Page 6
Story: Handling Haven
As the others said goodbye to the Deimos spy and then moved toward the door, Frisco held back a moment. Carter raised an eyebrow at him.
He cleared his throat. “Listen ... um ... I don’t know if you can, and I understand if you can’t, but I’d appreciate it if you ... uh ... if you could let me know how she’s doing.”
The other man cocked his head to the side and stared at him for a few seconds. Frisco refused to back down from the intense scrutiny. Finally, Carter nodded. “I’ll do my best.”
“Thanks.” Without another word, he walked out the door. For some unknown reason, though, he felt like he was leaving a part of himself behind.
CHAPTER 5
An incessant beepingpenetrated Haven’s mind, annoying her as she floated amidst pure darkness. When she tried to push it away, it was replaced by something else ... something that had her wanting to scream. Pain ... white, hot, searing pain. She was either still alive or had been borne through the gates of Hell, and didn’t know which was worse.Where am I?
Searching the darkness, she tried to find a clue to where she was and how to get out of there. But the agony was so excruciating, she couldn’t move. Her legs wouldn’t obey her mind and felt like they were submerged in a vat of lava. This was it. Her Hell. The one she deserved after all this time. Or was it?
There had to be a way out. A way to redeem herself. Before it was too late.
Her eyelids were being held down by five-pound weights, and it took all her energy to pry them open. Wherever she was, it was dark, but not as bad as the abyss she’d been in. She could move her arms, but her legs were restrained. Haven blinked, and her head and stomach swirled in nauseating circles, causing her to slam her eyes shut again.
I’m drunk. I have to be. All the signs are there. Nausea, dry mouth, pounding headache.But she never got drunk—at least, not since college. And why did the rest of her feel like it was on fire—her back and stomach were just as bad as her legs. Had she been in an accident?Oh, God!Was she in the hands of one of her enemies? Was she being tortured? If that was the case, she didn’t want to wake up.
Wait. No. It hadn’t been an accident. Screams. Gunshots.Run, Kenny. Before it’s too late. Hurry. Kenny, where are you? I’m his bodyguard. Where is he? If anything happened to that sweet kid, I’ll never forgive myself.Yes, he was a part of her world, but only on the periphery. He spent his time cocooned in the communications center at headquarters. His engagements with the enemies of the United States weredone from behind a computer screen. He’d never killed someone in cold blood because the alternative was Americans dying at some bastard’s hands.Kenny. Damn it. Where are you?
The beeping grew louder. Faster. She had to get out of here. Had to find Kenny.
Haven. Wake up, honey. You’re going to be okay. I’m right here. Wake up. That’s an order, Haven.
She knew that deep, rumbling voice. She knew him. He was a friend. She was safe with him. The knowledge calmed her, easing her panic. She forced her eyelids upward again and, this time, she managed to keep them open and not throw up. Her eyes focused and found the man sitting next to the bed she was laying on.
“Hey, it’s about time you woke up.”
Carter.His blue eyes were filled with a combination of concern and relief. Haven scanned the room. She was in a hospital, so she must have been right—she’d been in an accident. Opening her mouth, she tried to speak, but her tongue and lips were so dry, she began to cough, and that sent shards of pain shooting through her body again. That damn beeping of the monitor over her left shoulderincreased too.
“Hey, easy, sweetheart. Here. Take a sip of water.” He held a straw to her lips, and Haven closed them around it, drinking the cool liquid greedily. “That’s it. Not too much.”
Letting go of the straw, she swallowed several times. “Wh-What happened? Where am I?”
Before he had a chance to answer her, the private room’s door quietly swung open, and Jordyn walked in on silent feet. Her face lit up when she noticed Haven. “Oh, thank God.” Hurrying over, she handed her lover a brown, paper, deli bag as he stood and let her sit in the chair. “How do you feel?”
“Like I got hit by a Mac truck. I’m in pain from head to toe. What happened?”
For some reason, her words startled the other woman, which she knew from experience was hard to do. Before Haven could analyze Jordyn’s surprised expression, it morphed into something akin to empathy. Placing the bag on a window shelf, Carter stepped over to the device attached to an IV pole next to the bed. He handed her a cable with a small box on the end. “Push the blue button if you’re in pain.”
Haven took it from him, but despite feeling like crap at the moment, she wanted a clear head whileshe found out what was going on. “What happened?” she repeated. “Where are we?”
“Landstuhl Medical Center. You’ve been out of it for two days.” Reaching over the bed railing, Jordyn laid her hand on her arm. “What do you remember?”
Her brow furrowed as she tried to think past the pain. “We were ... we were at the wedding. Kenny ...” Her eyes went wide. “Oh, my God, is he okay? Where is he?”
“He’s fine. He’s already back in California.”
A sigh of relief escaped her. “Okay. Good.” She settled back down and concentrated. “Um ... we were walking around.” The memories started pouring in. “There was an explosion. Then men with guns came in. I shot one of them. Kenny and I jumped out the window, and we were running ... I ...” She shook her head slightly, but the nausea returning stopped her. “I don’t remember anything after that. What happened?”
Jordyn bit her lip and then glanced at Carter. He leaned over and took Haven’s hand. “You were shot in the back, sweetheart. Ian and a few others came running and got you and Reardon out of there on the Blackhawk. They flew you straight to Kearsarge where you had surgery, before beingtransported here.” He paused, and Haven got a sick feeling in her stomach. “The bullet nicked your spinal cord, which caused swelling and bruising, but the doctors said the damage will heal in time.”
Unable to fully comprehend what he was telling her, the only words that stood out were “spinal cord” and “damage.” Her mouth dropped in horror. “Wh-What do you mean damage? What kind of damage?”
“Sh. Listen to me. Calm down. You’re going to be all right.” He squeezed her hand. “The doctors are calling it cord shock. It means that until the swelling goes down, and the tissue heals, you’re going to have limited use of your legs for a while.”
“Limited?” Her gaze went back and forth between the two of them as she tried to understand what he was saying. “You—You mean I’m ... I’m paralyzed? But I can feel my legs ... I can ...” Staring at her covered legs, she tried to move them, but they just lay there. She shook her head so hard in disbelief it should have gone flying off her neck, and her nausea returned. “No ... no ... but I can feel them. They hurt. I ... oh, God, they hurt! Why can’t I move them?”
He cleared his throat. “Listen ... um ... I don’t know if you can, and I understand if you can’t, but I’d appreciate it if you ... uh ... if you could let me know how she’s doing.”
The other man cocked his head to the side and stared at him for a few seconds. Frisco refused to back down from the intense scrutiny. Finally, Carter nodded. “I’ll do my best.”
“Thanks.” Without another word, he walked out the door. For some unknown reason, though, he felt like he was leaving a part of himself behind.
CHAPTER 5
An incessant beepingpenetrated Haven’s mind, annoying her as she floated amidst pure darkness. When she tried to push it away, it was replaced by something else ... something that had her wanting to scream. Pain ... white, hot, searing pain. She was either still alive or had been borne through the gates of Hell, and didn’t know which was worse.Where am I?
Searching the darkness, she tried to find a clue to where she was and how to get out of there. But the agony was so excruciating, she couldn’t move. Her legs wouldn’t obey her mind and felt like they were submerged in a vat of lava. This was it. Her Hell. The one she deserved after all this time. Or was it?
There had to be a way out. A way to redeem herself. Before it was too late.
Her eyelids were being held down by five-pound weights, and it took all her energy to pry them open. Wherever she was, it was dark, but not as bad as the abyss she’d been in. She could move her arms, but her legs were restrained. Haven blinked, and her head and stomach swirled in nauseating circles, causing her to slam her eyes shut again.
I’m drunk. I have to be. All the signs are there. Nausea, dry mouth, pounding headache.But she never got drunk—at least, not since college. And why did the rest of her feel like it was on fire—her back and stomach were just as bad as her legs. Had she been in an accident?Oh, God!Was she in the hands of one of her enemies? Was she being tortured? If that was the case, she didn’t want to wake up.
Wait. No. It hadn’t been an accident. Screams. Gunshots.Run, Kenny. Before it’s too late. Hurry. Kenny, where are you? I’m his bodyguard. Where is he? If anything happened to that sweet kid, I’ll never forgive myself.Yes, he was a part of her world, but only on the periphery. He spent his time cocooned in the communications center at headquarters. His engagements with the enemies of the United States weredone from behind a computer screen. He’d never killed someone in cold blood because the alternative was Americans dying at some bastard’s hands.Kenny. Damn it. Where are you?
The beeping grew louder. Faster. She had to get out of here. Had to find Kenny.
Haven. Wake up, honey. You’re going to be okay. I’m right here. Wake up. That’s an order, Haven.
She knew that deep, rumbling voice. She knew him. He was a friend. She was safe with him. The knowledge calmed her, easing her panic. She forced her eyelids upward again and, this time, she managed to keep them open and not throw up. Her eyes focused and found the man sitting next to the bed she was laying on.
“Hey, it’s about time you woke up.”
Carter.His blue eyes were filled with a combination of concern and relief. Haven scanned the room. She was in a hospital, so she must have been right—she’d been in an accident. Opening her mouth, she tried to speak, but her tongue and lips were so dry, she began to cough, and that sent shards of pain shooting through her body again. That damn beeping of the monitor over her left shoulderincreased too.
“Hey, easy, sweetheart. Here. Take a sip of water.” He held a straw to her lips, and Haven closed them around it, drinking the cool liquid greedily. “That’s it. Not too much.”
Letting go of the straw, she swallowed several times. “Wh-What happened? Where am I?”
Before he had a chance to answer her, the private room’s door quietly swung open, and Jordyn walked in on silent feet. Her face lit up when she noticed Haven. “Oh, thank God.” Hurrying over, she handed her lover a brown, paper, deli bag as he stood and let her sit in the chair. “How do you feel?”
“Like I got hit by a Mac truck. I’m in pain from head to toe. What happened?”
For some reason, her words startled the other woman, which she knew from experience was hard to do. Before Haven could analyze Jordyn’s surprised expression, it morphed into something akin to empathy. Placing the bag on a window shelf, Carter stepped over to the device attached to an IV pole next to the bed. He handed her a cable with a small box on the end. “Push the blue button if you’re in pain.”
Haven took it from him, but despite feeling like crap at the moment, she wanted a clear head whileshe found out what was going on. “What happened?” she repeated. “Where are we?”
“Landstuhl Medical Center. You’ve been out of it for two days.” Reaching over the bed railing, Jordyn laid her hand on her arm. “What do you remember?”
Her brow furrowed as she tried to think past the pain. “We were ... we were at the wedding. Kenny ...” Her eyes went wide. “Oh, my God, is he okay? Where is he?”
“He’s fine. He’s already back in California.”
A sigh of relief escaped her. “Okay. Good.” She settled back down and concentrated. “Um ... we were walking around.” The memories started pouring in. “There was an explosion. Then men with guns came in. I shot one of them. Kenny and I jumped out the window, and we were running ... I ...” She shook her head slightly, but the nausea returning stopped her. “I don’t remember anything after that. What happened?”
Jordyn bit her lip and then glanced at Carter. He leaned over and took Haven’s hand. “You were shot in the back, sweetheart. Ian and a few others came running and got you and Reardon out of there on the Blackhawk. They flew you straight to Kearsarge where you had surgery, before beingtransported here.” He paused, and Haven got a sick feeling in her stomach. “The bullet nicked your spinal cord, which caused swelling and bruising, but the doctors said the damage will heal in time.”
Unable to fully comprehend what he was telling her, the only words that stood out were “spinal cord” and “damage.” Her mouth dropped in horror. “Wh-What do you mean damage? What kind of damage?”
“Sh. Listen to me. Calm down. You’re going to be all right.” He squeezed her hand. “The doctors are calling it cord shock. It means that until the swelling goes down, and the tissue heals, you’re going to have limited use of your legs for a while.”
“Limited?” Her gaze went back and forth between the two of them as she tried to understand what he was saying. “You—You mean I’m ... I’m paralyzed? But I can feel my legs ... I can ...” Staring at her covered legs, she tried to move them, but they just lay there. She shook her head so hard in disbelief it should have gone flying off her neck, and her nausea returned. “No ... no ... but I can feel them. They hurt. I ... oh, God, they hurt! Why can’t I move them?”