Sami Smith-Guthrie waved over at her father, Sam Guthrie, as she swung back and forth on the swing. He smiled back and waved at her, interrupting his conversation with his fiancée, Rahne Sinclair. He didn't notice her glare slightly at him, just jump to his feet and jogged over to where his little girl was swinging.
Rahne sighed, and crossed her arms over her chest. Since the little girl had become part of Sam's life, it was like she wasn't even there. All he talked about was what she did, or how he was feeling about Sami.
Not that was a bad thing, Rahne amended in her mind. She just wished he'd pay a little more attention to her and the wedding. They were suppose to be married in under a month, and he hadn't helped her with a single thing since Sami showed up.
Rahne couldn't help but be just slightly angry with Tabitha for putting her and Sam both in this sort of position. If she had just TOLD Sam about the child…
But then you wouldn't have him, a little voice whispered at the back of her mind. He'd have married Tabitha, and they would have lived happily ever after.
Rahne told the little voice in the back of her head to shut up. Sam loved HER, not Tabitha.
She looked back to where Sam was pushing his little girl in the swing, laughing and smiling happily. He looked like he was having the time of his life. Rahne forced a smile, trying to make herself happy for him.
But there was a little part of her that started to resent Tabitha's little daughter.
"Higher Daddy! Higher!" Sami squealed, pumping her legs as best she could. Sam laughed out loud, and did as he was commanded. Sam watched his little daughter fly through the air on her swing, and once more thanked God that he had agreed to take her. He wondered briefly what his life would be like if he had never found his little girl, but quickly banished that thought from his head.
His only regret was that he had not found her sooner. How had he ever lived with out this precious little person in his life?
"Sam?" A voice interrupted his musings. He looked up and smiled at Rahne, and continued to push Sami.
"Hi Rahny. What's up?" He asked, his eyes dancing back to Sami.
"Sam…I need to talk to ye. Alone." Rahne told him, stepping forward and crossing her arms over her chest.
"Right now?" Sam asked, loathing the idea of leaving his child.
"Aye." Rahne said through gritted teeth. Sam didn't notice her rather strained response. He just slowed Sami to a stop, and kissed the top of her head.
"Ah'll be right over there with Rahne, okay?" Sam asked her, and the little girl nodded, resuming swinging.
Rahne nearly stomped over to the bench, flopping down on it with sigh of annoyance. Sam followed suit, and looked over at her with an expecting glance. She just glared at him, not trusting herself to say anything.
"Rahne, what is it?" Sam asked, looking at her oddly.
And finally, all the anger that she had been holding inside since the day that Sami had walked into her and Sam's life, exploded out of her.
"WHAT IS IT?! WHAT IS IT!? I'LL TELL YE WHAT IT IS!" Rahne stopped screaming at the shocked blonde man before she could truly cause a scene. "Ever since the day ye came back to the mansion with that little girl, she's been ye entire world!"
"Rahne, she's mah daughter." Sam said, still stunned by her outburst.
"Aye, and I'm ye fiancée. But ye couldn't tell by lookin' at us! Ye NEVER spend any time with me, only with Sami. 'Tis like she is the only important thing in ye life anymore." Rahne told him, her voice still shimmering with rage.
Sam stared at her, shocked and hurt. "Ah know that Ah ain't been spending a lot of time with you lately, but…she's mah DAUGHTER Rahne. She's PART of me…and Ah've lost EIGHT YEARS with her, already. Ah don't wanna lose any MORE time."
"Am I nae important anymore?!" Rahne screamed, furious.
"Ah didn't SAY that Rahne!" Sam's voice rose slightly.
"Aye I see the way of it." Rahne continued on as though she hadn't heard him. "Some bitch ye were sleepin' with when ye were a lad dies, and ye decide that ye'll take pity on her orphaned BRAT! Ye never even got a DNA test to show she was REALLY ye daughter!"
"Tabitha said…"Sam started.
"The slut was probably sleepin' wit so many men, she couldn't keep 'em straight! The little brat could be anyone's!" Rahne snarled back, leaping off the bench. Sam stood up as well, his control finally snapping.
"How DARE you--" He started, enraged, when a cry caught his attention. Both he and Rahne whirled to see Sami standing a few feet away from them, obviously able to hear every word.
Sam reached forward, stepping toward her, but the little girl just turned and ran away, her long hair flying out behind her. Sam stared after, not sure if he should go after her or not.
He turned to Rahne and growled "See what you did?" before deciding to go after the distraught child.
Rahne stared after him, sputtering.
Sami ran as fast as she could, and due to the fact that she had a head start, managed to stay ahead of her father. Tears slipped down her little face as she did, and she squeezed her eyes closed tightly.
Why had Rahne said those mean things about her Mommy, and her? Sami didn't really know WHAT to think of Rahne; she didn't think that Rahne liked her very much.
So intent on her thoughts, that the little girl didn't even notice that she had run out of the park, and onto the sidewalk. Without looking, the child darted out into the middle of the road.
Sami was not at all tall. She was very little, very much like her mother. It was hard to see her on the busy street she had run onto.
Which is why, Marcus O'Neal didn't see her. Didn't see her-until he it was too late.
The car he was driving slammed into the little girl, knocking her to the ground, where she struck her head hard against the pavement. It made a sickening crack, the way melon does when it is smashed into the ground. Blood pooled around the little girl's head.
Sam had just made it to the sidewalk when all this occurred. He stood and watched, unable to do anything, while his precious little girl was struck down. For several long seconds, he stared, horrified. Then a single word was torn from his throat, like a primal scream.
"SAMI!"
The distraught man raced into the middle of the street, collapsing next to his daughter still form. He reached out a hand to touch her cheek, tears rolling down his face. He was only slightly aware of the bustle behind him, as cars screeched to a halt, and people all around stared.
The scream of a siren pulled him out of his stunned stupor. He looked up, and saw the flashing lights of an ambulance.
It squealed to a stop next to him, and two paramedics got out. Sam was still kneeling by his daughter, but was forced to move when the two white-clad people raced over to Sami.
"Sir, you're going to have to move." The first one said, dropping down next to Sami. Sam did as he was told, his eyes never leaving her still face.
"Will she be okay?" He thought he heard himself ask.
"We don't know sir. Are you any relation to her?" The second asked, looking up at Sam.
"Ah'm her father." Sam told them as they lifted her onto a stretcher and pushed her toward the waiting ambulance.
"Alright, come with me then, sir." The second commanded, as they loaded Sami up into the vehicle. Sam and the paramedics climbed up as well.
The ride to the hospital was the longest that Sam had ever been though in his life. Words like 'concussion' and 'internal injuries' danced though his ears at regular intervals.
When they reached the building, Sam was herded into a waiting room, as Sami was rushed to surgery. The hours passed by in a great blur, as he paced back and forth, waiting for any news on his daughter's condition. He didn't notice when Rahne and his sister Paige entered the waiting room, along with Paige's husband, Angelo.
"Sam?" Paige asked, touching his shoulder. He spun around, surprised.
"Paige! What are you doin' here?" Sam asked, lacing his fingers together.
"How's Sami?" Paige asked, disregarding his question. "Is there any word on her condition?"
"No…she's been in there for HOURS Paige. All they tell me when Ah ask is that 'it's to soon to tell you anything definite.'" Sam moaned, finally collapsing into a chair, and burying his face in his hands.
"She'll be all right, laddie." Rahne tried to reassure him, laying her hand on his shoulder. Sam shrugged it off, not wanting her comfort. "Sam?" She asked, amazed by his actions.
"Just…leave me alone right now, alright Rahne?" Sam pleaded, not looking at her.
Rahne nodded, to hurt to say anything. So she sat in the chair, and began to silently seethe. He wouldn't even let her touch him! All that mattered was the big-eyed little brat-
Rahne mental shook herself, ashamed by her thoughts. The poor child had lost her mother and now might be seriously hurt, even dying…
But if she died, Sam would be all yours again. Rahne gasped out loud at that thought, horrified. She couldn't believe that she thought that!
Her eyes danced over to where her fiancée sat, his head down in his hands. He would be completely destroyed if he were to lose Sami. Rahne knew all this, so why wasn't she more upset about the little girl? Just because she and Sami had never gotten along very well…
"Mr. Guthrie?" A voice interrupted Rahne's thoughts. A man in a long white coat holding a clipboard stood in front of the gathered people.
"That's me." Sam said, jumping to his feet. "How is she…can Ah see her? Is she alright?"
"Mr. Guthrie, you have a very lucky little girl. Her injuries weren't as life threatening as we thought when she was first brought in. Indeed, they not the norm at all for these types of cases. Now, is the child a mutant?" The doctor asked, checking his clipboard.
Sam stiffened. "Would it matter if she was?"
"No sir, we were just wondering about the injuries. Would her mutant power manifest itself in some sort of protective field of some kind?" The doctor asked, lifting his eyes to look at Sam of the rim of his glasses.
"It…may." Sam allowed, swallowing hard. "Can Ah see her or not?"
"Yes…but--" The doctor began only to be cut off by Sam.
"But? But what?! What's wrong?"
"Samantha," The doctor checked his clipboard again. "yes, is in a coma."
"A…coma? Can you pull her out of it?" Sam asked, his face draining of all color. Rahne stood and placed a hand on his shoulder. This time, he didn't shrug it off.
"No, sir. But, she has a sixty percent chance of coming out of it completely fine." The doctor said, once more glancing at his clipboard.
"And a forty percent chance of what?" Sam asked, his voice breaking.
"Possible brain damage, spinal cord damage, perhaps loss of memory." The doctor ticked the outcomes out on his fingers.
Sam covered his face with his hands, and tried to regain control of himself. "Can Ah see her?"
"Yes, you may. The child's mother…?" He gestured toward Rahne.
"Her mother is dead." Sam was quick to tell the doctor. Rahne glance at him, but he didn't look over at her. His jaw was set and his eyes were dark as he followed the doctor to Sami's room.
He closed his eyes and looked away for a split second when he saw her. She lay as still as death on the bed, several different machines hooked up to her body. The heart monitor beeped continuously, adding a bit of sound into the still room.
Sam moved over to where his daughter lay, and slipped into the chair next to her bed, taking her small hand in his as he did. The doctor wisely left, and Rahne stood in the doorway, not quite certain what to do.
"Look at her…just look at her." Sam's voice was shaking with tears. "If she hadn't run out in front of that car…"
"I'm so sorry Sam." Rahne told him earnestly, coming up to stand behind him. She placed her hands on both his shoulders, and bent her head to kiss the top of her head.
"Are you?" Sam asked, so softly that she almost didn't hear him.
"What?!" Rahne cried, yanking her hands off his shoulders like he had burned her.
"Nothin', Rahny, Ah'm sorry." Sam said, looking up from where he sat with his hands laced through Sami's.
"You blame me, don't you?" Rahne asked, surprising even herself at how cold and steady her voice was.
"No." Sam cried, but his voice lacked conviction.
"You do." Rahne snapped, her voice still steady.
Sam was silent for a long minute. "Ah can't help but think that if you had just not said those things where she could hear 'em…"
"Ye…bastard!" Rahne snarled, her temper breaking. "How could you…how could you think that?!"
"Mah daughter is lyin' in a hospital bed, in a coma, Rahne! What do you EXPECT me to think?!" Sam's voice some how managed to be both cold and furious at the same time.
"I've had enough of this!" Rahne shrieked, her eyes glazing with her fury.
"What do you mean, Rahne?" Sam asked, standing up from his chair and turning to face the fuming red head.
"I'm givin' ye a choice! Me, or Tabitha's brat!" Rahne issued her ultimatum with snarling lips.
"You can't ask me to make that choice!" Sam cried, his eyes widening.
"I just did." Rahne snapped back, her eyes glowing with anger. Sam looked away from her for a long moment, his baby blue eyes studying the wall. Then they fell on his small daughter, and he reached to touch her hand gently.
"Ah'm sorry Rahne…truly." Sam whispered not looking at her. Rahne stared at him for a long moment, then yanked the diamond off her hand and pitched it at his forehead.
"I hope ye rot in hell!" Rahne cried, turning on her heel, and stalking out of Sam Guthrie's life forever.