A.N. And on into the hospital chapters... these (for some unknown reason), are a little harder for me to write so, while I will try to keep the updates daily, I may have to switch to every other day or so. I hope not though!

As always, I do not own Flashpoint and have borrowed the characters only for entertainment.

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Silence reigned. Five people occupied the sterile, white, waiting room, filling it and making it feel small, but if one closed their eyes, they wouldn't even know anybody was there. One knee bounced up and down, though the attached foot never left the floor. Two hands clasped and unclasped. And all five pairs of eyes were trained on the doorway, willing a doctor to walk through, smiling, saying everything was going to be fine.

The team had been waiting for four hours without a word except: "They lost him once in the ambulance but got him back, and now he's in surgery."

Despite multiple friendly (and when that failed, hostile) attempts to cajole more information from the nurses, they had nothing.

Finally, Wordy rose. "I'm going to make a coffee run, would anyone like something?"

Bleak stares met his before Greg spoke up. "That's a good idea, Wordy. What do you say, team? How about we put some fuel in our tanks after the day we've been having?"

There were murmurs of consent and appreciation, so Wordy left with Jules to place the orders.

Spike rose to wander the halls and try to work off some of his nervous energy, leaving just Greg and Ed in the waiting room. Greg sighed and leaned back against the wall, rubbing his face with his hands.

"It's not your fault."

His eyes snapped open and he met his Team Leader's gaze. "What was that?"

"I know what you're thinking, and I'm telling you not to think it; none of this was your fault. It was a good call with the information we had. None of us knew the whole picture—Maclaney and Harrison made sure of that. They did a damn good job of manipulating and anticipating us… and Sam's going to be fine," Ed stated confidently, hoping his voice wouldn't betray his inner feelings of worry.

"Aw Ed." Greg leaned forward. "How do you know that? You saw him; two armor piercing rounds in close quarters, exposed to the cold for a short—but long enough—period of time, whiplash, and a lot of blood loss… I'll be the first to say that Sam constantly surprises me with his strength and determination… he's probably one of the strongest people I know, but I just don't know if he can come back from this."

Ed closed his eyes and, for a moment, just a single, short moment, let all of the worries Greg brought to light, flood him. He'd seen, first hand, the damage the bullets had done to his teammate, felt the shift of bones beneath his fingers as he desperately tried to stop the bleeding, watched as Sam struggled to breathe, and he knew that what Greg feared could become a reality.

He might never see Sam comfort a frightened child again—see the tough soldier soften and wrap his arms around the kid and say everything would be okay. He might never see the younger man's amazing marksmanship that—though he'd never admit it to anyone—surpassed his own. Ed knew the kid had not had an easy life, between growing up with the General, having his sister's life wrenched from his hand, and then being told that he was the one responsible for his best friend's death… he'd gone through hell, and yet he still managed to be a confident steady presence for his team. Ed marveled at this fact, and screamed inside as he contemplated the fact that this amazing individual could be gone forever. There'd be nothing left but a gaping hole where he used to watch his teammates' backs.

Ed's eyes snapped open and he quickly turned his gaze to his boss. "Greg," he called softly, "Sam's going to pull through. You said it yourself: he's one of the strongest people you know, and he's always surprising you. He's going to pull through this."

Greg met his gaze, and for a long moment, neither of them said another word until Greg blew out a breath and murmured, "I hope you're right, Eddie. I hope you're right."

Hours passed, the rest of the team returned, and Natalie arrived. Sam's parents had been called, but the General only sent his regrets that he couldn't make it. Ed winced as he recalled the words that'd left his mouth after that call. He'd also called Sophie, telling her he wouldn't be home for dinner, and, in response to that, she'd brought dinner to them. Though none of them were particularly interested in eating, no one wanted to risk Greg or Ed's wrath if they refused.

Footsteps were heard approaching from a hall, and a doctor came striding up to the nurse's station and quietly conferred with the nurse on duty. Six pairs of eyes were glued to his back, willing him to turn around, walk over, and smile. Instead, he turned, paused a moment, then walked towards them with a friendly face that gave nothing away. He met Ed's eyes before his gaze skimmed across the rest of the team, unsure of who he should approach. "Family of Constable Braddock?"

The entire team, plus Natalie, rose and moved towards him. He seemed a bit taken aback by the large group of imposing people in front of him—after all, they were still in their tactical gear—but he gathered himself and continued, referencing the clipboard in his hands. "First of all, I want you to know that he is out of surgery and in the ICU."

The entire group let out a collective sigh of relief when they heard he was still alive.

"We lost him several times while operating, which is why you've had to wait so long. He's mostly stable right now, but, I will be honest with you, that could change at any time."

The relief they'd all felt a moment ago was immediately replaced with worry. The doctor raised his hands. "I don't mean to alarm any of you, but I feel that full disclosure is what will be best right now. He lost a great amount of blood, and we've given him many transfusions to counteract that. Both of the bullets lodged very close to his spine; one bruised his right lung, and the other broke two ribs on his right side. Because both of these are causing stress on his lungs, we've intubated him and placed him on a respirator. We were worried that his spinal cord had been damaged, particularly since we have no record of him moving and have been unable to revive him, but upon further inspection, we believe that's not the case. However, just to be on the safe side, he is currently in a medically induced coma to allow his body to heal."

The doctor paused a moment to let all of this sink in.

Ed closed his eyes. He wasn't in shock… No he wasn't. If he was honest with himself, he wasn't really surprised by the news they were being given. He'd seen how bad Sam was, seen how hard it was for the ex-soldier to even open his eyes. A memory flitted into his mind and he seized on it before meeting the doctor's gaze. "He moved his hand."

Having been about to continue, the doctor paused in confusion. "Pardon me?"

Ed repeated himself, a little more strongly. "He moved his hand. You said you were worried about his spinal cord; well, he moved his hand. I didn't see him move a leg, but a hand is something right?"

The doctor remained silent a moment, before a very small smile spread across his face. "That is definitely good news, though we will not know anything for certain until he wakes up.

Now, I know you are all eager to see him. Please, only two at a time, and I can only let you visit him for a short while."

"Thank you doctor." Ed reached out to shake the man's hand, clasping it in a firm grip, trying to convey just how thankful he was.

The doctor nodded before hurrying on to his many other patients.

Everyone agreed that Jules and Natalie would go first, then Spike and Wordy, and last, Greg and Ed.

It was ten minutes before Jules and Natalie returned, and when they did rejoin the team in the waiting room, Greg ordered both of them home. They didn't leave willingly, but after much protest, Greg finally managed to convince them to leave just for the night. They promised to return in the morning. Wordy and Spike shortly followed, also with promises to return in the morning and, at last, it was just the Team Leader and Sergeant left. They glanced at each other before making the trek up to ICU, steeling themselves for what was to come.