Chapter 2

Gasping for breath, Arizona had one last chance searching with her hands for anything that could help. She felt something hard and metal hit her hand, the gun, she brought it up in front of her and pulled the trigger. Blood flew everywhere as the pressure on her neck eased, Gary Clarke's blue eyes met hers for a brief second as he fell forwards landing on top of her, dead.

"Arizona," Callie was there rolling him off her, "Are you okay?" she used a sheet to wipe some of the blood off her face. Arizona sat up, gasping for breath.

"I'm okay" she croaked, her throat sore, her head aching, her ribs, sending shooting pains deep into her chest. "Call the police, let them know the shooter has been neutralized," she ordered, holding her ribs, Callie regaining her focus jumped to obey, the nurse ran in alerted by the gun shot, "Anabelle, start prepping Ruby, we still have to remove her appendix, I need to scrub again" She gripped the gun going to the controlled drugs cupboard, Annabelle handing her the keys placing the gun inside locking the door pocketing the keys.

"Arizona," Callie caught her arm, "You're hurt".

"I know but right now if I don't operate Ruby will die," Commitment, she had made a promise to Ruby, she wasn't going to let her down and while Callie was an amazing surgeon it had been a long time since she had done an appendix, especially on a moving, awake child, whereas Arizona at least removed appendix frequently. She just had to block out the pain, she had to push through. Robbins were strong, they never gave up, her grandfather had drowned after saving 17 people, he was trying to make it 18 when his body betrayed him, that was who she was, someone she had been brought up to be. She was going to save Ruby, regardless of how hurt she was.

"Someone else can" Callie protested in a hushed whisper,

"Callie, we don't know who is alive, we don't know if the OR is free or a crime scene, what I do know is there is a scared 7-year-old child with an epidural and a ruptured appendix who is going into septic shock. If I don't remove it in the next 10 minutes, she is likely to die. So, I need you to call the police, let them know we have a shooter down and help me remove these appendix" Arizona said, honor, the unwavering need to fulfil obligations. She made eye contact with Callie pleading with her to help. Callie nodded reaching into her pocket pulling out her phone dialing 911 for the second time.

"Hello this is Dr Torres, in Peds." She hoped her voice wasn't shaking as much as she thought it was as she watch Arizona scrub the blood from her face, her whole front drenched in blood and brain matter. "The shooter he came, he had a gun, there are children, Ruby, he'd been shot. Arizona, she pleaded with him to leave, pleaded with him to spare the children, we have them all grouped together in one room, it was my idea, makes it easier to monitor them," Callie rambled, she felt Arizona's presence by her side, as she gently took the phone,

"This is Dr Robbins, I've shot one of the shooters, I have the gun locked in the CD cupboard" she kept her voice steady; Marines didn't panic in a crisis they kept calm powered through, "Was he working alone?"

"We believe so we have armed officers searching the building and evacuating people, but it is taking time" The police officer replied, "Can you safely evacuate.

"We have a 7-year-old with a ruptured appendix, I need to operate now, or she'll die I can evacuate my ward after" Arizona offered,

"Very well" Arizona hung up the phone, handing it back to Callie, she could tell her girlfriend, ex-girlfriend was traumatized, "Callie you are okay, I'm okay and Ruby will be okay, take a breath, steady your hands, you are amazing, talented, and so good with kids. I need you to keep Ruby calm, I need you calm" Arizona soothed. Callie nodded Arizona words getting through. "And tonight, I'll pour us both a large glass of wine, you with red and me, white and we can freak out together" Arizona promised. Ruby screamed interrupting the rest of Arizona's speech.

"Callie, can you do the drapes, Annabelle can you start evacuating the children, I need to scrub" Arizona ordered taking charge scrubbing at the sink.

"Can we not wait, do it at Pres?" Callie asked concerned, keeping her voice low, her hand steadying Arizona's back,

"I don't think we have that much time" Arizona whispered, shooting Ruby a worried glance. Callie nodded, deferring to Arizona's judgement.

Once sterile she went back to Ruby getting gowned and gloved up, taking the scalpel she lightly touched the stomach,

"Can you feel that honey?" she asked,

"Feel what?" Ruby asked,

"Feel Dr Torres holding your hand" Arizona lied as she began her first cut, her focus now totally on the surgery, as she trusted Callie to distract Ruby.

"I want my mum and dad" Ruby moaned as she squirmed, just as Arizona was cutting the infected Appendix out,

"Keep her still" Arizona whispered to Callie, who began singing. Arizona paused marveling at Callie's voice she was truly gifted.

The surgery only took 30 minutes, by the time Arizona was doing her last stitch the swat team had arrived, and Graciela and the Pediatric nurses had started evacuating the patients.

"Done" Arizona said, stepping back from the table, "we can go and find your parents now Ruby" she said happily,

"Light is green?" Ruby asked, "Dr R? Light is green" she repeated worriedly, Callie looked up finding Arizona gasping for breathing holding onto the sink, appearing like she was going to collapse, the surgery had finished and so had the adrenaline, now she was crashing, hard.

"Arizona" she cried worriedly running to catch her lowering her to the floor, "babe, open your eyes" she asked gently running her hands down the side of Arizona's bruised face. There was no response but she was breathing.

"Is Dr R dead?" Ruby asked, Callie forced herself to smile trying to reassure the traumatized child,

"No, she is just tired." Callie lied relieved as she found a pulse. Needing help she ran to the door, shouting for anyone to come, to her relief Meredith and Cristina were walking past.

"Meredith, I need you to take Ruby downstairs, Arizona just removed her appendix under local, we gave fluids and antibiotics. Her parents are down there somewhere too" Callie handed over, noticing both women just staring at the dead body in the middle of the Pediatric treatment room. "Meredith go," Callie ordered. She had to pick Meredith to escort Ruby out, Cristina alone with a traumatized child was a recipe for disaster.

"Cristina help. She took down the shooter, finished her surgery and collapsed" Callie cried, Cristina ran over, helping Callie carefully roll Arizona over, trying to remember the basics. It was harder when it was someone you knew.

"What happened?" Cristina asked checking Arizona's airway, reaching over and applying the O2. "Distended neck veins"

"He came in with the gun, she went to give him gauze and took him down, she seemed fine, she finished the surgery, stepped back and collapsed" Callie babbled in shock, the shooter was less than a meter from their position and she half expected him to come back to life and shoot them both.

"I think she broke some ribs, maybe a tension or a tamponade" Cristina diagnosed getting the stethoscope and listening, "Muffled heart sounds, I need a large needle and an ultrasound" she ordered,

"Are you qualified to do this?" Callie asked worriedly.

"Do you see anyone else?" Cristina snapped back, "I can do this" she said confidently taking the needle from Callie, carefully landmarking the ribs,

"Ultrasound" Cristina ordered, Callie gently placed it locating the heart, "Keep it still, I'm advancing the needle" she said calmly, they watched on the ultrasound as it pierced the sack around the heart, Cristina then began pulling the blood out, they watched as the heart began pumping more,

"Okay, we need to stabilize her more" Cristina ordered, working quickly to put in a canula start an IV and run fluids. "She needs to go to the OR; I'd like to do a Thoracotomy with pericardiotomy or establishment of a subxiphoid pericardial window. Teddy is in the OR, if we can get her there we can make sure there is no damage".

"The OR is closed," Callie reminded her, "There is a shooter".

"Callie, the shooter is here, he is dead, we need a sterile OR" Cristina pointed out studying the shooter, "he was looking for Derek" she said remembering pointing him in the way of Derek's office, which was just next to the Pediatric ward. She knew Derek wasn't in his office, when April had found him, he'd gone straight to the OR taking April with him, finding Cristina and Meredith on the way back to his office ordering them to evacuate. The shooter must have gone there found it empty then headed to the nearest ward.

Callie nodded, "I'll go find a bed" she offered running down the ward returning seconds later with a trolley.

"On 3" Cristina ordered, "1, 2, 3…Robbins needs to lay off the doughnuts" she moaned, as they gently placed her on the bed reattaching the monitor.

Carefully they left the Pediatric ward going to the lifts,

"They're not working" Callie noticed, "there is no hum".

"This is stupid, you got the shooter" Cristina snarked. "Why did they have to shut everything down".

Callie sighed, holding Arizona's hand, searching for options,

"I could carry her downstairs" she offered not waiting for Cristina she carefully lifted her girlfriend up, glad Orthopedic surgery had made her strong. Cristina got the doors and held the monitor, as they made their way down the 2 flights.

As soon as they entered the OR corridor Cristina dropped the monitor finding a trolley, Callie glad to put her down.

"Hey, what are you doing, there's a shooter, the chief told us to stay put" Jackson said, sticking his head out of the OR.

"Robbins shot him" Cristina told him gleefully, enjoying his shocked face. "Mctakedown, McKickass," she sounded out, "where is Teddy?"

"She left with Owen, it's just me and a surgical team". Jackson said, Cristina eyed the monitor, Jackson studying it too.

"She can't wait" Cristina decided. "We are lucky her heart hasn't burst already".

"Well, we have a whole scrub team" Jackson offered.

"Callie, you can't be here, I can't see your sad puppy dog eyes staring at me while I cut into the love of your life," Cristina ordered. "April, you're good at the mushy stuff sit with her".

"I'm Ortho, I can help with her ribs, make sure they don't get broken" Callie pleaded, wanting Arizona's chest and heart to be as undamaged as possible.

"Her ribs are already broken that's what has pierced her heart, it must be a small leak, but you're her girlfriend, she is your person, I need you out" Cristina ordered her hands shaking slightly as she scrubbed,

"Cristina" Callie pleaded using her first name, "Please look after her" she begged. Cristina nodded.

"I will" she promised.

April nodded, taking Callie's hand, sitting her on the floor. As Cristina entered the OR.

"You're covered in blood are you okay?" Callie asked April who rocked slightly.

"Reid is dead, he shot Reid, I fell I slipped and landed on her body, she was by best friend, and she is dead" April sobbed. Callie put her arms around her not caring that she got covered in blood herself.

"Arizona got the shooter" Callie said, still struggling that Arizona had fought a gunman, her perky roller-skating girlfriend who cried at Disney movies had tackled a gunman.

"Good" April said, making Callie look at her with surprise, she was sure April would be asking her to forgive, wasn't that the Christian thing to do. "I know the bible teaches forgiveness, but he shot my friend, and she wouldn't hurt a fly, she was good and talented, she was going to be a good doctor, not like me" April sobbed. "I'm the screw up, I'm still waiting for them to fire me again, and now my friend, my roommate, has been shot and I don't know what to do"?

"Right now, you feel, it's hard, but we are safe, then you are going to stay with us, Arizona, Cristina and I, we have a sofa bed, it's not the most comfortable but you have friends, and you are going to be an amazing doctor" Callie reassured, remembering her time grieving George. "I promise, when this is over I'll teach you the Torres method"

"The Torres method?" April questioned, despite the situation Callie grinned,

"My secret method for passing exams, guaranteed to not let you fail," Callie reassured,

"She'll be okay, Dr Robbins is strong" April promised, "we can pray?" she offered nervously, to her relief Callie nodded.

They both bowed their heads, still holding hands.

"God, it's April, you took my friend, please don't take my mentor. Dr Robbins, is awesome, perky, she saves children, she makes everyone happier, please we need a win," April begged crying, Callie squeezed her hands.

"God, remember when I asked you to help me get over the butterflied scrub cap, and I fell in love instead. I need her to be alive, she completes me, she is my everything, please God" Callie prayed harder than she ever had before.

"April, please call me Callie, at least while we are here" Callie requested.

"Okay Callie" April said smiling, as the OR door burst open, the door making a huge bang as they did so, causing both women to take cover.

Wait, who is barging through the doors? Is Gary Clarke dead, is there another shooter?

Let me know your guesses