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“Does anyone want coffee? Frank offered.
I couldn’t help looking around the room and toward the hallway where I expected Dr. Radar to appear an hour before.
“I’d love some, dear.” Roma’s voice held the same soothing tone I remembered.
“What’s taking Dr. Radar so long?” I wondered aloud, starting to pace.
“Don’t assume anything, Teagan. He might be behind on rounds or something.” Jensen was standing near me and offered his reassurance. “If anything was wrong, we would have been paged.”
I nodded and ran a hand through my hair. “Yeah.” He was right, but I was a nervous wreck. I wanted the update to settle all of us, but more, so Chase could know what was happening with her before they put him under. “I just want to know she’s okay.”
“I’ll see what I can find out,” Jensen began, but just as he turned to leave, Dr. Radar appeared. Jensen’s steps halted as quickly as they began. “Here he comes.”
Dr. Radar had on dark rimmed glasses and a white lab coat over his teal scrubs. All of us stood immediately and gathered around him.
“Dr. Radar, these are Chase’s parents, Frank and Roma Forrester,” Jensen introduced. “This is Remi’s doctor. He is the chief of childhood cancer at the hospital.”
The doctor shook hands with Roma and Frank. “It’s nice to meet you both.”
“How’s Remi doing?” Frank’s question was anxious.
“She’s doing pretty well for as weak as she’s been.” His answer was full of caution and his expression stoic.
“What does that mean?” Roma was standing next to Frank, her attention fully centered on Dr. Radar.
I sighed heavily. It wasn’t a resounding endorsement from the doctor, and I knew him well enough to know he was choosing his words carefully. Jensen stood silently at my side, drawing the same conclusion as I was.
“She’s vomiting some, and it’s been hard on her. We’re giving her fluids through her port. Her infection tests, before the radiation late last night, showed we’d eradicated it, which is good. The sooner we can get Chase’s marrow into her, the better.”
“What’s the process doctor?”
“As soon as it’s removed from Chase, it will be tested for infection and impurities, but generally, it goes into a bag, like a blood donation and it will be administered to Remi in a similar fashion through her port.”
“That’s it?”
Frank and Roma continued to question Dr. Radar.
“Yes. I’m afraid Chase has the hard part. He’ll be very sore for a while. We’ll puncture his pelvis in four places to extract the marrow.”
“How long will it take for the marrow to be replaced?” Frank asked.
Dr. Radar’s eyes met mine over the top of Roma’s head. He smiled, answering all of the their questions patiently. “Chase will be completely replenished in about three weeks. Remi, we’re hoping, within a month.”
“Do we have to wait a month to see her?”
“No. We’ll watch her cell count and play it by ear. She’s in a room that has a lot of windows, so technically, you can see her, but I’m afraid it will only agitate her. She’ll want Teagan, Jensen or Chase in the room with her, and right now, that’s not possible. It’s better to let her rest for a few days.”
“Poor little squirt.” Jensen inhaled a deep breath and threaded both of his hands on top of his head.
Dr. Radar continued to converse with Chase’s mom and dad. “Are you all from Atlanta?”
“Greenville, South Carolina.”
“Well, at least that’s not too far. It’s pretty up there.”
I turned to Jensen and spoke in low tones. “I’m going to go back and see if I can give Chase an update on Remi.”
He nodded. “Okay. Text me and let me know what you’re doing. I know we can’t see her, but I still want to go up and talk to the nurses.”
