Mark Greene stripped off his gloves and threw them into the bin as he walked down the corridor and past the admit desk. "They're all next door?"
Randi nodded tearfully. "Yuh huh.."
"Romano and Corday are in the lounge with.." He trailed off and paused at the desk.
"Yuh huh.." She mumbled faintly, staring at the paperwork in front of her.
Mark nodded with a pained smile. "Okay. Thanks Randi.." He looked down at his watch. "You were off hours ago.. Go home... Get some sleep. It's been a rough night."
She nodded sadly and ducked under the counter, grabbing her coat and purse. "Thanks Dr.Greene."
"Did you want a drive home?" He asked worriedly.
"No.. That's okay. I'll take the El.. I don't live far."
Mark nodded and hurried out the door. As he strode across the street, he stopped looking back at the windows of the various hospital rooms. One of those rooms contained a good doctor and one of those rooms contained a good medstudent. Both of whom had something brutal and senseless happen only hours ago. One would live, one would die. It was something made even worse by the fact that Sobriki was sitting in another room, strapped to a bed and drugged to the gills. He was going to get away with it. He had laid in wait for them, he had essentially planned it, but because he was a few CC's short of a full dose.. Mark sighed angrily and turned away from the hospital as Corday and Romano lead the stunned mother from the lounge and to the lift.
"Are you sure? I mean... When I see her.." Barbara Knight broke off into muffled sobs behind her shaking hands.
"The machines are keeping your daughter's body alive, Barbara.." Romano said truthfully. "I was hoping we could discuss organ donation.."
Elizabeth glared at him as the mother stopped short and looked at Romano. "I.. You mean.. Cut her open again? Cut her open and take pieces of her??!!" Ms.Knight shook her head as a tear escaped from her closed eyes and slipped down her cheek. "I.. I don't know.. I mean.. I.. Lucy.. She would have wanted that. She would have wanted to help."
"It's okay.. We can discuss that later.." Elizabeth murmured comfortingly as the woman leaned into her for support. As they neared the room they could hear the blips and beeps of machines. Of the machines that were keeping the blood flowing and the organs pulsing inside Lucy's shell.
She lay on the bed, a clean gown covered her small frame, her hands at her sides, her fingers cupped slightly around the pulse-ox monitor on her finger. The ventilator hushed and clicked as it fluttered like a wounded moth. Tubes like translucent caterpillars travelled from the trach tube and to the machines. Wires peeked and crawled from every opening in the gown, covering her like veins. Barbara choked back a sob at the sight of her daughter. "W-ho.. Who did this to her? I.. I want to speak to them." The woman stiffened in Elizabeth's comforting arm and her voice was filled with pain and anger. "I.. I want to see them.. I want to see the person.. I want to see who could d-do such.. such a.. thing.."
"Ms.Knight.. I don't think that's a good idea right now." Corday said hurriedly, leading her to a chair beside the bed.
"Would you like some time alone with her?" She whispered softly, her hand leaving the woman's shoulders as Barbara sat down.
"Yes please." Barbara whispered, staring at Lucy.
The two surgeons exited as the mother collapsed in tears on her daughter's body. "Please... Please Lucy.. Please.. Goosey.. Please.. Wake up for me.." She sobbed quietly, wrapping her arms around her daughter.
"She won't you know.. She won't wake up.. She can't hear you.."
The voice startled her and she looked up sharply for the speaker. "Who's there?!"
"I was a friend... Just a friend.." They murmured softly, the voice drifting around the room.
"W-where are you? Wh-" Barbara pushed herself off Lucy and stumbled to the end of the bed, whipping away the curtains.
"She's gone.. I know that now.. I.. I couldn't save her.." He whispered, pale and laying back on the bed. His breathing was laboured and assisted by a mask. Dark rings under his eyes, glistened a deep purplish hue.. "It's my fault.." Dave murmured, closing his brown eyes, full of pain and sorrow.
"Wh-o?" Barbara stood at the bedside of the man who had shared those hours beside her daughter as they'd both slowly bled to death.
"By all odds.. I should have died... Not her.. If she hadn't-" Dave broke off in a coughing fit, lurching forward as the startled mother handed him a kleenex.
"You're the other doctor.." She finally surmised. "I'm sorry.. I didn't know.."
He shook head slightly, rolling it back on the pillow. "No... Not your fault.. All us patients look the same.. Even the ones who happen to be doctors.."
*****
"How come I have to? I mean.. I'm not even ICU staff.." Weaver murmured as the two surgeons brought up the rear.
"You.. Carter.. Dave.. You should be there.. You'll regret it later if you aren't, Kerry." Romano said softly.
"But I have to pull the plug on one of my medstudents?!" Kerry cried out as if in pain as they trudged down the corridor. "That hardly seems fair. I'm too.. I'm too..." She shook her head as she struggled for the word in her grief addled brain.. "Close.. too close to it.. One of the ICU staff should.. It's their job.. I can't.. I shouldn't."
**
Mark entered the restaurant. It felt like any other time.. The cold air rushing in the doors and the heat rushing out, as the door flung open. The airy tinkle of the bell over the doorway. It was like any other time. The soft laughter hurt his ears as he walked to the booth, standing beside them and casting a dark shadow over the table.
"Mark? Mark what's wrong?"
***
Kerry entered the room to find Barbara's chair empty and the air filled with the muffled words that floated from behind the curtained bed in the corner. "Malucci?" She called out worriedly.
"Over here Chief.." He called out in return, turning his attention back to Barbara. "So... Then.. After Chuni had seen Carter and Lucy all over each other.."
Kerry passed Lucy's bed, glancing at her worriedly as if expecting the medstudent to leap out of bed and shout. "SURPRISE! FEBRUARY FOOLS!" Instead Lucy lay there, tape covering her eyelids to give the illusion of her sleeping. Without the tape... Lucy's dead eyes staring at them all as they pulled the plug. She shuddered painfully and pulled back the curtain around Dave's bed.
"Dave? Ms.Knight? It's time.."
****
"I don't know why you felt you had to do that right now. We had just told the woman that her daughter was dead and you hit her with something like that! You saw the mess in the operating room. I sincerely doubt we could salvage any viable organs anyway. Why burden her with anything else to deal with?" Elizabeth sighed, pushing away from the table, and glaring at Romano who had seated himself across from her as he sipped his coffee.
"So maybe she's not a heart donor, or a spleen donor or a..." Romano trailed off with a bitter smile. "It doesn't matter, Lucy would have wanted us to try."
"Try? All you've done is manipulate the emotions of a very upset mother. There is no way in hell that Lucy could ever really donate and you bloody well know that. I've got to go Robert.." Elizabeth stood, walking to the wastebin and dumping her coffee before stomping from the cafeteria.
***
"You mean? Oh Mark!" Lydia's eyes filled with tears.
"They're doing it now?? Pulling the plug?" Luka sighed and ran a shaky hand through his dark greasy mop.
Mark glanced at his watch. "Kerry said that it'd be after they'd told Lucy's mother.. and she's been here for awhile now.. They've told her by now I'm sure of it."
**
"N-No! You can't!" Barbara's voice cracked as she burst into tears. "Get away.. Get away from her..." Her hands pushed at the bodies surrounding her daughter, surrounding the bed. It was the code team.. But this time.. "You can't kill her! She's in a coma.. You said she was in a coma.. People wake up from comas! You can't do this!"
"Mrs.Knight.. She won't wake up.. It isn't the sort of coma you wake up from." The nurse comforted softly, before turning her attention on the woman who hid in the shadows near Dave's bed. "Please. We need to do our jobs.. Dr.Weaver.. If you'd come over here, please.."
"You kill people for a living!? How heartless and cruel are you!!??" The mother sobbed pulling at the doctors and technicians surrounding Lucy's body.
"Ms.Knight.." Kerry pleaded softly as she watched her struggle with a rather large ICU doctor.
"Barbara!" Dave said hoarsely, the woman stopping suddenly, as she'd started to lunge at a nurse. "Please... Lucy wouldn't want this.. Just.. Let her go... Let Lucy go." He closed his eyes, leaning back in the bed, catching his breath.
"Dave you shouldn't be working yourself up like this. Bonnie maybe it's time we moved him upstairs now." Kerry said worriedly as she glanced between Ms.Knight and Dave's nurse.
"No.. I.. I wanted to stay.. I want to stay with Lucy.. P-please.." Dave groaned softly as something was inserted into his IV and he fell asleep.
Barbara walked to the bed, distracted by Dave as Kerry disconnected the life-support.
**