Abby rolled the gurney off the ambulance to be met at the door by Weaver and Luka.
"39 year-old female taken an overdose of Litho hydro mine 25mg, all the pills were absent at the scene so she's consumed 900mg".
Ashley jumped down, and followed them inside. Her eyes were streaming with tears and she felt an enormous sense of guilt and responsibility for her mother's suicide attempt.
"Chuny pull an intubations kit, get a vent, MG and charcoal", Abby yelled across to Chuny prompting a lot of staff to turn and watch them all enter.
"What size ET?" Chuny called.
"Seven and half". Gill lay motionless on the gurney, her eyelids were fluttering slightly but she failed to respond to any questions.
"Pulse is one-thirty" said a nurse.
"Rasps are shallow, but I think her airway is clear."
Ashley followed them into the trauma room; she stood still beside the door watching the events unfold.
"Abby", she called out her voice quivering.
"Ashley I'm going to have to ask you to wait outside. I promise to come find you when I have some news ok?"
Ashley nodded her head and left the trauma room peering back over her shoulder.
"CBC chem. 20, blood and urine tox screen"
"She's got no gag reflex."
Suddenly Gill's pressure dropped, a flat beeping sound echoed throughout the room.
"Abby we're losing her" yelled out Weaver
"She's in v-tack charge the portable panels" Abby grabbed the panels, and breathed in deeply.
"Come on Gill" she whispered under her breath.
Charge to 200"
"Clear"
"Charge to 300 we can get her back"
"Pressure's down to ninety after two litres."
"Pulse Ox is dropping check the O2"
"Still Fib"
"Pulse Ox down to seventy-two"
"Clear" Abby called again her voice was desperate and hopeful.
"A-systole"
"No capture, no pulse"
Everyone in the room paused in what they were doing and turned their gaze at Abby. She let the panels drop to her side and didn't take her eyes off the lifeless body lying before her.
"Time of death 22:37".
Abby just stood still, staring down at Gill's face. She caught a glimpse of Maggie and her eyes filled up with tears.
"Abby are you alright?" Weaver touched Abby's arm gingerly.
"Yeah, this has just been a really bad night" Abby's voice quivered, and she tried to hold her composure.
"The girl, is there any family members we can contact?" Luka asked in his deep Croatian accent sounding concerned.
"I need to go speak to her."
"Abby do I need to get someone down from upstairs?"
Abby shook her head, "No give me a minute I'll go speak to her and sort something out."
She stepped out of the trauma room and kept totally focussed on what she was going to say to Ashley, ignoring the constant yell of doctor from pleading patients. Abby felt guilty, even though it wasn't her fault, she had seen Gill go up to her apartment in a manic state but hadn't thought to go after her. Abby paused outside the family waiting room and glanced in fearfully. Ashley was sitting all by herself nervously fidgeting on a plastic grey chair.
"Hey Ash", Abby's voice called out to her waking her from her trance. She approached her and sat down on a chair, with her body tilted slightly so that she was facing Ashley. Abby sensed she knew the truth as she remained quiet and her face emotionless. Ashley kept her eyes firmly on her shoes and started pulling on a loose thread attached to her jacket.
"Your mother came in with an overdose of 900mg; we worked on her for as long as we could…" Ashley wound the thread tighter round her little finger, pulling harder on it causing more thread to come loose from her jacket.
"Ashley I'm really sorry" Abby put her hand on Ashley's knee and gave it a little squeeze.
"Ashley…" She heard a loud rip as the thread pulling caused a huge hole to emerge from the jacket.
"I ripped my jacket" Ashley started to panic, her eyes fearfully darting across the hole.
"Ashley, do you understand?"
The door opened startling them both, and they turned to see a young man standing awkwardly in the darkened doorway. Abby recognised him almost immediately, he was the man they sent for when children parents had died and they had to be taken into care. Ashley lent forward to look past Abby and then sat back down in her seat. Abby wanted this man to leave and she told him so.
"I was called down by Dr Weaver" he said in protest.
"And now I'm telling you to go back up, you can come down when we're ready".
He glared across at her and left slamming the door behind him. Abby closed her eyes and reopened them to see that Ashley had left her side and was standing beside the window staring out into the Chicago night.
"What's going to happen now?"
"Do you have any other family members in Chicago?"
"No"
"What about your father? Is there any way we can contact him?"
"My father doesn't want me"
"Ashley, we still need to phone him maybe he could come to the hospital an..."
Ashley spun around, "Abby my father doesn't want me! I don't have any other family members it's just me." She raised her voice into an awkward shout and glared across at Abby. Abby gently rose off the chair and walked over to the window. They both stared out watching the world go by and Ashley edged across so she was closer to Abby.
"Is she really gone?" her voice came out in a soft whisper.
"I'm sorry Ashley, your mum passed away".
Ashley ducked her head down, and the tears began to fall first slow than gradually as she realised she was now alone in the world.
"I should have been watching her" Ashley wailed her clenched fist banged against the window. She turned her back against the world and slid down the wall eventually ending up on the floor.
"Hey there was no way you could have watched her 24-7, none of this was your fault."
"It was my fault, we-we had a fight on the stairs and I just walked away from her" Ashley wails grew louder and she put her head into her hands gulping for air. Abby gently stroked the top of her head and sat down on the floor beside her.
"What am I gonna do? Will they put me into care because I won't go, I won't go" Abby looked across at the door and saw that he was still standing there peering in. She sighed in deeply, "Ashley do you want to come say goodbye".