CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Alden thought he knew what it felt like to crave the drug but he had no idea what a bunch of rich old women could be like when they weren’t getting what they wanted. He had one hope. Find a clinic or hospital that desperately needed help and steal what he needed, at least for the time being.
He got lucky when he found the small rural hospital in southern Alabama. With only twenty patient rooms and an emergency room that desperately needed love and a good paint job, he stepped in as a hero.
A multi-car accident was causing chaos, just as he was walking through the doors.
“I’m sorry, sir, you’re going to have to wait,” said the nurse running like her hair was on fire.
“No problem, but I’m an emergency room doctor. Can I help?” She turned with a quick stare and wanted to say yes.
“You see that patient on the gurney over there?” she asked. He looked at the older man she was pointing to and nodded. “He’s my head of emergency medicine and he’s about to die. I have no one else right now. Show me your license.”
He nodded, pulling his license from his wallet and his paperwork that he’d carefully forged. She quickly glanced at it, in no way able to verify it that quickly, and nodded.
“Great. You take the doctor and the kid over there. We’ll triage the rest.”
“On it,” he said confidently.
The sad truth was this is what he missed. The urgency. The rush of adrenaline as an urgent medical need came through your emergency room. The chance to play superman and savior all in one.
“Doctor, just relax,” he said staring at the old man. He had to be in his seventies, but based on his breathing, pulse, color, and the massive bruising on his chest, he’d hit the steering wheel hard. “I’m Dr. Johns. I just happened to be passing through. Were you wearing your seatbelt?”
“N-no,” he gasped.
“Doc, you know as well as I do that you need to wear it at all times.”
“S-stupid sh-shit,” he said with another gasp.
It wasn’t hard to figure out that he not only had multiple broken ribs but internal injuries. He needed to be prepped for surgery, among other things.
“Do you have a surgeon on call?” he asked the nurse.
“You’re looking at him,” she said nodding to the gurney. “We do it all here. He’s head of surgery, emergency medicine, and delivers most of the babies around here.”
“Get me the anesthesiologist,” he said.
“I’m her,” said the nurse. “Like I said…”
“…you do it all here,” he nodded. “Okay. Get a surgery room prepped for him immediately.”
“Great. I’ll do that, you take care of the IV and pain meds for those two,” she said tossing him a key. “Drug locker is behind the desk.”
Bingo.
He could have taken what he needed and left. He could have. But he didn’t. He knew that the doctor would die without surgery and he knew the nurse would be the one taking the blame. For some reason, that bothered him.
So, he took what he needed, placing in a temporary locker in the staff dressing room.
It felt good to be helping. A rush filled him as he made the first exploratory cut and found the bleed internally. There were three broken ribs, bruised organs, and an internal bleed that he was able to stop.
When he was done, he went back down to the emergency room to ensure the others were okay. Most of the patients were sedated and doing well.
“I can’t thank you enough, Dr. Johns,” said the nurse. “We would have lost him and others without you here.”
“It looks like you need a doctor for a while. How about I stay? I was just looking for something to do for the summer anyway. I’m on hiatus from Boston General.”
“Boston General? That’s quite a change compared to our little corner of the south,” she grinned.
“I needed the change,” he said. “I’m staying at a little place along the beach for now. I can be here within seven minutes.”
“Normally Dr. Gaines would make the decision but since he’s incapacitated, I’ll have to risk my neck for this one.
” Alden smiled at the woman, nodding. For some strange reason, his insides were churning, knowing that she was risking her license and most likely would take the fall for whatever he did.
“I promise, I won’t disappoint you.”
She nodded and walked away, checking on each of the patients. In his mind, he knew he would disappoint her but he could at least get his mother off his back and put some cash in his pocket.
“I’m going to take a shower and change clothes. I don’t think I got your name,” he smiled.
“It was a bit busy,” she grinned. “Sally Yoski but everyone calls me Yoz. We’ve got this now. Thanks again for jumping in. We didn’t even talk salary.”
“Don’t worry about that. We can talk later. I’ll be back in a little while to check on everyone.”
He left the small hospital and arranged to meet his mother at a small diner on the side of the ride. Never one to disappoint, she walked in wearing one of her finest outfits and all eyes stared at her, shaking their heads.
“Really, Alden. This is where we meet? Why not at the club or even my home?”
“Hello to you too, mother. I don’t need for everyone to see me. Nor do I need to see Lawrence suffering because of you.”
“He’s not suffering,” she said with a wave. “He’s just tired all the time. Besides, have you suddenly developed a conscience?”
Alden slid the bag across the table. It was marked ‘personal items’ from the hospital bags used when patients were admitted. There was more than expected and his mother’s eyes lit up like a Christmas tree.
“This is lovely!” she exclaimed.
“I expect to be paid now for this.”
“I know. I came prepared,” she smiled. She handed him a roll of cash, filled with hundred-dollar bills. He didn’t bother to count it. He knew it would be somewhere in the neighborhood of ten to fifteen thousand. Exactly what he wanted.
“Thank you,” he said attempting to slide out of the booth. She gripped his hand.
“We need more,” she said staring at him. “Double this. Double it and we’ll triple the price.”
He stared at his mother and then calculated what was in the bag. They must have something planned the wicked witches of Gulf Shores Country and Yacht Club.
“Planning something big for Lawrence and the others, mother?”
“You don’t need to know what we have planned,” she smiled. “Just double it and double it soon. We’ll handle the rest.”
“I’ll see what I can do, but no promises. This is a small rural hospital without a lot of supply.”
“Then order more,” she said with an edge to her voice. She took out two of the pills from one of the bottles and swallowed them without water or anything to wash it down. He just shook his head.
“You know what, mother? One day I won’t be able to do this for you anymore and you’re going to be left to sort out your own mess.” She stood and patted his chest, kissing his cheek.
“You know what, Alden? My mess is your mess. Remember that.” He watched her leave in her brand-new car, realizing it was different than the one from just the other day. Whispering to himself, he shook his head.
“How could I possibly forget.”