Chapter 77

I wasn't upset being left with a stranger on my first night out of the hospital. Everybody needed some rest. Millie and Mr. Bell were nearby, and I supposed Rebecca and Colleen were also close.

My nurse, that first night, introduced herself as Madeline Hobson. She stood five-two, weighed about two-hundred thirty pounds, and was what we liked to think of as "big boned." She was a singularly unlovely person in looks, demeanor, and personality.

When she opened her mouth, it was obvious that her IQ was four points short of a carrot. She was big boned, big butted, big breasted, and big stomached. She also had big hair, a big appetite, a BIG mouth, and a tiny little brain.

When she laughed or even moved, it triggered her whole body into an out of kilter motion that was almost fascinating to watch. If you thought about it, it would drive you crazy, so I decided to keep my gaze off of Madeline's unique physical characteristics.

We might have got along fine. I was too weak to do more than lie there. BUT! Knowing I was captive, she showed no mercy. Not having an interest in my needs didn't slow her down from enumerating her many disappointments, failed love affairs, lost fortunes, stolen moments of ecstasy, and all the latest dish from reality TV. I wasn't a patient; I was a prisoner. It got annoying, and then it got downright obnoxious.

Within forty-five minutes, I was going out of my head from listening to her prattle on and on about nothing. Finally, Millie stopped in to see how I was doing, and Madeline took that opportunity to run to the restroom and "freshen up a little."

"Please," My eyes begged Millie. "Please have Rebecca get rid of this woman. She's so annoying I can feel my blood pressure rising, just from having to listen to her babble on and on.

"Help me, here. Please?"

Millie stayed beside me until well after Madeline returned. Seeing fresh meat, Madeline started right back where she started with me, telling Millie all the same stupid prattle. I have to give Millie credit, she got tired of Madeline much faster than I did, and excused herself to find Mr. Bell and make this right.

They must have called Rebecca and Colleen, because Rebecca's car skidded into the Bell's driveway, a very short time later, and she dismissed Madeline. I wanted to cry, then hug her, and then worship at her feet, for saving me from that mental case. The resulting quiet had the immediate effect of calming my tortured brain enough that I could fall asleep. Being cradled against Rebecca, and petted by Millie and Colleen certainly helped.

Sleep was a blessing, and by morning I could feel my body responding.

Mr. Bell was sitting beside the bed when I opened my eyes. On the other side of my bed sat Judge Jones and Kevin Hudson, Assistant Director of DHS. That got my attention so fast, I almost jumped. Mr. Bell patted my hand and said, "Don't get scared, Brian. The Judge and Mr. Hudson decided to come out and brief you in person, so they commandeered a jet early this morning, and here they are.

"Millie is making them a country style breakfast, and we were waiting for you to waken up, before discussing anything more important than the weather." His smile was both paternal and feral. I suspect I knew that Mr. Bell had had enough of the problems that were besetting the US Government where we were concerned, and they were about to see a different side of him.

I wanted to defend him before it became necessary, and said, "Good morning Mr. Bell and Judge Jones. Good morning Director Hudson. I apologize for being indisposed and forcing you to wait for me to wake up.

"Mr. Bell, didn't Judge Thorson wish to be present when our official guests arrived?" He saw through my question and recognized I was protecting him, before he started something that would cause hard feelings. It went without saying that I would stand with Mr. Bell, come hell or high water, but why antagonize an ally when you can maneuver someone else into being the in-between, bad guy?

Judge Jones jumped in ahead of Mr. Bell. "Good morning Brian. You are right. Judge Thorson is on his way, and even though we were waiting for you to wake up, we would have still delayed until the Judge could be with us.

"It is good to see you awake, son. The last two times I visited you, you were in awful shape. I do owe you an apology for how things went when we tried to help you travel to Sweden. I am so sorry, son. We discovered several things that you deserve to know. We'll talk about it all when my friend, Clyde finally gets his butt out here.

"In the meantime, can one of you give us an update on your health problem?"

I deferred to Mr. Bell, out of respect and logic. I'd been unconscious for the last six weeks. Anything I could tell them was second hand. Mr. Bell smiled, patted my arm in a fatherly way, and said, "Judge..."

"Jim, why don't we dispense with titles? My name is Cleveland, and you can call me Cleve, Ok? I think Director Hudson would rather be referred to as Kevin, if you don't mind."

"Of course, and you'll refer to me as Jim, from now on ... Now gentlemen, you knew that the NIH sent some miracle men to save Brian's life with an experimental procedure. It worked on the initial problems, and then when things went south again, they used the same procedures to work their magic.

"Essentially, Judge – I'm sorry. I meant to say 'Cleve' – When those people drew off Brian's security detail, and killed the five agents, Brian's carefully repaired arteries weren't capable of withstanding the blood pressure spikes. That he remained conscious long enough to protect my daughter, and Doctor Temple, is a medical miracle, in itself. As you know, that boy succeeded in doing what five highly trained, very skilled, and heavily armed protective division agents failed to do.

"Brian knew he had limited physical strength and expected to die from the stress. Even with the new bleeding causing pain and pressure against his skull, he stood his ground, just as you advised him.

"I can't speak for you, Cleve, but I am so proud of Brian. He saved my daughter and my almost-daughter, twice, with nothing but his brains and guts. And now, for the rest of his life, he will pay the price for what was done to him when HIS government let him down.

"We've decided that Brian will convalesce here. My daughter and Doctor Temple are arranging full time nursing care and physical therapy. We can at least pretend to live like normal people, at home instead of being hidden around in hotels and safe houses.

"Brian will recover some portion of his life, but the doctors say he will never be able to have the life we enjoy. His limits will be harsh, and he will pay a price every time he exceeds them.

The Judge sat quietly, thinking.

The Assistant Director of DHS said nothing, but looked embarrassed.

Mr. Bell waited, calmly.

I was still in bed. It occurred to me that Mr. Bell planned it that way, to give himself whatever edge he could gain. I'd seen my face in the mirror and it was ghastly. The scars were much worse than the other times. Those angry looking scars were puckered, purple, and red, and would scare the living hell out of children and women, the world over. The bruising around the wound made me look like I belonged in an ICU, waiting for a priest to administer last rites.

That couldn't have hurt our case, either.

Judge and Sandra Thorson arrived, and after Sandra gave me some loving, she went off to help Millie with breakfast. The Judge pulled up a chair and spoke. "Morning Cleve, Kevin, Jim.

"Brian, it is a real pleasure to see you awake and alert. How are you, my boy?"

"Thank you for your good wishes, Judge. I am so very thankful to be out of that awful hospital unit. They treated me like a slab of meat, and honestly, sir, they caused me more pain by treating me roughly, than I thought I could stand.

"Even in a medically induced coma, I could feel their rough handling practices, and it hurt so bad, I tried to scream, but though my mind was alert, I couldn't signal anyone that they were hurting me. You literally saved me, yesterday, by ordering them to let Rebecca move me where I could get better care. Thank you, sir. I owe you my life for what you did."

The Judge smiled, thanking me for my answer with his eyes. He gave Judge Jones a very pointed look, then waited.

Apparently, we waited too long, because Millie came in, followed closely by Sandra, and asked, "Brian, I just heard that you had some little bit of awareness when you died. Is that true? You have to tell me about that, and I mean right now." Her smile belied her words, but I got the point and answered slowly and carefully.

"Mrs. Bell, everything hurt so bad. It hurt to breath. It hurt to see. It hurt not to breathe, and it hurt to keep my eyes closed. The noise around me was like standing inside the amplifier at a rock concert. It hurt so bad to hear those sounds, I would have cried, but that would have hurt too much.

"I didn't know how much pain a body could take, until I couldn't take anymore.