The alarm blared and jerked Megan from a dream she wished hadn’t ended. During the night she had found him, the perfect man for her. Though she hadn’t seen his face, his hair was dark and his eyes were hazel. She sighed. She’d had this dream before but her dreams never came true. She sat up and touched her toes. Prince Charming had vanished like mist as had the three men she had recently dated. Their attitudes and aspirations had told her they weren’t right. She rubbed her eyes, slid from the bed and dashed to the bathroom to begin her morning routine.
Fifteen minutes later, she sat
at the kitchen table and turned a coffee mug in circles. One gulp of the
aromatic brew did nothing to jump start her enthusiasm for the day ahead. A
long sigh escaped.
Every day for months, her
eagerness to head across the street to the hospital had lessened. A year ago
when she’d started working on the Oncology unit, she had welcomed the
challenge. Since that day, twenty of her favorite patients had died. The past
week had been the worst of her career. Two of her patients had died. With
dread, she waited for the third. These days she felt as though a sinkhole had
opened beneath her, leaving her dangling with no way to escape.
Move. Time to go. She had never been late to work a day in her
life. Not happening today. With a
sigh, she stuffed a pen holder, her keys and money in the pocket of her pink
scrubs. While pulling on her sheepskin lined jacket, she rode the elevator to
the ground floor. The town clock chimed the quarter hour. She would make the
seven AM start.
As she trudged across the
street, the brisk breeze of the February morning made her shiver. A pale sun
shone through clusters of gathering clouds. She pulled open the door of the
employees’ entrance and paused at the time clock to punch in.
Her friend Suzanna Winstone
dashed inside and grabbed her card. “Megan, guess what?” Her voice rang with
excitement.
“You’re pregnant.” Just like three others of the Grantley Gang.
Suzanna smacked Megan’s arm. “Are
you crazy? I’ve only been married for weeks.”
“I figured with Jenessa, Cate
and Lauren ready to increase
Suzanna laughed. “Caleb and I
found a house. Lauren’s place is waiting for you.”
“Don’t expect me to move in. I’m
happy in my apartment.” She rang for the elevator. Lauren’s house had seen four
of the six members of the Grantley Gang finding love while living there. Wouldn’t work for her. Her perfect man
existed only in her dreams. She stepped into the elevator.
Suzanna followed. “Lunch?”
“I’ll let you know.”
When Megan reached the unit, she
checked the assignment sheet before cornering the night nurse for report on her
four patients. Then she began rounds and started care. Death hovered in her
thoughts. Who? When? Mr. Phelps was
going home. Though not cured, he had gone into remission. Then on to Mrs. Gray
and Mrs. Brown. She quickly completed their morning care and treatments. Both
responded favorably toward their chemotherapy.
Megan entered the room of her
favorite patient and rubbed her arms to chase a sudden chill. The five year old
girl looked so tiny and frail. A virulent type of leukemia had drained the
child rapidly. The little girl’s color nearly matched the white sheets. Megan
drew a deep breath. Though the night nurse had assessed Bonnie’s condition as
stable, Megan knew the woman had been optimistic.
Not today. Please. As certainty entered her thoughts, her stomach
lurched.
“Morning, Button.” She waited
for the child to open her eyes and make her usual response. The little girl’s
eyes remained closed. She didn’t speak. Megan cleared her throat and tried
again, hoping to hear “Not Button. I Bonnie.”
The child’s eyelids fluttered
open exposing her dark eyes. Bonnie seemed to stare at a point in the distance.
Slowly, she focused on Megan. “Tell…Mama…Not be …sad…Hurt gone.”
The whispery voice brought a
cold shiver. Megan checked Bonnie’s pulse. An erratic beat bounded against her
fingers. Shallow breaths were interrupted by long pauses. Megan’s fears
deepened. She pulled her cell phone free and dialed the number taped to the
bedside stand.
“Mrs. Mellis, Megan Carter here.
I’m Bonnie’s nurse. You need to come at once.”
“Is she?”
“No, but she’s very weak.”
Urgency filled her voice. She prayed the woman would arrive in time. She bit
her lip to keep from crying. Why this child? Why now?
My Places
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