Time to Heal
Chapter OneThis could not be happening.
It was crazy, it was impossible- well, not impossible, she conceded with a grimace, but definitely improbable.
As if her life wasn't complicated enough already, what with half her family dead, including her mother who had been shot to death by the police on her Uncle Bo's order after the alleged serial killer tried to break out of jail, and then the entire mess with Lucas... now this, too?
Why, oh, why had she ever let him touch her in the first place? Hadn't she learned her lesson the last time, the only other time, that they had been together?
Closing her eyes, Sami Brady leaned against the cool lobby wall of her apartment building, waiting for the elevator as another wave of lightheadedness came over her. It had been the lightheadedness, coupled with the nausea, that led her to make an appointment at the hospital in the first place, but she'd been hoping that she was just being paranoid, that it was stress mixed with fatigue and nothing more.
There had certainly been plenty of stress in her life over the past week, the apartment seemed so empty without Will now that he was away at camp, and when she wasn't burying herself in her work at the office until all hours of the night, she was avoiding Lucas like the plague. The last thing she wanted was to see his face, not after what he'd done at Alice's that night, not after she'd spotted that woman, Manda, leaving his apartment the next morning.
She'd called in sick to work that day, locked herself in her room and just cried herself to sleep clutching an old stuffed animal that had taken up residence on her bed now that Will had insisted he'd outgrown it.
After words of wisdom from both Rex and Bonnie that night, she'd convinced herself that Lucas was worth fighting for, that if she just told him how much she loved him, they'd be able to work things out. Now, though, she was wondering why she'd ever wasted her time on him in the first place. Lucas and Sami? It was a crazy idea, always had been and always would be, there was too much bitterness and betrayal between them for it to have ever worked.
If she needed proof of that, all she had to do was look at how Lucas had flaunted Manda in her face, calling her a 'heartless bitch' and a slut, words she'd heard plenty of times before, even from him. It wasn't the words that bothered her, though, it was the fact that he was deliberately trying to hurt her, in the most personal and intimate way imaginable. This wasn't a new pattern, it had been like this between them in the past, during all those dark years of fighting, each of them lashing out and trying to hurt the other worse than they'd been hurt.
They were right back on that same sick cycle carousel all over again, as if they'd never gotten off of it.
And that, Sami decided, only showed that they just weren't meant to be.
The fact that they were going to be parents together all over again was merely an ironic coincidence.
Glancing up at the dial over the elevator shaft, she was irritated to find that the car was still lingering up near the top floor. At this rate, she might as well take the stairs, she'd probably make it up to her apartment long before the elevator even reached the ground floor.
With a glare at the heavy elevator doors, she turned on her heel and made her way to the stairwell, starting her climb up towards her floor, grumbling under her breath. This day was not going at all the way she'd planned, that was for sure. Lexie had been surprisingly kind to her at the hospital, probably out of pity, but there wasn't much the doctor could do for her other than write a prescription for some prenatal vitamins.
What she really needed, Sami admitted to herself, was someone to talk to. Someone that she could sit down with and share all of her fears and anxiety about this unexpected turn of events, as well as the hopes that came along with it. She had no idea what she was going to do, Lucas wasn't even speaking to her anymore and she'd convinced herself that was the way she wanted it, but she certainly couldn't do this on her own. With Will, she'd had Lucas to turn to, he'd been there for them every step of the way, even before he'd known that he was the father.
Now, though, everything was so screwed up, and she didn't have the faintest idea how to fix any of it, much less how to even go about telling Lucas that he was going to be the father of her child yet again.
Oh, he'd rise to the occasion and be a wonderful father to this child, just as he had been to Will, of that she had no doubt. Their baby would never want for love or attention, not from either of them, and between the two of them and Will, it would be a miracle if she, for Sami was certain that this baby would be a girl, didn't grow up completely spoiled.
It was everything else that she was uncertain about.
How would Lucas feel about yet another bridge connecting their lives? Was he going to try and get custody of the baby like he had Will? Would Will be confused about the new addition to the family when his parents weren't even together anymore?
There were just so many questions and she didn't have the answers to any of them, so she needed someone who did.
Who was she supposed to talk to, though? Her mother was dead and Belle was practically joined at the hip with Philip lately, so she'd just insist that Sami go tell Lucas, something she definitely wasn't ready to do yet. There was always Rex, of course, her half-brother had seemed sincere enough about wanting to build a relationship that night at Alice's, but somehow Sami just didn't feel up to confiding this secret in him, especially not since he was technically Lucas' half-brother, too, which would make him feel obligated to pressure her into telling him.
She could always call Eric, but then again her twin would probably decide to kill Lucas, and Carrie was out of the question, her older sister couldn't even bother to come home for their father's funeral and Sami had absolutely no intention of calling her in Israel.
The only other family she had in Salem was her uncle, who she still held accountable for her mother's death, and her stepfather, who wasn't even an option. She was already emotionally drained, the last thing she needed was to have John Black thrown into the mix. Sure, he might have listened, and if she was honest with herself it would have been nice to have someone fussing over her, but there was just too much baggage that came along with him.
Besides, he was Kate's business partner and friend, and if that bitch ever found out...
"God help us all," Sami grumbled to herself as she reached the landing for her floor, stopping at the top of the stairs to open her purse and dig around for her keys. Normally they were near the top, but she'd been in such a state after leaving the hospital that she'd shoved them down to the bottom of the bag.
Absently, she was aware of footsteps somewhere behind her, someone either coming out from the hallway or down from the floor overhead, and she started to turn her head to see who it was when she felt something solid connect with her lower back.
She stumbled, swaying precariously on the edge of the steps for one terrifyingly surreal moment.
And then she went tumbling down the stairs, landing in a crumpled heap at the bottom of the landing a few moments later, and everything went black.
Two Hours Later...
Pacing the waiting room, John Black ran his fingers through his hair in frustration, glancing at the clock on the wall for what seemed like the hundredth time in the past few minutes.
Dammit, he thought irritably. How long is this going to take?
After the phone call he'd gotten from Lexie once the ambulance brought Sami in, he wanted some answers, but all he'd been able to get out of anyone so far was that his stepdaughter had fallen down the stairs in her apartment building. The full extent of her injuries hadn't yet been determined, but given the nasty blow she'd taken to the head during her fall, it was more than probable that she would have a concussion once she came to.
"Dad, come sit down," Brady ordered gently, and John looked over at where his son sat, along with Belle, who was tearful and silent, the occasional sniffle coming from her direction. "Pacing won't help Sami wake up any faster."
"I know that," John sighed. "I just feel so helpless."
"We all do," Brady assured him. "But Sami's tough, she's survived worse than this, remember?"
"Brady's right," Belle agreed with a weak smile. "She'll be fine."
Sensing that she was waiting for him to reassure her, John gave his youngest child what he hoped was a faultless smile in return. It was true, Sami most likely would be fine, the paramedics had noted what a miracle it was that she hadn't broken her neck, but he couldn't forget the worried tone in Lexie's voice when she'd called.
Something was wrong, he was sure of it, and he wanted to exactly what it was.
Maybe he was just being paranoid, but after losing so many friends and family members, after watching Marlena get shot down on the prison rooftop, only to have her die in his arms, John felt that he was entitled to a little bit of paranoia. He couldn't bear losing anyone else, especially not one of the children, not when he hadn't gotten the chance to make amends with Sami, to tell the daughter he'd raised as his own that he still loved her, no matter what had happened between them in the past.
I can't lose her, Doc, he thought desperately, praying that Marlena could hear him and somehow help save their little girl. I already lost you, Samantha can't leave me, too.
Why was it always Sami, anyway? Why was she the one always getting hurt like this? Not that he wanted any of his other children to wind up in the hospital, mind you, it still seemed a bit unfair that all the bad things always had to happen to her.
Then again, Sami was probably the only one who could endure them all. She was constantly being knocked down, and she never failed to get back on her feet again somehow. It was one of the things that he admired most about her, that relentless determination and unwavering stubbornness that allowed her to keep fighting no matter how bad the odds.
Just don't quit fighting now, peanut, he implored her silently. You've got too many people who need you to wake up. Belle, Eric, Carrie, Brady, Grandpa Shawn, your cousins, Will... your little boy's counting on you, Sami. Don't let him down.
John had briefly considered whether or not to call Will at camp and let his stepgrandson know about what had happened, but he had decided against it for now, better to wait until they knew exactly what was going on. Lexie had been quite clear that Sami's injuries didn't appear to be life threatening, so he didn't see a point in worrying the boy just yet.
Besides, if it turned out that there was something serious to report, it might be better for Will to hear it from his father, even if John's opinion of Lucas Roberts had significantly lowered over the past week or so. He'd got a glimpse of Lucas with some woman all over him at Alice's the week before, and while Sami didn't confide in him about such matters, or much of anything lately, John was certain that had something to do with his stepdaughter's sullen mood at work over the past few days.
And Kate's gloating certainly hadn't helped.
Sighing, John rubbed his forehead wearily, making a mental note to talk to her about her attitude towards Sami at work, because while he could sympathize with her, he couldn't help being snarky to Sami sometimes, either, it was starting to cause problems at the office. And frankly, he was just sick and tired of listening to her badmouth Sami every time she opened her mouth, he had more important things to worry about than whether or not his stepdaughter was plotting against his business partner.
"Dad," Brady said suddenly, nodding in the other direction, and John turned to find Lexie Carver approaching, her clipboard in hand as she gestured that she wanted to speak with him.
"How is she?" John asked at once.
"She's got some bumps and bruises, a few broken bones, but nothing that we can't fix up," Lexie assured him with a weak, tired smile.
"So she's going to be fine, right?" Belle asked, biting her lip anxiously.
"Physically, anyway," Lexie confirmed, her expression turning grave and remorseful. "I'm afraid the emotional and psychological scars from something like this can take a long time to heal, so there's no telling how long it will take for Sami to fully recover."
"What are you talking about?" Brady demanded, voicing the confusion that her words had stirred within them all. "I mean, I know falling down a flight of stairs is horrible, she's lucky she didn't break her neck, but how is that going to affect her emotionally?"
Lexie blinked, clearly taken aback, and for a moment her eyes darted over each of their faces, as if searching for something. Then she pressed her lips together, dark eyes narrowing in sudden, weary realization. "You didn't know," she said at last, more of an observation than a question.
"Know what?" John asked impatiently, not liking being left in the dark, especially not when it concerned one of his children. "What's going on, Lexie? What's wrong with Samantha?"
"You know I can't tell you that, John," Lexie replied with regret, shaking her head. "Doctor-patient privilege."
"To hell with Doctor-patient privilege," John cried sharply. "That's my daughter in there!"
"Stepdaughter," Lexie corrected evenly.
"Does it matter?" John demanded shortly, used to ignoring the sting of that word 'step' attached to the child he had raised, who was just as much his as she was Roman's, blood or not. "Just tell me what's going on."
Lexie glared back at him for a long moment, and he met her gaze steadily until she sighed in defeat, looking down at her clipboard. "I really shouldn't be telling you this," she muttered irritably before lifting her voice to a more professional tone. "Sami came to see me this afternoon, she needed to have a test done."
"What kind of test?" John asked, his mouth going dry. Was Sami sick and he hadn't even known? Could he really have been so wrapped up in clearing Marlena's name and finding out what Nicole and Crystal were hiding that he hadn't even noticed she was having medical problems?
"A pregnancy test," Lexie answered quietly.
It was odd, how he could be so relieved and so shocked at the same time. So Sami wasn't sick, that was wonderful, she was just pregnant, and that was... he didn't know what that was, really. It had been a devastating blow to find out that she was going to be a mother at seventeen, but she wasn't a kid anymore, she was a grown woman with a beautiful son whom she loved more than anything in the world, so there was no question about her capabilities as a mother.
But to be pregnant, now of all times, when nothing seemed to be going right for her?
"She lost the baby, then?" Brady inquired solemnly, genuine sympathy for his stepsister showing in his expression.
"Yes," Lexie confirmed with a sad nod of her head. "I knew when they first brought her in, but I'd hoped... it was a bad fall, there wasn't really any chance for the baby to survive."
"Oh God," Belle whispered, a hand going to her mouth as her pale blue eyes shimmered. "Poor Sami."
John, who was still in shock, focused on those words, his heart sinking as he thought of what this would do to Sami. She had already lost so much, her parents, her grandmother... this would kill her.
"Who's the father?" Brady wanted to know, his brow furrowing in confusion.
"Lucas," Belle sniffled, then stiffened suddenly. "Oh no..."
"What?" John asked tensely. "What is it?"
"I was with Philip when you called to tell me about Sami," Belle replied nervously, chewing her lip. "I told him that she'd been rushed to the hospital. You don't think... I mean, what if he called Lucas? Someone's going to have to tell him that Sami lost their baby."
"Did he even know she was pregnant?" Brady asked.
"No," a strangled voice said from behind them, and the hair on the back of John's neck bristled in dread. "I didn't."
Belle gasped and they all turned to find Lucas standing in the mouth of the waiting room with Philip and Rex just behind him, his face deathly pale and a stunned, horrified look on his face.
"Dammit," Brady cursed, effectively summing up what they were all thinking.
