Disclaimer: All the characters you recognize from the Stephanie Plum books belong to Janet Evanovich.
A/N: This story isn't beta'ed. Any grammar faults or spelling errors are not to be considered flaws or defects but enhance the individual beauty : )
Whoohoo ... you've really blown me out of the water with your reviews. Thanks so much. Belinda, you made me smile extra bright ;)
I don't know how to tell you; but this will be the last chapter for a few weeks. Twenty-five chapters I got finished before I got totally stuck writing 26. There'll be about five more chapters before the story is finished. I'm so sorry to break in on the regular updates; but what shall I do. I can't force myself to be creative. Give me a little time. I'm in a bad place myself right now but latest next Monday someone special will be back who'll kick my muse into gear. If I'm good, I manage two chapters per week then.
Thanks again to everybody who reviewed. I never got such wonderful feedback before.
Chapter 25 – The Accident
Two weeks later, Hal's apartment
Steph scurried through the bedroom, taken aback how late it was. Ten AM already. Goddamn. Why was she running so late? She'd been at the Aquatics Center with Cal, then breakfast at the Pancake House, then off with Ram to the gun range. Growling she grabbed her duffel and started to throw clothes for Hal into it; socks, boxers, t-shirts, sweat pants and sweaters, board shorts, bathing towels. Shampoo, shower gel and extra warm slippers came next. Today was the big day; he'd finally leave the hospital for the rehab center. Happy didn't start to explain her mood.
The past two weeks had been exhausting for Steph. Each day, in the early morning, she worked out for a couple hours with Cal and Ram, did searches for Rangeman till noon, went over to Princeton for lunch with Hal just to go back to Trenton to chase some skips. In the evening she would pack up whatever Ella had cooked for them and go back to Princeton to have dinner with her man. Afterwards they'd indulge in what had become their nightly bathing routine before Stephanie would drive back to Trenton and meet up with either Cal for some self-defense training or Ram for some gun training. At first she wanted to cancel the additional appointments; but Ram convinced her to try it for a few days and who knew, Steph found the physical exertion relaxing after a long strenuous day.
Anyway, the TLC she gave Hal worked its magic and not just did his remaining open wounds finally heal, he also gained some pounds back so the doctor agreed to release him to her colleagues at the rehab center. In half an hour Steph was supposed to be at the hospital to help him with his first official shower since the assault and she was still at their apartment, turning around to check that she didn't forget anything. Cursing, she threw her winter jacket on, grabbed the bag and bolted out of the front door.
"Steph, can you…"
"Sorry, Bobby," she stumbled past him toward the stairwell. "I'm running late. Need to hurry. We'll talk later," and just like that she was gone.
Barreling down the stairs and into the garage, she crashed right into Zip's hard chest.
"Hola Hermosa," he grinned, flashing his pearly whites. "I knew you'd come to your senses and decide for some Zip-love."
Steph smiled and pressed a quick kiss onto his cheek. "Sorry Z-man. I'm running late and my senses are all pointing to Princeton," she hollered as she rushed over to her Dacia Logan, threw the back door open to push the duffel bag on the backseat before sliding into the driver's seat.
Zip stood to the side and laughed good-heartedly. Like everybody else he had hoped for a chance with Steph; but their first date fell on the night when Hal pushed her away. He came over to Stephanie's to find her in a daze on her couch and instead of taking her out to that first-class Puerto Rican restaurant in Newark as he had planned, he spent the evening consoling her and helping her see through the chaos that raged in her mind.
Turning the key in the ignition, Steph tried to crank the motor; but nothing happened.
"Aaaaaargh," she gripped the wheel and shook it.
On the third try the motor finally started on a puff of black smoke causing Zip to laugh even more. Shaking his head he quickly stepped into the stairwell before the exhausts could envelope him and watched Steph careening out of the underground garage.
"Hal, do right by her or I swear I'll step in," he muttered as he climbed up the stairs to the fifth floor.
Meanwhile, Steph rushed through the streets of Trenton, cursing the other drivers, the traffic lights and life in general. Fifteen minutes. She had fifteen minutes to get to Hal's room. That was impossible. Cutting off someone's right of way, she sped on the Highway and thumped her horn at some slug in front of her. Hal was waiting for her, she didn't want to let him down. With a sigh, she angled her purse from the passenger seat and started to search for the cell phone. The guys would kill her if they could see what she was doing; they were all about keeping their eyes on the road and concentrating on driving. Apparently they didn't know what it meant to be pressed for time.
"Hey Baby," she balanced the cell between her shoulder and ear while putting stuff back into the purse and throwing it over onto the passenger seat. "I'm sorry; but I'll be late. I don't know what the problem is. I did my normal morning routine and suddenly I was running out of time," she hastily spoke into the phone. "Don't worry about a thing. We'll make your shower just in time," she quickly drew in a breath.
"Angel, calm down," Hal's soothing voice sounded in her ear. "Are you driving? You know I don't like when you drive and phone. You have no handsfree set."
"I just wanted to let you know that I was going to be late," Steph grabbed the wheel with her left hand while shifting gears with her right.
"Don't worry about a thing, Angel. I want you to be safe. Put the phone aside, and drive carefully. The streets are slushy from what I heard and I don't want you to endanger…"
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrgghhh," Steph's voice screeched through the receiver. There was the sound of metal hitting metal, more screams from Steph and then the line went dead.
"Steph? Stephanie? Stephanie, talk to me!" Hal shouted into his phone causing Junior to open the door and check what was wrong. "Call Rangeman," Hal yelled at him. "Stephanie had a car accident. They need to send an ambulance. Bobby has to find her," he tried to get a grip on the panic coursing through him.
~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~
Control room, Rangeman building…
"BOMBSHELL ALARM," Zero yelled over the floor, causing men come running from all directions. "Car accident on the Trenton Freeway between Whitehead Road and the intersection with the Brunswick Pike. Tracker is still functioning, cell is dead. Hal was on the phone with her when it happened. Vince and C.K. are nearby; ambulance and police are informed."
"Brett, Manny, move. Santos, pick Brown up and go after them," came Tank's calm command from behind the men's back. They all turned; but their boss' blank face left no doubt that the rest of them had to stay behind, no matter how much they wanted to check on their blue-eyed girl. "Zero, I want to be notified the second you hear back from C.K. and Vince."
As expected the traffic on the Freeway was already jamming up when the Rangemen hit the on-ramp at Whitehead Road. There was no time to abide traffic rules so they tore over the shoulder towards the intersection with the Brunswick Pike. Slush shot from Brett and Manny's SUV against the windshield of Les and Bobby driving behind them. Lester cursed; but didn't slow down. His Beautiful was potentially hurt and his heart wouldn't beat regularly again until he saw and held her in his arms if that was even possible.
"Fuck," he yelled as their SUV skid slightly on the half frozen ground. "Do you have your stuff ready?" He chanced a quick glance over at Bobby next to him. "I can see the accident scene in the distance."
"Ten-four," Bobby padded the medic pack between his legs, completely in his zone. "Just get me there in one piece."
Les hadn't entirely stopped when Bobby already jumped out of the truck and ran towards Steph's Logan or what was left of it. Apparently, the Dacia skidded over the shoulder, broke through some shrubs, down an embankment, before wrapping around a tree. There was nothing left of the hood, the passenger's and driver's side were thoroughly smashed, the whole car's body distorted. About fifty yards ahead an SUV stood on the shoulder, its passenger door dented.
"Brett, Manny, check out the other driver and coordinate everything with the police," Bobby yelled from behind them and half ran, half slid down the embankment toward the woman who'd become the little sister he'd always yearned for. The closer he came to the wreckage, the more he became aware of the extent of the damage. He saw Vince crammed in the backseat behind the driver's seat, stabilizing Steph's head while two EMTs tried to work on her through the broken windows.
"The body's so contorted that they need the Jaws of Life to cut the roof off. Otherwise, there's no chance to get Steph out of the damn car," C.K.'s features were hard when Bobby stopped next to him, worry written all over his face. "Vince got in through the rear to hold her head still. She's hysteric and slightly confused."
"Are you Bobby?" One of the EMTs shouted over to them.
"Yeah," Bobby ran over.
"You need to calm her. BP is 190 over 140; she's fighting us. Stomach and chest are sensitive, perhaps inner bleedings. She's confused," the EMT reported quickly. "I ordered a MedEvac chopper to take her to Princeton."
The firemen had already removed the windshield giving Bobby access to the front seats.
"Hey Honey," he maneuvered his legs over the crumbled hood into the passenger's side and painfully worked himself into the distorted car on the remains of the passenger seat, his body twisted as he turned toward Steph. "It's me, Bobby. You are safe, Honey. Vince is behind you, holding your head and I'm right next to you. Do you feel my hand grabbing yours?" He asked as he took her right hand into his and started to draw soothing circles on it. "I need you to calm down, hon. Your blood pressure is way too high, endangering your life right now."
"Bobby," croaked Steph, thick tears running down her face. "I want to go to Hal. Take me to Hal."
"Hush, love. You are injured, you need to be taken to a hospital."
"NO," Steph tried to move; but Vince held her steady. "I want Hal," she sobbed. "I need him."
"Listen Honey, the EMTs ordered a MedEvac chopper that will fly you into Princeton. I will try to bring Hal to you as soon as I can. I promise."
"Beautiful," they could hear Lester's yell and the next second he stopped in front of the compressed hood and cautiously leaned through the window frame to caress Steph's cheek. "No tears, Beautiful. Everything will be fine. We are all here for you. Bobby and Vince you already know. Then I am here, C.K., too, and Brett and Manny. You are not alone, Sweetie."
"I want Hal," Steph whimpered.
Les threw a pained look at Bobby whose jaw worked hard. Suddenly he ripped his head around as he felt Steph's hand go limp while her breathing became intermittent.
"Steph? Stephanie?" His voice was loud.
The EMT that monitored her through the driver's side window looked alarmed and started to feel her pulse. "She's going into shock!" He hollered to no one in particular. "Stephanie? Stephanie, you need to stay with me. It will soon be over and you'll be free," he spoke to her loudly.
Then everything seemed to happen at once. From up the embankment, men called down that the truck with the Jaws of Life arrived the same moment the telltale motor drone of an approaching chopper could be heard.
"We'll get you out here Steph! Stay with us," Bobby commanded from her right side.
The firemen threw jackets over him, Steph and Vince in the backseat and the Jaws did their job sawing the roof off the car body. The moment it was gone, firemen and EMTs appeared from all sides and Bobby quickly got upright. A backboard was handed over to him and the fireman that had entered the backseat next to Vince.
"The neck brace first, then we have to move her onto the backboard. Cautious, men. Cautious," the senior medic ordered.
It was the work of seven men and the eternity it seemed to take them were barely a couple minutes in reality. The moment Steph was free and transportable, four firemen started carrying her unconscious form toward the chopper that waited 50 yards away on the field, holding the most prepared and capable people to care for her. Bobby stood next to Les and helplessly had to watch his adopted sister being taken away from him.
"Vince," he turned around. "You come with Santos and me and take care of Hal when we arrive in Princeton. C.K., tell Manny that he is in charge of the scene. I'll call Tank on the drive and inform him about everything."
The young man in front of him nodded without hesitation and went off to find his colleagues dealing with the police.
"Let's go," Bobby turned to Lester. "I want you to get me to the hospital as fast as possible."
~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~
University Medical Center of Princeton…
With screeching tires, Lester brought the SUV to a stop and Vince and Bobby jumped off the rig to get inside the building.
"Park the car and wait for me in the waiting room," Bobby hollered back to him, already running towards the emergency entrance. "Vince, get up to Hal and calm him down. He needs to check in the rehab center or he loses his spot. No discussion."
"Great," Vince mumbled as he found the elevators bringing him to Hal's floor. "Calm him down. Ha! He will chew me alive, spit me out and then kill me slowly."
The moment he exited the elevator Vince could already hear Hal's voice thundering in his room at the end of the floor. There was no sign of Junior so he was probably inside trying to keep Hal from killing whoever was with him. The picture greeting him when Vince entered the room made every muscle in him instantly tense up. Hal was standing next to his bed, leaning heavily on his crutches, growling menacingly. In front of him stood a doctor, flanked by two aides who looked like Rangeman material themselves. Junior kept himself to the side; but was obviously ready to jump in at any moment.
"Mr. Bengtsson, if you don't calm down, I'm going to give you a sedative whether you agree or not. I understand that you are upset; but you are endangering your healing process," the good doctor was bravely holding Hal's intimidating stare.
"I swear," Hal's deadly voice filled the room, causing the temperature to drop a few degrees. "If you even come close to me with that syringe, then you better pray that I never get out of this bed because if I do, you are a dead man."
Vince quickly stepped in between the parties. He knew when his friend was about to lose it and Hal was a hair's breadth away from it.
"Gentlemen," he put himself in front of Hal and faced the doctor and his aides. "I'm sure a sedative won't be necessary. Give me a moment alone with Mr. Bengtsson and I'll do my best to calm him down."
The doctor regarded him with narrowed eyes and seemed to assess his options. "He's not supposed to lean on his crutches. His ribs are still healing and can easily break again. I'll be back in ten minutes to check his blood pressure," he nodded and left the room together with the two men accompanying him.
"Sit down," Vince turned around to Hal, his voice calm but assertive.
"Fuck you. I need to see Steph. Tank called and told Junior that she was brought here," Hal tried to take a step forward; but reeled.
"You. Sit. Down." Vince repeated, grabbing Hal under his armpits and helping him backwards down onto his bed. "Your face is fire engine red. You are sweating profusely. You can't overstrain yourself and risk a setback when Steph is needing you. Get a grip, man."
Had anyone else talked to him like that, he'd ripped their head off; but Vince' voice broke through the panic raging in Hal.
"Tell me she's okay. Tell me nothing serious happened to her," he pleaded with Vince.
"Sorry man, I can't," Vince sighed and set down next to Hal, bringing his arm around Hal's shoulder to squeeze him. "She wrapped her car around a tree. I was with her while the EMTs worked on her. She was conscious; but slightly confused. She went into shock just before the Jaws of Life arrived to cut the roof off. Afterwards, they immediately transported her to the waiting chopper that brought her here. Bobby and Lester came with me and are taking care of her and I am here to take care of you."
Hal listened to him, shuttering in face of the potential injuries his Angel could have sustained.
"I need to get to her, Vince. You need to bring me down to the emergency room."
"No, man. They'd never let you see her. You'd just sit in the waiting room. That's Lester's job. He will update us as soon as there is news. Our job is to get you over to the rehab center."
"What the fuck!" Hal shook off Vince's arm and groaned at the pain that movement caused. "I won't go to rehab. It's on the other side of the premises. I'm needed here."
"Hal…"
"No, shove it. I'm going to see Steph and stay with her as long as she needs me."
"No!" Vince narrowed his eyes at him, his voice raising a notch to make Hal listen. "I will accompany you over to the rehab center so you won't lose your spot. I'm serious Hal. Stop behaving like some single minded caveman. You care about Stephanie and your joint future? Prove it by taking your healing serious. Steph is in good hands. Bobby's with her, Les is waiting for news in the waiting room and will immediately call us. Right now, there are important things for us to take care of. Don't let Steph down."
Hal stared at him with anger raging in his eyes; but Vince knew he had him. Being able to take care of Stephanie was Hal's biggest wish and he knew he'd need more healing for that; physically and mentally.
~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~
Since Steph never got to bring him his clothes, the nurses at the hospital gave Hal some scrubs to wear and an ambulance drove him and Vince over the premises to the rehab center. Checking into rehab took some time; but all in all it was an easy affair. The four floor complex was open and cheerful; the nurses, therapists and aides they met all had warm smiles on their faces. After a short ride in one of the huge elevators, they arrived on the fourth floor that was reserved for paraplegics and Hal got a nice spacey room with an en-suite bathroom. Everywhere other patients were rolling around in their wheelchairs, chatting with each other, and though he hadn't interacted with anyone yet, Hal instantly liked the place.
"It's nice," Vince looked around the room after the nurse left and took everything in. Outside a group of men and women rolled past the door and watched them curiously. "I'm sure you'll have fun here."
"I want to go see Steph now."
"I'll try to spring you as soon as I find someone responsible," came Bobby's smiling voice from the door, causing Hal to wheel around.
"How is she? Is everything alright?"
Lester had texted them ten minutes ago that Steph was more or less fine and that Bobby was on his way over; but Hal needed to know first-hand that his Angel was truly unharmed.
"She's okay, man; just bruises and a contusion on her chest where the safety-belt caught her," Bobby tried to calm him.
"I need to see her. Now."
"Give me a few to find someone I can explain the situation to and release you into my care for the time being," Bobby stretched his fist out and waited for Hal to bump it. He could imagine how out of his mind with worry Hal had been and Vince had done an excellent job of keeping his friend in control.
~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~
Steph was fast asleep when Hal finally rolled into her room.
"Can you give us some alone time?" He turned to Bobby and Vince who'd followed him.
"Sure," the two men nodded and turned to keep Lester company outside the door.
Silently, Hal rolled around the bed, put the brakes on his wheelchair and watched Steph's sleeping form. The accident was bad, really bad, and Hal sent thanks and prayers to all the guardian angels working for his love in those moments the crash happened. Vince didn't want to talk about it; but eventually succumbed to Hal's questioning and told him about the extent of the damage to Steph's car. Nothing was left; the Logan a case for the junk yard. She could have been killed. His Angel could be dead. Hal pressed his lips together and narrowed his eyes against the upwelling tears.
"Hey," a croaky voice brought him out of his dark thoughts.
"Angel," Hal smiled, filled some water into a cup and handed it Steph. "I'm so glad to see you. There are no words for the panic I felt when I heard you scream and suddenly the connection to your cell broke."
"I'm sorry, Hal. I'm so very sorry," Steph voice quivered and tears appeared in her eyes. "You told me not to phone while driving; but I wanted to tell you I'd be late. I had to shift gears and then there was suddenly the other car…"
"Hushhhh, Angel," he took the cup back from her and wiped at the tears running down her cheeks and temples. "It's over now and all that counts is that you are alive and kicking."
"But…"
"No 'but'," Hal smiled and painfully worked himself upright and over onto the edge of the mattress. Leaning forward he encased Steph's upper body with his forearms and put his brow against hers, sharing a few precious breaths with her. "All that matters is that you are alive," he whispered and started to pepper her face with tender kisses, internally wincing at the pain in his own body.
"You are in pain," Steph cupped his face and gently rubbed the lines of strain around his mouth and eyes. "Go, sit back into your wheelchair."
"This one time, I will obey," Hal smiled at her with a grimace. "But the next time you won't get rid of me so easily.
That caused Steph to chuckle and grimace in pain herself.
"Tell me what happened," Hal released the brakes, pushed the bedside table aside and rolled even closer to Steph's bed.
"It was horrible," Steph entwined their hands and Hal started to draw soothing circles on the back. "I was accelerating and had to shift gears. My left hand was on the steering wheel, the right hand was shifting and the phone clamped between my left shoulder and ear. The gear didn't catch and I looked away from the street for a moment. When I looked back up there was suddenly this big SUV next to me and I sideswiped it. I had drifted over into the neighbor lane. I screamed and pulled at the wheel and the Logan started to spin on the slush. It was horrifying," thick tears were back rolling down her cheeks remembering the happenings. "I tried to get the car back in control; but suddenly we skidded over the shoulder and through some brush and then down anembankment. There were trees everywhere and I rammed one with the passenger side, then with the driver's side and lastly the Logan crashed hood first into a trunk. My body felt like every limb was ripped from it and I couldn't breathe; but luckily nothing happened aside from a some bruises and a contusion on my chest where the safety belt gripped me."
Steph took some deep breaths and wiped at the tears rolling down her face. "I'm so sorry for worrying you."
"None of that, my love," Hall shook his head and smiled lovingly at her. "Not long ago it was me that scared you to death when I was assaulted. We are even."
"What is it with the two of us that we constantly produce such drama?"
"Well, neither of us likes living the boring life. I guess this is our way of keeping it interesting and keeping the guys on their toes," Hal chuckled. "But seriously, I plan to share the rest of my life with you and there will always be good times and bad times; but after everything is said and done they are still our time and we can make them into whatever we want."
Steph nodded. "So what does that mean in this situation?"
"It means that we learn from what happened and grow stronger because of it," Hal lifted their entwined hands to his mouth and pressed a loving kiss into Steph's palm before lying them back onto the bed. "Let's promise to always be mindful whatever we are doing. Loving each other means taking over responsibility for the other. I won't take any unnecessary risks like going out on my own without back-up and you won't take any unnecessary risks like driving distracted. Let's always keep in mind that we are no longer alone; but now have someone else caring for us. We should do our best not to cause the other sorrow."
Nodding again, Steph raised her hand and stroked Hal's cheek. "I love you."
Three simple words; but they meant the world to him. Steph had never been able to say these words to anybody else, not Morelli, not Ranger; but to Hal she gave them freely. He couldn't believe his luck as he caressed her hand and watched her slowly fall asleep again.