It made for a wet and miserable time in the wards as the doctors and nurses and their helpers attended to their patients. Everyone seemed to be on edge. Some of the crew were aware that Lenny was missing. Some even knew that the Chief’s daughter Emmanulla apparently was missing with her. Twice Deanna stopped gossip about Lenny’s sexual orientation, snapping at the people who were discussing her like an object. Maddie knew enough about Deanna’s feelings on the subject to stop from discussing it at all even though Leida and a couple of others attempted to draw her into conversation. For some reason, after several talks with Deanna, she felt it demeaned her somehow to engage in such gossip. She avoided it like the plague they were dealing with in their patients.
“Doctor Cooper?” she addressed Deanna formally in front of the ward as it made the patients respect them more. Only when they were all alone and kicking back was she addressed as Deanna.
As Deanna looked up, her familiar chirpy smile was in place. For the first time, Maddie realized her light blue eyes also lit up when she answered her. “Yes?”
“The patient in bed nine is complaining of abdominal pain. Can we increase some of the medication?” she asked as she handed her the chart.
The number of patients hadn’t lessoned because of the weather. In fact, there was already a small increase in the numbers. Weather-related accidents were already occurring. There were no signs of a let-up in the rain either. Doctor Burton had already warned their people to stay well away from the river and not to leave camp unless in pairs, if at all.
Deanna looked at the chart, finishing up with the patient she was attending and walking with Maddie over to bed nine. Her interpreter followed in their wake, but she knew she might not be needed as Deanna had picked up quite a bit of their language. She discovered the patient was a child, his mother was sitting anxiously next to the cot where he lay moaning from the pain and thrashing about a little. She examined him and noted his sweat despite the coolness from the rain. She listened to his heart with her stethoscope, checked his stomach, and examined the whites of his eyes, the color of his nails, and poked and prodded at him as she talked a little with him and his mother. She used a combination of their language—the words that she knew—and French, which her interpreter effortlessly translated for her. This relaxed the mother and even the boy, who was obviously in pain.
“Prepare him for surgery,” she ordered Maddie. “He’s got appendicitis. Wish we had a way to run cultures faster or an X-ray machine,” she said under her breath to the nurse. It was the only thing she did complain about, that in this modern world things such as that took days, sometimes weeks, and by then patients could easily die.
“Are we going to be able to keep the generators going?” Maddie reminded her of the sporadic electrical outages that they had to deal with. Losing lights during such an operation could prove fatal.
“I’ll inform Doctor Burton,” Deanna said with a grimace. “Get the boy ready.”
Maddie nodded as she watched Deanna walk off to the doctors’ office. Deanna was rarely in it, preferring to write her notes in her charts among the patients, chatting with them, making them laugh at her attempts to speak their languages, socializing with them all. It put them at ease and she had earned the respect she now commanded of them. Word spread that she was competent and friendly. It made women want to listen to her, learn from her, and it was why some of her classes with Lenny were more enjoyable.
Deanna knocked on the office door before opening it. “Doctor Burton?” she called cheerfully. He wasn’t in the office, but Doctor Wilson was. “Oh, Doctor Wilson, do you know where Burton is?”
“I believe he is handling something in the village.” Deanna wondered briefly if it had anything to do with Lenny and Emmanulla, but then focused on the matter at hand. “Will I do?” he asked with a grin.
She smiled, showing she was actually a very attractive young woman. “I have a boy with an appendicitis and I’m going to need the surgical booth,” she told him. “I just want to be sure we have the generator as backup in case of an outage.”
“That’s a good idea to check,” he answered thoughtfully. “Have you checked his white count?” he asked.
“No, I was just about to do that. I won’t open him up until I do,” she promised. “I just wanted to prepare the surgery while I do that.”
He nodded. She was most efficient, setting things in motion on several fronts so that she could multi-task. He knew it drove Burton crazy that this young thing was so good at what she did. He would be sorry to see her go; she was good at this. He’d been prepared to be impressed based on what people had told him about her, but the reality was, she was even more impressive in person. He could only imagine what she would be like in ten years. Hell, in five years she could run a clinic like this. She probably could now, but he knew they wouldn’t give such a responsibility to a twenty-six-year-old woman. “Do you need help?” he asked helpfully.
Deanna smiled. She knew Burton wouldn’t have offered. He would have tried to take it over, treating her like a nurse or a messenger. “Thank you, I’ll let you know.” She also knew that Wilson had many of his own patients to take care of as well as any that would come in while she was in surgery. She left him to go take blood from her patient and look at it under a microscope. It would tell if all the signs that pointed to an appendicitis were accurate. Blood didn’t lie. She explained to the mother and the boy what she was doing and why.
The boy wanted to know if she would see all the bugs, since the direct translation from French didn’t really explain micro-organisms or white count. She assured him that the microscope would indeed show her what she needed to know. He bravely allowed her to take a blood sample. She smiled and ruffled his hair as she got up and Maddie quickly put a bandage on the small spot that was oozing a little blood.
Deanna put a drop on a glass and put it under the microscope. It was teeming with white blood cells, which told her there was an infection in the small boy’s body. As all the other signs pointed to the appendix, her mind was made up and she nodded at Maddie. She sought out their anesthesiologist. He was new, but competent, and kept Deanna and the other doctors from having to do more than one job for their surgeries.
In a short period of time the surgery was prepared—the boy was put under and Deanna had scrubbed herself at the sink. It wasn’t as sterile as the hospitals she had worked at in the States or in Europe, but they did what they could to ward off infection. Many times it was a secondary infection that killed their patients, not the initial surgery or illness. She knew by keeping things as clean as they possibly could they would have to make do on the rest. She herself had boiled the instruments she was now using. She wished she had a tray of scalpels, instead of the few she used. She could feel the slight tug against the tissue as they dulled. She tried to use each one sparingly as she looked for and found the sharp edges to cut open her patient. She could hear her own breathing behind the mask as she peered into the boy’s abdomen when she had cut him. She found a greatly distorted appendix, like an engorged worm or tic. It was full of putrefying puss. She tied off each end twice and then she gingerly cut off both ends that fed the little monster, careful not to nick it and get the contents in the cavity. Slowly she exorcised it from the wound, putting a spit tray below it quickly before cutting beyond her sutures at both ends. The little blob of flesh soon began to pump its poison into the tray, but it was okay, it wasn’t in her patient anymore. She whisked it away and handed it to Maddie.
Maddie watched as Deanna made it all look so easy. She knew it couldn’t possibly be as easy as the young woman made it seem. She didn’t seem to hesitate...ever. Her confidence was a wonder to watch. She knew her stuff, that was obvious. Maddie enjoyed working with her. She could only hope to measure up as her nurse and do the best she could for this amazing young doctor.
Quickly she cleaned the incision and then sewed it up, taking pains to make the sutures small so that it would heal without too much scarring. She wasn’t sure
of this tribe’s beliefs. Some tribes thought scars were a sign of strength, but she erred on the side of caution.
It was less than an hour later that she herself was helping to clean up the surgery. She never put on airs, expecting others to clean up after her. Many doctors felt their work was done when the surgery was done, but Deanna chipped in. Maddie had returned to help her along with the anesthesiologist and a couple of helpers. Keeping their surgery as clean as possible was very important. They couldn’t keep it germ-free. That was impossible in this area, but they tried. All they could do was try.
“He comfortable?” Deanna asked conversationally to Maddie.
“Yes, his mother wanted to know when he would awaken?”
Deanna smiled. It was a common enough occurrence and parents were the same worldwide. She finished her section of cleaning, put away her supplies, and washed her hands once again before going to her patient to check on him and reassure the worried mother.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Lenny and Emmanulla were discovered the next day when the rains stopped almost as abruptly as they had arrived. They were cold, they were tired, but they explained they had been caught out by the sudden storm. They hadn’t seen the clouds rolling in and fortunately they had found a crude rock shelter in a hill, high enough from the waters churning through this section of the large valley. The river was running full. Because of the way the river wound through, it nearly circled back on itself in an oxbow. They had to walk wide around its dangerous waters to make it back to the village. They were believed for the sake of propriety and the chief made a great show of thanking the school teacher for keeping his daughter safe. Deanna and Lenny exchanged a look that promised a conversation later, but other than that, the two of them were brought back safely and welcomed.
“You think she stooped the chief’s daughter?” Thomas said crudely to Harlan and they both sniggered like schoolboys.
Walking up behind them, Deanna frostily replied, “If you can’t remain professional, I suggest the two of you go back to your tent where you can’t be overheard. They may not speak English, but if they do, the villagers would be grossly offended by your conversation.”
“It’s really none of your business what we say, now is it?” Harlan defended himself and his companion.
“What if people were talking about the two of you the way you are talking about others?” she asked, arching a brow as though to judge them.
“What do you mean?” Harlan asked, genuinely puzzled.
“That you two were going at it,” she replied succinctly.
“That’s disgusting,” Thomas put in angrily.
“Yes, and so is the subject of your conversation,” she pointed out.
They realized what she was trying to say and quieted as they turned away and got their meals. Deanna put food on her tray too, but she wasn’t hungry. The constant speculation as to Lenny’s sexual orientation was upsetting her. She was sick of the gossip.
“What did the frat boys have to say?” Leida asked with a grin to cheer up Deanna. She was rewarded by the doctor with a small smile.
“They need to grow up,” she answered, taking a bite of the bread she was tearing apart.
“Boys will be boys,” she responded as she dug into the food. They had recently gotten a shipment with plenty of canned fruit and she relished the change. “You have to try this,” she advised as she pointed out the offerings to Deanna.
“Boys may be boys, but that is no excuse for these supposed men,” she answered angrily. She looked at the fruit, decided it did look good, and got up to get herself some. Her tray was still fairly full and she didn’t realize anyone was behind her. Much to her mortification, she bumped into Maddie with the tray and it poured the contents down the redhead’s front. “Oh, I am so sorry,” she said apologetically.
“Oh man, I just managed to get a shower after all this mud,” Maddie said mournfully in response as she looked down, horrified at the mess on her clothes.
“Looks like you are going to need another,” Leida answered as she tried unsuccessfully not to laugh.
“And I will gladly pour it for you,” Deanna promised. “I am very sorry,” she repeated, looking genuinely contrite.
Leida’s laughter got a glare and then Maddie realized it really was an accident and laughed herself. “I guess dinner is on me this time,” she teased.
That drew a laugh out of the blonde. “I’ll pay your cleaning bill,” she offered. They all chuckled. They were fortunate that some of the locals, for a small fee, washed their clothing for them. They did a good job too. “Let me help you clean that up,” she offered, but as her napkin came up Maddie took it from her, suddenly flushing in embarrassment.
“I got it.” She wouldn’t let Deanna help and shooed her away.
Deanna went to fill her tray again, this time with foods she knew she would eat including the delicious-looking fruit that Leida had on her own tray. By the time she returned to her spot, Maddie was sitting down eating her own food and chatting with Leida. Magda had joined them as well as Alex, and they were all discussing supplies and when the next truck would be due.
* * * * *
“What were you thinking?” Deanna hissed at Lenny. They were in the classroom talking, the only private place they had been able to find in the days since the two women had disappeared together.
“I was thinking I wanted to be alone with Emmanulla. We didn’t see the storm coming on and when we did, we thought we could make it back!” she defended herself hotly.
“You almost got caught,” she warned, keeping her voice low. One never knew who spoke what language or was listening. They couldn’t walk out in the village as it was too muddy.
“I know and I’m sorry. I hope Emmanulla didn’t get into too much trouble with her father.”
“Do you think he knows? Do you think he disapproves?”
“He wants to marry her off,” she said bitterly. “Emmanulla doesn’t like any of the men her father has found for her.”
“He’s got to be suspicious!”
Lenny nodded miserably. “I’ve made a real mess of this. Maybe we should go away, but how am I going to get her back to the States? It takes years to get a passport here!”
“You can’t possibly take her back to the States. They won’t let her in and what are you going to say? She’s your student? She’s a little old for that! Your servant? They won’t let her in!”
“I know,” she moaned, “but what am I going to do? I love her!”
“Dammit, you shouldn’t have fallen in love with her!”
“I know, I know!” she repeated.
“Shit!” Deanna ejaculated under her breath, still whispering. It wasn’t a good situation and she felt bad for her friend, but there was nothing they could do. If they were exposed, they would both be disgraced: Emmanulla would be married off to the first man that her father could find, and Lenny would be shipped back to Canada. Lenny would never be allowed another post like this. If she was exposed as a homosexual, they would label her as unfit. If they heard it was with the chief’s daughter she would be labeled as the perpetrator on that ‘innocent’ child. Deanna had another thought. “You didn’t...” she began.
Lenny looked up. “We’ve...well, you know...” she began, whispering louder.
“Shhh,” Deanna warned. “No, I don’t know. Spell it out.”
“I didn’t do anything she didn’t want to do,” she defended herself.
“Oh shit, did you take her virginity?” Deanna asked, horrified at the possible consequences.
“No, there are other things you can do for pleasure,” Lenny blushed. “Oh, God! What am I going to do?” she started to cry into her hands.
Deanna went to take her friend in her arms, but hearing a noise outside she hesitated and decided not to. “You are going to have to stop seeing her,” she advised.
“No! I love her!” she protested, looking up, her eyes awash in her grief.
CHAPTER NINE
“S
o these guys are lugging in my supplies on their backs and on donkeys, and I didn’t realize why I was tied up to the donkey. You know, led by a rope?” Deanna was regaling them with stories of her travels and they all smiled appreciatively at her description. “It was as I slipped off the narrow trail face first into the mud and started sliding down the steep slope, hitting tropical plants with my unmentionables, that I realized…that rope that kept me from falling down the mountainside. That was a good idea!”
They all started laughing, nearly choking on the beers they were sharing. “Oh, my gawd, Deanna! Did that really happen?” Magda wiped the tears away from the corner of her eye as she smiled at the story.
Deanna nodded. “Yeah, I’ve been to some pretty funky places. But you know what? It’s one of the greatest things about what I do, seeing the sights. When they hauled my ass back up with that taut rope, I looked at that donkey and the phrase ‘kiss my ass’ had a whole new meaning.”
They all collapsed into laughter again at her imagery.
Nights like this made the women close. Using a combination of English and French, they regaled each other with stories about their lives. It wasn’t often they were all there at the same time, but it was nice when they were able to share like that.
The rainy season provided plenty of time for introspection. No one wanted to be caught away from camp, not after Lenny had disappeared. She was quieter since she had been found, watchful. She still talked occasionally with Emmanulla, but they were unable to walk out together anymore. It seemed to be creating a tension. The others noticed their friend’s agitation and came up with their own conclusions as to why she was like that. Although Deanna knew the real reason, the others could only speculate.
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