Page 20 of The Love Dose
I wrap the bandage around the boy’s arm and tell the nurse what to prescribe. The kid has one foot still in puberty and I’m hesitant to write a script for an opioid that he’ll likely sell anyway.
My mind reverts to an unconscious Caroline. As they wheeled her into a room, I said to the nurse, “I know her.”
“You want to take her?”
I knew I shouldn’t but there was no one else around. All the doctors were treating other patients. I instructed the nurse to take Caroline to the only available room, start an IV, and get the medic’s report. Then I approached the soccer mom. “Can you tell me what happened?”
She said, “My friend and I were eating and she got a funny look and face planted into her gnocchi.”
It sounded like a comedy sketch but the woman looked stricken. I learned her name is Samantha. I recognized it as one of Caroline’s lunch friends. “Was she under stress at the time?”
Sam furrowed her brow. “Yes, but that's normal for her.”
“Right. Caroline has been under a lot of pressure lately.”
A look of surprise crossed her face. “You know her?”
I nodded. “She's my friend. I better get back there.”
Her eyes widened. “You're Doctor Hand?—”
“Doctor Sinclair.”
As I hurried to the back, Sam asked, “Will she be okay?”
All I could say was, “She'd better be.”
When I got to her, Caroline's pulse was racing like a runaway train, her eyes closed. Thank heavens the measures we took were successful. It wasn’t the first time I prayed in the ER but it was the most desperate. By the time we got her heart rate under control, mine was through the roof.
She’s stable, I remind myself. Awake and coherent. Even joking. Her friends are with her. I’ll run more tests and if things check out, I’ll discharge her in the morning. But not before she and I have a serious talk. There’s something I’ve been meaning to suggest. I like the idea a lot but who knows if Caroline will agree. Only one way to find out.
I'm back in the present and gently pat the kid on the back. “Stay safe, kid.”
He eyes me, his expression that of someone who’s seen more than he should in his short life. “Yeah.”
With Bozo at his heels, he walks back out onto the New York streets.
Chapter Fourteen
Caroline
Mo says nothing and places a container on the side table beside me. It smells like chicken soup.
“Thanks,” I say, wondering if it's laced with arsenic.
Barbie hands me the latest copy ofVogue. “For your reading pleasure.”
They’re standing in a circle around my bed like a coven of witches about to chant.
“Will you please sit down?” I say.
Mo and Barbie sit in the only two available chairs. Evie settles on the edge of the bed. No sign of Paul. Thank heavens. He’d never let me out of his sight again.
I riffle through the magazine’s pages, trying to distract myself from the crazy situation I’m currently in. “How long do you think I’m going to be here?”
Barbie says, “Question for the doc.”
Calvin is gone and I realize I didn’t properly introduce him to the club gals.
