Chapter Eighteen

Back in the hospital, Neela had been moved into exam three, sharing the room with Abby. As it turned out, Abby had actually been more injured than she knew. Kerry had confined her to her bed, ignoring her protests. When Sam had heard this, she quickly solved the problem by moving Abby's bed right next to Neela's. It was the only way to get her to stay still.

Upon entering the room, Ray's eyes flickered from Neela to Abby to Sam and back to Neela. Taking a deep breath, he began to take in the damage. Dressed in just the hospital gown that Sam had changed her into, he could easily see the bruises that covered her arms and he assumed there were more, hidden by the clothing. There was a large cut just above her eyebrow that had been stitched up. Her right hand had been put into a cast. "Looks like just two broken fingers though." He noted.

"She has three cracked ribs, two broken fingers, some minor cuts and bruises on her face, abdomen and back. Um, we did a rape kit and sent it out, just in case. Kerry gave her quite a lot of morphine in the trauma room because she was in massive amounts of pain." Sam told him quietly. She was sitting next to Abby's bed with her knees pulled up to her chin.

"Did she wake up after I left?" He questioned.

"No but it was still obvious that she was hurting." Sam replied.

"How's Abby?" Ray looked over at his girlfriends' best friend. Abby was sleeping on her right side with her left hand snaked through the bars of both beds, holding Neela's left hand.

"She's okay. She had a mild concussion, two cracked ribs, a broken wrist, and some cuts and bruises on her face and abdomen. They're gunna have matching scars when the stitches come out." Sam laughed weakly and gestured to both their foreheads.

Ray forced a smile. "That's gunna be interesting."

Sam nodded. "Kerry said she is keeping them both here for a few days to recuperate. She's refusing to discharge them until she thinks it's okay and well, you know Kerry. They'll be here for a while."

"I'm sure they're going to be ecstatic about that." He replied sarcastically. "How are you?"

Sam shook her head. "It's just so hard to see them like this and know that I can't fix them. You know? This is a life-changing event. I know Abby is strong enough to work through this with our help but Neela…"

"I know, Sam." Ray nodded. "That's what I'm worried about, too, but I think with our help they're both be okay."

"But how? Abby won't go near you just because you're a guy. Who's to say Neela won't do the same?" Sam couldn't hold back her tears any longer.

"Because we aren't going to let her." Ray sat down next to Sam and pulled her into his arms. Sam may have been forced into growing up when she took on the role of a mother but Ray still thought of her as a younger sister who needed his protecting. "We're gunna make sure she knows that she is safe with us. Tony isn't going to come back. Ben has him strapped to a gurney until the police get here."

"Ben?" Sam wiped away some tears. "When did he get here?"

"Not long after Abby came back. He stopped me from killing Tony in the ambulance bay." Ray told her. "He's a good guy, Sam. Don't be afraid of it." Ray knew she was scared of getting attached since her last few relationships didn't work out so well.

Sam inhaled deeply. "I know, I'm working on it."

"Good, I know he wouldn't hurt you. He really cares about you."

Before Sam could reply, Kerry walked through the door.

"You'll never guess what I found out! How are they?"

"Still out." Sam replied. "What did you find out?"

"After Luka suspended Tony, he moved away." She started. "It turns out he was admitted to the St. Luke's psych ward in Cincinnati for being depressed and bipolar. He, somehow, managed to escape and made it here."

"Wow…" Sam's chin nearly hit the ground while Ray just stared.

"Yeah, so the police are taking him back to Cincinnati and he's being charged with rape, kidnapping, attempted rape and assault. He'll be held in the psych ward at the state prison." Kerry explained.

"That's so weird." Sam stated. "Do they know what caused it?"

"They aren't sure but they think it was a combination of Meg and Sarah leaving, the incident between him and Neela a few months ago, being suspended and having to start over completely new. The stress and loneliness sent him over." Kerry answered as her pager went off. She looked down and sighed. "I'll be back. The police have just arrived. Did you get to talk to Abby?"

"I tried but she didn't say anything." Sam replied.

"That's okay. We have enough information to go on for now. Thanks, Sam. Page me if anything changes." Taking one last glance at Neela and Abby, Kerry left the room, fighting back the tears. "How could this happen to such innocent and caring girls?" Shaking her head sadly, she headed towards to the trauma room where Tony was being held.

"I can't believe he was in the psych ward." Sam stated. "That's so strange."

"Yeah and attempted rape?" Ray added. "That's one thing we can see in a positive aspect."

Sam nodded. "What are we gunna do about Abby? She's isn't going to wanna leave Neela's side."

"Do you think she'd stay at my place? I don't want her staying her myself and she won't stay at your place if Neela isn't there."

"Well, Abby's got the biggest apartment but she may not want to stay there. I don't think we can really decide anything until they wake up." Sam replied.

Ray nodded in agreement. "Yeah."

At that moment, they were interrupted when Kerry walked through the door.

"Sorry to barge back in but Sam, the police want to talk to you about the rape since you found her." She explained.

"But I don't know anything more than what I told them before." Sam really didn't want to talk to those officers again.

"I know, but you know police. They have to do everything over and over." Kerry replied sympathetically.

"Yeah, I know." She reluctantly stood up. "I'll be back."

xxxxxxx

"Ray, they're down two doctors and have three massive traumas coming in. Can you…?" Chuny stuck her head in the exam room fifteen minutes later. "Sam is still with the police."

"I-." Ray started. He didn't want to leave Neela but he knew she'd kill him if she found out he didn't help. "I'll be right there."

Chuny nodded and shut the door.

"Neela, I know you're gunna pull through this. I'll be with you every step of the way. Abby and Sam, too. Even Ben will be there. We're a family and families take care of one another. Always."

"Ray!" He heard Chuny yell as she ran past the exam room.

"I love you, Neela. I'll be back." He kissed her forehead and ran off towards the trauma rooms.

AN: Does anyone know where Ben went? He wasn't in the last two episodes.