The Imposter (33 page)

Alex
woke up in her bed in a cold sweat, hearing muffled, choking sounds.  Where are
they coming from? She looked around her darkened room.  It's me, she noted. 
She felt like she was being suffocated.  Her body was rigid and heavy.  The
illuminated dial of the alarm clock next to her bed said 3:00 AM.  At first,
Alex's mind was numb and frozen.  She felt acute pain in her shoulder as she
attempted to roll over.  Then, it all came back to her and an agonizing sound
came from her mouth as she began to scream.

Immediately,
Robert Bonnet was at her side.  She continued to cry uncontrollably.  Robert
attempted to take her into his arms to comfort her, but she resisted, pushing
him away forcefully.  She turned her body away from him and curled up into a
little ball in the fetal position in her bed.

Robert
was desperate.  He didn't know what to do.  Every effort he made to comfort
Alex made him feel increasingly useless.  He was tempted to call Nadine Wells
for advice, but decided against it.  He knew the police woman had put in the
long hours and deserved a good night's rest.  After all, she had told him to
expect something like this since Alex was in the initial phase of rape trauma
syndrome.  He tried to remember the things Nadine had told him to expect, but
his tired mind refused to let him think back to their conversation.  Gradually,
Alex’s crying slowed to a muffled sob, and Robert went into the kitchen to make
her some hot tea.  When he returned to her room with a tray, Alex was sound
asleep.

Robert
went back into the kitchen where he sat for several hours, reminiscing over his
life with Alex and the tragic events of the past few days.  He felt miserable,
guilty.  He had enough to contend with before last night, and now he had no
idea where it would lead or whether Alex would ever recover.  Finally, he
returned to bed, depressed and sad.

He
rested fitfully in Alex's beautifully appointed guest room.  His mind kept
returning to the attacks on Alex and Monique.  Why hadn't he insisted on going
in with Alex when he dropped her off at Monique's house?  Why hadn't he sensed
the danger?  How could he have been so stupid?  Robert continued with his self
deprecation until he could think of nothing else to blame himself for.  This
was all his fault.  It was his fault Alex and Monique had been attacked.  It
was his fault the marriage had ended and that knowledge was utterly painful to
him.

He
felt tears jump into his eyes.  The dinner he and Alex shared only two nights
ago had been so promising.  He had begun to think that perhaps Alex would marry
him again.  Now, they had all of this to work through -- the rape, the medical
problems with Monique, and Jack's grief.  Of course, he had been grappling for
months with the thought that he would never be able to operate again.  A
surgeon without hands, an amputee, that's how he perceived himself.  That in itself
had caused him to be terribly depressed over the past six months.  And now all
of this.   He could only hope and pray that he could cope.

Robert
checked his watch for the third time in twenty minutes.  It was almost 6
o'clock in the morning.  He checked on Alex and she was sleeping peacefully. 
He then phoned the neuro intensive care unit at CCMC.  The nurses reported that
Dr. Desmonde was the same, stable but unresponsive.  Robert could only guess
how Jack was doing and figured he was feeling just as useless as he was.  Thank
goodness he wasn't in Jack's position.  At least Alex could think and talk, but
Monique probably wouldn't ever come out of her coma.  She probably wouldn't
ever wake up.  Tomorrow, they would do the first EEG to measure her brainwave
activity.  He prayed that the swelling had decreased.  He wasn't ready to tell
Jack they needed to disconnect the ventilator and let her die.  Please Lord, he
prayed to himself, don't let that happen. 

Robert
returned to the kitchen and made coffee.  The annoying feeling in his gut told
him he was hungry, but he had no desire to eat.  He continued to sit at the
table, silently drinking coffee and reminiscing over all the mistakes he had
made in his adult life.  He only wanted his childhood again, just to be young
and carefree.   Finally, he was aware that Alex was behind him.   He could feel
her presence.

She
smiled tentatively at him, touched his shoulder, and asked, "Could you
share your coffee with me?"

He
stood immediately, "I can do better than that.  I'll let you have your own
cup."

Alex
had huge coffee cups, just like the ones Alex's grandmother had in Virginia. 
Robert removed a brightly decorated porcelain cup from the cabinet, made Alex a
cup of coffee in her Keurig, and set it down in front of her with a flourish. 
He was pleased that she looked so rested and relaxed.

Alex
savored the rich flavor of the New Orleans coffee.  She murmured her
appreciation, "Mmm, this is good.  I feel like I may be human again. 
Thanks Robert.  Thank you for staying with me and for always being there for
me.   It means a lot, especially in times like these."

Robert
smiled, feeling a little brighter.  Alex looked lovely this morning.  Her hair
was down and its curly reddish-chestnut color beautifully framed her delicately
colored face.  Her eyes were clear and blue.  There were no signs of tears,
dark circles, or fatigue.  Only the black eye and the drooping shoulder told of
her recent misery.

He
said lightly, "You look rested this morning, Al.  You must've gotten some
sleep."

"Yes,
I did.  I remember awakening during the night and crying.  It all came back to
me, but I decided that today's another day and we need to move forward.  Have
you checked on  Monique?" Her voice and her face expressed her concern
over her friend.

"Yeah,
I have.  There's no change.  It's still pretty early, Alex," Robert said,
noting the crestfallen look on her face.   "You know that."  His
voice was soft, but definitive, as he attempted to comfort her.

Alex
nodded, stirring her coffee.  She looked up and asked, "Did Anthony
Gavette kill Whitset?"

Robert
nodded.   "Yes, he did.  Apparently, Whitset had a secret access to the
Pavilion.  He used the old tunnels that connected the Pavilion to the main
hospital building.   Most people had totally forgotten they existed.   That's
how he had been coming and going secretly for months."

"Wasn't
something said before I fainted about his killing a patient in there?"

"Yep,
he did.  He told Anthony, who reported it to the psych staff, and it checks
out.  I talked to Jack last night, who confirmed that a young woman admitted
for depression a few months back had committed suicide in the room by slashing
her wrists.  The staff never knew where she'd gotten the razor.  Apparently,
Whitset gave it to her -- at least, according to Anthony.   Or, who knows,
perhaps Whitset slashed her wrists and watched her bleed.   He seemed to be
that crazy."

"Did
he rape her?" Alex asked and continued to stare into her coffee.

"I
don't know.  I don't think they can prove that, but Anthony said Whitset told
him all about it.  I would guess it's probably true.  Whitset was a sick
man." Robert looked carefully at Alex.

"Also,
Jack seems to think Whitset probably did slash the woman's wrists because there
was a bottle of wine and human blood found in his office.   They were mixed
together.   I think forensics is going to type the blood and see if it matches
the dead woman's."

Alex
was appalled and her face was disbelieving.   "What, you think Whitset
bled the woman's wrist into the wine bottle?  How disgusting!"  She
shuddered at the thought.

Robert
nodded.   "Yes, grotesque and disgusting.   Somehow he got the blood into
the wine bottle.   Unbelievable!"

“Un
huh, you bet.  Real sick.  You're sure he's dead?" Alex's voice was
tremulous.

"Positive. 
I'm absolutely sure.  I saw him."

Alex
looked relieved, "I'm glad.  Very glad.  I guess that's not the best way
to feel, but I'm glad he is dead”.

Robert
reached for her hand.  "I think it's a very honest and appropriate way to
feel.  I feel the same way."

"Good,"
Alex said brightly.  "I feel vindicated, and I'm hungry.  Let's eat.  What
should we have?"

"I'll
cook, you get dressed.  You know that breakfast is the only meal I can
make." Robert paused for a moment and said with a smile on his face,
"By the way, Alex, do you remember what Jack did to Montgomery?"

Alex
looked confused.  "What Jack did to the Don? No, I don't think so."

Delight
was written all over Robert's face as he told her, "He cold-cocked him!
Knocked the hell out of him! It was great!"

Alex
burst into laughter.  "You're kidding! When?"

"Yesterday,
just after you fainted.  I wanted to take a picture with my iPhone, but
didn't.    Everyone standing around gave Françoise a huge cheer!"

Alex
continued to laugh.  "I'm sorry I missed it.  Jack's been dying to do that
for a long time and Montgomery finally pushed him over the edge.   I just wish
I'd seen it."  She was interrupted by the phone.

Robert
answered and said, "Speak of the devil." It was Jack.  They talked
for several moments.  Robert gave a delightful  war whoop and hung up the
phone.  He was smiling a huge smile.

"Robert,
what is it? What did he say?" Alex's voice was excited, inpatient.

"Jack
swears that Monique just squeezed his hand.  He swears she can hear him.  He
said she opened her eyes!" Robert was ecstatic.

"What
do the nurses say? Do you think Jack could've imagined it?" Alex felt
hopeful but looked uncertain.

Robert
stared at her and said firmly, "No.  If Jack saw Monique open her eyes and
felt her squeeze his hand, then it happened."

Alex
smiled happily, "Let's hurry up and eat.  I want to go see for
myself."

"Me,
too.  Get dressed and we’ll eat in a hurry.  Jack also wants to give us the
final information about Whitset before he closes the case."

Alex
felt her happiness ebb away and felt fear engulf her. 
He must have the
results of my lab reports,
she thought to herself. 
At least I'll know.
 
Then, she remembered. 
Well, maybe I will know something.

The
couple ate a quick breakfast and hurried to the hospital.  They found Jack in
the waiting room outside the intensive care unit.  He looked forlorn, exhausted
and gloomy.  His face brightened when he saw Robert and Alex.

"That
damn Doctor who operated told me there was no way Monique squeezed my hand.  He
said her brain is too swollen for her to do anything like that."

Alex
felt her heart sink.  She looked for reassurance.   She walked over and gave
Jack a huge hug.

Robert
said to Jack, "If you felt her squeeze your hand, then she squeezed your
hand," Robert reassured him.  "I'm going to go look in on her."
Robert was mentally cursing the neurosurgeon.   What a bastard the man was,
but, that being said, he was a great neurosurgeon.

"I'm
going to go, too.  The hell with that man.  How about you, Alex?  By the way,
you look mighty good today." Jack leaned over, hugged her again, and gave
her a kiss on the cheek.

Alex
smiled and once again returned the hug offered by the thickset, kindhearted
police Commander.   She whispered clandestinely, "I heard you knocked out
my boss!"

Commander
Françoise’s eyes lit up and he smiled from ear to ear.  "You are damn
right, I did, Al.  I would have kept hitting the son of a bitch if Josh Martin
hadn't stopped me.  Little prick has had it coming for months .…"

"Probably
all of his life," Alex surmised.

Alex
had a hard time controlling her emotions when she looked down at Monique
Desmonde.  She had forgotten how horrible craniotomy patients looked after
surgery.  Monique's eyes were both black and her face was swollen.  She wasn't
recognizable.  Alex managed to keep herself together, but felt her heart sink
as she heard Jack talking softly to her.  She also began to talk to Monique.  
But there was no response.  Monique seemed to be in a deep coma.  Alex was beginning
to doubt what Jack had seen.  She looked over and saw Robert reviewing
Monique's chart.  He shook his head at Alex and came to the bedside.

Robert
and Alex stood quietly looking at Monique while Jack continued to hold her hand
and talk to her.  Finally, he said, "Well, she ain't talkin' now, but that
doesn't mean she won't wake up a little later, right Robert?"

"That's
right, Jack.  Let's go." Robert's voice was gentle.

"Nah,
I'm staying a while longer.  Can we meet in your office later this morning,
Alex? I'll have everything by then and I'll give you both the finals.  Nadine's
coming at 10 o'clock." Jack looked sad.

"Sure,
Jack.  We'll see you then."

"I'm
going to the O.R. to get a shower and change my clothes.  Either of you need
anything," Robert asked.

"No,"
Jack and Alex said in unison.

"I'll
walk out with you, Robert.  See you in a little while, Jack.  You want any
donuts," Alex asked in a teasing voice.

"No,
I'm not hungry lately," Jack said a little dismally.  He knew what his
friends were thinking.

On
the way out of the unit, Alex asked Robert, "What do you think, Robert? 
Do you think Jack just wanted to believe Monique was coming out of it?"

"I
don't think anything.   I'm just praying Jack is right."  Robert's voice
was tense, and Alex could feel his disappointment.   "That being said,
she's still in a deep coma and I certainly didn't see any response at
all."