Nora busied herself in the kitchen; it had been a long and sleepless night for all the family.
She had heard Justin still moving in his room until the small hours of the morning, her husband had similarly lain awake besides her reading, talking, tossing and turning trying to sort through the events of the party.
She had never before seen Justin, or any of her children for that matter, so distressed. Justin had a tendency to be emotional and easy to spark but she had never known him to be violent. Something in her stomach told her that there was much more to this situation than meets the eye – she would get to the bottom of her son's problem that she had promised herself.
She had risen early this morning, firstly checking in on Justin who was sleeping soundly, she decided to make him his favourite breakfast before William took him in hand. She knew that William had a soft spot for their youngest but when they clashed they could be as stubborn as each other.
Mixing the chocolate chips into the batter she heard voices floating in from the hallway, she breathed a sigh of relief when she heard Kevin's voice mixing with her husbands. The two men appeared in the kitchen, Kevin approached her and gave her a tender kiss on her cheek, she could tell he was concerned by the quick moment when their eyes met – he was on guard around his father.
"So… no sign of Jus then?" the first tentative broaching of the subject since the night before.
William was sat around the island, coffee in one hand and the paper spread before him he only raised his eyes to look at Kevin briefly then returned to the paper. He had had an early meeting with an orchard contractor this morning but had rescheduled so he could stay at home to see his son – who was not helping himself by lying in to avoid the conversation.
Nora glanced over her shoulder from the stove, "Not yet we had a late night last night."
Kevin knew the reaction from his parents meant 'Leave it now' in a non-too-subtle way.
"Probably sleeping off his hangover!" a deeper voice broke into the kitchen, Tommy's face appeared from the backdoor. He greeted his mother in the same fashion as Kevin and circled the island patting his fathers shoulder knowingly on his way to the coffee pot.
"Tommy what are you doing here?" Nora queried, not waiting for her son to respond she pointed the spatula at him threateningly, "Your brother does not need an audience this morning Thomas, you father and I need to have a serious talk with him."
Talking a long drink of the strong black coffee Tommy raised his hands in a surrendering gesture, "Actually I'm here to see Dad, not Justin – anyway Kevin's here!"
Nora had heard such defences from her children since they could talk, always quick to point out the others short comings.
"Hey sorry I was just concerned about our little brother flipping out and punching some guys lights out!" Kevin's sarcastic backhands were well honed.
"He did not 'punch his lights out' Kevin" his fathers voice silenced the banter between his two sons. "Tommy come into my office, we can talk there."
The two Walker men, coffees in hand, made their way out of the kitchen toward the home office, Kevin took over the reading of the paper and Nora returned to her pancakes.
"Do I smell choc chip pancakes?"
"Sarah?" Kevin and Nora stared at each other and called out in unison.
"Hi" Sarah's head appeared around the corner of cabinets, "Where's Jus?"
"Still in bed." Kevin commented quickly before his mother could jump in.
"Dad read him the riot act yet?"
"Nope, he's with Tommy."
"Excuse me!" Nora broke in, "As much as I love you just popping in, why are you all here so early in the morning don't you have jobs to go to?"
"Yes mother we have jobs but this is more important." Kevin answered with no hint of sarcasm or humour; he was as worried about Justin as the rest of them.
Silence filled the Walker kitchen, a very rare event.
The time continued to slip away quarter past became half past and a soon a new hour was approaching.
"Okay enough." Kevin got up from the counter and headed toward the stairs, quickly tailed by Sarah and Nora.
"What are you doing?" Nora tried to reach out to her sons arm, "Kevin don't please."
"Mom he has to get out of bed and face Dad sometime – he might as well do it while we're all here to talk with him." Kevin gave a wry smile trying to lighten the mood, "Plus I have a meeting at 10!"
He lightly jogged up the stairs toward Justin's room; Sarah pulled Nora away from the bottom of the stairs before she had the opportunity to eavesdrop.
Nora and Sarah had just re-entered the kitchen when they heard a shriek from upstairs followed by heavy footsteps and Kevin's strained calls.
"Mom! Mom! Mom call 911" Kevin appeared at the top of the stairs gripping the railings tightly his face pale. "Dial 911 it's Justin."
Sarah and Nora were joined hastily but William and Tommy; Sarah grabbed the hallway phone and pushed the emergency numbers as calmly as she could. The tears were already making paths down Nora's face as she listened to Kevin call Justin's name repeatedly.
Tommy and William began to make their way up the stairs quickly following Kevin's shouts; they entered Justin's room to be greeted by a crying Kevin with a limp and pale Justin in his arms.
"Jus?" Tommy called shocked by his brother's demeanour, he stayed in the doorway while his father took over the situation sensing the danger to his child.
"Justin? Kevin what's happening?" William pulled Justin from his arms and removed the blankets.
"I…I…I thought he was sleeping, I shook him…" Kevin stammered perched on the edge of the bed "…he wouldn't wake up…Dad he won't wake up…"
Sarah and Nora reached the doorway standing behind Tommy gazing into the room; Sarah had the phone clutched to her ear relaying details of the house to the operator on the other end.
"Oh God…what's happening…Justin…Justin!" Nora pushed her way through Tommy's shoulders to stand beside the bed.
William was knelt beside Justin's head checking his breathing and pulse, Nora stepped forward and tugged at his limp hand, crying uncontrollably as she watched her husband tend to Justin. Kevin was shaken from his haze by his mother's sobs he made his way around the bed and gathered her into his arms pulling her from the bed allowing his father to look after an unconscious Justin.
"Come on Jus." William called softly, looking toward Sarah he called out, "Tell them he's not breathing and I can feel a weak pulse."
Sarah gripped the phone to her ear, trying to block out her mothers desperate pleas, "Um…he…he isn't…I don't think he's…"
"Sarah!" He father stopped the emergency aid to look at his daughter carefully, "You need to be calm – tell them he isn't breathing and has a weak pulse."
William returned his attention to his son, carefully pinching his nose and tilting back his head, pushing deep breaths into his lungs, "Come on kiddo."
After what seemed like an eternity, Tommy led two paramedics to the room where his brother lay.
His Dad was still beside Justin in an effort to get him breathing again, he had never seen his father so pleased to see anyone in his life.
"Okay Mr. Walker you've done a great job, Matt and I will take over now." The paramedic was so calm, probably because it wasn't their child or brother lying on the bed not breathing.
William reluctantly gave up his space joining his family, he wrapped an arm around his wife, she turned her face into his chest and immediately his shirt was wet with tears.
Swiftly a face mask and air bag replaced the job he had been doing, giving Justin vital oxygen. A gurney was brought to take Justin from the room and he was strapped securely on before the Walker men did their best to aid the paramedics out to the waiting ambulance.
The doors were slammed shut immediately and the paramedic rushed to get to the drivers seat, "One of you can ride with me – the rest will have to follow."
The Walkers paused, this was a choice they didn't want to make, surprisingly it was Tommy who took charge organising the family into action.
"Dad go with him. We can take my car and follow."
With that the Walkers sprung into action, Sarah, Tommy and Kevin headed toward the truck while William jogged to the front of the ambulance.
Left behind for an instance Nora called out to her husband, "Don't you dare let him die."
The drive to the hospital had been tense, the silence only broken by the stream of sobs and sighs from the occupiers, and of course the obligatory yet devastating calls to Kitty and Saul to relay the events of the morning.
Sarah knew that the situation was bad usually Tommy and Kevin would be full of reassurances for the women in the family, making them feel like they were over reacting in any situation.
But today was different, Tommy gripped the steering wheel till his knuckles were white and Kevin stared out of the passenger window the tears marking his cheeks.
Once at the hospital they were ushered into a 'Relatives Room' which had ghastly peeling pink paint, terrible coffee and month old magazines. The silence hung over the family, Nora jumping every time a nurse or doctor would rush past the door fearing the worst.
Kitty arrived from her hotel, minus Marshall, fifteen minutes after the family, Saul taking some more time to sort out the business now that it was without himself, William and Tommy for the foreseeable future.
With all of them present and Kitty and Saul having missed out on the morning's event, a low conversation began amongst the family. Many questions were batted back and forth – all the while Nora paced the floor occasionally stopping to stare out of the dirty window into the morning sky.
Finally their agony was broken by a sharp knock on the door as a middle aged male doctor swung open the door.
"Family of Justin Walker."
Slightly overwhelmed by the mass rush of six people to greet him as he entered, the doctor gestured to the chairs inviting the bedraggled family to return to their former positions.
"How is he doctor?" Saul questioned, Nora's hand firmly in his grasp.
"During the ambulance journey Justin's heart stopped," he drew breath allowing for the inevitable gasps and sobs which such news brought to any relative, "once in the E.R. we had to shock Justin's heart to get it to start beating again. He's still not breathing on his own so we've had to intubate him, this means placing a tube down his throat to allow a machine to breath for him. He's being moved to a high dependency ward as we speak so that he can be monitored carefully."
The Walkers took a moment to absorb this information, technically he had died his heart had stopped and he still wasn't breathing. Last night they had been fighting arguing with him and now…
"What caused this? His heart? Did he…" Sarah tailed off when a look passed across the doctors face she didn't recognise.
"Okay … we did a blood test as standard when Justin was brought into the hospital, the results showed high levels of the drug Temazepam. This is most commonly found in sleeping pills…"
"It was an accident." Nora cut the doctor short knowing where this conversation was headed instantly, "we were arguing last night before bed, he must have taken a sleeping pill."
"Mrs. Walker to reach the levels that Justin had in his system you we need to take at least half a bottle of tablets." The doctor glanced around the room, these people seemed so close and were extremely stressed by the situation they were in, no one wanted to admit someone they loved was so unhappy. "Mrs. Walker it's my professional opinion that Justin purposefully took an overdose of sleeping pills last night."
Nora rose to her feet and took to pacing the room again, "He wouldn't, Justin he just wouldn't, I know he's rebelled in the past – but he wouldn't, not on purpose."
"Mom." Kitty stood and attempted to comfort her panicked mother, who was currently wearing away a path in the carpet, Kitty could spot the warning signs that the doctor was in for an earful shortly.
"Don't Kitty!" Nora jerked her hands upwards in warning to her daughter, "Don't patronise me. He's had his problems but he wouldn't do this!"
Everyone sat in silence unsure of how to proceed; Nora was right Justin had been through trouble in the past but nothing that would make anyone consider him to be at risk of this. He was a happy, contented teenage, sure they had arguments about college, getting a job and his love of night life but what family didn't. It was a lot to take in that he could be this depressed.
"Where's my husband?"
"He's with your son while they settle him into the room Mrs. Walker."
"I want to see them." The children knew that tone well not a request but a command the doctor clearly didn't and opened his mouth to protest, "Now!"
"Of course, the nurse will direct you." Clearly there was no point in arguing, families under pressure rarely acted in a rational manner – that was one thing they didn't prepare you for in medical school.
The door closed behind Nora as she took some deep breaths to calm her raw nerves, she was on her way to see Justin she would know for herself when she saw him.
"So what happens now Doc?" Tommy asked leaning forward to rest his forearms on his knees a hand rubbing at the stubble developing on his chin after a few days growth.
"We had to pump Justin's stomach in the E.R. to take away what we could of the remaining pills; we also administered charcoal to absorb any additional residue. He'll be given IV fluids continuously to flush out his system. Other than that we just have to wait till he wakes up."
"And the side effects…could he be…brain damaged from the lack of oxygen." Tommy appeared quite knowledgeable about the subject but it did nothing to calm Kevin's fears he hadn't even thought about the repercussions.
"With anyone who isn't breathing there is a danger that the brain could be starved of oxygen but the resuscitation your father carried out and the help from the paramedics he should have been receiving levels of oxygen. There are other side effects associated with sleeping pill misuse."
"Such as?" Saul this time, he was glad Nora had left by this point she could barely handle the events in the present never mind what could be coming in the future.
"Well there is a danger from the onset of shock, sustained breathing difficulties, fainting episodes and possibly slurred speech." The doctor was aware of the time moving on, he would never abandon a family when they needed him but rounds started ten minutes ago and he needed to be back down on his ward. "All these things are possibilities not certainties, we have just have to wait until Justin wakes up and assess him from there."
Rising from the seat his muscles groaned, he was coming to the end of a double shift and had been on since Thursday morning – at least he thought so.
"If that's all your questions for the time being I really should be getting back to the ward, for the moment Justin's restricted to two visitors but there will always be nurses around if you have any questions."
"Thank you so much doctor," Saul stood and shook his hand in a firm grip "really thank you for all your help."
Nodding the doctor left the family alone once again.