I sighed as I stepped out of the isolation unit. Meredith's temperature was down to 102.7. They'd stopped the sedatives and she would be back in the ICU within the hour. I could spend twenty four hours a day seven days a week in the ICU, and I would if I had to for Meredith. I headed for the nearest nurse's station to give an update via the nurse's gossip and the groups of Meredith's "family" who were surely hanging around there waiting for me. As I neared, I recognized two uniformed police officers standing at the counter.
"Detective Kowler?" I called. He looked up and gave me a stiff nod and the grim expression on his face made me nervous.
"Dr. Shepherd." Officer Dayforth greeted, his face equally grim. "We have news. Could we go somewhere more private?" I nodded and led them to a nearby conference room. As I usher them in I feel a twisting sense of doom in my gut. The detectives slid into the seats on the far side of the table and and I sat across from them. The detective spoke up first.
"First off I would like to inform you that we have identified the driver involved in your wife's accident." His tone of voice scared me. This was good news and he seemed to be disappointed.
"I'm sensing a but here." I shivered. This isn't the atmosphere one would expect on such an occasion.
"His name is Peter Blanche. He has no past record which leads us to believe it was truly an accident. However Mr. Blanche has fled the state." Detective Kowler's grave facade didn't waver and I was getting more worried by the second.
"So what? You just go after him right?"
"Unfortunately it's not that simple. Blanche isn't a repeated offender and in this case he's only a Class C felon because he didn't kill your wife. There are bigger criminals to deal with." I shook my head in disbelief.
"So essentially you're sitting back and crossing your fingers in hopes that he'll just get caught with his pants down?" I could feel the frustrations growing inside me.
"Of course not . We've alerted the authorities in the surrounding states and the border patrol. But there will be less of an active effort due to his status. We do have our technology consultant working on tracing his phone and his credit card. It is going to take some time but I assure you we will do our very best to find this man."
"But you won't because he only severely injured my wife. I'm grateful she's alive but because of that hti man can walk free. That's not fair." I scoffed. I stood from my chair and paced. "Look I'm sorry but my wife has been conscious for three hours out of the past 90. I just want the damn bastard behind bars an you saying that he isn't that big of a deal is really frustrating." The two officers nodded and stood.
"We'll do everything in our power Dr. Shepherd." Officer Dayforth said, rising to his feet. He shook my hand followed by Detective Kowler. "If it makes you feel any better, you're one of the less tempered spouses we've had before." He offered before both officers left the room. I took a deep breath before opening the door and heading back to the nurses station. Meredith's friends were all leaning up against the desk.
"They identified the guy. Now they just have to find him." I offered by way of explanation. I left out the minor detail that he wasn't "that big a deal" knowing that if I said that half the group would run after the officers and castrate them.
"Mer's back in the ICU. She should be waking up soon." Alex said.
"Thanks." I nodded and headed for the ICU.
The ICU was relatively quiet when I got there. I made a beeline for Meredith's room but paused in the doorway to admire her beauty. Her face had healed quite a bit and some of her color returned. She wasn't perfect but I think it made her more beautiful.
"She pulled it together." I jumped at the sound of Bailey's voice behind me. "I thought she would need a kidney transplant but she got it together."
"So she's off dialysis completely?" I hadn't really asked questions beyond the point of Meredith's return to the ICU.
"Yep, should be a textbook recovery from here." Bailey confirmed. "Although this is Meredith Grey we're talking about here." I nodded and my gaze returned to Meredith. She was still intubated but now I could almost pretend she was sleeping. Bailey disappeared as I stepped into the room and slid the door shut behind me. I sat in the visitor's chair beside the bed and took Meredith's hand in my own. I just sat there quietly and waited for her to wake up. I didn't have to wait long. I felt her fingers wiggle first.I sat forward in the chair and waited anxiously for her top open her eyes. She didn't fight the tube right away which made me nervous even though that was normal, but soon enough her eyes flickered open for a second. Then again for another couple of seconds and she lightly squeezed my hand.
"Hey." I whispered softly. "It's okay. I'm here. Take your time. You're alright I promise." It took another minute but her eyes opened all the way before she looked at me. "There you are beautiful." I smiled before gently kissing her forehead. She tried to talk but I quickly stopped her."Shh don't try to talk. The tube will come out soon." She squeezed my hand and closed her eyes. I kissed her cheek.
"Everything's gonna be okay."
A/N And I promise from here on out medically speaking Meredith will be okay. I hope you liked this chapter. Someone pointed out that I might be trivializing the accident and how the police logistics work. I have no idea how law enforcement works so now I'm just using it as a drama feeder. I'm sorry if it's unrealistic but I'm totally clueless when it comes to that stuff. Hope you enjoyed! Show just how much you loved it by leaving a review. Have a fabulous day!
