Extremely personal chapter once again. Just another kick down in my life.
"Darling! We got to head to work soon!" Adam called out. The kids were ready to go and playing happily downstairs. "Yeah I know! Just FaceTiming with Michael." Kim was talking to Michael when Adam heard her yelling for Michael over and over again. Adam ran to be by Kim's side to see what was happening. "Adam give me your phone!" Kim grabbed the phone and called 911. Adam saw Michael gasping for air as Kim called it in. As Michael came to he told Kim that she was over reacting. "Really asshole! You have a history of blood clots in your lungs. We are not taking a chance. Be pissed off I don't care!" Kim,yelled at him. She was angry and not interested in listening to his bullshit. "I feel better than I did a few minutes ago. It's fine this is all too much." He replied annoyed. Adam hadn't said much as Kim was holding her own at the moment. "It's not to much! You were gasping for air! You need medical assistance. I'm staying on the phone till you arrive at the hospital. So be prepared for a long call." She huffed as she finished getting ready.
Adam got the kids in the car as they started to drive to the daycare. Kim was still focused on your phone making sure Michael was still breathing. She admitted he did look better but she wasn't backing down. When the paramedics arrived she unlocked the door from her phone. She yelled into the phone so they heard her. Once they started to assess Michael he was being cold and flat out stated that she over reacted by calling it in. Kim once again explained to the paramedics that he had a history of blood clots and that it seemed like it was happening again. They agreed it was better safe than sorry. She stayed on the phone as they moved him to the ambo in the driveway. The whole time her body was in pure panic but she tried to hold it together for the kids. Once they were dropped off Kim allowed herself to feel the pain from the was needing to be released. Adam held her as she cried. He couldn't imagine how hard that was to watch the first time let alone again. Once her tears were somewhat dry they headed to work. Her phone never leaving her hand.
Everyone noticed Kim's mood right away when she entered the bullpen. She dropped her bag and headed to the locker room to clean up some. "So is she okay?" Kevin asked knowing Adam would know what had happened. "Not even close. She was on FaceTime with her bestie Michael when he passed out and started to gasp for air. She was yelling for him but he was unresponsive. She used my phone to call 911. He's pissed at her, thinks she over reacted but last time he passed out gasping for air it turned out to be a pulmonary embolism and he literally died twice that day in front of Kim. So she wasn't taking a chance this time." Adam explained as they all looked shocked and sad for their friend. "She was a mess after that. Lived in flight mode for a year before her body started to shut down. Luckily she's in therapy already so she should be able to work through it before it becomes a bigger issue." He knew that was more information than they needed but it was background that explained Kim's state of mind more.
"Sounds rough. I'm sure it wasn't fun to watch for either of you." Jay offered knowing it had to be traumatic watching someone struggling to breathe. "Yeah it was bad. More for Kim but I could have lived without seeing that. She's also his emergency contact so the hospital will be calling shortly I'm sure." He watched Kim return and head right for the break room. She made herself a tea and heads to her chair to wait for the call. The phone never leaving her hand. Roughly an hour later the phone rings and she knows right away it's the hospital. "Kimberly Burgess speaking?" She answered heading back to the break room. "Good morning this Pocono Medical calling about Michael Bremer. We know you are in Chicago but we wanted to share his status." The nurse could hear the sigh in the other end. "Okay how bad is it?" Kim asked worried beyond belief. "Well not great. He has a massive pulmonary embolism and admitted he hasn't been taking his blood thinners daily. He also has a slight case of pneumonia. We are starting him on meds for all of that right away and he will be transferred to Cedar Crest later today. The clot is so large they have the expertise to handle such a large clot. We will of course call if anything changes." The nurse hated delivering bad news. "Well that's exactly what I thought was happening. Thank you for the call. I do appreciate it." Kim hung up shortly after pissed off and frustrated.
As she left the break room all eyes were on her. "I was right! Stupid shithead wasn't taking his meds as directed and has a massive PE which is requiring him to be transferred to another hospital. And he also has slight pneumonia. So I might just kill him myself. They are starting him on heparin right away as well as an antibiotic and some fluids. They have him on oxygen since his oxygen rate was at 87 when the paramedics picked him up. But looks like me being an asshole with him saved his life again. Thank god for small favors." Kim sunk into her chair and buried her face in her hands trying to relax a bit but it wasn't easy that was for sure. "Sounds like you did good. Made the right call whether he liked it or not. That's important. Don't ever lose sight of that." Al walked over giving her a hug knowing she needed comfort in that moment. "Thanks just hard when I'm so far away. I'm just so thankful I was on the phone when it happened. Otherwise who knows what would have happened to him." She sighed heavily but couldn't dwell on it for too long. They had a case and that was always more important.
As the teams headed the crime scene Kim was on her phone checking in with Michael. She also got a hold of someone to clean his house since pneumonia is contagious. She wanted the whole house clean and safe before his return. Though she had no idea when that would be at this point. And while Jay was concerned for his partner she had never let him down and he knew she wouldn't today. She just needed to clear up a few loose ends so she could forget about it for a while. The scene was the usual dead gang bangers but no signs of drugs or guns. And with gang bangers you never knew which it was going to be. As they processed the scene Adam came across a trap door leading to a crawl space under the house. It was hidden under a rug with a table on top so it was harder to find. It was a tight fit but he worked his way in with Kevin right behind him in case. "Yeah so I found lots of coke and lots of cash. Looks like whoever killed these guys didn't find the full stash." He climbed back out having CSU go in to photograph the evidence before collecting it.
Kim and Jay were still working the upstairs when they both heard a noise. Neither sure where it was coming from but turned their radios so the team could hear every word they said. They needed to get the message across without startling whoever was hiding. They continued to search hoping to find this hidden person before shots were fired. Just as they entered the last room the last offender came out of the closet charging at them knife in hand. Luckily Jay was trained in hand to hand combat and was able to block the first few swings while Kim placed her weapon on the back of his head. "Drop the knife! You don't need to do this. Killing a cop is a suicide mission. And I really don't want to shoot you!" Kim yelled seeing the man stop dead in his tracks feeling the cold metal on his neck. He never spoke just dropped the knife. Jay cuffed him right away dragging him down the stairs. Kim stayed for a minute to compose herself before heading down the stairs as well.
The partners were met with praise for a job well done as they left the house. "Alright Jay and Kim interview this guy figure out who he is and why he was there. Adam you and Kevin figure out if these drugs were stolen or if they are linked to any known deaths. The rest find out who our DOAs are." Voight sent everyone off with their missions. "Nice job back there. You held your own against a knife." Kim was proud he was her partner even if it was temporary. "Thanks. But you too. You did a good job separating work and personal. I'm sure today was horrific but you did good." He was truly surprised how well she separated the two. "I guess I'm used to it. Having a shitty marriage that weighted heavy on my heart and soul with a very dangerous job taught me to separate pretty well." Kim shrugged but knew he probably already knew that much. "Truly we aren't all that good at separating the two so I'm impressed to say the least. Now onto better topics. Did I hear something about you and Adam looking for a place together?" He asked with a shit eating grin.
"Um yeah. I uh sold my house in Queens. And both my kids and myself feel safer when he's there. I feel like more the real me with him. We are both happy and I'm tired of running from having a life I really want. So we moved forward, together." Kim tired not to give too many details away. She liked having some things private and this was one of them for sure. "That's great. I'm happy for you both. We can all see how clearly happy you are together. And how his support has allowed you to grow into the person you want to be. We are proud of you both. You for opening up and trusting again and him for supporting you and your kids. Takes a real man to be a dad to kids that aren't his own. And I know that's pushing it but you know it's coming." He gave her a very knowing look. "Yeah I know. But they have to want that. I will never rush. Especially since they knew their father, even if they were scared of him. They knew they had one so they have to be able to decide when to call Adam dad. It's on their time." Kim would never rush the kids. Truthfully she wasn't ready for that either. "We get it. Just know you have our support." Jay parked the car as they headed inside the district.
They were heading up the stairs to the district as her phone rang once more. "Kimberly Burgess?" Kim answered as she continued to walk. "Good afternoon just wanted to let you know that Michael is being transported as we speak. We know you aren't close by but we got him and we promise to take good care of him." The man replied. "That's great. Which way did they decide? Helicopter or Ambulance?" She asked knowing Jay was watching her. "Helicopter. The skies are clear. Should be about an 18 minute flight. We will let you know when he has arrived. Can I ask has this happened before?" The paramedic asked. "Um yeah. Just about 10 years ago. Collapsed on the hardwood floors face first. Broke the clot enough to let him breathe again. The fall broke the clot into tons of small pieces so it dissolved pretty fast." Kim shook her head and stopped walking.
Jay stayed close by just in case. "Okay. Just so you know, we were pleased with how good he looked when we arrived. We were expecting him to look way worse. He's going to the best hospital. Just try to relax some. We will keep you informed of his arrive." Kim hung up after that. "Did I hear them say helicopter?" He asked looking towards her. "Yeah. Apparently due to the size and pneumonia they decided to take him somewhere he could get better care. Which I appreciate. But he will also have to be in the ICU. They might do surgery to remove it if the heparin doesn't work fast enough. So we shall see. Lucky for me being his medical power of attorney." Kim rolled her eyes smiling slightly. "Not close to his family?" He asked. "Um not really. They don't even know it happened the first time. He doesn't tell them most things. He had surgery last year and they didn't know till months after. He hates people fawning over him. He's ridiculous!" Kim shook her head again. "Probably not the best attitude to have but not my issue. Good luck!" Jay smirked as he headed towards his desk.
The team got back to work, everyone had their own task. Voight and Al were interviewing the man that attacked Jay. Though Kim was focused on her work her phone never left her hand. She was waiting for anything to let her know what was going on. It had been a scary morning in more than one way. But she had to focus. It wasn't too much later that her phone rang once more letting her know that Michael had arrived at the new hospital safely and that he was doing well all things considered. She had taken the call in the break room so she would disturb anyone. She wasn't surprised when she heard the door opening and Adam walking in silently. He waited till she hung up before wrapping his arms around her. "How are you holding up?" He whispered feeling her body relax a bit. "Um I'm angry. Shocked by the level of stupidity. Scared that he could have died. That he's still not well. He's in the ICU. Thankful that he's still here and I was on the phone when it happened. But also thankful that there wasn't blood everywhere this time. And I didn't have to see paramedics shock him back to life. The smell of old blood still makes me sick. I assume tonight's going to be rough. Once I have time to sit with it and let it settle in my head. As long as I stay busy I'm good. It's once I'm not that I'm worried about. Just promise you will stay close in case I fall apart." She turned in his arms to hold him as well. "Always!" He kissed her forehead before they headed back to work.
The case finished hours later, everyone was headed out to Mollys. Kim declined wanting nothing more than to see her children and to try and forget the horrible day. Adam declined as well knowing Kim needed him and he promised to stay close just in case. As they drove home Kim stayed silent. She was having a hard time processing what had transpired that morning. She did respond to several messages from friends who had visited Michael. And she also responded to the cleaners who would be washing everything in Michael's home. She wanted it sterilized before he was released from the hospital. They arrived home to two very excited kids. Kim put on a happy face so the kids wouldn't know anything was wrong. She didn't want them to worry. They lived with enough worry already. The sitter left the small family leaving Kim and Adam to get the kids in bed for the night. Thankfully they had already eaten and just needed to be taken to bed.
Once they were alone again Kim retreated to the deck. It was calm and she didn't need to hide her emotions. She could just let it out if needed. But she currently felt numb. Adam watching her closely. He moved closer to hold her. Picking her up to place her in his lap. "I can feel the anxiety running through your body. Is there anything I can do?" He asked holding her tight. "I really don't know. I have no idea how to explain how I feel in depth or how to deal with it. I kind of feel betrayed a bit because he promised he was taking his meds and obviously he's not. I'm angry he lied to me about it. And I'm pissed off about how he reacted to me calling 911. Telling me I overreacted. Well apparently I didn't! Not to mention it was like seeing the past again. Though not bloody but watching him struggle to breathe. It was hard and scary. I still feel like I'm flashing a bit. I know I need sleep but I'm afraid it won't come. And what I need to sleep people think is an issue so I don't know." Kim just stared at the dark backyard. "What do you need to sleep?" He asked. He never saw her take pills except for Advil. "Um I really just need a Xanax. I don't take it often. It's been months but after really bad cases I will take one. After close calls I might take one but this I need it or I won't sleep. I already know it. I will be haunted all night by it." She didn't dare look at him.
Too many people saw it as a party drug or something drug addicts used but it has legitimate uses. "Then let's get you to bed and you take one. I will hold you all night. I don't think it's an issue. You clearly aren't addicted to it. We've been together for a while now and Ive never seen you take it so I'm not worried. And you absolutely need your sleep. So let's go." He helped her up the stairs and allowed her to change while he got her some water. When he returned he saw where she kept the bottle hidden in the bathroom. He watched her take one pill and place it in her mouth. She washed it down then hid the bottle once more. He held out his hand waiting till she took it to lead her to bed. "Just rest now. You are safe." He whispered as she fell asleep safely wrapped in his arms.