Chapter 27

Quinn leaned against the wall next to the door, her eyes closed in an attempt to briefly block out the scene before her. Marcel had left with Beth ages ago and had yet to return. Even with her eyes closed, it all played out in her mind, like a movie clip on repeat.

"The baby's crying. The baby's crying." Sam had been yelling in the middle of the room, hands over his ears.

Quinn hadn't been paying attention to him, too busy pleading with Sue not to tell Sam about what happened to Beth, at least not now, not like this. Beth had been steadily crying through their whole conversation. Sue bounced her on her hip as she continued to yell out insults.

"Sam sweetheart, look, she's okay." Sue leaned Beth closer to Sam so he could see his daughter. "I think we just scared her with the noise."

Sam held his head in his hands, rubbing his temples. "Can one of you tell me what's going on? What happened to Beth?"

"We talked about this Sam," said Quinn rubbing his back. "You know my struggles with PPD."

"Is that what you were referring to mom?" Sam asked looking from Quinn to his mother. He seemed confused, as if he didn't know what to trust. They had been so close before Sue came in ruining everything with her accusations and bitterness.

"Yes. I think you deserve to know the truth, especially if you are getting mixed up with her again."

"Quinn and I have talked, like she just said." Sam smiled as he took Quinn's hand in his. Relief washed over Quinn, Sue hadn't ruined anything. Sam was still with her.

"I know she didn't tell you everything because you let her near the baby. I'm sure she lied to you," said Sue as she rocked Beth in her arms, trying to get her to quiet down.

"Quinn and I don't lie to each other." He kissed her then, full on the lips, right in front of his mom. Quinn wanted to cry at the gesture, so bold and open. Sam was so willing to give all of himself, she needed to be brave enough to do the same. "We have nothing to hide."

"Oh baby you are thinking with the wrong head again. All this girl does is lie. Did she tell you she left Beth in the house alone?"

"Ye she did. It was difficult for her, but she let me in and told me about it all." He squeezed the hand he still held.

Never had Quinn felt so supported and loved. He was standing up to his mother, for her. Was it possible for love to overflow, to fill a heart so much that it burst? Quinn was sure she would soon discover the answer to that question, because the love she felt for Sam continued to build within her.

"It's like I said Sue, we've talked." Quinn stressed her words, a direct message to Sue to drop the subject.

She had begged Sue to let her be the one to tell Sam about Beth, pleaded with her to back off. Sue had practically laughed in her face, almost seeming thrilled that she had the chance to humiliate Quinn, not caring that in the process she would be hurting her son.

"Which time did she tell you about Sam?" asked Sue ignoring Quinn's pleas for a subject change.

"There was more than one?" Sam asked, looking at Quinn.

"Sam I tried to tell you there was more, but…"

"But you conveniently left it out?" asked Sue cutting her off mid-sentence.

"No I stopped her," replied Sam. "She was getting upset and I didn't want to overwhelm her as she just got out of the hospital."

"Have you asked yourself why she was in the hospital in the first place?"

"My father had something to do with it." Wrapping his arms around her shoulders he pulled her against his side.

"Did you know she left Beth alone for over two hours? The neighbors heard her screams and were going to call the police."

"Two hours?" Sam tensed. "Is that why CPS took her away Quinn?" he asked stepping away from her.

She hugged herself, suddenly feeling like she was on the witness stand. She had wanted to tell Sam about all of this, in her own way. "I didn't mean to. I just lost track of time."

"But she's a baby you can't leave her alone for any amount of time." He ran his fingers through his hair roughly, yanking a few chunks along the way.

"I know that!" Quinn said sharply, tears falling down her face. Stupid embarrassing tears, she wished they would stop, she wanted her mask of indifference back, her hiding spot for her emotions. "I forgot okay. I jumped in the car and I forgot all about her."

"You forgot you had a child?" he asked, shock all over his face.

Everything was too raw now, too real. It hurt to see Sam getting upset, his eyes growing colder as he looked at her like she were a stranger, like someone he could hate. This wasn't right, he promised he would understand. He always understood.

"Don't look at me like that. You promised you wouldn't. I was out of my mind that night." Quinn reached out to touch him, to reassure him, to let him know she was the same person he always loved, but he backed away, as if she were tainted.

"Now do you see why she had to be put away? It took a whole lot of persuasion to get that nosy neighbor to keep her mouth shut. But I would do anything to protect my granddaughter."

"Don't act like you're some hero Sue, you wanted to see me fall, wanted me crazy. You did nothing to help me."

"I tried to step in, give you a break, you wouldn't let me near Beth most days."

"You think I want my baby around someone that hates me?" She was yelling, to drown out Sue's lies, to be heard over Beth's continued cries that filled the room like grating background music.

"It wasn't about you, selfish little twit," said Sue bitterly. "Beth was the priority, and you would know that if you were any kind of mother."

"Mercedes and Beiste were there, they helped out."

"How nice of you to put it all on Mercedes, especially when she was already busy taking care of Sam."

"Just stop it." Sam said from somewhere in the room.

His voice was low and weak, almost muffled, but Quinn didn't take the time to see why. Sue was determined to attack her and she had to defend herself.

"Mercedes wanted to do it. She loves Beth," said Quinn lowering her voice when she saw Beth's face. She had been reacting to their every word with wide eyes and whimpers, the loud noise must have bothered her.

"Mercedes loves Beth, we all do, as far as I can see you're the only one that seems not to care."

"Be quiet please," Sam said from behind them, his forehead pressed against the wall

"I do care. I love my baby."

She didn't have to prove anything to Sue she knew what was in her heart. She loved Beth, just because she was facing some challenges feeling the full power of that love didn't change the fact that it was there, buried inside her. She knew it was, she had felt it all the months she waited for her to be born in excited anticipation. She wanted her baby, and she loved her.

"Strange way of showing it, leaving her alone, cold and defenseless, anything could have happened."

Quinn would take every hit when it came to that, the whole world would gladly beat her down for that one heinous act, and she would let them. She deserved it all. There was nothing she could say to defend her actions that night. She knowingly put her child in harm's way and that was something she would have to live with forever. Sorry was nowhere good enough, but that was all she had.

"I know and I'm so sorry."

"Just words Quinn, totally meaningless and they don't change the fact that you're nothing but a cold-blooded –"

"Shut up. Just shut the hell up!" Sam yelled getting between them.

He looked off balance, as if he were drunk. Quinn reached out to steady him, but he pulled away, never meeting her eyes.

"Sam, your nose is bleeding."

Quinn opened her eyes and eased herself back to the present. Pushed to the sidelines, she watched Sue cradle Sam's head in her lap, lovingly stroking his hair, touching his face. Quinn watched helplessly, rubbing her bare arms, unable to be of any use. The man she loved was lying there in the middle of the floor helpless and she couldn't be near him. Every time she tried to approach Sue shoved her away, slapping at her hands like a bear protecting her cub. While her first instinct was to push Sue, she didn't. Instead she let Sue maintain her control, knowing that Sam would want his mother close if he were hurting or sick.

"Why did you send Marcel to get Mercedes?" Quinn peeked out the door hoping to catch a glimpse of the tall man. So far no one had appeared down the long corridor. "He's a nurse he could have done something."

"I wasn't leaving Sam alone in here with you, for all I know you could've poisoned him."

"Poison is your thing, not mine."

Sue rolled her eyes completely ignoring the reference to the plot to destroy her life. "You just keep your mouth shut from here on out. No more bouts of conscience. Dwight doesn't want Sam told about what you did to Beth yet."

"You're the one that brought the subject up. If you had just stayed out of it like you promised you would..."

"My emotions got the better of me. I said too much. I just don't like seeing him being manipulated by you."

"I wasn't manipulating him. We care about each other Sue, can't you just accept that?"

"No way in hell," said Sue, looking Quinn straight in the eyes. "But," she paused, running her hand through her hair. "I'm going to take a step back because I made a deal with God that I would and by the looks of things." She looked down at Sam and took a deep breath. "God is going to hold me to my word."

"Don't say that Sue." Quinn fell to her knees beside Sam, taking his hand, daring Sue to push her away. "There's nothing wrong with Sam."

"He's not responding!" Sue said loudly. "I think something is very wrong."

Quinn shook her head not wanting to hear such negativity. Sam was fine just a few minutes ago. This wasn't anything serious.

"Nothing bad is wrong. It's just…it's just nothing. It has to be. Where the hell is Marcel?" Quinn asked, jumping to her feet and heading to the door.

"You get back here! This house is full of people, the last thing we need is for everyone to know you're here. It will be a circus. We just need to wait for Marcel to come back with Mercedes and then we can decide what our next step is."

Quinn stopped, dropping her head. Sue was right. They didn't need to cause a scene, not with all the media out in front of the house.

She went back to Sam, threading her fingers though his. He was so still, almost like when he was in the coma, pale and lifeless. His hand was clammy to the touch, limp and unresponsive. Fear gripped her, chokingly tight, forming a lump in her throat. This couldn't be happening. They couldn't be losing him again, not now, not when they only just got him back. Quinn squeezed his hand hard, practically letting her nails embed in his skin, anything to get him to respond.

"Sam you've got to be okay. I need you."

"I know he's going to stand by you and there's nothing I can do about it." Sue stroked his blonde hair, ignoring the tears that were streaming down her face. "I have to sit back and watch him lose everything again, all because of you." She sniffled.

For a moment, Quinn understood, Sue was scared just like she was. This was her baby, unresponsive on the floor, and there was nothing she could do to help him. How could so much hate and love exist in the same person?

"He means so much to me Sue. We are building a life, a family. We both want the same things."

It was probably pointless to try to explain things to Sue, but she had to try. Maybe if she knew what was in her heart she'd relent, back off and let Sam be happy.

"Men always look more attractive when you have nothing. They make you feel strong, give you a base, something solid to hold on to, but that doesn't make it real. That doesn't make it love."

"You're wrong."

Quinn knew how it must look. She was down on her luck leaning on Sam, hoping he would save her, make her life better. She had used him before, as much as she hated to admit it, but this time was different. She didn't want anything from Sam except his heart. She would give up her freedom here and now, if it meant Sam would open his eyes and be okay.

"I've been there. I'm not wrong."

"About this you are," said Quinn with quiet defiance, keeping her eyes fixed on the older woman. "That's not me and Sam."

Sue was the first to look away, her blue eyes flashing with a hint of something unfamiliar, maybe even begrudging respect.

"I'm going to see what's keeping Marcel." Sue carefully propped up Sam's head on a pillow pulled from the bed before standing up. "Come here and hold him, so he will know he's not alone."

Quinn nodded as she took Sue's spot, the sting of tears the only hint of emotion she displayed.

With Sam finally in her arms, she took a deep breath in relief, she could hold him now, keep him safe. She pressed his face against her chest, rubbing his soft hair, running her hand down his arm. She wanted to touch him everywhere, never losing contact, so he would know she was there. So he would know it was time to come back from wherever he had drifted.

"Can you hear me Sam? Please wake up now," she whispered. "I'm getting really scared here. We have a big night planned, no backing out of it. You know I didn't sneak in here tonight just to wish you a happy birthday, though I'm sure you figured that out. I wanted to tell you that you are so special to me, my closest friend, my family. I don't ever want to lose you from my life. I want us to always be together. I love you so much." She kissed his forehead gently, her tears falling on his face. "I love you," she whispered again.

"Oh my God! You! Get the hell away from my husband."