“What can be done for her?”
Theresa gave a deep sigh and laid a hand on his shoulder. “If you believe in prayer, pray for her recovery. Everything humanly possible is already being done.”
Rob nodded and breathed a silent prayer for the baby and for the men and women working to save her.
The unit doors opened. A distinguished-looking man with wings of silver in his dark hair and a deep tan walked briskly toward them. His white lab coat flapped open to reveal a gray silk shirt and a red tie above well-tailored slacks. He smoothed his sleek hair with one hand as he asked, “Did someone page me?”
Theresa left Rob’s side to confer softly with the man Rob assumed was the missing Dr. Kent. After listening to what the head nurse had to tell him, Dr. Kent nodded and walked into the room.
At the foot of the bed, he thrust his hands in his coat pockets. “I see you have everything under control, Nora. Is there anything I can do?”
She was reading a slip of paper from one of the machines beside the bed and didn’t glance up. “We have a stable heart rhythm at the moment.”
He ran a finger between his neck and his collar. “The batteries were dead in this silly pager of mine.”
Nora looked up but she didn’t smile. “Yes, one of the nurses mentioned she paged you several times. I find changing the batteries on a regular basis prevents such problems.”
She moved away from the bed and turned to the residents who had been watching her. “Let’s get started on rounds, shall we? Dr. Dalton, perhaps you can give us an overview of this patient’s neurological status, and Dr. Glasgow can give us fluid recommendations.”
A nervous-looking young man with thick glasses swallowed hard, then begin reciting a list of facts and numbers. Most of the nurses filed out of the room, leaving only one to answer questions posed by Nora and the other doctors. It was as if nothing special had happened. One minute Rob had been watching Cara Dempsey’s life hanging by a thread and the next minute everyone had gone back to other duties. It was almost bizarre.
He turned his attention back to Nora. What kind of woman did it take to make life-and-death decisions for children like this on a regular basis? What did it take for her to do such a job? He wanted to know what kind of toll it exacted on her, how she handled the pressure, what made her tick. He wanted to learn a lot more about her—and not just for his story.
Nora clasped her arms across her middle as the adrenaline rush ebbed away, leaving her feeling weak and shaken. It took all her strength to maintain a calm, controlled demeanor. It was important for her students to see that panic had no place in a critical care setting. Getting them to focus on the details of their patient might very well prevent a crisis from occurring again.
Glancing down at Cara, Nora bit the corner of her lip. She had helped the baby cheat death once more, but would it be enough?
I want to fix her. I’m a surgeon. That is what I do. I fix broken kids.
Only some children couldn’t be fixed. She knew that better than anyone. She had done all she could do for this one at the moment. She accepted it, but she didn’t like it.
From the corner of her eye, she saw Rob enter the room and stand at the far edge of the group. As she listened to the young residents list the baby’s treatments, she turned so that she could see Rob better without being observed.
What was he thinking? Was he looking for a story angle or was it genuine concern that she saw in his eyes when his gaze rested on the baby?
And why did she care what the man thought? Determined to put him out of her mind, she looked at the residents. “Who is next on our list?”
Rounds were accomplished in a relatively short time. As the group broke apart to attend to various other duties, Nora returned to the computer corner and started dictating her notes for the day. When she was finished, she looked over to see Rob straddling one of the office chairs nearby. His arms were crossed on the seat back and his chin rested on his forearms. He watched her intently.
“What?” she asked, growing uncomfortable with his scrutiny.
“Is Cara Dempsey going to be okay?”
“I don’t know.” The faces of the children who had died while under her care would never be forgotten. Their names crowded into her mind.
For a moment, she was tempted to share with him how truly difficult it was to do the job she loved. Fortunately, her pager began to beep. She checked the message. “It looks as if we are done for the day. I’ll show you back to the office so you can change.”
“Do you often have to save the day because Dr. Kent can’t be reached?”
She scowled at him and began walking down the hall. “Of course not. We’re a team.”
“He isn’t much of a team player if the nurses can’t get ahold of him when he’s needed.”
As much as Nora didn’t like Rob prying into her life, she wasn’t about to turn him loose on Peter. Her partner had been going though a rough time of his own since his recent divorce.
“Dr. Kent’s pager battery was dead. It happens. You may shadow me and ask questions about open-heart surgery or Ali Willis’s care, but I will not discuss my colleagues with you. Are we clear on that?”
“Crystal clear.”
“Good. I’m finished with my rounds for the day and I don’t have any patients scheduled in the office. Unless you wish to sit and watch me sign insurance forms and wade through the paperwork waiting for me now, I suggest you leave.”
“Okay then, I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“No, I won’t be here.” She stopped at the elevator instead of taking the stairs. Her legs were still feeling shaky. It opened quickly, and she punched the button for the third floor.
“You mean you actually get a day off? That’s great. Perhaps we could get together over lunch and you could tell me more about your work with Children of the Day.”
“That won’t be possible. I’m working at the Fort Bonnell Medical Center tomorrow. I cover a few shifts a month there so that the army cardiac surgeons can get a little time off.”
“What if there is an emergency with one of the kids in this unit?”
The elevator doors opened and she stepped out. “Dr. Kent will be covering here. My next surgery is scheduled for the day after tomorrow at 8 a.m. sharp. If you wish to join me, you should be here at six-thirty.”
As they entered her office, Carmen looked up and held out a stack of notes. “You have two requests for consults. One from a doctor in Waco and one from here in Austin. Oh, and Tarkott Pharmaceuticals returned your call.”
“It’s about time. Get them on the line for me again.”
Walking into her inner office, Nora noted with relief that Rob chose not to follow. She didn’t like feeling as if she were constantly on display.
Sitting behind her desk, she turned on her computer and waited for it to boot up. The welcome screen flashed on and Nora opened the files she needed to update. Typing quickly, she had finished her first case when the phone buzzed and Carmen’s voice came over the speaker. “I have Tarkott’s CEO, Mr. Sawyer, on line one.”
Quentin Sawyer had once worked with her husband. His reputation for being a hard businessman was well earned. This wouldn’t be easy. She pressed the button. “Good morning, Quentin. Thank you for returning my call. I hope you and Merilee are enjoying the cooler weather.”
She engaged in a stint of small talk in spite of her discomfort at trying to do so. Quentin and his wife had been friends of her husband, but Nora never