A/N: Hey folks! Thanks to all those lovely people who have reviewed so far! It is much appreciated! Sorry this chapter took so long! It's musical season here in the north east and I'm currently helping direct two so not a whole lot of free time right now! Enjoy!

Casey lay as still as he could in his hospital bed, staring at the ceiling, turning the events of the day over and over in his mind. Despite his lack of concussion the hospital had insisted on keeping him for observation. Or, rather, Hallie had insisted on keeping him for observation despite the fact that every test they had run had come back negative, even the ones that had been completely unnecessary.

He'd had hours to go over every detail of his attack from beginning to end and no matter how much he thought about it nothing significant came back to him. He couldn't remember their faces. He couldn't remember their voices. He could barely even remember what they'd been wearing. It had all just happened so fast. Maybe if he…

"Hey."

Casey was startled from his thoughts by a knock on his door. He instinctively turned to look and immediately regretted it. The x-rays had proven his ribs weren't broken but when he moved it certainly felt like they were. He winced and turned more slowly to see Severide poking his head in. "Hey," he stepped inside, "Boden told me what happened. You look like hell man."

Casey grimaced as he tried to sit up a little straighter. "Hey take it easy," Kelly moved to help him. "Damn. They really worked you over huh?"

"Yeah," was all Casey could manage.

Kelly sat in a chair near the bed and tossed the white paper bag he'd brought with him onto Casey's lap. "Brought you some real food. Thought you might need it."

"Thanks," Casey replied.

"You talk to Antonio?"

"Yeah."

Kelly rolled his eyes and sat forward. "Come on Casey. Talk to me. You're pissed. I can see it."

Casey clenched his jaw. "Fine. Yeah, I'm pissed. I don't know what to do here. He's untouchable. We can't get near him. He's a god in that police department. And if he can do this to me how am I supposed to keep Hallie safe?"

Kelly shook his head. "I don't know. I'd tell you to just let Antonio handle it, but I honestly don't know if that's the right answer."

They sat quietly for a moment. "You want me to knock some heads together for you?" Kelly finally offered.

Casey sighed. "No. I don't even know who to tell you to hit. Didn't even get a good enough look at the guys to give Antonio a description."

"Is that what you're pissed about? That you don't know what these guys look like? Casey, they were pounding your ass into the sidewalk. No one can blame you for that. Besides, chances are somebody else saw them. Broad daylight like that? They'll catch them."

"Yeah, that's what I keep hearing. 'Don't worry. We'll take care of it. Let the police do their job.' Well guess what? That's what I've been doing and look where it's gotten me!"

"Yeah, I know. I wish I could tell you something different," Kelly said. "But you know I'll back your play. Whatever you decide." He stood. "Look, I have to go. You gonna be all right if I leave you here?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine."

"You're not going to do something stupid like try and leave or anything right?"

"I will not leave the hospital," Casey said between gritted teeth.

"Okay, just checking," Kelly held up his hands in a gesture of surrender. "Stay strong man. I'll see you later."

Casey woke from a nightmare several hours later his eyes swinging wildly around the room, searching for the person who'd been attacking Hallie in his dreams. It took several seconds to shake off the haunting images and get his heart rate back to normal. He took a breath and grimaced as he shifted on the bed trying to find a position that didn't make his ribs throb.

"Hey, you're up." Hallie appeared in the doorway and came to sit on the edge of his bed. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm all right," his voice was little more than a croak and he swallowed hard.

She put a hand on his cheek her eyes full of concern. "You're pale and sweaty. Tell me the truth Matt."

He was not going to share the contents of his nightmare with her. "Just a dream. I feel fine."

Her eyes told him she wasn't buying it but she let it go for the moment and for that he was grateful. "Come here."

She moved slowly, trying not to hurt him as she settled against his chest. "We'll get through this," she told him. "You know that right?"

He pulled her closer, ignoring the pain. He needed her in his arms. He needed to know that for this moment at least, she was all right. "I know."

A/N: So, true confessions time. I sometimes forget that Casey's first name is Matt. Probably because they call him Casey so much on the show. I wrote this chapter and realized that I spent the whole thing referring to him as Casey and Kelly Severide as Kelly. Because honestly, Severide is too long. Thoughts on this subject? Please review!