I woke up in a room, and I groaned as I looked around me. Unlike at home in Trenton, there was no other bed. The lights were dim which made me feel like it was much later at night than I wanted it. Tears came to my eyes as I thought about how scared Tia, Grace and Alix would be. I wasn't fully convinced they had recovered from me being in the hospital the last time. They were coping well, but they were still a little anxious when I had to leave the castle. As much as we downplayed what had happened, they still knew that I had almost died.

I looked to the other side of the bed, and Kai and Ranger were both sitting on chairs, sound asleep. Ranger must have sensed that I was watching him though. He opened his eyes, and joy flooded his face. He transferred over and sat on the side of the bed. He picked up my hand and massaged my palm, and he leaned over and kissed my nose. "Hi", he said softly. I waved at him, and he grinned. "How are you feeling?" I wiggled my hand in a seesaw pattern. I looked around us and then looked back at him. "The congestion is slowly going down in your lungs, so the antibiotics are working fast. Tomorrow, they are going to try taking out the tube and putting you back on a face mask. Kai is predicting that, in another few days, you'll be able to go home. We are hoping, that once you are back on a face mask tomorrow, that I will be able to have the kids in. With you not being able to talk, and hooked up to all this machinery we think the kids would find it scary." Tears filled my eyes. "Do you not agree?"

I sniffled and swiped my eyes and nodded.

"Okay. I'm going to wake up Kai and get him to do an exam." I looked at Ranger, and Ranger smiled. "It took a little bit, but apparently they are just as short doctors throughout the hospital as they are in the ER. I had to sign some more paperwork absolving the hospital from any liability in the event that Kai fucks up, but otherwise he is being recognized as your doctor." I was relieved. I trusted Kai. "Of course, it helped that a life-or-death emergency came through the doors and they were already dealing with another life-or-death emergency. Kai jumped in and saved the person's life. The person happened to be on the Hospital Board, and she made sure that Kai was given privileges while you were in the hospital."

Kai woke up with Ranger's whispering, and he smiled to see me awake. "Hey, Steph", he said. "How are you feeling?"

I moved my hand in a seesaw pattern again.

Kai smiled. "Let's see what we've got." He read the monitor readings. "Okay, Steph. Your oxygenation numbers, with the tube in, are very good. Your blood pressure is a little high, but your heart rate is nice and steady and strong." He pulled a thermometer out of the bin of equipment on the wall, and took my temperature. "That's great. You still don't have a temperature." He then used his stethoscope to listen to my chest and back. He smiled as he did. When he finished, he sat on the bed. "Okay, Steph, we'll start at the top and work our way down. You went for several tests while you were sleeping and we found out a bit. Your headache – put your hand up if you still have it." I just looked at him. Kai smiled. "Good. I imagine it was uncomfortable. Anyway, your headache was caused by not getting enough oxygen. Because you waded into the fire to retrieve Ben, the inside of your throat and nose were burned from the heat of the fire, your skin had first and second degree burns, and your eyes were irritated from the chemicals in the smoke. However, smoke doesn't hold heat that long and it didn't affect your lungs. It did, however, cause your windpipe to swell and that is why we had to insert the tube. We've been giving you anti-inflammatories to try to cut down on the swelling.

"You inhaled chemicals released in the fire. Those chemicals have irritated your lungs and caused chemical pneumonia. I'm sure that you feel miserable. We will be watching things carefully to make sure it doesn't turn into a bacterial pneumonia. But your lungs sound better and your lack of a temperature makes me hopeful.

"You have second and third degree burns on your feet and ankles, shins and calves, and you will need to stay off them. You can start to work up to more and more time on your feet as they heal. Because the burns are so extensive, you may take a little longer to heal than normal. As for your abdomen, you had healed from the hysterectomy, but you reinjured yourself. You have a muscle tear and, unfortunately, it will probably take a while to heal. It's a good thing that I brought as much acetaminophen with codeine as I did. Don't be afraid to ask for it.

"Now let's talk medication. You are on an IV, and you are receiving pain medication, anti-inflammatories to reduce the swelling in your throat and lungs, prophylactic antibiotics since we want to head off a bacterial infection in your lungs and steroids to help open your airways. You are using a tube for breathing, but your oxygen saturation is good, so we should soon be able to move to a face mask delivery system and try that. We hopefully won't have to intubate you again."

I think I looked thankful, as Kai smiled as he felt my throat. "Feels good. I'm awake now. I just got five hours of sleep and can stay up to monitor you. Do you want to try a face mask now?" I gave him a thumbs-up. Kai laughed softly. "Let me get the nurse."

As Kai left, I reached out and grabbed Ranger's hand. I brought it up to my cheek and nuzzled it, and he smiled. "I love you too", he said, "and I am so glad that you are getting better." I looked at him and saw the tears in his eyes. I reached over and cupped his cheek, and he smiled and kissed my palm. "Fuck, you scared me", he said. "Your feet will recover. Kai is spreading on antibiotic salve to make sure they don't get infected. Your muscle tear will take longer to heal but, in actuality, that is just recovery time. But your lungs scared me." I smiled sadly. "What do you want to do when the tube comes out?" I pointed at a cup that was on my rolling table. "Ice chips? We can do that", he said. I was very thirsty, and I was greatly looking forward to the ice chips.

Kai came back with the nurse. In her hands were a cup of ice chips, a cup of water, and a sleeve of throat lozenges. Kai was carrying a face mask. As the nurse set it up, Kai lowered my bed and talked his way through taking out the tube. A couple of minutes later, the tube had been removed and he was looking down my throat. "Your throat looks good, Steph. It is no longer swollen and I can't see any reason why you cannot use a face mask. Is your throat sore?"

"Yes", I croaked out.

"I'm not surprised. Not only is it still healing from the burns, but it also is irritated from the tube being inserted. Drink some water to soothe the irritation, and suck on some throat lozenges. I will leave the face mask on and If we are really lucky, we'll be able to downgrade to a cannula soon."

"That would be awesome. Could we do that before the kids come?"

Kai smiled. "I don't know, but that will be our goal." He sighed. "You realize that you won't be going into the office for a while, don't you? I know that you were looking forward to starting part days next week, but now I want you to spend a good part of your day sleeping."

I sighed. "At this rate, I'll never get home."

Kai smiled sadly.

Ranger looked at me. "You will. You might have to get Julie to do more than you are comfortable with, but you know that she can do it. Also, I have called the Gurus over to Scotland for a few reasons. One, I thought you could use the support. Two, they are very worried about you, and a vacation for a month with their wives and kids will be good for them. The last few months have been hard for them too. Three, I thought they could help do the training, and four, we have a case in front of us." I must have looked intrigued, as Ranger smiled. "Because we have a case in front of us, I have also called over Hal and a strike team just in case we need them. How much do you remember about meeting Ben Fowler in the emergency room earlier?"

I looked at him, confused. "I just remember pain and fear", I said.

"I'm not surprised to hear that", said Kai. "You were very sick." I looked at him. "And you are getting better very quickly."

I smiled. "Good doctoring."

Kai laughed. "How much do you remember about what happened?" he said.

"Not much. Just pain and fear again."

"Okay", said Kai. "From what we've been able to piece together, the bomb went off, you and Ranger sprinted to the front and by the time that you got there, Heather had already arranged for most of the injured to be carried out of the auditorium. There were three people left to be carried out, but Heather and Ranger only saw two. Ranger saw the dean on the stage, and he vaulted up on the stage, picked him up, and started up the aisle, and yelled at you to follow him. Heather picked up the person on the floor at her feet, and she left the auditorium as well. You saw the last remaining person through the smoke. How you saw him, I don't know. He was lying unconscious on the ground behind a wall of fallen chairs, and to get to him you had to walk across a flaming floor. The man was about three hundred and fifty pounds and about 6'5", and you dragged him up the aisle - that thankfully was not on fire - and out of the auditorium. We don't know how you did it, Steph. You're a true hero."

Ranger smiled. "Ben Fowler is the name of the man you rescued. He was closest to the center of the fire and since, he is the head of MI6 and we are guessing he was the target. He is pulling the security footage for us today, and he said that he is willing to work with us to figure out who did this, why they did this, and what they hoped to gain. I am throwing our elite team at it. Even though you will be on sick leave, I thought that you would appreciate working with the guys as they sort through the data. Especially with being involved in the rescue, I thought that working with the guys to solve the case would help the nightmares."

"Have I been having nightmares?"

"Yes." Ranger smoothed my hair away from my face. "The guys will be here, not today but tomorrow. We are going to have a full house, but we also are going to have a lot of people wanting to help you, and a lot of people that we'll be able to throw at the case and get it solved expediently."

"It will divert the girls, too, from what has happened. I think it will help them to have their closest friends visiting."

"Yes", said Ranger. "That's what I thought too."

"How are the girls doing?"

"They are okay. I think Julie will have her hands full tonight. Lindsay and Heather also are staying overnight. They thought they might be able to help hand out cuddles in the middle of the night. I have told them that the team is coming."

I sighed. "Now the elephant in the room. Did you call my parents?"

Ranger sighed. "I did. I talked to your mother and told her what was going on and what a hero you were. I told her that, when you were back in the castle, you would do a zoom call. She is very upset, but I don't think she would be less upset hearing your voice muffled through a face mask."

"How did she take things?"

"She was ready to jump on a plane and come to visit – and that may be something that we should consider. Ask Val to stay at home with Grandma for a week or two, have Annie look after Grandma during the day, and have your parents come for a visit. Personally, I think it would be good for them to get a break from your grandmother. It would give your mother uninterrupted time with the kids, and your dad could relax and spend some time cuddling the little ones. We could even lend them a car and let them explore on their own while you are sleeping. Would you like that?"

"Yes, but after the guys return?"

"Somehow, I imagine that your mom won't want to wait that long. You are sick now, and worrying about you for a month won't be good for them. Do you want me to phone them now and ask them to the castle with the guys?"

I smiled. I loved my mom and dad a lot, and I wanted to see them. I loved my sister and my grandmother as well, which is why they made me cry with their insensitive and cruel comments. However, I thought it would make a huge difference in the relationship between my parents and myself to invite them. I said that to Ranger, and he smiled and kissed me on my nose. "I agree, babe. And as much as your sister has driven me nuts especially over the last little while, I honestly think inviting your mother and father would put your relationship back on an even keel. Do you want me to invite them on the private plane?"

I smiled gratefully. I was looking forward to seeing my parents just as much as I was to see the rest of the Gurus.