***Thanks for all the reviews and follows and such. I appreciate it.***
Ninety minutes later, Lorelai's cellphone rang with an unfamiliar number. It was late and she was tired, so she silenced the call. She shrugged and put her phone on the counter. Lorelai, Luke, and Jess were still at the diner. They were talking as Luke closed-up for the night. Jess was helping with the mopping while Lorelai at pie. A few minutes later, she noticed that the caller left a message. "Hello, this is Henry Jackson calling from the Connecticut State Police." She sat up straighter and continued to listen. "I'm calling because you are the registered owner of a beige Jeep Wrangler." Her eyes widened as the message continued. "This vehicle was involved in an accident tonight. Please return my call for more information at…" She didn't hear the rest of the message as tears ran down her face.
Luke and Jess both noticed her reaction to the call as she began sobbing hysterically. Luke implored her to tell them what happened. "What? What's wrong?"
In between sobs, she pushed her cellphone across the counter to him. He played the message on speakerphone so that Jess could listen too. Once they heard the news, Luke said, "Well, we need to call him back, right?" Lorelai just cried and cried. "Do you want me to call?" She nodded as she wiped her eyes.
Five minutes later, they learned that Rory was unconscious and was being taken to Hartford Memorial. The Jeep was likely totaled and was being towed to a salvage yard. It appeared to be a single vehicle accident. They would have to get any more information about Rory at the hospital.
Luke grabbed his coat and turned off the diner lights. "Okay, let's go."
Lorelai just stared at him, not being able to put thoughts together. Finally she said, "Luke, she's unconscious. What if she never wakes up? What about the baby?"
Jess jumped into action and said, "Let's go find out." He put Lorelai's coat around her shoulders and ushered her into the backseat of his Subaru Crosstrek. He motioned for Luke to get in with her and he would drive. Jess started driving and they were off.
Luke said, "Okay, Logan needs to know. You should call him."
Lorelai sobbed. "We don't know anything yet. I shouldn't call until I have something to tell him."
Jess interjected. "You have something to tell him. His fiancé and unborn baby were in an accident. Rory would want you to tell him right away."
Luke nodded. "I think so too." Lorelai shrugged and held out her phone to him. "You want ME to call him?"
Lorelai nodded. "I can't say the words. His number is in my phone."
Luke took the phone from her and found Logan in the directory. He touched Logan's name on the screen, pressed the phone to his ear and waited. Luke wondered what the time difference was between Connecticut and London, but he didn't care much.
Logan answered the phone quickly, "Logan Huntzberger."
"Hey, Logan. Its Luke Danes." Luke said quickly.
"Luke? What's up?" Logan asked as got concerned. He knew Luke wasn't a guy who would just call him out of the blue.
"Well, Logan. Umm… I don't have a lot of information yet, but Rory was in a car accident."
Logan gasped. "Luke, is she okay?" As soon as he asked, he realized that she would have called herself if she was okay.
Luke took a deep breath. "So, we don't know a whole lot yet. We're on our way to the hospital in Hartford. Rory borrowed Lorelai's Jeep to drive to Hartford to meet Paris. But then we got a call from the state police. The Jeep had been in an accident. The driver was unconscious and being taken to Hartford Memorial."
Logan was at a loss for words. "Oh my God, Luke. I….. I…..," he just trailed off.
Luke said, "We're on our way to the hospital now. The police officer said that he had no more information, and we could find out more at the hospital. The Jeep is probably a total loss. It was on its side when they found it." Luke waited for Logan to absorb what he'd said. "Logan, are you okay?"
Logan's voice cracked as he said, "Luke, they are my whole life. Please….."
Luke's voice dropped as he said, "I know. I'll text you as soon as we get any information." He answered Logan's unasked plea.
Logan said, "Luke, I'm on the next flight out. I'll be there as soon as I can. Thank you for letting me know."
"Travel safe, Logan," Luke said as Logan disconnected the call.
Logan was preparing to leave for work in London when he received the call. While he randomly threw clothes and toiletries in a bag, he called his assistant. He let him know that Rory was in an accident and needed a flight to Hartford as soon as humanly possible. Logan told him that he was on his way to the airport, and he needed to be in the air immediately. He also asked him to let Mitchum know that he was on his way out of town. Once he was out the door, he jumped into his hired car and said, "Change of plans: I need to get to Heathrow, as fast as you can, please," as he threw his carryon bag next to him on the seat.
A few minutes later, Logan's phone chimed, indicating a text. He checked it and saw a text from Mitchum that read, "I'll meet you at Heathrow. We'll take my jet – I already have the filing the flight plan." Logan took a deep breath at the thought of having to deal with whatever he was facing AND dealing with his father. He tolerated Mitchum in small doses (at best) but he couldn't say no to using the jet and a direct flight to Hartford. As he sat in the town car and waited to arrive at the airport, he was more nervous than he ever had been in his life.
The irony of the situation was not lost on Logan. Ten years ago, he and Rory were fighting, and he went to Costa Rica with the Life & Death Brigade to celebrate graduation. When he left for Costa Rica, he was certain that their relationship was dead – and he was responsible for its demise. Before Rory, he probably would have hooked up with several of the single girls on the trip just for something to do. 'Get drunk, get high and get laid' was pretty much the theme of the Life & Death Brigade trips. But he had no interest in meaningless sex – not anymore. Logan had changed. He was happy to get drunk and slightly high, but he needed to know that he would be able to hold his sweetheart tight against his chest as he slept. He spent the past six days being virtually ignored by Rory – not that he didn't deserve it. Taking the trip without her was a small sample of what life might be like without her, and he hated it. He drank as much as possible, did as many drugs as he could access and flung himself off the cliff not caring about anything. The drugs and the drinks didn't dull the heartache. Logan found out later that he had been airlifted to New York on a fixed wing medical-grade aircraft after being stabilized in Costa Rica. Rory had received a phone call and rushed to the hospital to be at his side for whatever was next. Now, Logan was the one terrified that he could lose HER. HE was the one who was scared. HE was the one who had to wait and beg for information.
Lorelai, Luke and Jess reached the hospital as the snow started to fall. Jess dropped them off at the Emergency Department as he went to park the car. Luke grabbed Lorelai by the shoulders and said, "She going to be okay. I just know she will." Lorelai collapsed in his arms. They stood there holding each other while she sobbed. They were still that way when Jess returned from parking the car. He rubbed Lorelai awkwardly on the shoulder and said, "Let's go find out that she's okay." Lorelai led them into the Emergency Department and walked to the information desk. Jess hung back a little to give them privacy, but Luke was at Lorelai's side. Lorelai whispered a plea for information about her daughter to the admissions clerk. Jess recited every prayer he could remember over and over until they came back with news.
A nurse brought Lorelai and Luke into a smaller conference room so that a doctor could inform them about Rory's condition. A tiny, skinny, pale man in scrubs and rimless glasses addressed Lorelai. He was carrying an iPad and had pulled up her chart for accurate information. "You're the family of Lorelai Gilmore?" he asked Luke and Lorelai in a very controlled voice.
Luke replied, "Doc, we're her stepfather and mother. Please give us some good news."
Lorelai repeated the plea, "Please. How is my daughter?"
Dr. Rose said, "Lorelai…."
Lorelai interrupted and said, "Rory. She goes by Rory."
Dr. Rose began again, "Okay, Rory is still unconscious. She is stable, but she remains unconscious."
"BUT SHE'S ALIVE?!" Lorelai implored Dr. Rose.
"Oh, yes. Rory is alive and well. She has a number of bruises and scratches and cuts. She also appears to have a bit of hypothermia, as she was subject to the elements for quite some time. She is being taken for a CT scan right now and you can be with her afterwards."
"Oh, thank goodness," Lorelai said with tears streaming down her face.
Luke asked, "Rory is expecting. Do you know anything about the baby yet?"
Dr. Rose shook his head. "We plan to perform an ultrasound after the CT scan. OB will be down to perform a full exam as well. Right now, we are concerned about major organ damage or bleeding."
Lorelai wiped her eyes and asked, "How long until she might wake up?"
"We're going to have to wait and see. Our first priority was to warm her up and now we are checking to see what might be wrong. Her temp is still low, but her vitals are stable." Dr. Rose took a breath. "I know this isn't easy, but its best that you try to remain calm and think good thoughts. Patients who recover from comas often report that they hear their loved ones while they are resting. So, when you visit her, be calm and positive."
Luke nodded. "We can do that. Thank you, Doctor." Luke shook his hand as he left.
Lorelai sat down on the small couch in the conference room and said, "We should let Logan know." She passed her phone to Luke.
Luke texted Logan, "Rory is alive and unconscious. She had to be treated for hypothermia, but they got her temperature back up. She has many bruises and cuts, but stable vitals. She is having a CT scan right now to figure out more. We don't know about the baby yet. We haven't seen her yet. I will let you know details as we get them."
Logan was settling into his seat on Mitchum's personal jet as his phone chimed again with Luke's text. He involuntarily clutched his phone to his chest and had to stop himself from hyperventilating. Mitchum paused in the doorway while he watched Logan wipe his eyes and take several deep breaths. He had never seen Logan so concerned about anyone or anything ever in his life – it was startling.
Mitchum cleared his throat a little, mostly to alert Logan of his presence. While Mitchum was here to support Logan, he was prepared to make up an excuse if asked.
Logan sniffled a little as he looked up at Mitchum. He blinked a little and absent-mindedly said, "Hey, Dad."
Mitchum settled in the seat next to Logan. "So… how are things?" he asked his son.
Logan handed Mitchum his phone. "This is the last bit of info I've gotten."
Mitchum read the text and squeezed his eyes shut for a couple seconds. "Okay, so its not perfect news, but it could be a lot worse, right?"
Logan accepted his phone and text Luke back, "Thank you for letting me know. I'm on my way out of London and should land in less than nine hours if we manage to get a tailwind."
Mitchum eyed his son. "Are you okay?"
Logan shook his head. "No. Not until I know they are both okay." He rested his head on his hand with his elbow on the armrest. "Dad, why are you here?"
"The truth?" Mitchum asked. Logan stared at him and nodded. "I didn't know what kind of news you might get. I didn't think you should be alone." The flight attendant checked in on them before takeoff and brought them each a glass of scotch without being asked.
Logan whispered, "Thank you," to the attendant while Mitchum simply nodded. He glanced at Mitchum. "You're only here because of me?"
Mitchum stared straight ahead while sipping his drink. "Is that so hard to believe?"
Logan gave him a sideways glance, and finally said, "Maybe."
His father finally quietly said, "I'm not here only for you. Rory and the baby are family too."
"Thanks, Dad. I appreciate it." Logan waited a minute and whispered, "I don't know what I'm going to do if…."
"I know, Son. I know…." Mitchum murmured as he uncharacteristically rubbed his son's shoulder.