Hey guys! Welcome to my first Madam Secretary fanfic! I do not own any of the characters in this story nor any Madam Secretary content. Feedback is always welcome with open arms. Enjoy!

Henry's ears rang as the gunshot echoed within the air. The pieces of gravel pierced his face as soon as his body was pushed to the ground by a part of Elizabeth's security detail. Elizabeth. Where was she? Was she okay? Henry tried to stand up but was immediately pushed down by another diplomatic security agent crouched over his body.

"Dr. McCord stay down please. The car is 45 seconds out and we can't risk anymore gunfire going off," Mike had said.

"Where's Elizabeth? Is…is she okay?" Henry asked with half of his face still lying on the gravel. And it wasn't until he was able to lift his head and looked up that he saw the horrifying image he had been praying not to see. "Elizabeth!" he yelled. "Mike get off of me I have to go with her!"

"Dr. McCord, I'm under strict orders to wait for the second car. Fred has her Sir and she is heading to Georgetown's hospital," he said. Henry's breathing became rapid as he thought about his wife who had been standing on the stage in front of him speaking to the public not but two minutes ago. "Dr. McCord breathe for me, in and out, in and out." Except it was impossible for Henry to breathe whenever he knew his wife had been injured.

As the car pulled up the DS agent removed himself from above Henry and took his hand to help him up. The two of them ran briskly to the car as other DS agents looked around to make sure that no threat was apparent. They both entered the car and soon sped off without looking back.

"Mike what do we know?" Henry asked after catching his breath.

"She was hit in the chest Sir, they aren't sure if her heart or either lung was damaged. Fred reported that they just arrived at the hospital and the staff is composed of the most competent doctors in the area. She's in good hands. On the other hand we have sent a vehicle to your home to secure your children since we aren't certain as to whether or not the threat could be towards your family," Mike said.

"Oh God, the kids. They…they said they were going to watch her speech today. They wanted to… to come but we told them to stay home," Henry stuttered. "Mike…Mike my kids saw their mother get shot on national television. They need to come to the hospital."

"Dr. McCord we have been ordered to take them to a bunker," Mike hesitantly said.

"Screw the order!" Henry yelled in the car. "The kids need to be to come to the hospital. If they don't they'll really worry about their mother. For God's sake they watched her get shot!"

"I'll see what I can do Sir," Mike said calmly back and then began to talk to someone through his headpiece. Henry was lost deep in thought. The kids? They have to be terrified, scared for their mother just as he was scared for his wife's life. "Dr. McCord the children are coming to the hospital, they're about 10 minutes behind us." The rest of the car ride was silent as the DS agents navigated through the hectic lunch hour traffic of D.C. And all Henry could think about was whether or not he would be a widow at the end of the day.

They arrived at the hospital, which was heavily guarded by security, ensuring his wife's safety inside. Henry walked inside the double doors and looked around.

"Dr. McCord," Fred had said as he walked near him leaving his post by the trauma room doors, "I'm sorry Sir but you can't see her. The doctors are working very hard to stabilize her so that she is able to transport up to surgery."

"How's she doing?" Henry asked shakily.

"I wish I knew more, but she lost consciousness just a minute away from the hospital. Her breathing became labored and that's all I know. No one has been out to update me, they've been in there working on her," Fred said. Henry could feel himself becoming light headed as the color drained from his face. No one has updated them? That wasn't a good sign. "Dr. McCord I'm sorry. It should be me in there, not her. I wasn't quick enough to respond to the sound of the shot, I knocked her down too late."

"Fred, no one knew that there was going to be a gunman today. Because trust me, if I would've known, she would've never went to that speech," Henry said. Fred nodded his head and went back to his post and Henry left for the waiting room. Seconds seemed like minutes and minutes seemed like hours. It wasn't until he saw the three kids walk into the room where he finally felt a sense of normalcy.

"Dad," Alison choked out running towards her father embracing him in a hug. Stevie and Jason followed, all of them with puffy eyes and tear stained cheeks.

"Hey guys," Henry said while hugging all three of his children.

"We saw it happen on TV, Dad," Stevie mumbled into his shirt. "She was shot and the screen went black."

"Is she dead?" Jason bluntly asked. At the question Alison and Stevie began to sob harder and Henry could feel the tears staining his shirt.

"The doctors are working on her now, I haven't heard anything since I got here. All I know is that she was shot in the chest. She was in a different car than me. I'm sorry guys I wish I had more information," Henry said as tears began to fall down his own cheeks. The children's muffled sobs filled the room and Henry closed his eyes hoping that he wouldn't have to raise his kids on his own.

"Dr. McCord," Fred said after stepping into the room. All of the kids turned towards him and Henry opened his eyes. "They just took her up to surgery. They believe that the bullet went through her aorta, thus she has lost a lot of blood. They are going to do everything that they can." Fred exited the room and the kids turned to their father as the tears continued to flow.

"Is she going to be okay, Dad?" Ali asked.

"All we can do is sit here and wait," Henry said. They all took a seat on the small couch in the room, no matter how crowded it was. The sense of being close together was comforting. No matter how badly the kids hated to admit it, they were all their mother's children and they all had such an amazing bond with her. And life without her seemed truly unbearable.