Donna returned to the fourth floor after pressing the lab to hurry with their analysis of the samples. She went directly to Dr. Miller’s office and knocked softly on the door.

“Come in,” Dr. Miller said gruffly behind the door.

Donna opened it and found him staring out the window into the gardens below.

“You wanted to see me, doctor?” Donna said quietly.

Miller turned. “Sit down.” 

She did so and he took a seat across from her. “If this is about what I said–”

“Of course this is about that!” Miller cut her off. “How dare you cast doubt and suspicions on my actions in there. For crying out loud that kid in there is already scared to death. The last thing she needs is to know that we’re doing something out of the routine.”

“I know,” Donna said, her eyes not wavering from his. “It was wrong of me.”

Craig turned away from her and looked at his desk and the file in front of him. He took a breath of air to clear his head and rubbed the muscles that knotted at his neck.

Craig shook his head. “She’s already lying about her symptoms. I think she’s afraid we won’t let her go home.”

“I know she is. What’s wrong with her Dr. Miller? Is she sick?”

Craig glanced up at her. His pale blue eyes clouded sharply as he stared at her for what seemed a long time, registering her completely. Then he nodded. “She’s very sick.”

“What is it?”

“I wish I had a clue,” Craig whispered more to himself.

“But she was fine yesterday.”

“That’s what makes it so difficult to diagnose. One minute she’s fine and ready to go home, the next minute her blood pressure is up, she has a temperature of 101.4°, her glands are swollen, her lungs are congested, her appetite is down and her pupils are starting to dilate and quite frankly, I don’t like her color. I scheduled her for another X-ray to see if it’s the concussion that’s causing the dilation and her headache–”

“You knew about the headache?”

Miller turned to her. “Of course. She winced like crazy when I laid the light on her.” He regarded the nurse longer before asking. “Did she say anything to you?”

“She was completely out of breath by the time we finished getting you your urine sample. She was flushed and sweaty. I think the fever is higher. When I pressed, she admitted to the headache and feeling hot. Also her chest hurts her and she’s experiencing nausea. What are you going to do?”

“I can’t really do anything until I hear from the lab. I have no idea what this it. It could be any number of things–” Craig broke off. He rose from his chair and returned to the window. He glanced out of it briefly before turning to Donna. “If she was in the ward, it would make more sense. She could have caught something from one of the other children. But she’s been isolated for the most part.”

There was a tap on the door and the door burst open.

A nurse in her mid-thirties stood in the frame, her face was flushed and her eyes alerted.

“Your patient in 421 has gone into convulsions, Doctor. Dr. Reiner is with her now. He sent me–”Dr. Miller brushed past her and burst from the room. He sprinted down the hall and entered to find Dr. Reiner administering aid to the child.

Miller went to his side. Kelly was thrashing and convulsing violently. Her face was a severe shade of blue, her lips swollen.

“I think she swallowed her tongue,” Reiner said.

Miller nodded. Together the doctors worked to free the child’s airway. Together they fought to bring the convulsions under control. But even after the passageway was free the child had difficulty breathing she wheezed and gasped in the air. Each breath sounded thick and wet.

Craig turned to the older surgeon, “Let’s get her upstairs to ICU and into an O2 tent.”

Reiner agreed and they arranged for a gurney. The convulsions had ceased, but had left the child drained. She barely had the energy to pull the air through her constricted lungs. Both doctors watched as two orderlies carefully picked the child up and set her gently on the gurney, covered her and wheeled her from the room.

Miller followed his patient into the elevator and up to the sixth floor. Kelly was again put into isolation, but this time she was put into an oxygen tent. The convulsions along with the earlier symptoms had Craig stumped.

After the child was stabilized, Reiner pulled Miller into the hall.

“What do you have here, Craig?”

“I don’t know. I sent blood and urine samples to the lab. But this–” he turned away from the hall to look at Reiner. “This came out of the blue, John. She was admitted for a concussion. This sounds like something viral.”

Just then the technician poked his head out into the hall. “She’s going into respiratory shock, Doctors. I called ahead for an OR. We’ll get her prepped down here and bring her up.”

Miller felt his face flush then drain of blood. “Jesus,” he whispered. “Thank you,” he told the technician, and then turned to Reiner. “Will you assist?”

Reiner agreed and they both left to prep for surgery.

*  *  *  *  *

Chief moved the couch two feet from where it had been sitting, to rest closer to the front window. It had been the fourth time Elly had asked him to move it and this time he was sure she would be satisfied. He looked at her expectantly.

“I don’t know...” Elly mused, one hand resting on her hip, the other at the side of her face.

“Elly,” Chief said, sweat dripping from his nose. “It looks fine.”

“Maybe if we moved it farther back–”

“You’re not listening. It looks fine.”

“I don’t know, Hon, it just–”

“El,” Chief said deliberately. Her eyes left the couch and focused on him. “It looks fine.”

She smiled at his determination. “It looks fine,” she agreed.

She went to him and he took her in his aching arms. “I know I’ve been a bit finicky with this,” she explained, “but the rest of the furniture needs to fall in place around the sofa. If it’s not right, the rest will be wrong.”

“I understand that, but we’ve had that couch sitting in every available square inch of this room. If you can’t tell by now where it belongs, then we’re in serious trouble, here.”

Elly laughed. “It belongs there. I’ll work around it.”

Chief smiled at her and kissed the tip of her nose. “Let’s bring in the rest.”

Elly agreed and together they retrieved the rest of Elly’s furnishings. They had been working on the redecorating, on and off, during the last week. The sofa and its grouping were all that remained, aside from a pair of very expensive and pristine chairs. They had been moving furniture all morning to get the house ready for Kelly’s return the following day. After hours at the task, Chief was well soiled, and dripping wet.

“There’s still the Bergére chairs,” Chief said from the front porch. “Where do you want them?”

Elly looked at the chairs still sitting on the front lawn. They were delicate chairs with intricate carved backs and floral printed cushions. They went with nothing in the Broden house. However, they were expensive chairs and Elly hated to part with them.

“I don’t know. Where’s there room?”

Chief was also looking at the chairs. To him they were like 18th century torture chambers. Their backs were too high and too straight. Their cushions were hard and pristine. And they were expensive–something that does not mix well with children.

Chief shrugged. “We haven’t put anything in the back room yet. We could move something out of there and make room.”

Elly realized that was the ultimate sacrifice. To change anything in that room was difficult for him. It was Katherine’s room. Elly decided it was her turn to sacrifice.

“You know,” she said. “I really don’t like those chairs. I think I’ll move them back to the pub and use them for a wait grouping or something.

Chief scowled. “You’re kidding? I thought you loved those chairs?”

She smiled and shook her head. “I love you. Chairs are something one can only admire or appreciate. I’ll do that at the pub. You don’t mind moving them back, do you?”

At that Chief laughed. “No.” Again he took her in his arms and, despite the fact they were standing on the porch in full view of the neighbors, he kissed her softly.

“I’ll be right back.”

“I’ll be right here.” She watched him, his forearms and biceps bulging under the weight of the first chair he carried, bearhug style across the street.

When finished, they surveyed their handiwork. The house had been completely restored since its siege by the mob. The wallpaper at the landing had been replaced, the wooden floor, sanded, re-stained and polished. The carpeting in the back room was also new. All traces of violence had been eradicated. Even the bloodstains on Chief’s bedroom wall and floor were removed. His mattress sent in as evidence and a new one put in its place.

“Well, if we’re through here, I’ll go get cleaned up and be on my way,” Chief told Elly.

“We’ll get things ready here for Kelly’s party tomorrow.”

“She’ll like that.” He kissed his bride once more before heading up the stairs.

When he returned, Elly and Maggy were busy in the kitchen, hard at work baking for Kelly’s return on the following day.

“Well, I’m off. Any messages?”

“Don’t tell her about the party and ruin the surprise,” Elly warned him. “Other that that, tell her we miss her and wish we could have come, too.”

“Especially, Joe,” Maggy put in. “He was in a state this morning when he left for school.”

“Well, she’ll be home tomorrow and he’ll get the day off from school, then,” Chief said from the doorway. “That ought to make it up to him. I’ll give her your regards.”

He kissed Elly good-bye and smiled for Maggy. “I’ll see you both later.”

Elly and Maggy listened as his footsteps died down the hall and the screen door squeaked briskly open before slamming shut.

Elly turned to Maggy. “I hope she isn’t too put out of place by all the changes around here.”

“Don’t worry, she’ll adjust," Maggy's assured her and they returned to their baking.

They had just finished putting Kelly’s cake into the oven when the phone rang.

Elly was closest so she picked up the receiver.

“Broden residence.”

“Is Chief Broden at home?”

“I’m afraid he left about an hour ago. May I help you?”

“To whom am I speaking?” retorted the brisk voice.

Elly hesitated briefly. “I’m his wife.” She glanced at Maggy. It was the first chance she had to say the words and they felt a bit awkward. “I can give him the message.”

“This is the hospital, Mrs. Broden.”

“Hospital?” Elly felt her face grow warm. Again she glanced at Maggy, who was coming to the phone.

“I’m afraid we have some bad news. It’s your daughter–”

“Kelly? Oh my god, what happened?”

“She’s in surgery–”

“Surgery? But I thought–”

“She had a respiratory failure. Dr. Miller is upstairs now in surgery. They’re doing all they can for her now, Mrs. Broden.”

“I don’t understand. She had a concussion. What’s that to do with a respiratory failure?”

There was a pause at the other end of the line. “I’m sorry, Mrs. Broden. She took ill this morning and became worse by the minute.”

“I don’t believe this. She was fine yesterday.”

“The doctors are doing all they can for her,” the woman restated. Elly found it more annoying than reassuring.

“We’ll be right there. My husband is on his way. He’ll be there within the hour.”

“We’ll try and head him off when he gets here. Look, again, I’m really sorry.”

Elly hung up the phone and noticed her hands were shaking.

“What’s going on?” Maggy asked.

“We’re going to the hospital. Turn everything off down here, while I go upstairs and get my keys.”

© Copyright 2025 C J Driftwood. All rights reserved.