Steve walked around the house and knocked on the back door. Jack had run through the house and was now scratching on the back door and howling. Steve frowned as he again got no answer. He knew Trina was home; her Jeep was in the driveway and she always took Jack with her when she went four wheeling. He tried the door and found it was locked the same as the front door.
He walked over to the window and peeked inside. The curtains were open and he saw Trina lying unconscious on the kitchen floor.
He hurried back over to the back door and began throwing his weight against the door. Jack continued to bark loudly. He was finally able to break through the lock and get into the kitchen.
"Trina, Trina!" Steve called her name as he knelt beside her.
She didn't respond. He could hear that she was struggling to breathe and her lips were swollen. He reached down and felt her pulse on her wrist and it was very rapid. He pulled his cell phone back out and quickly dialed 911.
"Yes, I need an ambulance. I found my friend unconscious, struggling to breath. She has a pulse and it is very rapid. Lips are swollen." Steve said into the phone as he spoke with the dispatcher. He noticed that Jack had calmed down and was lying quietly beside Trina. "No, I don't know any of that. She was fine when I saw her earlier, then I found her unconscious. Just get some help over here." Steve said and gave them her address.
He hung up his phone and looked Trina over for any marks, trying to figure out what had happened to her. He saw no marks around her head or neck and the house was locked tight so he ruled out assault. Jack stayed beside her.
"What happened to her boy?" Steve asked the dog as he checked her feet and ankles for snakebites, thinking maybe a snake had bitten her in the yard.
After what seemed like forever but in reality was only a few minutes, he heard the sirens indicating that EMS was on the way. Steve rushed into the yard and directed the paramedics into the kitchen. He had to hurry back inside and pull Jack away because the coydog was growling and wouldn't let the strangers near Trina.
"They're gonna help her. It's okay." Steve said to Jack as he pulled him into the living room.
The paramedics immediately began assessing Trina. Using a tongue depressor and a light they looked into her mouth.
"Throat is swollen. Get oxygen on her. Pulse is rapid." The younger paramedic said. His badge read 'Ryder'.
"Blood pressure is low. Appears to be in anaphylactic shock." The older paramedic said. His badge read 'Irvine'.
"We need to get her stabilized for transport." Ryder said as Irvine put an oxygen mask on Trina.
"I'll ride to the hospital with her." Steve said.
"Okay, she doesn't have any family." Ryder said as he took the backboard off the stretcher.
"Get an epinephrine injection, see if she responds." Irvine said.
Steve watched as they loaded Trina onto the stretcher and secured her. He hurried and fixed her door as best he could, at least getting it to lock using the deadbolt. When he walked into the yard he saw them loading Trina into the ambulance. He climbed into the front seat as Irvine climbed into the driver's seat. Steve looked back and saw Ryder continued to monitor Trina's breathing.
"Don't worry, she'll be okay." Irvine told him, seeing the worry on Steve's face.
Irvine pulled the ambulance away from her house and started towards the hospital. Steve pulled out his cell phone again.
"Jerry, its Steve…..Trina is on her way to the hospital." Steve said.
"What in the world happened?" Jerry asked.
"I don't know. When I got to her house she was unconscious and having difficulty breathing. EMS says it's most likely anaphylactic shock." Steve sighed. "I'm going with her."
"We'll meet you there." Jerry said and hung up.
Steve looked back at Trina again. He was glad her team mates would be coming to the hospital. He could see how close they all were.
The ambulance pulled into the unloading zone outside the emergency room at Davis Medical Center. Irvine was quick to get out and assist Ryder as they moved Trina into the ER. Steve followed close behind them. They took her to the back to be worked on and told Steve to stay in the waiting room. He had barely sat down when he saw Layfield and Lawler rushing into the ER as well.
"How is she?" Jerry asked.
"They have her in the back working on her." Steve said. "Where is Seth?"
"At the station, made us promise to call as soon as we knew something but we practically had to sit on him to get him to stay at the station." John said. "Do they know what happened?"
"No, they said something about giving her epinephrine." Steve said. "She was struggling to breathe and her lips were swollen. They said her blood pressure was low."
"She was fine earlier." John said.
"I know, I don't know what happened." Steve said.
"Luckily you went to visit her." Jerry said.
"Yeah, just wish I had gotten there sooner." Steve said, his eyes on the doors to the ER.
Jerry and John could tell that Steve really cared about Trina. The three men sat quietly waiting for the doctors to tell them something. The ER was surprisingly quiet that night as they waited.
After about an hour, a doctor finally came out to speak to them. Jerry jumped up, obviously recognizing the doctor.
"Kerry, how is she?" Jerry quickly asked.
"Calm down, she is going to be okay. I have been working with her for the past hour. You are listed as her emergency contact so I can talk with you." Dr. Von Erich said.
"How is she doing? Is she breathing better?" Steve asked, still worried.
"Dr. Von Erich, this is Detective Steve Borden. He is the one that found Trina." Jerry said.
"Nice to meet you. Trina is breathing better. She was in anaphylactic shock, however we have been unable to find what caused the allergic reaction. We have checked her from head to toe and found no stings or snakebites. It may be from food. Is she allergic to any food?" Dr. Von Erich asked.
"She is allergic to banana peppers. She mentioned it to me once." Steve said.
"Shit! I didn't know that!" John said, obviously upset. "A few of the pinwheels my wife made…the ones with the ranch flavor…they have banana peppers chopped up in them."
"She must have ate them once she got home." Jerry said.
"Food allergy….okay." Kerry made some notes on his clipboard. "The good news is she is responding to the medication. She is breathing easier but we are still giving her oxygen. We have managed to get her pulse and blood pressure back to almost normal. She began running a fever but that is normal in this case. She is awake but a little out of it due to the medication. We will be keeping her at least over night to monitor and keep giving her meds. She is being moved to a regular room."
"Can we see her?" Steve asked.
"Once she is settled in her room you can. I better get back to her." Dr. Von Erich said and left them as he headed back into the ER.
"I am glad she will be okay." Jerry said.
"Me too. Damn, I wish I had known about her allergy to peppers." John said.
"The important thing is she is okay." Steve said.
After about another fifteen minutes, hospital staff told them Trina was settled into her room upstairs and that they could go see her. The three men took the elevator upstairs and found the room they had been directed to. They walked in and found Trina on the bed wearing a hospital gown, a nasal cannulas on to provide her with extra oxygen and an IV in her left hand.
"Trina?" Jerry spoke as they walked over to the bed.
She slowly opened her eyes and managed a small smile. "Hey guys."
"How do you feel?" Jerry asked.
"My throat still hurts." She said. "Steve, they told me you found me."
"Yeah, I had stopped by to see you….Jack was flipping out. He knew something was wrong with you." Steve said.
"Jack is very smart." Trina said. "Dr. Von Erich told me I had an allergic reaction to food."
"Yeah, those pinwheels you took home. They had banana peppers chopped up in them. I didn't know you were allergic. I am so sorry." John said quietly.
"Hey, it's not your fault. I know my own allergies. It is my fault for not asking what was in something before eating it." Trina said.
"What happened? Do you remember getting sick?" Steve asked.
"When I got home, I ate a few pinwheels as a snack. I went to change clothes and my throat started hurting and I was feeling dizzy. I walked into the kitchen….I don't remember anything else." She said.
"I found you in the kitchen. Jack was howling and carrying on…like he was trying to alert someone you were sick. I had to break through the lock on the back door to get in. I'll fix it." Steve said.
"Don't worry about the door. I am just glad you got me help. Thank you." She gave a weak smile and took Steve's hand.
"We better leave and let you get some rest. I better call Seth before he worries himself to death. He wouldn't know what to do with himself if he didn't have you to fuss with." Jerry chuckled.
"And I'll be back in the morning to get you when you are released." Steve kissed her forehead.
"Thank you." She smiled.
"Get some rest. Call one of us if you need anything during the night." John hugged her.
"I will. Goodnight." She said, obviously tired from the drugs in her system.
The three men left her room and walked down the hall towards the elevators. They were glad she was going to be okay.
"I need to pick up my truck. It is at Trina's place." Steve said as they stepped onto the elevator.
"I'll give you a lift out there." John said, pushing the button.
"Let us know how she is doing in the morning. If she needs anything, we're there." Jerry said.
"I will." Steve nodded as they stepped off the elevator.
Then walked to the parking lot and waved goodbye to each other. Steve got in the passenger side of John's SUV. John started the vehicle and started out towards Trina's farm.
"I've noticed you and Trina have gotten very close." John said.
"She's really something…although I still worry about the way she obsesses about this case." Steve said.
"There is a pretty big age gap between you two. You could be her father." John pointed out.
Steve sighed. "I never gave much thought to our age differences. I want to see where things go with her…but I am worried I will just be a rebound from Joe." He sighed again. "And after my divorce, I wonder if I even should bother."
John glanced at Steve. "Trina has a really big heart and a lot of love to give. We worry about her getting hurt again. But a guy like you might be just what she needs."
"What do you mean?" Steve looked over at him.
"Someone who is mature and won't play games. Someone who is looking for something stable and means it….isn't just saying that and then becomes a jackass." John said.
"I really care about her. She has so many things I find endearing…..all that country music, or how down to earth and real she is, or when she is goofing around with Seth, or the crazy things she says that I am not expecting." Steve smiled.
John found himself smiling. "Well, if you truly want a relationship with her…I think she could make any man with half a brain happy." John said as he turned into the long driveway leading to Trina's farm. "But if you don't want anything serious with her, break away now before she gets hurt."
"I guess I have some thinking to do tonight." Steve said as John stopped the SUV.
"Talk to you tomorrow. Let us know how she is doing." John said as Steve got out of the SUV.
Steve nodded and waved goodbye as John started back down the driveway.
June 30th, 0730 Hours
Seth walked into Trina's room and saw her asleep. She still had oxygen on and the IV in her hand. He sat down by her bed not wanting to wake her but she must've heard him because her eyes opened.
"Seth? What are you doing here?" she looked over at him.
"Decided to stop on my way home from the station. You didn't think I'd miss a chance to flirt with a hot nurse or two did you?" Seth winked.
"Forget it Rollins, my nurse is new and is some big girl with black and white extensions. She could throw you out the window with one hand. Nice lady but you better stick to bimbos that secretly lust for Justin Bieber." Trina chuckled.
"You must be feeling better if you are picking on Taylor Swift and for the record she never went out with Justin Bieber." Seth smiled.
"Wow…..he is too annoying for even Taylor Swift." She laughed.
"You look good." Seth said.
"What?"
"With your lips all swollen…it looks like you had those fancy injections. You have that sexy pouty look going." Seth smiled.
"I think I look like I was punched in the mouth." She rolled her eyes.
"Oh no…women are paying for this look." He winked again.
"Remind me to call your mom and ask her if she dropped you on your head as a child." Trina shook her head.
"They still letting you out today?" Seth asked.
"Yeah, Steve is coming by later to take me home." She said.
"Jerry tells me you two had quite the date at the Mayor's ball…dinner, dancing, smiling a lot." Seth said. "And?"
"And what? It was a party, what did you expect?" she answered, knowing he was fishing for info again.
"Come on Trina, you and Steve been hanging out a lot. He is even the one that found you passed out yesterday." Seth said.
"What is your point?" she asked.
"I'll call Naomi, she'll know the good gossip, she was at the ball too." Seth said. "I better get home. I am exhausted."
"Get some rest, with me out a day or two Jerry will need you." She said as Seth stood up. "And Seth?"
"Yeah?"
"Thanks for coming to check on me." She smiled.
"Anything for my favorite female officer." He kissed her cheek. "Call if you need anything."
She nodded as she watched him walk out of her room.
0900 Hours
Steve arrived at Davis Medical Center to take Trina home. He had called her earlier to check with her and she told him the doctors had cleared her to go home. After calling the Davis PD to let her teammates know how she was doing, he had driven to the hospital.
He walked into her room and found Trina sitting on her bed dressed in her own clothes. She looked tired but the swelling around her lips had decreased a lot. She smiled at him as he walked in.
"Steve, I am so glad you are here." She said as he hugged her.
"How do you feel?" he asked.
"I feel tired but the doctor said that is the medicine. My blood pressure is normal, pulse is normal. Throat still hurts." She said. "Doctor was here a bit ago and gave me my meds to take home. I already signed out. And I fussed enough that they won't be making me ride in a wheelchair."
"Let's go, I am sure you are anxious to rest in your own bed." Steve said.
"Yes and I want to shower." She said as he wrapped his arm around her.
He walked with her down the hall and onto the elevator, then out of the hospital to his truck. He helped her in the passenger seat and then climbed in himself. He pointed the truck towards her farm as he pulled out of the parking lot.
"Seth stopped in to see me this morning." She said.
"Doesn't surprise me. You two are close friends." Steve smiled.
"Big goof told me that with my lips swollen it looked like I had collagen injections. He said it gave me a sexy pouty look." She chuckled.
Steve laughed. "I would be inclined to agree with Seth."
"Well enjoy it while you can, because I can't wait for the swelling to be all gone and feel normal again." She said.
Steve reached over and took her hand. "You are beautiful with or without swollen lips." He kissed the back of her hand.
She smiled and squeezed his hand. She closed her eyes and relaxed the rest of the short drive to her house.
When they arrived at her house, Steve helped her inside. Jack immediately came up to her wagging his tail.
"Hi my baby." She kneeled down to hug him. "Steve said you were so upset that mommy was sick."
Steve smiled seeing her interact with her pet. Jack seemed glad that Trina was home. She stood back up. "I am going to take a shower."
"Go ahead. I am gonna see what I can do about your door." Steve smiled.
Trina walked upstairs to her bathroom. She was so glad to be home. She shut the door and sat down on the edge of the tub. She reached in and turned on the water and adjusted the temperature. She stripped off her clothes and climbed into the shower.
Downstairs Steve looked at the door. A bit of the frame had broken when he forced the lock. He decided to put in a new door frame as soon as he had the chance. Upstairs he heard the shower shut off and figured that Trina was done with her shower. He got her a glass of water and grabbed the paper bag that contained her medicine.
He walked into her bedroom and saw her dressed in a cotton nightgown climbing into her bed. Jack was resting on the floor at the foot of her bed.
"Brought you your meds. I am going to work for a bit." Steve said.
"Okay, I will probably sleep most of the day. Thank you, for everything." She took his hand.
He sat down on the bed by her. "You call me if you need anything today."
She chuckled. "I can take care of myself."
"I like taking care of you." Steve smiled. "Do your lips hurt?"
"A little, but not bad." She said.
Steve leaned forward and gently gave her a quick kiss. "I'll be back after work."
She smiled and nodded. Steve stood up and walked downstairs. He made sure to lock the doors before he left.
Steve drove to the Davis police station. He wanted to finish his work for the day and then get back to Trina. He chuckled to himself realizing it had been a long time since he was anxious to get home to a woman. He walked into the building to find John working at a computer with Jerry looking over his shoulder.
Jerry looked up as he walked in. "Hey, get our girl all settled in?"
"Yeah, the meds are making her tired so she said she was gonna sleep." Steve said. "What's the latest on the case?"
"Just spoke with the Morgantown police. They have still haven't had a person reported missing that fits the description of Cheat Doe." Jerry said. "They said they are still posting the picture Kofi drew around the area."
"I am starting to wonder if maybe she lied when she told Robert Gibson she was from Morgantown." John said.
"That is a possibility." Steve agreed. "I have also been thinking, maybe she is a college student…WVU is right there. With it being summer, maybe no one has noticed she is missing yet."
"That sounds reasonable too. Guess we will have to wait until someone reports her missing somewhere." Jerry sighed.
"How long are we going to leave her unclaimed?" Steve said.
"Dolph will make sure she is well cared for. He has wonderful compassion, which is why Trina gets along with him so well. He will pull whatever strings he has to in order to ensure that she is given a proper burial should it become needed." John said.
"Most states do cremation for unclaimed persons." Steve said.
"Let's hope it doesn't come to having to make a decision about it and we can return her to her loved ones." Jerry said. "I'll be in my office."
They watched as Jerry walked into his office and closed the door. They could tell this case was getting to him more than he was letting on.
"Any new leads on our other Jane Doe?" Steve asked.
"No, it's frustrating. But I guess with this being a tourist area and so many people from all over coming through here it is going to take him." Layfield said.
Steve sat down in the seat across the desk from John. "I thought a lot about what you said last night."
"Figure anything out?" John asked.
"I spent a long time thinking last night. And I realized that I have feelings for Trina. And I'd like to see where it could lead." Steve said. "Guess in life you gotta take risks."
"Just be careful. Trina has been through a lot and she is very special to us. None of us want to see her hurt. Not that I think you would do it on purpose." John said.
1900 Hours
Steve pulled his Silverado up behind Trina's Jeep in her driveway and parked it. He could see her sitting on the front porch on the swing reading a book while Jack rested on the steps. Steve grabbed a few bags and hopped out of the truck and walked towards the front porch. As he got closer he could see an orange tabby cat curled up on her lap as she read. He was glad that she was feeling better and was out of bed.
"Hey there. How you feeling?" Steve smiled as he walked up onto the porch.
"Better. I slept most of the day. Decided to come outside and relax and read while I had the chance." She smiled up at him. "What's in the bags?"
"I picked us up some dinner and grabbed a movie out of one of those Redbox things." Steve said. "Who's your orange friend?"
"This is Horatio. I named him after the guy on that cop show. He is an adorable little guy. Very sweet." She gently patted the cat. "How is the case going?"
"Well no ID on our two victims yet. Layfield helped me check out several long haul drivers with routes through the area and none of them have records of violence. But I will keep looking tomorrow." Steve said.
"I hope something breaks soon." She said.
"You hungry?" he asked.
"Yeah, what did you get?" she smiled as she gently set the cat aside and stood up.
"Picked up some sandwiches from the deli in town. Come on." Steve said.
Trina followed Steve into her house and into the kitchen. He went into the living room to set up dinner, while she went to the kitchen to wash her hands. When she returned to the kitchen Steve had pulled a few sandwiches out of the bags and set them on the coffee table.
"What did you rent?" she asked.
"Some action movie. Has that Liam guy you like so much in it." He shrugged.
"Sounds great, I love his movies." She sat down beside Steve.
"And I double checked with the deli and nothing I bought has any peppers in it." Steve said.
"Thank you. I actually feel a bit foolish that I didn't ask what was in those pinwheels yesterday." She sighed.
"It happens. The important thing is you got medical care before any serious damage was done." Steve took her hand. "But please don't scare me like that again."
"I won't. And the ER doctor gave me a prescription for an epi-pen should something happen again." She said. "Now let's watch some Neeson ass kicking."
Steve chuckled at her as she grabbed the TV remote. He unwrapped a sandwich and handed one to her as they sat back to begin the movie.
As the movie played, they both enjoyed their dinner from the deli. Trina was still careful due to the swelling in her lips, even though it had lessened from the night before. When they finished their food, Steve loosely took Trina's hand as they watched the movie.
"I got lost somewhere in this movie. A drug dealer went to him for help…his wife was dead….and what does the body parts in the garbage have to do with anything?" Trina fussed at the movie. "And who is this bird guy?"
"Okay I think the drug dealer went to him because he couldn't go to the police….and the body parts led Neeson to the bird guy." Steve said as he watched the movie.
"I know this is a movie so it's overly dramatic…but ever see anything like this in LA?" she asked.
"Had several gruesome crimes, but like you said this is a movie. Besides, I don't want to talk work, its nice just being with you." He smiled.
"Well aren't you just charming tonight?" she giggled.
"Does it bother you?" Steve asked.
"No, it feels nice." She smiled and kissed his cheek.
Song Inspiration for this chapter: 'Tougher Than The Rest' by Chris Ledoux (or Bruce Springsteen but I listened to the Ledoux version)
Author's Note- Love my reviewers. You are making working on this story ten times more fun than I thought it would be. Love you guys. Thanks to Debwood-1999 (Sunny has always been a hot mess, lol), cdajr, Paisley2 (Welcome back! Glad you are developing theories. And glad you are enjoying Seth!), carlyrosanna83, Batistasprincess, jcott3 (I just had to give JR a nod and yes that was Sunny.), and Cinnamon Muffin Punk for the feedback!