Author's note: Thank you for reading. The kind reviews are the perfect encouragement to keep going with the story. I have never written anything for other people to read before and all of the readers and reviewers have been so welcoming.
Maura picked up her phone and looked at the caller ID. Her heart rate spiked as she read Suburban Hospital on the caller ID.
As her finger moved towards the button to accept the call, Maura began reviewing her mental files and Rolodex in regards to Suburban Hospital. The hospital, like Walter Reed, is in Bethesda, Maryland. It is a regional trauma center and is affiliated with Johns Hopkins as well as many local healthcare organizations. Maura did not believe any former colleagues or schoolmates worked at the hospital.
Maura answered the phone with her professional voice, although it probably sounded a little shaky to familiar listeners. "This is Dr. Maura Isles, how may I help you?"
The voice on the other side of the phone spoke with quiet efficiency. "Dr. Isles, you are listed as the emergency contact for a Jane Rizzoli. Ms. Rizzoli was brought into our ER about 15 minutes ago. We are still examining her but at first glance she seems to have a variety of injuries to her musculoskeletal system. The only truly concerning injury is to her head. She appears to have sustained at least a moderate concussion. Ms. Rizzoli is being extremely uncooperative with the medical staff here and I would like to inquire as to whether or not this behavior is typical for her or should in some way be contributed to her head injury?"
Maura closed eyes and brought her hand up to her forehead to rub the tension headache she could feel forming. After momentarily calming herself, Maura responded to the woman on the other side of the phone. "Unfortunately, Jane has a history of being difficult with medical staff. While I am not there to assess her behavior I would highly doubt it is caused by the head injury. May I speak with her? Sometimes a familiar voice can calm her into greater compliance."
The woman, who introduced herself as Cecilia Anderson, a nurse manager agreed to allow Maura to speak with Jane. Maura could hear Jane complaining and roaring at the beleaguered hospital staff and then she heard Jane's raspy voice in the phone, "what, who is this?"
"Jane," Maura said slowly, trying to calm the other woman. "Jane, you need to calm down and let the doctors work."
"Maur?" Jane questioned. "How are you on the phone? I don't want to calm down! I want to leave. Maura there are sick people here."
Maura sighed as Jane voiced the exact thoughts that had been troubling her. "Jane. The hospital called me because I am your emergency contact and you were being uncooperative." Maura ignored Jane's muttered narcs and continued speaking, "I know you want to leave. I need you to cooperate long enough for them to assess and stabilize your injuries. Please Jane, do that for me. I am on my way to you. When they say you can leave, you can fly home to Boston with me."
Jane gave a defeated sigh, "Maura, you know I can't say no to you. I will cooperate with the doctors and nurses." Then after a brief pause Jane's tone changed to nervous excitement. "Did you say you were coming here? Maura I don't think it is safe to fly now. I am also not sure I am in any shape to be sitting in an airplane right now."
Maura interrupted Jane's ramblings, "Jane, let me worry about safe and comfortable travel. You just need to worry about cooperating with the medical professionals. Now, please inform nurse manager Anderson I would like to speak with her."
Once the nurse manager had regained the phone Maura informed her that Jane had promised to cooperate. She also asked that she be immediately informed of Jane's condition when the doctors were done assessing all of her injuries. Finally, Maura explained that she would be flying into a nearby airport with another medical professional to collect Jane as soon as it was safe for her to travel. After receiving an agreement from nurse manager Anderson, Maura hung up the phone. She then sat down with Angela and filled her in on what she had learned.
Angela spoke with Maura about a few of the details that had been troubling her. "Maura if you bring Janie back here, who will take care of Frosty? How will she get any of her belongings?"
While Maura hadn't really been concerned with Jane's physical possessions, assuming she could just buy whatever Jane needed, she really hadn't considered the small dog at all. "Oh dear," she stated. "Do you think perhaps Frankie or Tommy could come with me to pack up Frosty and a few essentials for Jane?"
"Let me take care of that. I will have someone ready to leave with you in an hour." Angela confidently stated to Maura.
The next hour passed by in a whirlwind of activity. Both women worked quickly through their own mental checklists prior to Maura's departure. Neither Frankie nor Tommy were available to travel with Maura, however, Nina was free. Once the traveling duo was decided upon Angela set about making enough portable food to feed a small army. She included some of Jane's favorite snacks, hoping her daughter would be well enough to eat on the flight home.
Maura called her pilots and asked them to establish flight plans to Dulles airport. Her research told her that it would be 18.9 miles from the airport to the hospital and 11 miles from the airport to Jane's apartment. She made arrangements for her friend Clara to come to Maura's house. This way she could ride to Logan airport with Maura and Nina. Checking those items off her mental list, Maura called a car company so that Nina would have a ride to and from Jane's apartment. Since Maura was still so unsure of Jane's condition she asked the car company to have a second vehicle waiting that Maura and Clara could use to collect Jane at the hospital. Maura also paid to have a private ambulance on standby to transport Jane to the airport if that was deemed necessary.
Feeling accomplished, Maura determined that she was ready to go as soon as Clara and Nina arrived. She hoped the hospital would update her in regards to Jane's condition before her plane left Boston.