ASJ Fanfiction Chapter 13
Warning: this fic contains graphic descriptions of a gunshot wound, along with medical procedure. Don’t read unless that sort of thing is interesting to you.
Hannibal Heyes is gunned down by a dry-gulcher on his way back to his hotel room. He and the Kid stumble into a time portal and wind up in the present day, just in time to nearly be run over by a passing car.
Chapter 13
Heyes shifted position again. He was trying to be quiet, but the Kid lifted his head anyway.
“You still antsy?” He asked. “Want me to see if Todd would give you a shave? Or another bath?”
Heyes tried to speak normally, but those damn broken ribs made him speak in panting bursts. “Kid, it ain’t no fun having another man give you a bath. Let’s table that idea. I’ll be OK once I get used to this medicine. Dr. Kealy said so, right?”
The Kid smiled. “Maybe get that cute Abby to give you a bath later.”
Heyes made sure to smile in return. He didn’t want the Kid worrying about how bad he was actually feeling. He could tell his fever was still high. He ached all over, for one thing. Heyes lay back against the soft pillow. Maybe he could doze off for a few minutes. He closed his eyes. Something grew very small and then very large again. He was really thirsty, but he didn’t have the energy to reach for the can of Coke still on the table.
How was he going to convince that doctor that they’d actually traveled here from the past? The trouble was, short of finding that doorway and going back through it, he didn’t see any way he could prove anything. He sure didn’t want to end up in the psychiatric ward - that sounded too much like an asylum.
He really wanted that Coke. Maybe he’d ask the Kid to pass it to him. Maybe he could hold it without help. This was really getting old very quickly. He had about as much strength as a newborn kitten. He shifted again. He wasn’t hurting any more than usual, but he just couldn’t find a comfortable position. He was feeling antsy, as Jed put it.
“Kid,” he tried, hating the weak sound of his voice, “could I have some Coke?”
“Sure you can.” The Kid passed over the can. When Heyes nearly dropped it, Jed held it up to his mouth for him to drink.
Heyes could see the worry in his friend’s eyes. That was nothing new - the Kid was a worrier. But Heyes hated giving him anything real to worry over. He was a little worried himself, if he were to admit the truth. He’d heard Todd say pneumonia. That was serious. He didn’t know what that antibiotic might be, but he hoped Todd was right and it would cure him.
And quickly. He was tired of lying here, and it had only been two days. Or he thought it was two. Time was a little fuzzy since he’d been shot.
Heyes gave up on the idea of sleep for the moment. “Kid, would it bother you too much if I tried to read?”
The Kid poked the button that turned on the light over his bed. Heyes was going to miss the lighting when they got back to the past. That and the Cokes. He wondered what was in a Coke and how hard it was to make one. It had soda water in it, that much was plain, but what made that intriguing bite at the back of his throat? Maybe he could duplicate the recipe somehow - he’d make a fortune, that was certain.
Heyes pulled out his book. These were also an improvement on the heavy tomes of the past. They were much smaller for one, and the covers were soft flexible paper. This one was only a little bit larger than a deck of cards. The stories were good - all about a “consulting detective” that solved crimes. Heyes wondered what Sherlock Holmes would have done with one of his and the Kid’s robberies. Would he have been able to track them down the way their own lawmen had never been able to do?
He was having trouble concentrating on the book, though. Usually, when Heyes read, he could immerse himself in the story and lose track of where he was and what time it was. Now, he kept having to move around, trying to find the perfect position. And when he did get comfortable for a moment, his eyelids would start drooping and he’d find himself nodding - only to jerk awake and have to move again.
If this was the new medicine, he could certainly do without it. But he’d told Dr. Kealy he’d give it a good try. It wasn’t going to do anything anyway, or not what the good doctor thought it’d do. Heyes figured it was some sort of medicine that made crazy people stop hearing voices and stuff. That’d be something if they had it back in the past. He’d seen a few people wandering the streets that could have used it.
Heyes set the book down for a moment and tried to think. It would probably help if he could just get out of bed and walk around for a bit. He wondered if they’d unhook all these tubes and let him do that if he asked. He knew one tube he could certainly do without - and the one poking into his hand wouldn’t be much of a loss, even if it was supposedly putting medicine straight into his veins.
He poked the painted button on the bed rail. “Could I ask you something?” He told the railing when Todd’s voice came out of it.
The man appeared in the doorway within minutes. “Are you still feeling rough, Mr. Smith?”
“Yeah. I’m thinking I might feel better if I could get out of bed. How do we make that work?”
Todd studied him for a moment. “I’d have to ask Dr. Kealy, of course. I think it’d be OK with her. You’d have to keep the IV and the chest tube in, though.”
“How in - sorry, I mean how am I supposed to get out of bed with tubes hanging out of me?”
Todd smiled. “The chest tube collection box is portable, and the IV comes with a portable holder. You just roll it along with you when you walk around.”
Heyes thought about it. “Better than lying here trying to get comfortable.”
“I have to say you’re one of the few patients I’ve had who wanted out of bed this badly. Most of the folks up here are barely conscious. You must have a robust constitution.”
Heyes had to smile. “Clean living and fresh air.”
The Kid snorted.
Todd patted Heyes’ good shoulder. He seemed to be one of those fellows who liked touching you to make his point. Heyes remembered that he had a husband - hopefully, the man didn’t automatically assume that he and the Kid were married. Heyes wondered if he should say something along those lines, or if it would be an impolite assumption on his part to even wonder.
“I’ll go page Dr. Kealy,” Todd said. “You’re lucky she’s been on duty most of the time you’ve been here. If this was her off week, she’d be at home resting up instead of just downstairs in the break room.”
Heyes lay back and tried to be patient. He picked up the book again and tried to read. He tried closing his eyes and dozing off. The trouble was, Heyes was not exactly a patient man. Well, not unless it involved casing a bank or planning a train robbery. Then, he could be as patient as he needed to be to get the job right. But lying here waiting to see if the doctor would let him out of bed …
It seemed like at least an hour or two before Todd came back. Heyes checked the clock: twenty minutes. This fever was messing with his time sense, too.
“Good news,” Todd said with a smile. “Dr. Kealy says if you want to get up that badly, she’s not going to stop you. But I’m to tell you that you do have to keep the chest tube collection box and the IV pole with you at all times. You’re not to try to unhook anything.”
Heyes sighed. There went that plan. “All right, I promise to behave. How does this work?”
Todd flipped back the covers. “You’re probably not going to like this part, but take a deep breath.”
He was right: Heyes didn’t like it one bit, but at least there was one less tube to think about.
Todd showed him how the portable IV pole worked. He picked up the collection box and set it on the bed. “Just remember to keep this below your chest at all times so the tube will keep draining in the right direction. You don’t want this crap going back inside, do you?”
He then pushed something on the outside of the bed and pulled the railing down on Heyes’ left side. The Kid stood, shifting from foot to foot with the desire to help.
“Sit up slowly,” Todd said, putting an arm around Heyes’ shoulder. “Lean on me if you need to.”
Heyes needed to. He felt like that newborn kitten again, but he managed to swing his legs over the side of the bed and sit up fairly normally. With Todd’s and the Kid’s help, he made it to his feet.
“Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea,” he muttered as he swayed on wobbly legs. “I feel like a calf trying to stand up the first time.”
“It’ll get better,” Todd assured him. “Don’t go too far your first time out. And lean on the Kid here when you need to.”
“Yeah,” Jed said, holding onto Heyes’ left arm. “I’ll pull the pole and you tote that box. We’ll go to the elevator and back.”
“Somehow it looks a lot farther away than it did an hour ago.”
They made it to the elevator. Heyes studied the contraption with interest. The Kid said it was just like those rising rooms in the Denver hotels, boxes on wires that lifted you to the top floors and lowered you back again. It looked nothing like them, however. No wire cage, no operator. Just a big silver door in the wall with a couple of those futuristic buttons next to it. The Kid explained that you pushed the button and the elevator knew you wanted it to stop and pick you up.
Todd walked along with them as far as the nurse’s station, then sat and watched from behind the desk. He was keeping an eye on Heyes’ progress without hovering, which Heyes appreciated. He’d rather the Kid didn’t hover, but he actually did need Jed’s support to get to the elevator and back. Being sick really stank.
They returned to the room and Heyes needed the Kid’s help again to get all of the accouterments positioned so he could get back into bed.
“I hate to admit it,” he said, out of breath from just that short walk, “but I’m exhausted.”
“I’ll bet,” the Kid replied, dropping back into the chair. “If we were back home, you’d still be flat on your back trying to breathe.”
“Hell, if we were back home I’d probably be six feet under and you know it, Kid.”
“I don’t want to talk like that, Heyes.”
“Sorry, Kid. I’m just trying to be honest. I’m just tired, though, not in agony or anything.”
“That’s real good. You still look flushed though. I don’t think your fever’s gone down much.”
“Doesn’t feel like it has. I think we need some more of these cold things, too. These are feeling kind of warm to me.”
As if his words had summoned him, Todd appeared again. “Figured you’d need fresh packs.”
Heyes had to ask. “Are you listening to everything we say?”
Todd laughed. “No, we can’t hear you from out there unless you talk really loudly. I just figured it’d been long enough for these to get warm on you. Let’s pull up the sheets and pack these around you again. We need to get your temperature down, especially around your vital organs.”
“All my organs are vital.”
Another laugh. “Yes, but your kidneys and liver are especially vulnerable to excessive heat. That’s why the packs are around your torso instead of down your legs or under your arms. And this one behind your neck helps keep your brain cool.”
The Kid chuckled. “I always said you were hot-headed.”
“Very funny. Remind me of that next time you’re about to lose your temper.”
Todd took the warm-cold packs back to the station and Heyes tried to read his book again. Sherlock Holmes was investigating a mysterious hound in the English countryside. Heyes had never been to England, but he figured it was a lot like America - well, probably more like Back East. They didn’t have anything like the desert over there.
Heyes read for a few minutes, then swung his legs over the side of the bed again.
“You’re back up already?” The Kid shot him a worried glance.
“Can’t sit still, remember? This is why I wanted them to take these tubes out.”
“If you’re determined to get up, let me help.”
“Want to carry the box this time? I can hold onto the pole for support.”
They tried it that way, and Heyes made it one full circuit of the “ICU” ward. He’d asked Etta what the name of the ward meant, and she’d said it was Intensive Care Unit. That let Jed’s idea right out, but “I See You” did make sense, as the rooms all faced the nurse’s station.
Of course, his walk was nothing like a normal stroll. He walked like a stove-up old cowboy pushing 80, holding onto the IV pole and barely managing to shuffle along. It took practically ten minutes to walk the entire loop and return to Room 3.
As he passed, he glanced into the other rooms. Todd was right - those folks looked like they were nowhere near ready to get out of bed. Some of them were older than dirt. Of course, folks in the future probably lived a lot longer than they had in the 1800’s. A couple of the other patients looked about his and the Kid’s age and a couple somewhere in the middle. There were men and women both, which ought not to surprise him considering how women dressed in the future. They probably had won the right to vote by now, too.
Back in Room 3, Heyes finally felt sleepy enough to lie back down and close his eyes. “Get some sleep, Kid” he muttered.
“Until Todd comes in to check your blood pressure,” Jed muttered back.
Hannibal Heyes is gunned down by a dry-gulcher on his way back to his hotel room. He and the Kid stumble into a time portal and wind up in the present day, just in time to nearly be run over by a passing car.
Chapter 13
Heyes shifted position again. He was trying to be quiet, but the Kid lifted his head anyway.
“You still antsy?” He asked. “Want me to see if Todd would give you a shave? Or another bath?”
Heyes tried to speak normally, but those damn broken ribs made him speak in panting bursts. “Kid, it ain’t no fun having another man give you a bath. Let’s table that idea. I’ll be OK once I get used to this medicine. Dr. Kealy said so, right?”
The Kid smiled. “Maybe get that cute Abby to give you a bath later.”
Heyes made sure to smile in return. He didn’t want the Kid worrying about how bad he was actually feeling. He could tell his fever was still high. He ached all over, for one thing. Heyes lay back against the soft pillow. Maybe he could doze off for a few minutes. He closed his eyes. Something grew very small and then very large again. He was really thirsty, but he didn’t have the energy to reach for the can of Coke still on the table.
How was he going to convince that doctor that they’d actually traveled here from the past? The trouble was, short of finding that doorway and going back through it, he didn’t see any way he could prove anything. He sure didn’t want to end up in the psychiatric ward - that sounded too much like an asylum.
He really wanted that Coke. Maybe he’d ask the Kid to pass it to him. Maybe he could hold it without help. This was really getting old very quickly. He had about as much strength as a newborn kitten. He shifted again. He wasn’t hurting any more than usual, but he just couldn’t find a comfortable position. He was feeling antsy, as Jed put it.
“Kid,” he tried, hating the weak sound of his voice, “could I have some Coke?”
“Sure you can.” The Kid passed over the can. When Heyes nearly dropped it, Jed held it up to his mouth for him to drink.
Heyes could see the worry in his friend’s eyes. That was nothing new - the Kid was a worrier. But Heyes hated giving him anything real to worry over. He was a little worried himself, if he were to admit the truth. He’d heard Todd say pneumonia. That was serious. He didn’t know what that antibiotic might be, but he hoped Todd was right and it would cure him.
And quickly. He was tired of lying here, and it had only been two days. Or he thought it was two. Time was a little fuzzy since he’d been shot.
Heyes gave up on the idea of sleep for the moment. “Kid, would it bother you too much if I tried to read?”
The Kid poked the button that turned on the light over his bed. Heyes was going to miss the lighting when they got back to the past. That and the Cokes. He wondered what was in a Coke and how hard it was to make one. It had soda water in it, that much was plain, but what made that intriguing bite at the back of his throat? Maybe he could duplicate the recipe somehow - he’d make a fortune, that was certain.
Heyes pulled out his book. These were also an improvement on the heavy tomes of the past. They were much smaller for one, and the covers were soft flexible paper. This one was only a little bit larger than a deck of cards. The stories were good - all about a “consulting detective” that solved crimes. Heyes wondered what Sherlock Holmes would have done with one of his and the Kid’s robberies. Would he have been able to track them down the way their own lawmen had never been able to do?
He was having trouble concentrating on the book, though. Usually, when Heyes read, he could immerse himself in the story and lose track of where he was and what time it was. Now, he kept having to move around, trying to find the perfect position. And when he did get comfortable for a moment, his eyelids would start drooping and he’d find himself nodding - only to jerk awake and have to move again.
If this was the new medicine, he could certainly do without it. But he’d told Dr. Kealy he’d give it a good try. It wasn’t going to do anything anyway, or not what the good doctor thought it’d do. Heyes figured it was some sort of medicine that made crazy people stop hearing voices and stuff. That’d be something if they had it back in the past. He’d seen a few people wandering the streets that could have used it.
Heyes set the book down for a moment and tried to think. It would probably help if he could just get out of bed and walk around for a bit. He wondered if they’d unhook all these tubes and let him do that if he asked. He knew one tube he could certainly do without - and the one poking into his hand wouldn’t be much of a loss, even if it was supposedly putting medicine straight into his veins.
He poked the painted button on the bed rail. “Could I ask you something?” He told the railing when Todd’s voice came out of it.
The man appeared in the doorway within minutes. “Are you still feeling rough, Mr. Smith?”
“Yeah. I’m thinking I might feel better if I could get out of bed. How do we make that work?”
Todd studied him for a moment. “I’d have to ask Dr. Kealy, of course. I think it’d be OK with her. You’d have to keep the IV and the chest tube in, though.”
“How in - sorry, I mean how am I supposed to get out of bed with tubes hanging out of me?”
Todd smiled. “The chest tube collection box is portable, and the IV comes with a portable holder. You just roll it along with you when you walk around.”
Heyes thought about it. “Better than lying here trying to get comfortable.”
“I have to say you’re one of the few patients I’ve had who wanted out of bed this badly. Most of the folks up here are barely conscious. You must have a robust constitution.”
Heyes had to smile. “Clean living and fresh air.”
The Kid snorted.
Todd patted Heyes’ good shoulder. He seemed to be one of those fellows who liked touching you to make his point. Heyes remembered that he had a husband - hopefully, the man didn’t automatically assume that he and the Kid were married. Heyes wondered if he should say something along those lines, or if it would be an impolite assumption on his part to even wonder.
“I’ll go page Dr. Kealy,” Todd said. “You’re lucky she’s been on duty most of the time you’ve been here. If this was her off week, she’d be at home resting up instead of just downstairs in the break room.”
Heyes lay back and tried to be patient. He picked up the book again and tried to read. He tried closing his eyes and dozing off. The trouble was, Heyes was not exactly a patient man. Well, not unless it involved casing a bank or planning a train robbery. Then, he could be as patient as he needed to be to get the job right. But lying here waiting to see if the doctor would let him out of bed …
It seemed like at least an hour or two before Todd came back. Heyes checked the clock: twenty minutes. This fever was messing with his time sense, too.
“Good news,” Todd said with a smile. “Dr. Kealy says if you want to get up that badly, she’s not going to stop you. But I’m to tell you that you do have to keep the chest tube collection box and the IV pole with you at all times. You’re not to try to unhook anything.”
Heyes sighed. There went that plan. “All right, I promise to behave. How does this work?”
Todd flipped back the covers. “You’re probably not going to like this part, but take a deep breath.”
He was right: Heyes didn’t like it one bit, but at least there was one less tube to think about.
Todd showed him how the portable IV pole worked. He picked up the collection box and set it on the bed. “Just remember to keep this below your chest at all times so the tube will keep draining in the right direction. You don’t want this crap going back inside, do you?”
He then pushed something on the outside of the bed and pulled the railing down on Heyes’ left side. The Kid stood, shifting from foot to foot with the desire to help.
“Sit up slowly,” Todd said, putting an arm around Heyes’ shoulder. “Lean on me if you need to.”
Heyes needed to. He felt like that newborn kitten again, but he managed to swing his legs over the side of the bed and sit up fairly normally. With Todd’s and the Kid’s help, he made it to his feet.
“Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea,” he muttered as he swayed on wobbly legs. “I feel like a calf trying to stand up the first time.”
“It’ll get better,” Todd assured him. “Don’t go too far your first time out. And lean on the Kid here when you need to.”
“Yeah,” Jed said, holding onto Heyes’ left arm. “I’ll pull the pole and you tote that box. We’ll go to the elevator and back.”
“Somehow it looks a lot farther away than it did an hour ago.”
They made it to the elevator. Heyes studied the contraption with interest. The Kid said it was just like those rising rooms in the Denver hotels, boxes on wires that lifted you to the top floors and lowered you back again. It looked nothing like them, however. No wire cage, no operator. Just a big silver door in the wall with a couple of those futuristic buttons next to it. The Kid explained that you pushed the button and the elevator knew you wanted it to stop and pick you up.
Todd walked along with them as far as the nurse’s station, then sat and watched from behind the desk. He was keeping an eye on Heyes’ progress without hovering, which Heyes appreciated. He’d rather the Kid didn’t hover, but he actually did need Jed’s support to get to the elevator and back. Being sick really stank.
They returned to the room and Heyes needed the Kid’s help again to get all of the accouterments positioned so he could get back into bed.
“I hate to admit it,” he said, out of breath from just that short walk, “but I’m exhausted.”
“I’ll bet,” the Kid replied, dropping back into the chair. “If we were back home, you’d still be flat on your back trying to breathe.”
“Hell, if we were back home I’d probably be six feet under and you know it, Kid.”
“I don’t want to talk like that, Heyes.”
“Sorry, Kid. I’m just trying to be honest. I’m just tired, though, not in agony or anything.”
“That’s real good. You still look flushed though. I don’t think your fever’s gone down much.”
“Doesn’t feel like it has. I think we need some more of these cold things, too. These are feeling kind of warm to me.”
As if his words had summoned him, Todd appeared again. “Figured you’d need fresh packs.”
Heyes had to ask. “Are you listening to everything we say?”
Todd laughed. “No, we can’t hear you from out there unless you talk really loudly. I just figured it’d been long enough for these to get warm on you. Let’s pull up the sheets and pack these around you again. We need to get your temperature down, especially around your vital organs.”
“All my organs are vital.”
Another laugh. “Yes, but your kidneys and liver are especially vulnerable to excessive heat. That’s why the packs are around your torso instead of down your legs or under your arms. And this one behind your neck helps keep your brain cool.”
The Kid chuckled. “I always said you were hot-headed.”
“Very funny. Remind me of that next time you’re about to lose your temper.”
Todd took the warm-cold packs back to the station and Heyes tried to read his book again. Sherlock Holmes was investigating a mysterious hound in the English countryside. Heyes had never been to England, but he figured it was a lot like America - well, probably more like Back East. They didn’t have anything like the desert over there.
Heyes read for a few minutes, then swung his legs over the side of the bed again.
“You’re back up already?” The Kid shot him a worried glance.
“Can’t sit still, remember? This is why I wanted them to take these tubes out.”
“If you’re determined to get up, let me help.”
“Want to carry the box this time? I can hold onto the pole for support.”
They tried it that way, and Heyes made it one full circuit of the “ICU” ward. He’d asked Etta what the name of the ward meant, and she’d said it was Intensive Care Unit. That let Jed’s idea right out, but “I See You” did make sense, as the rooms all faced the nurse’s station.
Of course, his walk was nothing like a normal stroll. He walked like a stove-up old cowboy pushing 80, holding onto the IV pole and barely managing to shuffle along. It took practically ten minutes to walk the entire loop and return to Room 3.
As he passed, he glanced into the other rooms. Todd was right - those folks looked like they were nowhere near ready to get out of bed. Some of them were older than dirt. Of course, folks in the future probably lived a lot longer than they had in the 1800’s. A couple of the other patients looked about his and the Kid’s age and a couple somewhere in the middle. There were men and women both, which ought not to surprise him considering how women dressed in the future. They probably had won the right to vote by now, too.
Back in Room 3, Heyes finally felt sleepy enough to lie back down and close his eyes. “Get some sleep, Kid” he muttered.
“Until Todd comes in to check your blood pressure,” Jed muttered back.