Lesley tried to take a moment to be able to explain what happened to Jessie but couldn't seem to talk clearly because she was too distraught as she's trying to process what happened and Monica was still trying to stop the bleeding but had alot of difficulty.
" Lesley tell Jessie a main artery was severed and I need an O.R stat and Cunningham needs to be on call" Monica called out
" Jessie, Alan, and Noah are coming up right now... Monica tell me he's gonna be alright." Lesley got out
It seemed too long for Lesley but it was only 5 minutes that it took for Noah, Jessie and Alan to reach Lesley and Rick on the second floor. Jessie and Alan first attended to Lesley to make sure she was okay while Noah and Monica worked their hardest to assess and try to save Rick's life.
" Monica how bad?!" Noah got out
" Bullet hit a main artery it could be lodged in the heart blood pressure is 54/70 pulse is low we have to operate now He's also been shot in the abdomen and could've hit another artery he's lost more than a liter or so of blood" Monica replied while lifting Rick into the gurney
" Monica if we just take Rick into surgery, he'll bleed out we have to stabilize him the best we can" Noah said
~~~
" You incompetent fools... I gave you a specific target and you got the wrong person. What do I hire you for if you can't even do a simple job right" Smith shouted.
" Sir, we swear we were almost certain that the guy was gonna be busy. We had no idea that he was gonna be attending and guarding the woman..." One of the hit men said
" I want you two worthless people off my property! I'll find someone who actually know what they're doing" Smith ordered
After about another hour Rick was stable enough that he was taken into surgery in the meanwhile all Lesley could think about was what he kept trying to tell her about her not being safe, yet he was the one shot and hurt and it made her just feel worse than before as it made her feel that it was on her that Rick was shot in the first place.
" Lesley Rick is gonna survive this... He loves you and the girls he wouldn't just go and leave especially not without a fight" Jessie said gently
Lesley stayed with Jessie until she was to see Monica come out of the operating room or to hear anything about Rick and his condition " I told him we shouldn't Jessie I begged him... for us to wait for Steve... and now because of me Jessie he's fighting for his life." Lesley cried more.
" Lesley it is not your fault Rick was shot... He continued to choose to keep you safe. That's all he wants to do. If I were him I would do the same thing. It is not your fault... Rick will be alright" Jessie replied trying to comfort Lesley
~~~
" Clamp." Monica asked while assisting Noah in the O.R
" There's arterial involvement we're gonna have to go in." Noah pointed out
" I got it." Monica said while starting to take control of the arterial bleed and repair the slight damage after the bullet was removed
After Monica finished with repairing the slight damage, Noah moved to start to remove the second bullet as well as he was gonna make sure that there was no further damage as they were expecting but Noah and Monica both knew it wasn't gonna be easy as Rick's stats were lower from the beginning that they started operating.
Just as Monica started to close and prepare to transfer Rick to CICU, Rick's blood pressure went down where he went into cardiac arrest where they both tried for nearly 35 minutes to resuscitate Rick.
" Monica we have to call it... We've done all that we can" Noah said
" No I'm not gonna just give up not on Rick I made a promise and I'm gonna keep it" Monica shot back while still trying to save Rick's life
Noah pulled Monica back " We tried Dr. Quartermaine but we've lost him. We may make a promise to a family member and we may try as hard as we can to keep it and save every patient, but we can't always save every patient. Even if we were able to help him further he would never wake up again. We have done all that we can."
Monica had just finished and stepped out to change out of the scrubs and talk to Lesley bracing herself because of what happened in the O.R and Monica knew Lesley wasn't gonna handle it very well that Rick was gone.
" Jessie... Where's Lesley?" Monica asked.
" Steve and I finally got her to get some rest for alittle bit but he had to give her a sedative. She's pretty shaken up and upset with what's happened... Is Rick just getting into recovery in CICU?" Jessie answered and asked.
" Jessie... Rick didn't make it... I tried and did what I could but he arrested on the table just as Noah and I were about to close." Monica replied
" Monica it's not your fault you tried and did everything you could... The important thing we have to do is help Lesley right now she's gonna need us..." Jessie replied
" She isn't gonna want my help... She'll probably blame me and refuse any help I go to offer" Monica stood up
" Monica what's to blame you for you didn't shoot Rick you didn't set out to hurt neither one of them you are not to blame here." Jessie bit out
" I'm gonna have to talk to her..." Monica stood up
" No you have had enough for one night... I think it should be me to talk to her... She's got to hear it from me." Jessie insisted
~~~
" More beautiful than the last everytime I look at you." Rick smiled while taking a seat beside Lesley.
" Rick, I think it's time that we go home where the kids are waiting for us." Lesley kissed Rick
" Everything is okay Lesley no one is ever gonna hurt you... I kept that promise to keep you safe..." Rick said while beside Lesley
" I don't understand..." Lesley replied
" I did what I needed to do. I had to keep you safe. I made the sacrifice I needed to make just remember that I'm still with you, Lesley. I will never ever leave you just as I'll always be with the twins..." Rick replied and insisted
" What are you….. No Rick... Don't talk like you're saying goodbye to me I need you so do the girls please Rick don't do this… don't make me say goodbye please." Lesley shot out
" Wake up Lesley you have to" Rick replied " I will always love you Lesley."
" Rick, please stop saying that it's like you trying to tell me goodbye and I can't do that..." Lesley called out in her sleep
" Lesley, I did what I had to do. I had to protect you… I was shot… and I would do it all over again if it meant to protect you and the girls… you have to go and wake up I'll always be with you." Rick disappears.
Lesley shot up quickly while calling out Rick's name and shouting 'don't say that' and Jessie was right there with her " Lesley... It's alright... Everything is okay" Jessie assured Lesley as best as possible
" Where's Rick... I have to see him. I want to see that he's okay.." Lesley replied
" Lesley I can't do that... I can't bring you down to see him, I wish I could." Jessie replied and reached for her hand
" What are you talking about?" Lesley pulled away " I need to see him Jessie. I want to see that he's okay." Lesley shot back.
" Lesley... Rick... He..." Jessie started and Lesley interrupted " No Jessie he is alive, he is not gone he did not leave me he would never do that to me... He would never do that to the girls!" Lesley shouted and then said again " I want to see him. I need to see that he's alright"
" Lesley everything that was done that could be was... Monica did everything she could... Rick went into cardiac arrest during surgery when she and Noah went to close." Jessie stated
" No... No it's not true he would never do this Jessie... How could he just leave..." Lesley broke into tears
Jessie pulled Lesley into a hug " I don't know Lesley I wish I had answers for you... What I do know is just how much more you mean to Rick..."
" Lesley...?" Monica said softly
" You... You promised me you swore to me you'd help him." Lesley shouted
" Lesley I promise you I did everything I could."
" No, get away from me... you didn't save him Monica... You didn't help him.." Lesley cried more
" Monica give me and Lesley alittle time please" Jessie turned slightly
~~~
After about another week and before Rick's funeral, Lesley had just been able to find the strength to arrive for Rick's funeral where their friends had gathered to pay their respects but to be there when Lesley needed them most but something still wasn't making sense to her why would Rick do this why would he just up and risk everything just to protect her? That was a question she could never seem to understand.
" It doesn't feel right lying to Lesley Steve... Making her believe Rick is dead... It's not fair to her or to their daughters who may not be able to fully understand what's going on..." Monica whispered
" At least he's alive and he's okay... But the point is the sooner Lesley and her children are protected the better and her going into witness protection is what we have to do to stop the people responsible for all of this if we come clean and tell Lesley now we'd be risking her and the kids' lives now Rick and the fed's made that very clear. We have to sadly do what we have to to make sure that she and her kids are safe." Steve whispered as much as possible
" Monica?..." Lesley spoke up
" Lesley I'm sorry that I couldn't do more for Rick... I want you to know that... I did everything I could to save him" Monica replied
" I know you did and I appreciate that you were trying and that you came for today... I hope you know that I never really held it against you that night... And i'm sorry if I led you to think that I was gonna blame you for Rick's murder..." Lesley got out
" Lesley you don't have to apologize to me. You were devastated and you were hurting when you lashed out and I can't hold that to you... Rick loved you more than he loved his own self, his selflessness to sacrifice his life was very noble of him maybe alittle bit stupid in the sense that he's left you and the girls, but it was very noble of him... Lesley if there's anything that you ever need anything at all... Call alan and me I want you to know we will be there for you if you need anything and I mean that" Monica hugged Lesley
" I will Monica and thank you... I know you loved Rick too..." Lesley replied and moved to get ready to head home with Jessie…
On the way home from the P.C memorial gardens after Rick's burial service Jessie started to notice how quiet and withdrawn Lesley had become with everything that had gone on but one thing Lesley started to realize was that she was now gonna have to face that Rick was never coming home and she was gonna have to raise the girls on her own
" Lesley is there anything I can do for you" Jessie asked gently
Lesley shook her head " No but thank you Jessie for asking... I think I'm just gonna go ahead and lay down for alittle while because today honestly took alot out of me, and l'm really not feeling good..." Lesley went to the side room before Jessie said or asked anything more. Jessie went to check on the twins upstairs while Lesley was trying to keep to herself.
Unable to hold back in her grief, Lesley put Rick's things along the side where she thought to put his urn beside one of her favorite pictures of him but selfishly she couldn't bring herself together enough to put his urn down instead, all she was able to find was that she had cried herself to sleep while holding on to what she had felt she had left of Rick later in the night and Jessie had came in to check on her and placed Rick's urn up by his picture before pulling up the blanket slightly so Lesley was comfortable enough.
After checking on Lesley, Jessie gave Steve a call to let her know that everything was okay and that she was gonna spend the night and to let Ruby know everything was fine.
~~~
" I don't care, I want my wife and my daughters safe... They need to be taken out of Port Charles and into protective custody because I'm not there, and for every minute that I'm not, they're in
danger especially with Lesley because she's a transplant patient. My family is more important to me. And Jessie Brewer is a part of that family as well as she is my wife's home care nurse. I want them safe!." Rick got out in spite of his recovery from taking a bullet dud to the abdomen and shoulder.
" Rick, I know you're frustrated... We all are but these things take time as soon as we can be sure we will move your wife and your daughters and of course Jessie Brewer to a safe house into protective custody. If we move them now Rick something will be bound to happen to them in transit and that is what we don't want..." Agent Sedlock pointed out
" I know you're right but I can't help worrying about Lesley... She means everything to me just as our daughters do... We have to do everything we can to protect them... And her medical status puts her at a higher risk" Rick replied
After about another week, Lesley worked up the courage to consider going back to work even though to her it doesn't seem right to have to try to move on. " Lesley, are you sure you'd like to go back to the hospital? If you need more time Steve will allow it for you? " Jessie asked
" Rick would want me to try... He would want me to try to keep my life going for the sake of the girls... Are they okay where are they?" Lesley replied and asked
" Genesis and Jesslyn are safe, Lesley they're asleep... And if you would like, I can stay with them." Jessie answered
" I appreciate that Jessie but... without Rick... I really don't know that I can be there 100% for them..." Lesley replied but turned away
" Hey Lesley, you are not alone, not by any means... I am gonna stand by you just as I will for those girls upstairs... Anything you need from me you just have to ask... Don't you ever feel like you can't come to me." Jessie replied and pulled Lesley for a hug.
" I miss him so much Jessie... He didn't have to do this..."
" I miss Rick too but what helps me is to be here to help you... Rick has never been too far from my mind just as he'll always remain in my heart everyday..." Jessie paused for a few seconds to grab a warm cloth. " Are you sure you don't want to give another day or so before going back to the hospital for work?" Jessie asked
" I'm sure... Jessie I can't avoid it forever I'll have to go back at some point it might as well be now..." Lesley stated but felt alittle nauseated
" Rick would be proud of you. I know I am... With everything that you've been through.." Jessie told Lesley while helping her stand.
" Could you check on the girls and make sure they're ready for when we leave? I think I'm gonna take the girls with me today... Maybe that'll help ease my fears and my mind with them?." Lesley asked while she started to feel alittle nauseous again.
" Of course... And if you'd like I could keep them with me while you're on rounds and you have a few things to do... They can stay with me for as long as you need or as long as you feel during the day." Jessie replied with a smile and gave Lesley a hug.
Lesley managed to finish getting ready for work but reached for the trash bin when she started vomiting again. While Jessie had just finished getting Genesis and Jesslyn dressed. Lesley was quite sure about facing going back to work but she also felt she owed it to Rick to do what they both loved to do together.
" I love you Rick and I wish you were here... I wish I could see you again and just tell you what I've been wanting to tell you... Rick It just hurts... It hurts that you went and did what you did and then you left us.. you left me feeling so alone" Lesley sat with Rick's urn.
" Lesley... Are you ready?" Jessie asked gently
" Yeah... I think so.." Lesley replied and put on Rick's necklace that he left home.
Jessie helped Lesley get into the car and put the girls into the car before they left the house... The ride wasn't long but Jessie didn't pretend to not notice how withdrawn Lesley had become as they were almost in the hospital parking lot.
