I looked down the corridor in time to see Joey racing toward me. "Is everything ok?" she asked me.

"I don't know yet," I replied. "The doctors are still in the exam room assessing her."

"What happened?"

"Let's sit and I'll fill you in," I said.

"I wasn't sure if the hospital was the best place for Mathew to be, what with all the noise and tension and stuff, so I left him with Leah," Joey told me as we found some empty chairs. "And Morag."

She had an amused smile on her face as she said that, so I just had to ask her what it was that she found so amusing.

"Just watching Morag holding a baby," she said. "I'm not sure who was more confused and uncomfortable, Morag holding the baby or Mathew staring up at this stern looking woman who looked like she was holding a hand grenade."

I found myself chuckling at the image. "How did she end up holding the baby?" I asked, recalling the way Morag had avoided doing just that when we'd first stop in to see her in the city before coming home.

"I kind of just plopped him on her lap."

"You're lucky she had a handful of baby or she might very well have killed you," I teased.

"Her glare just about achieved that, but then Mathew picked up on her mood and she suddenly had a wriggling baby to contend with."

"I wish I'd seen that." Once you got past the gruff exterior, Morag was a wonderful woman, but she did have a sternness about her that can be off putting for some people, especially when the scowl came into play and she certainly wasn't a woman you'd dare to cross. Unless of course, you were my cheeky girlfriend who decided to put a baby on her lap. I had a feeling though, that my baby boy may just come out on top in this battle and make Morag forget about Joey.

"So," Joey said. "What happened today?"

It had been nice to talk about Mathew and Morag and let my mind focus on something else, even for just a few minutes, but now it was back to the reason why we were both here at the hospital.

"Grace was worried when she couldn't get in contact with Georgie," I began at the start. "She'd stopped by her place before work and got no response, then tried calling her and each time, nothing. There could have been any number of reasons why Georgie wasn't answering the door or her phone," I said. "She's been stressed out, so she could have just been sleeping in late or she was just so pissed at Grace and with her enforced sick leave, that she just needed time alone and wasn't ready to talk to anyone just yet."

"But Grace wouldn't let it go, would she?"

I shook my head. "At first, she tried to talk herself into thinking she was just overreacting, but given that Georgie hasn't looked well and has been acting out of character, Grace just couldn't stop thinking that maybe something was seriously wrong," I explained to Joey. "So we swung by Georgie's place on the way back to the Station."


FLASHBACK:

"Watson, open up," Grace shouted as she banged on the door. "Maybe she's not home," she said when further banging and yelling didn't get a reply.

I trotted around to the other side of the house. "Her car is here," I called back to Grace.

"Then where the fuck is she," I heard Grace mutter as I rejoined her. With her own mobile to her ear, Grace peered in the window by the front door as we both listened to a mobile ring unanswered from inside. "There, on the table," Grace said and I could just make out a phone shape sitting there. "She's definitely home, but I can't see any fucking movement."

"Calm down Grace," I said, worried she was about to go into full blown panic mode as she paced from one window to the next, peering in and desperately trying to see some sign of their friend.

"Jesus Charlie, what the hell do we do now?" she asked.

"Since Georgie's on sick leave, her car is here, her mobile is in there and she's not answering the door or her phone, then I think there is enough concern for her wellbeing to justify us breaking in."

"She better be ok," Grace said as she put her shoulder into the door. "Fuck," she muttered in pain, but she did it again and again, each connection making me wince in sympathy at the pain on Grace's face. After about six goes, the door lock finally gave way. Grace raced in and stopped short. I nearly ran into her. "There's water all over the carpet."

"The bathroom," I said and we both ran with renewed urgency.

"Oh god baby, please be ok," Grace said frantically as she slid to her knees in the water and lifted Watson's unconscious body onto her lap while I called for an ambulance.

I quickly gave the dispatch lady the address while I turned the bath tap off and grabbed a towel off the rack. "Here," I said, handing it to Grace.

She wrapped Watson up in it and held her close. "Help me get her out of the water," she said.

My friend was heavier than she looked, but between the both of us, we were able to move her into the lounge room and put her on the couch. Grace moved in behind her and held her in her arms while I did a quick examination of her.

"That's a nasty looking head wound," I said. "But I don't see any other injuries."

"Her breathing is ragged and she's burning up," Grace said. I put the back of my hand to Watson's forehead. She was right. "Charlie, that water was freezing, yet her skin is like fire."

"Grace, she'll be fine," I tried to assure her with a confidence I didn't feel.

"She'd better be." She pressed her lips to Watson's temple. "Charlie, all that water, she must have been lying there all night." She closed her eyes. "She was lying there, hurt and all alone."

"It's not your fault," I told her when I detected a hint of self-recrimination in her tone.

"I shouldn't have just let her run off like that yesterday," she said. "I should have done more to make sure she was ok."


I shook my head sadly as I finished recounting it all to Joey.

"I kept telling Grace it wasn't her fault," I said. "But she just sat there, gently rocking Georgie and muttering to herself how she should have done things differently while we waited for the ambulance to arrive."

"Where is Grace now?"

"In having her shoulder seen to," I replied. "She hurt it breaking through the door."

"Fuck," muttered Joey. "What do you think happened to Watson?"

"It looks like a very unfortunate accident," I said. "The bath was running and she was naked, so I'd say she slipped getting into the tub, fell sideways and banged the side of her head against the edge of the vanity unit on the way down. I found blood there and it matches the wound to Georgie's head." I glanced toward the room where my friend was still being examined by the doctors. "It was just damn lucky that Georgie didn't fall into the tub and actually ended up on her back when she hit the floor or she may very well have drowned."

"She's going to be ok though, right?"

"I don't know," I murmured. "She was so lifeless when we found her and god only knows how long she was lying in that water for. " I reached for my mobile. "I should probably call the station and get the number for her parents, so I can let them know what is going on."

"Perhaps you should wait until you have some news from the doctor before telling them," suggested Joey.

"You think?"

Joey nodded. "And maybe we should first check with Grace," she said. "Since things aren't all that flash between Watson and her family right now."

I winced as I remembered what Joey had told me about Watson's brother. I didn't know much about him or her parents, since she was a rather private person and never really talked much about her family. I'd never even met her girlfriend, but I'd seen the damage my own infidelity had done to Joey, so I could only imagine the double betrayal of finding your girlfriend in bed with your own brother. No wonder she had problems with trust.

"They obviously deserve to know," Joey was saying. "But if things are serious with Watson, then Grace would be in a better position than us to know if Watson would want her family by her bedside or not, once they've been notified."

"Yeah, you're right." I sighed heavily and then felt Joey's hand in mine. I squeezed it gratefully.

"Be positive, believe she'll be fine and everything will be ok."

I nodded. "How's your morning been?" I asked, wanting to talk about something else just to take my mind off my worry once more. "Did you see the house?"

"Yes and it would be absolutely perfect for us."

"Then I hope you put in an application."

"Yeah, I did," she said. "I really hope you like it as much as I do."

"I'm sure I will."

"And before you hear it from Leah or someone else, I should tell you that I had a bit of confrontation this morning."

"Did Heath or Casey hassle you?" I demanded to know as I leapt to my feet. "I'll bloody tell them what I think of them if they did and rip them a new one right before I haul their arses in for breaching the order."

"It wasn't them, so you can get off your white horse since you don't need to ride to my rescue."

I let myself laugh a little at my overreaction as I sat back down.

"It was just some guy who is staying at the caravan park," Joey explained. "He seemed to think I was actually interested in his ideas on parenting and male role models for babies," she said. "Of course, he was gravely mistaken with his presumption and I informed him of exactly that."

"God, I wish I'd been there to see that," I said with another chuckle. My girlfriend had become quite the firebrand when she let herself be and she often caught people off guard because they tended to underestimate her. More than once, I'd been surprised by her since we'd renewed our relationship. She'd become so strong and confident compared to that scared and insecure girl I'd first met. I loved that Joey, but this new and improved Joey was such a turn on.

"If he was just having a go at me for being gay, I'd probably have just ignored him, but I just see red whenever someone tries to say I'm not one of Mathew's parents."

"You are one of Mathew's parents," I said. "No matter what anyone else says."

"I know." She brushed her lips over mine. "And your opinion is the only one that matters on this, but that doesn't stop me seeing red when idiots like him say stupid things."

"Remind me to never make you mad."

"You don't need to make me mad for me to see red."

The wicked glint in her eyes had me blushing at her real meaning.

"See, I'm seeing red right now."

"Stop it," I murmured, feeling my face flush even more.

"Anyway," she carried on. "We had built up quite an audience by the time Bianca joined in and offered him her own opinion on his antiquated and just plain bigoted and dumb opinions."

"Bianca was there?"

"Yeah. Leah introduced us afterward," Joey said. "She seemed nice, not that she stayed all that long."

"Oh."

"It wasn't because she was avoiding anything to do with you," she assured me. "She was only there to pick up some food before she went to meet with her sister." She squeezed my hand again. "I think you should call her."

"Yeah?"

She nodded. "And I think under the current circumstances, she's going to be far more receptive than the last time you spoke."

I snorted softly. "You mean since now we have both been knocked up by Braxton drug dealers."

"That's not all you have in common," she said. "Brax and Heath are brothers, which makes Mathew and Rocco cousins and I honestly believe it would benefit both you and Bianca, to support each other and to let the boys bond."

"I'll call her tomorrow," I said. "When things aren't so hectic and stressful." At least I hoped things were less hectic and stressful by then.

"Grace." Joey bounded to her feet when she saw her friend. She was shocked by her appearance. Joey had never seen Grace like this. Her shoulders were slumped, her eyes were puffy and red and she looked like death warmed up. "How is your shoulder?"

"Bruised," she mumbled. "Oh god Joey," she cried as the tears started to fall.

Joey went to her with open arms and Grace fell into them. Her sobbing broke my heart.

"Seeing her lying there so lifelessly," she sobbed. "Made me realise how much I truly love her Joey and now I may never get the chance to tell her that."

"Of course you'll get that chance," Joey said as confidently as she could.

"Joey, Grace," I said to get their attention.

They broke their embrace and turned as Sid joined them.

"Sid, how is Georgie?" I asked him.

"The Snr Sergeant is in a critical condition," he informed them and there was a collective gasp from the waiting trio. "It appears she picked up a blood infection around her gunshot wound," he said. "And it's spread."

"Did that come from her treatment here?" I said.

"That's being investigated," he replied. "There is every chance that this infection contributed to her accident."

"What do you mean?" Grace demanded to know.

"It's possible she fainted and she was unconscious before she even struck her head on the vanity unit."

"Jesus," I muttered. Despite all Joey's talk about being positive, I was starting to think things were worse than I first thought and Sid's demeanour did little to dispel that fear. "What about her head injury?" I asked with some trepidation. "How serious is it?"

"Very serious," he replied. "There is swelling on her brain and hairline fractures around both points of impact on her skull."

"Both points of impact?" I queried him on.

"That's right. To the side of her head from where she struck the vanity unit and also to the back of her head, right here." He demonstrated for them by tapping a spot on the back of his head. "That wound is consistent with having hit her head on the tiled floor of the bathroom," he explained.

I hadn't even picked up on the second injury. It was possible, I suppose, that the water had washed the blood on the floor and her wound away, and her hair had covered the rest up, unlike with the more obvious wound to the side of her head. It didn't make me feel any better that I'd missed such a serious injury though. I noticed Joey putting a supportive arm around Grace. The poor woman looked about ready to faint or throw up or both at what Sid was telling them. I was feeling a bit faint myself.

"And along with the infection," he continued on. "The Snr Sergeant is also battling hypothermia."

"Hypothermia?" Grace said in confusion. "But she was burning up, not cold."

"The fever is from the infection," he said. "The water was cold and she was lying in it for an extended period of time, yet while the cold was attacking her, the infection inside her was having the opposite effect in raising her body temperature. In essence, her body was warring with itself and the fever won out."

"But she's going to be ok, isn't she?" Grace asked in desperation.

"Right now, the fever and infection is battering her body beyond its ability to cope on its own, so we've had to put her into an induced coma and on life support to alleviate the stress on her heart and hopefully, reduce the swelling on her brain. Beyond that, there's not a lot more we can do to reduce the swelling, other than give her time and unfortunately, the infection and fever might delay that even further," he told the stunned trio. "We're fighting the infection with antibiotics and trying to get her fever down," he said. "If the antibiotics don't work, we'll have to perform a blood transfusion to rid her body of the infected blood, which given her weakened state and brain injury, we would want to attempt only as a last resort."

I walked to Grace and Joey's side and asked Sid the one question we all wanted the answer to. "Sid, what are her chances of a full recovery?"