"Visiting hours will be in another few minutes and maybe he'll eat something afterwards." Joel suggested.
"I'll head on down to the cafeteria, can I bring you anything?" Brown asked.
Simon opened his wallet again and extracted a 20.00. "Yeah, a couple of sandwiches and a coffee if you don't mind." He handed the money to Brown. "Do you want anything, Joel?"
"No thanks, Simon. I'm going to hit the road for awhile. I have some things I need to take care of. I'll stop back by later on tonight," the Captain of the Bomb squad reached out and laid a hand on Simon's shoulder.
"Do you want your coat?" Simon asked, gesturing toward the sleeping Blair.
Joel stared at the slumbering man for a long moment before shaking his head. "No, I don't want to disturb him. I'll get it later."
"Thanks," came Simon's grateful reply.
"Come on, H. I'll walk down with you," Joel said, slapping the smaller man on the back, before moving toward the door. "Simon," he looked back over his shoulder.
"Yeah?"
"Take care of him," Joel gestured toward the couch.
"I will, Joel. See you later."
Simon watched as the two men exited the room and then moved to sit in the chair that Joel had vacated. A restless stir caused Simon to turn his attention to the couch, but Blair slept on. Simon knew that he would have to wake Blair soon. Intensive Care visiting hours was ten minutes every two hours and Blair Sandburg had not missed one since Jim had been moved into the unit. The sporadic visits were taking its toll on the young man. He slept and ate in spurts. After the second day, he started napping between visits and making half-hearted attempts to force down food. His entire being was focused on the man struggling to live in ICU # 7.
Blair had rejected any attempt at persuading him to go home for much needed rest and a change of clothes. Dr. Dalton had spotted the bedraggled figure on one of his rounds and had promptly dragged the protesting anthropologist to the doctor's lounge for a shower. He had also supplied clean scrubs for the young man, citing that Jim didn't need to breathe in toxic fumes while he was fighting for his life.
Blair had returned to the waiting room seemingly refreshed and had inhaled a sandwich and drank a cup of coffee before presenting himself to the nurse for his promised visit.
Every member of the Major Crimes Unit had unanimously agreed that Blair would be the one to have each 10-minute visitation. They resigned themselves with momentary glimpses of their friend through opened doors and the paned windows that housed the wounded detective. Each person knew that the soft tones of Blair's voice would reach the comatose man when nothing else would.
So far, nothing had done any good. Jim remained in an unconscious state, even though Blair used every method he could think of to reach his friend. As Jim's Guide and his friend. With each visit, Blair would attempt to envelope Jim in gentle words and soft touches, desperately trying to believe that Jim was in a deep zone and not in the deep coma that the doctors had diagnosed.
Blair had been at Jim's side when he had had his first seizure.
Since that time, Jim's prognosis had gone downhill. It seemed that the Sentinel was losing this ultimate battle.
Blair refused to listen to such reports, even becoming belligerent with the medical staff when they tried to explain Jim's condition. Simon had stoically remained at the young man's side, handling Sandburg's bouts of quiet desperation and sporadic flares of temper with quiet resolve.
He had acknowledged Blair's refusal to leave and had taken a quick detour by the loft for clean clothes and other items that he thought Blair would need. At least it would get him out of that floral designed scrub suit that he's wearing now, Simon thought to himself with a small smile.
Simon's musings were interrupted by a loud buzzing, sending nurses and staff doctors scurrying down the hall. Simon rose from his seat and walked to the entrance, glancing back as Blair stirred. He watched Blair sit up, pushing the coat off his chest and rub at sleep swollen eyes.
Glancing toward the commotion that was taking place down the hall, Simon saw the medical personnel start to crowd into his detective's hospital room.
"Oh God, not again!" his voice cracked with emotion.
"What?" the voice that floated across the room was filled with fear and weariness. "What's happening, Simon?"
"Sandburg," Simon turned away to see Blair push off the couch. "Just stay there."
"What's going on, sir?" Blair obtained a standing position, but stumbled, causing Simon to hurry across the room.
"Jim must be having another seizure. Doctors are with him," Simon's explanation was curt.
"Oh, man," Blair sat back down and leaned forward, dropping his head into his hands. "I was hoping the new medication would do something."
"There's Dr. Dalton now," Simon said as he watched Jim's doctor hurry down the hall towards Jim's room.
"Good," Blair raised his head for a moment before dropping it back into his hands. "He said he had a couple of other ideas, if this medicine didn't work. I hope whatever it is will do the trick."
"Yeah, me too, kid," Simon moved to sit beside the younger man, resting a supportive hand on his back.
Henri Brown chose that moment to enter the room, pausing a moment to observe the activity level in and around his fellow detective's room.
"Another seizure?" he asked as he deposited several large bags on the table.
Simon nodded over Blair's bowed head. "Think so."
"Damn! I was really hoping.......you okay, Sandburg?" Brown turned his attention to the exhausted countenance of Jim's partner.
"I will be as soon as Jim decides to wake up," Blair's tone dared the other two men to dispute him.
There was a long moment of silence before Brown answered. "Yeah, we all will, kid," Brown moved to sit on the other side of Blair. "Here, I brought you some dinner. They had baked chicken on vegetables tonight."
Simon reached over and started removing containers from the bag in front of him.
"Yeah, you'd better start eating or Jim will kick all of our asses when he wakes up and finds you sick from not eating."
Blair tilted his head toward Simon, a grateful smile warming the other man. "Thanks, Simon."
"You're welcome," he smiled back. "Now then, Brown. Where's my sandwiches."
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Brianna Rivers followed her brother into their hotel room and kicked off her shoes, reveling in the feel of the plush carpeting beneath her feet. Moving to the couch, she lowered her weary body down.
Laying her head back against the back of the couch, she gave her brother a smile.
"You hungry?" he asked her. "Can I get you something?"
"Hmm, maybe something lite," she agreed.
"Soup and sandwiches?"
"Sounds good," she watched as he moved over to the phone and listened as he ordered room service. "How did we do tonight?" she asked when he hung up the phone.
Brian returned to sit beside his sister, turning slightly so he was facing her. "We took in a little over ten thousand."
"That's pretty good. And the total so far?"
"Counting tonight, a little over forty thousand," he answered. "Why, you ready to move on?"
"Maybe," she said hesitantly. "It's just there is something I have to do, but I......"
"What?" Brian laid a calming hand on his sister's delicate arm. "What is it, Sis?"
"I don't know, Brian. Not yet anyway," Brianna explained, reaching over and grasping her brother's hand, they intertwined their fingers. "Did you get that information that I asked for?"
"Yeah, I did," he accepted his sister obvious attempt to change the subject.
Brianna was not one to speculate about something until she had meditated long and hard.
"Where is it?"
Brian let go of his sister's hand and rose from the couch, moving over to the doorway to retrieve the battered briefcase that he had left by the front door. Placing it on the table in front of the couch, he snapped the latches and opened it. Shuffling through several leafs of paper; he finally extracted a large manila envelope and passed it over.
"Here it is," he watched as his sister opened the envelope, pulled out the forms inside and start flipping through the pages.
His gaze swept over her once more, noting the weariness that marred the delicate features. Green eyes that so matched his own were tinged with red. He sighed; hoping that this would be the night that his sister would get some much needed sleep.
He was totally devoted to the fragile creature that sat beside him. He had been since that fateful night twelve years ago, when a car accident had taken the lives of their parents and two older siblings. The same accident that had mangled his right leg and had put his ten-year-old sister into a deep coma for two months.
It hadn't been until Brianna had awakened that Brian realized his younger sister had been change forever.
The normally boisterous little girl was now quiet and contemplative. It wasn't until much later that she had confided that she had been on a journey, one that was to be continued in her waking world.
At first Brian had been skeptical, but had quickly turned into a believer, when he had found his sister in the playroom of the hospital where they both had been installed after the accident. Brian remembered Brianna kneeling in front of a little girl not much older than herself. He had stood there, leaning on crutches that supported him and watched his sister cup the other child's face in her own delicate hands. He had held his breath in awe as the pale face flushed with pink health.
Both of them had kept quiet about the incident, even though the whole hospital was buzzing about the child with leukemia that had miraculously gone into remission overnight.
It wasn't until Brian had turned 20 that he had been able to take custody of his 16-year-old sister and they had started on their 'mission' as Brianna called it. They had been traveling for six years now, going from city to city as Brianna used her miraculous gift. People would flock to her meets, some in disbelief, some in desperation. Many people were healed, many were not. Brianna could not tell which person would be benefited by her amazing gift. She had stated many times that she was just the vessel, that God worked through her and it wasn't anything that she herself ever did.
"I like this one," her soft accent brought his thoughts into line.
Reaching over, he took the form from her hand and quickly perused it. "Babies with AIDS. I should have guessed," he said with a short laugh. "I thought you would go for that one."
"It's a pestilence, Brian. One that the young shouldn't have to suffer with," Brianna shrugged
Brian's reply was interrupted by a knock on the door. Rising from his seat,
he went to answer it, quickly signing for their meal and returned to spread it
out on the table.
"Come and get it," he instructed.
Brianna got up and went to the table, plopping down in a chair, curling one foot under her and reaching for her food, suddenly famished.
"So, how much do you think we'll need this trip?" she asked around a mouthful of sandwich.
"Don't talk with your mouth full," the admonishment came automatically. "Okay, okay....sorry," he said as she glared at him.
"I'm not a kid anymore, Brian," she growled.
"You'll always be my kid sister, sweetheart."
"Brian," her face held an expression of seriousness, but he saw a smile tugging at her lips.
"Alright...alright," Brian held up his hands. "I haven't gone over all the expenses yet, but I estimate about ten thousand. It'll pay the hotel bills, the staff and reservations for the next place we head to. Got to pay the insurance on the bus this time and I've estimated the gas budget. That leaves about thirty thousand." He took a bite of his sandwich, chewed then swallowed. "Do you want it going to one place or should I split it up like I did the last time?"
"Hmm," Brianna swallowed before continuing, "Give at least twenty to the AID's foundation-be sure it goes for the babies-and the rest.., do they have convalescent centers here in Cascade?"
"I don't know. I could find out though," Brian replied.
"If there is, find the neediest one and give the rest of the money to them. If not, find a shelter for the homeless and give an anonymous donation."
"Okay-dokey," Brian said.
He was pleased to see his sister had finished her sandwich and was starting on her soup. Brianna's eating habits were almost non-existent. She spent long hours fasting and meditating
Brian could not help but worry about her health. He had to admit that she was resilient. She could be totally exhausted, but after an hour or two of prayer, she would appear rejuvenated.
Brian admitted that he was occasionally jealous of his sister's close relationship to their Master, but Brian had also felt His presence, filling him with peace when errant feelings about their mission welled up within him.
Brian knew he too was chosen, not to the extent of Brianna, but as her advisor and protector.
Brianna's sudden gasp caught Brian's attention.
"What's the matter, Sis?" he asked, laying a questioning hand on her arm.
Brian felt the hair on the back of his neck rise as the surge of power swept over his sister, causing the hand that touched her arm to tingle and itch.
"Brian," came the hoarse whisper.
"I know, sweetheart. Go ahead," Brian encouraged., watching as his sister rose and walked toward her bedroom, softly closing the door behind her.
Brian's face lit in a gentle smile before he went back to his meal.
Someone was about to get a blessing.