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“How is she, how’s Camilla doing? Is she better?” Margaret wailed into her cell phone. Do they know what’s wrong with her?”
“I don’t know, Margaret. Now, will you stop calling me so I can talk with the doctor?” Dottie snapped, her patience at the breaking point. “Do not call me again and tie up my phone. I’m trying to reach Michaela,” she hissed into the phone.
“Humph. Now, Dottie, don’t get all ‘countess’ with me. I know that frosty, hoity toity, aristocratic voice. It won’t work,” Margaret declared. “Just don’t even try it.”
Dottie gritted her teeth and pressed the red disconnect button on her iPhone. She looked over at Kathryn and moaned, “She’s driving me nuts. I’m glad she didn’t come with us to the hospital, aren’t you?”
Kathryn patted Dottie on the shoulder. They’d been friends for years. “Well,” she said slowly, “it probably is making you crazy. She’s still excitable and has been since all that happened to Allison. It was a good decision not to bring her,” she commented as she looked at Dottie. Dottie’s face was flushed. Kathryn’s heart flip-flopped. “Are you feeling okay, Dottie? I don’t want anything to happen to you,” Kathryn added as she surveyed her friend critically.
Dottie sat on one of the couches in the Medical College of Virginia’s emergency room waiting area. She fingered the soft, buttery feel of her new leather purse. The bulk of her gun comforted her. She reached inside and touched the cool metal. She felt her heart slow down. She didn’t like it when it felt like her heart would jump out of her chest.
“Yes, sure, I’m fine. Just a little excited, that’s all. I want to find Michaela. She’s been out of town, but she’s due back this afternoon.” She smiled broadly, “It’s Tuesday and she’s never gone longer than three or four days. She never misses going to Biddy’s for more’n four nights. Besides, tonight is police night and all the cops will be there for reduced-priced Guinness. Especially, the Irish ones,” she added with a smile.
Kathryn laughed. “Well, good for them. They need it based on what they do. It’s a great restaurant, great décor, and great food. Adam and I had dinner there a couple of weeks ago. We were in Richmond on a Thursday evening. I had the Shepherd’s pie and it was the best I’ve ever eaten,” Kathryn added. “We’re taking some friends there soon.”
Dottie smiled, “Great. I’ll tell Mic. How is the congressman?” Dottie had a secret crush on Congressman Adam Patrick Lee, the senior legislator from Virginia. She liked his looks and his sense of humor. She always had a grand time when he was around. But she knew that Adam only had eyes for his “bride” of fifty years.
Kathryn rolled her eyes. “Same as always. Works all the time. In D.C. half of the time. Hasn’t slowed up a bit... although, I do see he manages to be at home more now that Alex is around,” she added with a broad smile. “That man does love his granddaughter.”
Dottie nodded. “I’m sure. I’m delighted that Michaela and Alex have become friends.”
“Me too,” Kathryn agreed. “They’re good for each other. Both are single, accomplished, beautiful and perhaps a little too daring,” she said with a smile. Kathryn was proud of her granddaughter, Alexandra Destephano, who was currently in Virginia on leave from her job as an attorney for Crescent City Medical Center in New Orleans. “Oh, look, Dottie. Here comes the doctor.” The two older women clasped each other’s hand and stood up.
“He looks grim,” Dottie said in a low voice, almost a whisper. “I don’t see a smile hiding anywhere on his face. I hope he doesn’t have bad news.”
The two old friends tightened their grip on each other as they watched the young physician’s long strides as he moved quickly to them.
The young man smiled with his eyes. “Are you here for Mrs. Camilla Rothrock?” he asked as he looked at the two older, fashionably dressed women over his half glasses, his gray eyes filled with concern.
“Yes, yes, we are,” Dottie said fearing the worst. “I’m Countess Dorothy Borghase and this is Mrs. Kathryn Lee. Camilla is our close friend.”
“How is she?” Kathryn interrupted.
The emergency room physician looked grave. “I’m Dr. Spencer. I’m one of the ED doctors here at MCVH.”
“How is our friend?” Dottie asked in a brusque voice. She didn’t give a damn what his name was. She wanted information.
Dr. Spencer shook his head slightly. “Not well. I’m afraid she’s very ill. She’s suffered a heart attack and she’s not conscious. She was confused when she came in but gradually became lethargic and slipped into unconsciousness,” he said as he surveyed the women who were definitely part of Richmond’s aristocratic, blueblood society.
“Whatever do you mean?” Dottie asked angrily. “You slip on the floor and fall down. How on earth do you ‘slip’ into unconsciousness?”
Kathryn placed her hand over Dottie’s well-manicured nails to quiet her. She knew Dottie Borghase well enough to know she was a nano-second away from adopting her hoity-toity countess voice and that would get them nowhere. At least nowhere in the United States and most likely nowhere anywhere else in the world. "You'll have to excuse my friend. She's quite upset," Kathryn admitted to the emergency room doctor. "Can you tell us what happened to her so that we can understand?"
The physician examined the two women over his glasses, shrugged his shoulders and said, "Frankly, we don't know."
Kathryn felt Dottie bristle next to her as she said, "Surely, you have some idea?" What’s wrong with this man? Is he an idiot? Medical College of Virginia usually had great emergency doctors.
Dr. Spencer ignored the sarcasm in Dottie’s voice. "Can you ladies tell me exactly what happened? I understand you were out having lunch, correct?"
Dottie nodded, "Yes, we were eating at the Hotel Madison. Camilla was fine and contributing to the conversation. In my opinion she was having fun," she said as she glanced over at Kathryn for affirmation.
Kathryn nodded. "I agree. Camilla was just fine. There was nothing wrong with her at all. But suddenly, I looked over at her and her pupils were wide and she had a flush on her face and she couldn't answer my question. She tried to talk, but she couldn’t. We kept asking her what was wrong and she wasn't able to talk with us."
Dottie noticed the furrow deepen on the physician’s face.
“Then she fell over on the table and we called 911,” Kathryn finished.
"So," Dottie began again as she attempted to hold her temper in check. "Now, what do you think happened to her? Why’s she so sick?" Dottie's ice blue eyes flashed her impatience, as her aristocratic heritage demanded an answer. She impatiently smoothed her updo with her hand and rearranged a comb to make sure she looked perfect, or as perfect as she could for someone eighty-two years of age.
The physician shrugged his shoulders and said, "Ladies, I don't know. She’s had a rather severe heart attack. There's no question about that. We've done a panel of blood work and so far, nothing seems unusual based on her age and state of health. We've sent other samples away for further testing."
“Was she poisoned?” Dottie asked abruptly.
Dr. Spencer raised his eyebrows, “I don’t know. We’re considering that. Do you think she was?”
“I don’t know. You’re the doctor,” Dottie responded flippantly, a hint of anger in her voice.
“But why would you ask such a question?” the physician asked as he stared at Dottie. "What did she have for lunch? Did she say anything about her lunch? Maybe it tasted bad or something?"
Kathryn shook her head. "No. She had the Chesapeake crab cake sandwich with fresh fruit and coleslaw and she said she loved it. I had the same thing and it tasted fine."
The doctor turned his attention to Kathryn. "So you feel absolutely fine, correct?"
"I feel great. There's absolutely nothing wrong with me. I promise you. And the lunch was good, very good in fact."
The physician nodded. “Good.”
"So when will you get the results of the blood work?" Kathryn asked.
"I'm not sure to be honest. Hopefully by this evening. We put a rush on it. And shortly, we'll move her to the critical care unit so she can be constantly monitored."
"She'll make it, won't she? Dottie asked, her eyes brimming with tears, as her anger dissipated. Dottie looked at Kathryn and Kathryn saw fear in her eyes.
Dr. Spencer locked eyes with the Dottie and said, "I honestly don't know. She’s critically ill. She has other medical issues that aren't working in her favor and by that I mean her heart and vascular disease."
"But," Dottie began, as she looked over at Kathryn for support.
The doctor checked his iPhone and said, "I've got to go. Does Mrs. Rothrock have any relatives close by?"
Dottie shook her head and said, "No. Her son is a retired army general and he lives in Florida. Does he need to come up here?" she asked, as a shadow passed over her face.
The physician nodded, "I think that's the best thing. She's quite ill. Here’s my phone number. Please have him call me ASAP."
"Should we stay here?” Kathryn asked him. “Or do you think we would just be taking up space in the waiting room?"
Dr. Spencer shook his head. "Honestly, there's nothing you can do here. We’ll move her shortly to the ICU and you can call the nurse caring for her directly for updated reports. I think it's best if you leave and go somewhere more comfortable but that's up to you," he offered.
"Please, please take care of our friend, Doctor. We’ve been friends for sixty years and there's just a few of us left," Dottie said. “Camilla’s in great shape, she’s a triathlete.
Dr. Spencer nodded. "I promise I will. Take care of yourselves, ladies. The best thing you can do is be strong and healthy for your friend," he said as he headed back to the patient care area.
Kathryn and Dottie sat on the hard plastic chairs, each caught in their own thoughts. Finally, Kathryn broke the silence and said, "I wonder what happened to the waitress who passed out there as well?"
Dottie shook her head. "I don't know. I intend to find out. Something here’s just not right."
Kathryn nodded and stood, "I think you're on to something, Dottie. Let's go."
"I'm calling Mic as soon as I get in the car. We'll get to the bottom of this nonsense," she declared, as she stuck her nose up and assumed her countess ramrod posture.
Kathryn gave her a bright smile and said, "Let's have at it." She smiled to herself. There was no one in her world like the Countess Dorothy Borghase. She was sure of that.