The Bradford's

Recovery

I have Tim 2 breaths and I I started compressions again and the paramedic said, "we got a rhythm."
"Bradford's don't quit," I told her.
"Let's get him loaded, you should ride with us let us look at that stab wound." She looked at me.
"I'm not leaving his side," I get up and hobble behind them carrying Tim out. We take off to Shaw Memorial, I call Grace.
"Grace, it's Tim! Meet us at the ambulance bay, he's been beaten real bad. Crashed for 10 minutes. We got him back but he's not looking good." I let the tears flow and we pull in a few minutes laters.
The EMTS relay the information to Grace and her team but I don't hear a thing. I take two steps into the ER and I fall over.
***Third person***
Nurse Veronica sees the woman that came in with Sergeant Bradford fall over, "I need some help over here!" She yells
"That's Lucy Bradford, his wife! Take care of her, they have 2 kids at home and he doesn't look good," Dr Sawyer yells as they wheel Sergeant Bradford away.
"I see a stab wound and burn on her right thigh, she has swelling to the face. Pulse is strong, BP is strong, let's clean that leg cleaned up, IV antibiotics and fluids, get her stabilized and to the CT machine." Dr. Anderson yells above the chaos. The nurses quickly start to tend to Lucy's injuries and start a IV.
Once she's ready they take her to the CT machine and then admit her to a Double room where hopefully her husband will soon be.
The doctor gets the results of the CT and determine she collapsed from shock as well as a blow to the head leaving a contusion on the brain and mild swelling.
Meanwhile Grace is with Tim in the OR. They opened him up for a emergency laparotomy, "okay theres tons of bleeding, I need lap pads and suction, hang another unit of blood. I need an update on Lucy as soon as possible!" Dr Sawyer looks for a bleeder and looks. Her eyes catch it, "bleeding from the spleen, let's get it under control, cauterizer," she gets the bleeding on the spleen under control and notices more bleeding coming from another area. "Suction and lap pads, okay there's another one, I'm going to need to resect part of the liver." They work on that and half way through a nurse comes in.
"I have an update on Officer Bradford, she's still out, we have her on IV fluids and antibiotics, she has a contusion on her brain that is non threatening. She's probably just crashed from everything she's been through." The nurse provided the update and Dr Sawyer let out a relieved sigh. Those kids need there parents, everything the Bradford's have been through, they need a break.
"Thank you, please let Officers John Nolan and Jackson West know. They are probably in the lobby right now knowing them." Dr Sawyer finished respecting the Liver and had them suction when she double and triple checked Tim she didn't find anymore bleeders.
"Okay I think we are in the clear for now." Then the machines started beeping. "Or not, I don't see any blood from here, let's open his chest." That's when she noticed the broken ribs. "Slowly crack his chest, there's broken ribs it got to be a punctured lung." Once the Ribs retracted Dr Sawyer saw there was a rib lodged in the bottom lobe of the lung. "We're going to have to try and close, but if things get tricky we are just going to resect the bottom part of the lung," they began working on removing the bone from the lung.
***Back to Lucy***
I sat up in the hospital bed and found no one around. Suddenly the memories of Tim coding and almost not coming back flooded my vision. I put my legs over the side of the bed and I forced myself up. Shakily I grabbed the IV pole and made my way in the hallway. I didn't see anyone there either and then I saw big letters that said "SURGERY GALLERY" I walked there. It was like a force in my body was pulling me. I went down a few doors and opened one. That's where I saw Tim chest to sternum cut open. That's when I heard the sound that will haunt my dreams forever.... The sound of him flatlining. I ran up to the front of the gallery and I banged on the window and yelled "HELP HIM!!" The Dr with Grace started massaging his heart and I heard her say, "I'm not losing him! Someone get Officer Chen out of the gallery," while she continued to work on what looked like his lung. And soon enough a nurse was in there. As I stood as close I could and cried silently watching them working n my husband.
"We got a heartbeat," the doctor said.
"Tim please be strong, please fight for me and our kids. We need you. I love you forever ." I whisper. And let the nurse guide me out of the room.

"Lucy," Grace walks in my room and I snap my head up to look at her.
"Well how is he? Did he make it?" I ask feeling the anticipation build.
"He's stable, we have him intubated and in a medically induced coma," I feel my heart break. "we will be bringing him in here shortly but Lucy these next 24 hours are very critical." She smiles and grabs my hand. "He's a fighter Lucy, you know it, I know it. It's not time for him to go yet."
"Yeah." I sit back in hm bed and cross my arms.
"How are you doing?" She asks.
"Good, nurse says my vitals are stable and I'm looking less dehydrated." I look around and I feel so lost... Like my world could slip away at any second. Tim is the heart of our family. Always keeping us happy and joyful.
"I'll be back once the nurses get Tim settled in." She walks out.

***24 Hours Later***
I'm sitting at Tim's bedside holding his hand in mine they took him off intubation but he still hasn't woke up.
"Tim I need you to come back to me, to Lila and Logan. We need you. You are our rock. The kids, they keep asking for daddy. I um, I covered for you told them you were working. I couldn't break the news to Lila that one of us was hurt again." I chuckle a little and wipes the tears from my face, "Tamara, she's holding the fort down for us. I haven't left your side. And Angela and Wes have been going over everyday. The kids just love them, but they need there dad." I break out in sobs and that's when I feel his hand move.
"Lucy," he groans out. And I snap up with a huge smile on my face.
"Tim, it's okay baby, don't talk, let me page Dr. Sawyer." I jump for the call button and tell the nurse who answers it that Tim's awake.
I kiss his forehead and he smiles at me, "you saved me as always Tim."
"Your a danger magnet." He smiles lazily.
"We'll look whose awake," Grace smiles as she walks in.
"Why Doc," he says weakly, "what's the prognosis?"
"Well we had to resect your liver and part of your lung, you have a broken rib we had to reset, and you had tons of bleeders in the abdomen. But you should make a full recovery." Tim and I smiled at each other as he grabbed a glass of water from Grace.
"The kids? How are they doing?" He asked taking a small sip.
"I told them you were at work. Angela and Wes have been helping Tamara out. And I've been here." I tell him and I lean in and kiss him.
"I thought I lost you. I didn't know what to do... I can't ever have us in a situation like that again Tim." I cry to him.
"Hey, hey, we are so strong. We have already been through the ringer. We will defeat whatever comes our way." He held my face in his hands and I noticed he was breathing kind of heavy.
"Hey lean back and just relax babe." I hold his pillow in place for him and gently lean him back.
We spent the next few days in the hospital and were told we could go home. I have to go back to work in a week Tim is looking at 4 weeks. So we spent as much time together as we could with the kids. They missed us so much and we missed them. We probably watched every Marvel movie and every Harry Potter movie in the week we spent together and eat our weight in food. Tim and I will definitely need to hit the gym a little extra, but it was all worth it.