Three men converged on room four and watched as the attending nurse checked the monitors on the unconscious patient. Josiah Sanchez saw them and immediately placed his hand on the blond head. He closed his eyes and said a silent prayer as he left the room.
“How is Mr. Larabee?” Ezra asked.
“He’s about the same,” Josiah said worriedly.
“Has he been awake yet?” JD asked.
“I’m afraid not, JD,” Sanchez said.
“What does the doctor say about that?” Travis asked, the lines around his eyes and mouth becoming more prominent in his worry over his friend and associate.
“They think he’s in a coma,” Sanchez said softly.
“Ah shit,” JD exclaimed.
“They’re going to put him through some tests just to be sure but the doctor is pretty certain.”
“What’re we gonna do?” JD asked.
“Talk to him, JD, there’s no way of knowing whether a patient in a coma can hear things but I’m a firm believer in doing anything and everything in my power to help Brother Chris,” Josiah said. “I’ll let you guys visit and go see Brother Vin.”
“Mr. Travis has arranged rooms for all of us at the hotel. Nathan and Ezra are going to stay with Mr. Larabee and Mr. Tanner while the rest of us get some sleep. They want us to relieve them in the morning,” Standish explained.
“That was very kind of you, Mr. Travis. I’ll see you guys in Vin’s room as soon as you’re done,” he said as he headed for the elevator.
“You want to go in first, JD?” Orrin Travis asked the youngest member of the team.
“Can you come with me, Ezra?” JD asked.
“I don’t know if they’ll let us both in but we’ll certainly find out,” Ezra Standish said as he placed his arm around Dunne’s shoulder. “We won’t be long, Mr. Travis.”
“I’ll be right here,” Travis said as he stood next to the open door.
“Only one visitor at a time,” the nurse said as she checked the monitors over her patient's head.
“My young friend is a little nervous. I’d like to stay with him if it’s ok, Nurse?” Standish asked.
Melanie turned from the monitors and noticed the slightly pale young man being helped into the room by a man not much older with intense green eyes. “You can stay for a minute but then you’ll have to go,” she said, giving them a small smile of reassurance.
“Thank you, Melanie,” Ezra said as he read the name on her tag. “How is Mr. Larabee doing?” he asked as she checked his blood pressure.
“There’s no change,” she said.
“Chris, I don’t know if you can hear me or not but you have to get better,” JD said as he leaned heavily against Standish. He let his own tears flow freely from his eyes and wondered if he’d ever be the recipient of the Larabee glare again.
“I second that, Mr. Larabee, the team needs you,” Standish said as he blinked away the moisture in his own eyes. “Ah hell, Chris, I need you. You’re the first person who’s ever believed in me and I won’t ever forget that. Keep fighting and come back to us.” He closed his eyes against the moisture but was pulled from his thoughts by the loud sound of alarms.
“You’ll have to leave! Get out of here now!” Melanie said as she began pulling the blankets off her patient.
Ezra Standish pulled the younger man from the room as the call went out over the hospital’s PA system. “CODE BLUE, SEVENTH FLOOR, ICU! CODE BLUE, SEVENTH FLOOR, ICU!”
“Chris!” the cry was ripped from Vin Tanner’s mouth as the call for code blue came over the speakers. His body thrashed around in the bed as he trembled in the throes of a nightmare.
Nathan Jackson, Josiah Sanchez, and Buck Wilmington didn’t need anyone to tell them that something had happened to their friend in ICU. The intangible link between Chris Larabee and Vin Tanner was in full force and even in his unconscious state Vin knew something had happened to his friend.
“Go, Buck, find out what’s going on. I’ll stay with Vin,” Jackson said as he soothed the trembling man on the bed.
“I’ll stay with Brother Vin, Nathan, you go with Buck,” Sanchez said as he took over Jackson’s place by the injured man’s bed.
“Thanks, Josiah,” Nathan said as he headed for the door.
“We’ll let you know as soon as we find out anything,” Wilmington said as he hurried from the room and raced towards the elevator, almost knocking over a drug cart pushed by a tiny nurse in his panicked flight. He apologized but continued to the elevator as the Code Blue call continued over the PA system. Nathan Jackson following closely on his heels.
Buck tapped anxiously on the door of the elevator and pushed continuously on the button for the seventh floor. Neither man said a word as the elevator continued it’s upward journey. It seemed like an eternity before the doors opened and they raced out into the hall. They ran down the hall towards their friend's room hoping they were wrong and that it wasn’t Chris who was in trouble but some other unfortunate soul. As they rounded the corner, they knew they’d been right when they saw the anguished looks on the faces of the three men leaning against the stark white wall.
“Oh, Buck,” JD said as he spotted his friend. Suddenly the dam burst and his body was wracked with sobs as tears fell from his eyes.
Buck reached out and gently held his the younger man. He lifted his eyes to the tiny room that housed several people all working anxiously to save the one man who meant so much to so many. “Ah, shit,” he said as his own tears joined those of his young friend.
Nathan Jackson stood by the door. He knew from his training what was happening in the tiny room. Chris Larabee was lying on his back, blankets pulled back, nude body exposed for all to see. He hated how hospitals made you feel as if you had no dignity but also realized that everything that was being done would help save his friend's life. He watched as Weaver lifted the paddles on the defibrillator and heard the anxious call to “Clear!” He watched as the patient’s body arched into the air as the jolt was delivered. He looked up at the monitors and knew nothing had changed. He watched as a needle was inserted into his friends IV and once again the paddles were applied and the body repeated the same arching as before. Once again his eyes were drawn to the monitors and he was relieved to see the signs improving as the drugs and shocks did their job.
Vin Tanner knew something was wrong before he opened his eyes. He’d felt the connection he had with Chris being snapped and it caused more pain then the ankle or his aching head. He pushed himself up in his bed but found strong hands pushing him back.
“Lay still, my friend.”
“Josiah?” Vin asked weakly.
“I’m here,” Sanchez said reassuringly.
“Something’s wrong with Chris,” Vin said, his sightless eyes filled with worry.
“He’s ok, Vin,” Josiah lied.
“No! No, he’s not, Josiah. I can’t feel him anymore. He’s not in my head,” Vin cried.
Sanchez had come to realize that Chris and Vin had an unspoken connection. It was something he’d known from the beginning and when he’d first witnessed it his thought had been, ‘The Lord works in mysterious ways.’ “He’s still there, Vin, you’re just not able to feel him because of the sedatives. How do you feel?” he asked, trying to divert the young man’s attention.
“Like my head’s gonna explode,” Vin said.
“Well that’s to be expected. The doctor was in earlier while you were resting. She says you have a severe concussion,” Sanchez said.
“Can you lower my head a bit, Josiah?” Vin asked as he continued to worry about his friend in ICU.
“Sorry, Vin, but you have to stay as you are. Dr. Mercer thinks it might help the swelling behind your eyes. You in any pain?” Sanchez asked.
“A little,” Vin answered as he winced at the pain in his ankle.
“More than a little. I want you to try to go back to sleep. You’re having surgery early tomorrow morning and you’ll be needing your rest.”
“Surgery?” Vin asked confusedly.
“On your ankle. They have to put a pin in to keep it immobilized and allow it to heal properly.”
“Josiah.”
“Yes, Vin.”
“Can I see Chris?" suddenly Vin started to laugh.
“What’s so funny, Brother Vin?” Josiah asked.
“I asked if I could see Chris. I can’t see nothing but can I visit him?” he laughed softly.
“You’ll be able to see him soon, Vin. You have to let your own body heal first.”
“I want to visit him now,” Tanner said forcefully.
“That’s not going to happen right now.”
Vin’s anger and frustration over his injuries and blindness exploded from his mouth, “I knew it. He’s dead and that’s why you won’t let me visit him.” Tears flowed from his eyes as his body was wracked with painful sobs.
“No, Vin, he’s not dead,” Josiah said as he pushed the tiny button that would summon the nurse.
“Then why can’t I see him?” Vin cried.
“Because you need to rest,” Josiah answered.
The attending nurse entered the room, took in the troubled face of her patient and left the room. She was back a few moments later and inserted a needle into the junction in the IV line. She stood and watched as the handsome young man succumbed to the drug induced sleep.
“What happened?” she asked Sanchez.
“He’s worried about his friend,” Josiah explained.
“He the one in ICU?”
“Yes, Ma’am.”
“I saw the others run out when they heard the code blue. Was it your friend?”
“I think so. They would have returned by now if it wasn’t Chris.”
“I’m sorry,” she said as she watched the lines of worry on the man's face.
“Thank you,” Josiah said and soon heard the door open as she left.
Weaver turned from the monitors and let his eyes fall on the men waiting outside the door. He knew he’d have to speak with them and he was glad it was with the news that their friend was still alive.
He signed the charts and changed some of the meds before leaving the room to join the waiting men.
“Doc?” Buck asked.
“He’s alive,” Weaver said.
“What happened?” Nathan asked.
“Your friend's body as been weakened from his injuries, peritonitis, and pneumonia. We’ve been monitoring him closely expecting something like this and that’s why we were able to bring him back so quickly,” Weaver explained.
“Will it happen again?” Standish asked.
“It could. We’ll continue to monitor him and hopefully if it does, we’ll be able to bring him back again.”
“Is there anything else?” Travis asked as he saw the worry in the man’s face.
Weaver knew he was dealing with a group of men who were used to reading behind the lines. His shoulders slumped as he gazed into each man’s face. “I’m afraid Mr. Larabee has slipped into a coma,” he said softly.
“W...what caused that?” JD asked worriedly.
“There are many things that cause a patient to go into a coma. In Mr. Larabee’s case, I’d say it was trauma, especially the type of trauma your friend as gone through. His body is weakened and he may have decided he doesn’t want to fight any more,” Weaver told them. He tried to stay unemotional with his patients and their friends but he’d found over the years that it was impossible to detach himself. These men cared so much about their friend and it was with a pained expression that he told them the news.
“Will he come out of it?” Wilmington asked.
“We know very little about Coma, Mr. Wilmington. From everything I’ve seen, your friend is a normally healthy man and that’s something in his favour. When you’re in the room with him, I’d like you to talk with him and touch him. Physical as well as emotional support will go a long way towards Mr. Larabee’s recovery. I’m going off duty but my associate, Dr. Burkhart will be here.”
“You’re leaving?” JD asked wearily.
“I’ve been on duty for twenty hours, young man. I don’t want to leave but I need some sleep as do all of you,” Weaver said as he once again looked at each man.
“Can I go see him?” Nathan asked.
“Give the nurses a few minutes to make him comfortable and then you can go in. Just make sure you don’t get in the way,” Weaver told them. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Thanks, Doc,” Wilmington said as he watched the nursing staff replace the thin sheet over his friend.
“One of you can come in now,” Melanie said as she finished pushing the crash cart away from the bed. She emptied the foley catheter and measured the liquid. She then turned to the drainage tube in her patient's side and emptied the dark pink liquid.
Melanie raised her head as a handsome dark skinned man entered the room. She saw the look of horror on his face at the coloured fluid she measured. “I’m sorry you had to see that,” She said as she disposed of the waste. “It’s a little darker than it was but he’s back and he’s holding his own,” she said but knew it did little to reassure the man.
“How are his vitals?” Nathan asked.
“Blood pressure is a little low, temperature is one hundred and four but that’s to be expected with the pneumonia and infection,” Melanie explained.
Nathan walked to the bed and looked at the man lying there. Between the tubes, IV’s, monitoring equipment, and the ventilator, there was little of his friend exposed. He reached out and placed a gentle hand on his left shoulder and spoke softly.
“Hey, Chris, you gonna just lay there or you gonna fight this thing? We’re all waiting here for you to come back and give us all a great big Larabee glare. Hell, I’d welcome one of those infamous glares right now,” Nathan said and Melanie couldn’t help but smile at the man.
“Keep talking to him. They don’t know for sure if a patient hears you but I’m a firm believer in talking to a comatose patient. It certainly can’t do any harm,” she said.
“Ok, if I sit with him for awhile?” Jackson asked.
“I don’t mind at all. I’ll let you know if you’re in my way,” Melanie told him.
“I’ll be right back,” Jackson said and left the room. “You guys better go get that rest,” Jackson said.
“I ain’t goin nowhere,” Buck said.
“Buck, I know you’re worried, hell we all are, but we’re not doing either of them any good if we get sick. Just get out of here at least for a couple of hours. I’m going to need you here tomorrow,” Jackson said.
“Nathan, I’m going to see Chris for a minute. Buck, you, JD, and Ezra go tell Josiah what happened and I’ll be down to take you all to the hotel in ten minutes. I mean it, Buck, no arguments. We’re going to need your strength,” Travis said as he hurried into room four.
“I’m sorry, Chris,” Travis said, guilt over the plane crash pressing on his mind. “Guess the next time you tell me you don’t need a vacation I’ll believe you,” Travis said as he looked at his employee and friend with tears brimming in his elderly eyes. “How the hell could something like this happen? You and Vin were supposed to get some R&R but you end up in here. Dammit, I wish I had the time back and could send you on some friendly little terrorist case instead,” he smiled down at the man on the bed. “I’m going to go let Nathan come back in. I think I’d better get Buck and the rest of your stubborn team out of here. Take care, my friend and make sure you’re here when I get back tomorrow or I’ll...” Travis smiled as he realized he was about to threaten to fire Chris if he wasn’t there when he came back in the morning. Patting the man’s left shoulder, he turned and hurried from the room before the nurse could see the path his tears took down his cheeks.
Ezra sat in the chair in Vin’s room. He stood up and stretched the kinks out of his tired, aching body. He walked to the bed and looked at the peacefully sleeping man.
The door opened and a young woman dressed in a white nurses uniform walked in, “Good morning,” she said pleasantly. “My name's Stephanie and I’ll be looking after Mr. Tanner today.”
“Good morning, Stephanie, I’m Ezra, Ezra Standish.”
“Well, Mr. Standish, if you’d like to go get some coffee or maybe some breakfast I have to get Mr. Tanner ready for surgery. They’ll be here for him in thirty minutes.”
“If it’s all the same with you, ma’am I’d rather stay with my comrade,” Ezra told her.
“If you insist,” she said as she began taking vitals and checked the IV line. Ezra watched as she placed a needle into one of the junctions and added some medication to the IV. “What’s that?” he asked.
“This is a mild sedative. Mr. Tanner is suffering from a severe concussion and the doctor thinks that’s what’s causing the blindness. She’s hoping that if the swelling goes down his sight will return. She’s arranged for him to see an ophthalmic surgeon but it has to wait till they fix the ankle,” she explained.
“I hope she’s right and that Mr. Tanner’s sight returns with the reduction of the swelling,” Ezra said as he watched her continue with her duties.
“C...Chris,” Vin called as he opened his eyes to the darkness.
“Hey, Mr. Tanner, it’s about time you woke up. I was beginning to believe you’d sleep the day away.”
“Shut up, Ez, where’s Chris?” Vin asked.
“He’s upstairs, Vin.”
“Why won’t they let me s... I mean visit him?” Vin asked as he yawned sleepily.
“He’s sleeping right now, Mr. Tanner, maybe when your surgery is over they’ll let us bring you up to see him,” Ezra explained.
“Surgery?”
“Don’t you remember, Mr. Tanner, you’re having surgery on your ankle this morning.”
“Let me visit Chris first,” Vin said.
“That’s not possible, Mr. Tanner, they’ve already called for you. The orderly will be here to take you to the OR any minute,” Stephanie explained.
“Who are you?” Vin asked.
“I’m going to be looking after you today. My name is Stephanie and I’m a registered nurse,” she said. She looked up as the door was opened and a stretcher was wheeled in. “I think your carriage has arrived,” she said.
As the orderlies and the nurse began to transfer the injured man to his bed, Vin spoke softly. “Promise me I’ll get to visit Chris when I come back, Ez.”
“I can’t promise, Mr. Tanner, but I’ll speak to your Doctor,” Ezra said as the nurse transferred the IV from one pole to another.
“Good morning, Mr. Jackson, is it?”
“Good morning,” Nathan said as a new nurse entered ICU four.
“My name is Peggy and I’ll be looking after Mr. Larabee today. Melanie said he had a rough night last night,” she said as she began checking the monitors, lines and various tubes leading into the man on the bed.
“He went into some kind of arrest last night and Dr. Weaver said he’s in a coma,” Jackson said as he rubbed his tired eyes. “Dr. Burkhart was in a couple of times but he says there’s no change.”
“I was just speaking with Dr. Burkhart,” she said.
“What does he say about Chris?” Jackson asked wearily.
“He changed the antibiotics to a stronger form. Right now Mr. Larabee doesn’t have the strength to fight the infections in his body and we have to be more aggressive in his treatment.”
“I understand,” Nathan said.
“Mr. Jackson,” Ezra called softly from the door.
“Ezra, what are you doing here? Is Vin alright?”
“They came to take Mr. Tanner to surgery. I though I’d come see if you’d join me for breakfast,” Standish said.
“Why don’t you go with your friend, Mr. Jackson? I want to drain some of the tubes and we’re going to turn Mr. Larabee again,” Peggy told him.
Nathan looked back at the bed and nodded, “I’ll be back in half an hour,” he told the nurse.
“That’s fine, Mr. Jackson, We should be done by then,” Peggy said as she was joined by another, older nurse.
Vin Tanner felt hands on his body as he was lifted onto a cold bed. He knew where he was as the orderly had explained where they were going and what they were doing. He was frightened for the first time in his life. He’d had surgery before but at those times he’d been able to see the faces of the people who were in the operating room with him. Now he couldn’t see any of the strangers in the room with him and he felt as if he’d lost control.
“Mr. Tanner, I’m Doctor Gleason and I’m going to be putting you to sleep today. I see by your charts that you have a hard time with anaesthesia.”
“Makes me sick,” Vin said softly, a hint of fear in his voice.
“We’re going to make sure the nurses in recovery know what to expect and hopefully the Gravol will make it a little easier on you,” Gleason explained.
“Thanks,” Vin said quietly as his right hand was pulled away from his side and strapped to a board. His left hand was pulled straight out as well and he listened to the doctor explaining exactly what he was going to do.
The circulating nurse went to the door and let the surgeons know they were ready to begin.
“Good morning, Mr. Tanner,” Dr. Mercer said as she stepped up to the bed. “I saw you yesterday in the ER. Do you remember?”
“Yes, Ma’am,” Vin said softly.
“I’d like you to say hello to Dr. Owens. He’s going to be doing the actual surgery today. Do you remember what we’re going to do?” she asked knowing that he was still suffering from a concussion. She wanted to know if his short-term memory was affected.
“Putting some kinda pin in my ankle,” Vin answered.
“That’s right, Mr. Tanner,” Dr. Owens said. “I guess we’re ready to begin. Dr. Gleason is going to put you to sleep now and you’ll wake up in recovery.”
“K,” Vin said.
“I’m putting the versed in now, Mr. Tanner, so try and relax now,” Gleason explained as he added the anaesthesia to the IV line.
He placed his hand on the eyelashes, when there was no reaction he inserted the succinylcholine into the IV. He then placed the endotracheal tube and hooked Vin Tanner to the ventilator. “All set,” he told the doctors as he finished checking the monitors.
Nathan and Ezra returned to ICU four and waited for news on Vin Tanner. Peggy was once again checking vitals and marking them down on a chart when they entered. Nathan hated the stillness of the form on the bed. He could see how pale the man’s skin was as he lay partly on his left side, his arms in front of him. Pillows supported his weight and kept him from rolling.
“Why’d they turn him?” Ezra asked.
“To prevent bedsores,” Nathan answered.
“I see,” Ezra said softly.
“Come on, JD, I want to get to the hospital,” Buck Wilmington said as he pounded on the bathroom door. They’d already called the hospital and checked on their friends. They knew Vin was in surgery and that things hadn’t improved for Chris.
“Coming, Buck,” JD called and Buck smiled as he heard the shower turn off.
“You got ten minutes to get dressed and meet us out front. Travis has arranged a car to take us to the hospital,” Wilmington shouted.
“I said I’m coming, Buck,” JD shouted back impatiently.
“Well then hurry up,” Buck shouted as he turned away from the door.
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