Chapter Sixteen

The ER was already busy when a man was rushed in with third-degree burns to over half of his body including his chest and face. The man was only able to tell paramedics that the driver's license found damaged next to him on the side of the road where he was found was his own. After that, he passed out and a breathing tube had be inserted. The smell of gasoline filled the trauma room. The patient was twenty years old and from Dallas. His burns had begun to became infected, the pacemaker he had for a heart condition was the only thing keeping the patient alive. Scott didn't advise the surgery required to remove the dead skin and tissue because the young man Shawn Rene wasn't likely to survive. He agreed with Drew that the best thing to do was put Shawn in an induced coma so he wouldn't have to suffer for his remaining hours of life. Even with the pacemaker sending charges to his heart, technically keeping Shawn alive, his other vital organs would fail by morning.

Despite that his family pushed for the surgery for their son's burns, wanting to give their son every chance, no matter what how slim. Drew and Topher tried one more time to dissuade them. Shawn's mother asked each doctor what he would do. If either's own children were in the same condition, they would want to be at their side during the last hours not have them die on the operating table. They reassured the parents Shawn wouldn't feel any pain if he was in a coma.

"Shawn can still hear you. You could say what you need to say." Drew told the mother.

Scott was obligated to perform the operation and Shawn Rene expired on the table before midnight. His lungs and kidneys simply gave out.

"I should have listened to you!" Shane's mother sobbed to Drew. "Now he's gone!"

Whatever happened to Shawn was now up to the police to find. His father said the young man's heart condition had worsened in the last year and Shawn was traveling the country to complete his "bucket list." How he ended up here in San Antonio was a mystery.

"That was rough," Topher said to Drew as Shawn's family left the hospital. They had declined to see him, wanting to remember as he was before. Silently all thought this was a wise choice.

"Yep. And tt's only midnight."

"Don't remind me."

The trauma room where Shawn was treated still had the stench of burned flesh and gasoline in the air despite the cleaning crew's best efforts. Hopefully it would clear by later in the day.

Following a patient like Shawn Rene, a four-year-old with an earache and fever was a relief. Drew had convince the boy to let him look at his ear because the boy said the last doctor he saw wasn't very nice and hurt his ear more, too.

"Well," Drew said. "Was he at this hospital? I'll have to talk to him."

The mom said no, the family had just moved here from South Carolina.

Drew told the very young patient that he had children and knew how not hurt sore ears. "What do you let me try?" He asked.


By the near non-existent exchange between Jordan and TC in the locker room before both left Drew guessed TC was either camping on the couch or in the spare room.

"You know what's goin' on?" Drew asked Topher.

Topher shook his head. "Neither is saying nothin'. I got a feeling this is not going to end well but soon."

Coming up on the Soap Opera known as San Antonio Memorial night shift, Drew thought.

"That's gonna be fun," Drew said.

"I'm beginning to think you and I are the only ones happy in our marriages. Small club," Topher replied.

"Yeah. We should start having bi-weekly meetings. How's the girls, by the way?"

"They're good. The twins are taking painting classes and not fighting as much. Lynn's gone up a level in her violin lessons. What about your kids?"

Drew told his friend that Skylar was loving soccer and Zach could stand for a few seconds now. "He'll definitely be walking soon."

"Fun stuff. Good luck getting a chance to sit down then," Topher laughed.