Face gently maneuvers Tess handing her off to Nate, Wes and Roxie. They gently place Tess' limp form into the basket with the steel still attached to her jutting awkwardly upward. The men carry Tess across the rubble in full view of the prying eyes of the media who are camped at the site waiting for the next story to emerge. When they get to the staging area for the medics, the men gently lift Tess from the basket onto the litter in front of the medics who immediately start to work on Tess. Nate pushes his way through to Tess taking her hand into his own as the medics work around him. Nate is visibly shaken by the sight of Tess in the glare of the scene lights. All he can see is the blood, the blood on her head, the blood on her face, the blood on the steel and the blood flowing from her leg. Nate wonders how much blood Tess has lost since it seems to be everywhere. Roxie grabs Nate by the shoulder to pull Nate back so they can get Tess into the ambulance. "Nate, they'll take care of her." Roxie has to physically restrain Nate as they lift the gurney into the back. Face looks down at his gloves which are covered in Tess' blood. He pulls them off, stuffing them into his pockets; he cannot bear to look at them. They all watch as the ambulance pulls away into the busy city street.
Donna sits next to Harvey watching the screen of his TV frozen to the image of Tess' body being carried across the debris pile. The camera zoomed in on Tess' bloody and battered face. Donna picks up the remote and turns off the image. "Harvey, Tess is badass. It'll take more than a building falling on her… remember been there done that." Donna nudges Harvey as she hands him a drink to replace the remote in his grasp.
At home, Jessica is also watching the footage with concern. Her thoughts are with Nathan as she watches the loop of the footage of Tesla. She knows the vigil that Nathan will once again keep for one of his children.
Louis is at his townhouse with Rose and Daphne. They have seen the same footage of Tess at least 20x in the last half an hour. Daphne wants to go to the hospital, Louis offers to take her there. As they pull up, Louis offers to wait with her but Daphne tells him to go home to be with Rose. Be grudgingly, Louis respects Daphne's wishes. The waiting room of the ER looks like a role call for Randall's Island. Many were hurt, a few quite seriously and several did not survive the fire when all was said and done. Daphne finds out that Tess is in surgery. She makes her way to the waiting area. Tess' brothers, in all senses: FDNY to blood, are lined up in the hallway in silence as Daphne approaches.
Nate is still covered with dust and dirt from the day along with Face and Roxie. Daphne takes an offered seat next to Nate to offer some comfort. Sully remained to keep order at the station. Ed came right from the station when he heard about Tess, still dressed in his jacket and tie. Wes is now off duty arriving in civilian clothes with the ever present FDNY jacket. Wes is on the phone with Frannie who is on the road with the band. Max was already at the hospital visiting a parishioner when he got the news that they were bringing Tess in. Her sisters wait at home with the children since their husbands are still on the scene. Even Paddy has arrived and he hates hospitals.
Nathan stands leaning against the window in the waiting room. His thoughts are tracing back through time. This isn't his first vigil. It likely won't be his last. He remembers back to that awful September day when he didn't know the fate of half of his children. He remembers countless visits to the ER for this and that through their lives and careers which are the blessing and curse of having 8 children.
Nathan thinks back to the night he wishes he could forget. The situation was both different and the same… the night that he kept the vigil in the waiting room while his wife's life slipped away. Nate and Wes intentionally did not share what they had seen with their father. Their collective hope is that Tess looked worse than the actual condition she was in. They literally had to load her into the basket with a significant piece of steel jutting from her leg. The medics told them not to even try to get it out of her and to leave that for the surgeons to handle. They were advised that trying to remove it could make her bleed out.
The hours pass like a century, when finally the surgeon comes out to speak with Nathan. All eyes turn to their conversation at the end of the hallway. Nathan looks back towards his children to tell them that Tess survived the surgery, now; all they can do is wait. The surgeon allows Nathan back into the ICU to see Tess for a moment and only a moment.
Nathan walks into the room desperately trying not to react to the vision of his child before him. Tess is still his baby girl and the vision before him shakes Nathan to his core. Tess' head is bandaged. There are tubes and wires seemingly everywhere. The surgeon had warned him that they have Tess in a medically induced coma to address the pain. Her leg is bandaged. Her hand… Nathan swears the only place that doesn't have a bandage or a tube is the tip of Tess' nose. Nathan leans down to kiss the end of Tess' nose while gently touching her head. He has to back away to wipe the tears from his eyes. He cannot let his other children see him this way. He needs to be strong for Tess' sake. Her brothers need to keep the faith and at this moment Nathan must summon his own faith that Tess will be okay.
After a few far too brief a moment, the surgeon and nurse tell Nathan that it is time to let Tess rest. They suggest that he and the others go home to rest. Tomorrow will be another equally long day, they will call if there is any change. Nathan knows that they are right and that Tess is in the best possible place but it tears his heart from his chest to leave his Tesla in such a helpless state. The nurses assist in shooing his children and the others out of the hospital. The brothers move the vigil to Donovan's as Nathan heads home to collect his thoughts and to wait through what will feel like endless hours.
Nathan drops his coat and settles into his chair. He sits with his hands interlaced in his hair. Before he can drive himself stir crazy, there is a gentle knock at the door. He gets up to find Jessica on his threshold with Chinese food. "May I come in?" Nathan waves her inside, he is happy to see the face of a friend. "How is Tess?" She begins to set it up in the living room for a coffee table picnic. "It is touch and go right now, Jess." The pain in Nathan's voice is obvious. The tired and teary expression pulls at her own heartstrings. "Well for most people a building falling on them is a once in a lifetime event." Jessica's comment makes Nathan laugh. "For most it is, Tesla, not so much." Nathan acknowledges the irony of his Tess. It has been a very long 24 hours. "You know there is nothing you can do tonight. She is in the best hands." Jessica serves Nathan a plate. Nathan settles into the couch with chopsticks. "I know but it doesn't make it easier." They settle into dinner and conversation. A friend eases the burden of time, too much time to kill. Nathan was there for Jessica so many times. It was time to return the favor.
Donovan's was both somber and joyful. They sit around sharing stories and a few rounds… Regular round of departmental therapy is mid stream. Tess' brothers are gathered with her friends exchanging stories and thoughts. This to is a ritual of time to kill when there is too much time to kill.