Dallas had was just about to sit down to enjoy her evening meal with a co-worker. It had been a rough day. The emergency room had been extremely busy and her feet and back were killing her. She was looking forward to having thirty minutes to herself where she didn't have to stand.

As she set her tray of food down on the table, and eased herself into a chair, she heard her name over the intercom.

“Dallas Kennan, you are needed in the ER STAT. Dallas Kennan, please return to the emergency room STAT.”

Dallas rolled her eyes at Lacey in feigned irritation. “I swear. I never get a break. This place is going to kill me yet.”

Casey laughed. “I know what you mean. We've had our share of hardships today. Well you better go before you get in trouble. I'll box your food up and bring it to you before I have to get back to labor and delivery.”

“Thanks,” Dallas said as she hurried away.

Dallas was the head nurse to the trauma center. It's where the worst of the worst came in. She'd seen everything imaginable from car accidents, to burns. Nothing much phased her anymore. In the beginning, she'd had her troubles though. She'd battled not only a weak stomach, but also weak emotions. At first it had been hard to separate her heart from the job. When she'd see a woman, a man, or especially a child that had been severely injured, it had been almost impossible not to let her feelings get in the way of her duties as a nurse.

But over the years, she had adapted. She knew that every moment was crucial. A second could be the difference between life and death. The trauma center was no laughing matter. Time was of the essence.

Just like now.

As she bolted into the trauma center, Dallas was quickly swept into the arms of fellow nurses and friends. They surrounded her in such away that she could not get a glimpse of the patient that lay on the bed in the center of the room.

Before Dallas knew what was going on, she was shifted in another direction and was being escorted out the same door she had just walked into. Confused she tried to turn around to look at the person lying still on the gurney.

It was noisy. The machines were beeping loudly. Doctor's were issuing orders and nurses were bustling around the room to do as they were commanded. The stress level was acutely elevated. Something didn't seem right. Something was terribly wrong. She could sense it.

Dallas was led down the hallway, then into the nurses lounge. Bewildered she glanced around at the many faces that stared back at her.

God what's going on? Has something happened to Ellen?

Dallas could read the look of concern on their faces. In their eyes shone a look of horror. Something was wrong. Dallas could feel it all the way to the core of her being. She had to know now. Or else she was going to go crazy. She couldn't take the suspense any longer. She had to know what was going on and why she had been removed from the trauma center.

“Would someone please tell me what's going on?” Dallas shouted.

Suddenly the room grew quiet and cold. Dallas shivered as she watched her friends. “Is something wrong with Ellen? I need to know. Is she okay?”

There was a thick silence that hung in the air. For a moment no one said a word. Someone tried to force Dallas to sit down. But she refused.

“I don't need to sit down. All I need to know is if Ellen is okay.”

“Ellen is fine,” someone behind her said.

Dallas released a sigh of relief. The tension in her body loosened a little and she was able to relax. Only then did she sit down as everyone had tried to get her to do earlier.

One of Dallas' close friends clutched her hand and knelt down beside her. There were tears in her eyes. “This isn't easy for me to say, Dallas,” Sharon blurted out. “But I'll do my best.”

Dallas was growing frustrated. “For God's sake, would you just please tell me what in the world is going on?”

Sharon squeezed Dallas's hand tighter, almost painfully. “It's Blake. He's been hurt.”

“Hurt? How?” Dallas was stunned by the news. She felt her mind suddenly spinning in a thousand different directions.

“At the game. His head collided with a bat. He hasn't gained consciousness since he was hit. The prognosis isn't good, Dallas. I've gotta be honest with you. He's been hurt pretty bad. We won't know for sure until all the X-rays are in. You just need to prepare yourself for the worst.”

“Oh God,” Dallas cried. She hung her head and placed her hands in front of her face to hide the tears that sprang from her eyes.

She was numb. This wasn't happening. Not to her. Not to Ellen. Not to Blake.

God, please help me through this. I'm not prepared. And please help Blake.

Dallas felt herself losing control. She lunged from her chair and tried to squeeze herself through the throng of supportive friends and co-workers. But someone grabbed her by the arm and stopped her progression.

“Dallas, you can't go in there right now. The doctors need time to do what they need to do. You'll only be in the way.”

That was true. She was a trained nurse. But she wasn't qualified to sit back when something was happening to her husband. A husband who didn't seem to love her anymore.

Dallas felt the gut-wrenching pain all the way to her belly. Suddenly she needed to be alone with her thoughts. She hadn't seen Blake in over two weeks, though she had talked to him a few times on the phone. They had been constantly at odds with one another.

Blake had become an overnight success and some how he had changed. Everything about him had changed. And quite frankly she didn't like it and wasn't going to tolerate it anymore. Now it all seemed so pointless. She might never get the opportunity to tell her husband she was sorry. Sorry for the arguments. Sorry for everything.

And Ellen? What would she tell Ellen?

“Let's pray,” someone said automatically.

The women in the room came together in a circle around Dallas. They all joined hands and one of them led the prayer.

Dallas tried to listen. Really she did. But nothing was getting through. She just kept thinking of Blake and how he looked when she walked out on him, taking her daughter with her. For the last few months their marriage had been falling apart. She'd tried to keep it together. Honestly she had. But she'd finally given up when she realized that Blake wasn't willing to do his part.

Dallas was angry at him now. Angry for letting this happen. How could he do this to her. He couldn't leave her. Not like this. There was so much left unsaid. She felt herself falling. Her legs grew weak and shaky. She grabbed onto someone. She didn't know who. She just held on for dear life, hoping that she wouldn't faint.

Dallas felt her way to the chair and gently lowered herself into it. She tried to calm her erratic breathing. She thought she might succumb to darkness at any moment.

“Dallas, is there anything we can get you? Anything at all?”

Dallas thought a moment. “I need to call my parents. I'll need them to keep Ellen for a few days. And I need to call Blake's parents. They'll want to be here. It'll only take then a few hours if they can catch a plane. It'll take much longer if they have to drive.”

Ellen called her parents first. They talked for only a short while. They expressed their concern and agreed to take care of Ellen as long as they needed to.

Afterwards, she called Alice and Durant Kennan. Blake's father answered the phone on the first ring. As always he was sitting by the phone, just waiting for it to ring. He loved to talk to his family. He was close to each of his three children. He was a loving, doting father. He could joke and make you laugh and Dallas liked that about him. She needed that at a time like this.

“Dad,” Dallas whispered. “Dad, this is Dallas. Is Mom there? I need to talk to both of you. It's about Blake.”

Dallas waited while Alice grabbed the other phone. After a few seconds she began to explain the situation, not once trying to sugar-coat it.

“Mom, Dad, there's been an accident. Blake's been hurt. Seriously.” Dallas took a swallow of air and gulped it down. “He may not make it. Can you come? He needs you here.”

“Of course we'll come,” Alice said sharply, a crackle of pain stabbing her in the heart.

“What happened?” Durant asked.

“I will tell you when you get here. Right now you just need to get on a plane and get here as fast as you can. If you need me to pay for the fare, I'll give you a credit card number.”

“No,” Alice said. “We'll be fine. We can manage on our own. We'll be there in a few hours.”

“Please hurry,” Dallas pleaded. “Please hurry.” There was an urgency in her voice. Dallas hung up the phone and began to weep. She didn't know how she was going to get through this. She never expected anything like this to happen. She knew there were some risks with Blake's job. But she never thought he would sustain an injury as severe as this one. She always thought if anything were to happen to him, it would be a broken wrist, or a twisted ankle, banged up shins. Not a crippling brain injury.

Dallas tried to keep her eyes open, but by midnight she was asleep in a chair in the corner of the nurse's lounge.

Chapter 3 Coming Soon