The next four days passed by in a blur as Gen juggled her her time between work, helping Johnny and tending to Olivia. Due to the generosity of Hank and Emily Stanley, Roy and Joanne and Mike and Alyssa, she hadn't been at a loss for baby sitters. Thank goodness for good friends.

She'd spent her most recent day off attending Thomas Ridley's funeral and spending time with his mother and sister. While the grief was prominent and many tears were shed, neither seemed to blame Johnny for what happened. In fact, knowing how close Tom and Johnny had become, both repeatedly voiced their concerns about how Ridley's death would effect Johnny.

Thankfully, since the 'sponge bath' she'd noted a slight elevation in Johnny's mood. It appeared that when she was around he made a better effort to keep the conversation going between them. The possibility existed that it was all just an act on his part to make her feel better. His attempt at taking care of her from his hospital bed. That hadn't exactly been her goal, but for the moment she'd take what she could get.

Maybe, once he was out of the hospital and back home he'd truly start to feel better. Unfortunately, his damaged lung began producing lots of fluid that could easily result in a build up if the tube was removed too soon. Until it stopped, his chest tube would need to remain in place or he risked pneumonia or worse. If all went well and with a little luck his chest tube would be removed in the next day or two and he'd soon be ready to come home.

Hopefully, Philips would be out of ICU before that happened and she could talk Johnny into seeing him. All information from the ICU nurses seemed to point to a remarkable healing process taking place with Philips. Considering his injuries were far more severe than Johnny's that was very good news and would hopefully help to make a difference with Johnny's recovery.

Doctor Morehouse, the therapist she'd consulted at the hospital, also believed it was vital to Johnny's emotional healing for him to see and talk to Philips. She was still waiting for the right time to broach that subject with Johnny.

So for now, this was their new normal and she was slowly starting to adjust. Though in the wee hours of the night, when she was overly tired and her defenses were down, she had to admit, she was still struggling. Johnny's absence from their bed seemed to be her biggest hurdle. It didn't matter that three nights a week she slept alone anyway.

Knowing what happened and where he was produced an effect on her she couldn't explain. The first night she'd been home with Olivia she'd tried to sleep in her bed, but simply couldn't. The couch in their family room had soon become her best friend. Probably not the best place for a woman well along in her pregnancy to sleep, she mused, but at least she was getting some sleep. All she needed to do was hang on a bit longer.

She'd just finished packing Olivia's bag for day care when a knock on the front door caught her attention. She froze. Due to the nature of the accident and the high mortality and injury rate it caused, it had made the news and in recent days she'd turned away quite a few newspaper and television reporters looking for comment.

The doorbell rang a second time and she cautiously made her way to the door. Man she hated the media. Yes, she understood they were just doing their jobs, but after the hell they'd put her through during the Barlow incident and trial, she'd been left with an extreme distaste for reporters.

It was times like this she wished they had a dog. All she'd have to do then is tell them to get off her property or she'd released the dog on them. No repeatedly stating 'no comment' and 'please leave' and then finally having to threaten to call the police on them for trespassing. Unfortunately, with their hectic schedules having a dog seemed cruel. After all, nobody would be home much to play with and take care of it.

Still, they could install a dog door in the back door of the house and finish fencing in the yard. That way the dog could run around and chase squirrels. After all, if Johnny was going to finish fencing in the pasture area for a horse, then why couldn't he do the yard too?

Did pet supply manufacturers make automatic water and food dispensers? Since she'd never had a a pet she had no idea. However, if they did... Somehow the idea was really starting to take root.

Maybe she could talk him into a dog for Olivia's birthday instead of a horse. It would certainly be cheaper and much easier to take care of. It could be a good companion for Olivia and the new baby, plus a protector for entire family. Yeah, it was definitely worth the discussion.

She took a second to stop and check on Olivia, who was happily trying to dress her baby doll in the play room. Then she paused, looked through the peep hole and found a man in business suit and hat waiting on the other side. Definitely not a reporter. Who in the world?

Slowly, she opened the door. "Can I help you?"

"Yes, ma'am." He tipped his hat. "My name is Cooper. Are you Mrs. Gage?"

"Yes." Awareness slithered up her spine as she stared at the man. Who was he and what did he want? "Can I help you with something Mr. Cooper?"

He nodded. "I need to speak with your husband."

"I'm sorry, but he's not here right now."

"Oh." His brow knit. "Is he still in the hospital?"

"Yes sir, but he has a no visitors order, so you won't be able to see him." So what if that was a lie? This man probably didn't know that and Gen would make sure the order was written today when she went to work. The last thing she needed was reporters or strange men in suits showing up in Johnny's hospital room to harass him. "What is this about, Mr. Cooper."

"Oh...um...well-" He lifted his hand and for the first time Gen noted the manila envelope. "I guess it doesn't rightly matter if these are served directly to him or not. Since you're his next of kin, that's good enough." He handed her the envelope. "These are for your husband. Please make sure he gets them."

She accepted the envelope and with a curious stare looked at the man. "What is this?"

"Court papers, Mrs. Gage. The family of Mr. and Mrs. Alcott have filed a wrongful death suit against your husband."

For a moment Gen could only stare at him as his words pinged around inside her head, She couldn't have possibly heard him correctly, A lawsuit?"

"Yes, ma'am. I am sorry to to have your ruin your day like this. Take care." With a tip of his hat he turned and slowly walked away, leaving Gen stunned in place, staring after him. We're being sued?

"Mommy?"

A tug on her slacks had Gen finally looking down. "Um...yes...yes baby."

"Dolly?" Olivia held up her baby for Gen to see. "I dress."

Despite the fact that her mind was spinning, Gen forced a smile. "That's very good, baby. You made her pretty."

Olivia preened at her compliment, then turned and raced back toward her play room. Gen closed and locked the door. She sank into the nearest seat and slowly opened the envelope.

Ten minutes later she sat staring into space, the papers strewn over her lap. They'd need to hire a lawyer and lawyers cost money. It would probably bleed their savings dry and what if by some turn of fate a judge or jury found him at fault? Could they loose the house, the land and everything they owned? Her attention turned toward Olivia and she placed a hand over her belly. What kind of future would their children face if Johnny lost this lawsuit?

Johnny!

Her thoughts immediately turned toward him. He'd been moody the last few day, but better. What kind of effect would this lawsuit have on his recovery? He was already blaming himself for the accident. When he found out someone else blamed him too... She glanced at the clock and her body jerked as she noted the time as she began gathering up the papers. No matter how important this was, worrying about it would have to wait. Right now she still had a job to do and she needed to get to work.

Forty five minutes later she walked toward the bay station and did her best to shake away her lingering stress. Doctor Brackett paused. "That face is not one of a happy person."

Gen shook her head as she reached for a chart. Too much drama and too many times of being mentally beat down over the past few days had weakened her resolve. This time it didn't feel as if she had the strength to keep her thoughts in check. "I'm not." She paused, looked up at him, hoping maybe in some strange way he might be able to help. Kelly Brackett was by far one of the smartest, most level headed people she knew. If anyone could think of a way out of this, it would be him. "Actually, I'm scared out of my mind right now."

Kel's curious expression turned to one of concern and he pushed his paperwork to the side. "Why?"

She made quick work of telling him about the papers and the lawsuit. Kelly frowned. "No way was any of what happened Johnny's fault."

Gen nodded. "I know, but apparently these people think differently." She leaned against the counter as the fear she'd been fighting to keep at bay slowly overpowered her. "W-what if some jury or judge agrees with them? I dread the havoc it would wreak on Johnny emotionally and what will that do to his career? He could lose his job, his pension, and possibly his paramedic certification."

The fear worked its way higher, clawing at her throat and she raked a hand through her hair. "W-we could lose our home and our land. What if they want more than we have?" Blackness edged around the fringes of her vision and she choked back a sob. "How would we live? How would we provide for our children?"

Kel grabbed her by the upper arms, holding her in place. "Gen." He gave her the tiniest of shakes. "Genevieve, look at me."

Despite the raging fear buzzing in her head she somehow managed to followed his instructions and met his stare.

"You're going to hyperventilate yourself. Now take a deep breath."

Feeling stupid for allowing her personal life to once again intrude on work, Gen did as he instructed. With the amount of stress she suddenly seemed to be carrying it almost surprised her that she hadn't gone into pre-term labor. That's all they need right now.

"Good, another," he prompted.

She inhaled deep and willed her body to relax

"Good. Now sit down."

Gen eased onto the stool and Kel crouched in front of her. "Have you told Johnny yet?"

Gen shook her head, "I." She choked on the word, swallowed hard and tried again. "He's made such progress the last few days. I'm afraid that when he finds out he's going to withdraw again. I know he's going to feel guilty for putting me and Olivia through this, but I also know he'll internalize everything and try to handle it on his own." She leveled a pleading look on him. "I'm afraid, Kel. I don't want to loose everything we have, but above all else...I don't want to lose him."

Brackett's expression slowly morphed from concerned to sympathetic. "You're not going to lose him, Gen and we're going to get both of you through this." He paused, took a deep breath. "Okay. So we're going to hold off telling Johnny until we have a few more answers first."

She arched a brow as curiosity cracked the shell of fear. "What kind of answers?"

"The kind that will make navigating this situation a little easier. I want you to make a phone call."

"To who?" she asked and wiped at her eyes.

"I want you to start with Hank Stanley. He's a battalion chief now, right?"

"Right," Gen replied. "He's Johnny's battalion chief."

"Okay, good. Then you call him and you tell him what's going on and you ask for his advice. I'm guessing if Johnny's been served then the department probably has also. If he can't help you, he'll be able to put you in touch with someone who can. You need to find out exactly where Johnny stands right now with the department and what recourse he has against this lawsuit. Have Hank check with their union rep. It's possible they might be able to offer access to a good lawyer at a discount rate."

With each word Kel spoke, her fear slowly subsided until she was finally able to think straight again. "Okay." She took a deep breath. "Okay. That's a good idea. I'll call him after shift."

Kel shook his head and frowned, "You'll call him now, Gen. As long as this is hanging over your head you're no good to me here. Talk to Hank, get a game plan together. Then you can work, okay?"

For the first time since she awoke that morning she managed a small, genuine smile, "Okay." She reached for his hand. "Thank you."

He returned her smile. "No thanks necessary. We look out for our own around here."

Once again she found herself grateful for the friends they had. Maybe, she thought as she headed for the break room to use the phone. Maybe there was still some hope after all.