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THE STATION
The shapely, buxom brunette leaned against the front counter twirling her necklace lazily in her long fingers; she had been waiting for over 20 minutes for Detective Torres and she was getting impatient. This assignment wasn’t her first choice, but her boss had told her that it was a favor to Chief Harris and he insisted she take it. As a criminal psychologist, Amanda McGhee traveled around to many different precincts working with many detectives on their toughest cases. Sunset Beach was another in the long line of police departments that she would be assisting and so far, she was less than impressed with their punctuality. "Ms. McGhee?" the deep, luscious voice called out from behind her. She turned around to find the handsome detective extending his hand with an apologetic smile. "I’m Detective Torres. Ricardo." "Amanda," she confirmed as she shook his hand. "Well, Detective Torres. I’m glad you were finally able to make it." The intended sarcasm in her voice made Ricardo want to smile. He liked a feisty woman and he could tell that Amanda was no exception. She was a no-nonsense, smart, beautiful woman who knew what she wanted and expected everyone she dealt with to understand and appease her. "So, shall we get started?" Checking his watch, Ricardo smiled. "It’s only 10:30. How about we grab a cup of coffee?" He placed his hand gently against her back to direct her to the break room. "Cream, no sugar?" he asked with a killer grin. "How did you know that?" Amanda tried to stifle the smile she felt. She had heard that Ricardo Torres was a charmer with the ladies; in the few short minutes since she had met him, she knew they were right. They made their way into the break room to discuss the day’s schedule. THE HOSPITAL Antonio stepped through the door as the amber rays of the sun warmed his skin. The sand beneath his feet sifted between his toes. The white shirt he wore was completely unbuttoned and the breeze pushed it back from his athletic, perfectly sculpted torso. He dug his hands into the front pockets of his faded jeans and walked slowly along the water’s edge; the waves lapped at his feet leaving a trail of white foam. In the distance, he saw her; she was dressed in a loose yellow sundress that moved with the ocean wind. She was facing in his direction with her arms open wide awaiting his embrace. The hue of the setting sun brought a glow to her sun-kissed skin; her cheeks were blushed and her dark eyes sparkled. Gabi was beautiful and the love of his life; he had waited so long to be with her and now she was just a few feet away. Antonio’s lips curved up into the warm, sexy smile that melted her heart. As he moved closer and closer, Gabi’s heart raced with anticipation. Slipping his hand softly into hers, Antonio pulled her against him and wrapped his arms lovingly around her waist. He lifted her up into the air as she slid her arms around his neck; he buried his face against her chest as her fingers weaved through his thick, soft hair. Bringing her down to the sand, Antonio looked into her expressive eyes finding all the love and longing that reflected his own. His strong hand touched her cheek; her skin was soft and smooth beneath his palm. Gabi closed her eyes with a smile and stood on her toes to finally bring their lips together in a firestorm of passion and desire. Antonio leaned down to press his wanting lips tenderly to hers. As her kiss enveloped him pulling him deeper into the blissful, serene place that was their love, he could feel her suddenly backing away. Antonio’s face contorted with confusion as Gabi almost drifted backwards; her outstretched hands were just out of his reach. "Gabi!" he called as he struggled to touch her, to pull her back into his arms. "Gabi!" "Come and get me, Antonio," she whispered playfully as she coaxed him to her with her index finger. "Come on. I bet you can’t catch me!" Her laughter filled the air as she moved away. ‘So she wants to play that game, huh’ Antonio thought as he smiled wickedly and began to run after her. Gabi sat miserably in the cold, hard chair of the St. Alexius emergency room. It had been almost an hour since they arrived and she was getting more worried by the minute. She had prayed for a miracle, for someone, anyone to come along; as if God were watching out for his former servant, a pickup truck crept over the hill and made it’s way toward the hysterical woman waving her arms by the road. By the time they got back to Antonio, he was unconscious and barely breathing; the savior who had found them was able to ascertain a weak pulse and immediately called for an ambulance on his cell phone. The ambulance arrived in less than 5 minutes; they were closer to town than they had realized. The paramedics worked swiftly to stabilize Antonio’s condition; Gabi had overheard enough to know that the situation was life threatening and chances were good that he wasn’t going to survive. The ambulance ride was endless; Gabi clutched his lifeless, bloodstained hand while whispering a quiet prayer to God and crying softly. She and Antonio had managed to find their way back to each other and now, through a cruel twist of fate, they may never have the chance at the future they had finally admitted they both wanted. The attending physician’s entrance startled Gabi back to life. She rose from her chair and met him halfway across the room. "I’m sorry," he began sending a wave of panic through her. "We have to take him into surgery to find and remove the bullet. It entered through his abdomen, but there’s no exit wound." The ominous tone of the doctor’s voice scared Gabi. "He’s lost a lot of blood and his condition is very critical. I’ll update you when I can…but I think you should call his family, just in case." Gabi nodded miserably as the doctor rushed away dictating orders to the nurse at his side. "Doctor!" she shouted as she ran to catch up to him. "Can I see him first? Please?" The doctor’s face softened and he managed a comforting smile. "I’m sorry, there just isn’t any time. We have to get Antonio into surgery immediately. I’m sorry." Gabi shook her head in understanding as he patted her shoulder and turned away down the hall. She wrapped her arms across her middle as the tears began to fall. "Call his family, just in case." Gabi had to call Ricardo, Maria and Carmen. Ricardo. How was she going to explain what happened to Ricardo; she was supposed to have gone home sick from work. Lies, more lies; the lies that had began after she made love to Antonio. The lies that would have to be dispelled now that Antonio’s life was in jeopardy. Nothing mattered anymore except Antonio’s survival. THE STATION "So, that about does it for the layout of the station," Ricardo announced as he and Amanda rounded the corner back to the front desk. He checked his watch and thought maybe he should call Gabi to check and see if she was feeling better. "Would you like to grab some lunch, Detective Torres?" Amanda asked just as he was about to excuse himself to call Gabi. "I know this great restaurant." Ricardo looked up and thought for a second he saw a sparkle in her emerald green eyes. "My treat, of course." "Actually, I had plans for lunch but they were cancelled this morning." Amanda was already heading for the door while Ricardo was deciding if he would make the call. He shook his head and yelled over his shoulder. "Hey Spence, I’ll be at lunch." Spence nodded as he finished his phone call. Ricardo and Amanda headed off to lunch just as the private line in Ricardo’s office began ringing off the hook. THE HOSPITAL Gabi slammed the pay phone down in frustration. She had been trying to reach Ricardo for the last 30 minutes; no answer at work, no answer at the loft, no answer on his cell phone. She though about paging him, but was afraid he wouldn’t recognize the number and might ignore it; he did that sometimes if he was in the right mood. She considered calling the front desk of the station, but was afraid she’d get in trouble for not being at work when she wasn’t really sick. Gabi was too flustered to think about reaching Ricardo anymore so she opted to call Maria instead; she would let her notify Carmen. Gabi gave Maria all the information on the location of the hospital and Antonio’s condition. She was grateful Maria didn’t ask for any explanation of why they were alone together in Gabi’s car driving out of Sunset Beach when Gabi was supposed to be at work. Maria told her she would pick up Carmen and that they would be at the hospital as soon as possible. Gabi hung up the phone and fell into the nearest chair; the ordeal of the morning had taken its toll and she was exhausted. The police had finally finished questioning her and told her they would need to speak to Antonio as soon as he was able; Gabi closed her eyes praying that he would be again. Antonio had been in surgery for almost two hours; Gabi paced the 4th floor waiting room chewing distractedly on her fingernail. Maria and Carmen still hadn’t arrived and the last time she tried Ricardo’s office, he still wasn’t there. It was almost 2:00 and she was feeling sick to her stomach having to wait out news of Antonio’s condition all alone. As she finally settled herself onto one of the cardboard soft couches, the weary physician entered the room and walked over to her. She started to stand when he put his hand on her shoulder to stay her; he took a seat next to her and pulled off his OR cap. "Things were a lot worse then we expected when we got inside," he sighed. Gabi’s heart sank to her toes and she felt herself beginning to lose it. "We had hoped to find the bullet perhaps in or near his intestine based on the point of entry." The way that he paused made Gabi feel weak and for a moment, she thought she was going to pass out. "Fortunately, the bullet missed several vital organs." Gabi’s heart soared. "Unfortunately, it lodged near his spine just under his vertebrae." A gasp escaped her lips as she felt herself sink back against the cushion. Tears welled in her eyes waiting for the next words out of his mouth. "We have a highly skilled team of doctors working on him and we’ll do all we can. I’m hopeful that we can remove the bullet, although he’s lost a lot of blood and we can’t keep him open much longer due to the risk of him going into shock." Gabi nodded slowly. "My greatest concern is that he will be affected by the location of the injury." Gabi always hated the way doctor’s danced around the point. "Affected how?" The doctor took a deep breath and dropped his eyes. "I’m afraid there’s a chance that Mr. Torres will be paralyzed." The tears spilled from Gabi’s eyes and she started to tremble. "We won’t know until he wakes up from surgery. I’m sorry, we’re doing to very best that we can." Seeing her distress, the doctor asked, "Have you contacted his family? Are they on their way?" Gabi shook her head even though she barely heard his question. Her mind was completely numb; she felt disassociated from her body. No, this couldn’t be happening. No. Antonio had gotten shot trying to save her from harm and this was they way he was being rewarded. No. No. The doctor stood up and left Gabi alone. As soon as the door closed behind him, Gabi began sobbing hysterically; loud, gut wrenching sobs that filled the room. She looked down at her hands, the hands that had covered his wound; she could still see his blood on them and she pulled them up to her chest and over her heart. Gabi rocked slowly back and forth as she cried helplessly, miserably, alone. Antonio could hear Gabi begin to cry as she moved slowly away from him. Her laughter turned to tears and the look in her eyes broke his heart. He called out to her once again. He thought it was a game and now she was crying; he needed to hold her and understand what was wrong. "Gabi, come back. Gabi!" He tried to run but didn’t move from the place where he stood. His arms shifted back and forth at his sides in time with the strides of his legs only his legs weren’t moving. "Wait! I love you, Gabi. I love you!" Antonio was getting frustrated that he couldn’t get to her; he didn’t understand what was happening. "Wait for me, Gabi. Wait, I’m coming." He reached out his arms as she slipped further and further away. "WAIT!" He didn’t understand why he couldn’t catch her. Antonio dropped his arms to his side as Gabi disappeared from his view. "Gabi." "Gabi?" Ricardo’s gentle voice woke Gabi as she rubbed her eyes and sat up quickly. "Ricardo? What are you doing here?" Gabi swung her feet to the floor and shook her head. She had fallen asleep on the waiting room couch. "How did you…?" Ricardo took her into his protective embrace pulling her into strong arms. "It’s okay, baby. I’m here." He stroked her hair and Gabi lost all remnants of her resolve at his touch. She began sobbing into his chest; her tears soaked his shirt as he held her tightly. "I won’t ever let you go, Gabi. I promise." His words reached her ears but not her heart; her heart was with the man fighting for his life in the operating room. "I love you, Gab. I’m so glad you’re alright." Maria had managed to get a hold of Ricardo at the station as she and Carmen were heading out of town to the hospital. He had just returned from an extended lunch with Amanda when he found his hysterical mother and sister standing in the lobby of the station. They explained what had happened and he left immediately with them to come find Gabi and Antonio. Ricardo had been too upset with the news to wonder how they had come to be together in the first place; the only thing that mattered was that Gabi was fine and Antonio soon would be. "Gabi," Carmen prompted her. "Please, what has the doctor told you? How is my Antonio?" Carmen held her handkerchief to her mouth as she clung to Maria’s arm. Gabi stared back at the three faces in front of her; Antonio’s family wanting to know his condition. How could she tell them that he may not live and that even if he did, he may never walk again? How could she tell them that they had been having an argument over their feelings for one another when they were attacked? How could she tell them that she loved Antonio more than her own life and didn’t know if she would survive without him? How could she tell them that the reason he was in surgery right now and may not survive and may never walk again was because he had been trying to protect her because she was the woman he loved? Their voices began to mingle and the room became repressively hot. Gabi felt herself begin to sway slightly as the three images before her jumbled like a kaleidoscope. All of the color drained from her face as she leaned forward and collapsed limply into Ricardo’s arms.
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