OUTLIER: Blood, Brotherhood, And Beauty (Beauty 0f Lifee Book 4)

by Laura Acton

  Jon had ranted at him in debriefing over that one after Bram and Ray returned from NRB. Jon went on and on about how TRF is different from the Army. They were subjects, not targets. It was the one time he experienced absolutely no guilt at all for disobeying protocols. He saved Lexa’s life—and the subject’s life, too.

  His mind settled, and he chose. Dan might make it without the job, but life wouldn’t be worth living without Lexa. “Boss,” he murmured.

  He pressed his medication button. Again, he didn’t feel the relief the painkillers usually brought. His pain kept increasing. Dan leaned his head back and closed his eyes trying to gain control over it and gather strength to tackle the meeting with his boss.

  St. Michael’s Hospital – Outside Room 1030 – 8:30 a.m.

  Loki appeared in the hall moments later. He looked at Boss. “He wants you next.”

  Nick glimpsed something flitter across Loki’s face. He was unsettled. “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing really, only a weird vibe I got when I asked who he wanted next.”

  “What was it?” Lexa asked.

  “Well, it took him some time to decide. Like he was considering two evils,” Loki said not finding the right word.

  They both glared at him, ‘evils.’

  “Sorry, that isn’t the right word. Like Dan was deciding who would be worse.”

  Rats! They glared at him again. How can I say this without Lexa slugging me? “The looks crossing his face, Dan was anxious how you two would react, I think. Kinda like, I don’t know like he couldn’t bear to be seen as less by either of you. Like it would hurt him a great deal if either of you rejected him because of what you saw and heard.”

  Oh good, Loki thought. Lexa dropped her arms and stopped glaring at him.

  Nick and Lexa looked at each other.

  A thought pop into Lexa’s head. “Boss, do you think he’s worried about losing his job. Being seen as unstable after everything that happened since he appeared at TRF headquarters the morning after the gang war?”

  Nick rubbed both hands over his head and across his eyes several times. He didn’t want to admit to any of his team he had thoughts along those lines. Not even to Jon, though Jon probably already knew, he was special that way.

  He especially didn’t want to let Lexa or Loki know he thought about this. They would bite his head off. However, the entire team’s safety is his primary concern. So yes, he considered the possibility. “Let’s just focus on getting Dan through this crisis. That is important now. That’s the priority.” He pushed himself off the wall and headed to the door.

  Lexa and Loki glanced at each other. Loki spoke what they both felt, “There’s no way I’m letting Boss remove Dan from the team.”

  Lexa nodded in agreement and went to sit down. She leaned her head back on the wall and closed her eyes. So many questions rolled in her head. At the forefront, why was Dan nervous about seeing her? Was Dan worried she would see him differently?

  That had merit in her mind. She would be concerned about that if their places were reversed. Lexa lowered her head to her knees as she wondered if Dan might try to push her away now. That would hurt because she thought he was different from other guys—maybe not.

  Help … Me … Dad

  44

  August 4

  St. Michael’s Hospital – Room 1030 – 8:33 a.m.

  Nick brushed away the thoughts Lexa brought forward as he entered the room. For now, it is important to get Dan back on his feet. The rest they had time to figure out. Dan’s physical recovery time would give them ample time to assess if there were any psychological issues to be worried about.

  Dan had positive visits with Ray, Bram, and now Loki. Nick assumed it went well with the general because he stayed in the room with Dan. Feeling more optimistic, Nick sighed with relief—his team is becoming grounded again. Necessary because they were on shift tomorrow. The scene which met him in Dan’s room was both touching and upsetting.

  The general stood next to the bed with his hand resting lightly on the side of Dan’s face in a fatherly caress offering comfort. Dan’s father spoke in hushed undertones, his voice not carrying beyond their tight bubble.

  Nick recognized signs of intense pain on Dan’s face, but also that he looked to his father for support. They had started to reconcile. They had forgiven and were beginning to accept one another. That was a magnificent sight to see aside from the pain on Dan’s face. The pain he saw upset him. Nick glanced at Jon seated in a chair not far from Dan. Jon expression communicated, ‘the general has it covered.’

  When Loki left the room, William noted Daniel lay back and close his eyes. Daniel didn’t speak a single word when Loki was in the room except to say ‘Boss’ when asked who was next. He watched the play of emotions and could tell Daniel was conflicted about something. William had risen from the chair and gotten very close to Daniel intending to help. What he saw close up wasn’t good—the pain was etched too deeply. In a hushed tone, William said, “Son, I can see you’re in pain. You need help with that?”

  Dan opened his eyes and found his dad so close to his face.

  William raised his hand and brushed the side of Daniel’s face.

  Flinching away, Dan closed his eyes trying to control the pain. I can do this. I don’t need help. It’s just pain.

  “Have you been pushing the button?” William asked.

  Dan opened his eyes.

  The general saw the same intense pain with added annoyance.

  “Yes,” Dan bit out like he been asked an idiotic question. He pressed the damned button regularly trying to stay on top of the pain like the nurse instructed.

  Why aren’t the goddamned pain meds working? Dan wondered as the pain steadily rose to an intense level. His dad brushed the side of his face again as a new wave of pain struck him. He didn’t flinch away this time. He closed his eyes tightly and leaned his face into the comforting touch. It hurt so badly he was rapidly losing control.

  “What’s the pain level?” William asked with concern.

  “Ten,” Dan ground out between clenched teeth as another spike of pain slammed into him.

  “Trust me to help you,” William whispered so only Daniel could hear.

  Dan’s breaths came in shallow pants. He moaned as yet another wave of pain crashed down onto him. Pain beyond his control now, Dan reached out for an anchor—for his dad.

  William caught the motion of Daniel’s hand in his peripheral vision and immediately gripped it giving his son something to cling to.

  Dan squeezed with all his might as a grimace seized his face. He whispered, “Help … me, … Dad.” Dan forced his eyes open.

  Pleading and trust reflected in his son’s eyes. “Hold on, son. Help is on the way,” William softly crooned. Turning to Scott, William said, “Run! We need the nurse now!”

  Scott flew out of the room.

  Lexa, Loki, Bram, and Ray exchanged surprised looks as Scott ran the past them. What was going on in there?

  William turned back to Daniel and continued to speak softly to him and stroke his face trying to get him to relax and breathe through the pain. Dan continued to mangle his dad’s hand with the sheer power of his grip as the pain overwhelmed him.

  Nurse Betty rushed into the room followed closely by Scott. She checked the pump monitor then the vial. She said calmly, “It is empty. Dan has not been getting any pain meds for several hours. I’ll be back quickly.” She rushed out.

  Dammit, couldn’t this kid get at least one little break? Jon shot out of his chair and moved close to Dan. “Hang in there Dano.”

  Scott stood on the opposite side of the bed. “Danny, so sorry I didn’t notice it was out. Hold on, relief is coming.” Scott mentally kicked himself for not paying enough attention to that detail.

  Nick stood barely inside the room, and well away from Dan giving him space. It was terrible to see him in pain. He wished the nurse was back already. He was about to go see what was taking the nurse so long when Betty
reentered the room with a middle-aged woman.

  “Hello, my name is Dr. Eva Larsson, Dan’s pulmonologist. I understand he is having an issue with pain control.” The doctor had been on her way to meet with Dan when a very upset nurse arrived at the station. She rapidly got the gist of what happened and told the nurse she would take care of it.

  William stated, “He needs relief right now. What can we do for him?”

  Eva looked to the patient who was way beyond the ability to maintain control of his pain and promptly moved forward to make her assessment. When she was done, Dr. Larsson turned to the man who spoke before, his father she assumed and directed her comments to him.

  “I’d like to do a nerve block now. It is a relatively simple procedure which will give him complete pain relief for days. His pain must be adequately controlled so he can breathe deeply and cough. Shallow breathing will cause problems and slow healing. Later we can determine if it needs to be repeated or if oral meds will control the pain. Do you authorize the procedure?”

  All four men loudly said, “Yes,” astonishing the doctor.

  Dr. Larsson quickly left the room to make the arrangements. Two orderlies returned to his room within two minutes and took Dan out followed by the general. Nick and Jon went into the hall to update the team. Scott sank down into a chair totally exhausted.

  Scott’s phone vibrated, and he took it out of his pocket and glanced at the caller ID. Oh crap! “Hello, babe. I’m so sorry I didn’t call.”

  “No worries. Is Dan doing better?” Lily asked.

  “No, he isn’t doing well right now. I can’t leave him. I don’t know when I can join you. I’m so sorry.”

  Lily was saddened to hear Dan wasn’t doing better. She heard the worry and fatigue in her husband’s voice. She learned so much about Scott from her mother-in-law Ann when they planned the wedding. Lily knew Scott and Dan used to have a deep connection. Lily figured that was the basis for the guys teasing her about Scott and Dan being twins—since they had twin mothers.

  Knowing that connection was still fully intact from the concern she heard in Scott’s voice, Lily spoke reassuring words of comfort to Scott for several minutes. She ended saying, “Don’t worry about me I’m fine right here. You take all the time you need. Dan needs you right now. I’m glad you’re there for him in his hour of need. I wish there were more I could do.”

  Scott’s tension had flowed out from his body at a steady speed replaced by a calmness as he listened to his wife. Lily always knew the right thing to say. Scott spilled out, in basic terms, what happened, all his worries, how happy he was Dan and Uncle Will were making a start at reconciling, and his wish that all his cousins could be here to help Dan with his recovery.

  When Scott finished their conversation, and he finally hung up the phone, he felt refreshed. Talking to Lily always restored him. Glad I finally got up the nerve to ask her to marry me. He had been intimidated by her father. Intimidating a Broderick wasn’t an easy thing to do to, but given who Lily’s dad was, it was understandable.

  Grand Citadel Hotel – Room 417– 9:00 a.m.

  Lilyanna sat on the small sofa with her feet tucked under her. Worry clouded her features. She never heard so much aching in Scott’s voice before. She hadn’t met Dan yet, but could almost physically feel the desperate need in Scott to be there for his younger cousin.

  Scott shared with her some details of Dan’s past during their nightly phone conversations over the past weeks. She needed to do something to help. But what could she do? A thought struck her as a smile removed the worry. Yes, she could do that.

  Picking up her phone, Lily pressed number two on her speed dial. When the call answered, Lily said, “Hi, Dad. Do you have a moment to talk?”

  St. Michael’s Hospital – Procedure Room – 10:00 a.m.

  Dr. Larsson finished the nerve block several minutes ago. She moved around to the other side of the bed so she could talk face to face with her patient who was lying on his side. Eva looked down at the young man who had been in excruciating pain and asked, “Better, now?”

  Dan’s face was smooth and relaxed, as was his entire body, “Yeah,” he sighed with relief to be mostly pain-free.

  “Good. Now, remember this should last for several days. We need to have a conversation about what you need to do to rehabilitate your lungs. But for now, I need you to be diligent and the first sign you feel any pain you let me know. There is absolutely no need for you to be in pain. What’s your pain level now?” Dr. Larsson asked.

  “Level two, but … mostly … aching … muscles … in my arms … and legs. … No pain with … breathing.” He was happy he could breathe more normally now—it helped. Although he knew his lungs still had issues given his halting speech. Regardless of that, Dan gave the doctor a big smile as he said, “Thanks, Doc.”

  Eva liked seeing his beautiful smile—so much better than the grimace which was on his face before. “Alright, let’s get you back to those friends of yours. They looked pretty darned worried. They’ll be happy to see you doing better. Though, I want you to keep it short with them. No more than a few moments only to reassure them. You’re exhausted and need some rest. Got it?”

  He nodded, and Dr. Larsson continued, “I’ll be by tomorrow to discuss your recovery plan in detail.”

  Dan looked at her—he liked her positive manner so asked, “Will they ... recover enough … for me to return … to work?”

  Eva looked directly into the soulful blue eyes which almost begged her to say yes outright. “The answer to that depends a lot on you. Based on my review of your scans it will be hard but not impossible. If you do exactly what I tell you to do and work hard … I’d be comfortable saying you have a good probability of making that happen. You only have to want it badly enough.”

  No freaking doubt he wanted it badly enough. Dan soared into the light, darkness obliterated from the corners of his mind.

  St. Michael’s Hospital – Outside Room 1030 – 10:45 a.m.

  William returned to Daniel’s room when the doctor took Daniel in to do the procedure. Dr. Larsson told him it would be about an hour or so before Daniel would be returned to his room because she ordered new scans. So, he went back to wait with the others. Rounding the corner of the nurse’s station, he saw the tired rag-tag bunch milling in the hall. These people cared so much for Daniel, and he was truly grateful.

  A little over an hour later the group tensed when they saw the orderlies bringing Dan back. The team all rose from the floor. They steeled themselves not knowing what to expect. The bed stopped in front of the door as one orderly went to prop it open. They were blown away by what they saw and heard.

  Dan gave everyone a bright smile and said, “Hi, … pains gone … I’m okay now … doc says … I have … to rest. Boss, … Lexa, can I … talk to you … tomorrow?”

  He yawned, and they could all see Dan barely kept his eyes open.

  Flabbergasted by the one-hundred-eighty-degree change in Dan, Nick stammered out, “Sure, Dan. We’ll be by after shift tomorrow.”

  Dan pulled strength from deep down to open his eyes fully and pointedly looked at Boss and said with conviction, “Boss, … I’m gonna … make it back … to the team. … Don’t fill … my spot.”

  Nick smiled and replied firmly, “I believe you. Your spot will be waiting for you no matter how long it takes. Rest now, we’ll talk later.”

  Jon moved close, feeling a mixture of wonder and worry. “Do you want me to stay?”

  Dan gave him a tired lopsided grin as his eyes closed halfway. “Nah, I’m … okay now. … Thanks. You … all need … sleep. Ya … can’t be … napping … on the job … tomorrow.”

  They could see sleep was about to overtake Dan so the team hastily said their goodbyes and reiterated they would be back after shift tomorrow. The orderlies pushed a sleeping Dan into his room followed by the general and Scott.

  Nick looked at the team and grinned. “Resilience! I’ve never seen anyone with resilience like that.” He
had a strong sense that if anyone could recover and make it back, it would be Dan. Damn proud of the kid.

  Loki was beside himself with joy. “Soooo glad to see Dantastic on the mend.”

  Bram looked at them all and said, “We ought to go. Dan’s right we need sleep.” Feeling lighter than he had in a long time, he teased, “Ten-to-one we catch Jon napping tomorrow.”

  Everyone laughed, and as they left the hospital, they made bets on who would be caught napping and where.

  On the way out of the hospital with the team, Lexa thought, I’ll grab a few hours of sleep then pop back here before work starts. I’m not waiting another full day to talk to him.

  St. Michael’s Hospital – Room 1030 – 11:30 a.m.

  As Dan slept William and Scott discussed a plan of action. They both agreed Dan needed to be out of a hospital so he would recover faster. Whatever Dr. Larsson did or said had made a significant impact on Dan. The light had returned to his eyes. They liked her and made an appointment to talk with her before she saw Dan tomorrow. For their plan to work they needed to find out what happened and to get her on board.

  Scott leaned back in the chair and yawned. “Uncle Will, you should go get some sleep. Bella will have your hide if you don’t. I’ll stay with Dan.”

  William looked at Scott and replied, “No, I’ll stay. You’re dead on your feet, and your lovely wife is waiting for you at the hotel. You know you never want to make her angry. Might cost you dearly. You’re a brave man to marry her.” He chuckled as he sat in the recliner and pulled the foot rest up.

  Scott blanched at the thought then smiled broadly. “Yeah, I guess you ticking off Bella is less threatening than me ticking off Lily.”

  William chuckled. “Not by much. But I’m willing to risk the wrath of Bella for Daniel. My son needs me. I’m not leaving him.”

  Rising from the chair, Scott nodded. “I’m glad to see you two making a start of reconnecting. I’ll see you tomorrow morning unless you need me to come back earlier.”