Kidnapped - Part 10B - The Conclusion
Dave's eyes widened in horror as the car in front of him slowed suddenly and began to turn. He slammed his foot on the brake, but he was too close and there was no room to maneuver. He braced himself as the van careened into the driver's side of the Ford. Dave was flung forward just as the air bag burst open. He then sat momentarily stunned as he shakily tested his limbs, relieved to discover that except for a bit of soreness in the back of his neck he seemed to be okay. He had just put his hand on the door handle to get out of the van when two police cars emerged on the scene. The officers flew out of their vehicles, guns drawn, and Dave decided to just stay put as he watched them cautiously approach the Ford.
"Sir, are you okay?"
Dave jumped, startled by the knocking on the window and the police officer's face that suddenly appeared.
"Yeah...yeah..." he nodded as the officer opened the door and Dave got out of the van.
"Driver's dead."
"This one's still breathing."
"I'm a doctor," Dave stated as he approached the passenger side of the car where the officers had helped the semi-conscious man onto the ground. "Anyone else in there?" Dave glanced at the back seat, unsure if he felt relieved or just more concern to find it empty.
Tony kept his eyes closed as he mentally debated what to do. Frankie was dead...the stupid fuck... He was out of this and Bill most likely was long gone too. Tony was going to end up being blamed for the damn thing. The kid was probably dead by now, but maybe not...maybe he'd at least be able to avoid a murder charge. "In the trunk..." he murmured. "He's in the trunk."
Dave felt his heart go into his throat as one of the officers managed to pull the keys from the ignition and they approached the back of the car. The trunk was unlocked and the lid raised, revealing Carter's unconscious form inside. As some of the officers carefully lifted him from the trunk and placed Carter on the ground, Dave stared at his friend, unable to even imagine what kind of horrors he had faced. He knelt down next to him as he heard one of the officers call for an ambulance. Carter was pale and feverish, his face covered with sweat, and his breathing obviously labored. Dave quickly took his pulse which was rapid at 130.
"Carter? Carter...it's me Dave. Can you hear me? You're safe now. You're going to be okay." He anxiously watched for any signs of responsiveness to his voice, but there were none.
"Carter!" Dave looked up to see a frantic-looking Benton and Greene running towards him. "How is he?" Benton asked, kneeling on the ground beside them.
Dave shook his head grimly. "Ambulance is on the way."
"You hang in there, Carter," Benton said, brushing the sweat-soaked hair off the younger man's forehead. "You've got to pull through this man...you've just got to..."
******************************************************************************
The ambulance ride to County seemed to take forever. Benton clutched Carter's hand tightly the whole way in and spoke words of encouragement, trying to get some kind of a response, but he remained unconscious. "You've got to hang in there man. You stay with me, Carter. You stay with me..."
Luka and Kerry were waiting outside as they pulled into the ambulance bay. Kerry couldn't help flashing back to the day of the stabbing, only then she had worked on Lucy, not Carter. She tried to focus as his vitals were recited by the paramedic. "Two large bore IVs. 15 liters O2. Pulse 130, respirations 32, shallow and labored, BP 90/50, O2 sat 94, temp 102.1.
They quickly wheeled Carter into the hospital and down the hall to Trauma Two. "Get some O negative down here," Benton shouted.
"Peter....Peter wait outside. You need to have someone take a look at you," Kerry said as she tried to lead him towards the door.
"No...no I want to stay with him."
"Peter come on...let us work on him," Mark, who had just arrived, stated firmly. "Dave...Dave take him and check him out."
"Sure...come on Dr. Benton."
"No....I need to be here."
"Peter please. We'll take care of him," Mark said sincerely. "I promise."
"He has a bullet in his shoulder," Benton called frantically as Dave tried to lead him away by his arm. "And I think he might have pneumonia...you'd better get a chest x-ray. He might have some cracked ribs too."
"Peter," Kerry said firmly. "We'll check everything. I promise."
Finally Dave succeeded in getting Peter out of the trauma room. They were met by Elizabeth in the hallway. "Peter...thank God you're all right. We'll talk later," she called back over her shoulder as she opened the door to the trauma room."
"Take good care of him, Elizabeth," Peter called softly after her.
"I will, Peter."
******************************************************************************
Peter allowed Dave to lead him into Exam 1 and sat complacently as Dave examined him. Finally he tired of it all though. "Enough!" he snapped, giving Dave an irritated look.
"I'm just trying to do my job," stated Dave. "You're not the only one who is worried about Carter you know. We all are."
"Yeah well *I'm* the one who has seen him go through hell the past few days. I've seen him get shot and kicked and watched as he laid there delirious, burning up with fever, begging me for water when we had none. Do you have any idea what it was like, Malucci? To be in a pitch black death trap...thinking that no one was going to come...that you were going to die a lingering death in that place and no one would ever even know what happened to you? Well let me tell you...it was pure hell."
Dave stood quietly and let Benton have his say. He knew it was good for him to get some of this off his chest. He knew that they had gone through hell and it was probably going to take some time to be able to get over it.
"Dr. Benton?" Dave spoke up after Benton had been silent again for a short time. "You really ought to be admitted, at least overnight for observation. You're slightly dehydrated and you took quite a blow to the head."
"I don't need to be admitted," Benton replied. "I'll be here anyhow, but I don't want to be admitted."
"Dr. Benton..." Dave began hesitantly, not wanting to start anything. "You...you've been through a very rough time. You really need to rest and push some fluids. If you don't...you're going to end up requiring an IV."
Benton sighed deeply, giving Dave an irked look but he wasn't up to arguing. "Let's talk about this later. Actually...I could use some water right now, want to get me some?"
"Yeah sure..." Dave knew Benton was just trying to get rid of him, but he did need to be drinking. He went off and returned a few minutes later with a pitcher filled with ice water. He had paused to look in the window of Trauma Two on the way back but they had still been working on Carter.
"Thanks," Benton said as Dave poured him some water from the pitcher and handed it to him. "Any word on Carter?"
"No. They're still in there with him." Dave replied as he watched Benton sipping from the cup.
"Damn..." Benton said, taking another sip from the cup as silence descended upon the room. "Uh Dave?"
"Yeah?" Dave asked as he sank onto a stool in the room. He was actually pretty tired and the adrenaline rush had long since worn off.
"I just wanted to say thanks...thanks for what you did. It took guts, chasing those guys down the way you did...you could have been killed..."
"Thanks..." Dave looked down at the floor, feeling a bit embarrassed. "You know...I didn't even think when I did it. I wasn't really considering what could happen. I just wasn't sure if you guys were with them...and I wasn't going to let them get away...not if I could help it."
"Well...I appreciate what you did."
"No problem." Dave stood up and awkwardly patted Benton on the shoulder. "I'm going to go get your paper work sent upstairs. You need to get into a room, get cleaned up, get some rest."
"Yeah...listen is Carter's grandmother here?" Benton gave Dave a questioning look. "I should talk to her.'
"Yeah...uh she must be...I'll check it out and send her in if I find her, okay?"
"Thanks Dave," Benton said, nodding. "And let me know if you hear anything about Carter, okay?"
"I'll let you know," Dave promised.
******************************************************************************
"Dr. Benton?"
Benton forced his eyes open and found himself looking up into the concerned face of Millicent Carter.
"Mrs. Carter..." he said as he sat up in the bed, looking a bit sheepish. "I...I guess I fell asleep."
"I'm sorry...I shouldn't have woken you...but Dr. Malucci said that you wished to speak to me...and I thought you should know...They stabilized John enough to bring him up to surgery. There was a bit of a debate on whether or not to wait, but the wound is beginning to develop an infection and Dr. Corday decided it would be better not to wait."
"Elizabeth is an excellent surgeon. Cart...John is in good hands." Benton smiled at the woman and gestured to the chair by his bed. "Please...have a seat."
"Thank you," Millicent sat down in the chair, smoothing an imaginary wrinkle from her skirt. "I won't stay long though...I don't want to tire you out. I know you've been through a terrible ordeal."
"I'm all right, really," Benton said, offering a faint smile.
Millicent shook her head. "Dr. Benton...I want you to know how very grateful I am for what you did for John..."
"Please Mrs. Carter," Benton said. "I really didn't..."
"Please..." Millicent said, placing her hand lightly on Peter's arm. "I really would just like to say this. Although I'm very sorry you had to go through everything you've been through these past few days...I am grateful that you were there. I know in my heart that you saved John's life. He never would have made it if he was alone. If there is *anything* at all that I can ever do for you in the future, I would consider it a great honor to do so."
"Your grandson...He's very important to me..." Peter said solemnly. "I just want him to be all right."
"I think he will be...thanks to you," Millicent said, smiling as she rose to her feet. "You know...you're very important to him too. He has a great deal of respect for you. I know he's always looked up to you." She could see that Dr. Benton was looking a bit embarrassed by her praise. "I'm going to leave you now. You'd best get some rest." Impulsively she leaned down and kissed Peter's cheek. "Thank you again, Dr. Benton."
"You're welcome, Mrs. Carter." Peter watched as she walked out of the room and leaned back in order to get some rest.
******************************************************************************
The first thing Carter felt as he struggled to awaken was the soft warmth of a blanket underneath his hand. He took a deep breath and groaned softly, straining to hear the voices in the background.
"Mrs. Carter...he's starting to come around. Carter...Carter can you hear me?"
Carter slowly opened his eyes and blinked several times as he tried to focus. Finally his gaze settled on Dr. Benton. "Hey," he whispered , managing a smile in spite of the rough, raw feeling in his throat. "Guess we finally got out of that place."
Benton nodded, grinning down at Carter. "I told you we would, didn't I? I told you we'd get out of there."
"John? Darling?"
Carter turned his head towards the familiar voice of his grandmother who was on the other side of his bed. "Gamma! I didn't know you were here."
"Oh John..." Millicent leaned down to give her grandson a gentle hug, holding him closely for several moments before releasing him and gently brushing the unruly locks from his forehead. "Thank God you are going to be all right. I was so frightened that I was never going to see you again."
"I'm fine, Gamma...It's going to be okay."
"I can't bear to think of what you must have gone through."
"Please Gamma...I'll be okay. I...I really don't even remember a much of what happened. A lot of it is just a blur. I was pretty out of it."
Millicent nodded and smiled down at him, blinking back tears as she kissed John's cheek. "I'm going to go and make some phone calls. I think it's time I told the rest of the family what happened here. You rest and I'll be back shortly, okay? Is there anything you need? Anything you'd like me to bring back for you?"
"No I'm fine," Carter responded softly. "Gamma?" He grabbed her hand before she turned away. "I'm sorry that I worried you."
"Don't' be silly, John. I'm just grateful that you're safe now."
After his grandmother had left the room, Carter turned his attention back to Dr. Benton. "So...what's the verdict? What's wrong with me?"
"Let's see..." began Benton. "The bullet in your shoulder didn't cause any major damage so that should heal up nicely. You were starting to develop a wound infection though so Elizabeth decided to remove the bullet right away rather than wait. As I'm sure you suspected, you have a slight case of pneumonia. It's actually not as bad as I would have thought though considering what you went through. You're on IV antibiotics for that and that should clear up your infection also."
Carter nodded. None of it sounded too bad and he felt much improved from when he had been in the cell. He knew he had to be pretty heavily medicated. "Dr. Benton?" he began hesitantly. "I...I just want to thank you for what you did for me in there. I would never have made it without you."
"Come on, Carter..." Benton replied. "I didn't do anything that you or anyone else wouldn't have done in the same situation."
"Even so...you saved my life." Carter looked sincerely into the eyes of the man he had admired for so long. "And I want you to know that I appreciate it."
"I know you do Carter...but you should know by now that I'd never let anything happen to you, not if I could help it."
"I do know that," Carter said, absently toying with a stray thread on the edge of his blanket.
The two men were silent for a short time before Benton spoke. "You know Carter...what we went through...it probably isn't going to be the easiest thing in the world to just forget. If...if you ever want to talk about it or anything...well...you know...you should come to me."
"Really?" Carter pondered that for a few moments. He remembered when Dennis Gant had died. He had wanted to talk to Dr. Benton then too, but Benton had refused to discuss his feelings. He hadn't even acknowledged that what had happened to Dennis had affected him. They had certainly come a long way since that time. "That'd be good." He knew the memories of what happened weren't going to fade away any time soon. For right now though, he preferred to try not to think about it. He knew at some point he was going to have to face what had happened, but not quite yet. He just wanted to focus on getting well, being grateful for light and water and warmth...all the things he had thought he would never have again.
Carter put his hand up to his mouth as he unsuccessfully tried to stifle a yawn.
"I'm going to let you get some sleep, Carter," Benton said, standing up as he lightly patted Carter's shoulder. Half the people in the hospital are going to be in here visiting you. You'd better get some rest while you can."
"Okay...I will..." Carter didn't even try to fight the sleepiness that was overcoming him. Even the pancake-like hospital pillows seemed like an amazing luxury to him, after days spent on the cold, hard floor of the cell. "Thanks again, Dr. Benton..." he said as his eyes closed and he drifted off to sleep.
Benton stood and watched his former student for a few minutes. He knew that neither of them would ever forget what they had gone through together. He had heard before of how people's lives changed after going through certain life-altering events. He knew that his own life would never be the same, nor would his relationship with Carter. He vowed to no longer take any of his relationships for granted in the future. He sighed deeply as he slowly headed out of Carter's room. Now that Carter was on the mend, it was about time he reunited with Reese. He could hardly wait to hold the little guy in his arms. He'd be back soon to see Carter. They could help each other through the aftermath of this whole nightmare and hopefully put it behind them.
******************************************************************************
Bill sighed in contentment as he lounged by the pool of his friend's home. Good old George had done very well for himself since his release from prison. Bill had only arrived the day before and George had made him feel right at home. He had all kinds of connections and would be able to help Bill find a job, leave the country, get false identification...whatever Bill decided he wanted to do. For now, Bill was going to lay low and enjoy his friend's hospitality. He had never before had an opportunity to experience the finer things in life and he planned to take full advantage.
He reached over to the tray on the patio beside him and picked up the copy of the Chicago Sun-Times George had obtained for him earlier today. Poor Tony...He had no sympathy whatsoever for Frank...the bastard had deserved to die, but Tony had just been a follower and now was going to be left holding the bag alone. Bill knew that he too would be implicated in what had happened...but he was pretty sure that no one would find him. He had covered his tracks well and he trusted George. He was also gratified to read that young Carter was going to fully recover from his injuries. He didn't regret stealing the money...Hell the Carter family had gotten off cheap, having retrieved two-thirds of the ransom, but he had never meant for anyone to be hurt. He wondered if their paths would ever cross again. He doubted it, but one never knew. For now though he was going to just sit back and enjoy his life and the wealth he now possessed, all thanks to young Dr. Carter. "To your health, Dr. Carter," he said, raising his frozen Margarita in a toast. "Perhaps some day, we'll meet again."
The End
Dave's eyes widened in horror as the car in front of him slowed suddenly and began to turn. He slammed his foot on the brake, but he was too close and there was no room to maneuver. He braced himself as the van careened into the driver's side of the Ford. Dave was flung forward just as the air bag burst open. He then sat momentarily stunned as he shakily tested his limbs, relieved to discover that except for a bit of soreness in the back of his neck he seemed to be okay. He had just put his hand on the door handle to get out of the van when two police cars emerged on the scene. The officers flew out of their vehicles, guns drawn, and Dave decided to just stay put as he watched them cautiously approach the Ford.
"Sir, are you okay?"
Dave jumped, startled by the knocking on the window and the police officer's face that suddenly appeared.
"Yeah...yeah..." he nodded as the officer opened the door and Dave got out of the van.
"Driver's dead."
"This one's still breathing."
"I'm a doctor," Dave stated as he approached the passenger side of the car where the officers had helped the semi-conscious man onto the ground. "Anyone else in there?" Dave glanced at the back seat, unsure if he felt relieved or just more concern to find it empty.
Tony kept his eyes closed as he mentally debated what to do. Frankie was dead...the stupid fuck... He was out of this and Bill most likely was long gone too. Tony was going to end up being blamed for the damn thing. The kid was probably dead by now, but maybe not...maybe he'd at least be able to avoid a murder charge. "In the trunk..." he murmured. "He's in the trunk."
Dave felt his heart go into his throat as one of the officers managed to pull the keys from the ignition and they approached the back of the car. The trunk was unlocked and the lid raised, revealing Carter's unconscious form inside. As some of the officers carefully lifted him from the trunk and placed Carter on the ground, Dave stared at his friend, unable to even imagine what kind of horrors he had faced. He knelt down next to him as he heard one of the officers call for an ambulance. Carter was pale and feverish, his face covered with sweat, and his breathing obviously labored. Dave quickly took his pulse which was rapid at 130.
"Carter? Carter...it's me Dave. Can you hear me? You're safe now. You're going to be okay." He anxiously watched for any signs of responsiveness to his voice, but there were none.
"Carter!" Dave looked up to see a frantic-looking Benton and Greene running towards him. "How is he?" Benton asked, kneeling on the ground beside them.
Dave shook his head grimly. "Ambulance is on the way."
"You hang in there, Carter," Benton said, brushing the sweat-soaked hair off the younger man's forehead. "You've got to pull through this man...you've just got to..."
******************************************************************************
The ambulance ride to County seemed to take forever. Benton clutched Carter's hand tightly the whole way in and spoke words of encouragement, trying to get some kind of a response, but he remained unconscious. "You've got to hang in there man. You stay with me, Carter. You stay with me..."
Luka and Kerry were waiting outside as they pulled into the ambulance bay. Kerry couldn't help flashing back to the day of the stabbing, only then she had worked on Lucy, not Carter. She tried to focus as his vitals were recited by the paramedic. "Two large bore IVs. 15 liters O2. Pulse 130, respirations 32, shallow and labored, BP 90/50, O2 sat 94, temp 102.1.
They quickly wheeled Carter into the hospital and down the hall to Trauma Two. "Get some O negative down here," Benton shouted.
"Peter....Peter wait outside. You need to have someone take a look at you," Kerry said as she tried to lead him towards the door.
"No...no I want to stay with him."
"Peter come on...let us work on him," Mark, who had just arrived, stated firmly. "Dave...Dave take him and check him out."
"Sure...come on Dr. Benton."
"No....I need to be here."
"Peter please. We'll take care of him," Mark said sincerely. "I promise."
"He has a bullet in his shoulder," Benton called frantically as Dave tried to lead him away by his arm. "And I think he might have pneumonia...you'd better get a chest x-ray. He might have some cracked ribs too."
"Peter," Kerry said firmly. "We'll check everything. I promise."
Finally Dave succeeded in getting Peter out of the trauma room. They were met by Elizabeth in the hallway. "Peter...thank God you're all right. We'll talk later," she called back over her shoulder as she opened the door to the trauma room."
"Take good care of him, Elizabeth," Peter called softly after her.
"I will, Peter."
******************************************************************************
Peter allowed Dave to lead him into Exam 1 and sat complacently as Dave examined him. Finally he tired of it all though. "Enough!" he snapped, giving Dave an irritated look.
"I'm just trying to do my job," stated Dave. "You're not the only one who is worried about Carter you know. We all are."
"Yeah well *I'm* the one who has seen him go through hell the past few days. I've seen him get shot and kicked and watched as he laid there delirious, burning up with fever, begging me for water when we had none. Do you have any idea what it was like, Malucci? To be in a pitch black death trap...thinking that no one was going to come...that you were going to die a lingering death in that place and no one would ever even know what happened to you? Well let me tell you...it was pure hell."
Dave stood quietly and let Benton have his say. He knew it was good for him to get some of this off his chest. He knew that they had gone through hell and it was probably going to take some time to be able to get over it.
"Dr. Benton?" Dave spoke up after Benton had been silent again for a short time. "You really ought to be admitted, at least overnight for observation. You're slightly dehydrated and you took quite a blow to the head."
"I don't need to be admitted," Benton replied. "I'll be here anyhow, but I don't want to be admitted."
"Dr. Benton..." Dave began hesitantly, not wanting to start anything. "You...you've been through a very rough time. You really need to rest and push some fluids. If you don't...you're going to end up requiring an IV."
Benton sighed deeply, giving Dave an irked look but he wasn't up to arguing. "Let's talk about this later. Actually...I could use some water right now, want to get me some?"
"Yeah sure..." Dave knew Benton was just trying to get rid of him, but he did need to be drinking. He went off and returned a few minutes later with a pitcher filled with ice water. He had paused to look in the window of Trauma Two on the way back but they had still been working on Carter.
"Thanks," Benton said as Dave poured him some water from the pitcher and handed it to him. "Any word on Carter?"
"No. They're still in there with him." Dave replied as he watched Benton sipping from the cup.
"Damn..." Benton said, taking another sip from the cup as silence descended upon the room. "Uh Dave?"
"Yeah?" Dave asked as he sank onto a stool in the room. He was actually pretty tired and the adrenaline rush had long since worn off.
"I just wanted to say thanks...thanks for what you did. It took guts, chasing those guys down the way you did...you could have been killed..."
"Thanks..." Dave looked down at the floor, feeling a bit embarrassed. "You know...I didn't even think when I did it. I wasn't really considering what could happen. I just wasn't sure if you guys were with them...and I wasn't going to let them get away...not if I could help it."
"Well...I appreciate what you did."
"No problem." Dave stood up and awkwardly patted Benton on the shoulder. "I'm going to go get your paper work sent upstairs. You need to get into a room, get cleaned up, get some rest."
"Yeah...listen is Carter's grandmother here?" Benton gave Dave a questioning look. "I should talk to her.'
"Yeah...uh she must be...I'll check it out and send her in if I find her, okay?"
"Thanks Dave," Benton said, nodding. "And let me know if you hear anything about Carter, okay?"
"I'll let you know," Dave promised.
******************************************************************************
"Dr. Benton?"
Benton forced his eyes open and found himself looking up into the concerned face of Millicent Carter.
"Mrs. Carter..." he said as he sat up in the bed, looking a bit sheepish. "I...I guess I fell asleep."
"I'm sorry...I shouldn't have woken you...but Dr. Malucci said that you wished to speak to me...and I thought you should know...They stabilized John enough to bring him up to surgery. There was a bit of a debate on whether or not to wait, but the wound is beginning to develop an infection and Dr. Corday decided it would be better not to wait."
"Elizabeth is an excellent surgeon. Cart...John is in good hands." Benton smiled at the woman and gestured to the chair by his bed. "Please...have a seat."
"Thank you," Millicent sat down in the chair, smoothing an imaginary wrinkle from her skirt. "I won't stay long though...I don't want to tire you out. I know you've been through a terrible ordeal."
"I'm all right, really," Benton said, offering a faint smile.
Millicent shook her head. "Dr. Benton...I want you to know how very grateful I am for what you did for John..."
"Please Mrs. Carter," Benton said. "I really didn't..."
"Please..." Millicent said, placing her hand lightly on Peter's arm. "I really would just like to say this. Although I'm very sorry you had to go through everything you've been through these past few days...I am grateful that you were there. I know in my heart that you saved John's life. He never would have made it if he was alone. If there is *anything* at all that I can ever do for you in the future, I would consider it a great honor to do so."
"Your grandson...He's very important to me..." Peter said solemnly. "I just want him to be all right."
"I think he will be...thanks to you," Millicent said, smiling as she rose to her feet. "You know...you're very important to him too. He has a great deal of respect for you. I know he's always looked up to you." She could see that Dr. Benton was looking a bit embarrassed by her praise. "I'm going to leave you now. You'd best get some rest." Impulsively she leaned down and kissed Peter's cheek. "Thank you again, Dr. Benton."
"You're welcome, Mrs. Carter." Peter watched as she walked out of the room and leaned back in order to get some rest.
******************************************************************************
The first thing Carter felt as he struggled to awaken was the soft warmth of a blanket underneath his hand. He took a deep breath and groaned softly, straining to hear the voices in the background.
"Mrs. Carter...he's starting to come around. Carter...Carter can you hear me?"
Carter slowly opened his eyes and blinked several times as he tried to focus. Finally his gaze settled on Dr. Benton. "Hey," he whispered , managing a smile in spite of the rough, raw feeling in his throat. "Guess we finally got out of that place."
Benton nodded, grinning down at Carter. "I told you we would, didn't I? I told you we'd get out of there."
"John? Darling?"
Carter turned his head towards the familiar voice of his grandmother who was on the other side of his bed. "Gamma! I didn't know you were here."
"Oh John..." Millicent leaned down to give her grandson a gentle hug, holding him closely for several moments before releasing him and gently brushing the unruly locks from his forehead. "Thank God you are going to be all right. I was so frightened that I was never going to see you again."
"I'm fine, Gamma...It's going to be okay."
"I can't bear to think of what you must have gone through."
"Please Gamma...I'll be okay. I...I really don't even remember a much of what happened. A lot of it is just a blur. I was pretty out of it."
Millicent nodded and smiled down at him, blinking back tears as she kissed John's cheek. "I'm going to go and make some phone calls. I think it's time I told the rest of the family what happened here. You rest and I'll be back shortly, okay? Is there anything you need? Anything you'd like me to bring back for you?"
"No I'm fine," Carter responded softly. "Gamma?" He grabbed her hand before she turned away. "I'm sorry that I worried you."
"Don't' be silly, John. I'm just grateful that you're safe now."
After his grandmother had left the room, Carter turned his attention back to Dr. Benton. "So...what's the verdict? What's wrong with me?"
"Let's see..." began Benton. "The bullet in your shoulder didn't cause any major damage so that should heal up nicely. You were starting to develop a wound infection though so Elizabeth decided to remove the bullet right away rather than wait. As I'm sure you suspected, you have a slight case of pneumonia. It's actually not as bad as I would have thought though considering what you went through. You're on IV antibiotics for that and that should clear up your infection also."
Carter nodded. None of it sounded too bad and he felt much improved from when he had been in the cell. He knew he had to be pretty heavily medicated. "Dr. Benton?" he began hesitantly. "I...I just want to thank you for what you did for me in there. I would never have made it without you."
"Come on, Carter..." Benton replied. "I didn't do anything that you or anyone else wouldn't have done in the same situation."
"Even so...you saved my life." Carter looked sincerely into the eyes of the man he had admired for so long. "And I want you to know that I appreciate it."
"I know you do Carter...but you should know by now that I'd never let anything happen to you, not if I could help it."
"I do know that," Carter said, absently toying with a stray thread on the edge of his blanket.
The two men were silent for a short time before Benton spoke. "You know Carter...what we went through...it probably isn't going to be the easiest thing in the world to just forget. If...if you ever want to talk about it or anything...well...you know...you should come to me."
"Really?" Carter pondered that for a few moments. He remembered when Dennis Gant had died. He had wanted to talk to Dr. Benton then too, but Benton had refused to discuss his feelings. He hadn't even acknowledged that what had happened to Dennis had affected him. They had certainly come a long way since that time. "That'd be good." He knew the memories of what happened weren't going to fade away any time soon. For right now though, he preferred to try not to think about it. He knew at some point he was going to have to face what had happened, but not quite yet. He just wanted to focus on getting well, being grateful for light and water and warmth...all the things he had thought he would never have again.
Carter put his hand up to his mouth as he unsuccessfully tried to stifle a yawn.
"I'm going to let you get some sleep, Carter," Benton said, standing up as he lightly patted Carter's shoulder. Half the people in the hospital are going to be in here visiting you. You'd better get some rest while you can."
"Okay...I will..." Carter didn't even try to fight the sleepiness that was overcoming him. Even the pancake-like hospital pillows seemed like an amazing luxury to him, after days spent on the cold, hard floor of the cell. "Thanks again, Dr. Benton..." he said as his eyes closed and he drifted off to sleep.
Benton stood and watched his former student for a few minutes. He knew that neither of them would ever forget what they had gone through together. He had heard before of how people's lives changed after going through certain life-altering events. He knew that his own life would never be the same, nor would his relationship with Carter. He vowed to no longer take any of his relationships for granted in the future. He sighed deeply as he slowly headed out of Carter's room. Now that Carter was on the mend, it was about time he reunited with Reese. He could hardly wait to hold the little guy in his arms. He'd be back soon to see Carter. They could help each other through the aftermath of this whole nightmare and hopefully put it behind them.
******************************************************************************
Bill sighed in contentment as he lounged by the pool of his friend's home. Good old George had done very well for himself since his release from prison. Bill had only arrived the day before and George had made him feel right at home. He had all kinds of connections and would be able to help Bill find a job, leave the country, get false identification...whatever Bill decided he wanted to do. For now, Bill was going to lay low and enjoy his friend's hospitality. He had never before had an opportunity to experience the finer things in life and he planned to take full advantage.
He reached over to the tray on the patio beside him and picked up the copy of the Chicago Sun-Times George had obtained for him earlier today. Poor Tony...He had no sympathy whatsoever for Frank...the bastard had deserved to die, but Tony had just been a follower and now was going to be left holding the bag alone. Bill knew that he too would be implicated in what had happened...but he was pretty sure that no one would find him. He had covered his tracks well and he trusted George. He was also gratified to read that young Carter was going to fully recover from his injuries. He didn't regret stealing the money...Hell the Carter family had gotten off cheap, having retrieved two-thirds of the ransom, but he had never meant for anyone to be hurt. He wondered if their paths would ever cross again. He doubted it, but one never knew. For now though he was going to just sit back and enjoy his life and the wealth he now possessed, all thanks to young Dr. Carter. "To your health, Dr. Carter," he said, raising his frozen Margarita in a toast. "Perhaps some day, we'll meet again."
The End