Wow thanks for all the reviews and story alerts much appreciated. :) Since this is AU I'm ignoring Andy's Mom.
Title: Snake Eyes
Author: Cindy Ryan
Pairings: Andy/Sam, Nick/Gail, Traci/Jerry
timeline: season three AU of Messy Houses
summary: Will Andy and Dov's combined bad luck take it's toll on an already volatile situation?
Traci Nash huddled against the far wall of the waiting room by the window. Her arms folded across her chest. She glanced up as Jerry approached. He pulled her into his arms and Traci leaned back against his chest.
"Thank you for calling Oliver."Nash commented quietly.
"Least I could do."Barber replied softly as he rested his chin on the top of Traci's head.
"Andy's going to be just fine."Traci stated hoping saying the words out loud would make her believe them.
"Of course she is."Jerry said as he tightened his embrace. "She's survived being with Sammy this long. It'll take more than this to take her down for the count."
"She's my best friend, Jerry."Traci whispered. "I don't know what I'll do without her."
"You won't have to know that for a long time."Jerry promised. "Andy's a fighter she'll come through this."
Traci sent off another silent prayer. She wished there was more she could do than wait and pray.
An hour later Dov found himself on the hospital roof leaning forward against the short wall that bordered the roof. Down below it was rush hour traffic everybody headed home to their families or to do errands. A reminder that life moved on no matter what bad experience you were currently going through.
Dov glanced down at his hands and saw they were shaking slightly. He balled them into fists. He'd come up here to get some fresh air. With everybody clustered in a small area waiting for news on Andy it seemed like the walls were closing in on him.
God, Andy.
Dov hadn't thought so much blood could escape from one part of the body. It'd covered Sam's hands and saturated the ground.
She'd trusted him to back her up; protect her. Do what partners were supposed to do. Dov had let her down. He hadn't been as aware as he should've been. Everything had happened so fast they had no way of knowing Moyer wasn't in the house. They assumed when they shouldn't have and Andy had paid the price.
"Hey, been looking everywhere for you."Chris Diaz stated as he stepped onto the roof.
"Needed some air."Epstein replied quietly not looking at his former roommate. "Is there word on, Andy?"
"Not yet."Diaz stated sadly as he came to stand next to his friend. "Nurses said the surgery could take three to four hours."
Dov winced. "Swarek's going to kill me."
"Wasn't your fault."Diaz responded.
"We were first on scene."Epstein countered. "Even a rookie knows to secure the area. I waited too long to call for backup."
"We all dropped the ball on this one, Dov."Diaz stated solemnly. "Nobody thought Moyer was that unstable."
"Maybe."Dov admitted. "Still sucks. Andy's been through so much and now this..."
"If it's one thing we know about Andy McNally is she can tough out anything."Chris said. "Little stab wound won't keep her down for long."
"Hope you're right."Dov commented.
"Me too. You coming back down?"Diaz asked as he turned to leave.
"In a bit."Epstein promised.
"Keep your phone on."Diaz began as he reached the door. "I'll call as soon as there's word if your not back yet."
"Thanks."Dov acknowledged as Chris left leaving the roof once more in silence.
Sam stood in the bathroom on the surgical floor. Andy had been in surgery for two hours now. It was only at Oliver's prodding that Sam had come in here to clean up. He hadn't wanted to leave Andy for even that long. Shaw had pointed out that nobody needed to see Andy's blood especially her father. There wasn't much Sam could do with what was on his uniform. Most of that was concealed by the dark blue of his pants. Looking down at his hands Sam saw there was still a bit of her blood under his nails. He'd gotten most of the rest off. Though the sink was now tinged pink from the effort.
Bile rose in Sam's throat and he forced it back. He turned the water on once more and splashed some on his face. It helped a little. Turning the water off Sam reached for a paper towel and tore it off. The paper jammed halfway and no tugging would remove it. He slammed the machine with his right hand with such force that it came partially off the wall.
Without realizing it Sam hit the machine again and it came all the way free landing on the floor with a loud crash.
He'd been the senior officer on scene. Sam thought they'd had more time to figure out what was going on. He'd ignored the warning signs; ignored what experience had told him. Sam had ended up with Andy's blood on his hands because of those mistakes. Sam leaned back against the sink running his still wet hands through his hair.
Sam thought he'd been terrified at the concert when he realized Andy had been shot. When he hadn't known if the vest had caught the bullet. Hadn't known if the blood on her uniform was hers or the girl next to her.
He hadn't realized it then but Sam had already been in love with Andy. Fallen head over heals so hard it scared him. So much that he'd pushed her away; made more mistakes.
Some how Sam had been given another chance with the woman he loved. They'd survived the time apart and were better for it. More appreciative of what they had.
Now Sam would give anything to have that wasted time back.
Waking up with Andy in his arms was something Sam wanted to do for the rest of his life. They deserved that chance at happiness. They'd been through enough. Too many close calls than Sam dared to count. So many times he'd almost lost her.
His vision blurred and Sam swiped a hand over his eyes to clear it.
Andy needed him to keep it together. Needed him to be strong.
Regaining his composure Sam left the bathroom. The doctors had been very hopeful that Andy would make a full recovery. Sam had to hold on to that. Had to believe Andy would be fine. It was the only thing keeping him sane.