Page 66 of Unforgivable Ties

“I saw you grab her hand. And if those scratch marks on your back are anything to go by, it looks like you two have been having some fun,” Felix said, his grin only growing wider.

“Drop it, Felix,” I retorted, my voice cold and controlled.

As I stepped into the steaming shower, I tried to wash the day away. The grime from the fight, Felix’s prying eyes, and the reminder of Stephanie’s touch on Rocco. The water ran red with blood, then brown with dirt, then finally clear.

I could wash all the sins I had committed today, but, as hard as I tried, I could never push Stephanie out of my mind.

Stephanie

The new semester had started. It was the last thing I needed, with how much I already had on my mind. I didn’t have the headspace to cram endless medical knowledge inside of it.

I had known Vincenzo was in the mafia and had accepted it. I had seen him bleeding, seen his gun, and the warehouse he did his shady business at. But seeing him covered in someone else’s blood made it feel so real. It showed me a different facet of Vincenzo that had been strategically hidden from me, that he had tucked away so I wouldn’t see how dangerous he really was.

He hadn’t mentioned it when we drove home that night, so I didn’t bring it up either. But I wish I had. The questions and what ifs were gnawing away at me.

“I’d like to introduce our next guest speaker, Dr. Gene Malden,” my teacher said, clapping her hands together.

This semester I was taking a general surgery rotation class to learn the basics of surgical principles. Things such as patient evaluation, diagnosis, preoperative care, and postoperative management. I would observe in surgeries and maintain a sterile environment, which I felt I was grossly overqualified for.

I had already done so much of this with Cesare. But, I hadn’t through university, and that was what counted towards the degree.

“This next guy is amazing,” Preston said from beside me.

At this point, I had grown used to him ending up in almost all my classes. He was like a fly buzzing around the surrounding area that wouldn’t leave; always making annoying noises I didn’t want to hear. Fortunately, I had gotten pretty good at tuning him out.

“Uh huh,” I said, keeping my eyes forward.

“Dr. Malden is a transplant surgeon who pioneered a cutting edge medical device for preserving the viability of organs. He has also discovered a breakthrough technique for almost eliminating the chance of organ rejection,” my teacher said. “And one of his many awards includes the Nobel Prize in medicine. Please give him a round of applause!”

The students responded accordingly, our clapping echoing off the lecture hall room.

“Thank you, thank you,” Dr. Malden said.

The charismatic, salt-and-pepper haired doctor smiled as he approached the podium. There was a hum of anticipation in the air. Dr. Malden was more than a surgeon; he was a medical legend.

“Good afternoon, students. I’m honored to be here today to share with you my experiences and my journey as a transplant surgeon. I hope to enlighten your young minds and possibly stir up some passion to follow a similar path,” he said, his voice clear and magnetic. He tapped the tips of his fingers together as he continued, speaking eloquently about the complexity of organ transplantation, the immense satisfaction of saving lives, and the rewarding challenges that came with the job.

Although he only spoke for thirty minutes, it felt like the time flew by faster. His words were magnetic and his stories wereenthralling, and I could only hope to have a medical career one tenth as amazing as his was.

“I encourage you to do your best in this class,” he finished. “As I will be selecting a student to watch my surgeries.”

My heart beat increased threefold, and I was glad there were two licensed doctors in the room in case I had a heart attack. A chance to watch him perform surgery? It was a dream.

I glanced around the room and estimated about forty people in the classroom. Normally, I had the top grades in the class, but there were a couple who came close. I scanned the crowd for them and only saw one.

It was possible to achieve this, if he was only choosing on GPA. But he might also look for a “wow” factor. Medical knowledge was the most important, but passion for the field was a close second. This potential golden ticket to witness Dr. Malden in action was no less than the opportunity of a lifetime.

“Can you believe that?” Preston asked as he walked offstage. “That’s a once in a lifetime opportunity.”

“I know,” I responded.

I packed up my school supplies, still in shock that we were getting this opportunity. Preston finally left me alone as we walked out of the class, and we went our separate ways.

Vincenzo was busy and wasn’t able to take me to work, so I hopped on the subway and headed towards the warehouse. The entire ride there, my mind was filled with ways I could achieve my goal of being the one he picked.

Cesare was sitting at the desk when I walked into the medical office.

“Cesare,” I said, needing to share the information with someone. “Guess what happened at school today!”

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