A/N: I told you all I would update faster. This chapter is bit more emotional; I hope I don't make any of you cry. The song lyrics in this chapter is I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing by Aerosmith. Here it is; enjoy. :)

~ Chapter Eight ~

~~ Mackenzie Gets Worse ~~

November

Emily

Rosewood Memorial Hospital was quiet in the early hours of the morning. The occasional nurse shuffled past with medical charts in hand as they checked on patients. Sounds of different monitors attached to different patients could be heard through the open doors of the patients' rooms. Emily and Maya approached the children's ward with trepidation. The double doors loomed up in front of them, the colorful letters spelling out the name of the ward didn't seem so friendly now. Emily reached over for Maya's hand, finding it halfway. They squeezed each other's hands for reassurance, before they entered that ward and received the news they were afraid to hear.

They pushed through the double doors, immediately scanning the area for Dr. Memphis, Mackenzie's doctor. Emily led Maya up to the nurses' desk to the older woman sitting in a chair, typing on a computer. She cleared her throat quietly to get the nurse's attention. The woman glanced up briefly, before her eyes flicked back to the computer screen.

"Hi, um, we're here to see Dr. Memphis," Emily began, hoping the nurse was listening to her. "He called, saying that he had news about our-"

"Em," Maya interrupted her, touching Emily's shoulder.

Emily turned and saw Dr. Memphis approaching them. He smiled at them hospitably, but it didn't even come close to reaching his eyes. He didn't have good news then. Their stomachs knotted up all over again in fear as they met the doctor halfway.

"She's fine, she's fine, she's fine," Emily murmured the words like a mantra, as a way of reassurance.

"Hello again, Emily, Maya," Dr. Memphis said in a way of greeting, nodding at each of them in turn. He was an older gentleman with graying hair and an air of wisdom, integrity, and respect. He also had a kind demeanor. "I'm sorry it's not under better circumstances."

"What's wrong?" Maya questioned, pushing her hands into her jeans pocket. "When we spoke earlier, everything seemed fine-"

"Earlier, I had reason to believe that Mackenzie was fine. She was acting just like herself, despite the minor seizure," Dr. Memphis explained. "But she's just had another seizure, this one worse than the first one."

Emily and Maya gasped. Emily covered her mouth with her hand.

"I took her in for some brain scans," Dr. Memphis continued, "and it showed that the tumor is pressing more harshly on her brain, causing the seizures." He gave them a minute to absorb everything in silence.

"So,...the medicine is not working at all now," Emily clarified, crossing her arms. "Does it have anything do with her not getting it a few weeks ago?"

"I'm afraid so," Dr. Memphis said, sympathetically. "Her condition is deteriorating faster than the medicine can heal her."

"Surgery is her only option then, right?" Maya added.

Dr. Memphis nodded. "I wanted to start prepping her for surgery before she had another seizure, but I wanted to make sure you two signed off on it first."

Emily turned to Maya. "We wanted so much to keep her out of surgery, that's why we went in this direction in the first place," Emily said. "We never thought we would find ourselves here, but it's her last chance..."

Maya put her hands on Emily's shoulders. "And we have to do everything we can to make sure she survives this," she finished. They turned back to the doctor. "Ok, do the surgery," Maya told him.

"We trust you to save our daughter's life," Emily added, with a small smile.

"Alright, I'll get an O.R ready and have a nurse prep Mackenzie for the surgery," Dr. Memphis explained. He was ready to leave when Emily stopped him.

"Can we see her first?" Emily asked, nervously.

"Of course," Dr. Memphis agreed. He motioned for them to follow him to Mackenzie's room. "I'll tell you that she has been in and out of consciousness since the last seizure."

Emily and Maya nodded in understanding as they followed him down the hall. They continued down the hall for a couple of feet, and then turned left at the next corridor. A quarter of the way down, they all stopped outside of Mackenzie's room.

"One at a time, please," Dr. Memphis told them. "Five minutes each. We're going to start getting her ready to go down to the O.R."

They nodded and looked at each other. Dr. Memphis gave them a parting wave, and left to get ready for the surgery. "I'll go in first," Emily volunteered. She squeezed Maya's hand one last time for strength.

Emily walked to the door, and pushed it open. She took a deep breath as she walked into the room. She stopped several steps into the room. A red-haired nurse in blue scrubs moved around, getting Mackenzie ready for her surgery. The nurse smiled at her reassuringly, but didn't say anything. Emily focused on Mackenzie. She lay on her hospital bed, flat on her back, the sheet pulled up to her chest and arms by her side. She looked incredibly pale with an oxygen mask over her mouth and nose. She looked so small and fragile. From her vantage point, it looked like she was sleeping.

I could stay awake

just to hear you breathing

Watch you smile while you are sleeping

while you're far away and dreaming

Mackenzie moved, and her eyes flickered open. Emily saw that she was starting to panic at what was happening to her, so she rushed to Kenzie's bedside. She knelt down next to the bed so that she was at eye level with her daughter, and scooped Kenzie's small, cold hand into hers. Kenzie turned her head to the right, seeing her mommy calmed her but she was still scared.

"It's okay, baby, you're okay," Emily soothed her. She wrapped her left arm around the top of Mackenzie's head, stroking her hair.

Kenzie couldn't speak because of the oxygen mask. She whimpered, squeezing Emily's hand as hard as she could.

Emily felt the beginnings of tears prick at the back of her eyes at seeing her daughter so frightened and not being able to do anything. She held back her tears in front Mackenzie; tears would only scare her further. "I know you're scared right now, you don't know what's going on," Emily continued, still stroking her hair. "But I promise you, you are going to be okay. The doctor is going to help you get better. They are going to make you go to sleep, and when you wake up, you're going to be all better."

Mackenzie just stared at her, her breathing loud and her eyes wet with tears.

I could spend my life

in this sweet surrender

I could stay lost in this moment

forever

Every moment spent with you

is a moment I treasure

Emily glanced over her shoulder at Maya, looking in through the window. She turned back to Kenzie. "Okay, we don't have a lot of time. I'm going to let mommy come in here to see you," she told her little girl.

Mackenzie started to get upset, not wanting her to leave.

Emily leaned closer to Kenzie's ear. "I love you, sweetheart," Emily murmured, her voice cracking a little bit. "And I'm going to be right here when you wake up." She pressed her lips to Mackenzie's temple, lingering there. She breathed in Kenzie's scent, committing it to memory.

Emily stood up slowly, holding onto Mackenzie's hand for as long as possible. She gave her daughter a real, reassuring smile and one last hand squeeze.

I don't wanna close my eyes

I don't wanna fall asleep

'Cause I'd miss you, babe

And I don't wanna miss a thing

She came out of Mackenzie's room, Maya meeting her at the door. "How is she?" Maya asked her, concerned.

"She's understandably scared," Emily replied. Maya nodded, and they hugged briefly. Pulling apart, they squeezed each other's shoulders and then Maya went into Kenzie's room. Emily walked to the window and watched them.

'Cause even when I dream of you

the sweetest dream will never do

I'd still miss you, babe

And I don't wanna miss a thing

Maya was kneeling in the same spot she had knelt, and she was whispering to Kenzie. The nurse was still walking around, taking care of prepping Mackenzie to be moved. The nurse pulled up rails on the side of Mackenzie's bed, and Emily saw Kenzie start to get scared again. Maya held onto her hand, and whispered something to her. Kenzie nodded, and Maya started singing to her softly. In a couple seconds, Kenzie was calm again and her head rotated toward the ceiling, her eyes fluttering open and closed.

Emily felt the tears building again, and this time she couldn't hold them back. She turned away from the window, leaning on the wall beside it. She let out a quiet shuddering sob, pressing her fist against her mouth as the tears started dripping down her cheeks. She slumped against the wall. Emily cried until she saw the wheels of Mackenzie's bed roll across the linoleum floor and she felt Maya's arms wrap around her. They leaned into each other, sharing each other's grief and strength.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Emily

The morning sun shone into the waiting room where Maya and Emily waited patiently, sometimes impatiently, for the news that the surgery went fine and that their daughter would make a full recovery. They didn't allow themselves to think of the alternative. Dr. Memphis told them that the surgery could take a couple of hours, to be sure they extracted the whole tumor. Maya sat in one of the chairs, her arms crossed and her legs stretched out, crossed at the ankle. Emily stood by the window, leaning lightly against the wall with her own arms crossed.

Emily turned away from the window. "Do you think we should call Hanna?" she wondered out loud. "Molly was half asleep when we dropped her off. She's probably awake now and confused."

"Yeah, you're right," Maya agreed, sitting up straight. It was better to do something than to sit there and do nothing but wait.

Emily pulled out her cell phone just as it started ringing. She pushed off the wall, stepping toward Maya as she read the caller id. "It's Hanna," she chuckled. Maya grinned wryly, standing up.

She touched answer on her phone, and held it up to her ear. "Hey, Han, is everything okay?" Emily asked.

"Yeah, everything is fine," Hanna replied over the phone. "Molly woke up about fifteen minutes ago, and Caleb is making her blueberry pancakes now. But she started asking questions about where you guys were and if Kenzie was okay. I didn't know what to tell her."

"Oh,...Hanna, hold on," Emily said, then lowered the phone and spoke to Maya. "Molly's asking questions. What should we do?"

Maya pursed her lips. "Hmm, she's going to find out what's going on sooner or later when her sister comes home or... It may be selfish, but I really want Molly here with us." She laid her hand on Emily's shoulder.

Emily nodded. "Me, too," she agreed, "Let's end this chapter together, as a family." They kissed quickly, and then Emily went back to the phone call. "Han, you still there?"

There was silence on the other end of the line, with the exception of some clatter in the background. "Hanna?" Emily repeated.

"Sorry about that," Hanna answered, coming back on to the line. "There was this whole milk, sippy cup disaster you don't want to know about right now. It's all good."

"Ooookay," Emily replied. "Well, I was just going to say that when you and Caleb are ready, you can bring Molly up here."

"Are you sure?" Hanna asked.

"Yes, bring her up," Emily assured her. She hung up from her friend shortly after that. Emily and Maya took each other's hands and sat down in the chairs to wait for their daughters.

Close to a half hour later, Hanna and Caleb arrived with Molly. The little girl ran up to them with questions pouring out of her mouth, excited over thinking that her sister was all better. They didn't have the heart to tell her the truth. They just scooped her up and held her close, tightly. Then, Maya took Molly over to sit down while Emily and Hanna embraced.

"How are you holding up?" Hanna whispered to her friend.

"About as much as I can right now," Emily muttered back, as they pulled back from their hug.

"I hope everything turns out the way you want it to," Hanna said. "We're here if you need anything. I'm sorry I can't give you a real hug. This bowling ball prevents me from getting any closer." She joked, gesturing to her stomach.

Emily laughed, despite her sadness. Once again, they retreated to the chairs. Hanna and Caleb stayed for support, for which Emily and Maya were grateful. But that wasn't the end of the support they were receiving. Spencer and Toby arrived a couple minutes later, after having dropped Tyler off with Melissa and Wren. Aria was the last one to get there, by herself. She didn't want to talk much about it, but they managed to find out that she and Jason had a fight, one that was about Ezra picking up Liam from school today and spending a couple hours together. She said it wasn't that big of a deal, so no one pushed the issue.

It was mostly quietly in the waiting room, just some lowered conversations. They all mostly just hoped that Mackenzie made it through the surgery safe and well. Nearing the two hour mark, two nurses walked by and seemed to be speaking about a surgery being done. They heard something like that it was all the doctor could do and the nurses glanced over at Emily and Maya when they said that. It was painful waiting for Dr. Memphis to come out to talk to them.

Finally, ten minutes later, they saw Dr. Memphis walking down the hall toward them in fresh scrubs. His face was neutral, so they couldn't tell whether he had good news or bad news. Everybody grew to attention. Emily slipped Molly into her own seat, and stood with Maya to meet the doctor halfway.

"Well, how did it go?" Maya asked, a little impatiently.

"Is she okay?" Emily asked, at the same time.

Dr. Memphis looked at both of them, and then spoke. "The surgery started off a little shaky. Mackenzie's blood pressure went up as we started and it was too late to stop." Emily and Maya felt their hearts begin to drop as the doctor went on. "I continued on cautiously, the best that I could do. I managed to extract the whole tumor without incident, and we got Mackenzie stable again."

Maya and Emily released twin sighs of relief. "So, she's going to be okay then?" Emily asked, to be sure. They held on to each other, happily.

"The surgery went fine, with only one complication," Dr. Memphis explained to them. "We won't know anything for sure of any lingering side-effects until she wakes up, but I expect her to make a full recovery."

They both smiled grandly, eliciting a smile out of the doctor. They threw their arms around each other, laughing a bit as they hugged. They pulled back, facing the doctor once more. "Thank you so much, Dr. Memphis," Emily thanked the doctor.

"Mommy, what's going on?" Molly asked, crawling out of her seat and walking over to them. By now, the others had learned the good news, too, and were congratulating them.

Maya scooped her up in her arms and spun her around. Molly laughed contagiously. "Kenzie is all better now!" Maya exclaimed.

"Yay!" Molly squealed, throwing her arms up in the air. "Can she come home now?"

"Soon," Maya smiled, looking to Dr. Memphis for confirmation.

Dr. Memphis nodded. "I'll like to keep her here for a couple more days to make sure she has a clean bill of health, but you'll have her home for Thanksgiving."

They thanked the doctor again for everything he's done for Mackenzie. Dr. Memphis gave them one more smile and a nod, and then walked away to get back to work. The rest of them relished in this good news, being happy for Emily, Maya, and their family.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

It was late at night, when the shadows of the night could almost be alive. In some cases, they were alive. The man in all black, hood up, walked through the quiet, peaceful neighborhood. He spoke in a rushed whisper on a cell phone. He sounded almost annoyed with the other person.

"I know, I know," he whispered. "I'm almost there. I'll get it done."

"You better," the female voice on the other end hissed. "This plan has to work. I need it to work."

"Don't worry," the man replied. "Your plan of eliminating them will go off smoothly." The girl didn't say anything else, just ended the call with a click. He scoffed as he pocketed his phone. Then, he made his way the rest of the way to the house. He crept his way into the driveway, walking up to the car parked there.

Dropping his bag onto the ground with a quiet thud, he pulled out a metal hanger. He bent and shimmied the hanger in the car door, until the door popped open. He grinned creepily, pulled the door open, and slid into the driver's seat. The man leaned over to his bag again and pulled out another tool.

Wire cutters.

A/N: I hope you guys liked that chapter. Well, what did you all think? Any theories of who A is this time? Please review and tell me what you think. :)