"Dave... We need to get down to OT now... Marie-Louise will take you down.." Ginny murmured as she entered the room.
"What's the point?? I mean.. I'm crippled.. What's the point of everyone smiling and patting me on the head?? I'm never going to walk again. My career is fucked.. I'm ruined.. All because I didn't.. Because I.." Dave trailed off and then jumped in fright as a vase flew past, inches from his head.
"Now you listen to me David Jesus Malucci! You little ungrateful bastard! You might be paraplegic.. You might never regain use of your legs. Are you going to mope around and lay in bed because of possibilities? Because of maybes? You get out of that bed and get down to that damn room before I drag you out by your damn hair! You got me?!" Ginny's face reddened with anger looking at the vase of flowers that lay on the floor in pieces.
Dave stared at her sullenly, his arms crossed and folded across his chest. Ginny glared at him and he sighed, pulling his useless legs over the side of the bed and used the rail and board to slide himself into the chair.
"Now then, David. Are we going to be going to therapy now?" Ginny said kindly.
"Yes please.." He murmured, slipping his hands into the handholds and wheeling the chair from the room.
"Marie-Louise will be with you in a moment, I'll see you later David when I come to get you cleaned up. I know that the sessions leave you a little drained.. A nice bath will do you good.." Ginny called after him as the defeated man disappeared down the hall and past the nursing station where Marie-Louise exited from the desk and started pushing the chair.
Ginny sighed and began stripping the bed, shaking her head sadly.
***
"Mark. Do you think going to the memorial service was such a good idea? I mean did you see how that woman had looked at us?! It was such... contempt.. She knows we killed Lucy... She knows.." Elizabeth shuddered, curling up next to Mark on the couch and flipping the channels.
"She was upset.. She just lost her only daughter. She has a right to be upset. Why did we go? I mean.. We placed flowers on that girl's grave. She's dead Bethie.. There's nothing we can do to change that.. It's not our fault.. You might think it is.. We can't go back and work that shift... We can't put Sobriki in restraints. We did what we could when we were there... Peter tried to fix Dave.. But Dave may never walk again.. You tried your best at saving Lucy.. But Sobriki had carved her up like an Easter ham... You couldn't do anything more than you had.. Both you and Peter tried your best.. It might not have been the outcome you two desired.. But at least it wasn't any worse... If both of them had died.. Or if that lunatic had gotten it into his head to interrupt the Valentine's party... We're lucky it didn't get any worse, Elizabeth.. Remember that.. The only one feeling guilty and laying blame on us about this is you, honey.. Barbara said nothing to either of us.." Mark sighed, and pulled himself up off the couch. "I'm gonna go get some milk, do you want anything?"
"I need a cigarette... Player's regular.. no filters.." Elizabeth rolled off the couch into a sitting position and bent over with her face in her hands.
"Elizabeth.. You don't smoke..." Mark said weakly.
"Mark... I need a cigarette.. trust me.." She murmured sadly, leaving the couch and walking to the window and staring out at the falling snow.
He shrugged grabbing his wallet and leaving for the Beckers.
*****
"Kerry? Are you okay?" Luka walked slowly down the snowy sidewalks and advanced on the ER Chief seated on the bench. "Dr.Weaver?"
The snow fell in wet soft clumps and hit the freshly shovelled sidewalk with a muffled splat. He chuckled sadly. It didn't know whether to rain or snow.. So it did a little of both. "Dr.Weaver?? Are you okay?" His hand went slowly over his knee as he sat, it stiffened up in the weather, but that's what happens when your older brother dares you to jump off the roof with the bedsheet as a parachute. Pins holding your knee together.
She looked up slowly and smiled as she acknowledged him. "Hello, Dr.Kovac.." Kerry glanced down at Luka's hand covering his knee. "Your leg bothering you in this damp weather?"
Luka nodded. "Yes... In this weather it tends to stiffen up."
Kerry sighed. "Yes.. I know how that goes.. Having the same troubles it seems.. Want to share a cab home?" She murmured as she saw her taxi pull up.
"Would you mind? I mean I don't live far, but if you'd like the company.." He blushed slightly and stared down at his shoes.
Kerry smiled biting her lip. "I'd be honoured if you escorted me home, Dr.Kovac.. Today hasn't exactly been a good day... I would like some company, that would be nice."
Luka smiled nervously and helped Kerry into the cab. "No.. Today was hard.. For all of us.."
The memorial service. Everyone standing around in the banquet hall staring into their watered down scotch and whiskeys. Everyone meandering around in circles nodding sadly to each other and trying to avoid everyone's eyes. Barbara stared at the wall, pumped full of sedatives so she wouldn't go screaming from the room. Her ex-husband at her side, holding her..
Carter had managed not to laugh bitterly out loud at the lousy irony.. Lucy's father.. The man she'd never met, sitting there at her memorial. Sitting there holding her mother in his arms as she trembled and held her head pressed close against his chest. His hand brushing over Barbara's long curled hair and murmuring soft, kind words.
Lucy hadn't made it exactly clear what had happened between Lucy's father
and her mother.. But for him to show up.. Carter hoped it was the drugs..
it was just the drugs that had made her senseless enough to be curled up
in the arms of that man.