At first she heard the beeping. The steady beeping of a heart monitor. Slowly she opened her eyes which seemed harder then it should. The light made her head throb beyond belief but the desire to see where she was and why helped her keep her eyes open.

There was an IV in her arm and wires leading to her chest which is why she could hear the beeping she realized it was her heart. She was in a hospital bed in a hospital room. Kate was to her left looking out the big windows.

She cleared her throat and Kate spun around rushing to the side of the bed.

"Lanie, You're awake. How do you feel?" Kate took her hand.

"Like I got hit by a truck. My head is killing me" She tried to lift a hand to her head but noticed both her hands were wrapped in a thick layer of gauze.

"Do you remember anything?" Kate asked and she thought then it all came rushing and she tried to sit up. Her head spun and she almost passed out.

"The explosion. Ryan and Esposito. Where are they?"

Kate put a hand on her shoulder.

"They are alright. They are in the waiting room waiting for you to wake up" She relaxed slightly then she looked over at Kate.

"How long have I been here?" Kate paled then swallowed.

"Only about 36 hours but Lanie. They didn't think you were going to make it at all" She could see now how tired Kate was her hair was in disarray and she was pale. She had dark circles under her eyes and they were red.

"Were you here the whole time?" Kate nodded.

"Yeah, We all were. Esposito, Me, Ryan and Castle. I'm going to go get them now and tell them you're awake"

Lanie nodded and after Kate was gone took a good look at the rest of herself.

Her head was throbbing and with the tips of her fingers she could feel the bandage on her temple. Both hands were wrapped thick with gauze leaving only the very tips of her fingers out. Both knees were wrapped well too and her right knee was elevated. She tried to move it and the pain was almost unbearable.

She lay back onto the pillows and took a shuddering breath. Tears stung her eyes and she held them back. She had never been so scared or shaken in her entire life. it was when she wiped her eyes against her forearm she noticed the small burn marks from ashes all up her arms and she bit her lip.

"Hey, There you are" She looked up at the sound of the voice she never thought she'd hear again.

"Esposito, Are you alright?" She wanted to reach for him and cry against his shoulder but didn't he nodded and stepped into the room.

"I'm fine, I'm not the one in the hospital" He came over and sat on the edge of the bed to her right.

"What about Ryan and Castle?" She was upsetting herself and she knew it. He did too.

"Hey, Calm down. It's alright everyone is fine. I was alone in the waiting room Ryan and Castle went to the cafeteria and Kate went to get them it's ok" He put a hand ontop of hers and she bit her lip.

"Nobody got hurt then?" He hesitated a minute then shook his head.

"Just you and we were all worried sick about you"

"What happened?"

"The warehouse was set up the fire chief said it was cheap home made bomb. All the killer had to do was open the propane tanks let them leak and set something up to spark or ignite after a few minutes"

She gasped it was scary enough let alone to think some one had done it on purpose.

"You got the worse of it I'm afraid. Doctors said it was because you were lighter in weight and you were behind Ryan and I slightly. When we got thrown onto the pavement you got banged up pretty good"

He sighed and played with the ends of her fingers slightly not taking his eyes off her hand she knew he didn't even realize he was doing it but she left him because it comforted her.

"I'm so sorry. I tried to get you out in time I covered you thinking that if I kept you covered...The damage was done when you hit the pavement I didn't do anything but add more weight"

"Hey. That's not true. I could have been burnt or hit with something if you hadn't been on top of me" He looked away from her.

"Well, The doctors said you might not wake up. The first 48 hours were critical but they said if you woke up. You should be alright. Severe Concussion. Your hands are just completely skinned as well as your left knee but your right knee is swollen they said they think it might have a slight fracture"

"Esposito, It could have been a lot worse. If you hadn't came in when you did"

He looked at her and she could tell there was something important he wanted to say he opened his mouth and Castle came sweeping in.

"Lanie! Enjoy the nap? Though I must say you're the only one who got any sleep" He handed her the strings to about 20 rainbow colored balloons.

"He's right. Castle kept us all up all night. We were about ready to put him into a coma ourselves" Ryan said smiling at her. He looked alright except for his right arm being in a sling.

"Hey, Hospitals are unnaturally creepy at night" Castle defended.

"Thank you for the balloons and thanks to all of you for staying with me. Ryan, Esposito...I don't even know what to say I wouldn't be here without the two of you...thank you so much"

Ryan, Kate and Castle smiled and Esposito stood.

"I'm going to go find a doctor and see when we can get her out of here" He said and turned leaving. It was then she noticed the slight limp and the way he held himself differently.

She looked at her friends.

"Is he alright? Really I mean...Something seems wrong" They gave her side smiles and Kate spoke.

"Sometimes it hurts in places we can't see"

Lanie was confused and Ryan tried to give her a reassuring smile.

"Physically he's fine. Emotionally he's exhausted and well...let's face it he never was all there mentally"

Lanie nodded at his arm.

"What about you?"

"What? This? Oh, It's nothing really I'm fine I was further away then you and Esposito I just got a dislocated shoulder. Doctors want me to take it easy for awhile I'm fine though really"

"I feel so guilty" She confessed and the others listened.

"If Ryan and Esposito hadn't came back for me they wouldn't be hurt. You all wouldn't be so tired..." Kate sat down where Esposito just was interrupting her.

"Hey, Stop that right now. You think we'd rather me in a morgue then here? Think again. Ryan and Esposito did their jobs which was to protect you while you did your job" Lanie nodded but she felt there was something they were all hiding from her.

Esposito came in with her doctor. A tall man in his late forties with think gray hair.

"Well, Miss Parish. Glad to see you up and awake we were wondering if we'd ever see those eyes again" He smiled and Lanie looked passed him at Esposito who looked completely drained.

"So, You have a concussion as well as some very deep cuts you your palms and a small fracture in your right knee. I can't send you home since your colleagues inform me that you live in a fifth floor apartment with no elevator and you will need a wheelchair for a short time then crutches for your knee"

"Is there anyway to skip the wheelchair?" Kate asked and the doctor shook his head.

"With that head injury and the coupling of her fractured knee AND inhaling a great deal of propane I don't want her moving around a whole lot until we're sure it's safe. I only think the wheelchair will be a factor for about three or four days then she can return to her normal life with the help of her crutches" Lanie sighed and flopped back against the pillow.

"Is there anyone who you can stay with? I would prefer you stay with someone for at least a week. Just to be on the safe side with all the injuries. If you don't have someone well then I'm afraid you'll haft to stay here for a few more days were someone can watch you"

She thought and then shook her head. There was nobody she could stay with. Her family all lived too far away and Kate was currently living in a hotel until she found a place since her apartment had been blown up.

"You can come with me" Esposito spoke from the doorway and they all turned to him Lanie shook her head.

"No, You've done enough already really" He walked towards her.

"I said you can stay with me and you can. I live alone on the second floor of an apartment with an elevator it's fine. I can't stand to let you here" He argued and Castle agreed.

"Yeah, It's creepy here at night plus the food totally sucks"

She sighed and nodded the doctor smiled.

"Ok, I'll get the papers and everything you should be out of here this evening. I will get you a wheelchair for now and make an appointment for three days to see where we are then. I'm going to give you gauze to wrap your hands with and head. I'm also giving you pain pills and a list of instructions. You should be good to shower just wrap your head and hands as soon as they are dry and that knee should be ok just don't use it or bend it. I don't feel a cast is necessary"

She nodded grateful she would be able to shower. he turned to Esposito.

"I will give you a list of instructions as well and a list of things to watch for so if she had a symptom you can bring her in. In three days we'll see if she can have crutches. Until then I want her taking it easy. nothing strenuous and other then sleeping and bathing I don't want her to get out of her wheelchair. No walking at all"

Esposito listened and nodded and when the doctor left she could tell by Kate, Castle and Ryan something was going on but she couldn't decide what and by now she was so exhausted she could barely stay awake.

She fell asleep while her friends argued over what to order for lunch.