Part 233
Nick wearily opened the door to his and Becca's suite, his mind reeling from all that had gone on. He saw Becca pacing by the window, but in his own grief he began prattling on and on about the events of the evening. It never even registered that Becca was trying desperately to be heard.
"Nick-"
"And I just don't know how Howie's gonna do it. Bec, he's devastated."
"Nick-"
"And Kevin God, Becca, Kevin barely held himself together tonight."
"Nick!" Becca gasped as he finally looked at her. Her face was ashen and she was gasping for breath.
"Bec?!" He caught her as she fell, a horrified expression on his face.
"I can't breathe-" she said, struggling for air.
"Oh God..." He lay her gently on the bed as he reached for the phone. "Kev? It's me we need help. Something's wrong with Becca. I don't know, just get help."
Becca grabbed for his hand and tried to sit up. "Nicky, please I have to get out of here. I can't breathe. Please!"
"Baby, hang on, Kevin's getting help."
No sooner had the words left his mouth than Billy was opening their door with his passkey. AJ ran in, his mom right behind him.
"Denise, help! I don't know what's wrong!" Nick was almost as panicked as Becca.
"Calm down, Nick, the hotel physician is on his way. Becca?" She sat gingerly on the side of the bed. "Sweetie, what's wrong?" Soothingly she held her hand as Becca struggled to speak.
"Don't know can't catch my breath. And the walls feel like I feel like they're closing in on me." She gasped for air, getting dizzier by the second. She began to cry,
"I'm scared. Make it s-s-s-stop."
Just then Kevin came in, accompanied by a kindly older gentleman who he introduced as the doctor.
AJ and Kevin left them alone, but when Denise tried to leave, Becca refused to let go of her hand.
"It's ok, I'll stay, Becca. But I need to move so that the doctor can examine you, all right?"
The doctor did his work quickly, asking questions as he went along. Nick filled him in on Becca's medication and medical history, and then explained all that had happened since they'd learned of Sarah's death.
"Offhand I'd say that it was a simple panic attack, but I'd like to check a few things just to be sure."
Nick and Denise watched quietly as he gave Becca a more through examination. They were not comforted as they watched his frown deepen.
"In normal circumstances, I'd give her something to calm her, but in this case I can't do that." He snapped his bag shut, jotting notes onto a small pad.
"Why not?" Nick was coming unglued.
"Mr. Carter, her blood pressure is dangerously high. With all that you've told me, and considering today's events well, it's not a good idea to treat her here."
"What do you mean, 'not here'?"
"I'm admitting her to Mount Sinai Hospital for observation. It's the closest one to here, and it's directly across from The Hospital for Sick Children."
"Why? There's nothing wrong with the baby, is there?" Nick was close to full panic right along with Becca.
"I don't think so, it's just a safeguard. But I must warn you, if they can't get her stabilized, they'll need to take the baby."
Denise saw the look on Nick's face and held his arm. "You need to hold it together, Nick," she whispered. "Becca needs you to be strong for her tonight. She can't do it herself."
Nick nodded, almost afraid to speak. "What do we do, Doc?"
"I'll arrange for transport. I'll set it up through your security team. I'm well aware of your situation, so we'll try to keep it as low key as possible. We'll use the service elevator down the hall. I'll meet you there."
Nick turned to Becca, smiling as best he could. "Hey, baby. Doc says we're going for a ride."
"It's too soon." She sniffled, her fear intensifying.
"It'll be ok, Bec. We just need to get you calmed down. Anyway, YOU get to ride in the service elevator this time. Remember the last time?" He grinned. "At least this time you're not pretending to be someone else."
Becca almost smiled until it dawned on her that *last* time she'd been covering for Sarah. The tears began to fall in earnest, but before Nick could do anything to make it better the rescue team arrived.