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Chapter 10: Work...Read and Review!
"Hey kid, your early," Lana greeted Lu as she walked into the RWHC the next morning.
"Yea, I went to bed at seven last night and I woke up at 6. I decided to come in and get some paper workdone before chat room. Lana, you haven't told anyone about this have you?" Lu asked pointing to her stomach.
"Of course not. I didn't think you would want me to." Lana replied.
"Thanks, I just feel like Jonas should know before the whole hospital does." Lu grabbed her messages and was reading over them.
"Speaking of Jonas, when is he coming home?" Lana asked.
"He says as soon as possible. I talked to him last night. Lana, I will be in my office working on paper work if you need me." Lu turned and walked toward her office.
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Later that day Lu finally sat down for a break. She had been running back and forth from the ER to the clinic all day. She was finally caught up as well as exhausted. Her feet were killing her and she had a headache.
"Lu, you okay? You look tired." Dylan said as he walked up to Lana's desk where Lu was setting with her feet propped up on the desk.
"I'm fine. I wish everyone would stop asking me that. It's just been a very busy day." Lu responded annoyed.
"Tell me about it. I had to help with a multiple car pile up earlier and I just got through with treating a woman with multiple bruising and a fractured arm. I suspect abuse but she won't talk to me. I was kind of hoping you would talk to her when you get a chance. Maybe she will open up more to you since your a woman and all." Dylan asked of Lu.
Lu smiled, "Sure, is this her first trip to the ER with this kind of injury?"
"Yes, and normally I wouldn't suspect abuse on the first trip like this but her signs are textbook. Black eye, bloody lip, hand print bruises on her arm along with a fracture in the other arm. She flinches whenever anyone touches her and she won't tell me anything about her boyfriend except for how she can't live without him. You know, the whole 'he always means well' spill. They all say that." Dylan told Lu.
"Hmm, I'll talk to her. Is she still in the ER?" Lu asked.
"Yes, I am trying to keep her until we find out what is going on." Dylan replied.
"Name?" Lu asked.
"Elena Jones. Thanks Lu." Dylan said as he headed toward his office.
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"Hey Elena, I'm Lu. How are you doing?" Lu asked as she sat down beside the young woman's bed.
"I feel better. It still hurts a little though." Elena said referring to her arm.
"Elena, how did this happen?" Lu asked.
"I'm just clumsy. I tripped over my shoe string and fell down some stairs," Elena said as she glanced down, unable to look Lu in the eyes.
"Elena, I can help you but ya gotta be straight with me. Now I have been in this profession long enough to know that ya don't get bruises that look like hand prints from falling down the stairs," Lu pointed to her bruised arm. "Now tell me who done this to you."
Elena looked at Lu and her eyes filled with tears. "He didn't mean to. We were in a fight and things got out of hand. I said something I shouldn't have. He would never hurt me on purpose, he loves me," she cried.
"They never mean to Elena. It just happens. Maybe it won't ever happen again but chances are, it will. Your boyfriend needs counseling. If he really loves you he will go and try to figure out how to deal with his anger." Lu said.
"No, you don't understand. I probably deserved what I got. I know better than to push him to far and I just couldn't shut my mouth..."
"Elena," Lu interrupted, "no woman ever deserves to be hit, no matter what she says or does. What do you mean you 'know better'? Has he ever done anything like this before?"
Elena looked at Lu with tears in her eyes, "He has never hit me before. He usually hits a wall or something when he gets really mad. He has broken his hand twice. I never thought he would hit me."
"He sounds like a violent person. A man who hits something when he is angry will sooner or later his someone. It is in their nature." Lu replied. "Look Elena, domestic violence is one of the most serious and common issues that I deal with every day. I have women come into my clinic with a black eye or bloody lip from their man and that is the first time I see them. The last time I see them they are usually dead. And usually the man is really sorry, and usually he really didn't mean to, but that doesn't change the fact that he done it and will more than likely do it again. Elena, let me help you. Don't live in fear for the rest of your life. Just tell me his name and I can find out if he has any priors and we will go from there." Lu pleaded.
Elena was crying heavily by now. She wanted Lu to help but she was scared. What if he came to the hospital and tried to hurt her there. She didn't know what to do. "I don't know. That will really make him mad. He has never hit me before. He really didn't mean to."
Lu stepped closer and picked up Elena's hand. "They never mean to Elena. I can protect you. I promise he will not hurt you again if you will let me help you." Lu spoke confident yet reassuringly.
Elena closed her eyes and prayed that she could trust this doctor. "His name is...is Eddie Pate."
Lu smiled to the young woman. "You are doing the right thing. Trust me. Now, try and get some rest and Dr. West an I will check back on you later. Do you need anything now? Is your arm okay?" Lu asked.
"I think I am fine. Can you let me know what you find out about Eddie before you do anything else?" Elena asked nervously.
Lu nodded, "I will do my best. I have a friend at the police departments. I will see what I can do."
"Thank you," Elena said as Lu walked out.
Lu felt so bad for the young woman. She had seen so much in the past years working at the clinic, and the hardest cases were the ones dealing with domestic violence. She had been threatened many times before by these men but so far, whenever the women accepted her help and followed all of her directions, she had protected them. As long as the woman did not go back to the man or have any contact with him, they had not been hurt again. But Lu knew that she was lucky in the fact that these men had not tracked these women down and went after them. Luckily she had not came across one that crazy yet. However, more times than not, the women did not want to report it because they were to scared. The men had often told them that they would kill them if they left. What these women didn't understand is that it was a lose-lose situation. There was always a chance that the man would find the woman and try and kill her, but the chances of him killing her were much greater if she stayed with him.
Lu remained in deep thought as she walked back through the clinic and to Dylan's office. She opened his door and found him sitting at his desk. "I got his name. I am going to run it by a friend at the police department to see if he has a record and then we can talk to Elena and go from there."
Dylan looked at Lu surprised, "Wow, I can't believe you got through to her. I really didn't think you would but I had to try."
"Yea yea, your welcome. I'll let you know when I find out something." Lu closed her office door and walked towards Lana's desk. "Any messages?"
Lana grabbed a slip of paper. "Mandi Reyes is coming in. She was having some cramping and you know how she is," Lana said as she handed Lu the paper and a file. "Here, I pulled her file for you."
"She is due in two weeks. It is probably just the baby moving into place but this is her first child and she worries over everything. There she is now," Lu said as she seen Mandi walking through the clinic doors. "Hey Mandi," Lu walked over and helped Mandi waddle into the exam room, "what is going on?"
"I don't know Lu. My stomach is just kinda cramped up and I am feeling some pain in my back," Mandi said as she had a seat up on the table.
"Well Mandi, back pain is understandable. As you can see, your carrying around a pretty good size baby boy in there," Lu joked as she rubbed Mandi's stomach. "As for the cramps, we will check them out but I am sure everything is normal. Put this gown on and I am going to get an ultrasound machine, then we will find out what's up."
Lu examined Mandi and found that she was dilated to two and was just having some minor cramping. Everything looked fine and the baby should be arriving right on schedule. Lu was now finishing up her paperwork in her office. It was very quiet because most people had already left for the day. It was nearing 6:30 and Lu was very tired. She had been going constantly all day except for the short break she took sitting at Lana's desk. She was glad she stayed so busy though. It kept her mind off of things. Lu's office phone rang, startling her. "This is Lu," she answered.
"Lu, this is J.C., I ran Pate's name and came up with nothing. This guy doesn't even have a parking ticket to his name. I can still go and arrest him but chances are, this being his first offense, he will be out of jail first thing in the morning." Lu's friend from the police department said.
Lu frowned, "No, don't pick him up yet. I need to talk to the girl, see what she wants to do."
"Lu, I know I don't need to tell you this but she really needs to report this. Even if he gets off light, it will be on his record and if he does this again, the charges will more than likely stick and he will do sometime." J.C. said.
"Yea I know. I just hate that he is going to have a chance for a next time. Hopefully I can talk Elena into staying away from him. He sounds pretty violent according to what Elena has said." Lu told her friend.
"Lu, I'm sorry. I wish there was more I could do," J.C. apologized.
"Me too, but thanks for trying. I'll talk to ya later," Lu said as she hung up the phone.
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Lu was finally on her way home. She had went back and talked to Elena but Elena had refused to leave her boyfriend. She said that she really did not think he would do this again. She was going back to him despite Lu's desperate attempts to convince her otherwise. Lu finally gave up and gave Elena her cell and home phone numbers in case she needed something. Lu left the hospital upset. There was one thing that she hated about her job and that was losing patients. When one of her patients died she took it very personal. Even though this was not technically her patient, she had cared for her and Lu knew that unless she could reach Elena somehow, she was well on her way to being one of those lost patients, and Lu couldn't stand it. She hoped that Elena would call and say that she had changed her mind but Lu knew she probably wouldn't.
As Lu rounded the corner and could see Jonas and her house, she thought she seen Jonas's black company suburban parked in the drive way. Her stomach suddenly started doing flips. As she got closer she knew for sure that it was Jonas. She was glad he was home but in a way she wished that she had a few more days to prepare to tell him. As she parked her car and opened the door, she suddenly felt sick. "Oh come on" Lu said to herself. She sat there for a minute as the nausea passed. She took a deep breath and got out of her car.
"Luisa," Jonas yelled as he walked out of the door and ran towards her.
"Jonas...hey...your home...already," Lu said as she hugged and kissed Jonas.
Jonas looked at Lu confused, "I'm sorry. I thought you wanted me to come home as soon as possible."
Lu smiled, "Jonas, you just surprised me, that's all. I am very happy your home. Come on, it's cold. Let's go inside." Lu grabbed his hand and led him inside.
"Yes and we need to talk. I want to know what is going on with you Luisa," Jonas said.
They made their way into the house and closed the door. Lu's mind was racing. She had butterflies in her stomach. She was a nervous wreck, she was even shaking.
Jonas noticed this as he pulled her down on the couch beside him. "Lu, what is going on? What is wrong with you?" Lu's eyes started to fill with tears, scaring Jonas more and more every second.
A/N...Sorry for the cliffhanger but I had to do it...Please read and review...I am not updating until I get some reviews, good or bad? I need to know what you guys think!