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The characters in this story don't belong to me. This is a Pretender fanfiction written strictly for my self and others who dearly love the Pretender. I'm getting no money and have no money so please don't sue me! Please read parts 1-3 first or this story will not make any sense.
In Pursiut Of Happiness
Part 4
by jojarod50
Recovery room 4:
Trenton Memorial Hospital: 9:00 a.m.
"Jon, can you hear me?" the nurse said using Jarod's designated name. "Jon, it's time to wake up now." She said giving him a little pat on his left arm.
Jarod slowly opened his eyes and suddenly attempted to sit up. The pain was excruciating. All he could do was arch his back and make a strangled sound while holding his breath; his eyes clamped tightly shut.
"Nurse, Meperidine, please."
"You're going to feel a prick now. This will make you more comfortable. Please try not to move around." It took a few moments for the pain to retreat leaving him in a strange dreamlike state. He closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.
"Jon, you need to wake up now." Said a deeper and more commanding voice, breaking though the protégé's dreamless sleep and pulling him back to consciousness.
Jarod took a ragged breath and open his eyes, this time taking in the sight of a nurse and an older looking man with a stethoscope around his neck standing beside his bed. Someone on the other side of the bed was taking his blood pressure.
Two policemen stood toward the back of the room by the door. "What….?" Jarod whispered, fear welling up inside him as his confusion increased.
"Son, take it easy. You've been injured, but you are gong to be just fine. I'm Dr. Daniels, your doctor. Can you tell us what your name is?"
The protégé closed his eyes as a series of confusing images flashed through his mind. He shook violently gritting his teeth against the pain.
A cool cloth was patting his forehead, bringing him out of the fog again. He could hear someone saying his temperature had elevated to 103 degrees again and another one saying something about increasing antibiotics as he drifted back to sleep.
"You're going to have to try to stay with us for a little bit while I examine you." Dr. Daniels said as he patted the pretender on the cheek.
Struggling, Jarod opened his eyes again, focusing on the concerned face of his doctor.
"Can you tell us what your name is?"
Sifting through his jumbled thoughts, Jaord's mind registered on the question.
"Jarod," he said barely above a whisper, feeling like he had found a piece of a puzzle.
"Jarod, well we were close," Dr. Daniels said, relieved that his patient had said something coherent.
"Just relax as I give you a quick examination. Jarod, I'm going to check your eyes now."
Briefly, the doctor flashed a small light in the pretender's eyes.
"Pupils only slightly dilated. Very good, Jarod. You have been on some kind of hallucinogen drug, but it looks like it's wearing off. Do you remember anything about that?"
Jarod focused on the older man's face only for a moment before he experienced a flashback. The dreamlike feeling of the Meperidine only heightened the distortion of his senses and for a moment, he fell back into a hellish nightmare world and began thrashing around. The doctor shot a worried look to Dr. Ross who had been quietly observing Jarod.
After a few horrifying minutes, Jarod was abruptly back in the present, struggling to catch his breath as he frantically looked around only to find himself back in the recovery room. A woman with fiery red hair was leaning over Jaord, telling him to take slow deep breaths and to exhale slowly through his mouth as he rode out the hallucination. The pretender looked away, as the gravity of what had happened to him started soaking in. Hands that had held him down were released. The protégé began experiencing a panic attack and closed his eyes as he struggled to stay in touch with reality.
"Jarod, try to relax. You still have the hallucinogen in your system making things seem so strange. The drug will wear off soon and you will start to feel better."
The pretender felt himself slipping into depression. The recovery room nurse put a fresh cool wash cloth on his burning forehead and he closed his eyes.
"Jarod, before you go back to sleep, would you like some ice chips? I bet you're very thirsty."
Jarod nodded slowly. The nurse gave him some small ice chips, which he accepted gratefully.
The doctor finished writing on Jarod's chart and spoke to him again. "We need you to lay very still and get some more sleep. The pain medicine we gave you will help you do that. We'll be transferring you to your own room now. I'll be back to see you again after you get some solid sleep. In the mean time, Dr. Ross will be with you in case you need to talk. Jarod, rest is the best medicine for you right now. I'll be checking in on you a little later."
And with that, the doctor stepped aside, giving orders to the nurse before he left. Jarod watched his doctor leave. He lay there with a horrible sick feeling in his stomach, as he scanned the room eyeing the two policemen who stood by the door. Another wave of terrifying images assaulted the pretender as he slowly slipped back into unconsciousness.
* * *
"Look, all I know is he remembered his name." The policeman said leaning against the payphone.
"Did he say anything else? A raspy voice countered.
"Naw, I think he passed out again. Look, he's pretty messed up and sick, too. The doc said something about an infection or something. With all his broken bones, he ain't getting up and leavin' or anything. He'll be alone for a while with just us two watchin over him. Oh, and that saucy psychiatrist, she won't be any problem. I can handle women, ya know."
Raines let out an aggravated breath. "You stay put…until the sweeper team is in place. I want Jarod…back here…as soon as possible, but if something…goes wrong, kill him. We can't allow…the Centre to be exposed. Do you…understand, Able?"
"Absolutely, boss, there won't be any slipup here."
"There better not be for your sake. Willie will contact you shortly…to give you your instructions." And with that Raines hung up.
Raines gave Willie a long hard look.
"There can't be…any mistakes this time. How long before…your team is in place?"
"Within two hours, Sir."
"Execute."
Willie nodded and left the room.
Raines let out a nervous sigh. "Danm you, Jarod." The old man grabbed a bunch of files and left his office, dragging his annoying oxygen cart behind him.
* * *
Angelo squeezed his eyes shut for several minutes, before shutting down the video camera and retreating through the air vent. "No kill, no kill. Help Jarod."
* * *
Sydney was pacing the floor as Broots fingers flew over the computer keys, searching for which hospital Jarod had been taken to.
"Bingo! He's at Trenton Memorial Hospital."
Sydney rubbed his hands together and craned his neck over Broots' shoulder with his eyes fixed on the screen.
"Condition report?"
"Just a minute."
Sydney's eyes darted back and forth from Broots to the computer screen impatiently, as he waited for the medical information.
"Here, um, here it is!" Broots excitedly announced.
Sydney nearly pushed Broots out of this seat as he took control of the screen. The room fell silent, as Sydney took in the report.
"MY God almighty, I'm going to kill Raines and Lyle with my bare hands!" Sydney suddenly jumped out of his seat, knocking it over, as he headed for the door. Broots grabbed him halfway out into the hall and pulled him back into the room, slamming the door accidentally. Sydney stared at him, red faced and totally enraged.
"Get your hands off me if you know what's good for you!"
"Sydney, stop it right now. We, we, can't help Jarod if you do this. Think, Sydney." Broots implored him, totally shocked to see the psychiatrist go off like this and not wanting to know what doctor had just read.
"They stole him from his family. He was a tiny helpless frightened child and they…"We" stripped him of his identity, exploited his genius while robing him of his child hood, his teen years, his whole life! All he ever wanted was a family and a home, so "We" told him his family was dead, killed his brother, and right when he found his father we ripped Jarod away from him and threw him back into the living Hell he had endured his entire life! Sydney sank to his knees and cried bitterly.
Finally regaining his composure, the older man looked up at Broots. "Broots, they took that gentle loving protégé and nearly tortured him to death. And if that wasn't insane enough, they pumped him full of drugs and overdosed him on hallucinogens. He's in a semi-psychotic state and may never recover. They aren't getting away with it this time."
Sydney was up again heading for the door as it suddenly flew open and Angelo rushed in, wearing Jarod's torn black leather jacket and holding a video camera.
"Sydney help! Help friend! Danger!"
Sydney gasped as he took in the sight, momentarily confused by what he was looking at. The psychiatrist took a deep breath and grabbed Angelo's shoulders to calm him down.
"Angelo, what do you mean? Who's in danger? Jarod?"
Angelo held up the camera looking back and forth from Sydney to Broots. Sydney gently took the camera from his hands and handed it to Broots.
"Broots, run what Angelo has here, now."
Broots said nothing as he worked with the video, setting it up to play.
"Here it is, Syd."
All eyes were on the tape as it started to roll. It includedRaines' entire conversation with the dirty cop. The angle widened revealing Willie standing by Raines' desk waiting for his instructions.
"You stay put…until the sweeper team is in place. I want Jarod…back here…as soon as possible, but if something…goes wrong, kill him. We can't allow…the Centre to be exposed. Understand?
Kill?! Sydney's heart was pounding as he finished watching the tape. It showed Raines looking over at Willie.
"There can't be.. any mistakes this time. How long before…your sweeper team is in place?"
"Within two hours, Sir."
"Execute"
"Two hours! Broots we've got to stop them!
"Broots, set me up with a background in drug abuse rehabilitation, degrees, everything, and have me transferred to the Trenton Memorial staff as of a week ago. Notify transportation. I want to be out of here before anyone catches on! Say anything you have to but get it done now!
"Wha what about Debbie? I I can't ju just leave her."
Sydney rubbed his eyes and looked up at Broots. "I'm going alone. You can't risk your life and your daughter's. I'll be fine. You better cover your tracks well and then just sit tight. They'll probably have you looking for me." Sydney said with a wane smile.
"Now, get busy while I get some things together." And with that, he walked away before Broots could put up an argument.
"Angelo, you've helped Jarod by giving us this. Jarod will be very grateful. You did just fine. I'm going to go help Jarod now, God willing."
Angelo smiled as he watched as the computer wiz feverishly did his work.
* * *
Miss Parker moaned as she woke up from a fitful sleep. Looking slowly around the room, she realized she was alone. The last thing she remembered was her father leaning over her saying that she would be safe here. No one but Sydney and Broots would know where to find her. She felt as if she were falling into a great abyss of despair as she wondered if her father would live through the day. She had begged him to stay with her: to hide out for a while. He never listened to her and now she would have to wait helplessly hoping that he would survive.
Her back felt like wild fire where she had been hit by Willie's high-powered rifle. Overwhelming emotions welled up inside her, as images of the airport, Jarod and her father, and the assassination helicopter played over and over in her mind. If Jarod hadn't kidnapped her father, none of this would have happened. Her anger burned as she thought about that cocky brainchild and how he had always managed to screw up her life. If anything happened to her father, she vowed that Jarod would pay dearly. Grudgingly, she thought about Jarod being back with his father and Gemini and how happy he probably was.
Her thoughts were interrupted as a nurse entered her private hospital room and stepped over to her bed to check her vitals.
"Well, you're awake. How are you feeling?" she asked as she wrapped a blood pressure cuff around Parker's delicate arm.
"Horrible." Miss Parker managed to whisper, her face contorting in pain.
How the hell do you think I'm feeling? Miss Parker thought. For God's sake, you're a nurse. I've been shot in the back and I think the painkillers wore off about an hour ago while you were on coffee break. Miss Parker felt a wave of nausea wash over her as her temper flared.
The nurse gave Miss Parker a concerned look. "Your blood pressure it awfully high. You must try to relax. Your doctor left instruction for a sedative to help you get some sleep, Miss Parker. Would you like a little ice water first?" she asked, giving her patient a compassionate smile.
Miss Parker nodded slightly and the nurse helped her take a sip.
Placing the cup back on the nightstand, the nurse administered the medication.
"Just try to get some rest now. After that, you may have a visitor for a few minutes. You're lucky to have such a caring family. Your brother is very concerned about you. He said he would be back in a few hours."
The nurse took her chart and recorded some information before quietly leaving the room.
My brother, Miss Parker thought, as she drifted back to sleep.
Part 4
by jojarod50
Recovery room 4:
Trenton Memorial Hospital: 9:00 a.m.
"Jon, can you hear me?" the nurse said using Jarod's designated name. "Jon, it's time to wake up now." She said giving him a little pat on his left arm.
Jarod slowly opened his eyes and suddenly attempted to sit up. The pain was excruciating. All he could do was arch his back and make a strangled sound while holding his breath; his eyes clamped tightly shut.
"Nurse, Meperidine, please."
"You're going to feel a prick now. This will make you more comfortable. Please try not to move around." It took a few moments for the pain to retreat leaving him in a strange dreamlike state. He closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.
"Jon, you need to wake up now." Said a deeper and more commanding voice, breaking though the protégé's dreamless sleep and pulling him back to consciousness.
Jarod took a ragged breath and open his eyes, this time taking in the sight of a nurse and an older looking man with a stethoscope around his neck standing beside his bed. Someone on the other side of the bed was taking his blood pressure.
Two policemen stood toward the back of the room by the door. "What….?" Jarod whispered, fear welling up inside him as his confusion increased.
"Son, take it easy. You've been injured, but you are gong to be just fine. I'm Dr. Daniels, your doctor. Can you tell us what your name is?"
The protégé closed his eyes as a series of confusing images flashed through his mind. He shook violently gritting his teeth against the pain.
A cool cloth was patting his forehead, bringing him out of the fog again. He could hear someone saying his temperature had elevated to 103 degrees again and another one saying something about increasing antibiotics as he drifted back to sleep.
"You're going to have to try to stay with us for a little bit while I examine you." Dr. Daniels said as he patted the pretender on the cheek.
Struggling, Jarod opened his eyes again, focusing on the concerned face of his doctor.
"Can you tell us what your name is?"
Sifting through his jumbled thoughts, Jaord's mind registered on the question.
"Jarod," he said barely above a whisper, feeling like he had found a piece of a puzzle.
"Jarod, well we were close," Dr. Daniels said, relieved that his patient had said something coherent.
"Just relax as I give you a quick examination. Jarod, I'm going to check your eyes now."
Briefly, the doctor flashed a small light in the pretender's eyes.
"Pupils only slightly dilated. Very good, Jarod. You have been on some kind of hallucinogen drug, but it looks like it's wearing off. Do you remember anything about that?"
Jarod focused on the older man's face only for a moment before he experienced a flashback. The dreamlike feeling of the Meperidine only heightened the distortion of his senses and for a moment, he fell back into a hellish nightmare world and began thrashing around. The doctor shot a worried look to Dr. Ross who had been quietly observing Jarod.
After a few horrifying minutes, Jarod was abruptly back in the present, struggling to catch his breath as he frantically looked around only to find himself back in the recovery room. A woman with fiery red hair was leaning over Jaord, telling him to take slow deep breaths and to exhale slowly through his mouth as he rode out the hallucination. The pretender looked away, as the gravity of what had happened to him started soaking in. Hands that had held him down were released. The protégé began experiencing a panic attack and closed his eyes as he struggled to stay in touch with reality.
"Jarod, try to relax. You still have the hallucinogen in your system making things seem so strange. The drug will wear off soon and you will start to feel better."
The pretender felt himself slipping into depression. The recovery room nurse put a fresh cool wash cloth on his burning forehead and he closed his eyes.
"Jarod, before you go back to sleep, would you like some ice chips? I bet you're very thirsty."
Jarod nodded slowly. The nurse gave him some small ice chips, which he accepted gratefully.
The doctor finished writing on Jarod's chart and spoke to him again. "We need you to lay very still and get some more sleep. The pain medicine we gave you will help you do that. We'll be transferring you to your own room now. I'll be back to see you again after you get some solid sleep. In the mean time, Dr. Ross will be with you in case you need to talk. Jarod, rest is the best medicine for you right now. I'll be checking in on you a little later."
And with that, the doctor stepped aside, giving orders to the nurse before he left. Jarod watched his doctor leave. He lay there with a horrible sick feeling in his stomach, as he scanned the room eyeing the two policemen who stood by the door. Another wave of terrifying images assaulted the pretender as he slowly slipped back into unconsciousness.
* * *
"Look, all I know is he remembered his name." The policeman said leaning against the payphone.
"Did he say anything else? A raspy voice countered.
"Naw, I think he passed out again. Look, he's pretty messed up and sick, too. The doc said something about an infection or something. With all his broken bones, he ain't getting up and leavin' or anything. He'll be alone for a while with just us two watchin over him. Oh, and that saucy psychiatrist, she won't be any problem. I can handle women, ya know."
Raines let out an aggravated breath. "You stay put…until the sweeper team is in place. I want Jarod…back here…as soon as possible, but if something…goes wrong, kill him. We can't allow…the Centre to be exposed. Do you…understand, Able?"
"Absolutely, boss, there won't be any slipup here."
"There better not be for your sake. Willie will contact you shortly…to give you your instructions." And with that Raines hung up.
Raines gave Willie a long hard look.
"There can't be…any mistakes this time. How long before…your team is in place?"
"Within two hours, Sir."
"Execute."
Willie nodded and left the room.
Raines let out a nervous sigh. "Danm you, Jarod." The old man grabbed a bunch of files and left his office, dragging his annoying oxygen cart behind him.
* * *
Angelo squeezed his eyes shut for several minutes, before shutting down the video camera and retreating through the air vent. "No kill, no kill. Help Jarod."
* * *
Sydney was pacing the floor as Broots fingers flew over the computer keys, searching for which hospital Jarod had been taken to.
"Bingo! He's at Trenton Memorial Hospital."
Sydney rubbed his hands together and craned his neck over Broots' shoulder with his eyes fixed on the screen.
"Condition report?"
"Just a minute."
Sydney's eyes darted back and forth from Broots to the computer screen impatiently, as he waited for the medical information.
"Here, um, here it is!" Broots excitedly announced.
Sydney nearly pushed Broots out of this seat as he took control of the screen. The room fell silent, as Sydney took in the report.
"MY God almighty, I'm going to kill Raines and Lyle with my bare hands!" Sydney suddenly jumped out of his seat, knocking it over, as he headed for the door. Broots grabbed him halfway out into the hall and pulled him back into the room, slamming the door accidentally. Sydney stared at him, red faced and totally enraged.
"Get your hands off me if you know what's good for you!"
"Sydney, stop it right now. We, we, can't help Jarod if you do this. Think, Sydney." Broots implored him, totally shocked to see the psychiatrist go off like this and not wanting to know what doctor had just read.
"They stole him from his family. He was a tiny helpless frightened child and they…"We" stripped him of his identity, exploited his genius while robing him of his child hood, his teen years, his whole life! All he ever wanted was a family and a home, so "We" told him his family was dead, killed his brother, and right when he found his father we ripped Jarod away from him and threw him back into the living Hell he had endured his entire life! Sydney sank to his knees and cried bitterly.
Finally regaining his composure, the older man looked up at Broots. "Broots, they took that gentle loving protégé and nearly tortured him to death. And if that wasn't insane enough, they pumped him full of drugs and overdosed him on hallucinogens. He's in a semi-psychotic state and may never recover. They aren't getting away with it this time."
Sydney was up again heading for the door as it suddenly flew open and Angelo rushed in, wearing Jarod's torn black leather jacket and holding a video camera.
"Sydney help! Help friend! Danger!"
Sydney gasped as he took in the sight, momentarily confused by what he was looking at. The psychiatrist took a deep breath and grabbed Angelo's shoulders to calm him down.
"Angelo, what do you mean? Who's in danger? Jarod?"
Angelo held up the camera looking back and forth from Sydney to Broots. Sydney gently took the camera from his hands and handed it to Broots.
"Broots, run what Angelo has here, now."
Broots said nothing as he worked with the video, setting it up to play.
"Here it is, Syd."
All eyes were on the tape as it started to roll. It includedRaines' entire conversation with the dirty cop. The angle widened revealing Willie standing by Raines' desk waiting for his instructions.
"You stay put…until the sweeper team is in place. I want Jarod…back here…as soon as possible, but if something…goes wrong, kill him. We can't allow…the Centre to be exposed. Understand?
Kill?! Sydney's heart was pounding as he finished watching the tape. It showed Raines looking over at Willie.
"There can't be.. any mistakes this time. How long before…your sweeper team is in place?"
"Within two hours, Sir."
"Execute"
"Two hours! Broots we've got to stop them!
"Broots, set me up with a background in drug abuse rehabilitation, degrees, everything, and have me transferred to the Trenton Memorial staff as of a week ago. Notify transportation. I want to be out of here before anyone catches on! Say anything you have to but get it done now!
"Wha what about Debbie? I I can't ju just leave her."
Sydney rubbed his eyes and looked up at Broots. "I'm going alone. You can't risk your life and your daughter's. I'll be fine. You better cover your tracks well and then just sit tight. They'll probably have you looking for me." Sydney said with a wane smile.
"Now, get busy while I get some things together." And with that, he walked away before Broots could put up an argument.
"Angelo, you've helped Jarod by giving us this. Jarod will be very grateful. You did just fine. I'm going to go help Jarod now, God willing."
Angelo smiled as he watched as the computer wiz feverishly did his work.
* * *
Miss Parker moaned as she woke up from a fitful sleep. Looking slowly around the room, she realized she was alone. The last thing she remembered was her father leaning over her saying that she would be safe here. No one but Sydney and Broots would know where to find her. She felt as if she were falling into a great abyss of despair as she wondered if her father would live through the day. She had begged him to stay with her: to hide out for a while. He never listened to her and now she would have to wait helplessly hoping that he would survive.
Her back felt like wild fire where she had been hit by Willie's high-powered rifle. Overwhelming emotions welled up inside her, as images of the airport, Jarod and her father, and the assassination helicopter played over and over in her mind. If Jarod hadn't kidnapped her father, none of this would have happened. Her anger burned as she thought about that cocky brainchild and how he had always managed to screw up her life. If anything happened to her father, she vowed that Jarod would pay dearly. Grudgingly, she thought about Jarod being back with his father and Gemini and how happy he probably was.
Her thoughts were interrupted as a nurse entered her private hospital room and stepped over to her bed to check her vitals.
"Well, you're awake. How are you feeling?" she asked as she wrapped a blood pressure cuff around Parker's delicate arm.
"Horrible." Miss Parker managed to whisper, her face contorting in pain.
How the hell do you think I'm feeling? Miss Parker thought. For God's sake, you're a nurse. I've been shot in the back and I think the painkillers wore off about an hour ago while you were on coffee break. Miss Parker felt a wave of nausea wash over her as her temper flared.
The nurse gave Miss Parker a concerned look. "Your blood pressure it awfully high. You must try to relax. Your doctor left instruction for a sedative to help you get some sleep, Miss Parker. Would you like a little ice water first?" she asked, giving her patient a compassionate smile.
Miss Parker nodded slightly and the nurse helped her take a sip.
Placing the cup back on the nightstand, the nurse administered the medication.
"Just try to get some rest now. After that, you may have a visitor for a few minutes. You're lucky to have such a caring family. Your brother is very concerned about you. He said he would be back in a few hours."
The nurse took her chart and recorded some information before quietly leaving the room.
My brother, Miss Parker thought, as she drifted back to sleep.
