Reckless
Part 24
"I can't believe you have the gall to question a patient while he is still in ICU," Melissa Sanchez said as she escorted the two detectives from the room. "He's still in critical condition and the last thing he needs is to be under interrogation."
Elizabeth Meyer turned to the nurse. "We weren't interrogating him. We just needed to ask him a few questions about the shooting. We have an investigation to wrap up."
"I don't give a damn about your investigation," the nurse spat. "I have a patient to take care of and you had no authorization to enter that room and disturb him."
Lt. Blane stepped between the two women. "We're sorry. You're right. We should have come to you before we questioned him. But we have what we need now. There will be no further reason to bother him."
Melissa gave the detectives a hard look. "Good. Now, I think you should leave my unit."
Lt. Meyer and her partner turned on their respective heels and left the ICU ward without further comment. On their way past the waiting room, they saw Cassy and Harry sitting on the sofa, talking.
Elizabeth put her hand on her partner's arm, halting his progress. "I think we should tell her."
"Not until we've written up the report," Blane responded.
"What does it matter? We have his statement. He's not going to change it. You know that as well as I do."
"It's not procedure," Blane answered.
Elizabeth shook her head and smiled. "No, it's not."
Ignoring her partner's protest, she entered the waiting room. Her arrival immediately caught the attention of the officers inside. Harry stood to greet the two IA detectives. Cassy kept her eyes focused on her hands which were folded in her lap.
"We have Ryan's statement," Lt. Meyer revealed. "We're heading back to the station to finish up our report."
Harry glanced at Cassy to see her reaction. There was no sign that the blond detective had heard the announcement although he knew she was listening to every word. "And?" he prodded.
Elizabeth turned to her partner. He shook his head and gave her a look a disapproval. She turned back to the Captain. "And he gave us some interesting information to consider."
Harry raised a suspicious eyebrow. "What?"
Elizabeth flipped open her notes. "He remembered every detail of the shooting."
Those words caught Cassy's attention. Her eyes left her hands and focused on the Lieutenant's face. "He did?"
"Yep. Said that he knew your location in the warehouse the whole time, but was unable to announce his presence to you without putting you in danger."
Blane stepped forward, now adding his own details. "He said that he saw you and Slater in the corridor. That he knew you had Slater in your sights. He thought he could take Slater down himself without gunplay, but he mistimed the jump."
Harry shook his head and turned away from the detectives. "Captain Lipschitz, is there something wrong?" Elizabeth Meyer tilted her head, curious at the reaction.
"Uh. . .no," Harry responded, recovering quickly from his shock.
Elizabeth gave the Captain a knowing smile. "Quite a turn of events, isn't it? If I didn't know better I'd say that one of you talked with Mr. Ryan ahead of time. Maybe influenced his story."
Harry turned to the investigators. "I swear, neither of us had an opportunity to talk to Sgt. Ryan about the fact that Sgt. St. John shot him."
Meyer glanced at her partner and nodded. "That's what Ryan said as well. In light of the fact that Sgt. Ryan appears to be admitting that he knew of Sgt. St. John's positioning and intentionally put himself in the line of fire definitely changes the tone of the report." She turned and made a beeline for the door. Blane followed his partner out of the room, leaving a stunned Cassy and Harry in their wake.
"What just happened?" Cassy whispered, confused.
"I'm not sure. But I'm damn well going to find out," Harry responded, leaving the waiting room.
Cassy followed her Captain into the hallway and back to ICU. Nurse Sanchez was standing at the main desk, speaking in hushed tones to another nurse. Seeing the Captain and Cassy coming towards her, she approached the two. "I wish you would have told me that the other detectives were intending to question him. I never would have permitted that," she stated, anger still in her voice.
"I'm sorry. I didn't think about that," Harry confessed. "I need to see Sgt. Ryan."
"We need to see him," Cassy, standing behind him, corrected.
"He's asleep. He needs his rest. I won't allow you to disturb him again."
"Please, it's very important that we talk with him. It won't take long. Five minutes. . .that's all we ask."
"No, I'm sorry," the nurse denied. "It'll just have to wait until morning. The doctor intends to move him out of ICU if all goes well. You can talk to him all you want then." Harry started to protest, but the woman held up her hand. "No. Mr. Ryan needs his sleep. You do want him to get better, don't you." The woman gave the detectives her best look of disapproval. It worked.
Guilt rising, Harry turned to Cassy. "We'll talk to him tomorrow."
Cassy nodded her agreement and the two left the ICU room.
Cassy started to return to the waiting room, but Harry grabbed her by the arm before she could enter. "Come on, I'll take you home."
The petite detective gave her boss a sly grin. "What? I'm allowed to go home now? Boy, you're fickle."
Harry gave the woman a look of mock anger as he waggled a finger in front of her face. "Don't start with me, St. John." He then smiled and put an arm around her shoulders, pulling her close. "Tom's not the only one who needs a good night's sleep."
Cassy nodded. For the first time since the shooting, she thought maybe, just maybe she would be able to truly rest.
Cassy felt the cool sheets against her back. She had been in bed for at least thirty minutes, but couldn't seem to let go of the events of the day. Her thoughts of Tom kept her awake. He was alive. It was more than she expected, and certainly more than she deserved. And for that, she was grateful.
Her mind drifted to thoughts of the meeting between Tom and IA. She couldn't help but wonder how Tom had suddenly remembered details of the events at the warehouse which had been traumatically missing from his memory only minutes before. She suspected she knew the truth, but until she had a chance to confront her partner, she would not know for certain.
She remembered the shooting. A pang of regret pierced her heart. Guilt still existed. She couldn't forget the nightmare of seeing Tom lying in a pool of blood on the cold warehouse floor. . .a pool of blood caused by her own hand.
She swallowed deeply, trying to push the memory back into the recesses of her mind. She had always believed that there was a reason for everything. Every event in one's life, both good and bad, had purpose. Every life experience was a lesson to be learned. Tom's shooting was no different. She was being given a second chance. Fate was providing her with the opportunity to examine her past and make changes for the future.
Her past. She had always prided herself on her stubborn strength and independent nature. They brought results. . .and certainly seemed to strike fear in the hearts of men. But now it had also brought pain to a man that she cared about more than she had ever realized before.
Her nickname flashed through her mind. Jane Wayne. The name no longer sparked pride as it had before the shooting. Instead, it caused her stomach to twist in discomfort. Cassy closed her eyes and remembered the promise she had made to Tom. She had promised him that things would be different. She was going to keep that promise. Jane Wayne was going to change.
Making that commitment seemed to calm her. Relief washed over her mind and body, soothing her previously raw nerves. And finally, without knowing that she was slipping away, she fell into a deep, restful sleep.
End Part 24
To Conclusion