Page 18 of The Heart We Guard
“It’s fine. I’m not much of a hugger. Think it comes from being in a sterile situation most of the time.” It’s a lie. A lie built on an old habit and safeguard:
Don’t upset or anger men.
I should be able to say,Please don’t grab women you don’t know.
Or better still, men should be telling other men,Hey, don’t grab women.
But here we are.
“How is Nicholas?” I ask.
“He’s gonna pull through. Had a rough night; the wife’s with him now. But I needed to see you and thank you. Saw that nurse, Andrea, as she was finishing up her shift, and she told me allabout it. How mad you were about the policy holding him back from some fund to help with costs.”
“You good, Doc?” Butcher’s gravelly voice comes from over my shoulder.
He’s leaning against the wall, one hand behind his back. I’m guessing the wall slump is because of how much pain he must be in right now. The hand behind the back is probably holding his gun.
The doctor in me wants to be mad as hell that he’s potentially ruining all the good work I did.
But the human being in me…
Well, she melts a little that he wants to protect me. It’s the first time in a very long time that anybody did.
“I’m good. This is the father of my last patient.”
“That nurse, Andrea, the one with the dark hair. She told me what happened to you,” he repeats.
“For Andrea’s sake, you probably shouldn’t tell too many people she told you. She could get fired, and she’s a real hard worker who needs her job.”
Gray shakes his head. “Won’t say a word. Got a connection at the DMV who got me your address because I wanted to know if there’s any way I can help. Like, I made a petition to get you reinstated.”
“I appreciate the sentiment, but…whether we agree with the processes and procedures or not, I violated them. I knew what I was doing when I made the call to treat him anyway. But there was no way I would turn down operating on someone. And I was angry they were going to send you the bill instead of letting the fund pay for it. Still, I should have kept my mouth shut.”
Gray blows out a breath. “Fucking bureaucrats.”
“My sentiments exactly.”
He reaches out again, this time, touching my elbow. “You sure you’re going to be okay?”
“She’s gonna be fine. Because she’s a great doctor,” Butcher says.
Gray studies Butcher for a second, then lowers his voice. “You safe in there, Doc?”
I glance at Butcher, then back to Gray. “Yes. Perfectly safe.”
He hands me a scrap of paper. On it is his name and phone number. “I haven’t got much, Doc. But whatever you need, just let me know. Because I’ll never be able to repay you for saving my son’s life. Even more so since it came at such a high personal cost.”
“It’s a choice I’d make over and over. I didn’t want you to be left with the kind of bill that surgery comes with. But there was a lot more to it than just your son. You don’t need to feel any responsibility.”
“We’ll figure it out. Bye, Dr. Hansen.”
“Goodbye and good luck, Mr. Gray.”
I watch him walk down the street before turning to face Butcher, whose brow is dotted with sweat. “Why on earth did you think it was a good idea to move?”
He shrugs. “Just looking out for you, Doc. On the off chance it was trouble.”
“Let’s get you back to the sofa.” I help him shift from the wall and put his arm over my shoulder, before kicking the front door closed with my foot.
