The Greatest Sacrifice

[charmed60]

Story Title: The Greatest Sacrifice

Type of Story: Medium Fic

Main Characters: Tony, Rachel, Jack, Martha, Leah, Morag

BTTB Rating: T

Genre: Romance, Drama, Angst, Romance

Does the Story Include Spoilers: none

Any Warnings: Some reference in later chapters of rape and domestic violence; will warn before.

Summary: Rachel unknowingly puts her own life at risk when she becomes emotionally involved with a vulnerable patient. But the consequences are far more devastating than she could have imagined and the experience will change her whole life forever.

Rachel wearily glanced at the clock as she strolled down the hospital corridor, her high heels clicking on the polished floor. With only ten minutes of her shift left and a quick discharge form to be completed it looked like she’d finally get away on time today. Her thoughts turned to the plans she had and her breath caught in her throat – she was ridiculously nervous.

“Ra…er, Dr Armstrong” she heard her co-worker boom as she rested her patient’s file on the nurses desk and she turned swiftly to see Derek smiling guiltily at her.

“I take it I’m not going to be getting away on time after all” Rachel sighed, rubbing her forehead in frustration. She hadn’t even decided what to wear yet.

“I’m really sorry, normally I wouldn’t ask but I’ve got three patients in triage and…”

“Derek it’s fine” Rachel interrupted, desperate to get this over and done with. One of the downsides of being in charge of the department was that you couldn’t really walk out when the staff were struggling with the workload. Well, some managers would and it had infuriated Rachel to no end before she’d been offered the position so she was determined not to be that sort of boss. “What have we got?”

“35 year old female patient with deep lacerations to her forehead which will probably need suturing, obs are normal and her husband is with her” Derek informed her, directing her towards the door of the bay. “She’s 13 weeks pregnant as well” he further added, “I’ll let Julie know and she can do the suturing to make up for keeping you here”

“Okay that’s great thanks Derek” Rachel smiled, casting her eyes over the notes to make sure there wasn’t any missed information. She’d had quite a few admissions to the emergency department in the past few years she noticed.

“Going anywhere nice tonight?” Derek interrupted as he pulled his bleeping pager from the strap of his trousers.

“Tony’s taking me out again” Rachel smiled, wishing he hadn’t reminded her. She could hardly stop her hands from shaking.

“Wow you guys must be getting serious this is what…date number three now?” he teased.

“Five actually but whose counting” she quickly replied, giggling like a schoolgirl. She hated when that happened, it was like she had no control over it. Every time someone mentioned Tony to her she’d start blushing and laughing like a complete idiot.

“Well have a nice time” he sang, winking at her as she playfully pushed him and waved him off so that she could put on her professional face and greet her patient.

“Good evening, I’m Dr Armstrong, I read here that you had a bit of an accident. It’s Lucy isn’t it?” Rachel greeted, examining the wound from the side of the bed. It was gaping quite widely and the edges were ragged suggesting that a force had been applied.

“Yes it is and yes she did, she walked into an open cupboard door didn’t you sweetheart. You clumsy thing” her husband explained, his hand gripping hers tightly. Rachel scanned her eyes over him. He looked familiar but she couldn’t place where she’d seen him before.

“How did it happen Lucy?” Rachel asked her directly.

“She was putting something in the oven and stood up forgetting that the cupboard door above her was open” her husband quickly interjected.

Rachel paused and took a deep breath in to calm her annoyance and stop her from crossing the line of professionalism. “I’d rather hear it from Lucy if that’s okay” Rachel smiled, uncomfortable with the dominant attitude of the man standing directly opposite her. “Is that what happened?”

“Yes, yes it is” Lucy nodded timidly, looking up quickly at Rachel before casting her eyes back down again.

“Okay well it looks quite sore, would you like some pain relief for it?” Rachel offered, again directing the question at her patient.

“She’s pregnant” her husband interjected as if she’d offered his wife a bag of crack cocaine.

“I’m aware of that” Rachel calmly replied wondering what excuse she could use to get the husband out of the room. Her mind was blank. “But paracetamol is perfectly safe in pregnancy as is codeine so if you’d like anything I can prescribe them for you.”

“She’s fine thank you. We don’t want to take any risks of it harming the baby” he smiled, sending a shiver through Rachel’s body. She looked at Lucy in an effort to communicate with her but her head remained downcast.

“Dr Armstrong I’ve got the suture pack would you like me to put the stitches in?” Julie greeted, causing Rachel to jump as she entered the room. Her mind was swirling with thoughts; she couldn’t put her finger on it but there was something about the situation that made her really uncomfortable.

“Erm, yes, yes please” Rachel stuttered. “Lucy I’m going to leave you in the capable hands of Julie here, it’s been nice meeting you.”

“You to” Lucy mumbled tugging on the sleeve of her oversized cardigan. As Rachel exited the room she spotted Dr Benson removing his coat at the nurses desk.

“Evening Rachel” he greeted, his smile disappearing as he witnessed the anxiety on her face. “That bad a day huh? Maybe I shouldn’t have volunteered to do the night shift” he joked.

“Oh no it’s been okay” Rachel reassured. “It’s just, the patient in Bay 2 Lucy Reynolds. I just, I can’t explain it but there’s something going on; I’m not sure she’s being completely honest with me. Her husband was very involved to, maybe too much. Can you just keep an eye on her for me please?” she rambled, hoping her colleague didn’t think she was exaggerating. She wished she could stay and see her care through but after fourteen hours of working she knew she was crossing the line into unsafe practice.

“Sure” he smiled. “Have a nice sleep.”

“Thanks” she drifted, hoping he would take it seriously. Taking a deep breath to try and force her to put the case out of her mind she quickly glanced at the clock, her heart racing as she realised Tony would be picking her up in an hour. “Damn it” she cursed, grabbing her bag and coat from the hook as she mentally browsed through her wardrobe wondering what attire would be most appropriate for a fifth date. But no matter how much she tried to distract herself with thoughts of her pretty impressive high heel collection, she couldn’t wipe Lucy’s fraught face from her mind. Something wasn’t right. She just wish she knew what it was.

Preview:

Jack is overjoyed when he receives an unexpected surprise.

I really hope you like my new story, please let me know and give constructive criticism if you can. Thank you

[HighwayUnicorn]

Wow. What a fantastic start.

Lucy's husband seems very suspicious & creepy.

A great chapter & you've already got me hooked.

I look forward to more. Well done.

Love Carina xxx

[Red Ranger 1]

That was a really great opening, you showed the tension in the air with Lucy and her husband really well.Wonder where Rachel thinks she knows him from.Looking forward to more!

[Sabrina]

Wow! Brilliant start!

I loved how Rachel got embarrassed when Derek was teasing her about Tony.

Lucy's husband seems very strange. I wonder where Rachel recognises him from?

Looking forward to the next chapter.

[callyha]

Great opener. I love how you've managed to already plant the seed of suspicion in Rachel's mind over Lucy's husband.-who sounds very creepy.....

Can't wait for the next chapter

[KirstyEkua]

Laura that was an amazing first chapter! I'm so happy you've started a new fic.

I loved how you've build up the suspense right from the get go. There's already something creepy about Lucy's husband and i like how you've left me wanting more! The short intoduction to him was enough to get me interested. The conversation between Rachel and them was brilliantly written and Rachel's concern/annoyance was evident. I liked how she managed to remain professional though but still asked someone to check up on Lucy.

I love that the story seems to involve Rachel's role at the hospital - there's so much potential for that. And she's head of department. I think Derek is a great secondary charatcer and enjoy the relationship he was with Rachel. It was cute he was teasing her about Tony and i loved how she seemed to get embarrased! Obviously i am excited to see how things develop from here with Tony and Rachel and it's clever that you haven't really given anything away concerning their relationship, it definitely leaves the reader wanting to find out more!

Fantastic start and i can't wait for more.

[Danni02]

Aww, Rachel getting embarrased when Derek was teasing her about Tony! Lucy's husband does seem very creepy....hmmm. I'm sure he is one not to trust!

Great start Laura. Looking forward to more!

[katie343]

I'm so glad you're writing another fic! Great start really can't wait to read the next chapter.

By the way forgot to comment on the last few chapters of your last fic I blame year 12 but I really enjoyed reading it and the end was beautiful.

xx

[suzannelgnz]

Yay! another fanfic from Laura The beginning already has me intrigued about what is going on with this patient,and between Tony and Rachel

[charmed60]

Aww wow thank you so so so soooo much for ALL of your lovely comments; Carina, Red Ranger, Sabrina (thank you for your comment, I assume you're a J&M fan so I hope you'll like this ) callya, Kirsty, Danni, katie (honestly don't worry - I remember what year 12 was like!) and suzanne; you're all fabulous

This ones specifically for the J&M fans and of course a little bit for those who enjoy Tony&Rachel

“Jack, come here quick” Martha shrieked, her hands shaking as she mentally willed him to hurry up. She heard his heavy footsteps thumping loudly towards her and her heart rate increased rapidly.

“What? What is it” he stuttered as he raced into the room, his hair dripping wet with only a towel wrapped around his body. He clung tightly to it as he carefully skipped over towards her, desperately trying not to slip over in the wet footsteps he was creating on the floor.

“I felt the baby move” she beamed, tears stinging in her eyes as she held her hand out towards him.

“Martha you’ve felt the baby move plenty of times, it’s me that never gets to feel it” he sulked, folding his bottom lip in sadness. His shoulders dropped as he eased himself onto the settee gently.

“That’s because the baby wasn’t big enough before now but I just had my hand on my tummy and I felt him…her…whatever. Trust me Jack give me your hand” she smiled, taking his hand in hers and placing it on her tiny bump. Jack waited patiently but didn’t expect much. He’d been here many times before; Martha would feel the baby move and he would excitedly press his hand against her tummy waiting to feel his child kick to. But he never did.

“There it was” Martha jumped, “did you feel that? You must have” she emphasised, her eyes wide in amazement.

“I, oh wow…” Jack felt like the breath had been knocked out of him. Just before Martha had jumped he had felt a tiny limb brush against his finger; it must have been a leg or an arm. Their baby. Tears welled in his eyes as he desperately tried to express what he was feeling but he couldn’t. “Hey bubba” Jack whispered. “I’m your Daddy.”

“Evening” Rachel greeted as she rushed through the door, the keys fumbling in her hands as she frantically tried quicken her pace, her eyes consistently checking her watch for the time. “I’m really late” she breathed apologetically, dumping her bags down by the bookcase and kicking her shoes off as she ran through to her bedroom. Suddenly she paused and backtracked her steps.

“Am I imagining things Jack or you are sitting on that couch naked right now?” she queried, her eyebrow raised as Jack’s bare back was all she could see.

“He has a towel” Martha smiled, poking him in the ribs.

“Dare I ask why you’re…actually I don’t want to know. I need to get ready” she exclaimed, holding her hands over her eyes as she threw a tea towel at him and turned back towards her bedroom.

“Rach the baby just kicked, I finally felt it” Jack shouted out after her; a smirk on his face as he heard her footsteps pause.

“Are you serious” Rachel beamed, entering the room once again. “Guys that’s fantastic, I’m so excited for you” she clapped enthusiastically. “Do you think the little one will kick for me?”

“Sure, come and feel; he’s doing some penalty kicks in there right now” Martha laughed, enjoying every moment.

“He?” Jack enquired sceptically; “is that some psychic maternal thing; do you think it’s a boy?”

“If it is Tony’s going to be snapping him up for the footie team straight away; he’s doing somersaults in there” Rachel beamed, thrilled for her friends.

“Speaking of Tony aren’t you two going out tonight” Martha teased, leaning back onto Jack’s chest.

“Yes we are” Rachel nodded, taking a deep breath. “I better go get ready, he’ll be here…” A knock on the door interrupted her thoughts and she felt her heart jump as she realised Tony was here to pick her up. “Damn it” she cursed jumping to her feet and clambering towards her bedroom. “Tell him I’ll be five minutes” she begged, her voice drifting off as the sound of the shower turning off drowned it out.

“Hey Dad” Jack greeted, “she’ll be about half an hour you better sit down. I’ll get you a beer.”

“Cheers mate” Tony replied, smoothing down his shirt before kissing Martha on the cheek and taking a seat opposite her.

“You smell nice” she winked.

“You don’t think it’s too much do you” he panicked, subconsciously trying to rub some of it off of the collar.

“No not at all” she smiled, “Rachel will be very impressed.”

“That’s the plan” he laughed nervously, rubbing his palms together before taking a swig from his beer to calm his nerves. “So…anything exciting happen today?”

Preview:

Rachel is distracted on her date with Tony