Reaching Out

Chapter 9

Lindsey lay on a gurney. She felt someone beside her. "Good," she heard a voice say as her eyes were pulled open and a bright light shone in her eyes.

"Now try to focus," the same voice said.

Lindsey felt a throbbing pain in her head and as she tried to sit up she was pushed back by two strong hands.

"No, you need to stay down."

Lindsey complied and turned her head to the side to see where the voice came from. Finally she was able to see the person who the voice belonged to.

"Hey," the woman said. "I'm Sam. Can you tell me your name?"

"Lin…Lindsey Willows."

"Hi Lindsey. You're going to be alright. Do you remember what happened?" the paramedic asked as she checked the girl's pulse.

"We were in a bus…" Suddenly it all came back to the blonde and again she tried to sit up. "Megan. Where is she?"

"Calm down, Lindsey," the paramedic said. "You need to stay still. You've got a head injury."

The young Willows' woman reached up to feel her head. When she touched her left brow she yelled out in pain. Though it wasn't her head that hurt…

"And you've broken a few fingers of you left hand," Sam smiled ruefully.

"Where's Megan?" Lindsey asked again. The last thing she remembered about the brunette was that she didn't respond when she'd called for her. "She was with me on the bus…Megan Sidle. Have you seen her?"

The blonde was on the verge of going into shock and the paramedic had to put in a lot of effort to get her to stay on the gurney. "Calm down," Sam said again. "Tell me what she looks like."

"Brown, curly hair," Lindsey started. "Blue eyes. About my height and my age. She sat beside me on the bus," she said, her voice wavering.

"I'm sorry," the paramedic replied, shaking her head. "I haven't seen her." She reached up for some gauze so that she could clean up the wound on Lindsey's forehead.

"Please," the girl started as she grabbed the woman's arm. "I need to know. She…we…" She started to sob uncontrollably before she could finish the words she'd wanted to say.

"Once we're at the hospital I'll see if I can find out more for you," the woman replied while she fastened the brace around Lindsey's neck. It was only then that Lindsey fully realized she was in the back of a moving ambulance, on her way to the hospital.

After five minutes they arrived at the hospital and Lindsey was brought to the ER. Sam told the doctor all information she had on Lindsey's vitals and injuries as the man started to check her. Then the paramedic turned to Lindsey and bent down so that Lindsey could see her.

"I'll go see if I can find out where Megan is."

"Thank you," Lindsey replied softly, tears still rolling silently across her cheeks.

"I'll be back in a few. Hang in there," the paramedic said as she placed her hand on the girl's shoulder before leaving the room.

Then the doctor spoke up, "Hi, Miss Willows. I'm doctor Fredricks. I need you to listen to me, alright?"

"Yes," the blonde whispered.

"Good. I need to check your neck so you'll have to keep your head still," the man said as he started to open the neck-brace. "Don't move."

"Al…alright," Lindsey stuttered.

*-*-*-*-*

Thirty minutes later Lindsey was in a bed in another room. She'd suffered minor injuries, the cut in her forehead had been superficial despite the amount of blood she'd lost. Her hand, indeed, had been fractured -two of her metacarpals as well as her middle and ring finger were broken and now her left hand was in a plaster cast.

She had to stay for a few hours for observation, then -if everything was alright- she would be released.

In the same room she was in were three other persons, all of them had been passengers on the bus and all had suffered minor injuries.

However, Lindsey still hadn't seen Megan, and was worried about her. Sam hadn't been back to see her either. She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath as she felt a new wave of tears well up in her eyes.

"Hey." Suddenly Sam's voice filled her ears. Lindsey opened her eyes again and found the paramedic sitting in the chair next to her bed.

"How are you?" Sam started.

Lindsey merely looked at the woman, noticing in her eyes that something was wrong. "Please," she started, her voice no more than a whisper. "Just tell me where she is."

Sam raked a hand through her short, blonde hair. This was one thing of her field of work she'd never get used to. "She's in surgery right now," Sam started. "She's suffered internal injuries. I'm sorry, Lindsey," she continued as she took the girl's hand, "but things aren't looking too well."

Lindsey gasped, salty drops falling like waterfalls, staining her cheeks again. Oh God no. I can't lose you. Not when I just found you. The silent tears turned into loud sobs. "Can…can I see…see her?"

Sam shook her head. "Once she gets out of surgery she'd be placed at the ICU."

"Please," Lindsey begged. "I need her…I mean…I need to see her," she quickly said, avoiding the paramedic's eyes.

"It's okay," Sam smiled as she stroked the girl's upper arm. Suddenly the paramedic's pager went. She checked the display then said, "I need to make a phone call. Then I'll ask if there's more info on your girlfriend."

Lindsey was surprised by the paramedic's words, but soon realized how right the words had been.

My girlfriend.

"Thanks," she muttered to the woman's retreating back.

"No problem," Sam replied, winking at the girl before she vanished into the hallway.

Chapter 10

Sara and Catherine entered the UCSF Medical Center, still not knowing whether Lindsey and Megan were alright.

"I'll ask at the nurse's station," Catherine said as she pointed to the desk. It was the first thing she'd said after Sara had told her the information Grissom had been able to find out.

Sara nodded at the strawberry blonde, then, as her cell phone started to ring, she saw on the display that it was Grissom. "Yes?" she asked, her voice sounding strained.

"Megan and Lindsey both are still alive," Grissom stated. "The casualties have been identified, neither of the girls being one of them."

Sara let out a breath -only then realizing she'd stopped breathing when she'd answered the call. At that moment Catherine came walking back. They're both alive," the brunette immediately said.

Catherine nodded, though didn't seem to be relieved. Sara looked into the older woman's sapphire eyes and saw the emotional turmoil in them. "I gotta go, Grissom," she quickly said before snapping her cell shut. "What's the matter?" she continued. "They're both alright."

Catherine took a step towards the taller woman, stopping right in front of her. "No, Sara," the strawberry blonde said. "We don't know yet."

"What do you mean...is Lindsey-"

"It's not Linds," Catherine interrupted, shaking her head. "It's Megan."

Sara felt her previous calmness starting to crumble. She clenched her fists at her sides, a wave of anger and helplessness coursing through her veins. "No," she stated harshly as she avoided Catherine's eyes.

Catherine reached for the taller woman. "She's in surgery at the moment, she has multiple internal injuries," she started as she pulled Sara's rigid body into a tight embrace. "They told me she..."

"What?" Sara asked as she stepped out of the strawberry blonde's reach, again sounding harsh.

"They're not sure whether she'll make it through surgery." Catherine didn't let herself be put off by the brunette's angry demeanor and reached for her again, taking Sara's clenched fists in her hands, softly caressing its back. "Let's go to the waiting area."

Sara visibly relaxed at the older woman's simple caress. "Sorry," she muttered, avoiding Catherine's eyes in shame. It didn't happen often that she felt this angry...this out of control.

"What about Lindsey?" Sara asked as Catherine guided her towards the elevators. But even before the strawberry blonde could reply, the brunette continued, "We'll go check on her first."

Catherine was about to argue about this, but as she saw the pleading look in Sara's eyes she knew that it wasn't what the brunette needed at the moment. "Alright," she replied as she took Sara's hand and pulled her into the elevator that had just arrived.

Lindsey'd been placed in a room on the third floor while the operating room where Megan still was, was situated on the fourth floor, so their first stop would be the third floor. Sara held Catherine's hand firmly clasped in her own, the dam she'd built around her emotions starting to crumble.

Catherine, though glad to know Lindsey was okay, didn't feel relieved -far from it even. The pain she'd seen in the younger woman's eyes she'd been able to feel for herself. She realized that if the situation had been the other way around, Sara would have been there for her as well. So, now she'd give the brunette all the support and comfort she had.

Sara looked at Catherine as she felt a small squeeze. The small, wordless action did her good. It gave her back some of her strength. She smiled a rueful smile and returned the gesture.

The door slid open and the two women quickly headed for the room where Lindsey was, their hands still linked; the comfort still shared.

As they reached the room, they noticed that Lindsey was sleeping. There were bandages on her head, her hand was in a cast, and a woman was sitting in the chair beside her bed, holding her hand.

Catherine immediately walked over to the bed and glared at the short-haired blonde. "Who are you?"

Sara stopped beside Catherine and was the first to notice the woman's uniform. She placed her hand on the strawberry blonde's upper arm, trying to somewhat restrain her. "Catherine," she started. But before she could finish her sentence, Lindsey woke up.

The younger Willows woman looked at the hand that covered hers as all that had happened came back to her. She smiled at Sam and noticed that there were other people standing beside her bed.

Green eyes blinked a few times, then settled on Catherine. "Mom," Lindsey sighed as she spotted her mother. She tried to sit up, reaching for her mother.

"Linds." Catherine carefully embraced her daughter, kissing her forehead. "I'm so glad you're okay," she said as she pulled her daughter closer.

"Mom," Lindsey replied in a small voice. "Meg...Megan...she's..." Tears started to well up again and as she spotted Sara she couldn't stop them from falling.

Catherine held her daughter's shaking body. "Shh, sweety. Calm down."

"She's...still in surgery. It's..." Lindsey said in between sobs. "it's..." The girl couldn't utter the words she'd been told by Sam half an hour ago.

Sam, who had vacated the chair, looked from mother to daughter. As she saw the pleading look in Lindsey's eyes she wordlessly understood what the girl asked. She cleared her throat and spoke up, "Her friend Megan suffered major internal injuries. She has a ruptured spleen, a perforated lung, and was unconscious when they brought her here."

Even before Sam had finished explaining about Megan's conditions Sara had exited the room in a hurry.

Catherine at first didn't notice Sara's hasty exit, though when Sam started to head after the brunette, Catherine stopped her.

"I'll go after her," the strawberry blonde said as she looked at Lindsey. The younger Willows woman nodded at her mother, wiping away the tears that stained her cheeks. "Will you please stay with her till I get back?" Catherine asked of the paramedic, not even awaiting the answer.

Sam nodded. "Sure," she said as she stepped back to the bed and watched the older woman head after the brunette.

Continued…

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