The weather was beginning to cool down and the first samplings of the autumn colors were settling on the trees. ‘Thank the gods for the new school year.’ The young nurse thought to herself as she put her key into the lock on the door. She was finding it difficult to relax when she came home from work with the sounds of the excited children playing outside all summer. It often brought back all of the childhood memories that she cared to muster. Her mind would think back on them but something was always missing, like she was never really a part of the activity around her but rather a spectator in the game of life. It had made her feel uneasy, even unsettled in her life just like she was now. ‘There’s got to be something more to life. Some other kind of…’ she searched for the right word, ‘fulfillment. Yeah, that’s it!’ She shrugged her shoulders dejectedly, ‘Maybe someday….’ The noise of the neighborhood children could only be heard now in the late afternoons and on the weekends. It had not been keeping her from sleeping since every night seemed to drain her energy with the multitude of traumas that were coming into the E.R. There were seasons to everything including trauma. Danni had been around long enough to know that each of the weather seasons brought on a rise in a particular kind of traumatic mishap that would befall her patients. The autumn of the year brought scholastic sports injuries with it as well as the falls from trees as people were preparing for the colder winter months ahead.

She pushed open the door and made her way into the comfortable looking living area. Her tired green eyes scanned the room until they detected the out of place duffel bag next to the coffee table. A grin came to her face as she thought about the owner of the bag and what a pleasant impact she was making on the life of the young nurse. It had been years since Danni had a roommate. She had several roommates back in her college days and none ever seemed to work out. In fact, it was those horrible experiences that had made her promise herself never to be put into those circumstances again. She shook her head in amazement at her situation now. Who would have thought that two people as different as night and day could actually be so comfortable around each other. It was as though they had known each other for as long as they had been alive or even longer. The petite blonde shivered as a chill ran down her spine at the thought. ‘I guess I just had to find the right roommate,’ she reflected. ‘Too bad I’ll probably lose her after next June. She’ll have a ton of offers from the really big hospitals across the country with her talents.’ And at that thought a melancholy mood came over her.

Danni shook her head in an effort to rid herself of the thought. "Take each day as it comes and don’t worry about the next until it is here," she whispered as if saying a prayer. Then, she mentally chastised herself for her thoughts. She knew that her time with the tall, dark surgeon was limited. She had no reason to stay here, no ties that could hold her here. ‘I just wish…she could see how much better I…ah…we are for her.’ Danni remembered the numerous times that she had been left behind as someone’s choice, never really finding that true allegiance of spirit in her youth. It seemed like it just followed her no matter what she did or where she went. There was always something that made her feel isolated at times. The E.R. was the first real place that she ever felt she belonged, well, except for her Grandfather and her days spent at his cabin. He never looked at her as different or lacking, but rather with the acceptance of an unconditional love that she had grown to cherish.

She wondered if the surgeon had changed on-call nights and forgotten her familiar duffel bag this morning. She looked over at the desk for a note but found none. "Well, only one way to find out. I’ll just page her," the nurse assured herself as she placed the phone call to the paging operator at the hospital. She stole a quick glance at her watch. It was 0830. Her mind tried to remember Garrett’s schedule but she found it next to impossible with her lack of sleep.

"Dr. Trivoli here." The voice was strong and clear.

Startled from her thoughts, Danni spoke hesitantly. "Ah, this is Danni."

The surgeon’s voice now softened in tone, "Hey, how did your night go?"

"It was busy as usual, traumas don’t wait for you when you’re not on-call," she said with a laugh. "Thanks for asking any ways."

"I walked right into that one, didn’t I? Sorry to hear it was so busy."

"Don’t worry. I’ll survive. Just think after I sleep today, I get to come in and do it all over again tonight."

"Yeah, but this time you will have a real good time. I promise."

The nurse looked surprised, "…and just why is that?"

"Well, ‘cause, I’ll be on-call tonight instead of Rene."

"Oh, did something come up?"

"No, more like something coming out," the surgeon teased. "Renee’s wife is in labor. It’s their first child, so it could take a while. He called me at 5 this morning," she laughed. "Right after he called the Obstetrician."

"Oh, so that explains the duffel bag in the living room."

Her voice reflected the blank expression on her face. "I guess I was so excited for Renee and his wife that I forgot it."

"Don’t worry, I’ll bring it with me when I come to work this evening."

"Thanks, Danni. I appreciate that and so will everyone around me tonight. It has all my toiletries and change of clothes. Boy, I guess I’d be in a real bind if I didn’t have a roommate, huh?"

"Well, consider it part of the roommate code. Rule # 7, I think."

"And that would be…?"

"Never let your roommate go without clean clothes and toiletries for an overnight outing." The petite woman was finding it hard to keep from laughing.

"One of the days, you are going to have to show me these codes that you quote, okay? I don’t believe I ever received my copy of them."

Jokingly the blonde woman stated, "You have to be a roommate for a while before they give them out." She could hear the beeping coming through the phone. "Is that you?"

Garrett looked down at the annoying sound to see the number flashing across the pager. "Yeah, I’ve got to answer this. I’ll see you later tonight and thanks for bringing that in for me. Now go and get some sleep."

"I’ll page you when I get in. Bye!"

"See you later." She hung up the phone pausing for a moment as she considered how lucky she was.

The brisk episodes of wind seemed to make the outside world alive with the ever-floating leaves in the air. It brought to mind the small snow globe that she had received as a child on a long forgotten day. She was amazed at how obscure that gift and the circumstances surrounding it had come to her mind. Continuing to gaze out of the window, her mind replayed the events. The cherished thoughts made her feel warm and conjured up a feeling of love.

Her parents had given the globe to her. It was their way of explaining the bond that was to fill her life. The two snowmen inside of the globe stood side by side, one slightly larger than the other. They had told her about an unseen bond between the two figures. Her father shook the globe vigorously and held it out for her to see. Her mother knelt down behind her to wrap her arms around the young girl. Pointing to the snowstorm of activity inside the globe she commented that the two snowmen were held together in their strength for each other and that nothing could separate the bond they shared, not even the cold, harsh winds of the snowstorm. At times it was hard to see the figures but then, the snow would die down and there the two were, standing side by side, as if nothing had ever happened. The small child wondered which snowman she was. It was then that her father pointed to the larger of the two saying, "This one is you." The girl looked up to her mother for confirmation of the choice. She was hugged gently as her mother whispered, "You are the older and bigger one, my love." A puzzled look appeared on the youngster’s face as she looked from parent to parent. Seeing this, her father winked at her mother and motioned his head to the other room. Her mother stood and left the room only to return a moment later carrying something in her arms. Her face was radiant as she looked at her daughter and husband. She sat down on the sofa, cooing gently into the blanket that was in her arms. Hand in hand the young girl and her father crossed the room to her mother. Together, they invited her to meet her new baby brother. She could still remember the exact words as though it was yesterday. "This is your brother, Lucas. He will need you to look out for him and help him when the storms come. Do you think you can do that?"

The young girl’s eyes grew to the size of saucers at the sight of her new brother. She nodded her head and asked. "He’ll be with me always…forever and forever?" "Yes he will," was their simultaneous reply.

"Hey, Doc! You want in on the baby pool?"

The tall woman’s concentration being broken, she turned from the window in the trauma vestibule to see John, the E.R. nurse, standing with a long sheet of computer paper in his hands. "I take it this is for Dr. Chabot’s baby?"

"Yep!" The smile was big across his face. "We’re splitting it 50/50 with the baby. Only two bucks, Doc, I just need you to guess a time and sex." His eyebrows seemed to vibrate as he said the last word.

Garrett chuckled as she thought of the stories she had heard of the young male from the other nurses and Danni. She was amused that even with the pending birth, this guy would find an angle to talk about sex. "Yeah, let me in on the pool." The ends of her mouth curled upward as she considered what time the baby would arrive. "Hmmm! It’s 1845 now and they are still in labor," she mused. Her face twisted with thought, "Let’s say 2115."

"Sex?" The word was said with more of an implication then a question. The look of anticipation at the duel meaning and purpose of the question was written all over the man’s face. John waited for her answer to be a slip in a moment of Freudian thought. His mind was racing with thoughts of bedding the beautiful surgeon. The long limbs of her naked body wrapped around him, the tenuous moment of copulation moving her over the edge into a world of….

"Girl!" The answer was crisp and clear. Her eyebrow arching up under her dark bangs.

His dreams had come to a grinding halt. "What?" He snapped back.

John stood there in a dazed state of mind. He quickly ran through the conversation in his head. Where had he gone wrong? It had worked several times earlier today. Why not now? He shook his head. ‘Oh well, the chase is half the fun anyway,’ he thought as he turned to look for his next body of conquest.

Exchanging her street clothes for a set of trauma scrubs, Danni found herself listening to the buzz of activity coming from the other occupants of the locker room. There was definitely an aura of excitement in the staff today. She shoved her purse into her locker and closed the door. Making several tugs here and there, she straightened her hospital-issued clothing. Just as she was about to leave, the locker room door swung open by a very upset Manager.

Nan looked as though steam was ready to come out of her ears as she scanned the occupants of the nursing staff locker room. The professional image that she always tried to project was on the edge of a losing battle. "All right, has anybody seen John?" Her voice was full of intensity. "I swear, if I get my hands on that little snake, he’ll wish he was somewhere else." Then she sighed loudly, crossing her arms in front of her chest, her right foot tapping nervously on the tile floor. "If any ones sees him, tell him to report to me immediately." She turned and stormed back through the doorway. ‘See if he makes a mockery out of that child’s birth just to have a reason to solicit sex from unsuspecting staff members. They’re going to think that we’re all like that down here in the E.R. They already associate us with the seedier side of life anyway.’

The small nurse had never seen her manager so upset. She turned to look into the faces of the staff around her. Shrugging her shoulders she asked, "What’s up with John?"

The brown-haired young aide let out a long whistle. "Glad I’m not him."

Danni looked over at Marianna, "I don’t ever think that I’ve seen Nan this upset. What happened on daylight shift?"

The tall blonde nurse seated on the bench in front of the lockers finished tying her shoestring and offered, "I heard it was something to do with a doctor’s wife," Lori said shyly.

Everyone’s eyes riveted to the girl showing her naivete as she blushed at what she had said.

"Lori, are you sure?" Danni asked, trying to stop any wild and unfound rumors.

"Well, I think that’s what I overheard," she stated insecurely.

"I don’t see what all the fuss is about," Marianna shrugged her shoulders. "It’s not like he keeps his steamy little affairs underwraps. Sooner or later he’s bound to end up in hot water."

"Well, just remember that he is a nurse and part of our department." Danni let her gaze advance slowly from one person to the next. "You know how rumors get blown out of proportion in a place like this. Next thing you know someone will be saying that he is sleeping with me."

Everyone chuckled at the thought of Danni sleeping with John. They all knew of her complete aversion to the male nurse.

"Nah, that was last week’s rumor." Rosie stood at the doorway a large smile on her face as she watched the petite blonde’s mouth drop open. Then with a serious look, she deadpanned, "Is it really true that you made it a threesome when Garrett came home?"

The riotous sound of laughter could be heard out into the hallway. The atmosphere was now one of mirth and camaraderie. It was a running joke with the E.R. staff. They all knew how hard John was trying to get any action out of the roommates, always resulting in a brush off or a flat refusal to acknowledge his suggestions.

"Yeah, and you are the one that probably started it," Danni shook her head with a wry smile. The small nurse made her way over to the tall, auburn- haired woman. "Hey, how was vacation? It’s nice to have you back."

Rosie rolled her eyes, "Too short! That’s how vacation was." She noticed her watch and gasped, "Geez, look at the time. We better get out into the department before Nan wants our heads too." She motioned toward the door, "I’ll tell you later."

Standing in front of the assignment board, the petite nurse slowly looked over the list of names that would staff the E.R. tonight. It was nice to have Rosie back on shift again she thought, the regulars always worked better together. Next she studied the list of Doctors that would be with her, Jamie for the E.R. Attending and Garrett for Trauma Fellow. Tonight was stacked in their favor. No matter what could be thrown in their direction, Danni felt comfortable that this staff was the best the hospital had to offer. A smile came slowly to her as she looked over the assignment that was hers, Trauma Nurse. She liked being in that position, especially if the Fellow was Garrett. There was just something about the two of them working together that always brought a good feeling with it. It always seemed like the patients had a better than average chance to survive when the two worked jointly. The young nurse made a mental note to check into that notion. Just what was their survival rate, she wondered?

Danni thought back over her days as a young graduate nurse when all things were new and wonderful. She stood in awe of the things that had changed or improved over the course of time to now, when she was a well-seasoned and established veteran of the nursing profession. She had made her mark with most of the doctors who passed through this E.R. Rarely did she find one that bulked at her better judgement, at least where compassion was involved. She never tried to tell a physician their job, but she was not above trying to dissuade them out of a wrong or hurtful encounter with either a patient or the family members. If ever there was an advocate for the patient, it was she.

"Phssst! Danni!"

Her concentration broken, the petite nurse looked around for the source of the hushed beckoning.

"Hey! Danni, over here." The muffled voice called out.

She turned abruptly to see the door to the supply room ajar with someone peering out of the opening. Trying to get a better look at the concealed features, she moved closer to the doorway. Pausing, she looked around the hallway before entering the room. Once inside, the door was promptly closed revealing the tall blonde-haired nurse. Nervously he looked out of the small window built into the door. Seeing no one approaching, John let a sigh escape, trying to calm himself.

The young nurse was weighing in her own mind about how wise of an idea it was to be in the small supply room with John. "You know that Nan is looking for you," she stated. "Don’t you?" She kept her distance from the man, relieved that the room was on a well-traveled hallway and that the door had an unshaded window in it that brought her into view of anyone outside of it.

"Yeah, I got that impression." He paused to look out of the window again. "I just wanted to give you report."

"Is there a reason for being in this supply closet, other than you trying to avoid Nan?" ‘Don’t even think of trying anything, mister. I may be small, but I can be tough when I have too.’

The man swallowed hard shaking his head. Stammering he started, "There’s… There’s nothing going on in Trauma right now. Hasn’t been all day in fact." He handed over the beeper to his relief. "That’s why I was asking everyone if they would like to get in on making the baby pool."

"Making the baby pool?" She looked at him with raised eyebrows, her arms protectively crossing over her chest. She was leery of any thing having to do in any way with sex where this man was involved. ‘Jeez! I knew it!’

"Come on, Danni, join in on the fun." He smiled sweetly, "I’ve already got Garrett pencilled in for nine fifteen…" leaning in towards the smaller nurse he confided, "…and she’s hoping for a girl."

The young woman’s mind was thrown into a quandary. Images of her tall dark-haired friend in the arms of this man raced through her head. ‘No, Garrett would never. She hates his sexist attitude as much as I do. There has to be something that I’m missing.’ She let her eyes stare directly into his, hoping for some sign to disprove what he had implied. Her mind raced with a little green-eyed monster darting recklessly around it. ‘Why would she choose him? She could have anyone. She could even have…’ then her thoughts were interrupted.

"You know, I realize that you two are close, so why don’t I just put you down for nine fifteen also. I figure, being a doctor that she will probably have the best time." He winked at the blonde woman; "You’re roommates. I know that you’re okay with sharing. I guess you’ll want a boy, that way all your bases will be covered." His look was one of hopefulness.

Stunned, Danni blurted out, "I can’t believe Garrett," she reiterated, "Garrett Trivoli is going along with this."

"Sure, why not? It’s a 50/50 deal. Everybody can walk away happy." He smiled at her. "It makes you feel good, it makes a deposit towards the baby bank, and me," his smile broadened. "I just walk away feeling damn good about the whole thing for doing my part."

She was appalled at the ease with which this man talked about the intimate acts that he was suggesting to her. ‘He acts as if it’s nothing to bring a life into the world. This is disgusting, and he wants me to do it with him and Garrett at the same time. He has finally crossed over that imaginary line of good taste and not to mention the code of roommates.’ Her eyes darted from him to the door and back again. She had all she was going to take. Danni stepped in the direction of the door, reaching for the handle.

Before she could grasp the knob, the door flung open. It was Rosie. "Have you seen John?" the well-relaxed nurse asked.

Danni’s eye riveted to the tall male nurse standing off to one side. "He’s in here," she spat out.

"Great! Hey, John, put me down for nine twenty-eight and it better be a boy." The auburn-haired nurse held out her hand with two crisp dollar bills in it. "I can’t believe that I made it back in time for the birth of Rene’s baby." The bubbly nurse looked at her friend, "So, what time did you guess the baby’s delivery would be?"

The young blonde nurse stood looking from Rosie to John and back again. Her mouth opened several times trying to form words but couldn’t. Suddenly it hit her. She thought about the phone conversation with Garrett earlier that morning and remembered the duffel bag in her locker. ‘Jeez, he’s been talking about Rene’s baby. That’s what the baby pool is about.’ She mentally chastised herself. Nervously she gulped and reached into the back pocket of her scrub pants. Retrieving her money, she meekly held out two-rumpled dollar bills to John. Smiling weakly and scrunching up her nose she said, "Put me down for that roommate thing. Okay?"

John took the money, "Sure!" He noticed the puzzled look on Rosie’s face and shrugged his shoulders as the embarrassed nurse slinked out of the room.

Karen sat at the desk studying the computer screen that listed the patient assignments. She marveled at how good it felt to have all of her girls together again. It was like having the pieces of a puzzle all in the right spots. The charge nurse had acted like a second mother for both Danni and Rosie for so long that she felt the symptoms of the "empty nest" syndrome when either of them was on vacation. She smiled at the concept of enlarging her family with the addition of the strong and brilliant surgeon, Garrett Trivoli. The doctor that had started out as Danni’s "Amazon" very easily became just one of the daughters in the older nurses’ extended family. There was something about the interaction between the young nurse and the trauma surgeon that complemented the other. It was going to be a fine night with all of her girls here together, the older woman thought. Resigning herself to the fact that there was business to attend to, she sighed and willed her mind back to the task of running the emergency room.

"Well, Mom, did you miss me?" Rosie stood peering over the desk at the older nurse.

Putting her hand on her hip, Karen cocked her head to a side and gave the nurse an uninterested look. "I can’t say that I did. You went somewhere?"

Rosie was thrown by what the older nurse said. Her mouth dropped open as she stood there. Looking over the desk at Karen, she studied the facial expression. Suddenly the tight-lipped nurse broke into laughter. It was truly a work of art the way she was able to tease and elicit the young nurse into believing that she was not missed.

"You did miss me," the nurse proclaimed. "Mom, you really know how to hurt a nurse, now don’t you?"

"Miss you, Rosie, she was counting the days until you got back. She said that it was too quiet with you gone." Dr. Potter said as she came up behind Karen. "Now, enough of this joking around." The red-haired physician was teasing both of the nurses. She winked at Rosie as she tapped the charge nurse on the shoulder.

"Hey, did I miss something?" Danni seated herself in a chair and slid it over to the desk.

"Nothing special, Dan, just these two being their normal selves," as Jamie pushed her glasses up on her nose and tossed her head in the direction of the other nurses at the desk. "Hey, has anyone heard how the delivery is going for Rene and his wife?"

Rosie looked down at her watch; it was almost 8 o’clock in the evening. "Yeah, how is that baby coming? I hope it waits for my time."

"I’m glad that Garrett is covering for Rene tonight. I like it when she is on my shift. It makes the traumas more bearable." The E.R. attending physician was confiding in the small group of friends. "She’d be the one that I would want to see working on me if I ever woke up in the trauma room."

An almost inaudible, "Me, too!" was heard coming from each of the nurses as they all stared off into space with the same thought, attesting to the skills of the capable surgeon.

Making the sign of the cross, Rosie offered a small prayer to any god that may be listening. "From our lips to your ears, please don’t let any one of us ever need her skills in such a manner."

"I don’t know, Rosie. I’ve seen your driving." The blonde nurse chuckled as she grabbed for the phone that had begun ringing. "E.R., Danni speaking."

"Hey, Danni. What can I do for you?" The familiar voice on the other end of the receiver asked.

Her eyes smiled at the recognition of the voice. It was Garrett. "Don’t forget that I brought in that duffel bag for you. Any word on the Chabot baby yet?"

"No, nothing yet, but I think that she’s getting close. I’m betting that she has it before the end of your shift."

"Well, thanks for that non-committal update on her condition," the roommate chided.

"Hey, I don’t have the stork listed as one of my office partners." The surgeon cleared her throat; "I’m into saving lives not bringing new ones into the world."

Her gentle laughter sounded good to the nurse’s ear. "Okay, Trauma Fellow Trivoli, I guess you are right. So, when are you going to pick up the duffel that you forgot at home this morning?"

The surgeon sighed. She had forgotten all about the duffel and the request of her roommate to bring it in with her this evening. "I’ll be down in a few minutes for it. Where will I find you?"

"I’m at the front desk right now. If I’m not there, I’ll be in the trauma rooms getting them ready for some action with you later."

"Okay, see you in a bit," the surgeon ended the conversation wondering why she had never allowed herself to have friends before. It was so nice to be able to rely on someone to be there when you needed a hand. She smiled silently to herself feeling an inner peace, one that she had not felt for most of her life.

The night was going to be a long one at the rate that patients trickled into the emergency room for treatment. Most of the injuries were scholastic sports related, the running injuries associated with Soccer, Football, Track and Field events. The ages and genders of the participants varied, as did the degree with which they dealt with the injuries.

Opening the door to the department, she noticed the large round clock hanging on the wall. It was 2000 hours and her thoughts drifted off to her colleague Rene and his wife. ‘That baby has got to be a girl," she mused, ‘or at least a procrastinator.’ The tall woman offered a prayer for the safe delivery and good health of the baby and mother as she let her gaze wander over the nurse’s station.

Sauntering up behind Rosie, Garrett lowered her voice and spoke directly into her ear. "What’s the matter? Didn’t you find anyone to latch onto during your vacation?"

The tall nurse’s eyes widened with each word as she tried to imagine who could be so bold as to tease her. She spun in the direction of the voice ready to give a verbal ear beating to the culprit. Seeing Garrett standing there with a lopsided grin, her eyes twinkling mischievously, the nurse gulped and quickly changed her mind. "I should have known it would be you." She accused as she gave the surgeon’s shoulder a tap.

"Hey, careful where you go tapping," the raven-haired woman raised her arms in caution. "These are the arms of a surgeon. Can’t afford any injuries, you know."

Both broke into gentle laughter as the nurse shook her head in disbelief of the easy nature the surgeon was allowing her to see. It was only a few months ago on their first meeting, that the nurse was ready to throttle her for her rude and arrogant nature. Rosie made a mental note to thank Danni for not letting her do that. The "Amazon" label that the tall nurse had given her that first day now seemed so inappropriate.

"Seriously, Rosie, it’s good to have you back." Looking around quickly, Garrett asked, "Have you seen Danni? I need to get my duffel bag from her."

As if on cue, the loud shrill tones of the Trauma Team pager went off.

"Trauma Team Page, Trauma Team Page" the crackling sound of the voice being emitted sounded of urgency. "Multiple vehicle accident, three possibly four victims transporting via helicopters with an eight minute ETA. This is a Level One Trauma Team Page."

"Guess you’ll find her in the trauma room, Doc."

Garrett nodded her head, "But I won’t need that duffel bag now. Looks like I’m not going to get any sleep tonight."

In unison the pair turned and headed toward the trauma rooms in the back hallway. The calm, cool demeanor of the professionals that they were was now replacing the laughter they had shared only a few minutes ago. Reaching the hallway, they quickly donned the lead aprons and trauma gowns, each mentally preparing themselves for the worse case scenario before the patient’s arrival. Garrett watched from the hall as Rosie strode off into the second trauma room, the first trauma room being already manned by the petite blonde nurse.

Scanning over the rooms, Garrett allowed her gaze to settle on Danni. The young nurse, sensing the attention, turned to look at the surgeon. The brief visual exchange between the two roommates as they acknowledged each other, brought the slightest hint of a smile under their protective masks. It was as if they had spoken volumes of words of encouragement as the green eyes locked on to blue.

The scurry of activity in the hallway increased as the other members of the Trauma Team arrived. Quickly, Garrett sized up the available resources and began plotting a course of action. It was hectic enough when one severely traumatized patient arrived, but now she had the possibility of three or four arriving within minutes of each other. Her chief resident for the night was Kreger, whom she knew to be capable in the trauma setting. He was eager to learn and had demonstrated that to her time and again.

"Rob," the surgeon called out. "You take the first one, use room # 2."

Kreger nodded in approval as he moved into the second trauma room where he positioned himself opposite Rosie. He waited patiently for the first trauma to arrive.

The Trauma Fellow thought about her next move in this game of chess. Her team tonight was not as deep as she would have liked it to be. The experience of the members was not of a surgical nature, and she pondered over the choice of team leader for the next patient. The surgeon thought of Dr. Rene Chabot up in the delivery suite, resigning herself to call upon the impending father-to-be as a very last resort. She viewed members of her team again. The sight of a lone red-haired bespectacled figure came into her view. ‘There’s my answer!’ she thought. The young E.R. attending physician would be able to handle any life threatening emergency until one of the surgeons could break away from their own patient.

The tall surgeon moved in a path to intersect that of the E.R. Attending physician. She acknowledging her colleague with a slight nod of her head, "Dr. Potter, would you be so kind as to be team leader for patient #3?"

The physician pushed her glasses up as she grabbed one of the lead aprons that hung outside of the trauma rooms, "Don’t mind if I do." She accepted the surgeon’s offer as she completed her preparations for the job of team leader in the end room.

Everyone snapped into attention as the loud speaker overhead blared out, "Trauma’s in the department, Trauma’s in the department."

"Alright, people, let’s do our jobs." The commanding voice of the Trauma Fellow was heard throughout the hallway.

The first patient-laden stretcher accompanied by the helicopter crew turned the corner and was met by Garrett who motioned them into the trauma room where Dr. Rob Kreger waited. Advancing speedily into the room, the Flight Medic gave a brief report of the patient’s obvious injuries and vital signs. The blood splattered and twisted body belted onto the backboard was swiftly lifted from the stretcher and placed carefully onto the gurney. Each member of the team with his or her own tasks at hand began their work. Garrett watched approvingly from the foot of the bed at the skills that the team leader was demonstrating, her smile shielded by the mask. Dr. Kreger was proving himself in her eyes. His quick assessment of the patient’s airway, breathing, and circulation began to reveal the critical nature of the injuries that the patient had sustained.

"I need a chest x-ray now," Rob commanded. His eyes glanced over to the trauma fellow at the foot of the gurney. Garrett subtly nodded. In the brief moment that the two surgeons locked eyes, Dr. Kreger had her approval of his actions and an exchange of confidence occurred. She had inspired him from that first day in the O.R. and now he felt as though he had taken another step up on the ladder that brought him closer to being her equal.

It was obvious to all in the trauma room that the woman was seriously injured. Her breathing was labored, and the large discolored area along the middle of her chest stretching from right shoulder to left abdomen was a sign of significant seatbelt injury, specifically that of a restrained passenger. The chest x-ray would be a guide to the appropriate treatment.

Rob Kreger decided to utilize the precious time that he needed to see the

X-ray. "Let’s set up for bilateral chest tubes, type and cross for six units of blood. Alert CT Scan that we will need to scan the head, and chest- abdomen-pelvis."

Garrett watched the electronic screen as the patient’s chest X-ray appeared. Her eyes turning a steely blue color as she studied it. Her voice came out tense, "Looks like she has a lot of broken ribs and bilateral pneumothorax." She peered at the X-ray again letting her fingers measure out something on the screen display. "The aortic knob looks pretty wide."

"That’s what I was afraid of," the team leader shook his head. "What’s her pressure?"

Rosie looked up at the monitor to her right. "Eighty over fifty and the heart rate is 126."

Rob’s eyes snapped up to the heart monitor, "Damn, look at those irregular complexes." His eyes quickly fell back onto the chest wall that he was inserting the tube in. "Call the O.R. and tell them to have a room ready for a ruptured aorta." Kreger hurried to finish placing the tube into the left chest and secure it from falling out. Blood now escaped from the chest via the tube as it drained into the holding container. "Damn!" He bit off the word, "No time for the other side to be placed. Call the O.R., we’re coming now."

As if on cue, the overhead speaker squawked again, "Trauma’s in the Department. Trauma’s in the Department."

Garrett turned to face the hallway leading from the door to the trauma rooms. Her eyes could barely see the patient through all of the bulky dressing wrapped around his head soaked through with blood. The only thing that she was sure of was that the patient was being assisted in his respirations by the medic that was bagging him. She motioned for the crew to follow her into Trauma Room #1.

Danni looked at the stretcher with the seemingly lifeless body on it. She noted the small chalky white hand that stuck out from under the cover that the flight crew had used to control his body temperature during the flight. Her heart sank as it always did when confronted with the ravages of trauma on a young person. Her thoughts drifted briefly to her own younger brother and she said her well-rehearsed prayer for his safekeeping. She quickly drew the soft cloth of the trauma gown sleeve across the side of her face, catching the single tear that lingered at the corner of her eye.

He had always been such a vivacious child, getting into trouble at the drop of a hat. It wasn’t that he was bad or ill mannered, trouble just seemed to follow him around. Matt was with her visiting with their grandfather at his cabin. She would have been ten that year and he had just turned five. Being the older sister, she always felt responsible for him, especially when he got injured. That was the first time she could remember having to tell her parents of Matt’s misfortune. He had fallen out of a tree trying to get an egg out of a bird’s nest. His grip had let go as he stretched out for it, thus resulting in a broken arm. After a while it became standard policy that Danni possessed in her hands a letter of parental consent for emergency care, just in case Matt had to be rushed to the hospital. She thought about how it felt to be in charge of her sibling, watching out over him like a mother hen. Perhaps that is when she first felt the urge to start collecting and helping lost, injured or wayward animals. It made her feel important, at least for a little while.

It was there, in the first emergency room that her brother was in, that she had made her mind up to be a nurse. Not just any old nurse, but the best and most skilled one that she could be. She always thought that she owed her brother a thank you for introducing her to the profession she loved and had brought so much joy to her. In fact, Danni made a mental note to thank him the next time she talked to him, but who would know when that would be. They were older now and with lives of their own. Twenty years had flown by and now they were both adults and living in separate cities. It wasn’t just the years that had them growing apart, but rather Danni’s choice of life at the cabin, out of the reach of all the materialistic goals that her mother tried setting for her, that had lost most of the ties of their teen years. She found the simple life with her Grandfather during the summer months to be so much more enjoyable than the loneliness of the city and her family for that matter. Her mother was always trying to push her daughters into meeting only the most promising young men from well-to-do families, thinking that only money could buy them happiness. She wanted a life of success for her daughters and in her mind that meant running a house and raising a family. Danni’s parents had always gauged their children’s success by the status that they lavished with on the social circuit. Unfortunately, she was never one to rise to the occasion of parties and dating with her classmates. She left that to her younger sister, Breanna, whom was seen as more favorable and brilliant in their eyes with her many interested suitors all vying to wear her on their arms. The bond of sisters was still between them, but each had always listened to their own hearts. Now, they all had grown and gone there separate ways. Matt was with his friends now, all working in law firms, Breanna with her boyfriend Marc who eventually became her husband, fathering her first child on their wedding night and Danni, mostly by herself, always wanting something that would make her feel whole.

Her mother never approved of her choice in careers, saying that it was beneath someone of her upbringing to be a servant to sick people. Her mother never understood her or her needs: to be giving and compassionate to a total stranger. That would always be a bone of contention between them. Her mother viewed this job as one without rewards or a decent income. Thinking that she needed more time to come into her own with men, her mother agreed to let her go to Nursing School but only if it were at a college that was attractive to the right elements, namely males of good breeding and money. Secretly, she feared that her mother still prayed that it would lead to her rightful position in society, by landing her a well-established physician to marry. Danni could never see herself as the arm piece of anyone, nor would she flourish being treated as someone’s lesser half.

The blonde nurse was brought back from her thoughts by the voice of the woman across from her, commanding the placement of the patient. Once the stretcher was in position beside the gurney, the Trauma Fellow disconnected the bag from the tube that was securing the patient’s airway. "Okay, on my count," her eyes sweeping the length of the patient for any possible problems with the move. "One, two, three!" The size of the patient was evident by the ease of the move as he was lifted on the long board over to the trauma room gurney. The mechanical act of breathing was again resumed for the patient by the respiratory therapist positioned at the head of the bed.

Extending her arm, Garrett arched her body overtop of the now patientless stretcher as she adjusted the earpieces of her stethoscope listening for lung sounds to assure her that the breathing tube was in the proper place. She moved the sensitive device from one side of his chest to the other.

"I want a chest X-ray now," the surgeon bellowed out as she rose to her full height. Stepping back slightly to allow the flight crew to depart with their equipment, she caught the harried pace of Dr. Kreger and his patient being moved briskly through the hallway to the elevators. Their eyes met for a second. The silent exchange was acknowledged by the slightest of nods on each of their parts and each one’s attention quickly returning to their own patient at hand.

Garrett moved closer to her patient as she reached over to the neck area to check for a carotid pulse. She glanced over to the tracing on the heart monitor, assuring herself that the weak pulse she felt under her fingertips was indeed the patient’s and not her own. "Let’s get blood hung on the rapid infuser." The surgeon’s gaze riveted to the medic at the end of the bed, "What the hell happened?"

The exasperated medic snapped back, "He was a rear seat passenger, that was partially ejected through the windshield of the SUV. It was a head-on with a tractor trailer, that’s what stopped him, doc." The medic grew pale as he gulped and continued. "We had to get his head out of the truck’s grille."

An eyebrow arched high under the dark hair of the tall surgeon. "Karen, get me…"

Her words were cut off; "I have neurosurgery called already."

"Then get me a…"

"Scanner’s ready and waiting, doc." The charge nurse motioned to the CT Tech standing patiently in the hallway outside of the trauma room.

"Chest X-ray is out," the technologist informed.

Garrett stepped back, "finish up on that blood work. X-ray, get me a lateral C-spine and abdomen." She turned and walked into the hallway and then over to the electronic viewer. She carefully studied the chest x-ray that was displayed on the screen. ‘The tube is in a good location, no apparent fractures or pneumothorax,’ she pondered. She sidestepped and looked back into the trauma room.

"Dr. Trivoli," the experienced CT Tech tried to get her attention.

"HMMMM," she muttered as she turned her head toward the voice, while her eyes remained observant of the activity around the patient.

"Head, chest and abdomen scans?" She asked staring up at the doctor’s face, full of concern.

"Okay, doc, whenever you’re ready."

"Just give us enough time for those X-rays and we’ll be right over," the surgeon glanced over at the technologist who was walking back to her scanner. ‘It’s nice to have experienced people to work with,’ she thought as her eyes moved between the two nurses in her room.

The sound of the loud speaker again was heard, "Trauma’s in the Department, Trauma’s in the Department."

Within seconds of the announcement, a stretcher was whisked around the corner and toward the beckoning motion of the E.R. Physician in front of the third trauma room. Jamie Potter, red hair flaring out from around the mask/shield combination that she wore, stood there waiting for them to transverse the distance to her. The young doctor’s attention stayed solely on the patient lying on the stretcher. Her assessment began with that initial moment. The experiences that she had gained in the few short years of being an attending in the metropolitan city hospital setting were evident. Her attention was on the patient as she absorbed the exchange of information from the medic. The cries of pain not only attested to the anguish of the patient’s torment, but also assured her that his airway was patent. With the blanket removed from the lower extremities, Dr. Potter could see the evidence of trauma to the man’s legs. The odd angularity of his right ankle caused her to wince at the sight of it.

"Call Ortho down," she commanded as she readied the team for the careful transfer of the injured patient. "Okay, nice and gentle now. One, two, three."

The patient was settled on the gurney, as a string of curses rolled off of his lips that would make a sailor blush. The anger and the intensity of his pain were fully realized by the facial expressions that he displayed to convey his emotions. His hands reached out as if to soothe and steady his aching limb, only to find them restrained by the belts that secured him to the long board he was lying on. Breathing hard and ragged in an effort to control his pain, the patient’s right hand grasped the gloved hand of the nurse as she released the board; his terror-filled eyes shifting to lock onto hers.

"Give me something for the fucking pain, will you! You’ve got drugs here."

His gaze seemed to burn a hole through the insecure nurse as she attempted to remove her hand from his grasp. Lori looked over to Jamie, her eyes silently pleading for help.

The physician leaned into the patient’s line of sight to get his attention. "Sir, we know that you are in pain, just give us a minute to find out what all hurts. I need to know where you hurt first before I can give you something to take the edge off that pain." Her left hand slowly traveled down the man’s arm until her gentle touch conveyed her sincerity as she held on to his hand. "Now let us do our jobs. Okay?" She asked.

With that the man’s grip weakened, allowing the slender hand to withdraw. The tall blonde nurse gently rubbed her hand trying to forget the memory of the vice-like grip that had held on to it.

The tension and strain of the situation was evident on the faces of the Flight Crew, as they made their way back down the hallway to finish their report. The short, thin medic walked over to the Trauma Fellow who was now studying the X-rays displayed on the viewer.

"Dr. Trivoli," he started as she looked over at him. "We thought you might like to know that the forth victim was DOA." He unzipped one of the cargo pockets on his nomex flight suit, fishing out a Polaroid, he offered it to her.

Garrett accepted the picture for closer observation. Her keen azure eyes scanned the images; quickly noting the victim pinned behind the steering wheel. The classic signs of upper body and extremity engorgement and the distinct purple discoloration of the skin along with the animated fully thrusted tongue and bulging eyes screamed only one thing in her mind. "Hmmm," she nodded. "Looks like traumatic asphyxiation, wouldn’t you say?" Her eyes raised to his in question as she handed the Polaroid back to him.

"Yeah, I’ve read about it but never saw it before," his tone was sober. "Maybe, I hoped that I never would," his voice trailing off to a whisper.

The surgeon reached out and touched his shoulder; "None of us should ever have to." Her voice was reassuring, "Thank you for sharing that with me." She looked directly into his eyes saying, "If you need to talk about it…."

Closing his eyes, he simply nodded and slowly moved away from her, letting her hand slowly slide off of him. "Thanks, doc," he whispered.

"Dr. Trivoli, we’re ready to go," Danni informed her as the entourage of medical personnel slowly rounded the corner of the trauma room into the hallway escorting the gurney.

"Yeah, I’m with you." The tall woman pulled herself away from her thoughts that the Polaroid had brought to her mind and once again assumed her role as Trauma Fellow. "Let’s see what’s going on in that head." She turned and popped her head into the nearly vacant trauma room, "Karen, when Neuro..."

"When Neuorsurgery shows, I’ll send them into the scanner," the older nurse cut her off. "Now, go do your job, I’ll take care of mine," she said teasingly, and winked at the surgeon.

Letting a lopsided grin show, the raven-haired woman stated, "Mom, you’re the best." ‘I guess this bunch of nurses are quick learners. They seem to anticipate my thoughts before I can voice them.’ She was relieved that they had followed her way and not fought her demands. ‘I wonder if they know that they joined my team?’ She smirked at the thought of how McMurray would view this when he reviewed the tapes.

The painful screams that she heard coming from behind her made her think of Dr. Potter and the third trauma patient. She made a quick mental note to check on them as soon as she reviewed the head scan on her patient. Then using her long strides, she made off to the CT Scanner and her patient down the hall.

The air was thick with tension as the surgical team fought desperately to save the life of the woman lying on the table. The heat from the bright lights illuminating the field of operation and the anxiety of the surgeon was enough to bring a sheen of perspiration to his brow. He turned his head to the circulating nurse who hastily wiped his forehead free of the gathering sweat. His eyes never left his patient as his nimble fingers deftly worked to suture the jagged tear through the woman’s aorta. The flap of vessel was evidence to the traumatic nature of the head-on crash. It was a typical injury in an abrupt deceleration scenario. The effect on the large vessel filled with blood during the sudden impact was similar to that of a balloon filled with water. The continued kinetic energy in the forward motion had nowhere to go once the outside casing was halted, thus resulting in enough force to cause the walls to give way at their weakest points.

Kreger thought about what might be able to tip the scales into his patient’s favor. His mind trying to emulate that of his Trauma Fellow, Garrett Trivoli, he considered all of the tricks she had taught him that could possibly help in the circumstance that he now found himself. He did not want to fail his patient and let down the trust that was placed into his hands by the trauma fellow.

"Damn!" His voice was sharp; "This flap is so flimsy, it just continues to tear the more I try to repair it." He blinked several times in succession as though trying to clear his view. "It looks like the weakened area is extending up into the carotid artery as it branches off of the aorta."

What had started as only a small tear was now becoming more unmanageable as the seconds ticked on. He was losing precious time that would ultimately result in the demise of his patient.

Kerger bit at his lip nervously. His decision was being made for him and there was nothing he could do about it. Clearing his throat, he barked out, "Page Dr. Trivoli to the O.R., STAT!"

The small form lay silent on the cradle of the CT Scanner, the only sounds coming from the room were that of the rhythmic cycling of the mechanical ventilator that forced air into his lungs and the whirring of the circling X-ray tube within the gantry of the scanner itself. The saying that "a picture is worth a thousand words" came to mind as Danni watched the grim faces of the doctors. The CT Technologist shifted her position to reach for some paperwork allowing the petite nurse to maneuver herself to get a look at the images that were appearing on the monitor screen. The nurse had seen enough scans in her career that she knew something was definitely wrong. The image that she saw on the screen was nothing like what she was used to seeing. Her eyes traveled to her electronic monitoring devices as she jotted down their readings onto the patient flow sheet making sure to note the time. It was 2047.

Michelle Payo, the Neurosurgery resident on-call for the night had arrived and was watching the last few images come up on the screen. She was of medium height and her pregnancy was obvious, compared with her rather small body frame, her white lab coat hanging open around the protruding form. Shaking her short brown hair, she let out a deep sigh. "May I see," she asked as she pointed to the screen.

"Sure, doc," the CT Technologist began cueing up the first image and slowly ran through them all.

"Well, what do you think, Michelle?" The surgeon was sure that the answer would not be good.

Looking up from the screen and out to the patient, the Neurosurgeon asked, "Did you give him any paralytics?"

"No, he hasn’t had any."

"How about the initial neuro exam, any stimulus?"

"No, nothing, not even decorticate posturing." The surgeon’s voice reflected the severity of the young man’s injuries.

Pursing her lips as she gently patted her pregnant belly, the small woman sighed deeply. "I don’t know of anything that we could do. It already appears that he has sustained an anoxic injury to the brain." She shifted her weight to the other foot, "With the extent of the skull fractures, I’d have to say that the only thing to do now is see if the next of kin will consent for him to be a donor." The young woman looked up to the tall trauma fellow; "There is really no hope for this kind of injury. The respirator will keep his body alive, but the brain will have no function whatsoever. I’d be pretty certain to say that he is brain dead."

Garrett looked away. Her face took on a disgusted scowl as she sucked in on her lips. Letting out a soft snorting sound, she shook her head. "Scan his chest and abdomen. Let’s see if there is anything going on with the vital organs."

The petite blonde nurse wrinkled her nose giving her a questioning look.

"Have the social worker find out if there is any family and contact C.O.R.E." The surgeon was disappointed, "There is nothing more we can do for him, Danni," she offered, "but maybe we can help someone else."

The nurse blinked her eyes to catch the small tear that was forming, "Alright, I’ll let the social worker know. I think that I saw Alex earlier tonight." She turned to the right and reached for the wall phone.

"Dr. Trivoli, Please report to O.R. #1 STAT!" The loud speaker blared, paused, and repeated again.

Garrett’s attention was grabbed as though someone had reached out and vigorously shook her without any warning. Almost immediately her pocket came to life with the sound of the pager beeping. She looked down and studied the number that was imprinted across the display screen. She looked over to Danni, "It’s the O.R., call them and tell them I’m on my way." The tall athletic body of the surgeon was being propelled though the doorway by her long powerful legs as she spoke. She quickly made her way to the stairwell and taking the steps two at a time, she pushed herself up the two flights of stairs. The metal door at the landing slammed open as she launched herself down the hall in the direction of the O.R. entrance. Nearing the doorway she peeled off her trauma gown as she sidestepped her way past an X-ray Tech with a slow moving portable machine. Yanking the right side half of the double doors, she entered into the main desk area. She slowed only long enough to grab a blue hair bonnet and shoe covers, while dropping the lead apron to the floor. Snapping the bonnet down over her shoulder length hair with one hand, she leaned on the desk for balance. "What’s going on?" Her words were punctuated by heavy breathing. She leaned over and slid her foot inside of the covers. The older woman at the desk looked up only to see the back of the surgeon as she vaulted down the hall.

Through the window in the door, she could see the scurry of activity in the operating suite. Hastily she picked up a facemask and placing it on her face, pinched the small metal piece over the bridge of her nose. Pushing open the doors, she entered the surgical arena. The circulating nurse was holding a gown that Garrett thrust her arms through, and spun around so as to have the gown tied shut. The surgeon reached for the pair of sterile gloves that had been laid out for her use as the nurse swiftly tied the loose ends of the facemask to secure it in place.

Striding over to the operating table, the surgeon snapped her gloves into place. "What’s going on, Rob? What can I do to help?"

"She’s bleeding out." His speech was fast and frank. "For every piece of the tear that I get sewn up, another area rips more." He quickly glanced over at Garrett. "I’m losing ground here," he confided.

"Hemostats! Suture!" The instruments were promptly placed into her outstretched hand as she entered into the life or death battle allied with Dr. Kreger.

The screams of anguish heard earlier were now turning into whimpers of discomfort as the medication began to take effect. Having thoroughly examined the man and ascertaining that his only apparent injuries were indeed the multiple fracture sights of both his legs, Dr. Potter felt obligated to ease the patient’s pain. A thought brought a smile to the freckled face of the physician, ‘I wonder if I gave him that to relieve his pain or more to relieve the pain we are experiencing from listening to his screaming.’ Much to the pleasure of all concerned, the medication was doing its job. A quiet peace was once again coming to the trauma hallway and the staff that still remained with the patient in Trauma Room #3.

Jamie stepped outside of the room to look at the X-rays that had already been done. She cued the viewer and began studying the routine films that were part of the trauma protocol. Having seen nothing to alarm or concern her on the cervical spine, chest or abdomen films, she felt good about her choice in pain control for the patient. Her job was just about done, and now it would clearly be an orthopedic case. Still, with the severity of the accident and knowing the fact that one person had been killed at the scene, she thought that it would be best to at least get a CT Scan of his abdomen, just to be on the safe side. She pondered only momentarily the wrath that she might incur from the tall, gorgeous, and demanding trauma surgeon if she didn’t.

"Lori, call CT and tell them we’ll need an abdomen scan for this patient," she said leaning into the doorway of the trauma room.

"Sure thing, Dr. Potter." The insecure nurse was beginning to regain her composure. Her shyness was something that she had trouble with all of her life. She loved being a nurse, but felt at times somewhat overwhelmed by the emotional demands of her patients. Her conservatively styled blonde hair and tall shapely body made her look older, but when she smiled, the illusion was gone in an instant as the youthful appearance of braces glistened in the light.

Jamie was now watching, as the X-rays of the lower extremities were becoming available. Shaking her head at the multiple fractures that were very evident on the X-rays, she advised the young nurse, "It may be a while until Ortho has all of the splinting done. You may want to let them know in CT."

The nurse reached for the phone and did the doctor’s bidding. Hanging up, she informed the physician, "They’re just finishing up that second trauma now, so whenever we are ready will be all right with them."

"Good, and here comes Ortho now." She waited for the tall, lanky form to come closer to her before addressing him. "Hi! I don’t believe that I’ve met you," she held out her hand to him.

His large hand was gentle at the touch of the handshake. "I’m Dr. Armand Selep, I’m covering for your regulars tonight." His eyes held her in his gaze.

"Jamie Potter, E.R. Attending." She smiled pleasantly at him, her hand lingering in his grasp.

The young nurse looked at the two, feeling embarrassed by her intrusion on the intimate moment, she nervously coughed trying to bring them back to the realization of where they were. "Dr. Potter," Lori spoke softly. "CT Scan is waiting for the patient," she reminded her.

Surprised at her reactions to the tall dark-haired man, the physician could feel her face begin to flush. Trying as hard as she might to subdue her inner feelings, she quickly started rattling off a brief report of the patient’s mode of trauma and her findings. "Thirty year old male, unrestrained driver of a tractor trailer that was involved in a head-on crash with an SUV. Obvious deformity to the right leg and ankle, complaining of severe pain in both lower extremities." She pointed to the viewer where the X-rays of his legs were displayed. Clearing her throat, she continued. "There was a reported death in the SUV. We would like to have those legs splinted before he goes to CT Scan to check out his abdomen."

The tall doctor stood with his hand rubbing his face and the barely visible growth of beard, studying the X-rays. Blinking several times as he compared one view of the leg to the other, he began to shake his head. "Those are some pretty bad fractures." He paused and looked into the trauma room at the patient. "Seems pretty quiet for the likes of those injuries," he mused.

"Well, you should have been here when he first came in." Jamie chuckled, "We snowed him pretty good. He was disturbing the entire E.R. with his screaming."

"Yeah, I bet." Armand smiled down at the physician. "Let me get started splinting then," he said. "While he’s in the scanner, I’ll notify my attending. I’m sure he’ll want to take him to the O.R. tonight."

"All right, then." The red-haired doctor nodded in agreement. Adjusting her glasses on her face, Jamie watched as the orthopedic surgeon assembled his supplies to splint the legs.

The long, eerie-toned note was all that was heard, as the surgical team stood transfixed to the electronic monitoring devices. Garrett sniffed as she looked over to the large clock on the wall, "Time of death, 2113."

The anesthesiologist slowly turned off his monitoring devices. Suddenly the room became deafeningly loud with the silence.

She stepped back from the lifeless body on the operating table, snapping her gloves as she ripped them off of her hands and threw them into the waste bucket on the floor. She pulled at the mask on her face, ripping the ties with a strong yank of her hand. She spat into the waste bucket, using the mask to wipe her mouth and discarded it. Death always left a bad taste in her mouth, even if there was nothing she could do to prevent it.

Rob Kreger let his eyes fall into the gaping chest cavity that had been his center of attention for the last hour or so. He let his mind go over his actions and questioned the patient’s outcome. Perhaps he should have called sooner for the talented surgeon to assist him. Would that have made a difference? Had he allowed himself to become arrogant in thinking that he could do the job himself? Alone?

Slowly his hands busied themselves with the task of removing the rib spreaders that were used to gain access to the chest cavity and its contents. The draping was being removed from the face of the woman and he felt compelled to look at her features. He studied them intently, so as to burn them into his memory. This was the face of his first patient lost during an operation that he would call to mind during the rest of his career. He owed it to her and to all the patients he would treat in his lifetime. The lesson being to keep him humble, never denying to ask for help not for him but for his patient.

Long dark hair moved gently with the breeze as the tall form stood staring at the landing sight for the helicopter. The marker lights in the darkening twilight hours illuminated the helipad. Her back faced the trauma doors to the emergency area of the hospital, but she could somehow feel the presence of another human walking towards her. Sensing no danger, she remained absorbed in her thoughts.

The small hand reached out to touch her arm. "Gar…I mean, Dr. Trivoli,

Mom told me you were out here," Danni used her most comforting tone of voice.

"You were right the first time. I don’t much feel like a doctor right about now." She nodded absent-mindedly to herself.

"I’m sorry."

"No need to be, Danni." The surgeon turned to face her friend. "Some things just happen. We all tried the best we could." She shrugged her shoulders, "It just wasn’t meant to be."

Danni looked off into the distance, "I know that, but it’s hard knowing that you lost two from the same vehicle."

The surgeon cleared her throat, "Ah… actually it was all three that were in the same vehicle."

Danni’s head snapped around peering into the blue eyes of her roommate, "What do you mean, all three?"

"The driver of the vehicle was the one dead on the scene. The last flight crew showed me a Polaroid of him." She licked her teeth, making a dissatisfied expression, "It looked like a classic traumatic asphyxiation. He was dead before he knew what hit him."

"Oh," was all that the petite woman said, nodding her head knowingly. Her gaze fell to the ground as she stood there, pondering the results of the catastrophic accident. Her gentle nature was always thinking about the victim or the effect that the trauma would befall the survivors. She closed her eyes and prayed for strength to carry her through until morning when her shift would end.

Garrett broke the silence, "Any word yet on family?"

"No, but Alex said that she would let us know."

"She’ll notify C.O.R.E. then, when she finds out?"

The nurse nodded, "Yes, she thought that would be the best. Just in case there is no one with the authority to deal with the situation."

They stood there for several moments, each absorbed in their own thoughts. The air was turning colder and brought a shiver to the small blonde nurse. Rubbing her arms to get warm, "I’m going back in." She turned, taking several steps, then stopped abruptly, "Garrett?"

"Hmmm?"

"Would you like your duffel bag now, before we get too busy again?"

"Yeah, I guess I could use something to freshen up with right about now," her voice was teasing as she sniffed at her scrub top. "Whew!"

This action brought a smile to both of them as they headed back inside. The two roommates nudging one another with their elbows and giggling as they walked along was letting the tension of the last few hours ease on both of them. For a minute or two, they were able to act as though they still possessed the innocence of childhood.

Entering the E.R., the two were meet by an agitated charge nurse. "Oh, so there you are!" The older nurse shook her finger at the pair. "I’ve been looking all over for you two. You’re the hardest people I know of to find when there is good news."

Danni and Garrett exchanged glances with each other, shrugging their shoulders in unison, then slowly both looked down at the pagers on their clothing.

"Gee, Mom, it’s not like you couldn’t page us or something," Danni teased.

"Yeah, there for a while tonight, you were reading my thoughts like you were inside of my head. What happened?" An eyebrow raised as Garrett looked in her direction.

"Well, next time, short of setting off those darn trauma pagers again, I just might do that," she was becoming flustered.

"So what’s the good news, Mom?" The petite nurse tried to help Karen get back on track with her thoughts.

"Ah…oh! Yeah, you won the baby pool."

"Which one of us, mom?" She glanced up at Garrett, "We both guessed Nine fifteen."

"Well apparently you both won, Rene and his wife had twins; a girl at nine sixteen and a boy at nine eighteen. Surprised everyone including themselves," she chuckled. "They finally took her for a C-section. Seems you two were the closest to the actual times."

Danni looked up to the surgeon, noticing the lopsided grin on her face, "Well, how about that, roommate?" She winked. "We make a pretty good team, you and I," and her soft chuckle became infectious for all three.

The surgeon was taken by surprise at her permutation into a team player, even if that team only consisted of two. She chuckled along with them, but her laugh was more on the side of nervousness at this odd sensation, which was binding her to the small nurse.

Garrett thought about the time of delivery. "You know, it only seems fitting that those babies be born around that time."

"Why is that?" Danni had a half laugh sound to her voice.

"I pronounced the woman in the O.R. at 2113." The surgeon’s voice was somber with the reflection.

"Oh, I see." There was silence for a moment of reverent thought before the young nurse spoke. "You know, they say that when one spirit leaves this earth, another one comes to take its place." She shrugged her shoulders. "Life goes on."

"Hmm…interesting thought, Danni. Interesting in a lot of ways." Garrett wondered who would be the one to take over the place that was vacated in her life. She’d have to give this concept more thought when she had the time. Right now, she was just too tired to put forth the effort.

The aroma of the strongly brewed coffee acted like a homing device to the sleep-deprived surgeon as she made her way to the doctors’ lounge, adjacent to the O.R. locker room. She knew this was the most powerful coffee within the entire complex and she was desperate to stay awake after the long night of monitoring the critically injured trauma patient. It was close to noon and still there was no word of any family members or next of kin for her patient. She hated to think that there was no one in the world that would care whether or not the young man even existed. She made a mental note to get in touch with the social worker and see if there was any progress in the case, but first she would get her cup of caffeine enriched coffee. Her mind drifted to thoughts of her bed at Danni’s house and she found herself envying the nurse for only having to work twelve hour shifts, unlike the thirty-six hours that her night of call held for her. ‘She’ll be fast asleep by now.’ She looked at her watch. It registered as eleven hundred hours in her military mind.

She reached out for the door handle only to have it swing open towards her. Her forward momentum halted as she saw a haggard figure before her. The rumpled and unshaven man was none other than her colleague, Rene Chabot. His eyelids barely open, he tilted his head back to view the obstacle in front of him. After a long moment, he recognized the tall, raven-haired figure as his replacement for the trauma team the previous day. Too tired to speak, he grinned from ear to ear, the way all new fathers do, and held up his hand showing two fingers raised side by side. His nervous giggle was all that was needed to realize that the arrival of twins had taken him by surprise also. So much for modern medicine and being able to predict with any certainty the number and gender of the fetuses, but then again, it may have been their choice not to know ahead of time.

Garrett found herself grinning at the man, nodding her head approvingly. Reaching out, she patted his shoulder, "Everybody is healthy?" The man’s head nodded in affirmation. "If your wife is resting comfortably upstairs, Rene, what are you still doing here?"

Her mind flashed memories of the last time she had seen her parents and a tear began to form in her eyes. Struggling to keep the tears at bay, she leaned toward the man while whispering into his ear. "Don’t let a day go by without telling them that you love them, Rene. That’ll be enough payment for me." She moved back from him physically while her eyes continued to convey her message.

The new father could sense that her words were spoken from the realm of her heart and let her know that he would indeed heed them. "I will, Garrett. Not a day will go by without all the members of my family knowing the love that I have for them."

She coughed, trying to clear her throat, "Now you better get some sleep so that you can see them grow big and strong." She stepped back to allow him to pass by. Advancing once again to the door and opening it, she could hear him call out to her, "Thanks, again."

Her eyes quickly checked the small lounge for signs of any inhabitants. Seeing no one, the emotionally drained woman stood with her head buried in her hands. It wasn’t often that she felt like this, but with the lack of sleep and the loss of several patients in the last 24 hours it could be expected. Her thoughts turned to Rene and his new family as she offered a prayer to keep them safe from any misfortune the world could throw at them. She reached out, taking a Styrofoam cup in her hand. ‘Damn you and your babies Rene! You should have been the one last night to get that family.’ Her hand flexed then contracted sharply smashing the cup in her hand. ‘Why me? I’ve already had my fill.’ Her eyes narrowed and she crumpled the cup even more before she throw it at the trash can next to the table. She walked away from the table and stood staring at the ceiling trying to calm herself. Finally pulling herself together, she returned to the table with the coffee urn and filled another Styrofoam cup. Coddling it in her hands, she made her way over to the soft leather couch. Sipping the black, unsweetened coffee, she tried to bring her mind back to the problems at hand. Perhaps if she closed her eyes, the task would become easier. Much to her surprise, all it brought to her was some very needed sleep. She allowed herself to go willingly into its arms as the dreams of a much simpler life overtook her.

"Garrett, wake up." Dr. Kreger spoke again, "Garrett, do you hear me?"

One heavy eyelid slid open to the harsh assault of the light that filled the room. Her mind had to be playing tricks on her. She could have sworn that her mother was calling out her name.

"Garrett!" Rob’s voice became a little harsher as he tried to arouse the woman out of sleep. "We’ve been looking all over for you. We have some family members that want to see you." His hand gently shook her arm. "Garrett!" Deciding that it was time for drastic measures, he yelled and nudged her violently, "Your patient is crashing!"

Dark eyebrows shot sky high on her forehead pulling her eyelids wide open revealing intense blue orbs. With a move as swift as a bolt of lightning, she was standing next to him, her hand grasping the material of his lab coat, "Which one?" The adrenaline pumping at maximum capacity through her body was like that of a caged panther waiting for the gate to open.

He now rethought his decision. By the look of intensity on the tall surgeon’s face, Rob knew immediately that he had chosen the wrong manner to awaken the sleeping woman. This woman was definitely someone that could scare the living daylights out of the most virile of men. He closed his eyes and gulped as he made a mental note to check his shorts for soilage after he calmed her down. That was, if he could calm her down. Wincing, he readied himself for her wrath. "No one. No one is crashing," he uttered.

The surging electric blue of her eyes searched deep into the windows of his soul. "What do you mean, no one is crashing? You just said that my patient…"

"I lied!" He was unable to return her gaze. "I had to get you to wake up. I’m sorry but nothing else seemed to arouse you." He sighed as her hold released. "I’ll know better next time." He assured her. "It’s just that we have been trying to get a hold of you for a while now."

Garrett looked down at her pager. She must have slept through the pages, and by the number of them, she guessed that it had been a long time that she had been dead to the world. "I must have fallen asleep," she remembered vaguely sipping on the cup of coffee. She looked down on the nearly full cup of black coffee waiting for her return on the small table next to the couch where she had placed it. "So what’s up that you’ve been trying to reach me?" She tried to wipe the sleepiness from her tired eyes as she twisted and turned her neck as if to work a kink out of it.

"The social worker was finally able to get in touch with a family member for that young boy from last night." Rob bit at his lip thoughtfully, "I knew that you would want to be the one to talk to them."

The somber look on her face and the slight nod of her head was enough of a reply for Dr. Kreger. "They should be here any minute. I told them that we would meet them in the family room outside of the Neuro-ICU."

She glanced at her watch, "Let me just splash some water on my face and I’ll meet you there in a few minutes." Garrett turned to move toward the locker room area.

"I am sorry that I had to wake you like that." Rob felt compelled to apologize again. "I’ll see you up there in a few."

"It’s okay, Rob, you did what you had to do. Given the situation, I would have done the same thing. Don’t ever apologize if it helps the patient."

He looked at her funny saying, "But how can we help the patient? He’s brain dead."

Her eyes once again pinned him. "We’ll help the patient through the family’s understanding and coming to terms with the loss. Sometimes that is all you can do."

Kreger accepted her words, knowing that she was right. Dealing with the family could very well be considered part of the healing process. It was times like this that he thought about how very little he did know, but he was glad to have been placed in the presence of such a remarkable teacher. His head nodded in agreement. "I’ll see you upstairs," he said as he made his way to the door.

*****************

The hallway outside of the Neuro-ICU was silent reflecting the serious nature of the area. Most patients here were immediately post-operative, remaining only a day or two until they would be transferred to a regular Neurosurgical floor. Then, there were the others. Those who were not well enough to be weaned off of a ventilator or those who would soon die from the total lack of brain function. The color scheme of the area reflected the neutrality. It was an area that could run the gamut of emotions from extreme happiness to that of severe depression all hinging on the words spoken.

The social worker stood waiting in the hall, her brown, unruly hair constantly getting in her way. It was not long enough to put behind her ears and too long not to fall into her vision or face with each movement of her head. The suit that she wore gave her an air of business as she presented herself, standing to her full five foot seven inches of height. She glanced at her watch only to check on the time. It was 3:58 P.M. and once again her hopes were rising with the sound of the elevator’s ding.

With the doors parting slowly, the figure of a man departing the elevator became apparent. The crisp white lab coat had a military look to it with the finely detailed starched lines running down the sleeves. He checked his lapel to assure that his I.D. was in place. In his hand he carried a manila envelope full of forms that would be needed for the family’s signature, if they would decide to donate the usable organs for transplantation. He slowed as he came upon the social worker and introduced himself, "Hi! My name is Mark Crawford, I’m with C.O.R.E." He offered her his hand.

"Alexia," she shook his hand. "I’m the social worker. Nice to meet you, Mr. Crawford." She smiled at him to conceal the eerie feeling she always got when meeting with anyone from the organ recovery team. It always made her think she was dealing with someone out of a Frankenstein novel, the grave robbers to be truthful. Alexia never gave these people her full name, nor would she let them call her by the name that her friends did, it was her mechanism of distancing herself from them.

He smiled courteously at her as his eyes strayed over to the door of the Family Room. "Have the doctors spoken to them yet?" His head motioned toward the door, his eyes eager for her answer.

"No, that’s who I’m waiting on now." Her face tensed a little, "Dr. Trivoli was tied up in a case for a while. She should be here any minute."

He looked at her with a puzzled face. "Trivoli, she must be new. I don’t recognize her name."

Alex was pleased that her friend Danni’s roommate was not one who would make Crawford’s presence necessary that often. For that, she was thankful. "No, actually she’s been here since July. She’s one of our Trauma Fellows."

"She must be pretty good or just lucky to be on when the traumas are not that bad," he joked.

"I think that I would bet on good, Mr. Crawford." The voice was confident as Rob Kreger walked over to them from the Neuro-ICU. "If I were you, I’d enjoy this meeting with her today."

"And why is that?" Crawford demanded.

"I don’t believe you will be seeing a lot of her in the future. That’s why." Rob let his face show a smug appearance. Hearing the elevator announcing it’s arrival to the floor, he gazed over to the opening doors, "Here she is now."

The tall, stalwart figure appeared to have an aura around her as the bright fluorescent lighting of the elevator contrasted to that of the muted mood lighting of the hallway as she stood in the doorway. Her facial features remained undistinguishable until the doors closed behind her, allowing the dim lighting to give her well-defined features a softening appearance. The power and grace of her moves as she walked down the hall towards them brought to mind the stalking qualities of a panther. If she had meant to impress anyone, she was indeed fulfilling that wish.

Rob and Alex both watched as the surgeon cast a spell over Mark Crawford. They saw his look go from one of utter annoyance with her luck, to that of disbelief at her ability to bring him to his knees. Glistening beads of perspiration were gathering across his forehead the closer to him that she came. His lower lip was noticeably quivering, as his mouth became agape. The man’s eyes seemed to be the only things moving on him with any purpose at all as they wandered up and down her long body. Yes, he was definitely hers for the asking.

Alex’s voice broke the solemn exchange of stares as she introduced the two to each other. "Dr. Trivoli, this is Mark Crawford from the Organ Recovery Team," she paused momentarily. "Mr. Crawford, this is Trauma Fellow Garrett Trivoli."

Garrett eyed the lecherous man as she drew her hand out of the pocket of her lab coat. "Mr. Crawford," she greeted him, offering her hand.

His hand nervously smoothed the buttons of his lab jacket. Gulping audibly he took her hand in his, "The pleasure is definitely all mine." Bringing her hand towards his mouth he gingerly placed a kiss on the back of it as he held her fingers in his.

The surgeon’s eyebrow edged upward into her hairline as her eyes narrowed. If looks could indeed kill, the cold steel color of her eyes would have penetrated his heart, and this man in front of her would be the next trauma page going off on her beeper. She tugged at her hand, not wanting him to think that she was actually enjoying his attempt at flirting with her.

"I believe you said that the family was here?" Garrett was professional in her manner as she addressed Alex. She withdrew her hand, placing it in her lab coat pocket, trying as she might to position it in such a way as to allow the absorbent material to erase the moisture of his kiss. "Yes, the only family member that we could find is here." Alex turned to face Garrett directly. "I found out the man that was DOA was David Morgan, the woman who died in the O.R. was his wife, Rita."

"The boy in ICU now, was he related to them?" Crawford was obviously edgy, waiting for her reply.

"Their son, Bradley," was all that she said seeing the disappointment in his face.

"How old was he? Did he have a driver’s license on him?" His only concern was that the young man had checked off the Organ Donor box on his driver’s license.

"Sorry, he isn’t old enough to even have a learner’s permit," Alex said apologetically.

"Hmmm! Is it a grandparent then?" His tone was insistent.

Tired of the interrogation that the social worker was under, Dr. Trivoli spoke up. "Why don’t you introduce me to the family member. I’d like to discuss my patient’s," she paused to correct herself, "Bradley’s condition with them."

Alex was appreciative for the intrusion in the line of questioning. "Allow me to do that right now. Dr. Kreger, Dr. Trivoli, if you would come with me." She purposely ushered them to the door of the Family Room, leaving a disappointed but still hopeful Mark Crawford standing alone.

Garrett looked through the narrow panel of glass in the door viewing the occupants of the Family Room. There was a woman, whom she guessed to be in her early forties, and two teenage girls.

With her hand on the doorknob, Alex looked at Garrett, then at Rob; "You ready for this?"

Rob’s eyes flashed to his mentor. Seeing the calmness in her, he nodded his head. The surgeon inhaled deeply and nodded saying, "As ready as I’ll ever be."

The door opened and the three walked single file into the small room.

There was an incredible tenseness in the air as the hospital personnel formed a tight semi-circle in front of the three women. The emotionless faces were nothing but a mask for the pleading eyes of hopefulness that watched them intently, waiting for the deafening silence to be broken. The older woman rested her arm on the shoulder of the smaller teen while the other teen quickly flanked her on the opposite side.

Alex cleared her throat and began. "My name is Alexia, I’m the social worker that you spoke to on the phone. This is Dr.Trivoli and Dr. Kreger." She motioned to each as she said their name.

"Hello, I’m Marianne Gryphon," the older woman introduced herself. She gently touched the far teen with her hand saying, "This is my daughter, Kristen and her friend Diana Morgan."

Garrett studied the small teen. She couldn’t be any older than perhaps seventeen, her brown hair pulled back into a barrette accentuated the worried look on her face. She looked like the typical girl next door, young and full of life.

"When we took Diana home from the sleep-over last night, we found the message on the answering machine. We thought that it was kind of funny that the rest of the family wasn’t at home. Are they alright?" The woman was genuinely concerned.

"Are you a relative, Ms. Gryphon?" The social worker so desperately hoped that she was.

Sighing loudly, "No. No, I am not." She looked at the teen; "Diana is the only relative that I know of."

Struggling to control her emotions, Garrett blinked back a tear as she reached out to the small girl. ‘Rene, you owe me big time for this.’ "Diana, why don’t we have a seat over here." She moved them in the direction of the comfortable looking couch along the far wall. Once seated she continued, "Does your family own a sport utility vehicle?"

The young girl stared at her, "Yes." Her eyes were searching the doctor’s face for some indication of her loved ones’ condition. The build up of tears was like that of a dam ready to overflow.

Garrett glanced at her co-workers briefly before she took the young girl’s hand in hers. "Your parents and your brother were involved in a very serious motor vehicle accident last night. Your mother and brother were brought to this hospital by helicopter straight from the accident scene. Diana, the rescue workers at the scene, Dr. Kreger, and myself did everything that we possibly could to save your parents but their injuries were just too extensive to sustain life."

"NO!" The girl cried out in anguish. "They can’t be. They just haven’t come home yet. It’s not them!" She turned, pulling her hands away from Garrett’s and then balled them into fists. She lunged at the surgeon next to her while her arms flung wildly in denial. "You…you let them die!" The torment of her soul was evident. "You didn’t even try to help them, did you?"

Garrett backed away, her mind reeling from the sudden outburst of anger shown toward her. Ms. Gryphon came from behind Diana and tried to stop her emotional display. The sobbing soon took over the girl as her words became more garbled and unintelligible. Diana stood up. She turned into her friend’s mother and clung to her body for support. She needed to be comforted and by the intensity of the outburst in Garrett’s direction, that would not come from her. The surprised surgeon never liked doing the sensitive things connected with her job, but now, this was even worse. ‘I don’t know how to deal with this. I…I…’ she thought about all of the many times she had witnessed the rich flow of compassion oozing forth from Danni in the trauma suite or with the members of a family in the hallway. ‘God, I wish she was here doing this. She’d know how to handle this girl.’

Garrett was afraid that the situation would escalate into one of sheer hostility, all directed at her.

Diana stared into space, tears spilling over her eyelashes and rolling down her cheeks. After several moments, the words slowly came to her voice. "My brother, Brad, is he okay?" Her eyes now stared into the doctor’s, looking for the truth. "Or are you going to kill him, too?"

"Your brother is in the Neuro-ICU with head injuries. The assault on his brain from the impact of the vehicles has left him unable to breathe on his own. We are breathing for him with the help of a mechanical respirator." Garrett held her eye fixed to Diana’s as she allowed time for this information sink in. ‘She doesn’t trust me. I can see it in her eyes.’

"Will he get any better?" she asked, almost knowing what the answer would be.

The surgeon lowered her eyes to the ground and very quietly said, "No, we believe his injuries to be fatal in nature."

"Do all of the doctors believe this, or just you?" Her voice was like a venom spat in Garrett’s direction.

Rob Kreger now spoke up. "If you don’t think that Dr. Trivoli or myself gave every effort…"

Garrett turned abruptly, her eyes sending forth a message of complete control when they locked onto the vocal Chief Resident. "I’m sure if Ms. Morgan wants to talk to another Doctor, we can arrange that." Her eyes flashed her anger at her outspoken colleague. She was trying hard not to provoke any more confrontation than was necessary.

Diana’s head dropped and the sobbing began. She broke away from her friend’s mother. She strode over to the couch falling into it and slowly curled into a ball, her body shaking relentlessly with each round of tears. Her world as she had known it for all of her life was at an end, never to be the same again.

Marianne held onto her daughter now fearing if she left go she would somehow disappear. The color drained out of her face and the look of desolation was in her eyes. "They’re gone." Mrs. Gryphon shook her head in disbelief as she clutched on to her own daughter even tighter than before. Her eyes closed in thanksgiving that it was not Kristen living through this tragedy. She looked to Alex, "What is going to happen to Diana now?" Biting at her lower lip she pondered the thought. "She doesn’t have any living relatives, at least that we know of." She looked at her daughter for reassurance. Kristen’s reply was a slow shake of her head.

Garrett sat down again next to the grief-stricken girl. Pulling a tissue from her pocket, she offered it to Diana and waited for the sobbing to diminish. The girl pulled away further into the corner of the couch, not wanting to have any physical connection with the surgeon. In Garrett’s own mind, scenes from her life tugged at her emotions as she remembered how things were, so many years ago.

She found herself leaning in toward the teen to speak, "Would you like to see your brother?" Her words were kind as her eyes searched for an answer in the red swollen orbs that peered up at her, the hate evident toward her. "He has a tube in his mouth that goes down his throat to breathe for him. There will be a lot of intravenous lines that are giving him fluids and medicine. The electrical devices that enable us to monitor his body functions will take up the better part of the room." Garrett attempted to paint a reasonable picture of what the girl would see. The last thing that she wanted was to frighten her even more or to give her any false hope of his condition.

The young girl wiped her eyes, "Could I, please?" Her voice was shaky and weak.

"Dr. Kreger, would you call into the ICU and tell them that Diana would like to visit her brother?"

Rob set about to his task of clearing the way for the entourage to enter the ICU, without being subjected to any undue strain from viewing the other patients or procedures that might be going on. When everything was set, he called into the Family Room on the dedicated phone line, informing the social worker of the time available for visitation.

The group made their way into the unit. Stopping at the nurse’s desk right inside the door, Dr. Trivoli reviewed Bradley Morgan’s chart. His condition remained the same. There were no voluntary movements or responses to deep painful stimulus. The extent of his injuries was quite clear in her mind. She would be talking to the neurosurgeon after Diana was done visiting, and ask that a brain death protocol be ordered. Putting the chart down, she motioned for them to follow her to his bedside.

The young girl walked over to the tall surgeon who held out a gown for her to put on. Donning her own gown quickly, she accompanied her across the room to the cubicle where her brother’s body lay, supported by a multitude of machines. The roaming eyes of the teen took in every detail of the room, her eyes darting from one noise to another as the machines did their job.

Garrett watched as the teen finally settled in on her brother’s face, a tear rolling down her own cheek. "You can talk to him if you’d like, Diana."

Her voice was barely above a whisper, "Could I touch his hand?" She looked up to the surgeon, her eyes pleading for approval.

"I think he would like that." Her head motioned to the body laying in repose. She watched as Diana made her way to the bedside. She hesitated as she reached out for his hand, looking over her shoulder for encouragement. Garrett nodded in approval. The young girl stroked his small hand with her own and soon was leaning over to talk ever so softly into his ear.

The surgeon studied the scene intently looking for any sign of recognition on Brad’s part. His eyes never fluttered, the muscles in his face never twitched, the hand remained still as if it had never been touched. Her keen sense of hearing listened for any change in the rhythm of the beeping noise emitted from the heart monitor, but there was none. In essence, the body before her was nothing more than an empty shell devoid of all the nuances that denote life.

After several minutes, she bent over and kissed her brother’s forehead. Slowly she backed away from the bed until she was standing next to the tall woman. Her eyes never wavered from watching him; "He looks so peaceful."

A minute or two passed by before the silence was broken. "Does he feel anything?" Diana looked up at Garrett, "He’s not in pain, I mean?"

"No, we’re giving him some medication to make sure of that," she responded.

"So, what’s next?" Her young voice had vagueness about it. "Does he just go on like this forever?"

The surgeon thought about what to say. "There is a group of tests that we will do on your brother that will tell us whether or not there is any activity going on in his brain. If they result in showing no brain activity then we can declare him brain dead and remove the ventilator. After a few minutes, his heart will stop beating and his other organs will cease to function." She tried to lessen the impact as much as she could.

"When?" She stuttered, "When will that happen?"

"We should know by tomorrow around noon," Garrett projected. "If you would like, you could be here with him, if that is what we need to do."

The girl nodded her head in agreement. Sighing, she hung her head and muttered. "Will you be here too? Yeah, I bet you like seeing people die."

Her eyes flashed at the surgeon with all the hatred that she could muster. "I bet you just love to see people’s whole lives get thrown right in the toilet before your eyes. It makes you feel all high and mighty, doesn’t it? You all think that you’re gods."

The surgeon grasped tightly onto the bed rail with both her hands. She really wanted to lash out at this for her taunting ways but knew that it would only provoke more of the same. "I will but only because I have to be. He’s my patient, Diana, not some experiment."

Diana turned to face her. "Well, at least you realize that he’s my brother and I’m not going to just throw him away." She saw her friend off in the distance behind the doctor. "I better get back with my friend now. I have some things that I need to sort out." She turned to look at her brother for a moment, then turning back to the surgeon she glared. The two stood that way for a moment before Diana slowly walked in the direction of Kristen and her mother, continuing to pass them on her way out of the door.

Garrett watched her leave with the Gryphons following right behind her. Cursing to herself for not being able to save the girl from the pain and anguish she was going through, she ran her fingers through her long raven hair in desperation. ‘Danni, why couldn’t you have been here?’

*****************

The sound of the front door opening caught Danni’s attention. She placed her plate in the dishwasher and made her way into the living room.

"Garrett, is that you?" She came around the corner of the hall to see the haggard appearance of her roommate. "Want happened to you?" She came over to her and took the duffel bag from her hand. "Didn’t you get any sleep at all?" Concern was written all over her face.

"Yeah, a few hours," she leaned against the couch to take off her shoes. "But not very comfortable, to say the least. I fell asleep in the doctor’s lounge in the O.R." Her hand rubbed at her back to ease the soreness. "I think I’m just going to take a hot bath and go to bed."

The petite woman could not believe how tired her Amazon looked. "You want something to eat?"

"Thanks, but no, I ate at the hospital. I just need to relax and get a lot of sleep."

"Well, let me start your bath for you." Danni went into the bathroom and turned on the water for the tub. Emerging from the doorway, she came back into the living room. "How about I fix you a nice cup of tea. Hmmm?"

Garrett nodded and muttered the word, "Thanks," as Danni passed by on her way to the kitchen, her energy waning.

Calling in from the kitchen, Danni asked, "Did they find any family for that young trauma patient yet?"

Garrett waited for her return, too tired to yell back. "Yeah, turns out the only family so far is his sister." She looked up at her roommate. "She’s only seventeen."

"Oh, by the gods!" She sat down on the couch. "She must be devastated."

"She’s doing better than some that I have seen. Tomorrow’s going to be the hard one."

Danni looked puzzled.

"I ordered the brain death protocol. We’ll know for sure by noon tomorrow." The surgeon rolled her tongue across her teeth; "I told her that I would be there with her tomorrow when it’s time."

The blonde sighed. "I wish I could have been there with you today. I know how much you like doing the sensitive chats."

"Yeah, well..."

"Garrett, I’m off for the next two days. Let me be there with you tomorrow?"

"Thanks, but you don’t have to, Danni." The surgeon rose to her feet. "I better get that bath before I fall asleep right here." She thought about the offer as she walked to the bathroom. Pausing at the door, she said. "Maybe that might not be a bad idea. I’ll see you about noon tomorrow in the Neuro-ICU."

After the time spent soothing her tired muscles with the heat of the water, the tall woman stole herself quietly into her bedroom. There on the corner of her nightstand was a cup of hot tea. ‘I’ll have to remember to thank her for this. It’s nice to have someone who cares,’ she mused. Letting her robe fall off of her body into a heap on the floor, she slid under the covers that had been neatly turned down for her. Taking a few sips of tea from the cup, she placed it back on the table and readied herself for sleep.

*****************

She had always prided herself on keeping her word and now as she mulled over the events of the last two days, the surgeon was not looking forward to what was about to take place within the next hour or so. It was her day off technically, but she had promised to be here with Brad’s sister Diana when the time came. Sure, she could have put it off for another day, but somehow that just didn’t seem right, to make the poor girl agonize over the potential outcome of the tests. Besides, she didn’t want to add to the young girl’s burden by causing any hassles over the payment of the hospitalization by the insurance company.

Garrett sipped at her cup of black coffee as she was looking over the reports of the tests that she had ordered on Bradley Morgan. The EEG test, which measured the activity of the brain, was plain and to the point; no activity found. The other test reports were all in alignment with the neurosurgeon’s prognosis at the sight of the initial CT Scan. Now it was going to be her job to help Diana grasp the concept that her brother didn’t really inhabit the body that was being kept alive in the ICU. There really was no life force present, only the mechanical initiative that preserved the body in its vegetative state.

The surgeon rested her head in her hands as she contemplated the course of changes that the life of Diana Morgan was going to encounter. She sighed knowing full well that this was not the way her parents would have wished for her life to be. Unfortunately, there was nothing Garrett could do about it except to give the support and guidance that she would need in the next few hours. The surgeon felt absolutely helpless at the outcome of her efforts.

The small windowless office seemed to be closing in on her as she raised her head out of her hands and looked around. She had been so preoccupied with her thoughts that she had not heard the knock at the door. The motion of the door slowly opening and the appearance of the blonde hair brought her back to reality.

Knocking again on the open door, Danni peered in at the woman seated behind the desk. "Hey," she smiled, "mind if I come in?"

The answer was evident by the lopsided smile on the surgeon’s face at the sight of her friend. "Yeah, I was hoping that you’d be a little early."

The petite woman slipped in the door as she studied the room. "I guess you don’t spend too much time in here." The nurse knew how claustrophobic the tall woman could be at times.

Garrett chuckled slightly, "Every free minute that I get." She was being sarcastic with her reply. "Have a seat." She motioned to the small chair that was behind the door. She waited for the door to close all the way. Gathering the papers that were spread out across her desk into a neat pile, she offered them to the nurse. "Care to read the results?"

"By the look on your face when I stuck my head in, I don’t think that I have to." Danni shifted her position in the chair. "Did you tell his sister yet?"

"No, I just got done reviewing them myself." She placed the stack of reports on the desk. "Danni," she hesitated biting her lower lip. "I’d appreciate it if you would help me with this one."

The nurse sensed the apprehension in Garrett’s voice. Something about this case was really bothering her but Danni knew enough about her friend not to push for answers. "Sure, anything that I can do to help, just let me know." She watched as the tense look on the surgeon’s face relaxed.

"Thanks, I really want to be as gentle and considerate as I can on this one. She’s got a lot on her plate right now and being so young." She took a deep breath, "Well, it could affect her for the rest of her life. I don’t want to let her feel any remorse about what has to be done. She doesn’t need to be haunted with this tragedy any more than she is already." Garrett closed her eyes at the thought, a pained look over taking her face.

Danni felt compelled to reach out to her friend. She was certain that this was affecting the surgeon more than usual. She knew that Garrett was not one for talking about herself or her childhood, and now seeing this, she was sure that there was a reason why. She let her hand gently rest on the edge of the desk with her fingers flexing. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Crystal blue eyes shot to attention as her lids opened wide then slowly narrowed settling on Danni. "There’s nothing to talk about," she snapped.

Her face had taken on a new hard look to her usually pleasant features.

Sensing that she had touched on an exposed nerve, Danni backed off.

"Sorry, I only meant to help," she apologized. "If you ever…" her voice trailed off abruptly with the intense look that she was receiving from her friend.

The surgeon cleared her throat trying to choke back the cry that was readying to escape from her. She let her gaze drift away from her friend to hide the well of tears that were threatening to overflow. Having successfully reigned in her emotions she pushed herself away from the desk and stood up. "Let’s get this over with," her face expressing no emotions as she rounded the corner of the desk, advancing toward the door.

Danni watched in amazement as she witnessed the surgeon fighting back her emotional turmoil and reinstating her mask of professional facade. This sight saddened the young woman’s heart. Her friend was hurting and she could do nothing but be ready for the time when Garrett would allow her into that secret place where her tortured soul dwelled.

The nurse followed her friend, reluctantly, out of the office. Pausing as she closed the door, she offered up a silent prayer. ‘She’s hurting so badly. Please, if there is any god that ameliorates the healers, let me act as your instrument to help her soul find peace within herself.’ Sighing deeply, she turned and followed the surgeon to the Neuro-ICU area.

******************

A young girl peered out of the safety window in the door of the family room. Her sullen eyes reflecting the scene before them. "Mom," she whispered to the woman who had just joined her there. "I don’t think it’s good news." She looked up to her mother for support.

Mrs. Gryphon observed the three women in the hall. She recognized Alexia and Dr. Trivoli from the day before. The third woman was new to her. She watched the grim looks that each one had on their faces and prepared for the worse. Resting her arm around her daughter’s shoulders, she glanced over at Diana sitting on the couch with her head buried in her hands. Sniffing back a tear, she squeezed Kristen and whispered gently in her ear, "I love you." The young girl smiled up at her and nodded. "We have to be strong for Diana now. Can you do that?" She nodded again then went to sit beside her friend.

Moving away from the door, Marianne took up a position nearer to the two young girls and waited for the trio to enter the room.

A few moments later the door opened with Alex leading the procession of sober faced professionals. Diana’s head raised out of her hands when she heard the sound of heels walking across the polished tile floor. The hopeful eyes of the young girl searched the faces as each one entered the room for the answer to the question ripping at her heart. Her mood went spiraling out of control as the petite blonde stepped in, closing the door behind her. Tears were streaking down her cheeks as Alexia greeted them. All her mind could think about was her brother and how he had been so full of life the last time she saw him outside of the hospital. Her eyes grew large as she picked out the tall surgeon and stared directly into her crystal orbs. The girl shivered seeing eyes staring back at her that were devoid of any emotions. Before any one had even spoken to her, Diana knew what was about to happen. Her hopes and dreams of the future were about to change for the rest of her life, for the second time in the last two days.

Garrett cleared her throat and began to slowly approach the young girl. "Diana," she paused motioning the petite nurse to come forward. "Let me introduce one of our trauma nurses to you. This is Danni, she was Brad’s nurse when he first arrived here the night before last." The surgeon’s eyes were gauging her response to the nurse. "Danni, this is Diana Morgan, Brad’s sister and her friend Kristen and Kristen’s mother Marianne Gryphon." She pointed to them as they were introduced.

The nurse used all of her skills as she came forward to greet the young girl. She brought herself to rest on the couch next to her and spoke in a soft, quiet manner. "I hope you don’t mind, Diana, but I asked my friend, Dr. Trivoli, if I could meet you today." She waited for a response but the young girl’s eyes were blanks. Danni looked around the room to the mother and her daughter, each one with only true concern written on their faces. The nurse tried a slightly different approach this time. "You know, little brothers can be a challenge to their older sisters, but deep within our hearts we love them dearly. When I was growing up, my brother was always teasing me and…"

The girl suddenly focused on the nurse sitting next to her. "You have a little brother too?" Her eyes were now coming to life as a common ground was found, linking the two women together.

"Yes," her warm smile bridging the space between them. "I know you love your brother just like I do mine, and that you only want the best of everything for him." She gently laid her hand on top of the arm. "That’s why I would like you to listen to what Dr. Trivoli has to tell you. Okay?"

Diana sniffed as she wiped a tear from her cheek with the back of her hand. She blinked several times trying to contain the tears that were waiting for release and nodded in affirmation. Her attention now turned to the tall figure in front of her.

"We’ve gotten the results from the tests back." Garrett paused as she looked at the nurse for support. "They proved what we had speculated about the night he came in." Her eye caught Kristen glancing at her mother in anticipation. "I’ve studied the reports and have spoken with several colleagues of mine in reference to Brad’s prognosis. I’m sorry to say but there is no evidence of a recovery at this point in time. His body is not able to function on it’s own without the assistance of the machines. I was hoping that there would be some small chance, but I can’t even give you any glimmer of hope that he will ever be anything more than what you see in that bed today."

The young girl bit down on her lip. She looked over to Kristen and then slowly lifted her gaze to Mrs. Gryphon. "What…" she stuttered. "What happens now?" She turned to the nurse beside her, pleading for guidance. "How do I take care of my brother now?" A large tear found its way over her cheek as her hand reached out to grasp the hand of the nurse.

"You have to think of what is best for your brother now. How he would like his life to be." She held on to the girl’s hand, letting the compassion show in her face. Studying her face intently, "Would your brother have enjoyed his life like it is now?"

Her gaze drifted to the floor, as she answered shakily, "No." Then without warning her body stiffened and she rose abruptly. "But he’s my brother, damn it!" Her head turned quickly as she looked at the people around her, "I can’t just kill…" her voice trail off into a whisper, "him."

"Nobody is asking you to kill him, dear." Mrs. Gryphon spoke up.

Kristen tried helping, "You know that’s not really Brad in there."

Danni drew her attention back by touching the young girl’s arm. "They’re right, Diana. Your brother’s life force," she paused searching for a better explanation of it, "the essence that makes Brad different from anybody else just isn’t there any longer. All that you see is his body, the shell that housed his soul and gave direction to the energy that he was." Danni gazed into the young girl’s eyes and then slowly directed her to look over to the surgeon.

Sensing that it was her time to speak, Garrett started. "We just need to let his body go, Diana."

"But how…who?" Diana’s eyes grew bigger as her mind raced with the possibilities. "You don’t expect me to…" her eyes now darted around the room, the tears welling up and starting to fall. "You’re asking too much. I couldn’t…"

"Me," fighting a break in her voice not to be heard. "I’ll be the one to turn the machines off." The surgeon reassured her.

The girl thought about it for a moment. Looking to her friend’s mother for approval, she slowly nodded her head in agreement. Garrett closed her eyes and sighed. The decision was made. Now all she had to do was carry out the task.

"Would you like to see him before…?" Danni waited for her answer. The girl only shrugged her shoulders, and then thinking on it, shook her head. "That’s all right, Diana. If it were my brother, I think I would want to remember him at his happiest moment, full of life and loving everything in it. What did your brother love to do best?"

The girl thought for only a second. "It would be riding his bicycle. His racing helmet on and streaking across the top of the hill at the end of our street, the late afternoon sun at his back, that’s how I’ll remember him." A faint smile played upon her lips at the thought.

"Then that is the way you will see him. Remember him like that and you will never be far from his spirit." Danni instinctively meet the azure eyes of the surgeon and felt that her words had helped more than just Diana.

The subdued voice of the nurse seemed to wrap itself around Garrett’s soul. The silences of the moment allowed a fleeting glimpse of a tasseled haired boy come to Garrett’s mind. His youthful features covered with a smattering of sweat and dirt as he laughed holding up his prize catch, a rainbow trout.

The nurse watched as a serene look came over the face of the surgeon. She wasn’t sure what her friend was thinking about, but at least what she had said was helping her cope with the situation at hand, if not what she held in her past.

Alex breathed a sigh of relief knowing that the hard part, if only for her, was over. She had feared the worst out of the young girl who was being dealt a hard slap in the face by reality. The intense emotional scene that she expected had been averted by the combined effort of Danni and Garrett. For this she was truly grateful.

Diana walked over to Mrs. Gryphon. "I’d like to leave now." Her voice was even and unwavering.

The woman gathered both girls into her arms and hugged them equally. Looking back to the medical professionals she mouthed the words, "Thank You." She watched as each one accepted her appreciation. "Come on, let’s go home." With that, the small group made their way to the door and out of the hospital.

Danni sidled up to the tall surgeon who seemed to still be absorbed by her thoughts. She watched the expression on her friend change to one of confused questioning, as the surgeon became aware of her. "Ah…I’d like to be with you when you take him off." Her green eyes locked onto the blue orbs in a knowing plea to allow her to share this last service to her patient.

Garrett acquiesced. There was something about the petite nurse that made her feel better about the whole situation. Rubbing her chin in thought, she nodded. "Let’s go see to our patient’s needs one last time."

They left the confines of the small room. The slow procession traveled down the hall into the Neuro-ICU without a single word spoken. The anguish on each of their faces was the only lament to the task they were about to do. As they passed the nurses’ station, Alex left the formation to review the arrangements for the destination of Bradley Morgan’s remains.

The surgeon, now taking the lead, walked with purposeful strides through the unit to the cubicle where the young boy’s body was being maintained. She stood observing the array of mechanical support systems and sighed. ‘This is all that modern medicine can do. We can duplicate and maintain the bodily functions but we can’t give him back his soul,’ she mused. ‘I didn’t want this to ever happen to anyone else.’

She was presented with the boy’s chart. Taking it, she flipped it open reading the latest entry in the nurses’ charting area. ‘No new observations of any physical activity on the part of the patient noted.’ That one sentence said it all along with the results of the battery of tests she had received earlier. She handed the chart to the petite nurse, allowing her eyes to view that all-encompassing declaration, announcing the futility of any further hope for Bradley’s survival.

The surgeon closed her eyes in an effort to calm the anger that was building within her. Her mind was in a quandary as she remembered what her goal had been when she decided to become a doctor. The suffering was soon to be over for Brad, but in her mind she had been able to do nothing for his sister, Diana. It was happening again and she had no control over it this time either.

Her mind was forced back to her present physical surroundings, as she felt a warm touch upon her back, the heat of which seemed to bring comfort to her. She looked down at Danni trying to hide all of the emotions that were raging inside of her head. "Would you like to give it one last try?"

The green eyes twinkled with the thought. Hesitantly she nodded saying; "I’d like that. Thank you." The nurse went to the boy’s bedside talking to him in the same gentle manner as when he had first arrived in the trauma room. She placed his hand into hers and delicately stroked the back of it. Squeezing his hand with hers she watched for any signs of response. Looking over her shoulder at Garrett she shook her head, a disappointed look crossing her face.

She laid his hand back down and once again stared at his angelic face. She brushed back a straying lock of hair on his forehead, as she leaned in to place a light kiss on his cheek before coming back to stand with her friend.

Garrett looked around the unit and motioned for the nurse to close the drapery, shutting the cubicle off from view. It was time to let the young boy’s body take its leave without the stares of any visitors or other patients to distract from his final moments in human form. The surgeon swallowed hard, trying to settle her nervous stomach. Walking over to the ventilator, she reached out and pressed the toggle switch to the off position. She pressed her eyelids together and inhaled deeply, trying to keep the scene of a distant time from reappearing in her mind. Exhaling, she opened her eyes and watched the electronic devices showing the deterioration of the human body lying before her.

The patient’s nurse stood off to the side recording the time and vital signs prior to the termination of mechanical support as Danni braced herself for the events to come. It was always sad to watch the passing of a life before your very eyes, but Danni was no stranger to death, it went with the job of being a trauma nurse. The sadness today seemed to come from her friend and the demons that she was wrestling with. Something in this woman’s past had really affected her. Wishing that she would be able to help ease the surgeon’s mind, she resigned herself to the fact that she could do no more than just be here for her. With that thought in mind, she watched the tall woman for any clue of how she might help her deal with that pain.

It was a few moments now since the rhythmic sound of the respirator filled the room. The steady rise and fall of the boy’s chest had ceased and his form remained motionless. The constant beeping of the heart monitor was beginning to slow; the electronic tracing on the screen became wider and more irregular in its pattern. The reading of the recycling blood pressure monitor revealed a steady drop in his pressure.

The minutes ticked by. Garrett was transfixed on the devices watching the progressive widening complexes of the heartbeat. Long drawn out pauses of inactivity with only a single pattern was now showing across the screen, the single beep randomly breaking the silence of the room. Her eyes took on a new intensity as a rapid flurry of patterned activity shot across the screen, the beeping coming one right after the other, almost without pause. The jagged, erratic tracing soon ceased, followed by the telltale warning sound of the flat line tracing that floated across the monitor. They all stood just watching for another moment or two. Assured that it was over, Dr. Trivoli blinked as she glanced over to the large clock on the wall opposite her. In a monotone voice she uttered, "Time of death, 1310." She cleared her throat and looked at the two nurses. "Thank you for you help," she said in a voice only slightly louder than a whisper, and left the room.

"Is she okay?" The nurse moved toward the bed to begin removing the connections of the machines to the lifeless body.

Danni had to think about that herself. "I hope so," she uttered under her breath.

*******************

The rest of the day was spent in solitude as Garrett opted to drive out to the countryside. She needed time to think and did so, as she walked through the leaves that graced the woodland floor. Her mind kept conjuring up familiar faces from her past. Each one coming to haunt her in their own way. With dusk approaching, she drew her walk to a close and began the long drive back home. ‘Time to go home,’ she mused. ‘Even my thoughts are haunting me. Home,’ she laughed, ‘I’ll never have a place that feels like home, or anyone that feels like family ever again.’ The words bit into her, tearing at her soul. The image of the petite blonde came to her mind. This image was different from the rest that had visited her today. It did not haunt her, but instead brought with it a feeling of warmth and compassion. A feeling that made her yearn for the sights and smells that reminded her of the nurse. No one had ever stood out in her mind like that, not even her…. She paused at the thought. Her face took on a surprised look as her brow raised at the concept.