Where were we? Oh yes. Right here...
Olivia was still nestled securely in Ed's arms outside of the 1-6. He was not willing to let her go and she was definitely not ready to face the aftermath of what just happened. So they stood there, tightly wrapped around each other, with cops and medics swarming by them.
"Olivia…" Ed breathed into her hair as he shut his eyes in relief. He attempted to pull her closer to him, though it was impossible, as she maintained her grip on his t-shirt.
"Don't let go," she whispered so low he almost didn't hear her. But he did and his heart both shattered and swelled up at the same time. She didn't want him to let go of her because he made her feel safe and secure. Nothing made him happier than the fact that he could provide that for his wife. But knowing why she was so shaken up threatened to break him. So instead of dwelling on that right now, he relished in the fact that she was alive and in his arms where she belonged.
"Where are my babies?" Olivia asked in a rushed, panicked whisper. Ed just rubbed at her back and put his mouth right by her ear to respond.
"They are just fine," he said, softly and calmly. "They are both at the apartment. Trevor is with them. Everybody is safe and secure."
Olivia just nodded at that and tried to wrap herself around her husband even more than she already was. She wanted to stay in his arms forever after what had just happened, but their solace was not going to last long.
"Lieutenant?" Olivia finally lifted her head from her husband's neck and saw that Chief Dodds was standing before her. His eyes were filled with compassion, however, he also meant business. "I don't mean to interrupt, but I wanted to offer you a ride to the hospital with me."
Ed looked down at her and brushed her hair back before kissing her forehead.
"Go," he whispered softly. "I'll follow behind."
"No…" she said softly. "I can't…I need you with me."
"Captain Tucker, you are welcome to ride with us," the Chief extended whole-heartedly. Ed and Olivia were there for him when his son died and the least he could do is try to ease their pain at the moment.
"Thank you," Ed said as he turned, his arm still holding Olivia tightly to his side, and walked with her towards the Chief's black SUV.
"Tar-lie?" Noah asked from his spot on her lap. The credits to Peter Pan were rolling in the background, and she was running out of ideas to keep him distracted. She hadn't heard from her dad in about an hour which had her teetering on the edge of a breakdown.
"Yes, pal?"
"We build fort now?"
Charlie looked at his little face and let out a soft sigh. She couldn't tell him no but she really didn't have the energy. Luckily, Trevor came to the rescue.
"Ya know what Noah?" He asked and the little boy's interest peaked a bit. "I bet us boys could build an amazing fort for your sister. What do ya think?"
Noah gave it some thought with his usual puckered lips and chin tap. Charlie smiled at him as he decided what to do.
"You build for like Tar-lie?" Noah asked, a little skeptical as to the fort building skill of the older man in front of him.
"Oh, I bet I make them better," Trevor teased a bit and Noah just gawked at him.
"Nooooo," he said firmly. "No one build better than Tar-lie. But, I let you try."
Trevor let out a laugh and looked over at Charlie who returned his gaze with a grateful look. He had been amazing so far that afternoon, constantly bringing snacks and water and juice to the duo on the couch. Occasionally, he would try to reach out to his contacts to try and get information but would come up empty. The longer he sat there with the two Tucker children, the bigger his fear got about what would happen if Olivia was hurt. Their silence was interrupted by Charlie's phone ringing. She immediately sprang up and ran to the back to answer, leaving Noah with Trevor to build a fort.
"Dad?"
"I've got her. She's okay."
At those words, Charlie lost her composure and crumpled to the floor in her parent's bedroom in tears. Ed could hear her reaction on the phone and gave her a minute to try and compose herself.
"Charlie, it's okay. I've got her right here with me and she is just fine. Just take deep breaths sweetheart."
"Are you bringing her home now?" She asked, desperate to see the woman who had become her mother, her best friend, and her confidant.
"No, she has some business she has to deal with at the hospital. We just got here."
"Hospital? Is she hurt?"
"No, baby, no. She's perfectly healthy. But several other officers were and she has to deal with some of the logistics and answer questions, okay?"
"I need to see her…" Charlie's tears were streaming harder at this point. She just needed to be with Olivia, even for a few minutes. To see her and touch her and make sure, for herself, that she was okay.
"I know. She wants to see you right now, too. Can you talk to Trevor about staying with Noah? I can send a squad car to pick you up. But we don't want Noah at the hospital."
"Okay, I'm sure he will."
"I'll text you with details once I have them confirmed, okay?"
"Okay. Tell Liv I love her so much." Charlie said as the tears began to flow again.
"I will, sweetheart. We will see you soon."
Charlie hung up the phone and remained on the floor for a little bit trying to regain her composure before facing Noah. Olivia was okay, and right now that was all that mattered.
"How many?" Olivia asked in a hoarse whisper. Once they arrived at the hospital, Chief Dodds immediately brought the Tuckers to a conference room where they met with a hospital administrator. They were still awaiting the arrival of the Mayor and the Police Commissioner, but until then the hospital was prepared to brief Olivia, Ed, and Chief Dodds.
"Five total were DOA," the lady said solemnly. "And another four are in critical, but stable condition."
Olivia's head fell forward at that and Ed squeezed her hand tightly. His stomach was in knots at the number of officers killed and hurt in the same room as his wife. And he knew her well enough to know that she was already feeling responsible.
"Lieutenant, we will need you to help ID those we have here," she said softly, sensing the blame and sadness that was overwhelming the other woman in front of her. Olivia raised her head and nodded to her.
"Okay," she said softly. "Let's go. I don't want their families having to wait."
Ed wasn't quite ready to let Olivia out of his sight, but he didn't seem to have an option. He stood with her and gave her a quick, but tight hug.
"I'll be right here," he whispered in her ear as he kissed at her temple. "You can do this."
Olivia lifted her head to meet his eyes and give him a soft, sad smile, before departing the room with the administrator. As soon as she was out of his sight, Ed sat back down and put his head in his hands. Chief Dodds sat quietly for a minute, before deciding to break the silence.
"I've got a squad car on the way to get Charlie," he said as Ed lifted his head and looked at him with grateful, but tired eyes.
"Thank you," he said. "I appreciate it."
"Of course," Dodds said. "Anything you need. I mean it."
Ed just gave him a nod, unable to continue the small talk. He wasn't thrilled with the idea of being separated from Olivia right now, but he knew that duty called and she had a long road ahead of her before she would be allowed to just collapse into his arms for good. He took a moment to be grateful for the fact that Charlie said Noah seemed oblivious to the fact that there was a real problem. He had been a little clingy, but once issued the challenge to build a better fort than Charlie, he was determined.
"Come on, Tevor!" He had yelled as Charlie had departed the apartment.
Ed thought back to the text exchange with his daughter and was suddenly anxious to have her with him while he waited on Olivia.
"Captain Tucker," came a voice from the doorway. Ed looked up and immediately felt a bit of relief.
"Fin," he said and stood to shake the man's hand. "How are you holding up, Sergeant?"
"I've been better," he said gruffly, before taking a seat next to Ed.
"From what I hear, you are a hero," Ed said softly. He wasn't much for this kind of conversation, but the little he knew about what went on the 1-6 was that Fin and Olivia likely saved a lot of lives.
"We lost too many, Captain," Fin replied. "That's all I know."
They sat there for a little while longer, just the two of them as the Chief had gone to greet the Mayor. Ed surprisingly wanted to throw his arms around Fin and thank him for getting his wife out alive. But that wasn't a very appropriate move at this point. So instead, he just cleared his throat and played with the cup of coffee in front of him before speak.
"You didn't lose Olivia," he whispered loud enough for Fin to hear and snap his head towards him. "Thank you."
"She means too much to me. To everyone," Fin said simply. "She may hate me for jumping in front of her, but I don't care. I'd do it a million times over."
"I have so many questions about what happened," Ed said as he rubbed his face. "But I'm not sure I can hear the answers until I have Olivia back in my sight."
"That's a wise move, Captain," Fin said with a little warning in his voice. "We are damn lucky right now."
Ed just looked at Fin and tried to take in exactly what he meant by that. Instead of analyzing and picturing the horror that his wife just experienced, he decided to sip his coffee and text Charlie for an ETA. He was ready for his wife and two kids to be back under the same roof.
"Amy Littrell's husband is on his way," Commissioner Bratton said as he and Olivia exited the hospital morgue. After going through the daunting task of confirming the identity of each fallen officer, she was on the verge of falling apart.
"Good," she replied, her voice strained with emotion. The Commissioner reached out to grab her arm, stilling her movements for a minute.
"Lieutenant," he said. "You saved a lot of lives today. I can't imagine how you are feeling right now. So if it's all right with you, I can handle the press conference. You go home to your family."
Olivia looked up at the older man with a grateful, tight smile. Any other time she would have argued that she should be present and involved. But at this point in her life, with everything she had faced over the years, she just didn't have it in her. There was no need to put herself through that pressor if someone else could do it for her. And she just wanted her babies and her husband with her as soon as possible. So she gave him a nod.
"Thank you, Commissioner," she said. "Thank you."
"No, thank you," he said. "We'll be in touch."
With that, he briskly walked down the corridor leaving Olivia to herself for the first time that day. Realizing that she was too dazed to find her way back to Ed, she sent him a quick text message letting him know where she was. He could just come find her. She took a quick glance around the hallway, and deciding she was alone allowed herself to collapse her forehead against the wall with her hands tangled in her hair. Her thoughts were running rampant at that point and she was never more grateful for the compassion of the NYPD Commissioner. All of the possible horrific outcomes were still running through her mind, along with Amy's pale face. She must have stayed in that position longer than she thought because she soon heard a distant ding from an elevator, a few footsteps, and then a gasp. As she looked up, she finally allowed her tears to flow as she watched Charlie sprint towards her.
"Oh baby girl," she gushed as she opened her arms to catch her incoming daughter. As soon as Charlie made contact with her, both women let out a little sob. Charlie's arms were wrapped tightly around Olivia's waste and her face was buried in her neck. Olivia held her tightly as her eyes met Ed's. His eyes mirrored the tears in her own and she eventually had to look away, burying her own face in Charlie's hair.
"Mom…" she sobbed out, catching Olivia a little off-guard. It was the first time she had referred to her as mom and it felt incredibly right in that moment, so she squeezed her tighter to her.
"I'm right here," she whispered straight into her ear. "I'm here. I'm okay. Everything is okay, baby."
Charlie pulled herself back just a bit, remaining in Olivia's embrace but still able to look into her eyes.
"You promise you are okay?" Charlie asked, nothing but fear and concern in her eyes. Olivia looked straight into them and cupped her face in her hands.
"I promise I am just fine, Charlie," she said firmly. "In fact, the Commissioner just told me I could head home."
"Really?" Ed asked as he came up to his girls, and put one hand on each of their shoulders.
"Yeah, really," she said while looking up at him. He gave her a quick kiss on the lips and then kissed Charlie's forehead.
"Well in that case, let's get you home and get our family back together," Ed stated as he began to lead them towards the elevator. It would be a long road to recovery for their little unit, but he was determined to help them navigate it. As the elevator doors closed, Charlie laid her head on Olivia's shoulder and Ed wrapped his one arm around his wife's waist. He sent up a quick thank you to whatever higher power kept his family alive and together that day. It was nothing short of a miracle.
Well. Our favorite little family has a lot to work through, don't they? Leave me a review and let me know what you think...or what you'd like to see along the way...