Luka peeked into the darkened exam room. She was sound asleep on a gurney. He smiled softly and watched her for a long moment. She looked so vulnerable when she slept. He sighed heavily. He was overwhelmed with protectiveness. It had been easier with the mugger...Brian, her neighbor...with people who had attacked her physically. He could put them in their place. But there was a fear within her that he had not been able to touch...yet.
"Luka," Chuny came up behind him. "Automobile accident coming in. Three victims...all critical...ETA is three minutes." Luka nodded.
"Abby?" he said. "Come on. We need you." She opened her eyes and sighed.
"Well...that was nice," she said. "I should be good for another hour or so." He laughed as she climbed off the gurney and they hurried down the corridor to the ambulance bay. Sam was coming in the door. Luka threw her a glance and tipped his head toward the doors.
"Three crits coming in, Sam," he said. She nodded and hurried to shove her things behind the admit desk. Two ambulances rolled up to the doors and the back doors swung open. The rolling gurneys were pulled out and paramedics hustled the patients inside.
"Male, 33...blunt trauma to the head...dislocated shoulder" one called.
"Pratt!" Luka called out. Greg Pratt nodded and helped push the stretcher to an exam room.
"Female...aged 3...backseat passenger...car seat incorrectly fastened..." a paramedic cried. "Name's Kristin."
"This one's crashing!" someone called as a third stretcher was pushed inside. Luka hurried to assist as the gurney careened into the nearest trauma room with Ray close behind. Abby and Sam took the gurney with the little girl into the room next door.
"Mommy!" the little girl screamed. Sam bent over her and adjusted the neck brace and oxygen mask that had been placed on her in the ambulance.
"It's okay sweetie," she said as she cut away the little girl's bloodied shirt. There was a gash over her eye.
"Oh geez..." she breathed as she saw the bruises from the seat belt that already crossed the baby's chest. Abby looked up from the blood pressure cuff and her eyes met Sam's. The little girl screamed again and Abby bent down to examine the cut closer.
"Let's get a butterfly on this right away," Abby said. Chuny nodded and gently pressed a gauze sponge to the cut.
"I want my Mommy..." Kristin screamed. Sam leaned over her and held her in place gently.
"Kristin? I like your pony tails. Did Mommy put those ribbons in?" Abby spoke calmly as she carefully examined the little girl's extremities and chest. The little girl was clammybut responsive to pain. " Let's get a type, CBC, serum amylase..."
"Probable rib fracture on the left side," she continued. "We need an x-ray." Chuny hooked the heart monitor to the little heaving chest and the blips sounded in the room.
"Blood pressure is dropping," Sam warned. Kristin stopped mid scream and vomited. Abby turned her gently on her side and Sam helped clear her mouth.
"What have we got here?" Luka asked.
"Three year old with blunt trauma to the chest," Abby said. "Probable broken rib on the left side, tenderness to the abdomen and left shoulder, dropping blood pressure and rapid heart rate."
"Spleen...," Luka said. "There's an open OR now. Let's get her out of here. They can an ultrasound upstairs. Call and let them know they will need a pediatric surgeon instead. I'll go with her." Sam detached the monitor lines and tossed them onto the gurney. She reached for the telephone on the wall.
Abby tucked a warmed blanket over the little girl and helped Luka push the gurney to the elevator. She smiled worriedly as he pressed his stethescope to the little girl's chest. The elevator doors closed in front of her and they were gone. When she turned back to the corridor she saw Dori pulling a sheet over the lifeless figure of the woman in the trauma room next to the one she'd just used.
"Oh damn," she sighed. Sam came out of the trauma room pushing a red hazard container. She followed Abby's gaze and frowned sadly.
"How is her Dad?" Sam asked. Abby shrugged and shook her head. Sam looked back at Abby and then averted her eyes quickly as she pushed the covered container to it's place in the hall.
" I haven't seen you in a while, Sam," Abby said. "We seem to be on opposite shifts. How are you?"
"Fine..." Sam said. "Busy. You know." Abby nodded. Sam's eyes dropped to Abby's waistline and then she smiled slightly.
"You're looking good," she said. Abby chuckled.
"Yeah...right," she said. "Ever growing...always eating and constantly sleeping" she said with a satisfied pat to her side. Sam's smile faded wistfully.
"Well," she said. "I need to go check in." Abby watched Sam head for the admit desk to retrieve her purse and jacket. She frowned slightly and followed Sam.
'Do you have a minute?" she asked her. "It's kind of quiet." Sam looked around and then shrugged. She followed Abby into the doctor's lounge and dropped her things on the table. She crossed her arms and waited.
"Look," Abby said. 'I am not good at small talk, especially when I have
something on my mind so I am just going to come out with it." Abby took a deep breath.
"I think you are really making a mistake keeping Alex away from Luka," she said.
"Well, that's my decision to make, isn't it?" Sam replied. "I'm his mother."
"You're a good mother, Sam," Abby said. "Why would you want tohandle this alone?"
"I can take care of my son," she retorted angrily. "I always have."
"You are always on the run from someone or something," Abby said sharply. "I grew up like that and it's not pretty." Sam's mouth dropped open in disgust.
"Are you comparing me to your mother?" she said angrily, 'because if you are..."
"I am comparing Alex to me," Abby interrupted her. "It took me a long time to learn to trust...and maybe I still can't do it completely... but do you really want him to be like that? He's a thirteen year old boy. He is going to need someone to talk to. If it can't be his dad or...or someone else...wouldn't you rather it be Luka ? Someone that cares about him?"
Sam glared at her for a long moment and then gathered her coat and purse from the table. Without a word she opened the lounge door just as Luka appeared in front of her. Sam looked up at him wordlessly for a moment and then stepped around him. He watched her as she hurried toward the staff locker room. Luka frowned and turned to Abby.
"Abby..." he asked slowly. "What did you do?" Abby sighed heavily and shrugged.
"Are you ready to go home?" she asked. Luka shook his head.
"I want to wait and see how the little girl does in surgery," he said. "We lost her mother today." Abby nodded.
" I'm going to go to my place tonight," she said. Luka nodded.
"That's fine," he said. "I'll see you there later." Abby shook her head slowly.
"I think I want to be alone for a while," she said softly. "Okay?" Luka crossed the room and tipped her face up to look into her eyes.
"What did you and Sam say to each other?" he asked.
"Nothing important," she said. 'I'm just feeling a little melancholy." She smiled softly and he kissed her.
"Put your coat on and I will walk you out," he said. Abby took her hospital jacket off and hung it in her locker. She slipped her arms into the sleeves of her coat and buttoned it as Luka watched her. He draped his arm across her shoulders as they walked out of the ambulance bay into the night. He hailed her a cab and stood watching until the cab was out of sight.