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Chapter 22

John leaned down, checked her pulse first, and then pulled his phone out of his pocket.

"Michael are you home? I'm... on the roof, Natalie, come right now," John told Michael after he said he was just downstairs in his apartment. He grabbed her hand and held it tight; he started to speak to her softly as he used his other hand to brush the hair from her face.

"Michael's just downstairs, you'll be alright, I won't let anything happen to you," he told her as he heard the door open and Michael run out onto the roof.

"John, what happened?" Mikey asked as he bent down next to her, Michael checked her pulse and it was fine, he looked her over, she was all banged up.

"John did you call an ambulance? Call one, right now" he told John and john was a bit frozen for a minute. "Now john" he told him again and john stood up and moved a few feet away as he called for the ambulance.

"Angel Square hotel, we... need an ambulance, Hurry" John spoke into the phone out of breath, out of air. He was starting to lose it as he watched Michael started to move her clothes away to look for signs of injuries. He had to look away for a moment; he couldn't look; what if there was something really wrong? What the hell happened to her tonight and who was responsible? He asked himself as he heard the EMT's rushing up the stairs; he walked over to the door and held it open for them.

"She has a good pulse but she's bruised bad, I'm a Dr at the hospital. We need to transport her there ASAP, she might have internal bleeding I'm unaware of." he told the EMT's as they started to get there stuff to transport Natalie to the hospital.

John watched them and he was still in his own world, she was hurt, he was so happy when she came back tonight, when they made love in his office, even when she said she wanted to talk, how could this night end so badly. Michael approached John for a minute as the EMT's started to load Natalie on the gurney for transport.

"John, she's still breathing and her pulse is good. What ever happen-" Michael cut off his own words as he saw one of the EMT's fastening the strap of the gurney around her stomach, around the baby and the man was pulling on it to tight, Michael automatically without thinking called over to the man and quickly ran over the few feet to Natalie.

"NO, its to tight, loosen it she's pregnant" Michael told the EMT abruptly. The EMT automatically loosened the strap and Michael looked at his brother's face. She hadn't told him yet, he could tell by the look on his face. The EMT's started moving the gurney towards the door as Michael started walking behind it passing John who was still standing there going over Michaels words in his mind.

"Pregnant Mikey?" he asked softly almost a whisper as he looked into his brothers eye's as he passed, Michael just nodded yes as he followed behind the gurney out to the ambulance.

John continued to stand frozen for a few seconds, she was pregnant, and now she was hurt, someone hurt her, he shook his head that will all have to wait till I make sure she's all right. He told himself as he quickly left the roof and followed behind the ambulance to the hospital.

John ran into the hospital just in time to see Mikey helping to push her into an exam room, he ran up to him frantically almost. John tried going in behind them when Michael stopped him.

"John, wait out here I need to examine her"

"No, Mikey, I need to be in there with her"

"John, trust me Please, I won't let a anything happen to her" he told John and he saw his face, he saw the fear of losing her and even the confusion of her being pregnant wash over him.

"Michael, please, please take care of her, you know how much I l--"

John was telling Michael as Michael cut off his words.

"I know John, she knows too," he told him and he left john in the hall as he attended to Natalie.

Ten minutes later John was still waiting for Michael to come out with news on Natalie when her family started arriving, Bo walked over to him with Jessica, and a woman he had yet to meet but he knew from pictures was her mom.

"John, what happened to my sister and when did she get back?" Jessica asked and he couldn't form any words, none, he was speechless; his emotions were running all over him. He finally was able to form something understandable

"I don't know, she just got back to town a few hours ago, we were suppose to talk on the roof at the hotel and when I got there... she was on the ground, I think someone beat her up" he said as he turned to Bo.

"Can you get a few men to go over there and see what they can come up with, if there's anyone that saw anything, or do you want me to do it?" he asked Bo and Bo nodded that he would do it.

"I'm sorry LT. McBain but we've never been introduced, I'm Vicky Davidson, Natalie's mother," she told him and he smiled weakly

"It's nice to meet you ma'am, Natalie talks about you all the time, and please call me John" he told her and he shook her hand.

"Call me Vicky and although I wish I could say she talks about you all the time I can't. Its Jessica who relays the messages to me about whats going on with you and she, and from what Jess tells me you seem like a pretty good guy for my girl. I had noticed a change in her lately up till the past two weeks and now I can see why, you really seem to care for her a lot, thank you"

"No need to thank me" he finished saying to her when they all looked to see Michael walk out of the examination room.

"Michael how is she?" John asked first as he walked the fastest to him, followed by jess, and Vicky.

"She's still hasn't woken but everything looks good with her, we have to still run a few tests on her and ...and... Well a few more tests just to make sure everything is alright." Michael told everyone, he got a bit tongue tied and almost revealed to everyone about the baby, but he caught himself.

"Dr. McBain, what aren't you telling us? And what exactly happened to her?" Vicky asked of Michael

"Ms. Davidson I'm telling you everything I know as of now, and it appears she was beat up. Had some type of altercation, she has bruising on her arms, wrists and her legs, she also has a few bruises on and around her abdomen." he told them and John shook for a minute. Her abdomen, the baby, he thought as he also thought about the other areas of bruising. His cop instincts were starting to kick in and he had more questions.

"Michael can I speak to you alone for a minute?" he asked and they moved away from her family so they wouldn't hear.

"Michael, her thighs, was there any bruising on her thighs? Any signs of... of..."

"No John, no signs of rape at all, just beat up and by someone who knew how to throw a punch. This was no street fighter, this guy or gal I guess knows how to land a punch." he told him and John was relieved for a few minutes till he heard Michael say about someone knowing how to throw a punch. He shook it off for the moment; he had more important questions to ask. To concentrate on.

"The baby?" he asked softly almost afraid to know, afraid to ask.

"I don't know John. I'm sorry she didn't get the chance to tell you herself, I know it would've been hard for the two of you, particularly you maybe raising someone else's child but I think that the two of you probably could've done it"

"What?" he asked Michael confused, Michael again realized he opened up his mouth when he shouldn't have but he had to tell him now.

"I'm sorry John, she didn't want me to tell you but... but she's over three months pregnant. I'm sorry if I had you believing it was yours when you heard me tell the EMT's. I should have clarified right then and there but it was more important to make sure she was alright.' he said and John stood frozen, three months ago. He met her at the bar, they went at it all night, they never used anything, he smiled briefly, and then they saw a nurse walk over to Michael.

"Dr. McBain, Ms. Buchanan is awake and she isn't happy about being here in the hospital" she told Michael and he started to walk away toward her room, John followed very closely behind and walked into the room behind him, before he was all the way in he turned to John.

"You have to wait outside" he told him and john shook his head no.

"Not a chance Michael" he told him and was about to say something else about him leaving as they heard her voice, although weak they heard it loud and clear.

"Either you let him in here or I'll go out into the hall to be with him" she said a bit stern and Michael and John returned grins as he motioned for John to walk in first.

John went without hesitation to her in the bed, she looked a mess, her face was bruised, and she looked as if she ached all over.

"Hey, you're awake. You worried me" he told her, she smiled weakly

"Christian" she said and he was a bit confused.

"You need to put out an arrest warrant for him, he did this to me" she told him and he stared into her eye's, her still beautiful perfect blue eye's.

"What? Your Ex? Why?" he asked her getting mad, extremely mad, he even stood after a few minutes went by and she didn't answer his question.

"He... he showed up on the roof, I... Michael how is my baby, how is our baby?" she asked, she knew he had to have already known. She reached for John's hand and he gave it to her, he gently intertwined the fingers and he looked into her eye's.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you before I left, I was afraid, I needed to sort thru it" she told him and they stared for a few seconds till Michael spoke.

"I have a nurse bringing down the ultrasound machine and then we need to watch you over night, I'll also have to do a few stress tests to see if your baby is in any trouble Nat" he told her and she looked at him a bit sternly.

"Its our baby Michael, mine and John's" she told him and John squeezed her hand tighter, they all saw the nurse walk in with the ultrasound machine.

"I need to tell your uncle about Chris. I'll be right back in when you're ready," he told her and he kissed her quickly on the lips. He walked out and over to Bo, spoke with him for a minute and was about to walk into the room when Michael came out for a moment before the ultrasound; he took John on the side.

"John, you do realize its not your baby right, not really anyways and when the guy, the real dad finds out she's pregnant, I just don't want to see you get hurt" he told him and John laughed a bit, not a full laugh cause they were still unsure if everything was alright with their baby.

'Michael, I won't be getting hurt, trust me, the baby that Natalie's carrying is mine. Its impossible for it not to be" he told Michael and it was impossible. They were too drunk the first few times to even consider protection. She had also told him one night when he was staying at her place that she hadn't been with anyone in a few months prior to their encounter that night.

"John you make no sense"

"Michael, mom really did waste good money on your education didn't she?" he said Laughing. Michael was still confused.

"Okay, I'm going to just say this and only once. It's my baby cause Natalie and I had wild monkey sex all night long over three months ago when we were both drunk off our ass'. So you understand now, we didn't just meet here in Llanview that was coincidence," he told him and Michael laughed at his terms. So did Jessica as she approached them just in time to hear John's declaration.

" Are you sure it was coincidence and not fate?" she asked and John got tongue tied, not entirely by her words but that she had just overheard what he said abut monkey sex.

"I... we..." John started to say but couldn't get the words out

"My sisters pregnant?" she asked as she turned to Michael, he nodded yes. " And the baby? Is she or he alright?"

"Not sure, need her to have some tests and stay for observation" Michael told her

"Well what the hell are you doing out here, get in there and find out if my sisters baby is alright"