A Fighter
"Charlie!" Amber said with relief when she saw her eyes open, "Charlie, you're gonna be okay. Come on, you gotta help me a little. Let's get you up and outta here." Amber hoisted her arms under Charlie's and then threw one of Charlie's arms around her shoulder. Slowly, sloppily, they made their way back to the truck. She didn't know where the guys had gone; she was just glad they weren't around right now. She took one last glance between the house and Charlie and started digging through Charlie's purse. She found the cell phone she was looking for and started driving. They couldn't be found there. She called the one number she swore she never would. But, this wasn't for her.
"911 what's your emergency?"
"My friend, we were at a party. She got dosed with something bad and she's not coherent. Please, she's pregnant. We need an ambulance now."
"Where are you?"
"Corner of 11th and 10th."
"We're on the way. Please…"
Amber didn't stay on the line. She scrolled through Charlie's contacts. Paige. She knew that name. She dialed.
"Charlie? How's…"
"Paige? It's Amber. Don't hang up."
"Amber, where's Charlie?"
"She's right here, but she needs help. I just called an ambulance for her. They'll go to Jackson Memorial. Paige, I need to ask you to make an alias for her. She got drugged and she's in bad shape. But, she's good at her job and I don't want to jeopardize it." Amber almost couldn't believe the words out of her mouth, but they were true; and damn it, somewhere along the road, Charlie had grown on her.
"Uh, yea, okay," Paige responded and Amber could hear the surprise in her voice. She didn't blame her. "Thanks. One minute." After a few moments of silence, "Amber? Her name's Charlie Brant, okay? She's a bank teller. I'll meet you guys at the hospital."
Amber just heard the sirens as she hung up the phone. "Charlie? Hey, Charlie. You're name's Charlie Brant and you're a bank teller, okay? We're gonna get you help. You were at a party."
"Brant. Bank teller." Charlie slurred.
"Yea," Amber responded, getting out of the truck and waving the ambulance. "Hey, over here."
Two paramedics scrambled out and over to Charlie, while a third went to address Amber. "What's your name? Can you tell me what happened?"
"My name's Ashley. My friend, Charlie, and I, we were at a party. Something must have gotten slipped into her drink. Please, she's pregnant."
"Okay. We're going to take care of her. Do you know how late into the pregnancy she is?"
"First trimester, for sure. Otherwise, I don't know exactly, maybe eleven weeks."
"She was drinking tonight?"
"Just one beer before she started acting strange."
Charlie was loaded onto a backboard and was being hoisted into the ambulance.
"Do you want to come?" the paramedic asked her.
Amber hesitated just a moment. Charlie was in no condition to be talking, but Paige would need information. Paige could call. "Yes."
The sirens were kind of making Amber's head pound as they sped down the road and watched the paramedics give Charlie some sort of fluid and try to get her to respond, with minimal success. Amber couldn't believe her situation right now. She was a felon, helping a fed, and they were both going to the hospital where they were all about identification. Perfect. But, she didn't have any other choice, not really. Not if the baby was to have any chance.
When they arrived at the hospital, there was a commotion of nurses, and doctors, and paramedics all exchanging information and forming a plan. Charlie was carted off to a room while Amber was asked to wait in the lobby and fill out paperwork; they would ask if they had any questions.
Fifteen minutes later, Paige had just walked in when a doctor came out looking for Amber. "Hi, I'm Doctor McClelland. Are you here for Charlie?"
"Yes," Paige answered, "I'm her sister, Paige."
"It's good family's here. Can we talk privately?"
"Yes, of course." Paige spared a brief glance at Amber, who had only blinked at Paige's response.
"Paige, your sister has received a dangerous dose of Ibogaine. It's a powerful hallucinogenic that can cause irregular heartbeats. We believe she'll be fine, but she's still very much disoriented. So, I have to ask…are you aware you're sister is pregnant?"
Paige put a hand to her mouth, "I…I knew she was. I just thought she had given it up."
"Well, that's certainly not what seems to be the case. However, we are very concerned about the fetus. Right now, we've already started medication with the assumption she would be accepting of the risks. But, as she's really not in a position to give consent at the moment, I need to ask you."
Paige nodded, "Yes. I'm sure she would. Clearly, she wants this baby very much. But, what are the risks?"
"We've given her activated charcoal as a precaution to try to control the drug doing any more damage to either of their systems. The risk, though, is with the procainamide we've started. The fetus's heartbeat is dangerously irregular and this drug should give it the best chance to revert back to a normal rhythm. It's normally one of the safest options for use during pregnancy; but, still trial tests have shown a potential risk for birth defects. Do you want us to continue? Without it, though, she'll almost certainly lose the baby."
"Yes. I'm sure she'd want you to do everything for the baby despite the risks."
"Okay, then. Would you like to see her?"
Paige nodded and followed the doctor back to Charlie's room. She was pale and sweaty and hooked up to a lot of tubes. The heart monitor showed Charlie's heart rate at 120 and an intermittent fetal heartbeat. Paige couldn't help but stare at the baby's vitals for a moment. She still couldn't quite believe Charlie had actually chosen to keep the baby, but hadn't told anyone. But, maybe Paige could understand. Charlie, like all of them, was so dedicated to her work; she hadn't really been willing to give up the case any more than she had the baby.
"Charlie," Paige called, "Can you hear me?"
"Paige?" she answered weakly
"I'm right here. You're going to be okay. You just hang in there and pull through this." Paige waited with her for a few minutes before stating, "I'll be back, okay? Amber's here. I need to go talk to her." Paige stroked Charlie's hair back and looked at the monitor once more before leaving.
Amber stood up when Paige returned. "How is she?"
"Not good. Let's go outside."
Outside Paige turned on her. "What happened, Amber?"
"I'm sorry, Paige. I swear I am. We told them it would be my last run and so they were throwing what they said was a goodbye party. Damn it, I should have known them better. They weren't happy about it. We'd had a few drinks when Charlie started looking a little out of it. She said she wasn't feeling well and needed to go lay down. When she tried to stand, she couldn't. That's when Rodney took her in the back. He was going to shoot her, but the other two stopped him…until I mentioned she was pregnant. They spooked and said they were going to throw her into the bayou because they couldn't have her going back without the baby and having to explain that. They told me to stay put, but I just followed them. Paige, I couldn't leave her. I'm sorry. I really screwed up, again."
Paige took a breath and bit her lip. "No, Amber. You saved her life. You might not have made the best choices, but at the end of it all, that's what it comes down to. You could have just turned away, but you didn't. Thank you."
Amber just nodded.
An hour later, Paige was back with Charlie, who was doing better. She still wasn't completely lucid and she was still a little pale, but she was coherent and had stopped sweating. Her heart rate had come back down to normal. The baby was still struggling, but it was also doing better.
"Charlie, honey," Paige began, "I know about the baby." She paused, "I think you should let me call Paul. I know it's not my decision, but I think he should know."
Charlie turned to the monitor as if to look at the baby's vitals. "You're right, it's not your decision," she answered weakly, and paused a moment. "But, you're also right. I need him right now."
Paige squeezed her hand, "Okay. I'm going to go call him. Do you want Amber to come back?"
Charlie just nodded.
Outside, Paige called Briggs.
"Paige? Where did you go? I was started to get worried," Briggs answered.
"Briggs, there's…Charlie's in the hospital, under the last name Brant. She's going to be okay, I think; but, you guys need to talk."
"Where?"
"Jackson Memorial." The line went dead.
Paige came back to hear a conversation between Charlie and Amber. "You saved me, Amber. You didn't have to. Thank you."
Amber just nodded and then said, "Yea. You're welcome."
Charlie looked at her and whispered, "Are you still interested in being a CI? Are you serious about that?"
Amber sat to attention, hope all over her face. "Yea."
Charlie closed her eyes and nodded, "Okay, then. I'm not making you any promises; but, you've earned a chance. I'll try."
"Thank you," Amber breathed.
Paul showed up five minutes later. They could hear him from the lobby back in the room.
"What do you mean I can't go back?"
"Hey, hey, everyone, calm down." Paige stepped into the lobby with Amber behind her. Paige whispered to the nurse, "He doesn't know it, but he's the father."
The nurse did a double take and whispered, "She wants to see him?"
Paige nodded, "She asked me to call him."
"I'm sorry, sir. Come on back."
"Thank you," he answered and followed the nurse back, but not before shooting an angry and distrusting look at Amber, who shrank back.
"Chuck," Briggs breathed when he went back.
"I'm okay," she told him.
"You're not."
"I will be."
"Paul," she called, "Sit down. There's something I need to tell you." He sat down, taking her hand. "Don't be angry. I didn't give the baby up."
"What?" he asked sharply, suddenly glancing at the monitor and seeing the fetal vitals. He put a hand to his mouth and dragged it over his head before kissing Charlie on the forehead. "You know you should have told me."
"You would have pulled me off."
"Wouldn't I have been right?"
"I wouldn't have listened either way." Charlie paused, "But, yea, you would have been right. When I made the decision to keep him, I still hadn't let go of the case. And now, I've almost lost him twice because of that. I hate it, but I'm done. I know I can't expect to be as lucky the next time. As of now, I'm on leave….I'll just need to make it official when I get out of here. I've been stupid and reckless, I know; but, not anymore."
Briggs nodded. "Okay." Then, he realized something, "You think it's a boy?"
Charlie smiled. "I know it is. Um, they tried to…I saw him, Paul. When I was in and out. I didn't think he'd make it, but I saw him. It was this little boy and he reached out to me."
Another hour passed and Doctor McClelland came back to talk to them. "Charlie? How are you feeling?"
"Tired. Maybe a little nauseous."
The doctor nodded. "You've been through a lot. We can see about something for the nausea." The doctor looked at the monitor, "But, your vitals are good. And, I can't make any promises; but, I think you might just keep the baby. You're lucky. Not many of them could have survived that dose and I don't know that it would have been as prospective if you'd waited any time; but, your friend got you right here and the baby's still hanging in there. If it's alright with you, I want to get an ultrasound to be sure of the heartbeat and status."
Charlie smiled nervously at Briggs, taking his hand. "Yes, of course."
The doctor nodded at the technician waiting outside, who wheeled in the portable ultrasound and prepped Charlie's belly. Doctor McClelland smiled and reported, pointing at the screen. "A fighter, for sure. Its vitals are looking better with a heartbeat rate and rhythm nearly back to normal." Charlie smiled and a tear fell out of her eye at the news. "Still, I want to watch you guys overnight, if that's okay. And no more parties for you, okay?"
Charlie nodded. "Absolutely. Thank you. Thank you so much."
AN: I just couldn't be okay with the ending to Bon Voyage, not like that. So, this is my happy version. I don't claim to know a ton about medicine, but being pre-med and starting work in the ER, I like to think I know some. Still, if someone with more experience happens to see something very wrong with the medications I've used, please let me know and maybe suggest an alternative and I'll change it.