Chapter 15
LYLE LOVED Wednesdays. In fact, he looked forward to them because after work he and James got dinner and spent a few hours together.
He was starting to prepare dinner when his phone chimed.
He checked the message and groaned. James wasn’t going to make it.
He had an exam the following morning and needed this evening to prepare.
“Okay guys, it looks like it’s just going to be us tonight,” he told the dogs and went back to making dinner, though he didn’t have to make as much.
He should have expected times like this, but he couldn’t help feeling disappointed.
Still, he sent James a message telling him that it was okay and that he should study hard. Then he set about finishing dinner.
He sat at the table with the dogs around him, eating his dinner. Once he was done and had cleaned up, he sent his mom a message that he was going to stop by but didn’t get a reply. His mother was often busy, but she always replied to text messages.
“Let’s go see Gramma, and then we can go for a walk in the park.
” He put the dogs’ leashes on and got all four of them out to the car before driving to his mother’s.
There were a few lights on, but the house was otherwise quiet.
He knocked on the door but got no answer.
It was unlocked, so he let himself inside.
“Mom!” Loopy hurried down the stairs, racing up to him.
He barked and led him and his dogs, still on their leashes, back upstairs. “Mom, are you up here?”
A groan came from her bedroom, and Lyle hurried inside. His mom lay on the bed, sweating, and her breathing seemed labored. “Hey, honey,” she said softly. “I’m okay. Just tired and I need to sleep.”
“Mom,” he snapped, hoping to get her attention.
“How long have you been in bed?” He glanced at the nightstand, finding it empty.
“When did you drink last?” he asked and didn’t get an answer to either question.
Lyle dialed 911 and explained what was happening.
The operator said an ambulance was being dispatched, and Lyle stayed on the phone until he heard the sirens.
“I’m up here!” he called when the EMTs came inside.
Lyle only hung up with the operator once the emergency personnel arrived, thanking them for their help. Then he got the dogs out of the room and told the EMTs how he’d found his mother. They started an IV and quickly decided to transport her to the ER.
“Okay. I’ll follow you.” He told them of the cancer diagnosis and the scheduled surgery. They noted it and got his mother onto a gurney and out of the house.
Loopy made a break for it, running across the yard to jump into the back of the ambulance.
“You can’t go with her, little guy,” one of the EMTs said.
Lyle took the dog from him and brought him back inside the house.
He found Loopy’s leash, locked up the house, and got all five dogs into his car.
He took them to his townhouse and let them all inside before leaving once again.
He messaged James while he was in the car and then started the engine.
James responded while he was driving, so he waited until he pulled into the hospital parking lot before checking it. Then he called him. “I have no idea how Mom is. I suspect she’s dehydrated and God knows what else. She was barely responding to me.”
“Are you at the hospital now?” James asked.
“Yeah. I brought Loopy to my place.” He sniffed. “That little dog loves Mom. He tried to go to the hospital with her. I’m so scared.”
“Just find out what’s happening and be an advocate for her. If she can’t speak or respond, then you have to be the one to express her wishes.” There were a bunch of voices behind James.
“I’ll let you get back to your discussion.
I’ll message when I know something.” He hung up and went inside.
His mother was in an examination room. Lyle was taken back to where she lay in a bed, an IV in her arm, eyes closed.
Nurses and a doctor worked on her, taking readings and drawing blood.
“Virginia, can you hear me?” the doctor asked, and thankfully his mom spoke very softly.
“We are giving you fluids. I think you have an infection, but we are going to run tests to find out.”
Lyle took a seat nearby and did his best to stay out of the way.
They took blood and ran tests, but mostly they did whatever it was that they do, and he sat and waited.
For a while he played Candy Crush on his phone because he didn’t have anything else to do, and his mother just lay quietly in the bed, her eyes closed.
Finally, the doctor came in. “I wish I had better news. You are aware that Virginia was scheduled for surgery. Well, we’ve called the surgeon and he’s on his way in. There are problems, and we need to get the procedure done now. There are issues that are causing a major infection.”
“Is it the cancer?” Lyle asked.
“Well, yes and no. What’s happening isn’t the cancer, but it’s because of the cancer. Certain parts that were to be removed have become necrotic because of the cancer, and that is causing a major infection. We’re hopeful that getting the procedure done will resolve both issues.”
“I see.” At least he was trying to.
“Your mother is going to be prepped for surgery and will be taken in just as soon as the surgeon gets here and is ready.”
He nodded. “Then what do I do?”
The doctor gave a half sort of shrug. “There is nothing you can do except wait. We’ll let you know before we take her in, but after surgery she is going to be out of it for a few hours.”
“Okay.” He shifted in the uncomfortable chair.
“There’s a surgical waiting room you can use once they take her out of the ER.
They’ll contact you there, and after that she’ll be admitted to a room.
The staff there can tell you where she’ll be.
” He left, and Lyle turned to his mother who hadn’t moved, other than the slow rise and fall of her chest.
Lyle stood and went down the hall to use the bathroom.
He passed a number of rooms, including one that made him stop in his tracks.
A man lay on the bed, holding his arm, which looked a bloody mess.
He glanced at his face and tried not to react.
He continued on, used the restroom, and headed back to where his mother still lay without any change.
A nurse came in to check on his mom. “Can I ask you something. That man down the hall, the one with the injured arm. Was he bitten by a dog?”
Her eyes widened slightly, which told Lyle all he needed to know. “Are you some sort of injury reader? That’s what we all thought happened, but he made up some story about being attacked by a bear in woods.”
“He’s a dogfighter. So yeah. He could very well have been bitten by one of his own dogs,” he told the nurse, who bit her lower lip.
“And let me guess, the guy is a bit of an ass.” He had that feeling about him, even though he had dealt with him only the one time.
She nodded and finished checking his mom’s IV.
AFTER WHAT felt like forever, they came in to take his mom to surgery. Lyle left to head for the waiting room, where he found James sitting in one of the chairs. “How long have you been here?”
James closed his book. “Maybe half an hour. I asked someone tell you that I was here, but I guess they didn’t feel the need.” He met the gaze of the woman behind the counter with a scowl. “What’s going on?”
“She’s being taken to surgery, and that’s about all they know now.
It’s not the cancer, but what’s causing the infection may be because of the cancer.
They don’t really know, but they think if they get the procedure done, it will help on both counts.
I don’t really know.” Thankfully, James opened his arms, and Lyle went right into them. “I’m scared to death.”
“It’s going to be all right. She’s a fighter, you know that. And they’re doing what they were going to do in a few weeks, so hopefully this will all be over.” From his lips to God’s ears.
Lyle leaned against James’s shoulder, his leg bouncing with nervous energy. “I thought you had to study for an exam tomorrow.”
“I was just about done, and….”
Lyle sat up straight. “I don’t want to be the cause of you not getting the marks you deserve.
There’s nothing you can do other than sit up with me until God knows what time.
” He closed his eyes and then snapped them open.
“Oh yeah, I didn’t tell you. The dogfighter guy, he was in the ER while Mom was.
Apparently his arm was ripped up by a dog. ”
James sat up straighter. “Did you call the police? They are probably looking for him.”
“No. I mean, at this hour?”
James pulled out his phone and made a call.
Lyle leaned against him once more, just listening to his voice as he spoke softly into the phone.
“Yes, I’ll hold a minute.” He sat still and quietly.
“Sure.” He gave his number. “He can call me back.” James ended the call and set his phone on the arm of the chair.
“Maybe you should go home and get some rest,” James told him.
“I can’t until I know if she’s okay,” Lyle said. “I’ll just worry.” He checked the screen for his mother’s surgery status. There was only one going on, so it wasn’t difficult to know which one was hers. He found himself staring at it, willing something to change. But the procedure was still active.
James’s phone vibrated, and he answered right away. “Thanks for calling back.” He spoke for a few minutes and then handed the phone to him.
“Hello?” Lyle was a little blinky.
“This is officer Redmond Markham. We have not been able to contact the suspect you referred to in your report. I understand that you’re at the hospital.”
“Yes. Out on Alexander Spring Road. My mother is having surgery, and I was in the ER with her. I saw him here. I think a dog ripped up his arm. I left that area maybe an hour ago. He was still in the ER then.”