Bianca Chapter 17
Christmas passed not exactly as expected. The club still had its holiday meal, and everyone spoiled Dora, though the mood was subdued. Everyone was thinking about my cousin. We took turns sitting with him at the hospital.
The shock of his diagnosis had barely registered before Dr. Norman arrived and told us what he wanted to do.
He agreed there was no way to tell whether the mass was malignant, but the best course was to remove it.
Our heads swam with the odds of success, which were really good, especially if it was benign, but not without the risk that he could die.
And if it were cancerous, then Mishap would have to undergo chemotherapy, maybe radiation, to ensure it was gone.
If they didn’t do surgery, then the less desirable course, in Dr. Norman’s opinion, was to try and see if the tumor would shrink with radiation.
However, if it didn’t, and it was cancer, that gave the disease longer to worsen.
Regardless of whether it was malignant, the longer it stayed in there, the more it would cause the issues Mishap had been experiencing.
And a greater chance of permanent damage.
Mishap and I discussed it. He didn’t want to tell my mom because he didn’t want to upset her.
In the end, he said to perform the surgery.
As his designated healthcare proxy, which he signed there at the hospital, I agreed.
We had to be reminded of all the risks and then sign several documents before they would take him into surgery, but they had him in the operating room less than twenty-four hours after he arrived at the ER.
Chaos never left my side, not during the surgery or in the days after it, even though I told him to work and to go back and sleep at the compound. The man was stubborn and refused. Instead, he gave his support to Mishap and me. Chaos made sure I rested as much as I could, showered, and ate.
The surgery took hours. I paced the waiting room and prayed the entire time.
Chaos and I weren’t the only ones in the waiting room during the surgery.
The whole club was there. They said to hell with work and remained silent sentinels.
We were shown to a conference room on the surgical floor to wait, since we had literally taken up the entire regular waiting area.
My legs went weak, and if it hadn’t been for Chaos supporting my body, I would’ve fallen to the floor when Dr. Norman came into the room. He had his surgical mask hanging off his face. He looked exhausted.
“H-How is he?” I rasped out. My mouth and throat were bone dry.
“He’s in recovery. He did very well in surgery.
I got everything, I believe. We’ll send the mass off for testing to be sure, but upon visual assessment, based on the hundreds of tumors I’ve removed, I think there’s a very good chance it’s benign.
He’ll have to take it easy as he recovers.
We won’t know whether there is any permanent damage for a while.
He could have memory issues, or sporadic flashes of temper.
We’ll have to see. We achieved the best possible outcome for now, I believe. ”
I reached out and grabbed Dr. Norman’s hands. “Thank you, thank you so much.”
He smiled and turned our hands so he could squeeze mine.
“You’re very welcome. Give it an hour, maybe a bit more, and then they’ll take him to the ICU. That’s just a precaution for the next twenty-four to forty-eight hours. Someone will tell you when he’s been moved, and you can see him. Just keep it to two visitors. He needs rest.”
The club gathered to thank him, which he accepted, and then he bid everyone goodbye. I turned and cried into Chaos’s chest, soaking his T-shirt. The man never even blinked, just hugged me tight and whispered words of love and encouragement in my ear.
That had been three days before Christmas. Since then, I've been at Mishap’s side every day. Others came and went, but there was always a Pagan there on duty watching over him. On Christmas Day, we brought him food and spent most of the day with him until visiting hours ended.
Now, Mishap was feeling good enough to bitch about being in the hospital and cooped up.
He demanded to go home. I thought it was too soon, but the doctors who did rounds on him this morning, the day after Christmas, agreed.
The nurse was completing his discharge paperwork, and then he’d be free to go home. He and I were arguing.
“Bianca, I’m not coming to stay with you and Chaos. I have my own house. And the two of you sure the hell don’t need me in your space. I don’t need you to babysit me. And I sure don’t want to be in the house where my club brother is boning my cousin,” he said, shuddering.
“Oh, for God’s sake, grow up. People have sex, even me.
And it’s not as if we’ll do it in front of you.
As for you not needing a babysitter, yes, you do.
You’ve needed one for months. I’m not letting you do anything that sets back your recovery.
And you’re weak and not steady on your feet.
You could fall and hurt yourself. So, you can argue and bitch all you want, but short of you physically tossing me out, you’re stuck with me.
And if I have to get the whole club behind me, I will,” I threatened.
He glanced over at Chaos, giving him a beseeching look. “Brother, help me out. Get your woman to see reason,” he begged.
“Man, you’re my brother, and I’d do almost anything for you, but I won’t go against her.
First, she’s right. You do need to be watched, whether you like it or not.
Secondly, I won’t do anything that gets me cut off from boning her, as you so eloquently put it.
I know where my loving comes from.” Chaos smirked.
Mishap kept grumbling and attempting to convince us.
But in the end, he gave in. We were sitting there, talking about what he had missed last night after we went back to the compound, which wasn’t much, trying to kill time.
A minute or so later, his nurse came bustling in, pushing a wheelchair and holding papers.
She was a cute redhead in her twenties named Maia.
“Alright, Mishap, I have it all here. All I need is to go over your discharge instructions and have you sign, and then you’re free to go,” Maia said cheerfully.
Maia was one of the few who used his road name instead of his actual one. She seemed to understand the importance of doing it. Her sunny nature had been uplifting, I think, for him. She sure made me feel better.
“What instructions?” Mishap asked.
Maia ran through them and answered a few of my questions.
Then my cousin signed the papers. She gave me his copies, then Maia pushed the wheelchair up to the side of his bed.
Chaos had already helped Mishap get dressed in his regular clothes.
My cousin sat on the edge of the bed, scowling at the chair.
“What the hell is that thing for?” he asked Maia gruffly.
“It’s to take you out to the car that’s waiting to take you home.”
“I’m not getting in that damn thing. I’ll walk,” Mishap snapped.
“No, you won’t. Hospital policy says you have to ride in one. If you fall and get hurt, it’s my ass if you’re not in this. And I’m not getting sued or losing my license because you’re trying to act all tough. So, what’s it to be? The chair, or you can stay here?” she asked.
Her tone was firm, and I heard the resolve in her voice.
She wasn’t letting him dictate to her. She returned his less-than-nice words with a few of her own.
She knew how to speak to him. And she did it with a smile still on her face.
Mishap stared at her through narrowed eyes for several moments before he sighed.
“Fine, I’ll ride in the damn thing. Has anyone told you that you’re a pain in the ass?” he asked, as Chaos stepped closer to offer him a hand if he needed it.
Maia said sweetly, “Yeah, all my life. It’s part of my charm,” she said breezily.
Her reply made all of us chuckle, even my cousin. Chaos had to help him stand and steady him during the transfer, which I could tell Mishap hated, but he kept his comments to himself.
I heard him mutter, “Thank you,” to my man.
Once he was in the wheelchair, Maia rode the elevator with us to the first floor and then out to the waiting vehicle.
People stared. Mishap had half his head shaved, with a white bandage wrapped clearly around it.
It would take time for the hair to regrow and cover the scar.
He and Chaos wore their cuts and those stern faces that intimidated most people.
Outside, I saw that Chaos had brought the Escalade.
I thought it was too hard to get into, but he assured me he’d get Mishap inside it.
I saw why he assured me. Parked in front of and behind the Escalade were six bikes.
Chaos had enough muscle to pick Mishap’s ass up and put him in it if necessary.
Maia’s eyes widened when she saw them, then she got back to business.
In no time, Mishap was installed in the front passenger seat, seat-belted in, with no more help than from my man.
Chaos helped me into the backseat, then got behind the wheel.
Maia wished us well and waved as we pulled out.
The roar of motorcycle engines was loud and drew tons of attention.
I heard my cousin sigh before he muttered, “I’m glad to be the hell out of there.”
I wholeheartedly agreed. The drive to the compound was filled with light conversation.