Chapter 4
Selene
After a full day battling hospital bureaucracy, the packages of sterilized Christmas decorations feel like an early Christmas gift in my hands. I promised Holly I'd make it happen, and I'm as stubborn as they come — I don't care how angry Dr. Winters gets about it.
“How did you get the hospital to approve the budget for all this stuff?” asks one of the pediatric nurses who volunteered to help me.
“Let's just say I owe Arya about fifty coffees and dinner at some fancy-ass restaurant, but it was worth it, don't you think?” I admit with a proud smile. “Is Holly sleeping?”
“Yeah, she's been really tired lately,” she acknowledges, lowering her voice sadly. “But wait till you see how happy she'll be when she wakes up and sees all this.”
As we sort through decorations for different kids, Dr. Winters's voice filters through the partially open office door, each word a dagger through my heart.
“The latest tests show significant deterioration. Left ventricular function has decreased another fifteen percent since yesterday.”
Holly's mother's sharp intake of breath almost mirrors my own.
“How long does she have without a compatible heart? Two, three months?” Vivian asks, her voice quivering.
“If we don't find one in a couple of days… you need to prepare for the worst,” Dr. Winters confesses, and Holly's mother's sobs echo clearly through the door.
Pain shoots through me. Raw. Devastating. I remember with crystal clarity how eighteen years ago, another doctor tried to explain to my mother why my sister Emily wouldn't live to see the New Year.
“Keep going. I need to do something urgent,” I tell the nurse, who gives me an odd look as I practically bolt toward somewhere quiet.
As snowflakes drift slowly past the window, tears fill my eyes remembering Emily's last Christmas. How she insisted on decorating her hospital room even though she could barely sit up without help. The way she made me promise that when I grew up, I'd help other kids be happy at Christmas when they had to spend it in the hospital. “It's easier to be brave with decorations,” she'd whispered, holding my hand.
I press my forehead against the cold window glass and pull out my phone. My fingers tremble slightly as I search for the contact — this isn't just another call to the transplant coordinator. This is for Holly, and I won't fail her.
“Marcus, it's Selene. I need a huge favor,” I try to keep my voice from breaking, though I doubt I'm succeeding.
“Let me guess, you're calling about Holly Thompson's case, right?”
“How do you know?”
“Dr. Alexia Winters already called me three times today. Each time to curse me out for not finding a compatible heart for the kid.”
“Isn't there anything we can do?”
“You know I'd do anything for you, Selene, but I can't bypass priority lists for a transplant. Let me check again. Nothing in New York or New Jersey. Boston has two critical patients at the top of the list, and Philadelphia…”
“Yeah, yeah, I just heard all that a while ago. Find something, Marcus, please. The girl is only seven years old, seven, damn it. She's full of life. It can't end like this.”
“You know I can't, Selene.”
“Please, my little sister died because the transplant never came in time. I don't want to go through something similar with this poor girl and…”
“Holy shit, wait!”
“What's happening?”
“A potentially compatible heart just came in.”
“Tell me where I need to go pick it up,” I plead without waiting for more explanation.
“Damn it, forget it, Selene. I got carried away. It's in Burlington.”
“Vermont? That's about two hours by air, the helicopter has enough range to get there.”
“There's also a terrible snowstorm in that whole area. You'll never get flight clearance.”
“I did two tours in Afghanistan, Marcus. I've been shot at while flying — snowflakes don't scare me,” I remind him.
“Maybe not you, but I doubt you'll find a cardiac surgeon willing to go with you.”
“How long do I have to deliver the heart if things get complicated? Four, six hours?”
“More or less, but Selene, you're not listening, damn it. This is a serious storm. The order is no flights for anyone, and that includes you. Even if you get a cardiac surgeon crazy enough to risk their life with you, nobody's going to approve your flight plan.”
“Is the compatibility good?” I ask, ignoring his words.
“Preliminary tests indicate it's very good. But, Selene…”
“Send me all the details and keep Holly at the top of the list. I'm heading there as soon as possible.”
“Selene, damn it, listen for once in your life…”
But it's too late — I'm already running toward Holly's room looking for Dr. Winters as fast as my legs will carry me.
The scene I find there breaks my heart. Alexia is kneeling beside the girl's bed, something very different from her usual attitude. She's gripping her pen tightly as she listens to Holly speak.
“The only Christmas gift I want is for Mom to stop crying about my illness. I just hope the hospital elves have enough magic to make it happen,” the little girl sighs, and I have to blink several times when I see the mighty Alexia Winters herself discreetly wiping away a tear.
At that moment, I don't think, I move.
I burst into the room without even saying hello and grab the doctor by the elbow, pulling her to follow me. Probably with more force than necessary, judging by the fury blazing in her gorgeous green eyes.
“What the hell do you think you're doing, asshole?” she snarls when we're in the hallway. The nurses watch us warily but say nothing.
I clamp my palm over her mouth to silence her and feel her sharp intake of breath against my skin. At least she hasn't bitten me.
“Shut up, damn it! I have a heart for Holly! It's in Vermont, in Burlington, and it's compatible. Give me your email, and I'll send you all the details,” I whisper, my hand still covering her mouth.
Dr. Winters's eyes widen in surprise, and I slowly move my hand away, though I keep it nearby in case she starts yelling.
“How did you manage that? I've called the transplant coordination center a million times! Never mind! Don't tell me. I don't want to be involved in anything illegal.”
“Just be quiet for a second, damn it! It just came up on the list, but they're going to cancel all flights because of a snowstorm.”
“How do you know all this?” she asks, confused.
“I have my connections.”
“How long would it take?”
“Just over two hours by helicopter, if we leave right now, before they ground all aircraft.”
“We? Why are you talking in plural?”
“Because you're coming with me.”
“No way. I'm not getting in a helicopter. Besides, do you know how much paperwork I'd have to fill out for something like this?”
“We're not telling anyone at the hospital until we're sure we can get the heart back in time,” I explain.
“Have you lost your mind? Let me see the details about this heart!”
While she reviews the data Marcus sent me on my phone, something shifts in her expression. She glances toward Holly's room, gripping her pen tightly again.
“The preliminary tests are excellent. Blood type, size, antibodies. Everything matches,” she sighs, frowning in concentration.
“Then let's go! Before it snows more.”
“You know this is insane?”
“Completely.”
“We could die if the storm is as bad as you say. We could even lose our licenses for not following established protocols.”
“I know, and I'm not sure that's the right order of priorities to worry about, but whatever. The point is, Holly has a chance. That heart is waiting for us in Vermont, and we need to leave now,” I insist, compulsively checking my watch.
“Why do you want me to go, exactly? Can't a doctor from the Burlington hospital accompany you back?”
“I want you to supervise everything in Vermont. I need someone who understands the complexities of a transplant heart, someone who can evaluate its condition in real-time if I need to divert the route. Someone who can keep that heart in optimal condition if things get complicated and the trip takes longer. I need you, Alexia,” I sigh.