Two days later

Maria and Danny were on the 1800 to 2300 shift at the hospital. At times, Danny talked about the childhood she and Danny shared. Maria told her about some of her more exciting cases before she and Danny worked together. She told her about her family and some of their traditions. Then she began reading different chapters and verses from the Bible. She had consulted with Monsignor Donahue, and he texted her a list of verses that might be meaningful to her. Danny held Erin's hand the entire time they were there. Shortly before they were scheduled to leave Danny felt something. He sat up straight and looked at Maria.

"What is it, Danny?" she asked.

"I think she was trying to squeeze my hand. Give me a minute." Danny stood up close to Erin's head. "Sis, if you're trying to get my attention, squeeze my hand again." He waited, then felt something. "Go get the nurse, please?" he asked, and Maria ran off to find the correct nurse. He came in instantly and began to review the monitors. All the numbers looked good, so he paged the doctor responsible for Erin's care today. She was there in moments and the two medical personnel reviewed all the data. Erin continued to squeeze Danny's hand, getting stronger with each passing minute. "Sis, take it easy, this is my gun hand. Be patient, the staff are talking about you deciding on the next step." He turned to Maria who was now standing next to him. "Take my phone and call Jack, tell him to get here ASAP. Then, call Dad, please." Maria reached into his pocket and found the device. She turned it toward him to use the Face ID function to unlock his phone and then stepped outside the unit to make the calls.

First, she called Jack's phone. "Uncle Danny? Is everything okay?" asked Nicky.

"Hi, this is Maria Baez, Danny's partner. Are you on your way to the hospital?"

"Yes, we're almost there. Has something happened?"

"We think Erin is starting to wake up. You might want to hurry."

"Thank you! This is the best news ever. Dad says we should be there in five minutes. See you soon." And she hung up. Next, Maria called Frank.

"Hi, Danny, what's up?" said Frank.

"It's Maria Baez, sir. Erin seems to be waking up and Danny wanted you to know right away."

"Have you spoken with Jack?"

"Actually, I talked to Nicky; they are almost here."

"Please call me with updates when you have them. I think having the four of you there will be enough excitement for her today. If she seems up to speaking with me, could you call me please?"

"Of course, sir, we'll update you as soon as we know what's going to happen."

"Thank you, Maria," and he hung up and went to update Henry.

Maria walked back inside followed by Jack and Nicky.

Danny turned to Jack, "This is Doctor Sidorov, from Doctor Hameed's team. He's consulting with Hameed, and it might be time to remove the tube. Why don't you walk over and hold her hand and talk to her," suggested Danny. He and Maria stepped back to give Nicky and Jack some privacy.

After a few minutes the room filled up with medical staff. Someone was talking to Erin; another person was using a stethoscope while someone else was checking her blood pressure. A young lady stepped into the room wheeling a cart in front of her. She asked the civilians to step outside. Her job was to obtain a blood specimen from an artery and most people didn't want to watch. A nurse pulled a curtain around Erin's bed while the family stood outside. Jack had his arm around Nicky hoping to calm her down just a bit.

It seemed like an hour, but it was only fifteen minutes before the nurse moved the curtain back and they could see Erin once again. The tube that had been in her mouth was gone and her eyes were open. It looked as if they had cleaned her up a bit and to the family, she looked beautiful. Nicky rushed up to her mother and hugged her with tears running down her cheeks. "Mom, mom, I was so scared when Dad called me. We've been here for days just waiting for you to wake up. I'll move back here and take care of you for as long as you need. And Dad will help, too."

"Nicky, it's so good to see you. And you don't have to move back to take care of me. I'll be on my feet before you know it. But if you could stay until I'm discharged, and we can spend a day or two together? I'd really like that."

"Sure, Mom, that sounds great. Dad's been so worried. And so has everyone else in the family. Grandpa is calling everyone letting them know that you're awake. But they probably will come tomorrow to see you." She leaned back on her mother's chest and hugged her again while Erin stroked her hair. Danny and Maria began to gather their things intending to give Jack and Nicky some privacy.

Erin saw them head out of her room. "Danny, Maria, please don't go yet." They looked at each other and turned around. "I appreciate you being here and being willing to let Jack and Nicky be with me, but I need to talk to both of you."

"Erin, you should just be with your family now, we can talk another time," said Maria.

"Yes, I could but I won't get any sleep unless I talk to both of you. Now." She looked over to Jack. "Could you ask someone if I could have something to drink? My mouth is really dry. And take Nicky with you, please?" Jack nodded and held Nicky's hand as they walked over to the nursing station. "I don't know everything that has happened since we were arrested but I remember Danny coming to me and blaming me for some things. I have no memory of what I've been told I did but I accept what I've done. Danny, I'm so sorry about what happened. Can you tell me, are we still wanted?"

"Actually, while the arrest warrants looked genuine, they were never filed in the system, so you won't be arrested again once you get out in public. The head doctor told us that the thing in your head could have made you do things you wouldn't ordinarily do so I'm satisfied. But…"

"I understand. Why don't you go wait with Jack, I'd like to talk to Maria. Alone, please?"

Danny stood there looking at Maria.

"Is this okay with you?"

"Well, I don't think she's about to jump out of bed and beat me up, so I'll take the risk. Give us space, please?"

Danny leaned in and kissed her on the cheek. "I'll be right outside," and he walked away. Maria stepped back over to the bed where she had been earlier.

"You were reading to me from the Bible, yes?"

"I had asked the Monsignor for some verses that might mean something to you, something from your childhood, that might stimulate your memory and help you regain consciousness. Your family was so worried about you. Most of them sat here all night when you had your surgery. I'm glad that you'll be able to make a full recovery and the Reagan legacy will continue."

"But I destroyed something very precious, your relationship with my brother."

"No, that growth made you do things that you might not have done. Right now, your job is to get better so you can go home and spend time with your daughter. I'll be fine."

"But what about Danny? He needs you. This nightmare that I caused…I can't forget that. I can't ask for forgiveness for myself; what I did was unforgivable. But Danny shouldn't be made to suffer for what I did to both of you. Please reconsider being Danny's partner. He would do anything for you."

"And I would do anything for him. We'll leave now so you can spend time with your family. Feel better soon, Erin." Maria walked away and nodded to Jack and Nicky. They headed back to Erin's room and sat on either side of the bed, each of them holding one of her hands. Maria headed out of the unit hoping Danny would catch up soon. She wanted to pick up Elena from her mother's home and get back to her house and get to bed.

Danny followed Maria out of the NICU and down the hall toward the elevators. She stopped at the door to the stairwell and began going down the stairs. After three flights she exited the stairwell and headed toward the front door hoping to catch a cab. Danny finally caught up to her. "Are you going to walk all the way back to your mother's place? Now? You do realize what time it is?"

Maria stopped and looked at him. "I guess that would take me too long. Maybe I could find a cab…"

"Or I could give you a ride but at this hour do you want to wake your mother, sister, and the baby? We'll spend hours getting her back to sleep. Or we could go back to your place or mine and talk. Please?"

"Danny, right now I'm tired, my throat hurts from talking so much…" She stood there looking at him, thinking about how much she loved him and wanted to be with him. "Okay, let's get somewhere there's a nice warm bed and I can get some sleep. We can talk in the morning, okay? But I will need to get the baby, Mami has a doctor's appointment just before lunch and Ana must work."

"No problem. Which way do you want to go?" They decided that even though his place was closer, her place was closer to her mother. Morning will be here soon enough.