Chapter 16: The Surprise

A/N: I do not own Covert Affairs.

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Auggie tried not to panic. He set to work checking her pulse. It was thready, but there. Frantically, he searched for his cell phone. Finding it, he dialed Joan.

"Auggie?" came her voice in answer.

"Joan, Annie's passed out in our office. She's breathing and has a light pulse but I think she needs to get to a hospital." Auggie's voice came out breathy and tinged with fear, for Annie, for their baby, for himself.

"Alright, Auggie. I'm already out the door. I'll be right there." Joan hung up.

Auggie found Annie's dress laying in a heap on the floor and with shaking hands, gingerly put it back on her limp body. He knew she would kill him if she found out he'd allowed her to be found like this. He then proceeded to pull on his own pants and wrapped his shirt around his torso, leaving it unbuttoned. Just then, Joan came practically running into the office.

She took in Auggie's half dressed appearance and the disheveled look Annie had about her. She would have smiled at their brash decision to have sex at the office had the situation not been so dire. "Can you carry her, Auggie? I'm not strong enough to take her that far." Joan admitted.

"Yeah, I can. Just don't let me trip or run into anything. Grab my cane, would you?" She could hear the tension in his words.

Joan found the cane laying on the desk as he lifted Annie into his strong arms. His muscles contorted and rippled with the exertion but she was barely any weight to him. Joan held the door open for him and with a hand on his arm, guided him to the elevator.

The trip to the emergency room was a silent one. Joan flew through the city, weaving in and out of traffic with swift, practiced motions. As she swung in front of the hospital she told Auggie, "I'll go get someone. Get her out," in her authoritative voice and flew through the doors of the hospital.

As Auggie was pulling Annie out of the backseat of the car, he heard the sound of wheels and Joan speaking to someone.

"She's got a heart condition, Myocarditis. And she's pregnant."

"Ok, just place her on the gurney, sir, and we'll take it from here." A female voice said to Auggie.

"I'm blind. I can't see it." He stated behind gritted teeth. Don't get mad at the poor nurse. She couldn't have known... he thought to himself, trying to keep his cool.

Seeing the woman's hesitation, Joan took the bed from her and placed it directly in front of Auggie. She helped him guide Annie down onto it.

The nurse asked, "Are you family?" as she began to wheel Annie inside.

Auggie answered first, "I'm her boyfriend, and the father of the baby."

Joan brushed Auggie's hand, offering her lead, and answered, "I'm her... friend."

The nurse nodded. "There will be some paperwork to fill out while the doctor looks at her. Can you do that?" she asked of Joan. She nodded.

They waited in the waiting area for what felt like days to Auggie. Intermittently, he paced back and forth until Joan convinced him to sit. He held his head in his hands. "Joan, if something happens to her or the baby, it's... it's my fault." His voice cracked with emotion.

Placing a hand on his shoulder, she replied, soothingly, "Auggie, it's not anyone's fault. She's got a condition that we all know about, but that doesn't mean she should stop... living." She chose her words carefully so as not to embarrass him. "I'm sure she'll be fine. Try not to worry until we hear something, ok?" Still holding his face, he nodded.

Minutes later, the doctor came into the room. "Mr. Anderson? Mrs. Campbell?"

They both stood and said, "Yes," together.

"I'm doctor Smith. Annie has had a fairly serious attack due to her condition. Now, the baby is fine, I assure you. But there are some decisions that need to be made concerning Miss Walker. Who do I need to talk to about them?" The doctor looked back and forth between the two of them.

Auggie stepped forward. "That would be me. I'm the baby's father."

Dr. Smith began explaining, "Annie needs to have a heart valve replaced and a pace maker put in. The multiple attacks she's had over the last few months have put a great strain on her heart and it has become severely weakened. For now, she is stable but that could change at a moments notice. Now, she could probably go a while longer without the surgery if she had very little stress in her life, but with the pregnancy I recommend we operate now."

Auggie was keeping his cool as best as he could as he thought logically. "What kind of risks does the surgery pose to Annie and the baby?" he asked.

"Minimal. Once the surgery is complete, her heart muscle will be stronger and she will better be able to handle the pregnancy, physically. We will take every precaution to ensure the safety of both Miss Walker and your baby."

Auggie nodded. He knew Annie had already decided to have the pacemaker surgery, so hopefully she wouldn't be too mad at him for making this decision. "Ok, do what you have to do."

"The surgery will take several hours to complete. There's a special waiting room up on the fifth floor for family members of extended surgery patients. I think you'll find that more comfortable than down here. Or, if you'd prefer, you could go home and we'll call you when she's in recovery."

"I'll stay, thanks. Doctor, that woman and the baby she's carrying mean everything to me. I'm trusting you to take care of them, understand?"

"We'll do everything we can, Mr. Anderson." With those words, Dr. Smith walked away.

"Auggie?" Joan spoke, cautiously.

"Hmm."

"I can take you up there if you'd like. Then, I could go get you anything you need. Clothes? Food?"

"Thanks, Joan. I'll be ok. If you could just take me up there you can go home if you want to."

"I don't think you should be alone, right now," she said as she began to lead him up to the new waiting area.

The waiting room was stocked with pull out bed couches, pillows, blankets, coffee and vending machines, as well as tv's, magazines, and one computer. Joan tried to encourage Auggie to sleep but he refused. His mind was too occupied to even attempt sleep. Joan and Auggie waited for over 12 hours before Dr. Smith finally came into the room.

"Mr. Anderson."

Auggie jumped up from his seat on one of the couches. "Yes?"

"She's currently in recovery. She did well during the surgery and we see no reason why she shouldn't make a full recovery with the proper rest and medication."

Audibly, Auggie sighed in relief. "What about the baby?"

The doctor hesitated. "Well, we did discover something during surgery."

Auggie's relief was quickly washed away with fierce worry. "Is something wrong with the baby?"

Dr. Smith smiled. "No, Mr. Anderson, your twins are also doing just fine."

Auggie stared in the direction of the doctor, dumbfounded.