Love You Through It
by Castlefan6
Authors Note: SnowKing1701 PROMPT REQUEST - They get together early in the series and a health scare tests their love, but not separate them. We may take liberties with the events and timeline from Canon and use events to make this a more believable fiction, Warning THIS IS AU, with only brief flashes of Canon. MAJOR CHARACTER ILLNESS, NO DEATH PROCEED WITH CAUTION, SENSITIVE SUBJECT MATTER
Thanks for the Prompt SnowKing1701, I hope I do it justice.
I don't own Castle; I use the characters for amusement purposes only, except the ones I create.
Previously
"Well, when we opened the chest cavity, we saw the what we refer to as backwash syndrome, it manifests itself when the valve is damaged and does not seal completely, either because of injury or disease, in your wife's case it was injury and the repair did not hold. I know you're upset Mr. Rogers, but in a sense, your wife was lucky it occurred when and where it did. Had this happened, even if she were in the hospital, she would have bled to death before we could have gotten her to the operating room.
"We had less than 3-5 minutes to seal the leak and get her blood back flowing, before permanent or life-ending damage could have occurred, I'm sorry you're upset, but as I said, IF it had to happen it occurred in the ideal location at the exact time it needed for her to survive."
"So, Mom had open heart surgery again, along with the cancer surgery, or did I misunderstand you, doctors? Alexis was back in her Mom protection mode.
"You are correct Alexis, your Mom did have both surgeries, and will be extremely weak for a week to ten days, so that's why we placed her in the Cardiac Critical Care Unit, or CCU, only you and your Dad are allowed to visit, and please no more than 15-20 minutes three times a day, if she feels up to it." Dr. Duhigg was clear, concise, and didn't sugar coat anything, so Rick asked him the next million-dollar question,
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Chapter 12
Mt Sini Hospital
New York
11:25 PM Day of Surgery
Rick had made a few calls and Kate was in a private ICU room in the VIP wing of the hospital, hell the new pediatric wing just opened was called Mr. Rogers Neighborhood, it was built was donation and grants from Rick Castle, AKA Rick Rogers, it was not surprising that once his identity was known the family would get special attention.
The family lounge was attached, complete with a bed, shower, and small kitchenette to heat up prepared foods, it took the sting of being away from the loved one somewhat. Even though they could see Kate through the glass window, their visits were still limited to three 15-minute sessions, per day.
Lanie had taken Alexis home to pack a bag, and get the phone charger Rick forgot earlier, and when they returned Rick would lie down for a few hours. It had been a long day, but nothing compared to what his wife had endured. Rick also hired a team of nurses to be with her, 24/7, since they were employees of the hospital working their off shifts it didn't cause any problems with the regular nursing staff.
Marlene Cowell was the lead nurse Rick hired, a widow with young kids, who could certainly use the money, and one of the top-ranked nurses in the hospital. She was kind, quiet and had gone out of her way when Kate first came to CCU to ensure she was comfortable, and that the family had been kept informed of each move.
She brought along two others on staff that were only scheduled part-time hours to keep them from receiving benefits, Joanne, and Gayle both younger but with a family and definitely in need of hospitalization. Rick provided them all with complete coverage as employees of RCE, or Rick Castle Enterprises.
Marlene walked into the lounge area to find Rick staring out the window,
"Hey Rick, the Blood Pressure is returning to normal, that tells us the pain medications are working and we have the right dose being administered. I know you got off to a rough start with Dr. Duhigg, but really, he is a great doctor, in fact, he saved my late husband when he had a near-fatal heart attack. He got him back to full health and then we discovered he had brain cancer, and our world ended" tears in her eyes couldn't be hidden,
"Yeah, I should really apologize to him, once he explained what happened it didn't take long to figure out who the one who screwed up was, and ironically it was Kate's old boyfriend. The 'I Walk on Water, Josh Davidson, world traveler and healer of poor kids', I never could stand that man but if I could reach him now, I think I would kill him with my bare hands. I'm very sorry for your loss, I mean that sincerely"
"I know you do Rick; this job is really going to help get us back on our feet, I was worried about all of the medical bills that I might wind up having to sell the house, it's been tough."
"I can imagine, and I see the look, I wasn't always a rich man Marlene. I had a pretty tough start in life, so I never take anything for granted. I would give it all away, right now, if I could trade it for Kate to get out of that bed, cancer-free, and no more medical issues and walk away with me" He said, a tear forming in his eye,
"You really love her, she's lucky Rick, and she loves you too, so she's a fighter, she's going to pull through this,"
"She does love me, and my, well our daughter now, sometimes I think Kate has been her Mom from birth, they get along so well. I know Alexis is taking this really hard, so if you could keep an eye on her. I mean I'm her Dad, but Dad's don't see what Moms do if you know what I mean."
"I would be happy to Rick, stay strong, but if you need to, no one hears you crying in the shower, I know that's how I hid my tears" She hugged him, "I better get back to Kate, talk to you soon."
Alexis arrived with Lanie, looking a little more refreshed, with a bag from Remy's in her hand.
"Dad, Mom would want you to eat, I know it's tough, but Lanie and I forced some food down so we could be here when Mom wakes up, she's going to need us all more than ever now." Tears didn't fall, but they were pooling in her eyes,
"You are right pumpkin, I'll eat then I think I'll use the shower and change out of these clothes, maybe it will make me smell better, even if I don't look it," his feeble attempt at a joke brought weak smiles from Lanie and Alexis. "You two can take the next visit, should be coming up in about a half-hour, if you want."
"Are you sure Rick, I mean, she's your wife, and"
And she's your best friend Lanie, you've proved that over and over and I think you need to sit with her while you can, I know you have to go back to work. I promise you, Alexis and or I will let you know the minute anything changes," He said softly as he pulled her into a hug.
A few minutes later, Alexis and Lanie were sitting in the room with Kate, nothing had changed, she was still on the ventilator, and her stats remained good, stable according to Gayle who had relieved Marlene as the night nurse for Kate. Rick was in the shower, and Marlene was correct, no one heard his tears, but they were sure bouncing off the soundproof bathroom, almost wails of desperation.
He thought back of all the wasted time, on his and her part, more worried about who was right or wrong, at a time like this, who cared. He blamed himself for her meeting Josh, to begin with, a mistake that broke his heart, but hers more literally than figuratively. The pompous ass was still haunting him two years later, Karma, please do your thing he thought.
Xx
Lanie had left to go home, with the threat of bodily harm if she wasn't the first person they called with any updates, tears in her eyes, she blew a kiss through the window, and this time she said it loud enough for all to hear, "I love you, like a Sister, get your ass better or I will smack you" then she turned hugged Rick, and clung to Alexis who walked her to the elevator.
About two hours later, Gayle roused Rick and Alexis, it seemed like Kate was beginning to come out of the drugs and shock her body had gone through. They were by her side when she opened her eyes,
"Easy Mom, you have a breathing tube, just rest, your nurse is getting the doctor to see if they can take it off, just hang on, please. We love you Mom, it's good to see you awake." Alexis's eyes were shiny, and Kate saw the love in them, she nodded her head in acknowledgment slightly,
"Hey Babe, what your daughter said, we'll tell you all about what happened, just lie still, please" he kissed her forehead and held the hand that wasn't in Alexis's. The doctor came in and checked the chart, looked at the monitors, and then told Gayle they would remove the tube, but to watch her O2 stats carefully. He wanted the oxygen still flowing but she could use the nose cannula, provided her stats stayed steady.
"Miss Beckett, I'm going to remove the breathing tube now, you look angry are you OK?" Doctor Petrella asked
"She's pissed because you called her Miss, she's my wife, Mrs. Castle, Kate Castle" Rick replied, as Kate's eyes relaxed.
"This is going to be painful Kate, so sit up as high as you can, as the doctor raised the bed head portion, the pain in Kate's eyes caused tears to fall,
"Now as I pull, I want you to cough, I know it's painful but please the more you cough the easier it is to get out, and less chance of damaging your throat, are you ready? On three ok? One, Two, Three"
The doctor pulled gently but steadily as Kate coughed, it sounded more like a bark than a cough, but she coughed for a few minutes, till she noticed, Alexis was holding a pillow against her chest, to ease the pain. As soon as she stopped coughing, Rick fed her a small spoonful of ice chips,
"Sorry Babe, no water yet, but we got all of these babies you want," OK, as he looked at her with such love and worry,
She patted his hand, and gave the small thumbs-up sign, they finally got it worked out, one tap for more ice, two taps for him to shut up, and three taps for Alexis to come by her side, and take over. It was about 45 minutes later she said,
"I love you both" in such a horse tone, they got worried, but Gayle stepped in.
"Kate, I'm one of the nurses your husband hired, that was fantastic for so soon after the tube was removed. I have some lemon drops we can add to the ice if it gets boring, but as soon as your stats stay stable for about 30 more minutes, we'll get you that drink of water, OK?"
The remainder of the night was spent holding Kate's hand, allowing Gayle to supervise slight slips of water and then more coughing, and finally, Kate asked about why her throat was sore.
Rick looked over at Gayle, and she nodded, she was awake and alert enough to know what happened to her, so Alexis came to the same side of the bed, took part of Kate's hand being held by her Dad in hers, so all three were connected. She slipped her arm around her Dad, and then Kate said,
"Something tells me this isn't good news, so please nothing held back, you promised Rick."
"OK Babe, Alexis is here as my witness, if you have any questions sweetheart please let me get through this then we'll answer them or find an answer for you, OK? He kissed her gently, her lips were chapped and dry, as he suspected, so he had applied a liberal amount of lip balm, and her eyes lit up, as she maneuvered the healing balm around her lips"
"Thanks, Babe, I needed that kiss, and the lip balm helped too, I love you" she whispered,
"Well, we were sitting in the waiting room for such a long time, until Lanie spotted a friend from college and sent him back to find out what the heck was going on. At first, we thought the OR's were backed up ad you had been delayed, but when he returned to us, we knew that wasn't the case. Lanie, Alexis and I went to the family counseling room to be greeted by Dr. Benavidez, Dr. Richardson, and two doctors we didn't know, Doctor Petrella and his associate Doctor Duhigg, along with Lanie's friend. Kate, please Babe, this is going to be hard, so just know nothing changes other than the timeline, promise me, please?"
She looked into a pair of blue eyes, full of tears, pleading with her to accept his love, help, and to let him in, all the way in. She closed her eyes for a second, then nodded gently, she loved and trusted this man, so she would do as he asked.
"Well, Doctor B had the tumor removed, he got it all, and the cells around the wall, he's pretty sure he got it all, BUT you had complications just as he was beginning to close, you coded, and they had to shock you back." Tears fall from his eyes, as he takes a deep breath, Kate squeezed his hand, about all she could do to reassure him at this point.,
"Well that's when Dr. Duhigg and Dr. Petrella came running in, Dr. B had called them during the surgery because he didn't like the signs of your oxygen levels, and was worried, then you coded, so I guess we owe Dr. B our eternal thanks for being so observant," he paused again, this time Kate did speak softly,
"Rick tell me the part you're dreading, it's OK Babe, I got you and Lexi, we'll get through this Babe"
"Hell some inspiration I'm turning out to be, I'm sorry Kate, they had to open your chest again, this time they used the same scar line, so there will be some more pain in healing, but it was the most direct route to the heart, and they were racing against the clock. When they opened your chest, they saw a pool of blood where it wasn't supposed to be, next to a valve, they found that was leaking near the aorta.
"They said it had been leaking at least a month, so they and I thought that the radiation caused the damage, but Dr. Duhigg pointed out that the original surgeon used the wrong sutures when he first starting repairing the wound from your gunshot. He said you were fortunate that he only had time to place 2-3 sutures, that's where it leaked, then when Doctor Kovacs took over, he used the correct sutures and type of material"
"Rick, are you saying that Josh used the wrong material causing my valve to leak, and cause this new surgery? That son of a bitch, now I do have the incentive to get better, we're going to own his ass when I get well enough to sue him" she started coughing, and Alexis beat Gayle to her to hold her pillow against her chest.
"Sweetheart, just get better we'll deal with everything else once you are back on your feet. I know you rehabbed in the cabin the first time, well I hired three nurses for around the clock care, and the gym in our loft will be there for your PT when you are ready."
"Rick, I'm so sorry, Babe, I put you through Hell back then, and now you have to relive it, all I do is bring you pain, I'm so sorry"
"MOM, stop it, you don't bring us pain, this time you have us, your family and you won't be alone in any of this, I promise you that" Alexis stepped in at just the right time, Rick was struggling with his words, now,"
"What about the radiation and chemo, what's the story with that?" Kate asked,
"Well, Doctor Richardson and Dr. Benavidez are working out a plan with Dr. Duhigg that will let them move just as fast as they can, but it's going to be at least two weeks before they can start. You have to heal some, plus get your strength back, "
Kate's eyes found the floor and her face told the story, she was so looking forward to getting rid of this cancer forever, and now, two weeks may not seem long to others, but to her, perhaps it could be a huge percentage of time she had left.
"Hey Mom, Dr. B said he was 96% positive he got it all, and it was low grade as they thought, so think positive, please? I know this sucks, for you, for Dad, hell for everyone, but MOM we HAVE YOU, that's the important thing. They told us you could have bled out if that damn suture let go when you were anyplace else, and I would be in prison."
"Prison, Lexi?"
"Yes Mom, Prison, I still want to hunt that Bastard down and shove his balls down his throat, she turned red, then said, "I'm sorry, that wasn't the way I was raised, but he could have killed you Mom" Kate smiled and squeezed her hand.
"Sweetheart, if he's still alive, we'll sit down and come up with ways to make him wish he wasn't, OK, but something that will keep us all out of prison, for now, it's motivation to get well, then kick cancer and his ass,"
Alexis smile, then kissed her on the forehead, "My Mom is back, so please don't overdo it, I'll be here every day till we bring you home, and you know someone has to keep Dad out of trouble so please don't argue"
"I won't baby, I'm too tired, I think it's time for my pain medication" as Gayle motioned them out to let her sleep some more.
"OK Mom, you rest, I love you"
"Babe all you have to do now is just get well, we got the rest OK? I'll be here when you wake up," he kissed her gently as she was already beginning to fall asleep from the meds, Gayle had added to her IV,
God, why did she have to go through this, it was almost like she was getting kicked twice cancer and then the heart she already had been through hell with.
"It'll be OK Dad, Mom's strong, the worst part is over, you had to tell her, you know right?"
"I guess pumpkin, no I know you're right. I did like her answer about keeping you out of prison and do we need to talk about where you learned such behavior that you described,"
"From Derrick Storm, Dad" as Rick almost choked.
TBC
