Carter shook his head as he watched Luka tease the soccer ball with his foot and kick it past the young boys trying to get it from him. He glanced around and grinned as he saw her sitting in the sparse shade of a huge bush. He should have known. They were never too far away from one another. She seemed to have one eye on Luka and the other on the three little girls in front of her who were weaving a basket out of dried grasses. She looked up at him from under the folded brim of her hat as he approached.
"Hey," he said as he squatted down in the dust next to her. "I don't know how he can move like that in this heat." Abby chuckled and indicated her own position in the shade.
"You're asking me?" Carter grinned. They watched the impromptu soccer game in silence and Carter sighed.
"Seems kind of unfair, doesn't it?" he said quietly. "All these kids... no homes...no real schools..." Abby glanced at him with a frown that soon faded. She knew he was talking about their own sons...who would have had everything. She'd had that thought herself. Too many times in the last few weeks.
"You two seem to be handling things okay," he said. Abby shrugged.
"Maybe...here," she said. Her eyes met his. "It will be harder in Chicago. We still have a nursery to dismantle. Lots of memories at the hospital." Carter nodded.
"Chicago..." he mused. " County seems like a world away," Abby scoffed.
"I hate to break it to you, Carter, " she said. 'We're in Africa? In the middle of the desert? County General is a world away?" He laughed and nodded. They both looked up as they heard the sudden crack of gun fire. One of the little boys kicking the ball crumpled to the dirt. Carter instinctively shoved her back against the bush and huddled to the ground. There was another crack and another child fell. And then another. Screams came from the grass huts nearby as people emerged fromthem and ran toward the open field.
"Get down!" Luka hollered in Arabic as he fell to the ground himself and began creeping toward the injured boys. The dirt directly in front of his facekicked as another bullet narrowly missed him. Luka threw his arms around his head.
"Snipers," Carter whispered as he turned back to her. Abby had gathered the three little girls in her arms. Her terrified eyes were locked on Luka. "Stay here." Carter carefully laid himself flat on the ground and snaked silently across the packed dirt. The boys were all flat and silent. Luka lifted his head and more shots rang out. The soccer ball was kicked into the air by a bullet and then destroyed by the volley that followed. There was a shout and then they heard horses riding away. Luka lifted his head cautiously and then sprang to his knees. He crawled to the bleeding boys and felt for a pulse on each of them. Carter was at his side in an instant to help. Abby stood up and ushered the little girls quickly toward their screaming families. She turned back to see Luka drop back on his haunches in the dirt and hang his head. The bodies were picked up and carried away, the gathered crowd moving with them and he was left alone surrounded by puddles of blood. Abby watched him for a moment as he stood up and brushed the dust from his pants. Kind of a futile motion really, but she knew he was buying himself some time to absorb what had happened so quickly. She crossed her arms and waited in the sun for him to come to her. When he was near she looked up at him. Luka didn't smile as he pulled her close and held her for a long moment.
"It's not your fault, Luka," she said finally.
"I shouldn't have brought them away from the center of the camp," he said. Abby was still and then she sighed.
"There was no where else to play. They needed to play."
"But did they need to be killed?" Luka was quiet as they walked among the tent shelters toward the clinic compound. His arm was looped across her shoulders and Abby's arm circled his waist.
John Carter leaned against the tent pole of the temporary hospital and watched them walk slowly in his direction. He couldn't explain the feelings he was dealing with. Was it jealousy? He had to admit that she was still in his head. Lord, she was beautiful. Sweaty and dust covered with that crazy khaki bucket hat on her head, his heart caught in his throat whenever he saw her. Here, in this place, with everything that had happened between them so far gone, he wondered what could have been with them had they stuck it out and stayed together. What she would have been like. What he would have been like. Carter shook his head again. Hell, he was the one that broke it off between them, and it hadn't been pretty. He knew he would hurt her when he wrote the letter. And he'd wanted to hurt her then. He'd wanted to hurt someone...anyone...because he'd felt so alone. Abby was just in the way. Losing her to Luka was a fitting punishment for him. He couldn't hate either of them for being happy. He'd driven them together...or at least cleared the way for the inevitable.
It was funny how these things played out. They had gone through the same thing...the loss of a child. And with Abby it had been even more devastating. At least he and Kem could have more children when they were ready. He hadn't known what to say to them about that. But then found it best to say nothing at all. He didn't understand how what they'd been through could have brought Abby and Luka closer together when it had driven a wedge between him and Kem. It had been months since anything but emails had passed between the two of them. And here Abby had followed Luka to Africa. Abby, whose penchant for long, hot baths and fresh, hot coffee were well documented, had actually chosen to follow him to a place where tepid showers and a good brew were a rare commodity. Luka Kovac was a lucky, lucky man. Carter sighed as they came nearer and tried to smile. They would be gone soon. He would miss them but, in many ways, it would be easier to have them gone. He wouldn't have to think about what could have been.
It was night. Luka was stretched out on his cot with his arms folded behind his head. He played the scene from the morning out over and over in his mind. What had he missed? Why hadn't they heard - or felt - the horses? How could he have asked Abby to come here? What if it had been her in the middle of that field. He couldn't bear the thought of that. He couldn't reconcile with the fact that three children had died today either. All because he'd wanted them to play. Luka turned his head toward the pillow next to him and was surprised to see that she was still awake. They had both been busy in the clinic for the rest of the day. New babies born, dysentery...one patient after another. It had been exhausting. Yet here she was, lying on her side watching him. Her eyes shone sadly in the light from the moon overhead. The tent tarp that covered the roof of their room couldn't block out the light. Luka turned on his side and looked at her. He lifted his hand to her face and drew his thumb over her features, tracing the lines of her jaw, her lips, her chin. Abby's eyes never left his face.
"And I should have paid more attention to what was happening to me...and to Joe," she said quietly. "I should have gone right to Coburn after I fell instead of ..." Luka pressed a finger to her lips and then closed his eyes. He opened them again and tried to smile.
"It wasn't your fault," he said quietly. "You're a good doctor, Abby. You did what you had to do at that moment. It won't change anything if we try to blame ourselves." He drew her closer and held her in his arms. Abby sighed and snuggled against his chest. Luka held her until she drifted to sleep. He had barely closed his own eyes when there was a knock and the door to their room opened.
"Dr. Luka...Dr. Luka...," came a frantic whisper. Luka opened his eyes and pulled himself up.
"Dr. John sent me to tell you," Adam Mohammad said. "We are being evacuated. He is at the clinic packing medicines and the first aid kits." Luka nodded and shook Abby awake.
"Abby," he said. "We've go to go. We have to evacuate." Her eyes opened with a start and she sat up. Luka was pulling his slacks on and tossed her clothes to her.
"I'm going to help at the clinic," he said. "Stay here and pack as much food and water as you can into our bags" She nodded and grabbed the duffle bags as he kissed her quickly and ran from the room. She went to the common room and emptied the contents of the cupboards into the bags. She dragged them outside just as a jeep pulled up. Adam helped her lift the bags into the back of the jeep. She climbed in and he pulled the jeep toward the clinic doors. Luka and Carter were waiting. They piled boxes into the jeep as other relief workers filled a truck in front of them. Carter went to the truck and was shouting orders to the aides in French. Abby looked around her, wide eyed. People were already filling the road out of the refugee camp...walking hurriedly and silently away on foot...with their belongings in their arms or on bundles on their heads. Luka climbed into jeep beside her. It was still night.
"Tata's sculpture..." Abby said suddenly. "I forgot it!" Luka looked at her and then pulled himself up.
"I'll get it," he said as he jumped out of the jeep.
"Luka!" Carter cried as he moved to get in.
"Get her out of here," Luka said as he started running toward the doctors' quarters. "I'll be on the truck right behind you. Don't wait for me."
"Luka...no!" Abby called frantically as she stood up in the back of the jeep. Luka just waved and disappeared in the dust. Carter contemplated what to do. He nodded at Adam and the jeep pulled into the road and honked to warn people to move away.
"Carter! Wait for him!" she cried as she fell back into her seat.
"He said to go, Abby," Carter said firmly. "He'll be on the truck." She turned around in her seat and watched the hospital compound fade as the jeep bumped along the road.