Aunt Santa

Chapter 2

Mo hadn't been able to check her phone on break because she was too busy avoiding her supervisor. She'd caught her eye enough times during her shift to know something was definitely up.

"Tracy keeps giving me the look," she said under her breath at the nurse's station.

Yolanda frowned over her chart. She raised her eyes just enough to catch a glimpse of their supervising nurse as she disappeared around the corner. "Ten days until Christmas." She whistled. "Whatever it is, it ain't good."

"She's going to ask me to cover John's shifts this week." Mo dropped her head into her hands. "I know it."

"'We're short-staffed. The baby came early.'" Yolanda mimicked the lilt of their boss' faint Irish accent perfectly. "'I need you to be a team player here.'"

"I can't." Mo took a sharp breath. "I won't do it." She accepted the stack of charts from behind the desk as Lois and Yolanda exchanged a look. "I'm supposed to be off all week. I need to say no."

"Yes." Yolanda nodded, her expression grim and resolved. "You deserve a break. You've been on nights all month, pulling doubles. We both covered for Rita just last week."

"Right. And I did all of that," she said, gesturing widely, "so that I could take the week off leading to Christmas. Because I had plans."

"You have plans."

"Right!" Mo pointed to Yolanda. "I have plans. Have."

"I really need you to be a team player here," Tracy said with a tight smile. "I've already worked it all out. Marie's going to cover on Christmas Eve and Tyrone is taking Christmas Day. I did that," she said slowly in a way that made Mo grit her teeth, "so you can have Christmas off with your kids. But I do still need coverage for the days leading up."

"And I took those days off. It's approved." Mo felt pressure in the back of her head like someone had gripped her neck and squeezed. Breathe, she could practically hear her husband Billy say, before you have a heart attack. "I appreciate you trying to make this work for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, but I have plans for that whole week. Which is why I requested the days off four months ago."

"Which was a difficult approval," Tracy reminded her gently, "considering how much time you had to take off in August."

"Because I was moving, remember?" Mo snapped back. "It's not exactly like I was on a beach vacation. I was trying to manage a move and get two kids settled before they started at new schools. It was complete chaos."

Tracy sighed as she studied the papers in her hand. When a gurney was pushed past them, both women stepped to the side of the narrow hallway and then automatically to the other side when Mrs. Pallermo was pushed in her wheelchair, heading back toward her room. "These are the moments when it would be good to have an office," Tracy clucked. She sighed again and looked at Mo. "I'm afraid we're at an impasse here."

"Tracy, come on." Mo felt her grip tighten on the charts in her arms. "My kids have had a really rough few months. Every year, we spend Christmas in the mountains with my best friend. We all look forward to it. We need it. I cannot cancel Christmas."

"And you don't have to, Maureen," Tracy said with a sincere smile. "Just the week leading up to it."

The fact that there were patients to tend to was a welcome excuse to break away. Better to put on a forced smile and monitor vitals for old Mr. Cormick before Mo said something that could get her fired.

When her shift ended, Mo sighed at the clock, more with dread than relief. Might as well get it over with, she thought as she wound her way back to the lockers and retrieved her phone. She was prepared to make the call when she saw the text that had come in from Sara four hours earlier. Two more sleeps.