Chapter 11
Bethesda Naval Hospital
Awareness flooded back slowly, bringing with it an overwhelming feeling of weakness, punctuated by a dull
throbbing pain. He felt a presence in the room with him, and his body tensed involuntarily in anticipation of more pain to come. But the torture never resumed, so after a long agonizing wait, he risked opening his eyes to see what was going on.
The brightness of the pristinely white room filled with warm sunlight assaulted his senses, and he winced, his eyes no longer accustomed to anything but the cold darkness of the cave. He waited patiently until his eyes adjusted to the blinding whiteness of the room. Was this a hospital? How did he get here? He frowned, straining to remember.
A slight movement off to the side caught his eye, and he turned his head slightly, instantly regretting the movement, as the pain shot through his body with renewed force. Closing his eyes again to ward off the pain, he felt a warm, soothing hand lay softly against his clammy forehead, smoothing the pain away. He looked up tentatively, blinking as the familiar precious face came into view.
"You're awake," she whispered, tears of joy brimming in her large brown eyes.
He smiled contentedly, reveling in her sweet features. She was here next to him. His Sarah....
"Don't ... cry ... Marine .... Don't cry." His throat was dry and his voice weak and hoarse, but the words carried clearly, tugging at her heart with bittersweet feeling of happiness. He wanted to reach out his hand and wipe her tears away, but his weakened body refused to cooperate, and he bit his lip in frustration.
She smiled, noticing his effort, and took his hand in hers, gently lifting it up to her lips and pressing it against them.
"I've missed you so much, Sailor," she whispered, her warm breath caressing the back of his hand.
"Me too," he managed, feeling his eyelids grow heavier with every second. He struggled against the overwhelming desire to sleep, forcing his eyes to stay open, fearing that if he were to close them he'd never see her again.
She must have guessed his thoughts, for she smiled softly, running her hand along his forehead and down the side of his face, flinching as her fingers smoothed over a long jagged scar above his temple. "You rest now, Harm, and don't worry about anything. I'll be right here when you wake up."
"Promise?" he mumbled groggily, relaxing under her touch.
"Promise," she whispered, brushing her lips against his forehead. "Sleep."
Sarah Mackenzie leaned back into her chair, watching her peacefully sleeping partner, a feeling of exhaustion mixed with relief washing over her. From the moment she held Harm's bloodied form in her arms back in the cave in Afghanistan until days later when the doctors declared him stable enough to be transported back to the States, Sarah couldn't let herself relax.
The horrifying images of the deep bleeding scars on his back, the torn wound in his left shoulder, the long jagged gash in his side left by some crude, sharp weapon -- those images would stay with her for a long time to come. She was so scared back in Afghanistan that he would die there in here arms without giving her a chance to tell him ... God, there was so much she needed to tell him!
The chilling words of the Seahawk doctor still echoed in her ears.
***Flashback***
"The Commander is very fortunate that you found him when you did. Hours, maybe even minutes later ..," the doctor shook his head ruefully "Well, frankly, I'm surprised that anyone could endure as much abuse as the Commander has and still survive...."
"But he will be all right?" she asked him then.
The doctor merely shrugged. "His physical injuries will heal eventually, if that's what you mean. Some scars are bound to remain, of course." He pursed his lips, staring her squarely in the eyes, and added in a grave, quiet voice. "It's the emotional scars I worry about, however...."
***End of flashback***
'Emotional scars.' Mac shuddered, thinking about the endless hours of ruthless torture that her friend endured; days of unending pain with no hope of ever being found -- not alive anyway. 'How horrible it must have been.' She sniffled, drawing a shaky breath, as she watched his chest rise and fall in a steady rhythm. He was so pale and thin, and weak, so unlike the strong vivacious naval aviator she knew. But he was here, and he was alive.
A bittersweet smile touched the corners of her mouth.
"The important thing is that you're safe now, Harm," she whispered, running a hand through his tangled dark hair. "The rest will be okay. ... You will be okay ... I'll make sure of that." She let her hand linger against his skin, closing her eyes in a moment of silent prayer. There will be rough times ahead, she was certain of it. But she also knew that, no matter what was to come, they will get through it ... together.
The end