I SHOULD HAVE INSISTED…

CHAPTER 3

In the ambulance, the medics had started an IV, continued her on oxygen and were doing another round of vital signs. Steve hadn't taken his eyes off her since he sat on the bench seat alongside her. He held her hand in his own.

"How's she doing?" he asked the medic as he finished with the stethoscope.

"She's holding her own. Her vitals are good," he answered.

They were about three blocks from the hospital when he felt her hand tighten slightly around his own. He looked back to her face and noticed a slight frown. Her other hand lazily came up to her face, trying to push the oxygen mask away.

Steve leaned over as the medic gently pulled her hand away from the mask. "Lori, its Steve. Can you hear me? You're in the ambulance. We're on the way to the hospital," he told her as he saw her eyes flutter just a bit, but then remain closed.

"What happened?" she asked so quietly he almost couldn't hear her. "Head hurts," she continued, the last part of the conversation seeming to take all the strength she had.

He put a hand on top of her head, still holding onto her hand. "You decided to take a pretty deep sleep on us. Guess you got hit harder than we knew," he answered. "Can you open your eyes and look at me?" he asked.

"One block out," the driver called from the front of the ambulance. The medic in the back with Lori and Steve started getting ready to switch things over so that they could get the stretcher out of the ambulance and wheel her in as soon as they arrived.

"Lori, can you open your eyes?" Steve asked again, getting no response. The frown was gone from her face, as if she was just sleeping again.

"I think she's out again, Sir," the medic told him.

They pulled up to the ambulance doors, the driver coming around to the back to assist in getting the patient into the Emergency Room. Steve let go of her hand as the stretcher was pulled from the ambulance and he followed her out onto the pavement.

5-0 – 5-0 – 5-0 – 5-0 – 5-0 –

Danny came striding up to Steve's side as the stretcher was going in through the doors.

"What happened?" Danny asked as he reached Steve's side.

"I don't know, Danny. I found her in her office. She was out cold – I couldn't wake her up," he said as the two followed along behind Lori.

"You'll have to wait here," one of the staff told them at the door to the examining area.

"Wait! She's from my team. I'm coming in," he argued. Danny, knowing from past experience with Steve being injured and brought to the hospital, grabbed Steve's arm and held him back.

"No use, Partner. You're not getting past that one," he said, referring to the triage nurse "guarding" the doorway. "We wait over here, right?" Danny said sarcastically to the woman.

"Someone will be out to talk to you just as soon as they can," she said, softening just a little, and giving them a grin. "You learn quick, Detective," she chided him.

As they were walking over to the waiting area, Chin and Kono came rushing through the door.

"Over here," Danny called to them.

"What happened?" Chin and Kono said in unison.

"Lori was in her office for I don't know how long," Steve started. "After you guys all left, I thought it was weird that I didn't notice when she'd left. But then, I thought maybe she left while I was on the phone with the Governor. Did anyone see when she went in to her office?" he asked them.

"You WERE on the phone with the Governor," Kono recalled. "She said she'd be right back and then I got tied up on phone calls. I guess I didn't notice that she never came back," she finished.

"Do they know anything yet?" Chin asked.

"No. They're just examining her now," Danny answered for Steve as he paced back and forth.

"I should have insisted she get checked out," Steve said out loud, but to himself.

"Boss, you told her to get checked out," Kono reminded him.

"Yeah, but I should have made sure she did," he said impatiently.

"Um…, correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe you told me that she told you she DID get checked out by the medics on scene," Danny chimed in.

"Yeah, but I should've made her come to the hospital. I should have insisted," he said dismissively.

Just as Chin was about to tell him that none of this was his fault, one of the doctors came out into the waiting area.

"Commander McGarrett?" he asked toward the group. Since they were all wearing guns, he assumed he had the right group of visitors.

Steve stepped forward, followed by the rest of the team. "Yeah, Doc. How is she?"

"We're still examining her. The medics that brought her in said she sustained a blow to the head earlier tonight?" the doctor inquired.

Steve nodded, "Yes. She got hit on the back of the head; with what I'm not sure, but she did get knocked out briefly."

"Okay, well, she's still unconscious. She has a moment here and there that she seems to wake a little – and that's a good sign. We're going to send her up for a CT Scan and go from there," the doctor advised.

"Ok. How long will that take – before you know anything?" Steve prodded.

"We're going as fast as we can, Commander. I don't want to rush and miss something that may be crucial. I"ll see that you're kept up to date," he answered.

"Of course. Thanks, Doc," he said, shaking the doctor's hand. Running a hand through his hair, he turned back to his team.

"By the way," the doctor said, turning back toward the group. "Does she have any family that we should be contacting?"

They all looked at each other. No one had really gotten close enough to her yet to get any information on that. Maybe the Governor's Office had some information – he was the one that brought here in to 5-0. Steve looked at his watch – no way to get hold of anyone there right now, he said, letting his hand fall to his side and brushing against an item in the pocket of his cargo pants. He remembered he had grabbed Lori's phone off her desk before they left for the hospital. He pulled it from his pocket and held it up.

"Maybe there's a number in here," he said.

"I'll go through it, Boss," Kono said, taking the phone from him.

"Please let the triage nurse know if you find any next of kin," the doctor advised them before returning to the emergency room.

"Okay," Chin said. "Sounds like this may take a while. I'm going for coffee – who wants some?"

Danny raised his hand, Steve seemed not to even hear him, and Kono offered to accompany Chin as she scrolled through the contacts on Lori's phone.

TO BE CONTINUED…