Author's Note: Read and review as always. I do so love reading the reviews. :D Thanks to my friend, the real Miss Fletcher, for helping me with the counseling stuff.

Chapter 38: Stress and Bed Rest

Micky walked with the medics into the parking lot of the school and looked around for Mike, Patty and Marcy. When he saw Agent Mukada walk out of the building with them, Mike was supporting Patty with his arm around her waist. She looked sick; like she was going to pass out at any moment. Marcy was walking next to them holding Patty's hand. Peter saw them soon after they walked out the double doors and immediately ran the few feet over to Patty. Marcy saw Micky and broke away from Patty and ran toward Micky.

"What happened?" Peter exclaimed helping Mike support Patty. "Are you ok?"

"I'm fine, Peter," Patty said. "Just a little dizzy."

"You don't look fine," Peter argued. "Mike?"

"I don't know," Mike answered as they reached the ambulance the medics were helping Micky into. "Her stomach hurts and she keeps saying she feels lightheaded."

"We'll take her to the hospital and get her checked out," Agent Mukada said. "But it's probably stress."

"Is Micky ok?" Mike asked seeing Micky sit in the back of the ambulance.

"Yeah," Micky answered.

"He fought with his dad for control of the gun," Peter answered. Micky saw the medics carry his mother on a stretcher to another ambulance and he instinctively reached out to pull Marcy close to him. He didn't want her to see her that way so turned her so that her back was to them and couldn't see.

"Maybe I should have gone with you," Mike said.

"Look, what's done is done," Micky answered. "We didn't know what we were dealing with. I'm fine; just a little pain. Nothing to worry about."

"Ok, both of you in the ambulance," Davy said firmly. "Neither of you appear fine to me at all. Mike, Peter, Marcy and I will follow you and meet you there. No arguing."

"No one is arguing," Micky said having already agreed to go to the hospital. Marcy looked worriedly at Micky to make sure he was ok. He squeezed her gently to let her know he was ok. "I'll be fine, Marcy. Go with Mike and the others. I'll see you in a little bit." Mike picked Marcy up and carried her out to the car with Peter and Davy. Micky moved aside to let Patty climb into the ambulance as well. Once she was inside, the medic climbed in the back with them and closed the doors. He banged on the side wall of the ambulance and someone up front started the ambulance and began to drive. On the way to the hospital, the medics took both Micky and Patty's heart rates and other vital information.

When they got to the hospital, nurses were already waiting for them with wheelchairs. Micky was wheeled into one room with Patty into the next room. After a couple hours and several tests, the doctors let Mike into the room with Marcy. She had a big smile on her face and Mike picked her up and set her on the end of Micky's bed.

"Be careful now, Marcy," Mike cautioned. "He's still fragile."

"I am not fragile," Micky laughed.

"You do need to take it easy," Mike said.

"How's Patty?" Micky asked.

"She's fine," Mike answered. "We've been with her for about an hour now while they finished your tests. They said she's just really stressed and that's taking a toll on the baby. I guess it was something about the placenta tearing a little."

"That sounds serious," Micky said. "Is the baby ok?"

"The baby's fine," Mike said quickly. "They said that the tear was small and she'll recover just fine as long as she lowers her stress levels. They said bed rest and relaxation with constant monitoring."

"I'm gonna help take care of her," Marcy said smiling brightly. "The nurse gave me this "little helper" sticker!" Micky smiled and looked at the sticker she was so happily pointing at. It was a large, round sticker with a smiley face on it that said "little helper".

"Well, that's great," Micky said smiling. "I'm sure you'll do a great job."

"Alright, Micky," Dr. Townsend said coming in the room with a smile. "I hate to see you back here so soon, but it looks like you're going to be fine. You did re-injure your spleen a little, but nothing that a little rest can't heal."

"So he's gotta be on bed rest, too?" Marcy asked.

"Yes, he does," Dr. Townsend said with a smile. "You must be the wonderful Miss Marcy I've heard so much about."

"I am," she giggled shyly.

"Well, I'm Dr. Townsend," he said. "Are you going to make sure Micky stays in bed for a while?"

"Yep," Marcy said smiling. Micky knew she wasn't used to people being this nice to her and was really enjoying it. "And Patty, too."

"Well, that means I'm going to have to make you a junior nurse," Dr. Townsend said smiling at her.

"What does that mean?" Marcy asked.

"Well, it means I'm going to have to deputize you as a junior nurse," Dr. Townsend said. "If you're going to take care of Micky and Patty, you need to be a junior nurse. Those are the rules."

"How do I get to be that?" Marcy asked.

"Well, raise your hand," Dr. Townsend said raising his hand to show her. Marcy happily complied and did what he told her to. "Now, repeat after me. I, Marcy Dolenz…"

"I, Marcy Dolenz," Marcy repeated.

"Vow to make sure my patients stay in bed," he continued pausing long enough for Marcy to repeat him. "Make sure they drink a lot of water, and give them lots of hugs."

"Am I a junior nurse now?" Marcy asked.

"You sure are," Dr. Townsend said. "Now, if Micky or Patty tries to do too much and get out of bed before they're allowed to, I want you to tell Mike or Davy or Peter. Can you do that?"

"Yep!" Marcy said.

"Thank you, Dr. Townsend," Micky said smiling at how happy Marcy was.

"Don't worry, this time we'll make sure they both stay in bed," Mike said.

"I really don't want to be confined to my bed," Micky said.

"But you have to get better," Marcy pointed out.

"I know," Micky answered. "But I also have to take care of you. And I don't like not moving around."

"Yes, getting you to sit still will be next to impossible," Mike laughed. "But you have to take care of yourself. And Peter, Davy, and I can help take care of Marcy."

"It's only for a few weeks, Micky," Dr. Townsend said. "And you can get up and walk around, but for no more than a few minutes every several hours. It's not like I'm saying they have to tie you to your bed. But you need to be off your feet and resting as much as you can. Same orders of no heavy lifting, sudden movements, take your medicine, but now you need to rest more."

"I understand," Micky said. "And I'll take it easy."

"Good," Dr. Townsend said. "Marcy, can you do me a favor?"

"Sure," Marcy said.

"Can you go get me a cup of water to give to Micky?" Dr. Townsend said. "Right outside the room is a counter with cups and a sink." Marcy nodded and did as she asked. Dr. Townsend turned back to Micky when she left with a serious look. It was obvious he wanted to talk to Micky without her hearing. "Alright, I don't know if you care or not, but I thought I'd let you know how your mother is. She made it out of surgery just fine a couple of minutes ago. When she wakes up, she'll be read her rights and placed under arrest. Once she's recovered enough, she'll be transported to a prison infirmary to finish care."

"That's fine," Micky said. He wasn't really sure if he cared about whether or not his mother was going to be ok. He certainly hadn't meant for her to get shot, but he didn't think it would bother him much if she died.

"The other man that was there was identified as Robert Rugen," Dr. Townsend said. "We treated his injuries and transferred him to the prison an hour ago. He confessed to hiding your parents and helping take care of your mother after she apparently got shot."

"Did Davy really shoot her?" Micky asked.

"Yeah, I guess when they first ran from the hotel, Davy took their gun and shot the windshield out," Mike said. "Peter shot the tires out later. Davy feels kinda bad about it."

"He shouldn't," Micky said. "He was trying to save his life. And Peter's."

"Yeah, I tried to tell him that," Mike said.

"What about my father?" Micky asked. "Is he in jail yet?"

"Yes," Dr. Townsend said. "He spent an hour in questioning, but said absolutely nothing. Though it's pretty obvious what happened, so they don't really need him to talk."

"Mukada said he would come by later with the district attorney to get details on what happened when you were kids to decide exactly what to charge them with for those crimes," Mike added. "Right now, they're being charged with kidnapping and attempted murder."

"That's fine," Micky said.

"I got the water!" Marcy said coming back in happily. She gave the water to Micky who thanked her and drank it. Agent Mukada came in a few minutes later and Micky relayed what had happened in detail. After an hour, Dr. Townsend came back with the discharge paperwork and told them he and Patty would be allowed to go home. On the way home, Marcy told Peter, Davy and Patty about becoming a junior nurse. When they got home, Marcy immediately set about making a comfortable place for Micky and Patty to sit in the living room with the rest of them. Patty assured Micky that both she and the baby were fine and that the doctors had checked to make sure the baby's heartbeat was still normal. She would have to go to the doctor very regularly from here on out, but Mike, Peter, and Davy had all already agreed to make sure she made every appointment.

Over the next week, Marcy made sure to help Patty and Micky stay resting. She would help get glasses of water for them and bring them blankets to make sure they didn't get cold. At first Micky didn't want her doing any of that because it reminded him too much of how she had to do things for their parents, but Mike and Peter both told Micky that she was excited to be helping and that he shouldn't be upset by it. They told him that it was a good distraction for her to be able to take care of her brother and Patty, whom she now saw as a big sister. The first night back home, she had a nightmare and woke up screaming. Micky had tried to go up and take care of her, but Peter pushed him back into bed and told him that Mike and Davy would take care of it. The next night, Micky had let her read him a book on the couch before bed and she fell asleep after reading it. Mike had tried to carry her up to her bed, but Micky asked him to leave her there. He fell asleep not long after that and they slept comfortably all night. It was the first night she didn't have any nightmares, so it became routine for Micky to try and get her to fall asleep in his arms.

Everyone wanted Mike staying at home as often as possible because no one had as yet seen his father, so Peter and Davy went to Marcy's old school and got her records to bring them to her new one so she could start later that week. Micky argued relentlessly with them to allow him to actually see her off for her first day of school; they finally agreed to let him come if he agreed to stay at the car and not stand for too long. Peter and Davy had gone to the school to pick Marcy up when it was over and she excitedly told Micky about everything she had learned that day. She seemed to enjoy school, which wasn't a surprise to Micky as he had dove into it too when he was younger. It was the only escape they had and a way for them to focus their anger and frustration. She excitedly got ready for school each day and showed Micky her homework each day. Micky helped with what she needed help with, as did the others. She had also met with the school counselor on her 3rd day of school and Micky asked her about it when she got home.

"How do you like Miss Fletcher?" Micky asked.

"I like her," Marcy answered. "She's really nice and pretty."

"What did you do with her?" Micky asked.

"She let me color a picture and I talked to her about my nightmares," Marcy answered.

"Did she tell you how to handle them?" Micky asked.

"Yeah," Marcy said. "She asked me if I feel safe with you guys, and I told her that I do. I told her I'm happy here. That I have fun with you. She told me to remind myself of that when I go to sleep."

"That's good," Micky answered.

"She wants to see me once a week and we're going to talk about mommy and daddy," Marcy continued. "She has lots of crayons and some pretty dolls she says I can play with."

"That's great," Micky answered. "I'm glad you're feeling better. How's school?"

"I'm really bored," Marcy answered.

"Why?" Micky asked.

"It's really easy," Marcy answered.

"Have you talked to your teacher about that?" Micky asked. "Maybe she could give you something a little more complicated."

"No," Marcy admitted.

"Well, maybe I can talk to her tomorrow," Micky said.

"You can't," Marcy said. "You have to stay in bed! I promised the doctor!"

"I can go talk to the teacher," Peter said.

"I really should," Micky said.

"You need to stay home!" Marcy argued. "I want you to get better!"

"I will," Micky said. "But I also need to take care of you."

"Just relax," Peter said. "Marcy's right. You need to rest. I'll take her to school tomorrow and talk to her teacher. It'll get taken care of. Trust me." Micky relented and let Peter talk to her teacher when he dropped her off the next day. When he got home, Peter told Micky that the teacher would recommend that Marcy be tested for her skill level and that they would most likely do it later in the week. Micky relaxed a little knowing that his sister would be well protected and taken care of, even if he couldn't always do it himself.