CHAPTER 21
I woke with a start and my head on the seat of the chair next to me. “Marygene, the doctor is here,” Sam whispered, and shook my shoulder.
“Oh.” I wiped my mouth. The waiting room had cleared out with only Sam, Lindy, and me left in it.
Lindy was standing in front of the man in a white coat. I slid my feet off the chair. Sam took my hand, and we joined Lindy. We stared like two lost children waiting for the nice man with salt-and-pepper hair and a creased forehead to tell us our daddy was okay.
“He came through the surgery well.” Dr. Zeke looked from Lindy to me and Sam. “We had a small incident where his vitals dipped and we almost lost him.”
I sucked in a breath, and Sam swayed on his feet. I gripped his forearm with my free hand. He squeezed my hand so tightly it almost hurt.
Dr. Zeke rushed to add, “He’s stable now.”
“Can you explain exactly what was done?” Sam cleared his throat. “I’ve heard of folks getting bypasses done, but I’m not sure I understand the procedure. I mean, how long till he’s able to be back on his feet and all that?”
“Of course. We performed what is known as a coronary artery bypass graft surgery. It treats blocked heart arteries by creating new passages for blood to flow to your father’s heart muscle.”
Sam nodded and so did I as I attempted to absorb what the doctor was saying. Numbness spread throughout my limbs. It was almost an out-of-body experience. Listening to some stranger tell about how he’d held your father’s life in his two hands and saved him.
Dr. Zeke’s coffee-colored eyes softened. “Let’s see if I can break this down a little. Basically, we take the arteries or veins from other parts of your dad’s body and use them to reroute the blood around his clogged arteries.” The doctor’s lips flattened into a thin line. “Now I must inform you that during the procedure his heart experienced failure and we nearly lost him, but we managed to stabilize him and right now, he’s okay. We’ll be monitoring him closely.”
“Thank you, Doctor.” Lindy shook his hand.
He covered hers with his. “You’re welcome. It’s a lot to process when it’s someone you love, I know.”
“When can we see him?” I asked.
“As soon as it’s possible, I’ll send the nurse out to inform you when he’s able to have visitors. It’ll be a little bit. Take this time to grab some coffee or a snack.”
“Thank you,” Sam and I said in unison.
“Take care.”
The doctor left and then the three of us embraced, and tears of gratefulness flowed all around before Lindy excused herself to go to the ladies’ room. My stomach audibly growled. I hadn’t eaten in hours.
“It’s going to be a while before we can see Dad. I could eat something too,” Sam said. “The cafeteria isn’t open yet, but we could pop down and get something from the vending machines. We’ll feel more awake when we see Dad if we get some sugar in our systems.”
I glanced at my watch. It was five in the morning. “Yeah, okay.”
We sat in the dark cafeteria with our tabletop full of crackers, granola bars, and a variety of chocolate bars. Sam braved the ham-and-cheese prepackaged sandwich while he talked to Poppy on the phone. The coffee tasted burned, but I drank it down with vigor while I texted Jena Lynn. She usually put her phone on do-not-disturb at night so it wouldn’t wake the baby if she received a call. She’d see that Eddie came through the surgery when she woke. I did the same for Bets.
“Javier stayed until he absolutely had to leave,” Sam threw out there after he hung up with Poppy. “He made me swear to call him if you needed anything.”
“He’s a good friend.” I got up and put some change into the machine and pressed the buttons for another cup of disgusting caffeine.
“Friend?”
“Don’t make mountains out of mole hills. We’re just friends.” I sat back down at the table.
“Well, he’s protective in a way that appears he’s more than just a friend, Marygene. He watched over you while you slept and made sure you weren’t disturbed. He stroked your hair like you were some prize.”
My fingers froze on the package of crackers I’d been about to open. “Really?”
Sam nodded. “Yeah. It’s not like you’re in a relationship or anything.”
I opened my mouth to refute his assumptions on my love life, but he cut me off.
“Don’t even say you’re seeing Paul. I can tell the guy’s just a placeholder.”
“That’s not true.” I tore open the package.
“Hey, it’s me you’re talking to. You started dating him on the rebound. He’s the complete opposite to every other guy you’ve ever shown interest in. That made him seem safe in your book.” He raised his hands. “I get it.”
“Maybe there’s a little truth to what you’re saying.” I shrugged. “I thought he was a great guy, or at least a different kind of guy.”
“Really? If that’s true, where is he? A great guy wouldn’t stay away without even checking in. Have you even thought about calling him?” Sam finished off his sandwich in two bites and, from his facial expression, it must not have been so tasty.
I froze mid-sip as I pondered Sam’s words. He had a point. Paul hadn’t entered my mind when I found out about Eddie. I’d never even thought about contacting him, especially after our dinner. Nor had I been devastated when I found out he might have had a relationship with Lucy, or by his reaction to my questioning. Was embarrassed by it, yes, but not hurt. I’d been more concerned about Lucy’s death than his deception. I felt awful that I could’ve been using Paul.
“The reasons don’t matter now anyway. We had a fight. It’s over.” I sipped from my cup. “It’s not a big deal. I forgot all about him when I got the news about Eddie.”
“See! I was right.”
“Yeah, okay.” I smirked. It felt good to be sitting here chatting with my brother, knowing our father would be okay. “Still, that doesn’t mean I don’t care about him. I’d like to be friends.” Even as the words fell from my lips, I wondered if being friends with Paul, after everything, would be possible.
Sam grinned. “I don’t see it happening, Sis. One thing I’ve learned through this nightmare with Dad is when catastrophe strikes, who you think about first is who you really care about. I called Poppy first thing. She’d have been here with me too, but she has a cold and Lindy said it wouldn’t be wise.”
“I don’t see the correlation.”
“Well, this also shows Paul’s true colors. A man with good character would’ve reached out, even if it’s over. Y’all had a thing. He should call and at least check in on you and your dad. Surely word has gotten around by now.”
Sam had a point. I checked my phone and confirmed I hadn’t received a call from him. I shrugged and slid my phone on the table. “We parted badly. I’ll tell you about it sometime, just not now. It isn’t like I loved him or anything. All that matters is Eddie’s alive and in the care of great physicians. He’s what’s important.” I concentrated on the black liquid in my paper cup.
My phone rang, and Sam and I both glanced down to see Alex’s face. The guy who loved Eddie too. His sheriff took him under his wing and taught him everything he knew about law enforcement. He’d been more like a father to him, really. That was why it’d hurt so much to hear Alex turn on him the way he had.
“Don’t answer it. That pain in the ass is probably what triggered Dad’s heart attack.” Sam’s face was beet red.
I wouldn’t do anything to go against my brother right now, and a little part of me agreed with him about Alex being the straw that broke the camel’s back. I declined the call and slid the phone back into my cross-body bag. Sam settled when he saw we were on the same page.
“Let’s not talk about anything that will stress Eddie out when we see him. We’ll only talk about positive things and put on a happy face at all times.” I placed my cup back on the table.
“Agreed. He’s always tried to shelter us from the ugliness in the world. Now it’s our turn to do the same for him. He won’t like it at first, though.” Sam held his stomach, which rumbled audibly, and Sam gave out a little groan.
“Did you check the date on the sandwich? I told you prepackaged meat and cheese could be risky.”
Sam shook his head. “It tasted okay. A little wangy, but I was starving.” Beads of sweat appeared on his upper lip and his hair looked limp. “I gotta find a bathroom and now.” The chair slid back loudly, and Sam bolted from the room, leaving a lingering odor in his wake.
I held my nose. “Oh yikes, Sam.”
Maybe next time he’d listen to his little sister.