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My other men, guys I’ve known for years, had given their lives so we could rescue the girl from the hands of a group of South American slave traders.
Dr. Stein leaned back, her aged face set in her usual no bullshit expression. “Looks good, Ramón. How does it feel?”
I opened and closed my jaw, the stitches stretching from my lower lip and up to my temple pulling tight. They’d dissolve soon, but the scars would remain. Not for the first time. I wondered how Joy would react when she saw my battered face, shaved head, and weight loss. With no food, we’d had to scavenge whatever we could from the jungle, I’d lost a lot of mass. While we didn’t starve, my body had used up pretty much all my fat reserves to give me enough energy to get to safety. There had been points I was ready to give up, ready to put a bullet in my head so I’d at least have a quick death, but my love for Joy kept me going. I kept a lock of her hair with me like a talisman, and used it to give me focus when all I’d wanted to do was curl up and die to escape the relentless pain.
When we’d finally reached civilization, I’d been in bad shape, incoherent, unable to speak due to my injuries. I’d slept pretty much a week straight. I’d only been deemed strong enough to travel back to the States on a private plane two days ago. Even though I was dying to see Joy again, I needed more time to heal first.
Remembering her overblown reaction to a few bruises, I didn’t want her to have a complete meltdown when she saw me really hurt. I could still barely stay awake, and I wasn’t strong enough to be there for her like she would need. No, as much as I wanted to see her, to touch her, and feel the life warming her body, I couldn’t be selfish and drag her to my bedside to watch me sleep and heal.
Tracing the scar, I flexed my jaw again and looked up at my doctor from my bed. “Good, a lot better than it should. Is this the new healing compound?”
“Yes,” she gave me a rare semi-smile. “Considering the right side of your jaw was attached by heavily damaged ligaments and muscles, and you’re now able to talk, I’d say the accelerated stem-cell healing is a success.”
With a sigh I slowly stretched out, a low ache breaking through the painkillers. “How long until I’m well enough to function?”
“Function how?”
“Let me rephrase that. How long until I can stand up for more than five minutes without passing out?”
“Four days, minimum. But I’d say that in a week, you should be able to do more…energetic activities.”
The thought of waiting another week to see Joy was unacceptable. “That’s too long. Isn’t there something you can do to cut the time?”
“Mr. Cordova, we’re already pushing your body to the limits, healing you as fast as we can. While I understand that you did what you had to do in order to get out, you destroyed your already damaged body in the process. Do you have any idea what a miracle it is that you survived? That you aren’t maimed or in constant agony? There is a price for accelerated healing, and if you don’t pay that price, the healing will stop and you will never be able to have a normal life again.” Her lips thinned and she lowered her head slightly to look me in the eyes. “When you stumbled out of that jungle, your heart was maybe a dozen beats away from giving up. If it hadn’t been for your men dragging you the last five miles, you would have never made it. You’re lucky you’re even alive.”
I looked away, my chest aching at the thought of my men, the ones who would never make it home. “How long will my jaw be numb like this?”
“For the next few days,” Dr. Stein returned as she briskly stripped off her gloves and tossed them in a wastebasket next to my bed. “As long as you take it easy. You must rest, Ramón. If I’m not being clear enough, let me put it into terms that you can understand. If you don’t rest, if you reinjure yourself, you will lose your jaw. How pretty do you think Joy will find you then? Not to mention the fact you’re as weak as a kitten. You know how dangerous that is in our line of work.”
Before I could respond, a knock came from the door of the room. A second later, Leo and Mark came in, the tension rolling off Leo in waves. “Ramón, I need to speak with you for a moment.”
