When Chuck disconnected, Sarah stood staring at the phone in her hand in shock. An accident is all he said aside from the fact he wanted her and Molly to be in the car waiting for him to arrive. He was clearly in a hurry and wanted to be able to drive, but not have to wait on the time it would take to move Molly's car seat from her car to his. She had a feeling in the pit of her stomach who might have been in the accident, there were only a few that would require her to join him at the hospital, and all of them might be on duty today, but only one of whom would make it difficult for her to… "Oh my God," She gasped, reality hitting her.
She tried to hold in her tears as fear and panic began to wash over her. She tried to tamp down her reaction as she mechanically went through the motions of checking Molly's diaper bag, grabbing and bagging up snacks for the toddler, getting said toddler from her room where she was napping, and looping her pure over her shoulder. Thankfully, Molly did not awaken as she was transferred to her car seat as dealing with a grumpy two-year-old on top of everything else would be just too much at the moment. She gently and securely closed the rear passenger door before swinging around to the driver's side to start the ignition. Once the car was started, she climbed over the console to the passenger's seat. She saw Chuck's Aston Martin swing into the driveway to park in what was normally her mother's parking space. She fastened her seatbelt as Chuck turned off his car, got out, set the alarm, and walked over to her Corsica to climb in.
"Ready to go?" He asked, his gaze quickly sweeping over her and then over their shoulders to ensure that Molly's straps were all buckled before backing out of the driveway.
"Chuck?" Sarah inquired after they had been driving a few minutes. The sound of his name carrying all the questions she wanted to ask of him.
He sighed as they pulled to stop at a lit intersection, he had deliberately taken another route so she wouldn't have to see her mother's totaled car. "I was heading home, and your mom must have stopped for coffee as we wound up at the same intersection at the same time. The light turned green, but a truck ran the light and t-boned her."
He saw Sarah's hand go up to her mouth as she tried to stifle the whimper that escaped her lips as tears began to fall from both their eyes. He reached out and took her hand securely in his own. "I called it in right way, but I think she hit her head in the accident. She still wasn't conscious when they loaded her into the ambulance. I called Ellie before I called you. She was called in not too long before I took you home and she's the one who caught your mom's case, or at least that's what it sounded like when I was on the phone with her. She is probably the best person to have on ER rotation for this, she was top in her neurology fellowship."
Sarah simply nodded, her hand flexing in his as she absorbed his strength into herself. When the light changed, they drove a few more minutes before she spoke again. "Thank you for being there." She whispered.
"It was pure luck, right time, right place." Chuck shook his head, "I'm just glad I was there."
The rest of the drive to the hospital was in silence. He pulled into the first space he could find and sent Sarah on ahead to get information from the receptionist as he collected Molly. Sarah nodded and, grabbing her purse, headed into the ER as Chuck efficiently and gently removed the still sleeping Molly from her car seat and hoisted her in his arms to rest on his shoulder while he grabbed her diaper bag and slung it over his shoulder. He locked the car and quickly made his way across the parking lot to join his girlfriend.
"I'm sorry Ma'am," He could hear the receptionist, an older woman in dull purple scrubs, talking to his very distraught girlfriend, "We cannot release information on a patient until their immediate family has been notified."
"But I am her immediate family," Sarah protested, "I'm her daughter!"
The receptionist looked confused, "The police said that they received no response at the address or phone number for her emergency contact."
"Um, that would have been my fault," Chuck approached, "I was present at the accident and probably got to her before the police could."
"And you are?" The woman arched her eyebrow.
"Chuck Bartowski," Chuck started.
"My fiancé," Sarah finished, just in case Ellie wasn't the doctor who was treating her mother, "And our daughter, Molly."
"Bartowski?" The older woman arched her eyebrow, "Are you related to the Woodcombs?"
"My sister and brother-in-law," Chuck confirmed, "Now could you please just give us any paperwork that needs to be processed and direct us to the proper waiting area?"
The woman just stared at him a moment longer before collecting the admission and insurance forms that would need to be filled out and handed them to Sarah, "Surgery waiting room is down that hall there, second door on the right. There is a smaller office labeled 'family consultation,' you can wait in there for the doctor to come see you."
"Thank you," Chuck looked at the ID badge around the woman's neck, "Beatrice, we appreciate your assistance." He then placed his free hand on Sarah's lower back and guided her to the room. Once the door to the consultation room closed behind them, Sarah quietly took a seat and focused on filling out the information she could.
"I don't know her insurance information," She spoke softly.
"Leave anything you don't know blank," Chuck advised, settling in the seat next to her as Molly continued to sleep in his arms, "If nothing else, the hospital's HR department will have the insurance information for her."
Sarah nodded and continued working on the forms. As she was finishing up, Molly began to stir, her blue eyes blinking slowly as she took in the unfamiliar surroundings, "Mama?"
"Hey baby girl," Sarah cooed.
"Where Grammy?" The little girl asked.
"Grammy got hurt," Chuck explained, "Auntie Ellie is helping her right now." He looked at his girlfriend for confirmation that she was okay with him referring to his sister that way and was given a nod and a sad smile. Molly seemed to accept this and snuggled into Chuck's chest from where she sat on his lap.
Chuck held Molly with one arm while his other hand held Sarah's gently brushing his thumb over her knuckles and the back of her hand in small, soothing, circles. She had just rested her head on his shoulder when a knock sounded on the door and a doctor with their long hair pulled back in a ponytail and wearing blue scrubs entered the room. "Hey guys," She spoke warmly as she pulled up a chair and sat across from them, giving Molly small waive.
"Ellie, oh thank God," Sarah sighed in relief, "I'm guessing you got her when she got in; is she okay?"
"She is as well as can be expected," Ellie gave them a confident nod, "She's pretty banged up from the accident. Her left arm is broken, and her hip and shoulder are pretty bruised from the impact. She also hit her head pretty hard, she did wake up for a little bit but was lethargic, not unusual in cases of concussion. We are waiting for her MRI to come back to make sure there isn't any other damage we need to be concerned about."
"Can I see her?" Sarah inquired.
"She had to have surgery to set her arm and is still in recovery, but she should be ready to be transported into a room in about an hour; you can see her then." Ellie informed them.
"When can we take her home?" The younger woman asked
"We would like to keep her for at least 24 hours for observation," Ellie explained, "But how long we actually will keep her is entirely dependent on the results from her MRI and other factors. She did hit her head pretty hard on the window, so that could cause some issues as well. With any luck, all she'll need is time."
"Okay," Sarah nodded, "Thank you, Ellie, for everything."
"Don't thank me," She shook her head, "Thank that brother of mine, if he hadn't been there and called in emergency services so quickly, your mom's prognosis might have been worse, especially if the accident was compounded by rubberneckers causing even more accidents in the area."
There was a knock on the door of the consultation room, when Ellie answered, an orderly stepped in, followed by a couple official looking people, a heavyset black man in uniform who looked a little like Chuck's old boss, and a tall thin black woman who looked to be in her early to mid-40's.
"Good afternoon," The woman spoke, "I'm sorry to be interrupting you in such a difficult time. I know the last thing you want to be doing when a loved one is in the hospital is answering a bunch of questions, but it is sadly necessary. My name is Detective Judy Hoffs, and this is Sargent Powell."
"It's nice to meet you," Sarah nodded at the two police officers, "What can we do for you?"
"I know Mr. Bartowski from the accident scene, thank you, young man, for your quick action by the way," Sargent Powell started, when he received a nod of acknowledgement, he continued, "Am I to understand that you are also the victim's family?"
"Well, she is," Chuck nodded toward Sarah, who had been squeezing his hand in a random pulse since the two police officers entered, "The little one here is, Sarah is Emma's daughter, and little Molly is her granddaughter."
"I thought the receptionist said that you were engaged?" Detective Hoffs gave them a questioning look which was only matched by Ellie's 'Oh, we are so going to talk about this later,' look from where she stood just over the officer's shoulders.
"Well, erm, that's not entirely true," Sarah spoke up, "At least not fully. I think I can safely say we are moving in that general-ish direction?" She looked to Chuck for confirmation who gave her a loving smile and nod.
"I would say that's a fair assessment," He agreed then turned to where his sister stood, "Sorry Elle, you can't break out your planning books just yet."
Detective Hoffs turned toward the young doctor behind her, "You know these two?"
"Yeah, I am Chuck's older sister," Ellie nodded, "And I work with Sarah's mom here at the hospital."
Detective Hoffs nodded in understanding before turning back to the younger couple. "You two sure have connections, from what I heard Dr. Woodcomb is one of the top surgeons in the country, especially at her age."
"Actually, that's her husband, sorry Elle," Chuck pointed out with an apologetic look to his older sister, "She's a close second in surgery, but she is one of the top ranked neurologists in the nation. The latter of which is a bit more beneficial to have on Emma's team."
"Agreed," Detective Hoffs nodded, "Well we do have some things you need to know."
"First of all," Sargent Powell spoke up, "The driver of the truck, a," He consulted his notes, "Joseph Davies, failed his field sobriety test and has been placed under arrest for DUI and reckless driving, at least for the time being."
Sarah nodded as she took in all the information she had heard from the officers as well as from Ellie in such a short span of time. "Is there anything we can or need to do on my mom's behalf?"
"It would probably be a good idea to retain a lawyer," Detective Hoffs recommended, "Normally we don't recommend firms, but my former colleague's nephew, Clavo, graduated UCLA Law, top of his class, and is now working at Firth, Wynn, and Meyer. He doesn't usually do personal injury, he's more civil right and immigration, but he's taken injury cases before. I can get you his number, if you would like."
Sarah looked at Chuck in question, "What could it hurt?" He shrugged and replied softly.
"We'd appreciate that very much," Sarah nodded, even if this Clavo guy couldn't help them, he might be able to suggest someone who could. The women shared a brief smile before Detective Hoffs pulled out her phone, notepad, and a pen.
Sarah watched as the older woman scrolled through her contacts before jotting a number down on the notepad and ripping the sheet out, handing it to her. The slip red Clavo Villanueva Penhall (818)555-4593. When Sarah saw the name, she gave the woman a questioning look.
"I know the name seems a little odd," Detective Hoffs shrugged, "There's a long story, but the short version is that his uncle brought him here from El Salvador to escape the violence almost 20 years ago and later adopted him."
"That makes sense, I guess," Chuck nodded, "And you're sure he'll take a personal injury case?"
"If you tell him I referred you, he'll take your case, or if he can't, he'll make sure you get matched with the best counsel available." Detective Hoffs gave them a reassuring smile. "Well, I think we are done here, unless you have something for them, Al?"
"Nope, nothing here," The man shook his head, "Besides, I'm meeting my cousin Michael for lunch, and I don't want to be late. We're trying a new Subway Fresh Fit sandwich today. I just hope that Sweet Onion Chicken Teriyaki tastes as good as it sounds."
Detective Hoffs barely restrained her eye roll. It was pretty well known around the station that Al and his cousin, a manager at a local box store, were obsessed with Subway and met up for lunch every day to partake of the Fresh Fit menu. She tapped the rotund man on the shoulder and nodded toward the door indicating that it was time for them to leave. Before following him out, she turned back to Chuck and Sarah and handed them a card. "If you need anything else, here is my card, it's got my office number and my cell if you need to reach me."
"Thank you," Sarah smiled up at her, "We really appreciate all that you do."
Detective Hoffs blushed slightly and gave a thankful nod for the compliment before following the large Sargent in exiting the emergency ward. Ellie followed the officers out after letting Sarah and Chuck know that she was going to check up on Emma's status.
When Ellie returned, she found Sarah sitting by herself in the waiting room, reading a magazine. "Where are Chuck and Molly?"
"Molly was getting a little antsy being cooped up," Sarah shrugged, "So Chuck took her for a walk around the atrium garden to get her wiggles out."
Ellie snorted and shook her head at Sarah's curious look, "Oh don't mind me," Ellie snickered, "You just reminded me of when Clara was a little younger than Molly, Chuck insisted on digging out our old VHS tapes from when we were kids and transferring them to DVD for her. We wound up watching the same two Raffi concerts multiple times over, 'Shake My Sillies Out,' was a fan favorite in our house, especially amid the curly headed crowd."
"Namely Chuck and Clara," Sarah filled in.
"Oh yeah," Ellie smiled and rolled her eyes, "He still will play some of the songs for her, but she's starting to get more into Disney now. I should warn you that if you guys make this a permanent thing, which, if I'm not mistaken, is something you are both amenable to, he will likely start to indoctrinate Molly into the music of the great Raffi."
"I am duly warned," Sarah chuckled, "I take it that you had another reason to come in other than to discuss the musical proclivities of our children and your brother?"
"Yeah," Ellie nodded, "Your mom is out of recovery and is in her own room now, if you want to go visit her. She's in room 305."
"Thanks, Elle," Sarah gave the older woman a hug, "I'll go up and see her in a minute, once I let Chuck know what's going on."
"Let me guess, the walk in the atrium was your idea?" Ellie gave her a knowing look.
"Maybe a little," Sarah shrugged.
"I understand," Ellie nodded, a small smile on her face, "You want to see how she looks so you can prepare Molly."
"Yeah," Sarah gave her an unsure look.
"I don't blame you," Ellie placed a gentle hand on the younger woman's shoulder, "I would do the same thing if the situation was reversed. Why don't you go see your mom, and I'll go find Chuck?"
"Okay," Sarah nodded, "How is she doing?"
"From what I can tell, her prognosis is good," Ellie advised, "She's a little beaten up, and we are just waiting until more of her sedatives wear off to finish our cognitive checks, but I don't anticipate much if any trouble there."
"She does have a hard head sometimes," Sarah chuckled.
"Which isn't entirely a bad thing," Ellie snickered, "I've seen her put a few doctors, deservedly, in their place. Not to mention, her stubborn determination will aid her in getting back on her feet faster, which is a very good thing in my book."
"Agreed," Sarah smiled, "So, how do I get to her room?"
"Tell you what, how about I take you before I go hunt down my brother?" Ellie suggested.
"Sounds good," Sarah nodded, "Lead the way."
