Page 31 of The Doctor's Twins

10

PEYTON

“Hey, Peyton. Are you joining us at Dr. Forbes’ house for a barbeque?”

“Hi, Olivia. Uhm, not sure yet.”

“You’ve gotta come. It’s a blast. Last year we all ended up in his pool. It was such fun. He’s not one of those creepy types if that’s what you’re worried about.”

I’d received the invitation a few days before. It was pretty much all the residents talked about. I wondered what the fuss was all about. Ben was a nice guy, so I wasn’t all that surprised.

Ever since I met him at his office, I couldn’t shake the feeling that we had some kind of unusual connection. Perhaps I read more into it than there was. But the way he took care of me and offered me a job spoke volumes about his character.

Uh-huh. You thought Mateo was special too and look where that got you. I would be too quick to fall for another guy, Peyton. Besides, you’ve got enough on your plate.

“Hello, Peyton.”

“Hi, Dave.”

“You asked me to let you know when Mrs. Riley’s son was here.”

“Oh, yeah. Thank you for letting me know.”

I wanted to have a chat with Mr. Riley. His mother was so frail, and I knew she was suffering terribly. Her son had power of attorney over her estate and her physical well-being, but clearly, he didn’t have the facts. As far as he was concerned, his mother was going to bounce back. She wasn’t.

I walked to the room where Mrs. Riley lay, hooked up to countless pipes and monitors. The poor woman looked like a creature out of the series Stranger Things. Her son was sitting at her bedside, talking to someone on his cell phone. I couldn’t help overhearing his conversation.

“Yeah, Mom’s okay. She’s resting. I’m sure she’ll be back home soon. Sure, I’ll call you tomorrow.”

I waited for him to end the call before I cleared my throat. He looked up as if he hadn’t noticed me until then.

“Hello, Mr. Riley. I’m Dr. Taylor.”

“Hi, Alex Riley,” he said and extended his hand.

“May I call you Alex?”

“Of course.”

“Thanks. Alex, the head surgeon, and I wanted to chat with you about your mother.”

“Why? What’s wrong? I don’t want to wait for another doctor. Just tell me.”

“Alex, I’m sorry to tell you this, but your mother isn’t going to get any better. She’s frail and her brain activity is all but non-existent. At this stage, her only hope of survival is if she remains on life support.”

“What are you saying, Doctor?”

“Alex, I’m saying that it will be better to prepare yourself. Say goodbye to your mom while you can, because as soon as we take her off life support, she will pass. I don’t recommend that we resuscitate her again. There’s no point. It’s time to let her go.”

The pain in Alex’s eyes filled me with compassion. I moved closer to him and touched his arm.

“It’s what’s best for her, Alex.”

“I can’t let her go,” he whispered.

“Technically, she’s already gone. You don’t have to decide right now, but please, think about it. My condolences, Alex.”

I left him to process my words and hoped he would come to the same understanding. Alex Riley was the first family member of a patient with whom I’d discussed such a heavy subject. I thought it had gone quite well.

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