LABOUR PAINS


Part 8.
 

        Mark yelled into the phone and paced the room. "ELIZABETH! ANSWER ME!!! HOW IN THE HELL DID
        THIS HAPPEN!?"

        There was no answer on the other end because Dave's cellphone had fallen to the floor. Elizabeth stood in
        shock, watching Cindy drag a young man into the apartment.

        "GOD! What happened!?" Elizabeth knelt beside the man and checked his pulse. Cindy cradled him in her
        arms.

        "It.. It's Danny.. I.. I found him like this outside the building.. Kurt and him had a fight again.. K-Kurt got out
        the gun.." Cindy whimpered, brushing the hair from Danny's closed eyes.

        Elizabeth cursed, ripping the shirt open and revealing a rather large gunshot wound to Danny's stomach..
        "Jesus Christ.. Where is that bastard?? I'll kill him myself."

        Danny was a regular at County General. Broken ribs, arms, legs.. You name it.. Danny had it in a cast, over
        the past year that he'd been dating Kurt. It was general knowledge that Danny was gay.. Dave never had tried
        to hide the fact. But it was still a sore subject.

        Elizabeth's cursing was greeted by the soft metallic click as Kurt's shotgun was pointed at temple. "Your
        brother is a fucking loser.. You know what he did today?!" Kurt growled.

        Elizabeth shook her head and grabbed a fallen dishtowel, holding it against Danny's wound as Kurt held the
        gun to her head. "No.. I don't Kurt.. Why don't you tell us. Tell me why you had to shoot Danny."

        Kurt laughed. "Seriously? You're even more fucked up than your brother. He was leaving. He said he was
        leaving me. Said he was going come live with you. He said.. That you told him to move out.. He said that you
        called me a sick bastard and that he should get away from me. He said he wasn't going to take it anymore."
        There was distinct hurt in his voice as it trembled. How anyone could care for somebody so much. Somebody
        that they used as a shooting target and a punching bag, was beyond Elizabeth's comprehension.

        He pulled the gun off Elizabeth's temple and pointed at the back of Cindy's head. Kurt smirked, his high
        forehead and low sloping brow only reinforcing the man's sheer stupidity. One could wonder what Danny had
        ever saw in Kurt. He certainly wasn't handsome, or nice.. One could only hope that Kurt was the greatest lay
        in history because.. Otherwise, Kurt really didn't have anything going for him. "Now.. Dr.Dave.. Fix my
        boyfriend or your girlfriend's brains get blown all over your nice kitchen."

        ***

        Mark stared at the phone. Elizabeth.. In trouble.. Jesus Christ. Quickly he hung up the phone and dialled 9-1-1,
        and yelled for Dave.

        "Malucci.. Get my wife's ass down here.. NOW!!"

        "911?? Hi.. I.. I have an emergency.. Yeah.. Somebody's been shot.. The.. shooter's still.. Still there in the
        apartment. Yeah.. 67 Bridge St.. Apartment.. Uh.."

        Dave walked into the room, Tescotickle asleep on his shoulder. "Apartment 32B.. Wh-what's wrong???"

        ***

        "Certainly, Kurt.." Elizabeth replied through clenched teeth. "He needs medical attention.. Blood.. Paramedics..
        I can't do anything for him here.."

        "FIX HIM!!!!!!!" Kurt's gun left Cindy's head for a split second, firing at the coffee pot and shattering it into
        pieces. His blonde, dirty, greasy hair fell in his dull, bug-like eyes and he blew it back with a puff from his
        chapped, bulbous lips. He looked like Kurt Cobain crossed with a stunned, blind sheep who'd been beaten
        severely with an ugly stick. Yes.. Elizabeth said to herself. Kurt was an ugly bastard.

        "I.. I can't.. I don't have the-" Elizabeth stammered.

        Kurt fired again at the package of coffee, causing it to explode, sending puffs of 'Columbian Fine Ground' into
        the air. "I don't care if you have the stuff.. Improvise.."

        **

        "What's wrong Mark." Dave said worriedly as Mark talked to the 911 operator.

        "I wish you wouldn't do that.." Mark muttered.

        "What?!" Dave stared at him confused.

        "Don't call me Mark.. You.. You're not her.." Mark replied, his voice shaking.. "She.. She's in your apartment
        with your brother and his crazy shit of a boyfriend."

        "What happened?" Dave's eyes widened and his skin turned a sickly shade of gray.

        "Kurt.. Shot your brother.. Now he wants you.. her.. to fix him.. I.. I'm pretty sure he had a gun.." Mark
        swallowed, pacing the floor.

        "Here.." Dave handed Mark, Tescotickle and walked from the room. "I'm going to fix this.. I'm going to kill
        the bastard myself."

        "NO!!!!!!!!!!!!! You can't!! You're in my wife's body.. If.. If anything happened." Mark ran after him, the baby
        asleep in his arms.

        "If anything happens.. Nothing will. I'll be fine.. Elizabeth will be fine. Let me handle this.. It's family
        business.." Dave glared at Mark. "My brother needs me. I don't care if I'm stuck in the body of your wife, I'm
        going to my brother."

        "B-but-" Mark stammered

        "No buts.. Are you driving?" Dave tossed him the keys.

        "I.. I.. What about Tescotickle?" Mark looked at the baby asleep on his shoulder.

        "His name's Andrew, Dr.Greene.." Dave sighed walking to the garage.

        "Actually I sorta liked Aethelbeorht.. Beorhtie Greene.." Mark smiled slightly.

        "Yeah.. But do you want to wake up one morning with your balls surgically removed and transplanted on
        your forehead? Remember.. You ARE married to a surgeon." Dave returned Mark's nervous smile.

        "Right.. Andrew it is.." Mark chuckled nervously. "We can drop by County on the way, leave him there.. The
        nurses will take care of him.."

        Dave nodded, glancing at Elizabeth's tasteful small gold watch. "I.. I guess we have time-" If they're not all
        dead already.. Dave finished in his head.

        "They'll be fine, Dave.. Everything will be okay." Mark said with more confidence than he felt.

        "I.. I hope so, Dr.Greene.. What if-" Dave glanced out the window, watching the world pass him by as Mark
        drove like a bat out of hell.

        "Don't even finish that sentence, Malucci.. Don't even think it." Mark careened around the corner, his tassled
        loafer pressing the gas pedal to the floor.



 Part 9
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