Author's Notes: Jack is going to survive despite his extreme injuries. We're almost to the point where our couple will be torn apart but I promise the story will continue until they're reunited. Reviews are very much appreciated.

Part 17

Age 12 Years 9 Months

Falling to her knees, Samantha cleared the snow away from Jack and tried vainly to wake him. His skin was as pale as the falling snow in the darkness and she looked at the blood staining his shirt fearfully. Struggling with the railing, she pulled it off him and ran up to the house. Opening the door, she was greeted by a surprised staff member.

"Call the paramedics!" Samantha screamed.

"Sam what's-"

"Outside, Jack fell from God knows how high. Hurry!"

Samantha didn't wait for the staff member to comment and ran outside. Stripping her coat off as she ran, Samantha got on her knees and placed it over Jack. There would be little warmth from the coat, but she wanted desperately to do anything she could. Although she longed to hold him to her, Samantha didn't dare move him for fear of making his injuries worse. A rattling cough shook his body and he began to gasp desperately for air as flashing lights and a screaming siren moved towards them. Several staff members had come outside with blankets and stood worriedly as Jack convulsed and gasped.

"How long ago did this happen?" one of the paramedics asked.

"I don't know," Samantha answered. "I found him like this, the railing was on top of him and I pulled it off and they called you."

"Shit, he's aspirating blood," the older paramedic said. "Get a back board, I'm going to radio for them to expect us."

Samantha watched terrified as the young man ran to the ambulance and the older man spoke into his radio, "We have a male. Approximately 13 years of age, height 5'5, weight about 135. Appears to have fallen several stories. Is unconscious, but responsive. BP is 80 over 60 and appears to be falling. May have complications from exposure. We're going to brace his neck and bring him in. Note patient is aspirating and may need to be intubated."

After radioing the information in, the paramedic listened for instructions. The younger man came running with the back board and laid it on the ground beside Jack. Grabbing a neck brace from their medical case, the older man placed it around Jack's neck and the men carefully moved him onto the back board. Efficiently, the older man cut Jack's sleeve and started an IV as the younger man took Jack's blood pressure again.

"He's down to 74 over 53, we've gotta get him out of here before we lose him."

As the men picked up the board, Jack roused slightly and cried out for Samantha. Normally the men would never have allowed such a young girl to ride with a patient, but he calmed slightly when he heard her voice. They needed him calm if they were going to get him to the hospital alive. As Samantha moved towards the ambulance as the men told her to, she noticed on the lawn that most of the residents had come outside. Jack's accident was bad enough that several looked frightened and two of the younger girls were crying. Billy stood looking amused and Samantha knew in that instant what lead to Jack's accident.

The younger man shut the doors and got in to drive as Samantha sat back with the older paramedic and Jack. Jack coughed and blood ran from his mouth, despite his gagging, he attempted to apologize and the man ordered him to remain quiet assuring him it was all right. Gasping, Jack lay still as the man asked him questions. Although Jack tried to answer he couldn't form words around the blood. As the man threaded a plastic tube down Jack's throat he struggled.

"Easy son, I know it feels awful, but it's gonna help you breathe. I'm going to ask you questions and I want you to blink twice for yes and once for no. Can you do that for me?"

Jack blinked and the man said, "Excellent. Now Samantha what's his name?"

"Jack."

"Okay, Jack I'm going to squeeze your hand and I want you to tell me can you feel anything?"

Jack blinked twice and the paramedic repeat the process with both of Jack's feet. Darting his eyes towards Samantha, he longed to speak, but couldn't around the tube. Immobilized on the back board he couldn't even reach for her. The man asked if he knew his blood type and Jack answered yes.

"Is it type O?" the man inquired. When Jack answered, the paramedic proceeded to check if it was positive or negative. "You're type O negative? Are you really sure? This is very important Jack."

Once the man was satisfied about Jack's blood type he radioed the hospital again, "We're ETA 4 minutes. Patient is alert and has feeling in his appendages. Has aspirated a fair quantity of blood and is intubated. Think we should start running some plasma into this kid?"

After a response, the man grabbed a plastic bag that had red liquid in it and stuck a needle in Jack's other arm. Jack raise his left ring finger towards Samantha, trying to touch her. Looking at the paramedic enquiringly, Samantha got permission and cautiously brushed Jack's extended ring finger with her own. As he looked up at his wife, Jack smiled weakly and fell back into merciful unconsciousness. Samantha watched him nervously as they approached the hospital, Jack looked so fragile. Silently she swore Billy would suffer so horribly that death would be a blessing in comparison to what she would do to him.

"Oh no!" the nurse in the emergency room exclaimed when she recognized Jack from the refrigerator incident a couple months before. As a trauma team took Jack into the waiting ER bay, the nurse told Samantha, "Stick around sweetie, if this is anything like before the second he comes around, he'll be calling for you."

Samantha sank in a chair across from the curtained area where they were working on Jack. As she sat, she buried her face in her hands and wept quietly. From behind the current a barrage of commands were barked out and even to her untrained ears, Jack was in serious trouble. Carts and monitors were wheeled to where the doctors were working on Jack. Listening to the slow beeping sound of a heart monitor, she knew she stood a good chance of losing him and it felt like her heart was being ripped from her chest.

The nurse who recognized Sam earlier, came out and spoke to her, "Samantha, I'm Nurse Sara. They've got Jack stabilized enough they're going to take him to radiology and x-ray him. As soon as they're finished they're going to bring him back here."

"Is- Will he-"

"I can't say. He took a terrible fall and the cold has made him very sick again. If he survives it's going to take a long time for him to recover."

Samantha watched as they wheeled Jack away towards radiology. Because Jack was in such bad shape, a doctor and a pair of nurses wheeled him down the hall. Nurse Sara brought Samantha a foam cup of ice water and she sipped it as the older woman sat down beside her. The nurse informed her the orphanage was going to wait until Jack was more responsive before sending a representative and Jack's parents had been contacted. They were in Europe but would be returning late tomorrow.

Across the loudspeaker a voice called out, "Code Blue in Radiology. Radiology we have a Code Blue."

"What's a Code Blue?" Samantha asked the nurse.

A team with a crash cart went racing past them towards radiology and reluctantly, the nurse explained to her. "The trauma team was just called to resuscitate a patient."

"It's Jack isn't it?" Samantha demanded.

"Yes, but you can't go back there, they need room to work if they're going to help him."

Samantha looked up at a clock, it was just midnight, Christmas and Jack was fighting for his life. There was nothing she could do except wait and pray. Desperately she wished Sofia was here, she'd know what to say and do. In Samantha's ears, the ticking of the clock thundered in her ears as each second crept slowly and each minute seemed to last an eternity. Twenty minutes passed at a painful pace and the team with the cart came walking back to the emergency room.

Samantha tensed as Nurse Sara, inquired, "The Code, was it the boy that was brought in a little bit ago?"

"Yeah. Think it broke the rest of his ribs and if it wasn't collapsed already, one of his lungs is collapsed. But we got his heart started again," a male technician informed them.

Tears of relief fell from Samantha's eyes. But even as she felt relieved, it terrified her that Jack's heart stopped. If Jack's heart ever truly stopped beating, she didn't think she wanted to go on. Standing up, Samantha began to pace nervously waiting for Jack to return. She felt sick and dizzy as she pace around. Suddenly the room swam before her and Samantha collapsed to the ground. Nurse Sara, scooped her up and guided her to a chair. After checking Sam's pulse, she waited for her to come to.

"Samantha, you fainted dear. I'm sure it's just because you're upset about Jack, but I want you to sit here and put your head between your knees for me."

Leaning downwards helped the dizziness slightly, but the nausousness remained. Sam sat up and watched anxiously as Jack was wheeled back to the ER. Her glimpse was brief before they wheeled him behind the curtain and more medical personnel moved in and out from behind the curtain. There was a hideous gagging sound and Samantha fought the urge to run and pull them away from Jack, they were helping him however awful it sounded.

After several moments, a doctor came around the curtain and said, "Samantha?"

"Yes!" she stood up and rushed towards him.

Closing the curtain behind him, the doctor stepped out and ushered her over to the chairs and told her, "He's regained consciousness. Now he's asking for you and I promised him I would bring you to him. Samantha, I need you to help me, you want to help your friend right?"

"Of course. Just tell me how."

"I need you to get him to stay still and quiet for us. He's got a lot of broken bones that need to be set and casts applied. And he's getting quite sick so we need him not to talk and start coughing more. Could you help?"

Samantha followed the doctor back to Jack and she looked at him as he lay still. They had removed the neck brace so he was able to turn his head towards her. Lifting his left ring finger to her, she gently caressed it. As the Doctor began to set the bones in Jack's right foot and leg, Samantha flinched along with Jack, her heart aching for his pain. Several times Jack tried to talk, but Samantha gently begged him to stay silent. When the doctor had set the bones in Jack's foot and calf, he move to his hip bone and began to adjust it.

Involuntarily, Jack cried out in pain and Samantha fought tears as the doctor informed her, "Normally with this many bones to set we would sedate him but with his head injury we can't risk any anesthetics, sedatives or analgesics tonight."

"What's that mean?" Sam asked.

"Grin and bear it," Jack croaked in a strangled whisper.

Samantha spoke softly to Jack and caressed the fingers of his left hand which seemed to be the only safe place to touch. The Doctor explained Jack had broken, both arms and his right hand. Both legs and his right hip and quite a few ribs between the fall and his coughing. Watching Jack suffer, Samantha fought the urge to weep and tried to remain strong for her husband. Whatever happened, Billy Watkins was going to suffer as much as Jack and more before she was done with him...