In A Heartbeat

Chapter Two

Riley Connolly helped the nurses lift the wounded officer up onto the gurney. She

quickly assessed her injuries. The bulletproof vest had deflected most of the impact of

the shoulder shot. It was her leg that had Riley worried. Keith had been taken to the

trauma room next door and she could see the doctor working over him. She pushed

thoughts of him away and concentrated on the officer who'd saved her. The nurses

quickly cut her clothes off, inserted IV's and attached her to a heart monitor. Riley

glanced up from where she was working to stop the bleeding at the officer's groin. She

was suddenly uncomfortable seeing the beautiful body of the officer on display, which

surprised her; usually the last thing on her mind was a patient's modesty. Not really

knowing why she reached up and pulled the sheet up over her exposed chest and pelvis.

Several police officers barged into the room.

"How is she? Is she going to be okay? We need to talk to you about what happened here

doctor," demanded one of the officers.

"You can't be in here, let me work and I'll talk to you when I can." Riley said never looking up from where she was still trying to stop the bleeding. "I think the femoral

artery has been nicked. Type and cross her for 4 units and send them to the OR STAT!

Open the IV's full bore she's losing too much volume. We have to get her upstairs NOW!

Let's move it people!"

One of the officers stepped in front of her, "You're going to operate on her? Are you a surgeon?"

Riley tried to push the large man aside. "Yes, I'm a trauma surgeon. Now get the hell out of my way. I'm trying to save your friend before she bleeds to death!" The officer

quickly scurried out of her way.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Riley stepped out of the OR and watched as they rolled the officer into recovery. She had

indeed had a nick in her femoral artery. She'd managed to repair it before the tissue was

damaged from loss of blood flow. They had been able to stabilize her quickly with little

additional blood loss; her vitals had come up after pumping in a couple liters of fluid.

They'd been able to complete the surgery without having to give her a blood transfusion.

The leg had pinked up well and Riley was confident the officer would, baring any

complications, recover fully. With the strain of being held at gunpoint then the struggle

to save the injured officer who'd been shot protecting her, Riley was at the end of her

rope. She was physically and mentally exhausted. She slumped against the wall outside

the OR.

"Dr. Connolly." Riley looked up wearily as one of the recovery room nurses approached.

"There are several police officers waiting to talk to you and the patient's family has arrived."

It was then that Riley realized she didn't even know the officer's name. She walked over

and picked up the officer's chart off the rack flipping to the first page she saw her name, Samantha McKenna.

"Okay Sara, I just need to check that she's gotten settled in recovery and write her post op orders. I'll be out to talk to the family then the police officers."

Riley entered the recovery room and went straight to Samantha's bed. She couldn't help

admiring the beautiful woman with her high cheekbones and classically chiseled

features. Not even realizing what she was doing, she gently brushed Samantha's dark

hair back from her face and softly stroked her cheek. God she's gorgeous, she thought.

Riley jerked her hand back when she realized what she was doing. She went over her

chart and wrote out her post op orders. Everything seemed fine. She looked down into

Samantha's slack features marveling at what the woman had done throwing herself in

front of Keith. She couldn't believe the officer had risked her life for someone she didn't even know. Sighing heavily she made her way out to face the family and Samantha's

fellow officers knowing this was all her fault.

The surgical waiting room was packed with police officers. Sitting in one corner were

two women looking shell-shocked holding hands. Riley did a double take; the dark

haired woman could've been the twin of the woman she'd just left in the recovery room.

She ignored all the officers and approached the two women.

"Are you here for Samantha McKenna?" She asked the two women already knowing the

answer. Jess looked up at the small slender redhead. Riley backed up a step when the tall

raven-haired woman rose towering over her. Her vibrant blue eyes locked with the

doctor's violet ones.

"Yes, I'm Jess McKenna, Sam's my sister. This is my wife Kim." She introduced the blond standing next to her. Riley glanced down noting the wedding rings both women

were wearing. "What's my sister's condition?"

"I'm Dr. Connolly, I operated on your sister." Riley said shaking hands with both women.

She's in recovery and doing well."

"What was the extent of her injuries? All the officers told us was that she'd been shot twice." Jess asked.

"Her bulletproof vest deflected most of the impact of the gunshot to her shoulder. She has a graze wound and extensive bruising to her shoulder. The second shot was to her

leg, it did a bit of damage." Riley explained. "I repaired the damage and she should recover fully."

"Exactly what type of damage? Please be specific. I'm a physician. I'm Head of the ER at LA Metropolitan."

Riley blushed. "I'm sorry Dr. McKenna no one told me that. The bullet entered at the

groin and nicked the femoral artery, it then tracked downward damaging the quadriceps

muscle. I was able to repair the damage to the artery and the limb pinked up

immediately. I also repaired the muscle damage. The damage to the muscle was fairly

extensive. Fortunately it was a small caliber handgun or the damage would've been even

more widespread. We were able to support her with several liters of fluid and avoid a

blood transfusion. With physical therapy she will regain full use of the leg."

"The police said you were in the room when she was shot?" Jess questioned.

"Yes, I was being held at gunpoint, your sister threw herself between me and the

gunman. I'm so sorry she got hurt." Riley apologized contritely.

"When can we see her?" Kim asked.

Riley glanced up meetings the blond's gaze. "She's still in recovery and will be going to the ICU once she regains consciousness. You can see her as soon as she reaches the

ICU."

"I'd like to see her now." Jess requested. When Riley hesitated Kim spoke up. "My wife and I are both physicians, as a professional courtesy we'd like to see her for just a few

minutes. We're both aware of the rules of the recovery room."

"Okay, but only for a few minutes." Riley conceded.

Jess headed straight for Sam's bed. She picked up her hand on her uninjured side.

Stroking Sam's hair she kissed her sister gently on the forehead. "Hey Kiddo," she whispered, "What have you done to yourself?" Kim came up and wrapped her arms

around Jess's waist. Jess pulled Kim close to her side, her eyes never leaving Sam's face.

Kim could tell Jess was struggling to control her emotions. "She'll be okay sweetheart, she's strong." Kim tried to reassure Jess. A nurse was waiting patiently to take Sam's vitals. "Come on let the nurse do her job. We'll see her again in the ICU." Jess leaned down and kissed Sam's forehead whispering to her, "We'll see you soon, I love you." As Kim led Jess out of the recovery room she glanced back at her sister-in-law praying she

would be all right. She and Sam had grown very close since her marriage to Jess.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Riley sat at her desk with her head resting in her hands. After speaking to Sam's family

she'd gone back into the recovery room to check on Keith. One of the recovery room

nurses let her know he'd died on the operating table. As she stumbled out of the recovery

room the police were waiting for her. The interview with the police had been grueling.

She'd gone over and over the events in the trauma room with them. They'd finally left

after telling her they would contact her again if they had any further questions.

She reflected back over the last few months trying to understand how everything had

ended so tragically. Keith had been stalking her for months since she'd broken up with

him. While they were dating she had finally come to accept that her interests lay

elsewhere and always had. She was involved with a woman in medical school but it had

ended badly. Riley had known her uncle would never approve of her seeing a woman

and had kept the relationship a secret. After the breakup she swore off dating and

concentrated on her studies. Eventually she succumbed to pressure from her uncle and

began dating again. She'd never had a successful relationship with a guy and Keith was

just the latest failure. She never told him of her interest in women and had just broken it off with him saying they just weren't right for each other. He'd tried for over a month to

convince her otherwise wooing her with flowers and begging her to come back. Then

three months ago he'd seen her with a woman and actually saw them kissing. He went

ballistic and become abusive saying she'd made him a laughingstock leaving him for a

woman. She had tried to explain that wasn't the case that it had nothing to do with him.

He'd been making calls to her house at all hours of the night, following her when she

went out, sending threatening letters to her home and work. Her SUV had been

vandalized several times as well as her condo. She could never prove it was him. Finally

after he smashed her windshield in the hospital parking lot in front of a witness she

managed to convince a judge to issue a restraining order against him. The restraining

order had been served on him today and his response was to show up in the ER with a

gun. Riley felt bad that she wasn't more upset that Keith was dead. She'd never felt

anything for him except friendship and that had faded long ago as he made her life these

past months a living hell. Riley glanced at the wall clock realizing Samantha McKenna

would be regaining consciousness soon and she wanted to be there. She wearily headed

for the ICU.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The ICU was bustling with almost all the beds occupied. Riley quickly located Sam's

chart and made her way to her room. She checked her latest vitals and lab results. She

seemed to be doing well. She was still asleep when Riley entered the room. The nurse

watching rose as she entered.

"Has she woken up yet?" Riley asked.

"No, they just got her settled a few minutes ago. She responded to the pain when she was moved but never opened her eyes." The nurse reported.

"Okay, you can take a quick break, I'll be here." The nurse quickly headed out happy for a respite.

Riley checked Sam's dressings and her IV's. Once all her checks were done she

approached the head of the bed and took Sam's much larger hand in her own. Lightly

stroking the side of her face she called to her.

"Samantha... Sam can you hear me? It's time to wake up."

Sam's eyes slowly fluttered open. Riley could see she was still groggy from the

anesthesia.

Sam looked up into soft violet eyes. She was confused feeling she should know this

woman. She stared at the beautiful woman with her head hugging pixyish cut coppery

red hair fringing her face, clear creamy skin with a smattering of freckles and striking

violet eyes. She just couldn't remember, her mind felt sluggish and her eyes didn't want

to stay focused.

"Sam, do you know where you are?"

Sam thought about that, her brow furrowing. It was slowly coming back to her. "In the

hospital?" she croaked out past a parched and sore throat.

Riley reached over and picked up a cup of ice chips from the bedside. She chose a small

sliver of ice and pressed it to Sam's lips. "Take a little ice, not too fast." Riley instructed.

After giving Sam several more ice chips she asked her. "Do you remember what

happened?"

Sam nodded. "Shot me." She whispered. "How bad?"

"He shot you twice. Your vest stopped the first bullet though you have some extensive

bruising on your shoulder. Second bullet hit you in the groin and nicked an artery. I

repaired it. It did damage to your leg but with physical therapy you'll be just fine. I told you I'd take good care of you." She smiled gently at Sam not even realizing she was

softly stroking her hair.

Sam smiled at Riley leaning into her touch. "I remember." Sam frowned suddenly

remembering more. "Is Davidson okay? What about the guy?" She struggled to

remember his name. "Keith."

"Davidson, that's your partner?" Sam nodded. "He's fine, he wasn't hurt." Riley hesitated not wanting to tell her the rest.

"Keith?" Sam asked again.

"He didn't make it." Riley told her quietly.

"I'm so sorry." Sam said tears forming in her eyes.

Riley felt terrible, the officer was more upset than she was. All she felt was a sense of

relief that the nightmare of his stalking was over. She said none of this to Sam.

"Thanks. Now you need to get some rest. Your family is here and will want to come in

soon; don't over tire yourself."

Sam was already drifting off; she struggled to remain awake. "Okay," she murmured sleepily.

Jess and Kim entered Sam's room as Riley was leaving.

"How is she?" Jess asked glancing over to the bed where Sam lay sleeping.

"She's doing well, vitals are stable. She's still very groggy from the anesthesia and

probably will be for a while."

"All right, we just want to see her for a few minutes. We won't wake her. Would it be

possible to see her chart?" Jess said.

Riley handed Jess the chart in her hand waiting to see if she had any questions. Jess

quickly went over the ER notes and the surgical notes Riley had recently added.

"Everything looks good. Thanks for taking such good care of her." Jess said gratefully.

Riley waved off her thanks heading out to check on her other patients.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Both women approached the bed gazing down at the sleeping woman. Kim glanced over

at Jess when she heard her breath hitch. Her eyes were filled with unshed tears and she

was shaking trying to control her emotions. Kim quickly stepped over and wrapped her

arms around Jess.

"It's alright... let it out, she's going to be fine." Kim assured Jess.

Finally the damn broke and tears began to flow down Jess's face. It was the first

emotions she'd allowed herself since the phone call telling them Sam had been shot. Kim

stroked her hair and continued to hold her tightly.

"God Kim, what if we'd lost her," Jess cried.

"We didn't lose her and we're not going to. You can't beat yourself up with what might have been. She's here and she's safe, we need to be thankful for that."

"I know you're right," Jess said struggling to regain her composure. "We should let her rest."

They both gently kissed Sam's forehead before leaving the room.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Riley strolled back into the ICU the following morning. She checked all her post-op

patients leaving Sam McKenna for last. She found her just waking up as the nurse was

checking her vitals.

"Hi Sam, how are feeling this morning?" Riley asked as she approached the bed to stand next to Sam.

"Did you get the license of the truck that ran over me?" questioned Sam in response.

"That good huh," Riley said sympathetically. "That's to be expected. Give it some time.

Did you see your family yet this morning?"

"Shit..." Sam muttered. "Why'd they have to call them? Who's here?"

"Your sister Jess and her wife are here. They came in yesterday while you were in

surgery." Riley told her.

Sam sighed in relief. "I don't want my parents to have to make the trip down here from Northern California. It's not a big deal, I'm fine."

Riley didn't know what came over her; she felt an incredible surge of anger at Sam's

words. She gripped Sam's forearm tightly.

"It is a BIG DEAL, he almost killed you!" Riley exclaimed almost shouting.

Sam's eyes widened, surprised at Riley's outburst. She reached out taking Riley's small

hand in her much larger one. "It's okay, calm down. I didn't mean it like that."

Riley realized how inappropriately she'd reacted. Just the thought of this woman not

caring how close she'd come to dying made her crazy. She needed to get away before she

did anything else stupid.

"I need to go check on my other patients. I'll let your sister know you're awake."

Sam squeezed the small hand still in hers. "Thanks. Will you come back later?"

Riley smiled down at Sam. "I'll come and check on you before I leave for the day."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jess and Kim entered the room to find Sam sleeping peacefully. Jess looked up checking

the monitor. Kim wrapped her arm tightly around Jess's waist as they reached the bed.

Jess reached out stroking Sam's face. "Hey Sam," she called softly.

Sam's eye's slowly opened. She grinned crookedly when she saw her sister. "Hey fancy

meeting you here." She tried to joke her voice cracking. She could see the emotions

churning beneath the surface of Jess's gaze. "I'm okay really." She tried to reassure her sister and Kim.

Kim leaned down kissing Sam softly on the forehead. "You scared us."

"I'm sorry you had to make the trip down here. I'm fine really. You didn't have to come."

"That's a bunch of bullshit of course we had to come!" Jess told her angrily.

Sam tried to shrug and winced in pain. "They didn't call the folks did they?"

"No I'm listed as your emergency contact. They called me as soon as the station house

knew what happened but they only said you'd been shot and were in the OR. We got

down here as fast as we could. I called Mom and Dad after we talked to your doctor.

They wanted to come but I convinced them not to."

"Good I don't want them making that trip. I'll be out of here soon." Sam said confidently.

"Damn it Sam! You've been shot twice and seriously injured, you're not going

anywhere." Jess insisted.

Sam looked away and didn't respond.

Kim stepped in leaning down to whisper in Sam's ear. "She was petrified Sam, give her a break."

Sam smiled at Kim, before meeting her sister's eyes. "Don't worry Sis I'll do whatever my doctor says to."

Sam was rapidly fading. Kim and Jess kissed her goodbye and told her they would see

her later. She was asleep before they got out the door.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Riley had seen Jess and Kim in the waiting room and convinced them to go eat and get

some rest. She assured them baring any problems and she quickly reassured them she

didn't think there would be any; Sam would be released from the ICU in the morning and

transferred to the post-op surgical floor. Riley was exhausted but had promised Sam

she'd stop by before going home. At this point all she wanted was a nice soak in the tub

and a stiff drink.

Sam was asleep when Riley entered the room. She hesitated not wanting to wake her.

Before she could make up her mind Sam's eyes slowly blinked open. She smiled softly

when her gaze met Riley's. "Hi," she murmured sleepily.

"I'm sorry I woke you. I was heading out and stopped by as promised."

Sam's hand lifted from the mattress beckoning Riley closer. She stepped to the head of

the bed and took Sam's large hand in hers. "How are you feeling? Are you having much

pain?"

"Some but not too bad. My shoulder aches but mostly my leg hurts when I try to move."

"Not surprising. You have quite a bit of muscle damage and sutures in the leg and pelvis.

Just take it slow. The nurses will be getting you up to sit in a chair a little later we don't want you getting pneumonia. Let them help you." Riley instructed Sam. "Everything will be fine, I promise." Riley said gazing into Sam's amazing blue eyes.

Sam was lost in the doctor's striking violet gaze. "Thank you." She said softly.

Riley felt her throat tighten with unshed tears. "I should be the one thanking you. You saved my life."

Sam squeezed Riley's hand, "Guess that makes us even Dr. Connolly." Sam realized she didn't know her first name. She tried to sit up a little to see the doctor's name tag

Riley misinterpreted Sam's movement. She quickly slipped her arm behind Sam's back

bringing her into a more upright position. Sam groaned loudly when her leg bent at the

pelvis shooting a sharp pain down her leg. Riley quickly lowered her back to the bed

apologizing. "I'm sorry I thought you wanted to sit up."

"It's okay," Sam said grimacing slightly at the lingering pain. Riley noticed she still had her arm wrapped around Sam's shoulder and quickly retreated. Sam immediately missed

the warmth of her arm.

"What were you trying to do?" Riley questioned. "Just ask if you need something."

Sam was embarrassed and looked down at the blanket. "I um was trying to see your

name tag. I don't even know your first name."

Sam looked up when Riley laughed softly, it was a wonderful sound and she wanted to

hear it again.

Riley shook her head, "You could've just asked me." She stared at Sam arching one eyebrow.

Sam grinned realizing the doctor was going to make her ask. In the sexist voice she

could manage she purred. "So doctor just what is your first name."

Riley gulped amazed at the reaction of her body to Sam's voice. She blushed lightly

before replying. "It's Riley."

Sam stuck out her hand, Riley accepted and her hand was enveloped in Sam's much

larger one. "Nice to meet you Riley." Sam hesitated then asked. "Is it okay to call you Riley?"

Riley smiled. "Well, not usually but since you saved my life I guess I can make an

exception in your case."

Sam's little half smirk appeared on her face. "Good to know, Riley."

Riley realized their conversation had slipped into light flirting. It wasn't a good idea to become attracted to a patient and she had to keep reminding herself no matter how

enticing Sam was her patient. If it wasn't for you she wouldn't be here, she berated herself. Riley knew she could easily fall under this beautiful woman's spell. She noticed

her hand still resting in Sam's. It surprised her; she was never the touchy feely type with patients. She forced herself back into doctor mode removing her hand from Sam's grasp.

Sam noted the sudden change in Riley's expression and wondered why.

"I'm glad you're doing well." Riley stated in a crisp professional tone. "Please be sure to let the nurses know if you need anything. You'll be transferred to the surgical post-op

floor in the morning. Have a pleasant night."

And with that she was gone. Sam couldn't figure out what happened. They'd been talking

and all of a sudden Riley just took off. Then it hit her, "Duh..." she muttered to herself mentally slapping her forehead. She probably thought I was flirting with her. You

were, piped up Sam's little voice . Shut-up, Sam told the voice.

Sam sighed in frustration admitting how attracted she was to the beautiful doctor. Forget it, she's straight. Remember her ex-BOYFRIEND shot you. Sam slowly drifted off to sleep visions of coppery red hair and soft violet eyes playing in her mind.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The following morning Sam's IV's and heart monitor were removed and she was

transferred to the surgical post-op floor. She'd hoped to see Riley before she was

transferred but she'd never shown. She sighed in disappointment settling down to get

some much-needed rest. The nurse told her they would be getting her up to walk later

and she dreaded it.