The Ransom -- part 3
Apr. 25th, 2009 09:02 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rabidsamfanIn her Chicago hotel room EJ Riverside eyed the box of chocolates she had bought for her husband and decided to open it anyway. She tried to do it quietly. "Hello, Ernie. What's going on? I got an urgent message to call you, and then a message from Stanley, saying he's all right. Why would he call me to say he's all right if he's all right? What happened? Was he in an accident?"
"No," Ernie said. "He wasn't in an accident. And he is safe now. Are you sitting down?"
EJ tugged the top of the box free. "Safe? Safe from what?"
Ernie took a deep breath. "Well, on Friday, as he was leaving work, Stanley was kidnapped."
EJ dropped the phone and almost dropped the chocolates and it took her a few seconds to recover the receiver. Ernie was asking, "EJ? Are you there?" when she got the phone to her ear.
"Yes. I just dropped the phone." EJ found a chocolate creme and held it like a talisman. "Kidnapped? Where is he? Can I talk to him?"
"He's in the Titanic, sleeping," Ernie said. "Gonzo just brought him back from the police station a few minutes ago."
"Stanley fell asleep in the Titanic?" EJ thought about Stanley's description of Gonzo's RV and stuffed the chocolate into the corner of her mouth. "He's that tired?"
"Here, Gonzo, you tell her how he is." EJ heard Ernie giving over the phone and took the chance to get another piece of chocolate.
Gonzo came on the line. "EJ? It's Gonzo. Stanley's going to be just fine. All he needs is sleep and fluids and a few square meals. He's got some bruises, but none of them are serious. I'd have brought him in to the hospital, but we're under siege by reporters, and he'd just end up on the news looking ragged."
"What did they do to him? Who was it? Did the police catch them?" EJ felt herself bursting with questions. "What did they want from Stanley? Why is he so tired?"
Gonzo wasn't fazed. "He's tired because he didn't get any sleep. They kept him tied up in a wooden chair the whole time, and watched him to make sure he wouldn't yell for help or try to break free. One of the kidnappers used to work for the hospital, and he lost his job when Riverside Senior approved the last round of cuts." She heard Trapper say something rude in the background and Gonzo's voice went distant for a moment as he explained, "It was Pop from the laundry and his son. You know, the old guy with the cane?" Then his voice came back strong again as he addressed the phone. "Anyway, they wanted Stanley's father to pay them a million dollars."
"A million?" EJ put aside the milk chocolate creams and went into her bag for the box of dark chocolates from Godiva's. "For Stanley? From his father?" Her voice cracked. "What did you have to do, put a gun to his head?"
"Actually, we couldn't reach him. Riverside Senior is somewhere off the coast of Tahiti in a boat with the radio off. Some of us put together what we could and we were able to fool the kidnappers into thinking it was enough long enough for the police to catch them and rescue Stanley and me." Gonzo's voice cracked a little, and EJ realized that there was more she had better know.
"Wait a minute," she said. "Rescue you? Why did the police have to rescue you?" And why are you unhappy thinking about it, she wondered.
"Well," Gonzo cleared his throat. "I volunteered to drop the money. I didn't plan on any heroics, but I thought if a cop did it, the kidnappers would know and they'd said no cops. The drop was at a phone booth, and when I got there, they called and said to go to a little carnival nearby. Once I got there, I was supposed to ride the ferris wheel. So I did what I was told, and Pop showed up and took the suitcase full of money just as the ride was starting. You know how long it takes to get off a ferris wheel. I thought he was long gone, but he must have recognized me the same as I recognized him, because when I did get off, he and his son came up and shoved a gun in my back."
"Go on," EJ managed around a mouthful of chocolate when he paused.
"They had Stanley tied up in a warehouse. When we got there, they tied me up too. The police had put a bug in the suitcase with the money, but the kidnappers had dumped that. What I didn't know is that they'd also put a bug in my coat. It turned out to be a good thing, too, because the last thing the kidnappers did before they left us was turn on the gas valve."
"They did what?" She could hear Trapper and Ernie exclaiming on the other end, too.
"They tried to kill us," Gonzo said flatly. "We tried to get out of the ropes, but it didn't work. If the cops hadn't come in... well... EJ, to be honest, I don't think they ever intended to let Stanley go. They never blindfolded him at all."
"Oh, my poor Stanley," she said, too appalled for bad language. "And me in Chicago. Are you sure he's all right?"
Gonzo sighed. "I guess you'd feel better if you could talk to him. It'll take a while to get him in and settled, but then we could call you back. Just don't get worried if he's a little groggy, okay?"
"You don't sound happy about the idea," EJ said
"I'm not," Gonzo admitted. "I'd just as soon leave him where he is and let him sleep himself out. The Titanic is a lot less accessible than a hospital room; and I could keep an eye on him without getting pulled away to look at patients; I've got Gloria out there right now just in case he does wake up, 'cause I don't want him to think he's been abandoned. But if you wouldn't mind waiting, I think he really needs the rest."
EJ bit her lip. "I can't get out of Chicago tonight anyway," she said, trying to think practically instead of emotionally. "I booked for tomorrow because all of the flights were full for this evening in the first place. And knowing Stanley, if you wake him up properly, he'll have trouble falling asleep again, no matter how tired he is. I hate to say it, but keeping him where he is is probably the best plan if you want him to rest."
"He really needs it," Gonzo said, relief in his voice. "What time is your flight?"
"9:00 Chicago time," she said. "I planned to check out of the hotel around eight in the morning. I should get into San Francisco around 1:00 in the afternoon."
"Do you need someone to meet you at the airport?" Gonzo asked.
"Well, Stanley was planning to meet me," she said, "but if he's not up to it I can take a cab."
"He may yet," Gonzo said. "But if not, then one of us will be there."
"Gonzo?"
"Yes?"
"If he wakes up, by himself I mean, and it's before eight Chicago time, would you have him call me? Please?" EJ figured she could have room service bring her meals while she camped by the hotel room phone. She wasn't going to get any sleep, that was for sure.
"Yeah. I'll do that." Gonzo paused for a moment, and she could hear voices. "Listen, EJ, I've got to go -- could you give Ernie the flight number and airline and all?"
"Sure. Thanks, Gonzo." She took the chance to eat another piece of chocolate
Ernie came on the line, her voice rich with sympathy. "Trapper and Gonzo are going down to the lab to check some results," she said. "Now, what is this about an airline?"
---
The corridor was starting to fill up with reporters again, some of whom were trying to lurk discreetly in spite of the notebooks that stuck up from their pockets. Trapper and Gonzo looked around them and hustled the lab tech who had come to see them across into the file room. It was empty, except for Jackpot Jackson, who had put his head down on the desk and was sleeping. Trapper shook his shoulder, and the younger doctor sat up, abruptly, pretending alertness. "I'm awake."
"No you aren't, but just listen for a few minutes. Li, have you got those results?"
"What's going on?" the small oriental man asked. "Who's the secret patient?"
"It's not a patient, Li," Trapper said. "It's Dr. Riverside."
Jackpot started, and bit his lip, his eyebrows high with worry.
Li raised an eyebrow, and fidgeted with his glasses. "Dr. Riverside? I heard about the kidnapping. Which room are you going to put him in?"
"Which room?" Gonzo repeated, as he plucked the lab report out of Li's hands and started to scan it. Jackpot got up and looked over his shoulder
"Well, he's very dehydrated," Li said. "The urinalysis -- second page. And his white count is slightly elevated. That's why I assumed it was a patient."
Trapper put on his glasses and read over Gonzo's other shoulder. "Red count's okay. And his blood sugar isn't as low as I expected."
"He ate some soup at the police station," Gonzo said, flipping to the second page. He grimaced at the numbers. "This isn't so good."
Trapper shook his head thoughtfully. He'd been imagining worse. "It's easy enough to deal with, though. Put him on IV fluids for the night and he should be raring to go."
"Dextrose and saline would bring up the blood sugar too," Jackpot added, starting to look more truly alert.
Gonzo nodded, but he was still uncertain. "I'm not worried about the medical part of it, Trap. Stanley's not in real bad shape, but he looks pretty frazzled and he's too tired to walk straight. My question is, do I let him stagger in the door on his own two feet, or try to get him to ride in a wheelchair or on a gurney? Either way, he's going to have to go past all those cameras and reporters."
Trapper smiled, smugly. "None of the above. We'll leave him right where he is and set up the IV in the Titanic. Slip a mild sedative into the mix, and he shouldn't even have any nightmares."
Gonzo brightened. "Good thought. It isn't like there's no one around to keep an eye on him. And the reporters will have to give up after a while if they want to make their deadlines."
"I can put a different name on the paperwork," Li offered. "That will make it easier to keep Dr. Riverside's location a secret. You know how hospital gossip is."
"Use Sam Waters," Trapper said. "If we need any more lab work, we'll send it under that."
"All right." Li took back the lab report and left.
Jackpot looked from Trapper to Gonzo. "Have I got this right? Stanley's in the Titanic?"
"Yeah," Gonzo said. "Are you on duty?"
"Not officially," Jackpot said. "I swapped shifts with Redmond so I could try to raise some money for the ransom at a poker game last night. I'm supposed to go back on at 11 tonight, but I wanted to hang around until you got back with Stanley. What happened to him, anyway?"
Gonzo -- who was getting tired of explaining -- blew out a sigh. "It's a long story, Jackpot."
"I thought you didn't have any money for the ransom," Trapper said.
"I used the money Gloria raised as a stake, but I didn't get back in time. Do you know she sold her car?" Jackpot shook his head. "I'm glad it turned out you didn't need it."
"Look," Trapper interrupted, "Gonzo, the reporters are going to want to talk to you, so you'll have to be the distraction while Jackpot and I go out to the Titanic and get the IV started. We can tell each other stories all night once we've got Stanley taken care of."
Gonzo pulled a face. "Maybe I should just paint, "sacrificial victim," on my forehead for today." He started for the door and then stopped and leaned against the jamb, looking wistfully at Trapper. "Do you think I can get hazard pay for this?"
"No," Trapper said, amused. "But I'll arrange for some beer."
"That would be good." Gonzo pretended to straighten his non-existent tie. "Forward into the breach!" he said, and headed out into the hall.
---
"No," Ernie said. "He wasn't in an accident. And he is safe now. Are you sitting down?"
EJ tugged the top of the box free. "Safe? Safe from what?"
Ernie took a deep breath. "Well, on Friday, as he was leaving work, Stanley was kidnapped."
EJ dropped the phone and almost dropped the chocolates and it took her a few seconds to recover the receiver. Ernie was asking, "EJ? Are you there?" when she got the phone to her ear.
"Yes. I just dropped the phone." EJ found a chocolate creme and held it like a talisman. "Kidnapped? Where is he? Can I talk to him?"
"He's in the Titanic, sleeping," Ernie said. "Gonzo just brought him back from the police station a few minutes ago."
"Stanley fell asleep in the Titanic?" EJ thought about Stanley's description of Gonzo's RV and stuffed the chocolate into the corner of her mouth. "He's that tired?"
"Here, Gonzo, you tell her how he is." EJ heard Ernie giving over the phone and took the chance to get another piece of chocolate.
Gonzo came on the line. "EJ? It's Gonzo. Stanley's going to be just fine. All he needs is sleep and fluids and a few square meals. He's got some bruises, but none of them are serious. I'd have brought him in to the hospital, but we're under siege by reporters, and he'd just end up on the news looking ragged."
"What did they do to him? Who was it? Did the police catch them?" EJ felt herself bursting with questions. "What did they want from Stanley? Why is he so tired?"
Gonzo wasn't fazed. "He's tired because he didn't get any sleep. They kept him tied up in a wooden chair the whole time, and watched him to make sure he wouldn't yell for help or try to break free. One of the kidnappers used to work for the hospital, and he lost his job when Riverside Senior approved the last round of cuts." She heard Trapper say something rude in the background and Gonzo's voice went distant for a moment as he explained, "It was Pop from the laundry and his son. You know, the old guy with the cane?" Then his voice came back strong again as he addressed the phone. "Anyway, they wanted Stanley's father to pay them a million dollars."
"A million?" EJ put aside the milk chocolate creams and went into her bag for the box of dark chocolates from Godiva's. "For Stanley? From his father?" Her voice cracked. "What did you have to do, put a gun to his head?"
"Actually, we couldn't reach him. Riverside Senior is somewhere off the coast of Tahiti in a boat with the radio off. Some of us put together what we could and we were able to fool the kidnappers into thinking it was enough long enough for the police to catch them and rescue Stanley and me." Gonzo's voice cracked a little, and EJ realized that there was more she had better know.
"Wait a minute," she said. "Rescue you? Why did the police have to rescue you?" And why are you unhappy thinking about it, she wondered.
"Well," Gonzo cleared his throat. "I volunteered to drop the money. I didn't plan on any heroics, but I thought if a cop did it, the kidnappers would know and they'd said no cops. The drop was at a phone booth, and when I got there, they called and said to go to a little carnival nearby. Once I got there, I was supposed to ride the ferris wheel. So I did what I was told, and Pop showed up and took the suitcase full of money just as the ride was starting. You know how long it takes to get off a ferris wheel. I thought he was long gone, but he must have recognized me the same as I recognized him, because when I did get off, he and his son came up and shoved a gun in my back."
"Go on," EJ managed around a mouthful of chocolate when he paused.
"They had Stanley tied up in a warehouse. When we got there, they tied me up too. The police had put a bug in the suitcase with the money, but the kidnappers had dumped that. What I didn't know is that they'd also put a bug in my coat. It turned out to be a good thing, too, because the last thing the kidnappers did before they left us was turn on the gas valve."
"They did what?" She could hear Trapper and Ernie exclaiming on the other end, too.
"They tried to kill us," Gonzo said flatly. "We tried to get out of the ropes, but it didn't work. If the cops hadn't come in... well... EJ, to be honest, I don't think they ever intended to let Stanley go. They never blindfolded him at all."
"Oh, my poor Stanley," she said, too appalled for bad language. "And me in Chicago. Are you sure he's all right?"
Gonzo sighed. "I guess you'd feel better if you could talk to him. It'll take a while to get him in and settled, but then we could call you back. Just don't get worried if he's a little groggy, okay?"
"You don't sound happy about the idea," EJ said
"I'm not," Gonzo admitted. "I'd just as soon leave him where he is and let him sleep himself out. The Titanic is a lot less accessible than a hospital room; and I could keep an eye on him without getting pulled away to look at patients; I've got Gloria out there right now just in case he does wake up, 'cause I don't want him to think he's been abandoned. But if you wouldn't mind waiting, I think he really needs the rest."
EJ bit her lip. "I can't get out of Chicago tonight anyway," she said, trying to think practically instead of emotionally. "I booked for tomorrow because all of the flights were full for this evening in the first place. And knowing Stanley, if you wake him up properly, he'll have trouble falling asleep again, no matter how tired he is. I hate to say it, but keeping him where he is is probably the best plan if you want him to rest."
"He really needs it," Gonzo said, relief in his voice. "What time is your flight?"
"9:00 Chicago time," she said. "I planned to check out of the hotel around eight in the morning. I should get into San Francisco around 1:00 in the afternoon."
"Do you need someone to meet you at the airport?" Gonzo asked.
"Well, Stanley was planning to meet me," she said, "but if he's not up to it I can take a cab."
"He may yet," Gonzo said. "But if not, then one of us will be there."
"Gonzo?"
"Yes?"
"If he wakes up, by himself I mean, and it's before eight Chicago time, would you have him call me? Please?" EJ figured she could have room service bring her meals while she camped by the hotel room phone. She wasn't going to get any sleep, that was for sure.
"Yeah. I'll do that." Gonzo paused for a moment, and she could hear voices. "Listen, EJ, I've got to go -- could you give Ernie the flight number and airline and all?"
"Sure. Thanks, Gonzo." She took the chance to eat another piece of chocolate
Ernie came on the line, her voice rich with sympathy. "Trapper and Gonzo are going down to the lab to check some results," she said. "Now, what is this about an airline?"
---
The corridor was starting to fill up with reporters again, some of whom were trying to lurk discreetly in spite of the notebooks that stuck up from their pockets. Trapper and Gonzo looked around them and hustled the lab tech who had come to see them across into the file room. It was empty, except for Jackpot Jackson, who had put his head down on the desk and was sleeping. Trapper shook his shoulder, and the younger doctor sat up, abruptly, pretending alertness. "I'm awake."
"No you aren't, but just listen for a few minutes. Li, have you got those results?"
"What's going on?" the small oriental man asked. "Who's the secret patient?"
"It's not a patient, Li," Trapper said. "It's Dr. Riverside."
Jackpot started, and bit his lip, his eyebrows high with worry.
Li raised an eyebrow, and fidgeted with his glasses. "Dr. Riverside? I heard about the kidnapping. Which room are you going to put him in?"
"Which room?" Gonzo repeated, as he plucked the lab report out of Li's hands and started to scan it. Jackpot got up and looked over his shoulder
"Well, he's very dehydrated," Li said. "The urinalysis -- second page. And his white count is slightly elevated. That's why I assumed it was a patient."
Trapper put on his glasses and read over Gonzo's other shoulder. "Red count's okay. And his blood sugar isn't as low as I expected."
"He ate some soup at the police station," Gonzo said, flipping to the second page. He grimaced at the numbers. "This isn't so good."
Trapper shook his head thoughtfully. He'd been imagining worse. "It's easy enough to deal with, though. Put him on IV fluids for the night and he should be raring to go."
"Dextrose and saline would bring up the blood sugar too," Jackpot added, starting to look more truly alert.
Gonzo nodded, but he was still uncertain. "I'm not worried about the medical part of it, Trap. Stanley's not in real bad shape, but he looks pretty frazzled and he's too tired to walk straight. My question is, do I let him stagger in the door on his own two feet, or try to get him to ride in a wheelchair or on a gurney? Either way, he's going to have to go past all those cameras and reporters."
Trapper smiled, smugly. "None of the above. We'll leave him right where he is and set up the IV in the Titanic. Slip a mild sedative into the mix, and he shouldn't even have any nightmares."
Gonzo brightened. "Good thought. It isn't like there's no one around to keep an eye on him. And the reporters will have to give up after a while if they want to make their deadlines."
"I can put a different name on the paperwork," Li offered. "That will make it easier to keep Dr. Riverside's location a secret. You know how hospital gossip is."
"Use Sam Waters," Trapper said. "If we need any more lab work, we'll send it under that."
"All right." Li took back the lab report and left.
Jackpot looked from Trapper to Gonzo. "Have I got this right? Stanley's in the Titanic?"
"Yeah," Gonzo said. "Are you on duty?"
"Not officially," Jackpot said. "I swapped shifts with Redmond so I could try to raise some money for the ransom at a poker game last night. I'm supposed to go back on at 11 tonight, but I wanted to hang around until you got back with Stanley. What happened to him, anyway?"
Gonzo -- who was getting tired of explaining -- blew out a sigh. "It's a long story, Jackpot."
"I thought you didn't have any money for the ransom," Trapper said.
"I used the money Gloria raised as a stake, but I didn't get back in time. Do you know she sold her car?" Jackpot shook his head. "I'm glad it turned out you didn't need it."
"Look," Trapper interrupted, "Gonzo, the reporters are going to want to talk to you, so you'll have to be the distraction while Jackpot and I go out to the Titanic and get the IV started. We can tell each other stories all night once we've got Stanley taken care of."
Gonzo pulled a face. "Maybe I should just paint, "sacrificial victim," on my forehead for today." He started for the door and then stopped and leaned against the jamb, looking wistfully at Trapper. "Do you think I can get hazard pay for this?"
"No," Trapper said, amused. "But I'll arrange for some beer."
"That would be good." Gonzo pretended to straighten his non-existent tie. "Forward into the breach!" he said, and headed out into the hall.
---
