Thank you for all the lovely reviews. I hope you all enjoy this latest update.

I've also cross posted this on AO3 now and I'm considering doing an alternate ending for that version. I wouldn't normally but my reason being that I very nearly took this story in a very different direction. Would that interest anyone?

Oh and for everyone that has asked, I do have a nursing background. Although I'm sure I've still made mistakes with it along the line.

Will hears the click of the letterbox along with the dull thud of the newspaper as it is pushed through and hits the carpet. Normally if he was off, he'd be first to it, but today he stays in his seat at the kitchen table, nursing his now cold, still full cup of coffee.

It is Sophie who grabs it and as she walks into their kitchen diner, he can see it tucked underneath her arm. She looks him up and down, and suddenly he has a heightened awareness of his blood-shot eyes, his ruffled hair and his five o-clock shadow, he looks like hell and he knows it. She sighs, placing the paper onto the counter and he can't help but notice that she has folded it so that the front page isn't visible. "You ready to talk yet?" she asks softly.

His reply is sharper than he really intends it to be. "Do I have a choice?"

She inhales sharply and he sees her shoulders stiffen, but the flash of annoyance fades as quickly as it hits. "Well, I'd at least like to know how Lizzie is," she tells him.

He gives a nod, he can understand that. He had only gotten back an hour ago, knowing that he'd be unable to sleep, he had wandered instead. Something that if she knew she'd scold him for, wandering the streets of DC at night wasn't the wisest decision after all. But his thoughts were such a jumbled rush, and he had felt as though a colony of ants had taken up residence under his skin, he'd felt jittery, uncomfortable and he just couldn't rest. "She's stable," he replies after a moment, his voice a harsh croak.

Sophie sits down across from him. "What happened?"

Will rubs at his eyes, they are gritty, and a collection of sleep is beginning to gather at the corners, worsening the feeling. "She had a tension pneumothorax."

Being married to a trauma surgeon means that Sophie is familiar with the term and knowing the significance, she winces. "They get it quickly?"

He places the cold cup onto the table, looking down at the murky brown liquid as he answers. "As quickly as they could. I…uh…think she had a pneumothorax and managed to compensate for a bit with that, but then couldn't when it converted. The needle decompression failed, and her heart stopped." He hears Sophie's quiet gasp and he rubs at his jaw, the small patches of stubble catching on the pads of his fingertips. "They got her back; they don't think they'll be any further ramifications from that arrest, she was well oxygenated throughout."

"Do the kids know?"

"Yeah. Henry phoned them, they got there before I did."

"Oh God, poor Henry. Was he with her?" Will nods and Sophie adds. "You could have stayed. I would have explained it to Annie, she would have understood."

"I didn't want to stay," Will admits after a moment. "I…I left the hospital hours ago."

She frowns. "Why?"

"I wasn't of any use." He gives a shrug. "Why stay?"

"I don't understand what you mean," Sophie admits after a moment. "If they didn't want you there, then Henry wouldn't have called you at three in the morning."

His fingers tap agitatedly against the wooden tabletop. "I should have been there."

"You were there."

He shakes his head, letting out a nervous sigh before his lips purse together. "No…I mean I should never have left. When she got worse, I should have been there."

Sophie eyes her husband warily, she recognises this mood. "Would that have made a difference?"

"Maybe." His hand presses against his mouth and he chews at the corner of his thumbnail as he thinks. He replays what the surgeon told him post op and adds in what the junior doctor told him about her deterioration. The seconds ticks by, Sophie doesn't speak again, but he knows she's waiting for him to expand his answer. Another few seconds and he does. "I don't know. I…" He blinks rapidly, still trying to piece the puzzle together. "I might have seen it sooner."

"And if you had, what would you have done?" she asks him, her voice soft, calm.

He thinks for another few seconds. When would he have seen it? At what point would he have realised that it was an emergency? What would he have done differently? "Maybe if the needle decompression had been done sooner…" He gestures with his hands, throwing them outwards. "Maybe it would have worked."

"You think they waited too long?"

"I'm not sure," he admits. That's the part of the puzzle he can't quite make fit together. Ironically, he would have needed to have been there to know that answer for definite.

"You've said yourself that they can come on quickly, that there can be seconds in it."

"I know what I've said!" His voice is sharp again and he sees her eyelid flicker, knows she has registered it and chosen to ignore it.

"Then you can't be sure," she points out gently.

"If I'd been there then I would be sure, but I wasn't, so no, I can't be."

"But Lizzie is going to be ok?"

"As much as she would have been before this happened."

"Good." Sophie presses her hand against his mug and on finding it cold, gets up to fiddle with the percolator. "What time is their ward round at? If you need me to, I can take Annie to school. Traffic can be awful round there."

"It's about nine-ish, but I can take Annie to school."

Sophie glances up at him. "That's going to be cutting it fine for you."

"It won't be. I'm not going."

"Oh." She pauses for a moment. "I thought you wanted to go?"

"I changed my mind."

"Right." She fiddles about the with bag of the coffee beans. "What about Henry? Is he not keen to have you there, explain and cut through all the medical mumbo-jumbo?"

Will's knee shakes, knocking against the underside of the table in intervals. "He'll manage."

She clicks the pot into place, still she doesn't turn to look at him, and he knows why she's doing that. She doesn't want him to feel attacked, hemmed in, wants him to feel free to say whatever he's thinking. For some reason he finds the avoidance just as annoying. He wants her to be angry at him, because if he's honest he's spoiling for the fight. She doesn't give it to him though, as she asks, "What made you change your mind?"

"I should have been there earlier. No point turning up now when I'm not needed."

"I'm sure Henry and the kids still need you and I'm sure Lizzie would still want you there."

"I'm sure Lizzie will be delighted if she wakes up to find that I bailed, it will fit right into her expectation of me." The bitterness drips off every word.

Sophie finally turns, crossing her arms across herself. "Why are you running from this?"

"I'm not running. I just don't see the point in being there when I'm not going to be of any use. When I could have been useful, I wasn't there, no point showing up and sitting there now the horse has bolted."

"What about Henry?"

"What about him?"

"You said he was struggling. I'm sure he'd appreciate having you there."

Will's tone is dismissive. "He'll manage."

She sucks her cheeks in for a moment before she tries a different tact. "I get that you're annoyed at yourself, that you feel this was the chance to prove yourself, but you aren't Lizzie's doctor. You are her brother, which means you aren't sitting at her bedside to diagnose her or to monitor her condition, but to support her and her husband and children. Your brother-in-law and your nieces and nephews. Your family."

"They'll be fine."

"That's not the point." She looks at him in exasperation. "Will, you should be there. You obviously want to be. Look at you!"

He scowls at her. "I don't want to be there."

"She's your family."

"So what?"

Sophie holds her hand up and shakes her head. "You know sometimes I just don't understand you."

"I'm not asking you to."

"If it was me or Annie, would you just walk away?"

"It's different."

"Is it?" She asks before letting out a long sigh. "You know what, you're going to do what you want. But think about it, really think about it. What you decide now, you can't take back. Lizzie and Henry would be there day and night if the shoe were on the other foot-"

"I don't want to hear about my perfect sister and how she would have managed this situation," Will interrupts. "And I don't need you to give me saccharine lectures about the importance of being there for family. I'm more than aware of what it feels like to let down family and you know what I've already let them down, so why go back just to do it all again?" His knee knocks the table again as he meets Sophie's exasperated expression. "Or should I just join Henry and make his one-man guilt trip into a group activity? You never know, could make for a fun family bonding experience."

"If this is what you're going to be like today then I don't want you to take Annie to school," she tells him. "Take the day, think things through."

His teeth grit. "I promised her."

"Yeah well-"

Her reply is cut off by Annie running into the kitchen, her hair mused, sections of it standing on end and she flings herself onto Will's knee. "Dad, you're home."

"Just like I promised," he smiled. He kisses her cheek. "Now will we get you some chocolate cereal?"

As Annie cheers her agreement, Will sees Sophie shake her head at him. He ignores her and lifting Annie up onto his hip, he carries her to the counter-top, placing her on top as he gets her cereal ready. Sophie gives their daughter a smile and ruffles her hair as she tells her. "I'm going to take you to school today. Your Dad has some things to do."

"Do you need to get back to see Aunt Lizzie?" Annie asks her Dad.

Will resists the urge to frown at Sophie, knowing that she's trying to back him into a corner just like he had done to her only a minute before with the cereal. "Aunt Lizzie will have her doctors to look after her. In fact if I move some things around then-"

Sophie doesn't let him finish. "Dad will take you to school another day, but you're so important that he had to make sure that you both had breakfast together."

Annie grins, missing the glower that her Dad shoots her Mom across the top of her head as she turns and tells him. "Dad, you can have some of my chocolate cereal as well if you'd like."

"How can I turn that down." He hands her the bowl and she swings her legs against the cupboard doors. He kisses her forehead and moves round her to whisper to Sophie, "You know that I wanted to take her to school."

Sophie pours out a cup of coffee. "I don't think you're in any fit state to drive her there and back. You've been up for hours."

"I still have the car and driver Henry gave me."

"That will just draw attention to her." Her nose wrinkled. "Also, you would have to have some nerve to use that when you can't even be bothered to support them, because let's face it that's why they gave you the car."

Neither of them notices that Annie has reached for the newspaper and has turned it round, flicking it over to the front page.

"I don't think they're going to care if I use it for the school run, they have bigger things to focus on."

"Which you should be helping with, you can't just claim the perks."

His shoulders draw back. "Believe it or not I've yet to find a perk to my sister being shot," he hisses.

Annie slurps her cereal, paying no attention to her parent's quiet conversation, her attention caught by the picture of her aunt on the front page. She sounds out the headline out loud. "McCord shot. Hit in chest in assas…assas." She frowns as her Dad snatches the paper out of her gaze. "Hey!" She protests. "I was reading that. It was about Aunt Lizzie."

"I don't think it's a good idea that you read that," Will tells her.

But the words are already sinking in, and Annie frowns, tiliting her head to one side as she thinks about the words she has read. "Did someone hurt Aunt Lizzie?" she asks.

Will doesn't know how to answer, his attention caught by the pictures on the front page. There's two of them, the smaller one is her standard press photo. But the main picture is her in the park, it must be a still from that damn video. The shooter at the corner of the picture as she stands with her back to him, oblivious to what awaits her. McCord shot! The headline blares at him, the sub heading underneath declaring, Hit in chest in assassination attempt.

Sophie notices the slackness of her husband's jaw and the glaze that's settled over his eyes. She moves to stand in front of their daughter and pushes a strand of hair off her forehead, her fingertips caressing her skin softly as she does so. "They did, darling."

"Is that why she's sick?"

Sophie nods. They had wanted to protect Annie from this part of what had happened, but it was too late for that now. "It is, but the doctors are working really hard to make her better."

"Did they catch the bad person?"

"They did. The police arrested him and he can't hurt your Aunt Lizzie again. I promise you."

Annie nods but still looks perplexed "Why did he hurt her? Aunt Lizzie is nice."

Will catches that Sophie has hesitated in her answer and he can't blame her, how do you explain any of that man's thinking to a six-year old. He steps in. "Sometimes people do bad things for no good reason. And we don't ever really understand why."

"Oh." She thinks over what she's been told and Will braces himself for more questions about what happened, but instead she asks him, "Did it make Aunt Lizzie sad?"

"Aunt Lizzie is…well she's been asleep since it happened so that the doctors can make her better."

"Does it make you sad?"

"It does," he admits.

"It makes me sad," she tells him. "But I'm glad that she has you to sit with her and make her feel better."

"I told you, Annie, she's sleeping."

Annie gives a shrug. "But it's still nice for her, it's not nice to be alone if you're sick."

Sophie intervenes. "Ann, we better go and get you ready for school." She lifts her from the counter, taps her shoulder and tells her, "Go and brush your teeth, I'll come and help you with your hair." As Annie runs from the room, Sophie glances at her husband and asks him, "Changed your mind yet?"

"Lizzie isn't alone. Henry's still with her," Will replied bluntly.

Sophie gives a sigh and shakes her head as she walks away.

Daisy can hear the click of the cameras and the whirs of the video cameras as she takes the podium. Normally her press conferences are a rather more sedate affair, but since the Whitehouse, or rather Russell has decided that the State department should present all the updates regarding the Secretary, the room has been teaming with journalists looking for a new angle or bombshell to pepper their stories with.

She clears her throat softly, and despite being well practised at this, her heart thumps in her chest, her stomach fluttering. Although to be honest the latter could just be morning sickness. Nope, she can't think about that just now, that particular issue needs to go back into its box until she has the headspace to deal with it. Lifting her head and focussing on the spot at the middle of the room, she begins to speak. "Good Morning everyone. I'd like to start today's briefing by giving an update on Secretary McCord. Her condition remains serious but stable and her family continue to ask for privacy at this difficult time. I can also confirm that a Raymond Merchant has been charged with the attempted murder of Secretary McCord, he is currently remanded in custody and we are expecting the initial arraignment to take place tomorrow. The FBI will be requesting that Mr Merchant is held in custody until his trial. Now for other business of the day-"

A hand clasping a tape recorder shot up and Daisy was interrupted with, "Is it true that Secretary McCord's children were called back to the hospital last night due to a deterioration in her condition?"

Daisy frowns. "As I said, Secretary McCord's condition this morning was confirmed to still be serious but stable. I can't comment on her treatment overnight."

Another hand shot up, another voice calling out, "Can you confirm if Secretary McCord suffered from a cardiac arrest in the early hours of this morning."

Her breath catches on a sharp inhale, they are catching her out and she knows it. "I have no information regarding that, so no, I can't confirm it."

Another question is volleyed at her from the other side of the room. "What about the rumours that Raymond Merchant was a former student of Secretary McCord, does the department have any comment on that?"

"This department cannot comment on an ongoing investigation," Daisy tells them firmly. "Now if we can move onto today's agenda-"

"Is it true that last night's cardiac arrest was in fact the second one that Secretary McCord has suffered and that she has yet to regain consciousness following the shooting and that despite your departments claims that she is in a stable condition that she in fact remains on full life support."

Daisy held up a hand. "This department has never downplayed the seriousness of Secretary McCord's injuries, but she is in a stable condition at this time. I will not comment on exactly what that entails as like all of us, Secretary McCord is entitled to privacy in regard to her medical care."

"Secretary McCord is a public figure, if-"

Unable to help it, Daisy interrupts the speaker. "As the Depute Secretary has taken over her full role at this time, it means that her condition has no bearing on the ability to do her job. Therefore, despite being a public figure and a representative of this government she is entitled to privacy in this matter."

A flurry of questions continues to be thrown at her and for that moment, Daisy hates her job.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"What just happened in there? How did they manage to ambush us like that? Daisy asked Nadine as she stepped back into the private corridor off the briefing room.

Nadine's lips are pulled into a straight line. "Clearly there's been a leak of information somewhere along the line."

"But is true?" Daisy asks. "Did she deteriorate?"

Walking along the empty hallway as they talk; Nadine gives a jarred shrug. "I'm not sure. We haven't been told much. Russell Jackson wants us to keep it as nothing to see here, move along."

"That only really works if there's nothing to see." Daisy's voice is exasperated as she continues, "We are her staff, we care about her and if he wants is to project that image then fine, but surely we have the right to at least know whether it's the truth."

"I agree." Nadine cannot help but give a small smile at Daisy's look of surprise. "Don't look so shocked, it does occasionally happen. But I agree, we should have a head's up if there's something potentially damaging in the woodwork."

"So why didn't we?"

"Could be a number of reasons. As far as I know the Whitehouse updates are basic in order to protect her privacy. She was stable last night, and she was stable this morning, they might not have asked anymore questions."

"And what they're saying about the shooter, is that true?"

She gives an irate sigh. "I don't know," she admits. "But that we should have been told, because if the press knows it then I can guarantee Russell Jackson does as well. Believe me when I tell you that I'm on my way to phone his office to rake up hell over that one. He would have known that that would have leaked and we should have been equipped to deflect or explain it."

"Just being prepared for it would have been nice," Daisy grumbled. They draw level with the elevator doors. "Do you think she's going to be ok?" she asks after a few seconds.

Nadine jabs the button. "I wish I had an answer to that, but honestly." She looks up, her brown eyes meeting Daisy's. "I don't know," she admits. "You know as well as I do that more often than we'd like there's truth to the information the press throws at us. And if that's the case," she lifts her shoulders in a soft shrug. "Then I really don't know."

"But they're telling us that she's stable."

"But serious," Nadine reminds her. "So, I don't think it's quite as simple as we'd like it to be."

"Blake did say they weren't sure if she'd recover. Maybe we should have asked what that meant."

"Maybe, or maybe he didn't want to talk about it."

The elevator doors open with a ping and Daisy is grateful to see that the space is empty. They both step inside and Daisy fold hers arms across herself, her briefing folder resting against her stomach. "Is he coming in today?"

Nadine gives a brief nod. "He is, he was taking breakfast to the McCords."

"That was nice of him."

"It was," Nadine confirms. She glances Daisy. "I know you want answers, and if he wants to talk then fine, but try not to interrogate him."

Daisy looks startled. "I wouldn't."

"Maybe not on purpose, but feelings are running high." Nadine pulls the sleeve of one of her suit arms down straight with the opposite hand. "And, whether we like it or not, we have a job to do. We need to keep this department running until she's back."

Daisy gives a nod of agreement as the elevator doors open on the seventh floor. It doesn't escape her notice that despite their conversation, Nadine still speaks as though it's a certainty that Elizabeth McCord will return to them.