Connor walked into his mother's hospital room early next morning. Gillian sat on her bed instead of lying on it, a snow white cast covering her left leg from knee to toes. She watched the first full coverage on the explosions, annoyed at Cook speaking to the press even before getting to his office and reading the full report.
The boy approached the bed and dropped her duffel bag to hug her tight. She kept him to her chest for a long moment. She had made Aldana confess what had happened while she and Brock were trapped in the building, and the thought of her son being in such a danger was enough to squeeze her throat and fill her eyes with tears, even six hours later.
"Connor, son! You okay, baby?"
"Yeah, Mom, don't worry. Hey, good news: they just moved Ron from the ICU to a private room."
"Great! You know where?"
He raised his eyebrows—of course. Then he nodded at the TV, as the report showed pictures of Wood and his son.
"Wanna know how we figured it out?" he asked.
"Tell me."
"The explosion in Dorchester."
"Shut the door! Really?"
"Looks like it was Wood after all. His trial before doing it at the station."
They laughed together until Connor rubbed his hands together. "Okay, what d'you need?"
Fred and Aldana did an early check on their bruises and wounds, then went to see Ron. They were talking with Laura outside his room, when she looked past them and frowned first, to smile right away. They turned around and saw Gillian, coming out of the elevator in a wheelchair pushed by Connor. She was fully dressed, her bag on her lap.
Fred smirked as she joined them. "Why do I suspect they didn't discharge you?"
"They want me to stay here a whole week," she replied, horror filling her voice.
"Reg, you almost needed surgery," said Aldana.
"I'm having this stupid cast for four weeks, and I'm gonna need crutches," she grumbled. "That's bad enough." She turned to Laura. "How's Ron?"
"Fine, thank God. He's definitely out of danger, but he's gonna be committed for a couple of weeks, to treat his burns and reduce their consequences as much as possible."
"Tell'im I'm coming to see him tomorrow, when I'm not in danger of being caught and locked up. And please, call me if you need anything."
"I'll tell'im."
"Need a ride home?" asked Fred.
Gillian shook her head, smiling. "It's okay, we're taking a cab."
Aldana looked up at the end of the hall and spotted a doctor coming their way. "You better go, Reg. That white robe is eyeing us."
Gillian and Connor glanced over their shoulders and waved goodbye at them.
"Tanya is swinging by your place at noon, to lend you a hand with whatever you may need," said Aldana, as Connor pushed the chair away toward the elevators.
Gillian's thumb up showed out from behind her son.