Rogue

“Why don't I go with you? I can hang around and lend moral support if nothing else.” He could only guess how hard those cases were, and Maxine made a career of them. He couldn't imagine dealing with that every day, but he admired her for it. And medically, it was far more interesting than what he did, much more stressful, and more important in a way.

“I might be there all night. At least I hope I will.” The only reason she wouldn't be was if the patient died, which was a strong possibility right now.

“No problem. If I get tired of waiting I'll go home. Hell, I'm a physician too, this isn't news to me.” She smiled. She liked having that in common with him. It was a strong bond to share medical careers. They gave the driver the hospital's address uptown, and sped north as Maxine explained the situation to Charles. The girl had cut herself, slashed her wrists, and stabbed herself in the heart with a kitchen knife. She had done a hell of a job. And by sheer miracle, her mother had found her fast enough to make a difference. The paramedics had been on the scene in minutes. They had given her two units of blood so far, her heart had stopped twice on the way in, and they had gotten it going again. She was hovering near death, but still alive. This was her second attempt.

“Christ, they don't go at it halfway, do they? I always thought kids did it for attention and made kind of half-assed attempts.” There was nothing half-assed about this. They talked about it quietly on the way, and Maxine sprang into action the moment they walked in. She was wearing a black cocktail dress and high heels. She dumped her black evening coat, put a lab coat over her dress, found Thelma, and met with the ER team. She examined her patient, contacted the heart surgeon herself, and talked to the attending and the chief resident. Her patient's wrists were already sewn up, and the heart surgeon was there fifteen minutes later, and whisked the comatose girl into surgery, as Maxine comforted the parents. While she did, Charles and Thelma conferred quietly in the hallway.

“She's something, isn't she?” Charles said in admiration. She was like a tornado of efficiency once she was working. And she was back to them in the hallway half an hour later. Thelma agreed with Charles completely, and liked the fact that he was so impressed and respectful of Maxine's work.

“How's she doing?” Thelma asked Maxine. She had stayed more to keep Charles company than for any other purpose. Maxine was in charge now.

“Hanging in. This is a close one,” Maxine said, praying not to lose her.

Eloise, her patient, was in surgery for four hours, and it was nearly five before Maxine knew anything conclusive. Much to her amazement, Charles was still with her. Thelma had gone home hours before.

The surgeon came into the doctors' lounge looking victorious, as he grinned at Charles and Maxine. “I swear, there are miracles sometimes that none of us can explain. She missed a whole lot of important stuff with her little hack job. She just missed killing herself by a hair. A lot could still go wrong in the next few days, but I think she's actually going to make it.” Maxine let out a whoop of sheer pleasure and threw her arms around Charles's neck. He hugged her and smiled. He was exhausted, but medically, it had been one of the most interesting nights of his life, to see what they contended with, and what they were doing to solve it, and Maxine was in charge of it all.

She went to tell Eloise's parents, and shortly after six A.M., she and Charles left the hospital. Maxine was going to come back in a few hours. It would be touch and go for the next few days, but the worst was over. They had replaced Eloise's blood, and repaired her heart. Her parents were beside themselves with relief, and so was Maxine. Her optimism was still guarded, but she had a feeling they were going to win this one, and had snatched victory from the jaws of death.

“I don't know how to tell you how impressed I am with what you do,” Charles said softly. He had an arm around her shoulders, and she was leaning against him on the ride home. She was still exhilarated from the night's work, but she was tired too. They both knew that it would be several hours before she came down from the excitement, and by then she had to be back at the hospital, probably without sleep. She was used to it.

“Thank you,” she said, smiling at him. “Thanks for staying with me. It was nice knowing you were there. I'm usually alone on nights like this. I hope we win this one. I have a feeling we will.”

“So do I. Your cardio guy is top notch.” Charles thought she was too.

“Yes, he is,” Maxine agreed.