When Kit woke up that morning, she had no idea that the events of the day would change her life forever.
Recent months of her life in the pandemic world have made her realize how lonely she feels. Of course, she could call her ex-husband, but what would be the point? In the last years of her marriage she has not been fully satisfied, and then she blamed herself for its break-up. Over time, one of her friends made her aware of the fact that in order for two people to have a relationship, they both have to commit themselves equally. These words did not quite calm her down, because she felt that she was the one who had devoted herself to her career. However, she forgot about a few important words of her friend's statement "no couple will survive without the support of their beloved".
And such support from her husband has gone missing.
The pandemic complicated everything at hospital and the health service was closed to collapse. All the recent events and the lockdown have caused Voss to stop taking care of herself, and she decided to focus on the needy. She was able to devote herself again to help in hospital, but despite the wishes... several patients with breathing difficulties or dyspnoea died on her operating table.
It was not the first time she had to deal with the death of a patient, but the enormity of her responsibilities and loneliness made her unaware of what exactly she wanted from her life. The only thing she saw around her was tears, pain and helplessness. In these three words she could describe last weeks of her work.
But she was not the only one who felt this way. Randolph Bell could not stand the condition of his colleagues, but in fact he was strongly concerned about Kit - she was the most important person in that moment.
"Kit" Randolph called her when he noticed her close to the elevator, but she did not answer. He could see that she was literally exhausted, and her skin was even more pale as before.
"Kit, come on!" he called her again but there was no answer. A few seconds later he was close enough to her to grab her thin hand.
"Ouch! What the hell are you doing, Randolph?!" she was not in the mood, but she knew how close they are. And the way he looked deep in her eyes, made her legs weak.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you. I just want to ask you if everything's okay" and yet he notice she was avoiding his gaze. There was something she was not telling him, and he knew it, since in these last months, filled with full of regret and bitterness, this couple of friends have really come closer together.
"Yes, I'm totally fine. I need to go. My patients are waiting for me." she looked at her hand which was still in his grab. Aware of how close they are to each other and their faces are divided by a few centimetres, the shivers have embraced her whole body.
"I need to go." she repeated and broke free from his grip. Tears welled up in her eyes and she wanted to disappear quickly, but the moment she entered the elevator Randolph jumped after her. She felt as she was completely fragile, and she did not want Randolph to see her like this. There were so many things on his mind, she did not want him to worry even more.
"You won't leave me, will you?" she asked him, and a tear fell down her cheek. At the last minute, she realised that he has gently lifted up his hand to wipe away her tears, but she did not want to allow it, so he stopped.
Their friendship has developed so much, that he could not look at her being hurt. The condition she was in meant only one thing to Randolph - suffering.
"Listen, if you're not ready to tell me what's really going on your mind. I'll wait, but you need to know that I'm really worried about my best doctor here." he winked at her.
Suddenly, her quiet laughter resounded in the elevator and her cheeks turned red. Despite the gloomy atmosphere in the hospital, Randolph managed to cheer her up for a while.
"Oh Randolph, if you're trying to flatter me so I have to take another extra duty, don't worry. I just volunteered to help our doctors." of course he didn't mean it. Her presence made Randolph want to be in the hospital, especially close to her. "I may be your favourite but not the best one. We both know who is the leading one..." she paused and felt a little dizzy. Yet he did not notice it and a big smile appeared on his face. "Oh, gosh! No, I didn't mean you, so you can stop grinning." With every word, her head became heavier abruptly, but knowing that she was close to him made her feel safe.
"You just said it cause I wanted to know what was wrong with you lately." He said it very calmly with a deep voice, so close to her ear that she felt his breath on herself.
It even crossed her mind that she could sense a note of jealousy from the notoriously nice Randolph Bell.
"That's not true. I know who I was thinking about. I mean Dr Austin, who's doing great at this difficult time. You can be really proud to have such a man on our team, Grandpa."
Unfortunately, the bell rang, signalling Kit should get off the elevator. Their conversation developed in an interesting direction. Actually, if a nurse was standing next to them, she could easily say that they were definitely filtering with each other.
"As far as I know, you have a grandkid, not me." He added quickly.
Even though she felt the beating heat from Randolph, she had to help her patients. The hospital rooms were filled with people in need of help, and there were fewer and fewer medical workers.
"Kit, I was thinking..." Randolph stopped the elevator door. There was no certainty in his voice, and the air seemed to become heavier. As a hospital director, he was known for his firmness and courage, but when it came to Dr Voss, he was speechless.
"Yes?" Kit turned over, hoping he would stop her after all.
"You know what, never mind. We'll talk later, I can see you are really needed there. But promise me you will take the day off tomorrow." he pressed a button and the door closed. Kit stood there for one more minute, unaware that Randolph really desired to invite her for a drink.
The hospitals in Atlanta were overcrowded, and the accident on the motorway resulted in a shortage of patient beds. The sound of ambulances drowned out all other notable events organised in the city. Many patients from the accident were redirected to Chastain Park Memorial Hospital and there was chaos in the emergency department for several hours. The doctors and nurses were very tired, but many people were saved except one young pregnant woman.
Kit definitely did not have the idea that her extra shift at the hospital would end like this. She was ready to go home when the husband of the woman who did not survive the accident burst into the room. It was known that he was in pain - not only did he lost a loved one, but also a child. However, no one expected such a turnover of actions.
"You're all guilty!" he started screaming and knocked down everything that was on the registration desk. The nurse wanted to call security, but he quickly grabbed the phone and took the gun out of his jacket pocket. He raised his voice again and told everyone in the room to lie down on the ground. However, this was not possible because several patients could not move from their beds. Kit was suddenly overwhelmed by anger, but she knew that she had to remain stoically calm to avoid irritating the intruder.
"Please, let the patients stay in their positions. They are not the ones to blame." These two short sentences have made it clear that all of the man's attention has been drawn to Kit. As a result, one of the nurses wanted to escape in order to inform someone about the situation, but she did not succeed. The gunshot stunned everyone, and Kit fell to her knees and saw her friend, who was bleeding out on the floor. These few seconds lasted like eternity, and Kit couldn't even scream. At the same time, when her hands started to shake, her breath became shallow.
Randolph looked at the clock, which indicated that Kit was about to end her shift. He decided to check how she felt after so many hours of intense work. However, instead of a quiet short walk, he was paralyzed when he heard a gunshot and screaming coming from the ER.
"Kit" he said quietly, full of concern. A strange current passed him all over his body, thinking only of her. Running towards the ER, he managed to inform the person he met on the hallway to call security and the police as soon as possible.
"You!" yelled the attacker, pointing at Kit. "Close all doors." Her hands were clammy, but they never used to be, except for moments like this. Moments when everything gets out of her control. And one thing she has learned in her relationships is that she is fond of things going as they are supposed to. When she can control what happens.
She was already getting up when Randolph walked into the room. At first, she felt relieved when she saw him, and then a heightened fear that Randolph might be shot. There were moments of uncertainty, no one knew what was going to happen next. And then, when the torturer noticed Randolph, he immediately grabbed Kit from behind and put the gun to her temple.
"No! Leave her alone!" Kit heard Randolph's words, but she couldn't say anything because the torturer's hand held her right around her neck, pushing on her trachea.
Dr. Bell extended his hand towards the aggressive man and approached him in small steps.
"I'll hurt her if you come any closer!" Tears have flowed into Kit's eyes. All her life appeared before her eyes, realizing that she is not ready for death. Suddenly she felt a pain in her head as if she had been struck by a blunt weapon, followed by another bang of gunshot.
She felt like in heaven for a moment and then she forced herself to open eyes. She let out a deep breath and looked around terrified. She felt a warm substance, when she had raised her hand to brush hair from her eyes. It was dark red blood. She turned around again, but this time she noticed what was going on around her.
To be continued...