Danni sat at the kitchen table without a single light on in the house. It was getting to be dusk and the light was fading from the day. So much like her life. Without the surgeon there with her, the nurse’s life seemed to pale in spirit. The petite woman didn’t like the feeling of loneliness that was creeping over her, nor did she enjoy the emptiness of the house around her.
And so she sat there, waiting for the dark to overshadow her, while that ill- begotten letter kept coming to the front of her mind. What the hell was her mother talking about? She took it out and read it once more in the fading light. Her mind searching for answers, she thought to call Brie then quickly decided against it. To call Brie would be like talking directly to Mother and Danni didn’t need that right now, not when her mind was on Garrett. Besides, wasn’t that what was making the whole letter of Mother’s a little confusing anyway? Why would Mother say that Garrett was flirting with a woman unless…did she know that Danni had feelings for her?
Tight-lipped and calculating, Mrs. Bossard sat waiting for her son to return her phone call. It had taken her several days if not almost a full week to come to terms with the idea of having her oldest daughter impregnated with twins, bastards as they were. Now, she was ready to deal with the fact and, after some drastic planning, she considered the legal issues to be her best bet here. Matt was a lawyer and would, of course, know just how to go about it. The matriarch was pleased with herself for pushing him in that direction. It was one part of her blueprints for her children’s lives that had seemed to be working as planned. Now, if she could only get Danni’s life on track like she wanted it to be, then life would be good again.
The phone rang and she hurriedly picked it up, caring to not waste another second in time before her daughter and the family’s good name would be vindicated. "Hello, Mrs. Bossard speaking."
"Hello, Mother."
"Matthew, I’ve been waiting for your call. What took so long for you to find time to return it?" The sternness of her voice was evident.
"Mother, I was in court when you called."
"I bet if that Judge knew that it was your mother, he’d…"
"Well, I’m here now, what do you need?" He tried to corral her assault on his ears.
Her eyes flashed red at being directed in her thoughts by her son, but he was a good lawyer and she knew it. "Matt, your sister Danielle has gotten herself into a bit of trouble. I need you to take care of it without dragging the family name through the mud."
"Danni?" He thought of his gentle sister. "What could Danni have possibly done to get in trouble?"
"I prefer to think that it was not her fault at all."
"Mother, if you don’t tell me what’s wrong, I can’t help her," Matt pleaded his case.
"Alright, but this is strictly between you and me." The matriarch continued on in a hushed tone so as not to be heard by anyone but her son. "That surgeon that your sister has been seeing has gotten her pregnant and with twins, no doubt."
"Danni’s pregnant? Why I…"
"Oh, it gets better, too. Dr. Garrett Trivoli is also referring to her as his mistress and laughing about it to all his friends at the hospital. Then, if that’s not enough, I saw him proposition a lovely young woman right before my eyes to have…" she paused momentarily, "to have ‘IT’ in his office." Her face became red with anger and her lips tightened to thin little lines.
Matt was shocked at what he’d just heard. Quite frankly, being a lawyer and all, it took a lot for him to be speechless and he was indeed.
"His friends are even lying to Danni about his activities with other women. Trying to cover for him. Matt are you still there?"
The question startled him. "Yes, Mother, I’m here. What is it that you want me to do?"
"I won’t stand for any bastards in this family. Do whatever you can to correct this situation and do it soon. Why, to see your sister, she’ll be ready to deliver those babies before the summer is over. I want the name on those birth certificates to be Trivoli and not Bossard." She sniffed, trying to once again establish her dignity. "Do I make myself understood?"
"Yes, Mother. I’ll get on that right away." He heard the click on the other end and slowly lowered the phone from his ear. "Danni, what do you have yourself into now?"
He sat down at his desk and thought about the sister that he had always looked up to. She’d always been a freer spirit than Brie or he when it came to Mother’s law. Now, look at where she was, unmarried, pregnant and with a man that didn’t respect women in the least. He closed his eyes and prayed for guidance.
The surgeon sat crumpled up in a ball on the armed chair in the Recovery Room. It had been a long afternoon spent in surgery and an even longer night spent by the patient’s bedside. Garrett stretched her long limbs trying to get some life back into them before getting out of the chair. She wasn’t unaccustomed to going that extra mile for her patients; in fact, she regarded it as her duty and not just a job. It was the likes unseen for some of the nurses here in this smaller hospital. Most cases of this severity would be transferred to larger better-equipped hospitals.
Wiping the sleep away from her eyes, the surgeon focused on her patient. Her groggy, sleep-filled voice broke the air. "Any change since the last time?"
"No, he’s holding his own," the efficient nurse answered as she checked the drops in the I.V. chamber. "Can I get you some coffee, Doctor?"
Garrett nodded as she continued to gradually allow the rest of her cramped body to wake up. "Thanks. Say, what time is it?"
"Why, it’s just about change of shifts, ten minutes to seven…in the morning."
‘Well, that’s one night down and only a few more to go.’ She accepted the offered cup of coffee and sipped at it slowly. ‘I wonder what today will bring with it?’
The blonde nurse plodded along through another day without the sight of her dark-haired friend and already it was taking its toll on her spirit. Her steps seemed just a little less buoyant and her smile, not as quick to rise. But what it did to her work was even more obvious. She was like a taskmaster doling out the most menial jobs to herself. Everyone around her could see what she was doing, and that was to wear herself out. Perhaps, that would finally bring her sleep. She’d spent a long restless night and there were no signs of it being any different tonight.
Forced to take her lunch, Danni had ventured to the cafeteria to sustain her body with nourishment. It was there that she thought about the surgeon again, wondering if she was eating or just surviving on coffee and a quick bite here or there. Downing only a few morsels of food, the nurse made her way back to the E.R., sick to her stomach by the absence of her friend.
On her return to the E.R., her Manager, Nan, greeted Danni. "Hey, you got a message while you were at lunch."