Title: In From the Cold
Author: little_miss_writer
Rating: R
Disclaimer: I own nothing unfortunately. Elizabeth Corday, Robert "Rocket" Romano (Warner Bros, Michael Crichton and a variety of other lucky, lucky people. I wish I did own them, but I don't. This is a work of fiction so nobody get upset ok?
Notes: A few things to know. In this story Elizabeth is not involved with Mark, so no marriage and no Ella. Takes place sometime before "Lockdown". It's just a nice little piece about Romano and Corday's friendship. I have read the season nine spoilers (I wish I hadn't!), but nothing is given away here at all, so its entirely safe. Also I'm British and so is my spelling, you have been warned!
I'm sorry!!! I can't believe I've not updated for so long!! For those of you that actually like this story my sincere apologies. I promise more updates soon. I'd also like to apologise for the liberties that I've taken with certain medical terms. I have no idea what half of them mean, I'm not a doctor! I just try to use them to help the story flow!! Oh and I'd like to congratulate Rocket Launcher on a fantastic end to her story. But you're gonna have to write another one soon!! Keep the reviews coming in, send any feed back to little_miss_writer@hotmail.com, or r/r!
Oh and season nine is well on it's way over hear in Scotland. We just had "A Hopeless Wound" a wonderful episode. If we see more of Rocket like that I'll be happy!!
Chapter 10
"Carter where are the charts for the Father Christmas in Curtain three? How exactly am I supposed to do a surgical consult if I don't know the patients history?" Elizabeth tried to school the impatience out of her voice, but her success was limited. Even to herself she sounded tired, impatient and irritated. With good reason. It was Boxing Day at County General, and it was as though the gates of hell had been opened and the patients of the devil had been unleashed. They were all the usual Boxing Day suspects: middle aged men, who after eating far too much over Christmas, thought their indigestion was a heart attack, and of course those who thought their heart attacks were simple indigestion, broken limbs from falls on the ice, kids who had eaten part, or all of their presents, and the most common and least well received, drunk drivers. All that on top of the usual patients that could be found anytime during the year: cancer patients, gallstones, shootings, stabbings, overdoses, and allergic reactions. County was packed to bursting point, almost every available doctor, on leave or not, had been called in to assist. Major traumas were being sent to Mercy and Rush, who were in turn sending their traumas to County. Security was stretched to breaking point, trying to keep calm in a hospital full of irritable staff and patients that are even more irritable. And if those carol singers didn't stop belting out "Tis the Season to be Jolly" she would be in severe danger of violating her oath.
Carter glanced up from the abdominal x-ray he was examining, showing what appeared to be various pieces of a doll. He'd been here before Elizabeth's shift had started at half six, his youthful features looked pale and tired, "I don't know Dr Corday, ask Abby. I'm still tryin' to handle the kid that ate his action man." He tried a weak smile.
She returned his smile and shook her head, "Dear lord, that's the third one today."
"Yeah, and there's another two waiting in chairs. Gotta love Boxing Day huh?"
"I'm sure."
Weaving her way to admit, she went past an arguing couple, children playing hide and seek and being reprimanded by their parents, a group of carol singers with frostbite, patients on beds in the halls, patients arguing and complaining in chairs, doctors calling for tests, nurses trying to track down doctors, paramedics bringing in new cases and security guards trying to contain a fight between three wise men. It was pandemonium. Everybody was raising their voices to be heard above the din, patients yelling at doctors, patients yelling at each other, doctor arguing, yelling for nurses.
" – you mean you slept with her? You're supposed to be fucking gay you bastard – "
" – stay where daddy and I can see you I won't tell you – "
" – I'm gonna lose my finger, I know I am, I'm – "
" – I want to see a doctor, I've been waiting four hours – "
" – I want to see Dr Carter he's cute – "
" – I'm gonna be sick – "
" – where's Mr Anderson's chart? I just put it down – "
" – you mean Mercy's sending us traumas? Get on the phone and tell 'em no way – "
She found Abby underneath a pile of charts arguing with Frank, who was trying to speak into two phones at the same times, while Mark and Luka were trying in vain to devise a strategy to clear the two boards. "Abby? The chart for Mr Evens?"
"Who?"
"The Father Christmas in three?"
"Oh. Carter had it last."
She sighed heavily. It was too much. She'd been here since six thirty, she'd missed breakfast, she was hungry, tired and frustrated and her head hurt, . "Never mind. It's one fifty five, unless anybody has an objection, I'm going for lunch. Page me when you find it please."
The canteen was far busier than she had expected. Doctors and nursed from all over County where there, trying to catch a bite to eat before their absence was noticed. Settling down with a turkey sandwich, she really despised the holiday season, she allowed her eyes to drift around the room, and her mind to wander.
Soft jazz drifted out of the car speaker as they talked. Nothing personal, nothing serious, just light chat, the weather, the surgical schedule, on why British comedy was far funnier than the "tripe" American's release, or in her opinion anyway. They did not mention the events in the park, or in Robert's house, she didn't ask about his father and she didn't ask how Robert was feeling. It just didn't seem appropriate. It had been a wonderful day but at the same time a heart wrenching horrible one. Best just to let him set the tone. One step forward, two steps back.
Conversation moved to work, other hospitals in the area, other surgeons, hospital politics. She laughed when Robert impersonated, frightfully accurately, the head of surgery at Rush, and happily argued with him over the differences between British and American surgical techniques. Then all too soon they arrived outside Elizabeth's door. Robert turned off the engine, and gave her a sympathetic half smile, "Early shift tomorrow?"
"Yes," she sighed, "Half six on Boxing Day."
"Awwwww, poor you. You've gotta love the holiday season at County. The joys of indigestion, people begging for antibiotics for the flu, the usual druggies and drunks."
"Not that you'll be experiencing any of that tomorrow."
He laughed, "Somebody's bitter. I'll be in the day after tomorrow. I've got three hernias scheduled, then a meeting with some financial idiot, and at some point I'm gonna have to talk to Weaver. And you think your day's gonna be bad."
"You have to work on giving sympathy, you know that don't you?" She smiled at him.
"I know, one of the few talents I have not yet mastered.." He laughed then stopped suddenly, catching her eyes, making sure he had her attention, "I wanted to thank you."
"What for?" The response was automatic, but she knew what he meant and was touched by his gratitude.
"You know what for." He leaned in and she felt his lips brush briefly against hers. "Bye Elizabeth."
She smiled, "Bye Robert."
Later, when she had curled up in front of the television, she had reflected on the events of the past week or so and was amazed by the change that just one person could bring. How her opinion of somebody could change so quickly. In fact –
"Dr Corday?" A voice cut into her memories, "Dr Corday?"
She shook her head, bringing herself back to the present, "Sorry?"
"Your pager." A young doctor, whom she recognised from radiology, smiled at her apologetically.
"Oh, thank you."
How long had her pager been going off? Considering the looks she was getting from some people, it must have been some time. How mortifying, she shouldn't be daydreaming at work, how long had she been sitting here? Her sandwich was untouched, her coffee stone cold.
Picking up her sandwich and stuffing it into her pocket, it could keep till later, she headed down to the ER.
Chaos revisited. She could have been upstairs for hours and nothing would have changed. Had anybody actually been discharged yet? Or did they just come in and stay? Battling her way though the packed corridors, she yelled over to Carter. "What have we got?"
"RTA, head on collision, three victims, one guy, one woman, and a child."
"ETA?"
"Anytime – "
Sirens screeched outside, an instant later the doors burst open, the first gurney was wheeled in, Weaver close behind it, "Elizabeth, you and Carter with this one, trauma one, Mark and Luka take the woman, somebody clear out trauma two, Susan you and me with the girl. Let's move people. Frank, is Anspaugh in yet? Two of them look like they'll need surgery."
"Dr Weaver, Anspaugh's in South Africa for Christmas."
"Dammit, which surgeons do we have? No, I don't care, call in Romano."
"He won't be happy Dr Weaver – "
"Dammit Frank just do it."
Elizabeth fell in line with Carter next to the gurney as the paramedic rattled off the history.
"Looks like a hemothorax. How did it happen?"
"He was drunk - head on collision - wearing a seatbelt - unconscious for the past ten minutes Merry Christmas huh?"
"Do we have any ID?"
"No."
They turned into trauma one. "Poor breath sounds, get a chest x-ray, we need a chest tube."
While Elizabeth it struck her again, as it always did, how the trauma team acted like a well-oiled machine. Everybody knew their job, knew their place, followed instructions, co-operated flawlessly. But it wasn't going to be enough to save their patient, if he didn't get to an OR soon, the bleeding was getting heavier.
"Stats are dropping Dr Corday."
"Phone upstairs, he needs to get to an OR now before he bleeds out, and somebody try and find his next of kin."
The doors burst open, a nurse carrying blood packs ran in.
"I said four packs."
"This is all they've got Dr Corday."
"Stats still dropping."
"Dammit – "
"Now now Lizzie, this is hardly grace under pressure is it?"
Elizabeth tried to control the grin that immediately surfaced, despite her tiredness, when she heard Robert's voice. She turned to see Robert in scrubs, standing, arms folded, eyebrows raised.
"I'm sure you'd know plenty about that Robert – "
Carter hung up the phone, "OR two is free."
"Ok lets go," She turned to address Romano "Now Robert if you wouldn't mind lending a hand."
"Anything at all Lizzie," he strode up to her as she and Carter started to manoeuvre the bed, "what have we got?"
"Male, approximately early 60's, head on collision, suspected hemothorax, bleeding profusely, doesn't look like he has long, no ID."
"Drunk?"
"Yes."
"Surprise, surprise, who else was involved?"
"A mother and her young daughter."
She watched as Robert shook his head, "Not content with screwing up his own life, three for the price of one."
"So it seems."
He turned and bellowed down the corridors, "C'mon people out the way! Let's move, before he and I die of waiting! C'mon let's get – "
He stopped speaking, mid sentence. She turned to look at him as they strode down the crowded corridors; his eyes were fixed on the bloodstained face of their patient. Robert's face was blank, expressionless, and ash grey.
"Robert? Robert?"
They were at the elevator, the team anxiously waiting. "Robert? Robert do you know this person?"
Eyes glazed he stared at her, not seeming to comprehend the question, the elevator doors opened, people spilled out, hurrying out the way, as they rolled the gurney in, Frank shouted above the din from the admit desk, "Dr Corday, your drunk guy is one Michael Romano, we're tryin' to locate his wife and kids now."
Romano. Oh good god. She looked at Robert, and understood in an instant.
"Robert is this – " her voice cracked, but he answered her in a whisper.
"He's my father."
Tbc
Hey
Well I'm not pleased with this one. I apologise for the medical errors, I did try to keep the medical stuff to a minimum and I'm not a doctor, so please don't complain too much. Not much Robert/Elizabeth action in this one, but there will be soon. Please tell me what you think; it's the usual address little_miss_writer@hotmail.com or r/r. I'll probably repost this chapter but for the moment it's on with chapter 11 if you all r/r!!
lmw
x