The Breach

14. Patience

A lot has changed in Anna's room ever since she left Haven. Most importantly, all her equipment was gone. She was told that SHD redistributed it between other agents and the R&D department. It wasn't really hers to begin with, but she still felt a little irritated. They just assumed she wasn't coming back and there was nothing Paul Rhodes could have done about it. Luckily they managed to bring some of her equipment from the Tombs and install it in the room. She couldn't really focus on any actual work though and Rhodes himself told her to take it easy. Especially since it was also the room they placed Theo in for recovery and her mind was preoccupied with every single breath he took and every single twitch of his body.

He has been unconscious for a while now. Joaquin told her that it was normal given the amount of blood he lost and the procedures they had to perform. It was true that City Hall was well equipped, but they still had to make do with what they had and it wasn't easy to keep him alive. The damage to the artery in his left leg was not simple to mend. The stab wound was even worse though - as soon as they removed the knife it started bleeding profusely, ultimately leading to him losing consciousness. It wasn't easy to restore his blood levels in time. But after twelve hours of non-stop work Theo was finally stable. She was told that he needed rest and that it would be unwise to try and move him, but ultimately Joaquin agreed as Haven was a much better facility and had actual medical equipment and antibiotics. So Theo was now laying in her bed, hooked to a machine that monitored his heartbeat and to a mechanical ventilator to help him breathe. There was also an IV disappearing in the vein on top of his hand. Joaquin told her not to worry, told her that with the strain his body went through he would be out of it for a few days, but she still couldn't stand it. So she would usually sit on the bed right next to him, watching his chest rise and fall with every breath he took, making notes in a medical journal they left with him. Writing no change for the tenth time in a row was very stressful though. Joaquin said that they couldn't be sure Theo didn't suffer any minor or major organ damage due to extensive blood loss. Luckily it was possible to check that in Haven and make sure that his internal organs were indeed fine.

„You sitting here is not going to make him wake up, you know," Joaquin's voice brought her back to reality as the man entered the room.

„I know," she answered. „But I can't focus on anything else right now. So I'm sitting here, making sure that he's alive. I sometimes get a feeling that he won't be if I don't check. I know it's stupid, I just can't shake it."

„It's fine. Just make sure you're well rested and taken care of as well. I don't want to have to take care of the both of you."

Anna smiled at that and Joaquin returned the smile. He was a much kinder man than she initially thought. She was really lucky to have met him along the way.

„And how are you? Everything okay?" She asked after a while.

„Yeah. I mean, Rhodes yelled at me for lying to him earlier, but ultimately he let me stay here too, so I guess we're cool. They have good food here. I think I'm gonna stay for a while longer."

He smiled at that, approaching Theo to check some of his vitals and take a blood sample for testing. Anna kept her gaze focused on Theo's face. At least he didn't look like he was in pain. If she didn't know better, she would have assumed that he was asleep.

„What if he doesn't wake up?" She asked suddenly, surprising even herself with this question.

„He will. He just needs time. He went through a lot. He has to rest now."

„Yeah, but what if his organs fail? What if his lungs collapse? What if..."

„Hey, don't think about it this way. The worst part is already over. It was bad, yes. But we managed to get him to safety in time. He will be fine. He just needs to rest."