Chapter 72

SATURDAY MORNING EARLY — SEPTEMBER 21

A little later, Caitlin walked into the waiting room. Jeff, Diana and most of the cops stood. As they gathered around, starved for news, Caitlin said, "She's in CICU now. Her nurse has her settled, but I don't have any more news. Joyce is still unconscious. We're hoping that she will wake soon. If she doesn't ... it will not be a good sign.

"Since she has been so frantically asking for Jeff and me each time she wakes for a moment, we're going to sit with her. I'll make sure someone updates you on any changes." Caitlin tried to swallow the lump in her throat. "She would ... be so very pleased if she knew that all of you were here. Thank you."

Jeff turned to Diana, but she shook her head. "Go. I'll be fine. Let me know as soon as you can so I can tell the others."

Most of the cops and deputies had assumed that Diana was Jeff's sister since the rumor got started that Jeff was Cramer's husband, but a couple of them had noticed the look on Diana's face when she talked to Jeff. She sat again, leaning her head back against the wall and closed her eyes.

The neurosurgeon had to leave because of a victim with a gunshot wound to the head. The cardiologist sat at the nursing station sipping a cup of coffee, against hospital rules, but supervisors allowed the rules to be bent a little in preference for alert nurses over dragging ones. Doctors tended to make their own rules. Trammell looked up as Caitlin and Jeff entered CICU.

"I've already discussed basal conditions with Jeff," Caitlin said before the doctor managed to say anything.

Instead of a lecture, Trammell shook Jeff's hand. "I suspect she'll be a lot calmer with the two of you near her. I'm going to get something to eat, Caitlin. I'll be back in a little while. No use going home. It's almost time for me to make rounds, anyway."

The tired doctor stood and walked out of the unit without a backward glance. (Most doctors will call the nurse by his/her first name. And some even ask the nurse to call them by their first name.)

"Come on," Caitlin said, "I'll introduce you to her nurse."

Shortly Caitlin and Jeff eased into the dimly lit unit. Each went to opposite sides of the bed and sat on chairs that Caitlin had already brought in for them. Jeff reached out and gently took Joyce's hand. Her head was bandaged and there was a wire running out of the bandage to an instrument.

Caitlin nodded, whispering, "Monitoring pressure on the brain. It's high normal, and gradually creeping up. Not good."

The nurse pushed the curtain closed making the room a deep twilight.

Easy, Little One. Remember all that I've been trying to tell you. There are many people nearby. And despite what you think about our technology, or lack thereof, these people are trying to help Joyce. Please, again I caution you, don't make any noise and you must remain hidden. We may not have ample time for you to do all the healing at one session, just like we discussed. I'm going to put you under the sheet and on Joyce's chest. Please try to conceal yourself if anyone comes into the room.

Jeff felt the reassurance from the healer as he looked at Joyce.

"Well, we're here," Caitlin whispered. "Whatever you did for Jeb, well ... now's the time."

"I need you to close your eyes for a moment or two, and if you see movement under the sheet to not freak out."

"Look, Jeff," Caitlin hissed, "I know that you've got some kind of invention. I wouldn't even consider this if I hadn't seen the way Jeb's arm healed overnight. But cut the mumbo jumbo and get on with it."

"Close your eyes, damnit," Jeff hissed at her.

"Oh, all right," Caitlin said turning her head to the side and closing her eyes.

When the healer flowed out of the neck of Jeff's shirt, he let go of Joyce's hand, raised the sheet and placed Little One on Joyce's chest. Can you just go under that bandage without cutting it off? They'll know something is wrong if you do.

As Jeff continued to look, the bandage rose up and slid aside. Even in the low light, Jeff with his sensitive vision got a good look at Joyce's swollen chest for a moment before the healer settled over the area.

Jeff quickly dropped the sheet back into place as the blue glow came on. Glancing at Caitlin, he saw that she still had her eyes closed. "Okay," he whispered, "you can open your eyes now, but don't get excited about the blue glow."

Caitlin instantly saw the faint light through the sheet, brighter where it leaked out around a couple of wrinkles. Jeff's hands smoothed the cover, tucking it in where necessary to cut down the light leaking out.

"Where did you have that?" Caitlin said first looking at the faint lump under the sheet, then back up at Jeff.

"Please," Jeff said, "we've gone through this before. Just hush and trust me. If we can keep this going for a while, Joyce is guaranteed a full recovery. But it's going to take time. We can't let anyone raise that sheet, and when she's done there we're going to have to conceal her on Joyce's head, somehow."

"Her?" Caitlin said.

"Oh, shit," Jeff said, his tired brain having let that slip.

With each of them holding one of Joyce's hands, and with them leaning forward, their faces were only a couple of feet apart. Seeing the look on Jeff's face, Caitlin sighed. "Okay. I just want her to be well. I'll do anything you say if you can heal her. If this has to be the big secret — which I certainly don't agree with — I'll play along. I love her with all my heart. I can't lose her. Just make her well. The nurse told me that she would wait for thirty minutes since I'm in here, anyway. So, we have that long before she'll peek in. She'll want to do a visual on the IVs and access her patient. We'll go from there."

Time drifted onward while Jeff vehemently hoped that the nurse wouldn't come in early. At the twenty-five minute point: Little One, the nurse should be here in a moment. Will you please put the bandage back and conceal yourself?

Having "heard" it before, Jeff was fairly certain that the grating response was the healer's version of cursing.

The door suddenly opened and the curtain slid back. Twenty-six minutes. Shit! Jeff thought as he frantically tried to think of a way to stall so the healer would have time to hide.

Caitlin, seeing the shock and worry suddenly appear on Jeff's face and realizing why, got up and spent a couple of minutes in whispered conference with the nurse, who by now was growing impatient with Caitlin.

Stepping to the foot of the bed, the nurse touched each of Joyce's feet through the hole designed for that in the bottom of the knee-high hospital hose. Caitlin later told Jeff that the nurse was making sure that Joyce's feet were warm, which meant that she had a good blood supply (pulse) in her feet. She checked her monitors for a moment, then after checking the IV tubing, she checked the central venous line where it went into the subclavian vein (near Joyce's clavicle) allowing the catheter to go into Joyce's heart for monitoring. When she found nothing awry, she attached a small bag of medication piggyback to the main IV bag.

Taking the stethoscope from around her neck and centering the earpieces in her ears, she pulled back the sheet a little. Maneuvering the stethoscope to several places on Joyce's chest, she gradually pulled the sheet lower and listened for extended periods of time, the concern on her face gradually morphing into a faint smile.

Suddenly, she pulled the sheet back to gently palpate several places on Joyce's stomach and chest, but didn't remove the bandage. Jeff held his breath as the movement of the sheet caused the bandage to slip a little as the nurse pulled the covering back into place. He marveled that Little One had managed to get the bandage into place and even partially adhered, thankful that the nurse hadn't noticed anything.

Making a minute adjustment to the equipment that regulated the new IV med drip, she watched the machine for a moment more. Moving the intubation tube a little, she swabbed Joyce's mouth, suctioning when she was done. With a small pad, she wiped around the NG tube in her patient's nose. (Naseogastric tube. In this case to provide suction to Joyce's stomach to keep her from vomiting and aspirating it.)

After shining a small light into each of Joyce's eyes and just standing and looking at the patient for a moment longer, she returned the sheet to its proper place. Smiling at Jeff and Caitlin, she quietly left the room, pulling the curtain back into position and the door closed.

Jeff felt like the world had just lifted from his shoulders. As soon as the nurse was gone, he let out a quiet sigh. Pulling the sheet back, Jeff saw a hair-thin tendril ease out from under Joyce's back, a very faint blue glow surrounding the near invisible tip. Realizing the coast was clear, Little One flowed from under the deputy to resume her usual configuration, pushed the bandage aside, then changing slightly, spread herself over Joyce's heart area.

Jeff heard a gasp as Caitlin slumped into her chair, a look of awe on her pretty face.

Jeff had been so worried about Joyce, not to say anything about the nurse discovering the healer, that he had momentarily forgotten about Caitlin.

Well, she's seen the healer. Ah, hell. Fuck that arrogant son-of-a-bitch, he thought, referring to his general. He and I need to have a good old-fashioned talk, anyway. I'm getting tired of being his little errand boy. If he weren't so tied up in secrecy, he would have sent enough of us to get the job done. No telling how many people he has gotten killed with his schemes. I know that at least two teams haven't come back, and if it hadn't been for just plain luck, we wouldn't have made it, either. And not just the last time. Maybe I am lucky after all.

Lovingly stroking Joyce's face, he tried to send his love to her. I understand that we need to maintain secrecy about the portal and the ship, and maybe the healers — within reason. But the healer has long since broken the compulsions that asshole buried in my brain. I will honor my vow, but he will just have to get over me telling my wives. I told him it wasn't reasonable and I didn't know if I could maintain the secrecy about the healer with my extended family, but that I would try. And I'm tired of being threatened with having me shot. Oh, I know that he can. Basically, he doesn't have anyone to answer to anymore. Nobody knows we exist. But yeah, we're going to ... talk, sooner or later. My way.

Glancing at Caitlin, he extended his hand until he was touching the healer. Caitlin has seen you, but it was my fault. You did well with the nurse. I sincerely appreciate it. Thank you Little One, he finished as he gently squeezed her for a second.

{{{ Your new mate will be better soon. I will not let her die. I only need a little while longer with her heart. Her brain will be easier to repair. But I will need more time later to bring her back to full health. }}}

Her message was sent with an emotion. And although the feeling was odd, he had no doubt that it was her version of love. He wasn't sure where the love was directed, but it was more than the usual feeling of contentment that Little One exhibited as she worked. Vaguely wondering, he caressed the healer for a moment before moving the sheet back into position.

Glancing at Caitlin, he took a breath. With his exceptional low-light vision, he saw that her face looked as if all the blood had drained from it.

Caitlin stared at Joyce's sheet-covered chest for a moment. After a while, Jeff could feel her eyes on him. Looking away from Joyce, he met Caitlin's eyes.

"That ... that ... thing is alive. I could feel ... something in my mind ... like a ... buzzing." There was a moment of hesitation before, "It was talking to you wasn't it?" she accused, although she still remembered to whisper.

"She is a she. Not an it," Jeff absently corrected. "And yes, I was 'talking' with her."

"Jeff, how could you make that, uh, her?" Then answering her own question, "You didn't. That thing is alive. Oh, shit, is Joyce safe?" she finished, her voice coming up enough to worry Jeff.

Jeff put his finger to his lips in the universal gesture to be quiet, glancing toward the door. When the nurse didn't show up, he turned back to Caitlin. "I'm already into deep shit, anyway. I'll tell you a little more about her when we're alone, or back at the retreat with my wives, but please, just cool it for now. She is healing Joyce. Remember, I promised you that if you could get me alone with Joyce for an extended period of time that she would be healed. If I understand correctly, Little One is finishing up with the heart now. She says that the brain will be easy and I guess, much quicker."

"Oh, so healing a broken blood vessel in the brain and repairing damaged brain tissue is just an 'easy' thing to do?" she sarcastically said.

Caitlin's eyes were drawn to Joyce's pulse rate showing on the monitor. "Her heart rate is falling and although that is good, you can bet that nurse will be in here shortly if it continues to fall at that rate."