Darlene’s numbers still weren’t up to acceptable levels when Lukas checked her again. She wheezed only upon expiration now—a good sign. But Lukas didn’t yet feel comfortable.
“I feel so much better, Doctor,” Darlene said. Healthy pink tinged her cheeks now, and her posture was more relaxed. “Can I go home?”
“I’m sorry, Darlene, but I can’t make any promises at this point. I’ll cut your oxygen down and see how you do. I’ll waive the X-ray. But we have to watch you awhile longer before I can decide.”
She stared at him rebelliously for a moment, as if she might check herself out against medical advice.
Lukas glanced at his watch. Thirty minutes until Camp got here. Lukas completed some charts, then returned to Darlene’s room and took her off the oxygen to see how she would do on room air. Then he went to change out of his scrubs. He would be cutting it close, but he still didn’t feel right leaving Darlene.
After fifteen minutes on room air, Darlene did a peak flow test. She registered 250, which was not enough for her age, weight and sex.
“I’m sorry, Darlene,” Lukas said. “We tried.”
She moved halfway off the table, her eyes wide. “Please, can you give me another treatment before you make your decision? I can’t stay.”
He went into his usual spiel. “I know it’s never convenient to be sick, but—”
“I’m not talking about convenience.” Her whole body radiated tension. “I have to go home. I’ll be fine.”
“Is it worth risking your life? You can work out a payment plan with the hospital. Asthma can be fatal if not treated properly.”
“I’ll take care of it,” she snapped.
“You weren’t taking your medicine before. I don’t think you realize how—”
“Please, Dr. Bower! I have a brother at home who needs me. He doesn’t have anyone else to help him. I didn’t even want to leave him this morning, but I just couldn’t breathe anymore.”
So that was what was going on. Lukas sat down. Time to find out more. “What’s wrong with your brother?”
Her warm hazel eyes shimmered with tears. Her finger worried the pulse ox probe as if she’d like to slip it off and falsify the reading. “Clarence is very sick, and he won’t see a doctor.”
“Sick?”
“He’s extremely obese. The last time he got on the scales, he broke them. He made a big joke of it, but that was two years ago. He’s gained continually since then. He doesn’t leave the house, and these past few weeks, I’ve had to take his meals to his room. The only place he goes is to the bathroom.”
“He won’t see a doctor?”
She shook her head as tears flowed down her cheeks. Lukas set a Kleenex box beside her on the bed.
“He’s given up. He’s tried so hard. He was such a hard worker, so proud of his mechanic skills. He helped me buy my house, then he lost his job because of a layoff. Which meant he lost his insurance. Then he developed pneumonia, went into the hospital, and used up the last of his savings to pay the bill. He had to give up his own home and move in with me, which really hurt his pride. He went into a deep depression, and he just kept gaining weight.”
“You can’t convince him to see a doctor?”
“He knows I can’t pay for it. Even when I worked outside the home as a bookkeeper, I couldn’t put him on my company insurance. I ended up having to quit my job and stay home and work as an indexer on computer so I could take care of him.”
“Surely he qualifies for disability.” Lukas couldn’t believe his own words, but if anyone truly needed state aid, this family did.
“He wouldn’t consider it.”
“But doesn’t he see what he’s doing to you?”
“He can’t help it. He’s just waiting to die. That’s why I have to go home. I don’t dare leave him alone for long. Please let me go. We don’t…we aren’t close to family.”
“Are you sleeping at night?”
“Not well.”
“You need more help. This is too much of a strain on you. Would you consider counseling?”
She pulled a single tissue from the box and dabbed at her face. She took another tissue and blew her nose. “I don’t have the money.”
“There are local agencies that can help. We can make some calls for—”
“No.”
He sighed in frustration. “Darlene, sometimes we all have to ask for help. That’s why those agencies are set up, for people like you, who are really struggling, trying to make an honest living for yourself and your brother. There is no shame in—”
She burst into tears. “Please let me go home, Dr. Bower. I can’t ask those people for help. Clarence and I were second-generation welfare kids. We grew up on handouts. We swore together when we left that mess that we would die before we asked for help again. We meant it.”
Lukas bit his tongue. Clarence might indeed die. Darlene obviously knew that.
He gave her a spare inhaler, some antibiotic samples, and a theophylline tablet, then gave her a script for that, and for Vistaril to help her sleep.
“These are fairly inexpensive,” he told her as he handed them to her. “Take them. You really need them. Remember that you’re not going to be able to care for Clarence if you end up back here.”
She stared at the bounty he had given her, then looked up at him. “You mean you’re letting me go home?”
“Against my better judgment. I wish I could do more to help you. If you need someone to talk to, call me.”
For the first time since she’d arrived, he saw her smile. She reached out and grabbed his right hand with both of hers. “Oh, thank you, Doctor. Thank you.”
Chapter Six
D ad backed the red BMW out of the drive, with Tedi safely buckled in, just like on any other school day. This day, however, Tedi was getting out of classes. For the first time in her life she would rather be going to school.
Granny Jane had been sick almost for as long as Tedi could remember, and Tedi had felt so bad for her. It hurt to watch someone suffering the way Granny Jane had suffered, and Tedi knew it had been really hard on Mom and Grandma Ivy. That’s why she had to go to this funeral. She wanted to be there for them.
“I’ll drop you off in front of the church,” Dad said as he turned onto the highway from their street.
“Fine.” Tedi didn’t look at him, but she felt him looking at her. Last night she’d hid out in her bedroom when he came home, and he hadn’t bothered her.
This morning Dad had fixed her favorite breakfast: French toast and fruit, with powdered sugar and hot maple syrup. Dad could cook when he wanted to, and this morning he’d done almost as good a job as Grandma Ivy. Almost.
“How about a trip into Springfield this weekend?” he asked. “We can go to the mall and get some summer clothes, then catch a movie, maybe do the zoo while we’re there. They’ve got a new baby elephant.”
Tedi didn’t stir from her inspection of the roadside scenery. “You go ahead, Dad. Maybe Julie would like to go.”
“Julie doesn’t like elephants. You and I do.”
Tedi shrugged. “I’m not in the mood.”
Dad sighed. He slowed the car and