Owen saw Derek approaching and buried his head in the chart he was reading, inwardly wincing as the surgeon saddled up beside him. He'd thought hiding in the trauma department would mean less interruptions but he may as well have left a sign on his office door advertising his hideout. "Derek, whatever it is I don't have time to-"

"Then make time." He cut the chief of surgery off, stubbornly refusing to let the issue drop. He couldn't. Not until he had drummed every last doubt about dating his sister into the man's head. "As soon as this storm lets up I'm back to DC so I need to make absolutely sure you understand what you're getting yourself into."

"Okay, enough-" Owen dropped his chart on the desk and held up a hand in warning, "you're acting like this is my call to make... it's not, so if you're going to warn anyone off maybe you should be warning Amelia."

"You know, you're absolutely right." Derek took the comment as an invitation to do what he'd previously been hesitant about. Amy didn't know all the facts about the man she was dating and despite everything he'd been reluctant to divulge the information. He'd wanted to try and maintain the friendship between them but he was running out of options and the throw away comment was all the permission he needed to go head to head.

Folding his arms, he stared down the man in front of him as he addressed the nurse behind reception, "page Doctor Shepherd please." She hesitated and he caught the slight tilt of her head in his peripheral vision, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. "The other doctor Shepherd."

"I have been." The comment raised confused looks from both men and she shrugged her shoulders at them, "Doctor Edwards asked me to page her half an hour ago."

Unease twisted in Owen's stomach as he glanced up at the clock on the wall. He'd been so busy he'd completely missed the fact she hadn't checked in and he sighed laying his hands flat on the counter. In the time she'd been gone he'd managed to go down to the basement, treat two patients and get an entire surgery moved to a new O.R. He hoped it was just paranoia and that she'd simply gotten distracted somewhere along the way but he couldn't shake the bad feeling that crept over him. "Try her again, now."

"What is it, what's going on?" Derek frowned letting his concern override their earlier argument. Something wasn't right. He could see the tension building in Owen's expression and when the man blatantly ignored his question he snapped in annoyance, "Hunt?"

Owen watched as the page went unanswered a second time trying not to assume the worst. There could have been any number of reasons that would keep her from answering and he breathed out making sure his voice stayed calm and even. "There's flooding on level eight. She went up to check it out but that was nearly an hour ago."

Derek felt his anger return full force as he tried to comprehend what he was hearing. After Webber's accident and losing an intern in the last storm, there was no way anyone should have been going anywhere near water unescorted... much less his accident prone sister. "You sent her up there alone?"

"It was a bit of water on the floor-" Owen tried to defend himself as he pushed off the desk, "the power was cut just in case, there wasn't any danger."

Despite the reassurance he started towards the elevator not willing to take any chances. It should have been straight forward but he knew better than to assume and he pressed the call button willing the damn thing to hurry up. "All she had to do was stick her head out and see how bad it was."

"And yet the fact she's been gone nearly an hour didn't ring any alarm bells?" Derek was seething as the doors parted and he followed the man inside the carriage pinching the bridge of his nose. He knew what his sister was like. They used to call her hurricane Amelia and if there was trouble she would always find a way to be in the center of it. "I swear, if anything has happened-"

"Then I will hold myself personally accountable." He meant it and guilt lodged in his throat as he tried to stop imagining worst case scenarios. She was probably fine. No doubt helping out in another surgery or making herself useful somewhere else but Derek was right. He should have noticed she was gone and he should of checked on her sooner.

The ride up was excruciatingly slow and Derek tapped his foot impatiently as a tense silence stretched between them. It was taking forever and when the doors finally parted he was out first, calling his sisters name down the corridor.

##

##

Amelia could hear something... her brother? Why was her brother interrupting her when she was trying to take a nice, relaxing ba-

Reality along with a bitter coldness slammed into her chest and she sucked in a deep breath trying to get her bearings. She wasn't taking a bath, she was trapped in a dark storage closet that at some point had started filling up with water. She tried to move but the weight of the shelving unit kept her pinned down and the attempt only increased the pounding in her head.

She was stuck, wedged in between the metal frame and the side of the desk.

A small amount of light filtered in through the grate and she squinted her eyes, trying to adjust to the darkness so she could get a better look at the situation. It was difficult and she had to strain her neck but she managed to make out the other shelf acting as a barrier across the door. It must have toppled over in the fall and judging by the way it had landed moving anything was going to be impossible. Everything had compacted in the tight space and she dropped her head back down, trying not to panic as her her hair touched the water.

She was not going to drown.

There was still plenty of time, she just needed to think.

Fear tightened her stomach despite the mental pep-talk and she flexed her submerged hands trying to keep the blood moving. The water was freezing and her body had started to go numb which meant checking for injuries was going to be difficult. Even if she could free herself there was a chance she'd end up doing more harm than good and she honestly didn't know which was worse, a possible punctured lung or hypothermia.

Either way, if the cold didn't get her and she managed to avoid drowning then her brother was probably going to end up killing her anyway. Or Owen. Even though none if it was his fault she doubted Derek would see it that way and she found herself momentarily wishing for him instead of her brother.

"Amy?"

His voice sounded again, closer this time and she decided it didn't matter who rescued her... so long as someone did fast.

"I'm in here-" she coughed, still trying to ignore the tight pain in her chest. It was hard to tell if it was just from the weight pressing down or something more serious but she didn't want to linger on the thought, instead focusing on her relief as Derek's shadow appeared in front of the grate.

He would find a way to get her out.

All she had to do was stay calm and keep herself above the water.