in soon."

Mike paused and his expression became serious.

"You two have made a pretty nasty enemy. Carol has told me the whole story. I put Mr. Taglioni's name into the system and got an immediate response from the New Jersey Organised Crime Unit. They are very interested in any and all developments regarding this piece of shit... sorry Carol. Please excuse the language." With a flick of her hand Carol waved off the apology and Mike continued.

"He has been under the microscope there for a while now. Everything from racketeering to tax evasion. The guy I spoke to in New Jersey basically turned cartwheels over the phone when he heard that Carol was here and safe. He wants to be able to talk to you about your ex Carol. Do you think you would be up for that?" She didn't hesitate at all.

"Any time he can get here." She looked very determined. Mike smiled, nodded and carried on.

"I thought you might feel that way. He's on his way here now. In fact he should be here by the morning. Up until now Taglioni has been facing major prison time if they could convict him, but now we have him on murder and attempted murder charges." His expression softened. "I'm sorry about Simon Glenn. He was a hell of a good guy. Taglioni was definitely the doer on both counts. We recovered cartridge cases from the ambush site that bore his prints and also lifted a set from your place. We can get him on premeditated murder, and attempted murder. He'll go to death row for this buddy. I know it's no comfort but Simon will be avenged." The formality of his words was offset by the grim look in his eyes. Again I thought it would probably be better for Taglioni if he was grabbed by the cops before Manny and I got to him.

We talked for a few moments more before Mike made his departure after organising a time for the next day to come and take a formal statement from me. As he left I sagged back onto my pillows, suddenly exhausted. Carol was at my bedside in an instant.

"I'm so sorry about all this Glenn. I know it's not my fault, but deep down I still feel guilty about bringing him into your lives. I know it's crazy but I feel responsible for Simon's death. If you want me to go I'll understand." I didn't know how to make her feel better about herself at this stage. I could feel myself sinking slowly towards sleep again but knew that I had to say something.

"Carol, please stay. I can't think at the moment but I do know that I want you around. Please stay." For once I must have said the right thing. As I faded out to sleep I saw her tear streaked face smile down at me as she stroked my forehead.

The next few days were eventful. I had interviews with the local cops and the guy from New Jersey's OCU, a guy named Nick O'Reilly. He was a no nonsense short stocky Irishman with a ready grin and a very quick smile. He would have made a great Santa Claus at Christmas parties. He also knew his stuff. In a couple of hours I learned more about the workings of the New Jersey Family in general and Robert Taglioni in particular than I could have learned from months of perusing files. I got the feeling that he had made Taglioni a personal project. This interested me and I made a mental note to find out what the connection was.

He spent time with Carol as well and from her talks with me it looked like Carol was aware of only a fraction of her ex husbands activities.

Carol was released from the hospital the day after my first interview with O'Reilly. After a lot of discussion with Manny and Mike Abernethy, we decided to move Carol back into my house. Manny would stay there as well along with a beefed up security detachment from my company and a good compliment of cops. This was being given a pretty high priority by the local force and we had the additional support from the New Jersey OCU. The electronic security was being beefed up as well with cameras being installed on all possible approaches to the house. She should be safe.

I was still too weak to attend Simon's funeral, which was held three days after he was killed. I was in a blue funk all that day until I got visitors. Simon's father and sister came to visit me before going to the funeral. I was lying there on my own feeling sorry for myself when they walked in.

Sam was in his mid-fifties and had served in Vietnam as a member of Marine Recon and later as a Special Forces operative working with Montagnards running covert operations against the North Vietnamese Army along the Ho Chi Mihn trail. He was tall and raw-boned and even in his fifties still looked like he could more than take care of himself in a sticky situation. Sam worked in computers writing programs for a small but profitable company in the city. He had actually written a couple of programs for us, and they were a major selling point when we were pitching electronic security to a customer.

Maria was like a young sister to me. I had known her longer than I had known Simon having met her through an ex girlfriend years ago. She too was in computers although her work was a little more shadowy. Officially she was a highly skilled analyst, but she had delved deeper into the wonderful world of computers and developed her skills a bit further than her teachers knew about. I had used her hacking skills on a couple of occasions before and had found her to be an extremely skilled operator. Normally she was a bright bouncy vivacious woman. Understandably today she was very subdued. She stood beside my bed and held my hand a look of sorrow on her face. I couldn't help it... the tears started to flow.

"I am so sorry Sam. Maria I... I just... aaah God. I don't know what I can say. I'm so sorry." I broke down completely.