I own no rights to Medical Investigation. Only to Dr. lindstrom and my imagination. The title is inspired by the Alan Jackson song by the same name.
I always thought that Miles came onto the team as a replacement for someone.
WHERE WERE YOU WHEN THE WORLD STOPPED TURNING?
The NIH team had just spent several days in Arizona tracking down the source of what had turned out to be cases of deliberate product tampering. Now they were sitting at a picnic table in a local park enjoying lunch before heading for Flagstaff to catch their flight.
"Keisha told me that her teacher was having the class write an essay on what they were doing on September 11th," Frank was saying as he passed around the pizza box.
"Sounds like a good assignment," Miles commented as he reached for a veggie slice. "Man, I'll think I'll never forget what I was doing that day."
"What were you doing, Miles?" Natalie asked.
"You tell me your story and I'll tell you mine," the younger doctor replied.
"Well, Eva was the newbie team member. In fact she'd only been with us a few months…" Natalie began.
"So, how long is it until our flight leaves?" Eva was asking nobody in particular as she looked around the small regional airport.
"In about an hour," Natalie replied smiling at the younger woman. "Relax, Eva, you'll be back in civilization in no time."
"I'm not even why you needed a press liaison on this assignment. The only "press" was a weekly paper with one reporter. Even Dr. Connor could have handled him," Eva complained glancing over at the team leader.
"Five days in the middle of nowhere, that's nothing. Try spending ten days in Alaska in December trying to stop a meningitis outbreak before it becomes a full blown epidemic," the third doctor on the team, Blaine Lindstrom pointed out.
"I'm getting cold just thinking about it," Evas stated rubbing her arms as she wandered off in search of a large cup of coffee.
"If all the flights are running on schedule then we should be home in time for supper," Frank spoke up. After nearly a week of hospital food aand mediocre takeout meals, he was more than readyfor a home cooked meal and spending time with his family.
The radio in the small lounge had been playing country music classics. Suddenly Randy Travis' Forever and Ever. Amen was interrupted by the local news announcer saying, "This late breaking news just in. At approximately 8:46am Eastern time the twin twers of the World Trade Center was struck by a low flying plane..."
"To make a long story short, we were stuck in Nowhere, Montana until we could rent an SUV and make it back to Bethesda after nearly 24 hours of driving," Frank summarized.
""Your turn, Miles," Natalie reminded the youngest team member.
"I know I was dead on my feet and ready to get home and go to bed. I'd already worked a double shift when I was called into the ER Chief's office," Miles said a thoughtful expression on his face as he recalled what he'd be doing five years previous.
"With all due respect, Dr. Channon, but isn't there somebody else you can get to cover for Dr. Nichols?" Miles was asking.
"You're the only one I have available, Dr. McCabe. And as I recall you have the next three days off so you'll have plenty of time to catch upon your sleep then,", Dr. Elizabeth Channon replied, shuffling some papers on her desk.
"All right, " Miles said reluctantly as he wandered off to grab a mug of coffee before he went back to treating patients.
The next several hours he was keep busy dealing with the victims of a major MVA and then a thirteen-year –old girl who'd swallowed half a bottle of aspirin because she'd gotten depressed after her boy friend had broken up with her. The anticoagulant effects of the aspirin had caused her to bleed out despite the repeated blood transfusions.
"How can a kid do that to themselves?" Miles was wondering as he stepped out of the trauma room after calling TOD. Taking off his bloody lab coat, he unclipped his badge and emptied the pockets. Quickly stuffing it in a hamper he was heading over to the girl's family when a student nurse rushed up to him excitedly saying, "Dr. McCabe, did you hear the news! The twin towers collapsed!"
"I finally made it home after midnight and then stayed up all night watching the news reports," Miles said, once he'd finished telling his story.
The radio at the nearby picnic table began playing Where Were You When The World stopped Turning? by Alan Jackson and they sat listening to the song as they finished their lunch; each one lost in their own thoughts.