Past Mistakes

Chapter 9

Christine had watched in horror as the vehicle hit Mike. She had followed him out of the office, knowing she had overstepped and wanting to talk to him. She immediately ran to him, not knowing if she was about to become a widow. By the time she got to him, the driver was out of the vehicle; freaking out. Mike was breathing and his leg was at an odd angle, but he was unconscious.

"Go inside and have my secretary call 9-1-1. He's breathing and there's a pulse, but he is unconscious. I'm pretty sure his leg is broken." Christine ordered the young man, who immediately complied. Mike was coming around and moaning in pain.

"Oh…" Mike cried out.

"I'm right here, babe. Just hang on. I love you so much and I'm so sorry for what I said." Christine said, not sure if Mike was even cognizant enough to understand.

"I love you…too. The girls…tell them I love them." Mike said.

"I will, but you are going to stick around. We have too much to do, and besides; there's that date you were talking about." Christine insisted. Mike gave her a pained laugh and then a moan.

"I was really looking forward to a steak. Guess it'll be hospital food for us tonight." Mike remarked.

"And it'll be a while before you can dance. That leg is bad." Christine said as she held Mike's hand. She could hear sirens getting closer and she knew Mike was struggling to stay conscious.

"I'm sorry." Mike said simply.

"You have nothing to be sorry for. I just want you to concentrate on staying awake. I know you're in pain. You are going to have plenty of time for me and the girls to spoil you rotten, and Hannah makes the best nurse. Just hang on for me, okay?" Christine begged. Mike's eyes were blinking rapidly, like he was trying to stay awake but thankfully an ambulance and a police car was approaching.

"I love you so much…" Mike said.

"I love you too." Christine replied, before leaning over and giving Mike a kiss.

The next few moments was a blur. The paramedic was worried about blood loss due to the leg and so Mike was transported quickly. Christine talked to the police and called her daughters. By the time she arrived at the ER, an orthopedic surgeon was already assessing Mike and the leg was badly damaged. There was even talk of amputating the leg below the knee. There were other injuries to be worried about as well. Broken ribs and a collarbone. Road rash. A nasty bump on Mike's head. Christine only got a moment with him before he was whisked away to surgery, in hopes they could save his leg and ultimately; his career and life.

The girls arrived and were just as scared as Christine. Fortunately, Hannah had the wisdom to bring things to keep Emma occupied with, and Emma busied herself drawing pictures for her 'Mister Mike.' Christine had also been in contact with Kara Green, so that she could let the appropriate people know of Mike's accident. Finally, a few hours later; one of the nurses approached Christine and asked her to meet the surgeon in a conference room, without the girls. It didn't help Christine's guilt at all. Dr. Givans was waiting on Christine and offered her a sympathetic smile.

"First of all; your husband did well through the surgery. He is resting comfortably. Unfortunately; we were unable to save his right leg. Due to damage to his femur, we had to amputate above the knee. I realize that this could have negative effects on his career, and of course; there is always prosthetics. I wanted you to have a chance to digest this before you went in there; and also to explain it to your daughters." Dr. Givans explained. Christine was stunned.

"I thought…there would be some fix." Christine remarked.

"Had we fixed it without amputating, there would have been no chance of him staying in the Navy. His femur, knee, tibula and fibula would have been…all rods and replacement parts. He would have never been able to walk on it. Honestly, he's got a far better chance now then he did. We would have also had to worry about gangrene. I understand this is upsetting, but I have no doubt that your husband will recover easily." Dr. Givans answered.

"And the other injuries? The ribs? Collarbone?" Christine asked.

"We also repaired the collarbone and the ribs will heal. He does have a slight concussion, but is responding well to cognitive tests." Dr. Givans answered.

"He's awake, then?" Christine questioned.

"Yes, and asking for you. He does already know about the leg. I find it is easier to not put that on a patient's family to tell." Dr. Givans said as they both stood up.

"How's he handling it?" Christine asked.

"I've seen a lot worse reactions, but he may not be fully understanding the potential ramifications at this point." Dr. Givans told her.

"If I know Mike; he is fully aware of his situation. He understands exactly." Christine remarked. She quickly sent a text to Katie to tell her that Mike was alright before being led to Mike's room. It was hard to look at the blanket covered foot of the bed, and only see one leg, but Christine focused on Mike's pale face. She walked to him and squeezed his good hand. At first, she thought he was sleeping, but his eyes popped open. He didn't smile, but he did nod towards her. "I'm so sorry." Christine said simply.

"Its not your fault. I shouldn't have run out into traffic." Mike remarked sarcastically.

"It is, though. Had I not argued…" Christine started.

"Chris…please. I'm processing. I would prefer we not play the blame game at this point. I'm tired and I'm in pain. I want to see the girls, and then I want to go to sleep. Tomorrow; I will start rehab. If you want to go home; I understand. If you want to stay, I would be perfectly fine with that as well, but I just cannot talk about what happened before I was hit." Mike said.

"Okay. Do you want to see Emma too? She's been drawing you pictures." Christine asked. She reached over and stroked Mike's face. Thankfully, he didn't turn away from her.

"Yeah. I'd like to see her. Do they know?" Mike asked.

"Yes. The doctor was going to explain." Christine answered.

"Good." Mike answered. Christine leaned over and kissed Mike's cheek, before texting Katie to tell her to come to the room with Hannah and Emma. The girls quickly filed in and began spoiling Mike with hugs and kisses. Emma presented all of her drawings to Mike, who asked the nurse to tape them up where he could see them. Katie and Hannah both were very worried about their father, but agreed to take care of Emma and to give him a bit of space to figure things out. Mike and Christine both gave the girls goodnight kisses before they were sent on their way. Thankfully, Hannah had had the foresight to pack a bag for Mike and Christine, so at least Christine had a change of clothes.

After eating a bit, Mike fell asleep, and Christine was left alone in her thoughts. She and Mike were going to have to straighten things out when he felt better, and then there was the matter of that missing leg. All because Christine had fallen back into past mistakes.