There was only a matter of minutes to go before Robyn's life support machine was turned off. Everyone was gathered in the room with the addition of a chaplain should the last rights be deemed necessary. It was well known among the group that Doctor Malone was always prompt, a trait they cursed this day. Desperate minds tried to find ways of halting the process but honest souls couldn't bring themselves to carry them out. This was a thing that had to be done; this was closure from all of the bad feelings and dread which had filled them. The sound of footsteps in the corridor alerted them that someone was coming. Looking at her watch Trixie knew exactly who was on their way to the room and her heart began to pound in her chest.
It was time.
Robyn tried desperately to get Detective Miller to drive faster but he flatly refused. He was already pushing the engine to its limit and if any police clocked them there would be a fatal delay. Luckily he still had his police light and had turned it on to alert other road users of his need to get by them quickly. Something at the back of his mind told him that it wasn't enough.
It wasn't enough.
A disgustingly composed looking Doctor Malone walked into the room followed by a not so composed looking Kathleen. Under his arm he carried a clipboard which he placed on the locker beside Robyn's bed. Looking at each of her relatives and friends he tried to detect any sign of objection to what he was about to do. When none came he ticked a box on the check list attached to the clipboard.
One box down four more to go.
Detective Miller sped into Greentown and took an express route to the hospital. It was meant only for ambulances but this qualified as an emergency. Rising up in the distance he could see the hospital, he didn't dare look at the clock set in the dashboard in case it told him just what he didn't want to know.
He was sure that it would tell him that their time was running very close to running out.
Following procedure to the letter Doctor Malone did a final check of Robyn's life signs. Her blood pressure, pulse, oxygenated blood levels and temperature were all a little below normal. It was unfortunate that at this present time that that didn't matter, under any other circumstances he would have done something about it.
Making some notes in her file he went back over to the clipboard and ticked another box.
Driving at break neck speed into the hospital car park Detective Miller ignored regulations and did a hand break turn into a parking bay near the front entrance. He had no time to worry about parking properly who he might hit doing it the dangerous way.
After all this wasn't real.
With all of the check boxes ticked Doctor Malone had to collect three signatures. One from himself as the participating doctor, one from Kathleen as a witness and one from Robyn's father as next of kin. Signing the box he had to sign he handed the clipboard to Kathleen who dithered. Eventually she signed the box she was meant to sign and handed the clipboard to Robbie with shaking hands. Robbie took the clipboard with a grim look on his face.
He couldn't do this; he couldn't condemn his daughter to death.
Detective Miller carried Robyn into the hospital running as fast as he could. He noticed that she was tremendously light for someone her age but he didn't have time to worry about that now. Ignoring the lifts he ran towards the stairs. Robyn kicked the door open for them and they headed up.
Robbie stared blindly at the form his mind wrestling his conscience. He knew what he had to do but it wasn't that simple. Burying his only daughter was the last thing he'd ever thought he'd do. Unable to sign the form he handed the clipboard to Sportacus who had also been named as a next of kin.
Biting his lip and issuing a silent prayer to any god or deity that would listen, Sportacus signed his name.
Completely exhausted Detective Miller nearly collapsed at the third floor. Running up the stairs alone was one thing but running up them with a dead weight was another. He couldn't do it anymore. His energy was gone, much to his sadness he resigned himself to the fact that Robyn was on her own now.
Wishing Robyn good luck Detective Miller watched as she climbed the stairs without him as fast as her injured body would allow.
Doctor Malone took the clipboard from a shattered Sportacus. Checking everything over once more he sighed. He hated this part of the job, he was here to save lives not take them. It disgusted him that it was meant to serve as part of the 'greater good' but there was nothing good about it.
With no other way to stall the inevitable he reached for the switch.
Robyn fought her rising agony. She had to make it. She had no choice. There were only two more floors to go, only four more flights of stairs until she reached the right floor. The closer she got the more she became aware of her body.
It was close, it was ever so close.
Kit stopped Doctor Malone's hand with his own. He couldn't let the man proceed. There was no way he'd let Robyn go again. Burning with selfish desire he wanted her to be with him forever whether it meant Robyn being on a machine for an undeterminable amount of time.
Anguish filled him as he watched his hand being pulled away by another person's hands and Doctor Malone's hand completing its journey.
Pain like no other pain before ripped through Robyn's body and she screamed. Pushed on by nothing more than her own waning adrenaline she continued on but she couldn't stop the screams of sheer torment rising from her throat. Falling to her knees she pulled open the door of the sixth floor and crawled through.
Her energy levels dwindling dangerously low she fell onto her stomach and dragged herself desperately along the ground.
Unable to remain in the room any longer as the lines on the monitors of Robyn's machines began to waver and die Robbie walked out followed by several other people none of whom he acknowledged. Reeling in the most extreme anguish he'd ever felt he fell to his knees and cried. Strong arms folded themselves around him and the person's tears mixed with their own.
Both paused in their mourning when an alarm went off.
Looking up with reddened eyes Sportacus saw the emergency light flashing above the doorway to Robyn's room. Desperate hope began to fill him when several nurses ran into the room pulling a crash trolley along with them. He stood up shakily and walked over to the half closed doorway of the room.
Doctor Malone was trying to resuscitate Robyn.
No improvement showed on the monitors after two rounds of cardiac compressions but Doctor Malone wasn't going to give up. He wasn't going to lose this patient even if forms had been signed saying he had to. There was no way he was going to give up Robyn without a fight; he had to at least know that there was no hope for her.
"Get me three milligrams of adrenaline and charge the defibrillator to one hundred; we're going to have go in quick with this." Doctor Malone said.
Administering the adrenaline he rubbed the paddles together and pressed them to the orange squares stuck to Robyn's chest, this had to work. Telling everyone to stand clear he shocked her.
Nothing happened.
Getting the machine charged to two hundred he shocked her again, there was still nothing. Swearing, he shocked her again.
Still nothing.
Charging the machine to three hundred he tried again, after three times at three hundred he accepted defeat. He'd lost. She was gone. Disappointment filling him and the bitter gnaw of guilt eating away at his insides he made a note of the time of the death. Sending away the crash trolley he disconnected the life support machine from Robyn, picked up his clipboard and left the room. For his own piece of mind he ignored the sad eyes that followed him from the room.
His face crumpled with sadness Kit walked slowly over to Robyn. She looked so peaceful, so serene. He expected her to wake up any minute and laugh at him for being so foolish, the bitter reality of it was that she was gone. It would never happen. Needing to be beside her he climbed onto her bed and lay next to her stroking her cooling cheek.
Not knowing whether it was an illusion brought on by grief or whether it was really happening he could have sworn he felt a shallow exhalation of breath against his wrist. Wanting to confirm what his mind told him he'd felt he placed his cheek near Robyn's mouth. Joy and hope reawakened within him as he felt her breath gently touching his cheek.
"Doc! Doc! You've got to get in here!" Kit shouted with rising excitement.
Doctor Malone came charging into the room. Feeling Robyn's neck he felt a pulse and instantly went to work. He switched all of the monitors back on and saw that she was coming back steadily. When she started to gag he called for a nurse and removed the tube from Robyn's throat that had connected her to the life support machine. He watched with confident happiness as she slowly opened her eyes and looked around.
She was back. She'd made it. The only thing she had returned without was her childlike innocence.
Several hours later Kit was sitting beside Robyn on the bed, both were extremely happy for their own reasons. Kit had his fiancée back and Robyn had survived an ordeal that she would never speak of. No one would believe her if she told them.
After all, it had all been in her mind.