Thanks for the lovely reviews! It feeds the demanding muse.

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Chapter 5
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"Mom?"

A beautiful woman with chocolate brown eyes and shoulder length auburn hair came walking out of a bright haze. She was petite, yet appeared willowy. She had a dazzling smile replete with a dimple in each cheek.

"I've missed you." Patrick, standing in his blue scrubs, looking dazzled, held his hands out to touch the vision in front of him. She clasped his outstretched hands and squeezed. He gasped at the feel of her.

"I know you have, but it's time for you to let go of your pain and move on. I just wanted you to know how proud I am of the amazing man and doctor you've become, Patrick."

"I've been told I'm insufferable." Patrick gave her a flirtatious smile, ignoring her more serious words. "And it's all your fault."

"You have a lot of your father in you, as well." She tightened her grip on his hands when he made to pull away. "I know you're upset with him right now, that you have been since I died. I'm glad you've finally admitted how much you needed him."

"Just in time for him to leave me again." Patrick's voice was hard with anger.

"He thinks that's what he deserves for hurting you and he doesn't want to put you at risk to save his own life."

"He knows that's ridiculous. It's a safe surgery, Mom. He can…"

"Stop! You and your father always trying to gross me out with the details." She laughed and shook her head. "Don't give up on him. And if you can't get through to him there's a spitfire of a doctor who's proven more than capable at saving Noah from himself."

"Robin." Patrick's voice roughened as he said her name.

"You care for her, Patrick."

"That's what scares me. Those are the ones that leave. She's so sick, Mom. What if I can't save her?" His eyes filled with tears.

"It was my time to go baby. That doesn't mean that it's Robin's. Sometimes medicine isn't enough, Patrick. Living takes heart."

Patrick woke with a start in Robin's darkened office. He touched his cheek, shocked to find wetness there.

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Simon looked down at Robin. He had to get through to her and this was his chance while the younger Dr. Drake wasn't watching like a hawk. "Robin? Can you hear me?" He sat down on the single chair at her bedside.

Her body moved a bit, responding to the sound of his voice. He smiled. "See I knew you didn't hate me. We can get through this. I love you Robin. Don't give up on us."

The faster beating on the heart monitor caught his attention. Her heart rate had accelerated as he talked. "Calm down sweetheart."

Her body began to rock slowly at first. She appeared to be struggling against her surroundings. An alarm sounded and a nurse rushed into the room. "You have to leave, Doctor."

Simon began to protest but was halted when he felt a hand on his shoulder. It was Patrick. His expression was hard as he pushed Simon from the room. "I told you to stay away from her. If you ever gave a damn about her you'll leave her be." Patrick shoved the man across the hallway and into the wall.

"I love her Dr. Drake! And she loves me even though she's angry." Simon lifted his hands, ready for a fight.

"Right now her health is more important than your ego. Stay out of her room." With a disgusted look at the blond doctor's pugnacious stance, he turned to the nurse who had just come out of Robin's room. "Is she stable?" The nurse nodded. "Please call Mac Scorpio. I want a guard posted outside this room." He pointed to Simon. "This man is not allowed in there unless I say so."

"This is not over." Simon walked angrily back toward the lab.

Patrick went back into Robin's room and sat down. It had just been a dream, he knew that, but it was still vivid. His mother looking like she looked before she fell ill. Her words ringing in his ears. He could feel her warmth on his wrists.

"It seems my mother likes you, Scorpio. I always knew she would." Patrick rubbed a hand over his face. "I don't know how to do this." He sighed and leaned forward, resting his hands on his knees. "My mom, who as you already know is a genius since she worshipped the ground I walked on and told me how wonderful I am, thinks that it'll take more than medicine to get you out of this and back to sparring with me on a daily basis."

Patrick closed his eyes for a moment before continuing. "So fine, I'm going to eat my own words. I told you that this life wasn't a dress rehearsal so I'm going to admit that not only do you drive me crazy, but that I am crazy about you. Not sure what the hell it is about you." Patrick shook his head. "But my day is just not complete if I don't get to drive you nuts at least once, if I don't get to see you. I'm fascinated by everything you do that I think doctors shouldn't do. And I want you to turn the endless compassion you give my father and everyone else on me."

"And I want to kiss you so bad it's keeping me awake at night. And I haven't so much as kissed anyone else in longer than I want to admit. So fight this and come back to us. To me."

Patrick sat and watched her for five. Ten. Fifteen minutes. Finally, frustrated, he stood up and walked out.

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Anna ignored the protest of the guard attempting to block her entrance into the hospital. "Ma'am, you can't come in there."

"Bloody hell I can't. My daughter is in there and she needs me."

"I have orders."

"I don't give a damn about your orders. The police commissioner called me; it's his niece, my daughter that I'm here to see. Would you like to check with him and waste my time and his or let me go see my daughter?"

"All you needed to do is tell me who you are. The Commissioner told us to let you in." The guard opened the door and let her pass.

Robert felt her glare on his back before he heard her ask for Mac and her daughter's room number. He turned, waiting for the blast that was sure to come, but he moved past him as if he wasn't there and towards Bobbie who stood at the nurse's station.

"Bobbie, where's my Robin?"

Robert started to speak but Anna turned quickly and held up her hand. "I will deal with you later. Right now, my daughter is more important."

"Our daughter." Robert's voice was calm, a smile touched his lip at the sight of Anna's fire.

"You gave up the title of father when you let her believe you were dead. I'll shoot you later." She turned back to Bobbie who came out from behind the desk and led the way to Robin's room.

"Why is there a police guard on her room?" Anna asked as they walked into the CCU ante-room.

"Robin's doctor is a bit zealous about any visitors who might agitate her."

"I bet it's her so-called father that's pissing her off."

"Actually, despite her fury with Robert his presence calms her."

"I guess I can understand…." Anna's voice broke off and tears filled her eyes as she saw her little girl lying in the bed covered with the sterile environment that was protecting her from additional threats to her already compromised immune system. "Bobbie, can she hear me?"

"No one can tell us for sure. I think that she can." Bobbie's eyes were kind.

Anna carefully opened the door and walked to the bed, slowly sinking in the chair sitting beside the bed. "Luv, I'm so sorry for not getting here sooner. But I'm here now. I'm not leaving your side." Anna pressed her hand against the plastic, displaying the bracelet that Robin had mailed to her after her move back to Port Charles, eliciting a promise that Anna would come to Port Charles to return it, as she had done in Paris after they had been reunited.

Anna lost track of the time she sat telling Robin about her latest adventure, about making plans for her return to Port Charles after a decade and about how they would make Robert suffer. She was completely unaware of her surroundings until she heard a commotion in the hallway. She turned to see Mac entering the room, a pissed off look on his face.

Not wanting whatever he had to say to be overheard by Robin who she was certain could hear her, she got up and walked into the ante room. "Mac." She slid comfortably into the arms of her brother-in-law. "She looks so…"

"She's going to be fine. She's your daughter."

"And yours, Mac. You did a fine job with my little girl." She caressed his cheek and moved out of his embrace to stand on her own two feet again, her spine ramrod straight. "Why the guard?"

"I don't have the entire story. There's this doctor that came with Robert, Simon Nicholls, his presence upsets Robin. Even when she's…like this. Doctor Drake has barred him from this room and asked me for a guard to keep him out."

"Doctor Simon Nicholl?" Anna asked, her voice incredulous. At Mac's nod she stormed past him and into the hall. "Where the hell is Simon Nicholl?"

"He's in Lab 7." Doctor Noah Drake stopped his conversation with Bobbie to answer. "Hello, I'm Doctor Noah Drake."

"Are you the Doctor I need to thank for keeping that vermin Nicholls away from my little girl?" Anna asked.

"That would be my son, Patrick."

"Could you show me where this Lab is?" she asked. "I'm Anna Devane. Sorry to be so rude, but I have a couple of murders to commit."

"I'll certainly show you. I knew your, um, Robert way back when."

"You dated Bobbie Spencer and Tiffany Donnelly. I remember hearing about you."

"Does everyone know my father in this town?" Patrick came walking out of the lab, a folder in his hand. "Hello, I'm Doctor Patrick Drake."

"Thank you for keeping that slimy Brit out of my daughter's room. Is he in there?" At Patrick's nod she stormed past him into the lab.

"I can see where Robin gets her beauty and her spine." Noah chuckled and shook his head. "Are these Robin's latest labs?" Noah held his hand out for the folder.

"Running the new serum in the virus in her blood sample, it seems like it would work."

"Then we should have enough made to administer it," Noah said.

"I'll go beat a dose out of him if I have to. Why don't you prep Robin's IV?"

"Sure." Noah raised an eyebrow at his son, but didn't say anything before walking away.

Patrick walked up to the door and pressed it open slightly.

"So all this time you've been in my not-so-dead husband's employ," Anna said furiously. "What the hell was he thinking? You're good Nicholls, I thought you really cared for my daughter. I'm not easily fooled."

"I did. I do. Robert sent me to work with her because she was already working on the drug we thought we'd need for this virus we suspected was out there and because he wanted to learn more about her. Make sure she was safe."

"What about marrying her? Was that part of your assignment?"