The Space Between
Chapter 4: Everything Changes
There were days when being an officer of the law was worth everything. The headaches of paperwork and red tape. When you returned a child to their parents it almost made up for those images of violence and blood that never quite left your mind. The pride you felt at solving a case could balm the pain of all those times you let the evils of the world slip through your fingers. Made those scars that never quite heal less painful.
Taggert lived for those days. And today... wasn't one of them.
Rubbing his head hard and choking back a curse, he dropped the case file on his desk. Carly Corinthos' picture stared up at him. He knew Mac was becoming worried about his obsession with the case and he'd even overheard some rookies commenting on it. But he couldn't, for whatever reason, get over the fact that some psycho had gunned down Carly.
It still made no sense no matter how many times he went over it alone or with Mac and Felicia. It had been weeks and they had no leads. It was a dead end. His brain told him that, but his gut...
"Lieutenant Taggert?"
Taggert glanced up at the officer across the room. "Yeah?"
"Phone, sir. Line one. It's from General Hospital."
He grabbed the receiver off his desk phone immediately. "This is Lieutenant Taggert."
"Marcus?"
"Gia, baby, what's wrong?" He rose, slipping into his jacket and reaching for his keys. "Are you okay? Do you need me to come over? I'll be right there."
"Marcus. Wait. I'm fine. That's not why I'm calling."
Taggert paused, confused. "What is it?"
"Carly woke up, Marcus."
Taggert breathed in deeply, searching the room for Mac. He needed to let him know. "Are you sure, Gia?"
"Yeah. One of the nurses told me. I just thought you should know."
"Thank you, baby. I'll be there real soon. Bye."
The line went dead before Gia could respond, and she smiled, rolling her eyes. Her brother. Always wanting to do the right thing. No matter how hopeless it was. She sighed, pushing down the flash button. The dial tone was loud in her ear. She took a deep breath and mentally kicked herself into gear.
It rang once.
What exactly am I going to say? Hey there, Lucky...
Twice.
Remember me? The girl that broke your heart.
Three times.
I'll just tell him about Carly and leave it at that.
Gia frowned as the phone rang a fourth and fifth time. It wasn't like Lucky not to answer his cell phone. Not to mention that his voicemail wasn't activated. She hung up and dialed Kelly's. It had just recently reopened and he was probably helping out.
"Kelly's." A deep voice answered and for a moment Gia's heart stopped before registering that it wasn't Lucky's voice. It was most likely Lucas.
"Um...hi Lucas?"
There was a pause. "Yeah?"
"Hey, this is Gia. I was wondering if your Mom was around."
"She just went down to the hospital, Gia. Carly woke up."
"Oh good." Gia smiled into the phone. "So everyone knows."
"Yeah. Mom called Uncle Luke and Laura from here. They're all headed that way. I'm going to be there as soon as I finish closing."
He hadn't mentioned Lucky. She guessed in their excitement they'd probably forgotten to get in touch with him, though that was odd. Gia's eyes flew to the door as it opened and Nik, Shari and Juan entered. "Lucas, did anyone tell Lucky? I know he would want to know right away."
"Ah...Gia, Lucky's gone."
Her hand gripped the phone tightly. "What?"
She saw Nikolas' brief glance at Juan, caught the guilty look that passed between the two.
"I'm sorry I thought you knew. He left a couple of days ago. We don't know where he went."
"Oh. Okay. Well, listen, tell Bobbie I'm happy about Carly. Bye." She placed the receiver back onto the stand and turned to look at her friends. Shari sent her a sad smile before looking away. Juan avoided her face altogether.
Gia's gaze settled on Nik's. She held out her hand. "Give it to me."
Nik shook his head slightly while reaching inside his jacket. He pulled out an envelope with Gia's name scribbled hastily on it. He patted it twice, his eyes steady on hers. " I want to say one thing, Gia. You gave him no choice." He threw it down on the bed, nodding to his friends as he walked out. "I'll be upstairs checking on Carly."
He closed the door feeling Gia's hurt stare boring into his back.
Stepping off the elevator took more courage than he'd thought. He nodded at Joseph once before turning to the other penthouse door. The one he hardly glanced at, let alone knocked on. He was aware that he could have called or sent one of the men but he needed to be there when she found out. To see the light in her eyes at the good news.
Johnny breathed deeply, raising his hand and knocking three times. If she wasn't in, he would leave a note. Or he'd go find her. That worked too.
The door flew open and he met Alexis' surprised stare. His voice stuck in his throat and he stared blankly back.
"Johnny. How can I help you?" Alexis asked, coldly. After their last conversation, she had no interest in talking to him. Is that why you can't catch your breath, Alexis...
Johnny frowned at the tone unsure as to why she was using it and how he should proceed now. Before he could form a sentence, he glanced past her shoulder to see Ned standing shirtless by the couch. Anger blinded him. He knew he had no rights to her. That she and Ned had a history and commitment. But knowing that didn't diminish the jealous rage that swept over his senses.
Keep it together, Johnny.
"I'm sorry to bother you, Ms. Davis. I can see you're very busy," Johnny sneered, ignoring the warning in the eyes that now glared at him. "But I thought you would like to know that Carly is awake."
Alexis bit down the harsh retort about to spill from her lips. She held onto the door as her knees almost gave out. "Are you serious?"
Johnny clamped his hands tightly to his side, tamping down the urge to hold her to him in relief. He wouldn't give in. Seeing Ned move closer to them, he knew he couldn't. Taking a step away from the door, he nodded in assent. "Yes, I am. I'm headed to the hospital now. I just thought you'd want to know." Not waiting for a response, he turned away.
Alexis stepped forward, his name on her lips, when she felt warm hands on her shoulder holding her in place. She glanced back at Ned. "I wasn't expecting that."
Ned shook his head. "I don't think any of us were." Ned studied her face. "Hey, this good news, right?"
"Of course!" Alexis replied, gently removing his hands. "I think I need to go down to the hospital. I know how you feel but-"
"It's okay." Ned held his hand up. "I understand. Go on. I'll wait here if you want."
Alexis nodded, kissing him on the cheek, and headed up to her room to change.
Ned stood at the foot of the stairs staring after her.
Something was off about Alexis lately. The closer they got to the wedding, the more he felt her slip away. He'd felt it for a long while, but every time he broached the subject with her she brushed away his doubts. Told him it was just nerves and work.
It seemed to have worsened after that insane night that had left them all so shocked. She'd almost cried with relief when he told her he was postponing the wedding until things had calmed down some.
And now she barely wants to talk about a new date...
A knock at the door pulled Ned away from his thoughts and he walked to the door, pulling it open, his face lighting up. "Chloe."
"Ned." Chloe leaned forward, kissing his cheek. She walked into the penthouse, scanning the room for Alexis. "What's going on?"
"You haven't heard yet?"
"Heard what?" Chloe dropped her bag on the desk, her expression concerned. Ned smiled at her. Chloe always worried about everyone around. He loved that about her.
"Carly's awake."
Chloe's hand flew to her mouth, her eyes filling up with tears. "That's wonderful news, Ned."
"It is."
"I'm so happy to hear that. I was so worried for Carly, Sonny, and everyone. Alexis must be so relieved. She's been in a lot of pain since that horrible night."
Ned nodded, looking at the stairs again. "She seemed...really affected by the news."
"Of course." Chloe frowned, studying Ned. "Is everything okay with you and Alexis, Ned?"
Ned shrugged, moving away from the stairs. "Is it ever?" He smiled sadly at his friend, taking the hand she offered. "I feel her slipping away, Chloe, and there's not a damn thing I can do about it."
Noise that could only be produced by members of his family flowed from the swinging doors of the waiting area the on-duty nurse had directed him to. Lucas shifted the flowers he'd stopped to buy at the gift shop to his other hand and pushed the door in. He looked around the room. His mother and uncle stood at one corner arguing over what he could only assume was Stefan's unwanted presence. At least unwanted by Luke anyway.
Stefan was ignoring the fight and speaking quietly to Nikolas in the opposite corner. Juan and Shari stood at the other end of the small room near the second exit. Emily and Zander sat next to Mike, who nodded at what they said but kept sending worried glances his son's way. Lucas watched Sonny near the window. He was the only one not speaking.
He could only imagine what he must be going through. Carly was his sister and he could barely contain the urge to grab one the doctors and demand to know what was happening. But Carly was Sonny's wife. The man was probably close to losing his mind right about now.
He noticed his father step into the waiting room and stare at Sonny for a long moment. Lucas frowned, sensing that the news wasn't exactly all good.
Tony walked to Sonny as a hush fell over the room. Everyone followed his progress to the window, holding their breaths and reaching to each other for strength.
Sonny felt Tony stand next to him and he turned his head slowly. "What's wrong?"
There was a flicker of compassion in Tony's eyes and Sonny clenched his hands open and closed several times. The moment they'd told him he needed to go to the waiting room until Tony could talk with him he'd known that there was something wrong. Looking at the doctor now, his heart grew heavy.
"Tony, just say it."
Tony nodded to the center of the room and Sonny led the way, taking a seat quietly. He watched Tony drag a chair and set it in front of his. He sat slowly, seeming to take the time to gather his thoughts.
Tony met Sonny's eyes. "First off, physically Carly is in better shape than I expected. Especially for someone who went through what she did. Her vitals are all normal and her reflexes are in good shape."
He paused to clear his throat.
"But?" Sonny prodded.
Tony took a deep breath, looking around the room as he spoke. "Carly has what's called retrograde amnesia."
"Oh God."
Sonny heard Bobbie's stunned exclamation but he continued to stare at Tony. "So...she doesn't..." He couldn't even get the words out. This wasn't happening.
Luke clasped Sonny's shoulder and asked Tony. "What exactly does that mean, Tony?"
"Retrograde amnesia affects memory preceding the event that caused it. In Carly's case, she doesn't remember anything before waking up today."
"Can she talk?" Tony glanced over his shoulder at Lucas. His gaze softened more as he answered his son.
"Yes. She can."
"I don't understand..." Sonny began but stopped abruptly. His mind couldn't process any of what Tony was saying. His wife couldn't remember anything. Not him. Not their life or their son. Nothing.
"Retrograde amnesia can often be traced to a severe emotional shock, in which case personal memories such as identity rather than less-personal material like language skills are affected."
"So Carly knows how to talk and walk but doesn't know who she is or, for that matter, any of us are?" Juan stated. He watched Sonny lean his head in his hands and felt his own heart break at seeing him this way.
"Correct. She has no memory of her life. At all."
Sonny raised his head, his red-rimmed eyes glaring at Tony. "Why? I mean...how...?"
Tony held his hand up as the others started to ask the same question. Looking at Sonny he answered gently. "This kind of amnesia seems to represent an escape from disturbing memories, most certainly a repression. Whatever happened that night affected Carly so deeply, in order for Carly to continue, her mind chose to erase it from her memory, wiping everything out in the process."
Bobbie came to sit by Sonny's side, holding her son-in-law's hand tightly. "What are the chances of Carly recovering her memory?"
Tony turned to answer her. He sighed, ignoring the twinge of jealousy as Stefan held Bobbie's other hand. "Memories can generally be recovered through psychotherapy or after the amnesiac state has ended. It can last for weeks, months, or even years." He faced Sonny as he finished and gently patted him on the shoulder. "I believe Carly is a case of when the mind is ready, it'll let the memories return. Until then, we just wait and see."
Nikolas spoke up. "You said therapy was an option."
Tony paused. "It is, but I'm not sure it's in Carly's best interest right now. For whatever reason, she simply can't deal with what happened to her. That means that, as hard as it is, all any of us can do is wait." He rose, touching Sonny's shoulder. "She wants to see you."
Sonny glanced at Bobbie, then Luke, and back to Tony. "She...said that?"
Tony nodded. "I think she feels it would be easiest talking to her husband first."
"She remembered being married?" Sonny asked hopefully, but already seeing the answer in Tony's eyes.
"I'm sorry, Sonny, no. I told her she was married and she asked to speak with her husband then."
Sonny nodded and rose to follow Tony. He turned at the door, his eyes meeting Luke's for a moment, before heading to Carly's room.
Bobbie hugged Luke, tears she'd been holding in escaping. Luke wiped at his eyes quickly as he comforted his sister, his heart breaking for her and for Sonny.
Blankness.
Deep and endless.
Carly scrunched her closed eyes tighter, determined to see something. Anything. Her head throbbed and her hand began to twitch, but she continued. She needed to remember. The pain in her temple intensified and she groaned.
The hollowness inside her mind was driving her mad. Her chest constricted and she breathed in shallow gasps of air. She needed to remember...
Nothing.
Tears gathered in her eyes and she choked back a sob.
She laid her head back on the bed, letting the tears fall. Her eyes opened slowly and she took a few long breaths, forcing herself calm. Her head turned and she saw the frame that sat on the small bedside table. She reached out and brought it to her lap.
She sat up, wiping her eyes with her hand. The frame held a picture of an adorable little boy with a head full of red hair. It looked recent to her, not that she could be sure of anything. She stared at the child, tracing his smile with her finger. Her eyes moved to the man that held him in his lap.
She held her breath as she studied the beautiful face…the deep brown eyes that seemed to radiate a sadness so deep she could feel it…the smile that reached out to her. Her fingers caressed his face.
"Sonny."
She wasn't sure how she knew who he was, but she did. Maybe it was the wedding ring that was identical to hers visible on his left hand. Or she'd simply guessed that the picture had to be her family. She didn't know how she knew. She just did.
The door opened and she looked up. Her eyes collided with the same brown ones she had been staring at. Her breath caught in her throat. Her heart beat a little faster, and her mouth opened, but no sound came out.
They stared at each other for an eternity...