"What about the drugs you gave him?" Tabby asked, worried.
"They'll do their job, but still, it's best to keep him up. He should even be walking soon, but only limited amounts until the wounds heal more. He's not going to be going into work for a few days, that's for sure. Your idea of a cold is better for that. If he's as strong as I think he is, he'll be able to move about outside gingerly by about Wednesday, but Friday would be better. That's a solid week, provided he doesn't have any setbacks."
"After that, he'll have more work to do," Mark interjected. “Either he needs to stop his nighttime activities, which I doubt, or he needs some training. He's got guts, but he's also almost gotten himself killed multiple times. We can't have that."
I could see Tabby wanted to object to the idea of Patrick ever going out again, but shut her mouth. She had seen the way Mark and I were, and she knew that even with my pregnancy, even with the love we shared, Mark was still out there doing his thing. Oh, Mark could tell you a thousand reasons why he did it, from defending the city to atoning for his numerous misdeeds in his prior life, but the reality is much simpler. Patrolling, being the Snowman, that's part of who Mark is. To deny him that would be like telling Tabby to deny who she is, or for me to deny that I loved both of them. It just isn't possible.
Patrick stirred, mumbling sleepily on his cot, and the three of us hurriedly finished our breakfasts and set them aside for taking downstairs later. I went over and checked his heartbeat and lung sounds, which were both clear and strong. We had gotten lucky, I thought. Very lucky indeed.
Patrick's eyelids fluttered, and I hurriedly sat back. He opened them slowly, his eyes still dazed. I’d given him a pretty good dose of sedative, I wanted to make sure he stayed down. "Wha.... what happened? Where am I? Who are you?"
"You got shot, you're being treated here, and I'm the person who pulled a nine millimeter slug out of your back," I replied. "But I assume you want more details than that."
Patrick nodded and wiped his hand over his face. "Yeah," he said, blinking. "I could use a lot more details. Like how I got here and why I'm not in a hospital and…”
"That's going to become very clear in a second," I answered. Turning, I waved Tabby over. "Tabs?"
The shocked look of recognition on Patrick's face was worth the misleading answers, and he was even more surprised when Mark stepped closer as well. "Wait... you guys... you're?"
"Matt Bylur, Marcus Smiley, Mark Snow. Please to meet you," Mark said. "Although you and I need to talk seriously later. But for now, I'm going downstairs to get some sleep, its been a long night.”
Patrick nodded, then looked at Tabby. "So.... Marcus Smiley is the Snowman?" he asked, still perplexed.
I guess being shot, losing a lot of blood, and then having very ad hoc surgery done on you only to wake up in a bell tower surrounded by your girlfriend and her, well, difficult to explain properly companions will fry anyone's logic circuits for a while.
"Yes," Tabby said, leaning down and kissing him on the cheek. "And like Mark said, there's a lot to talk about. But Sophie’s right, you're safe, and you're being treated well. But we need an answer. Do you have any events you have to be at for the next few days?"
"No," Patrick replied after a moment. "Next thing is a meeting on Monday morning. My new assistant, Gwen, she has the full schedule."
"Do you have her phone number?" I asked. "We can give her a call for you, or you can try later."
"In... in my phone, I think," he said. "My bag."
His eyelids fluttered, and he closed his eyes. His breathing deepened, and he was soon snoring lightly. Tabby looked at me, concerned, and I nodded reassuringly. "It's normal after surgery and sedation. You look exhausted. Did you stay up with Mark all night?"
Tabby nodded and yawned. "I couldn't sleep with Patrick just lying there. I closed my eyes, and each time I did questions just kept whirling through my head."
"You need your rest," I said, giving her a hug. "Now go, lie down and close your eyes. If you want, you can up here, but it'd be best in the entertainment room. Close the doors, it'll be dark and quiet for you. Go, and I'll make sure to get you up for lunch. He should be coming out of it by then."
Tabby sighed and nodded. "Thank you, Sophie. I... I...."
"I know. Go get some sleep."
* * *
Patrick came out of his nap just before I was going to run downstairs and wake up Tabby, so I decided to let her sleep. Mark would be up soon anyway, he had most likely set an alarm to be sure. I came over and checked his pulse again, and looked in his eyes. "How are you feeling?"