Hey! So sorry that it took soooooo long to get this written and posted! My professors seem to have a conspiracy going to keep me from writing this chapter. So now, without further ado, on with the show (story…whatever you want to call it)

"Excuse me? Are you family of Stella Bonasara?"

"Doctor, how is she?"

Dr. Lews stepped out of surgery. It had been a grueling shift. He had seen more police officers in his ER then he wanted to see. He had lost a couple of them. He walked to the waiting room and asked the nurses where he could find anyone for Stella Bonasera. The nurse pointed to a young man, ok young to him, who was deep in thought and struggling to keep his composer.

"Excuse me? Are you family of Stella Bonasera?"

"How is she doctor?" the young man didn't waste any time in asking.

"She'll be fine. She lost a lot of blood and she came very close to loosing a lung. The bullet grazed her left lung but we were able to fix it. She made it through surgery and is recovering."

When Mac heard those words, he released the breath he didn't realize that he had been holding since the doctor had walked over to him. "Can I see her?"

"In a few minutes. She's being moved into recovery right now. A nurse will come and get you when you can go see her." The doctor walked away and Mac sat back down. Now that he knew that Stella was alright, he was impatient to see her. Just then, Danny, Lindsay, Sid, and Hawkes came rushing through the door.

"Hey Mac. How's Stella?" Danny asked.

"She lost a lot of blood and her left lung was grazed by the bullet but she made it through surgery and is in recovery. Where's Flack and Adam?" Mac was starting to get concerned. He had seen Flack stand up but was too busy trying to get the bleeding to stop to notice if Flack was hurt or not.

"They're both fine. Couple of scratches. Adam was pretty shaken so he decided to go home. Flack's still at the scene making sure that everyone does their job right". Mac nodded to Danny as a nurse came up.

"Sir, you can see her now." Mac looked at the other and Danny told him to go.

"Go on, Mac. No need to keep her waiting." Mac just nodded again and followed the nurse to a room. When he opened the door, Mac paled. Stella was in a bed that looked like it was ten sizes too big for her. Everything made her look small and fragile.

"Hey Mac. I'm hurt, not dead!" Stella's voice snapped Mac out of his thoughts and he hurried over to the bed.

"Hey, you know that you're supposed to duck, right?"

Stella smiled. "Well, maybe I just need lessons. I think that Marines make the best instructors." Mac smiled tightly.

"What? What's wrong?'

"Why would there be anything wrong. Other than the obvious?"

"Mac, I know when you're trying to avoid a conversation. So just tell me what's wrong."

It's…I've been recalled. To the Marines."

So. What's gonna happen next? I'll try to update soon but you never know with my professors. Any ideas or comments greatly appreciated!