A/N Almost at the end, just hang in there and we'll be wrapping up soon. Remember, reviews make a happy author.
Promises
Chapter 8
Trowa paced the waiting room, growing more agitated by the moment. Yet another scream came from the trauma unit where his husband was being treated. The unintelligible Arabic words reiterated the pain that Quatre was going through. He'd begun to hyperventilate during a meeting with Relena almost an hour before. The episode had escalated to fits of screaming by the time they'd arrived at the hospital via ambulance. Trowa had arrived only moments after Quatre had been brought in. He'd been banished to the private waiting room along with Relena and Lady Une, who'd also been in the meeting.
He spun, propelling himself towards the door. "What could be going on? He's upset and in pain. Can't they give him something for the pain?" His voice broke on the last word.
Lady Une rose from the hard plastic seat and rested a restraining hand on his arm. "Trowa, they would tell you if something were happening. Please try to calm down, I know this is difficult but…"
"Shut up!" He snarled at her, ripping his arm free from her grasp. "That's my husband in there."
"I'm aware of that, Barton." Anne's voice was threaded with steely calm. "But you'll only cause him more pain if you are agitated."
Trowa calmed somewhat, knowing her words to be true. "Can't they…"
The door opened at that moment, revealing a heavy-set middle aged woman. "Mr. Barton-Winner?"
"Yes." Trowa instantly turned to face her.
She extended a hand to Trowa. "I'm Doctor McGuire. I'm your husband's attending physician."
"What the hell is going on? He's still screaming." Trowa ignored the outstretched hand.
The doctor nodded sympathetically. "I've done a thorough examination, and your husband doesn't have anything physically ailing him. At this point my recommendation is that we administer a sedative to calm him down. I need your permission to do that. Then we can run some more tests, an MRI and a CAT just to bar any type of brain injury."
Trowa furrowed his brow. "I… yeah, that's fine. Can I see him?"
"Maybe in a bit after we've had some time to calm him down. There's just one thing that's not clear to us." The doctor remained calm, even as a ghost of a frown crossed her face. "There's only on clear word he's saying. It's the name of your oldest daughter. The one that's missing."
The words struck Trowa to his very core. He lost his breath for a long second, the gasped for air, staring at the doctor in disbelief. "Megan… he's feeling her again."
"Pardon?" The doctor's frown was now distinct.
Trowa gritted his teeth and glanced to the women in the room. "It's not in any of Quatre's medical files. He has a fear of the press getting their hands on them and having a tabloid holiday with the information. Dr. McGuire, my husband is a Newtype."
The woman's brow smoothed out as she finally understood. "I see. In light of that, why don't you come with me. I think that under the circumstances, you should be there when we administer the sedative. I'll use a lower dosage so he'll still be able to communicate, but I can't guarantee that it will alleviate a pain that isn't physical in nature."
"I understand." He followed the doctor from the room and down the long hallway to where his husband's screams were still reverberating from the sterile white walls.
He was ushered into a curtained-off cubicle. It was here that he found Quatre fighting against the leather restraints the bound him to the bed. Trowa was instantly outraged. "What the hell? Get those things off of him!"
"Mr. Barton-Winner, they're for his own protection as well as that of my staff. He gave an orderly a black eye and broke my triage nurse's thumb." Dr. McGuire's voice was firm. "I'm sorry. After he's calmed down a bit, we'll remove the restraints, but for the moment…" She fell silent as she moved forward and reached for the box of latex gloves mounted to the wall.
Trowa pushed his way through the crowd of interns and growled at them when he reached his husband's side. "Get out! He's not a side-show!"
The students appeared taken aback for a moment until he balled up his fists. Dr. McGuire's voice was firm. "That's enough. Dr. Jorgensen, please escort your colleagues to the meeting room. I will join you there in a bit."
Trowa made a mental note to thank the woman later. She readied a syringe, drawing a small amount of the sedative into it. Trowa gripped Quatre's hand tightly and leaned over his spouse. Quatre's voice instantly stilled as he felt his lover's presence next to him. The doctor blinked in surprise, then shook her head. The injection was over with in seconds. Quatre's blinked blearily, then let his eyes focus on the ceiling.
He moaned belatedly in protest of the needle, the turned his head to gaze dazedly at Trowa. He was breathless as he spoke in Arabic. "Megan… pain." He shuddered in response as the drug began to take effect. "The plane… baby."
"Plane? Quatre, what are you talking about?" Trowa pinched Quatre's hand lightly, then realized the other man was fast asleep.
He turned a worried gaze to the doctor. "He's exhausted and the sedative worked quickly. When he wakes up, he'll be okay."
"You said he would be communicative." He demanded angrily.
The doctor held a hand up in self-defense. "I thought he would be, but people respond to medications in different ways. He'll probably sleep for a long while. You can stay with him if you like. I want to monitor him. If he's all right when he wakes up, I'll release him to your care. Just press the call button if you need anything."
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Wufei passed the pregnant woman off to the waiting EMTs and turned around, running back to the plane to help with the other survivors who were now fighting to get off. A sickening dread filled his stomach. He hadn't found Megan yet, that meant she was probably among the dead… he sternly reprimanded himself. He hadn't searched all these months to lose her now. He would find her, and alive.
He heard the sound before he saw what was left of the fuselage explode. His heart stopped beating for a moment as he was thrown back to the ground, shrapnel grazing his legs. He covered his head the split second before there was another explosion as the fuel in the remaining wing caught a spark. His world went black as he felt something strike him in the back of the head.
X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X
Someone whispered words to her, she remembered that much. She'd felt safe for a few precious seconds before darkness consumed her. Then… nothing. Blissful white light and sleep enclosed her.
Now however, Megan felt something. She was cold. Very cold. She heard a far away beep, something about it was sterile. She smelled antiseptic and soap. Blearily she coaxed her eyes open as she drew in a breath of that vile sterile atmosphere. The machinery and white walls were a dead giveaway. She was alive. She'd survived the crash. The memories rushed back to her in a flood. Mrs. Wang lying dead in front of her, the woman's limp body cushioning her baby from the impact.
Megan's hands went to her stomach, her very sore stomach. Panic coursed through her veins as she found her bulge to be suspiciously absent. She screamed loudly, not even having the coherent words to express how she felt.
The machines began beeping, joining in her cacophony of dread. Then voices from down the hall. She gasped for air at the thought her child suddenly not being a part of her. The child she'd sacrificed everything for, the child Lily Wang had died to save. Megan's screams became sobs.
A figure appeared next to her, speaking in soothing tones, Mandarin. Megan's fogged brain couldn't make out the words. She responded with a strangled sob and curled her arms over her empty belly. "My baby. Where's my baby?"
As thought registering the fact that their patient was speaking English, the person reached up to silence the machines. "You're fine. You're baby's fine."
"I want my baby. Where is my baby?" Megan's confusion mounted. "It hurts."
"Please calm yourself, child." The person spoke again, a woman. "You were bleeding. The doctor delivered the baby through Cesarean as soon as you reached the hospital. You are fine, the bleeding has been stopped and the tear in your uterus repaired. The child is safe. I promise you, your baby is fine."
The words reached Megan's distorted mind, soothing her instantly. "What… "
"A girl. She was a bit small, but she is comfortable and stable in our nursery. What is your name?"
Megan was suddenly tired. "Megan. You promise she's safe?"
"I promise. Rest and we will bring her to you. Is there someone we can call for you? Family?"
"Wufei." She muttered as she began to drift back into drug induced sleep.
"Wufei?" The voice was questioning. Megan did not register her mistake before she was engulfed once more in that blissful, dreamless dark of rest.
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"Doctor Martin?" The nurse spoke in a respectful, yet soft tone to the British doctor who was head of the trauma recovery ward for Hong Kong's International Medical Centre.
"Yes, Li?"
"The patient in 401. She woke briefly."
The slight female doctor's head rose abruptly. "Has she now? Was she coherent?"
"Yes and asking about the child. I was able to get her first name as well as the name of a family member to contact. Only his first name, however. My deepest apologies for not having further information." Li bowed deeply.
Cynthia Martin rolled her eyes surreptitiously. "You haven't failed in anyway and will you knock it off with all the bloody bowing. What were the names?"
"The woman's name is Megan and the man's Wufei."
"Good. Get me the list of identified injured and dead. We'll start there. Once we rule out his status as one or the other, we'll proceed from there. Have the baby prepped and ready to be visit her Mummy when she's up to it." Cynthia smiled smugly. She'd saved the woman by the skin of her teeth and 4 pints of grade A type O. The mother-to-be had been in critical condition through the night, but it was only the morning after the accident. She hadn't expected the woman to bounce back so quickly.
"Yes, Doctor Martin." Li bowed once more as the pager at Cynthia's hip went off.
Cynthia lifted it and stared at it for a moment before rolling her eyes again. Chang was awake once more, and demanding to be seen by her for the third time in less than 24 hours. She'd pawned him off on the nurses after he'd referred to her as an overly-cautious woman… at least that was the hesitant translation the nurse on duty had provided her with. She suspected the ornery Mr. Chang had used much stronger language.
She dismissed Li and moved in the opposite direction, directly across the ward to the man's private room. She drew in a fortifying breath and pushed open the door. The man sat up in bed, strands of long inky black hair left to fan out across his shoulders. He scowled at her, his sour expression making him appear much younger than his 34 years. Cynthia steeled herself for another argument. "Mr. Chang, I've already told you that I will not release you until I am certain your injuries are sufficiently healed."
He glowered at her. "I want a list of the identified dead."
Cynthia blinked. "I'm sorry, Mr. Chang. That information is confidential and will be released only to the proper authorities."
The man winced as he gestured to the closet that held his stained and torn clothing he'd been brought in wearing. "Give me my wallet."
Dr. Martin drew herself up, prepared to read him the riot act. He spoke again, his voice firm. She had figured him a force to be reckoned with, but she hadn't expected him to be so blatantly… disagreeable. "Why?"
"I'm a Preventer. I'm an upper level officer with level 8 clearance and I'll prove it to you if you'll just hand me my damned wallet."
Cynthia bit her lower lip for a moment, then complied with his wishes. He accepted the well-worn leather wallet and flipped it open, pushing it at her for her inspection. Sure enough he was Lieutenant Colonel Chang Wufei of the Preventer's Manhattan branch. "Now, let me see that list."
Wufei… the name the woman across the ward had given to Li. She pursed her lips and stared at him, as though memorizing his face. Mentally she compared him to the baby she'd delivered the night before. Newborns rarely looked like either parent, but given the child's clear Asian heritage she was now forced to consider the impossible. "Why do you want the list?"
Cynthia knew the chances of the child being his were remote at best, but her morals still demanded to know the entire truth. He bit out the words angrily. "I'm looking for someone."
"Who?"
"That's none of your concern." He was clearly becoming agitated.
The woman held her ground. "I need to know who you are looking for. We have unidentified people on the ward and in the morgue. I have a responsibility to protect the families of those who have not been identified."
"She was traveling under an assumed name." He relented at last, voice suddenly tired. "I've been tracking her for months. Her alias is Anja Zhang, but her real name is Megan Hanahan-Barton-Winner and she's the daughter of Quatre and Trowa Barton-Winner. If she's dead, I need to know so that they don't find out from the media. And if she isn't, I need to be able to identify that she's still alive with my own two eyes."
So, he probably wasn't the father, but he did know her. The woman sleeping across the floor was the only Caucasian pulled from the wreckage, either living or dead. Cynthia swallowed hard. "I can't give you the list."
He immediately launched into a tirade. The doctor held up a hand to stop him. "There was only one person on that flight who wasn't Asian, living or dead. She was pulled from the wreckage yesterday, one of the last to make it out alive as I recall." Cynthia wisely avoided the subject of the baby, for her patients own protection in case she was wrong about the woman's connection to the man. "She's in the hospital, but she's sleeping right now."
Chang Wufei threw back the covers and rose from the bed. "Take me …" He crumpled instantly.
Cynthia moved forward and caught him smoothly, pushing him back onto the bed. "Mr. Chang. I'm sorry. But it's too soon to disturb her. She needs to rest as do you. I'll make you a deal."
He went back onto the bed willingly, obsidian eyes wide with suspicion. "What deal?"
"If you'll remain in bed and don't give my staff any grief, I'll take you to look in on her this afternoon. But only when she's asleep and you have to swear you won't wake her under any circumstances. Her injuries were extensive and she needs to rest all that she can."
The indignant Agent Chang seemed to consider this for a long moment before he nodded. "I accept your offer, and extend my thanks for your willingness to bend the rules concerning the matter."
"You're welcome. Is there anyone I should contact on your behalf?"
He shook his head, expression darkening. "No. Thank you." The expression of gratitude was muttered, as though it was hard for him to say. Cynthia had to take what she could get. She left him without a word in return, returning to her office to finish her nap that had been so rudely interrupted by Li's call about the American woman.
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Megan woke sometime later, instinctively reaching down to touch her bandaged stomach. She panicked for a moment before remembering the stranger's words from earlier. She drew in a slow breath and hit the call button for the nurse. The same woman from before appeared in the doorway, bowing deeply before approaching the bed. "Miss Megan?"
Her name… her real name… the one she had not heard in months filled her with a sudden fear. "Yes."
"My name is Li, I am your nurse for this morning and afternoon. How are you feeling? You have slept most of the morning away. It is just after noon." The woman approached, cheerful smile in place as she glanced at the machines, then pulled back the covers and peeked under Megan's bandages.
Megan sighed heavily. "I'm fine. Sore, but alive. Can I see my baby?"
Li smiled as she pulled the covers back up. "Of course. The nursery is one ward over. I will bring her myself."
"Is she really all right?" Megan's anxiety increased suddenly. "I mean… she's so early.
"A bit small, yes. But she's breathing on her own and she's quite healthy for being premature. She is being watched carefully. Don't be afraid of the wires. They are connected to a box that remotely monitors her heart rate and breathing."
"But she's really okay?"
Li smiled brilliantly as she headed for the door. "She's absolutely perfect. Her reflexes are good, she's responding to stimuli, and eating well."
"Thank God." Megan breathed out the words as the nurse left the room."
Several nerve-wracking minutes later there was a quiet knock at the door. Megan pushed the button to move the bed into a seated position. The door was opened and Li smiled at her as she pushed in an enclosed bassinet on wheels. Megan's breath caught in her chest when the cart was close enough for her to see into. She saw the impossibly tiny arms flailing indignantly as the baby cried. "Why is she in that thing?"
"Don't worry, it is only to keep her warm and the loud noises of the other babies out. It's not an incubator, though it may look like one." Li smiled as she unlatched the lid and pulled the infants arms into a blanket, swaddling her tightly.
Megan swallowed hard, straining to look over the nurses shoulder at the baby. Her daughter was settled gently into her arms a few moments later. The squirming bundle cried loudly, in protest of being removed from the warmth of her bassinet. Megan's heart froze as she lifted her gaze to Li in momentary panic. "What if I hurt her?"
The woman laughed softly. "Just support her head and don't drop her, and you'll do fine."
"Can I unwrap her?"
"For a few moments if you wish. Just don't let her get too cold. I'll leave you two alone to get to know each other." Li turned for the door, glancing back with a soft smile in place. "Oh! I need to know for her certificate, what is her name."
"Well, I hadn't really… " Megan trailed off and stared down at the baby, who'd settled down to a few hiccupping sobs. She worried at her lower lip for a moment before an idea came to her. "Lily. Her name is Lily…" She paused again. "Catherine…" She frowned this time, for a moment before lifting defiant eyes to the nurse. "My daughter's name is Lily Catherine Chang."
"That is beautiful. I will inform the clerks." Li was gone in an instant, before Megan could call her back to correct what could possibly be her downfall.
The door closed softly behind the nurse, leaving Megan alone with her daughter for the first time. The baby was impossibly small. Megan glanced to the note card taped to the foot of the bassinet. It reported to her that her daughter weighed 5 pounds even and was a mere 14 inches long. Five pounds, a bag of sugar. Megan giggled to herself. "Lily… my sugar baby." Carefully, she maneuvered the baby enough to loosen the receiving blanket and expose her child's body for her inspection.
First she counted fingers, twice. Then her toes… three times just to make sure. She was perfect. Absolutely perfect in every way. The baby's bottom lip quivered in dismay at being manhandled. She carefully wrapped the baby up again, not as tightly this time and positioned her once more in the crook of her arm, tracing her forefinger down the infant's cheek in amazement.
"You're real. You're real and you're here." In response, the baby gurgled at her, opening the eyes the had been tightly shut the entire time, searching for the source of the new sound. Megan chuckled. "You're gorgeous aren't you? The most perfect thing I've ever seen."
The baby had a thick tuft of black hair the seemed to stick out in every conceivable direction. Not a curl in sight. Her eyes were dark, a shade of black just off Wufei's own. "You have Grampa Trowa's nose, toots." Lily's mouth was a perfect cupid's bow. Her own lips. The baby's complexion was like porcelain, not the golden that Wufei's was and a few freckles dotted the bridge of her nose just under those perfect, almond shaped eyes.
Megan smiled happily. "Lily Catherine Chang… it's nice to meet you. I'm your mom. And your father… well… we'll get to him later. But you're here and you're perfect. And I'll love you like no one else can."
The baby gave a gurgle of what Megan hoped was approval, before sighing deeply and burrowing further into the warmth of her mother's tentative embrace. Lily fell asleep within moments. Megan was content to hold her daughter, relishing in the sudden wave of the strongest emotion she'd ever felt. For the moment fear was banished to a place far away, and Megan was euphoric.