Disclaimer: Lauren Brooke owns it all except the storyline and a few characters. Period.
Amy's heart raced into her throat.
"A stroke? Really? Oh my god, is he okay? What happened?"
"He collapsed this morning while he was doing the feeds. He was only out for a few minutes. He came round and I called for an ambulance. He's in hospital now, doing well. He can remember most things and his speech isn't troubled at all. They think he can make a full recovery."
Amy breathed out. It was a lot to take in.
"Which hospital is it? I'm coming over there straight away."
"St Matthew's" Ty sounded relieved. "Are you sure? I think he'd really like you to come back. Since you left he's been a bit withdrawn, I think he really misses you."
Amy's heart lurched out to her dear old Grandpa. She loved him so much; she had to be with him.
"I'm on my way; I'll be there within a couple of hours." She paused. "Thanks Ty. I'll see you soon. Bye." And she snapped her phone shut.
Luckily the next stop was the city coach station and Amy leapt out and made her way as fast as she could to the ticket office. She approached the woman at the desk.
"I need to get to St Matthew's Hospital as soon as possible. When's your next coach going in that direction?"
The woman smiled at her. "We've got a 340 leaving in quarter of an hour. That takes you to the cinema complex and train station – you can get a bus from there."
Amy opened her purse and paid the woman. "Thank you" she said and jogged over to Bay 6, where her coach would be leaving. Impatiently she got in the queue and waited to board. She hoped with all her heart that Jack would be alright.
X X
An hour and a half later Amy ran up the steps in front of the hospital. The journey had been quite quick and Amy was grateful – she wanted to see her Grandpa as soon as possible!
She reached Reception and got her Grandpa's room number from the nurse there. She made her way towards him, stopping only when she saw Ty a couple of corridors before the room.
He gave her a tight hug. "Are you alright?" he murmured into her hair.
Amy nodded, holding back the tears that were trying to come. She had to be strong for Jack's sake.
"Yeah, I'm okay" she said. "How is he?"
"He's doing well. He's just had an operation on his lungs but he's fine. He's sitting up in bed, asking about you. Lou and Scott are in there now. Why don't you come and see for yourself?"
With his arm around her he guided her to Room 205. She pushed the door open and surveyed the room, taking in as much as she could.
Jack Bartlett was sitting in bed with a couple of drips attached to his arm. Lou and Scott were sitting on a couple of chairs, Lou holding his hand. They looked up as Amy and Ty entered.
"Amy!" said Lou, getting up and hugging her sister. "I'm so glad you're here. It hasn't been the same without you."
Amy returned the hug. She was glad to see her sister too but Grandpa was top of her concerns. She let go of Lou and rushed to the side of his bed.
"Grandpa! Are you feeling okay?" she asked.
Jack gave a weak smile.
"I feel fit as a fiddle" he said. "I'll be back on the yard in no time."
"Oh no you won't!" said a voice. A friendly looking nurse had walked in carrying a couple of tubes of medicine and another pillow for Jack. "I'm afraid you won't be able to help around your farm anymore. You're going to be taking it easy from now on." She went out.
"Rubbish!" said Jack. "I'm fine."
"No Grandpa, you heard what the doctor said." Lou rolled her eyes. "Honestly, do you want to live in the hospital? 'Cos that's what'll happen if you so much as lift a finger on the yard."
Amy looked at Ty. His expression was hard to read.
"So, Grandpa, can I get you anything? A newspaper or a book?"
Jack smiled at his granddaughter. "No, I've got everything I need. You could tell me all about your last couple of weeks though."
Amy sat down in a free chair and began to talk. Jack listened with his eyes half-closed.
About half an hour later the nurse came back in and began to check over Jack. Lou, Scott, Ty and Amy watched anxiously.
Finally the nurse turned to them, giving them a reassuring smile.
"He's going to make a full recovery and he's doing well at the moment. But you've got to make sure he takes it easy. Too many times people recover from strokes, get back into full work then have another two months later. We don't want that to happen to Mr Bartlett here, do we?" She smiled at them. "Any questions?"
They all shook their heads. The nurse looked surprised.
"Alright then. Now, Mr Bartlett needs to rest. You can all come back tomorrow morning, but for now I'm afraid you're going to have to leave him."
Amy and Lou gave their Grandfather a hug each then, all four of them calling goodbye, they left the room.
X X
Lou drove Ty and Amy back to Heartland. Scott was on call and Ty had come with Jack in the ambulance so he didn't have his jeep. Amy was deep in thought. She had had quite a shock that afternoon, realising that her Grandpa was much older than everyone assumed and that he'd never be able to work again. What would they do for help around the stable? Would he still be able to cook and drive? What if he died?
They pulled into the drive and Ty took Amy's hand and guided out of the car. Amy hardly took in the fact that she was home again. She automatically went to the barn and stopped when she reached Sundance's stable. He wasn't there of course but Amy had forgotten. As the memory dawned on her Ty put his arm around her and drew her into a hug. Amy wrapped her arms around him and cried into his shirt. The sight of her Grandpa, lying in bed like that, had given her a big shock and she felt drained of all her energy. Ty's arms and shoulders supported her as she cried, holding her safe. Slowly the tears began to lessen and Ty guided her over to sit on a bale of hay.
"I want him to be alright, Ty" Amy sobbed. Ty held her, stroking her hair.
"He will be" he said.
Joni entered the barn and came over to where the other two were sitting. Kneeling down she reached out and took Amy's hand. Amy smiled weakly through her tears.
"Jack will be fine!" she said. "You and I both know he's made of strong stuff! He'll be back home in no time and I'm sure everything will be fine. There's no need to worry."
As Joni said this Amy realised it was true. There was nothing to worry about. Of course he'd be fine. There was no doubt about it.
X X
Lou had to get back home as Scott's parents were coming over for dinner but Joni and Ty offered to stay and eat with Amy. They washed their hands and put some pasta and a sauce on to cook. Amy and Ty cleared the table while Joni watched the dinner. All three of them were tired and their conversation was slow until Amy asked about Sassy.
"Did you find a good home for her? I didn't see her in the barn."
Ty smiled. "No home, yet. She was in the back paddock this afternoon, that's probably why you didn't see her. We're actually having problems finding someone to buy her; I think her fear of new people puts everyone off."
Amy's heart went out to the mare. "I'll take her out tomorrow. She needs to know that nobody's going to hurt her, poor girl. And I'll see if there's a small local show on at the weekend that I can take her to."
Ty looked at her.
"What about college? You've got to go back, Amy, you're doing so well."
Amy sat down. "I know. I just don't want to think about it at the moment. I'm not going back until Grandpa's home. I just can't."
Joni smiled. "At least you'll be able to help out with the horses for a few days. Without Jack here and with Bill, the guy who comes for work experience on holiday we need all the help we can get!"
She dished out the food onto three plates and carried them over to the table. They dug into their meal. Twenty minutes later there was a contented silence.
"I'd better be off" said Joni. "I'd love to stay but I've got a stack of accounts to do and I could use an early night." She looked at Amy. "Promise you'll call if there's any news or you need anything?"
Amy nodded.
"Okay, then." Joni gave Amy a hug, said goodbye to Ty and walked out the door. Sitting in silence, Amy and Ty could hear her car going down the drive.
"What do you want to do?" asked Ty. "I can stay for a bit if you want me to, we could watch a movie or something."
Amy nodded. She saw so little of Ty these days, she didn't want him to go.
Together they loaded up the dishwasher and set it going then settled down on the sofa and put on a DVD.
Amy watched the first few minutes but after a bit her mind glazed over and she was happy to just lie with her head on Ty's shoulder, enjoying the comfort.
After the movie had finished the two of them sat there on the couch together. Ty kissed Amy's hair.
"Will you be alright here by yourself tonight?" he asked.
Amy nodded. "Yeah, I'll be fine. I just hope Grandpa's okay."
Ty turned her face towards his. "I'm sure he's doing well" he said. He kissed Amy and held her tight. Amy had never felt such comfort before.
They held each other in silence for a couple of minutes. Then Ty broke into the peace.
"How long are you staying?" he asked bluntly.
Amy frowned. "I don't know, Ty. As long as it takes, I guess. I'm not going back before Grandpa's home and fit enough to get around. I just can't. He means too much to me."
Ty was quiet.
"So you'll be staying for a while, then." He said eventually.
It wasn't a question, it was a statement. Amy didn't answer.
Ty looked her in the eyes. "What about college?"
Amy felt a rush of irritation run through her.
"I don't know, alright? I just don't know. I can't think about that now. Grandpa's in hospital after having a stroke and everyone seems so surprised that I'm here! Of course I'm here! I'm his granddaughter! Where else would I be at a time like this?"
Ty looked at her, taken aback. He hadn't expected such an outbreak.
"I didn't mean it like that. You know I didn't. I can't tell you how glad I am that you're here." His voice caught in his throat.
Amy felt guilty. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to yell at you. I'm just stressed. "
Ty rubbed her hand. "I know. But take a break. Help out around here for a week or so. Then, when Jack's back, you can go back to school and continue with your training."
"I don't want to talk about college right now" Amy said. Ty nodded, accepting he'd reached the limit.
"Okay" he said.
They sat there for a further minute or so then Ty made to get up.
"I should get back home" he said. "Are you sure you'll be okay?"
Amy nodded. "Thanks. I'll be fine."
They both got up and went to the door. Amy looked at Ty.
"Do you think you could check on the horses once more before you go? I really can't face it. I just want to sleep."
Ty put his arms round her.
"Of course" he said.
They kissed and then Ty walked into the chilly January air, closing the door behind him. Amy locked it then went straight upstairs to bed, falling asleep in her jeans and t-shirt.
A/N: Originally it was joined with the next chapter but I split them in half to make it easier to read. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, keep reading to find out what happens in the last chapter!
