Jaxon got off the bed.
I went to help him, and he waved me off. He wanted to do it on his own. Despite my bravado, I was worried sick. Jaxon did indeed look fragile. I’m sure the feeding tubes put some weight on him but I wasn’t seeing it.
He took his first steps. One leg limped badly, and the other shook from the added effort. Halfway to the door, he stumbled on his damaged leg but somehow caught himself from falling. The crowd outside parted. Jaxon began again. Step after shaky step he limped forward.
He stumbled again at the door.
He used the doorframe to catch himself. He wasn’t going to be able to make it. He was too weak. His body was too broken.
I ran to his side.
“I’m here for you,” I said as I threw his arm over my shoulder. “I won’t let you down.”
He nodded in understanding, and we left the room. The crowd outside the door had grown. There were people all around us. Nick was waiting in the crowd.
“Is this what you want?” he asked Jaxon.
Jaxon nodded.
“Let me help,” said Nick, as he took over for me.
The three of us made our way through the crowd. Through the corners of my eyes I saw the astonished faces of those around us. Something was happening. They weren’t sure just what but they knew they had to watch.
Another thing I should point out is that someone had talked. The news that the General was brought into the hospital had spread far and wide. Reporters were everywhere. Security kept them from entering the building, but they weren’t able to stop the hundreds of random fans that had checked themselves in with made up illnesses just to try and get a look at him.
More and more people were filling up the hallway.
We walked on. We weren’t stopping. I could see the strain on my uncle’s face. I could see how weak he had become, and just before his body gave out Georgie appeared.
“I believe in you!” he shouted with tears in his eyes. “We will not fail. You will not fail. We won’t let you fail. We can do this!”
Georgie took over for Nick.
And then there were four.
“Make way for the General!” Georgie called out.
Jaxon pushed on. I started crying. I’m not a crier, but his will and determination was astounding. Nick was wiping his eyes. Nick is a crier. The crowd began to pat us on our backs as we moved by them.
We made it to the elevator. As soon as the door closed, Nick picked Jaxon up in order to give him a rest. I put my hand on Jaxon’s shoulder. Georgie put his hand on his other shoulder.
“We began this together,” Georgie said. “We’ll finish it together.”
Before the doors slide open on Skie’s floor, Nick had set my uncle back down on his feet. I took over helping him walk once again. I was blown away by what I saw when I stepped out of the elevator.
The crowd below paled in comparison to the amount of people waiting for us on Skie’s floor. The entire hallway was filled with people, and every damn one of them was giving him our salute of the right fist crossed over the heart.
A kind nurse came forward with a wheelchair.
“The General doesn’t need a wheelchair, ma’am!” Javie shouted out as he stepped forth from the crowd. “He has us to help him.”
I let Javie take over for me, and the five of us made our way past a silent crowd.
“Just a little bit more,” Javie whispered in Jaxon’s ear. “You’re almost there. You can do it.”
He pushed himself. He’s always pushing himself. His face was strained. He looked sick. His limbs were shaking but he never gave up. He never even thought about quitting. He paused at the doorway. Miriam and Ivana had taken a few steps back to give him room.
Jaxon looked at his wife for the first time in a long, long time.
Tears began to fall from his eyes. He tapped Javie on the shoulder, and Javie let him go. Jaxon limped to her bedside. It wasn’t easy for him. He stumbled a bit. He even paused a bit to catch his breath, but he did it. I brought over a chair for him to sit in, but he didn’t take it. He only saw Skie.
I watched the man, the warrior, the invincible force of nature that broke bones and cleaved skulls turn soft and gentle. I watched as he tenderly placed a kiss on the top of his wife’s head. I watched as he stroked her face and held her hand.
The General had been reunited with his wife. No one said a word. We were all too afraid to break the spell. He spoke soft words to her. He touched her hair. He cried softly.
After a while, Ivana couldn’t take it anymore. She gently approached Jaxon and placed her hand on his arm.
“Sweetheart,” she said. “You need to sit down.”
Jaxon looked at her. He nodded once and allowed her to help him into the chair. He never let go of his wife’s hand.
Thirty minutes later Jaxon had a seizure.
It was a bad one. His heart actually stopped beating for over a minute. The hospital staff ran in and went to work. They managed to bring him back, and the doctor was polite enough not to say “I told you so.”
They pulled another bed into the room for my uncle. They hooked him back up to a bunch of machines to monitor his heart and whatever else those machines do.
“He’s stable,” the doctor said. “But no more excitement and I mean that. As of now, he’s done playing games. I will not allow anyone of you to risk my patient’s health once again.”
Nick was about to reply, and I cut him off.
“We’ll go down and grab something to eat,” I said. “My grandparents should be arriving with the kids soon. I need to give them the news.”
Everyone was in good spirits after my grandparents arrived. We were worried about Skie, of course. Miriam alone seemed unconcerned about her. We bought our lunch and told everybody about what had just occurred.
“I can’t believe he just got out of bed and went to visit Skie,” Ivana said. “After so many days of nothing, he just gets up for a stroll.”
“Well, he’s not out of the woods yet,” I said. “In retrospect, it was a bad move to let him do that, but I don’t think anyone would have been able to stop him.”
“Let’s just hope he stays put now,” Nick added. “What’s he going to do if Skie doesn’t wake up?”
It was a stupid thing to ask with her kids sitting at the same table. Everyone got quiet. Miriam just smiled.
“I don’t think we need to talk about that right now,” I said.
“Nonsense,” Miriam said.
Everyone turned to her.
“Your mother will be waking up very soon,” Miriam told the kids. “Never doubt the power of love. Human beings can do amazing things when they are in love.”
“Did you put a spell on my Mom?” Otis asked.
“I did,” Miriam said. “I wanted to keep her safe and sound until your stepfather found his way back to her.”
“So, she’s like Sleeping Beauty?” Otis asked.
“I believe that’s somewhat accurate,” Miriam said.
“Doesn’t that make you the evil witch?” I asked.
Everyone laughed. Even Miriam gave a chuckle. Lunch was over soon after that. My grandparents wanted to see Jax, the kids wanted to see their mother, and the team wanted to protect everyone.
The elevator doors opened up on a ruckus. The earlier crowd had long since dispersed, but nurses were running in and out of Skie’s room. I went to the door and was immediately approached by the rather exasperated looking Doctor.
“Everything is fine,” he said. “Your uncle is still stable but he’s the most frustrating patient I’ve ever encountered.”
I looked over the doctor’s shoulder. Jaxon had moved from his bed to Skie’s. He had also unplugged himself from all the tubes and wires in the process.
“Did he hurt himself?” I asked.
“Fortunately, he did not,” the doctor answered. “But he could have. He simply cannot be moving around. The staff is getting together now to put him back in the other bed.”
&nbs
p; I looked to my uncle. He was curled up next to his wife. His head was resting on her shoulder. He wasn’t conscious. I wondered if he fell asleep normally, or if he passed out after moving himself.
“Doctor,” I said. “Let him stay with her.”
“I can’t do that,” he said. “It’s against policy.”
“I need you to listen to me,” I said. “You don’t understand. My uncle will just keep moving back to his wife. No matter what you do, he’ll just keep trying. It’s who he is. He will never quit. If you’re worried about him moving around, let him stay with her.”
The doctor grumbled and complained but in the end, he took my advice. All of us piled into the room. My grandma rubbed Jaxon’s arm and kissed his cheek. My grandpa laughed at all the chaos Jax was causing.
“I’m shocked he even took the time to get a haircut,” Georgie mused.
“I think he was summoning up what little energy he possessed while I cut his hair,” I said. “You didn’t see his expression. He looked like he was getting ready for a battle.”
Eventually, everything calmed down. My grandparents left with the kids. The team rested. I alone stood watch over the sleeping couple. Shortly before dawn, I fell asleep in a soft chair on the far side of the room.
I was awakened by a small voice quietly singing.
It was a relatively pleasant way to wake up. I yawned and stretched. I let my tired eyes gaze out the window upon the forest. Then, I freaked the Hell out. I was the only person in the room with Jaxon and Skie, and it certainly wasn’t Jaxon’s voice I was hearing.
Sometime during my rest, Skie had woken up.
Chapter 11
Jaxon
The next time I met with Jaxon, I looked at him with different eyes. I’m not sure why that was; the man has proven time and time again that he can be put through the grinder and still push forward, but all the suffering he went through, the very country he fought to protect turning against him, and the belief that his wife had died broke my heart.
He walked into the room wearing jeans, t-shirt, and cowboy boots. He took one look at my face, and let out a groan.
Stop it.
“Stop what?”
Stop feeling sorry for me. I lived through it, didn’t I?
“You did. Now tell me how. Tell me what happened after Skie woke up.”
It was beautiful, just beautiful. Even the dreams I had while I was sleeping next to her were beautiful. That’s why I didn’t want to wake up, but there was this soft voice singing in my ear. I’ve never been woken up by a soft voice singing in my ear, so I figured I might as well crack an eye and see what was going on.
It wasn’t easy. My eyes were heavy. I was very tired. My body had been through the ringer, but that voice kept calling to me; then I felt the softest touch upon my skin as a hand traced my cheekbones.
I opened my eyes.
Sunlight was streaming through the room. The figure next to me was bathed in light. I couldn’t make out her details, but I was positive the song came from her. I let her finish. I really didn’t have the energy to stop her anyway.
When she was finished, she moved her dark head just a fraction of an inch and blocked out the sun. I could see my wife smiling down at me. The tubes and wires were no longer connected to her body.
“I’ve missed you, baby,” Skie said. “Where have you been?”
I started crying.
“I tried,” I said. “I couldn’t find my way home.”
“You did find your way home,” Skie said. “You woke me up, Jaxon. You woke me up.”
I took her in my arms. I probably squeezed her a bit too hard but she didn’t complain. She just laughed that laugh I hadn’t heard in way too long. I could feel her smile against my neck, and I started laughing as well.
“We have company,” Skie said.
I looked at the foot of the bed. I saw Dudley. He was standing before us just bawling his eyes out.
“Thanks, Dudley,” I told him.
He left the room. When he returned, he had everyone with him. Twenty minutes after that, my parents arrived with Skie’s kids. Against the doctor’s wishes, there was a small celebration in our room. I, of course, was strictly forbidden to join in on the festivities but that didn’t matter. I kept dozing off anyway, and I wasn’t feeling my best.
“What song was Skie singing to you?”
“Down to the River to Pray.”
“I’m not familiar with it. I’ll have to look it up.”
Skie told me she learned it from the pretty young girl that kept watch over her. She said her name was Sally, but no one in the hospital knew any Sally.
Skie didn’t let it bother her. She was too happy to be awake. She was also energetic. Unlike me, she was able to get out of bed without any problems. The doctor couldn’t explain it. He also couldn’t explain how she became unplugged from all the medical contraptions that kept her alive. In essence, it was like Skie had had a big long nap, and now she was ready to put her dancing shoes on.
The only thing that actually kept her in bed was my appearance, something she was very unhappy about.
“Jaxon,” she said. “I’m okay. You should go heal yourself up in the shower. Your broken nose is starting to freak me out.”
I didn’t answer her. I didn’t know what to say.
“Jax,” Skie said with an undertone of worry. “Why do you have an IV in your arm?”
Then she moved the covers off the rest of my body and saw for the first time how skinny I had become through my hospital gown. Her eyes immediately welled up.
“Don’t cry,” I said. “I’m here. I’m alive, and so are you. That’s all that matters.”
“I didn’t even notice before,” Skie cried. “I was so happy to see you. I was so happy to be awake. “
“It’s fine,” I said. “I’ll catch you up on everything. Just relax a bit.”
She made a move to take my hand. I pulled it away from her. I had kept my hands hidden from her since she woke up in an effort to not freak her out. She tried to take my hand again, and when I still moved away from her, she grew angry.
“Let me see,” she said.
Everyone in the room was quiet. Ivana went to her side and touched her shoulder.
“Maybe this is all a bit much for you right now,” Ivana said. “Maybe you should take your time a bit more.”
“Have you seen my husband?” Skie demanded. “Who the hell did this to him, and why the hell can’t he heal?”
Everyone sort of looked at their feet.
Skie got out of bed and marched over to Miriam.
“Miriam,” Skie said. “I want answers, and I want them now.”
“He can’t heal because he’s lost his powers,” Miriam answered. “Your husband is a normal human being, and so is everyone else. His hair is grey because the age he avoided while he was the Guardian has finally caught up with him now that he is powerless. The scars and the overall damage to his body are the result of his imprisonment and subsequent torture.”
Hardin walked into the room before Skie could gather her thoughts. Everyone looked at him. In turn, he looked over his shoulder. Then he looked back at my wife who was standing before him.
“Did I pick a bad time to visit?” He asked.
Skie began screaming at him. I mean, she really let him have it. She probably called him every name in the book, and when Miriam tried to defend the man, Skie turned on her as well. The bitch-out session probably lasted thirty minutes and when it was over, my wife banned both of them from our room.
The festivities were over at that point. Skie asked a nurse for our doctor. Then she got tired of waiting and marched off in search of him. She wanted to know how bad I was. She wasn’t happy to find out.
The only ones allowed to visit me after that day were the Regulators, the family, and the medical staff. Hardin and Miriam didn’t even try. I think they were too afraid of angering my wife.
As the days went on, I became stronger and stronger. Eventually
, I was strong enough to get out of bed and walk around with a leg brace and a cane. After that, I had some minor surgeries on my hands. They were still pretty useless after the surgery but at least all my fingers were pointing in roughly the same direction. I was supposed to have additional surgeries, but I refused them. I told everyone it was due to the pain, but in reality, I just wanted to go home.
“Did you get to go home?”
I did. I went home to my family. My days of playing hero were done. I was beat up, busted up, worked over, and pretty much good for nothing at that point. At least that’s how I saw myself.
“I’m a bit confused. The public at large thought you went back to El Paso to continue the fight. There are even pictures of you and the team boarding a helicopter at the hospital.”
Those were body doubles. The powers that be asked us very politely to keep the country in the dark about our status. They also paid us quite a bit for our discretion.
“Can you explain to me why the reason for the deception?”
They felt that the country would panic if I wasn’t holding down the fort. They wanted people to believe their hero was still out there keeping them safe. Also, other countries needed to believe that as well. If the truth came out, the panic might even spread throughout the world. They were worried about foreign borders closing on Americans.
“I see. So now that Mr. Hardin was back in the captain’s chair, how exactly was he keeping the zombies from breaking out of El Paso?”
Well, that was tricky. Continued operations in the city had been terminated once the Monster turned on Major Crass because the Monster started killing all the operatives. Nobody was killing the zombies anymore.
Instead, they were feeding them. Since they couldn’t enter the city, they had helicopters dropping out fresh corpses onto the streets in order to keep the zombies from searching out new food.
This was a necessity, but it didn’t make Hardin very happy at all. Of course, I had no knowledge of this at the time. I was a civilian. The Regulators were civilians. We were all busy living out what was left of our lives, and it wasn’t much of a life, believe me.
Broken (Book 3 of The Guardian Interviews) Page 30
