Persistence. That voice was so persistent. It would not leave her alone. It's echoing waves of sound followed her as she shied away from it. It was distorted and far away. She couldn't make out what it was trying to tell her. She was confused and it was so far away. Gradually it became clearer. The soft voice, she could recognize it, was calling her back. Not beckoning in the manipulative way that the darkness had, but calling to her. Asking her to return. Desperate and emotional. It wanted her to open her eyes. He wanted her to open her eyes.

Sensing no danger, feeling no apprehension, she came back. She returned within herself. As she opened her eyes, a painful flood of light filled her vision. Pain was so predominant, she expected to feel it. But there was something underlying. An emptiness. Something was wrong, something terrible had happened.

Blinking until her swollen eyes adjusted to the lights, she surveyed her surroundings. She was staring at a plaster paneled ceiling, reminiscent of the ones that had lined her public school so many years ago. She moved her head slowly, and stopped when she felt dizzy. She was weak, very weak. But he was there, she just knew he was. She had heard him.

"Nick," she whispered hoarsely. Her voice was dry and fading. She swallowed painfully and licked her cracked lips. She took a deep breath and tried again.

"Lilia! You're awake, Baby!" Paul exclaimed. She turned her head to see him. She looked past him, and saw no one but a strange doctor. Nick wasn't there. Another figment of her imagination. Her head began to swim again, dizzying waves attempting to overwhelm her, trying to lull her back into sleep. Her shock at her surroundings had dulled her pain, but it returned with full force. With it returned her fear.

"My baby," she whispered. Paul brushed a stray hair away from her eyes, and gazed down on her sorrowfully. His eyes were veiled, his expression sad. Her fear became a hysterical need to know, to have her question answered.

"My baby!" she said, her dry voice cracking with the force of her effort. Paul looked away, and she knew. He was trying to hide it from her, but she could see it.

She turned her head back towards the ceiling, staring ahead. Her lower lip trembled slightly. She heard voices around her, discussing her condition, talking to her, but she ignored it all. She just focused on the ceiling and silently wished for the darkness to return, for it to take her, to wrap her in it's oblivion.

* * * *

"She needs rest. Her body is trying to heal, and it's taking everything from her. We'll wait until she is more coherent to tell her," the doctor said.

"I tell you, she already knows. She could see it in my face, I know she could. But listen, you cannot tell anyone about this, no one who comes in here except me," Paul insisted.

"Of course, sir. I am not allowed to tell anyone, it's against the law. But for now, I think that she should be allowed time to rest, because she is going to need all of her strength," he responded. Paul walked slowly towards the waiting room, exhausted. It had been a long 24 hours for him. When he entered the room, they all stood up. Sandy, Damon and Jacki. And AJ and Brian.

"How is she? She really woke up?" they all demanded.
"Yeah, she was awake. She went back to sleep, but they think she'll be okay now," he responded. Relief soared through everyone, and they all hugged.

"We're going to go back to the hotel and sleep. We have to do our show tonight, but we have a few hours to grab some sleep," Sandy said.

"We have to what?"

"I know, I tried, but there is no reason for us not to be there, they said. It wasn't one of us. It's only a few hours, Paul, and then we can come right back here," she said. He sighed, and hugged her again.

"I love you, you know that? You're so logical, and I would have lost it a long time ago is you weren't here," he whispered into her hair.

"Where did Nick go?" AJ asked Brian.

"I don't know. I didn't see him come out with Paul. I hope he's okay," Brian stated.

"Look, we're all exhausted and we have a concert tonight. We should all go and sleep, we're going to need it," Damon said. They all agreed, and headed out the door.

Nick watched them leave. He had heard what they had said. She really had woken up. She was going to be alright. His Lily was going to be alright. He waited until he was sure that they were gone, and walked back to her room. He looked carefully to make sure she was unconscious before he walked in. He sat down, and resumed his silent vigil. She was going to be alright. But he felt that she still needed him.

* * * *

Over the next two days, Lilia drifted in and out of sleep. Memories haunted her, laughing and mocking her with their bittersweet meaning. The scattered images were terrifying, warping happy moments of her life into visions from hell. Her fear still hung around her like a cloak.

On the second day, she awoke to find Paul sitting next to her.

"Hi," she said sleepily.

"Baby, how are you feeling?" he asked quietly.

"Better than before. What happened to me?" she asked. He looked down, and her frustration grew. No one would give her a straight answer. Her memory from that night was sketchy. She remembered the man coming in, and running and the fear she felt, but everything else was a blur. She needed to know what had happened.

"Lilia, perhaps you need to wait, and talk to the doctors about this. They can explain it better than I can, about what happened," Paul answered.

"Paul, tell me what happened that night, not to me, not what's wrong with me. Tell me what happened. I can't remember it all," she pleaded.

"Some bastard was running from a robbery, seems he didn't want to go to jail. He found the front door of Genuine unlocked, and walked in, saw you two, and decided that hostage situation was his only way out. Anna, you got her out, and then he gave them an hour to get what he wanted, and they didn't comply. So he tried to kill you, but you ran, and he shot you twice. Once in the leg and once in the back," Paul explained.

"Oh god, I remember. Anna, how is Anna?"

"She's in shock, startled, shaky, but she'll get through it," Paul said.

"What happened to my baby?" she asked. Paul didn't say anything.

"Perhaps I can answer that, Lilia," a voice said. She looked up and saw Dr. Callaghan.

"What happened, Doctor? No one will tell me. They keep changing the subject or telling me to wait to speak to you. Will you tell me? Please?" she pleaded.

"Lilia, you were shot twice. One bullet grazed your leg, and it shouldn't bother you too much right now. It just lacerated the tissue, and it will take awhile to heal, but it shouldn't bother you. The other bullet hit you in the lower left of your back. You lost a lot of blood. The bullet in your back caused some extreme eternal bleeding and we had to operate to stop it. There wasn't enough blood being carried to the fetus. You were only in the second month, the first trimester. The chances of miscarrying are huge, and I'm afraid that that is what happened in this case. I believe that even if you hadn't been shot, you would have miscarried, given just to the way you fell," she responded.

"Oh my god," Lilia whispered. It was final. She knew the truth. Her child had died. She had lost it.

"I'll leave you with Paul now," the doctor dismissed herself, and left her alone.

"Lilia, talk to me," Paul pleaded.

"Please, just leave me alone. I just want to be alone right now," she said.

"No, you don't. You need to talk to me. Tell me how you feel."

"How do you think I feel? My god Paul, my baby is dead!" she exploded. Her rage quickly dissipated, leaving her sorrow. Trembling with repressed anger and intense grief, she struggled to maintain control. Paul sat down beside her on the bed and grabbed her into his arms. The simple gesture of support broke down her resolve, and she burst into tears. Tears of rage, tears of grief, tears of regret. If only things had been different, she thought.

* * * *

"Nick, you look horrible. When was the last time you've slept?" Brian demanded.

"Leave me alone, B. I have to get ready for the concert. Jordan will demand my death if I'm not there on time," Nick said wearily.

"You need to sleep, man. You're going to exhaust yourself," Brian warned.

"Too late for that. I'll sleep when we've left T.O. Until then, you know where to find me," Nick grunted, as he stormed off, leaving his best friend speechless.