Four days after Dr. Vera's first visit, and Abby still had yet to open her eyes, responded more to verbal commands, not consistently, but more then before. Her right hand had even moved a bit, once. Whatever it was, it wasn't permanent, even if it was slow to wear off.
"Alright Abby," Susan began, having returned to her room with a fresh cup of coffee, "How about waking up for us today?"
The ring finger and pinkie of Abby's left hand curled closed, the index and middle finger stayed straight and together, then moved to meet her thumb. It was mildly humorous to Kerry, who knew that while it probably wasn't deliberate, it meant 'no' in sign language. It was as though Abby's personality had awoken before the rest of her.
"Yes Abby," Susan obviously had known what Abby was signing. "Open your eyes, eh? Give us a break," she continued. This time, Abby shook her head slowly, she was defiantly hearing them. "I have chocolate. Junk food. Bad chick flicks. Wake up," Susan began mentally planning their next girls' night out.
Abby heard them, heard them demanding she wake up? What was the hurry? And since when had she taken orders from anyone? She wanted to yell at them to go away, let her sleep, but couldn't speak.
"Without you there, Morris's got the run of the place Abby, you have to save Neela and Pratt."
What the hell was she blabbering about? Save Neela and Pratt why? Had they already killed someone?
Kerry rolled her eyes at the last bit, "Everyone downstairs wants to know how you're doing, c'mon, wake up, give us something to tell them." Abby thought about it, what the hell was going on? Clearly Susan and Kerry had lost their minds, fine she would wake up, prove that she was perfectly fine, that maybe she could get out of the ER earlier then expected today. Go home, have a nice relaxing bath, watch TV for a while, sounded like a good plan to her. Abby's eyes flickered open, and she was more than a little surprised when the ceiling was not that of the ER. There was no sewage leaking from it, no stains from various explosions and incidents. She wasn't in the ER or the on call room. Looked more like the ICU. What the hell? She was suddenly aware of a dull pain shooting through her body, and the she felt the annoyance of the tube in her throat. A sudden sharp pain from her back caused her to try and sit up, but found that another pain in her stomach was not going to allow that to happen. She couldn't move without pain shooting up from somewhere in her body, 'best to lay still' Abby figured out rather quickly.
"Abby? Thank God...Don't try to sit up Abby, okay?" Susan requested gently. Abby nodded slowly and as Susan tucked the blankets back around her, she noticed the fear in Abby's eyes. "It's okay, Abby. You're safe." Her left hand went to the tube in her throat, wondering why it was there. "You're intubated, but now that you're awake, we can see about having it removed, okay?" Another nod, but why, why was she intubated lying in the ICU? She turned to Kerry and suddenly remembered lying in the snow weeks before, how Kerry had rushed to her.
"Do you want a paper and pen or something? Are you in any pain? Your meds okay?" Susan was bubbling over with questions. Abby thought about it, her chest was killing her, not that she was having trouble breathing…it just hurt. Her left hand went to her chest and she looked back at Susan, hoping she would get the message.
"The thorocotomy still hurting you?" She nodded. "I'll talk with your doctors about getting some more morphine." Another nod, then she mimicked writing, wanting a pen and paper, Susan quickly found a small notepad and pen in her purse, "Here."
Abby took the pen in her right hand, but soon realized she would not be able to even hold it. She wasn't worried though, she couldn't even think clearly at the moment. She transferred the pen into her left hand. It took Abby quite a while to write down the two words, and it was doubtful anyone could be able to read them. 'thank-you' she handed the paper to Kerry. What little effort it took to write that down had completely exhausted her.
Kerry had to squint to read it, partially because she wasn't wearing her reading glasses, and partly because it the writing resembled Henry's scribbling. "Just glad to have you back, Abby."
Abby nodded and settled back into the bed, wanting to fall asleep again, needing to sleep. She knew there was a reason she was in the ICU, she vividly remembered Kerry comforting her in the snow. what she did not remember was why. But at that moment she was to tired to think anymore about it. Just as she closed her eyes, Susan spoke softly to her.
"I know you went through a lot, Abby, but you're going to get through all this." Abby opened her eyes and looked at Susan, what the hell was she talking about? "Kerry, can you call the neuro?" Susan asked, figuring they shouldn't be the only ones to know Abby was conscious. Kerry nodded and quickly stepped out of the room.
Abby forced herself to write a little more, she couldn't get all of what she wanted down on paper, just couldn't find the energy, but did manage 'What Happened?'
"Let's talk about it later kay?" Susan didn't want Abby to know the details, minutes after she had woken up.
Abby just underlined the text.
"Later," Susan emphasized, "please Abby,"
Abby added a second question mark. One track mind, she wasn't letting Susan off the hook.
"You were attacked,"
"How bad?"
"You decided to rejoin us a month later," Susan said evasively. Again, the underlining bit came into play. "You were stabbed repeatedly, Kerry found you in the snow, we didn't think you would make it though the night, but you did, and you made it through the surgery, then we didn't think you would wake up, and you did," she decided not to mention certain other things at the moment.
Abby thought Susan was leaving something out, but was too overwhelmed to complain, too tired, so she just took Susan's hand and held it.
"Abby, cant fall asleep yet, just hold on," She nodded slightly and picked a ceiling tile to stare at. Susan was so upset over something, but it was that particular something that Abby couldn't remember, and it was starting to scare her.
Kerry reentered, "Dr. Vera will be here at four." Susan nodded and glanced at the clock on the wall, 2:45, and by the look of it, Abby wouldn't be awake much longer, but did they dare let her sleep?
"Think you can stay awake until then Abby?" she nodded, of course she could, but Susan saw that she was fighting off sleep. "Want me to talk to you, or maybe get a CD or something...?" Susan asked hopefully. Abby nodded, sure why not. "Which one?"
Abby momentarily forgot the tube was down her throat and tried to form the words, didn't work out to well. 'Talk' she hastily signed, if Susan didn't understand it, Kerry was right there.
"She wants you to talk," Kerry translated. Abby's signing wasn't particularly good, but she got the point across.
Abby signed 'thank-you' once again, but she was quickly losing the battle for consciences, so tired. As Kerry signed back 'you're welcome,' Susan began to babble on every topic which came to mind. Somehow, she had to keep Abby alert and entertained for over an hour.
Abby looked back at Kerry, and signed the words 'how bad' she had to know before she fell asleep, which would be any instant now, and Kerry and Susan knew it. 3:10, fifty minutes.
"I'll tell you later, all right Abby?" Kerry offered. While she didn't think Abby needed to know all of it right away, hiding the truth was likely only to cause anger and resentment later, so she would tell, just not with Susan present, the blonde would throttle her for telling Abby the severity of her injuries.
'Chest' she signed again, it was the pain from her chest that was keeping her awake, she would have been long gone if they would have given her the morphine, maybe that's what they were doing? Withholding pain medication to ensure that she stayed awake.
Kerry finger spelled thorocotomy, then repeated the signs for 'tell you later', she wasn't in a mood to argue with Susan.
'Why?' came next, Abby had led them right into it. Kerry just pointed at Susan, hoping Abby would figure the rest out. Abby looked back and forth at the two of them, they were hiding something, but she couldn't fight right then, she closed her eyes.
"No Abby, stay awake!" Susan practically jumped on Abby. She didn't open her eyes, shook her head, they weren't going to tell her what was going on, she wasn't going to listen. She was tired and damn it she was going to sleep.
"Susan, why don't you go for coffee or something, I'll talk with Abby for a while?" Kerry tried, guessing that if she volunteered some information about what had happened, Abby might stay awake.
"I.." she started but with a quick glance from Kerry, Susan realized that she'd better leave. "I'll be right back Abby," she squeezed her hand one more time and left the room, figuring she could go tell the good news to her staff.
"It's later, if you want me to tell you, I will," Kerry said as soon as Susan was safely down the hall. Abby nodded, didn't open her eyes, but nodded.
"You were attacked...Stabbed multiple times, beaten," Kerry paused, trying to decide if she should glance over one detail fro the time being, but no, it wouldn't do any good in the long run, "raped, and left in the snow for dead."
The last part got her attention and her eyes shot open, and focused on Kerry. 'when'
"About a month ago."
Abby nodded trying to absorb the information, taking in what Kerry had just told her. When one tear slowly made its way down her cheek, she tried to raise her right hand to wipe it away, but it hurt to much, her arm to heavy. Kerry quickly wiped the tear away, instantly regretting her blunt honesty. Susan's way might have been better. Only might though, there wasn't really a way to know for sure.
'Tired,' Abby signed again, 'please..sleep'
"You can't until the neurologist gets here," she looked up at the clock, "which should be any minute."
She nodded again, something in her mind was alarming about a neurologist at the hospital. Kerry had told her she had been attacked, that was all she knew.
"They caught him though," she added almost as an afterthought. Abby didn't sign, didn't have the energy, but the look in her eyes, Abby was more then scared. "He's in prison, he can't hurt you again."
'What else,' she signed.
"You've needed to be on dialysis."
A blank expression came across Abby's face, this was getting worse and worse. She shook her head, maybe this was just a horrible, horrible nightmare, maybe if she just closed her eyes, she might wake up.
Just then, Susan reentered the room, "Back, God, forgot how bad the coffee in the cafeteria tends to be. Should've just gotten it from the lounge, at least I wouldn't have had to pay for it." She looked down at Abby and knew Kerry had told, damn it. Susan dumped her coffee, deeming the stuff impotable, shot Kerry a very telling glare, then returned to Abby's side. Abby knew she had returned, felt Susan bend down and hug her, but didn't react, didn't know what to do.
Finally, Dr. Vera arrived, fifteen minutes late. Susan looked up, grateful to see the specialist, grateful for the escape from the questions she knew Abby was wanting to ask. "Dr. Lockhart, glad to see you're awake, I hope you're feeling a bit better." Abby nodded, looking at the stranger that had entered the room, obviously she was the neurologist.
"Is it okay if I do a brief exam?"
Another nod, as long as it was brief, she wanted to sleep. The exam was reasonably quick, a few standard bits, 'what color is the paper' and 'catch the pencil', nothing out of the ordinary.
As soon as she was gone, Abby turned to Kerry, and grabbed the tube, seemingly unaware of the extensive damage that had yet to be repaired to her heart and lungs.
"It can't come out Abby, not yet."
She rolled her eyes, 'I fine' she managed to once again spell, Susan laughed.
"You'll need some more surgery before you can breathe on your own." She wanted to know why, but couldn't stand it anymore, she had to sleep. She closed her eyes and was out like a light, leaving Kerry and Susan.
Once Susan was certain Abby was asleep, she pounced, "What the hell did you tell her?"
"The truth," all though she had emitted certain aspects.
"She just woke up!"
"I didn't tell her everything, just about the attack and dialysis."
"That seems about everything Kerry!" her voice rose a little as Luka entered the room.
"And that he had been arrested. She has a right to know."
"I know she does..but.." Kerry was right, "how did she take it?" Kerry shrugged, about how she'd expected.
"She's telling us she's fine.."
"That's not new, Susan."
"Think we can get her to talk about it?"
"I don't know, maybe."
Susan nodded and then smiled "at least she's here for us to fight over her,"
"That's something," the brooding Croatian in the corner spoke.
"Hi Luka," Susan said softly, not wanting to wake up Abby.
"Susan, Kerry," he nodded to them, "How's she doing? I heard she woke up."
"Oh she defiantly woke up," Susan laughed. "She wants the tube out,"
"If I recall correctly, that's not an option for a while."
"Does Dubenko know? I would guess he would be the one to do the surgery,"
"He'll find out soon if he doesn't already."
"Think he'll want to do it right away?"
"Probably sooner rather than later."
"Wonderful," Susan paused "does she know about Stenton, what he was doing?"
"No, just that her attacker is in custody."
Susan was about to speak, when Dubenko rushed into the room, only now hearing that Abby had regained conciseness. "She's awake?" he was slightly breathless from sprinting.
"Well she's no longer comatose," Susan laughed. "She'll wake up now, when asked to"
"Asked might not be the right way of putting it, but I'm glad to hear she's out of the coma."
"She keeps pulling on her ET tube, its just a guess, but I think she wants it out," a suttle way of dropping a hint to Dubenko.
"They're not comfortable, but she's going to have to wait at least until after the next surgery."
"Which is…"
"Going to happen some time in the next three days if she consents for it."
"Why wouldn't she?"
"One never knows with Dr. Lockhart."
"But its repairable right?"
"Quite."
"Good," she looked down to see that Abby seemed to be waking up, "go back to sleep," she whispered, knowing Abby need the rest. Surprisingly, Abby complied.
"That will never happen again," Luka laughed.
"Probably true." It was hard to believe that Abby had actually complied, but then again, Abby always did her own thing, defied everyone's expectations and had a truly unique way of doing things.