A/N: I'm cured! The writer's block is over! Okay, I know it's a bit short, but I got it to ya quick, didn't I? And I'll try to be just as fast with the next (and hopefully longer) one. This just seemed to be the best place to end this one.
By the way, I loved all of your wonderful reviews. I even got some from new sources which was excellent. And I got some from my beloved loyalists. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Read on!
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"Sara!"
So many things were going on inside my head, I couldn't think straight, I couldn't process. The sound of screeching tires brought my attention to the front exit of the parking lot. A beat up car was shooting out onto the main drag. My mind quickly turned back to the problem at hand. Sara. Scooping Maggie up, I was running again, towards the SUV. Where Sara, my Sara, and Greg were lying collapsed by the tailgate.
"Sara? Sara, oh God." There was blood, blood everywhere, pooling on the hot pavement. I opened the back door and slid Maggie onto the seat, simultaneously reaching into my bag in search of my phone.
Both of the older girls were in the back, staring out the rear window. Lindsey looked up at me with frightened eyes. "What's happening?"
"I don't know, stay here."
"No, I want to come with you."
"Lindsey, stay here. Watch your little sisters. I'll tell you when it's safe to come out." Without another word, I slammed the door and dialed 911.
"Las Vegas Emergency Response, how may I help you?"
I came around the side of the SUV and stood over an apparently unconscious Sara. I tried to remain calm. "Yes, this is CSI Catherine Willows, I'd like to report the shooting of two off duty officers. Both are still breathing and in need of immediate medical attention. I need two buses sent to the Albertson's Grocery Store on Spring Mountain Rd."
There was a pause, and then, "Okay, ma'am. They are being sent out now. ETA is eight minutes."
"Oh, and one of the victims is pregnant. She's hurt the worst."
"Alright, ma'am. Just try to remain calm and help will be there as soon as possible. I'd like to ask you to remain on the line in case there are anymore developments."
"Yeah, sure. Whatever." Sticking the phone in my back pocket, I knelt down beside Sara trying to ascertain where all the blood was coming from. Stay calm, just breathe. It's probably not nearly as bad as it looks. "Sara? Sara, honey?" Hesitantly, I touched her body, checking for wounds. She had been shot once in the shoulder, and once in the leg. The leg looked to be bleeding the most, her pants were soaked through, and a puddle was spreading out around the wound.
It wasn't a through and through, the bullet was still in there. There was no GSR around the opening, so it hadn't been a close range shot. I didn't know why, but thinking about this as a crime scene was calming me down, keeping my head level.
There was a moan to my right and I turned to see Greg, I felt momentarily guilty for not checking on him sooner. He was shot once in the arm and was cradling it tenderly. "Greg? You okay?"
He groaned but nodded, his eyes closed against the hot afternoon sun. "Fine, Cath. Just worry about Sara."
I nodded, grateful that he understood, and turned back to my wife. "Sara? You gotta wakeup honey." I touched her face lightly, but she remained unconscious. I sighed. What could I do? I picked up the phone again. "Hello?"
"Yes, I'm still here."
"Yeah, look, my wife's leg has been shot. She's losing a lot of blood fast. Can I make a tourniquet or at least apply pressure to try and stop the bleeding?"
"Yes, of course. The ambulances are about four minutes away."
"Great, thanks." Shoving the phone back into my pocket, I stood up and opened the lift-gate. Reaching in I found a length of rope. The girls sat up and were looking at me. Maggie was still crying.
"Mommy!" She wailed, holding out her arms to me. "Mommy!" It was still weird for me to hear her say that word with such conviction.
"Just another minute baby, just hang on one more minute." And with that I closed the lift-gate again, hoping they would stay in the car. Kneeling down again, I brought the rope quickly around Sara's leg and tied it tight. It must have been painful because she gasped deeply and her eyes shot open. Relief ran through my veins. "Sara."
She turned her head toward me, her breathing labored as she fought off the pain. "Cat…"
I leaned down and kissed her briefly, smiling. "You're okay, you're alright. Everything's going to be fine."
She closed her eyes and with much effort, shook her head. "No…Cath…femoral artery. I'm…losing too much blood."
"No, no, you're not. I've slowed it down, and the paramedics will be here in two minutes. You're going to be just fine."
She smiled, her eyes still closed. "Don't try to pick a fight…just because you're scared."
"I'm not scared."
She shook her head again. "Greg?" she questioned.
"I'm right here, Sara. I'm fine."
She opened her eyes again, looking at me, "True?"
"True. He's got a flesh wound, but he'll be fine."
"Good. He's brave. He…saved the babies."
"What?"
But she shook her head. "Cath, promise me something."
I felt my throat tighten, I didn't like her tone of voice. "No, you're going to be fine."
"Cath." Her voice commanded attention. She reached out with her good hand, searching for mine. I grabbed her hand, my eyes stinging. "Promise me…if it comes down to a choice, save the babies. Don't…save me. Let me go."
The blaring of ambulance sirens began to ring out in the distance. My anger came over me in waves. "Shut up! Shut up!! Don't you dare think like that." My tears began to roll over. "Don't you dare. You're not leaving me, Sara Sidle. You are not getting out of this that easily. You have…you have five children, you have me. You are not leaving us."
She smiled again. "I love you, Catherine. Please, please…promise me. You've made my life worth living and you've given me something worth dying for. Let me give them life. Let…let me give them a life with you."
"No!" I sobbed. "No!" I bent down, putting my wet cheek against hers. "I can't do this without you, Sara. I can't live without you." I kissed her gently.
"Yes, you can," she whispered as I sat back. "You're the strongest woman I've ever known. And…the best mother in the world. You'll be fine."
"No, I won't. You're not going to leave me, damn it! How can you be so fucking calm? Anyone would think you were trying to get rid of me!" The sirens were close now, pulling into the parking lot.
She just kept smiling that annoying, serene, beautiful smile. The smile I fell in love with. "I love you Catherine. I love the girls, and our babies, but…more than anything…I love you." And then her eyes closed, and her body relaxed.
"No! No!" I was growing hysterical. "No! Sara! I love you, too! I love you, too, damn it! Wake up! Wake up, you bitch! You cannot leave me like this!"
"Excuse me, ma'am." A stranger virtually manhandled me away from my wife, my Sara.
I watched worriedly as the man knelt beside her limp form. "We've got a pulse!"
Oh, thank God. Oh, thank fucking God. I let myself breathe again.
Everything moved quickly after that. The paramedics loaded Sara and Greg into gurneys and then onto the trucks. I wanted to ride with Sara, but of course I couldn't. And then a police officer tried to make stay so he could get my statement. I could have killed him. I told him in no uncertain terms, that I would talk at the hospital, or not at all. When that was settled, an officer arranged for the girls and I to get a ride in his car, since ours could not be moved until CSI had processed the scene.
I opened the back door and Maggie catapulted off the seat and into my arms. "Mommy!"
I hugged her tightly. "Hey, angel, everything's okay." How could I even say that? Everything was as far from okay as it had ever been. But I found comfort in her little arms.
"Mom? What's happening? Did that man shoot Mama?" I looked at my eldest daughter. She had already seen one parent shot and killed, could she really handle it happening all over again?
"Yes, sweetie, he did."
"And Uncle Greg?" Ayla asked.
I nodded. "We're going to go to the hospital now, to make sure they're okay. But we can't go in our car so we're going to ride in a police car. So, everybody out, we want to get there fast."
I carried Maggie and tried to shield her view of the immense blood puddle, but the older girls saw it as they walked by. Ayla grabbed my hand and held on tight, Lindsey just pursed her lips and hurried past. After the polite young officer had ushered us all into the back of his car, with Maggie on my lap, I asked the older girls, "I need you to tell me everything you remember."
In silent agreement, Lindsey spoke for both of them. "When you and Maggie went in the store, we all got out of the car so Greg could show us how to play a game. We played for awhile, and then Greg pointed at something and whispered in Mama's ear. I looked and it was three men-"
"What did they look like? The men?"
"Two big ones and one short one. They all had shaved heads and they were like Puerto Rican or Mexican or something."
"Hispanic." I supplied.
"Yeah. The two big ones had lots of tattoos. The short one didn't have any and he was younger. After that, Mama gave me the keys to the car and told me to go sit inside and take Ayla with me. So I did. The shortest man started talking angrily at Mama and Uncle Greg, but I couldn't hear what he said. Then Mama kept saying 'Calm down, let's just all calm down here.' But that just made the man madder and…" here Linds began to choke up. "And then he pulled a gun from the back of his pants and he shot at Mama." She sniffed. "After that I pushed Ayla down and I sat on the floor so we didn't see anything else. But the man shot two more times. We stayed on the floor until you opened the door. That's it."
I leaned across Ayla and kissed Lindsey, wiping her cheeks, and then I hugged Ayla tightly. "You girls were very brave, and I'm so proud of you. You did just what you were supposed to."
"I would have called 911, but we didn't have a phone. I know you're supposed to do that, but we couldn't."
I smiled tearily at Ayla, "That's okay sweetie. I called." I thought of something. "And now, I've got to call Aunt Nancy." Maggie leaned heavily against my chest and I could tell the minute she shut her eyes. I dialed the long familiar number.
"Hello?"
"Nance? It's uhh…it's Catherine."
"Cath? What happened? You sound awful."
"Umm…there was an accident." The tightness returned to my throat. An accident? Could I really call it that?
"Oh, God. Who's hurt?"
"It's Sara. She's been…she's been shot. Twice."
"Oh, my God, where?"
"In the parking lot at the grocery store."
"I meant where on her body."
"Oh, once in the shoulder and once in the leg."
"Oh, Cath. But she's going to be okay, right?"
The tears began to overflow again. "They don't know. She's lost a lot of blood."
"I'm so sorry. What can I do to help?"
"Well, I was thinking you could come to the hospital in a couple hours and pick up the girls. Get them fed and in bed."
"Sure, not a problem. What about you?"
"I'm not leaving that hospital until I've seen Sara breathing with my own two eyes."
"Cath, surgeries can take hours."
Silence.
"But I guess this is one of those things I'll never be able to talk you out of."
"Nope."
"Okay, well, I've got to pick mother up from her Canasta tournament in about an hour and a half. What do you say I head on over after I pick her up? That will put me at Desert Palms at around five-thirty."
"You're a godsend, Nance. See you soon."
Shutting the phone I looked out the window. How could it be so sunny and warm when my heart felt like a thunderstorm?
"Mom? Do we have to go to Aunt Nancy's? I want to stay with you."
"Yeah me too. I want to know what happens to Mama."
I lay my head back, momentarily exhausted. "Yes, you have to go to Aunt Nancy's. It's just for dinner and sleep, and then you can come back to the hospital first thing in the morning."
"But how will we know when Mama's okay?"
"Do you really think I wouldn't call you just as soon as I found out any news? I'll call you the second I find out anything."
"Promise?" Ayla looked skeptical.
"Cross my heart."
"Mom?"
"Yes, baby?"
"What's going to happen to the babies? Do you think they got hurt when Mama was shot?"
I closed my eyes. "I don't know, Linds. I hope not."
"Me, too."
"Me, too." Ayla fidgeted. "I left my book in the car."
"We'll get it tomorrow."
The last ten minutes of the drive were made in silence, for which I was grateful. I was losing the ability to function outside my distress for Sara and our unborn children. What if something had happened to the babies? What about Sara's promise? Could I make that decision on my own? Would it come down to that? When we finally arrived at the hospital, I had difficulty getting out of the car because Maggie had passed out in my arms. Carrying her and guiding the other two girls, I made my way to the front desk.
"I'm here for information on Sara Sidle."
"Are you family?"
"Yes, these are her children."
"Alright…" the woman inspected her clipboard. "Ms. Sidle is still in surgery. I have no other information. If you'd like to wait in the visitor's lounge one floor up, you'd probably be more comfortable than out here."
"Okay, thank you."
"Could I get your name? So the doctor knows who to talk to?"
"Catherine Willows. I'm her emergency contact as well."
"I see. And what's your relation to the patient?"
"I'm her wife."
There was a momentary pause in which the woman clenched and unclenched her jaw. And then, "Alright, Ms. Willows. I'll be sure to let the doctor know you're here." She gave a polite smile and then returned to her work.
My back gave an annoying twinge and I winced. "Maggie? Maggie? You've got to wake up and walk, I can't carry you anymore."
"No!" she whined, burrowing further into my chest.
"Yes, come on sweetie. Mommy's losing feeling in her legs." Gently, I set her down and held her hand. I took Ayla's hand in my free one and gestured for Lindsey to walk ahead of me towards the elevators.
The visitor's lounge was quiet and comfortable. There were only two other people in it, a woman about my age, and an older man. There was even a children's corner with toys and crayons and magazines. An hour went by and then another. The girls started to get bored and restless.
"When is Mama going to be better?" Maggie yawned.
"I don't know, angel. It might not be for a while. But Aunt Nancy is going to be here any minute to take you guys home. And you're going to have a yummy dinner and then go to sleep."
"And then Mama will be okay?"
"Maybe. We'll just have to wait and see." I stood up. "We should actually go downstairs so your aunt knows where to find us." Tiredly, I got them all up and out the door.
Nancy arrived just ten minutes later, pulling up and parking in a fire lane. Getting out of the van, she threw her arms around me. "God, Cath, I'm so sorry. Has there been any news?"
I shook my head. "No. Thanks for doing this, Nance. You're a lifesaver. I just need to be able to think for minute without having to worry about them."
"Don't worry about it. I've got the whole gang in the car; Mom, Abbi, and Jeremy." She looked at the girls. "Why don't y'all go hop in and get buckled up?"
I got a tight hug and a kiss from both Ayla and Lindsey before they got in the van, but Maggie clung to my legs. "I want to stay with Mommy," she cried sleepily.
With great effort, I lifted her up and kissed her nose and her forehead. "No, sweetheart, you have to go. But I'll see you in the morning, I promise."
She looked up at me with big eyes. "Can I have macaroni and cheese for dinner?"
I smiled. "I think that can be arranged." I kissed her again. "I love you, Maggie May. I'll see you in the morning." I squeezed her tight and set her back down. She waved and trotted off after her sisters.
My sister turned to me. "Now, you call, if you hear anything, you call. I'll be right by the phone, waiting."
"Thanks, Nance." I watched and waved as they drove away.
With the added stress of watching the girls taken care of, I was able to think more clearly. Getting my phone out of my bag, I dialed a number.
"Hello?"
"Warrick?"
"Cath, thank God. I've been trying to reach you for hours."
"My phone's been off. I've been in the hospital. What's going on?"
"I heard about the shooting over the radio. Has anyone been by to take your statement?"
"No, they said they would but they haven't."
"Any word on Sara?"
"As far as I know, she's still in surgery."
"Cath, I…we're all praying for her."
"Thanks, Rick. Look, do you think you could get Brass to take my statement? I just don't think I'm up to talking to anyone who isn't family at the moment."
"Sure,
sure. I gotcha. You bet. I'll give him a call right now."
"Thanks.
And can you tell him that I'll be in the visitor's lounge. I'm
waiting for news from the doctor."
"The visitor's lounge. Got it. Listen, do you want me to come by or something? It's no problem at all."
"Thanks, but I don't think so. Come by in the morning after shift. Oh, shit. Can you tell Gil that I won't be in tonight?"
"I think he pretty much assumed…"
"Right. Okay. Well, I gotta go. Talk to you later, Rick."
"Take care, Cath."
I hung up and shut off the phone again before making my way back up to the visitor's lounge. After about fifteen minutes a nurse came in and looked around. "Miss Willows?"
I stood up. "Yes?"
"I've been sent to tell you that the doctor is still operating your wife. It should be another hour or two before he can come out to give you an update."
I sighed and slumped back in my seat. "Thank you." Well, if they were still operating, that at least meant that Sara was still alive. That was a good sign, right?
For a minute, I thought that the nurse was about to tell me something else, but then she just nodded and left.
"You look like you could use a cup of coffee."
I looked up at the familiar voice. "Jim!"
He was standing in the doorway holding a cup of coffee in each hand. "Hey, darlin'."
I stood up to take one of the cups from him. "Thank you. It actually smells halfway decent. Where'd you get it?"
He shrugged. "Diner down the road. What do you say we take a walk? Or do you need to stay where they can find you?"
I shook my head. "The nurse just came in to say it'll be at least another hour. So, a walk sounds great. Anything to keep busy."
He ushered me out the door and we began walking down the corridor. "So, kiddo, you know how this goes. Why don't you tell me how it happened?"
"I really don't know much. Just what the girls told me and what I know."
I proceeded to tell him about going into the store with Maggie and hearing the shots and running out to find Sara and Greg on the ground. I remembered to tell him about the car I saw. He asked me for a description and I was surprised at how well I could recall it. Green compact, beat up with a bent fender. I even remembered a partial plate number. I guess those years of being paid to be observant were finally ingrained in me. As I wrapped up my account, we came to a door.
"What's this?"
Brass smiled slightly and knocked on the door.
"Come in," called a familiar, if tired, voice.
"Greg's room?" I asked.
Brass nodded and pushed the door in for me to enter.
"Greg?" I peered around the door.
"Catherine, come in."
I came up to his bed where he lay, his right arm in a sling. "Hey, how you feeling?"
He smiled slightly. "Ridiculous." He looked down at his hospital gown. "They took my clothes for an arm wound. An arm wound!"
This made me smile. Typical Greg.
Brass put a hand on my shoulder. "I had to come down here to take Greg's statement, I figured you might want to hear it, too."
I looked at Greg. "If you don't mind."
"Not at all." He smiled apologetically. "Any word on Sara yet?"
I shook my head. "Just that she's still in surgery."
Brass sat down in a chair, setting his tape recorder down on the side table. "Okay, Greg. Tell us what happened."
Greg sat back and I sat at the foot of his bed. "I was teaching Lindsey and Ayla how to play hacky sack. Sara was supposed to stay in the car because she promised Catherine she would. But I guess she got bored, because after about three minutes, she was standing out with us. I don't know how long we played. It couldn't have been very long. Then I heard a door slam and looked up. Across the parking lot, three guys were headed towards us. And I recognized one of them, I had seen him in interrogation months ago. He had been the brother of one of the suspects. It was one of Sara's cases. So I pointed them out to Sara and she got really nervous and made the girls go and get in the car. Then the three guys approached us. The one I remembered seeing asked Sara if she recognized him and Sara told him yes.
"Then the guy went crazy, yelling about how Sara killed his brother and how she had to pay for it. After that, he drew a gun, a forty-five, I think. Sara was trying get everything under control, trying to calm him down. But it wasn't working. He was holding the gun like he'd never held one before, and he was really nervous. All of a sudden, he shot at Sara, but he only hit her shoulder. She was sort of in shock, but she kept her arms around her belly. Then the guy took aim at her stomach and I knew I had to stop him, so threw myself at him and knocked the gun off balance. He still shot her, but he hit her leg instead. One of the other guys drew his gun and yelled something in Spanish at me and then he shot me. After that, I guess they got scared they'd made too much noise or something, 'cause they ran off. Just got in their car and drove away. A minute later, Catherine was there trying to help Sara. Then the ambulance came and that's it. End of story."
"Did you see the car?"
"Yeah, it was a green something. I wasn't really paying attention. You know, being shot and everything."
I stood up from the bed and came around to kiss Greg on the forehead. Then I hugged him, being careful of his injured arm, "Thank you so much," I was crying. "If she makes it, it's because of you. If our children make it, it's because of you." I kissed him again. "Thank you."
He turned red up to his ears and didn't say a word.
"Well, ladies." Brass smiled endearingly at Greg, "I'd love to stay and chat but…shift starts momentarily."
I looked at my watch. "I've got to go too. I want to make sure that the doctor can find me." I kissed Greg one more time. "Thanks again, Greggo. I'll make sure to come down and tell you when I hear about Sara."
He grabbed my arm as I stood. "She's going to be okay, Catherine."
I smiled. "I hope you're right." I smiled again from the door and walked out with Brass.
He pulled me into a hug at the end of the corridor. "Everything will work for the best, kiddo. You'll see."
"Thanks Jim."
"What do you know about the guy who did this? One of Sara's cases?"
I nodded grimly. "One of Sara's and mine. If I had to guess, I'd say this guy was Emanuel Ruiz. His brother, Ray, was convicted of killing two tourists and robbing them of their lotto winnings. Last April, I think."
"What do you think he meant about Sara killing his brother?"
I shrugged. "Emanuel always maintained his brother's innocence, even though the evidence against him was overwhelming. I just heard last night that Ray was killed in a brawl at some point on Tuesday. I hadn't told Sara. With her hormones, this kind of thing could really upset her."
"Ruiz must have followed you from your house." Brass looked at his watch. "Well, look, this is my number one case tonight. I'll handle it personally. And when we catch up with this Ruiz fellow- he's going to fall quite a bit on the way to PD."
I smiled. "Thanks, Jim." I waved him out and made my way back to the visitor's lounge.
Alone again, I let my thoughts wander. Was Sara going to be alright? What about the babies? Would she be able to carry them to full term now, with her injuries? Was it possible that Sara wouldn't survive but the babies would? No matter what Sara believes, there is no way I could raise five children all by myself. I didn't even want to think about it.
Unable to sit still any longer, I began to pace up and down the hallway outside the lounge. I bought a candy bar, I ate it, I continued my pacing. I couldn't stand not knowing anything. Why wasn't anyone telling me anything? I collapsed in a chair outside the lounge, my head in my hands. This was beyond frustrating and to make matters worse, I felt as if I was going to cry again.
I looked up when I heard the swinging of a door. I didn't recognize the doctor coming towards me. He was young with neatly trimmed black hair and dark unreadable eyes. His face and neck were sweat-streaked and he looked exhausted. I was sure I didn't look much better. I stood up shakily as he approached, but he motioned for me to sit back down.
"Ms. Willows?" He took the seat next to mine and faced me.
Jerkily, I nodded. "Yes." I wanted to ask him about Sara, about the babies, but I couldn't get the words past my lips. What if something had gone wrong?
He smiled softly and a knot untied in my stomach. "I'm Dr. Matthew Kroger, I operated on your wife."
I nodded. "Is she…? Is she okay?"
He nodded once, "Ms. Sidle is recovering from her surgery, and I'll talk about her in moment. Right now, I'd like to talk to you about your children."
Children? My heart skipped a beat. "I have children?"
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Voila! Okay, so it's a tiny cliffy. And something could still go horribly, catastrophically wrong in the next chapter. But you won't find until you…what was it again? Oh, yeah! Until you REVIEW!