You know what I just realized? Finding Her Serenity has been up for like, two years and a couple months. Isn't that amazing? Two years. Now if only I could write faster...Anyway, chapter seven, yeah! As I said before, really short, but it's also kinda sad so prepare you're selves. See all y'all later.
P.S. - please review! Over a hundred people have read Finding Her Serenity since yesterday and yet none of you left me a review. I even made it so that anonymous people could review. (I will admit that I didn't know that there was a restriction on that until my friend tried to leave me a review...) So go ahead and push the button!
Finding Her Serenity
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Chapter Seven: "I'm Sorry"
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"Go get an ambulance!" Elizabeth turned and shouted at the man from the junkyard. Ever since John had pulled his gun, he had stood there, stock still and terrified.
"NOW!" Captain Tam screamed when he didn't move.
The man took off, proving faster than he looked, not daring to look back at Serenity and her crew.
Eliza rushed to her sister's side and found her hand. "Ruth?" She asked her blood running cold at the sight of her sister's bleeding stomach wound. "Ruthie, answer me sweetheart." She pleaded.
Ruth managed to turn her head enough to meet her sister's gaze. "'Liza?" She asked confused by the pain she felt. "'Liza what happened?"
Eliza held back the tears. "You just got a little hurt is all. Don't worry we'll get you fixed up."
A wailing siren spoke up in the distance. Eliza hoped that it meant that the man had gotten help.
Ruth squeaked when Jules pressed down on her stomach, trying to stop the bleeding. "Stop it." She moaned trying to shove him away. "Don't hurt baby, stop it."
Eliza felt like her heart was about to break.
"Ruth," she tried to say, but stopped when she heard her voice crack. "Ruth I don't know-"
Just then two EMTs rushed through the hold carrying a stiff stretcher, followed by the junkyard man. The politely but firmly replaced Jules, moving him off to the side so they could inspect Ruth's wound. They tried to move Eliza too, but one good glare and the sentence, "I'm her sister," ended that nonsense. The two men talked quickly, not bothering to find out what happened. On the count of three they flipped Ruth onto the stretcher and carried her to the white and red vehicle that had just screeched to a halt in front of Serenity.
Eliza followed them quickly. "Michael, go get Alex." She yelled back before jumping into the back of the ambulance, the doors slamming shut behind her.
The ride to the hospital was bumpy and terrifying and nothing like the flying Eliza was used to. She sat there clinging to her sister's hand as the EMTs busied themselves around the unconscious woman. They managed to slow the blood leaking out of Ruth's body, but were unable to stem it completely before they reached the tall, clean building known as Memorial Hospital.
The two uniformed men rushed out of the vehicle as soon as it screeched to a halt, carrying Ruth with them. Eliza hopped out and followed them, nearly running to keep up with them inside the white tiled confines of the hospital. The hurried through another set of doors, shoving them roughly aside and attracting the attention of other nurses and doctors, but when Eliza tried to follow them, a middle aged nurse with premature streaks of gray in her short cut brown hair stopped her with a hand on her shoulder.
"I'm sorry miss," she said apologetically, "you have to stay out here. We'll tell you when you can see her."
Eliza wanted to shout at the woman, tell her she could see her own sisters if she very well pleased, especially when she was hurt, but she couldn't make her mouth move quick enough and the woman hurried through the doors to wherever the others had taken her younger sister.
Not knowing what else to do, Eliza tumbled over to a dark blue plastic chair and collapsed with her head in her hands.
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The automatic doors opened half an hour later with a muffled 'shff' as Michael and Alex swiftly entered the hospital. They stopped long enough to spy Eliza sitting dejectedly in the corner. After a quick look at each other, Alex rushed to the reception desk to find out how his wife was doing while Michael went to sit next to Eliza.
He didn't say anything at first, watching his brother as a nurse led him through the swinging doors. Eliza took the chance to wipe her eyes and dry her cheeks on her dirty shirt sleeve. However her eyes were still red from crying when she looked up at Michael.
"Where are Taylor and Jules?" She asked her voice thick.
"They're guarding John until the law can take him into custody. Though I imagine that won't take too long. Jules contacted me on our way here and told me that a few officers were already there asking questions. I doubt John will get away from prison."
Eliza nodded, not saying anything else.
"She's going to be okay." He tried to reassure her after a moment, but his voice quavered. He didn't know at all if his sister-in-law would live.
Eliza nodded anyway. Her sister was going to live. She just had to.
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Alex walked with heavy steps down the straight wide hallway, looking at each door plaque as he walked by, reading the numbers anxiously. 311. Where the heck was 311?
The number suddenly glared out at him off to his left and he arrowed towards it.
He hesitated just outside the door, afraid of what he would find inside. But a small moan from inside drew him in and he, looking around wildly for the source.
Ruth lay on a thin white sheeted hospital bed with plastic rails lining the sides so she wouldn't fall off and hurt herself even more. Alex walked softly to the side of the bed, afraid of waking her even though he knew that the hospital doctors would have sedated her so they could remove the bullet. He glanced at the monitors and charts surrounding his wife reassuring himself that she would live, that she would wake up in an hour or two.
Then finally, he turned and looked at his wife. Her face was pale, but her breathing remained steady and even. She didn't look like she was sleeping so much as she looked like she was sick and had dozed off from exhaustion.
Alex found a chair and took Ruth's hand. How could he have let this happen? Why hadn't he been there to help her? He could have waited to fetch more supplies for the clinic. Why hadn't he stayed?
Alex leaned his head against the bed railing. He just didn't know.
A soft step behind him should have alerted Alex to the other man's presence, but he was so involved in his own thoughts he didn't notice until the man spoke.
"Mr. Tam?" He asked laying a hand on his shoulder to gain his attention.
Alex stood and faced the person behind him. The man, obviously a doctor by his white coat and I.D. clipped to his pocket, stood about a head shorter than Alex with light brown hair and brown eyes framed by thin glasses. The look on the young man's face destroyed what little hope Alex had left. He knew that look. He saw it on every face, including his own, whenever he had to tell some poor soul that someone they loved was dying.
Alex swallowed convulsively. "Yes." His voice cracked, but he barely noticed.
"I'm afraid that while we were able to save your wife we weren't able to save the child. I'm sorry."
Alex nodded, unable to speak. The man gave him a sympathetic look but didn't say anymore before he left the room. Wearily Alex resumed his seat next to his wife.
Ruth was fine, she would live.
But they had lost their child.
