Chapter 12: Panic

Cam tugged his t-shirt on over his head and sat down to pull on his socks and boots. SG-1 had just beed dismissed to go home after being stuck off-world for three days trying to negotiate a peace treaty and he was dying to get home to his family.

Just as he was reaching for his leather jacket, his cell phone rang. Peering at the display, he grinned to himself and tapped the screen. "Couldn't wait for me to get home?"

"Cam."

Her voice sounded frantic and Cam instantly tensed. "Carolyn? What's wrong?"

"It's Brian."

Cam felt his heart stutter in his chest. Instinct took over and he headed for the door at a run, skidding to a halt in front of the elevator and pressing the call button repeatedly. "Where are you?"

"At the hospital," Carolyn answered. "The school called, they said he had fallen and to meet them here." Her voice wavered and cracked. "Cam, he won't wake up and they won't let me in there with him."

"Where's Sarah?" Cam asked, throwing himself into the elevator when it opened and tugging on his jacket without missing a beat. "Is she with you?"

"She's here," Carolyn answered. "I just grabbed her and ran. Cam, he-"

"I'm on my way, darlin," Cam soothed, trying to calm his wife despite his own racing heart. IF Carolyn were panicking, it was not good.

The elevator door opened and General Landry appeared. "Mitchell, I need you to come with me."

"Sir, Carolyn just called. Brian's been hurt and he's at the hospital. Sir, I need to go – "

General Landry paled slightly, but held up a hand. He tapped the earpiece he was wearing and spoke clearly. "Walter, get Ellis on the radio. Tell him that I'm authorising immediate transport to Colorado University Hospital for Colonel Mitchell."

Cam nodded his thanks wordlessly.

"Keep me posted, Mitchell," the general ordered. "I want to know the moment you hear anything, good or bad."

"Yes, sir," Cam answered before he found himself up on the control deck of the Oddyssey. "Colonel, thank you for this."

Ellis nodded. "The general orders, I obey. Hope whoever you're visiting is okay."

Cam found himself standing at a side entrance to the hospital seconds later. A quick glance around confirmed that nobody had seen him, although he knew that Captain Collins would have made sure of that before he sent him down. The ship's first officer was a stickler for the details.

He entered the building at a run and stopped at the first nurses station he saw. "Brian Mitchell?" His crisp tone made it clear that he wasn't in the mood for platitudes.

She glanced at her screen and frowned. "Turn right at the end of the corridor, take the third left and you'll see your wife." She gave him an arch look. "If you could try to keep her from interrogating my staff, it would be very much appreciated."

Cam glared at her and took off, darting around doctors and patients. When he turned into the hallway indicated, he saw Carolyn pacing and wringing her hands and Sarah sleeping on the chair beside her. The sight unnerved him. Carolyn never panicked. Not when Brian had needed stitches after falling from the fence at his parents' house; not when Sarah fell and ended up with a black eye while trying to jump off the sofa.

His earlier thought ran through his head again. If Carolyn were panicking, it was really not good.

She looked up and spotted him, darting down the hallway towards him and crashing into him.

"Carolyn, what happened? Where is he?" He cupped her face in his hands, every horrific scenario running through his mind.

"He fell out of a tree," Carolyn managed to say, her voice breaking. "His arm is broken and they think that he hit his head...he won't wake up, Cam."

Cameron drew her into his arms, stroking a soothing hand down her ponytail and closing his eyes in a silent plea to the gods to take care of his boy. Brian was a sunny little boy, content to play with his toy planes and entertain his baby sister for hours with mindless chatter. He was five now, but still their baby boy and the center of their world. They would never be the same without him.

Shaking his head to clear it of his morbid thoughts, Cam gave a quick glance at his daughter to make sure she was still asleep and concentrated on trying to soothe his wife.

"He'll be okay," he murmured, cheek pressed against her hair as she gripped fistfuls of his sweater. "He's tough."

"Remember the time he hid under Dad's desk?" Carolyn said with a half laugh. "He fell asleep and we were frantic."

Cam smiled. "Or the time he tried to sneak that mangy puppy home from Mom and Dad's?"

"We should get him a dog," Carolyn said, sitting in the chair when he urged her to. She leaned her head against her husband's solid shoulder. "Oh God, Cam, what if-"

"Mrs Mitchell?" A doctor dressed in green scrubs and a white lab coat stepped out from the exam room and stepped towards them.

Cam surged to his feet and gripped his wife's hands. "Is he okay, Doc?"

The doctor nodded and Cam felt his knees go weak with relief. A glance at Carolyn's white face made him tighten his grip on her.

"What are his vitals?" Carolyn asked in a clipped tone, straightening her spine and clearing her throat. "Have you run a CT and blood work?"

"Honey, maybe you should let the doc give us the lowdown," Cam suggested gently.

"Mr Mitchell, Doctor Mitchell, Brian hit his head when he fell out of the tree," the doctor, whose name tag read 'Mark Carroll, MD' began. "His arm is broken, so we've put a cast on it. The bang to his head caused a concussion. He's awake, but a little groggy at the moment. We expect that he'll be back to normal, barring the cast, of course, in a couple of days."

Carolyn sagged against Cam in relief. "When can we see him?"

Dr Carroll smiled. "I had thought to keep him overnight, but seeing as his mother is a doctor, I think we can release him today. You can see him shortly."

"Thank you, Doc," Cam said fervently, shaking the man's hand. "We appreciate it."

"Mama?" A little voice piped up from behind them. Sarah sat up, rubbing at her eyes with a small fist. She spied Cam and let out a squeal. "Daddy!"

"Hey there, sweetpea," Cam greeted, tossing her in the air and rubbing his cheek against hers. "How's my favourite girl?"

Sarah's dark hair bounced around her face and Cam noticed, as he did every time he looked at her, how much she resembled her mother. "Bwian fell," she informed him seriously. "He hurt."

"He's hurt, but he'll be okay," Cam assured her. He turned to look at his wife, who was still tense looking. "How about we go and see him, huh?"

"See Bwian!" Sarah clapped her hands. Brian was her hero and she adored him with all of her three-year old heart.

In the cubicle, Brian was stirring and opened bleary eyes as Carolyn grabbed his chart and scanned it quickly. She dropped it and hurried to his side to pepper his face with kisses, despite his protests. When Brian noticed his cast, his eyes lit up. "Look! Mom, look! How cool is that!"

"Very cool," Cam said dryly, tousling Brian's sandy coloured hair. "But you almost gave your mom and I a heart attack. What were you doing up that tree, son?"

Brian looked guilty. "I was trying to climb to the top to see the baby birds."

"Next time, don't do that," Carolyn chided, wrapping her arm around him and squeezing gently. "Come on, let's get you home."

Brian lay in his bed, sprawled face down with his good arm dangling off the side. His face was peaceful in sleep. Cam watched as Carolyn smoothed the covers over him before turning on his night light and kissing his forehead. She went down the hall to Sarah's room and repeated the gesture, making him smile.

Carolyn was outwardly tough, but when it came to her children she was as soft as butter and as protective as a tigress.

Back in their bedroom, Carolyn gave him an absent smile as he came out of the bathroom after brushing his teeth. She went in and turned on the shower as Cam got undressed and into bed.

Ten minutes later, the water stopped running and Cam heard her get out. Moments later, she padded across the room silently and crawled into bed beside him. Cam reached out to turn off the bedside lights and saw his wife's face and the silent tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Darlin..." The word came out on a sigh. "He's fine."

Carolyn shook her head, tears streaming from her dark eyes. "I panicked, Cam. I was useless."

Cam pulled her into his side and stroked a hand down her back. "You're a brilliant doctor, sweetheart. But today, you were a momma who thought that her little boy was badly hurt."

"I couldn't do anything," Carolyn choked out, making a futile attempt to dry her eyes, but they kept leaking tears. "Brian was unconscious and I couldn't think, I couldn't even breathe for a second."

"Momma," Cam reminded her. "It trumps doctor any and every time."

Carolyn sniffled and laughed as he made a face and reached across her for a tissue from the box she kept on her nightstand. "Sorry."

"Blow," Cam commanded, holding it to her nose and grinning when she rolled her eyes and obliged. "That's better." He kissed her nose. "You look like a tomato."

"Hey!" Carolyn smacked his shoulder. "Be the gentleman Wendy raised you to be."

"Beautiful," Cam amended quickly, pressing a kiss to her nose.

"Better," Carolyn said, satisfied. "Keep going."

"Beautiful," he repeated, kissing her cheek and tracing a path down the side of her neck with his lips.

Carolyn sighed and wrapped her arms around him. "Now you're talking."

Thank you to my sole reviewer for the last chapter. I decided to keep going while I felt up to it, and this little chapter was inspired by another story I read somewhere. I can't remember the author or story name, so if you see it and it reminds you of yours, I meant no harm.

Eva