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Sammy pushed the hospital doors open, eyes burning with determination, daring anyone to try and stop him.
No one did.
Daniel Jacobi had been missing in action for exactly five months and seven days, and Kepler’s team had just that morning found him wandering the desert, about sixty miles away from his last known location. Sammy had been informed by a worried Maxwell, and had immediately driven in to see him, heart in his throat at how shaken she’d sounded. He approached the room number she’d given him, only stopping when he saw Major Warren Kepler standing just outside it, looking for all the world like he was standing guard. The image made Sammy snort a little despite himself. At least the Major was composed.
“Major.” he greeted with a curt nod, and Kepler, to his credit, nodded back.
“Lieutenant-Colonel.” he said, clearly displeased to see Sammy but smart enough not to say so. Sammy didn’t waste time on pleasantries, cutting right to the chase.
“What happened?”
“We aren’t sure.” Kepler replied coolly, “They’re keeping me in the dark. They won’t even tell me what he’s being treated for, beyond burns and ‘mental trauma’.” he added air quotes with a derisive look.
“Bullshit.” Sammy growled, “He’s missing for five months, and then suddenly shows up in the middle of the desert miles away from his last known location, and they won’t tell us what’s going on?”
“I am just as displeased about the situation as you are.” his lip curled slightly, “More so, I would say, as this has directly affected me and my work.”
“Uh huh.” Sammy said dryly, unimpressed and electing not to confront him on that, “Maxwell called me. where is she? Does she know anything more about this?”
“She’s currently combing the desert where he was found for any signs of what happened.” he answered tersely, “I had to insist, otherwise she’d have insisted on being with him and caused problems. You say she called you, of all people?”
“Yes.” he replied with an irritated sigh, “And you better not chew her out for it. Cry about it all you want, but Jacobi is my friend too.”
“Well, he is fine.” Kepler said, posture stiff and unfriendly, “Or rather, he will be. If your fears have been alleviated, you may go. I’m sure your team is wondering where you are.”
“Yeah, I don’t think so.” Sammy glared, crossing his arms and using his height to his advantage, looking down at Kepler with a hard look, “I’m not leaving until he wakes up.”
“With all due respect, Lieutenant-Colonel Stevens, I don’t think this situation falls under your jurisdiction.” Kepler said with a raised eyebrow, though he had to tilt his head up to meet Sammy’s eyes, “I insist you go. This is not a suggestion.”
“Major.” Sammy said firmly, sighing and uncrossing his arms to run a hand through his hair, “Look. I get it, you hate me because Jacobi and I are close, you don’t like me being all buddy buddy with the guy you’re fucking, I get it. You and Jacobi have this weird power play thing going on, and while I don’t understand it, I respect it as long as Jacobi is happy with it. I know you care about him. Don’t try to deny it.” he added sternly as Kepler opened his mouth to protest, “I know you care, but I care too. He’s as much my friend as he is yours, so how about we put this childish posturing aside and act like goddamn grown ups for five minutes, or at least until Daniel is on his feet again, alright? Sound reasonable?” Kepler glared, but Sammy could see the gears turning in his mind, weighing the pros and cons. He finally sighed, his posture loosening just a tad.
“You… make some valid points. Very well.” Kepler said begrudgingly, clipped and reluctant, “As you know, he was stumbling around the desert when we found him. His tracker signal had reappeared and Maxwell and I couldn’t follow it fast enough. He was delirious when we found him, barely able to stand. He didn’t seem to recognize me or Maxwell, nor even acknowledge us. He didn’t seem to want to be touched.”
“How’d you get him to hold still long enough to transport him?” Sammy asked, grateful the stupid macho contest was over.
“His legs gave out. He collapsed into my arms.” Kepler said stiffly, the memory clearly a sore one, “He was rambling, he wasn’t making sense. Something about helicopters, and a.. a dog park? I’ll admit a lot of his words blur together into the background, as none of it made any sense and I was far too focused on getting him into the truck to drive him to a hospital.”
“Was he okay in the truck?”
“He seemed convinced that there was someone else in the car with us.” he said, turning to glance at the door Jacobi was behind, “He addressed them civilly, though. So I can’t tell if he was afraid of this ‘old woman’ or not. It’s entirely possible, logical even, that this was another hallucination brought on by desert delirium.”
“Any news on where he was, or what happened to him? Any clues at all?” Sammy asked, and Kepler shook his head.
“His five months MIA are completely unaccounted for.” Kepler said, looking as annoyed as Sammy felt, “All his equipment seems to have been scrambled, no data at all on the missing time, and we have absolutely no explanation as to why he reappeared where and when he did. It’s… It’s beyond infuriating, and no explanation Jacobi provides makes sense , it-” He seemed to force his jaw shut, as if preventing himself from saying anything more. Sammy felt a tiny stirring of pity for the Major. Whatever friendship he had with Jacobi, Kepler had something else entirely. His mask must truly be slipping if even Sammy could tell how affected he was by all this.
“How is he doing now?” Sammy asked softly, and Kepler’s nostrils flared.
“They won’t let me see him.” he grit out, shooting a dark look at the door, “They tell me he’s freaking out if anyone gets near him, shouting about god knows what. He almost cut a nurse. They had to sedate him.”
“Damn.” Sammy said simply, glancing at the door, “And uh… you holding up okay?” Kepler gave him a dirty look at that, like he was offended he’d asked.
“I am fine.” he said stiffly, “Although I’m honestly surprised you were allowed to take a detour from your duties to visit Mister Jacobi.”
“Jack said he could handle the rest of the mission.” Sammy shrugged, “It’s really just cleanup, we’re pretty much done there.” Kepler opened his mouth to respond, but that was when the door to Jacobi’s room opening cut him off, and a mousy-looking nurse peeked out. Judging from the scratches on her arm, she was likely the one Jacobi had attacked. To her credit, she seemed to be unshaken.
“He’s asleep now.” she said softly, “You can visit him if you want, but please try not to disturb him.”’ Sammy and Kepler exchanged glances, and Kepler nodded curtly. A truce, then. Sammy gestured for him to go first, and Kepler did so without a backwards glance. They entered Jacobi’s room, both unconsciously relaxing at the sight of him sleeping peacefully, burns bandaged and strange bruises treated. The nurse closed the door behind them, granting them privacy
Or so they thought.
Neither of them saw the shadow of an old woman in the corner, watching silently as the two men sat on either side of Jacobi’s bed. Their attention was focused completely on the occupant of the bed, neither of them noticed the lights flicker, nor did they notice the heart monitor briefly flash with the image of a body floating dead in the great void-like pupil of an immense purple eye, a bottle of amber liquid clutched in a cold hand. The image vanished as quickly as it came, leaving only static in its wake. No one noticed.
Jacobi’s eyes slid open, and both Sammy and Kepler gave him looks of reassurance, speaking softly so as not to startle him.
Sammy took his hand.
Kepler did not.
Satisfied that the outsider had been returned to where he belonged, the Faceless Old Woman Who Secretly Lives in Your Home slipped quietly away.