DISCLAIMER: I do not own the rights to the NCIS:LA characters, I'm only borrowing them
Katy woke at five when Callen's alarm went off. Callen tried to roll over to turn it off, but Katy's head was on his chest. She smiled up at him and moved over so he could reach the night stand. Once the noise stopped, he rolled over and pulled her to him. Callen rubbed her stomach and sighed.
"I wish you didn't have to go to work today." She sighed.
"I know I wish I could just stay here with you all day."
"I hope we can have a nice quiet weekend."
"I do too. Maybe we can have your Dad and Yegor over for dinner Saturday night. I need to get the baby's room finished up. We'll pull a chair in and you can supervise." He laughed.
Katy chuckled. "I'll delegate from the corner."
"I've got to shower." He said kissing her ear.
"No, not yet, I'm too comfortable." She laughed.
"I have to." He said and rolled over to get out of bed.
Katy watched him stand and stretch before he walked to the closet to pick out what he was going to wear. There was a vast sea of blue before him and Katy laughed thinking he needed to expand his wardrobe. Before disappearing into the bathroom, he leaned over and gave her a soft kiss. Once Katy heard the water running, she got up and put on her robe so she could start a pot of coffee. Hungry, she went through the refrigerator for something to eat and by the time Callen walked into the kitchen she had bacon and eggs cooking.
"That's my job." He laughed kissing her cheek from behind.
"Well, you were in the shower, so I thought I'd do it for you." She smiled back at him.
"Thank you."
"There's coffee." She told him as she got a plate out of the cabinet and made him a plate.
Callen took it from her, thanked her and sat at the island while she got her own. "Please promise you're going to take it easy today."
"I promise I will take it easy." She said sitting next to him. "Besides, Mary will be here shortly after noon."
"Good, I hope she keeps you down. Keep your feet up and I'll cook dinner tonight after I get home."
"What do you want, I'll take it out?" she asked.
"Pork chops?" he asked.
"Sounds good to me." She said.
After they finished eating, Callen cleaned up while Katy showered. He had fifteen minutes before he needed to leave when she walked back out into the kitchen. They sat on the couch for a while watching the morning news until Callen left.
It was weird going to work without Katy. Callen really hoped that she would take it easy and relax. Kensi, Deeks and Sam were already in the bullpen when he walked in. For a silent moment it was awkward when they all realized Katy wasn't there.
"Wow, it's so empty in here without Katy." Deeks said.
"Don't remind me." Callen said sullenly. "Just imaging what it's going to be like when she's on maternity leave."
"I don't even want to think about that." Kensi told them.
"We'll deal with that when the time comes. For now, let's just enjoy the four days we have with her during the week." Sam suggested.
After they'd had their coffee, they went up to Ops to see if there was anything new. It was decided that after talking to Rose and a couple of the Lieutenant's friends, they would head back to the hotel to see if they could find anything else. Callen and Sam seriously doubted they'd find anything, but figured since they were at a dead end they'd give it a try. The Callen and Sam headed to the county morgue, while Kensi and Deeks headed to talk to her friends. Like the previous day, Rose was up to her elbows in a corpses' chest cavity.
"Good morning you guys." Rose said with a smile through her plastic visor. "I'm working on your Lieutenant right now."
"Find anything good?" Callen asked.
"Well, everything seems to be normal so far. I called on the toxicology tests this morning and they weren't ready yet. I hope her medical records will be delivered by ten."
"So we still have nothing? No idea of why or how she died?" Sam asked.
"I would venture to guess that it has something to do with the puncture wounds on her neck and legs." She said pulling out the Lieutenant's liver.
"Rose, this just came for you." A clerk said dropping a file on the counter.
"Is that Candace Marx's medical record?" Rose asked cataloging the weight of her liver.
"I believe it is." He said and disappeared.
"Do you mind?" Callen asked picking up the inch thick file.
"Be my guest." Rose said picking the liver up and placing it on the table. She took out a long knife and began slicing thin slivers off of it and placing those in several containers.
Callen and Sam watched Rose for a moment before Callen opened the file and flipped through to the medication portion and began reading. "I don't see anything about her being on insulin."
Rose stripped off her gloves and took the file from him.
"Tracy Hopper?" Kensi asked as a woman in her late twenties, with jet black hair opened the door.
"Yes." She said looking at her with the utmost interest. "Can I help you?"
Kensi pulled her badge. "My name is Kensi Blye; this is my partner Marty Deeks. We're with NCIS; we're investigating the death of Candice Marx."
"Oh god, it's true?" she said with her hand to her mouth. "I tried calling her yesterday and she didn't answer. We were supposed to get together last night since she was back in town."
"When was the last time you spoke to her?" Deeks asked.
"Please come in." she said stepping away from the door. "I talked to her Sunday afternoon. She'd called to let me know she was coming in town for an investigation at an LA hotel and wanted to get together for dinner."
"How did she sound when you talked to her?" Kensi asked.
"Well prior to Sunday, I hadn't spoken to her in about a year. We've communicated through email. She seemed okay, I guess."
"Did she mention any medical conditions to you that she would need to inject a medication?" Kensi asked.
"Well, I know she was trying to have a baby." She said.
Kensi and Deeks looked at one another. "Was she on and inject able medication for that?"
"She may have been, but we never really talked about it."
"Do you know who the father may have been?" Kensi asked.
"There was no father that I knew of. Again we really didn't talk about it."
"Do you know of anyone else in town that she may have been in contact with?" Deeks asked.
"I know Sam Knickson was supposed to join us for dinner. We all went to high school together."
"We're actually headed to talk to her after we're done here." Kensi told her.
"I hope she's more helpful than I am. I'm sorry I couldn't tell you more."
"You've been more than helpful. Thank you." Kensi said as they walked towards the door. "If you think of anything else, please give either myself or Detective Deeks a call."
"I will; thank you for this. Candace really was a good person. I can't imagine anyone who would want to hurt her."
Katy sat in the living room flipping through the channels bored as could be. Ying and Yang were asleep on the couch next to her. "Is this what you two do all day?" She asked nudging them. Neither cat moved. Katy turned off the TV and tossed the remote on the coffee table with a sigh. She sat there for a few minutes trying to figure out something to do. Katy pulled herself off the couch and walked into the baby's room. The room still smelled faintly of paint, so she cracked the window open and sat in the rocking chair. Henry was kicking and rolling in her belly. She smiled down at her belly and placed her hand on the outline of his foot.
"Oh little man, when are we going to get to meet you? There are so many people waiting to meet you." She said as tears rolled down her cheeks.
The doorbell rang, so she pulled herself to her feet, wiped away the tears and went to see who it was. Ivan stood on the other side of the door with a pink pastry box in his hand. "Dad, what are you doing here?"
"I came to keep my darling daughter company on her day off. I brought your favorites." He said waving the box at her.
"Thank you, I thought I was going to die of boredom." Katy laughed as they walked into the kitchen. "Do you want a cup of coffee?"
"Your eyes, have you been crying?" He asked brushing his thumb across her cheekbone.
"I was just talking to the baby, telling him there were so many people who couldn't wait to meet him."
"Ah yes and his Papa is definitely one of them." Ivan said putting both hands on her stomach. Henry kicked under his hands. "Oh my goodness."
"He's been so active this morning, probably because I'm sitting around on my butt." Katy laughed.
Kensi called Callen. "Well, her friend Tracy said Candace was trying to get pregnant and may have been on an inject-able medication or hormone or something."
Callen looked up at Rose and Sam, "There was nothing about that in her medical record."
"She's probably seeing a specialist at a fertility clinic." Kensi offered.
"Let me see the file, there may be something in here about a referral." Rose said.
"Alright Kensi, go see her other friend and hope maybe we can get more out of her." Callen said before hanging up.
Rose walked to her desk and laid the file down as she flipped through the pages. "Here, a referral to an infertility specialist. Let me call and get the records from her."
Fifteen minutes later, Sam and Callen walked out of the Medical Examiner's office with the address to a Doctor Renee Tillman. She was between procedures and had an hour and a half to spare before she had to see her next patient. They rushed over to her office as quickly as they could and found her sitting in her office reading through Candace Marx's chart.
"Doctor Tillman?" Callen asked as the receptionist walked away.
"Yes, please come in, you've got impeccable timing, I was just going over Ms. Marx's chart. She was due to come in next week for harvesting." She said looking up from the record for the briefest of moments.
"Harvesting?" Sam asked.
"Ms. Marx was in the process of preparing for In Vitro Fertilization." She said handing him the file. "Seeing as I have no use for this anymore, would you please see Rose gets it?"
"Did you prescribe any inject-able medications for Lieutenant Marx?" Callen asked.
"I did indeed. She was on several Repronex, Cetrotide, Noraval, and Progesterone. All were administered intramuscularly. I was going to be calling a prescription for an antibiotic this week." She said.
"Do you have the name of the Pharmacy she was using?" Sam asked.
"It should be annotated in her medical record, but I believe it was the Walgreens on Sepulveda." The Doctor said.
"Her chart states she's allergic to Lidocaine and Procaine, what do you use as a numbing agent during procedures?" Callen asked.
"She and I discussed having an anesthesiologist come in. Instead of using a local anesthetic, she wanted to be asleep. It's not abnormal. I have other patients who preferred to be asleep during the harvesting and implantation processes."
"Who was the father of the baby or rather who would've the father been?" Callen asked.
"She was using a donor from the bank here at the clinic. Candace weeded through thousands of applicants to find the one who had the attributes she desired in a partner."
Callen thought for a moment about Katy then looked at his watch.
"Is there someplace you'd rather be Agent Callen?" Doctor Tillman asked.
"No, I was just thinking about someone and wondering what she's doing." He said
"We can stop by the house and check on her." Sam offered.
"Yeah, it's almost lunch time. We can grab something from the house." Callen said.
"Well, if you need anything else, please don't hesitate to call. It's truly a shame about Candace. She was a very nice person and would've been a wonderful mother."
Callen studied the medical record the entire drive over to the house. He was pleased to see Ivan's car parked in front of the house and knew Katy wasn't doing much of anything. Mary met them at the door when he walked onto the porch.
"Hi Uncle Callen, Uncle Sam." She said hugging both of them.
"Hey Mary, how was school?" Callen asked.
"It was good. You're just in time, Papa Ivan was making us lunch."
"Hey honey." Callen said kissing Katy.
"Hey how's your day?" she asked wrapping her arms around his neck. "I missed you."
Callen leaned his elbow on the island, rubbed her belly and kissed her. "I missed you too."
"Sam, how are you?" Ivan asked.
"I'm good, how are you?" He asked.
"I'm very well, thank you. Oh son, I've taken Wednesdays off so I can keep Katya company and off her feet." He said holding up a packages of ham, turkey and roast beef.
"Good, I was worried about her being alone. However, with you and Mary here to take care of her, I don't have to now." He said pointing at the turkey.
"I'll have turkey too." Sam said.
Callen and Sam wanted to share the new developments in the case with Katy, but didn't want to say too much in front of Ivan or Mary. Katy hooked her foot around Callen's leg under the table as they ate. He smiled at her and kissed her, knowing the kind of mood she was in. The two disappeared into the bedroom for a few minutes before they headed back to the office.
"So I take it we're going to have a repeat of last night?" Callen asked pinning her against the wall.
"Too bad we don't have the time now." Katy said breathlessly as he kissed her neck.
"I'm sure Sam wouldn't mind waiting say thirty minutes before heading back to the office." He said looking at his watch.
Katy laughed. "Sam is not going to wait. Another five minutes and he'll be banging down the door."
With one last kiss, Callen opened the door and walked back into the kitchen. All eyes were on them, Mary giggled knowing what they were doing. "My Daddy and Ana do that too."
"We weren't doing anything." Katy assured her.
"Why is Uncle Callen wearing your lip gloss then?" She laughed and pointed to the pale pink sheen to his lips.
Katy turned beet red and wiped the gloss off with her thumb. Callen pulled her to him and gave her a mind-numbing kiss before he and Sam left. Sam gave him a bad time the entire way back to the office and made it a point to tell Kensi and Deeks about the pretty pink lip gloss. Callen just shook his head and took it. Finally they all headed back up to Ops.
"We need to find out where Lt. Marx's personal effects are." Callen said leaning on the table in Ops.
"You didn't find any vials and hypodermic needles at her house?" Kensi asked.
"No, she probably had it with her in her travel bag." Sam said.
"Do you have the numbers for the other investigators or does Katy have them?" Callen asked.
"I think Katy has them." Kensi said.
"Damn, Nell did she give them to you?" He asked.
"Yes she did." Nell said pulling them up.
Kensi called David Johns and asked about the Lieutenant's personal belongings. They made arrangements to meet at their hotel so Kensi and Deeks could pick them up. While they were out, Rose called Callen and asked him and Sam to stop by the Medical Examiner's office. The two checked in with Hetty before they left.
"Hey Rose, what have you got?" Callen asked when they walked in.
"Some of the toxicology reports came back. All of the medications, that were found in her system are consistent with what a patient going through IVF would've been given." She said handing him the report.
"Lupron, Repronex, Cetrotide, Noravel, and Progesterone. Those are the medications prescribed to her by Doctor Tillman." He said passing her the medical record. "She's also allergic to Procaine and Lidocaine."
Immediately, Rose looked up from the file. "What? Procaine was the other drug in her system."
Callen and Sam looked at one another. "How did she get the Procaine?"
Sam pulled out his phone and dialed Kensi. "Hey Kens, when you get the Lieutenant's belongings, we need you to bring them to Rose."
"On our way." She said.
"They're bringing her stuff here." He said hanging up the phone.
"So what would this do to her?" Callen asked.
"Anaphylactic shock; her throat would've closed, she would've had difficulties breathing, her skin, fingernails and toenails would've turned blue, convulsions, and loss of consciousness."
"How long would it take for the medication to take effect?" Callen asked.
"Immediate." Rose said with a smile, fitting all of the pieces together in her head.
Callen pulled out his phone and called Eric, "Eric, can you send me both the surveillance footage of Lt. Marx's death and her personal camera footage. It might help Rose put a few more pieces to the puzzle together."
"It's on its way to your phone now." He said.
No sooner did Callen hang up and his phone received the videos. "Have a look at this."
Rose took the phone and leaned back against her desk. As the surveillance video played she shook her head. "This is definitely consistent with Anaphylaxis. We just need to figure out how she got it."
"Did you ever figure out what the puncture wound was from on her neck?" Sam asked.
"No, but it may have been from the Procaine injection. Can you get the surveillance footage from the entire hotel so we can see the timeline of events?" she asked.
"I'm sure we can." Callen said looking at his watch. "We can send Kensi and Deeks after they drop off her belongings."
Kensi and Deeks showed up no more than ten minutes later and almost immediately headed for the hotel. Callen and Sam left Rose with the vials of her medications and headed back to the office. By three, Kensi and Deeks returned with the rest of the surveillance tapes. They spent the rest of the afternoon looking over the tapes. At five thirty, Hetty came up to Ops for a situation report.
"Well, we know how she died, but we're still working on who and why." Callen told her.
"Wait, look at this." Nell said excitedly, pulling their attention to the screen.
They watched Lieutenant Marx walk down the hall on the eleventh floor, past room eleven twenty-one. The door opened slowly and Crystal Camden walked out with something in her hand. She followed Lt. Marx to the stairwell. Just inside the door, Crystal brought her hand up, allowing the hypodermic needle to come into view. In one swift move, she jabbed it into her neck, pushed the plunger, pulled it out and kicked her away. Lt. Marx stood there in a daze, grabbing her neck before proceeding down the stairs. Crystal stood and watched as Lt. Marx stumbled and fell down five or six steps.
"Well, that was interesting." Hetty said with a smile. "I'll get the warrants; they should be available in the morning. Good work, home with you all. Would you be opposed to Katy going out on the arrest and questioning of Ms. Camden?"
Callen smiled and shook his head. "I don't mind. I'm sure she's feeling a little left out right about now."
Katy and Ivan were in the kitchen; Katy seated at the island while Ivan made dinner; when Callen walked in. Ying and Yang met him and wound themselves through his legs as he walked from the door to the kitchen. He kissed Katy and asked how the rest of her afternoon went, then thanked Ivan for staying. He sat down next to Katy and told her about the developments in the case and how Hetty wanted her to go out with them for the arrest and questioning. Katy did feel a little left out, but looked forward to the following day.
The three sat down to dinner within minutes of Callen's arrival, no matter how many times they asked Ivan to stay, he insisted on letting them have the rest of the evening alone together. Katy sat at the island while Callen loaded and started the dishwasher. Afterwards, they decided to watch a movie in their room. Katy had fallen asleep before they could watch the opening credits. Callen turned off the movie, locked up and headed to bed himself. When he walked back into the room, he stood there for a few minutes watching her sleep. He shook his head, smiled and climbed into bed next to her.
"Good morning." Katy said rolling into him.
Callen sighed and wrapped his arms around her. "How did you sleep?"
"I didn't even make it through the opening credits, did I?" she asked.
Callen laughed. "No you didn't."
"I'm sorry."
"You were tired." He said kissing her. "Why don't I help you shower?"
"That would be nice." She said with a lurid smile.
An hour later, after fooling around the best they could with the baby belly in the way, Callen backed her out of the bathroom and onto the bed. In spite of the fact that they had forty-five minutes to get dressed and eat breakfast before they had to head to work, they made love. Quickly, they dressed and stopped off on the way into the office to get coffee and something to eat. They were laughing when they walked into the bullpen fifteen minutes late. Sam, Kensi and Deeks eyed them suspiciously.
"Are you all ready?" Hetty asked from the wrought iron partition.
"Let's go get her." Callen said.
Hetty handed him the warrant for Crystal Camden's arrest. The five headed over to the Biltmore Hotel. Katy, Callen and Sam headed over in the Challenger, while Kensi and Deeks drove her Cadillac. When they arrived, they parked at the head of the circular drive. Once they made their way into the lobby, they went directly to the reception desk and asked for the hotel's head of security. With four members of security with them, they headed up to the fifth floor. Callen asked Katy and Kensi to stay in the lobby in the event Crystal wasn't in her room and could stop her from leaving.
"Why is it they all stay in this hotel?" Katy asked over the com.
"I guess they're the only ones who could afford it." Callen laughed. "Alright, we're at her door. Keep your eyes open in the lobby."
Callen knocked on the door with his hand poised on his pistol holstered at his back. He looked back at Sam, Deeks and the four security officers from the hotel when she asked for a minute. Then he smiled when he heard her footsteps approach the door on the hardwood floor. Crystal opened the door without hesitation and a smile.
"Agent Callen, Agent Hanna; what a surprise." She said and gave Deeks the once over. "Ooh, who is this?"
"Crystal Camden, you're under arrest for the murder of Lieutenant Candace Marx." He said reaching for her wrist.
"Excuse me?" she stammered. "I didn't kill Candy."
"We can do this one of two ways, you come on your own or we can take you by force. I'm sure everyone in the lobby would enjoy seeing you being dragged out kicking and screaming." Sam said with a smile.
"Dave," she yelled into the hall. "Dave. Dave get out here."
The door across the hall opened. "What the hell is going on?" David asked.
"I'm being arrested for Candy's murder." She said flabbergasted.
"Agent Callen, this can't be serious?" Davis asked.
"This is very real; we've got all of the evidence to charge her with Lt. Marx's murder." Callen said.
"Go Crystal, obviously they think they've got the right person." He told her.
Crystal turned around and allowed Callen to put her in flex-cuffs. "This is bullshit. I don't know what you think you've got, but you're wrong. Dave get me a lawyer."
"Can I accompany her to wherever you're taking her?" He asked.
"No, just call a God damned lawyer." Crystal screamed.
Callen told Kensi and Katy that they were on their way down with Crystal. The two met them at the elevator and walked with them out to the vehicles. Crystal took one look at Katy and cringed, mumbling something inaudible under her breath. Once she was situated in the back seat of the Cadillac, they headed to the boat shed.
Katy stopped in the outer room thinking she was only going to observe the interrogation. Callen came back out once Crystal was in the room and told Katy to go in. She smiled when he handed her the file.
Crystal mumbled again when Katy walked in. "Fucking pregnant women, they're everywhere."
"Well, that's a wonderful greeting. I take it you have something against pregnant women?" Katy asked.
"You all whine and bitch about how uncomfortable you are. Actually, I think women who are trying to get pregnant are even worse." She snarled.
Katy laughed. "So I take it Lt. Marx was vocal about her attempts to conceive?"
"God, she wouldn't shut up about it. It was so fucking annoying."
"Would you like to confess now or do we have to show you everything we have?" Kensi asked.
"I'll tell you every damn detail." Crystal laughed.
Callen, Sam and Deeks watched from the outer room and were admittedly a little taken aback by Crystal's remarks. Callen paid close attention to Katy's body language, hoping she didn't get too stressed out. Callen's phone rang, so he stepped away from the others to take the call.
"Rose, what have you got?"
"We tested the vials Lt. Marx had in her personal belongings and one of the vials, the Progesterone was tainted with Procaine. However, that's just the tip of the iceberg. The Procaine was a contributing factor to her death, the injection to her neck is what actually killed her."
"What was in the injection to her neck?"
"Air, Lt. Marx died of an air embolism."
Callen smiled. "Thank you Rose."
"You're very welcome. Let me know if there's anything else you need."
Callen immediately walked to the hall as Sam and Deeks watched. He knocked on the door and waited for Kensi to open it. "I need to talk to you two." He said.
Katy gave him a curious look and followed him and Kensi out to the outer room. "What's going on?"
"Crystal somehow mixed Procaine with Lt. Marx's vial of Progesterone. But that's not what killed her. The injection in her neck wasn't Procaine, it was air."
"Oh shit." Katy said Kensi shot her a look. "Air injected directly to a vein causes an embolism. It could potentially stop her heart."
"Wow, she knew exactly what she was doing." Kensi said.
"Ms. Camden, how did you get the Procaine into Lt. Marx's vial of Progesterone?" Katy asked as she walked in.
"It was easy; she left that shit sitting on the sink in our hotel room."
"Where did you get the Procaine?" Kensi asked.
"My brother is a plastic surgeon. Can't you tell?" she said showing her profile. Kensi and Katy tried not to laugh.
"Did your brother give you the vial or did you acquire it when he wasn't looking."
"I took it. I put it in her Progesterone, but that's just the half of it. You know I shot her artery full of air, right?"
"Yes we do know that." Katy smiled. "Why?"
"She always had higher ratings. When that bitch Tammy got pregnant her ratings sky-rocketed and I knew if Candy got pregnant too." She stopped and shook her head.
"You killed Lt. Marx because of ratings?" Kensi asked.
"Yes, I did. I told Dave not to hire another woman, but he didn't listen to me."
"Jealously? You did all of this because you were jealous? Were you also jealous that she was trying to have a baby and you weren't?" Katy asked.
"Wipe that fucking smug look off your face, bitch. Like I said, you're no fucking different than any other pregnant bitch out there."
"Ms. Camden, you aren't able to conceive are you?" Katy asked.
"I've only been able to carry to full-term once, all of my other pregnancies ended in miscarriages."
"I'm sorry; I know how difficult miscarriages are."
"Right" she said sarcastically. "Stop patronizing me."
Katy shook her head. "What happened to your one successful pregnancy?"
"He died; he was born with a heart defect. My ex-husband and I divorced after he died at two years old. Do you have any idea what that's like to lose your child?" she cried. "No, don't tell me you do."
Katy excused herself from the room and went out to her purse. She took something out of her wallet and returned to the interrogation room. Katy put two pictures on the table in front of Crystal. She looked at them and then up at Katy.
"My daughter died when she was twelve and my husband and I lost a set of twins last December. I do know what it's like, all too well. Did you ever get any counseling after your son's death?"
"No, I got knee deep into paranormal research looking for him. I tried so hard to contact him and never could. Candy said she'd seen him in the last year, even talked to him. She had nerve enough to tell me that my baby wanted me to stop trying so hard." She said throwing the pictures across the table.
"Hopefully you can get some counseling and work out your issues while you're in prison." Kensi added.
"How long do you think they'll give me?" Crystal asked.
"I don't know that's for the jury to decide. We were only responsible for the investigation; we turn everything over to the District Attorney's office. I don't know what lies ahead for you, but I wish you the best of luck." Katy said and walked out of the room.
"You okay?" Callen asked when she tossed the file on the table.
"I'm fine, let's just get her booked and out of our lives." Katy said wrapping her arms around his neck.
"US Marshall's are on their way to pick her up." He told her looking at his watch. "They should be here any time."
Within minutes, the Marshalls were there to get Crystal. All of the agents stood and watched as they led her out into the hallway. Katy had an odd feeling that their experience with her wasn't over. They all stepped back so they could walk past the table. Suddenly Crystal kicked out, hitting Katy right in the stomach. Instantly, Katy was on the floor in excruciating pain. Callen was on the floor next to her praying she and Henry were alright. As Katy was curled into a ball on the ground, Sam called for an ambulance. The larger of the two Marshalls kicked Crystal's legs out from under her and threw her to the ground while the other ran out to the car for leg shackles.
"You stupid bitch, you think you're so much better than everyone else." Crystal grunted.
"That's enough." The Marshall yelled, pinning her head to the ground.
Katy's mind raced as the seconds felt like hours. Henry wasn't moving. Callen had his hand on her stomach and repeated over and over for Henry to move, but he never did. Just as the second Marshall returned with the shackles, they heard sirens in the distance. Kensi, Sam and Deeks stood back praying. With Crystal's legs shackled, they pulled her to her feet. Callen was up on his feet and in her face the minute she was standing.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" he growled.
"That's what she gets for sitting in there, acting like she knows what I've been through."
"You have no idea what she's been through, what we've been through. If something happens to my son, I'll make damn sure you rot in hell. I'm adding an assault charge just for starters." He said as the EMTs walked in.
The Marshalls drug Crystal out to the car while the paramedic's tended to Katy. Kensi pulled herself away from the activity in the boat shed to call Hetty.
"Hetty, Katy's." she stopped not knowing how to put it.
"What is it Ms. Blye?" Hetty asked impatiently.
"Crystal kicked Katy in the stomach. The EMTs are here to take her to the hospital."
"Oh no, I'll call Ivan and meet you all at the hospital. I pray everything's alright. Do you know if Henry's moving?" she asked.
"I don't know. I don't think so."
Hetty let out a ragged breath. "No. Mr. Callen, how is he?"
"He promised to add an extra charge if something happens to either Katy or Henry."
"Yes, yes starting with the assault of a Federal Officer."
"They're bringing her out now. We'll see you at the hospital." Kensi said and hung up.
Hetty sat for a moment, fighting the urge to cry. Nell came down the stairs and watched her. For some reason, after they'd finished watching the interrogation, they continued to watch and saw the entire thing. Slowly, Hetty picked up her phone and dialed Ivan's number. She calmly told him what had happened and which hospital she was at. As soon as she hung up, Nell was standing at the steps leading to her desk.
"We saw the kick." She said somberly.
Hetty just shook her head. "I'm headed to the hospital; call me if anything comes up. If by the end of the day Katy hasn't been released, feel free to join us."
"We'll be there." She said worriedly.
The ride to the hospital was the longest ride of Callen's life. It seemed longer than several of his own trips to the hospital. He felt helpless, watching Katy cry. He saw the worry and fear in her eyes and she could see it in his. In spite of the fact that the paramedic asked him to just hold Katy's hand, he was sitting awkwardly on the floor next to the gurney holding her hand with one of his and had the other across her chest. Katy was shaking and held onto him for dear life.
When they arrived at the hospital, they were taken immediately up to Labor and Delivery. Once she was transferred to one of the beds, it was mass chaos as nurses and doctors ran in and out of the room. Katy was hooked up to all of the fetal monitors, Henry had a heartbeat, but it was very faint. She was also having contractions every five minutes. The on-call doctor called Dr. Wong and she was on her way from the clinic across the street.
Dr. Wong ran into the room and immediately over to the monitors. She picked up the papers being fed out of the printers and then looked over at Katy and Callen. Both of them had pleading looks on their faces. Dr. Wong told them she'd be right back and left the room to converse with the on-call doctor.
"Should we stop labor?" The on-call doctor asked.
"His vitals are weak. Let's get an ultrasound to see if there are any visible injuries. We can decide after that." She said.
"We've only got so long before her labor progresses and we can't stop it."
"You think I don't know this?" Dr. Wong snapped.
"I'll do the ultrasound now." He said and walked away to find an ultrasound machine.
Hetty stepped off the elevator and walked the fifteen feet to the Labor and Delivery waiting room. "Is there any news?"
They all shook their heads. Ivan walked in behind Hetty and put his arm around her. She looked up at him and shook her head. Ivan sighed and walked out of the room. Hetty found him standing at one of the windows, his arms crossed over his chest.
"They have to be okay." He said with tears in his eyes.
"I know Katy's alright; it's just Henry we have to worry about."
"Do you think they can get through it if something happens to him?" he asked.
Hetty thought for a moment and nodded. "They are strong. They've already been through so much; this by far will be the most difficult issue they've faced."
Nate stepped off the elevator and walked over to them. "I came as soon as Nell told me. Is there any word?"
"No, not yet." Hetty told him. "Ivan, this is our Operational Psychologist; Nate Getz. Nate this is Katy's father Ivan Leshev."
"It's a pleasure to finally meet you. Katy and Callen have told me a lot about you. I'm sorry it's under these circumstances."
"Yes, these are horrible circumstances." Ivan said offering his hand.
Dr. Wong and Dr. Mason rolled the ultrasound machine into Katy's room. There was absolute silence in the room, except for the beeps on the monitors. Callen and Katy watched intently as the doctors looked Henry over. "He appears to be alright, but we won't really know anything until after he's born. Katy would you be opposed to delivering now?" she asked.
"I've still got a month and a half left." Katy cried.
"At this point, I think it's more important to make sure he's alright." Dr. Wong said. "Our hospital has a state of the art NICU, depending on his condition; I don't think he will be staying here very long."
"I just want to make sure he's alright." Katy said looking at Callen.
"Since you're in active labor, I want to see if these contractions are dilating you. If not, we'll have to do a c-section."
"How much do you think he weighs at this point?" Callen asked.
"I'd say between four and five pounds." Dr. Wong estimated.
Katy was checked and she was now four centimeters dilated. After the doctor checked her, Callen left the room to let the others know what was going on. He found Ivan, Nate and Hetty in the hall by the windows. They walked towards him as he stopped by the doorway to the waiting room.
"She's in labor; there are no visible signs of trauma to Henry on the ultrasound."
"Are they going to let her deliver?" Sam asked.
"Yes, Henry will be in the NICU until he's ready to come home."
"I'm so sorry Callen." Ivan said.
"These things happen, Ivan. I never should've let her out in the field." He said.
"No, this is my fault." Hetty said. "I'm the one who wanted Katy and Kensi to do the interrogation."
"Let's not play the blame game." Nate interjected.
"Do you want me to call Reggie and Ana?" Sam asked.
"Yes please, they'll want to be here."
"Michelle and the kids are on their way." Sam said as he walked back into the room to make the call to Reggie.
Callen looked at his watch. "I don't know how long this is going to take. She's only four centimeters dilated. I don't know if they're going to give her anything to help labor progress. We could be here a while."
"There's nothing to do except the paperwork for this case and given the current situation, it can wait. We will be here as long as you want us here." Hetty told him.
"Thank you." Callen said the fear evident in his face. "Ivan, did you want to come back to see Katy?"
"Yes please." He said putting his arm around his son-in-law.
"I'm sure the rest of you will be able to come in at some point, only two guests are allowed in the room at a time. Hetty, do you want to come in too?"
"Yes, then you can go in Ms. Blye, I know you want to see Katy too." She said and followed Callen and Ivan into the ward.
Katy was on her side, gripping a pillow and the railing as another contraction came and passed. She tried to smile through the pain when they walked in. Ivan and Callen were at her bedside, Hetty lingered near the door. Ivan placed his hand on Katy's stomach and felt Henry move; he smiled as tears filled his eyes.
"That's a good sign." He said.
"Dad." Katy said and broke into tears.
Callen sat on the bed behind Katy and wrapped his arm around her. Katy took his arm and held it tight. Three minutes later, she felt the tightening in her abdomen and squeezed his hand. Having not been able to take Lamaze classes, she tried to remember the breathing techniques from when she delivered Kari. Hetty just stood there near the door with a pained look on her face. When the contraction passed, Katy put her hand out for her and Hetty finally stepped towards them.
"I'm so sorry, Katy. I'm the one who suggested you and Ms. Blye question Ms. Camden. I never imagined she's lash out in the way she did."
"It's alright Hetty. We'll get through this no matter what the outcome is. Henry is moving and his heartbeat has gotten stronger. I think he'd going to be alright." She said.
"Still, I take full responsibility for what happened."
"Please, I don't need your apologies right now, I need your comfort." Katy said with a smile and a squeeze of Hetty's hand.
Ivan put his free arm around Hetty. "We will have out grandson; I have no doubt about that."
The four sat there through three more strong contractions. Just as the last one ended, Katy's water broke. Ivan and Hetty left the room so the Dr. Wong could check her again. By the time they walked back out to the waiting room to let the others know; Reggie, Ana and the three kids were just stepping off the elevator. Nell and Eric stepped off the other elevator right after them. Hetty and Ivan told them all how things were progressing.
A few minutes later, Kensi and Ana went in to spend a few minutes with Katy and Callen. The anesthesiologist was in the room with Katy giving her and epidural. Now six centimeters dilated, Katy was in extreme pain. By nine, Katy hadn't progresses any further in spite of the contractions coming at regular intervals of every minute and a half. At nine thirty, Katy was wheeled to another room and prepped for a c-section.
Callen sat at Katy's head, holding her hand, trying not to look into the mirror above their heads. He focused solely on Katy and wiping the tears that were trickling from her eyes. Fortunately, Katy felt nothing as Dr. Wong made the incision with the scalpel. Layer by layer, she cut until she got to the embryonic sack and carefully cut it open.
"Alright Mom and Dad, you ready to meet Henry?" she asked.
Callen rested his head against Katy's. "I love you."
"I love you too, are you ready to meet your son?"
"Ooh, he's a big boy." Dr. Wong said.
Both Callen and Katy looked into the mirror and saw Dr. Wong pull a chubby, bloody baby from her abdomen. As soon as his head was free the room filled with the wails of a newborn. Callen stood to get a closer look and smiled down at Katy.
"He's so big." Callen told her.
"We're going to let the Neonatal team have a look at him, alright? Dad, would you like to cut the umbilical cord?" Dr. Wong asked.
"Please." He said letting go of Katy's hand.
"Callen." Katy said as the room suddenly started spinning.
One of the nurses assisting with the procedure called Dr Wong's attention to Katy's vital signs and the blood that was pooling in her abdomen. "Doctor, she's hemorrhaging."
Callen ran back around to Katy. She was pale and in and out of consciousness. "Mr. Callen, go with your son while I work on your wife." The Doctor ordered.
Callen stood there torn. He wanted to stay with Katy, yet he wanted to make sure Henry was alright too. The doctor yelled at him as another nurse pushed him towards the door. He took one last look at Katy before he stepped out. He turned back around and looked through the port-hole windows in the door before the nurse pulled him away and led him to the nursery.
Henry's apgar scores were given by one of the Neonatal team while another recorded them. He was then weighed. "Five pounds, eleven ounces."
He was breathing on his own, but they gave Henry oxygen anyway. Callen stood next to the basinet-like bed while Henry was bathed and checked over more. The whole time, his mind on Katy down the hall. Fifteen minutes later, one of the nurses asked Callen if he'd like to hold the baby. He sat down in a rocking chair that someone had pulled over and the NICU nurse placed him in his arms. Callen looked down at the tiny baby and cried.
"Don't worry Henry, Mommy will be fine." He whispered over and over, not knowing if he was trying to reassure himself or the baby crying in his arms. The louder Henry cried the tighter Callen held him. He smelled him and kissed his head trying to calm him.
"Mr. Callen, do you know if you're wife was going to try to breast feed or was she going to give him formula?" a nurse asked.
"I don't know, we hadn't discusses it." Callen said looking up, feeling stupid.
The nurse placed her hand on his shoulder. "It's alright. Would you like to try to feed him?"
"Um, I guess." He said looking down at Henry. "Is that what's wrong, you're hungry?"
Callen watched as the nurse went to a cabinet and got out a tiny two ounce bottle of formula, opened it and put a nipple on it. "Have you ever fed a baby?" she asked.
"Yes, though never one this small."
"Give him an ounce and try to burp him." She instructed.
Callen sat there for a few minutes, rubbing the nipple on Henry's tongue before he finally closed his mouth and began suckling. He made a sighing or snapping sound as he tried to suck and breathe at the same time. Within minutes, Henry had sucked down half of the bottles contents and began crying again when Callen took the bottle away and gently placed him on his shoulder. The nurse watched as Callen patted his back.
"You're a natural, Mr. Callen." She smiled.
"I'm sure his mother would be better at this than I am." He said with tears in his eyes.
"Let me send one of the nurses to check on your wife." She said and stepped away to one of the other nurses in the nursery.
The nurse left and returned a few minutes later with a smile on her face. "Mr. Callen, Dr. Wong was able to stop the bleeding; your wife is stable but she's lost a lot of blood. She's being transferred to the ICU so they can watcher her. Did you want to go with your wife or stay here with your son? I'm sure she'd want you to stay here with your son."
"I don't know." He said looking down at Henry who was just about done with the bottle. "Can I go out to the waiting room to let everyone know what happened and have her father go up with her?"
"Of course, I can finish feeding him if you'd like?" she offered.
Callen allowed her to take Henry; he stood and walked to the door. He stripped off the paper gown and put it in the trash bin before he walked out. It was a long walk through the labyrinth of halls and corridors. When he finally walked out through the doors to the waiting room, everyone was standing around looking tired and worried. They all looked at him expectantly.
"Henry seems to be fine. Five pounds, eleven ounces; bigger than we expected. Katy started hemorrhaging, she's stable, but they're moving her to the ICU. I'm going to stay with Henry for a while longer. Ivan, Hetty did you two want to go up to the ICU with her?"
Hetty sat heavily into the chair behind her. "Yes, of course."
Ivan put a hand out for her and the three disappeared into the ward again. Callen led them through the corridors to the procedure room. Dr. Wong was waiting outside the door for them. Callen introduced Ivan and Hetty to her before he went in to check on Katy.
She was on a gurney with bags of blood attached to the IV in her arm. "How are you feeling?"
"Weak. How's Henry?" she asked with a faint smile and weak, shaky voice.
Callen smiled. "He just finished a two ounce bottle without a problem. He weighed a whopping five pounds, eleven ounces."
"Wow, imagine what he would've weighed had he gone to full term." She said.
"I'm going to stay with Henry for a while longer. Hetty and Ivan are going to go upstairs with you."
Katy gave a weak nod. "That's fine. Tell Henry I love him and I'll see him soon."
"I will. I love you Katy." He said brushing his hand over her forehead and hair.
She smiled, half asleep. "I love you too."
Dr. Wong walked back in with the team that was moving her to ICU, Ivan and Hetty waited outside until she was wheeled out into the hall. Ivan took one hand and walked by her side to the patient elevator. Hetty lagged behind still blaming herself for all of this. Callen walked back to the nursery slowly, turning around every so often until Katy disappeared around a corner. When he walked back into the nursery, the nurse was sitting in the rocking chair. Henry was asleep in her arms.
"Daddy's here." She said softly while Callen put on a fresh gown. When he walked to the rocking chair, she stood and placed Henry in his arms. "Mom's alright?"
"Yes, Mom's doing well." He said and looked down at Henry. "Mommy says she loves you and she'll see you soon. Is there any way our family and friends can come back to see him?"
"Sure, I can bring them to the window and you can hold him up for them." She said. "I will be right back."
Within minutes, Sam, Michelle and their kids, Kensi, Deeks, Nell, and Eric walked back to the window. Callen stood and slowly walked to the window, he stood and moved Henry in his arms so they could see him. They were all pointing and smiling. Sam and Michelle's kids were plastered to the windows. A few minutes later, Reggie, Ana, Nate and the kids joined the others. Reggie pulled Mary up into his arms and held her so she could see the baby. She waved enthusiastically at Callen and gave him a thumbs up. Henry stretched and yawned in his arms. Everyone loved watching the baby. The pediatrician walked in one of the other doors and Callen had to take Henry back over to the basinet so the doctor could check him out.
"Hello Mr. Callen, my name's Dr. Christian Dempsey, I'm the on-call pediatrician tonight. Let's have a look at little Henry." He said as Callen laid Henry down and unwrapped him.
The doctor looked Henry over closely and deemed him perfectly healthy. He did suggest keeping him in the nursery for a couple weeks to make sure. Callen had no problem with that, wanting to make sure he was healthy before he went home. They stood and talked for a while before the doctor left.
If took a few minutes for the orderlies and ICU nurses to get Katy situated and everything transferred to the ICUs equipment. Finally, Ivan and Hetty were allowed into the room. Katy was asleep, so the two sat talking quietly until Callen came in. He walked over to Katy's side and kissed her softly on the head. Katy woke and smiled up at him.
"How's Henry?" she asked groggily.
"The doctor looked him over and he's good." He said with tears in his eyes. "They want to keep him in the NICU for a couple weeks just to make sure nothing comes up."
"Alright, good." She smiled.
"Katy, he's the most perfect handful." He said with tears rolling down his face.
Katy brought a shaky hand to his face and wiped his tears away. "I'm sure he is. I can't wait to hold him."
"You can probably hold him sometime tomorrow." Dr. Wong said from the door. "How are you feeling Katy?"
"Tired and weak, but very thankful. Thank you for everything you did, not that I remember any of it, but I'm alive." Katy said.
"You're welcome. I couldn't leave that precious, beautiful baby boy without a mother." She smiled and picked up Katy's chart. "I think another bag of blood and you should be alright. You will probably be released tomorrow night or Saturday morning."
"Alright." Katy nodded.
Dr. Wong stayed with them answering any questions they might have about her care once she was released from the hospital. She told them that Katy would need to be on bed rest for at least a week after being released. Katy voiced her concerns about coming to see Henry. Dr. Wong assured her that she would be able to visit whenever she wanted as long as she stayed seated while doing so. Then once Henry came home, she would still have to take it easy, and lift no more than ten pounds for a couple weeks. Dr. Wong told them that she'd like to see Katy in three weeks after she was released and then again at six weeks out. At that point, they'd determine when she could return to work and whether or not it was at full or light duty.
By eleven, everyone had trickled through the ICU to see Katy and were headed home for the night. Hetty had told them to be in the office by noon the following day since they were out so late. She didn't intend on making any of them work unless they chose to. Having them come in was more for accountability than anything else.
"I spoke with Director Vance and arranged for you to have a couple weeks off to take care of Katy, and then your paternity leave will kick in after Henry is released. Sam will assume the position as lead until you return to work. The director is going to send Ms. Long and Mr. Lewiston to us until you both are back at work and at full duty."
"Thank you Hetty, Callen said and pulled Hetty into a hug. I can't thank you enough for everything over the years. Henry's very lucky to have you as a grandmother."
Tears filled her eyes. "Well, he wouldn't be in this predicament and in the NICU if it weren't for my poor judgment."
"Hetty please, he's here and he's healthy, please stop beating yourself up over this." Katy said. "You saved me another month and a half of misery by not going to full term."
Hetty shook her head and laughed. "Well since you put it that way, you're welcome. Get some rest; I'll see you in a few hours. I'll stop by before I head to the office."
"Good night you two, I'm going to make sure Hetty makes it to her car." Ivan said.
"Dad, Hetty can more than take care of herself." Katy laughed and grabbed her abdomen. "Oh, too early to laugh."
Once Katy was asleep, Callen wandered back down to the NICU to check on Henry. He was awake and ready to eat again. When the nurse saw him watching from the window and waved him in. Callen put on a gown and sat down to feed Henry. A couple hours old now, he could tell he had blue eyes and Katy's nose. He was the most beautiful baby he'd ever seen and he was his. The only thing that would've made this moment any better was if he was sharing it with Katy. Once Henry finished his bottle, burped and was back to sleep; Callen held him for a while before lying him in the bassinet and going back up to check on Katy.