St. Luke's Hospital - Emergency Room
Bright, wide lights hang from the ceiling, casting the clean and sterile surroundings with brilliant light. Large, steel-topped tables take up most of areas behind the curtains, and each curtained area is edged by a stainless steel counter against the wall and trays of clean surgical tools. Several various monitors and cords take up most of one wall. This is where incoming patients are given emergency treatment.
Two large metal doors across from the entrance lead outside to the ambulance loading dock. The doors are marked 'EMERGENCY ONLY' in large red letters.
Characters
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Brooke Bishop | Gideon Hastings | Sera Roche | Robert Knight | Kieran Collins |
Tonight was a bad night to take a shortcut through Central Park.
To get on the right subway to head back to Brooklyn, Brooke decided that the quickest way was to cut through the park. She's a witch. She can prevent herself from being mugged. From being attacked. She's not super-speedy to get away from things, but cutting through the park is something she's done a thousand times before.
But tonight, it was a bad decision.
What started out as a routine walk has wound up with her being glamoured — she remembered what it felt like when she suddenly remembered that Kieran had done it; being attacked — which caused a great deal of blood loss from the wound at her neck and the fact that her arm was broken after she cast a rather strong spell; and using so much magical energy that she quite literally passed out — from casting two rather nasty sorcerer spells, and the strongest binding spell she could manage at the time while she was still conscious.
Before she passed out, she dialed Kieran's number and said four words, "Blood loss, Park, Hospital."
She's been slipping in and out of consciousness and she has no idea how she made it to the hospital. She remembers an ER nurse talking about her stats, and that her heart rate was low, and she recalls giving her bloodtype of AB negative before she drifted out again.
**
Gideon has been doing his own bits of reconnaisance in the City. He's here on Serafine Roche's bequest, and though that part of his visit has been tidied up - there was nothing he knew about the mysterious half-vampire bodies. He is now here out of curiosity, exploring avenues and keeping a certain distance from Kostas and his court. He half-suspects the Master of the City might have a hand in things, but he is patient. Not one to challenge or accuse without full proof.
His own investigations have led him to the nest at the East River pier, days before Blackwell and Roche, and of course the younger vampires had no memory of such. He's observed the one known sorcerer 'outcast' who deals in medicine, and is nearly completely certain that the man would be involved in no such thing. His investigations led him back to Central Park, conveniently so. To find the dead twitching body of another half-vampire and the witch bleeding out not so far away.
Gideon pricked his finger, giving her a few drops of his blood. Not enough to fully heal her, or even really reverse the damage. Merely enough to keep her hanging on. He's old enough that he can scent the magic in the blood spilling on the ground from her wound, and a taste to the tip of his tongue confirms it. It's not enough to be a full meal, not enough to trigger the gag and rejection response that comes from not feeding on his chosen type, and he's old enough to resist it if required.
Hefting the woman easily in his arms, he speeds out of the park and to hail a taxi. He orders the driver to the hospital, with a little less than subtly placed glamour of asking no questions and ignoring the fact of the woman's appearance. In the cab, he fires off a quick call to Blackwell. Quick, succint to the point. "Job for your people. Another body in the park. A survivor. One of the The Coven. Taking her to the hospital."
The next call is to Kieran, "Your problem has escalated. One of the Coven attacked. We'll talk later." Because this is escalating and Gideon is aware that the woman in his arms (he's checked her ID) has a business arrangement - and perhaps more - with the Master's Sheriff.
Gideon has no qualms about using his abilities quickly and easily, and the witch is in a private room, receiving blood within minutes of entering the ER. He also has no trouble 'convincing' the medical personnel to allow him to wait with her. He'll give up his post once one of the Priory or her next of kin arrives.
**
The worst thing possible at this point would be for someone to call her closest next of kin — Bridget. She'll just go on a tear about how all vampires are evil again, and she's only recently agreed that perhaps not all of them are so bad.
Brooke doesn't come out of it for a while. She's well into her second bag of blood when her eyes flutter open again. Her first instinct is to reach out. To figure out where she is. Her arm that's able to move hits the metal side of the bed. The other arm is attempting to lift itself when she cries out in a great deal of pain and drops it again.
"Hospital," she rasps, trying to reach up to her neck. She can feel a weight there, and thinks it might be a bandage, but she's not certain.
"Robert…. Knight."
**
Gideon moves quickly and fluidly to the side of the bed, gently pressing a hand to her arm and holding it to the hospital bed beside her. He has a quiet strength but an unthreatening presence, at least in this moment. His gaze connects with hers, but is not mesmerizing; it won't be unless she requires him to make it so.
"You are at St. Luke's Hospital, in the Emergency Room, Miss Bishop. Dr. Knight is currently winding up a surgical emergency, but has been made aware of your presence here. Likewise, Mr. Blackwell of the Priory has been contacted, as has Mr. Collins." Yes, he did go through her cell phone, and was amused to see to whom her last call had been. It was one of the things that Gideon did while the nurses cleaned and bandaged her wound and he convinced them delay the report until given further instructions from Dr. Knight or a representative from Browning and Dunlop.
"Unfortunately, the staff can not give you any medicine for pain until they have x-rayed your arm and made certain that it is nothing more than a fracture. Sadly these things happen when muggings go wrong." His tone implies that he well knows it was not a mugging.
**
"They… called Bryn?" Brooke can easily take care of the wound. She can't set bones, but she can at the very least deal with the pain. If she could muster up the energy to cast a spell. The problem is that she's afraid it will set off some medical equipment, which is why she's going to wait for Robert.
"And Kieran?"
Closing her eyes again, she nods. A mugging. She knows that's not what it was. It was a vampire. Two vampires? This isn't going to go over well with Regina, and she knows that it'll be mentioned to her because at some point she's going to ask what happened.
"Who're you?"
**
Reassured that the woman is not going to try to move and further injure herself, Gideon steps away from the bed. He is immaculately dressed, tailored three piece suit, though the jacket and vest are unbuttoned and the tie has been loosened and all crusted in a dark, coppery-brown substance. He wears Brooke's blood as naturally and comfortably as he does his clothing and his own skin. Tugging down the sleeves of his jacket, he nods. "Gideon Hastings."
Beat.
"I am a consultant, new to the city, aiding Mr. Blackwell in one of his current cases." One that Miss Bishop has fallen directly into the midst of, it appears. "I would question you, but you would grow weary repeating the same information, over and over, I do think."
Beat.
"I found you in the park, Miss Bishop."
**
"You… found me."
Brooke is trying to keep her sentences short, simply because her throat hurts due to the injury and the pain from her arm is killing her. Closing her eyes, she exhales a slow breath and quietly says, "Thank you." She was planning on calling for help after contacting Kieran, but she doesn't remember anything after saying the word hospital.
"You… work with Bryn." The witch can easily accept that because she doesn't know everyone that works for the Priory.
**
"Yes, and you were quite fortunate that I did," Gideon says. "It was quite a nasty attack. It seems that the thugs are growing much more bold these days."
Casting casually around, Gideon pulls up a chair and positions it near Brooke's bed. Close enough to talk to her, but not so much to make her uncomfortable. "Mr. Blackwell and I share information and assist one another on occassion. As I said, I am here assisting with one of his current cases."
Beat.
"I am to assure you that Mr. Collins or Mr. Blackwell will be in attendance as soon as they are able. It seems that one of your assailants might have left something of a trail and a clue behind." In the form of a dead body that shouldn't exist. Gideon doesn't add that because he is uncertain of how much Miss Bishop knows regarding the rogue vampire in the City.
**
"Thugs."
Brooke keeps her eyes closed. Mostly so she can keep trying to push through the pain. Breathing slowly, she tries to nod. It causes a wince, but she exhales a long breath and inhales slowly to keep from crying out.
"Did I kill the va — thug that tried to tear my throat out?"
**
"Quite effectively." Or uneffectively, depending on your point of view. Though the fact that the body did not turn to ash has nothing to do with Miss Bishop's talent or spell power. It's just another hit upon that weird facet of the case.
"You should try to relax and avoid speaking. It is better for your body, though the pain is a good sign. It is indicative that you can feel pain and the proper blood volume is being restored to your body." Gideon checks his watch. "If they do not return in ten minutes to take you for x-rays, I will seek out medical personnel."
**
The woman who marches into the ER and up to the nurses' station commands attention, though perhaps not in the subtle, charismatic way that Gideon did. Serafine attracts attention when she enters a room, even when she's dressed as she is: yoga pants, a loose t-shirt, a track jacket and her dark curls pulled back in a messy tangled ponytail. It shows how rushed she was; Serafine would not typically be caught out dressed in such a manner.
Tonight, however, she's not playing up her sexual lure so much as using it to get attention of the nurses and then just as easily glamouring her way back into the triage area. Kieran is delayed, torn between visiting the crime scene and the body and wanting to see Brooke. He was barely able to finish the question before Sera answered it. She'd check in on Brooke at the hospital, and she'd also get a statement from the witch. Though the statement is secondary, Serafine is mostly here as a concerned - and pissed off - friend.
"Brooke, sugar! I'm so sorry, I came as soon as I could!" The vampiress strolls into the witch's exam room as though she belongs there, and quickly hides the look of chagrin and annoyance that flashes across her face at the sight of the witch so battered.
It's a stuttered moment later that she takes in Gideon. "Gideon."
Beat.
"Thank you."
**
"Good."
Brooke would honestly love nothing more than to heal herself and get out of the hospital before someone decides to call her sister, or Regina, and all hell breaks loose. She starts to nod again, at the whole being quiet thing because she's thinking that passing out might just make her handle the pain better.
But then she hears Sera.
"You… didn't have to." Closing her eyes, she asks, "You know Mr. Hastings?"
**
"Good, indeed." Gideon gives a slow, half-smile, lifting one corner of his mouth. "Although, she would be easier to question if she were still alive." Of course, the Priory does have contact with a necromancer so nothing is impossible.
As Serafine sweeps into the emergency area, Gideon gives a very prominent and obvious lift of his brows. He's playing human, and allowing emotions to show is part of the game. He can't recall a time in recent decades when he has seen Serafine dressed in such a manner. "Serafine. You are … welcome." His first urge was to say she was an unanticipated surprise, however, if her Maker is tending to the body, and given her close association with Blackwell and her involvement in the case, it's truly not a surprise that the young vampiress is here.
**
"Of course I had to." Serafine considers the chair and then dismisses it, stepping up to the side of the bed. She takes Brooke's hand, conveniently the good one, and rubs her shoulder. "Honey, that's what friends do. You were attacked, you're in the hospital, and I'm here."
Her green eyes flicker to Gideon. "Gideon's working on a case with me and Bryn." There's a touch of a frown. Serafine doesn't know if Brooke is aware that she's been helping Bryn, and in essence liasing with the Priory.
**
"Easier to stay alive when she was dead." Brooke glances at Sera and wants to lift up to talk to her friend. The fact that she doesn't even attempt to should indicate that she's aware that things were possibly touch and go for a while.
"He mentioned… working with Bryn." Opening her eyes, she exhales slowly and tries to smile. "Small world. He saved me."
**
Gideon rises to his feet, giving a polite inclination of his head at the women. "I am going to go check on your status with the medical personnel. The sooner you are seen to, the sooner you may be released to go to your own home." He pulls on the cuffs of his suit coat again and meets Serafine's eyes. "We should speak before this evening is concluded, Serafine."
**
"I heard," Serafine gives Brooke a soft smile, and squeezes her shoulder gently. "He spoke to Kier." She leans down and whispers, though she knows Gideon will hear, the whisper is not for words to be hidden from the Ancient Vampire, "He's more aware of a lot of things that go on in the City than he lets on or would ever reveal."
Straightening back up, she brushes hair gently away from Brooke's forehead. "How are you doing, honey? Did they give you anything for pain?" Her eyes jerk up to Gideon. "Of course."
Beat.
"How's she doing? Where are the doctors?" In the back of her mind, she knows she can make Brooke perfectly well again, and she wonders why Gideon didn't do so when he found her.
**
"You don't need…" Brooke tries to argue with the man that essentially saved her. "Thank you."
A glance is given to Gideon, coupled with a wince due to the direction she's got to turn her neck to see him. "I know. He told me."
Wrinkling her nose, she says, "Hurt. Think my arm is broken. Nothing for pain."
Beat.
"Dr. Knight is in surgery."
**
"She lost a good deal of blood," Gideon explains, with a hint of compassion in his voice. Serafine is an emotional fiery one, as her bloodline is famous for, and he doesn't wish to get her going here in the ER. "That blood bag is her second. The bandage on her throat is a stop gap until a proper plastic surgeon can tend to it. Her arm is broken, possibly in two places and she may have bruised ribs. She went down hard, though her pupils were reactive, and there's no immediate sign of a brain bleed, however, they will be taking her for a CT scan. The doctors will not administer pain medication until they've taken x-rays and the CT scan."
Beat.
"All in all, Miss Bishop is doing remarkably well given the encounter with the … thugs this evening."
Gideon gives a kind glance to Brooke, though there is something of the weight of years and ages there. "You do not need Dr. Knight for x-rays."
**
Serafine listens to Gideon's calm reiteration of Brooke's injuries and bites her lip in frustration, eyes flashing. This has gone on long enough. Between what they learned from the vampire nest and whatever Brooke can tell them, it's time for Kostas to stop ignoring this.
That's why Gideon didn't heal her. He wants to shake something loose.
Sighing, she realizes she can't question Gideon on his tactics, not right this moment. Instead she focuses her attention on Brooke. "Nothing for the pain? Oh, sugar, I'm so sorry. Let me help with that?"
**
"I'll be fine. I'd… take care of it myself but…" Brooke needs to talk to Robert before she attempts to. If she lost as much blood as Gideon is saying she has, it's best she not use any magic now anyhow. She blew through her reserves, more than likely, and trying to cast another spell could send her comatose for a while.
"Two places? A cast is not ideal…" Especially not when she and Bridget are planning a trip to California in just under two weeks.
"You're right. Not for x-rays."
**
"That would not be advisable, Serafine." Gideon levels a knowing look at the Karneros. He can easily see how she wants to help the woman in the hospital bed, and not simply becuase of some plea from her Maker. "The body experiences pain for a reason. It is how it communicates with her. Taking that pain away from Miss Bishop will hinder the work of the doctors."
His gaze slides next to Brooke, and his tone is softer, though no less firm. "It would not be advisable for you to handle things yourself Miss Bishop. From what I understand of your talents, being in peak physical condition is a must."
Beat.
"Now, please excuse me." He settles a last warning glare on Serafine.
"You will not play doctor, Serafine." He's aware of the vampiress's underlying submissiveness, and while he may not have the sort of hold on her that her Maker and Blackwell do, Gideon is not above using whatever advantage he has. With a ducking of his head, he leaves the cubicle.
**
Biting her lip, Serafine stares after him, warring with herself over whether or not to listen. It's not easy, when dealing with someone as old and powerful as Gideon and in the end, she looses a breath, her shoulders slumping. She won't glamour away Brooke's pain, as much as she would like to do so. Instead she rubs her friend's shoulder in a comforting manner. "I'm glad you're all right, Brooke. Better a little beat up than the alternative." Serafine squeezes Brooke's hand. "Kieran will be here as soon as he can. I'm going to keep you company until then."
**
The witch cannot help but blink at the man. He obviously knows what she is, which is a little worrisome, but then if he's working with Bryn, chances are he's got files on the Coven and therefore is aware who most of the major familial players are. "It is. That's why I want Robert." If the pain meds don't work as fast as they're meant to, he'll supplement it with a weak healing spell. Just enough to tide over the pain until the meds kick in.
"I'll be… fine, Sera. Kieran doesn't need to come. I don't want him to see me all bruised up. It was stupid. I shouldn't have cut through the park."
**
When Gideon disappears, Serafine leans over and presses a light kiss to Brooke's forehead. It's a combination of maternal and sisterly and friendly, chaste and affectionate. "You're crazy if you think that he's not going to come and check on you. He's probably worrying himself sick over you right now, and the only reason he isn't here is because he knows I am and you're safer in the hospital than you would be out of it right now."
She affectionately and soothingly pulls her fingers through Brooke's hair and frowns at the matted stickiness. She's careful as she parts the hair, enough to see the laceration on the witch's scalp where she must have contacted something hard on the ground. "Oh, Brooke, cherie. I'm so sorry."
Beat.
"This wasn't your fault. It's the fault of whomever did this. This sort of attack is severely frowned upon. Kieran's going to tear the city apart until he finds them, and I'm going to help."
**
"Female. Dead." Brooke can at least grin at that, because she knows that the 'illegal' magic that she's not supposed to have is what got her away from the attackers enough to save her life. If she'd only used binding spells, the second she went down the spell would have given way and she'd have been a sitting duck.
"The other. Male. Had an ear piece. About six foot. Brown hair. Hazel eyes I think. Could've been glowing. Glamoured me into complying, I think… but then I hurt so I had to run."
**
"Sounds like the same one who - " Serafine trails off. Brooke might know or might not know about what's been going on, but she doesn't need to know that Serafine was attacked by the pair. Though, 'Terry,' isn't old enough to have overpowered her the way he did unless he's being juiced up by magic or something else.
Serafine blinks, "Glowing? What does that mean?"
**
"His eyes. Were shiny. Really shiny. Like a cat when the light hits them." Brooke wants to lift her hand again. Wants to rub her head. Wants to see what Sera saw on her scalp. The witch isn't very happy with being unable to move a whole lot, and while she can be a good patient she really doesn't want to be right now.
"Could be that I hit my head. Spell casting and running, and more spell casting, and blood loss…"
**
Serafine makes a mental note. Shiny eyes. That's a new one. As though sensing Brooke's desire, Serafine takes her hand tightly in hers and gives it a squeeze. "Best thing for you to do sweetie, is just to lie here and rest until a doctor or nurse comes, all right?"
"You're very lucky that you're conscious at all. Which, is a small miracle, I think." The curtain draws back to admit Robert, and he smiles warmly at Brooke. "Brooke. I really never wanted to see you in my ER." His gaze goes to the woman beside the bed and he racks his brain for a moment, "Miss Roche. You are Mr. Blackwell's associate."
Serafine flashes the sorcerer-doctor a sweetly charming smile. "I'm his girlfriend, yes." Beat. "I'm also working with the Priory on a case, and Brooke is my friend."
Beat.
"She needs x-rays and hasn't been given anything for her pain. There's a laceration on her scalp that hasn't been properly cleaned, the blood is starting to seep through the bandage and - "
"Miss Roche." Robert cuts the woman off with a sharp look and a sligthly raised voice. "I don't tell you how to display art, please don't tell me and my staff how to practice medicine." He pauses and nods, "I'm sure you're worried about Brooke. Why don't you step … back and allow me to examine my patient?"
**
"Robert." Finally able to breathe a sigh of relief, she tries to grin. It's full of pain, but it's there. "Never wanted to be here." At least Mr. Hastings knew to ask for Dr. Knight, which really is a godsend. She has no trouble believing he works with Bryn since that was the case. Anyone else would've let any of the ER doctors work on her, and she'd much rather have another magic user.
"Sera forgot…" A slow breath to ease the pain and she makes a face. "Used a lot of magical energy before I passed out." Squeezing Sera's hand in return, she glances at her friend. "Don't worry. Tell Mr. Hastings thank you."
**
Giving Brooke's hand another squeeze, and brushing another kiss over her forehead, Serafine sighs and steps back. There is a protective vibe coming off the vampiress although she knows Brooke is in good hands. Human doctors help heal human patients, but she could do so much more by just giving the witch a swallow or two of her blood.
"I'll be right outside, Brooke. I'm going to go talk to Gideon and make a few phone calls." To Kieran, to Bryn.
"Please tell Bryn that I want an update," Robert calls after the woman. "I want to know how many more of these cases are going to end up in my ER."
Serafine bites back a response that the ones who end up in the ER are the lucky ones, and simply nods her head and hurries out. She's not there to antagonize the handsome doctor. She's here for Brooke.
**
"Unfortunately, you've been preliminary examined and had a chart written up," Robert tells Brooke once the vampiress is gone. "I can do a wee bit to help you and we can cover it under the usual expediency and assessment of the ER." The doctor gives her chart a good look and sets his tablet aside.
Walking up to her, he gently presses on her shoulder. "Stay still. Don't try to sit up." His fingers tenderly examine her scalp, parting her hair to view the cut in the scalp. Robert makes a soft sound of knowing in his throat and then moves on to the wound at her throat. The bandage is gently pulled back and a frown creases his forehead. "First I'm going to get a nurse in here to take care of that cut on your head and get this wound fully and properly cleaned up."
Beat.
"I don't want to start trouble with the Coven and the vampires, but Patel and I are really the only ones able to manage these wounds."
Beat.
"You need to forget all thoughts of healing yourself. I mean it. You're lucky to be awake. Dawna will have my hide if I let you further drain or harm yourself."
**
"Tell Kieran that I'm fine." Brooke's voice is still a bit raspy, but she's managing larger sentences now because she needs to.
Brooke is rather good at listening now that she's got the doctor there with her. She doesn't move except to wince a little as he pokes around. When he's done she asks, "How bad is the scarring going to be, and will you need to cut the hair to stitch up the wound on my head?"
Beat.
"I know that makes me sound vain, but I'd rather know now than be surprised later."
The witch knows she's lucky to be awake, and she wonders how it's possible that she woke up at all considering the severity of her injuries and how much blood she lost.
**
"I think we can manage the head injury just fine," Robert tells her with a wink before he returns to his tablet to make a few notations. On a normal patient, he'd go through normal channels, but a healing spell on a witch isn't going to harm anything. Especially when that injury hasn't been noted properly. "You're actually in better shape than you should be."
Beat.
"The wound on your throat is what's accounting for your blood loss. We can give it a little boost, and I'll get Dr. Mitchell on it. She's our best plastic surgeon."
Robert grabs a stool and slides it over to the bed. He fixes Brooke with a very serious look. "I need to do a cursory exam on that arm Brooke. I won't lie to you. If it's as bad as the chart says? It's going to hurt. Once I've examined it, I'll see what I can do to take the edge off the pain and get the portable x-ray in here."
**
"No surgery until Kieran gets here. I'll live with the pain." Brooke doesn't want him to see her like this, but at the same time Gideon's attitude told her that it was maybe a good idea.
"I shouldn't be awake." Closing her eyes, she exhales a sigh. "They were going for the kill. I wouldn't be here right now if I weren't dabbling in things I shouldn't. Siobhan should be… learning more of that side of her." To keep her safe, obviously. The spells can be dark, but they can be handy as well.
**
"Collins?" Robert asks, with a curious lilt to his voice. He saw the pair at the Summer Gala, and mentioned his concern to Dawna who stated that Regina was there as well and will deal with things if there's something to be dealt with.
"I may not be one that they trust with such things, Robert, but I do know that there are a good many politics at play in The Coven," she'd said to him. In his opinion, it seems like a risky place to put one of the Coven's own for the sake of spying on vampires but … it's not his business.
Not unless Regina decides to play her chess games with his wife or children.
"I saw the pair of you at the Gala," Robert remarks casually. "I thought he was something of a … playboy." A vampire and possibly a dangerous one at that, though he keeps his nose clean with anything regarding his human facade and persona. It's the only reason he didn't have Sam and Karen pluck Jenna from her job.
Before she can answer, he takes presses fingertips lightly to the spot most indicative of a break due to the swelling and discoloration.
**
There's a sharp intake of air, a whimper, and then a string of cursing the likes of which Brooke really shouldn't even know. Pressing her eyes closed tightly, she forces herself to calm down so that Robert can do his job and take care of her arm.
"Yes," she says, voice filled with pain. "He was." Brooke pauses a beat, and then quickly adds, "Is. He's not a bad sort. But he needs to see me like this."
Beat.
"So he doesn't expect me to take care of his businesses at his businesses."
**
Robert is unfazed by the witch's response. He's heard and seen worse. "You work for him then?" He makes a note on her chart, and gives her a moment to catch her breath.
His fingers move further up the arm, at the site of the second break. Again there's probing and waiting for Brooke to relax. The sorcerer then focuses his attention on her fingers and the palm of her hand, testing the nerves and the motor reflexes. "A comminuted fracture in your lower arm. Which in layman's terms means your arm is broken is in three places. Both the radius and the ulna took a hard hit, those are the two bones in the lower arm, and it feels as though the joint was damaged as well. I'll know better after the x-ray."
Robert pauses and holds his hand over her arm, then brings his fingers to rest lightly beneath the joint and over the bone. He murmurs softly in Latin, a witch's healing spell. Nothing the calibre of what his wife or The Soltisice House sisters would do, but it will mostly numb the nerves and takes the edge off the pain. "That will hold you for the x-ray. You'll still feel major pain and discomfort, which is important when the techs are jostling your arm, but it won't cause you to pass out."
Beat.
"As for Siobhan …" Robert gives a shake of his head. "I hear she has an excellent mentor, and I have a few books I can loan to her. However, we can talk about that later."
**
"Yes."
It's an easy 'lie' because it happens to be the truth. She does work for him now, so that she can continue to play by Regina's rules whether she wants to or not. It gives Brooke time to think of other things to do.
"Three places?" That means a full arm cast which is not going to be fun in California. In fact, it's going to suck. "Elbow or wrist joint?"
There is a faint hint of a smile when he casts the minor healing spell. She can feel it taking place, and can feel the immediate pain washing away. It unclouds her mind for just a few minutes. Long enough to question, at least internally, why Sera came in yoga pants.
"It's important if witches are being targeted," she points out.
**
"Wrist. Which is a relief and easier than elbow, but might still require surgery. Still not as tricky as the elbow."
Robert makes a final notation in Brooke's chart and then gives her shoulder a light pat, holding her gaze. "It is important, but what's most important right now, as your doctor, is that you rest and try not to concern yourself with the rest of it. There are people in the City to handle that sort of thing."
**
"I think I can live with the wrist." Brooke wants to kick herself, and really wants to have the bones healed as quickly as possible. She knows that she can't ask Robert for more healing, he's got far more important cases to worry about it on.
"Promise me you won't call my sister. Not until after the surgery… and no surgery until Kieran gets here."
**
"You're already in the system or otherwise we could make this easier," Robert tells her with a quiet shake of his head. Still, there's nothing stopping some accelerated healing once she's in the cast … but they can discuss that later.
"Fine, no call to your sister and no surgery until Mr. Collins arrives."
Beat.
"I need to check on a far less cooperative patient than you, and I think your friend will be returning soon."
**
"Well I would've tried to time my incident for when you were free but you know how these things go. Best laid plans…" Brooke is trying to be humorous, because she really doesn't want to think about how she looks. Bruised for sure. Arm broken, definitely. She's tired, and she knows that she was supposed to take care of a client tonight, which means that she's going to have to start looking to hire someone to work with her. To at least take over what she can't handle if she winds up like this again.
"Thank you, Robert. Go take care of your patient. It's not like I'm going anywhere." Giving him a weak smile, she lays back on the pillow and just tries to rest for the time being.
**
Robert is only gone for a few minutes before Sera returns. She pulls a chair up close to the side of the bed, on the side of the good arm after eyeing the other one with a rather pained look. Honestly, she hates that she can't just give Brooke a little blood and clear the whole mess up.
"How're you doin' sugar?" Serafine strokes a hand lightly over Brooke's head. "Kier's on his way, and will be here soon."
Beat.
"You think you can tell me what happened?"
**
"Robert gave me a little something for the pain." It doesn't matter that it was a spell. It's helping her to focus. The x-ray will come soon enough, then some real medication if she needs it.
"I'll live."
Beat.
"He didn't have to come." Brooke knows that Kieran needs to see her like this, but it doesn't mean she's happy about it. "Even so, I told Dr. Knight no surgery until Kieran got here." Closing her eyes she shifts her body just a little so that her ribs are more comfortable.
"I took a shortcut through the park. I saw two people ahead. I figured they were just doing the same. Didn't think much of it. Once they passed me they started following." She pauses to take a deep breath, exhaling it slowly. "The male glamoured me, I think. I don't remember much from then until the pain started and I ran. Casting whatever spells came to mind. Internal fireballs, aneurysms, and binding before I passed out. Gideon said it was from blood loss."
**
"You have met Kieran Collins, right? You know how futile it is to argue with him and suggest that he does anything contrary to what he wants to do?" Serafine asks with a faint smile. Her Maker will come and there's not a damn thing Brooke can do about it unless she develops the ability to reach across the city and physically stop him.
"I'm going to guess it was bloodloss and magic? Lots of it?" She takes Brooke's hand and gives it a squeeze. Brooke really is lucky that she's a witch and that she's alive. She wonders a bit, again, if maybe this was a cry for help or a warning or just bad luck and ill-timing.
**
"Yes. I just didn't think he'd want to come." Brooke keeps her eyes closed, mostly to do as Robert ordered she do — rest. "It's going to be difficult to keep up appearances once he's here." It would likely be difficult to keep up appearances regardless, because she wants the comfort right now.
"I think so. I put a lot of oomph into those spells. One was a blood spell which likely didn't help."
Beat.
"I'm pretty sure it was on purpose. The female said, 'That's her.'."
**
"Are you still laboring under the delusion that Kieran doesn't care about you?" Serafine asks quietly. She strokes a soothing, maternal hand over Brooke's brow. It's probably an odd contrast, knowing what Sera is and seeing how tenderly she treats the woman in the hospital bed, not a move of it faked or feigned. "He doesn't always show things the way we'd like, but he's quite taken with you."
She bites her cheek to avoid suggesting that it goes deeper than that, that Brooke could very well be Kieran's soulmate.
"Are you a mind reader too, now?" The vampiress just smiles softly, given no strong reaction to the words other than bemusement, but inside she goes cold and still. It's very clear: someone is trying to send Kieran a message … or a warning.
**
"No." Brooke smiles and peeks an eye open. "He told me what he is. What he needs. He wouldn't have told me if he didn't care." Even if it's not the same in the way she's come to care for him, he does care in his own way and that's what matters. "I just don't want to make things worse for him with Regina."
Beat.
"No. I just remembered that part. It was like they were looking for me, Sera. I'd say they knew I'd cut through the park, but I think they were trying to find me at the shop I was coming from."
**
"You let Kieran handle things with Regina. He can be civil when he needs to be, and he does want to keep the peace in the City. Though honestly, that's getting to look to be a harder and harder sentiment in light of recent events." Especially if the attack on Brooke was intentional.
"I'm going to make another call to Bryn as soon as Kieran gets here. I need to make sure that I tell him everything that you've told me."
**
Brooke isn't certain she should let Kieran handle things with Regina. She knows he can be civil, and she knows he's offered to talk to Regina before. She just doesn't want there to be a kerfuffle over her. "Recent events meaning me being attacked? Have their been other witches attacked?"
It's a regular reaction for her to want to sit up at that. She shifts to do so, and then yelps and flops back down. "Okay. You should have a tape recorder, then you could just play it for him."
**
"Stay still!" Serafine orders in her strictest, matriarch voice. "No need to injure yourself more."
Beat.
"Yes, well more attacks, not necessarily on witches. It's an unresolved case, though we've been getting a few breaks on it. No one wanted to sound a general alarm." Serafine shakes her head. "I probably shouldn't be telling you any of this, but you were attacked and you have a right to know."
She pulls out her phone and searches out the voice memo. "And I will share, as soon as you repeat for me again what you said. All of it. The description, the walk in the park, what you overheard." Which should occupy them until the portable x-ray comes.
**
"I'll be fine." But Brooke does as ordered and stays still. It's horribly uncomfortable, and the least they could've done was given her a second pillow, but it's the ER, and she's lucky she's been looked at with any sort of expediency as is.
"Has there been attacks on other witches?" She wants to know if it is an issue she'll have to bring up with Regina or not. Either way, she's going to make sure that the younger witches she knows are well aware to avoid the park after dark.
Repeating, word for word, what she's told Sera, she adds in what Dr. Knight said about her injuries, and the fact that Gideon Hastings is the one who found her and brought her here.
**
Brooke's timing is perfect and the x-ray technician arrives to take the x-ray. They'll still have to take Brooke down for the CT, but the x-ray they can do bedside. Sera grumbles about 'overkill' and having to leave the general area while the machine is being used. She spends a few seconds pondering glamouring herself into staying, but decides not to make waves.
Outside of Brooke's 'room' she finds Gideon is still present.
"Thank you," Serafine tells the older vampire, giving his arm a squeeze. It's her in nature, and while others may stay at arm's length, Serafine is tactile. "For bringing her here though you could have done otherwise."
« Doing otherwise would not have forced Kostas hand or brought this situation to the light with all parties, » Gideon says in flawless Gaelic, the dialect that Kieran taught Serafine. « I sustained her enough to keep her alive and get her here. I assume you will be meeting with Bryn soon enough? »
« Do we really want to force Kostas hand? » Serafine nods. « Yes, soon enough, I'm sure. He might come here to talk to Brooke. I don't know yet. » She doesn't know all of her boyfriend's work habits.
« If he is not part of the solution then the Master of the City is the problem. » Gideon holds Serafine's gaze for a moment. Then he grabs a scrap of paper from the nurse's station, and a pen, ignoring the indignant protest from the young man. « This is the address of where I am staying. I wish to speak with you and Bryn, as soon as possible preferably this evening. Your Maker as well. » It's not a request.
With a nod of his head, Gideon turns to go and by the time Serafine has looked over the address and put the slip into her purse, the Ancient Vampire is gone.
Sighing, she fires off a quick text to Kieran and Bryn and returns to Brooke's bedside.
**
Despite the x-ray going on, Brooke can hear voices in the hallway. Gaelic. At first she thinks Kieran's arrived, but the voice is not his. Sera is talking to someone else who can also speak the old language. She can't pick up on any of the words, really, except Kostas' name.
That just makes her blanche a little.
When the x-ray technician asks her what's wrong, the witch murmurs something about being given very little for the pain, and explains that she's just been hit with a new wave of it. She hopes that suffices to explain the cause of her suddenly pale palor.
**
As soon as the tech is done, Serafine returns with a bright smile. She settles in her chair again and pats Brooke's arm affectionately. "I overheard the nurses talking about bringing you something for the pain and they're going to take you down for the CT for your head in just a bit."
"Is there anything you need? Anything I can do for you, cherie?"
**
"Sera." Brooke smiles at her weakly, and then asks, "Who were you talking to in the hall?"
Beat.
"My head is fine. There's no brain matter falling out. Wish Robert had gotten here first." Then she wouldn't need to be going through all of this workup.
"What were you saying about Kostas?"
**
"Gideon. He wants to meet with Bryn and I later." Kieran, too, but Sera doesn't add that. She knows Kieran will want to see Brooke and she doesn't want the witch being concerned about distracting him.
Sera lowers a voice, "He would have healed you?" She could kick Gideon for not doing the same. The man is inscrutable and though his reasoning is sound, she hates that Brooke has to be his guinea pig.
"There's been a great deal going on with these attacks and he is being difficult as far as aid and cooperation. Gideon thinks this might get his attention because he can't ignore a witch being attacked unless he wants to piss off Regina."
**
"Gideon…" It takes Brooke's brain a moment to catch up, but the way he didn't seem to mind wearing the blood on his suit, and the way he reacted to Sera, coupled with the Gaelic cinches it for her. "… he's a vampire."
Beat.
"I don't know. Maybe. Or he'd have sped all this up so I could get some pain killers."
Wetting her lips, the witch frowns. "Unless he's the one who ordered the attack?"
**
Serafine hesitates a moment and then nods. "He is." Gideon wouldn't have denied it if he were there, so Serafine has no problems admitting what he is to Brooke. "He's older. A little mysterious and inscrutable. But helpful, really. He knows a lot about a lot of things and looks at the world very differently than we do."
Beat.
"I'm sure he's doing the best he can. I imagine it's hard to practice sleight of hand in the middle of a busy ER."
Beat.
"Why would he do that? That would be assuming he has something to do with these attacks and nothing points back at him." She gives Brooke's hand a squeeze. "Look, don't you worry about it. You need to just rest. Get your x-rays and get home - "
"Which won't be happening tonight." Robert returns and gives Brooke a sad, soft smile. "You hit your head. You show signs of a mild concussion and were out of it when we brought you in. Blood loss, yes, but maybe other things compounded it. We're keeping you overnight for observation. The good news is, I'm not going to have to do any surgery on that wrist." Robert winks at her. A hidden message in his words. The wrist is bad enough to need it, but he's going to practice a little 'sleight of hand' as Sera said and take care of the worse of it.
It will probably speed the healing up a bit as well.
"They're a little backed up with the CT, but as your doctor, I can go ahead and get you something mild for the pain, if you'd like. Otherwise we can set the bones and get you casted up."
Beat.
"Or would you still like to wait for Mr. Collins?"
**
"He is, and he brought me here instead of finishing the job?" Brooke stares at Sera for a long moment, and then lets a faint smile hit her eyes. So maybe her assessment of vampires to Siobhan wasn't all wrong after all. You can't deny their nature, but that doesn't make them all blood hungry fiends. That's not to say she's not still going to be careful about things, but she's not going to automatically judge them.
"Because he's Kostas. Does there need to be a reason othe than that?" There has always been a bad feeling where Xander Kostas is concerned. Something in the back of her mind that Brooke has never been able to put a finger on. Something that tells her loudly, that he's bad news.
"Thank goodness." Brooke does give Robert a grateful look at that, simply because she really didn't want to go into surgery and be worried about it. "Something mild will be fine, I think."
Glancing at Sera, she chews on her lip. "Let's maybe at least get it set? That way I can get some rest until he gets here?"
**
The vampiress looses a soft, bemused laugh. "That's not really Gideon's style. From the look of him and you, he probably caught a scent of your magic in your blood and knew what you were." She frowns and wrinkles her nose. "No, I'm not that good, but Gideon is very old."
Being a witch saved Brooke's life. Sera doubts Gideon would have rescued any old human, but he wouldn't have fed on them either. Gave them a peaceful end more like.
"I suppose it doesn't." Serafine doesn't care for Kostas, but she's more careful about what she says in a public venue, despite the creepy feeling at the back of her neck. It would be bad for Kieran if she speaks too much out of the turn.
The handsome doctor gets a gracious smile that he returns easily. Serafine tends to have that affect. Then he abruptly clears his throat and turns quickly to Brooke. "Let me get someone to help me and we'll set those bones."
**
Brooke doesn't need to be so careful when talking about Kostas. She tries to remain friendly with him due to his relationship with the Coven, but that's about as far as it goes.
She doesn't trust him.
"Remind me to thank him, regardless. What he did…" Likely saved her life. She has no doubt that if he hadn't been there when he was, she'd have been far worse off before anyone found her and got her to the hospital.
"I'm not going anywhere, Robert, so there's no rush."
**
Serafine remains with Brooke through the ordeal of setting the bone, allowing the witch to hold onto her hand and squeeze as tightly as possible. A few broken fingers won't hurt her and they'll heal just as quickly.
She follows the transportation to the radiology department and hovers outside, glamouring anyone who tries to get her to leave. Back in the ER, waiting for a room for Brooke and while her temporary splint is removed and her cast is applied, Serafine is there as well. The vampiress sits beside the bed, stroking hands through Brooke's hair (and wondering when Robert managed to sneak a healing to the gash in Brooke's head), and singing softly to her in French. A lullabye that Serafine's mother used to sing to her.
Serafine is aware on some subconscious level of Kieran before she hears his familiar gait, and smells his familiar scent. The aftershave he wears, the soap and shampoo he uses, but something beneath it that is a kin to her, that she recognizes as her Maker. "I think I'll be taking my leave very soon, Brooke."
**
There is no squeezing of the hand, because Brooke is a stubborn witch. She survived this ordeal, and she's not going to be a child and whimper and moan about it now. Instead, she's just wishing that she'd been conscious enough to have Gideon bring her elsewhere to get healed up. The ribs aren't going to be fun for the next little while, and a cast in California isn't going to be amusing at all.
The lullaby actually soothes her a little and she's just beginning to relax when Sera speaks.
"Do you have to go?"
**
"She doesn't have to go, but I think she might want to meet up with Bryn." Kieran speaks before he enters the curtained area, ducking inside with a smile. He didn't ask where Brooke was, having been given a location by Sera and smelling the scent of both of his girls within the ER. Easy enough to track.
He frowns inwardly at the sight of Brooke in the hospital bed, though it doesn't show on his face. Gideon could have had the decency to heal her properly, but he's certain the older vampire has his reasons. Gideon always has his reasons.
"Hey luv," Kieran steps up to the bed and strokes his hand over her cheek. "I came as soon as I could get away."
**
Serafine rolls her eyes at Kieran's quip. "That's not it at all. I just thought that three might be a crowd." Right now, like this anyhow. She tucks a loose strand of hair behind her ear, and leans over to give Brooke a light sisterly kiss on the forehead. "I promise to come back tomorrow night if they don't release you by then."
**
"Thank you, Sera. I'd hug you, but…" Her one arm is elevated, and it hurts to sit up too much. "Go take care of what you need to."
Brooke gives Kieran a lopsided smile and says, "You didn't have to come, you know. Dr. Knight has been taking care of me. Sera was seeing to it. He even fixed my wrist with no surgery." Thanks to a little magic touch, and while the arm is still broken it's not killing her as much now.
**
"I didn't come because I had to," Kieran says simply. He reaches behind him and in one fluid, graceful movement pulls the curtain closed. A few strides carry him to the bed where he leans forward and down and kisses Brooke sweetly on the mouth. "I'm very, very happy that you're a'right luv."
Glancing over at Sera, Kieran presses his fingers to her cheek, "Thank you for looking after her. I know you didn't do it for me, but thank you anyway."
**
"You're welcome. Both of you." Sera takes Kieran's fingertips and gives them a light, chaste affectionate kiss. "I'll check on you tomorrow, Brooke." With that and a final smile at the pair, the vampiress departs.
**
"No, I suppose you didn't." Brooke is still smiling, because she honestly wasn't expecting Kieran to show this early which is why she finally gave Robert the go-ahead to take care of her arm. "Me too. I'm sorry I didn't call sooner. I was trying to get away first." At least she did call, which was probably stupid of her. Dialing 9-1-1 would've been much better.
"You're at least seeing me all bandaged up. I did have a laceration on my scalp, and my arm was pretty bad off. I think I've got bruised ribs still and…" Well, he can see the damage to her face. "I also think that I'm very lucky Gideon Hastings was in the park tonight."
**
"All superficial, and all of it will heal," Kieran reminds her. He draws her hand to his lips and kisses the back of it. It'll heal a good deal faster than normal if he has anything to say about it, but he's not going to turn Brooke into the miracle patient while she's still in the hospital. "We're both lucky Gideon was there tonight."
"What's this about you getting a room?"
**
"Dr. Knight suggested that I stay over for observation. I hit my head pretty hard on a rock when I fell, and that coupled with the blood loss means that I'm a candidate for concussion." Brooke wrinkles her nose, but then offers another smile to Kieran.
"I really wish I hadn't cut through the park. This is not how I wanted to spend my evening."
**
"For the record? I wish that you hadn't cut through the park too." Kieran turns and hooks an ankle around the nearest chair. He drags it over without another look back and settles into it, close enough to the bed to be able to comfortabley touch Brooke and even rest his chin on the side of her mattress.
"Suppose that you could take care of some of it if you weren't in the hospital system?"
Kieran rests a hand affectionately on her leg. Seeing her like this, while reassuring that she will survive, is not settling his nerves. Beneath the surface, Kieran is pacing like a caged beast, wanting to find and tear apart the vampire responsible. "Overnight observation is typical. Concussions can be nasty. Rest assured, I'm staying until they kick me out."
Unless they find the bastard that did this, and then he might slip out to go see the vampire with a very short unlife expectancy.
**
With Kieran that close to the mattress, looking a little concerned, Brooke reaches out her good hand and whispers, "I'll be okay." A soft half-smile is given to him, before she immediately says, "You have the most gorgeous eyes of anyone I have ever met, you know that?"
Beat.
"Not for a few days. I need magical recharge time. With the amount of blood loss and power that I used, my batteries are worn out." Brooke knows that she could take care of it given time. "Otherwise, the superficial stuff easily. Robert took care of the laceration on my head. I could do the bruises, maybe the ribs. Broken bones generally take more than one witch."
Beat.
"Or until just before dawn?"
**
Kieran waggles his brows. "Do go on …" Kieran knows that he's good looking and has been told far too often how beautiful his eyes are. He accepts it, and he's a bit vain, but he can have a sense of humor about it as well.
"Then we'll worry about that sort of thing when you get released. I'm sure we have some leeway to play with." A bit of his blood should accelerate the healing, and depending on how cautious he wants to be, might get her all the way there.
"Or until dawn." Kieran does have ways to stay around, but they involve closing blinds and stealthily avoiding sunlight patches. He'd rather not have to do that across the hospital.
**
Brooke laughs at the waggling of his brows, and immediately regrets it. Setting her good hand to her ribs, she makes a face. "Ow. How am I supposed to go to a Broadway show with you tomorrow night?" Sighing she says, "Take Sera with you if I'm not well enough to go yet, and give my apologies to Miss Donovan?"
Hopefully she'll be able to heal up the superficial things by tomorrow. Rest, and a bit more blood should be able to keep her steady on her feet to handle a few minor healing spells without expending too much energy.
"You know you're sexy, I don't need to go on. Besides, you're the one that's supposed to be making me feel good."
**
"I'm certain that one day Sera is going to be tired of being my last minute backup date," Kieran says with a grin. Not very likely. Sera likes to get dressed up and go places, even at the last minute. He laces his fingers through Brooke's. "She was really worried about you, yeah? It's been a very long time since I've seen her in public that dressed down."
Beat.
"I think I'm supposed to let you rest. That's what you need most right now. I'm going to hire a service for you while your arm's banged up and you need to watch those ribs. Someone to come in and pick up the place, and I'll send over some meals."
**
"I know she was. She sang to me." Brooke squeezes his hand and glances over at him, a great deal of affection apparent on her face. "I'd have to say that she's likely one of the best friends I've ever had. I'm lucky to have had the chance to run into her that one night." Since that lead to her meeting Kieran, and having a really great friend even if they're both vampires.
"I don't want to rest. I can't move, therefore my body is resting." Brooke is really just being stubborn, because she doesn't want him to wander off. "I can go somewhere tomorrow, or the next day, to see if I can get healed up. We have a place for that. Coven healers…"
Beat.
"Whoever did this, did it on purpose, Kieran. I don't know if Sera told you that or not. They were looking for me."
**
"She sang to you?" Kieran grins at that. "Sounds like you got the full 'mothering' treatment there, luv. Sera doesn't sing to just any one." He brushes lips across her knuckles again. "Woman has good instincts. She always has. Well … except for where she threw her lot in with me, but I suppose that didn't work out too badly." Kieran winks.
Beat.
There's a flash in Kieran's eyes. Anger. Annoyance. Not at Brooke. Not even toward Serafine though he is of half a mind to take her over his knee for keeping information from him. "She might have left that out," Kieran remarks with a lot more levity than he's feeling. "How do you know that?"
**
"A French lullaby I think. I could tell it was French, but I'm not sure what she was signing." Brooke blinks at him, then laughs. It causes her to 'ow' again due to her ribs, but she is in good spirits now that he's here. "No, I don't think that worked badly at all."
Beat.
"I heard them say, 'That's her.' and they wouldn't have said that if they weren't looking for me."
**
Kieran scowls. He doesn't like the sound of that. "I'm not leaving you alone or unprotected." With that, he's pulling out his telephone. He does have a few contacts in the city, contacts that aren't vampires. One of which is Owen, and he very quickly texts the werewolf that he's going to need some assistance and will tell him what he needs later. The second text is to Bryn; they need to talk again and as soon as possible.
That done, he looks back to Brooke. "You don't need to think about it right now, however. Just close your eyes and rest. I'm not going anywhere until I have to."
**
"I'm not unprotected in the hospital. Robert is here." Though Brooke has no idea when his shift ends, or if he's pulling a double, or who's told Regina what just yet. She bites her lip, realizes it's bruised, and exhales a sigh. "Kieran, I'll be fine. I promise. Please don't stress yourself out over this?"
Getting an impish look in her eyes, she slides over as much as she can on the bed. "Will you come up here until you have to leave?"
**
"I don't care and you don't get to tell me not worry," Kieran says with a somber look in her direction. "I know that you'll be fine because I'm going to see to it that you're fine, and I don't want to hear any objections." He's older, maybe not necessarily wiser, but in this case, he does know better.
Chastisement given, a slow smile breaks over his face and Kieran nods. Standing, he slides gracefully onto the bed beside her, tucking her into his body. "How's this?"
**
"Okay. I'm sorry, Kieran." Brooke bites her lip, knowing that it was less an order and more his worry talking. "You're right. I don't get to tell you how to feel." She exhales slowly when he moves toward the bed, but it takes a moment or two for her to smile again.
"Much more comfortable now." Shifting her body, she rests her head against his chest and smiles. "Thank you for coming to check on me," she says, finally relaxing.
**
Kieran gazes at her with intense blue eyes. For a long few moments, the vampire is silent. He trails a hand over her hair and down her cheek and along her arm. "You're mine, Brook Bishop. I wouldn't have done anything else."
