Chapter Seven

Regina stepped out of the fracture room and walked toward the sink. She just finished casting a fifteen-year old boy’s wrist fracture and was discharging him. She rolled her eyes and failed miserably at stifling a chuckle as she listened to his mother yelling at him for using his bed as a trampoline again. It reminded her of the pillow fights she used to have with her older brother when they were kids.

Sandy looked up from the lab work she was reading and smiled, hearing Regina’s infectious laugh as she walked over to the desk.

"You look like you’re feeling better these days." She noticed that the healthy color in Regina’s face had returned.

"Mm." Regina nodded her head as she hung over the desk, reaching down to snag a piece of chocolate. One of their former patients dropped the box off as a small token of appreciation for what the staff had done for him. "The medication that Alex gave me works wonders. Just a little nausea but I haven’t gotten sick in days," she said, as she popped the candy into her mouth and bit into it.

Regina was feeling exceptionally good today. Alex drew her blood two days ago for the six-week blood test and slipped her results into her locker enclosed in a white envelope with Regina’s name written on it in black ink. Regina picked up the envelope as she had changed into her scrubs earlier that evening and felt a warm tingle of hope inside her chest as she read the results.

"Ooh, that was good." Regina said, licking the chocolate from her fingers and eyeing another piece.

"Ah, ah." Sandy swiped the box away from her. "I will not have the two of you on a perpetual sugar high all night. Alex is bad enough when she gets ahold of this crap."

"Where is Dr. Margulies anyway?"

Sandy rolled her eyes and pointed down at the end of the corridor. "Jameson got ahold of her. He’s been looking for someone to bail him out of doing the budget for the department."

"Ugh. Why?" Regina asked.

Sandy leaned over the desk closer to Regina. "Rumor has it there’s more budget cuts coming. Guess he doesn’t want to be the bad guy."

"Think she needs to be rescued?" Regina asked, a mischievous glint lighting up her eyes. Sandy leaned forward as Regina whispered to her.

******

Alex crossed her arms and let her gaze fall just over the shoulder of the medical director standing before her. He was talking incessantly about the budget due at the end of the month. It was obvious that he was looking for someone to take the burden from him. Dr. Jameson had been the medical director for ten years now and was firmly entrenched in the old school of practicing medicine. It went something like this, Alex mused: ‘if it feels good, do it’ - without too much thought given to fiscal responsibility. Once again, just like he did every year, he was talking about the upcoming budget and how difficult it would be to make the mandatory 7% cuts that the administration handed down to all the departments.

It had been a quiet Saturday evening in the emergency department so far and he had cornered her when she stepped through the doors of the emergency department. Alex was listening with half an ear, her attention focused on the torrential rain coming down outside. It had been raining hard all day and many of the low-lying roads had been flooded, so people seemed to be staying indoors which meant they were staying out of trouble. Too bad, Alex mused; she could have been otherwise preoccupied instead of stuck here, listening to her medical director drone on.

She pulled her attention away from the rain running down the outside of the window and fixed him with an icy stare. "Listen, Jim," she said, reaching the end of her limited patience with his whining. "If you spent as much time working on the numbers as you’ve just spent complaining, you might be done with it by now."

He stopped mid-sentence and stared at her. "You know Alex, you might want to be a little more cooperative than that. It might just be your job that ends up being cut," he snapped.

An eyebrow arched in amusement. "I doubt that. They’re looking at outcomes, numbers and productivity. I think we’ve already cleared up any misperceptions on that." The M and M conference the week before had made it obvious who was to blame for the poor outcomes and productivity slump.

Alex felt a vibration at her waist and looked down at her beeper. She frowned at the extension listed in the LCD display and looked in the direction of the nurse’s station. Sandy was holding a phone up pointing to it.

"I’ve got a phone call I need to take," she said, hoping that it wasn’t Dana calling again.

"This isn’t over by a long shot Margulies," he hissed following her as she walked to the desk and took the phone from Sandy.

"Who is it?" Alex asked, turning her back to the seething doctor standing behind her.

Sandy gave her a weird look. "Sorry, didn’t ask."

Alex frowned and put the phone to her ear. "Dr. Margulies here."

A soft voice giggled. "We thought you needed rescuing." Regina’s voice floated through the phone line.

Alex laughed. "Thank you. I did, no actually I still do," she corrected as she looked up and saw the doctor standing next to her. "Hang on a second." She covered the mouthpiece of the phone and looked at him. "Jon, our conversation is over. Its one of my patients."

He shot Alex a threatening look as he walked away in search of another victim. Alex watched him skulking past the trauma rooms.

She took her hand off the mouthpiece. "Where are you?" she asked, her eyes twinkling mischievously.

"Room five," Regina said.

"Get out."

"W…Why?"

"You’ve got three seconds," Alex said as she watched Dr. Jameson walking down the corridor. "He’s looking for someone else to commiserate with about the upcoming budget he has to do." Alex drawled. There was a squawk at the other end of the line and a click. Alex set the phone in its cradle and sat down in a chair chuckling.

Regina ducked as she saw Dr. Jameson walk by the room. She scooted over to the interconnecting door and slipped through to the next exam room. Regina waited until she saw the tall blonde-haired doctor’s head turn the corner and then made a beeline for the nurse’s station. She slid around the desk and slumped into one of the rolling chairs, letting it roll back away from the desk, looking decidedly relieved that she had eluded the medical director for the moment. Alex winked at Regina as she met her eyes.

Regina smiled and turned her chair as she heard her name.

"Thanks, Dr. Kingston." The boy whose arm she had put a cast on waved at her as he walked past the desk. His mother was less enthusiastic, still berating him about the use of the bed as a trampoline.

Alex glanced at Regina. "Another happy customer."

Regina smirked. "I don’t think his mother appreciated me telling him about the pillow fights I had with my brother growing up. It was a good diversion while I set the break."

"Uh oh." Sandy said, looking up from the desk.

"What uh oh." Alex looked up dismayed. "Ah shit, he’s coming back. Come on, let’s get out of here." The doctor grabbed Regina’s arm and pulled her out of the chair.

"Wh…where are we going?" Regina asked, completely startled by Alex.

"Away from here. I’ve had enough of budgets and him for one evening," she said nodding her head in Dr. Jameson’s direction.

"Hey! That’s no fair." Sandy called out from behind them. "Don’t leave me here alone."

Alex turned around and waved. "We’re not, you’ve got Marcus and Dr. Jameson to keep you company. We’ll bring you back something from the cafeteria." She grinned at her.

Alex released Regina’s arm as they turned the corner and opened the door to the stairwell. Regina walked through the door and trotted down the flight of gunmetal gray stairs, holding the door open at the bottom of the stairs for Alex. They entered the mostly empty cafeteria, which wasn’t unusual, given the lateness of the day and the fact that it was a Saturday.

Regina headed to the self-serve yogurt machine. She checked it out earlier and noted happily that it was double dutch chocolate, one of her favorites. Holding a Styrofoam cup underneath the dispenser, she made a neat swirl of yogurt in it. She shook some sprinkles over it then stepped aside, watching as Alex filled her cup and poured a liberal amount of chocolate syrup over the top, followed, too, by chocolate sprinkles.

She turned and noticed Regina’s look. "What?"

"Have a little yogurt with that chocolate syrup why don’t you," Regina said, with a smirk on her face.

"Thanks, I will." Alex dug her spoon in and sucked the yogurt off of it, savoring the taste as she swallowed.

"I figured you for a health nut or something the way you run every day," Regina shrugged, walking to the register to pay.

Alex snorted and followed her to the register. "Uh, uh. My treat for rescuing me from hell." Alex handed a bill to the cashier. "Remind me to get some for Sandy before we go back up. She’ll kill me if I don’t."

Regina walked to a table in the back of the cafeteria and sat down. Alex sat down across from her with her back to the wall, and they both worked on their yogurts for a few minutes in silence. Sitting back, Alex crossed one of her legs over the other and regarded Regina from across the table. She suspected the resident’s good mood was related to the most recent set of lab results.

"Did you get the envelope I left in your locker?" The semi-reclined doctor asked, referring to the one she had slipped through the metal slats earlier in the day. She had found herself uncharacteristically nervous as she had waited for the results of the HIV-Antibody Test in the lab.

A smile broke across Regina’s face and she patted the pocket of her scrubs. "Right here. Thanks. I really appreciate you taking the time to run these tests yourself."

Alex waved it off. "Its no problem. I’m glad I could do it for you. Your CD4 cells look good," she said, referring to the white blood cells in the body that played a critical role in coordinating the immune system’s response to infection. If the number of CD4 cells started to decline it would be a sign that Regina had contracted the disease. She had breathed sigh of relief when she had read the lab values before sealing them in the envelope.

"Six weeks down," Regina said, wishing that it had been six months already.

"I’ve got a good feeling about it." Alex scraped the bottom of the cup and looked up, catching the look of nervousness on her colleague’s face.

"God I hope so," Regina said, feeling the uneasiness settle heavily in her chest at the prospect of having to deal with HIV. "I can’t even think about what I’ll do if it ends up being positive."

"Don’t. We’ll cross that bridge when we have to." Alex caught her breath. The words were out before she had a clue where they had come from.

Regina looked a little startled by Alex’s sincere words. "T…Thanks Alex."

"You’re welcome." The older woman leaned back against the booth and ducked her head, suddenly interested in the bottom of her cup.

******

The rain had been coming down steadily all day. Three inches had fallen and many of the roads were flooded; orange detour signs directed the white Ford Explorer through a maze of back streets. Andy looked nervously over at his wife, who was trying her best not to cry out from the strength of the contraction that she was experiencing. He reached his hand across the console and squeezed her hand gently.

"It’s gonna be alright Laura." He wished he felt as confident as his words sounded. This was the third detour he was making to get around the flooded low-lying roads that led up to the large medical center.

The contractions had started two hours ago and had progressed much more rapidly than Laura’s obstetrician had expected them to. Andy turned the wipers on high as another sudden torrential downburst of rain marred his view of the road. He fiddled with the controls, turning the A/C on to help defrost the windows faster.

"Andy," his wife called his name in between gasping for air as she endured another contraction. "How much farther? I feel it…pressing…oh god…it hurts," she cried out, pushing back against the seat.

"We’re almost there Laura. Just hang on another five minutes," Andy said, licking his lips nervously. He recognized a street sign through the torrents. "Finally." He turned on his left turn signal and proceeded up the steep hill.

The medical center was on the left just below the top of the steep incline. Andy couldn’t be sure but he thought that he heard the wail of a siren in the distance. He couldn’t tell if it was behind or in front of them. He didn’t see any lights so he signaled his left-hand turn.

As he started across the wide intersection his wife cried out. "Andy no!" The last thing he remembered as he looked up was the shape of a large vehicle spinning out of control, heading directly toward the front side of the truck. Jerking the wheel hard, he watched in horror as time seemed to slow down as it sometimes does when things goes terribly wrong.

There was an ugly noise of metal impacting and crumpling as the two vehicles collided with each other. The sheer force of the collision drove the truck up over the curb and rammed it violently into a telephone pole.

The incessant chiming of the bell telling him a door was ajar pulled him out of the blackness he was swimming in. Andy blinked his eyes and winced as he felt a sickening grinding of bones as he shifted his arm. Looking down, he almost passed out as he saw his left arm bent at an impossible angle. He heard the sound of the rain drumming on the roof of the car and felt a steady dripping of cold water on the back of his neck.

"Laura?" Pushing the deployed airbags out of his way, he turned his head and focused on his wife. "Laura, oh god, Laura, talk to me." He reached out with his right arm and touched her face.

"Mm. Oh…ah…Andy it hurts. Oh god, my leg." More awake now, Laura clutched her stomach and cried out. "The baby, Andy. I can’t feel it!"

Her cries shocked him out of his daze. "Laura, I’m gonna get us help. You hold on. I promise you’ll be ok, the baby’ll be ok." Andy pushed against the door but it was jammed shut. Turning his head, he saw that the back door was open on the passenger side. Painfully, he unhooked his seat belt and reclined his seat. Using his legs and his good arm he pushed himself backwards. Each movement caused a blinding hot streak of pain to shoot down his arm and he bit his lip to keep from crying out. It seemed like it took forever but finally he managed to get himself out of the truck.

He leaned against the side of the vehicle forcing himself to stay upright, panting from the exertion and the searing pain in his arm. Thunder continued to rumble and continuously overhead as the storm raged on around him.

Stumbling in front of the ambulance, he glanced up at the window. He couldn’t see the driver, but shattered glass from the windshield littered the pavement and spatters of rain-diluted blood glistened and rolled down the white hood of the emergency vehicle. Clutching his arm to his side, he staggered across the grass toward the glowing blue sign that pointed to the emergency entrance a hundred feet away.

******

"Please…I need help."

The unit clerk at the desk looked up, his eyes widening as he saw the man leaning heavily against the desk. His clothing was wet and he was clutching his left arm through a bloodied and torn shirtsleeve. The woman the unit clerk had been talking to backed up, her face turning ashen at the sight of the man’s obviously broken arm.

One of the nurses walking down the hallway saw the woman stagger back. Running up behind her she caught the slumping woman as she started to pass out. "I need some help here." Maggie called out, staggering underneath the weight of the woman.

Dropping the linens he was stocking, Thomas ran over to help Maggie get the woman in a wheelchair. Smelling salts quickly brought her around and Thomas wheeled her into one of the treatment rooms.

Maggie quickly grabbed some a package of gauze from a cart, ripped it open and held it firmly over the man’s bleeding arm. "Let’s get you into a room, so one of the docs can look at this."

Meanwhile, the unit clerk looked quickly around the emergency department for help. "L…let me get one of the doctors."

"No you don’t understand. My wife," Andy grimaced and shook his head, clutching at the desk for support. "We…had an accident…she’s in labor."

"Where is she sir?"

The man shook his head and ran a hand through his wet hair. "Outside… I…I told you we had and accident."

The clerk frowned. "She’s in the car?"

"Yes! Please get a doctor." The man’s voice was getting louder.

The clerk stood up from his chair looking decidedly uncomfortable. "Sir, where is your car?"

"Old Town Road."

"Ok. I’m going to call the paramedics." The clerk picked up the phone and started punching in the numbers.

"What? No, please y…you’re an emergency room. Send someone…out…she can’t wait for the paramedics."

"Sir, let’s get you into one of the rooms so we can take a look at the arm," Maggie urged him.

"No, my wife, please – she needs help."

"Sandy." The clerk looked around and called for the charge nurse. "I need you over here. Now."

Hearing her name and the tone of the clerk’s voice she stuck her head out from one of the rooms. "What’s wrong?"

"This man’s hurt and his wife is injured out in their car. They had an accident," the clerk said, taking a step back as Sandy approached the desk.

"Please, you’ve got to help my wife. She’s trapped in our car. She’s in labor." Andy was near tears and the pain was making him feel light-headed.

"Sir, we’ve called the paramedics. They’re on their way," Sandy assured him. "Let me get you into a room." She stepped closer to help Maggie.

He slammed his hand down on the counter rattling the plastic clipboard next to him. They both jumped back. "You’ve got to be kidding me. You’re a damned emergency room!"

Startled by the angry voice, Regina dropped her stethoscope as she walked out of an exam room towards the sink. Retrieving it, she stuffed it into her pocket and shoved her hands under the stream of water from the faucet.

Sandy shifted her weight from one foot to another and looked over her shoulder for one of the doctors. She felt a wave of relief wash over her as she saw Alex and Dr. Jameson walk out of one of the rooms. She called their names. They looked up from their conversation and quickly headed over to her.

"What’s the problem?" Dr. Jameson looked down at her id badge. "Sandy."

Sandy gave them a quick explanation of what had happened motioning to the man standing across from her.

"Did you call the paramedics?" Dr. Jameson asked.

"Yes," Sandy said and cringed, knowing the man on the opposite side of the desk was frantic with worry over his wife and didn’t give a damn about hospital policies, only that his wife was hurt and their unborn baby’s life might be in danger.

Dr. Jameson looked at the man’s arm. "Sir, come with me and we’ll get that arm taken care of."

The man took a step forward and stopped. "I don’t care about my arm. My wife is hurt out there! She needs help."

"Sir, we will take care of your wife when the paramedics bring her in. Now please, let us help you." Dr. Jameson lowered his voice.

Regina finished washing her hands at the sink and threw the paper towels into the waste container. Deciding that she would look outside and see if the ambulance had arrived, Regina walked down the hall.

It was dark and rain was pouring down in sheets as Regina stepped through the doors to the ambulance bay. Stepping down to the pavement, she looked out at the road. A gust of windblown rain blew her hair in her face. Wiping it away, Regina flinched as a flash of lightening illuminated the darkness. For a haunting moment she could see the sports utility vehicle smashed up against the utility pole on the grass and the flashing light of an ambulance winking faintly as it hung precariously from its roof.

"Jesus." Stepping forward, she stopped and turned back to the emergency room door, torn between what she knew she should do based on policy and the oath she had taken as a doctor. Regina ran a hand through her hair and gnawed at her bottom lip.

"Shit."

Knowing she was crossing a line and going against what she knew the hospital’s policy was Regina sprinted toward the vehicle. Damn, damn, damn. She peered through the shattered window and saw the young woman slumped against the door. A quick glance at the dashboard shoved up against the seat and Regina knew that at least one of the woman’s legs was likely broken if not crushed.

Leaning closer, she called out and felt the woman’s neck for the carotid pulse. "Ma’am? Can you hear me?" She got a mumbled response.

"Thank god. You hold on, we’re gonna help you." Regina knew there was not much she could do without equipment. Glancing at the ambulance she ran to the passenger door and tried unsuccessfully to open it. Hopping up on the runner, she peered through the glass. All she could see was darkness and the crimson blood that was being washed down the hood of the ambulance.

Regina ran back through the drenching rain, shaking water from her hair as she ran through the entrance of the emergency department.

"Alex!" She ran up to her and laid a wet hand on her forearm.

"What?" Her attending asked, turning around and arching an eyebrow as she saw Regina’s wet hair and rain soaked clothing clinging to her body.

"I saw the wreck Alex. It’s bad. The truck is up against a pole." Regina’s eyes plead with her.

"Regina, we can’t go out there," Alex said, pulling her eyes away from the young resident’s and turned toward Sandy. "How long ‘til the paramedics get here?" she demanded.

"They’re twenty minutes out. Some of the local roads are flooded and they have to take a detour."

Alex looked down at her hands. "Shit." She closed her eyes, weighing the options. The hospital’s policy was clear about doctors not providing medical care outside of the facility while on duty. The woman was in labor, most likely badly hurt. The ambulance was twenty minutes out. Damn, sometimes, she decided, the scales are tipped for you.

"Alright," she sighed, against her better judgement. "I’m going to check on the woman."

Dr. Jameson walked out of the fracture room having turned the man with the fractured arm over to one of the residents. "Dr. Margulies, don’t be a fool. You can’t go out there. The hospital will be liable."

"Someone may be badly injured. What’s more important?" Alex spread her arms wide as she walked backwards away from him.

Jameson started to open his mouth then stopped and an evil glint flashed in his eyes. "Fine, you go right ahead."

Regina ran after Alex. "I’m going with you."

Alex spun around. "No you’re not." She put a hand on Regina’s arm. "You stay here. There’s no sense in you getting in trouble too." Dr. Margulies walked away from her charge and out into the driving rain.

Regina put her hands on her hips and looked down at the floor. Taking less than a second to make up her mind, she ran into the storeroom pulling out one of the trauma kits that the paramedics used to stock their rigs. She hoisted the bright orange bag over her shoulder and ran toward the door.

Dr. Jameson blocked her, his neck veins bulging and face turning red as he watched his chief attending defy his authority as she disappeared into the darkness. "You’re stealing hospital property, Dr. Kingston. You could be terminated for that."

Regina lifted her chin defiantly. "It’s not considered stealing if you’re using supplies to help a patient Dr. Jameson." She brushed past him, knocking him in the stomach with the bulky kit slung over her shoulder.

"Just remember I make the rules!" he shouted after her. "Go play the hero with your friend and see what kind of trouble you get into."

Alex was soaked by the time she ran up the hill and got to the ambulance. It was facing the wrong way and from the looks of it the rig must have spun into the truck and hit the street sign. The front window was shattered. Glass crunched under her sneakers as she jogged across the pavement. Wrenching open the passenger side door, she crawled inside, wincing as shards of glass bit into her ankle. She grimaced as she pressed her fingers against the driver’s neck, checking his pulse, knowing that there was nothing she could do for him now. Backing out of the ambulance, she ducked reflexively as lightning flashed and thunder clapped overhead.

Alex ran through the grass toward the truck.

A woman’s voice filled with pain and fear reached her ears. "Andy?"

"I’m Alex Margulies. I’m a doctor," she answered the woman. She flicked on the flashlight she had brought with her and directed the beam over the interior of the sports utility vehicle. The air bags had deployed and the woman was still in her seat belt. Alex shrugged out of her lab coat and crawled inside the back passenger door of the vehicle, hunching down beside the woman. The dashboard had been pushed in by the force of the collision and was pinning the woman’s legs. "What’s your name?"

"Laura…oh god," she hissed as another contraction hit her. "It’s coming. Oh god…please, it hurts."

"Does anything else hurt, Laura?" Alex asked, noticing how pale she looked.

"My left leg," came the shaky reply.

"Alex?" Regina was at the door peering in at her.

Alex lifted her head and shot a steely glance at the resident. "Dammit Regina, I told you not to come out here." Seeing the stricken look on Regina’s face and realizing that it was too late anyway now that she was there, she gave up. "Oh never mind…is there a neck collar in that kit?"

Regina ripped open the Velcro straps and opened the canvas pack. "Here," she handed the collar to Alex.

Alex carefully slipped the collar around the woman’s neck.

The woman let out an agonized scream and clutched her abdomen. "Oh god it hurts!"

Alex pushed herself up and spoke softly to the woman as she examined her abdomen. She felt the baby sitting low and guessed the seat belt was restricting its movement into the birth canal. "Laura, I need to release the seatbelt."

"Try and stay still Laura." Alex instructed, as the woman strained to lift herself back as the belt released.

"I need to lay back…baby’s…coming," Laura gritted her teeth against another contraction.

"Ok, Laura listen to me. I’m going to move the seat back very slowly. I need room to be able to check on the baby." Straining, Alex reached down underneath the seat and pulled the handle up. With her other arm she slid the seat back. She moved the flashlight over the woman’s body and stopping when she saw her lower leg.

"What’s wrong?" Laura asked.

"Your leg’s broken Laura," Alex told her.

"I can’t really feel my foot," Laura said quietly, closing her eyes as she rested between contractions.

"Regina, I can’t get down by her legs. See if you can open the passenger side door and get down there. We need to stabilize the fracture."

Regina tried pulling on the door but couldn’t budge it. "Alex I can’t get it to move," she called out. A flash of lightning crackled overhead and Regina yelped, ducking as thunder ominously rolled through the dark sky.

Alex quickly slid out of the back passenger door. Grasping the door handle and the window frame, she braced herself and pulled back with all her strength, the door groaning in protest as it gave way to her.

The doctor grabbed Regina’s arm, pulling her close so the woman wouldn’t hear her. "We’re going to have to put a tourniquet on her leg. She’s got a compound fracture and she pumping out arterial blood. If she loses too much we’ll lose the baby too."

The resident nodded and squeezed herself in between the dashboard and the front seat, bending over to look at the leg. She caught her breath as she saw the pearly white jagged pieces of bone protruding through the skin of the woman’s shin. Alex handed her a length of rubber tubing and Regina tied it above the gash in the woman’s leg. The pulsing of blood slowed considerably and Regina slipped an air cast over the lower leg to stabilize the fracture site.

"I’ll be right back, Regina." Alex ran to the ambulance and yanked open the rear door of the rig, stepping up into the vehicle. She picked up the backboard, jumped down out of the ambulance and ran back to the truck.

Laura moaned as another contraction started. Regina looked up as Alex returned and looked in on her. "We’re going to have to lay her back so we can check on the baby."

Nodding in agreement, the taller doctor held up the backboard she had retrieved from the back of the ambulance while Regina had been busy with the woman’s leg. She crawled in the back seat as Regina pulled up on the handle to lower the seat back. Alex slid the board behind Laura to support her spine.

"I’m going to start an IV. Regina, you need to check the baby. I can’t fit down there." Alex indicated the small space that Regina had wedged her torso into.

The blonde stared up at her mentor, swallowing nervously. She wiped her wet bangs out of her eyes with her forearm. It was one thing to deliver a baby in the hospital with all its modern, hi-tech equipment; this was another story entirely. Regina prayed that she would hear the sound of the sirens from the recently dispatched paramedic unit, but the only thing that reached her ears was the drumming of rain and the continual rumble of thunder overhead.

Laura cried out again as another contraction took hold.

"I need scissors, Alex," Regina said, hoping her voice didn’t betray how nervous she felt. This was probably one of the few times in her life she wished that she was much taller than her five foot four frame.

"Here." And the scissors were in her hand.

"Laura." Regina waited for the woman’s eyes to focus on her. "I’m going to cut your underwear. We need to get it off so we can check the baby."

"G’head." She sounded groggy and Regina realized she was quickly slipping into shock.

Regina pulled the garment away and examined the woman. She looked up at her attending. "This baby’s not going to wait for the paramedics. Alex, I don’t know if I can -"

"Easy. You’re doing fine," A comforting voice rumbled in her ear from above her. Alex was kneeling in the driver’s seat holding the flashlight over Regina giving her what little light she could.

Regina could see the perineum distending and knew the head would be crowning with the next couple of contractions. She could hear the woman breathing hard and felt her tense under her hands as another contraction started. "You’re doing great Laura."

Regina looked up at the woman. "Ok, Laura try and relax. I can see the head. That’s it -you’re doing great."

The woman screamed again and clutched at Alex’s hand, making her wince as her fingers were squeezed in a vice-like grip. Rain drummed down on the roof of the truck filling it with its incessant noise, and in the distance, the wail of a siren could be heard from the approaching ambulance.

Regina felt a wave of relief go through her as the ambulance approached. Finally.

Laura screamed again and Alex looked over Regina’s shoulder as she watched the resident gently guide the head out. The shoulders and the rest of the body followed minutes later.

"It’s a boy." Regina breathed a sigh of relief, as she leaned over and gingerly settled the baby on his mother’s stomach. Laura opened her eyes briefly and mumbled something that Regina couldn’t quite understand. The resident squirmed back out from the tight space she had been hunched in, grimacing as she saw the blood covering the front of her scrubs.

Alex was looking around for something to wrap the baby in when the ambulance finally pulled up behind them. A young paramedic stuck his head in the wrecked vehicle and blanched when he saw the scene before him.

Alex pinned him with her eyes. "Get blankets, a clamp and scissors, now."

Looking down at the infant, the attending checked his pulse and breathing satisfied that he was all right for now. Returning seconds later, the paramedic handed Alex everything she had asked for. The dark-haired doctor quickly clamped the cord and cut it, giving orders to the resident at the same time. "Regina, take the baby into the emergency room and call the Intensive Care Unit. I want one of the neonatologists to check him out." Wrapping the baby in the blanket, Alex reached across the seat and laid him in Regina’s arms. "Go on. Tell Sandy we’re going to need an OR for this lady."

Sandy met Regina at the door and took the baby from her, listening as Regina told her about the woman in the truck. Within minutes the emergency room was once again chaotic as the paramedics and Alex wheeled the mother into one of the rooms and residents from the neonatal unit arrived to take over the care of the newborn.

Regina was standing in the hallway with her arms clamped tightly over her chest, shivering as she watched the surgical team wheel Laura off to the operating room.

"Here." A blanket was tossed over her shoulders and a set of dry scrubs was thrust around in front of her. Taking the scrubs, Regina turned around to see Alex looking down at her. Blue eyes twinkled for a moment and then turned predatory as they looked up and fixed on someone else.

"You know, Dr. Margulies," Dr. Jameson said, his voice oozing sarcasm, "you just solved all my problems for me. You put the hospital at risk for the last time. I just talked to the surgeon and that woman is going to lose her leg. You were the one who put the tourniquet on it."

Regina opened her mouth to protest. "Don’t interrupt me," Jameson snapped. "I’ve already contacted the medical review committee. You are suspended starting immediately."

"You can’t suspend her," Regina jumped to Alex’s defense. "She didn’t-"

"Regina don’t," Alex warned, holding a hand out to stop her.

Looking between the two doctors, the young resident stepped forward. "I put the tourniquet on her leg, not Dr. Margulies."

A wicked smile crossed the medical director’s lips. "Fine. You’re both suspended, immediately."

Regina’s mouth dropped. "B…but she didn’t do it."

"She’s your immediate supervisor. You both are going down," he said triumphantly. "Have a nice day ladies." Looking back at his nemesis, Dr. Jameson laughed. "You won’t be so lucky this time," and walked away.

Regina turned to say something to Alex but she had already slipped away. "W…where did she go?" she asked turning around.

Sandy who stood at the desk nearby and witnessed the entire scene, pointed at one of the empty trauma rooms.

Regina headed to the locker room, scrambled out of her filthy scrubs and jumped into the shower washing off the blood and grime from the delivery. She threw on the set of scrubs Alex had given her and headed for the trauma room.

Regina stood by the window, looking in at the curtain that was pulled across the room, the bright procedure light was on over the table casting a shadow of someone sitting on the stretcher. Pushing the door open, she slipped quietly into the room, looked around the curtain and saw Alex sitting on the treatment table with her back to her. She was hunched over in an awkward position, her leg bent underneath her, and she peered intently at her ankle.

"You can come in, Regina," Alex said quietly.

"How did you know it was me?" Regina asked, as she stepped up beside the doctor.

"No one else would have followed me in here."

"Oh. Alex I...I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to get you in trouble."

"It’s not your fault, Regina."

Regina hung her head, feeling miserable about the whole situation. "What happened to your ankle?" she exclaimed, as she saw blood seeping out from under a wad of gauze Alex held on it.

Alex shrugged. "I must have cut it on the glass getting into the car."

"Let me see." Regina pulled Alex’s hands away and carefully lifted the gauze. "You’re going to need stitches," she said, looking up at the woman.

"I know." Alex held up a package of three oh silk and handed it to Regina.

"You want me to do it?"

Alex nodded her head. "I can’t reach it very well."

Regina walked to the sink and washed her hands, pulling out a set of sterile gloves from an overhead cabinet. Filling a syringe with lidocaine, she walked back to Alex and injected the medication around the site. The resident pulled the gloves on and took the silk out of the package that Alex had opened for her.

Regina looked up at her. "You ready?"

Alex leaned back on her hands and closed her eyes.

"Don’t like getting stitches, huh?"

Alex shook her head. Regina smiled to herself and started stitching the wound closed.

"You have gentle hands," Alex said, breaking the silence in the room.

Regina looked up and their eyes met. She held Alex’s gaze and then ducked her head, turning her attention back to the gash; she felt her ears turning red from the heat of the blush working up on her face.

"Thanks." Regina finished closing the wound and then wrapped it in a sterile dressing. When she was done she peeled her gloves off and stood at the end of the table looking down at her hands. "You know, what you did back there was the right thing to do. I’m just sorry I got you in trouble, Alex."

"Don’t be. If I had to do it again I would." Alex smiled and leaned forward, picking her sneaker up off the table. She turned serious as she pulled it back on her foot.

"Listen, Jameson wants me out. I know that." She held her hand up at Regina’s protest. "Let me finish. They will probably meet with us separately in a day or two. Just tell them exactly what happened. You’ll be ok. I promise."

"What about you Alex?" Regina asked, feeling herself close to tears now. I only wanted to help and now we’re both getting in trouble for this. It’s not fair.

"Don’t worry about me."

Regina wished she believed her as she watched her walk out of the room.

******

The chief attending walked to the open office door and leaned on the doorframe. "What do you want Margulies?" he asked, without looking up.

Alex walked into Jameson’s office, stood over his desk, and stared at the top of his head. "You can take my privileges away, right now. No meeting. Just leave Dr. Kingston out of this. She has nothing to do with you and I."

"Hmm. Interesting." He leaned back in his chair and laced his fingers behind his head, surveying the woman standing in front of him. "Actually, I think it’ll be fun to watch you squirm as you see your little friend get hung out to dry."

He wasn’t sure how she did it. But all he saw was the door to his office slam shut and then felt his body lifted out of his chair. The two diplomas hanging on the wall crashed to the floor with the impact of his body. When the room stopped spinning, Dr. Jameson found his back pinned against the wall, with Alex’s hand wrapped around his throat and her knee shoved up painfully against his groin.

Her voice purred in his ear. "I’ll say this one time. You take my privileges away and leave Dr. Kingston alone. Are we clear?" She pressed harder with her hand and her knee.

She felt his throat work as he swallowed. "Crystal," he squeaked.

Alex pulled her badge off her lab coat and threw it on his desk. "Have the paperwork filled out. I’ll sign it tomorrow." Without another word she left the office.

******

Regina unlocked the door to her condo and walked in, locking it behind her. Everything ached in her body and she felt like she was getting sick. She looked at the blinking light on her answering machine and headed into the kitchen, ignoring it for the moment.

Feeling thirsty, she opened the refrigerator and pulled out a can of soda. The tab opened with a pop and hiss of bubbles, and she took a long, drawn-out swallow. Alex said everything would work out but in the pit of her stomach Regina felt her guts churning and her head was starting to throb.

The message machine blinked its red light incessantly, demanding her attention. The petite blonde woman sighed, knowing it was either her mother or Derrick calling and truth be told she really didn’t feel like dealing with either of them right now. Blink. Blink.

"Oh, alright." Regina gave in and hit the button.

"Hi, Regina its mom. I just wanted to remind you about our plans to have you come up here this weekend. Please call. We really want to see you since you won’t be up for the holidays. Call us on Friday before you leave."

"Great, just great." Regina slid down onto the couch and held her head between her hands. "Gee mom, sorry I can’t come home this weekend because I have to go to a hearing to see of I lose my privileges as a resident at the hospital." Well, this ought to drop me right down to Jeffrey’s rung of the ladder. Regina looked up. Jeffrey? Oh where did I put that number?

She was on her feet and rustling through papers on the kitchen table. "Damn." She put her hands on her hips and looked around the room. Walking into her bedroom, she flicked on the light and yanked open the drawer to her nightstand, emptying its contents on the floor and quickly started sorting through it. "Aha!" Holding the piece of paper in her hand, she looked at the clock. California was how many hours behind Eastern Standard Time?

"Come on, Jeff, pick up." Regina paced her living room, listening to the phone ring on the other end of the line.

"Uh, hello." A hoarse voice answered.

"Jeffrey? It’s Regina."

"Oh. Regina, no, this is Darryl. Hang on a second." She heard muffled voices in the background.

"Regina? What’s wrong?" Her brother asked.

"How do you know something’s wrong?"

"It’s two in morning out here Reg. Or did you just forget the time difference again?" Her older brother was awake now and sitting over the edge of his bed.

"Shit. I’m sorry. I guess both."

"Both? You’re confusing me Regina. Have you been drinking?"

"No. I uh, listen. I’m in trouble. At least I think I am," Regina motioned with her hand as she walked restlessly around the room.

"What did you do now?"

"It’s a long story. Um, well we saved a woman tonight who was in a car accident. We delivered her baby in the car, but she’s going to lose her leg. The hospital is suspending us and they might take our privileges away." Regina took a breath.

Silence at the other end of the phone then, "Jeff, you there?"

"Eyah. What the hell happened?" He asked. "Ok, this time give me the details and slow down."

Regina spent an hour detailing out what happened earlier that evening. "I’m sorry Jeff. I know you have to go to work in the morning."

"It is morning. Don’t worry about it. You’re my sister and the only member of my family who still talks to me. Hey, thanks for the anniversary card; Darryl thought it was really sweet."

Regina smiled briefly. "You’re welcome. So what do you think, Jeffrey? Can they suspend us and take our privileges away?"

"Well, based on what you told me about the hospital’s policy, they could suspend you. But considering the circumstances, the weather, the ambulance being delayed, the fact that the woman was critically injured and in labor…" He hesitated and took a breath. "It would be a poor choice to make scapegoats out of two doctors who saved her and the baby." Jeffrey was in full legal mode now. "Hospitals revoke privileges when doctors practice bad medicine and make mistakes that, based on the situation, they shouldn’t have. You know that, Regina. Do yourself a favor: get that policy before you go into that meeting, and fax it to me. Upon hearing his sister’s agreement, he continued. "So you sound pretty upset about this Dr. Margulies. Is he a friend of yours?"

"No - Alex is the attending I report to while I’m on the residency," Regina explained. She started to tell Jeffrey that Alex was a woman but stopped. It wasn’t relevant anyway.

"Alright, well call me later today. Let me know what happens. You have my pager number?"

"Yeah I do," Regina said, holding the piece of paper.

Chapter Eight

Regina fell asleep in bed still wearing her clothes. It had been a restless night filled with strange dreams and she woke up finding herself tangled in the bed covers. After several minutes of kicking and wrestling with them, she rolled out of bed, quickly showered, dressed, and ate a quick breakfast of cereal and juice. It was still raining out so she opted to drive the short distance to the hospital, parking in the lot reserved for medical staff.

She practically ran into Marcus and Dr. Washington in her haste to get into the emergency department.

"I guess you already know about last night?" she asked, looking warily at the two of them. Marcus nodded his head but remained silent. Ever since the day that the incident with the needle-stick occurred, Marcus had tried to keep his distance from Regina, succeeding more lately than in the beginning.

"Yeah, we heard," Dr. Washington said, looking grim. He looked around the department and grabbed the resident’s arm, pulling her into the staff lounge. "Listen, Regina, everyone knows that you and Dr. Margulies did the right thing. Jameson is using this as an opportunity to discredit her."

"I know," Regina said, her eyes glistening with tears.

"You have to talk to Alex before she leaves. I don’t know what he said to her but she’s giving up her privileges and resigning. I saw her earlier this morning."

Regina’s heart skipped a beat. "You mean she’s quitting? Just like that? I don’t understand. Why?"

He shrugged. "I don’t know Regina. Maybe she’ll talk to you." Dr. Washington smiled sadly. "You both did a great job last night." He patted her on the shoulder. "The woman was asking for you and Alex when she came out of recovery. You should go see her," he said, before he left the room.

Regina walked aimlessly through the corridors of the hospital. Everyone she asked told her they had not seen Alex and she was getting worried that she had missed her altogether. She had to find out why Alex was just giving something up that she knew she loved. Regina displayed her id badge to the security guard as she walked onto the wing of the hospital that was reserved for the newborns and their mothers. The unit clerk at the nurse’s station directed her to the room where Laura was staying.

Regina knocked on the door and a quiet voice told her to come in. Peeking around the multi-colored curtain, Regina saw the woman whose baby she had delivered, lying in the bed. She was hooked up to an IV; her face was still pale and her brown eyes looked sunken and hollow. She smiled weakly when she saw Regina.

"Come here." She held out her hand to her.

Regina walked to the edge of the bed and squeezed her hand gently. Her eyes traveled down the length of the covers and her gut clenched when she noticed the blanket as it dipped down to the mattress just below Laura’s left knee. Regina lifted her eyes and saw Laura’s husband lying in the chair on the other side of the bed dozing. His arm from elbow to fingers was encased in a fiberglass cast, which hung at his chest in a sling.

"I’m so sorry, Laura," Regina said, looking at the heavily bandaged leg.

Laura nodded her head. "You saved my baby. Wait until you see him."

A slight rattling then broke the silence that of the clear bassinet’s wheels across the linoleum floor as the nurse rolled the newborn into his mother’s room. "Here he is Mrs. Martin." The nurse said, as she pushed the bassinet up to the edge of Laura’s bed.

Laura struggled to sit up, losing her balance momentarily as she overcompensated for the loss of her lower leg. Regina steadied her and leaned over her shoulder as Laura cuddled the infant to her chest. A light, downy fuzz covered the crown of his head and tiny blue eyes peeked out between the puffy eyelids.

"He’s beautiful, Laura," Regina whispered. Laura beamed at Regina and squeezed her hand. "What’s his name?" Regina asked, running a hand gently over the baby’s head, staring in wonder at the little boy she had brought into the world last night.

Laura looked over at her husband who had woken up and was leaning forward in the chair. He nodded his head and went back to marveling at the bundle lying in his wife’s arms. "Alex Reginald Martin. He wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for you two."

Regina was flabbergasted and stared at Laura in disbelief. Her jaw worked several times before she could find any words to say. "I…well…thank you," she finally managed to get out. After hugging both of them, she left and wondered as she walked down the hallway if Alex had come up here to see them. She had forgotten to ask before she left their room.

Regina walked into the emergency department and headed to the nurse manager’s office. The door was unlocked so she let herself in and walked over to the shelf that held the policy and procedure manuals. She wrinkled her nose as she read the titles that were printed on the spine of the large three ring binders.

"Ah, administrative policies. It should be in there." Pulling the thick manual down, she opened it up and sat down behind the desk. It took her several minutes of flipping through the index to find the policy she was looking for. Regina pulled it out and read it over, deciding to make a copy. Next, she picked up the phone and dialed the number for the police department.

Regina closed the office door quietly behind her and walked out into the department. Dr. Jameson spotted her immediately as she stepped around the corner. "I have the VP of medical affairs in the conference room down the hall. We both want to speak to you, now, Dr. Kingston."

Regina took a deep breath and squared her shoulders. "I need to get something off the fax machine." Regina walked away from the director praying the report would be there.

"Now, Dr. Kingston." She could hear the edge of barely contained anger in his voice.

Regina ignored him and tapped her fingers nervously as the machine beeped and a fax started coming through. She saw the heading on the top of the page and breathed a sigh of relief as she retrieved the document, folding it and sliding it into her bag.

Walking slowly towards the door, her anxiety built inside as she remembered her conversation with Jeffrey earlier in the morning. She wished he were here to help her now.

She entered the carpeted room with its mahogany tables and chairs lined up around the perimeter. Dr. Jameson walked to the head of the table and sat down, resting his hands in front of him on the table. A sharply dressed woman sat to his left. She was wearing a black pantsuit with a red silk shirt on underneath. Her short blonde hair accented her strong features and she nodded her head at Regina in acknowledgment.

"Sit down, Dr. Kingston." The medical director pointed to a chair across from the other woman. "This is Dr. Mitchard, our vice president of medical affairs. She already heard Dr. Margulies’ story and I suppose yours is much the same, so let’s not waste her time, shall we?"

Regina watched the woman as her eyes narrowed subtly and her jaw muscles worked as the director spoke.

"Since Dr. Margulies is your supervisor, legally she bears the responsibility for your actions. You both rendered emergency medical care outside of the hospital and caused irreparable damage to a patient." Dr. Jameson opened a folder in front of him. "We have no choice but to suspend you without pay until the medical review committee can meet and determine the appropriate course of action." He slid a triplicate document over the table and rolled the pen in her direction. Sitting back in his chair, he crossed his legs and folded his hands over one knee, looking very self confident and smug. "This is a copy of the report. I need you to sign it."

Regina could hear the blood rushing in her head as she listened to him. Jesus, this couldn’t be happening, could it? She pulled the paper toward her, read it over twice. "No, no. This isn’t correct," she said, sitting up straighter and pushing her hair behind her ear.

"What do you mean?" The VP leaned forward, suddenly taking an interest in the woman sitting before her for the first time since the meeting began.

"This says the vehicle that Mrs. Martin was in was off the hospital property. It wasn’t. It was on the front lawn of the hospital." Regina pushed the paper away from her. "I’m not signing this."

"That doesn’t mean a damn thing. Sign the paper." Jameson leaned forward in his seat, letting the front legs of his chair bang heavily onto the carpet.

"Like hell I will!" Regina raised her voice.

"You have no proof that the car was on hospital property." He stood up, putting his hands on the table and leaning over her.

"I have the police report." Regina stared back at him, her eyes challenging and defiant. Thank you Jeffrey. I owe you one.

Dr. Jameson paled and the vice president leaned forward, touching Regina’s arm. "Dr. Kingston, may I see the police report?"

She cast a warning glance at the medical director. Regina dug inside her backpack and pulled out the report. Unfolding it, she slid it across the glass-topped table.

"But the policy…" Dr. Jameson argued.

Dr. Mitchard cut him off with a motion of her hand. She studied the report and pushed it over to the medical director. "Jim, stop splitting hairs. Yes, they took a risk and the hospital will probably be liable for the woman’s injuries, but it could have been much worse."

She turned her attention to the resident sitting across from her. "Well, this certainly sheds a different light on the situation since the car was on hospital property. It would look very damaging for the medical center to take the stance that we will not offer medical care to an injured or sick person because they’re not inside the building. I’m afraid the suspension will stand until the committee meets."

Regina breathed a sigh of relief. "What about Dr. Margulies?"

"Obviously you’re not aware that Dr. Margulies resigned this morning due to personal reasons," Dr. Jameson said.

A cold numbness settled over Regina as she watched residents and nurses hustling in and out of various rooms taking care of patients. For the first time in her career, she felt oddly distanced and unsettled as she watched as an observer, looking in at what had become her life over the past couple of months.

Sandy walked up behind Regina and tapped her on the shoulder. "Hey."

Startled from her daze, Regina turned around. "Why did she leave, Sandy?" trying to fight the lump forming in the base of her throat.

Sandy lowered her head and shrugged her shoulders. "Maybe she got tired of fighting Jameson at every turn."

"I don’t understand it, Sandy. She could fight this." Her voice was ragged and tears started rolling down her cheeks again. "Do you know where she is?" Regina wiped the tears from her face.

"No. She didn’t tell me where she was going." The nurse took pity on the young woman standing before her. "Here, I have her cell phone number." She wrote it down on a piece of paper and handed it to Regina. Give her a call. I think she still has it."

Regina took the paper from Sandy and headed home. There was nothing left for her to do here. The hospital would contact her when the committee was ready to meet.

******

Fighting the quiet depression in her heart, Regina made the three-hour drive up to her parent’s house. She had only talked to them on the phone twice since she had broken up with Derrick and could only imagine the reception she was going to get.

Turning into the dirt driveway, she slowed the car, the gravel crunching beneath her tires as she drove up to the old farmhouse. A familiar wash of memories flooded her as she stepped out of the car and shut the door.

Her father walked out of the barn carrying a shovel and a pail. He stopped and watched as she stepped out of her car and shut the door. "Hello, Regina."

"Hi dad." She walked up to him and kissed him on the cheek. Looking at her father, she decided he had more gray hair and the lines on his face seemed deeper than the last time she saw him.

His dark eyes regarded her carefully. "So, I guess you’ve made up your mind about Derrick then." He set the bucket down on the ground and leaned on the handle of the shovel regarding his only daughter carefully.

Regina nodded her head. "It’s the right thing for me to do."

Her father closed his eyes and shook his head. "I don’t understand your generation Regina. You have a good man who’s willing to take care of you. Why do you always want to be so independent?"

"Dad, please, I really don’t want to get into this. Is mom inside?" Regina asked. Might as well get this over with, she thought morosely.

"Yeah," he sighed. "She’s pretty upset."

Regina nodded her head and walked up to the wooden steps. Of course, she would be upset. She pushed opened the screen door and stepped inside, holding her hand out behind her so it wouldn’t bang when it closed. "Mom?"

She listened and heard the creak of the floorboards over head. She was in the sewing room. Where else would she be? It was Friday and her mother always ironed clothes on Friday.

"Up here, Regina."

Regina climbed slowly up the steep staircase, letting her eyes look over the family pictures that hung on the wall. There were empty spaces where Jeffrey’s pictures had been taken down. Regina had never been able to understand how her mother had shut him out of her life so completely; it was like he had never existed in this house.

Stepping onto the small landing, Regina watched as her mother poked her head out of the room. She was wearing a faded denim skirt and a brightly colored shirt.

"Hi." Regina stood in the hallway awkwardly. Part of her wanted to reach out and hug her mother, needing the re-assurance that everything was ok, but she didn’t. Physical displays of affection were not commonplace in her home and her mother’s piercing green eyes held her at bay.

"You look thin, Regina. Aren’t you eating enough?" Alice walked back into the sewing room, picked up the iron, and started pressing the creases into her husband’s shirt.

"I’m fine mother," Regina said, pointedly avoiding any questions about her health. Regina could see her mother’s jaw working as she clenched and unclenched the muscles, and she felt the butterflies start in her stomach. Quietly, she stepped into the small room and leaned her hip against the wooden desk.

Her mother lifted the shirt off the ironing board and hung it on a wire hanger. She turned and set the hanger over the door and glanced at her daughter.

"Derrick was heart-broken, Regina." It was a simple statement but it spoke volumes.

It had always been about how other people perceived the family. Appearances are important Regina. You’ll understand that one-day. Her mother’s voice echoed in her ears.

"I don’t love him mother. Can’t you understand that?" Regina looked down at her hands. Oh, this was going to be a joyful weekend, she thought.

Her mother pulled another shirt from the pile and laid it on the ironing board. She sprayed the fabric with starch and picked up the iron, pressing the button and causing steam to belch out as she ironed the shirt. "Regina you hardly gave him a chance. Love doesn’t just happen, it takes time."

Regina tilted her head up against the wall and closed her eyes. "Mom, has dad ever laid a hand on you?"

"What kind of a question is that young lady? How dare you." Her mother’s face reddened with rage.

"I didn’t think so."

Her mother’s eyes narrowed. "Just what are you saying?"

"Derrick threw a vase at me mom or did you conveniently forget that?" She yanked the sleeve of her shirt up and shoved her arm out so her mother could see the red and puckered scar running up the inside of her arm. Her mother turned away. "I needed close to twenty stitches by the time it was all over."

Her mother pursed her lips. "Well, you’ve always had the capacity to infuriate people with your stubbornness. He shouldn’t have done that though."

Regina chewed her bottom lip. "Mom, I can’t love someone like that."

"Regina." Her mother turned around to face her. "You’re going to end up being old and alone. Is that what you want for yourself?"

Coming to the decision that talking about this was a useless proposition, Regina walked to the door. "I’m going to bring my bags in." She walked down the stairs, fighting back the sting of the tears welling up in her eyes.

******

Dinner was a quiet affair. Regina picked at her food and excused herself after enduring the idle conversation her mother made about people that she hardly knew anymore. Most of them she had lost contact with after she got accepted to medical school.

Regina brought her plate into the kitchen and set it down in the sink. She could hear the hushed voice of her mother talking in the other room as she washed the plates and the pots. It was obvious her breakup with Derrick was the topic of conversation. She stacked everything in the dish rack and walked back to the living room.

"I’m going to take a walk," she announced, as she walked back through to the front hall.

Her parents looked up at her and her father motioned her over. "Take my flashlight and don’t get lost in the woods. Its in the hall closet."

"Dad I think I know my way around. I grew up here," Regina said testily. It was like she had never grown up and left home. Some things just never changed. I’ve been here half a day and not once has either of them asked about my work. The only thing they’re concerned with is Derrick.

Regina grabbed the flashlight and her jacket from the hall closet. She stepped out onto the deck and cringed when the screen door banged loudly against the frame. "Sorry," she called out.

Wrapping her purple and green fleece jacket around her, Regina stepped down off the porch and walked over the gravel driveway. She headed up the hill, listening to the sounds of the night animals around her. In the distance, she heard the haunting sound of the barn owl calling out in the darkness.

Her feet carried her over the broken ground, down a small hill and toward the stand of pine trees she had played in as a child. This place had always been the one she had come to when she was confused or hurting. No one ever looked for her this far from the house, never thinking she would wander this far from home. Inhaling the fresh scent of the pines, Regina squeezed between their tightly woven branches. Ahead of her, she could begin to hear the sound of the water running through the narrow creek on the other side of the pines.

She walked quietly along the pine needle-covered trail. A shadow loomed ahead of her and she made out the dark shape of the ageless glacial boulder that sat proudly above the running water. She stepped up onto its base and felt for the familiar handholds; she lifted herself up and crawled onto her favorite spot.

Overhead, the moon was rising and the stars were twinkling brightly in the sky. Regina leaned back against the rock, pulling her knees up to her chest, wrapping her arms around her legs and gazed up at the stars.

Her eyes scanned the darkness above and she took a breath as she saw the hazy arc of the Milky Way, the light of millions of stars reflecting back to earth from light years away.

The stars had always fascinated the young woman. They hung up in the sky like sentinels looking down over the world, connecting and binding the strands of time and space together. The same stars that people had looked upon when they gazed up at the sky thousands of years ago. She felt a profound sadness flow through her now as she sat alone in the darkness.

She had forgotten how awkward it was for her to go home. Her old friends acted weird around her after they had found out she was going to medical school. She’d finally decided they were just jealous that she had left the small town she grew up in and moved onto better things. Her mother, well, that was another story altogether.

She had always resented the fact that Regina had defended Jeffrey’s lifestyle to her, considered it a personal affront that her only daughter hadn’t sided with her. Her father and her younger brother Michael, although they didn’t approve of it, tried to keep in touch with him after he first left home. Gradually they gave up, as the weekly battles had taken their toll on all of them. Finally, her mother had resorted to ridding the house of anything that reminded her of Jeffrey.

Regina had secretly written to him and kept in touch, knowing how hard it was for him to follow his heart even though it had destroyed his relationship with his family. When Regina had taken the MCAPS and gotten into the University of Massachusetts, her mother’s reaction had been subdued at best. For Regina it was an escape and to her mother it was a betrayal. Her only daughter wasn’t supposed to leave home before she was married.

She wasn’t sure how long she sat on the rock, only knew that her seat was sore and she was starting to fall asleep. Carefully, she slipped down off the rock and made her way back to the house.

Regina noticed the light was on in the study as she walked through the front door and closed it quietly behind her. She could hear her mother’s voice talking but heard no one else’s.

Deciding she was talking on the phone Regina headed for the stairs. As she started to walk up the steps, she overheard her mother’s voice and stopped. The hairs stood up on the back of her neck.

"You have to come up and talk to her."

"Yes, I know its all been a terrible misunderstanding Derrick. I’m sure you two can work it out."

"It’s all right. Good, then we’ll see you tomorrow morning. Excellent."

Regina walked quietly to the door of the study and waited for her mother to hang up the phone and turn around. Her mother’s eyes widened slightly and then her mouth set in a thin line when she saw her daughter standing there.

"How dare you," Regina growled, barely able to contain the anger she felt. "I can’t believe you would go behind my back and ask Derrick to come up here. You know damn well I don’t want to see him!"

"Regina, I’m just looking out for your best interests. You obviously aren’t capable of doing that," her mother insisted. "Who is this doctor that you’ve been working with in the emergency department?"

Oh shit. "She’s my supervisor." Regina crossed her arms. Warning bells went off in her head.

"After what Derrick just told me, it doesn’t sound like she should still be practicing medicine at all."

"Mom, you have no idea what went on. Derrick doesn’t like her because she ran him out of the ER the night he attacked me."

Her mother’s eyes searched her face. "She’s -" she stopped and put a hand up to her mouth.

"She’s what mom?" Regina asked, feeling her heart begin to race. Oh god, not now. I don’t need this.

"A lesbian," her mother spat the word out like she had just tasted something rancid.

"So."

"You should find another hospital to work at."

Regina laughed at her. "Don’t be ridiculous mother. There are gay people everywhere."

"She’s going to try and corrupt you."

Regina rolled her eyes. "Mother, that is so -" she threw her arms up. "Either you’re gay or you’re not. What does it matter who you fall in love with as long as they love you back?"

Her mother’s eyes narrowed. "What are you saying?"

Regina’s heart skipped a beat, as she realized the question for what it was. She was tired of the half-truths and she wasn’t going to keep living a lie. She took a breath letting it out slowly. "I’m gay."

"You are not!" Her mother stepped up closer and pointed a finger in her face. "Don’t you dare say that to me."

Regina backed up. "Come on mom, you knew three years ago. Why do you think you asked me about Sarah?" She stuck her hands in her pockets and looked down at the floor. "The problem was I was too scared to admit it to myself at the time." She looked back up.

"No! You are not a lesbian!" Her mother sat down in a chair. "Oh god, I think I’m going to be sick."

"You know what mom?" Regina jammed her hands down deeper in her pockets, feeling completely alienated for the second time in a day. "I think maybe Jeff was the lucky one when he left home."

Her mother stepped up to her and slapped her hard across the face. "You bitch. I don’t know who you are anymore, Regina. You’ve changed since you left home and I don’t like the person you’re turning into."

Regina restrained herself from showing how much the slap hurt. "I think its called growing up, mom, and finding your own way." Regina kept her emotions in check as she stood face to face with her mother. Slowly she turned and walked up the stairs away from her mother, retreating into her old bedroom.

"We are not finished discussing this," her mother called after her. "You are not - like your brother."

Closing the door behind her, Regina leaned against it. Her heart pounded in her chest and her mind was racing. She couldn’t stay here. Derrick would be here by morning and he was the last person she wanted to see. Regina brought her hands up to her face and shook her head as the reality of what she had just done hit her. Good grief, I just came out to my mother. Oh, this is not good. What the hell were you thinking? I must be going crazy.

Pacing across the room, Regina looked at her unpacked suitcase. Part of her wanted to grab it, run down the stairs and drive away now, but she could barely keep her eyes open and if she got into the car now she was sure she would end up in a ditch or worse. Before she climbed into the bed she looked at her watch and set her alarm for midnight. At least she could get a couple hours of sleep before she left.

Two hours later, the gentle beeping woke her from a sound sleep. Blinking her eyes open, Regina reluctantly sat up from underneath the warm covers and ran a hand through her hair unsure of where she was for a second. Oh, just a little more time. I feel like I just fell asleep. It would have been so easy to lie back down and close her eyes, except her mind quickly reminded her that Derrick was on his way and that he had been the person who had disabled her car just a few nights ago. That and the thought of another confrontation with her mother was the only reminder Regina needed to get moving.

She felt catapulted back to her high school days as she snuck from her bedroom, carrying her bags and slipped down the stairs. Jeffrey and her would frequently wait until their parents went to sleep to sneak out of the house and go sit on their special rock by the creek. They had talked for hours, forming a bond between them that most siblings their age didn’t share.

Regina felt a pang of cowardice and guilt as she wrote a quick note to her parents. She would call them in a few days, but she couldn’t stay. She hoped they would understand in time. Regina locked the door behind her and got into her car. Starting the engine, she left the lights off as she pulled out of the driveway, turning them on as she headed down the road toward the Massachusetts Turnpike.

The interstate was deserted at this hour of the night as Regina traveled east toward Boston. She hadn’t really thought about where she was going, only that she wanted to get away from her home. Ironic that I still considered it home. It certainly isn’t anymore. Who was it that said that home is where the heart is anyway?

The young doctor just let her body go on autopilot, like it knew exactly where she needed to go even if she didn’t know why. In less than an hour, Regina turned off the turnpike and headed north onto route 93. Then it was a right turn into Sumner Tunnel and a toll to pay. After negotiating through the confusing directions at Logan Airport she left her car in long- term parking and walked toward the entrance for departing flights.

Inside she stood staring at the monitors wondering why she had ended up here of all places and why did she still have that awful sense of dread building inside of her? Digging in her pocket, she pulled out a wrinkled piece of paper and headed toward a bank of phones.

Chapter Nine

Alex stood in the second floor apartment looking out over Provincetown Bay. By sheer luck she had stumbled across the listing in the local newspaper five years ago. It was a small rectangular lot, with the old house sitting close to the road one block up from Commercial Street. She bought it for a reasonable price and had taken her time fixing the house up to her liking. She rented out the downstairs part of the house and kept the upstairs apartment as her own.

A separate entrance ensured her privacy. The narrow staircase led up to a small landing. A ninety-degree turn to the right, and the hallway that was bracketed by two large crawlspaces that she used for storage led to the apartment door.

The apartment itself was U-shaped. The walls were paneled with knotty pine wood and the ceiling was whitewashed with heavy wooden beams running across its length. There was a small rectangular wooden table that sat next to the bay window looking out onto the gravel driveway below. To the right of the room sat a maroon leather couch that pulled out into a bed, and a color television faced it from the opposite wall. Alex’s favorite spot in the apartment was the small deck with a sliding door entrance she had built onto the side of the house. Completing the U-shape was the area that was filled with the queen-sized bed with two nightstands.

She bought the house with the intention of making it an annual vacation spot. As it turned out, Lana had gotten sick again and the vacations had never become a reality. One of the last requests Lana had made before she died was for Alex to bring her ashes back to Provincetown and spread them out in the bay. Eight months had passed since her death and it had taken her all this time to return here.

Alex sighed as she turned away from the glass door. There was no sense in delaying the inevitable.

"Well, I guess its time I get this over with," she said quietly to herself. Alex opened the box that the urn was securely packed in and slipped the metal container into her backpack. Slinging the pack over her shoulder, she stepped out of the apartment, locked the door behind her, and headed down the stairs into the warm late-night summer air.

It was a clear night and the moon was out, three quarters’ full. Alex walked along the still bustling main drag in Provincetown. Weaving in and out of the crowd, she kept quietly to herself, stepping up onto the steps of some of the storefronts at intervals to keep away from the jostling crowds.

She gratefully left the noisy and raucous atmosphere behind her, heading down the narrow road toward the mile long outcropping of rocks that formed the jetty. It was high tide and she could hear the gentle sound of the water lapping up in between the rocks as she headed farther out into the darkness, picking her way carefully along the rocks. The smell of salt water and fish filled the air.

Finding a flat rock to stand on, Alex stood in the moonlit darkness and removed the urn from her backpack.

She stood quietly for a few odd moments watching the eerie trail of white moonlight flicker on the waves of the water and gradually disappear into the darkness as it reached the horizon. Alex raised her head and looked at the moon above. The man was still there looking down, but his face was only half-visible tonight. Alex closed her eyes as she was reminded her of another time she sat in the darkness with the moon the only source of light.

Opening her eyes, she let out a heavy sigh. There was a moment of uncertainty as she looked at the container that lay in her arm, holding Lana’s ashes. No, it was what she wanted, you promised. Unscrewing the lid, Alex squatted down on the rocks and stared into the dark water below. She thought that she should feel more sadness than she did and decided that maybe she was just numb from everything that had happened over the past several months.

Holding the urn in her hands she held it out over the water and emptied its contents, watching as the gray ashes were carried off in the breeze and disappeared into the dark water below. In the distance, a foghorn sounded. Goodbye, Lana.

"Ooh, how touching, Alex," a harsh voice broke the stillness.

Alex lifted her head up to see a blonde-haired woman dressed in jeans and a dark leather jacket, standing several feet away, clapping her hands slowly. "Hello, Dana."

"You know, I’m so hurt you didn’t invite me to this ceremony." Dana chewed hard on her bubble gum, snapping the bubbles loudly in between her teeth.

The tall, dark-haired woman stared at the leather-clad blonde and slowly stood up, twisting the top back on the urn. That was the whole point you self-absorbed, manipulative bitch. "After you didn’t show up for your own sister’s memorial service, I honestly didn’t think you cared one way or the other what I did with her damn ashes."

"You know I cared about Lana."

Alex stared down at the water, listening to the gentle lap of the waves on the rocks as she considered her next comment. "Only when it suited your purposes."

Dana flashed her a toothy grin and crossed her arms, shifting her weight onto one leg. "Oh, that hurts Alex."

"The truth usually does, Dana." Alex stated, her lip curling into an evil sneer.

"So, we finally get to see what Lana left the two of us. You know Alex, I was thinking, maybe we can go back to the store and have us a private party for old times sake after the lawyer does his thing with the will Sunday afternoon." She eyed her appraisingly.

Alex ignored the comment and picked up her backpack. She shoved the urn inside and zipped it shut. "Is that all you came out here for, Dana?" Alex asked her, knowing that it wasn’t.

"You never were much for conversation, were you Alex? Come and work with me again. We’ll split the profits fifty-fifty," Dana bluntly offered.

Alex brushed by her, starting to negotiate her way back toward the shore. "I’m not interested, Dana."

Scampering across several rocks, Dana caught up with Alex, and placed a hand on her arm. "What’s wrong Alex, afraid you’ll be tempted again?"

A look of pain crossed Alex’s face. God, I caused Lana enough pain to last a lifetime. "Yes."

"Come on Alex. They’re no strings attached this time. You’ve got no one to worry about now but yourself. I’ll make it worth your while," Dana said, smiling seductively.

"Give it a rest, Dana." Alex angrily shrugged her arm free.

"Well, you can’t blame me for trying, Alex. Here, I brought you something to help you relax tonight." Presenting the taller woman with a bag, Dana smiled. "I know how much you’ve been dreading this whole thing. Sweet dreams, love." Dana shoved a brown bag into Alex’s hand and winked at her, before she disappeared into the darkness. Alex stared after her wondering how in the hell she was going to keep her last promise to Lana.

She walked back to her apartment in the darkness. Restless and on edge, Alex prowled around the apartment. She opened the sliding glass door and stepped out onto the deck, folded her arms across her chest and leaned back against the railing, looking up at the sky. Seeing the stars overhead, she searched and found the constellation Regina had pointed out to her. Orion’s Belt. I wonder, does the sky look the same where you are tonight Regina?

Well, you sealed your fate today, Alex thought bitterly to herself. For better or for worse, she severed her ties with the hospital and that was just fine with her. I don’t need any more complications, damn it. Alex took a breath and blew it out slowly between her lips. Dropping her arms down to her sides, she looked across the apartment at the brown bag sitting on the table, patiently waiting for her. Oh, what the hell. Who gives a crap about what you do at this point anyway?

Walking over to one of the cabinets, she pulled out a shot glass. The brown bag crinkled as she grabbed it off the table and walked over to the couch. Alex lowered herself to the floor, her back leaning comfortably against the couch with one leg pulled up in front of her and the other stretched out, resting against the leg of the table. She pulled the bottle of Green Label Jack Daniels out of the bag and set it on the table in front of her.

There was no subtly to Dana’s motive; she had always been the grand manipulator. After all, Alex grossed her the most profit in the short time she worked for Dana. Why wouldn’t she want her to back?

She unscrewed the cap and filled the shot glass with the amber fluid. Lifting it up to her mouth, she tossed the alcohol back, grimacing as it burned her throat and heated up her insides on the way down. Twirling the cap on the table with her fingers, she stared at the TV screen in front of her. Briefly, she wondered how the mother whose baby Regina delivered the day before was doing. It doesn’t matter anymore; just forget about it.

Alex picked up the bottle, re-filled the shot glass and lifted it up to her mouth. Without hesitation she tossed the alcohol down and set the glass down on the table, wiping the liquid from her lips with her other hand. She could feel the warm fog settling down around her and she smiled as it numbed her aching soul. Ah, the wonders of self-medicating. What was that saying? Healer, heal thyself? She laughed caustically. Yeah right.

Her cell phone rang and she ignored it. "Oh screw off. It’s probably some asshole calling from the hospital. Doesn’t realize I don’t work there anymore." It rang three times and then stopped.

Alex fished in her jacket pocket for a lighter and pulled out the joint she had taken out of the bag that Dana gave to her earlier in the evening. What the hell did it matter anyway what she did at this point? She wasn’t going back to the hospital. She made sure of that, when she signed the papers earlier today, or was it yesterday? The past few days seemed like one big blur to her now.

She lit the end of the joint and sucked the acrid tasting smoke into her lungs. Holding her breath, Alex turned the joint, rolling it slowly between her index finger and her thumb, studying it intently as she exhaled. The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree now does it, papa? Picking up the bottle, she poured herself another shot; holding the glass of oily amber fluid and the joint in front of her, Alex saluted them.

"To old friends." Alex tossed the shot down and swallowed the alcohol, grimacing as it burned her throat. She took another long drag from the joint and inhaled the smoke. She was well on her way to getting completely soused and quite frankly, she really didn’t give a damn one way or the other. There were no responsibilities, no obligations to fulfill anymore, so she could do what she wanted.

She wasn’t sure how long she sat like that, floating in that dreamy state of consciousness, feeling comfortably disconnected from reality. At some point, she screwed the top back on the bottle of Jack Daniel’s and stubbed out the joint.

It had been six years since she wandered aimlessly down this desolate road. Did she really want to open those doors again, letting those demons drag her back down? She laughed at the absurdity of it all. God, if they only knew back at the hospital, Jameson wouldn’t have had to work so hard to get her out of there.

Her heart pounded a faster, as one by one all her sins lay out in front of her. She let the noble belief that she could succeed where the other doctors failed drive her to conveniently rationalize her grossly misguided actions. There was no way that Lana could have gotten the money she needed to pay for the experimental drug to treat the aggressive cancer while she was still in medical school. Alex was terrified enough of losing her that she struck a deal with Dana, Lana’s twin sister. It was simple enough and Alex willingly agreed to it. She would sell drugs for Dana and get a cut of the profits. The money was easy and she was confident that she could handle herself.

Alex swore Dana to secrecy. It became a game and Alex hadn’t realized she was the one being played until it was too late. They made a staggering amount of money in one week and Dana insisted on having a party to celebrate their success. Alex did the one thing she promised herself she wouldn’t do and by the end of the night she gave everything away, including her soul. It was a quick and dizzying descent into a nightmare of overpowering compulsion to continue taking the drugs, seeking a repeat of that initial euphoric excitement.

An image of lying in bed next to Dana nauseated her. Out of desperation she laid everything on the line, compromising her relationship, career and her life, for what - to try and keep a dear friend alive and cheat death. It hadn’t worked and in the end it was Lana’s pleading that pulled Alex back from the brink of self-destruction.

Alex shook her head as memories of the night of the accident ran through her head vivid and clear like they just happened yesterday. Alex rubbed her face as she saw herself standing next to the boy’s body that lie naked and lifeless on the stretcher. Her hands hung limply by her sides as she watched helpless to do anything else.

The blood dripped slowly from the wound where they had cut the boy’s chest open and used the rib spreaders to open the chest cavity. Blood saturated the blue sheet that covered the stretcher, rolling down the metal rails, slowly dripping to the white tiled floor, staining it a dark red as it pooled and coagulated.

The damage was massive. The impact of the steering wheel tore several of the vessels around his heart. It had ceased beating moments before, so blood was no longer pouring from the torn vessels with each beat of his dying heart. Alex stared down at the gaping wound, her bloodied hands, and the blood-soaked scrubs she was wearing. She saw herself stagger back against the wall, and slide limply down to the floor, overwhelmed by the loss of her lover and now the death of this boy whose name she couldn’t even remember.

Alex pulled her eyes away from the wall, dispelling the haunting image from her thoughts. She imagined Sandy standing at the desk with her hands on her hips, glaring at Alex for some sarcastic remark no doubt. Then an image of Regina flooded her mind. The young doctor was staring up at her with that look of wonder as she lifted the newborn up and set him on the mother’s stomach. Angry at the strong emotions thoughts of Regina evoked in her, Alex shoved the unwelcome images out of her mind. Damn you, for feeling anything about her!

Alex wrapped her arms around her knees and tucked her head down, rocking back and forth as tears unexpectedly started to roll down her face. Distraught, she reached inside her jacket and pulled out the bottle of Lana’s pain medication she found in her medicine cabinet at home earlier that day. She grabbed them then as she shoved clothes and toiletries haphazardly into her duffel bag, packing to leave for the Cape. She twisted the cap off and shook them all out into her hand, counting them methodically. There were thirty.

Unscrewing the cap from the liquor bottle once again, she poured more Jack Daniels into the shot glass. Alex wiped her eyes and leaned forward onto the table, covering her mouth with her hand as the tears rolled down her face. She didn’t think she had the strength left to listen to Lana’s will being read on Sunday. She’d put it off for eight months after she died, but was no more prepared to listen to it now than she was before.

All the while, she knew Dana was sitting back waiting for the right time to tempt her back into that hellish existence she struggled so hard to get out of. Of course that was no one else’s fault but her own. How stupid could she have been to think she could walk away unscathed? Yeah, she got the money she needed at the time, but what had she lost in the process? Alex rolled her fingers over the white pills, listening to them clicking together on the wooden table. She was tired of waking up and hurting everyday. Staring at the glass in front of her, she decided that she desperately wanted it all to go away.

The cell phone rang shrilly again and she jumped. Reaching her arm out across the table, Alex knocked the glass over, scattering the pills onto the rug. "Son of a bitch," she cursed and picked the phone up.

"Didn’t anyone tell you I don’t work there anymore?" She slurred angrily into the phone as she answered it.

"Alex, is that you?" Regina’s voice on the other end of the phone startled her out of her haze of self-pity.

"Shit." Alex tried to sit up straighter and collect her wildly scattered thoughts. "Regina? How’d you get this number?" She demanded.

"Sandy gave it to me. Are…are you all right Alex?" Regina asked, hearing the uncharacteristically slurred and broken speech.

"I’m fine…Regina. Never better." Alex grimaced and rubbed her forehead with her hand as the sarcastic words slipped out.

"I don’t understand why you left Alex."

Alex tilted her head back, letting her arm lay over her eyes. "I don’t expect you to understand why I left. It’s complicated." She groped for words. "It has to do with more than just what’s going on at the hospital. It’s better this way."

"No Alex. I don’t accept that. What do you have to do that is so important that you would throw away your career? It’s your life. It’s who you are."

"It’s over, Regina. There’s nothing you can do." Alex wished now she hadn’t picked the phone up.

"I got the police report. The car was on the hospital’s property." Regina paused to let the words sink in. "It’s possible we won’t lose our privileges."

There was silence on the line as Alex absorbed the words; then: "Yeah, whatever you say. It doesn’t matter, Regina. I’m not coming back." Alex leaned over and slowly started picking the pills up off up the floor. Her words conveyed more meaning than she intended them to.

Regina felt a shiver go through her and she clutched the edge of the phone booth. "Alex, don’t do this." It was obvious she was drinking and walking a very fine line emotionally. "Hey," her voice softened. "Do you want to know what they named the baby, Alex?" Just keep the conversation going, Regina told herself.

Alex sat silently on the other end of the phone, her arm wrapped around her middle, rocking back and forth.

"I know you can hear me, Alex," Regina could hear her ragged breathing. "She named him Alex Reginald Martin."

"Yeah, well they should’ve put your name first." She rolled awkwardly onto her knees and put a hand on the table, pushing herself up. She took a moment to regain her balance before she slowly walked awkwardly into the kitchen and opened a cabinet. There, she leaned against the counter, reached inside, fumbled a little, and finally pulled out a glass. Holding it under the faucet, she filled it with water.

"Alex, where are you?" Regina heard the sound of running water in the background.

"What do you care where I am?" Alex snapped defensively. She steadied herself on the counter with her hand. "Why are you calling me anyway?"

"I care, Alex. You’re a friend and you’re hurting. I care," Regina said, leaning into the phone and closing her eyes at the pain she heard in her friend’s voice.

Alex leaned her head against the cabinet and closed her eyes. "Damn it, Regina." Her voice was hoarse and Regina thought she might be crying.

"Alex, whatever it is, let me help you."

"It’s not your problem, Regina. Besides, you’re on call this weekend." Alex walked back to the leather sofa and slumped heavily into its softness. She stared at the pills on the table, sitting there mocking her cowardice.

"No I’m not. They suspended me until the review board meets to decide what action the hospital should take," Regina told her.

Alex felt her blood pressure rise, pounding in her ears, as she seethed. Jameson reneged on his promise to leave Regina out of this mess. God damn him to hell. She knew he used his power to sway the medical review committee to order an immediate suspension. Cassandra’s hands were tied; as the VP of medical affairs, she couldn’t override the committee’s decision.

"Are you still there, Alex?" Regina asked, into the silence on the other end of the phone.

"Yeah." Her voice was foggy and sounded far away as she struggled with the sudden wave of guilt that washed over her at what she had intended to do.

"Alex, where are you?"

A heavy sigh. "I’m on the cape in Provincetown," came the quiet reply.

Regina looked up at the monitors blinking their departing flights information. Taking her heart in her hands, she leaned into the phone booth. "Alex, let me come out there. You shouldn’t be alone. Please?"

Alex felt her resolve crumbling. She didn’t want to be alone and for as much as she told herself that it was for the best to remain so, her heart was telling her differently.

"Alex?"

"Why would you want to see me?" She wiped the tears from her face.

"Because I’m afraid if I don’t, I won’t ever get a chance to see you again." Silence. Then, "Please, don’t do this, Alex." Regina felt her heart hammering in her chest.

"Where are you?" Came the hoarse reply. She thought hazily that she could hear an voices in the background but she wasn’t sure.

"I’m at Logan Airport," Regina answered hopefully.

"What are you doing there?" Alex was confused.

"It doesn’t matter. I don’t quite understand why I came here, but I did. Alex, I can get a flight on Cape Air at eight in the morning. Let me help you." She put the information out there for Alex to decide what she wanted.

"Why?" Regina strained to hear the word.

"You’re my friend, Alex. I don’t want to lose that."

Alex closed her eyes and let the tears roll unchecked down her face. "W…What time is it anyway?" she asked, letting some of the pain ebb away.

"Almost two thirty in the morning," Regina answered, stifling a nervous giggle as the absolute absurdity of what she was doing hit her.

"Has anyone ever told you, you’re crazy?" Alex asked the woman after she took a long swallow of water from her glass.

"Mm. Yeah, my older brother tells me that all the time," Regina told her.

Alex leaned forward, putting an elbow on her knee and holding her head in her hand. "What are you going to do between now and eight o’clock?"

Regina looked around at the mostly quiet ticket area. A few people, mostly employees, were walking to and from different areas of the airport. She smiled into the phone. "I can stay right here and keep talking to you, if you want."

"No. I…you should sleep," Alex said, grimacing at the not so subtle beginnings of a hangover announcing itself to her brain.

"Alex, are you going to be alright?" Regina didn’t want to get off the phone.

"Yeah. I…Regina?"

"What, Alex?" She asked, feeling a wave of relief wash through her.

"I don’t know…how or why," Alex put her head down and took a breath.

"You’re going to be ok, Alex. Now promise me you’ll be there in the morning, ok?"

"I promise, I’ll be there."

"G’night Alex," Regina listened until she heard the click of the receiver on the other end and then slowly hung up the phone. She turned around and headed to the ticket counter.

Continued - Part 4

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