"Everybody step back. We're going to cordon off the area! Matthews, where is that ambulance?!"
It was the sirens and heavy footsteps that had pulled him back out of the darkness, causing his head to spin and his stomach threating to resurface the delicious breakfast waffle.
"How's he?"
"Stable. But he took a good whack to the head. You know what those can do. He's been pretty quiet…too quiet for my taste. Fading in and out of consciousness, too."
"Well, do what you can to keep him going. I'll help Vicks secure the scene. We gotta get these people out of here before they compromise the area for evidence."
The paved path below felt cold against his cheek, the sensation spreading through the rest of his body, causing him to tremble.
Steve had no clue how long he'd been out, and the painful throbbing coming from the back of his head made it hard to refocus.
Hands touched him and muffled voices could be heard here and there. At one point somebody retrieved the badge out of his rear pocket and he heard a call for backup and to notify Homicide, before he drifted off to blissful nothingness once again.
Too paralyzed with pain, he'd remained perfectly still during his wake moments, concentrating on staying alive by breathing in and out slowly, hoping for the throbbing and pressure to subside enough for him to function.
"Hang tight, Inspector, an ambulance is on its way.", a soft voice reassured him from somewhere nearby, followed by a hand that carefully nudged his shoulder.
Trying to get out as little as a grunt had been an unbearable task and Steve swallowed against the nausea building up in the back of his throat, the sheer thought of movement making his world spin.
"Stay with us, okay? Just try to stay awake.", the voice pleaded, having noticed his increasing stillness, before two cold fingers appeared along the side of his neck, then returned to their previous position to give his shoulder another squeeze.
More sirens could be heard, followed by the all-familiar squealing of tires, as backup arrived.
Deciding to give consciousness another try, Steve peeked his eyes open for the fraction of a second, enough to be blinded by daylight, a sensation that made the headache return with a vengeance. Drawing in a deep breath, he couldn't subdue a groan as the pain grew to intolerable levels.
"You have to stay still, Inspector Keller. We need to keep you immobile until the paramedics arrive, okay? Just in case something's broken. Your department has been notified. I am sure they're on their way as we speak. You're going to be fine."
As if to get the point across, the hand on his shoulder grew firmer, keeping him pinned against the cold ground, unable to move.
Suddenly, the smell of blood filled his nostrils. Not his blood, that much he was reasonably sure of.
Confusion about the current situation, mixed with the irritation of being stuck in place was enough to convince him to open his eyes again, regardless of the outcome. As the blinding light returned, so did the navy-blue pants of a Sergeant who was kneeling down next to him, his dress shoes so close to his face that Steve could smell the leather.
Swallowing against the nausea, he waited until the rest of his blurry vision cleared somewhat, trying to ignore the voices up top talking about him as if he wasn't around.
A few feet away, a cluster of onlookers had gathered, watching him intently, thirsting for the action and drama to ensue.
And then he saw Andrea lying beside him, their faces only a couple feet apart, the collar of her red leather coat slightly askew from falling to the ground. Trying his best to regain some sort of professional expression in a situation that was clearly out of control, he glanced at her face, proud that he almost managed a smile.
It wasn't until several seconds into his act that Steve noticed that her blue eyes were glazed over, her expression blank, as the puddle of blood beneath her head was growing in size.