Title: The Forest

Chapter: 10

It had been three weeks since Lilly had gone into a coma and the doctors were giving her another day before performing the apnea test and a braindeath examination on her. Scotty didn't agree with the decision. He'd seen the monitors, Lilly's brain activity had leveled off. She wasn't dying anymore, she was suspended in a coma. But, with the end approaching Scotty had decided to go back to work. He wanted to pick up a copy of Lilly's forty-nine report. He had to know what happened to her. He wanted to assure her that it would be okay, that he wouldn't judge her for it.

He'd thoroughly over the past few weeks and decided that he'd wanted to see the forty-nine. Even if he didn't read it, he wanted to know that it existed. That she really had one. That she was really suffering. He'd understood Lilly's contempt towards deadbeat dads. Knowing that her father had walked out. But what he couldn't understand was her contempt towards negligent parents. He remembered that one case they'd investigated, the death of this girl Toya. Her mom had been in a coma for several yeras and they were getting the opprutunity to question her. Lilly had argued with him about the mother. He could recall her saying, "...mom makes some exuse why there is no dinner tonight and, oh yeah, no breakfast either. So thank god for the free cornflakes at school if you get there early and maybe some kid will give you some scraps out of his lunchbox." When Scitty said, "So times where hard with your mom" she'd replied. "Scotty there was never a good time."

Did her mother have something to do with the forty-nine? Why Lily was so introverted about her feelings? If that was the case then why hadn't she told him? He was her friend wasn't he?

Entering the records office he presented his ID to the clerk. He felt strange...George had once sat there. This is where he'd read about Lilly's forty-nine. Where he found out what her colleges wanted to know. He knew the very mystery of Lilly rush.

"Dr. Valens," Scotty began. "I need the forty-nine on Lillian Rush."

"Lillian Rush? As in the officer that was shot last month?" the record keeper said.

"Yeah, that'd be her."

"It's tragic. I met her once. She seemed nice, really genuine, but her eyes always seemed distant, like she was carried around a dark secret. Have her doctors said anything?"

"There's been no change," Scotty said. He was lying but he didn't care, he just wanted the damn forty-nine.

"Oh...I'll pray for her," the record keep said as he typed Lilly's name intot he computer. The screen returned with an abundance of information. "I'm sorry, it's been checked out."

"What? By who?"

"Detective Stillman."

Lilly arrived at the police station later that morning. She'd showered and dressed in her sweats. The nurse was there at the station and ushered her into one of the interview rooms. Lilly had to admit that she was feeling better, but she was still anxious when she was asked to step into the doors of her interview room.

"Please," the nurse said. "There's not much time."

Lilly entered the room without a word and took a seat. Soon two figures came in. Figures that looked exactly like her. She stared wide-eyed at her two imposters for a couple moments and then asked in amazement, "Who are you?"

"We're you," one of the figures said. "Well at least part of your psyche. I'm your ego."

"And I'm your superego," the other figure said. "And at this time you've been in your coma for a month."

"A month?" asked Lilly. "How is that possible? I've only been her for one day."

"Time passes differently here," said ego. "We'll need to proceed to make a case in time."

"Time for what?"

"Let's just say there's a deadline," superego explained. "We have until tommorrow before the doctors perform an apnea test. We're here to help you decide wether or not to live or die. Call it informed consent."

Lilly was speechless. Two figures looked exactly like her, clothing and all. We're telling her that she had to make a decision by a certain point. She felt even more uneasy than when she'd walked in. In fact she felt like she was going to vomit.

"Shall we begin?" said ego.

Scotty rushed to Stillman's office. What the hell was Stillman doing with Lilly's forty-nine report? It wasn't revelent information for him to know. Hell he had probably know the forty-nine had existed before he did But he needed the forty-nine. He needed to know what'd happened.

"Stillman?" Scotty siad as he walked into the office.

"What can I do for you Scotty," Stillman said in a very kind way.

"I just got back from the achives. They told me that you had Lilly's forty-nine report?"

"Yeah, it's right here," said Stillman holding up the file. "I haven't read it. I was going to but I haven't had the courage to open it. I had the feeling you would come looking for it."

"I need to know," Scotty said, tears brimming in his eyes. He felt anguish, knowing the file was in front of him. Knowing that the mystery of her was in his grasp. "Please, can I have it?"

"Scotty, it's not for you to read. It's for Lilly to tell you about when she feels comfortable. It's too personal for anyone to read..."

Their conversation was interupted by a knock on the door. A yound female detective. A brunette dressed in the same conservative way that Lilly did, was standing in the doorway. "I'm sorry. Detective Stillman?"

"Com ein," Stillman said urging the woman in. "You must be Josie Sutton. Detective Sutton meet Scotty Valens."

"Hi," Josie said holding out her hand for a handshake.

Scotty looked at the hand suspiciously before extending his own. "Nice to meet you."

"Detective Sutton will be taking Detective Rush's place for the duration of her recovery." He then turned to Sutton. "I suggest you go talk with Vera and Jefferies. They can get you up to speed."

Sutton nodded, "Thank you, sir." She exited the office.

"You found her a replacement," said Scotty. "I thought that you had hope for her recovery."

"I do," Stillman said. "But I had no choice...the commissioner was on my back. We needed another body on the CCS."

"Don't play this game," Scotty said. "If you've lost all hope and decied with the doctors, just tell me. Don't blame it on the commissionor. A month ago you had every hope that she would wake up and smile at us like nothing happened. Now you're hiring her a replacement?"

"I'm telling you the truth Scotty," Stillman said. A pause hung between them. "Scotty, it's obvious it's too soon for you to come back. Go home and get some rest. And by home...I mean your home. Not Lilly's."

Scotty didn't answer. "Can I see the forty-nine?" he asked. "Please."

Stillman handed over the forty-nine and Scotty accepted it. He held the file in his hand for a moment before stepping out the door. "Thanks."

"It's obvious that you know about your condition," Ego said to Lilly. "Comatose for almost a month. That's not good."

"I know," Lilly said. "I was shot in the head. When I wake up I'll probably have brain damage."

"But consider what you're going back to," super-ego said. "I mean; you're at odds with your sister, you don't have a relationship with your mom, and you don't have a serious relationship outside of work."

"I have my cats."

"But they can't return the same affection that humans can," ego said. "A cat can't hold you, or keep you warm at night.

Lilly ran a hand through her hair. She didn't know what to say: how did she answer a question like that. The fact that it came out of her own mouth was also suprising. "Scotty loves me," said Lilly. "I've seen him, crying over me. He wants me back."

"Are you going back for him?" ego asked.

"You do remember that the man dated your sister.

Scotty went back to his apartment just as Stillman had said. But it wasn't where he wanted to be. He wanted to be back at the hospital with Lilly. He wanted to be at her side incase anything happened. He wanted to console her. Urge her to keep fighting. To tell her that it was okay to come back.

Scotty didn't have the energy to go to his room. He pulled off his shoes and went to the kitchen. He took out a beer and opened it up before returning back to the living room. He turned on the TV and thought of Lilly. The program on didn't concern him at all. He wanted to call the ICU, ask how Lilly was doing. He wanted to go to the hospital and hold her hand. Hold her close to him.

Tommorrow was a stange day to have the apnea test. The papers said that George's burial was to take place tommorrow. The same day they would decide on Lilly's braindeath. He sighed painfully. He didn't want her to die. He knew that she was still there. He knew that she hadn't left him. She wouldn't leave him.

With that Scotty stretched out onto the couch.

Author's note: Well, what do you think. I promise, Lilly's condition will be resolved soon. Please reveiw.