Two weeks gone from the events at her house, Sam was out of the hospital and living with Michael and Amanda again. Carly had decided to stay there too, it hadn't really even been a decision.
Johnny stayed there too, although that took some convincing with Amanda. Johnny didn't care though, he wasn't going to let Carly out of his sight.
Sam however, was worse walking than after the helicopter crash. She couldn't walk at all. Sam had to be in a wheelchair and Johnny had already put temporary small ramps on the raised doorways.
As for upstairs, Sam couldn't go up there and slept in the living room in a hospital issue bed that could adjust it's shape. She didn't like it but it was for the best.
The rib damage had affected her spine and damaged the nerve inside it, meaning she'd had some after-effects like her temporary loss of walking. Not that she couldn't walk completely, she'd forgotten how since her nerve was controlling differently after the damage.
Carly was asleep...at least that's what Michael thought when he checked in on her. He had no idea that she was dreaming about revenge. Dreaming of ways to torture Trevor and Ivory before killing them.
Sam just couldn't sleep. She was wheeling herself around the tennis court, getting used to controlling her chair but stopped for a while, just looking out to the city.
The fact that she'd forgotten how to walk was not nice. She felt like she was a year old, trying to walk from papa to mama. Of course, she'd had no dad back then, just a chair and her mother.
After some more wheeling, Sam returned inside and went to the kitchen. She rested her hands on the work surface and pulled herself up. She was standing, that was a start. Sam moved a foot forward, putting her weight on it but still gripping to the surface. She could move like that. As Sam let go of the surface, putting her weight on the next foot she moved forward, she'd done something wrong as she fell sideways, hitting the table in the middle of the room before landing on the floor, unable to get back up if she tried.
Sam dragged herself across the floor, back to her chair. She tried to pull herself up to it but did the opposite, pulling it down to her, it's wheels now in the air.
''Help!'' Sam called. No point trying to be the wounded hero.
Carly came downstairs, helping Sam up and putting her on the couch, then picked the wheelchair up. Sam could see that it took too much energy out of Carly but Carly wasn't going to say anything.
Sam also saw the scar that the stitches left behind. This one mirrored the one that used to be through Carly's right eyebrow. The new scar however would never go away.
''You okay, Sam?'' Carly says breathlessly. She was finding it hard to talk nowadays.
''Carly, just wheel it.'' Sam said, holding on to the chair as she transferred where she was sat, all of her weight in her arms.
''You don't worry about me, you're the one in recovery.'' Carly said. She had a point.
Sam decided it wasn't something to give up on. She wheeled herself to the arch that led to the hallway and put her weight on the wooden desk, standing up again. Slowly she made it to the other side. Carly was sat on the couch, watching Sam but ready to get up at a moment's notice.
Sam stood still, letting go of the wooden desk. She put a foot in front, slowly putting all her weight in it before bringing the other ahead. She'd made one step, this was going well.
Johnny walked downstairs, seeing this. He remembered how much trouble Gionna had walking after the Majestic Hotel incident.
Sam did the same again, now making two steps. The next was quicker and again, she made it. The one after that however, she fell again, her legs somehow giving under her.
''Gotcha, kid.'' Johnny says after helping Sam up and guiding her to the couch, putting her next to Carly.
''You were doing well there.'' Carly said. By some sort of instinct, her arm moved behind Sam's back.
''Yeah, i got excited.'' Sam said.
Carly blinked her tears away, trying not to cry. This was wrong and it was Trevor who did this to Sam.
''Hi, you've reached the De Santa Residence. Leave a message.'' Carly's voice on the answering machine says before beeping.
''I tried your place but you and your little fiancee aren't home, Klebitz.'' The three of them hear Ivory say.
''I...Ivory...'' Carly said. Sam moved herself back to her wheelchair, something she'd gotten use to doing.
''Ivory, do the letters F O mean anything to you?!'' Sam asked. And he thought Carly's sarcasm was bad.
''Or better still, C. Fuck off you big-'' Sam was interrupted by Ivory kicking her chair hard, launching Sam across the room before collapsing at the wall. Johnny puts himself in front of Carly to protect her.
''As little Carly knows, i don't take nice to sarcasm!'' Ivory said before pulling a 12 inch combat knife from his belt, it's serrated edge would cut through flesh like running a marble on a slanted glass panel.
Carly lunged at Ivory, knocking him down and sending the knife flying into the wall, lodging it in too deep to be retrieved. Before long, her hands were on Ivory's neck and she started choking him. Ivory tried to pull her off of him but Carly's grip was too damn strong.
''LSPD! We'll take it from here, Miss.'' An officer says, carefully pulling Carly off of Ivory as another one tasers Ivory before handcuffing him and dragging him out of the house.
''Put...him...in a...padded...cell.'' Carly says as the paramedics check on Sam and Johnny checks on Carly, making sure that she didn't hit her head during the fight.
''That skull fracture affected her worse than i thought.'' Johnny thought, seeing that Carly's not feeling any pain.
One of the paramedics ran out to the ambulance. He returned with a defibrillator.
''No, Sam!'' Carly shouted. Defibrillator meant Sam's heart had stopped. The paramedics laid Sam on the floor, placing the two iron-looking emitters on two places on her chest.
When the shock came, Sam's body jolted violently as electricity shot through her heart, starting it again. After a few beats though, the heart stopped again.
Johnny cradles Carly in his arms as she starts crying.
''She'll be okay, baby. She'll be okay.'' Johnny says softly as the paramedics stabilize Sam before putting her on the stretcher and taking her outside, putting her in the ambulance and driving off, Carly and Johnny following in Michael's car.
