All These Lives

Author's Note: For the Disclaimer, see Chapter 1. The subtitle of this part is a lyric from Dashboard Confessional's "Until Morning". Thoughts are in italics.

Part 11: "Hang on, just long enough"

"Aidan's going to stay with Jamie until Tad gets here and I'll be tied up with the police for awhile. Call us if you need anything, alright?" At Maggie's nod, Anna led Greenlee out of Leo's hospital room.

Maggie sighed and reached for Leo's hand but was immediately met with pain in her side. She undid her coat and lifted her bloody shirt. "Oh man… I'll be right back, baby." Maggie left and went to the locker room down the hall. She took a shower and assessed the wound she had received from her fight with Reese. Deeper than she had originally thought, Maggie clenched her teeth together as she stitched herself up and then covered the wound with a bandage. She then took the two syringes she had grabbed from a cart on the way and injected the medication into her arm. Maggie took a deep breath, trying not to succumb to the pain in her side, in her heart… in her soul… She pulled the clean undergarments and scrubs from her bag and quickly got changed so she could get back to her son's room.

After talking to Robin and then checking on the children, Kendall followed Bianca to the master bedroom and watched her sister tuck Miranda into bed. "Binks?"

Bianca turned and gestured for Kendall to follow her out of the room. She didn't want to wake Miranda from her slumber. "What is it, Ken?"

Kendall smiled slightly and pulled her sister into a hug. "I just wanted to tell you that I love you and that I'm proud of you."

Tilting her head in question, Bianca replied, "Um, thanks?"

"You've handled things really well today, especially with Maggie involved. I really thought I was going to have to knock some sense into you, but you let Mimo take her Maggie back." Kendall chuckled. "Her Mum… How did that come about anyway?"

Bianca chuckled as she walked toward the den and gestured for Kendall to follow her inside. "You know Maggie's dry sense of humor. She used to love watching the BBC and I swear, every time I came home from work, those two were sitting in front of the television watching some British comedy." She shook her head. "Then one day, Miranda just called her Mum and that was it." Bianca opened the safe and pulled out a folder. "When my world was falling apart, well I didn't think that Miranda would remember Maggie, her being so young and all… Kendall, I was scared. I didn't want my little girl to have her heart broken and…" She shook her head, interrupting her excuses. "I'm a horrible mother."

Kendall took the folder her sister held out to her. "No, you're not. You did what you thought was right." She looked at the paperwork in her hands and then to her sister, surprise in her eyes. "When did you have Jack draw up new paperwork?"

"A few months ago. Like I said before, once Reese and I were divorced, I was going to find Maggie. Whether she wanted to start over, be friends, whatever, I still wanted to correct the egregious error I had made so long ago. I still wanted Maggie to be Miranda's other mother." Bianca shook her head in frustration. "I should have realized that when Maggie came back to Pine Valley for us. And I should have realized that Miranda would never forget her. I just let my fear and my pride get in the way and I won't let that happen again."

Kendall watched Bianca put the folder back into the safe and then pulled her sister into another hug. "And that's another reason I am so proud of you. I think you should let her know about this tomorrow. It will be a bright spot in this nightmare we're in." At Bianca's nod, Kendall gave her a kiss on her forehead and then went to join her children in one of the guest rooms.

Bianca smiled as she gently placed her hand on the safe's door. Kendall's right. She walked back into the master bedroom and climbed into bed with her daughter. "I'm so glad you're safe now, Mimo." Bianca pulled Miranda into her arms and drifted to sleep.

"Good morning, Mary Margaret."

Having finally fallen asleep an hour prior, Maggie lifted her head from the edge of Leo's bed and turned to the surprise visitor. "Hello, Erica." She rubbed the sleep from her eyes and yawned. "Bianca's not here." Maggie said as she turned back toward her son and caressed his cheek with the back of her hand.

Erica stepped further into the room, silently watching the love Maggie showed her son. "I'm not looking for Bianca. I'm here to see you."

Maggie turned back around and frowned. "I'm not really in the mood to get into how I screwed up Bianca's life right now."

Erica shook her head indicating she didn't want to talk about that either. "I'd like to apologize for that. Sometimes I'm overprotective to a fault with my children. I should never have said such horrible things to you, especially with my own sordid past." Erica responded as she took a seat next to Maggie and gestured toward Leo. "I wish you had called when young Leopold first got sick." She stopped Maggie's response by holding up her hand. "I know. I didn't give you any reason to think I would help you. And for that, I am truly sorry." Erica took hold of Maggie's free hand and gently squeezed. "Whatever you need is yours. Jackson and I will do everything in our power to get you what you need. Money, specialists, a good Kane thrashing…" She winked and smiled at the slight smirk that finally showed on the younger woman's face. She was surprised when Maggie suddenly wrapped her in a tight embrace. "We may have had our differences, Mary Margaret, but I assure you that you have always remained a part of this family, however dysfunctional we all are."

Maggie nodded and released the hold she held on the older woman. She had surprised herself when she had hugged Erica, but she was overcome with such emotion at what the Kane matriarch had said. Sniffling and wiping away a few stray tears, Maggie replied, "Well, for starters, please call me Maggie. That's what my friends and my family call me." She smiled at the slight nod she received from Erica in response. "And I really appreciate your offer, but-"

"Now Maggie, just think about it." Erica interrupted.

"Alright, I can do that." Maggie acquiesced. "Where's everyone else? I think I remember Greenlee saying half of Pine Valley was on their way here?"

"Yes, that's about right. I had a full jet on the ride over. Just me and a bunch of men, just the way I like it." Erica chuckled. "I had the pleasure of meeting Robin's husband and he said he and Zach would visit later this afternoon."

"Oh, Zach came?"

"Of course, dear, haven't you two become close since you saved my grandson?" At Maggie's slight nod, Erica continued. "Don't worry. Kendall is the only other one that knows about it. Although, I'll never understand why so many secrets…" She said as she shook her head in exasperation. "And of course, Ryan and Jack came too." Erica took Maggie's hand in hers once again. "Maggie, we're not just here because of what happened to Miranda. We're also here because of what happened to you and I promise you that I won't rest until that woman gets what she deserves."

"Thank you, Erica. Your support means a great deal to me and my son." Maggie bit her lip in nervousness. "Um, there is one thing you could do for me…"

"Name it."

Maggie tried not to get emotional, but was failing miserably. "I haven't seen Jamie yet and I don't want to leave Leo alone…"

"Say no more. My driver will take you and I'll stay with young Leopold until you're able to get back." Erica stopped at the tiny chuckle that escaped Maggie's lips. "What?"

"He's gonna get such a kick out of you calling him that. I hadn't wanted to give my son a name like I had, but when he was born… I just couldn't leave anyone out. I had to honor Leo and Frankie and his father, of course." Maggie smiled brightly as she wiped her eyes. "Leopold James Francis Stone… It's such a mouthful, but Leo loves it."

"It's a beautiful name, Maggie, so very strong and such a nice tribute to his family. And I will call him Leopold until he requests otherwise." Erica winked.

Maggie stood and gave her son a kiss on the forehead. "I shouldn't be at the other hospital for very long. Leo finally regained consciousness at about six this morning, so he'll be able to start his treatment later this afternoon and I want to be back for that."

"I spoke with Bianca briefly and she'd like to bring the kids up here once they wake up."

"I know Leo would love to see them again. And he's been hounding me about meeting Miranda, so yeah that would be great. Oh, do you think you could get Bianca to call JR and see if she can pick up AJ on her way here?" At Erica's nod, Maggie turned to leave but then stopped, turning back to Erica. "Leo knows that Jamie isn't feeling well and that's why he can't visit, but that's it. He doesn't know what happened or that his father is in the hospital. I'd like to keep it that way."

"Of course, dear. Now run along. We'll be fine here."

"Kendall, can you get the door?!" Bianca yelled from the kitchen as she finished making breakfast.

"Yeah Binks!" Kendall yelled back and opened the door. "Oh thank God you're here." She wrapped her arms tightly around Jack's neck and received a kiss to the forehead and a hug in return. "Bianca!"

Bianca poked her head out of the kitchen to see what Kendall was yelling about. At seeing who was standing in the door, she smiled and threw the towel on the counter. "Uncle Jack!" She rushed into her uncle's arms, a sob escaping her lips, and held on tightly.

"Shh, it's okay, Bianca." Jack murmured as he held her close. He watched as Patrick took Robin into his arms, Ryan pulled Greenlee into a hug, and Zach held Kendall close, all three women with tears in their eyes at seeing their loved ones. "Patrick told us everything that happened. Any recent news?" Kendall pulled away from Zach and nodded. She explained what had happened since they last spoke, much to everyone's dismay. "Okay, well Erica is visiting Maggie right now, so I think that after breakfast, I'll visit Maggie on my way to the station to meet Anna."

Zach pointed to Patrick. "Yeah, we're going to meet Aidan at Jamie's hospital."

"Why? What's going on?" Kendall asked suspiciously.

"We just need to exchange some information. Nothing to worry about." Zach responded trying to avoid the question.

Before Kendall could say anything else, Ryan jumped to Zach's rescue. "Don't worry! I'll be here to help with the kiddos. I hear they wanted to go visit their new friend in the hospital?"

Bianca pulled away from her uncle and nodded. "Yes. Actually, I need to call Maggie to make sure it's alright." She was startled when her cell phone rang. "Oh, hi Mom." She gave an apologetic glance to the group and then walked back to the kitchen. "Is everything alright?"

"Yes, of course, dear. I'm just calling to let you know that I'm staying with young Leopold for a bit. Maggie wanted to go see Jamie, but she said she'd be back this afternoon for her son's treatment."

Slightly disappointed that Maggie had left, Bianca replied, "Oh, okay, well, I guess the kids can wait to see Leo."

"Oh no, dear, Maggie wants them to come. She said Leopold would love the company. And I'd have to agree. There's only so much 'Old Maid' either one of us can take." Erica winked at the bright smile she received from the little boy sitting up in bed.

Bianca chuckled into the phone. "Okay then. We'll come by after breakfast. I have a feeling they are going to want to stay until Leo has to leave for his treatment."

"I'm sure they will. Oh, Maggie would like you to give JR a call and see if AJ can come with you. She thought you might be able to pick him up on the way here."

"Sure. I'll see you in a little while then." Bianca hung up the phone and went to wake the children up. They had new guests to greet and breakfast to eat before taking off for the hospital.

Aidan almost fell out of the chair as he was startled awake by the opening of the door. As soon as he realized who it was, he quickly stood and wrapped the visitor in a tight embrace. "Maggie, I'm so sorry."

Maggie had caught a glimpse of Jamie before Aidan had grabbed her and she just nodded in his arms, unable to do anything else for fear of breaking down. She was glad Leo couldn't visit because it would certainly scare the young boy. Hell, it scares ME. Maggie's medical training had flown out the window at the sight of all of the machines hooked up to her best friend. She just buried her head in Aidan's chest and prayed that Jamie would pull through.

JR held up his hand to interrupt the conversation in the jet and answered his cell phone. "Oh, hi Bianca."

"Hey, JR." Bianca didn't speak much with her old friend anymore. He was busy with his life and she with hers, but they loved that their kids were such great friends.

JR took a seat as he mouthed who was on the phone to Tad. "So, I hate that we only ever communicate when there's some tragedy going on."

"Yeah, me too." A headache was forming at the thought of telling her friend the latest news and Bianca pinched the bridge of her nose trying to make it go away. "When do you get to Paris?"

"We land in about fifteen minutes. What's up?" JR ran his free hand through his hair in frustration as Bianca updated him on the situation. "No, I'll bring him. We'll see Jamie and then head over there to see my Godson." He said his goodbye and then threw his phone on the seat next to him.

"I think I gave her too much sedative." Tad chuckled as he tried waking Brooke up and then noticed the silence. "JR?"

JR spoke in a monotone voice, still in shock at the information he had just received. "That bitch actually did what Stewart said. One doc says Leo won't make it past six weeks."

Tad immediately stopped trying to wake Brooke and sat down, a look of disbelief covering his features. "Oh my God… Well, what does the other doc say?"

"There are some treatments that are having pretty quick results in trials right now, so they're going to try them this afternoon. Apparently the second doc, who is actually Maggie's boss, is hopeful but it's still a long-shot since Leo's a high risk patient. So if an improvement isn't seen by mid-day tomorrow then the original prognosis is more likely."

"Dad? What does that mean?" AJ asked as he looked toward his father with fear in his eyes.

"Oh AJ, I thought you were still asleep…" JR sighed and looked toward Tad for help. Seeing the older man shrug his shoulders, JR realized he needed to tell his son what was going on. Now's as good a time as any, I guess. He took a calming breath and hoped he wasn't doing the wrong thing. "Leo's really sick, buddy, and it's possible that he might not make it another month."

AJ jumped out of his seat and rushed to his father, jumping into his lap. He spoke with tears in his eyes and sadness in his voice, "No! Leo can't die!" He continued to cry as his father held him close.

JR's heart broke at his son's reaction and he was unable to keep his emotion hidden any longer as tears slipped from his eyes. He looked to Tad for reassurance that things would be okay, but the older man had his head in his hands, his shoulders shaking slightly. JR was thankful, at least, that Brooke was still oblivious for now.

Bianca wrung her hands as the adults huddled in the kitchen after breakfast. "I don't think we should tell them until we know if the treatment has improved Leo's prognosis. Mom said that would be tomorrow."

Robin nodded. "You're right. They need a day of fun with him before they get any more upset."

"Alright, well we need to head out." Zach said as he put on his coat.

"I'm coming with you." Robin and Greenlee both said at the same time.

Zach shook his head no, but then relented at the look on each woman's face. "Fine. Let's go." He walked out to the dining room and gave each child a kiss on the forehead. "We'll see you guys a little bit later, alright?" A round of nods and goodbyes erupted from the table as Zach walked to the door and held it open for Patrick and the tagalongs.

"Oh Robin, could I borrow your car then?" Jack asked quickly.

"Yeah, of course." She threw the keys in Jack's direction and left.

"Alright kiddos, let's get your winter gear on so we can go see Leo in the hospital!" Ryan exclaimed and smiled at the silent 'thank you' he received from Bianca.

"I'll just be outside." Aidan softly said as he released his hold on the tiny woman.

Maggie nodded in response and stepped over to Jamie's bedside. She grasped his hand and kissed the palm, still blinking the tears from her eyes. "Oh James… I am SO sorry… I did this. You're my best friend, my family, and SHE wanted to hurt me so she went after you. God, Jamie, I can't lose you! Do you hear me?" She squeezed his hand tighter. "You CAN'T leave me. I just won't accept that." She heard a commotion outside and turned to look out the window. "Looks like your mom and dad are here."

"Maggie?" Aidan poked his head through the door. "Um…"

"I just need a few more minutes alone with him." Maggie watched Aidan nod his head and shut the door again, before turning back to the pale man lying in bed. "Remember when we discussed the possible complications of Leo's disease? Well, the bitch that put you here somehow switched Leo's meds and now he's developed LC. I know you remember that one." She wiped the tears from her cheeks and sniffled. "Well, I spoke with your doctor and even if this experimental treatment works and gets rid of the LC, you can't donate your bone marrow. One, you're too weak. And two, you might have gotten HepC from Stewart." As one of the monitors beeped because of the rise in Jamie's blood pressure, Maggie sighed. "I know. We're living a nightmare. But, hey, don't freak out yet. Marian is hopeful about this new treatment and maybe we'll get lucky and find a donor match too." Maggie tried to sound optimistic but was failing miserably. She leaned over and placed a kiss on Jamie's cheek. "I love you, James. We both need you, so hang in there, okay?"

"Maggie…" Tad spoke with sorrow in his voice as he walked up behind the tiny woman. Once Maggie stood from her chair, Tad pulled her into a hug. "Is there anything I can do?"

"Just being here is enough." Maggie said as she accepted the older man's comfort. "You'll come see your grandson later?" As Tad nodded in response, Maggie pulled away and finally noticed Brooke. "Um… What's wrong with her?" She asked, frowning.

Tad looked sheepish as he rubbed the back of his neck. "She was freaking out, so we sedated her. I think we gave her too much." Maggie smirked as Tad shrugged. "So, are you hanging around here or going back?"

"Mags can go back with me and AJ." JR said as he walked into the room with his son and Aidan by his side. He gave Maggie a hug and kiss on the cheek, whispering in her ear, "I know things are going to be okay." He smiled as she nodded and pulled away.

"AJ, you've gotten so big!" Maggie exclaimed as she picked up the ten year-old and squeezed him tightly.

The frown didn't leave AJ's face as he hugged his favorite of his father's friends. "Leo can't die, Aunt Maggie, he just can't." A tear slipped from his eye. "I love him. He can't leave." AJ felt Maggie hold him tighter, her shoulders shaking slightly. "And Uncle Jamie… I love him too. He has to be okay."

Maggie's voice broke. "I know sweetie, I know." She pulled away and kneeled to look into AJ's eyes. "We just need to keep praying for them, okay?" As the little boy nodded and walked to his uncle's side, Maggie felt JR put his arm around her and she leaned into him, watching Tad pick AJ up and letting him place a kiss on his uncle's forehead. She could feel her life changing and she hoped it wasn't for the worse.

tbc