by Stevie Barry
"Flippin' hell," Lorna croaked. "Katje?" She tried to raise her head and went white as a sheet, her jaw clenching against what had to be a lot of pain. "No, I didn't fight a bloody bear. Can we talk about this when I'm wishing a little less I was dead?" Her voice gave out entirely on the last word, and Katje winced.
"Will your bodyguard let us look at you?" one of the medics asked, eying the wolf. Katje couldn’t blame his hesitation, either.
Lorna stroked the creature's head again. "Sure it's all right now," she said quietly. "They mean no harm."
She gave the medics a nod, and they swooped down on her like a flock of vultures, administering painkillers and checking her vitals. If it wasn't a bear, what the hell could she have tangled with so badly, this far out in the middle of nowhere? It obviously hadn't been her wolf.
Then again, she shouldn't have been able to make it so far on foot, not in two weeks, and certainly not after having been shot so recently. There was definitely a story behind that, but nobody was going to hear it until Lorna could speak properly.
The medics loaded her onto a stretcher, and to Katje's alarm, the damn wolf followed them.
"It's all right," Lorna croaked. "She just wants to be sure I'm safe. She'll go home when she is."
The hospital's going to love this, Katje thought. She wasn't about to try to stop the creature, especially since it trotted right up beside the stretcher and stayed there. Lorna laid a hand on its back -- for its comfort or hers, Katje wasn't sure.
"She will not attack doctors, will she?" Katje asked warily.
"She's smarter than that. She's the Lady's wolf, really."
That wasn't as reassuring as Lorna probably intended it to be. One of the medics wisely radioed ahead, warning the hospital of their incoming lupine escort.
Katje chewed on the inside of her lip as she followed. She was a little ashamed to find she already wondered how she could use Lorna to deal with the U.N. -- this job was eating up her brain. Lorna needed R&R, as Geezer would say, which in this case meant rest and Ratiri, who would hopefully stop acting like a caged animal now that she'd found him. He'd probably be as glued to her side as that wolf was.
The DMA staff really were terrifyingly efficient. The normally busy corridors to the hospital were empty, traffic no doubt rerouted into some terribly complex detour. Apparently, nobody wanted to risk getting their arm eaten off, though the wolf looked calm enough. Somehow, the creature looked even bigger in here, its paws eerily silent on the tile floor. It kept pace with the medics perfectly, and almost seemed to ignore them, instead focusing intently on its semi-conscious human companion.
How long had it been traveling with Lorna? If it was the Lady's wolf, that explained why it hadn't eaten her, though perhaps not why Lorna hadn't wound up desperate enough to eat it. She'd always been wiry, but now she was worryingly scrawny, sunburnt skin stretched so tight over her face it looked much like a skull. Her eyes were sunken, her hair wild as a cavewoman's -- she looked almost as much an animal as her wolf.
There were so many questions to be asked, and God only knew how long it would be before Lorna was capable of answering them. Katje couldn't even guess how bad her physical damage might really be.
The emergency area of the hospital was as clear as the hallways, though dozens of curious, wary eyes peeped through doorways. Somebody must have alerted Gerald, for he was the one who met them.
Only Katje would be able to spot his slight wince when he saw Lorna. Doctors were supposed to have professional detachment, but this was his friend, and Katje wondered if he should be the one attending her. At least Ratiri wasn't here, thank God.
A little animation entered Lorna's glazed expression when she saw him, and she smiled. Her wolf cocked its head and eyed him curiously, and evidently decided he wasn't a threat. Which was a damn good thing, since he paled at the sight of it.
"Your bodyguard's going to have to back off for a bit," he said. "I need to assess the damage. It can come in, if you want, it just needs to…sit in the corner, or something."
Katje could guess what he was thinking -- having a wild animal in the hospital was dreadfully unsanitary, but no sane person would try to separate it from Lorna. She actually reached out and scratched the huge beast behind the ears, and almost seemed to communicate with it through her eyes alone. It was a little creepy.
Katje lingered by the door as the group went to a room, and breathed a sigh of relief when the wolf really did retreat to a corner. The orderlies busily cut off her clothing, and discovered in short order she had a broken arm. She hissed in pain when Gerald touched her ribs, and the wolf growled.
"It is okay," Katje said, surprised she was even speaking to the creature. "They must find is wrong with her, and it will hurt a little." She was even more surprised to see that the wolf seemed to understand her -- it actually laid on the floor at her words, though it never took its eyes off Lorna.
"I need a CAT scan," Gerald said, "but I'd say she's got at least two broken ribs. Let's get her into a gown and start her on some morphine."
On an instinct even she didn't understand, Katje went and sat in a chair beside the wolf, hoping silently it would recognize her as a friend. She cringed a little when they cut away the rest of Lorna's clothes -- the poor woman was one big bruise, and the ribs on her left side were distorted under her skin in a way that was nauseating. Bile rose in Katje's throat, and she was shocked when the wolf nuzzled her hand. Yes, it had evidently decided she was a friend, and was intelligent enough to realize she needed comforting. That was almost worrisome, though Katje was grateful for it.
"I'm going to have to get her into surgery eventually," Gerald said. "Her leg is so mangled I'm going to have to re-break it. Katje, can you sit with her bodyguard? She seems to like you."
"I will not have to watch the surgery, will I?" she asked, grimacing.
"No. You can face the wall, or we can give you a curtain. I'd just rather you be in there to keep that wolf calm."
"All right. But someone should tell Ratiri she is here. He may want to sit in, too."
"As long as he knows he's not assisting," Gerald said firmly. "He's much too close emotionally. Tell him once we’ve already gotten her into surgery."
So are you, Katje thought, but there was no point in arguing. When it came to some things, she knew she was going to lose.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Von Ratched woke feeling blessedly numb.
The sun was well up, illuminating the total devastation he and Lorna had wrought. The clear golden light somehow made it seem almost macabre, though there was little blood to be seen. Yet it was also somewhat fitting: of course he and Lorna could only ever create destruction between them.
He sat up, and pain exploded through him. The blood from his stab wound had actually frozen, sticking his shirt to his skin -- how he hadn't died of hypothermia, he didn't know. His legs were burning, too, and her realized she must have broken the other one as well.
Von Ratched swallowed, and shut his eyes. There were ways of dealing with pain, of manipulating one's own body to shut it out, at least temporarily. His need to do so had never before been so great, and it took him much longer than he liked.
At least the cold had kept him from bleeding to death. Hypothermia might not have killed him, but it must have slowed his autonomic responses, his heartbeat and respiration. He'd need bandages, and a way to splint his legs, but he would survive. Dying was not an option.
Unfortunately, neither was walking. Undignified though it was, he'd have to drag himself back to the helicopter. At least there was no one out here to see him. Forcing his arms to work was something of a challenge, one he almost couldn't manage. His side burned, and the hot wetness against his skin told him the wound had opened up again.
Damn Lorna. Damn her to whatever hell might exist. Never in his life had Von Ratched been bested so thoroughly -- he really, really wanted to know what had happened to her in these woods, what could have augmented her power so. Killing her
was no longer an option, simply because he didn't think he could.
The thought angered him, and at least the anger was warm. Just what manner of Galatea had he created? That beautiful, terrible creature, her power as borderline inhuman as his own. He'd wanted an equal, and it seemed he might have one.
Be careful what you wish for, he thought grimly. Von Ratched had always considered the phrase to be patent nonsense, but no longer. His vengeance would not now come as swiftly as he had hoped. Oh, he would have it in the end, but it might take years longer than he had planned.
No matter. He was good at adapting, in some ways if not in others. Lorna would rue the day she didn't make certain he was dead.
Everyone would.
----
As soon as Ratiri was informed of Lorna's presence, he ran to the operating room as fast as he could. He'd never been so impatient while scrubbing up, and he actually growled at the nurse who tried to warn him to stay away from the operating table.
It was Gerald's glare that stopped him. However normally mild-mannered Gerald might be, Ratiri had learned weeks ago that he was fiercely protective of his patients. And looking at Lorna, Ratiri had to admit he had a point. There was no way to remain objective.
This wasn't the first time he'd seen her look like she'd been in the mother of all pub fights, but it was definitely the worst. It had been weeks since she'd tangled with Von Ratched at the Institute -- her injuries shouldn't be nearly this fresh. What the hell had happened out there?
"Come keep my new friend calm."
Katje's voice startled him, but what he saw when he looked at her made him freeze. Her 'new friend' regarded him curiously, head cocked to one side, assessing him with a scrutiny that was almost human.
"Do I want to know why there's a wolf in here?" he asked.
"Would you try to keep it away? It won't leave Lorna. Has been her bodyguard, I think."
Not a very effective one, from the look of things, he thought. She looked like she'd fallen off a cliff. He held out a hand so the wolf could sniff it, and the creature actually licked his fingers. No, he wouldn't have tried to keep it from the operating room, not if it was determined to stay near Lorna.
The surgery seemed to take forever, though it was actually no more than two hours. The wolf followed again when they took her to the recovery room, laying on the floor beside her bed and looking like it was content to stay there.
Katje, who looked wrung-out and exhausted, left Ratiri to his vigil. He had a nurse fetch him a brush, and he patiently set about teasing the snarls from Lorna's hair. It needed washing -- he'd do that as soon as he got a chance.
"What the hell happened to you, Lorna?" he asked, working at a particularly persistent tangle. "You escaped, you wound up so much further south than you ever should have managed on your own, and you've a bloody wolf who won't leave your side." From the bruises around her throat, he was guessing she wouldn't be telling her story verbally. Had Von Ratched caught up to her? And if so, where was he?
Maybe she really did kill him this time. It was the only theory that made any sense -- Von Ratched never would have let Lorna escape him again, not if he was still alive.
The thought was chilling. No matter how many times she'd drawn blood from him, Von Ratched had almost seemed invulnerable, immortal. Lorna had tried to tear his throat out, for God's sake, and he'd shrugged it off far more easily than any normal human being should have. The idea that he might now be dead in the forest was pleasing, but it was also damn unnerving.
"I wish you could talk," Ratiri said to the wolf. "I wish you could tell me what you saw. I wonder how long you plan on sticking around, too." Were he and Lorna going to wind up with a permanent lupine pet? He could only imagine how much it would need to eat. Speaking of that, he should probably send someone to the cafeteria for some fresh meat -- a lot of it. Talk about unsanitary.
He realized his mind was wandering, and wondered if he was in shock. He'd spent so much time missing Lorna, and fearing for her, and it was hard to believe she was really here now. After all the dreams he'd had of her return, he kept expecting to wake up alone again.
To his immense surprise, she woke up not long after he'd finished with her hair. Well, her eyes opened, anyway -- she didn't seem at all aware of her surroundings. Her fingers closed around his when he took her hand, but her eyes were glazed, staring at nothing. At least her expression was peaceful, as was her aura. Who knew how much that would change, when she regained coherence.
----
Lorna woke feeling like she was floating. She had just enough cognizance to realize she was high as a kite, but that was all she knew. Where she was, how she'd got here -- both were mysteries she didn't have the energy or brainpower to work out just yet. She was warm and clean, and for a long while, that was all she cared about. Even opening her eyes was too much effort.
Eventually, she registered an IV line in her arm, and that snapped her eyes open. For one horrible, disoriented moment, she thought she was back at the Institute, trapped, her journey through the wilderness nothing but a dream.
But then Ratiri said her name, and the warm tongue of her wolf touched her hand, and Lorna almost wept with relief. Yes, she was in a hospital, but this wasn't the Institute. She was safe, and Von Ratched was more than likely dead.
She tried to ask where she was, but her abused, parched throat refused to make a sound. Ratiri raised the bed so she could sit up, and placed a few ice chips in her mouth.
Where am I? she sent him.
"The DMA. It's a long story, but you're safe now. We all are."
Got a damn long story myself, she told him. A story that was going to have some careful editing, but it was long nonetheless.
"I'm sure you do. Once you've been awake a while, there are a few people who will want to see you."
Lorna was certain there were. She hoped she had enough energy to deal with it.
She sucked on more ice chips while Ratiri told her about the DMA, about their raid of the Institute and rescue of the other inmates.
"Don't let Katje badger you into going before the U.N.," he warned. "I know she'll try. Gerald had to re-break your leg, and with your ribs, you have to rest a while."
Lorna made a face en lieu of answering. She'd had enough of that prior to her escape.
The fact of her safety hadn't really sunk in yet. Part of it had to be the drugs, but that wasn't the whole of it. No matter what the Lady had said, a corner of Lorna's mind hadn't really believed she'd ever find civilization. At least she was too doped up to feel trapped -- yet. That, she thought fuzzily, would come later.
She must have fallen asleep at some point. It seemed like her head had cleared between one blink and the next, and Ratiri was no longer the only person in the room. Katje, Gerald, and Geezer had crowded in as well, all carefully avoiding the wolf. To Lorna's vague irritation, they looked worried.
"Will you leave off the funeral faces?" she croaked. Her voice sounded like someone had scrubbed her throat with lye. "I'll not drop dead if you breathe wrong."
Katje smiled as only she could, radiant and lovely. Gerald had the grace to look sheepish, but Geezer raised an eyebrow.
"Don't think a chainsaw'd kill you, lass," he said. "Good to see you in one piece. More or less."
Lorna laughed, and winced. Whatever painkiller she was on wasn't enough to fully soothe her ribs. "Fuck going gently into the good night," she said. "God knows the night tried."
"What did you do to it?" Gerald asked, completely serious.
She grinned. "I set it on fire."
Katje tried to choke back a laugh, and failed. "Of course you did."
"Now don't think you're getting up any time soon," Gerald said sternly. "I mean it, Lorna. You're on bed rest until I say otherwise."
"Have I got to do it in here?" she asked, a little plaintively. "I've had enough'v bloody hospitals."
"I want to keep you under observation for a few days," he said, "but you can go convalesce in Ratiri's apartm
ent after that, so long as you behave yourself. Try to move around too soon and I'll drag you right back here."
"Aye, Captain," she said, tilting a salute and wincing again. "Now shove off, you lot. I'm tired."
Ratiri and the wolf stayed, unsurprisingly. Their presence meant she had no qualms about going back to sleep.
----
Gerald busied himself reading over Lorna's chart, checking her blood work. She was remarkably healthy for someone who had spent two weeks in the wilderness, eating God knew what. Underweight, yes, and dehydrated, but she wasn't even malnourished. White count was good, no anemia or infection --
Oh.
Uh-oh.
He needed to talk to Lorna, and they needed to get her off morphine ASAP. Assuming it's not too late to be pointless, he thought, all but running.
Ratiri and -- thankfully -- the wolf were both absent. Lorna was dozing, and Gerald hoped she could be roused into something like lucidity.
"Hey," she said. Her abused voice still couldn't do much more than croak.
"Are you awake enough to answer some questions?" he asked, pulling up a chair.
"Why?" she countered, and the wariness in her voice told him she was more or less cognizant.
"It's important. When did you last have your period?"
Lorna looked at him like he was insane, but after a moment, she frowned. "Not since before you lot escaped," she said, and her comprehension was an uncomfortable thing to behold. She wasn't glad -- she was completely terrified. "Ratiri and I -- the night before I got you all out -- oh, Christ." Her eyes widened. I've been pumped full'v drugs for a month and half, she sent him, evidently not trusting her vocal cords, and then I was out there -- sure God, what could that've done to a baby? How the hell'v I not miscarried already?
"My guess is the kid's as tough as you are," Gerald said. "I have to take you off the morphine, and we'll start you on a prenatal regimen right away."
"Is it even going to come out a baby, after all that?" she asked aloud. "I don't even know what all Von Ratched had me doped on." She swallowed, pale beneath her sunburn.
