Chapter Three

10.37am

Even though Stella's eyes were glued on the article about diabetes on the hospital notice board, nothing about it registered in her mind. She felt numb… Barely an hour ago, she was in the morgue with Sid, talking about the autopsies of the three victims from Queens. Just another day… Funny how one's life could change in one hour.

The gun shots echoed in Stella's ears. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw Danny falling to the floor, his lab coat stained with blood. She saw it so many times, it seemed foreign to her. Did it really happen?

Five minutes ago, Danny was wheeled into the Emergency Room. Everything was really chaotic at that time. Paramedics, doctors and nurses were yelling instructions over each other's heads as they maneuvered the bed carrying Danny through the hospital corridors.

But all the noise disappeared the moment Danny was pushed into the ER. The din was replaced by a tension-filled silence instead.

Stella tore her eyes away from the article. The corridor was deserted except for her and her fellow colleagues. Mac had his back to her; he was talking quietly on his cell phone. Flack agitatedly paced back and forth, his usual confident demeanor was long gone. He looked like a guy totally at lost at what to do. Hawkes sat on one of the benches, staring at his open palms. Stella knew Hawkes was still seeing the blood that he had washed off… Danny's blood. Lindsay sat in the bench opposite. Every once in a while, she would cast a furtive glance at the door leading to the ER, willing someone to come out and tell them all that Danny will be alright. Stella caught her eye once and smiled softly. She wanted to reassure the younger woman that their friend will be okay. Lindsay merely nodded weakly and turned back to the door.

Stella sighed and settled down beside Lindsay on the bench.

Danny… you have to pull through, ok? For us…

This was going to be a long wait.

11.30 am

For the past hour, the five friends waited in the corridor. Very little words were exchanged between them. Only once or twice did Mac half-heartedly suggest they go home and get some rest. "I'll stay here and keep you all updated."

Stella had said with utmost determination, "We're all staying." Mac did not argue.

Everyone was just sitting there, immersed in their own thoughts. At long last, the door opened. They all stood up and practically ran to the doctor.

The doctor looked to be in his forties. His expression was unsmiling. He said slowly and gravely, "We managed to remove both bullets. The first wound wasn't too serious, it hit his rib and broke it, but that prevented the bullet from getting to his lungs. However, the second bullet hit his jugular vein. Naturally, Detective Messer lost a lot of blood… not enough oxygen is getting to his brain…"

Mac asked, "He's in a coma?"

The doctor nodded, "We have him on a ventilator. He might wake up later today, tomorrow, next week… or…"

His voice trailed away. They all knew what he was about to say… never…

Then he continued more confidently, "But we are hopeful. His vitals are stabilized, his wounds are all stitched up… there is a very good chance for a full recovery. We just have to wait for him to wake up."

He gave them all a small smile, "You may go and see him if you like… but not too long."

He walked away and Flack immediately said with a smile, "Well, that's great isn't it? Danny's gonna be just fine."

When nobody returned his enthusiasm, Flack said, "C'mon! Danny's one of strongest people we know. He'll be awake by tonight. You'll see…"

Stella cracked a smile and said, "Yeah… that's our Danny."

With that, they entered the room, walking as silently as possible. The room was cold and quiet. Only the sounds of the ventilator pumping air into Danny's lungs and the steady beeping of the heart monitor could be heard.

Stella felt like she was in a dream as she looked down at Danny. He seemed like a whole new person to Stella. His eyes were closed, his glasses were gone, his face had lost all colour, the tube from the ventilator was taped to his mouth and a white bandage covered his neck wound. He looked… weak. Stella never thought that word existed in Danny's dictionary.

Stella reached out her slightly shaky hand and placed it gently on Danny's cold forehead. "You'll be okay…" she whispered. She wondered if she was comforting him, or trying to convince herself.

On his other side, Lindsay held his hand tightly, tears fell from her eyes. His hand was cold as well. It was as if all the heat had left Danny's body, leaving him cold and lifeless.

For a while, the five of them merely stood there, staring at their fallen team member… their friend. They listened to the soft bursts of air from the ventilator and the slow 'beep, beeps' of the heart monitor. These sounds were the only proof that Danny was alive.

After that, Mac said silently, "Come on…"

They left the room and Mac was suddenly all business. "I have officers securing the crime scene. I'm going to get swing and night shift CSI's to process it…"

Lindsay and Hawkes said loudly at the same time, "No!"

Hawkes face was set in a determined glare as he said, "I want this…" Lindsay nodded her agreement.

Mac hesitated for a second, and then he said, "Alright. Lindsay and Hawkes, back to the scene… find us some answers."

Flack chimed in as Lindsay and Hawkes left the group, "I've got my guys interviewing everyone and anyone who might have seen something. I'll keep you guys posted."

When he left too, Mac turned to Stella, "I've contacted Danny's parents. One of us should stay here to keep an eye on Danny until they arrive. In case he wakes up… or the shooter comes back to try and finish the job."

He held up the small evidence bag holding the bullets. They were still stained with Danny's blood. "Get to the lab, process these… while you're at it, dig up Danny's past cases, see if they lead us anywhere."

Stella raised an eyebrow, "You're staying?"

Mac's eyes cast downwards, then towards the window where they could see Danny lying motionless on the bed. He then said quietly, "I was right there, Stella. The shooter walked right past me… Danny was right behind me when he got shot…"

Stella replied, "You're blaming yourself for what happened?"

"I know it's not rational. There was no way for me to know that old guy was going to shoot Danny. But I was there and I should have been able to do something… anything…"

"You can't help but feel responsible…" Stella stated.

Mac nodded, "I don't know why…"

Stella gave a whimsical smile, "It's because you're you, Mac."

Mac gave her a look. Stella shrugged and said, "You'll never forgive yourself if Danny died, right?"

After a moment, Mac said, "Yes."

Stella smiled and walked away from him, "Then you have nothing to worry about… By next week, the shooter will be in jail and Danny will be strutting around showing off his scars like a war hero…"

Mac chuckled. Stella wasn't fooling anyone. Mac knew she was just as worried about Danny as everyone else, if not more.

He went back into Danny's room and pulled up a chair. Slowly, he took Danny's cold hand in his warm one and held it tightly, "I'm sorry…"

TBC

Sorry you guys had to wait so long curses exams. Hopefully the next chapter will be quicker... ;-D