Chapter Five

Lucky

A couple of hours had passed. There was still no word on Keara's condition. Nick was starting to worry. Keara had been in surgery for so long he couldn't help but think the worst. He was no longer sitting, now he was pacing through the waiting room. Finally, the surgeon came through the OR doors and into the waiting room.

"How is she doctor?" Nick's voice shook as he questioned the doctor.

"The wound was pretty deep and she lost a lot of blood. Thankfully her attacker missed the major organs. I was able to cauterize the wound and stop the bleeding. She's in in recovery now but she's still sleeping from the anesthesia," the doctor explained.

Nick sighed with relief, "thanks doc, could I go sit with her? I'd like to be next to her when she wakes up."

"Of course, this nurse will take you to her room," the doctor replied as he called over a nurse from the nurses' station.

Nick followed the nurse through the halls of the hospital. They reached Keara's room and Nick went inside. He took a chair and pulled it up next to Keara's bed. He sat down and took her hand in his. He felt horrible, he couldn't help but blame himself for what happened. If only he had gotten to her sooner.

Nick had fallen asleep in his chair. Keara began to stir in the hospital bed. She began whimpering and mumbling in her sleep. This woke Nick up and he sat up. Keara's whimpers and moans grew louder.

Nick took her hand, "Keara, Keara you're okay."

"No, stop!" Keara shouted and sat up.

"Shhh, shhh, Keara it's Nick. You're okay now. You're at the hospital," Nick did his best to calm and comfort her.

Keara started to cry. Nick got up from his chair and sat in the bed next to her and held her.

"Jeremy. . .Jeremy came to my house. He knew I was at Mr. Osbourne's house. He. . .he wanted me, to destroy the evidence. I. . .told him. . .I told him I couldn't and. . .and that's. . .that's when he. . .he stabbed me," Keara managed to explain between her sobs.

"I'm so sorry Keara," Nick apologized.

"It's. . .not your fault. You. . .you couldn't have known Jeremy. . .was going to do this," Keara replied.

Nick let go of Keara and got out of the bed. He started to pace, "no, but I should've called you sooner. Greg got a hit on the DNA from the tooth and saliva. It belongs to Jeremy Morgan."

"So… Jeremy, does have something to do with our case?" Keara had a feeling, but she was still a stunned.

"It looks that way. The prints also came back as a match to Jeremy," Nick answered. "Did he say anything to you? Why did he do this to you?"

"He saw me at the crime scene," Keara's tears finally slowed, "he wants me to destroy the evidence that incriminates him."

"And when you said no he stabbed you," Nick growled. He was so angry.

"Yeah…oh my god, my dogs! Are my dogs okay?" Keara panicked.

"They're fine, animal control came and picked them up," Nick replied.

"Good," Keara sighed, "I thought Jeremy might've hurt them. Wolfgang did manage to bite him after Jeremy stabbed me."

Nick cocked his head, "one of the dogs bit him?"

"Yeah, Wolfgang. My German Shepherd."

"I'll call Grissom and have him call Brass. With a bite wound like that Jeremy would need to seek medical attention."

Nick pulled out his cell phone and walked towards the door.

"Don't leave me! I don't want to be alone!" Keara cried, she nearly jumped out of the bed.

"Don't worry, I'll be right back. I'm just going into the hallway, I promise I'll be right back," Nick assured her.

She laid back down and Nick left the room. He opened his phone and dialed Grissom's number.

"Grissom."

"Hey Gris it's Nick."

"How's Keara?"

"Alive…awake, the doctor said she's going to be okay. She's a little shaken, um, scared, but who wouldn't be after something like that."

"That's good to hear that she's okay. We still haven't found your suspect," Grissom explained.

"About that, Keara said one of her dogs bit him. He might've been to a hospital," Nick suggested.

"Alright Nick, I'll let Brass know. I'll also have his post a couple officers by her room. But I want you to stay with her, she needs to be with someone she trusts right now."

"Don't worry Grissom, I'll keep her safe."

Nick hung up and closed his phone. He went back into Keara's room and sat back down in the chair that was by her bed.

"Have they found Jeremy?" Keara asked.

"No, not yet. Don't worry they'll catch him. In the meantime, I'm not leaving your side. I'm staying right here with you. Grissom is also going to have Brass post a couple officers outside your door. He's not going to hurt you again," Nick proclaimed.

"Thank you Nick. I feel much safer with you around."

Nick smiled, "you've had a rough day. Go to sleep, you need your rest."

Keara nodded, "yeah. Um, Nick, this is probably going to sound childish. Could, could you hold my hand?"

Nick took her hand and held it tight. "It's not childish at all. I'll hold your hand for as long as you want. Now, get some sleep."

Keara smiled and closed her eyes. Having Nick there was comforting. But she was still completely terrified. She could've died, she never thought something like that would ever happen to her. Her mind finally surrendered and Keara fell fast asleep.

Morning had finally come. Sunlight flooded Keara's hospital room. Keara started to shift in her sleep. The sun was shining on her face. She opened her eyes slowly and looked around the room. Nick was gone. She immediately sat up, a sudden rush of panic washed over her. Her heart began racing, which made her monitors go crazy. She started to get out of her bed when Nick came jogging into the room.

"Hey, get back in bed. I'm right here, I just went to get some coffee," Nick gasped as he made his way back to his chair.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to freak out," Keara apologized.

"You don't have to apologize. I'm sorry you got nervous. I didn't want to wake you, you looked so peaceful," Nick replied.

Keara readjusted herself in her bed and laid back down. "Any word on Jeremy? Did they catch him yet?"

Nick shook his head, "no, they checked all the hospitals in the area. They're still out there looking for him."

"How did Mandy get a match to Jeremy's prints? I've been thinking a lot about that."

"He was in the system for drug possession," Nick answered.

"Well, I guess that would explain his bad temper. I'm glad I got out of that relationship when I did. He probably would have hurt me sooner."

"You don't have to worry about that now. We'll catch him. He may be on the run now, but he won't be for long."

"Why don't you go home? You've been here all night, you should go and get some rest," Keara suggested. As much as she wanted and appreciated him being there, she felt bad that Nick was just hanging around.

Nick moved closer to Keara's bedside and took her hand. "I'm not going anywhere. I'm not leaving you until they catch Jeremy. Sorry sweetheart, but you're not getting rid of me that easy."

Keara let out a soft laugh, "I don't want to get rid of you. I feel safer with you around. I just thought you might want to get out of this hospital room. Plus I feel bad that you've been here all night."

"Don't worry about me," Nick assured her. "I'm fine, all that matters right now is you safety."

Keara smiled and squeezed Nick's hand. She felt very lucky to have him as a friend and a partner.