Love On Call

“Meaning?” Abby said, wondering if either of them would ever go through with their teenage dream to become vets, return to the community, and set up a practice together. She’d wanted to be a doctor as long as she could remember, and she’d never wavered, but many teenagers their age changed their minds about the future along with their hairstyles. Add to that the fact Margie had never had much experience outside her hometown and Blake’s big city exposure hadn’t been exactly great—they both had a lot of the world left to see. “So did you change your game plan?”

“No, but we thought we should get some human experience as well as, you know, animal.”

“I see. Humans not being animals.”

“You know what I mean, Mom.”

“It’s a good idea. A lot of techniques in human medicine are applicable to veterinary medicine, and believe it or not, there’s actually some crossover the other way around. What were the two of you thinking?”

“That we’d split the summer,” he went on quickly. “I’d start here and Margie would start with Dr. Valentine, and then we’d switch.”

“Doing what?”

“Well,” Blake said slowly, “that’s kind of where I thought you could help. Like…I don’t know—whatever you need us to do, volunteering, I mean.” He grimaced. “And I don’t mean standing around greeting visitors.”

“Honey, this isn’t Home Depot. We don’t have greeters.”

“That’s good.”

“Give me a minute.” Abby sorted facts. They were both sixteen, or Blake would be in a few days. Legally they could do volunteer work at the hospital. Unpaid, but that was only fair, considering they were also completely unskilled. They were both bright, mature, and sensitive kids. “We could use a volunteer in the ER, and I bet Flann could use one in the OR.”

“Really?” Blake’s heart skyrocketed. “That would be incredible.”

“Do you have any idea what that would be like?” Abby said gently. “Those are two of the most challenging areas of the hospital. The patients we see are often very sick or seriously injured, even dying. It wouldn’t be easy, and it might be scary.”

“You do it every day. So does Flann.”

“I know, and it never gets any easier.” Abby tried not to think of the Hoffertins and the still, pale body of the beautiful young girl on the cold stainless steel table, her mother and father broken in grief. “And it’s still hard on us too.”

“I think we can do it, both of us. Please, Mom. We could help.”

“It would be mostly scut—taking things to the lab, helping the nurses change sheets and clean rooms, that kind of thing.”

“That’s okay. We’d still see things, learn things.”

“I’ll have to talk to Presley and Harper and make sure they’re all right with it. And clear it with Flann too, but I’m sure she would love another body up in the OR to help out.”

“Thanks, Mom.” Blake just about vibrated while managing to stay in one place. “I’m gonna call Margie and let her know.”

“Tell her it’s not a done deal,” Abby called after him.

“Got it.”

She smiled as his footsteps disappeared down the hall. In a few short months, he’d transformed, not just physically as he transitioned, but emotionally and psychologically. He was happy now. His happiness filled her with joy.

And his life wasn’t the only one that had changed. She thought of Flann and the night ahead. Still smiling, she speed-dialed a number and waited. “Glenn? Let’s get the newbies into the conference room and bring them all up to speed.”

Chapter Six

Mari slumped on the narrow bench across from her locker and tried to summon the energy to pull out her purse and drag her weary body down the hill, through town, and back to her apartment. Twenty more minutes of movement seemed like an eternity. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been so tired. She could, actually, but then she hadn’t been just tired, she’d been drained of everything: energy, will, even hope. Not now, though. This was an altogether different form of exhaustion. This was the aftermath of a campaign waged and won. Beneath the nagging ache in the small of her back, the twinge of pain in her calves, and the faint harbinger of a headache throbbing at the base of her skull, she felt anything but hopeless. She hadn’t worked so hard in over a year, and she’d been so busy all day, she hadn’t been able to think of anything except the patients, their families, and her obligations. When she wasn’t treating one of them, or discussing a case with Abby or Jason Monroe, the other ER doc, she was supervising one of the new students. And somewhere in the midst of all of that, she’d had to meet with Glenn to review the curriculum, only to discover she had a lecture to give the next morning at seven a.m. She looked at her watch. In exactly twelve hours.

Mari closed her eyes and groaned.

“How are you doing?” Glenn said from somewhere so close behind her, Mari jumped. “Sorry, didn’t mean to bother you.”

“No,” Mari said, springing up on suddenly shaky legs. She caught herself with an outstretched arm on the lockers. “You didn’t. I was just…thinking.”

Glenn frowned. “You look a little whupped.”