When The Night Falls Quiet
Oh hey guys! Long time no see. No seriously, it's been forever - blame university, not me. So this morning, I was working on the next chapter of "Hours" (check it out if you haven't already), but inspiration struck in a different direction and I ended up belting this bad boy out. I thought of adding this into one of the hours, but ultimately (and I think it's the right move) I've decided to make it into a brand spanking new two-shot/three-shot (haven't decided yet, let me know your thoughts).
I, timeline wise, have this set at the end of this season. Maybe (because I'm hoping Linstead get back together in New York with the crossover episode) before the crossover episode. Linstead has happened, Voight's forced them apart, but what happens in this story may bring them back together.
I hope you enjoy, and if you do, feel free to leave your thoughts and feelings in a review at the end.
Much love, :) x
The wind whispers. Shadows dance. A single snowflake falls.
Lifting her head to the sky, Erin Lindsay blinks: once, twice. Inhaling the frigid air, she turns her head towards her partner and nods.
Guns drawn, they move, creeping along the footpath. Through the gate and up the stairs. Jay Halstead's knuckles rapped against the doorframe.
"Chicago PD, open up". His voice echoed.
No answer.
He knocked again.
Still, there was no answer.
They exchanged a look. Erin nodded.
Wood splintered as the door swung open. They moved in, breaking formation and clearing separate rooms.
A single sound echoes off the empty walls: crack.
Whipping her head up at the sound, Erin called out, "Jay".
No answer. Everything fell still. An eerie silence.
Furrowing her brows, Erin moved from the kitchen, checking her six as she crept along the hallway. She checked each room as she went: bathroom, bedroom, what appeared to be a linen closet. Nothing.
Moving towards the final door at the back of the house, her breath hitched. Again, she called his name, "Jay".
With no answer, she kicked the door, moving in as it swung on its hinges. Sweeping her eyes about the empty room, Erin felt her stomach drop.
"Jay!" Her voice screeched a sound that was unfamiliar.
Rushing over, she dropped to her knees, holstering her gun. Her hands trembled, hovering over the red blood seeping from Jay Halstead's chest, just above the heart. "No, no, no".
Realisation hitting, Erin packed pressure onto the wound with one hand, the other reaching for her radio.
"10-1, 10-1, shots fired at 6031 South Indiana Avenue. My partner's been shot!" Dropping her radio, Erin applied a heavier pressure to the gunshot wound, her lip quivering. "Come on Jay, stay with me".
Out on the street as dusk rolled in, everything was a blur. The world seeming to buzz straight past her. Lights flashing. People moving. Voices shouting. But she was frozen. Muted in place.
"-Erin", a voice called, but Erin didn't hear them. She stood, watching as paramedics worked ferociously on her partner. Watching as they did everything they could to save Jay Halstead's life.
A comforting hand came to rest between Erin's shoulder blades, a gravelling voice soft. "Erin".
Even with Hank beside her, Erin couldn't tear her eyes away from Jay's limp and lifeless body.
"Systemic pressure is falling".
"Push norepinephrine".
The younger of the two male paramedics push the norepinephrine through Jay's IV line. "Norepinephrine in".
"Systemic pressure is rising. Let's get him to the hospital before we lose him again!" The older paramedic's voice bellowed.
Watching as the doors of the ambulance slammed closed, and the rumble of the engine started, Hank Voight stepped in front of Erin, forcing her to look at him instead of the ambulance which was speeding off towards Chicago Med.
"Come on, kiddo. I'll take you there".
With scared eyes, Erin looked up and gave a single terrified nod.
The drive over to Chicago Med was quiet. Neither Voight nor Erin spoke a single word. Sound crackled from Voight's police scanner, calling for additional units to the scene where Halstead was shot, but neither was paying attention. Erin was numb. The scene replaying in her head: wood splintering, feet moving, the single crack as a bullet shot through the air, blood oozing between her fingers. So much blood. Too much blood.
As Voight pulled into the closest parking bay to the Emergency Department, Erin didn't wait until the ignition was turned off. Her seatbelt was off and her door was flying open. Turning to get from the vehicle, Erin felt strong fingers wrap around her wrist. Looking over her shoulder to Voight, she saw the worry in shadows that danced across his face.
"Breathe".
Erin, knowing that Voight wouldn't let go of her until she took a moment for herself, did as she was told. She inhaled through the nose, and exhaled through the mouth.
"Okay. Now let's go see what they can tell us". And together they did. They exited the car, walked across the parking lot and through the large double doors that led into chaos.
Sharon Goodwin spotted Erin and Voight as soon as they walked through the doors. "Sergeant Voight".
As they walked over to where Sharon was standing, Erin spoke her first words in nearly an hour. "Halstead, how is he?"
"They've taken him straight into surgery, sweetheart. They're doing all they can". Sharon gave Erin a reassuring smile, but she knew it was of no use. She then watched as Erin clasped and unclasped her hands, keeping them busy. "How about we get you cleaned up, get that blood off your hands?"
Erin looked down to hands as Sharon called out to April, willing the nurse over.
"April, can you take the Detective through to the staff toilets, get her cleaned up. I'll show the Sergeant through to the surgical waiting room".
April nodded, and after Voight gave Erin a few reassuring words, calling her "kiddo" more than once, he and Sharon watched the two walk off.
An edge had worked its way into Voight's voice when he spoke again, "I want it straight, how is my Detective really going?"
Sharon took a breath. "It's touch and go at best. I would prepare yourself and your Detective for the worst".
They'd only been sitting the surgical waiting room for a few minutes when Voight filled the void of silence. "You know I don't allow in-house relationships-"
Erin turned her head, "Hank-"
But Voight's gravelling voice interrupted her, "I know you care for him".
She forced a smile, tears budding behind her hazel eyes. "You have no idea".
A worrisome voice broke Voight and Lindsay apart, turning their attention.
"-Erin".
"Will". Erin's voice was shaky, barely covering the emotion that was jumbled inside her
"Sharon called, said Jay was shot. What happened?"
Looking down to her hands, which were stained with blood, Erin shook her head, unable to stop her bottom lip from trembling.
Standing up, Voight shoved his hands into his jeans pockets. "Jay and Erin were following a lead; the perp got a jump on your brother. He's in surgery now".
"Will, I'm-"
Will took Erin's hands in his own. "It's not your fault".
Looking up to the younger of the two Halstead's, Erin only wished she could hear his words as true.
"Hey, hey, hey". Will's voice went soft as he wiped a tear that rolled down Erin's cheek. Her façade now broken. "Jay's a fighter. He'll win the battle".
"Blood". Her voice was a strange hiccup. "There was so much blood".
She's seen blood before. That didn't worry her. She'd seen gunshot victims. That didn't worry her either, it all came with the job. But this was different. This time, she knew who had the trigger pulled on them. Sure, she had that personal connection when Burgess was shot a few months back, but this time, someone she deeply cared about, even loved, was the one lying on the operating table fighting for his life. She hadn't had that before.
Looking from Erin to Voight and then around the waiting room, Will turned back. "How about we go wait in the staff break room downstairs? We got a killer upgrade after the E.R explosion".
Erin cracked a smile. A genuine smile that seemed to wash away the pain for at least a second. "Okay".
Two hours later, Erin was woken by someone lightly shaking her shoulder. As she came to, rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she found the person to be Voight.
"Halstead's surgeon is here".
With a sharp intake of breath, Erin jolted to her feet. Shuffling over to where Will and Dr Hannah Tramble were quietly conversing.
"Jay?"
Hannah turned her body towards Erin, "I was just telling Will that Jay made it through surgery. Just. I'm not going to sugar coat it because he's not anywhere near being out of the woods. There were some complications and he did code on the table multiple times. He suffered a secondary tear to the inferior vena cava and right atrium, which has come from resuscitative efforts".
"How many units of blood did he go through?" Will, having gone into doctor mode, asked.
Hannah squinted towards her colleague before answering. "Fourteen".
"And the bullet?" Voight, who was listening from the back of the room, spoke up.
"What I can tell personally is that it was a low velocity bullet, most likely from a handgun. The bullet will be passed on to your police techs for further analysis". After answering Voight's question, Hannah looked between the three concerned faces, each reflecting the others feelings. "I wasn't the lead on this, so Jay's cardiac surgeon will be around to explain what comes next in his recovery process".
Running a hand through his hair, Will collected his breath. "Thanks, Hannah".
"I'll come back and let you know when he's out of recovery and in the ICU". And with a weary smile, Hannah moved from the room, leaving Will, Erin and Voight to collectively breathe a sigh of relief.
Jay Halstead, for the time being, was alive.
And there it is part one of god knows how many (probably, maybe three).
If you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it, drop me a review, I'd love to hear your thoughts and opinions.
Will Jay survive? Dun, dun dun... You decide?