By Tracy LeCates
Saturday - Early Afternoon
Peter slowly opened his eyes. He made no attempt to stifle the yawn which stretched his jaw open to its limits. A sleepy glance at his watch told him he'd been napping on the couch for almost an hour. "Just closed my eyes for a second...." He yawned again as he sat up, rubbing his eyes. The house was quiet. Bethany had long ago curled up on the love seat with her favorite blanket and fallen asleep in the absence of her brother and sister who had been dropped off at a friend's birthday party. The cold, rainy afternoon had done nothing to discourage father and daughter from their lazy pursuits. "Nick?" Peter called out.
He was answered by silence.
"She can't possibly still be in the bath. What did she do? Drown in there?" Peter mumbled to himself as he stood and headed up the stairs, towards the master bedroom. His wife had announced her intentions to soak in the jacuzzi tub and disappeared upstairs before he'd fallen asleep. A smile crept over his face as he pushed the bedroom door open and heard the sounds coming from the bathroom.
The portable CD player had accompanied her for her hour of relaxation. The sounds of Meatloaf's Bat out of Hell album met his ears, Nicole's voice drowning out the singer. What she lacked in tonal quality, she more than made up for in enthusiasm. Peter tried, unsuccessfully, to hold back the laughter he felt bubbling up as she belted out the final verse at the top of her lungs, missing every note by a mile. It was her favorite album, she'd worn out several cassette tapes since they'd met, and was now working her way through the CD.
Knuckles poised to knock at the door, Peter paused. The title track had ended, and another song began. Slower and softer, the song played on, and at a lower, less enthusiastic volume, Nicole's voice wasn't nearly as offkey.
*Heaven can wait
And a band of angels wrapped up in my heart
Will take me through the lonely night
Through the cold of the day
And I know
I know
Heaven can wait
And all the gods come down here just to sing for me
And the melody's gonna make me fly
Without pain
Without fear
Give me all of your dreams
And let me go along on your way
Give me all of your prayers to sing
And I'll turn the night into the skylight of day
I got a taste of paradise
I'm never gonna let it slip away
I got a taste of paradise
It's all I really need to make me stay
Just like a child again
Heaven can wait
And all I got is time until the end of time
I won't look back
I won't look back
Let the altars shine
And I know that I've been released
But I don't know to where
And nobody's gonna tell me now
And I don't really care
No no no
I got a taste of paradise
That's all I really need to make me stay
I got a taste of paradise....*
An unexpected lump formed in the detective's throat as his hand fell slowly to the doorknob. The empty feeling in the pit of his stomach took him a little by surprise. He'd heard the song a thousand times before, but the lyrics had never struck him before. Forcing a smile to his face, he slowly opened the door and poked his head in before the song could end. "Hey..."
"Hey, yourself." Nicole smiled up at him from the tub, visible only from the neck up above the masses of bubble she'd loaded the tub with. "Something wrong?" she asked, catching something in his expression.
Peter entered the bathroom and closed the door behind him, and came to sit on the edge of the tub, fighting back the strange feelings welling up within him. "Nope. I was just getting lonely down there. Beth crashed, and with the monsters out for the afternoon... it was gettin' kinda of quiet. I just though I'd come in and visit."
"Miss me? Or did you just come in to gawk at the nekkid lady?" she laughed.
Peter's eyes widened humorously. "Are you nekkid under all them there bubbles?" he drawled.
Nicole's reply was puctuated by a flying clump of bubbles. "I'll never tell."
"Ahhhhh, vee hav' vays of making you talk..." He grinned devilishly as one hand disappeared beneath the foam and water.
The grin on his wife's face grew to match his, as the searching hand encountered flesh beneath the water. "Wanna join me?" she asked as she reached to take hold of his shirt.
Peter pulled his hand out of the water and slipped off his shirt. "Are we starting work on that project you and I talked about last night?" he asked with a curious glance.
"Check the garbage can," she suggested, pointing to the green basket under the sink.
With a smile, he leaned over to check the basket's contents as he worked his jeans off. A small, pink pill dispensor lay at the bottom. "You threw them out."
"I tossed them first thing this morning." Sitting forward, Nicole reached out a hand to her husband. "I figured even if we fail, at least we might have some fun making the attempt. You know, before we get too old."
"Too old?" The naked detective laughed before being pulled into the tub with a splash.
***********
Sunday - Night
The words were halting and choked with tears. "God, Kermit. What am I gonna do now?"
The former mercenary watched as his friend's life crumbled, and had only meager words to offer. "I don't know. I don't have any answers for you. I don't think anyone does. It all happened so damned sudden..." His voice trailed off as he realized his friend wasn't really hearing his words. "I'm sorry," he whispered.
"I don't think I can do this alone." The confession tore from an emotion-constricted throat. "This wasn't supposed to happen. Our lives were finally, really back on track again. We'd even been talking about having another baby... and now... now... it's over. It's all over."
Griffin's arms wrapped around the grieving spouse.
2:00 P.M. Saturday Afternoon
The water in the tub had grown cold by the time the pruned couple emerged. Finally dried off and dressed, Nicole and Peter had wandered downstairs. The sound of their entry had at last woken Bethany from her nap on the sofa. Blinking sleepily up at her parents, a smile formed on the face of the most even-tempered Caine child.
Peter returned the smile and reached down to scoop up their youngest into his arms. "Whattaya think, Bethy? Want to come with Daddy to pick up Cait and Paul?" he asked.
"Wide in da car," she grinned.
"You takin' her?" Nicole asked, picking up her jacket and purse.
Peter nodded. "Yeah, I got her. I'll pick up the monsters and meet you at Paul and Annie's for dinner?"
"Sounds good to me," she replied, quickly planting a kiss on her daughter's forehead. "Be good for Daddy." She grinned as she looked up at her husband. "And YOU - just be good."
"Always am. You don't want to tell me what this mysterious errand of yours is?"
"Nope. I'll tell you tonight, after dinner," she assured him with a quick kiss. "I love you and I'll see you in a little while."
"Love you too, Nick," he replied softly, watching her slip out the front door.
*********
6:00 P.M. Sunday Night
Staring out the hospital window, into the dark night, memories played out again. Memories of another hospital, another time, long gone.
~ ~ ~ Not even the air conditioning in the hospital could completely dissipate the heat of the Arizona midday. Kermit had flown home to Sloanville after the arrest of Nicole's 'brother', and only Peter, Nicole and Caine remained behind. The day before her release, Peter had been possessed by an idea.
"Marry me," he blurted out, as his feet crossed the threshold of her room.
The astonishment showed in the gray eyes staring at the young cop. "Excuse me?"
"Marry me, Nicole," he repeated adamantly. "Here, now, today. Let's drive each other up every wall in our home for the rest of our lives."
Astonishment was joined by something else in her eyes. Something bright and cautiously hopeful. "You're out of your fucking mind..."
Peter's eyes lit up as a smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. "No, I'd be out of my fucking mind if I let you get away again. Marry me."
Nicole began to laugh as she sat up in the hospital bed, staring at the insane man standing a few feet away from her. "Peter, this is ridiculous!"
He approached the bed quickly and sat on the edge, reaching for her hands. "I love you, Nick. I want to marry you, I want to live with you, I want to share a life with you. While you were gone, I got a taste of what going back to a life without you would be like, and I didn't like it. I need you, Nick. You came into my life, and you did something to me. You shook me up. And I needed that. You keep me on my toes. You make me look forward to tomorrow. I want to look forward to a lifetime of tomorrows now, with you. Marry me."
"I must be crazier than you," Nicole finally conceded after what seemed an eternity of silence.
"Is that a 'yes'?"
Looking into those eyes had been her downfall every time. "It's a 'yes'. I can't believe I'm saying it, and I can't believe we're gonna do this, but it's a 'yes'," she affirmed, beginning to smile.
A new life was starting for both of them that day. Two restless souls were settling down together. Making plans. Commitments.
"What about work? No way are we going to be able to be partners anymore. And what are we gonna tell everybody when we get back? What about your apartment? My apartment?" Nicole rattled off rapid-fire questions, catching Peter's enthusiasm despite her best intentions.
"It doesn't matter!" he laughed. "None of that matters, Nick. None of it. Not today. All that matters is if that we're going to be together. We'll make those decisions together, when we have to."
"I don't have a wedding gown," she protested with a brief laugh.
"Nope, you've got a hospital gown."
The shared laughter was as good as anything either of them had ever felt.
The ceremony in the hospital chapel was brief, and simple. Kwai Chang Caine had happily performed the blessing of their union, with two candy-stripers in attendance as witnesses. Vows had been impromptu promises of building a life together, a lifetime of love and partnership. Their wedding night had been spent in her hospital room, with smuggled-in candles and take-out food.
~ ~ ~
Staring out the hospital window, into the dark night, memories played out again. The soft sounds of the monitors filled the otherwise silent room. The lonely vigil continued as hope slipped away.
2:30 Saturday Afternoon
Bethany sang car songs to herself, strapped into her carseat in the Jeep as Peter drove. She'd inherited her mother's voice, he realized with a slight smile. *Poor kid.*
A quick glance at his watch as he turned down Evergreen Terrace told him he was right on time. For once. The balloons tied to the mailbox identified the house his own tiny terrors were visiting for the afternoon. The grin spread from ear to ear as the memory came bubbling to the surface.
~ ~ ~ "Peter, did you get the cake?" Nicole called from the kitchen as she heard the front door open.
"I got it!" he called back, following the sound of her voice. "Awful big cake. It's not like we needed the space to put all the candles on it - like we do for our birthdays."
Gray eyes laughed at him as he came through the kitchen door. "Oh, you're soooo funny. Lemme see the cake."
Peter stole a quick kiss as he placed the enormous bakery box on the counter. "Love me?" he asked, flashing her his most charming smile.
Nicole grinned at him as she raised the lid to the cake box and peered inside at the twin's first birthday cake. "Love you."
Peter gently grasped her wrists, pulling her hands away from the box. "We got time for a quickie before everyone gets here?"
"No, you horn-dog, we don't," she laughed. "This morning wasn't enough to tide you over until tonight?"
"No way," he growled playfully, trying to pull her out of the kitchen.
Freeing one hand for a second, she reached to turn down the oven temperature on dinner. "Quickie," she agreed. "But if Paul and Annie are ringing the doorbell in the middle of it, I'm gonna be cranky through dinner."
The couple hustling down the hall towards the master bedroom was brought to a screeching halt by a small but demanding voice from the nursery. "Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaddyyyyyyyyyy."
Groaning in unison, Peter and Nicole changed course. The twins were up from their nap, standing up in their cribs and ready to play. Cait wore her biggest smile. It was directed at her father, and he had no resistance.
Each armed with a birthday-kid, the Caines returned to the kitchen. "Later?" Peter asked his wife with a frustrated look in his eyes.
"Oh, definitely," she promised. Nicole looked to the child she held. "You guys wanna take a peek at your cake?" she asked.
"YEAH!" Cait cheered from her father's arms.
Peter laughed as he opened the cake box again and he and Nicole brought the kids in for a closer look. Paul's face lit up at the Pooh and Tigger decorations. Without warning, Cait's hand flashed out, digging into the chocolate cake.
Peter moved back quickly, but it was too late. With an enthusiastic cheer, Cait sent the fistful of cake and frosting flying. Quick as her reactions were, Nicole wasn't able to dodge the airborne dessert.
Paul, Cait, and even Peter burst out laughing at the sight of the young mother, wiping frosting from her face. ~ ~ ~
2:45 Saturday Afternoon
Nicole finally gave up on finding a parking space anywhere on the street. With a muttered curse, she pulled the Mustang into the nearest parking garage. "Goddamn it.... Gonna cost me thirty five bucks to go book a vacation..."
Grumbling extensive obscenities under her breath, she handed her keys to the parking attendant, along with the standard dire warning of bodily injury if she found one extra mile on the odometer, or so much as a fingerprint on the paint.
Once out in the bright spring afternoon again, her good mood returned. *Gettin' outta town for two weeks. Two whole weeks, just to play in the sun and the sand and the surf. No phones, no faxes, no kids, no beepers, no clients, no clothes.... *
Months after their remarriage, the Caines were finally about to get the honeymoon they'd been talking about. A two week cruise in the Caribbean, with the tickets as a surprise for Peter. *Perfect...* Nicole congratulated herself. *Check out the brochures, pick a package, make the reservations and surprise him over dinner tonight.... maybe hit Paul and Annie up to take the kids for half the time we're gone, my parents for the other half.*
Two blocks from the parking garage, Nicole spotted the travel agents' office across the street.
**********
5:00 P.M. Sunday Night
The voice on the phone line was soft and tired. "Paul? Keep the kids tonight, okay?"
"Sure. How do things look there?" Blaisdell asked cautiously.
The answer was long in coming. "Not good, Paul... not good."
~ ~ Peter Caine stood leaning against the frame of Kermit's office door. It had been a rough weekend. Jordan had done nothing but whine at him from the time the clock struck five, Friday night, until he finally managed to sneak away sometime Saturday morning. He'd told her he hadn't been feeling well, and it hadn't been a complete lie. He'd felt as though he couldn't breathe. She was suffocating him, pure and simple. Monday morning had been a mixed bag of prospects. On the one hand, he was going to have to deal with Jordan. On the other hand, his new partner was starting work, and they already had their first case. However, he'd yet to meet her.
Twenty minutes earlier, a tall, dark haired beauty had walked passed his desk and into Simm's office. Dressed in black, her leather boots had been curiously silent on the tile floor as she passed.
"Chill, Peter," Kermit sighed. "Go sit down, do some work."
"Was that her, do you think?" he asked for the fourth time.
Griffin had barely been able to conceal his surprise as he'd recognized the woman the moment she'd walked through the door. "Yeah, that was probably her," he vaguely replied.
"Wow..." Peter laughed. "Looks like my luck is about to change."
Kermit bit down on the inside of his cheek to quell the urge to laugh. "I wouldn't count on that...." he mumbled to himself.
Peter turned to ask for clarification, when he caught sight of Simm's door opening, and the Captain beckoning him into her office. Running a hand through his hair, the detective left his spot, sauntered into the office, and came face to face with his new partner.
Karen Simms returned to her seat behind her desk, and motioned towards the tall, slim woman standing facing the door. "Peter Caine, this is Nicole Shaw."
Armed with his most charming smile, the young cop got a good look at his new coworker. "Nice to meet you, Nicole," he greeted her. Hazel eyes traveled involuntarily down the length of her body.
"Nice to meet you." Gray eyes turned suddenly stony "What the Hell are you looking at?"
~ ~ ~
3:00 P.M. Saturday Afternoon
"Mommy, I wanna go in there!!!" The petulant young voice a few feet behind Nicole wailed as she stood waiting at the corner for the light to turn to cross the street.
"Honey, we don't have time to go to the toy store right. I promise, tomorrow we'll come back and we'll get you something," the mother answered impatiently.
"NO, NOW!!!!!" the small boy insisted loudly.
The mother, seeming to reach the limits of her patience, snapped at the child. "Jason, I said no, and if you keep it up we won't come back tomorrow!"
The traffic light turned yellow and the cars in the northbound lane slowed their approaches. From the southbound lane came the sound of an engine gunning as a bright blue Camaro sped up to beat the light.
"NO! NOW!!!!!" Jason screamed at his mother, bolting away from her, and the sidewalk as fast as his five year old legs could carry him.
A split second later, Nicole bolted after the boy.
3:45 Saturday Afternoon
Armed with goodies from the birthday party, the twins ran into the Blaisdell house, loudly blowing their noisemakers to announce their arrival. Peter followed at a more sedate pace, with Bethany in tow.
The smell of slow-cooking pot roast in the oven greeted their noses and brought a smile to the detective's face. His foster parents were already being mauled by their grandchildren by the time he made his way through to the den. "Dinner smells great, Mom," Peter greeted her, planting a kiss on her cheek. "You didn't have to go to a lot of trouble. I think the monsters are pretty full of cake and ice cream already."
Paul Blaisdell turned a curious eye to his foster son. "Feeling all right?" he asked.
Peter glanced over at the older man as he sank down onto the couch next to Annie, and put his feet up. "Actually I think I might be coming down with something, now that you mention it. I've been feeling like I'm walking through water ever since I woke up from a little nap I took earlier."
"Maybe you are coming down with something," Annie interjected. "Taking naps in the middle of the day isn't like you. Not since you've gotten yourself a human schedule, anyway."
Blaisdell looked up at the door to the den again, then over at Peter in question. "Where's your lovely new bride?"
"Running an errand. She shouldn't be long." Peter reached for the cordless phone on the table, and dialed. "I'll call her cell and see what her ETA is." Several rings later, he was greeted by his wife's voice mail. 'This is Nicole, leave a message when you hear the beep. If you've gotten this far and don't leave a message and I have to dial in for messages and find blank ones, it costs me airtime, so don't be a jerk and hang up.' Peter chuckled to himself as he left a brief message. He'd finally gotten her to get rid of the '...or I'll find you and do serious damage to your person' part of the message. "She must have left the phone in the car. I'm sure she'll be here long before the food hits the table."
********
"What have we got?" the Attending asked as the gurney was shoved through the doors to the ER.
"Single victim, car versus pedestrian..." The EMTs recited rapid fire statistics on the patient as the doctors prepared to take over.
"Get her into Trauma One - Any ID on the victim?"
As the gurney disappeared behind the swinging doors, the nurse at the desk pulled the ID from the victim's wallet. "Oh, my God..." she groaned, showing the photo license to the clerk. "You'd better call the family."
********
5:00 P.M. Saturday Afternoon
Peter glanced at his watch once more. Over an hour had passed since he'd tried his wife's cell phone, and still she hadn't called back, or shown up. The timer in the kitchen had gone off moments earlier, announcing the roast was finished cooking.
"We'll just wait until she gets here," Annie assured him as she got up and headed into the kitchen to answer the timer's ring.
Peter closed his eyes again as he leaned back into the overstuffed pillows on the couch. A slight smile played on his lips as he remembered.....
~ ~ ~ ....creeping into the darkened bedroom. Stuck in an endless interrogation, he'd been unable to call home and let his new wife know he'd be late. Already passed midnight, he was sure he was in for a chewing out. Married for less than a year, they were both still settling into the routine of marriage. Nicole's pregnancy had hardly made life more predictable. With her hormones, it was never certain what he was walking into when he came home at night.
A near inaudible sigh of relief escaped his lips as he paused near the bed, and heard the deep, even breathing, telling him she was asleep. *She never would have fallen asleep if she was pissed. If I was in the doghouse, she'd be awake,* he reasoned silently. Without making a sound, Peter stripped down to his shorts, and pulled the covers back, sliding into the bed.
"You're late," the body next to him whispered.
Peter cringed comically. "Sorry," he whispered in return as he waited for the tirade.
Nicole turned to face him, one arm draping over his chest. "'s'okay," she sleepily replied. "Busy shift?"
The detective allowed himself to relax again. Her hormones were swinging her to the right, not the left tonight. He reached out and pulled her into his arms. "Very busy. You're awfully mellow tonight," he whispered in her ear.
A smile crept across her face. "I felt the baby kick today."
"You're kidding!" Peter laughed softly. His hand moved from her arm to her abdomen, feeling the rounded flesh beneath his palm. "I wish I'd been here for that. Skalany and I were on a roll with an interrogation and I didn't want to disrupt the flow we had going, or I would have called."
The pregnant woman mumbled something incoherent in her half asleep state. "... and you don't have to call every time you're gonna be late. I trust you."~ ~ ~
"You don't have any idea at all where she went?" Paul asked as he poured himself a drink from the wet bar, jarring his son from his reverie.
The detective shook his head slowly. "She wouldn't say, and I didn't push it. I assumed she was just stopping at the store, or dropping off the movies we rented last night. No big deal." Despite the casual tone he forced into his voice, Peter Caine was beginning to feel more than slightly edgy about his wife's absence.
At 5:30, when Kermit Griffin arrived unexpectedly, Peter had only to take a single look at his friend's face to know that something was very wrong.
9:30 P.M. Saturday Night
Peter's pacing brought him back to the waiting room once more. His face was pale, and his eyes red. "They said they don't have anything new to tell me..." he mumbled. He heard the sound of his own voice without realizing he'd said anything at all. "I talked to the officer who was at the scene. According to a witness, she ran out into the street and pushed a five year old boy out of the path of a car. She just couldn't get out of the way, herself. The driver took off, but someone got a partial on the plate, and it's only a matter of time."
Kermit looked up from the chair he'd claimed, and nodded. He was used to sitting vigil at County, but generally his time was spent preventing Nicole from hurting the staff. Without a task of that magnitude to occupy his mind, he wasn't quite sure what to say or do. It occurred to the ex-merc, as he watched his friend's hands shaking the contents of the Styrofoam cup he held, that Peter Caine had little or no experience being the one in the waiting room. "C'mon, Peter. Park it for a while. She could be in there for a long time. You usually are."
"I wouldn't know about that," the younger man replied, finally attempting to sit for a few minutes. "I'm usually unconscious, and without my watch. Is this what I put her through? All those times?" he wondered aloud. "How the Hell does she stand it?"
A wry smile formed on Griffin's face. "She has her ways of dealing with the stress. By this point she would have grilled everyone who even looked at you since you were picked up. She'd know their names, ages, family histories, education, driving records, home address and telephone numbers, credit histories.... Trust me, five minutes after you get here, the entire staff knows. She makes sure they earn their income. There's been more than one occasion when the staff voted it was more humane just to let you die."
The short laugh escaped Peter's lips before he could stop it. "You make it sound like I have my own private pit bull."
"You do."
"Yeah..." he smiled fondly. "I guess I do. I always hated waking up here... but she's always right by my side. Even before I wake up, I know she's there."
"She's hard to ignore. Last time you were in here, she was even threatening God. She told me later that she'd made some kind of deal with him."
Peter turned curious eyes to his friend. "Deal?"
"Yeah. She told Him that if He left you here, He could take her. Don't worry, I hardly think He's taking her up on that now."
With an uneasy laugh, the younger man shifted in his chair. "Why would He do that? Two seconds after she got there she'd be trying to take His job. She'd be bullying all the angels, outlaw hugging.... Remember the time she was taken hostage?"
Kermit nodded, his smile growing at the memory. "They took her to retaliate against you for something, and returned her an hour later. They figured giving her back was punishment enough."
"She keeps my life interesting, Kermit. She's a challenge for me, even after all this time. If I had the chance to go back in time and do things differently in my life, I'd still marry her all over again." Peter's voice diminished to a soft whisper as he stared at the door to the waiting room. "I can't imagine a world without her in it."
*I hope you won't have to, Kid... I really hope you don't have to.*
6:30 A.M. Sunday Morning
The morning sun had begun its ascent. Gentle pinks colored the eastern sky as dawn chased away the remnants of the dark night. Peter Caine ached with exhaustion, both physical and emotional. He'd sent Kermit home shortly before midnight, when he, at last, had been allowed into ICU to see his wife. Though he'd told Kermit to go home, he had a nagging suspicion that were he to poke his head out into the waiting room, he'd see that his friend was as bad at taking orders as he himself.
The first sight of Nicole in the ICU had taken breath away, and stolen what lingering hopes he'd had. The car had been traveling at least 45 mph when it struck her, head on. One leg was broken, one arm was a well. A broken rib had punctured her left lung, and the internal bleeding from multiple other injuries had been massive. The blunt trauma to her head was what caused the most concern. She been unconscious at the scene of the accident, and had never shown any sign of coming around. The doctors had delivered their grim prognosis during the night.
As the dawn began to light the sky, the weary detective's eyes returned to the figure in the bed. Swathed in bandages, her bruised face was barely visible. "Come on, Nick. Time to wake up," Peter pleaded softly. The fingertips he gently held in his hand remained still. Her hand had never looked so small, or her body so fragile as it did to him at that moment.
"I know you can hear me, Nick. I know you can, because I know I can always hear you. I probably never told you that. I always knew when you were here, watching out for me. You gotta open your eyes now, Sweetheart, because you're really scaring me. I never knew what you went through with me, all those time. Now I do, and I can't say I care for it. I know you must be scared too, but I'm here. And I'm not going anywhere. If I learned anything from you, it's how to bully the staff here. I'm nowhere near as good at it as you are, though."
The sounds of the hospital never seemed to change, the lulls in activity outside the ICU were all too brief. Sleep beckoned Peter in a soft, seductive voice, kept at bay only by the sound of his hammering heart.
"I know what you did for me that time, Nick. You pulled me back from a place people just don't come back from. You did it for me, and I'll do it for you if that's what it takes. You're more than my wife, you're a part of me. You never gave up on me, and I'm not giving up on you."
His eyes drifted shut of their own accord, heavy as lead weights.
~ Rolling over in the large, unfamiliar bed, Peter heard the deep breathing beside him in the dark night. The warmth radiated from the body, inches away, and brought a smile to his face. As his hand reached to glide over the smooth flesh, a contented sigh met his ears. *My wife...* The thought was still new to the formerly confirmed bachelor. *My first night in my new home.*
His wife of three days moved closer to him in her sleep, seeking the warmth and comfort he willingly provided. Her unconscious gestures of affection still took him by surprise. *Just when I thought I'd gotten used to be snarled at for putting my hand on your arm. Full of surprises. I like surprises.* Eyes closing once more, Peter relaxed and let sleep take him under until the beeping of the new alarm clock woke him hours later.~
The beeping of the monitors in the hospital room reached through and pulled Peter back into the world with a start. Waking from the dream into the nightmare of reality sent his heart spiraling back down into his stomach. "Whatever it takes, Nick...." he promised softly. "Whatever it takes."
3:00 P.M. Sunday Afternoon
Minutes became hours, and hours became an eternity for Peter Caine. Forced from his wife's side, at last, by his own sick and empty stomach, he'd made his way to the hospital cafeteria. Doctors and nurses had been his near constant companions for the last twenty hours.
Nicole's family, her mother, father and sister had returned shortly after daybreak, offering to spell Peter while he rested. Caitlyn, Doug and Monique had been fixtures in the hospital since their arrival, making frequent trips down to the chapel. The staff seemed to skirt Monique, giving her wide berth in the assumption that more than physical resemblance to her sister was possible.
"They don't know, Mom." Peter fought to keep his voice calm as he stood at the bank of payphones. "Her injuries were so damned extensive. The fact that she's still alive at all seems to surprise the doctors." Despite his best efforts, the younger man's voice began to tremble. "When I spoke with Dr. Jacobs around noon he said it could be days... or hours..."
Annie Blaisdell tried to find words of encouragement for her son, and came up empty. "Is there anything I can do?" she asked softly.
Wiping the moisture from his eyes, Peter shook his head. "Just... take care of the kids."
********
6:00 P.M. Sunday Night
The lonely vigil continued. Though other family members and friends wandered the halls the waiting area, Peter Caine had never felt so alone in his life. Exhausted, he drifted occasionally to sleep at the side of the bed as his wife remained unmoving and unresponsive. Opening himself up to her essence, a profound tiredness reached back to him. Pain, confusion and a diminishing life force tore at his heart. He knew at that moment he could not longer deny what the doctors had been telling him. Yet, beneath it all, he could feel the stubbornness.
"Always too damned stubborn for your own good. You're always fighting everything so damned hard. You fought against being friends with me, you fought against getting married... you fought against having kids... you fought against everything in this life that you really wanted, and needed. You never knew when to stop fighting," he whispered. "I'm still here, Nick. I talked to Mom and Paul. They've got the kids right now, so don't worry about them."
Taking a deep breath, Peter tried to find the calm center of his being. The calm center where the he knew the answers lay. Nicole was in pain, clinging to life by the sheer force of her will, and a few machines. Heart aching, he swallowed hard passed the constrictive lump in his throat.
"It's okay, Nick. You gave me a lifetime worth of love in just a few years' time. You gave me three incredible children, and every time I look at them, I'll see you, and that love. I know you don't think that you and I are going to the same place when this is all over... but you're wrong. We'll be together again, someday. I don't want to see you suffering anymore."
The tears burning behind his eyes welled up and began to break free. "The kids and I will all right," he continued, his voice halting and choked. "We've got each other. You will always be by my side, and in my heart. I love you, Nick, but if you need to let go now, it's all right. I promise, we'll see each other again." Peter's hand shook as he clasped her fingers and brought them to his lips. "I love you so much, Nicole. Let go..."
Staring out the hospital window, into the dark night, memories played out again. Memories of another hospital, another time, long gone.
~ Peter had been possessed by an idea.
"Marry me," he blurted out, as his feet crossed the threshold of her room.
The astonishment showed in the gray eyes staring at the young cop. "Excuse me?"
"Marry me, Nicole," he repeated adamantly. "Here, now, today. Let's drive each other up every wall in our home for the rest of our lives." ~
~ He reached out and pulled her into his arms. "Very busy. You're awfully mellow tonight," he whispered in her ear.
A smile crept across her face. "I felt the baby kick today." ~
Staring out the hospital window, into the dark night, memories played out again. The soft sounds of the monitors filled the otherwise silent room. The lonely vigil continued as hope slipped away.
Less than ten minutes later, Peter felt her slip away, taking his heart with her. Nicole had stopped fighting.
The…. End?????