Chapter 3
Jessica had awoken bright and early. As usual, she was cheerful and ready to go. Gemma was tired and cranky. Crying yourself to sleep did that to a person. When you had a twenty-pound bowling ball on your bladder, it did not make you any more chipper.
Gemma slowly got up and prepared breakfast for Jessica. Oddly, she had no appetite, so she only drank juice with her daughter. Then setting her daughter in front of the cartoons, she took her time cleaning the kitchen. She tried to talk her head out of pounding so roughly.
Warrick called to check in, getting Jessica to promise to help Mommy and be a good girl. Gemma didn't admit how miserable she felt, knowing that he had no way of coming home and he would spend the day feeling guilty for that. Instead, she feigned cheerfulness and wished him luck on his case, making him promise to be extra careful.
It was noon when the first pain hit. She was sitting at the table, trying to play the third round of CandyLand with Jessica when her felt a spasm of pain run through her back. Wincing from the discomfort, she told Jessica that they would have to finish later, Mommy needed to sit in a softer spot.
Breaking her rule of limiting Jessica's television time, she turned the cartoons back on and sat in the recliner. Jessica sat quietly on the floor with her stuffed monkey and watched the cartoons. Gemma let herself relax, drifting into a restless slumber, only to be woken by the next pain. With this pain, she understood it for what it was.
The pain had been getting worse as the hours passed. She tried calling Warrick, but his cell was out of the service area. Waiting a while, she tried again. Still no service. She tries to call her father, but Gil's phone is out of service too. Catherine, Nick, Sara, Greg……, all out of service. She needed someone.
Lucy is out of town for a nursing lecture. Hodges had gone on vacation. Trying Grams, she got the machine. The elderly woman refuses to carry a phone with her. Tears welled up in her eyes when she realized that she had no one that was not somehow connected to Warrick and the CSI's.
Jessica, the ever-sensitive child, looks up from her cartoons her big brown eyes full of concern. "Mommy huwt?"
"Yes, Sweetie, Mommy is hurting. It's okay though, it just means that the baby is ready to come out to meet you." Gemma gave a forced smile to her daughter. "I'm fine, Sweetie."
"Gotsta go to the Housetable?" Jessica questioned.
"In a while." I want Daddy to be here. I don't want to go to the hospital in a taxi."
"You Dwive."
"I can't, Sweetie." Gemma sighed. The ringing of the doorbell caused her to frown. She levered herself out of the chair, slowly making her way in the direction of the door. Jessica jumped up and ran for the door. "No Jess!" Gemma cried out as another pain wracked her body. She reached out frantically, grabbing the doorframe to support herself. She clenched her teeth, trying to keep herself upright as Jessica swung the front door open wide.
Sean Arthur stood on the front porch once again. "Hello?" He sounded surprised as he looked down at the little girl.
"Hi!" Jessica looked up at the man. "I'm Jessica."
"Should you be answering the door?" Sean knelt on one knee so he could be at her level. He watched the expression change to one of guilt.
"Daddy says not to." Jessica answered in a small, remorseful voice.
"Daddy? Is your Daddy, Warrick Brown?" He studied the little girl, seeing that she looked a lot like the lady of the house.
"Yep! Tha's my Daddy!" Jessica smiled prettily, looking proud of that fact.
"Is your father here?" He asked, his voice full of hope.
"Nope. He's at wook." Jessica let out a sigh full of sadness. "He's on a big case. He didn't come home last night."
"Is he an attorney?" Sean questioned, interested to know about the man that was so hard to catch.
Jessica frowned, trying to figure out the word. She was unsure what the big man with the strange voice had meant. "My daddy wooks wid Gwampa. They sove cwimes. They help Unca Jim put bad guys in jaiw."
"Oh!" Sean nodded, thinking he understood. "He's a policeman?"
"Uh….., No. He's a Cwimmagis. Daddy instigates the pawaces bad things happen. Ant Cat-twin says they do the wook, and the cops get to finish it."
"Uh….okay." Sean agreed without actually understanding. "Well, Jessica, my name is Sean Arthur." He offered the girl his hand. She looked at his hand for a moment before understanding what he was meaning. She took it in her small hand to shake it.
"My name is Jessica Wynn Brown. Nice to meet ya Mwista Aw-da…..Aw-tha."
"Why don't you call me Mr. Sean for now? Mr. Sean will do fine Miss Jessica." He offered, understanding her troubles. "And now….., where is your Mum?"
"Mommy's in the fwont room. She has to sit in a soft chaw cuz she's having a baby. Do you have a caw, Mwista Sean?"
"A caw? Oh! A car! Yes, I do have a car, Miss Jessica." Sean rose to his feet as the girl tugged at his arm, tugging him into the house. He entered reluctantly, shutting the door behind him.
"Good!" Jessica crowed, still tugging on his arm. "You can dwive Mommy to the Housetable!" Sean allowed her to pull him into the next room where Gemma Brown was standing, gripping the door jam, her face red and full of pain. One look at her face and the wet carpet below her feet and he understood what was happening.
"Mrs. Brown! You're having a baby right now!" He told her unnecessarily, as if she would need to be told that.
"Mommy! Mwista Sean has a caw! He's gonna take us to the Housetable!"
"Mr. Arthur…..I'm very happy to see you right now." Gemma gave him a pained smile through her sweat-covered face. "So very glad to see you."
"I understand why." He came over to her, scooping her up into his arms. "Jessica, open the door. Looks like we are going to the house-table."
"Hospital." Gemma chuckled nervously as the man, a stranger, carried her out to his car.
"Go shut the door, Miss Jessica." He ordered as he placed Gemma in the back seat of his car. Gemma recognized the sticker on the window of the car as a rental agency located at the airport.
"I'm afraid I'm causing you to lose your cleaning deposit on your rental agreement." She whispered tiredly.
Sean laughed deeply. "Let's not worry about this right now." When Jessica returned from shutting the door, Sean put her in the back seat next to Gemma and buckled her up.
Gemma's opinion of the man raised another notch as he did this. He climbed into the front seat and started the car. "Miss…uh….Ma'am…. Could you tell me where the House-table is?"
"Take a right, go three miles, then a left at the light." Gemma grunted in pain. "Please hurry. This baby is really eager to come out!"
Sean agreed whole-heartedly. He wasn't ready to deliver this woman's child, no matter how badly he wanted to meet her husband. He floored the car and sped off in the direction she had given. He hoped an prayed that she could hold out until they got to the hospital before this baby started coming.