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The sound of the front door opening caught Danni’s attention. She placed her plate in the dishwasher and made her way into the living room.
"Garrett, is that you?" She came around the corner of the hall to see the haggard appearance of her roommate. "Want happened to you?" She came over to her and took the duffel bag from her hand. "Didn’t you get any sleep at all?" Concern was written all over her face.
"Yeah, a few hours," she leaned against the couch to take off her shoes. "But not very comfortable, to say the least. I fell asleep in the doctor’s lounge in the O.R." Her hand rubbed at her back to ease the soreness. "I think I’m just going to take a hot bath and go to bed."
The petite woman could not believe how tired her Amazon looked. "You want something to eat?"
"Thanks, but no, I ate at the hospital. I just need to relax and get a lot of sleep."
"Well, let me start your bath for you." Danni went into the bathroom and turned on the water for the tub. Emerging from the doorway, she came back into the living room. "How about I fix you a nice cup of tea. Hmmm?"
Garrett nodded and muttered the word, "Thanks," as Danni passed by on her way to the kitchen, her energy waning.
Calling in from the kitchen, Danni asked, "Did they find any family for that young trauma patient yet?"
Garrett waited for her return, too tired to yell back. "Yeah, turns out the only family so far is his sister." She looked up at her roommate. "She’s only seventeen."
"Oh, by the gods!" She sat down on the couch. "She must be devastated."
"She’s doing better than some that I have seen. Tomorrow’s going to be the hard one."
Danni looked puzzled.
"I ordered the brain death protocol. We’ll know for sure by noon tomorrow." The surgeon rolled her tongue across her teeth; "I told her that I would be there with her tomorrow when it’s time."
The blonde sighed. "I wish I could have been there with you today. I know how much you like doing the sensitive chats."
"Yeah, well..."
"Garrett, I’m off for the next two days. Let me be there with you tomorrow?"
"Thanks, but you don’t have to, Danni." The surgeon rose to her feet. "I better get that bath before I fall asleep right here." She thought about the offer as she walked to the bathroom. Pausing at the door, she said. "Maybe that might not be a bad idea. I’ll see you about noon tomorrow in the Neuro-ICU."
After the time spent soothing her tired muscles with the heat of the water, the tall woman stole herself quietly into her bedroom. There on the corner of her nightstand was a cup of hot tea. ‘I’ll have to remember to thank her for this. It’s nice to have someone who cares,’ she mused. Letting her robe fall off of her body into a heap on the floor, she slid under the covers that had been neatly turned down for her. Taking a few sips of tea from the cup, she placed it back on the table and readied herself for sleep.
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She had always prided herself on keeping her word and now as she mulled over the events of the last two days, the surgeon was not looking forward to what was about to take place within the next hour or so. It was her day off technically, but she had promised to be here with Brad’s sister Diana when the time came. Sure, she could have put it off for another day, but somehow that just didn’t seem right, to make the poor girl agonize over the potential outcome of the tests. Besides, she didn’t want to add to the young girl’s burden by causing any hassles over the payment of the hospitalization by the insurance company.
Garrett sipped at her cup of black coffee as she was looking over the reports of the tests that she had ordered on Bradley Morgan. The EEG test, which measured the activity of the brain, was plain and to the point; no activity found. The other test reports were all in alignment with the neurosurgeon’s prognosis at the sight of the initial CT Scan. Now it was going to be her job to help Diana grasp the concept that her brother didn’t really inhabit the body that was being kept alive in the ICU. There really was no life force present, only the mechanical initiative that preserved the body in its vegetative state.
The surgeon rested her head in her hands as she contemplated the course of changes that the life of Diana Morgan was going to encounter. She sighed knowing full well that this was not the way her parents would have wished for her life to be. Unfortunately, there was nothing Garrett could do about it except to give the support and guidance that she would need in the next few hours. The surgeon felt absolutely helpless at the outcome of her efforts.
The small windowless office seemed to be closing in on her as she raised her head out of her hands and looked around. She had been so preoccupied with her thoughts that she had not heard the knock at the door. The motion of the door slowly opening and the appearance of the blonde hair brought her back to reality.
Knocking again on the open door, Danni peered in at the woman seated behind the desk. "Hey," she smiled, "mind if I come in?"
The answer was evident by the lopsided smile on the surgeon’s face at the sight of her friend. "Yeah, I was hoping that you’d be a little early."
The petite woman slipped in the door as she studied the room. "I guess you don’t spend too much time in here." The nurse knew how claustrophobic the tall woman could be at times.
Garrett chuckled slightly, "Every free minute that I get." She was being sarcastic with her reply. "Have a seat." She motioned to the small chair that was behind the door. She waited for the door to close all the way. Gathering the papers that were spread out across her desk into a neat pile, she offered them to the nurse. "Care to read the results?"
"By the look on your face when I stuck my head in, I don’t think that I have to." Danni shifted her position in the chair. "Did you tell his sister yet?"
"No, I just got done reviewing them myself." She placed the stack of reports on the desk. "Danni," she hesitated biting her lower lip. "I’d appreciate it if you would help me with this one."
The nurse sensed the apprehension in Garrett’s voice. Something about this case was really bothering her but Danni knew enough about her friend not to push for answers. "Sure, anything that I can do to help, just let me know." She watched as the tense look on the surgeon’s face relaxed.
"Thanks, I really want to be as gentle and considerate as I can on this one. She’s got a lot on her plate right now and being so young." She took a deep breath, "Well, it could affect her for the rest of her life. I don’t want to let her feel any remorse about what has to be done. She doesn’t need to be haunted with this tragedy any more than she is already." Garrett closed her eyes at the thought, a pained look over taking her face.
Danni felt compelled to reach out to her friend. She was certain that this was affecting the surgeon more than usual. She knew that Garrett was not one for talking about herself or her childhood, and now seeing this, she was sure that there was a reason why. She let her hand gently rest on the edge of the desk with her fingers flexing. "Do you want to talk about it?"