A bright white light shone into James’s blue-green eyes as he opened them. It was too bright. He closed his eyes and smelt the familiar fragrance of disinfectant mixed with Betadine. The smell of the yellowish-brown liquid reminded him of his grandparents. His grandfather was a pathologist, and his grandmother was an OBGYN. Betadine was his grandfather’s favourite product, and a bottle of it went everywhere with him—the result of an “expect the best and prepare for the worst” mentality. Another habit to thank his grandparents for.
A few moments later, James felt a warm hand on his arm as the metal trolley he was on stopped rolling. James opened his eyes to find Harry Lancaster at his side.
Oh, merde. Now I’m in trouble.
James’s eyesight blurred.
‘The paper,’ he whispered.
‘Really?’ Harry looked down at James. ‘This is your biggest problem right now?’
‘There’s one more article to edit,’ James said. ‘It came through last-minute on my phone.’
‘James,’ Harry said with a hint of sympathy. ‘I think I know how to get an edition ready for publication. Did I not accompany you on a few of your first late nights?’
James nodded as the emergency doctors rolled him through the double doors from the waiting area to the A&E.
‘Don’t worry about the next few editions,’ Harry told James as the doors closed and the trolley stopped rolling.
James pulled out his phone and hit the home button. There were no new messages.
‘Mr Lalonde, I’ll keep that safe for you,’ the doctor said as he pushed a mask onto James’s face.
James felt lightheaded as the doctor grabbed his phone. The room spun, and he took a few more deep breaths. It was as if he were floating on a cloud. Whatever the doctor was administering to him through the mask was good; it was fantastic.
For the first time in the last few hours, James felt pain-free. His eyelids grew heavy. There was no use fighting it anymore. As his eyes closed, his world filled with darkness.