Chapter 2
Spencer paced the hallway of the emergency room, flexing his bandaged hands. He looked down and saw the tinge of blood marring the white of the gauze. He'd already broken some of the stitches- he'd felt them rip about ten minutes after they'd put them in… but the pain was helping him stay focused.
Lifting a shaking hand, he scrubbed at his face, shoving his hair off his forehead.
Morgan stretched his legs out in front of the seat, watching the doors where they had taken Scarlett. He kept waiting for someone to walk through with any information. The other's had taken similar stances along the waiting room. When the doors finally re-opened, they all turned towards the sound.
"Dr. Reid?"
"Right here," Spencer stepped towards the man outfitted in scrubs. He fisted his hands tightly, letting the pain fuel his adrenaline and met the man's eyes.
"How is my wife?" he asked.
"She hasn't regained consciousness yet," the doctor informed him. "She has a broken arm and wrist, two broken ribs and several contusions across her back and some deeper cuts that required stitches. She has a wound to her upper arm- a bullet grazed her at some point, not incurred in the collapse…"
Spencer heard Scarlett's voice replay in his head… 'Fine- get the bastard!' she'd said after the unsub had fired at her. He scowled. She'd taken a fucking bullet and he hadn't even known.
"The fact that she hasn't woken up yet gives us some concern with the concussion… But there were no internal injuries… so we have upgraded her condition."
Spencer clenched his fist as he asked the next question.
"And our baby?"
"We want to perform an ultrasound- but we were able to hear the heartbeat over the monitor, and could feel movement with hand palpitation… the baby appears to be fine…"
Reid felt his legs go weak.
"When can we see her?" Morgan's voice came from his side. Derek grabbed his brother under the arm, holding him up.
The doctor eyed up the team standing before him.
"We'd prefer to keep the visitors to a minimum…" he mentioned.
"I'm going to her," Spencer squared his shoulders as if daring the man to say otherwise.
"We make the exception for family members…" the doctor met Reid's eyes with compassion. "Of course you can stay, Dr. Reid…"
"And her brother," Spencer said, nodding to Morgan. "Scarlett would want her brother to stay…"
"Absolutely- I can take you back in a moment- they are finishing up some tests…"
Spencer blew out a tense breath and nodded. He looked over at Hotch.
"We'll take care of things on our end. You two stay."
Derek nodded, following the doctor along with Reid down the hall to Scarlett's room.
Spencer stopped in the doorway, his feet refusing to take him any further as he looked over the monitors and wires that were connected to Scarlett. He scanned them quickly, his mind trapping each reading permanently into his brain. He sighed, squeezing his hands once again, letting the pain help move him forward.
"How many times are you going to do this to me, crazy girl?" he asked her as he came to the side of the bed, trying to keep his voice in a teasing tone. He looked down on her face, brushing some of her hair off her head and back over the bandages that covered part of her head.
Derek watched his brother in law lean over Scarlett, kissing her forehead lightly, resting his other hand over their baby. He noticed the red stain on the bandages on the palm of Spencer's hand as he moved it across Scarlett's abdomen.
"Reid. You are bleeding again," he told his friend. Spencer only shrugged, pulling a chair closer to sit alongside the bed. Morgan sighed, pulling up another seat to start their vigil.
Spencer lowered the railing from the bedside and sat as close as he could get to Scarlett's side. He held her hand between his, stroking her fingers softly.
"You know, baby girl… I'm getting pretty tired of sitting in hospitals. For someone who claims to hate them so much, you really need to stop ending up here…" Morgan picked up the cue from Reid and sat to her other side, talking to Scarlett, keeping the conversation light.
"I think she secretly enjoys the attention," Reid claimed, giving his voice a purposefully snarky cadence. He felt her hand twitch in his and looked over at Morgan.
Derek noticed the movement. He patted his sister's shoulder, avoiding the cast and bandages.
"Of course she does… even from when she was a little girl, she was always causing trouble… I can't even begin to tell you how many times I've had to save her ass… or cover for her with Mom…" he grinned.
"Did she ever tell you about the time she snuck out of her bedroom window? Miss Thang here thought she could shimmy down the rain gutter like she saw in the movies… Ended up in the ER with a busted shoulder… and I got to spend the entire weekend rehanging Mom's gutter system…" he scowled at her. "Trouble maker…"
Reid laughed in spite of himself. "Where was she sneaking out to?" he asked.
"Some of her 'friends'," Morgan made air quotes around the word, "were having a drinking party. Mom knew they were trouble and had forbidden her to go…"
"Which meant, of course, she had to go…" Spencer supplied with a smirk, squeezing her hand again.
"Of course, hence, troublemaker…" Derek teased. "So anyway, in all her teenaged defiance and glory- Katy bird shimmied out the window, tearing out the downspout and half the gutter from the roof… the noise woke up Mom- and half the neighbors… We found her lying in the grass, laughing like a lunatic. Mom thought she'd already been drinking…"
"How old is 'teen aged'?" Reid asked, thinking of Norie…
"Ah, the ripe old age of fourteen… our Scarlett was an early delinquent…"
Spencer shook his head, unable to recall what he'd been doing himself at fourteen… He looked back down at Scarlett's face and saw her eyes flutter.
"So while I was in college, you were racking up a record," Spencer said to Scarlett directly, making a sound of disapproval. "I'm surprised you made it into the academy…"
He watched her eyes open slightly to scowl at him and he grinned hugely. Morgan let out a sigh of relief, raising his eyes towards heaven, and then closing them in a wordless prayer of thanks.
"I warned you that I was a bad influence," Scarlett managed to whisper out the words. Her voice sounded rough to her own ears and it hurt to breathe deeply. She turned her head slightly to look at Spencer, not able to remember what happened. She took a few more moments as she watched his eyes, using them to center herself.
"And I was coming back from the party," she continued, now looking over at her brother. "So Mama was right, as always. I was drunk…" her scowl deepened as she looked around the room in confusion. Her breathing began to turn shallow when she tried to sit up.
"But being able to purposely dislocate my shoulder from then on has benefitted me more than once. So everything happens for a reason," she shot back at Derek.
Spencer moved into her line of vision, resting his hands to her shoulders, settling her back down before she hurt herself.
"Hello, girl…" he said quietly, his voice husky with unshed tears.
"Hello, boy…" she responded. She laid her hand across her stomach.
"The baby?" she asked, closing her eyes tightly, afraid to hear his response.
"Is fine…" he reassured her, covering her hand with his own. Even as he did, they felt it give a healthy kick and Scarlett sighed.
"Thank you God and Goddess," she said softly. She tried to reach for her brother and found she couldn't move her arm. Looking down she saw the cast covering her hand to her elbow.
"Ugh. What did I do this time?" she asked, laying her head back against the pillow and closing her eyes.
"Fell through a fucking roof, you little pain in my ass…" Derek stated glibly, taking her fingers carefully in his hand when he saw her try to reach for him.
"I'm going to insist you stop scaring years off my life, crazy girl. I did have plans for them," Spencer told her. Scarlett met his gaze and saw the tears in his eyes.
"I'm not going anywhere, farm boy," she told him, reaching her good hand up to touch his cheek. "I'm not done with you yet…" she said, brushing a tear from his cheek bone.
Morgan leaned over as he stood, kissing her temple. "I'm going to go snag the nurse, let her know you are awake, Katy bird. Don't close your eyes again…" he told her.
"I won't let her," Spencer answered for her, keeping his hazel gaze locked on to her green one. Scarlett continued to stroke his cheek and he kissed the palm of her hand.
"What are the total damages?" she asked him, lifting her arm slightly, eyeing up the cast.
Spencer huffed out a breath, leaning over her so he could watch her face more closely.
"Concussion… you were out cold for ninety three minutes and forty seven seconds," he told her matter-of-factly. "That doesn't include from the time you fell through, if you were knocked out immediately- or the time it took them to dig you out… The entire fucking roof and a part of the back wall fell in on you," he frowned, the memory of the sight forever branded on his psyche. He shuddered a bit.
"I don't remember anything after feeling it drop out from under me…"
He saw her scowl again and kissed her nose. "God, how I love your expressive face," he breathed out in relief, studying her intently. Scarlett touched her lips back to his.
"I'm okay Spence," she reminded him, seeing the tears in his eyes again.
"I know. I just…" he took a steading breath and kissed her once more.
"Okay," he cleared his throat. "Uh- you broke your arm and your wrist," he indicated the cast. "Two ribs," he said, pulling the sheet down to look over the bandages there.
"The doctor said you had bruising and cuts on your back- I haven't seen it yet…" he tried to stop her when she pulled forward in the bed. "No- Katy, don't move, just wait…"
"Just tell me how bad it is, farm boy," she asked, leaning forward so he could look over her back.
Spencer studied the purple bruising across her back along with welts and scratches that rode her skin. Two areas had suture glue holding the smaller cuts together while stitches held the skin around the deeper lacerations that had torn into the muscle…
He breathed in deeply seeing the worst bruising was around the area bandaged to cover the broken ribs, and a pattern caught in his mind.
"You don't remember falling?" he asked her as he helped her lean back into the pillows again carefully.
"Not really… I sort of recall hearing the porch giving out- I remember trying to grab the window sill… but before that, I just remember taking down the asshole who was shooting for you…" she smirked a bit.
Spencer scrubbed his face roughly. "Yeah- you got him… he got a piece of you too… You didn't even tell us," he scowled at her as he touched the bandage on her upper arm.
"The doctor said you'd been grazed…" he looked in her eyes.
Scarlett held his gaze. "I didn't even feel it, Spence. I didn't know. Probably once the adrenaline wore off, but right then? I didn't know," she promised him.
He bit his lips together, studying her face. "I don't think I like the fact you could 'not know' you took a bullet, Katy," he frowned.
"I didn't 'take a bullet', Spencer. I was grazed. Completely different…" she wrinkled her nose at him. "It's just a flesh wound!" she teased, quoting Monty Python.
Reid rolled his eyes. "You. You are killing me…" he smiled a little at her cheeky grin, kissing the back of her hand.
She opened her fingers, resting her palm against his cheek. Spencer leaned into her touch, closing his eyes as he felt her stroke his skin. A shuddering sigh wracked through him.
"So the back isn't a total mess?" she asked him, changing the subject back to her injuries. "Nothing that'll keep me down long, I hope?"
"Uh, you? Probably not," he shook his head, looking into her eyes once more. "It actually…" he choked up a little… Scarlett ran her hand along his jaw, trying to soothe him. He swallowed roughly against his emotions, furrowing his brow as he cleared his throat before trying again.
"It looks like you curled over the baby, taking most of the blow to your back and arms… and head. Most people would have instinctually covered their heads, Katy Scarlett," he told her.
Scarlett watched his face closely, continuing to trail her fingers over his cheek. "I protected the baby… It's a mother's prerogative," she told him softly, sort of recalling the thought she'd had to cover her stomach as she fell. She was beginning to remember.
"Spence…"
She shifted over in the bed, making room him to sit alongside her. Spencer moved onto the space, leaned over to her, burying his face into her neck. She felt his breathing stutter slightly as he sobbed against her and felt his tears on her skin.
"It's okay, shh… I'm fine, boy. I'm right here…" she crooned softly, kissing his forehead, letting him empty out his fears for a bit. Pushing back the hair from his face, she kissed his cheek.
"I'm still right here…"
"I know… I just…" he took a hesitant breath, pulling away, wiping at his face. Scarlett noticed the blood on his bandaged hands.
"You were hurt?" she asked, taking his hands in hers, turning them palms up. She could see the red stains covering the sterile pads.
"Not really- some stitches, they are just in a bad place and keep tearing," he stated flatly, unconcerned with the pain.
"Mmm-hmm," Scarlett frowned over the damage, meeting his eyes. He scowled back at her.
"It's just a flesh wound," he threw back at her, anticipating her argument. Scarlett rolled her eyes with a huff.
Morgan reentered the room at that moment, cutting off their conversation. Scarlett took Spencer's hands gently in hers, looking behind her brother to the doctor who followed him…
"When can I go home?" she asked. Spencer groaned.
"Katy… behave," he pleaded and heard her sigh.
"Fine," she breathed out the word, becoming annoyed at the repetitiveness of this conversation. She really did have to try harder to stay out of hospitals.
"Dr. Reid needs someone to check on his hands," she turned the conversation around on him. "He's seems to have torn his stitches," she told them, glaring at Spencer's low growl.
"I'm fine," he groused, fisting his hands together.
"You are bleeding," she argued, correcting him.
The doctor looked between the couple.
"I'll have someone come in to look at the stitches," he offered, earning a grin from Scarlett.
Another hospital staff member came into the room, pushing an ultrasound machine in with him.
Scarlett met Reid's gaze with fear in her eyes.
"You said the baby was fine…"
Spencer grasped her hands that she'd protectively moved over her stomach.
"The baby is fine," he reassured her, rubbing his thumbs across her fingers. "They want to double check, that's all…"
Reid felt her fingers tighten their grip against his as her hands shook.
"Okay," she swallowed down the tight fear that had clawed its way into her throat. "Okay…"
The doctor added his reassurance. "There are no signs of any problem. We're just going to take a quick look …"
Morgan moved over to Scarlett's side, angling a view at the monitor. She felt her brother's hand at her shoulder, offering his support with a squeeze. She leaned her cheek onto the back of his hand, closing her eyes, trying to regulate her worries to a corner of her mind.
"Katy…" she heard Spencer's soft voice call her name. She opened her eyes again to look at him, seeing the tenseness on his face.
"Keep your eyes open, beautiful… please," he asked her.
"I…" he shook his head and huffed out a tense breath, trying to find the words he wanted to say.
"You still have a concussion… and you wouldn't, you couldn't wake up before… So, just, please…" he asked again, swallowing against the lump in his throat. "Stay…"
Scarlett nodded, hearing his concern. "I will, farm boy. I'll stay with you…"
Reid took her hand, lifting it to his lips to kiss her knuckles softly. He turned his gaze from hers to the monitor when the tech started to run the wand over Scarlett's abdomen.
"You said the baby's due October thirty first, correct?" the doctor asked, reviewing the screen from over the tech's shoulder.
"Yes…" Spencer responded, still watching for himself as the images appeared.
"We actually are scheduled for our OB appointment next week," Scarlett offered.
"Twenty week follow up?" the doctor asked.
"Yes," they answered in unison.
The doctor nodded. "Well, everything looks more than fine," he told them as the technician clicked along some images.
"The fall didn't cause any damage to the fetus, placenta or the amniotic fluid. Everything looks perfectly fine," he smiled at Scarlett when she released her pent up breath.
Reid squeezed her hand tightly as he felt it tremble in his once again.
"Everything is okay, crazy girl…"
Scarlett nodded, looking from his face back to the screen. She felt the baby move and saw it clearly on the monitor. She reached down, resting her hand with Spencer's onto her stomach.
"Hello baby…" she said softly.
"It seems like he's very healthy and active," the doctor told them.
Morgan raised a brow as he saw both Reid and Scarlett look to the doctor.
"He?" Derek grinned. "I'm getting a nephew this time?"
The doctor looked at them. "Do you want to know the sex?" he asked.
Spencer met Scarlett's eyes, holding them with the question.
"Um, yeah- if you can tell for sure… we want to know…" he responded, reading Scarlett's unspoken response.
The technician grinned. "Well, it isn't difficult to tell… your son is very active," he told them. He clicked a few buttons on the machine and froze the image there.
"And he's not being shy," the doctor agreed with a smile. "Definitely a boy…"
Spencer felt his heart speed up in his chest. A son…
