Chapter 6

The next series of events were a blur for Gage; him cradling his partner, putting pressure on the wound so she didn't bleed out, the helicopter landing and taking him and his partner away (he had insisted on riding with her, he couldn't have lived with himself if she had slipped away and he wasn't there), Walker, Alex and Trivette meeting him and Barker at the hospital.

"Oh, Gage! We came as soon as we heard!" Alex said as she gave him a hug.

Gage was at a loss for words, everything had happened so fast, and he collapsed against Alex's mothering hug, allowing her to envelop him.

"We still don't know anything, she is still in surgery, I don't know … its been so long and …" Gage trailed off as he withdrew from Alex's hug.

"Hey! Don't go talking like that! Syd's tough! She's gonna pull through!" Trivette said as they all sat in the waiting room.

It seemed like centuries had passed before the doctor came out to talk to them.

"Rangers, My name is Doctor Gentry. I have some good news and some bad news; the good news is she made it through surgery, but we almost lost her twice. The bad news is she's not out the woods by a long shot. The bullet went through two ribs, punctured her lung and lacerated her liver. There has been a good amount of damage, but she still was lucky, about a half inch to the left and she wouldn't have made it to the hospital at all." He said.

"But will she be okay?" Gage said, his eyes desperately searching the Doctor's face.

"It is still too soon to tell, she did make it through the surgery, that is a small victory, but the next few weeks are going to be crucial. I will say this, she is a strong girl" Gentry said.

"Can we see her?" Gage asked.

"Of course, but only one at a time and not for long, just don't expect much in way of response, she will be in a coma for quite some time while her body heals." Gentry said as he flagged down a nurse to show them to Sydney's room.

"You go first, Gage. We can wait." Walker said with a knowing twinkle in his eyes. Gage nodded his head in a hasty thanks as he went inside.

He took a deep steadying breath before he approached her bedside and sat down in the chair that had been provided.

"Oh, Syd …" Gage said as he brushed some of her inky hair away from her face, she looked so peaceful, like she was merely sleeping and was going to wake up any minute.

"I should have waited for backup instead of rushing in there halfcocked like I always do. I was so afraid we would miss the drop, I put catching those assholes over your safety, it should be me in that bed instead of you, he was shooting at me Syd, why did you have to ..." He trailed off as tears welled up in his eyes.

He loved her … there … he said it; and now he might not ever get the chance to tell her because he was a coward.

"Oh, Walker, this is awful!" Alex said as they watched through the room's window. Walker remained silent, but his thoughts didn't. He was genuinely worried about Gage, he didn't know how he would take it if Sydney didn't pull through, and after talking more with the doctor, he knew there was a real chance they might lose her.

"Ranger Walker? I am sorry but visiting hours are over, I am afraid I am going to have to ask you all to leave." A nurse said.

"Okay, ma'am, but you had better let that boy stay, because I don't think a herd of wild horses could drag him away." Walker said with a small smile, The nurse smiled sadly.

"It's so sweet, isn't it? He came in on the chopper with her, and he never moved from the waiting room, not even to eat or drink, we had to bring it to him." She said with a sad smile as she left to go on her rounds.

"Walker, I'm worried about how Gage will take it if she doesn't …" Trivette trailed off.

"I know, Trivette, but the best thing we can do now is be there ... for both of them." Walker said as they all walked out together.

Walker and Alex's drive home was a silent one, they were both were deep in thought.

"Alex, you know what this means." Walker said as they pulled into the drive.

"That you're going back to work early." Alex replied.

"I'm sorry, honey, but with Sydney being shot and Gage not fit for duty right now, our friends need my help. We have to find the bastard who did this." Walker said as he put his hand over Alex's.

"I know, Walker, just be careful, I don't want to be a widow." She said as she waggled her finger at him.

Walker chuckled in spite of himself as they went inside to relieve the babysitter.


"Ranger Walker, sir! To what do I owe the pleasure?" Barker said as he strode around his desk to shake the older ranger's hand.

"Nice to finally meet you, Ranger Barker, your reputation precedes you." Walker said.

"As does yours!" Barker replied with a wide grin.

"You said you encountered the Dracul's in San Antonio?" Walker asked as Trivette joined him.

"Yes, I thought they were all either dead, or in prison, but it looks like some of them might have slipped through the cracks, still, they can't be the Dracul's A listers." Barker said.

"They were good enough to get the drop on Sydney and Gage, if it wasn't for Sydney's excellent marksmanship, we might have two rangers in the hospital, or worse." Walker said.

"Yeah, she's really something, all right. It's been a long time since I met a ranger, let alone a female one with her dedication, fire and toughness. Hell, she is tougher than most men I know. No one wants to spar in the gym with her, Gage is the only one who's brave enough." Barker said, a nostalgic smile crossing his face.

"It sounds like you think a lot of her." Walker said with an amused glint in his eyes, Barker chuckled, knowing what he was hinting at.

"Yeah, but I don't want to step on someone else's toes if you know what I mean." He said with a wink.

"Yeah, I could tell they were growing close ... too close. Normally I wouldn't encourage that kind of thing, but they made such a good team, I just couldn't bear to split them up. When Gage first joined with the rangers, and he was being assigned a partner, he insisted that Syd was the only ranger he wanted to work with, and he came to the rangers with a reputation of being hard to work with and standoffish." Walker said as he sank into his own nostalgic thoughts.

But, Sydney was somehow able to push past that and befriend the surly young ranger. Hell, she managed to do a hell of a lot more than just befriend him, somehow, at some point, she had captured his heart.

Walker thought back to when he first realized his own heart had been roped by Alex, it was the most exhilarating, terrifying time of his life and he had never felt like that with anyone else. Whether Gage knew it or not … he was hooked, all Syd had to do was slowly reel him in, if only she had realized she had a fish on the line before it was too … no … he wasn't going to think like that, she was going to be okay … she had to be okay.

AN: Thank you to everyone who favorited this story, I really appreciate it! When I posted it, I never thought it would get this much love and traffic, thanks! Keep reviewing, reviews are sugar highs for my fingers.