AN: To kill or not to kill? I went back and forth, wrote both and this version actually worked better. Meh, I hope. Blame Jack's puppy. Oh, and thanks to Jacks herself, for being so helpful and smoothing out my bumpy prose
Calleigh looks peaceful in her hospital bed, surprisingly so. Blond hair frames her face, fluttering slightly against her breath. The only sign of her altercation coming from the drip in her arm and the IV tube in her hand.
Clorinda Delko sits at her side, holding her hand tightly. I've only met the woman on a few occasions, but I know she doesn't like me. I also know she loves Calleigh with all her heart. As I enter, Clorinda raises her brows in acknowledgment of my presence. She must take in my blood stained clothes, but she doesn't comment.
"How is she?" I ask, voice curiously small.
Clorinda blinks furiously, her aged face crinkling as she wards off tears. "They say she'll be okay," she says, raising a hand to stroke back matted blond hair. "It's just the waiting." She glances up, but doesn't meet my eyes. "Her father's on his way, I don't think her mother can make it out until tomorrow."
I nod. "And Eric?" I mummer my concern, almost fearful of her response.
Her eyes meet mine now and my heart almost breaks at the pain I see behind them. She's lost one child, I don't think she could handle losing another. But behind the pain lies steely determination, I can tell she's fighting for all of them. "They've stabilized him," she says, "but he's still in surgery. Could be hours before we hear anything. My poor baby," she whispers the last part to herself, eyes now focused on Calleigh.
It had been several hours since they took Eric into surgery, Alexx still hot on their heels. Clorinda had arrived moments after the hospital had called, leaving her husband to take care of the grandchildren.
"I'm so sorry," I say, not really sure how my words can be of comfort. I feel almost intrusive standing there in the room with them, but Clorinda motions for me to sit before I can contemplate leaving.
"It's not your fault," she says, shaking her head dismissively. "You saved their lives, both of them." She still won't look at me. I know her thanks come somewhat reservedly, as she still hasn't forgiven me for hurting Eric. I guess she doesn't know that we both hurt each other.
"He didn't respond to me," I tell her and I don't need to explain. Her smile as she squeezes Calleigh's hand tells me everything.
"She always could tell him what to do. She was the only one who could get away with it." Her voice is soft, tender, but I notice she's speaking in the past tense.
"Don't give up," I try, finally meeting her eyes across Calleigh's form.
"I can't convince -" Her sudden stop commands my attention. "Calleigh?" Clorinda's eyes are focused on the bed, riveted on Calleigh's face. "Calleigh?" she repeats, a large smile breaking as Calleigh's eyes stir open and close again at the harsh light. Clorinda's fingers reach up, gently grazing over Calleigh's cheeks. My hand grips her forearm tightly as I try to give her some of my energy.
She tries to speak, but her voice is too weak. Taking a deep breath, she tries again. "What are you doing here?" she finally gets out, voice groggy from the drugs. Her eyes fall on the counter and Clorinda jumps to attention, moving a cup of tepid water to Calleigh's lips, letting her sip through a straw.
Her thirst quenched she glances between us slowly. "Where's Eric?" she asks, voice hesitant.
Clorinda nibbles her lip, clearly debating whether telling Calleigh is a good idea. I almost cut in with an answer, knowing Calleigh would hate not knowing, but she starts to speak, stopping my input.
"If he's," she starts, pausing to take a breath, "if it's bad, I want to know. I want the truth."
"It's bad," Clorinda states, eyes wet, brimming with emotion. "It's bad, Mi Hija." Her repetition hits home a truth I don't think Calleigh has acknowledged before.
Calleigh moves, tugging her IV to allow her arm some more room. She attempts to sit up, but the pain from her chest forces her to retreat into the pillow again. "How bad?" she mumbles, voice strained from her exertion.
"They've only just managed to -" Clorinda's whispers fade away. Unable to finish her sentence, she turns to me, eyes begging me to finish for her.
"They've stabilized him, Calleigh, we're waiting on test results and word from his doctors. He's in surgery right now." I inform, trying to keep my voice as reassuring as possible. Truth is, I don't know if he'll make it out of the OR.
Calleigh's eyes shut momentarily, then reopen, flashing with such a fierce determination it scares me a little. She tries to move again, gritting her teeth against the pain. "I have to -" Her arms fail and she falls back into the pillow, a sound of frustration escaping her as she plants them down and tries again. "I need to -" She's almost sat up, back lightly leaning against the pillow as loud beeps fill the room, informing the nurses that she's disengaged her IV tube.
"Calleigh -" I start, trying to push her back down as a female nurse enters, reconnecting the plastic pieces. "You don't need to do anything." I raise my hands, effectively stopping her arguments. "Eric may be out of surgery soon, he'll need you here, strong for when he wakes. There's nothing else you can do for him right now."
Her eyes close in annoyance but she complies, leaning down again though remaining upright. I let it go; it's all about compromise with Calleigh. At least, it is if you want to win an argument with her. She tries pull her hand away as the nurse (who's name is Gloria, I notice) tries to administer pain relief.
"You'll be needin' it later, doll face, trust me. It'll get worse before it gets better," Gloria drawls, accent thicker than Calleigh's. Call it a Southern connection or something, but Calleigh willfully gives over her arm, letting the drugs be pushed into her IV. Gloria pats Calleigh's head gently, old, worn fingers weaving around to test her forehead for fever. "How're you feelin'?" she asks. "You look better. If that wound of yours is lookin' okay, you may be outta here by mornin'."
"I feel fine, actually, just a little pain," Calleigh replies, accent thickening slightly in the presence of Gloria.
"Nausea?"
"Not anymore."
"You were lucky," Gloria says, nodding her graying brown head. "That bullet caught just the top of the lung; the tissues already repairin' itself. It coulda been a whole lot worse, Missy."
"I know," Calleigh replies. "How long before it stops hurting to breathe," she quips.
"Should be fine in a couple of days, Sweetheart, just fine. We'll give you antibiotics, anti-inflammatory for the muscle damage and pain relief when you leave." She turns to Clorinda asking, "mother-in-law? Friend?"
"She works with my son, Eric Delko. He was brought in with her." There was no masking the shake in Clorinda's voice.
"Right," Gloria replies sadly, "I heard about the cops getting inta some trouble. I'm extremely sorry. I didn't know it was y'all who were involved." She places a gentle hand on Clorinda's shoulder, her genuine concern radiating across all of us. "I'll leave you to it; I'll be back to check on you later," she excuses herself, leaving the door ajar as she exits.
Mere moments later, it opens again, revealing Doctor Reader with Horatio following close behind. I can't read her expression. "Mrs. Delko?" the doctor asks, smiling tightly when she locks eyes with Clorinda, reaching out to shake her hand as she rises. I try to read Horatio's eyes but he keeps his gaze on Calleigh. "I'm Doctor Reader; I've been working on your son."
"Is he okay?" Clorinda's voice wavers again, her eyes brimming with tears as she grips Calleigh's hand tighter.
"Mrs. Delko; would you like to step into the family room? We can have more privacy there."
Clorinda shakes here head. "Here is fine. How is my son?"
The soft smile from the doctor sends a wave of hope shooting through my body. "The surgery was a success, so far. We're closing him up now. I'll go in to detail about the surgery when you've had time to digest the news. He'll be taken into ICU when they've finished, after that, the next 24 hours in post-op will be crucial. If we can prevent infection and keep his vitals strong, he should make a full recovery." She pauses to flick her eyes towards Calleigh. "But, like I said, the next day or so will be critical. It's a waiting game, but we'll monitor him closely."
Clorinda rises suddenly, wrapping her arms around the Doctor, whispering thanks in Spanish I'm sure the red-head doesn't understand. My eyes fall on Calleigh, her head is lowered, but I can see the glint of tears on her cheeks.
"I'm glad it could be a happy ending for you," the Doctor says and I have to restrain myself from pointing out that she was the one who wanted to give up on him in the first place.
"I wanna see him when he's out," Calleigh says suddenly, her head still bent down.
"He'll have to be kept relatively isolated, for now at least, to minimize infection. I'll let you go see him when he wakes. You need to rest."
Calleigh nods, too emotionally exhausted to do much else. I smile reassuringly at her, trying to remind her that, for now, Eric was okay.