Chapter Five – Buried in Defeat

Trapped now behind the impenetrable walls of the Dream world, there will be no end, no recovery and no truth. Lost forever to the sights and sounds beyond reality, beyond understanding or even caring. What is there to return to now? What hope is behind these towering walls?

~*~*~*~

Megan sat beside her partner’s bedside. She watched the easy rise and fall of his chest now lacking the multitude of tubes that had assisted him with breathing, eating, and cleansing. He had woken finally but still the doctor’s were not willing to risk surgery. The swelling had gone down further but it wasn’t reducing fast enough for the doctor’s liking.

Lucy had gone home earlier in desperate need of sleep. The poor girl was beginning to develop bags under her eyes and her normally pale skin was almost translucent from the stress. Megan knew the poor woman had rarely left Rafe’s side. She had cried long and hard when Rafe had finally woken, exhausting herself in Brown's arms as the doctor’s had checked him over. Rafe had convinced Lucy to get some real sleep at home in their bed and it told of her exhaustion when she didn’t argue but allowed Henri to take her.

A groan from the bed roused Megan from her thoughts and she stood up, reaching for his hand. “Rafe?”

“Mmm.”

“You awake now?”

“Mmm.” Brian’s eyes fluttered open and his sleepy gaze met hers. “Meg’n?”

“Yeah, Rafe, I’m here. How you feeling, need more meds?”

“Nuh. Luce?”

“H took her home, Rafe. She’s resting now. Like you should be.”

‘Wha’ppen’d”

“You don’t remember?”

There was a confused look in his eyes for a moment then a flash of remembrance. “Car?”

“Yeah. Drive-by shooting. Got us both. Doc says when the swelling goes down they are going to fix you up good as new. Lucy said she’d be back in the morning.” Megan watched her partner’s eyes drift slowly shut. “You get some sleep too, Pard. I be here.” Her hand reached out and brushed a stray lock of hair from his face and he seemed to shift into a deeper sleep.

~*~*~*~

Simon sighed in frustration. The last few weeks had been the toughest in his whole life. As far as he was concerned. Jim had slowly seemed to emerge from his funk, at least enough for him to return to the loft. Even though Simon had his doubts, Jim had seemed to rally. Where before he had been listless, now he seemed to be more aware, enough to react at any rate.

Over the last three days since Ellison’s release from the hospital, he'd moved back into the loft. Joel and Henri had been by to check on him frequently when they weren’t still out searching for Ventriss. He had seemed fine, if a little emotional.

The one thing that had confused all of them had been the small tape recorder hidden in the bedroom upstairs that had been found when the search had been done on the loft. It had been tucked under the floorboard beneath the bed where no one would have thought to look. The only reason they had found it was because the floorboard had been loose and Henri had almost fallen down the stairs. The bed was moved slightly from where it had been, but otherwise the room was undisturbed.

The tape recorder was now in forensics being evaluated.

They had all but given up hope of finding the young grad student. There had been no word on the national APB they had put out on the kid. Naomi hadn’t been easy to find but Simon had managed to reach her finally, in Singapore of all places. She hadn’t heard from Blair but when Simon had told her what was happening, she had ranted for a long while before finally telling Simon she was returning to Cascade and he had better be prepared for a nightmare of a lecture.

She was due in Cascade on the morning flight and no Simon wasn’t looking forward to her visit. It would not be a friendly one for sure.

“Brown, what have you got?” Simon called out as his detective entered the bullpen with a folder in his hands.

“Not good, Captain. I think we may have found Blair.” Henri entered the office and handed the file to Simon. “Hit and run in Baltimore. There was no id on the victim but he matched the APB description. The hospital contacted the police who called us.”

“Baltimore? How the hell did he get there?” Simon demanded in surprise. “Brown, take Joel and go get Jim. I am going to take him with me and we’ll bring Blair back.”

“Won’t be that easy, Captain.” H interrupted. “According to the report, the victim is in a coma. He is undernourished, emaciated and there is evidence of some mental degradation. He’s at St. Barnabus Hospital. Several broken ribs, cuts and bruises over most of his body, fractured hip and a broken leg. The hospital won’t allow him to be moved for a while. And certainly not until he has woken.”

“Damn, this just gets better and better. What more can go wrong? Okay. I’m going to catch a flight to Baltimore tonight. I want to confirm that this is Blair. H, I still need you to go and check on Ellison. He didn’t answer the phone this afternoon. I want to make certain he’s alright. Call me when you’ve seen him.”

“No problem, Cap. On my way. I’ll take Joel with me. I am sure Jim will be fine, though I will admit to being a little worried.” Henri nodded before leaving Simon to his thoughts.

“Yeah, me too.” Simon whispered to himself as he watched Brown head for Taggart’s office.

~*~*~*~

There was no answer to this knock either. Just like the previous three times they had tried only to receive silence as a response.

"You have that key, Simon gave us?" Brown asked Megan. Henri had been unable to locate Joel until Megan had shown up and informed him that Joel was at the hospital with Rafe. She had agreed to go to Jim’s with him.

"Yeah, here." She handed him the small gold key which he swiftly inserted into the lock, turned it and pushed open the green door to reveal a silent and dark loft.

"Jim?" Brown called out softly, almost hoping the man was sleeping like he was supposed to be doing. Still, there was no reply. Henri exchanged a glance with Connors, realizing as he did that she felt the same anxiousness that he was feeling, like something was well and truly wrong. He motioned for her to check out the small first floor room and bath while he tried upstairs.

He barely made it to the top of the wooden stairs when Megan called for him. "He's here, H."

Turning he took the steps down again and crossed the living room. Megan had turned on the hall light to discover Ellison sitting on the bed, still dress and holding what appeared to be a flannel shirt. Something of Blair's probably.

He was completely unresponsive to their entreaties for him to come around. His open eyes stared at some point between his nose and the far wall but they saw nothing.

"What the hell is wrong with him?" Brown demanded to know.

Megan had to make a decision, betray Jim and Blair's secret or potentially lose a very good pair of friends. No contest... she started speaking, explaining to Brown that Jim was zoned and this was a common problem and Blair was supposed to be the only one who could bring this man out of it. She explained about his heightened senses and the Sentinel/Guide bond.

There was little surprise in Brown's reaction. "That explains a lot." He said as he tried to bring his friend around once more by lightly smacking him in the face.

"I got an idea, stand back." Megan told him. With a curious look, Brown did ask he was told. It wasn't until Megan had drawn her fist back and let loose a mighty blow to the catatonic man that he understood her intentions. By then it was too late to stop her. Unfortunately, it didn't have any affect, other than knocking the poor Sentinel to his side on the bed.

After nearly two hours and there being absolutely no response, Megan finally had to contact Simon. He was already on board and preparing for take off so he had no choice but to recommend contacting an ambulance if it looked like his breathing was in jeopardy.

She and Brown decided to wait with Jim for a while longer with the hopes that they could bring him out of it. It didn’t take long however before Jim’s breathing began to slow and become laboured.

Worried by the speed which the gasps of air were trying to get through the struggling lungs, Megan had no choice but to summons the ambulance. Nothing they had tried had worked to bring Jim out of the zone out and now it was only matter of time before Jim either died or Blair was found in time to help bring Jim around.

~*~*~*~

Simon was worried as he paced the halls of St. Barnabus Hospital in Baltimore. He had arrived a few hours ago and had come straight from the airport. The doctor’s had been less than optimistic with their prognosis. Blair was too critical to move regardless of how desperately he was needed in Cascade.

“Captain Banks, that young man is starved to the point of serious medical complications. We had a hard enough time keeping him alive during surgery. To move him now would most likely kill him. He just simply isn’t strong enough to move just now. If he survives the night we may consider it then. That is the best I can offer. The administrator and I have already had this conversation when it was determined that the young man had no money whatsoever. The administrator wanted him moved to Sisters of Mercy two days ago. I just don’t feel it would be in the boy’s best interests to even attempt such a long journey right now. I am sorry.”

With that solemn speech the doctor then disappeared and it had been hours since Simon had seen him. He’d only been allowed in twice to see Blair and both times only for a few minutes. The family only rule had been dispensed with only after Simon had laid down the law, stating that he was Blair’s temporary guardian, a legal technicality that had been taken care of shortly after the whole Alex Barnes affair when Jim needed to make certain Blair was taken care of if anything happened to him in the line of duty.

“Captain.” A nurse called. Her name was Angela and she had taken up Simon’s cause with an appreciated eagerness. “The doctor has finished his exam if you would like to sit with your friend for a while. He won’t be back until the morning now so you can stay a little longer if you like.”

“Thanks Angela. I appreciate it. How’s he doing?”

“No change, I’m afraid. That isn’t necessarily bad news at the moment but I know how anxious you are to get him home.”

Simon smiled in wearily graciousness. He headed slowly for Blair’s room. A chair had been placed closer to the bed for him to sit more comfortably while watching over his friend. Appreciatively he sank down, prepared to wait as long as it took.

~*~*~*~

Naomi stormed into the lobby of the police building and punched the button for the elevator with all the anger she felt. The nearest elevator doors opened as if sensing her fury. No one got in with her and she road up to the seventh floor without interruption. Her thoughts were jumbled as she desperately attempted to calm herself enough to give Simon Banks a coherent piece of her mind.

She got off the elevator and headed down the short corridor to Major Crimes. She paused briefly to gather herself, prepare herself for the coming confrontation. She was fuming but she needed to center herself.

What the hell had happened? The last time she’d spoken to Blair things were great. He’d been upbeat, looking forward to her visit next month, then she gets a phone call. The one phone call she had been dreading ever since she learned that Blair was working with the pigs. The one that told her he’d been hurt. Hurt while working on a case or for the cops or whatever, it was still the one call she had prayed never to receive.

When she felt she was ready she pushed open the door and stepped through. The normally busy office was quiet, almost too quiet for the time of day.

Only four people were at desks and only one did she recognize even remotely. She'd never been introduced to him but she was certain she'd seen him the last time she'd been here.

Ignoring the detective for now, she made her way to Captain Banks' office and knocked loudly, allowing the banging to show her anger. A soft 'come in' was not what she'd been expecting.

She opened the door and entered, prepared to give Banks a piece of her mind. The man behind the desk, while broad enough was no where near tall enough to be Simon Banks. His face was gentle, his eye soft and telling of the sorrows he'd seen.

"I'm looking for Captain Banks." Naomi said, almost regretting her hostile tone.

"You must be Naomi, Blair's mother. Come in, please. I was told to expect you. I’m Detective Joel Taggart. Simon had to leave for a couple of days but I expect to hear from him in a little while."

"He knew I was coming in today. I had hope to talk to him about my son. He told me that he was missing." The anger at the Captain's disappearance was adding to the anger of her son's plight.

"Ms. Sandburg, I am sorry Simon couldn’t be here but he made sure before he left that I could answer any questions and help you in anyway possible. To be honest, he has gone to Baltimore to check on a possible sighting of Blair. I for one hope it is.” Joel rose and moved around suddenly concerned as Naomi sank into a chair as her knees went weak.

“Ms. Sandburg? Are you alright?” Joel asked.

Naomi stared up at the handsome captain staring down at her. Her expectations in coming here to confront Simon Banks had not been met and for once she was very pleased. It took a moment before she was able to reply and for the entire time Captain Taggart rubbed her shoulders in a gesture of comfort.

“Is he going to call?”

“Yes. He should be at the hospital soon and he promised to call as soon as he knew something. Would you like to wait here?”

“Please, may I.” Joel nodded as he watch the lost expression slowly being replaced by a sliver of hope on the beautiful woman’s face.

~*~*~*~

A white haze greeted him, a painful glare of light that hurt him. A groan of pain sounded and he realized it was his own voice.

“Blair?”

A name from his past, one he only just recognized as his. One that he couldn’t remember using in a long time. The pain that lingered through his body began to become more noticeably as he approached closer to full wakefulness.

The recognition of himself as an entity faded as the agony of his injuries took more focus. An echo of the voice he heard just seconds before was gone, vanishing into the void of oblivion.

~*~*~*~

For brief moment, Simon had thought Blair was surfacing. His head had twitched slightly at the sound of his name but then he was gone again. The tall Captain had returned to the room after the doctor had come in to do his morning exam. He had pronounced the young student somewhat improved and had begun to taper off the drugs keeping Blair unconscious.

It had now been four days since Sandburg had been brought in and two days since Simon’s own arrival. This was the first time that the doctor’s had changed his diagnosis from guarded to hopeful. He’d told Simon that if Blair continued to improve then he would authorize his transfer to Cascade for later the next day.

Simon had spoken to Henri and learned that Rafe had finally woken and while he was in extreme pain, he was slowly recovering. Megan’s shoulder had been declared completely healed and was back on full active detail. Joel had so far had no problems in Simon’s absence.

The last and most distressing piece of news was that Jim was fading slowly. He was still on the respirator but his body was slowly shutting itself down. He was not responding to any stimulation at all, his heart rate was sluggish but no amount of medication seemed to help.

Simon was concerned that even if he got Blair back to Cascade it wouldn’t make a difference. Jim seemed too far gone to be reach and Simon wasn’t sure whether Blair would be capable of even attempting to reach the Sentinel. Silently he prayed that putting the two men together might begin the process of healing.

~*~*~*~

Megan and Brown stood at the glass window and watched as the nurses and doctors bustled around their friend. The sudden and rapid deteriorating of Ellison’s breathing and life signs had scared them. The ambulance had arrived quickly and within a short time Jim was being rushed to the emergency ward of County General where they now waited to hear about his condition.

Finally, after what seemed an eternity, a man in a green lab coat approached.

“Are you here for Detective Ellison?” He questioned.

“Yes, how is he?” Megan asked. Her anxiety was evident in the clenching of her fists at her side.

“To be honest? I’m not entirely sure. We have stabilized him and he is on oxygen to help his breathing. His heart rhythms are stable for now but until we know what caused their fluctuations we don’t know how to prevent it from happening again. There is nothing wrong with him, or at least there shouldn’t be. For some unknown reason he’s shutting himself down.”

“Is there nothing you can do?” Megan whispered in horror.

“We have him sedated, hopefully when the test results come back we can find something. Until then we just have to wait until he regains consciousness. I won’t keep him on the sedatives for too long, just long enough for him to get the obvious rest he needs.” With that, the doctor returned to the room were Jim lay under the white hospital sheets, monitors and wires surrounding the strong body that was slowly closing itself down.

Chapter 6

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