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I might fall over, but I assure him I’m fine.
“In your wife’s case, not everything passed naturally and the infection ensued. My best medical guess is that she’s unlikely to experience difficulty conceiving in the future. That’s a complication we typically see after a more advanced pregnancy, but before we worry about any of that, we need to get her through the infection.”
“Wait, you said sepsis? That’s bad, right?”
He nods. “Extremely. But, as I said, the drugs seem to be working, and I think we caught it in the nick of time. Her organ function is still good.”
“So?”
“So, we keep the antibiotics coming, monitor her closely. I’m optimistic. She’s young and otherwise healthy. That always helps.”
“May I see her?” I’m no one to her, nothing but a one-night mistake. She needs someone, though, and sadly, I’m all she’s got.
“Of course. They’re in the process of moving her to ICU right now. I’ll send a nurse to get you shortly.”
With that, the doctor disappears to wherever it is doctors go when you really need them.
After fifteen more minutes of pacing, no one has come for me. Are they on to me?
Aw, heck.I need to see Annalise, and I’m nothing if not a good role player. If I need to be her husband to see her, her husband I will be.
I leave the waiting area, ask a few questions, and follow the signs to the ICU one floor up. The double doors part, and I stride through as if I own the place. A nurse looks up from her paperwork, lips parted, but I spy the doctor at the entrance to a patient room. He’s my ticket, so I make a beeline for him.
“Right here, Mr. Walker.” He waves me inside.
One of the nurses from before is there, pushing buttons on some of the equipment above Annalise’s head. Her brow creases when she sees me because she knows I’m not who the doctor has called me. I wait for her to protest, but I guess nursing staff think twice before correcting doctors.
There are more wires and tubes than before. Or maybe not. Maybe it’s my fear. My chest tightens with an awful lot of emotion for a woman I barely know. Must be because of my friendship with Tripp.
Yep, that’s it.
Aw, who do I think I’m kidding? Obviously, Annalise’s looks grabbed me first, but some x-factor has been reeling me toward her ever since. She’s been consuming my thoughts for two days, which is odd given the chaos I left behind in Dallas and the ashes of my career fluttering around me.
“When will she wake up?” I ask the doctor.
“Soon probably. She came around for a minute down in recovery, but her body is fighting hard, so I suspect she’ll be in and out for a while.” He types something into a tablet, shakes my hand, and goes to the door. “Let the nurses know if you need anything. I’ll make rounds in the morning, but they’ll page me sooner if necessary.”
Nodding, I turn to Annalise as both doctor and nurse exit. I pray she isn’t filling him in.
The beeping of the machinery unsettles me, though I suppose it’s a good thing that’s it’s constant and steady. The jagged lines on the monitor are equally as disturbing, simply for my lack of understanding, but I know flat is bad, so I take comfort in the zigzags.
I lay my hand on top of Annalise’s. “Fight, Annalise. You’ve got a whole lot of life to live and a whole lot of butt left to kick.” I wrap my fingers around hers. Grinning, I say, “Maybe we can do some of it together.”
I would like that, I think. I’d like to know her when she’s fully on her game.
I stand there for some time, passing my thumb back and forth along the top of her hand. Her skin is soft and smooth. I like the feel of it and regret that I won’t be able to hold it once she wakes up.
But I want her to wake up. Sheneedsto wake up. Soon, or I’ll be forced to call Tripp, and I desperately prefer her permission before I do.
I release my hold long enough to drag the nearest chair close to the bed, then retake her hand. The old man’s words ring in my head.Prayer is talking to God. Don’t make it harder than it is.Yeah, easy for him to say. And yet, a few words escape my lips. “Heal her, God. Please, You’ve got to heal her.”
My eyelids become heavy, and I begin to nod off. I jerk upright, but before I know it, I’m nodding again.
A moan yanks my head up. “Shh,” I murmur, standing. “You’re alright, Annalise. You’re going to be alright.”
Her eyes flutter and dart. Land on me. “M-Marco?”
I make myself smile. “Good, you remember.”
