by Brina Cary
A deep sigh helped clear his thoughts. Looking over at the clock on his nightstand he confirmed that he had to be up in three hours. He could either lay in bed and hope to get an hour of sleep or begin preparing for his day. He had two surgeries at the hospital, which he had already worked around his time at the clinic. He also had to get Daniella’s blood. Synthia was scheduled to bring her by for that at seven thirty.
A shrill beep from his phone interrupted his thoughts. Who would be calling him at this hour? He hoped it wasn’t an emergency case. Those were awful. The last one he attended was a kid that had crashed his motorcycle. Nineteen years old and the kid had destroyed four vertebrae and fractured his skull.
“Dr. Brooks,” he answered.
“Oh my god! Thank God you answered!”
“Synthia?”
“It’s Daniella! I don’t know what’s wrong! She’s running a fever of a hundred and three and she can’t speak! My baby was fine this afternoon! She said her head was hurting, but I figured it was the strep! I don’t know what to do!”
He was already out of bed and searching for a pair of jeans. “Synthia, you have to calm down. Have you called an ambulance?”
“They won’t come here! We live in… in a bad part of town.”
“Tell me where you live and I’ll come get you.” Now that he thought about it he had never asked where his patient’s lived. He had assumed that they lived around the clinic.
“We live in… the gas lamp district.”
Oliver could hear the shame in her voice. The gas lamp district was where druggies and hookers lived. It was also thirty minutes from the clinic. She was right, ambulances didn’t go to that area at night. At least, they didn’t without police presence. It was too dangerous. They had no business living there. “Synthia, I’m leaving now. It’ll take me about ten minutes to get there. Wrap her in a blanket and try to get her to talk to you, try to keep her awake. I’ll honk when I get there. Don’t come outside until then.”
He grabbed the keys to his jeep, slipped his shoes on his feet, and ran out the door. He would make it in seven minutes if he ran a few lights.
Chapter 5
Oliver waited with Synthia in the small waiting room at the hospital where he worked. He hoped no one recognized him, but it was the closest hospital. If they did, he only hoped that Synthia didn’t tell them how they knew each other. “Synthia, don’t worry. Everything is going to be alright.”
“How do you know that!?!”
“Honestly, I don’t. I trust these guys though. I know they’ll do everything they can to help her.”
“Oh, really? I suppose that makes everything just hunky dorey.” She was being sarcastic and for some reason it brought a grin to his face. Her daughter was in a place that she couldn’t go, which was terrifying her, and she still showed her personality. “Quit smiling at me. I have no idea what’s going on and it’s making me angry. I also don’t know how I can pay for this. I told you to take us to Saint Luke’s. They’ll work with me on the payments.”
“Saint Luke’s wouldn’t be able to help her. These guys can.” He took a deep breath. “There’s something that I need to tell you though… I work here. These are my guys. I’m a surgeon here. I work at the clinic in my free time.”
He watched her take a step back and narrowed her eyes at him. He waited with baited breath for whatever she was about to say, expecting the worst.
“You must be a terrible surgeon then.”
“Come again?” Whatever remark he had expected, he certainly hadn’t expected that.
“You’re always at the clinic. That means you either do surgeries at night or you rarely do surgeries. If you rarely do them then you must be bad at it.”
A deep laugh escaped him. She was one feisty woman. “No, I schedule my surgeries around my time at the clinic. The clinic is open Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday. I do my surgeries the other days. It can make for some long days, but the clinic is needed.” Speaking of… “Synthia, you can’t tell anyone about the clinic here. They don’t know. I could get in a lot of trouble if they found out.”
“What do you want me to say then?”
“I honestly don’t know. They’ll call you back any minute. It’s up to you, I’m not going to ask you to lie. I just need you to know that the clinic could get shut down if they find out about it.”
The door opened and a nurse called Synthia’s name. Oliver sat back in the waiting room chair while she went to talk to the nurse. It was Rena, she knew him. His whole career was about to come crashing down. Rena would tell half the hospital before the end of her shift. If that happened then the board would force him to close the clinic and reprimand him… possibly report him. There was no way they would leave it and just ignore that he was violating his contract with them.
A few minutes later the door opened again. Rena came out and stood in front of him. He was waiting for the recriminating look, but she was smiling. It was a gentle happy smile too. “Rena?”
“Oh! You should have told us! You can bet that half the hospital will know by morning. Mac’s already sending emails.”
Synthia had told them everything… His shoulders slumped, he was doomed. There’d be no way he could make up for Lucy now.
“You sly dog.”
What? His head shot up. What exactly had she told them to make Rena say that? Had Synthia told them something else? “Told you what?” His stomach clenched.
“That you were engaged, silly.” She grabbed his forearm and pulled him up out of the chair. “I can’t believe you’re sitting out here while they’re back there. Don’t you worry either. We’ve got the little one in a great room and we have a specialist coming to look at her too. We’re going to take great care of your soon to be family. Your family is our family.”
As she hauled him through the door, he felt panic assault him from all sides. She had kept his secret, but instead told everyone they were getting married…
What in the world was he going to do? He couldn’t be a husband! He couldn’t even remember where he parked his car after a busy day!
Rena stopped, “Are you hyperventilating?”
He shook his head and tried to get himself under control. Synthia may have told them that, but that didn’t mean it had to happen. No, there wasn’t anything that said he had to marry her.
“You ok?”
“Yes, I’m ok.” In reality he was far from it, but it wouldn’t do to tell Rena that.
“Good. Now come on, they’re waiting for you.”
Chapter 6
Jack? They called Jack? Oliver looked at his friend with sadness. If they called Jack then it had to be bad. They wouldn’t have called him at three a.m. unless it was really bad.
“Hey, Ollie,” Jack greeted before looking over towards Synthia who sat in the chair next to Daniella’s bed. “You must be Synthia, Oliver’s fiancee. I’m Jack, his best bud.”
Damn. Even he had heard about it. He glared at Synthia, and she grinned in return. He was in so much trouble.
“Hi, Jack. Wish we could have met under better circumstances.”
“Oh, don’t worry. Oliver doesn’t know it yet, but I’m going to be the best man.”
They were talking about him like he wasn’t even present. “Jack,” he warned.
“Is this the little one you were going to get me blood samples for?”
“Yes, but something came up.”
“Don’t worry, this will be easier. We can run all the tests we need now.”
Synthia sat up straight and Oliver knew what was coming before the words were even out of her mouth. “I can’t pay for this!”
Jack’s confused look made Oliver feel guilty. No, he hadn’t told her. They weren’t really engaged. Well, technically they were. He just hadn’t been the one to ask. In fact, he hadn’t been asked at all.
“Ollie didn’t tell you?”
“Tell me what?”
“Once you get married you get his health insurance coverage. As
a hospital employee, anything done here is covered. It’s a benefit.”
“Does it cover us while engaged?”
Oliver had a feeling that she would stay engaged forever if that were the case. He could see the hope on her face. Unfortunately, he was about to break her heart. Sighing deeply he whispered, “Only married couples.” He looked at Jack, “What did the initial tests show?”
“Her white blood cell count is at twenty-seven now. Her platelet count is dropping. They started her on I.V. antibiotics… She’s septic.”
“From what?”
“We don’t know. The cultures won’t be back for a few days.”
“Take a guess.”
“I’m thinking that her immune system is failing her because of something that’s attacking her body. I don’t think this is a normal immune deficiency though.” He went silent and Oliver’s stomach flipped. “Ollie, I’m requesting an MRI to go with the blood cultures.”
Jack was trying to tell him that this was serious. More serious than he was prepared to tell Synthia. “Jack, are you thinking Montoya’s field or mine?”
“Montoya’s,” the flat answer resonated around the room. The skin on his arms and the back of his neck raised up.
Montoya was a pediatric oncologist.
Oliver tried to find his voice, but it was hard. Synthia looked back and forth between them. How was he going to tell her? How was he going to be the one to break her heart? How was he going to be the one to destroy the hope in her eyes?
“Someone please tell me who Montoya is? Please?” Her face was frantic. Her golden brown eyes drilled into his soul — breaking it into a thousand pieces before gluing it back together again. “Ollie?”
“We’re going to go get married right now.” If he needed to do that for her then he would. Montoya was a bit of a bastard. A great doctor, but a bastard. He would send her to Saint Luke’s… Daniella would die. Unless, he forced Montoya to take it.
“Married? Seriously, married?”
He stood up and walked to her. He grabbed her by her forearms, “Synthia, just trust me.” Tears were gathering in her eyes. “Do you trust me?” She nodded and he smiled sadly at her. Oliver knew that she understood something was wrong. “We’re going to get married right now.”
“I can’t leave her here. What if she wakes up?”
“The Chaplain will do it for you. He’d love to do a wedding.”
Frank certainly would love to do a wedding. Frank loved weddings. Unfortunately, Oliver would have to tell him the truth — would have to tell him that he was doing it because of Lucy. There was no way he was going to let another child die.
Oliver felt as if he had been sucker punched in the stomach… once Oliver told Frank what was going on… Frank would call his father. They had been friends since Oliver was five. There’s no way that Frank would keep that secret.
Chapter 7
“Frank, we need to talk.”
As Frank looked up from his desk, Oliver felt his heart break. There was no way he could lie to him.
“Hey, Ollie. It’s awfully early for you,” he said as he looked at his watch.
It was just after five in the morning, pretty early. “Yeah, there’s something important that I need to talk to you about.”
The look went from slight concern to the look of a Chaplain waiting for the other foot to drop, as Frank motioned to a chair. Oliver took it. Brushing a hand through his hair, he sighed deeply. “Frank, I’m getting married.”
“I’m sorry. Do what?”
A sad laugh escaped him. “You heard me. I want you to do the ceremony, but her daughter is really sick. She’s here and they’re going to send her to Saint Luke’s if we don’t get married ASAP.”
“What’s wrong?”
“They don’t know, but Jack thinks it’s cancer.”
“Saint Luke’s can’t handle that.”
“I know. That’s why we need to get married ASAP.”
“Who will be handling the case here?”
“Montoya…” Oliver knew that would be all he needed to say.
“Well, Montoya comes in at nine. City Hall opens at eight. Can you get over there and get the license right away? If so, then we can have you guys married before Montoya has a chance to turn them away. I can also keep him a bit busy until you can get Stacy in HR to process the paperwork.”
The drive from City Hall was ten minutes. A wedding could be done in five. HR… HR would take thirty minutes… If Frank could keep Montoya busy for a bit, then he could do it. “We need someone to stay with Daniella until we return.”
“Don’t worry about it. I’ve got that covered. Let’s go talk to your bride and make sure you have all the documents City Hall will ask for. Normally there’s a waiting period, but tell Denis he owes me a favor. He’ll get it done for you. I’ll make sure he’s there.”
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Oliver and Synthia raced into Daniella’s room. They had been delayed at City Hall. They had fifteen minutes to get married and get HR to process their wedding certificate. Fifteen minutes…
Oliver watched helplessly as Synthia slid on the freshly cleaned floor, grimacing as he himself lost his footing. Sliding to the left, he realized he was going down. The ground rushed up at him, as he turned towards his side.
“At least the baseball games were good for something.”
That voice… It couldn’t be him… Why would he be here? Looking up, he saw that the man he dreaded seeing out of everyone in the entire world was there. He was holding onto Synthia and smiling at him. Oliver’s mouth opened and closed. For some reason his voice box wouldn’t work. Shock? Maybe.
“Seeing as how he’s too dumbstruck to introduce us, I’m Drake Brooks. I’m Ollie’s dad.”
“Oh! I’m Synthia, Oliver’s…”
Oliver stood up. “Fiancee,” he provided.
“I figured that much.” His father smirked.
Ollie frowned. Drake Brooks was a lot of things in Ollie’s book; however, he wasn’t a moron. He would have picked Synthia out right away, even if they hadn’t come rushing in together.
“Frank called you, didn’t he.” It was more of an accusation than a question. Judging from the look on Frank’s face, it fit perfectly. It wasn’t a surprise that Frank called, he had expected it, but it certainly was a surprise that he showed. “We don’t have a lot of time. We need to get this done quickly.”
“He told me why we’re on a time limit, but when there’s more time there’s going to be a proper wedding.” His father turned away from him and towards Frank. It was like he was being shut out once again. Told that he needed to do better, to be better. The same thing his father had been telling him, without words, since his mother died. “Frank, since we’re in such a big hurry, let’s get started.”
“Ollie, do you take Synthia?”
“Yes.”
“Synthia, do you take Ollie, even though he’s being a prick?” Frank’s crude words elicited a giggle from her and Oliver smiled. It was the first time she had laughed in a long while.
“I guess so,” she said with a smile.
“Then you two are married. Don’t worry, we’ll do it proper next time. For now, it’ll do.”
“Great! Sign the paper, so I can get it to Stacy.”
“Oh, that’s already done.”
“What?” Oliver turned toward him, anger rolling just beneath the surface.
“Yeah, that’s why I said to see Denis. He faxed it over earlier. I’ve already signed it and given it to Stacy. She’s already updated your W-7 form to show you’re married to Synthia. You should have a copy of the paperwork any minute.”
“Are you serious?”
“Yes, why wouldn’t I be?”
Oliver threw his hands up in the air. “We nearly killed ourselves trying to get back in time and you had already signed the paper and submitted it!” He was a dead man. It didn’t matter that he was a Chaplain. Oliver was going to kill him and make it look like
an accident. Or maim him. Being a neurosurgeon did have it’s advantages. He new exactly where all the nerves were.
“Oliver, it’s ok. We’re here and it’s done. Please, don’t do this in front of Daniella.”
Daniella. The little girl who was now his daughter. Turning to look at her, he regretted his behavior. She was so pale, almost blending into the crisp white sheets on the hospital bed. “Hey, sleepyhead”, he whispered at her as he walked to her bedside.
“Are you fighting?”
He sat in the chair next to the bed and leaned forward. He smoothed back her curly blond hair and smiled. “No, sweetie. We were just talking loudly. Grownups do that sometimes.”
“Before daddy died, him and mommy fighted a lot.”
“It’s fought and how do you know that, sweetheart?” He could hear the quiver in her voice. Synthia had no clue that her little girl knew about the arguments. She had no idea that little ears could hear and remember all of the harsh words parents say.
“I heard you.”
He got up and sat on the bed beside Daniella. “Sweetie, I’m going to let you in on a secret. Parents sometimes get really mad at each other. They sometimes say mean things because they’re upset. They don’t mean any of them and then feel really bad about it. Have you ever said something mean to someone?”
“Yeah, Charlie.”
He hid his grin. Charlie was the clinic’s pet goldfish. “How did it make you feel?”
“It made him cry. I cried too.”
“See that’s what happens when parents say mean things to each other.”
“Do you feel bad?”
The curious question hit him in the gut. “I feel bad about a lot of things,” he whispered. His voice breaking from emotion. Lucy Woods being the foremost of those things.
“Then I think you should kiss and make up.”
His father’s boisterous laugh echoed off the walls. “I think that’s a great idea!”
