Try as she might, not even Babs is impervious to her father's tears. She blinks away her own, even as her thumb brushes his away.

"As soon as you're strong enough, you can tell me everything that happened. Until then, I'm staying right here, Dad. They'll have to pick me up and carry me out to tear me from your side," she grinned at him.

Kissing his cheek again, she breathed another deep sigh of relief. "I love you too, Dad. I don't know what I'd do without you. You're all I've got."