Pilgrimage from Darkness-Sequel to Searching for Answers in the Fog.

By Ginny

Disclaimer-Robert, Elizabeth, Ella, Shirley etc. all belong to people other than me. Dorothy belongs to me.

Rated-PG-13

All previous stories in this series can be found at www.gkinneman.com

Feedback is greatly appreciated.

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In a scene reminiscent of one a few weeks earlier Elizabeth wrapped up Robert's arm and helped him into the sling. The word "amputation" hung in the air even though neither had spoken it aloud. Giving voice to it was something they weren't ready to do. As Elizabeth stood behind him she pressed a kiss to the back of his head. She let out a chuckle as she realized she'd left lipstick behind. Wiping it away with her thumb she glanced at the clock. It was almost time to pick up Ella. Kris had a few days off so she put Ella in the hospital daycare. It was good for her to be around the other kids and Elizabeth liked being able to check in on her during the day. Robert was known to sneak away from the ER for a quick peek at his favorite little girl too.

"Are you heading home soon?" Elizabeth asked him as she cleaned up the tray and instruments.

"Yeah, I've had enough for today. Dorothy's picking me up," he replied with a hint of bitterness in his voice. After some long conversations with his doctors and Elizabeth he'd decided to give up driving all together. It was just another decision that forced him to face his diminishing independence. Deep down he knew he shouldn't have been driving at all since the accident but he did anyway. He'd been considering hiring a driver but was resisting. Dorothy had been very willing to pick him up at night and Elizabeth usually drove him in the morning.

"I still have to go upstairs and check on a few patients. Do you want to take Ella to my place? We can order something for dinner," suggested Elizabeth.

"Sure, sounds good. Am I going to have trouble signing her out of daycare?"

"No. I put you on the list," said Elizabeth with a smile.

Robert returned the smile and kissed her cheek as Abby knocked softly and stuck her head in the room. She stifled a giggle and covered her eyes. "Sorry, Dr. Corday, Dr. Weaver is looking for you."

"Abby, uncover your eyes," teased Elizabeth. "Where is she?"

"She'll meet you out at the admit desk in a few minutes," said Abby as she glanced at Robert. "Are you ok, Dr. Romano? I heard about your arm."

"I'm fine. And by the way, you are forgiven for the comment earlier," he said with a smile as he left the room.

"What comment was that?" asked Elizabeth curiously.

"I was helping him gown up for a trauma this morning and he said 'gloves too'. I asked if he wanted both. It just sort of slipped out," said Abby with a shrug of her shoulders.

"Don't worry I would have said the same thing. There's just something about Robert that brings out the sarcasm in all of us," mused Elizabeth.

Abby laughed a bit and held the door for Elizabeth. After meeting up with Kerry and seeing her patients Elizabeth headed home. She called out to Robert and Ella as she opened the front door. When she didn't get a response she headed for the backyard. The scene before her brought a smile to her face. Ella was laughing in the swing of the new wooden playset Elizabeth had gotten her for her 2nd birthday. Robert sat on the swing next to her, swinging slowly, dragging his feet through the sand. When Ella caught sight of her mother she called to her. "Mommy, Mommy," Robert looked up at Elizabeth and smiled but didn't make a move to get up. He was tired and didn't want to interrupt the mother/daughter bonding moment.

After hugging her mother, Ella was ready to get down from the swing. Elizabeth set her down to run around. "Did you order dinner?" she asked as she stood in front of Robert.

"Should be here in about 15 minutes," he answered as he glanced at the watch on his right wrist. He'd only recently stopped glancing at his left wrist for the time. As his swing stopped completely Elizabeth took a step closer and put her hands on his shoulders. With a weary sigh Robert leaned forward enough to rest his head against her stomach.

"Are you ok?" she asked quietly as she ran her hand over the back of his head. Robert just shrugged his shoulders, not bothering to voice a reply. Elizabeth didn't push the issue. Instead she gave a sad smile, kissed his forehead and pulled him to his feet. He went inside to wait for the Chinese food while Elizabeth played with Ella.

It was a nice spring evening, the warmer weather had finally settled in to stay in Chicago. They ate out on the deck, watching the sunset. When Elizabeth took Ella inside to get her ready for bed Robert stayed out on the deck with his glass of wine. Elizabeth found him dozing lightly in the lounge chair when she came out. She had brought an afghan out and tossed it over him. She pressed her hand to his cheek. "I'm not running a fever," he muttered without opening his eyes.

"I know that now," smirked Elizabeth as she pushed his legs over a little so she could sit down. "But seriously you need to keep an eye on things. The road from fine to septic can be a short one."

"Thank you, Dr. Corday," he snorted.

"Robert, do you think for once you could just accept my concern?"

"I'm trying," he muttered. He reached for his wine and took a big gulp. It was clear to Elizabeth that the conversation was over. They watched the stars appear and finished the wine. It had been a long day and when Elizabeth started yawning a little after 9 Robert sent her to get ready for bed while he went to finish cleaning up the kitchen. He started the dishwasher and grabbed his briefcase from the front hallway. He settled down on the couch with a book on the latest trends in ER medicine. He'd made the decision that if he was going to succeed at all in the ER he would need to catch up on what he was supposed to be doing.

The next morning Elizabeth woke up a little after 6. As she walked down the stairs she realized she didn't even know if Robert had spent the night. A quick glance at the couch in the family room and she had her answer. He was sound asleep on the couch, left arm hanging off, his book across his chest. She smiled at the sight and went to move the book and put his left arm over his chest. She headed to the kitchen to start the coffee maker before she woke him.

An hour later they were on their way to the hospital.

Unfortunately the next few days were rough on Robert. The infection in his arm got steadily worse, as did his attitude. He was hanging on by a thread, barely sleeping or eating. Elizabeth tried to keep on top of things, tried to make sure he took care of himself but it was proving to be an uphill battle. It was clear he wasn't in the mood to be helped. Thing between the two of them became strained both in and out of work. They were short with each other; Robert was unwilling to let her in and Elizabeth was unwilling to stand by while he slid into a dark and dangerous place.

A week later, after another crappy day in the ER Robert went home a little on the early side with a headache. He kicked off his shoes, fed Gretel and went into the kitchen to make a cup of tea.

As the fire engulfed his arm he saw his future go up in flames.

TBC