Chapter 4
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Sammy, after her third yawn, picked up her empty mug, walked over to the coffeemaker, and poured herself the second cup of the morning.
“Sounds like you might need to inject it this morning,” her coworker joked, now laughing.
She glanced over at her and nodded. “I didn’t get much sleep, that’s for sure.”
“How come? You were off at a reasonable hour.”
“I was, but a friend of mine had some trouble,” she explained, “and I went over to give him a hand.” She didn’t want to say too much, but it was laughable as she explained a little bit about it.
The other woman looked at her in horror. “Triplets? And men?”
She began, “They were definitely struggling, not because they were men,” she told her coworker, “but because they didn’t have any experience with babies.”
“Good God, you would think somebody would have hired a proper nurse for these children,” she replied, frowning.
Immediately Sammy went on the defensive. “I don’t know why they would,” she stated, then shrugged. “No reason to. The men are perfectly capable of handling the babies on their own.”
“But you just said they didn’t have any experience.”
Sammy snorted. “Exactly—like new, first-time parents, but with triplets,” she pointed out. “The babies were teething, so nothing was really wrong, and they were doing a great job.”
“If those were my babies, I wouldn’t want them looked after by a bunch of clueless men,” she muttered.
“I didn’t say they didn’t have any clue. I said they didn’t have any experience, and that’s a whole different story.” Irritated at her coworker jumping to the conclusion that these men were completely incapable, Sammy headed off with her roster to do the first rounds.
She had to leave her coffee behind until she got back but immediately realized she would be better off taking a moment or two and just sitting here before she got started. The other woman left on her rounds.
Just as one of the friendlier supervisors headed her way, a yawn escaped her.
“You didn’t have a good night’s sleep?” she asked gently.
“I’m okay,” she replied. Then she downed her coffee and went about her work. She entered a room to check on a patient. The older woman greeted her, a smile on her face, but she looked tired. When she asked about her sleep, she shook her head.
The patient said, her voice quivering, “It was not a good night. I don’t sleep well here.”
“Do you want me to get something from the doctor to help you sleep?” she asked quietly.
The woman shook her head. “No, thanks. I don’t like taking anything. It makes me feel weird,” she stated.
Sammy frowned at that, nodded. “I certainly won’t force meds on you,” she noted. “Yet if you want to try something—”
“No, I don’t,” she muttered and just waved her on.
And it was kind of that way for the next few patients. People were out of sorts, as if something had set them off throughout the evening.
By the time Sammy made her way up to the fourth floor, where Talia was, Sammy was more than happy to see Burton sitting out there. She stopped in front of him and smiled. “I wasn’t sure I would see you here today.”
“Yeah, I came to give Leland a break,” he replied.
“Of course.” She nodded.
He checked his watch, then stared at her quizzically. “Did you get any sleep?”
“I did, thank you,” she told him. “How are the babies?”
“They had a decent night,” he admitted. “That infant Tylenol seems to work wonders.”
“Yeah,” she agreed, “just something to keep in mind when needed. Sometimes nothing will work, but I’m glad it did.”
“We are grateful,” he noted, with a smile. “The fever had us worried, and we didn’t know what we were dealing with.”
“And I wouldn’t have a clue what to do if you put a gun in my hand,” she pointed out. “Different people have experience in different things. “You put babies in my arms, and I know what to do. It’s the same thing.”
“Well, it’s good to know that some people understand.” He chuckled. “We’ve been teasing ourselves about it all morning.”
“Good,” she stated, with a nod. “That’s the kind of attitude you want to have. Not everybody can be great at everything.”
He nodded and smiled. “I get that. We’re being humbled time and time again in this job.”
“How so?” she asked.
He shrugged. “You know how it is. You walk into normal jobs, where you have the skills and the training. Even though something is different, something is unique about it, you still have the history or some skill level that you can draw on to handle the new circumstance. But in this case? Wow.”
She laughed. “It’s all good. Don’t put so much pressure on yourselves. Those babies are doing just fine.”
“They are, aren’t they?” he declared, and such pride filled his tone.
She chuckled. “Look at you,” she muttered. “Pretty soon you’ll be a dad with your own kids. A happy, proud papa.”
“I kind of feel that way already,” he admitted. “It’s hard not to fall in love with them. Once you’re there spending time with them, they’re just so special.” He shook his head. “I can’t imagine how anybody doesn’t love their own children.”
“And yet—” she whispered.
“I know,” he acknowledged, grimacing. “I know what you’re not saying, and it just saddens me so much.”
“Of course,” she agreed. “And that’s what gives you your humanity and makes you so special.”
He looked at her in surprise and then grinned. “Aw, shucks,” he quipped.
She shook her head at him. “I hear you, you know? I hear you trying to brush it off, but you guys are doing a great thing, and I know that Talia will appreciate it.”
“Some people might say it’s a great thing, but for us? It’s doing what’s needed,” he declared. “It’s stepping up for friends and family who need help. When they need help, you give that help. There really shouldn’t be any questioning it.”
She smiled. “I need to go in and check on her. Back out in a minute.” As she went in Talia’s curtained-off area, Sammy checked the tablet to see how her night had been and what was going on in her world.
She read the doctor’s notes about the medication once again being reduced and looking for signs of life in the next day or two. She smiled at that.
She looked up when Burton joined her. “They’ve reduced her medication again,” she shared, with a big smile. “So, they’re expecting her to come around in the next twenty-four hours or so.”
“And that’s good, right?” he asked.
“That’s very good,” she stated. “The only thing is, we need to keep an eye on her pain level. It’s hard to heal when you’re in extreme pain. So that will be a priority, once we see how she surfaces.”
“Will she wake up in pain?”
“I hope not,” she replied, “because we’re not taking away the pain meds. We’re just reducing the dosage, so she’s more … conscious.”
“Good to know.”
“I’ll check in with the doctor to confirm,” she muttered, going through different tabs in Talia’s file to be sure. She went through another couple, looking for what she wanted, then she nodded. “Okay, same medications, just reducing them slightly, and set for an X-ray next week on that pelvis.”
“Another X-ray?”
“Yes, there were some concerns that it may not have been set as well as it could be, but they’re really hoping that it’s fine. So, they’ll check it, especially since she’s been out for so long. They want to see signs of the healing coming in.”
“Good enough,” he said. “I can’t imagine a busted pelvis. It sounds horrific.”
“It is horrific,” she acknowledged. “Yet people can recover from this and can do well. Of course keeping her calm and letting that head wound heal is another big issue.”
“I didn’t even realize she had a bad head wound.”
“Yeah, along with the busted pelvis, they cracked her head pretty well too.” She grimaced, adding in a casual tone, “I really hope you get these assholes.”
“Yeah, don’t worry about that. We will. The problem is making sure we get all of them and not just the minions,” he pointed out.
She winced. “That’s always the hardest part, isn’t it? I mean, why the hell should anybody out there be allowed to do what they did to her? And how about her husband?”
“The one who not only allowed it to happen but pretty much directed it to happen?”
“Yeah, you don’t want to hear my response to that either,” she grumbled, with a headshake. Now that she was done here with Talia, she turned to Burton and asked, “You okay here?”
“I’m fine.” He nodded. “Thanks again for coming and helping us out last night.”
“Not an issue. I’m going to grab a coffee. Do you want one?”
“I absolutely want one,” he confirmed, his smile lighting up further.
She stared at that smile, shook her head, and muttered, “That should be a lethal weapon.”
“What?” he asked in confusion.
She burst out laughing. “Your smile.” He grinned at her, a wicked grin that sent shivers down her spine. “Oh, no, you don’t. None of that.”
“Are you sure?” he teased, batting his eyelashes in an overblown and hilarious way.
She chuckled even more and said, “Nope, nope, nope, nope, nope, not going there.”
“We could go there.”
“Nope, not going there,” she repeated, but she was still chuckling.
He pointed at her, his eyebrows raised. “See? You don’t sound convinced.”
“Maybe not to you,” she clarified, “but the answer is still no.” As she walked away, she glanced back and added, “At least at the moment.” With a laugh of her own and a teasing glance, she headed out to get their coffee and then to visit the rest of her patients.
As she turned and glanced back again, she realized Burton had decided to stay in Talia’s room. She hesitated and sent him a text, asking why.
He sent back a text. I go by instincts. I can’t always tell where, why, or how, but I’m not ignoring it.
She agreed with not ignoring those nudges.
Yet it was odd to watch him assume that sense of responsibility and follow it blindly on a completely instinctive level.
She went to get their coffee. As she returned, walking up the hallway with his cup, she saw him stepping out of the room. He was talking on the phone.
She held up the cup. He smiled at her, accepted the cup, and within a few minutes said goodbye to whoever was on the other end of the phone.