Thursday, December 28, 2006
When Fiction Meets Reality - Pt. 22
"He left earlier this afternoon, sir." the agent said the moment he got the picture.
"Do we have any idea where he went?"
"No sir, he headed east, that's all we know."
"Vehicle?"
"On foot."
"Dammit."
"Thanks. Keep your eyes open, you're most likely sitting on the nest."
"Don't worry sir, we've got this covered."
He hung up just as he reached Kiefer's place, parked the car and hopped out. He let himself in and was greeted halfway into the hall by Molly. They headed up the stairs to Kiefer's apartment and found Tony alone in the living room, watching TV.
"Where's Kiefer?" Jack asked.
"He was feeling tired and went to lie down for a while."
"What took you so long?"
"We got some information."
"Anything interesting?"
"I think we may have found who's behind this, even though I can't exclude the possibility of him still being a middle man."
"Tell me."
Jack joined Tony on the couch and spread out the file he had assembled with Milo and Jamey's help. They went over things for quite a while, discussing the possibilities until Molly barked suddenly. She had been lying near the hallway, staying between her master and the men who had come to help her protect him. But a noise had alerted her and she alerted her aids to it, knowing they didn't have as good a hearing as she did. Her sharp bark startled them but they reacted at once, and she shot down the hall, going straight into the room at the back of the hall to find her master.
Jack jumped in alarm, his hand already on his gun before he even saw Molly head off into the hall. He was up before she reached it and he shot after her, instructing Tony to check downstairs.
Gun drawn, Jack slowed down near Kiefer's bedroom door and he listened for a moment. He heard Molly whining softly and he knew it meant trouble. He hadn't heard her yelp, so he didn't think anything had happened to her, in which case her whining meant something had happened to Kiefer. Jack angled into the room and spotted Kiefer lying on the bathroom floor, Molly at his side, nudging him softly against the shoulder. Jack couldn't take any chances and checked the room first, making sure nobody had entered. He then went over to check on Kiefer who lay unconscious, blood dripping from his nose.
"Tony! Get an ambulance!" Jack called loudly, holstering his gun and nudging Molly out of the way.
"Move over girl, let me check on him."
She moved reluctantly and sat down, watching him closely.
"Kiefer." Jack said urgently, "Can you hear me?"
His fingers roamed around until he found the pounding jugular. The pulsating blood under his finger brought forth a shallow sigh of relief.
"Can you hear me Kiefer?" Jack repeated.
He was lying face down and Jack carefully turned him over, making sure his airways weren't obstructed. A small trickle of blood still ran from his nose and Jack doubled his efforts to wake him up.
"The ambulance is on the way." Tony said the moment he walked into the room, "What happened?"
"I have no idea." Jack replied, softly slapping Kiefer on the cheek, "Come on, wake up."
"He's bleeding."
"Nice catch, Einstein." Jack replied jokingly.
"Inform the surveillance team we have an ambulance coming in."
Tony pulled his phone out of his pocket and called CTU, asking them to put him through to the surveillance team. While he talked to the agent outside, Jack finally managed to rouse Kiefer. He was slightly disoriented at first, but when he saw Jack and recognized him, the memories came back.
"Can you hear me?" Jack asked softly.
Kiefer nodded in confirmation.
"What happened?"
"I got sick," Kiefer replied in a half whisper, "I felt dizzy and I fell."
"Did you hit your head on anything?"
"I don't know. Maybe."
"Why?"
"You're bleeding. Are you still dizzy?"
"The room is spinning."
"Nausea?"
"Not really … it might change when I get up."
"Don't worry, you're not getting up."
"What?"
"I called an ambulance. We're taking you to the hospital to get checked out."
"I'm fine."
"No you're not." Jack replied sharply enough to shut him up.
"You got sick, you were dizzy and now you're bleeding from the nose but you didn't hit your head on anything."
"You probably have a concussion and I'm not taking any chances."
"Can you help me back to bed?" Kiefer asked quietly, having taken Jack's words as being final.
Jack and Tony helped him up slowly and got him back to bed.
"Nauseous?" Jack asked as they eased him onto the mattress.
"Yeah." Kiefer sighed in response, fighting it back.
He definitely had a concussion.
Minutes later, the ambulance arrived and the paramedics quickly got him on the gurney, covered him and strapped him in. Jack and Tony tagged along, Jack riding in the ambulance, Tony following by car. When they got to hospital, they took him straight in for x-rays and exams. When they were done, they transferred him to a room where he could wait more comfortably for the test results and Tony went in to keep him company while the doctor talked with Jack.
"What happened?"
"He took a blow to the back of his head on Friday. It required a few stitches but he was released from hospital that same night."
"Well he should've stayed in observation for at least 24 hours, he's got a concussion. Maybe not a severe one, but bad enough to want to keep a close eye on him for a while."
"Well apparently he has a rather overwhelming dislike for hospitals."
"We know all about that." the doctor replied, taking Jack by surprise.
"What do you mean?"
"It's not the first time we see him here, and he's always a pain when it comes to staying longer than he would like."
"How much of a pain?"
"Nothing we can't handle." the doctor replied, "With a tranquilizer when we have to." he added with a wink.
"What's your recommendation?"
"A few days in a dark and quiet environment."
"How long?"
"At least three days. More if someone could convince him he actually needs it."
"He'll be hard to hold for three days already."
"I know. Do you think you would have a better handle on him?"
"Maybe."
"I'll let you know if I need that tranquilizer." Jack added with a wink of his own.
"I'll inform the nurse."
The doctor left him to deal with Kiefer and Jack went into the room, but the moment he walked in, he knew he wouldn't have a problem with him at all. He could feel the defeat in the air.
"I just talked to your doctor." Jack said, sitting down on the edge of the bed.
He could barely keep from gasping at the change in Kiefer when their eyes met. It seemed as if he had aged by fifteen years if not more.
He looked tired. Beaten.
The stress and strain he had been under for the past three months had finally caught up with him and the power of it had knocked him down.
Hard.
"He recommends a quiet and dark environment for a couple of days, three at least, preferably more."
"You'll have to call Jon." Kiefer replied quietly.
His voice too had changed. Jack could feel the pain in it.
Not physical pain, but the emotional pain that had been hidden under that layer of toughness Kiefer had displayed at length. He had been trying to shield himself from the events, pretend it didn't touch him, but he couldn't keep that up.
"Do you know his number?"
Kiefer gave him the number and Jack went outside to make the call.
Jon answered on the fourth ring.
"Jon Cassar."
"This is Jack Bauer sir." Jack started, "I'm calling to inform you mister Sutherland won't be coming in for work for a few days."
"What? What happened?" Jon asked, panic sounding in his voice.
"The effects of that blow on the head kicked in tonight, he got sick and he started bleeding from the nose, so we brought him back to hospital. He needs to stay in a dark room for a few days."
"Any idea how long?"
"At least three days."
"Okay, tell him I'll shuffle the shooting schedule around, he doesn't have to worry about a thing."
"I'll let him know."
"Thank you."
"No problem."
Jack hung up and went back to Kiefer's room. He had drifted off to sleep and Tony sat watching him.
"You okay Tony?" Jack asked quietly.
"Yeah, I'm fine."
"He'll be alright."
"Yeah, I know. I was just thinking about what happened earlier. Maybe I should've brought him in when he first said he wasn't feeling too well."
"You have nothing to blame yourself for Tony, you couldn't know."
"Yeah, but still."
"Nothing happened Tony, he'll be fine given some rest."
"Yeah, I know."
"Good, why don't you go home and get some sleep."
"You sure?"
"He'll have to stay overnight at least. I'll stay with him, you go home and get some rest."
"Okay, I'll come by here in the morning."
"Perfect."
Tony left and Jack got as comfortable as he could get in the lazy chair in the corner.
Time ticked by slowly and Jack felt the pull of slumber at the edge of his vision. Kiefer slept peacefully, the heart monitor bleeping at a steady pace, his chest rising and falling rhythmically. There was no reason for him to stay awake but he didn't feel comfortable about his position, so he pushed up from the chair and moved it quietly. He positioned it near the entrance, propping his feet up on one of the straight-back chairs in such a way nobody could get by him without waking him up.
He let sleep claim him, knowing his slumber would be light and easily disturbed. It always was when he was in a potentially dangerous situation.
"Do we have any idea where he went?"
"No sir, he headed east, that's all we know."
"Vehicle?"
"On foot."
"Dammit."
"Thanks. Keep your eyes open, you're most likely sitting on the nest."
"Don't worry sir, we've got this covered."
He hung up just as he reached Kiefer's place, parked the car and hopped out. He let himself in and was greeted halfway into the hall by Molly. They headed up the stairs to Kiefer's apartment and found Tony alone in the living room, watching TV.
"Where's Kiefer?" Jack asked.
"He was feeling tired and went to lie down for a while."
"What took you so long?"
"We got some information."
"Anything interesting?"
"I think we may have found who's behind this, even though I can't exclude the possibility of him still being a middle man."
"Tell me."
Jack joined Tony on the couch and spread out the file he had assembled with Milo and Jamey's help. They went over things for quite a while, discussing the possibilities until Molly barked suddenly. She had been lying near the hallway, staying between her master and the men who had come to help her protect him. But a noise had alerted her and she alerted her aids to it, knowing they didn't have as good a hearing as she did. Her sharp bark startled them but they reacted at once, and she shot down the hall, going straight into the room at the back of the hall to find her master.
Jack jumped in alarm, his hand already on his gun before he even saw Molly head off into the hall. He was up before she reached it and he shot after her, instructing Tony to check downstairs.
Gun drawn, Jack slowed down near Kiefer's bedroom door and he listened for a moment. He heard Molly whining softly and he knew it meant trouble. He hadn't heard her yelp, so he didn't think anything had happened to her, in which case her whining meant something had happened to Kiefer. Jack angled into the room and spotted Kiefer lying on the bathroom floor, Molly at his side, nudging him softly against the shoulder. Jack couldn't take any chances and checked the room first, making sure nobody had entered. He then went over to check on Kiefer who lay unconscious, blood dripping from his nose.
"Tony! Get an ambulance!" Jack called loudly, holstering his gun and nudging Molly out of the way.
"Move over girl, let me check on him."
She moved reluctantly and sat down, watching him closely.
"Kiefer." Jack said urgently, "Can you hear me?"
His fingers roamed around until he found the pounding jugular. The pulsating blood under his finger brought forth a shallow sigh of relief.
"Can you hear me Kiefer?" Jack repeated.
He was lying face down and Jack carefully turned him over, making sure his airways weren't obstructed. A small trickle of blood still ran from his nose and Jack doubled his efforts to wake him up.
"The ambulance is on the way." Tony said the moment he walked into the room, "What happened?"
"I have no idea." Jack replied, softly slapping Kiefer on the cheek, "Come on, wake up."
"He's bleeding."
"Nice catch, Einstein." Jack replied jokingly.
"Inform the surveillance team we have an ambulance coming in."
Tony pulled his phone out of his pocket and called CTU, asking them to put him through to the surveillance team. While he talked to the agent outside, Jack finally managed to rouse Kiefer. He was slightly disoriented at first, but when he saw Jack and recognized him, the memories came back.
"Can you hear me?" Jack asked softly.
Kiefer nodded in confirmation.
"What happened?"
"I got sick," Kiefer replied in a half whisper, "I felt dizzy and I fell."
"Did you hit your head on anything?"
"I don't know. Maybe."
"Why?"
"You're bleeding. Are you still dizzy?"
"The room is spinning."
"Nausea?"
"Not really … it might change when I get up."
"Don't worry, you're not getting up."
"What?"
"I called an ambulance. We're taking you to the hospital to get checked out."
"I'm fine."
"No you're not." Jack replied sharply enough to shut him up.
"You got sick, you were dizzy and now you're bleeding from the nose but you didn't hit your head on anything."
"You probably have a concussion and I'm not taking any chances."
"Can you help me back to bed?" Kiefer asked quietly, having taken Jack's words as being final.
Jack and Tony helped him up slowly and got him back to bed.
"Nauseous?" Jack asked as they eased him onto the mattress.
"Yeah." Kiefer sighed in response, fighting it back.
He definitely had a concussion.
Minutes later, the ambulance arrived and the paramedics quickly got him on the gurney, covered him and strapped him in. Jack and Tony tagged along, Jack riding in the ambulance, Tony following by car. When they got to hospital, they took him straight in for x-rays and exams. When they were done, they transferred him to a room where he could wait more comfortably for the test results and Tony went in to keep him company while the doctor talked with Jack.
"What happened?"
"He took a blow to the back of his head on Friday. It required a few stitches but he was released from hospital that same night."
"Well he should've stayed in observation for at least 24 hours, he's got a concussion. Maybe not a severe one, but bad enough to want to keep a close eye on him for a while."
"Well apparently he has a rather overwhelming dislike for hospitals."
"We know all about that." the doctor replied, taking Jack by surprise.
"What do you mean?"
"It's not the first time we see him here, and he's always a pain when it comes to staying longer than he would like."
"How much of a pain?"
"Nothing we can't handle." the doctor replied, "With a tranquilizer when we have to." he added with a wink.
"What's your recommendation?"
"A few days in a dark and quiet environment."
"How long?"
"At least three days. More if someone could convince him he actually needs it."
"He'll be hard to hold for three days already."
"I know. Do you think you would have a better handle on him?"
"Maybe."
"I'll let you know if I need that tranquilizer." Jack added with a wink of his own.
"I'll inform the nurse."
The doctor left him to deal with Kiefer and Jack went into the room, but the moment he walked in, he knew he wouldn't have a problem with him at all. He could feel the defeat in the air.
"I just talked to your doctor." Jack said, sitting down on the edge of the bed.
He could barely keep from gasping at the change in Kiefer when their eyes met. It seemed as if he had aged by fifteen years if not more.
He looked tired. Beaten.
The stress and strain he had been under for the past three months had finally caught up with him and the power of it had knocked him down.
Hard.
"He recommends a quiet and dark environment for a couple of days, three at least, preferably more."
"You'll have to call Jon." Kiefer replied quietly.
His voice too had changed. Jack could feel the pain in it.
Not physical pain, but the emotional pain that had been hidden under that layer of toughness Kiefer had displayed at length. He had been trying to shield himself from the events, pretend it didn't touch him, but he couldn't keep that up.
"Do you know his number?"
Kiefer gave him the number and Jack went outside to make the call.
Jon answered on the fourth ring.
"Jon Cassar."
"This is Jack Bauer sir." Jack started, "I'm calling to inform you mister Sutherland won't be coming in for work for a few days."
"What? What happened?" Jon asked, panic sounding in his voice.
"The effects of that blow on the head kicked in tonight, he got sick and he started bleeding from the nose, so we brought him back to hospital. He needs to stay in a dark room for a few days."
"Any idea how long?"
"At least three days."
"Okay, tell him I'll shuffle the shooting schedule around, he doesn't have to worry about a thing."
"I'll let him know."
"Thank you."
"No problem."
Jack hung up and went back to Kiefer's room. He had drifted off to sleep and Tony sat watching him.
"You okay Tony?" Jack asked quietly.
"Yeah, I'm fine."
"He'll be alright."
"Yeah, I know. I was just thinking about what happened earlier. Maybe I should've brought him in when he first said he wasn't feeling too well."
"You have nothing to blame yourself for Tony, you couldn't know."
"Yeah, but still."
"Nothing happened Tony, he'll be fine given some rest."
"Yeah, I know."
"Good, why don't you go home and get some sleep."
"You sure?"
"He'll have to stay overnight at least. I'll stay with him, you go home and get some rest."
"Okay, I'll come by here in the morning."
"Perfect."
Tony left and Jack got as comfortable as he could get in the lazy chair in the corner.
Time ticked by slowly and Jack felt the pull of slumber at the edge of his vision. Kiefer slept peacefully, the heart monitor bleeping at a steady pace, his chest rising and falling rhythmically. There was no reason for him to stay awake but he didn't feel comfortable about his position, so he pushed up from the chair and moved it quietly. He positioned it near the entrance, propping his feet up on one of the straight-back chairs in such a way nobody could get by him without waking him up.
He let sleep claim him, knowing his slumber would be light and easily disturbed. It always was when he was in a potentially dangerous situation.
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5 Comments:
Poor, poor Kiefer :(
Is it really only 2 parts to the end? That's sad :(. So great fan-fic - so short :(
Well I don't know where you got the idea of how many parts there were gonna be, but I really don't think Melia can post the rest of the story in 2 more parts, there's still a lot of action to come, so rest assured, it's not short at all .... trust me, there's a lot more coming your way.
Glad you're still enjoying it.
Maybe I didn't understand her as I should have, but I thought there are only 24 parts... So it's great there's a lot left to read :).
This part is great, I was listening Irish music (climatic, sometimes sad - Clannad), so I felt like translating it at once... I have half of it ready. I had a lump in my throat... Great, great job!
And not only I STILL enjoy it, I think it's better and better :)
There will be a few more parts, and you'd better get ready for some REAL action, it's about to get faster and harder, so buckle your seatbelts and keep your hands and feet inside the vehicle at all times ... lol.
Have fun translating and don't forget to let me know what your fellow Polish fans think ;)
One of my fellow fans burst of laughing when it came to Jack baby-sitting Kiefer (at the end of firts part). Now they're happy with "24"-production details ;).
They like the story very much too and they're trying to make me write it faster (I published only five translated parts :(. I don't have as much time as I would like to :( ).
If you feel like little email-chat with me, you can use joasui@bocznica.org . :)
So, Melia, I'm waiting for action! ;)
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