Rick could only stare at his wife, not believing what she'd just told him. There had to be some mistake. This couldn't be happening to her. But first, he needed the whole story before he jumped to any conclusions.

"Kate, I thought that Dr. Hall wanted to talk to you about our new peanut."

"I went there thinking the same thing. But when she told me to come into her office and sit down to talk I knew that something was wrong. Now it seems that I have to speak to two or three specialists in order to find out what is wrong with me."

"What did she say about peanut? Is she okay?"

"This is still in the discovery stages. They want to see me on Tuesday morning. I have to call Dr. Hall tomorrow and get her referrals for these doctors. I'm in the dark here, babe. But she did tell me that peanut is right where she is supposed to be for how far along I am." Kate said as she rubbed her baby bump.

Then Rick had a thought.

"I don't want to alarm you, Kate, but do you think that working down at the pile for those three months after the attacks could be the cause of what's happening with you now?"

"I'm not sure. But you do remember the fallout that was around lower Manhattan back then? We wore those surgical masks, but not until the EPA told us that the air might be hazardous to us. For the first two months we were working the pile with nothing but our utility blues."

"Kate - what about me and Alexis? We were living in the hot zone back then and we never went in for any testing."

"I don't know what to tell you, babe. But if we were to do anything because of what Dr. Hall thinks, I'd get tested for everything under the sun. That goes for Alexis as well."

"Who do you need to see tomorrow?"

"First Dr. Hall. Then she'll bring me to see an oncologist. After that, I'm not sure what happens."

"This is not happening to us. They told us that the air quality was fine, there was nothing to be worried about. We breathed that air in for years!"

"Honey, don't jump to conclusions. You've done that ever since we've been married. Let's get the testing done on all of us first."

Rick looked down at her baby bump, wondering if he should voice his thoughts to her, but decided he'd keep those thoughts to himself until a better time presented itself.

Xx

Rick, Alexis, Jake, and Reese were just leaving the doctor's office after being checked out thoroughly. The results from the twins were negative. But Alexis had something the doctors can identify readily. She'd need to go in for more tests. Rick, on the other hand, had respiratory issues and a possible blood infection. He didn't understand what a blood infection was so he went home to do as much research as he could on the subject.

Xx

Kate sat in Dr. Hall's office waiting for the two doctors to arrive. Not wanting this meeting to be awkward, Dr. Hall started making small talk with her.

"So Kate, how are Rick, Alexis, and the twins?"

"They're doing good. Rick and the kids are getting tests done this morning."

"Tests? For what?" Dr. Hall asked.

"We thought about the doctors that I am seeing today and wanted to know if there was any possibility of them having any health issues."

"I see. Kate, make sure that they get a full workup. Bloodwork and chest X-rays as well."

"Why, Dr. Hall?

"Even though I am an OBGYN I have heard stories from men and women who worked down at the World Trade Center site who've been diagnosed with cancer, respiratory distress syndrome, blood infection, and a host of other ailments that we are only now discovering."

"Now I see why you wanted me to meet with these other doctors. "

"Exactly, Kate."

Just as she finished her sentence there was a knock at Dr. Hall's door. She got up to answer it and in walked an older gentleman with a bald head and a younger man of about 40.

They entered and took a seat at the table where Kate was sitting. Doctor Hall closed the door and sat next to her.

Kate read the embroidered name tag on the right side of the older man's lab coat. It says Dr. Amin Khatri.

"Mrs. Castle, my name is Doctor Amin Khatri. I am in charge of the Oncology Department here at the hospital. There were some red flags that popped up in your initial tests that we want to look into further. It seems that you - along with a lot of your co-workers and people who lived in lower Manhattan during the 9/11 attacks - have become more frequent patients in the past years. They have respiratory and blood issues. And now we've come to realize that cancer is becoming a more prominent diagnosis in these people as well. I do see from your records that you are three months along in your pregnancy, is that right?

"Yes, I started my second trimester last week."

"I'm going to be straightforward with you, Mrs. Castle. No matter what we find wrong with your body, you are going to have to make a choice between your life or the life of your unborn baby. I know this sounds precipitous, but from what I've seen in the preliminary tests it could be that this is a choice you will need to make sooner than you thought. The chemicals that are involved in the chemotherapy treatment, if we do have to go that route, will harm your baby. And if you opt not to receive treatment for your disease, giving the chance for your baby to make it through your pregnancy will definitely put a strain on your body. So, you have a choice to make, Mrs. Castle. My colleague and I will go over your results once we get everything we need from you. You're going to need to spend most of the day here today."

All Kate could do is turn and look at Dr. Hall, who looked as white as she did. But she tried to calm Kate down.

"Kate, that's the worst case scenario, I'm guessing. I don't know if you should be making a decision right now since the tests have not even been performed yet. Let's just look at them once the results come in."

Kate just nodded and watched as both doctors got up from the table and stood by the door to wait for her.

"Go with them, get your tests done and then meet me back here when you're finished. We'll go over everything together," Dr. Hall told her.

For the next six and a half hours they poked, prodded, drew blood samples, urine samples, stool samples, and even samples of her hair. From one department to another she was shuffled all over the hospital, and it was just about at the 5 hour mark when she was just about finished. She sat in the waiting chairs facing the X-ray room. She was third in line for her last test, a chest X-ray. She watched as the tech read her file and called her name.

"Kate Castle," the tech called.

Kate raised her arm. He motioned her forward to the interior room. The X-ray was done in three minutes. She was told to go back to her doctor's office and they would send the results to her doctor.

When she arrived back at Dr. Hall's office, Dr. Hall picked up her desk phone and made a call to Dr. Khatri. During the call, she told him that Kate was back from all her tests and asked if he would like to go over them with her. There was a short conversation and she hung up the phone. When she looked at her watch Kate noticed that it was just about 4:30 in the afternoon. She'd missed lunch and her stomach was letting her know it.

"Kate, I have Dr. Khatri returning with your tests that were ran earlier this morning. He will stop by the X-ray department and pick up your latest chest X-ray."

"Dr. Hall, I've been here all day - is there any way I can call my husband and have him here when the results are read?"

"That might not be the best route to take. What I mean is you need to get this information and then you need to go home and talk with Rick. Being at home is better than being here getting this type of news. So, when your doctor returns he'll give you the rundown on everything. I just hope it isn't as bad as he thinks it is."

"So do I."

But it was just the opposite when Dr. Khatri placed the last file down and looked directly across the table at Kate.

"Mrs. Castle, you have a lot of different problems going on in your body right now. Your lungs are compromised with lung cancer, you have a blood infection that affects your white blood count, and you're going to need further tests concerning your blood work alone. We're not sure what exactly is in your blood; all we know is that it is attacking your body from the inside out. And it's true that while you were working down at the Trade Center site in 2001, these symptoms have been well hidden. They've only come to light now because your doctor, Dr. Hall, requested a specific test for your baby. If it wasn't for that test we would have never caught this. Now, whatever kind of treatment we place you on will definitely affect your unborn baby. Studies have proved that some babies make it through without any ill effects, and that's the best-case scenario. Others are stillborn after being carried to term. You have a hard decision to make, Mrs. Castle. I suggest you go home to your family and tell them what has happened here today. But please try not to take too long in making your decision. Time is of the essence."

As both doctors got up to leave Kate looked over at Dr. Hall, unable to stop the tears flowing down her cheeks.