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“I think that was half breeding, half Eugie,” I said, laughing so hard, tears were streaming down my face.
“I believe you’re right.”
We immediately calmed when Dr. Caldwell entered the room. The expression on his face made me want to hurl, and no matter how obvious it was that he tried to school it, it wasn’t happening. My hands began to tremble inside Cricket’s, but I stilled them almost at once.
“Give it to me straight, doc,” she said, squeezing my hand.
“Well,” he said, scratching the back of his neck, “we can’t explain the rapid decline of the kidneys, but we recognize acute renal failure. You need a kidney, Cricket.”
She sighed. “Okay, how much time?”
“A few weeks?” he said, gutting me.
My heart began to hammer, to clobber my rib cage in overwhelming devastation.
“How,” I said, clearing my throat to keep from sobbing, “long does it take to get a transplant?” I asked.
o;My granddaughter is here, love,” Ellie spoke sweetly. “Name’s Caroline Hunt?”
“Yes,” she said, “she’s with a doctor now.”
“May we see her?” she asked.
“Just a moment,” the nurse answered, standing up and heading through double doors.
I saw a row of seats near the desk and helped Ellie sit. She was so calm, so sweet, but she was leaning on me so heavily. I knew she was emotionally wrecked. My heart bled for her. I sat next to her and set her hands in my own.
We sat quietly, waiting for the nurse. It was taking forever. It always infuriated me when hospital staff took their time. I understood that this was the day-to-day of their jobs, but to us, to the family of the sick, it was a place where every minute, every second, felt like torment. I hated the casual “wait” attitude they possessed. It made me want to shake them. There was no sense of urgency when it came to their patients’ families, and I thought that cruel. At a time where compassion should be priority, it fell so quickly to the wayside with the humdrum of their work.
The nurse finally strolled in with a “They’re working on her now. I’ll let you know something when I do.”
“Is she conscious? Still breathing?” I demanded. “Can you give us anything?”
“I’m not sure,” she explained and walked away.
Ellie and I prayed together and waited...and waited and waited and waited.
Two hours passed and we hadn’t heard anything, making Ellie so nervous she was looking pale.
I stood and marched over to the nurse’s desk. “Anything?” I asked as nicely as I could.
“Let me check,” she said, incensing me.
I stood by the doors, my arms crossed, and waited, again.
She came back ten minutes later. “I’m sorry, but she was moved to the Critical Care Unit more than half an hour ago.”
“What the hell?! Ellie,” I said, turning toward her, “she’s in CCU.”
I ignored the nurse when she tried to give us directions.
“I’ll just follow the signs,” I told her.
I supported Ellie’s arm in the elevator and guided her down the hall toward the Critical Care Unit sign.
“Can I help you?” a nurse asked as we approached.
“Yes, we’re looking for a patient. Her name’s Caroline Hunt.”
