Chapter 33-News? March 15, 2003

Kim, Carlos and Heather had joined Alex and Ty in the lounge. Sully had been in surgery for almost three hours now. Ty assumed that was a good sign. The longer they were in surgery it meant that they were still working on him and that he was alive. Alex had fallen asleep next to Ty. He just stared at her. He was so happy to have her by his side when he needed someone to be there.

Just then Ty caught sight of a doctor walking towards them. He patted Alex's shoulder to wake her up. The others joined around Ty wanting to hear the news.

"I assume you are here for Officer Sullivan?" the doctor asked.

"Yes, I am his partner. How is he?" Ty asked.

"He is in very critical condition. He has lost a lot of blood. We have been able to control the bleeding. That does not mean he is out of the woods. The next twenty-four hours are the most critical. It can go either way without warning," the doctor informed the friends.

"Can I see him?"

"I'd prefer you didn't at this point. He needs to focus all his energy on getting himself through tonight. I suggest you all go home and get some sleep and come back in the morning. I will be able to give you a better outlook after we see his reactions tonight."

"Thank you doctor," Kim spoke up. Ty was unable to form words.

"They always let you see the person, even if it's for like 5 minutes," Ty finally got out slumping back into his chair.

"Hey.the doctor is right. He needs to focus on getting better. Hearing you worry about him won't help him," Alex said trying to comfort him.

"It's not supposed to be like this. Sully is the veteran, he's not supposed to get hurt."

"It doesn't always happen like that babe. Come on, let's go home, relax a little bit and we will come back first thing in the morning."

"I'm not leaving."

"Ty, it would do him no good for you to go in to see him in your current state. You need to calm down. I promise you, first thing in the morning we will come back."

"What if something happens during the night?"

"I'll give the nurses our number and ask that they call if anything happens."

"I don't want to leave him Alex."

"Right now the only thing he needs is rest. And that's the best thing for you too."

"I guess you're right."

"Come on," Alex said taking Ty's hand and pulling him up from the chair.

"We'll see you guys later," Alex said turning to Carlos, Kim and Heather.

"If you need anything Alex call me," Kim said.

"I know, I will."

Alex and Ty walked out of the hospital hand in hand. Alex figured it would be best for them to take the subway back home considering Ty's current state. It was about a 20-minute ride from the hospital. After what seemed like an eternity for Ty they finally got to their stop.

Alex led Ty into the house. She suggested he take a warm shower to try to calm himself down. He wasn't in the mood to argue with her and frankly the idea appealed to him. After Ty had gone off into the bathroom, Alex sat herself down on the couch. She needed to compose herself and be strong for Ty. She had no idea about Sully's condition, but knew it couldn't be good. Ty would absolutely fall apart if he were to lose Sully, even if it was just as a partner. After making sure she had herself pretty well together Alex went into the bedroom to get changed. Neither her nor Ty would be getting much sleep tonight.

Ty walked into the bedroom and silently took his place next to Alex in the bed. He didn't know what to say. He didn't know what he wanted to say. He felt the best thing was to say nothing.

"I know it's easier said than done, but try to get some sleep baby," Alex said.

"I'm just worried about him."

"It's ok to be worried. I'm here when you need me," Alex said as she laid her head on Ty's chest. She wasn't going to leave him when he needed her most.

Both Ty and Alex both managed to fall asleep, even if it was just for a couple hours. The ringing of the phone suddenly awakened them. They both stared at each other for a second knowing what the call was probably about.

"Hello?" Ty answered.

"Mr. Davis?" the voice from the other end asked.

"Yes this is Officer Davis."

"This is Josephine Jackson a nurse at Angel of Mercy Hospital. I was asked to call you concerning Officer John Sullivan."

"Yes, how is he?" Ty asked nervously. Alex had crawled across the bed and was leaning against Ty's back.

"As you know Officer Sullivan was critically injured yesterday. The doctors believed that they stopped all the bleeding, unfortunately the stitching they did on one of the vessels came undone and he began bleeding internally again. About an hour ago he went into cardiac arrest, they were unable to bring him back," the nurse said.

Ty just dropped the phone. He was in shock. Alex knew what the nurse had said based on Ty's reaction. She quickly picked up the phone thanked the nurse for calling and hung up.

"Ty I am so sorry. What can I do for you?"

"Nothing.all I want is for Sully to be my partner tomorrow when I go into work and that isn't going to happen ever again."

"Do you want me to call Kim so you can talk to her? She had almost the same experience when Bobby was killed. She would be able to relate to you better than I can."

"Right now I just want to be alone."

"Ty please talk to someone, you can't keep everything inside. I don't want you to get to the point that Kim did."

"I just need to think now Alex," Ty said getting up out of the bed.

"Be careful," Alex said watching Ty walk out of the bedroom.

Alex thought about calling Kim. She was going to need someone herself. Kim would be able to tell her what to look for and how Ty is feeling.

Ty walked out into the living room. He sat down on the couch. His partner, his only partner was dead. He had grown up with the man. He was like a second father. It was hard enough when his father was killed, now he had to watch his second father die. Sully dieing was secretly Ty's biggest fear. He felt so comfortable with Sully. They understood each other and had the mutual respect good partners need. He knew that he needed Alex, he couldn't push her away. Her idea of talking to Kim sounded pretty good to him. She did have almost the same experience. She was there when Bobby was shot and she was there when the doctor told them that Bobby was gone. Ty didn't want to go into the deep depression that Kim did. He had Alex and their future to think about. Suddenly there was a knock at the door. Ty got up to answer it.

"Kim?" he said fairly surprised.

"Alex called me and told me. She thought you might want to talk. Even if you don't now, I want you to know that anytime you do I will be ready and willing to listen," Kim said walking in past Ty.

"I don't know what I want right now. Everything is just jumbled."

"That is perfectly normal. I didn't know what I was going to do without Bobby; he was my best friend for five years. We started the shift together and then I go home and he is dead. It will be hard to get over, but you realize that you have lots of other people around you who love you too."

"I don't want to push Alex away, I'm afraid that I'm going to do that. I'm already doing that."

"That's probably because you feel that she can't relate and really she can't. That's why she called me. She knows it isn't easy."

"Did you go to Bobby's funeral?"

"Yeah I did. I had to say the good-byes I never got to say before he died."

Ty sat back on the couch. He was still in shock from the news that Sully was gone. He really did appreciate having Kim to talk to. She really could relate.

"Listen, the best thing you can probably do tonight is try to get some sleep. You'll be able to think things through better when you are rested. So go back into your wife, let her know that you aren't shutting her out and try to get some sleep. If you want to talk more tomorrow you have my number, feel free to call anytime."

"Thanks Kim. I really appreciate you coming over here," Ty said as he stood up.

"Anything you need, let me know," Kim said giving Ty a hug.

"I will."

Ty led Kim to the door and locked it behind her after she left. He took a couple minutes to compose himself before going back into the bedroom with Alex.

"I'm sorry if you didn't want to talk to Kim, I just thought I should do it," Alex said when she saw Ty coming back into the bedroom.

"It's ok, I'm glad you did. She helped me realize something," Ty said as he walked towards the bed and got himself comfortable next to Alex.

"What was that?"

"I felt like I couldn't talk to you because you didn't know what I was going through. She helped me realize that the important thing was that I don't push you away. It's not your fault you can't relate, and it's a good thing really."

"That's why I called Kim. I know I can't relate. I'm glad she helped you. I'm not going anywhere, I will be here whenever you need me. I promise."

"I know. I love you," Ty said kissing his wife.

"I love you too."

"I'm going to try to get some sleep. I'll probably feel a little better once I am rested."

"That's a good idea. I'll see you in the morning."

"Goodnight."

"Night."

Alex curled up next to her husband. She was glad that he realized Kim was the one who could help him the best. She was also glad that he didn't resent her because she couldn't help him. It was going to be a hard road, but they would get through it.

~*~*~

Ty had spent a lot of time with Kim the last couple days. He wanted to talk everything out. He knew that was the only way that he was going to get past this, with the love of his wife and friends. Today was Sully's funeral. Anytime someone dies in the line of duty the department goes all out for the funeral. They had asked Ty to speak, but he declined. He didn't think he would be able to keep himself together. Alex tried to tell him that he should, but he didn't want to.

Everyone from the third watch was at the funeral. They all had known Sully, he was the veteran of the group. Even though no one was particularly close to him, it always hurts when you lose one of your own.

The police chief was the first one to speak.

"Today we are gathered together to lay Officer John Sullivan to rest. His life tragically came to an end in the line of duty answering a call for help. Officer Sullivan was well respected for his knowledge and abilities on the streets of New York City. I know he was one of my best officers and he will surely be missed."

Several other speakers followed, some officers that had worked with Sully during his time. Ty was sitting between his wife and his mother. Ty's mother took the news hard; she had known Sully for years since he was Ty's father's partner before he was killed. Ty was even worried about his mother and Sully dating at one point. Alex was trying to be strong for her husband.

The fire department offered to host the reception after the funeral. They had a buffet catered from a local deli. Simple things, but it meant a lot to Ty. He felt that he was all that Sully had. His mother had died about a year ago. His wife had been killed. He had no other family in the city. It was nice to see everyone pitching in to pay tribute.