After two painstaking hours of restlessness in the hospital waiting room, Dr. Salvio arrived and alerted Christian on the status of Amy's condition. He informed him that she had remained stable throughout the series of tests they'd run, and that she was resting comfortably. Miguel also informed him what he had been dreading all along. After reviewing the results of her labs, it appeared as though she'd suffered a moderate heart attack, but she would most likely recover. Assuming that they kept monitoring her closely for any sudden abnormalities in her heart rate.
Christian was now seated at his daughter's bedside, holding her hand in his, and waiting rather anxiously for her to awaken. He'd been sitting there for the last fourty five minutes, but she had yet to even open her eyes. He was keeping his hopes up though. All that mattered to him was that she was still alive after her attack, and after two hours, that was a good sign.
Amy laid still in the large hospital bed, which was surrounded by a few machines. The wires beneath her gown, were connected to the machine on the left hand side of the bed--the side Christian was seated on--monitoring the beat of her heart. A plastic clip was attached to the index finger of her right hand, as well as a blood pressure cuff around the same arm. The two devices were connected to the machine on the opposite side, which monitored the oxygen in her blood in addition to her blood pressure. She was obtaining oxygen from the mask over her nose and mouth, and recieving fluids from the IV in her left hand.
"How's she doing?" Sean inquired.
He exhaled sharply. "She's holding up. It's me that's a God damn wreck."
"I'm sorry I couldn't be here sooner. Shortly after I recieved your call, I got into an argument with Matt." There was a pause before Sean continued, "he told me you slept with his girlfriend."
He sighed wearily, a deep scowl crossing his face. His heart constricted in his chest, staring woefully at his daughter's feeble form. Swallowing the huge lump that had taken form in his throat, he shook his head in discouragement. "I screwed up Sean."
Sean's footsteps neared closer to Christian, stopping just behind the chair he was seated in. He set a comforting hand down on his shoulder. "I'll admit that what you did was wrong, Christian, but he's just a kid. He'll get over it, it'll just take some time."
"I'm not talking about Matt. I'm talking about my daughter. I'm talking about Amy." He bit down on his bottom lip, trying mercilessly to hold back the tears stinging his eyes. "I've screwed up a hell of a lot in the past, but I never imagined I'd screw up my own kid."
"This isn't your fault."
"Isn't it?" Christian stole a glance over his shoulder at Sean. "I tried being a good father to her. I did everything I could to keep her safe, to keep her the hell away from her foster father. I protected her with my life...but I lost control." A single tear managed to roll down his cheek. His voice shook with emotion as he continued, "when that bastard was raising her, all he ever did was beat her. Now I start to raise her myself, and I...I nearly kill her!"
Sean sighed as Christian began sobbing softly. Bringing over the only other chair in the room, he sat down beside him. Setting a reassuring hand on Christian's back, he gave it a soothing rub. "I'm sorry Christian, but the important thing is that you got to her in time. She wouldn't be alive right now if part of it weren't for you."
He knew Sean was right, but the possibilities of what could have gone wrong had he not been there, still stood out in his mind. He gently nodded his head, looking down at the hand he still held in his own, the pad of his thumb rubbing against the top of hers. "You know, after I lost...custody of Wilbur, I didn't think I'd ever find someone else who could fill that void. Then came Amy. She came along, and somehow, she managed to open up my heart again. After seeing what an asshole her foster father was, I promised I'd never let anything or anyone hurt her again. I left her alone with my ex-girlfriend, and it turned her into a God damn coke whore."
Sean's brows furrowed in consideration. "I'm not so sure I understand."
"Kimber." His irritation was quickly taking the place of his sorrow, but he wasn't going to allow himself to give into the rage boiling within him. Besides, he'd already taken that rage out on the bitch a few hours ago. "That bitch was feeding off my daughter this whole time. The results of her labs showed traces of enphedermine. She had a heart attack for Christ's sake! The evidence was right in front of my God damn face, but I misinterpreted it as something else. I should have known she'd be suceptible to the shit, she's got my damn genes."
Sean scowled. "It's not your genes that did this to her. You can't be held accountable for this. It was bad judgement, on both your part and hers. Maybe she thought that in be-friending Kimber, she'd learn more about you. The person you were before she came into your life."
"Oh what the hell could she learn about me from Kimber? Besides the fact that I'm an arrogant, self-absorbed asshole. Kimber was just waiting for the opportunity to turn my own daughter against me."
Sean sighed softly. "Are you saying Kimber did this to get back at you?"
Christian exhaled sharply, looking over at his partner. "What other reason would she have for doing what she did? Think about it Sean. I've put that bitch through enough shit, and she stills holds a grudge against me for never loving her. The way I loved Wilbur. The way I love Amy." His eyes roamed back over to his slumbering daughter.
Sean was quiet for a moment, almost as if he were trying to figure out what to say next, but when he finally did speak, his words caught Christian off guard. "Did you ever love her?" For a minute, he thought Sean was referring to Amy, but then he continued. "Kimber. Did you ever truly love her?"
He didn't know how to respond to that question. It had been a question lingering in his mind since that day at the Ikea store when he'd ran into Kimber. He shook his head, "I've never given any thought to it to be honest. Maybe I did, at some point in our relationship. Maybe I was too blind to see it. I never truly believed I could love anyone, as much as I loved Wilbur. I cared about her, but I don't think I could ever fully give myself over to her, the way I can my own child." He stole a glance over at him, "it still doesn't change anything. There's no chance in hell I could ever love her after all this."
Sean nodded his head in regard. "Well for what it's worth, you did the right thing, Christian. Even though it may not seem like it. Amy's safe now because of you. If you ask me, the love you give to your own daughter should be more important than the love to your girlfriend. Take it from me. I've been a father a lot longer than you have." He set his hand back on Christian's shoulder, giving it a reassuring squeeze. "No matter how hectic your life gets, when you're raising a child of your own, family should always come first."
He sighed softly, swallowing the lump that had taken form in his throat. For a long moment, neither he nor Sean said anything. The two of them just sat there quietly, both of their eyes on the girl that laid in the large bed before them. Finally, Sean spoke, "have you gotten in touch with her mother yet?"
Christian shook his head. "Jesus, I wouldn't even know where to begin. If she found out about this, Sean, or if she even knew her daughter had a drug addiction, she could wind up blaming me for everything." His heart constricted in his chest just thinking about it. Truth be told, if Amy's mother found out about the drugs, she might end up pressing charges against him or something equally as bad, and things could end up ten times worse than when he'd lost Wilbur.
"She still deserves to know. If I were her mother, at the very least, I'd want to know that my daughter was in good health after an attack like that. You don't have to mention there were drugs involved, but if she asks, just tell her the attack was stress related. After all she's been through, with you, with her foster father, with Kimber, she's likely to believe it."
He gently nodded his head. "I'll give her a call in the morning." He stole a glance down at the hand he was holding, giving it a soft squeeze before looking back down at Amy. "I want to be here when she wakes up," he added softly.
"I can stay if you want me to." Sean offered.
"I appreciate it, really, but I'll be fine."
Sean nodded. "In that case, I should probably head home." He gave Christian's shoulder a pat before rising to his feet. "I've got an early morning rhinoplasty and tummy tuck. By the way, if you don't feel up to coming in to work tomorrow, I'll understand. Take as much time as you need."
He sent his partner a tight smile. "Thanks."
Sean moved the chair he'd been sitting in back to it's original place, and turned back around to face Christian. "When she does wake up, tell her I hope she feels better."
He smiled tenderly and nodded in regard. "I certainly will."
Sean headed towards the door, but paused in the doorway and looked back over at him, "if you need anything, give me a call."
After Christian gave his best friend the reassurance that he would, Sean went on his way, and once again, left him alone with his daughter. He stole a glance at the heart monitor beside his chair, relieved to see that her heart remained at a steady and normal rate. Rising to his feet, he leaned over the bed, placing a tender kiss to Amy's forehead before settling back down in his seat. A weary sigh escaped him as he brought his free hand up, rubbing the sluggishness from his eyes. He didn't know how much longer he'd be waiting until she finally opened her eyes or at the very least, began to stir, but he didn't care. He'd spend the night there if need be. It was unlikely the hospital staff would have a problem with it. After all, he was a doctor. Maybe not a doctor employed here, but still, it wasn't as if he'd do any harm. He just wanted to be with his daughter.
Although he'd turned down Sean's offer to stay, he still appreciated the thought, but he couldn't ask his partner to pull an all nighter here with him either. Especially when he had surgery in a few hours. Sean needed the sleep, and, well, they still had a business to run. Even if the other man was going to be the only one working tomorrow. At least Christian could count his blessings that Amy's asshole of a father wouldn't find her here, but there was no guarantee that her mother wouldn't accidentally let it slip out to the man once she knew. And if she didn't tell him, Christian would undoubtedly feel twice as bad about himself. He had a bad feeling the woman would probably be subjected to further abuse from Frank, and he couldn't allow that to happen. Especially now that the woman was intent on testifying against the man.
Well, as God was his witness, he was going to bust his ass twice as much this time as he had with Wilbur. He was going to do everything in his power to make sure Amy, and her mother were safe, once and for all, and that abusive prick was locked up for the rest of his life.
A faint moan escaped the young girl's throat, as she shifted against the mattress beneath her tiny body. Amy had no idea how long she'd been asleep, but she felt as if every muscle in her body were in a knot. Upon hearing the noises around her, she didn't have to open her eyes to know that she was in the hospital. She recognized the rhythmic beeping as a heart monitor, and upon feeling an object covering her nose and mouth, she knew she had to be anywhere else but in her own room or apartment. Her eyes lids fluttered open, cringing at the beam of light that shined down on her from above. She shut her eyes tightly and then opened them again, in an attempt to get used to the new rays of light that entered her vision.
Slowly, she once again opened her eyes, allowing them to roam around the room she was in, and scrutinize her surroundings. The first thing she noticed was her father. Christian. He was hunched over the bed, still holding her hand in his, but it appeared as though he were fast asleep. His eyes were closed and his head was resting against the mattress of her bed. A soft smile crept across her face. She stole a glance over at the window that sat adjacent to the bed, noticing the darkness behind the vertical blinds. Had he been here at her bedside all night? How did he get here? More importantly, how did she get here? What had happened to put her here in the first place?
Those, in addition to a million more questions raced through her head, but she wouldn't find out the answer to any of them until he woke up. She sighed in frustration, now noticing the few machines she was connected to. This was definitely not her idea of a comfortable sleeping environment, but having him here made it a little easier for her. As much as she didn't want to wake him, she knew that she had to. He was the only one who knew what had gone on while she'd been asleep, or should she say, unconscious.
"Christian?" She called out to him softly, suddenly realizing that he probably didn't hear her at all with the mask covering her face. Pulling the oxygen mask down and away from her face, she called to him once again. When she got no response or even a faint moan to indicate that he'd started to stir, she attempted to move the hand that was still in his grasp, and at the same time, continued calling out his name, but louder than before. "Christian."
"Hmm...?" He moaned softly. His eyes came open, and it looked as if he were about to close them again, until he met her gaze. Almost immediately did he lift his head up, and look over at her, a tender smile crossing his face. "Hey sweetheart. I'm sorry, I must have dozed off for a minute or two. How are you feeling?"
Amy forced a small smile, her shoulders rising and falling in a shrug. "Better, I guess, considering I don't even remember what happened."
Christian scowled, "what's the last thing you remember?"
She looked down at their linked hands, noticing the way his thumb was lightly caressing the back of hers. A deep scowl came over her face. "I remember us...fighting." Her brows furrowed in thought. Had he done something to put her here? No, never. Hadn't he told her he'd never lay a hand on her? No, this wasn't his fault. It couldn't be. She lifted her chin, looking expectantly back at him. "Did something happen to make me...?" Her voice trailed off, letting him figure out where she was going with that sentence.
He exhaled sharply, nodding his head gently. "You had a heart attack sweetheart. You collapsed back at my condo. I administered CPR until the paramedics arrived, and we brought you here. I'm just glad I got to you when I did. You were very lucky."
She sighed woefully. "Oh," she spoke softly. Suddenly, something occured to her that hadn't before. This wasn't his fault. None of it was.
"Look, I'm sorry I acted the way I did earlier, and for the things I said to you, but--"
"It's my fault." She spoke suddenly, her heart constricting in the process.
"What?"
"This whole thing is my fault." Tears stung her eyes but she tried as she might to hold them in. It was then that all the words came spilling out of her mouth. The words she had been dying to utter for the last two weeks. "I lied to you. I was taking drugs. Kimber was the one who gave me the stuff, and I've been taking it up until now. I tried to stop, but I couldn't. I thought it would help get rid of all of my problems like she said it would, but then this happened and...oh God Christian, I'm so sorry. I should have listened to you. I'm sorry for everything. For all the bad things I said to you, and just...everything." The tears were now streaming down her cheeks.
The scowl remained fixated on his face. Averting his gaze down to his lap, he exuded a deep sigh. He gradually brought his eyes back up to her face, his expression somber. "This isn't entirely your fault. Kimber is more to blame than you are right now, sweetheart. Not to say that I wasn't pissed when I found out, but you do have my genes. You were just as susceptible to her lies and deception as I was. I warned you about her, I don't know how many God damn times, but you refused to see her for the person she truly is. You let her corrupt your better judgement."
She brought her free hand up to wipe the tears from her eyes, nodding in regard. "I guess I did, but how did you find out? I mean, you suspected I was doing the drugs before, but how did you find out you were right?"
"When the results of your blood work came back from the lab. There were clear traces of the drug in your blood stream." He shook his head. "Jesus, I never wanted something like this to happen to you."
"Neither did I."
"If you were having a problem, drugs sure as hell weren't going to do you any good. Unless I was the one prescribing them to you. The next time you have a problem, you come talk to me. Or to Sean. Anybody but Kimber." She nodded her head, as he continued. "I said it before but I'll say it again. You're never to see her again. I don't even want you coming within a five mile radius of the bitch. I've tried hard enough as it is to keep you safe, but I'm not about to let something like this happen again. Understand?"
Amy nodded once again, brushing away a stray tear that had managed to slide down her cheek. "Yeah, but I promise, I'll never see her again. Especially not after this. I'm done with her."
"Good, but while we're on the subject of promises, there's a promise that I'm going to make to you, right now."
A smile played at the corners of her mouth, "what?"
He gave her hand a soft squeeze, "your mother called me earlier tonight. Your foster mother. She told me that asshole stopped by the other night. He wanted to know where you were, but she wouldn't tell him." He averted his gaze downward, sighing deeply. "He hit her a few times and left. Your neighbors called the cops but they didn't get there in time to catch him."
Amy's heart constricted in her chest, and even began to pound the minute she heard the words, "foster faster." Was was he going to tell her? That her mother was in the hospital too? That something worse had happened? A couple more tears trickled down her cheeks as she took in a shallow breath of oxygen. Her eyes fell closed as she tried to keep herself from crying. "No."
Christian's brows stitched together in concern, leaning in a little closer and staring intently into her face. He stole a glance at the heart monitor and scowled. "Amy...it's going to be all right, sweetheart. You need to take a deep breath, all right? Just try and relax." He reached out and placed the oxygen mask back over her nose and mouth. "Your mother is going to be all right. In fact, you're both going to be fine. She's planning to testify against Frank, and I'm going to be there when she does. I'm going to do whatever the hell I can. I'll bust my ass to make sure you two are safe, and that asshole is behind bars. I promise you that. I'm never going to let anyone hurt you again as long as I live."
The oxygen from the mask on her face, along with his reassuring words succeeded in calming her down. She couldn't allow herself to have another heart attack. She had to remain calm or she could end up killing herself, and that was not something she wanted. Opening her eyes, she turned her head and looked over at him, a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. He stole another glance at the heart monitor with a soft sigh. Focusing his attention back on her, he placed his opposite hand over the hand that he still held in his, "you should probably try and get some sleep. You need all the rest you can get. We don't want you to have another heart attack now, do we?"
She shook her head. As tempted as she was to remove the mask, so she could speak clearly to him, she refrained from doing so. Not only because she was certain her body needed it at the moment, but also because she knew Christian would probably disapprove of her doing it as well. She sighed woefully, "I can't."
"What do you mean you can't?"
She scowled deeply. "I can't sleep here. I don't even want to be here. You know how much I hate hospitals. You know how scared I get. Do you really think I can spend the night here all by myself? If I'm scared, there's no way I'll ever be able to fall asleep."
A scowl crossed his own face. Releasing the hand that he'd been holding, he slowly rose from his chair, and leaned over to shut off the light above her bed. The room instantly grew dim, and the only light that remained came from hospital corridor, which radiated from the open door to her left.
Her brows furrowed inquisitively at his action. She looked up at him, his much larger frame shrouded in the shadows of the room. "What are you doing?"
"Roll over," he murmured.
She still was somewhat confused with what he was planning on doing, but nonetheless, did as he said and turned over to lie on her right side, her back now facing him. It didn't take long for her to figure out what he was doing. The moment she felt his weight sink down into the mattress beside her, she understood his purpose. He wrapped one of his arms around her waist in a protective embrace, his chin resting against her shoulder. She smiled tenderly to herself, fearing she might start to cry all over again. Never in her life had she had a man, much less her father hold her in such a loving and comforting manner.
He sighed softly. "There's no reason for you to be scared, sweetheart, because I'm staying right here until you fall asleep."
Nothing could prevent the single tear that escaped the corner of her eye. "Really?"
"Mmm-hmm, but come this time tomorrow, you should be sleeping like a baby. I'm taking you back to McNamara/Troy. You can finish recovering there. From here on out, you're under my care."
Her eyes widened in surprise. Stealing a glance over her shoulder, she looked expectantly at him. "Are you serious?"
"Of course I'm serious. You said it yourself, you can't sleep knowing that you're here all by yourself, but if you're at McNamara/Troy, you'll hardly be alone. I'll be there, so will Sean, and you've already met Liz. I'll work overtime if I have to. Whatever it takes to make sure you feel as comfortable as possible."
His words warmed her heart, and the more he spoke, the more she realized just how lucky she was to have him in her life, and how lucky she'd been to have survived this heart attack. Another tear managed to escape the corner of her eye, but before she could bring her hand up to brush it away, Christian brought his own hand up and did it for her. "Thank you. Really, you don't know how much that would mean to me."
"My pleasure. By the way, Sean told me to tell you that he hopes you feel better."
She smiled softly. "Well the next time you see him, tell him I said thank you."
"I will. Better yet, you can tell him yourself, once we get you settled."
She nodded gently, "okay."
Christian pressed a kiss to her temple, before resting the side of his head back against hers. "Get some rest now sweetheart. If I'm not here when you wake up, I'll be back sometime tomorrow afternoon."
With another nod of regard, she shut her eyes. She shifted in the bed as much as she could -- which was rather difficult seeing as how he was pressed up against her -- and attempted to get comfortable. Suddenly, the only sounds she heard were the beeping heart monitor, and the very distinct sound of their own breathing. An unfamiliar woman's voice could be heard over a loud speaker off in the distance.
Amy couldn't believe how much she'd been through over the last few days. She had sure been on a rollercoaster of sorts, with both emotional highs and emotional lows. It might not have seemed like a mistake about a week ago, but getting involved with Kimber had been the biggest mistake she'd ever made. Christian had been right all along, but she'd been the stupid one not to listen. She'd been naive. She was taken advantage of in a moment of vunerability, and now that she looked back on it, she hated herself more than anyone. More than her adoptive father. More than Courtney, and definitely more than Kimber. Honestly, she didn't know exactly what the woman's true intentions had been for be-friending her.
Did she want to be friends with her because she was lonely? No, that was bullshit! It had to be. What kind of friend would do this to her? Well, definitely not a real one. Sure, Courtney had slept with her father, but for as long as she'd known her, Amy knew she would never hurt her. Physically anyway. Okay, so they had gotten into a cat fight back at Christian's condo, but Courtney wouldn't do something so extreme as to put her in the hospital. Had Kimber used her simply to get to her father? Absolutely. She wouldn't put it past her that doing this had been Kimber's idea of revenge for not being able to be with him. Bitch! Well after all she'd learned about her, Amy was thankful her father was no longer commited to Kimber. He was commited to her.
It was then she realized that he was more than just a father. He was a life saver, a hero, a friend.
"Christian?"
"Hmm?"
"I love you."
She had been longing to utter the words since the night he'd saved her from her adoptive father, but it was now that they held so much more meaning, because she meant them with all of her heart. And after a brief moment of silence, he replied. "I love you too sweetheart."