Chapter 14
CHAPTER 14
C hristopher didn’t see his wife Becca until later that night. She’d spent hours at the hospital, and when she got home, he didn’t want to stress her with the news about Emily.
It was, however, the only thing on his mind, and it showed.
“Do you want to tell me what’s got you so distracted?” Becca asked as she dropped her backpack to the bedroom floor.
“Distracted? I’m probably just tired.”
Becca moved to his side of the bed and leaned down to kiss him on the cheek.
“Nice try. Besides, being tired is my thing,” she teased.
He turned to face her and pushed the strands of her hair behind her ear.
“Do you know how beautiful you are?”
She smiled. “Okay, now I know you’ve got something on your mind.”
She grabbed his hands and pulled him up and off the bed. “Let’s go into the living room and talk. You’ve caught me on a good night. I’ve still got some energy left.”
They went into the kitchen first, and Becca pulled out a tray of cut-up veggies and onion dip.
“How was work?” he asked.
Becca smiled. “Today was a good day. I had a rotation in pediatrics.”
“Oh, your favorite.”
Becca nodded. “You’re right about that. It’s hard to see kids in the hospital for anything serious, but I love spending time with them and doing what I can to make their time somewhat fun.”
“Fun isn’t something most people feel when they have to stay in the hospital. The kids are lucky to have you to make it bearable.”
She carried the tray of food to the living room.
“Let’s sit in here. I’ll get some wine to go with it. What do you want, red or white?”
“Red please.”
Becca brought the already opened bottle of wine and two glasses to the coffee table and filled the two glasses half way.
“So, what’s on your mind?” she asked.
“You remember my half-sister Emily?”
“Yeah, she’s really sweet. Is she coming for another visit?”
He shook his head, “No, she’s in Mass General. She has Lupus nephritis and needs a kidney transplant.”
“Oh no. That’s horrible. I can’t believe it. She’s so young.”
“I know, it’s very serious.”
Becca was quiet for a minute, and Christopher could tell she was already figuring it out.
“Chris, you and your siblings have to get tested to see if you are a match. I mean, have you talked to your family about that possibility?”
He laughed. “Way ahead of you, hon. Mom called a Code Red this morning. We’ve all agreed to get tested.”
“Oh thank goodness. I’m glad to hear that. It’s vital that they test every possible donor. Although I don’t have any genetic connection to her, I’m happy to get tested too. I’ll talk to some of my friends to see if they’ll get tested. Michael should do the same. It’s possible one of the police officers in his precinct might be a match. You just never know.”
“Yeah, I’ll mention that, but I don’t know how well that’ll go over at his house. Brea didn’t seem on board with any of this.”
Becca shrugged. “That’s a reasonable response after what that family has been through. She almost lost Michael when he was shot. She’s probably still suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.”
“That’s exactly it. We’ve all been through trauma these last few years. Donating a kidney isn’t an easy thing for any of us.”
“But, it’s the right thing to do,” she insisted.
“Do you have any idea how long the testing process is? I mean, do they take a blood test and that’s it?”
Becca shook her head as she finished sipping her wine. “No way. It’s involved. The fact that you are all living donors speeds up the process quite a bit.”
“When you say speeds up, do you mean days?”
“Yeah, absolutely. I mean choosing the donor could come early, but that’s after they’ve done an evaluation of your medical history, and a physical exam, and then lots of diagnostic tests like blood tests, imaging studies, and sometimes they even have to take a biopsy if they find anything suspicious. The truth is they need to identify any potential issues that might affect Emily. What’s your blood type?”
“O positive.”
Becca nodded. “Good one. That’s the best, because it’s the most common. I’m B positive, which is not. You have to have a compatible blood type to Emily’s. The worst would be if Emily’s body rejects your kidney. They’ll mix your blood and hers to check for any reactions right away though.”
“You don’t think my amputation might prevent me from being accepted as a donor?”
Becca shook her head. “To be honest, I’m not sure. I think if your amputation was a result of a vascular disease, then they’d tell you no right away. The fact that it is from a bomb and not an internal disease should factor into their decision. Don’t worry, they’ll accept you if you’re a good candidate. First things first…you need to go to Mass General and get the tests done as soon as possible. I’ll go with you.”
For the first time since deciding to donate his kidney, Christopher felt nervous. He knew it was the right thing to do, but that didn’t stop him from feeling anxiety about it.
“Becca, I…well, I was wondering…what if the surgery triggers emotions I haven’t felt since being in the hospital in Germany?”
She placed her hand on his arm and leaned closer to him. “Honey, you need to be honest with yourself and the doctors. I didn’t say this before, but a psychiatrist might evaluate you. If you’re not able for any reason, physical or emotional, they’ll determine that. Promise me that you’ll be honest with me about everything. I know you want to do the right thing here, but you can’t do it at the cost of your health.”
He nodded. Becca was right. He’d already committed and didn’t think about how it might affect him. Whatever happened, he’d need to stay vigilant about putting himself and his family first. He wouldn’t sacrifice his life again for anything or anyone. Not after Iraq…never again.
Kat was about to hang up the phone when Nolan’s voice came through.
“Hey, honey. I’ve been so worried about you,” he said.
“Yes, Maggie told me you called. I was at work.”
“She told me. I was surprised to hear that you’d taken a job. What are you doing?”
“I’m waitressing at the Seafood and Sunshine restaurant. I’m having a lot of fun too.”
“I don’t understand, Kat. Why are you waitressing and when are you coming back home?”
“I’m not coming back to Massachusetts, Nolan. I told you that in the letter. This is my home now.”
“What? Captiva is your home? Does Maggie feel the same way, because when I talked to her, she didn’t sound so happy to have you around all the time.”
He’s exaggerating as usual. My sister wouldn’t want me to leave her, no matter what she said to Nolan.
“Nolan, you have to accept that this is the way things are.”
Nolan didn’t say anything for a few seconds, but then finally asked, “Don’t you love me anymore?”
Kat sighed. “Oh, Nolan, it’s not about love. It’s just that things aren’t the same with us anymore. You sit in front of that television like you’re in a trance. You don’t hear me when I talk, you don’t see me when I try to get your attention. All you do is go to work, come home, eat, watch TV and then go to bed. The only reason you’ve noticed I’ve gone is because the ice box is getting low on the meals I prepared.”
“That’s not true. I noticed you were gone right away when I called you to get me a beer. I noticed you weren’t there when I went off to work. You usually kiss my cheek just before I leave, but you weren’t here to do that. I notice you’re not with me in bed when I look over at your pillow. The house isn’t the same without you, Kat.”
Kat was annoyed. The phone call had lasted far longer than she wanted. There wasn’t anything Nolan could say to change her mind.
“Nolan, I’ve got to go. I have to be at work. Besides, there isn’t anything you can say to change my mind. Now, I have to hang up. You try to have a nice day at work.”
Without waiting for him to say goodbye, Kat ended the call.
Lord in heaven, I do not know what I’m going to do with that man.
She looked at the clock on the wall, and realized she was already late for work.
It’s all Maggie’s fault. If she hadn’t insisted I call Nolan, I would have been out of here an hour ago.
Brea had dinner on the table just as Michael came through the door.
“Good timing.” She yelled out to her daughters Quinn and Cora. “Dinner’s ready.”
The banging of two sets of feet running down the hardwood stairs sounded like a stampede.
“Daddy!” Cora, the younger sister, screamed.
She jumped into her father’s arms while their dog, Willa, danced and twirled in front of them. Quinn, the older daughter, went directly to the table.
“I was just getting ready to call Charlotte. We have to talk about our algebra homework. Mr. Cordon is so mean. He’s making us have homework on the weekends. I swear, he’s the worst teacher in the whole school…maybe even the whole town.”
Brea laughed at the usual dinner time drama that followed the lives of two pre-teen girls.
“Oh, I’m sure he’s not that bad,”
“Not that bad? Mom, are you serious?”
Michael joined the conversation. “Your mother is always serious,” he said as he winked at Brea.
“Quinn let's put this conversation on hold. It’s time for dinner.”
Brea had little else on her mind since this morning’s video with her mother-in-law. It was hard to imagine what Emily was going through, but she also couldn’t ignore the terror she experienced last year when Michael was shot. She couldn’t go through that again, nor did she feel Michael could handle it.
“So, how was work?” she asked.
He shrugged, “Not as easy as I thought it would be. After that call with Mom, I’ve been thinking of nothing else. I guess I’m going to have to pop over to the hospital and go through the testing. The rest of the family is doing it. I can hardly refuse.”
Brea looked him in the eye. “Yes, you can. You have a perfectly good reason for not doing it. We’re just getting back on our feet, Michael. Please think about this.”
“I am, I promise. What I’m going to do is go through the testing process and then deal with the results when they come in. I might not be a match, so there is no use getting worked up about something that might not happen anyway.”
Brea nodded and pushed the broccoli with her fork. She prayed Michael was right. It was crazy to get unnecessarily upset about this. Her husband was a loving, caring brother to all his siblings. Emily’s situation was unique, but it didn’t preclude her from receiving all the love and support this family could give her.
If she and Michael weren’t talking about the kidney transplant, they were quietly thinking about it. It was impossible to do anything else.