Chapter Three

It was like a bad dream, playing itself over and over in her mind. She was on the curb, staring at the bullet riddled car, and the blood-soaked material beside it – his blood.

As though she needed her life to be more painful, he was on his way to the hospital with three bullets in his body, two dangerously close to killing him, whilst Danny was sitting on the tray of the second ambulance, holding an ice pack to his head, and ignoring the medic who was trying to talk to him.

She already had her orders from Jack, to "find Dornvald", but how the hell was she meant to do that when the man she thought about every single moment of the day, could very possibly die without ever knowing the truth of how she felt about him.

Danny looked up and saw her, and she could see, from the way his expression changed, that he could see her pain. He could see she loved Martin so much more than she had ever imagined she could, and he could see that what had happened between them was an accident and not meant to be anything more than once.

Sam however, could see that he was wishing it was him who was swinging between life and death, and that Martin would be the one who would be hugging her, like he was about to do.

"I'm so sorry Sam." They were the only personal words she had allowed her brain to hear utter from his lips since she woke up that morning to see him lying naked in her bed.

He hugged her tightly, forcing her to cry, but she couldn't. Not here, not now, especially not now with all these people who saw her as strong and cold, and yet she did; three solemn tear drops leaked from her eyes and fell down her face.

"Get yourself to the hospital, Danny." She sniffed into his ear, evading his hold. "Get that head of yours checked out."

She didn't bother to earn a reply, turning on her heel, finding her car and heading back to the office, somehow managing to arrive safely, only to pound her fists into the steering wheel after she had parked, crying her heart out.

--§--

Just under twenty four hours later, Samantha was sitting in that small, antiseptic smelling room, staring at his face, willing his eyes to open. She'd lost track of how long she'd been sitting in that one same attitude, and although it felt like it had been hours, she was certain it was closer to half a one.

Every so often a nurse came in, picked up the chart at the end of his bed, and had a quick look at it, and then at the machines he was hooked up too. When they left they would glance at her, smile sadly, and move on.

Could they see her transgression? Could they see that she had performed the ultimate betrayal of him? Or were they telling her she was wasting her time, that he was a lost cause, better to leave then to hold onto indefinitely.

"He'll be okay." One of them had said, which at the time had meant the world to Samantha's heart, but ever since had been seen as cruel and gut-wrenching.

Eventually she felt her eyelids forcing themselves closed, and her head tipping forward. She recognized them as signs of fatigue, but she couldn't leave – she couldn't leave him.

"Sam?" His voice was hoarse and fractured. Initially she thought he had woken, but when the voice came again, harder and clearer, Sam turned to see Danny's face in the doorway. "Go home." He said – more as an order than a suggestion – to her quietly.

Sam shook her head, turning back to him. "I can't Danny. Not until I know he's alright." Ever since she had released a collection of tears onto his shoulder and onto her steering wheel, she had swallowed all saddening emotions, and now, they were threatening to spill again. But Sam knew she would be unable to hold them back.

Danny saw her eyes well up, knowing she was about to cry again. But before he had a chance to cross the room and hug her, she leaned her head onto the bed, interlocking her fingers with that of the man who lay unconscious on the bed, and cried onto the plain white sheets.

"Why won't you wake up? Please wake up, Martin." She sobbed quietly.

Danny didn't know whether to leave her there, recognizing the moment as one he wasn't meant to witness, whilst at the same time just wanting to help ease her pain. But as he continued to stand there watching her head and shoulders move in that painful rhythm to tear drops, he realized that her tears were not just about willing Martin to wake, but also in complete pain about what she had done to him. Okay so she had been dumped, but that still gave her no reason to go out and sleep with his best friend – him!

It was this realization that made Danny step backward from the room, and pull the door shut, leaving the heartbroken woman to cry to the man who, by all accounts should be fine, but had been so very close to death.

Outside the room Danny continued to look in, staring at the couple who he knew, and had known since he saw them that afternoon on the balcony, were meant to be together. He didn't know why he had such an epiphany when he didn't even know the full details, but Sam was a woman who had been scorned far too many times in relationships, and thus sought men who would treat her as such.

But Martin, he was so much different. For one thing he was someone who Sam would never normally be interested in, as he was always there, unlike her previous boyfriends. He was free of baggage, he was mentally able and ready to be in a relationship, and he was someone who gave loyalty to those he loved. Sam had struck gold, and probably because of her own nature she had lost him, only now to discover what a good thing she had.

Danny smiled to himself, in spite of everything that was going on in their lives, knowing that they would work everything out in the end, even if he had to help them out.

He pushed the memories of that night with Sam from his mind, forcing his brain to place them in the dreams area, before leaving the hospital, making a quick detour up to Vivian's room.

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