5. Cedrick
Amixture of concern and frustration toward the old man pulsates through me and raises my speed as I walk with the stretcher to the medical wing of the palace, which is actually a hospital-level surgical center. King Francis had it custom-built after his stroke.
I follow inside with the team, helping where I can, but take a step back to allow them to work without distraction. Too many doctors can result in none of them being able to work efficiently.
I tap the chief nurse on the shoulder, letting him know I’m sitting there. “I’ll stay out of your way, unless you need me. It’s a small space, I know.”
I give a weak smile, unable to stop worrying. More than anything, I hope my last conversation with my father isn’t an argument.
“Of course, sir,” the nurse says with a nod. “You consulted with the design, so you definitely know. And you know he’s in good hands.”
“The best doctors in the country. I have to ask, do they know if it’s something serious yet?”
Nurse Valeria gives a reassuring smile, but not too big. “Right now, just some fainting and high blood pressure, it looks like.”
“Oh, good.”
Four medics surround my father on the hospital bed, organized but tense.
A doctor I recognize from medical school waves me over. “Dr. Vanecourt, we’re giving him oxygen and we’ve given him medication to stabilize his blood pressure, as you can see. It may have been an ischemic attack.”
“Mini-stroke. Right.”
“Just going over the possibilities. He’s stable. We’re monitoring his heart, and we’ll give him blood thinners and other medication. But as you can see, his blood pressure reading is not great.”
The numbers on the screen change slightly every few seconds, but even the best reading is a troubling 180 over 120.
“Dangerously high. Yeah.”
Slowly, gradually, my father comes to. He eyes the tubes leading to the IV drip suspiciously, looking at his arm, then looking up.
He looks like a confused child, not the angry, stubborn man I argued with less than an hour ago.
“Cedrick, you’re here?” he asks weakly, his face still ashen.
I clear my throat and pull down my mask. “Yes, Dad. And the others are on their way.”
He addresses the professional team around him. “Please allow me to speak to my son in private. Thank you for your assistance.”
“Your Highness, but we’d like to continue monitoring you…”
“Lucky that my son is a world-renowned physician then, isn’t it? Besides, you have me on all of your machines at the desk. They’ll know in an instant if something changes.”
He nods as if to say, ‘That’s final.’ At least he treats everyone that way, not just his children.
Everyone nods their head in a bow, including me, and the physicians and nurses leave the room.
“It won’t be long,” my father says with reassurance. Really? How does he know?
I pull a stool up to the bed, and Dad looks like he just woke up from a nap.
“You gave us a scare, you know, Dad.”
“I don’t need a private audience to discuss my health, Cedrick.” He wears a stern expression, one that has intimidated diplomats and warlords into acceding to his demands. “This just demonstrates why it’s imperative that you get married. For my very survival. You know as well as I do that this episode was a result of stress. I may not have many years left. I want to see you settled and happy.”
“Dad, even from you, this is unbelievable.” I snort out a breath, then center myself. “Look. Even if I were ready for that, which I’m not, who would I even marry? Some noble hanger-on desperate to rope in a prince?”
“Good thing I have that covered, my son. I have the perfect woman for you. And if you marry her, I’ll give your foundation more money than you’ve ever dreamed of.”
“Uh-huh. Sure. This oughta be good.”
“Eleanora. Dr. Eleanora Lawson.” Who? Did he hallucinate during his unconscious episode?
“That doctor who just got that award? Why, because she’s in town and an eligible female? As in, one with a pulse. That’s insane. I don’t even know her.”
“But you do.”
I know her by reputation, but not well enough to even know what she looks like. Our circles don’t overlap much, and I’ve never met her in person.
I question him with a puzzled look, and he nods in response.
“You remember little Ellie?”
In a flash, I remember the little girl with wild curls and radiant mocha skin, the one I had just been thinking of today. Playing hide-and-seek in the throne room, offering to let her try on my mother’s tiaras, laughing at her for being afraid that a lightning bolt would tear it off her head for our impudence.
Besides Henry, she was my best friend. And I always wondered what happened to her. Now I know.
“Wait. Little Ellie is Dr. Eleanora Lawson?”
He’s wearing a huge grin now, although in his eyes it looks like it takes energy.
I suddenly remember those big hazel eyes shining brightly while she and I held races throughout the palace. We made obstacle courses around the vases and scepters, and it was a miracle we didn’t break them.
“We used to say we were twins, even though I was older and we looked nothing alike,” I say, wading through the newly unlocked memories. “I”m not sure who we thought wouldn”t question that a little white boy and Black girl were twins.”
“She’s even lovelier now than she was then. A wonderful young woman, a vibrant personality, excellent company. Brilliant and driven. Absolutely worthy of having funding for a medical charity.” A self-satisfied grin takes hold of his lips.
“Wait, how do you know what she’s like?” I resent that he uses my charity again as a carrot. “Even so, Dad, I’m not interested. I’m not ready to get married. Not to her, not to anyone.”
As annoyed as I am, I have to admit I’m also intrigued, although I try to hide it. He smiles like the Cheshire Cat.
Right then, the recently exiled team of doctors comes back into the room.
“We need to resume your treatment, Your Highness,” Nurse Valeria says.
“In my professional opinion, I agree.” I turn to the doctors and nurses. “Take good care of him, okay?”
I kiss him on the cheek quickly and surge out of the room and to the grand double doors leading out.
Outside the palace, I run into my brother Ishmael on his way in to see our father. I update him on our father’s health, and I serve him the tea about his newest matchmaking scheme.
Ishmael listens closely, taking in everything, as we stand outside the palace entrance like a changing of the guards.
“Do you want my advice, Cedrick?”
“Of course. I trust your opinion far more than his.”
“You might not like what I have to say. But I think you should go for it.”
My legs freeze. “Excuse me?”
“Listen, this could be great for you.”
“Come on. I don’t see how.”
Ishmael shrugs. “You know how Dad is. He won’t stop hounding you until you relent. But that’s not the biggest thing.”
He looks at me seriously. “For me, it was the best decision of my life. I resented him at first, but I love Liza and Isha with all my heart. And you have your funding to think about. Besides, you can get divorced if it doesn’t work.”
“I don”t really know her, though. With you, she was the love of your life. But thank you for your input.”
I start turning to the car, and Ishmael holds up a hand to stop me. He makes the final appeal pleading his case.
“It’s better than marrying a stranger. I remember how close you were. What’s the harm in getting to know Ellie, and just considering it? I bet you have a ton in common as adults.”
I run a hand through my hair and consider his words. She’s a doctor, after all. And she was a cute kid. But what if she’s horrible now?
“Maybe. I have to think about it. Thanks for the advice. Good seeing you.”
We hug goodbye, and I get into my car as I see Ishmael walk into the medical wing in the side mirror.
I have to admit that my father’s gotten my attention. I find myself eager to learn more about what became of little Ellie Lawson, who isn’t so little anymore.
I sit in my car and pull out my phone. I don’t want to delay finding out more.
“Okay, Ellie, let”s see what I can dig up on you.”
Ellie Lawson.
Underneath the search it says, ‘Did you mean Dr. Eleanora Lawson?’ I click yes.
I see the photos from her conference ceremony, and I’m stunned. Her wild curls have become long, beachy locks, and her features are stunning. And there are those hazel eyes that I would recognize anywhere. Her body is definitely not the skinny little tomboy I went swimming with.
It’s the body of a woman, and I can see it even underneath the lab coat. Wearing the form-fitting suit of the conference, I’m blown away. I find myself getting excited, staring.
She’s a pioneer in reproductive medicine, but I only saw the names in academic journals. ‘Lawson, E.’ Not even full names. I never put two and two together.
I think she may have even helped with fistula surgeries in a World Clinic office in Kenya, but I remember I couldn’t be in-country to overlap with her. I might have even talked to her on the phone.
I had no clue this E. Lawson was the Ellie I had climbed trees with.
I click on the news article of the ceremony. Renowned Fertility Doctor Returns to Headline Reproductive Conference.
It was this week. My father met with her, he said. Is she still in town?
She looks poised and graceful, full of life, and brilliant. The kind of woman who I could see…
But even with another doctor, I’m not ready. And two doctors? Would we even see each other? I cannot give up my entire life for my father. And what if she’s not the person she was, or the person she seems like?
I’d rather forget this detour and resume my medical career, never thinking about women until I’ve contributed what I feel compelled to. But maybe she’s a good option.
Marriage is absolutely not an option I remotely want to consider right now. But maybe I could make time in my schedule to get a cup of coffee.