Chapter 54
FIFTY-FOUR
Naya could feel Maddy’s anxiety building as she walked next to her stretcher bed on the way up to the OR. Maddy was silent, mouth pinched as she cradled her broken wrist protectively on her chest, her feet twitching restlessly under the blanket.
Naya laid a comforting hand on her shoulder. Poor thing had been through so much already. “Dr. Jung already came to see you to explain the procedure and why it’s necessary. He’s a master at his craft. I’d want him to operate on me if I had your injury.”
“I’ve just…never had surgery before.”
“I can understand why it feels scary.” Based on her own observations, she was pretty sure Maddy was solidly on the neurodivergent spectrum. “Would it help if I explained what to expect?”
“Yes,” Maddy said in relief.
“Sure. There’s a whole team waiting upstairs for you in the operating theater.
It’ll be really bright in there when you go in, just to warn you.
Dr. Jung will be there all scrubbed in and ready to go, along with an anesthetist who will look after you while you’re unconscious, plus a couple of highly trained nurses to assist them and make sure everything runs smoothly.
They’ve all done this hundreds of times and are total pros. ”
“And I won’t feel anything.”
“No. Once you go in, they’ll transfer you onto the table, and the anesthetist will get ready to put meds into your IV line.
When everyone’s ready, she’ll put a mask over your nose and mouth and tell you to breathe deeply, then to start counting down from ten.
You’ll be asleep before you hit seven, and the next thing you know, you’ll be waking up in a recovery with a nurse right there to check on you. ”
“Lachlan promised he would be there when I wake up.”
Visitors in the recovery room wasn’t usually allowed, but this was a small community hospital, these were special circumstances, and Naya had some sway with her medical colleagues. “I’ll make sure it’s set up so he can go in with you.”
Maddy exhaled, but the anxious frown still creased her brow. “Thank you.” Her foot twitched faster under the blanket as they exited the elevators and started down the hall.
Naya squeezed her shoulder when they reached the double doors. “Here we are. This is Nav, the head OR nurse. You’re in good hands.”
She waited there while the orderly wheeled Maddy into the theater and the doors shut before returning downstairs.
What a crazy day. She’d been looking for some kind of a distraction to take her mind off the pile of ashes her life had become, but not like this.
Maddy and Lachlan were lucky to be alive.
It made her think of Charlie for the millionth time since his death. Of his charming, roguish grin and the cocky edge that had won her over the first time she’d met him.
He’d died doing what he loved, at the controls of his floatplane. But his death had only been the beginning of her pain. And it just seemed to get worse as the weeks rolled on.
When she stepped out of the elevators outside the ED, Grey stood from a chair in the hallway. “She okay?”
She stopped, the old, unspoken tension between them pulling her stomach tight. She was well aware he’d had a thing for her once, but with the seven-year age gap he’d been too young for her, so she’d turned him down. Because once Charlie had swept into her life, she’d never looked back.
But that didn’t mean she was blind. The age gap was irrelevant now. Grey McCaffrey was a tall, ruggedly gorgeous and powerfully built man with a quiet intensity that made her skin tingle like an invisible forcefield.
“Nervous, but she’ll be fine,” she answered. “The team up there’s great. We’re lucky that Dr. Jung was on island today.”
Grey nodded. “I wanted to thank you for taking care of her like that.”
She waved his thanks away, noticing that his black hair was speckled with salt from being in the water.
What incredible bravery and selflessness to jump from a helicopter to save his brother and Maddy.
“Of course. I heard what was happening when Rachel alerted everyone and thought I would head up here in case I could help.”
“Any idea how long she’ll be? Lach was asking.”
“I wouldn’t think more than two or three hours. She asked that he be in recovery when she wakes up. I’m going to clear it all right now.”
“That’d be great. Thanks.”
“No problem.” He looked tired, and not because he’d performed a dual water rescue.
She’d heard Beth had left him. It seemed ironic that they were both trying to heal their broken hearts at the same time. Though for very different reasons.
“You okay?” she asked.
“I’m good. What about you?” His ice blue gaze delved into hers. Probing.
That stare had always unsettled her on some level. Had always made her feel like he could see right through her. X-ray vision that exposed everything she tried to hide.
She forced a smile, lifted a shoulder. “Doing my best. One day at a time, you know?”
Another nod. “Yeah, I get that.”
“I’m gonna go talk to the recovery nurse. Don’t forget to send me the info on the training courses.”
“I would never forget.” His word choice felt purposeful and significant.
The weight of his stare followed her through the double doors until she was out of sight.
Naya pushed out a heavy breath and made her way to the recovery room, fighting against the weight of the sadness tugging at her. Along with the corrosive anger burning beneath it.
Her entire life had collapsed with Charlie’s death, and not merely from grief.
Because it turned out that the past eight years had been built on a foundation of lies.