A few hours later, I was back in my room. Doc had said that the surgery went well. “Some of the inside stitches had come out, but I got it all re-stitched and cleaned up the mess from the internal bleed”, he told me in Recovery. He had not been able to come back up to my room with me as he had to do an emergency c-section after my surgery was done. In order to do my surgery, he had had to take call for the whole night. After that, he had a couple deliveries. He has always said that a lot of the time, nights on call are either deadly quiet or very busy.

I was in more pain this time than I was after the first surgery. Doc had ordered a very strong pain killer that kept me drifting in and out of sleep. I finally woke up to daylight. He was sitting in a chair beside my bed, still in his blue scrubs. The last time I’d woken up, he was not there, so I presumed he was busy with emergencies. He was asleep so I just lay there quietly, watching him. I did not want to wake him up, he needed his rest. As I watched him, I thought about what had happened the night before. I was feeling guilty about what I’d put him through and vowed to try to not give him any more hassles for the duration of my stay in hospital. I say “try” because you know me - obstinate, stubborn, headstrong, difficult, self destructive Meredith.

A nurse came in to change my IV bag. I put my finger to my lips in the ‘shhhhh’ sign and pointed to the sleeping Doc. She nodded her head and did the change in silence. In a whisper, she asked me if I needed anything. I shook my head no and she left the room.

As I shifted position in my bed, I could feel the catheter. Great, I thought, Doc had been planning to take it out today - I bet he will want to leave it in for a couple more days now. At least it didn’t hurt, but it felt weird. I wondered what it would feel like to have sex with one in and thought about maybe asking Doc to insert one during a play session in our private exam room.

Speaking of the exam room, I still hadn’t asked Doc to bring a pair of scrubs home. I really must do that, I thought. He looks so HOT in them! I have always thought Doc is handsome, but even more after I talked him into growing his blonde hair out a bit. It had been just a bit longer than a brush cut, I think that was at least partly due to his need to always be neat and clean. He finally agreed to grow it a bit longer. It‘s not long by any means, which is fine with me as I prefer short hair on guys. But it‘s long enough for me to run my fingers through. He says he likes it when I do that, though he always brushes it when I stop. That need to always been neat as well as clean. But I love him, faults and all. Besides, I’d much rather he be obsessively neat and clean than be a slob.

He stirred and opened his eyes. Those beautiful blue eyes that make me melt whenever he looks at me a certain way. “How long have you been awake, hon?” he asked.

“A while.”

“You should have woken me up.”

“No, I should not have. You need your sleep, honey. I suspect you’ve been up most of the night.”

“How did you know?”

“Because every time I woke up, you weren’t here. Until this time.”

“You are right. It’s been a busy night.”

“You should have crawled into bed with me, Doc. It can’t be comfortable sleeping in that chair.”

“I didn’t want to wake you up, hon. You need your rest more than me.”

“I’ve been doing nothing but sleep lately, it seems.”

“You need it, you are recovering from major surgery - now, two surgeries. You need to sleep as much as you can.”

“I’m awake now. Come lie with me, Doc.”

“Meredith, you know I won’t lie on your bed during the day. It’s not proper.”

“Oh, Doc, come on. I need to have you beside me. Do it for your patient, ok?”

“Well, maybe just this once.” He looked at the monitors, and then picked up his stethoscope. “Let me check your lungs first, hon. Those sats are way too low for my liking. How is your pain?”

“It’s bad, but don’t worry about it, Doc.”

“I do worry about it, Meredith. It’s my job. I’ll get you some medication after I’m done here.”

He took a lot of time listening to my lungs. I didn’t complain. Not only was he looking out for my best interest, I kind of enjoy it. Having him so close to me and the feel of the stethoscope on my back …. Ok, back to Earth, Meredith.

“They sound fine, hon. Curt and I just can’t figure out why your sats get so low after surgery. Have you had your inhalers yet this morning?”

“No, Doc.”

“Take them now.” He picked up the Ventolin inhaler and handed it to me. “This one first.” I took both the Ventolin and the steroid inhaler. “I’m going to go to the washroom, hon, and I’ll get your pain medication. Do you need anything?”

“I’m fine, thanks, Doc.”

“I’ll be back shortly.”

He was back in a few minutes and injected the drug into my IV, then lowered the rail and lay down beside me, moving the cardiac leads and my tubings out of the way. “Come lay your head on my chest, hon. I don’t want you on your left side.”

I cuddled up beside him and he put his arm around me. I laid my wrapped hand on his chest as well. He bent his head down and kissed my exposed fingers. “I’m kissing them better, hon.”

“You are so sweet Doc.” I looked up at him and smiled. He gently pushed some hair off my face and kissed my forehead. “Doc?” I asked.

“Yes?”

“How long do I have to be here now?”

“Expect a few days, hon. Three or four.”

“That many?”

“Yes, for one your sats are lower than they were. For another, you’ve just been through a second surgery in as many days. It will probably take you longer to recover.”

“Doc, I’ll understand if you want to go home and not be here 24/7 with me.”

“I’m not going anywhere, Meredith. I’m staying here with you until I discharge you, except for going home once a day to clean up and change clothes. How‘s your pain?”

“Better than it was.” The medication was taking effect and I was getting drowsy.

“Good. Go back to sleep, hon.”

“Doc, am I still under the ‘no visitors’ thing?” I asked.

“Yes, Meredith. For today, at least. I’ll see after that.”

“I want Karen to come see me, if she wants to. She won’t upset me.”

“We’ll see this afternoon. Now go to sleep.” He reached over with his right hand and closed my eyelids to make his point. I left them shut.

“Ok, Doc.” After a minute, I said “Doc, wake me up when the breakfast tray comes so I can have a coffee.”

“Meredith! Go to sleep! I asked the nurses to keep your tray out there so they don’t wake you up. I will get you a coffee from the café.”

“My eyes are closed, Doc.”

“What am I going to do with you, Meredith?”

“You ask me that a lot.”

“I know how to get you to sleep, sweetie.” He started stroking my hair - he was right, that puts me to sleep every time, this time was no different. I fell asleep listening to the sound of his heart beating.

A few hours later, I was woken up when a nurse came in and said something to Doc. He got out of bed and followed her out of the room. A few minutes later, he returned. “How are you doing, hon?” he asked, seeing that I was awake.

“I’m okay, Doc. Where did you go?”

“I had a phone call.”

“Anything to do with me?”

“Nothing you need to worry about right now, Meredith.”

“So it was about me?” Doc had a guilty look on his face.

“Meredith, after last night, I want you to *rest* today. No visitors and no contact with the outside world.”

“Doc, you are not answering my question.”

“That’s all the answer you are getting right now.”

“You said Karen can come this afternoon.”

“I said I would see about letting her come. You need to be calm and do as I say. Meaning drop it about the phone call.”

“Ok, Doc. Will you tell me when you deem me able to handle it?”

“Yes, hon, I will.”

“Ok, then I will drop it.”

“Thank you, Meredith. Now, I’m going to go downstairs and get us some coffee. I’m not going to push breakfast on you this morning. In fact, I have you on fluids only for today. I’m pretty sure you won’t want to eat, but I would like you to at least have some broth and drinks. Before I go, I will listen to your lungs. You aren‘t due for your inhalers yet.”

Doc brought us some coffee from downstairs as well as oral pain meds for me, since it was too soon for the heavy duty inject-able. He sat down to drink his coffee with me. “I’m going to go home in a bit and shave, shower and change clothes, hon. I also need to see someone for a chat. I should be back by noon. I want you to sleep as much as you can while I’m gone. I will leave a request for the nurses to stay out of your room as much as possible so that you can rest.”

“Are you going to the farm or the apartment, Doc?”

“The apartment. It’s much closer. Why? Did you want something from the farm?”

“Just a book I’ve been reading. But it’s okay, I don’t have to have it.”

“I can get Karen to bring it if I let her visit you later. I’m impressed that you are reading a book, even if it is a Walking Dead one.”

“You’re rubbing off on me, Doc.”

“That’s not a bad thing, Meredith.”

“Now, if I could only get you on a horse ….”

“Haha, hon.”

“I’ll get you on one if it’s the last thing I do.”

“You won’t be getting on any horses for a few weeks.” I rolled my eyes. “I’m serious, Meredith. Riding is out of the question until you are completely recovered.”

“I know, Doc. I’m just giving you a hard time.”

“Meredith, what will I do with you?” he asked for the second time that morning.

“Give me a hug, Doc.”

“A gentle one. Then I have to get going but I won’t be gone too long.”

“Doc, can you hand me my phone, please?” He took my phone off the stand by the bed and handed it to me. “Need to make some calls?”

“Just in case I need to call you or someone calls me.”

“You are not to answer it unless it’s me or Karen calling.”

“Aw, Doc…”

“Don’t ’Aw, Doc’ me. No calls except me or Karen. And you are not to make any calls except to either of us. That’s an order. I don‘t want you getting upset.”

“Ok, Doc. I won’t.”

“Good, hon.” He leaned over my bed and gave me a gentle hug, then kissed me. “Get some more sleep, Meredith. I’ll be back in a while.”

I watched him leave the room. I could tell he was still tired from his busy night. My heart went out to him. He hadn’t said it, but I knew he was feeling guilty about Jane. I intended to bring the subject up later in the day and make sure he knew it was not his fault.

I turned onto my right side - no way could I lay on my left - and closed my eyes. Just as I was drifting off to sleep, Curt Wilcox came in. “Hi, Meredith, how are you feeling?”

“I’m okay, Curt. A bit sore, but Julian has me on some pretty good drugs.”

Curt looked at the monitors. “I don’t like your sats, Meredith. Are you taking the inhalers I prescribed?”

“Yes, Curt. Doc… Julian….is making sure I do.”

“Where is he anyway?”

“He went home to shower and change clothes and he said he had to meet someone for a chat.”

“I’m glad he’s getting out of here for a bit.”

“Me, too. Other than going home to shower and taking care of a couple things, he’s been here 24/7.”

“He loves you a lot, Meredith. That’s why he’s been here almost all the time.”

“I know. And I love him, too. I feel like we were meant for each other.”

“You have been very good for him. You’ve gotten him out of that blasted apartment that he used to spend almost all of his free time in. And you’ve gotten him to do things he never would have dreamed of doing. Like going to a barn dance! I couldn’t believe it when he told me he’d gone to one with you!”

“I still have to get him on a horse!”

“Keep trying, Meredith. You just might succeed some day. And if you do, I want a picture!”

I laughed. “If I get him on a horse, I’m gonna have the press there! Seriously, though, I have been able to get him to help feed my horses and to even brush a couple of them.”

“He told me about that! That’s why I say you’ve been good for him. If someone had told me even a year ago that he‘d be in a barn brushing a horse, I‘d have told them they were nuts.”

“He still has to shower as soon as he goes back in the house when he’s been in the barn.”

Curt got serious. “Meredith, I don’t think that’s ever going to change. What happened in Vancouver wasn’t his fault, but it changed him. Getting him to go to the barn and even help with the horses’ care is huge. But trying to get him to ease up about being clean when he gets back inside would be futile. I hope you can live with that.”

“I can, Curt. I accept Julian as he is. It’s great that I’ve got him to come out to the barn and go places he’s never been, but if I hadn’t been able to do that, I’d still love him. It wouldn’t change anything between us. And if I can’t ever get him on a horse, so be it. It won’t change anything.”

Curt smiled. “I’m glad to hear that, Meredith. “Mind if I listen to your lungs before I go?”

“No, go ahead - but Julian’s been doing it and he says they are clear.”

Curt listened and sure enough, they were clear. “I’m going to up the oxygen a bit and see if that helps, ok?” I nodded. “I’ll stop by later this afternoon.”

I fell asleep shortly after Curt left my room. Some time later, I was awoken by my phone vibrating. I had it on the bed beside me in case Doc called. I looked at the display. Karen. Doc had said I could talk to her, so I answered. “Hi Chickie, how are you?”

“Listen to me, Meredith”, a voice that wasn’t Karen’s said.

“Who is this? And where is Karen?” I asked.

“Who do you think it is?”

“Jane?”

“Very good!” My blood ran cold.

“Where is Karen?”

“You don’t need to know where she is. All you need to do is beak it off with Julian.”

“I’m not breaking it off with Julian. Now tell me where my friend is.”

“I don’t kno….do as I say and she won’t be harmed. Neither will Julian.”

“What do you mean?”

“Break it off with him.” And with that, she was gone.

I lay there not knowing what to do. Mess with me, that’s one thing but threaten my bestie or the love of my life and it’s war. Problem was that 1. I didn’t know where she was and 2. Even if I did, there was not much I could do in my physical condition. No way could I even think of getting in another fight.

I tapped the number in the call log to call back. Jane answered. “Have you broken off with him already?”

“Not going to happen, Jane. You better not have harmed Karen.”

“Karen is fine. She will stay fine as long as you do as I said to do. And no cops. You involve them and you will never see Karen or Julian again.”

“Don’t you dare threaten me, Jane.”

“I’m not threatening you, Meredith. I know you’d ignore me if I was coming after you, but I’m pretty sure you will listen if you know harm will come to your friend and your boyfriend if you don’t.

“Put Karen on the phone. I want to hear her say she’s okay.” The phone went dead. I didn’t know what to do. I could feel panic coming on. Every fibre of my being wanted to get out of that bed and leave the hospital. I wanted to go to the farm to see if everything was okay. I knew I was in no shape to do that, but that never stopped me before. What stopped me this time was how much it would upset Doc. I couldn’t do that to him.

I found Doc’s number in the list of callers and tapped it. He answered on the third ring. “Hi hon, I’m just finishing up my meeting and I’ll be back very shortly.”

“Can you please hurry, Doc?” I asked in a trembling voice.

“What’s wrong, Meredith? Are you okay?”

“Not really.”

“What is it? Are you in a lot of pain?”

“Yes, I‘m in pain but that isn‘t why I need you.”

“You sound like you are panicking.”

“I’m trying very hard to stay here in bed and not leave, Doc.”

“Ok, Meredith, I’m on my way. Promise me you won’t try to leave?”

“Yes, honey. I promise I won’t.”

Doc was either very close to the hospital or he sped all the way. It didn’t seem like more than 10 minutes before he was walking into my room. I was curled up on my side. He could see me trembling. “I’m here, hon. What is going on?” he said as he put the rail down and sat on the bed.

“Doc, I think something has happened to Karen.”

“Why do you think that?”

“I got a call from her phone. I thought it was her, so I answered it.” I proceeded to tell him about my conversations with Jane.

When I was done, he took his phone out of his pocket. “I’m calling Detective Fletcher.”

“Doc, you can’t! Jane will hurt both you and Karen!”

“Meredith, I have to call him. I’m not letting her do this to us.” I tried to get his phone from him, but he got up and walked away from the bed. I sat up and swung my legs over the bed, then stood up and tried to walk. I had forgotten that I was hooked up to wires and tubes. One of the cardiac leads must have come off because the monitor sounded an alarm. I had taken a very few steps when Doc was back at the bed. I heard him say “I’m going to have to call you back, Detective. She just got out of bed and her cardiac leads are coming off.” The detective must have said something because Doc said “Ok, see you soon.” He dropped his phone on the bed and grabbed me just as I was about to fall. Walking on a cast is not easy. I fell into his arms and broke down. “Doc, I can’t lose you or Karen!” I cried, “We can’t involve the police any more than they are!”

Just then, a nurse came into the room and Doc asked her to turn the monitor off. “She’s really upset over something. I will put the leads back on when she calms back down.”

Doc helped me back to the bed. I sat down and he sat beside me. He wrapped his arms around me again and I lay my head on his chest. “Hon, they are already involved. This is the best way. How are you going to find Karen without them?”

“I … I don’t know, Doc. I just know that I can’t lose either of you.”

“You aren’t going to, hon.”

“Doc, if you want to break up, I’ll understand.”

“Why would I want to break up with you?”

“So Jane will not come after you.”

“Meredith, I don’t think that would stop her. If I broke up with you, she would still come after me when she realized I will never get back together with her. Even if she wouldn’t, I’m still not breaking up with you. Unless you want to break up with me?”

“I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t thought of it - to protect you and Karen. Remember when I promised you I’d never try to back off our then-friendship again?”

“Yes.”

“Well, that promise extends to our relationship, honey. I’ll never forget the look on your face when I said that and I will never do that to you again. Besides, I have no right to make that decision for you. I wouldn’t want someone to make it for me - the decision whether or not to risk something - so I won’t do it to you.”

“I appreciate that, hon.” He held me tight. After a few minutes, he said “Let’s get you back into bed and settled. Detective Fletcher said he would come over instead of having me call him back. He’ll be here soon.” I lay back in the bed and he put the leads that had come off back on and turned on the monitor. Then he put my oxygen on and checked the IV tubing. “I’m going to go get a cold washcloth for your face, hon.”

I realized that my face must be a mess from crying. “I can’t let him see me like this!”

“He’ll understand, Meredith. I’m sure he’s seen lots of people cry. Here’s some tissues.” He handed me the box of hospital tissues that felt like sandpaper. I blew my nose.

Detective Fletcher got there soon after. “Are you okay, Meredith?”

“I’m really worried, Detective!”

“Meredith, tell him about the conversations with Jane”, Doc suggested. When I finished recounting the call from Jane and how I’d called the number back and talked to her again, the detective got his phone out and made a call.

When he was finished speaking to the person at the other end, he said “That was one of the detectives at your farm. He said he hasn’t seen Karen leave or anyone come in, but he’s going up to the house to check on things and he will call me back.”

“Detective, you may as well tell her what you told me over coffee”, Doc said.

“Call me Scott - both of you. Meredith, I told Julian that Jane’s credit cards are still being used, but we haven’t been able to nab the person using them. She’s veering all over the place instead of going in a straight line and there’s no rhyme or reason to it, so it’s impossible to predict where she will go next. She is in Alberta, still ultimately going east.

“There was a substantial payment made on the cards via online banking and the IP address traces to Jane's home in Vancouver. We know she hasn’t been there, so we’re pretty sure she’s spoofing it.”

“Doc says she’s a computer expert”, I told him.

“We think we know how she got into your medical file. The company that manages the computer system found an inquiry on your file by a password that was assigned to Dr Eric Elliott. The IP tracks to a Starbucks here in the city and employees there verified she had been in and was using a laptop while she had her coffee. It appears that Dr Elliott’s password was not cancelled when his employment was terminated.”

“I’m looking into that, hon”, Doc interrupted. “I personally called the management company and requested that it be cancelled.”

“How did she get his password?” I asked.

“We don’t know”, Scott replied. “There were no other entries into the system from outside the clinic.” The detective’s phone rang and he answered it. When he was finished the call, he said “Karen is at your farm and she is fine. She has her phone with her. Her husband is at work and fine, too.”

“That’s a big relief”, I said. “But why does my Caller ID show her number?”

“You said she’s a computer expert. She probably spoofed the number so you’d think it was Karen calling you. She knows how to spoof her IP address, so I’m sure she knows how to do it with a phone number. I have your number, so I’ll see if I can find out which tower the call came from. I’ll also get Karen’s number from you in case we need it.”

“But when I called Karen's number, it went to Jane and not her.”

“She may have hacked into your phone and programmed it to do that. I think you and Julian should go to a safe house until we get her.”

“Meredith can’t leave the hospital”, Doc replied. “She had surgery last night, the second one in two days. She’s in no shape to leave.”

“How long until she can leave?”

“A few days, at least.”

“Doc, I’m not in danger. Jane said she knew it would do no good to threaten me. It’s you and Karen who are in danger. You go to the safe house.”

“I’m not leaving you, hon.”

“Doc, it’s for your safety.”

“No, Meredith. That is final.” I know when not to push it with Doc and this was one of those times. I backed off.

“I’m going to post another undercover on the floor here, just in case”, Scott told us. “ Though you aren’t listed as a patient, so if she calls Patient Information, she won’t find out that you are here. I think I should have a fake chart put on the computer, saying you were discharged. Maybe put something in about you going to stay with a friend while you recover. Just in case she is able to hack into the hospital‘s computer system. You‘ll have to keep a written chart on her instead,” he said to Doc.

“We keep paper charts on the patients anyway. They have all the doctors’ orders for medications, tests etc in them. We can’t put the originals on the computer, just copies.”

“I’ll be in touch as soon as I have more information. Try not to worry. If Jane hasn’t been caught by the time Meredith is discharged, please consider the safe house. She can go with you, even though Jane said she wasn‘t after her. You never know with people like her.”

“We will definitely go to the safe house”, Doc said. “Meredith doesn’t have a say in it.” I rolled my eyes.

“What about Karen?” I asked.

“I’m going to talk to her and recommend she and her husband go, too.”

“But that will leave my horses without anyone taking care of them!”

“Can one of Walt’s sons do it?” Doc asked.

“I’m sure they would if I asked, but I don’t want to put them in potential danger if Jane shows up there. Doc, I’ve got to get home.”

“You can’t, hon. How are you going to feed the horses and clean their stalls? You couldn’t even walk a few steps here in your room.”

“Don’t worry about it right now”, Scott said. “We will figure something out. Karen might have some ideas.”

“I could call the rescue co-ordinator and probably get the foster horses placed elsewhere, but there’s one that is permanently with me because he does not adjust to new homes and I have a couple of my own.”

“Like Scott said, we’ll figure it out”, Doc said. “Maybe Walt or one of his sons can take them for a bit.”

“Jack doesn’t do well anywhere else, Doc.”

“He will have to for a bit, hon.”

“I’m going to go and get started on tracing that call. I’ll be in touch”, Scott said and left my room.

“Doc…” He cut me off by taking me in his arms.

“We’ll figure something out, hon. Everything will be okay. Jane could very well be just blowing hot air and trying to scare you into breaking up with me. Now try to relax. That’s an order.” He held me tight. Despite his words, I could tell that he was just as worried as me.