More Than Eyes Alone Can See
19
xmlns:st1="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"
xmlns="http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40">
----------------------------------------------------------------
Tessa collapsed, the lack of air
and a wash of disbelief making her knees weak.
She didn’t understand what had just happened; she was sure that Sands
had been on the brink of killing her, or . . . .
at Sands’ feet and catch her breath.
probably doesn’t think you’re worth doing anything with, even when everything
is offered. Story of your life, isn’t
it? Just barely valuable enough to serve a purpose, but not worthless enough to be
killed outright.
Tess kept a cautious eye on Sands as she re-oxygenated her body.
cigarette – he really was upset. This
was the first time she’d seen him light up inside the house.
cigarette barely visible.
lighting into me?
“. . . T?
for her.
“Better scamper
away before they send in the hounds, conejo.”
Tess shivered as she noticed that Sands’ voice was back to normal.
follow the man’s advice and get out of here.
Tess slowly rose
to her feet, making as little noise as possible, afraid that any sudden
movement would cause Sands to react in kind . . . and now that she was getting
used to the idea of living, she wasn’t so eager to anger Sands.
all.
now.
Sands heard the
door to his room creak open slowly. He
was gratified to notice
thatcomfort. If she’d tried, he probably
wouldn’t have been able to keep from killing her – he’d killed men and women
for less. It’s not like
he had anything other than a drug-induced conscience holding him back.
Damn her to hell.
idiot. God. All the pieces had been
there in front of his non-existent eyes, and he still hadn’t managed to figure
out that the most likely reason his voluntary doctor had been raised in the cartel
was because her father was the fucking
He took an agitated drag from his cigarette.
the Devil stood and/felt how awful goodness is,/and
saw Virtue in her shape/how lovely; saw, and pined his loss.
know why you haven’t bothered to kill her?
It’s because you’re drawn to her.
She’s different than all the rest – from anyone
you’ve ever met. She helps because she
can, not because she can get something out of it.
advantage of – expecting to be taken advantage of – but she still does all she
can. She’s so
drives you nuts.
her? It’d be an easy way to solve the
puzzle.
don’t want to solve the puzzle. You’ve
never wanted to simply solve the puzzle.
To win the game by the conventional rules is easy.
challenge. You’re a manipulator at
heart, Sheldon. That’s why you haven’t
killed her – you know there’s got to be some way to
get under all that
pedestal. To make her human.
her around your little finger, and then show her what you turned her
Sands gave the idea some consideration.
“T?”
When Jessica saw Tessa’s face, she felt a small surge of alarm.
at any moment. “What happened?”
improve.
“I .
. . I’m going to bed.” Tess tried to
move pass her friend, but Jessica stopped her.
“You
know you can talk to me, any time during the day or night, right?”
Tess
nodded and tried to smile – the best she managed was a brief thinning of her
lips. She knew she should say something
to make Jessica stop worrying, but couldn’t imagine what those words should
be. I
just found out that something that had been a major source of shame and
ridicule in my life was a malicious lie told to manipulate me?
free, but has instead increased my debt? That I offered my body to a man who is
physically and emotionally damaged because of that renewed sense of
responsibility, and he started to take me up on it, but rejected me at the last
minute? That his rejection hurt?
without having been shot, throttled, or beaten, part of me wishes that he
would have a reason to hate him as much as he undoubtedly hates me?
you sure that’s the only reason, Teresa?
Tess
covered her throat with her hand and silently went into the bedroom she was
sharing with Jessica. All she wanted was
for this day to be over, the next past, and every memory of
guilt forgotten. Including the memory of
her patient.
The next morning was not a good one for
Tess. She’d risen almost before the sun,
unable to find any refuge in sleep.
Sleep itself had been elusive – simply too much had happened in the past
month for her to process. Too many
emotions had been raised, too many questions asked, too many answers
revealed. Especially after last night.
It
was almost as if she were existing on a different plane than she normally did –
her motions felt jerky, her thoughts mechanical.
grip on her, yet she couldn’t come to really care.
moving like a silent film from the ‘20s, her voice was willing to stay
quiet. I wonder if this is what it would be like to live inside a strobe
light.
“Tía? I can’t find my shoes.”
“Your
shoes are in the living room by the toy basket,
In
her vision, everything was softened, all the sharp edges dulled.
focus on what was being said to her. Her
body seemed almost numb, and memories came dripping
into her consciousness like semi-congealed wax.
There was so much that had happened the night before that she didn’t
understand. Why had Sands searched for a
reason not to kill her? That wasn’t his
personality. She knew men like him – they usually killed without asking for a good
reason why they shouldn’t. But he’d
asked. He’d been on the brink of
strangling her, and his hands had been punishing after she’d implied that she
wouldn’t fight him if he choose to bed her, but when his hands had explored her
face they’d been gentle. His voice had
been full ofningning emotion when he’d asked what color her eyes were . . . and
when he’d felt her tears, he’d let her go.
But why? It doesn’t make sense.
you have preferred to have him beat you or put a bullet in your brain?
constancy. The part of her brain not
involved in the internal debate mused that perhaps she was just surrounded by a
wall of ice and not living in a strobe light.
Whatever was going on, it slowed down her reactions and movements.
quickly that it made everything else seem slow by comparison.
“Hey
there.”
Tess
turned around to find Jess standing behind her.
“Hey.” After this abbreviated
greeting, Tess turned back to making lunches.
Jessica eyed her friend. She was
well aware of how much sleep she’d gotten the night before and was concerned,
and not just about the possibility of a mental breakdown.
and her hair was down. Tess
something wrong? Did something happen
last night between you and Sands?”
Tess
paused as she was labeling lunch bags, but then resumed her work.
been more than something.
The
other woman didn’t believe Tess for a moment.
As Tess walked by, intent on finishing her packing, Jessica reached out
and grabbed her arm. Tessa flinched as
if she expected to be hit. As her head
turned away, Jessica noticed that Tessa’s hair swung across her face.
I just want to survey the damage.”
“It’s
nothing.”
“That’s why you’re being so evasive.”
Jessica shook her head. “Tess,
‘nothing’ doesn’t usually require a person to hide the truth.”
Tess
still hesitated. Jessica had a low
tolerance for bullies or men who hit women.
She wouldn’t agree that Sands had been provoked past his capability to
remain non-violent, and she wouldn’t be able to understand unless Tess
explained all the dynamics of the situation – which she wasn’t willing to do.
may I suggest you stop acting as if you have something to hide.
Jessica watched as Tess tucked her hair behind her ear.
moment, then reached over to turn on another
light. She hadn’t been mistaken – there
was indeed a slight bruise covering Tessa’s right temple.
did this, didn’t he?”
“No.” He didn’t mean . . . No,
that was a lie. He had meant to hurt
her. He’d meant to hurt her because her
family had blinded him, taking away more than just his sight.
totally and completely isolated in a sighted world.
intellectually Tess knew he had no right to take that out on her, her feelings
of guilt and responsibility still said that he had every right to do more than
just hit her.
Jessica was highly skeptical.
While Tess denied that Sands had anything to do with the bruise on her
face, her denial had been quiet and not certain enough for Jessica to let
things go quite yet. “Then what
happened?”
“
last night that I . I knI knew I shouldn’t have looked at, but I did, and I
found that I wasn’t prepared to deal with all the, umm . . . all the
ramifications.” Tess was
apply some makeup to the discoloration on her temple.
night. And while I was cleaning, I umm,
ran into a door jamb.”
Jessica simply nodded. What else
could she do? All she had was a feeling
that Tess wasn’t being completely truthful, but last night
couldn’t disprove Tessa’s explanation.
“Is there anything I can do to help?”
“Yeah. You can go . . .” Tess
gestured vaguely with her hand, “. . . you can go make sure that Sands is ready
to go. I’ve got to go drop the kids by
their school, but then I’ll be back to shuttle us all over to the hospital.”
“
Tess
looked over at Marcos. He was hesitating
in the hallway as Tess signed
program. His face was serious.
face is too often serious. I need to
make his life sure enough that he doesn’t have to worry all the time.
Take
that job Jessica told you about.
college.
thought you wanted to get as far from
that.
Tess
smiled at the daycare attendant as she finished signing her name,
“You, sir, are going to be late for your class if you don’t hurry
along.”
“I
don’t want to go to class.”
“You’re worried about señor
Sands?” He nodded.
boy would be too distracted by what was happening that day to sit still and
listen to a teacher all day long. “Ok,
then here’s what we’re going to do.
as long as you can. I am going to go
back to the house to get Sands and take him to the hospital.
here, pick you up, and we will discuss what our next move it going to be,
alright?”
“Our
next move?”
“Yes. I need to find a job, and
there’s one I can get with relative ease, but I want your opinion first.
real estate agent that can show us some houses in
internet. How does that sound?”
door halfway down the hall.
As
she left the building and walked back to her car, she asked,
let Sands know where I’m going, wouldn’t it?
She reached her car and opened the door, settling into the driver’s
seat.
certainly make it harder for him to track you down and kill you.
but he didn’t take it.
smoothly, but Tess didn’t try to back out of her parking space quite yet.
hate me, though.
Well,
it’s youult ult for talking about family business in front of strangers –
especially ones that might hold a grudge.
wouldn’t have been any fun.
Right. Tess rolled her eyes.
were also getting to close . . . too sympathetic.
now. She’d heard the revulsion in Sands
voice the night before when he’d told her to leave.
she’d taken enough from him and staying through his recovery would be taking
too much. That was still true.
back. She didn’t want to see disgust in
his eyes in the same way she’d heard it in his voice.
.
gear, pulled out of her parking spot, and into LA’s constant traffic.
Once she was sure Tess had left, Jessica went
to Sands’ room, opening the door after a brief knock.
an open window, cigarette in hand. ask you to rise and shine, but something tells me that the most I can expect
from you is rise and scowl.” Sands
flipped the woman off. “Well that wasn’t
nice. What if one of the children had
seen that?”
“The
kids left with la niña.”
Jessica was surprised he knew that.
How had he known that Tess had taken the children to their school?
over a cell phone while Tess had been upstairs dressing Selena.
conversation. “Still, you can never be
too sure.”
Sands
wondered if he’d been deaf as well when he could still see.
was seen that they neglected their other senses altogether.
torture me? Or are you just taking
advantage of the fact that Tessa isn’t here?”
This
was the opening she had wanted. “Funny
you should mention T,” Jessica leaned against the doorframe, her arms crossed
over her chest. “What happened between
you two last night?”
thoughts, he found he wasn’t too surprised by this news.
and she certainly wasn’t loose lipped.
between Tess and I is none of this woman’s business.
aware of?”
The
innocent tone in his voice was too practiced.
She knew a line when she was being fed one.
climbed. “Look, Sands –”
“I
would, but unfortunately I can’t at the moment.”
Sands
felt pressure building up inside of him.
He’d been so good about not shooting anyone and this woman was pressing
her luck.
Jessica watched as tension overrode his body, and she softened her voice
a bit. From all accounts, this man was
unpredictable and dangerous despite his lack of sight – she didn’t want to
cause anything to happen that might be regretted later.
do her best to conceal it. She didn’t
say that you had anything to do with it, but something tells me that you were
the cause of it. I know that you’ve been
behaving . . . erratically, due to the meds you’re on, and I know that Tess
would never complain, but I want you to know that she’s put herself through
hell for you. If you can’t appreciate
anng eng else about her, appreciate that, and the fact that she respects you
enough not to ask someone else to look after you even though it was
suggested. God knows I probably wouldn’t
have isolated myself with a man who was abusing me – knowingly or unknowingly.”
Sands
smiled. Respect. Right.
then flicked it out the open window.
Slowly, he walked over to where the woman’s voice was coming from.
Jessica narrowed her eyes. “Death
seems like an appropriate solution.” She
raised her face as Sands came even closer.
“You can stop trying to intimidate me.”
“That’s funny . . . I don’t seems to remember trying to intimidate
anyone.” Sands flashed a meaningless
smile. “I can’t even see where you are.”
“Something tells me that’s not –”
As
soon as he had a reasonable idea of where the woman’s head was, Sands lashed
out with a fist. His hand slammed into
the wall right next to the woman’s head, cutting her off.
friend was a few inches shorter than she was.
“Perhaps you need to take your own advice and keep your mouth shut.
be a good idea to keep your nose out of the business of others.”
The
front door opened and shut. “Jess?
trapped, walking into the living room.
He heard Tess freeze when he came into view.
“Sands.” Tess felt unease at the
self-satisfied grin on the man’s face.
He’d been up to something or he was up to something, and the thought was
not a comfortable one.
“
“Umm
. . . are you ready to go? Or have you
changed your mind? It would be
understandable if you had decided not to go through with this, especially if
something had happened that would might make you feel
as if you might not be able to trust . . . my judgment.
experimental procedure should be enough to make anyone second guess what
they’re doing, particularly –”
“You’re rambling uncontrollably, sweetie.”
She was either terrified of him, extremely nervous that he might kill
her at the drop of a hat, or she’d drunk way too much caffeine that
morning. “I think we should be on our
way before you collapse into a pile of raw nerves.”
smile. “Would you stay, knowing that life would be a bit worse?
the one about to become Frankenstein’s monster.”
last night. Was it possible that he
didn’t remember? That was almost too
good to be true. But still, she couldn’t
help but hope that it was. That she was
jumping the gun by deciding that she had to leave him without any notice at
all.
certainty.
finding he knows the truth when you should be hoping that he’s forgotten
it. Don’t let yourself be drawn in
again, Teresa. You’re leaving before the
choice is taken from you.
all day, or were we actually going to go to the hospital at some point?”
head. Was she relieved to o clo close to
getting rid of him? Did she wonder if
he’d forgotten their . . . conversation . . . the night before?
return to normal? If she did, it’d be so
much easier to manipulate her.
The hospital.” Tess opened the
door and waited for Sands to come to her side before going out.
leaving the house. “Jess?
I’ll be right out.” The door shut
and Jessica took a moment to look around Sands’ room.
had come into the house. There was
something going on that she didn’t like.
I think I’ll do my best to stick
with Tess for most of the day. Or at
least until Sands goes under the knife.
I’m not sure he should be trusted.
Once they had reached the hospital, things
moved along relatively quickly. Tess, as
Sands’ listed physician, signed him in and got all his paperwork in order.
‘Giovanni’ as his first name.Tess
wondered what was so bad about his real name that he would so adamantly refuse
to use it . . . or who he thought might be on their
tail. That was the only reason she could
see for not wanting to leave a paper trail.
he was checked in, they went upstairs to meet with
debrief. Sands was still set on doing
this, so
room to change into a hospital gown, leaving Tess alone with Jessica.
For
several minutes they sat in silence, but finally Jessica had to ask, “T . . .
why are you doing this? Why have you put
yourself through all this? I know that
over nurses to care for Sands so that you wouldn’t have to deal with it.
and that’s the enough reason to go for me.
It’s my job, to be worried half to death, and that’s the thing peo
res
respect in me. It’s my job, to better
than the rest, and that’s a rough break for me.”
Jessica shook her head. “I’m not
sure that Jimmy Buffett is still the answer for everything, T.”
“Blaspheme.”
“Tessa . . . .”
“I
took him inss.
dying, I held his hand when the pain or the nightmares got too bad, I told him
that . . . that I would see him this far.
And I have.”
“That’s no reason not to accept help when you so obviously need it.”
“You’re right.”
“Can
yive ive me a reason?”
you.”
“It’s
my fault.”
“Tess, none of this is your
fault. Your voice is trying to pull a
fast one over on you if that’s what it’s saying.
hurt that man? Did you drill his eyes out? Did
“No,”
Tess whispered, “but my family did.”
Now
Jessica understood. The great mystery
had been solved. Years ago, when the
four friends had been preparing to leave school and start new lives, Jessica
had pressed Tessa for an answer as to why she was going back to Mexico to work
in a family practice when she could have any number of jobs in the US.
about returning to her family, and after an hour of arguing with her friend, Tess
had given in. “Did you have any part in
it?”
“No,
but if I’d been there, maybe I could have done something more.”
“Could you have convinced your father to spare that man?”
spanspan>“No
–”
“Then
how is it your fault?”
“I’m
the last one. The rest are dead.”<
“So you
decided to take the punishment for what they did?”
others do. No one in their right mind
would hold you accountable for any of .
No one is going to hunt you down and make you pay.”
of people who would. “You’re
probably right . . . but I know men like Sands.
By taking him in, I made a deal.
I would care for him and never let anyone know what he went through, and
he would let me live. And as time went
by, I just felt that . . .”
How could she explain?
“He’s a very private man, a man used to hiding thoughts, emotions, and
pain alike. But I . . . I put myself
into a situation where he couldn’t help but let all those things show.
what kind of man he is, and I saw him at his most pitiful and his most
vulnerable, and I chose to keep those
confidences. I managed to get him to
trust me in some small manner – enough that he was willing to let me treat him
– and I couldn’t betray that trust by leaving him to strangers.”
going to leave him to strangers. He
doesn’t know
everything? First you want me to leave,
and then you don’t. You want me to get
away from him, you want me to stick close.
make you nervous? Don’t you like having the
truth of your actions pointed out to you?
Tess didn’t reply and the voice sighed.
It doesn’t really matter what he feels, because in a few weeks, you’re
never going to see him again.
“T? Can you come in here?”
the door of the prep room. “
refusing to allow the nurse to do his job.
He’s still sticking to his story that you need the practice.”
“Why
is he only my patient when he’s being difficult?”
“Because
you’re the only one willing or able to deal with him.
“And
he complains of me being a bossy crank,” Jessica whispered to Tess.
Tess
merely shook her head and stood up, crossing the hall into the prep room.
salt and pepper hair and a thick goatee – then took Sands’ hand in hers.
tightly, but realized he was simply nervous. spanspan>That was understandable. “I hear
you’re being ‘difficult.’”
“If
you’d been in here a few minutes earlier, you could have heard Dr. Frankenstein
calling me a ‘pain in the ass.’”
Tess
looked over at
shrugged. “Nonetheless, you’re going to
have to let this man do his job if we’re to continue.”
the knot of tension in her stomach. “You
know I’m right.”
“I
know you’re annoying.”
“That
was weak.” He flipped her off.
man’s nametag, “Steve do his job, or are you really going to make me take
over?”
“God,
you’re such a nag.” Sands didn’t know
what he was doing. He was letting the
woman off the hook when last night he’d been prepared to kill her.
. . . .
“Fine.”
forward, IV prepared. Tess didn’t let go
as the man slipped the IV into one of the big veins on backback of Sands’ hand.
wanting her to, and she cursed them both for it.
acted like this, she had a hard time decided which part of his dual personality
was the act.
urged her to sleep, and who came running with guns out when she had a nightmare
– or was it the one who would insist that all that was done out of
self-interest and personal gain? Was the
real man the one who wanted to kill her, or the one
who let her go because she was crying?
Was it the man who annoyed the hell out of hor tor the one who . . .
held her hand? The one who let no one
weakness?
Steve
came back. “Dr. Pierce isdy tdy to move
the patient to pre-op.”
“Yeah, well, maybe ‘the patient’ isn’t ready to go.”
“Sands . . .”
“Why
are you whining?” Tess stuck her tongue
out at the man; Steve laughed. Under his
breath, Sands murmured uncomplimentary things in Spanish, but finally relented.
Sands didn’t let go of Tessa’s hand as he was
wheeled out of the prep room. He
despised himself the the weakness, but still didn’t release her.
a number on his head. He could barely move
and that brought back too many memories of the Day of the Dead.
was trying tlloolloon into full-fledge panic . . . and whether he wanted to
admit it or not, Tess was his link to reality.
He
swallowed and tried to keep his face clear of emotion as they entered an
elevator. Elevators were too closed in,
too small and they moved. Sands usually
tried to avoid them at all costs – as he did with escalators – mainly because
he didn’t like the feeling of motion sickness that they gave him, but also
because one of his private fears was being trapped in one.
elevator.
Tess
hadn’t said anything when Sands had refused to let her go, just as she didn’t
say anything as his grip tightened on her hand.
She did look down, though.
those nurses.
let her other thoughts go as her confusion deepened even further.
better about leaving. She wanted him to
trust her even less than he could picture her face in his mind’s eye.
hand and find comfort in it . . . because she found no comfort in holding
his. All she found was guilt,
responsibility, and an overwhelming sense of duty.
to keep quiet. Perhaps he only wants
reassurance as long as he can pretend that I’m not the one giving it.
out, and Tess was relieved and regretful as the hand clutching hers relented a
bit. She cursed as his dual nature
coaxed dual reactions out of her.
He’s dangerous. He’s influencing
you. If you’re not careful, you’re going
to have another voice to talk to.
accepting the statement.
They
entered pre-op, and Tess leaned down to say to Sands, “This is the end of the
road, señor.”
“You’re leaving?” His hand
tightened on hers again, preventing her from pulling free.
their joined ones.
“I
can’t exactly go into the O.R. with you, and I have other charges to look
after. Besides, do you want me waiting
around like an anxious wife for the next eight hours?”
No. He didn’t want that . . . but
he didn’t want to be left alone either.
“I don’t know – it’d be nice to have someone waiting to attend my every
beck and call.”
that separated the operating room from the room they were in.
were ready for Sands to be brought in.
She shook her head and nodded at Sands – she wasn’t going to leave him
if he still had doubts or memories there ere haunting him.
his head in mock exasperation, then pointed to her
right. She looked and found a surgical
smock hanging above a bench where paper booties, mask, and a surgical cap
waited. She smiled, then
said to Sands, “Give me a moment to suit up.”
She turned too quickly to see the triumphant look on Sands face.
Tess
slipped the smock over her clothes, the cap over her hair after making sure it
was all tucked in, the booties over her sneakers, and the mask over her
face. She looked around and found a box
of gloves. She took a pair and slipped
them on, then returned to her patient, taking his hand.
feel latex. “Don’t freak out on me,
Sands.” She reached for his hand again,
and this time he let her take it, although she saw the cords of his neck
tense. He didn’t like the fact that he
wanted to have some company as he went into the O.R.
still with them. “Let’s go.”
entered the room. “I was beginning to
think that Sands had killed you or something.”
The joke fell flat; Tess squeezed Sands hand, warning him not to say anything.
we can get the anesthesia started.”
Tess
stayed by Sands’ side as he was wheeled into position.
looked over Sands’ chart. Sands himself
was slowly giving in to the muscle relaxant that he’d been given earlier.
tense, though his grip on her hand was still firm enough to make her think that
his mind was still anxious.
Sands interrupted
her thoughts. “Any words of wisdom,
niña?”
Why did he have
to be so civil? The night before he’d
had a gun at her head and a hand cutting the air off from her lungs.
her to apologize for everything. She
looked around and realized that everyone had stepped back to give them a bit of
privacy. She didn’t want to need to have
any privacy when she was around him.
“
was holding instinctively.
Tess cursed as
she felt a single tear work its way free of her control; there was that hint of
a lost boy in his voice again. She
couldn’t leave him while he was unsure.
Crouching down, she whispered, “That is not dead which can eternal lie,
and with strange eons even death may die.”
She smiled sadly under her mask.
“Did that help?”
“No.”
still quoting things reassured him. Not
without his mind telling him that was unacceptable.
couldn’t start to see her as a person.
Not after what he’d learned.
Tess watched as
the anesthesiologist finished prepping the injection that would go into Sands’
IV. Quietly she started talking so Sands
would know what to expect. “The nice man
is coming with some drugs that are going to put you under very quickly. Is there
anything I can do for you before you take a very long nap?”
“Yeah, pick me up
another carton of cigarettes.” He paused
before letting his mind do what it wanted.
“. . .May I have a kiss before you go?”
his temperament this much . . . She
didn’t know why the relaxants were making Sands’ tongue so loose, but she’d
take it while she could. Sooner or later
all the drugs were going to be out of his system, he was going to hate her
again, and she was planning on being far away by the time that happened.
night that he remembered, but at this point any was probably too much.
Carefully, she placed a kiss on Sands’ forehead – the kiss of a sister
or mother, diluted because of the surgical mask she was wearing.
it was much more intimate than she wanted.
She’d never planned on coming to care.
“Care-charming Sleep, thou easer of all woes,/Brother to Death, sweetly thyself
dispose/On this afflicted prince; fall like a cloud,” she removed his
sunglasses, “In gentle showers; give nothing that is loud/Or painful to his
slumbers; easy, sweet,/And as a purling stream, thou son of Night,/Pass by his
troubled senses; sing his pain.”
< sty style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Verdana;color:black'> The
anesthesiologist injected the drugs as
asked Sands, “Can you start counting backwards from one hundred for me?”
Sands head rolled
on the headrest, conveying impatience and distain.
slowly trailed off.
Tess knew that
this was the sign that he was out. She
gently pulled her hand free of his, and removed his sunglasses.
Sands’ face as it was lit by the harsh lights of the surgical bay.
into slumbers like a bride.
“T? We need to get started.”
She
nodded and left the room. Reaching the
pre-op room, she stripped off her surgical gear, then
took a moment to look in through the window.
Sands was barely visible as he was intubated and nurses crowded around
his body.
go with God.