The Thief of Lost Time

Chapter 40: "The Greatest Gift You Can Give"

I arrive at the hospital straight from work. I'm surprised to learn at reception that Mom is still in the emergency room. At the ER entrance, EMTs and hospital staff unload an ambulance. I step aside for a stretcher carrying a middle-aged man in a business suit. A nurse runs beside the stretcher holding a compress against his chest where blood soaks through his shirt. He must be a victim of the accident on the highway.

The ER is hectic: staff shout orders, phones ring, and bedside monitors beep insistently. No one asks me what I want, and I look for Mom. Leslie waves from the back where she's standing with Dad.

Leslie gives me a kiss. "What's all that confusion?"

"Pileup on 128. Not my side of the highway. The police closed two lanes."

I give my father a hug. "Dad, how are you?"

"Thanks for coming."

His words surprise me. Did he think I might not come? "Sorry I wasn't here sooner." I'm convinced Mom's condition isn't as serious as they think. She's been rushed to the ER many times. I turn to Leslie. "What happened this morning?"

"She was unresponsive when they woke her for breakfast, so they called an ambulance."

"Why is she not in a room?"

"They're backlogged discharging patients." Leslie has no tolerance for inefficiency.

"Just like the military." Dad leans on his cane. "Hurry up and wait."

He acts like he hasn't slept. His face is puffy. His cardigan hangs from his thin shoulders.

"Dad, let me get you a chair."

"I'm fine. I've been sitting all morning."

"Mom seemed better in the ambulance," Leslie continues. "That's what the EMT told the ER nurse. She said Mom was conscious when she came in but confused."

I try to look past them into the cubicle. "I'll peek in for a minute and say hello."

Dad nods and steps aside. "She may not respond."

Leslie closes the curtain behind me hoping to block out some noise. When she said Mom was confused, I expect to find her thrashing about, she lies peacefully, her eyes closed.

"Mom?" I wait. "It's Mark."

Her eyelids flutter, but she exhibits no other sign of recognition. I hold her left hand. She's not wearing her engagement ring. I assume Leslie removed it for safe keeping.

"How are you feeling? Do you want anything?" She doesn't answer. She must be asleep because she'd respond if she heard my voice. I hope she'll recognize me when she wakes up.

I pull back the curtain. Leslie looks up. "Any reaction?"

I shake my head. "Still asleep."

A nurse brushes by to check Mom's vitals. I wonder if we're in the way. Tough luck, if we are.

Looking up from the monitor, the nurse speaks to Dad. "The doctor's ordered a higher dose of morphine when needed. There'll be a room soon."

I lower my voice to speak to Leslie. "Why is she on morphine?"

Leslie takes a deep breath. "This is the end."

"What do you mean 'the end'?" I frown as if it's a bad joke.

Leslie assumes I know. "The doctor doesn't expect her to last the night."

I step back from Leslie, shocked by her negativity. Mom's been in admitted before with a dire prognosis but pulled through every time. She always said she had nine lives like a cat. "Why on earth does the doctor say that?"