Natural Selection
July 26
It was a day like any other in summer. The heat, smog, windless air and unyielding cement made Chicago into one ungodly sauna in which its inhabitants could find neither relief nor escape. They moved, sluggish as stunned flies, from one point to another. One bade her father good-bye as he wished her good luck and drove away. One fussed with her baby in the backseat. Another counted how many cherry popsicles he had left in his ice cream trolley. A milk tanker edged slowly around the intersection in cautious precision that complemented the languor of the moment.
It all changed when a speeding car plowed into its side.
A spark soon ignited into a huge pillar of flame and combusting metal. A wave of great heat sent everyone on the street flying. Even the cement shuddered with a shockwave that slapped the air. Litres and litres of milk flowed everywhere.
The girl picked herself up. Everywhere she looked there were flames, broken glass and spilt milk. The car that crashed into the milk tanker hadn't survived at all. The milk tanker, along with parked cars, an SUV and the ice cream trolley were all overturned. She gaped.
"Dude..."
Ceila Kowalski brushed away troublesome black curls from her face and dropped her shoulderbag. She knew emergency crews had a response time of eight to ten minutes. She had to do something in the mean time.
Ceila sprinted into the heart of the disaster site. Her hair now had become undone. She hopped around the hot spots. A burst of heat made an attempt to approach the downed milk tanker next to impossible. She turned instead to the tipped-over SUV. A woman hung precariously from her seatbelt. She was conscious and frantically trying to get herself out. Her desperate brown eyes pleaded with Ceila.
"Help me! Please!"
Ceila pulled at the door handle and then recoiled. The door had become too hot. Ceila quickly flicked off her blazer and covered her hands with it before attempting to pull the door open again. She released the woman from her seatbelt and carefully dragged her far from the burning car.
"My baby! My baby's still in the car!" she screamed.
Ceila ran back to the downed SUV. A crying infant was suspended from her carseat in the back. Her wails got louder and louder. Ceila climbed in, gently extracted the baby from the seat, supported her head and carried her to her mother.
"Is she hurt?"
"I don't know," Ceila admitted.
Ceila examined the child. She had minor inhalation burns about her nostrils. She pressed on the child tenderly. Squeals got louder as she pressed the infant's stomach.
"She has abdominal pain."
The woman squinted her eyes.
"Oh God.."
"Don't cry, don't cry," Ceila tried to assure her. "Hey! What's your name?"
"Dana," the woman panted.
"Okay. I'm Ceila. Tell me what your daughter's name is."
"Larissa," Dana sputtered.
"That's a pretty name," Ceila smiled as she brushed a lock of hair from a cut on Dana's forehead. "I need to ask you some questions, okay?"
Dana struggled.
"My daughter..."
Ceila put up her hand to silence her.
"I know, I know. But I can't do anything for her now. All I know is that her stomach hurts. It may be nothing but where the bar caught her. The emergency crews are on their way."
A tear escaped Dana's eye.
"She's crying."
Ceila lay the child flat on her back. She still cried but her squeals lessened.
"Dana, I need to ask you- did you lose consciousness?"
"No," she answered.
Ceila looked into Dana's eyes.
"Can you move your toes and hands?"
Dana wriggled her fingers and toes.
"Yes."
"Good," Ceila nodded as she cupped her hands around Dana's head. "I want you to keep your head as still as you can."
Just then, the SUV exploded into flame. Ceila shielded Dana and Larissa from the blast. In the distance, sirens sounded.
"Don't move. Help is on its way."
An onlooker emerged from a nearby building. Ceila waved him down.
"Hey! Hey you! I need you stay here with them, please."
The man nodded and knelt by Dana and Larissa.
"Don't go!" Dana cried.
Ceila knelt back down.
"I'll be right back, Dana. I promise. The emergency crews are nearly here. You won't even need me. Just stay perfectly still. You and Larissa are away from the fire so you're okay. Just be brave, Dana!"
Ceila ran from Dana and tried to get to the burning milk tanker.
"Hey! You can't get in there! It's on fire!"
Ceila's head swivelled to the voice warning her.
The ice cream trolley man staggered to her.
"Kid, stay away from there!"
"The driver is dying!" Ceila returned. "We have to get to him!"
Ceila ran for her blazer and wrapped it around her front. She darted to the driver's side of the tanker. She perched herself on the blistering hot undercarriage and grabbed the driver's arm.
"Help me! He's heavy!"
The ice cream trolley man edged near the tanker. He raised his arms to protect himself from the heat.
"It's too hot!"
"Hurry!" Ceila pleaded.
The man took Ceila's place and hoisted the driver half way out. Ceila grabbed the driver's other arm and together they pulled him to safety.
Ceila coughed from the heat and exertion.
"Is he breathing?"
The other man coughed.
"I don't know."
Ceila immediately fell to her knees.
"What's your name?"
"Gary," he panted.
"Okay, Gary," Ceila panted, "we need to see if this guy is breathing and see how badly he's hurt, okay?"
Gary raised his hand.
"I'm hurt."
Gary's cut was superficial. Ceila's immediate concern was the driver. She ripped a section of her blouse and wrapped it around Gary's hand.
"You're good to go."
Ceila turned her attention to the driver. She leaned over him and checked his airway.
"His breath sounds aren't so good. No doubt there is some internal injury and there's partial thickness burns on his side," Ceila observed.
She touched the driver's left side. Underneath his shirt there was a hole with something protruding out of it.
"Jesus!" Ceila exhaled. "Do have, like, tongs or anything, Gary? Like, clean ones?"
"I have ones I use to scoop nuts on ice cream."
"Get 'em."
Gary went to his overturned trolley, picked up his tongs and gave them to Ceila. She applied the tongs to the tip of the protruding item and yanked.
Gary looked like he was going to vomit.
Ceila's brow furrowed as she regarded the offending item.
"This looks like a stick shift. Dude, that is nasty!"
Ceila composed herself.
"We've got to staunch the blood."
Gary thought quickly.
"My trolley! I might have something in there!"
Ceila nodded.
"Do you have any water?"
"Yeah, in my trolley," Gary answered.
Ceila nodded.
"Great. Bring anything else like the first-aid kit, scissors. Hurry!"
Gary bolted from Ceila.
Ceila ripped the driver's shirt off. He had second degree burns over his upper body where flames and heat had licked him and the huge gash underneath his left underarm from blood was pouring. She remembered a girl in Norman Wells who had her liver gushing from her torso. This didn't seem worse yet it was. Luckily, the man was unconscious. Or maybe it wasn't lucky. She checked again for cardiac sounds. They were faint, like his breathing.
Gary mercifully arrived with bottles of ice-cold water, the first-aid kit and a white dishcloth.
"Thanks. Help me lift him," Ceila ordered. "Carefully."
Gary carefully cradled the man while Ceila poured the water over his chest, careful not to get any in the wound. She cracked open the first-aid kit, ripped gauze from their packages and placed thin pieces on the driver's burns and put the dishcloth on his wound.
"This should hold while help comes."
**
The first emergency crew arrived. A tallish man with ginger hair looked all around him.
"My, my," he clucked his tongue. "What a mess."
The emergency crew was flagged down by a stranger. They ran to him and the woman lying at his feet.
"This girl told me to stay with this lady and her baby," he explained.
The ginger-haired man knelt by the woman.
"Ma'am, I'm Dr. Karamazov. I'm going to look after you and your baby, alright."
She sniffed.
"That's like the book."
He grimaced.
"I get that a lot."
The woman touched his arm.
"My name is Dana. This girl pulled me and my baby out of our SUV. She told me to move my toes and keep my head still. She said my daughter has a pain in her stomach."
The paramedic nodded her head.
"Jeff, she's right. This child presents with blunt force abdominal trauma and slight inhalation burns."
Jeff creased his brow curiously.
"Were you seen by a doctor, ma'am?"
"I guess so," Dana supposed. "But then she went away."
Jeff nodded.
"Well, she saved you and your baby's lives." He nodded to the paramedic. "I want a saline IV, O² and a collar. Get on the radio to County General and them we might have a pediatric surgical case."
Dana flustered.
"She needs surgery?"
"She might," Jeff stated as he dressed Dana's head laceration. "But she's gonna be okay. I promise you that."
They started to load Dana and Larissa onto the ambulance while a fire rig put out the milk tanker fire.
**
Ceila looked at the dishcloth. It was soaked in blood.
"Shit!" she cussed. "This guy is losing blood fast."
She waved down a rig. A paramedic ran to her and started to treat the driver.
"Hey! My hand is hurt!" Gary pointed out.
"Not now!" Ceila huffed at the impatient man and then rattled the driver's condition to the paramedic. "We pulled this man from his burning tanker. I haven't ascertained cervical or spinal trauma but have assessed his other wounds. He was unconscious when we pulled him out. Partial-thickness burns over the trunk and part of the neck, penetrating trauma just under the left axillary artery with subsequent blood loss and possible fractures of the ribs. So far, no depression of the lungs but his blood pressure is very low- about 20/40- and he's losing a lot of blood."
The paramedic was astounded.
"Doctor, you didn't appreciate any C/S injuries?!"
Ceila shook her head.
"I'm not a doctor!"
The paramedic tried to push Ceila out of the way.
"Stay back and let us do our job!"
Ceila would have none of it.
"Hey! This guy would be dead if we didn't pull him out! Now you check! His blood pressure is low. He's losing blood faster than you can give him in this rig! You can argue with me or you can get him the hell out of here!"
The paramedic couldn't argue.
"He's got a damaged axillary artery so we've got to staunch the blood before we can move him. We also have to put a collar around his neck, if it will do any good."
Ceila nodded and got to work on putting pressure on the wound.
The paramedic was ready to load the driver on the rig.
"Where are you taking him?" Ceila asked.
"County General," the paramedic answered.
"Then I'm going with you," Ceila asserted. "I need to be there. Besides, you can use an extra set of hands."
"What about my hand?!" Gary cried.
Ceila cast a quick look at him.
"There are paramedics treating minor wounds over there."
Ceila was ready to shut the door.
"Thanks a lot, Gary!"
Ceila continued putting pressure on the driver's wound while the paramedic started giving the driver saline.
"How long before get to the hospital?" Ceila asked.
"Eight minutes," the paramedic answered. "Do you know how to take blood pressure?"
"Yes," Ceila nodded.
"Then take his," the paramedic demanded and handed her a BP cuff.
Ceila wrapped the cuff around the unconscious driver's arm and calculated his blood pressure.
"Still 20/40," Ceila reported.
Ceila touched the driver's neck and looked at her watch.
"Heartbeat less than twenty."
"We're nearly there," the paramedic assured her.
A few minutes later, the rig pulled to a sudden stop. The paramedic started to unload the driver. Ceila checked his pulse.
"Hey! His heart stopped!"
The paramedic rushed him into the hospital. Ceila climbed on top of the gurney and started compressions. She tried to drown out strange voices and pump life back into the driver.
"Is this from the crash?"
"Yeah. Adult male in his forties. Partial thickness burns over twenty percent of his body for which he received dressings in the field, possible rib fractures, penetrating wound near axillary artery, loss of consciousness, BP down to 20/40 and heart rate less than minimal. Just started compressions."
"Who's this?"
"A Good Samaritan."
A man tapped Ceila on the shoulder.
"Hey, we can take it from here."
Ceila shot a look to the person who tapped her on the shoulder. A tall, thin young man with blank Alpine ski-chiseled features and a cuff of dark brown hair common among tall, thin WASP-ish types glared at her as if to say: sit down, little girl, we've got it covered.
"I've got to stabilize him. I've nearly got him back!"
The young man was annoyed.
"We can do that! You're just thumping his chest!"
"I'm getting his heartbeat back, asshole!" Ceila cried indignantly.
The attending looked up at the strange young woman who performed CPR on the patient. Her tangled black hair kept getting into her eyes but she still pumped life into him. He looked back at the patient and ordered a gram of epinephrine. He touched Ceila's shoulder.
"Miss."
Ceila looked at him quickly.
"Let us take care of him," the attending said firmly. "You've done enough. Go."
Ceila bit the inside of her cheek and relented. She hopped off the gurney and bade watching the doctors and nurses pull the driver from the brink of death.
The attending ordered a series of tests.
"You have to check for blood in the chest cavity," she offered.
The attending turned to her.
"I know," he said simply and returned to treating the man. "Leave."
Ceila backed her way out of the trauma room, her irrelevance becoming more obvious with each passing second. Everywhere she looked, someone from the accident was being treated. Blast injuries, glass shards, minor burns. She saw a familiar face lying behind a curtain.
"Dana!"
Dana sat up.
"Ceila!"
Ceila sat next to her.
"You're alright."
"Whiplash and a cut head," Dana grimaced.
"And Larissa?"
Dana gulped.
"They took her up to operate on her. They said they found blood in her belly."
Ceila wrung her hands.
"Oh my God!"
"Don't. You saved us both," Dana gushed. "We would have burned to death if you didn't pull us out in time."
Ceila clapped her hand on Dana's.
"I didn't do anything, Dana. You were the brave one, remember?"
A nurse approached Ceila.
"You can't be here."
Dana tried to reach out to her.
"But she saved me and my daughter!"
The nurse was insensible. She ushered Ceila away and closed the curtain.
Ceila back away from Dana and the rest of the injured and found solitude in an empty treatment room. She lay down on a gurney and shut her eyes. It wasn't even two o'clock and she already bumbled her way through her first trauma in the city.
**
Traumas slowed down to a trickle. Soon, no one from the accident was being treated. Only the odd sprained ankle and allergy attack were seen.
A young woman approached the admittance desk. She lay down a dry cleaning bag on the desk and addressed Frank.
"Excuse me, I'm looking for my brother. He was in an accident."
"I think he's resting in the curtain area," Frank answered. "I can get one of the nurses to take you to him."
The woman nodded and thanked him. She joined a nurse who led her to her injured brother.
**
Kerry ran the board with Luka.
"Three major trauma cases," Luka iterated, "an infant with abdominal bleed, now under control and in recovery in the PICU. A man with partial-thickness burns and penetration wound to the upper thorax is now in surgery. One more, an MVA, dead on arrival. Everyone else had minor injuries- lacerations and contusions. Some had concussions but none have shown signs of serious cerebral damage."
Kerry nodded.
"I'm surprised that's all."
"There was something else," Luka started.
Kerry proceeded to walk away. Luka had to follow her.
"Yeah. I heard a "Good Samaritan" had words with Carter," Kerry related.
Luka nodded.
"Yes. She looked familiar. Anyway, she was stabilizing a patient as he was coming in."
Kerry now paused.
"Is that a fact? Was that the driver?"
Luka nodded.
Kerry looked impressed.
"Some Samaritan."
Kerry now looked at her watch.
"In another hour I have to interview a student for..."
Kerry stopped and peered into the treatment room. She saw a young woman stretched out on a gurney and she was truly a mess. She appeared injured. Dried blood stained her clothing and her hair was matted with sweat.
"Oh my God, Luka! Whose patient was this?!"
Luka and Kerry burst into the room. The young woman stirred.
"Did I fall asleep?"
A look of recognition touched Luka's face.
"I know her! She came in with the driver! She's Malucci's Canadian friend. Wait here!"
Luka ran off.
Kerry tried to assess the young woman.
"Are you hurt?"
The young woman shook her head. She rose from the gurney.
"No. This isn't my blood but this pantyhose is ruined!"
Kerry sighed.
"Did you come here with a friend or a relative?"
"No, I was...in an ambulance with a man who was injured," she explained. "Do you know anything about him? He's a milk tank driver. He had partial-thickness burns..."
Kerry nodded.
"He's in surgery. He's alive because of you, Miss...."
"Ceila," the girl answered.
Kerry smiled.
"He's alive because of you, Ceila."
Ceila shook her head.
"I didn't do anything. The doctors did."
Kerry smiled.
"Don't sell yourself short."
She extended her hand to Ceila.
"Walk with me."
Ceila was apprehensive.
"Why?"
"Because I am impressed with you," Kerry admitted. "I should be recommending you to the board."
"I have an interview here," Ceila revealed.
"Do you?" Kerry gushed.
This was all happening too fast. Ceila bit on her nails.
"I have to phone my mum."
Ceila ran to find a phone. Kerry strolled over the admittance desk, looked at Randi and tapped the bridge of her nose.
"That's Canadian for mom."
**
Luka ran to the lounge and got into his locker. He lifted the Polaroid from the envelope. He knew he had seen her somewhere before. He ran back to join Kerry in the treatment room.
"Hey, Luka!" Carter called out.
"In a moment!" Luka shouted out and ran to find the familiar face. She kept her head low, uttered a few words into the pay phone and hung up.
Luka lifted the Polaroid in the air.
"I know you."
Ceila seemed confused.
"Yes?"
"You are Ceila Kowalski. Dave Malucci's friend."
Ceila nodded.
"Yes."
"He recommended you come here," Luka said.
Ceila was too smitten to speak. She blushed at the Croatian doctor. He was very tall, dark and extremely handsome. His features were so chiseled one could have mistaken him for a god. His eyes were both pensive and inviting. He always appeared neat and tidy, even after a trauma rushed through like a hurricane. His voice had a lovely-velvety-gravelly quality to it. Her face was turning red and there was nothing she could do about it. He had that effect on her.
Luka extended his hand to her.
"Kovac."
Ceila gratefully though timidly accepted.
"You are a student, yes?" Luka asked.
"Yeah."
"From Canada?"
Ceila nodded.
"I ran into some people from Canada once," he admitted.
"Really?"
Luka only smiled.
"I saw you in the trauma room," Luka revealed.
Ceila waited for Luka to finish, as if to receive his approval.
"You did well," he resumed and walked away to another patient.
**
Carter watched as Luka turned away from the Good Samaritan.
"There she is!"
Carter charged after her.
"Hey, you!"
Ceila swivelled to the person calling her.
"What the hell were you trying to pull?!"
Ceila only glared at the approaching man.
"Pull?"
"Don't play games with me!" Carter snapped. "You're damn lucky that guy was negative for spinal injuries and that his pressure got back up!"
Ceila shook off his anger.
"Yeah, I guess I am!"
"I wouldn't have that attitude when Dr. Raymond gets down here," Carter warned.
"Who's he?"
"He's the guy who put the driver back together,"Carter snapped.
Ceila still did not understand Carter's animosity.
"He's lucky that there was a guy to put back together. Look- what is your problem? Seriously? Is it that I shouted at you in front of the nurses or that I pulled a guy from the brink before you got to?"
"You're arrogant!" Carter observed.
"Then I should get along very nicely with you!" Ceila returned.
"Hey!"
A doctor in surgical scrubs addressed Ceila and Carter.
"I'd like to do my dressing-down in private."
The doctor led the two into an empty treatment room.
"Is this the Good Samaritan who doubles as a cowboy?" he angrily asked Carter.
"Yes, Dr. Raymond," Carter nodded.
Ceila stood her ground.
"Tell me,"Dr. Raymond asked, "do you have a medical degree?"
Ceila drew in confident breath.
"No, but I do have paramedic experience..."
"Oh! Well, hold the phone!" Dr. Raymond exclaimed. "You're a paramedic! That trumps surgeon any day! You moved a victim without proper caution against possible cervical or spinal injury...."
"He would have burned to death!" Ceila shot back.
"I'm not finished!" Dr. Raymond snapped. "You then pulled debris from a major penetrating wound."
"I had reason to believe..."
"Reason to believe what?"Dr. Raymond queried.
Ceila bowed her head as Dr. Raymond rebuked her.
"What the hell were ya thinking? Or were you thinking?"
The ginger-haired doctor at the accident scene entered the treatment room and gave her a curt sympathetic look.
"Don't worry about it, kid."
"Don't stand up for her. Dr. Karamazov!" Dr. Raymond snarled.
Dr. Raymond now turned his fury back to Ceila.
"You're damn lucky the outcome was good. Next time, when your luck runs out, find yourself a good lawyer. But for now, stay the hell out of my way!"
Dr. Raymond stormed out of the treatment room. Carter followed him. Only Dr. Karamazov remained.
"Kid, don't let them get to you. You did what you thought was right."
Ceila crossed her arms.
"If the patient's outcome was good, why are they so mad?"
Jeff put his hands in his pockets and shuffled his feet.
"It's their show. Besides, sometimes you might get lucky, other times not so. Just keep that in mind. Medicine isn't for cowboys...or some such thing."
Ceila took that as small comfort.
"Thanks..."
"Jeff," he smiled.
"Jeff," Ceila smiled back.
He gave her a thumbs-up signal before leaving.
"Hey! Sensitive souls like us have to stick together!"
**
Ceila tried to get her bearings straight before exiting the treatment room. Luka followed her. He saw she was crestfallen.
"Are you alright?"
Ceila lifted her head.
"Yeah."
"It was Dr. Raymond, wasn't it?" Luka surmised.
Ceila rolled her eyes.
"I guess that's his name."
"Don't be discouraged," Luka advised. "Everyone gets yelled at around here, especially if they are new. I was yelled at all the time. It might have been that I parked my car in the ambulance bay," Luka joked.
Ceila laughed.
"You didn't do that!"
Luka was caught in his whimsical lie.
"No. But at least you feel better."
Ceila conceded with a small smile. She brushed loose curls from her face.
"By the way, what time is it?"
Luka looked at his watch.
"Ten minutes to two."
"Shit!" Ceila cussed.
Luka was puzzled.
"What?"
Ceila threw her hands in the air and paced.
"I'll be late for my appointment!"
Ceila looked at her clothes.
"I'm a mess!"
Luka didn't know how to respond to Ceila's distress.
"I don't have anything that fits you!"
Ceila now scowled at him.
"Huh?"
Luka was now crestfallen.
"That doesn't help?"
Ceila shook her head.
"NO!"
Ceila left the treatment room. Her eye caught her eleventh hour salvation. Immediately, she grabbed a dry-cleaning bag with a Mandarin blouse in it resting on the admittance desk. She ran to the elevator and frantically pressed her floor number. Luka followed her.
"That isn't your's," Luka pointed out.
"I know," Ceila admitted. "I'm only borrowing it for a while."
With that, she removed her blood-stained shirt and put on the blouse. Luka turned away. She quickly ran the comb through her tangled black hair, grabbed a set of wrapped chopsticks, blew away the paper and fixed them in her hair. She applied some lipstick.
"My pantyhose is ruined!" she exclaimed and removed them.
Luka had his back to her.
"Tell me when I can look."
Ceila smoothed out wrinkles in her clothes.
"It's alright."
Luka turned around. Admittedly, she looked better than when she first came in.
"You look good."
A bashful smile touched Ceila's face.
"You think so?"
He nodded
"Yes."
Luka looked at his watch.
"You have less than two minutes."
Ceila ran from the elevator.
"Thanks."
Luka watched her as she sprinted down the hall. He crouched down to pick up her discarded clothes. Another doctor stepped into the elevator and gave him a puzzled look.
"What?"
**
Ceila made her appointment on time. She noticed a name badge on the blouse and removed it quickly. She smiled quickly at the assembled interviewers. She recognized one of them- the genial red-haired doctor from downstairs, Kerry. She waved to Ceila and smiled at her. She was very eager to get everything started.
"Before we begin, I feel introductions are in order. This is Nurse Terence, head of nursing; Dr. Kayson, head of cardiology; Dr. Coburn, head of OB/GYN; and you know me. I'm head of the emergency department."
Kerry was the only one who smiled. Everyone else had a face of stone or wonderment.
"How good of you to join us, Miss....Kowalaski," Kayson greeted her cheerlessly.
"Kowalski," Ceila corrected.
She felt self-conscious about doing so.
Kayson noted what he thought was an oddity.
"Are those chopsticks in your hair?"
"No!" Ceila denied. "Why would I shove chopsticks in my hair?"
"Just have to ask," Kayson rattled off.
Nurse Terence clicked her pen and prepared herself to take notes.
"Please, in your own words, tell us why you want to be a nurse."
Ceila sat up straight. She had rehearsed this over and over in her mind. What could she say that hadn't been said or done? She wanted to be a nurse because she wanted to help. She had an aptitude for it. She could splint a leg using only hockey tape and two-by-fours. Her career as an Arctic nurse- the uber of all nurses- depended on this practicum.
"It's complex...."
**
"Thank you for coming, Miss Kowalski."
Ceila rose.
"Do I have it?"
Kerry's face neither confirmed or denied anything.
"We'll let you know."
Ceila nodded politely and left.
Kayson waited for Ceila to be out of sight before shaking his head.
"No."
Kerry was surprised.
"Why not? Her grades are the best I've seen. She certainly has the aptitude for it."
"I don't like her attitude," Kayson replied.
"Wasn't she the one who used a rude epithet to Dr. Carter earlier?" Coburn asked.
Kerry tried to explain.
"Yes, but that was..."
"Bad attitude," Coburn finished for her.
"It can be changed," Kerry returned.
Nurse Terence started to weigh in with her opinion.
"I agree with Dr. Weaver. The young woman certainly has proven herself."
Coburn huffed
"She's smart. I'll give her that, but she's sassy."
"She's not sassy, she's..." Kerry put.
Coburn was still in disbelief. She crossed her arms.
"She's what?"
Kerry bit her lip. Out of all the candidates, Ceila was the most promising. She couldn't let her slip away because of one slip of the tongue.
"She's got balls!" Kerry snapped back.
**
Luka had no idea what to do with Ceila's discarded clothes. He had no idea how long she would be or if she was even coming back. He tried to tuck the clothes into a ball and place them in the lounge but he was caught.
Abby looked at Luka.
"Why do you have pantyhose?"
He handed them to a passing Yosh and escaped.
Just then, a salvation of sorts.
Ceila emerged from the elevator. She no longer had her proud, springy gait but rather shuffled along dejectedly. Her head was pressed down to her chest.
"Ceila!"
Ceila lifted her head. She brightened to see Luka.
"Dr. Kovac!"
Luka walked over to her.
"You weren't long. You are finished with your interview?"
Ceila nodded.
"Yes, but.."
Luka was troubled by her hesitance.
"But what?"
She didn't look at him directly.
"I don't think I did well."
He only smiled.
"I think you did well," Luka assured her. "You did well today."
Ceila held her head high, as if expecting something.
"Did I?"
"Yes," Luka nodded. "Your patients survived. You did a lot for them."
She couldn't help but shrug.
"Some people don't think so."
Luka huffed.
"When you're a doctor, you have to do what you think is best."
Her brow furrowed.
"But I'm a student nurse."
Luka waived away her assertion.
"Whatever."
Ceila nodded. She bit her lip and glanced quickly to the bay doors.
"I have to go now. My ride must be here. Maybe I'll see you?"
Luka nodded as well.
"I hope so."
**
Carter pulled his locker door open. Another day, another mess. Jeff prepared himself to leave.
"New shift next week!" he piped.
Carter nodded.
"I guess you don't like working with us."
"I never said that... out loud," Jeff joked.
Carter smirked a little.
"Well, you won't have to work with all of us."
Jeff's brow furrowed.
"Are you still fried over that girl today?"
"Nah," Carter lied. "Well- yeah. A little. What do you think of her?"
Jeff huffed.
"Look, Carter, I know you don't appreciate being shown up by a student, especially a girl student, but she was right in what she did. You weren't there. I was. If she didn't act when and the way she did, we would be looking at crispy critters crisped beyond recognition."
Carter gaped.
"She's arrogant. You saw her."
"Maybe," Jeff supposed. "But she knows her stuff."
Jeff slung his pack over his shoulder.
"Till next time."
Carter bade him farewell and prepared to leave for the evening.
**
Kerry stepped out of the elevator with an air of triumph. She had done it. She won over her colleagues and got herself a new protégée. Kerry looked up the number Ceila provided and called her.
She could start tomorrow.
**
Ceila stepped proudly into the ambulance bay. The day to begin her orientation had finally arrived. Kerry came out to greet her.
"Oh good. I'm so glad you're here."
Kerry looked at Ceila's apparel. It didn't seem appropriate to wear a short-sleeved shirt and an even shorter skirt with hiking boots.
"We'll have to find scrubs for you."
A look of ingenuous puzzlement appeared on Ceila's face.
"The other nurses said I wouldn't be staying so I wouldn't need scrubs."
Kerry seemed bothered by that.
"I'll look into that for you. In the mean time, I'll give you a quick tour and set you up with the nurse manager and a doctor to observe what we do here."
Randi approached Kerry with some forms. She seemed impressed with Ceila's choice of clothing where as Kerry seemed dismayed.
"Cool skirt."
Ceila grinned.
"Thanks. It's a duway skirt. Cool for hiking in hot weather."
Randi nodded her approval.
"Is there a doctor free, Randi?" Kerry asked.
"Dr. Lewis is with a patient, Dr. Kovac is with Gallant and Drs. Chen and Pratt are with an abdominal pain patient. Dr. Carter isn't in yet. Him, maybe?"
Kerry smiled.
"Alright then. Ceila, Randi will have you fill out some forms and when you're done, we'll get some scrubs and get started."
**
Kerry stopped to get a fresh cup of coffee. Carter had just arrived.
"Oh good, John, I'm so glad you're here. I've got a project for you."
Carter started to groan.
"Please no discompunctions."
Kerry shook her head.
"No, nothing like that. More of a student/teacher nature."
That was a little better.
"Oh, yeah. A medical student?"
"No, a nursing student," Kerry provided. "I just need you to show her around. Let her know what we do here, that sort of thing. I wold have one of the other nurses do it but they're a little tied down now."
Carter nodded and clapped his hands eagerly.
"Alright. Who am I teaching? Someone from U. of C.?"
Kerry sipped her coffee.
"No. I've decided to bring on that Canadian."
"What Canadian?" Carter asked casually.
"The girl who came in with yesterday's trauma," she explained. "Oddly enough in search of a practicum. She impressed me and the board so much that we gave it to her."
Carter couldn't believe it. Not her!
"Kerry, you can't!"
"Can and did," Kerry spouted nonchalantly as she strode away. "She's a great kid, smart, on the ball."
Carter puffed heavily and poked his head out the lounge door.
"Where is she then?"
"Can't miss her," Kerry answered quickly. She waved her hand over her head. "She's got big hair and earrings and that."
Kerry made her way down the hall.
"You'd better find her. I've paired her with you for the first half of the shift."
Carter looked around the hallways. Where was this bright young student nurse?
A crushing blow to Carter's trachea felled him. He fell back after having been clotheslined. A smiling face peered at him.
"I do hope we'll be able to work together, Dr. Carter. Okay?"
Ceila sashayed away.
Carter lay on his back. Randi had since walked over and looked down on the felled doctor with her hands on her hips.
"What?"
**
Carter put on a turtleneck sweater for the rest of the morning. His colleagues thought it odd as it still was summer but there was talk of a brutal and unexpected clotheslining. Pratt was the first to notice.
"That girl hit him," he remarked to Chen.
"What girl?"
"That new one," Pratt supplied. "She's a nurse, I think. And she's got a fiiiiiine butt."
Chen rolled her eyes.
"Don't you ever have a feeling that doesn't originate in your pants?"
Pratt didn't know what to think.
**
Ceila studied the layout of the ER. She knew where the trauma rooms were, where to put finished charts, where the drug lock-up was. She would go through each and every single room and determine where everything was put.
"You done?"
Ceila turned her head to the stalwart nurse's manager, Haleh.
"Not yet," she politely answered. "I still have to remember where all the fire extinguishers are located."
Haleh was still stony-faced.
"Why do you have to remember that, child?"
Ceila was serious.
"Trust me. I do."
Haleh sighed.
"Just don't injure me, child."
Ceila nodded.
"Understood."
**
Luka walked Gallant through a patient behind Curtain Three. He turned his head slightly. The student nurse was back.
Gallant also turned his head.
"Is she new here?"
Luka smiled.
"Yes. She is a student nurse. You'll like working with her, I think."
Gallant's impressionable jaw was dropping.
"Yeah..."
Luka and Gallant regarded Ceila.
"Shouldn't she be wearing nurse's scrubs?" Gallant asked.
Luka did not answer.
"Did you do a full work-up of the sciatic nerve in Curtain Three?"
Gallant's attention was still elsewhere.
"What skirt?"
Gallant quickly caught himself.
"I mean- yes. I did! The patient still has pain so I prescribed a painkiller..."
Haleh tapped Gallant on the shoulder.
"We have an electric shock victim coming in. ETA one minute."
Luka and Gallant ran with Haleh to the bay doors.
**
Kerry supplied Ceila with the requisite nurse's scrubs- baggy light pink drawstring pants and a top.
"We're also going to have to do something with your hair," Kerry noted.
She took a hair band and pulled Ceila's hair right back and tied it up in a tight bun.
"It would also be advisable that you avoid wearing dangly earrings, make-up, nail polish, costumes, items of a symbolic or sentimental nature... Oh! And decent shoes! I can't stress that enough!"
Ceila tried to keep her sanity.
"Dorothea Dix didn't even have so strict rules."
"Yes, she did," Kerry countered.
She looked at her protégée once more.
"There. All ready."
Kerry piled charts and suture kits into Ceila's arms.
"Now, follow me and we'll take you through some traumas. Minor ones, because it's your first day."
"I can take on heavier loads," Ceila insisted.
Kerry had to gently disappoint her.
"We'll start simple for now."
Ceila lagged behind. Another nurse joined her.
"You know, if you do it her way, nobody gets hurt."
Ceila cast her eyes on the stranger.
"Does she hire people to break thumbs?"
The nurse shifted her head left and right, checking to see if the coast was clear.
"Ssshhh! Don't say anything!"
She put forth her hand.
"Abby!"
Ceila could only offer her index finger.
"Ceila."
Abby smiled a warm smile that put Ceila at ease.
"You've got lots of earrings."
"Just two on each ear."
She pointed to the markings on her upper arms.
"And tattoos. What's with the funny face?"
Ceila rolled her eyes.
"That's Malina, the woman who lives in the sun. She's a symbol in Inuit mythology."
Abby didn't understand.
"It's like Eskimo," Ceila exhaled.
Abby nodded.
"I see. Well, I feel better for knowing that."
"Ceila!"
Abby broke away from Ceila.
"You better catch up before Weaver yells at you!"
Ceila looked at Abby once more before she scurried away from the mythical wrath of Kerry.
**
Luka and Gallant started to shock the patient with the defibrillators by the time Lizzie had walked in.
"How long has he been down?"
Gallant looked at the clock.
"Fifteen minutes."
"Push five of epinephrine," Luka ordered.
"If he doesn't pull out, we'll have to do something else," Lizzie grimly suggested.
**
Kerry led Ceila (still balancing kits and charts in her arms) through the curtain area.
"This man needs a banana bag, this man is waiting for sutures. That woman's icon was positive for pregnancy. We'll discharge her in a minute."
Ceila observed the woman.
"She seems iron deficient, possibly anemic. She looks pretty pale. See her eyes? See the ring around her contact lenses? I'm sure we can enroll her into a prenatal clinic if she's willing."
Kerry beamed at her.
"You're quite observant but we prefer to let the doctors do the diagnosing."
Ceila took on a conciliatory air.
"I'm just saying."
Kerry approached Susan who was treating the woman.
"Student Nurse Kowalski has reason to believe your patient is anemic and thinks it would be wise to enroll her in a prenatal clinic."
Susan tried to bite her tongue.
"Well, Student Nurse Kowalski, we like to perform tests as opposed to just diagnosing things we read in Homeopathic Medicine Today."
Ceila still juggled suture kits and charts.
"Dr. Joseph Bell, upon which Sherlock Holmes was based, could tell what was wrong with a patient just by looking at him. And when you look at your patient, she seems kind of pale. I suppose if we ask her what her diet is like, along with the final blood work-up, we can rest the case."
Susan still furrowed a skeptical brow.
"You can join Dr. Bell if you like."
Kerry shushed Susan.
"Dr. Lewis, check your patient. If Student Nurse Kowalski is wrong, then it will be lesson for her not to diagnose. However, I think she was just offering an observation."
Susan at last bit her tongue.
"Alright, for the sake of science, I will ask my patient what her diet is like."
Susan approached her patient.
"How are you for iron?"
The patient was confused.
"You mean, like, huffing stuff? Because I stopped years ago."
Lily gave her the results of the blood work. Anemia.
Susan shut her eyes. The kid was right about something.
**
Susan slammed her chart down.
"Dammit!"
Carter sipped his drink.
"It's the student nurse, isn't it?"
Susan swivelled her head to him.
"Yes! She diagnosed anemia in my patient just by looking at her! In front of Weaver, too! Those beady little eyes of her's! She was staring at us like: destroy, my little pretty!"
Abby typed something into the computer.
"She's just a busy little beaver. Give her some time. She'll stop giving a rat's ass in the next few weeks. The other nurses and I are trying to break her spirits now. She's been taking urine samples all day."
Susan smiled.
"Good."
**
Luka applied the defibrillators to the patient's chest.
"Nothing," Lizzie noted. "We've got to put him on bypass."
Luka's brow furrowed.
"What is it with you and bypasses?"
Lizzie's eyes burned him as she phoned the SICU.
"It works. I'll deal with Dr. Romano. You know how territorial he is. Gallant, prepare to move this man."
"I'll need an extra set of hands," he said glumly.
Luka whipped off his gloves and started out the trauma room.
"I know where to get them."
"Get them before Romano arrives!" Lizzie called after him.
**
Romano charged out of the elevator.
"I swear to God everyone here has to suffer from some sort of developmental retardation! I get a skewed report about a bypass...."
Romano rammed right into Ceila. She avoided spilling the contents of her tray but dropped her charts.
"Sorry," she muttered and bent over to pick them up.
Romano was annoyed.
"In this hospital, we use our eyes if not our brain cells!"
He had a peek.
"Nice butt, though."
Ceila swivelled to him angrily.
"I'll thank you not to walk right into me and not to look at my bum!"
Romano, stung and mystified at the same time, placed his hands on his hips and held Ceila in his virile gaze.
"I've heard about you. You're the kid with a cussmouth for every chief resident and specialist who blinks the wrong way. You've got quite the wontons to stand your ground, however shaky it may be, and I can almost respect that. And as much as I truly can't stand to even hear the sound of Dr. Raymond's voice, I still can't let a little nurse like you strut around like you own the place. So, just continue..."
Romano noticed Ceila's labs collection.
"Collecting urine samples and let the grown-ups do all the big work. Okay?"
"Student Nurse Kowalski!"
She turned to a familiar voice.
"I need you to assist me in with this patient. You have to bag him. Do you understand, nurse?"
Ceila nodded.
"Yes, Dr. Kovac.
Romano looked at the lanky Croat.
"Is this the one who's assisting you on the bypass?"
"Yes," Luka lied.
Romano looked at her once.
"Don't mess this up."
As Romano left, Luka surreptitiously winked at her.
And Ceila knew.
July 26
It was a day like any other in summer. The heat, smog, windless air and unyielding cement made Chicago into one ungodly sauna in which its inhabitants could find neither relief nor escape. They moved, sluggish as stunned flies, from one point to another. One bade her father good-bye as he wished her good luck and drove away. One fussed with her baby in the backseat. Another counted how many cherry popsicles he had left in his ice cream trolley. A milk tanker edged slowly around the intersection in cautious precision that complemented the languor of the moment.
It all changed when a speeding car plowed into its side.
A spark soon ignited into a huge pillar of flame and combusting metal. A wave of great heat sent everyone on the street flying. Even the cement shuddered with a shockwave that slapped the air. Litres and litres of milk flowed everywhere.
The girl picked herself up. Everywhere she looked there were flames, broken glass and spilt milk. The car that crashed into the milk tanker hadn't survived at all. The milk tanker, along with parked cars, an SUV and the ice cream trolley were all overturned. She gaped.
"Dude..."
Ceila Kowalski brushed away troublesome black curls from her face and dropped her shoulderbag. She knew emergency crews had a response time of eight to ten minutes. She had to do something in the mean time.
Ceila sprinted into the heart of the disaster site. Her hair now had become undone. She hopped around the hot spots. A burst of heat made an attempt to approach the downed milk tanker next to impossible. She turned instead to the tipped-over SUV. A woman hung precariously from her seatbelt. She was conscious and frantically trying to get herself out. Her desperate brown eyes pleaded with Ceila.
"Help me! Please!"
Ceila pulled at the door handle and then recoiled. The door had become too hot. Ceila quickly flicked off her blazer and covered her hands with it before attempting to pull the door open again. She released the woman from her seatbelt and carefully dragged her far from the burning car.
"My baby! My baby's still in the car!" she screamed.
Ceila ran back to the downed SUV. A crying infant was suspended from her carseat in the back. Her wails got louder and louder. Ceila climbed in, gently extracted the baby from the seat, supported her head and carried her to her mother.
"Is she hurt?"
"I don't know," Ceila admitted.
Ceila examined the child. She had minor inhalation burns about her nostrils. She pressed on the child tenderly. Squeals got louder as she pressed the infant's stomach.
"She has abdominal pain."
The woman squinted her eyes.
"Oh God.."
"Don't cry, don't cry," Ceila tried to assure her. "Hey! What's your name?"
"Dana," the woman panted.
"Okay. I'm Ceila. Tell me what your daughter's name is."
"Larissa," Dana sputtered.
"That's a pretty name," Ceila smiled as she brushed a lock of hair from a cut on Dana's forehead. "I need to ask you some questions, okay?"
Dana struggled.
"My daughter..."
Ceila put up her hand to silence her.
"I know, I know. But I can't do anything for her now. All I know is that her stomach hurts. It may be nothing but where the bar caught her. The emergency crews are on their way."
A tear escaped Dana's eye.
"She's crying."
Ceila lay the child flat on her back. She still cried but her squeals lessened.
"Dana, I need to ask you- did you lose consciousness?"
"No," she answered.
Ceila looked into Dana's eyes.
"Can you move your toes and hands?"
Dana wriggled her fingers and toes.
"Yes."
"Good," Ceila nodded as she cupped her hands around Dana's head. "I want you to keep your head as still as you can."
Just then, the SUV exploded into flame. Ceila shielded Dana and Larissa from the blast. In the distance, sirens sounded.
"Don't move. Help is on its way."
An onlooker emerged from a nearby building. Ceila waved him down.
"Hey! Hey you! I need you stay here with them, please."
The man nodded and knelt by Dana and Larissa.
"Don't go!" Dana cried.
Ceila knelt back down.
"I'll be right back, Dana. I promise. The emergency crews are nearly here. You won't even need me. Just stay perfectly still. You and Larissa are away from the fire so you're okay. Just be brave, Dana!"
Ceila ran from Dana and tried to get to the burning milk tanker.
"Hey! You can't get in there! It's on fire!"
Ceila's head swivelled to the voice warning her.
The ice cream trolley man staggered to her.
"Kid, stay away from there!"
"The driver is dying!" Ceila returned. "We have to get to him!"
Ceila ran for her blazer and wrapped it around her front. She darted to the driver's side of the tanker. She perched herself on the blistering hot undercarriage and grabbed the driver's arm.
"Help me! He's heavy!"
The ice cream trolley man edged near the tanker. He raised his arms to protect himself from the heat.
"It's too hot!"
"Hurry!" Ceila pleaded.
The man took Ceila's place and hoisted the driver half way out. Ceila grabbed the driver's other arm and together they pulled him to safety.
Ceila coughed from the heat and exertion.
"Is he breathing?"
The other man coughed.
"I don't know."
Ceila immediately fell to her knees.
"What's your name?"
"Gary," he panted.
"Okay, Gary," Ceila panted, "we need to see if this guy is breathing and see how badly he's hurt, okay?"
Gary raised his hand.
"I'm hurt."
Gary's cut was superficial. Ceila's immediate concern was the driver. She ripped a section of her blouse and wrapped it around Gary's hand.
"You're good to go."
Ceila turned her attention to the driver. She leaned over him and checked his airway.
"His breath sounds aren't so good. No doubt there is some internal injury and there's partial thickness burns on his side," Ceila observed.
She touched the driver's left side. Underneath his shirt there was a hole with something protruding out of it.
"Jesus!" Ceila exhaled. "Do have, like, tongs or anything, Gary? Like, clean ones?"
"I have ones I use to scoop nuts on ice cream."
"Get 'em."
Gary went to his overturned trolley, picked up his tongs and gave them to Ceila. She applied the tongs to the tip of the protruding item and yanked.
Gary looked like he was going to vomit.
Ceila's brow furrowed as she regarded the offending item.
"This looks like a stick shift. Dude, that is nasty!"
Ceila composed herself.
"We've got to staunch the blood."
Gary thought quickly.
"My trolley! I might have something in there!"
Ceila nodded.
"Do you have any water?"
"Yeah, in my trolley," Gary answered.
Ceila nodded.
"Great. Bring anything else like the first-aid kit, scissors. Hurry!"
Gary bolted from Ceila.
Ceila ripped the driver's shirt off. He had second degree burns over his upper body where flames and heat had licked him and the huge gash underneath his left underarm from blood was pouring. She remembered a girl in Norman Wells who had her liver gushing from her torso. This didn't seem worse yet it was. Luckily, the man was unconscious. Or maybe it wasn't lucky. She checked again for cardiac sounds. They were faint, like his breathing.
Gary mercifully arrived with bottles of ice-cold water, the first-aid kit and a white dishcloth.
"Thanks. Help me lift him," Ceila ordered. "Carefully."
Gary carefully cradled the man while Ceila poured the water over his chest, careful not to get any in the wound. She cracked open the first-aid kit, ripped gauze from their packages and placed thin pieces on the driver's burns and put the dishcloth on his wound.
"This should hold while help comes."
**
The first emergency crew arrived. A tallish man with ginger hair looked all around him.
"My, my," he clucked his tongue. "What a mess."
The emergency crew was flagged down by a stranger. They ran to him and the woman lying at his feet.
"This girl told me to stay with this lady and her baby," he explained.
The ginger-haired man knelt by the woman.
"Ma'am, I'm Dr. Karamazov. I'm going to look after you and your baby, alright."
She sniffed.
"That's like the book."
He grimaced.
"I get that a lot."
The woman touched his arm.
"My name is Dana. This girl pulled me and my baby out of our SUV. She told me to move my toes and keep my head still. She said my daughter has a pain in her stomach."
The paramedic nodded her head.
"Jeff, she's right. This child presents with blunt force abdominal trauma and slight inhalation burns."
Jeff creased his brow curiously.
"Were you seen by a doctor, ma'am?"
"I guess so," Dana supposed. "But then she went away."
Jeff nodded.
"Well, she saved you and your baby's lives." He nodded to the paramedic. "I want a saline IV, O² and a collar. Get on the radio to County General and them we might have a pediatric surgical case."
Dana flustered.
"She needs surgery?"
"She might," Jeff stated as he dressed Dana's head laceration. "But she's gonna be okay. I promise you that."
They started to load Dana and Larissa onto the ambulance while a fire rig put out the milk tanker fire.
**
Ceila looked at the dishcloth. It was soaked in blood.
"Shit!" she cussed. "This guy is losing blood fast."
She waved down a rig. A paramedic ran to her and started to treat the driver.
"Hey! My hand is hurt!" Gary pointed out.
"Not now!" Ceila huffed at the impatient man and then rattled the driver's condition to the paramedic. "We pulled this man from his burning tanker. I haven't ascertained cervical or spinal trauma but have assessed his other wounds. He was unconscious when we pulled him out. Partial-thickness burns over the trunk and part of the neck, penetrating trauma just under the left axillary artery with subsequent blood loss and possible fractures of the ribs. So far, no depression of the lungs but his blood pressure is very low- about 20/40- and he's losing a lot of blood."
The paramedic was astounded.
"Doctor, you didn't appreciate any C/S injuries?!"
Ceila shook her head.
"I'm not a doctor!"
The paramedic tried to push Ceila out of the way.
"Stay back and let us do our job!"
Ceila would have none of it.
"Hey! This guy would be dead if we didn't pull him out! Now you check! His blood pressure is low. He's losing blood faster than you can give him in this rig! You can argue with me or you can get him the hell out of here!"
The paramedic couldn't argue.
"He's got a damaged axillary artery so we've got to staunch the blood before we can move him. We also have to put a collar around his neck, if it will do any good."
Ceila nodded and got to work on putting pressure on the wound.
The paramedic was ready to load the driver on the rig.
"Where are you taking him?" Ceila asked.
"County General," the paramedic answered.
"Then I'm going with you," Ceila asserted. "I need to be there. Besides, you can use an extra set of hands."
"What about my hand?!" Gary cried.
Ceila cast a quick look at him.
"There are paramedics treating minor wounds over there."
Ceila was ready to shut the door.
"Thanks a lot, Gary!"
Ceila continued putting pressure on the driver's wound while the paramedic started giving the driver saline.
"How long before get to the hospital?" Ceila asked.
"Eight minutes," the paramedic answered. "Do you know how to take blood pressure?"
"Yes," Ceila nodded.
"Then take his," the paramedic demanded and handed her a BP cuff.
Ceila wrapped the cuff around the unconscious driver's arm and calculated his blood pressure.
"Still 20/40," Ceila reported.
Ceila touched the driver's neck and looked at her watch.
"Heartbeat less than twenty."
"We're nearly there," the paramedic assured her.
A few minutes later, the rig pulled to a sudden stop. The paramedic started to unload the driver. Ceila checked his pulse.
"Hey! His heart stopped!"
The paramedic rushed him into the hospital. Ceila climbed on top of the gurney and started compressions. She tried to drown out strange voices and pump life back into the driver.
"Is this from the crash?"
"Yeah. Adult male in his forties. Partial thickness burns over twenty percent of his body for which he received dressings in the field, possible rib fractures, penetrating wound near axillary artery, loss of consciousness, BP down to 20/40 and heart rate less than minimal. Just started compressions."
"Who's this?"
"A Good Samaritan."
A man tapped Ceila on the shoulder.
"Hey, we can take it from here."
Ceila shot a look to the person who tapped her on the shoulder. A tall, thin young man with blank Alpine ski-chiseled features and a cuff of dark brown hair common among tall, thin WASP-ish types glared at her as if to say: sit down, little girl, we've got it covered.
"I've got to stabilize him. I've nearly got him back!"
The young man was annoyed.
"We can do that! You're just thumping his chest!"
"I'm getting his heartbeat back, asshole!" Ceila cried indignantly.
The attending looked up at the strange young woman who performed CPR on the patient. Her tangled black hair kept getting into her eyes but she still pumped life into him. He looked back at the patient and ordered a gram of epinephrine. He touched Ceila's shoulder.
"Miss."
Ceila looked at him quickly.
"Let us take care of him," the attending said firmly. "You've done enough. Go."
Ceila bit the inside of her cheek and relented. She hopped off the gurney and bade watching the doctors and nurses pull the driver from the brink of death.
The attending ordered a series of tests.
"You have to check for blood in the chest cavity," she offered.
The attending turned to her.
"I know," he said simply and returned to treating the man. "Leave."
Ceila backed her way out of the trauma room, her irrelevance becoming more obvious with each passing second. Everywhere she looked, someone from the accident was being treated. Blast injuries, glass shards, minor burns. She saw a familiar face lying behind a curtain.
"Dana!"
Dana sat up.
"Ceila!"
Ceila sat next to her.
"You're alright."
"Whiplash and a cut head," Dana grimaced.
"And Larissa?"
Dana gulped.
"They took her up to operate on her. They said they found blood in her belly."
Ceila wrung her hands.
"Oh my God!"
"Don't. You saved us both," Dana gushed. "We would have burned to death if you didn't pull us out in time."
Ceila clapped her hand on Dana's.
"I didn't do anything, Dana. You were the brave one, remember?"
A nurse approached Ceila.
"You can't be here."
Dana tried to reach out to her.
"But she saved me and my daughter!"
The nurse was insensible. She ushered Ceila away and closed the curtain.
Ceila back away from Dana and the rest of the injured and found solitude in an empty treatment room. She lay down on a gurney and shut her eyes. It wasn't even two o'clock and she already bumbled her way through her first trauma in the city.
**
Traumas slowed down to a trickle. Soon, no one from the accident was being treated. Only the odd sprained ankle and allergy attack were seen.
A young woman approached the admittance desk. She lay down a dry cleaning bag on the desk and addressed Frank.
"Excuse me, I'm looking for my brother. He was in an accident."
"I think he's resting in the curtain area," Frank answered. "I can get one of the nurses to take you to him."
The woman nodded and thanked him. She joined a nurse who led her to her injured brother.
**
Kerry ran the board with Luka.
"Three major trauma cases," Luka iterated, "an infant with abdominal bleed, now under control and in recovery in the PICU. A man with partial-thickness burns and penetration wound to the upper thorax is now in surgery. One more, an MVA, dead on arrival. Everyone else had minor injuries- lacerations and contusions. Some had concussions but none have shown signs of serious cerebral damage."
Kerry nodded.
"I'm surprised that's all."
"There was something else," Luka started.
Kerry proceeded to walk away. Luka had to follow her.
"Yeah. I heard a "Good Samaritan" had words with Carter," Kerry related.
Luka nodded.
"Yes. She looked familiar. Anyway, she was stabilizing a patient as he was coming in."
Kerry now paused.
"Is that a fact? Was that the driver?"
Luka nodded.
Kerry looked impressed.
"Some Samaritan."
Kerry now looked at her watch.
"In another hour I have to interview a student for..."
Kerry stopped and peered into the treatment room. She saw a young woman stretched out on a gurney and she was truly a mess. She appeared injured. Dried blood stained her clothing and her hair was matted with sweat.
"Oh my God, Luka! Whose patient was this?!"
Luka and Kerry burst into the room. The young woman stirred.
"Did I fall asleep?"
A look of recognition touched Luka's face.
"I know her! She came in with the driver! She's Malucci's Canadian friend. Wait here!"
Luka ran off.
Kerry tried to assess the young woman.
"Are you hurt?"
The young woman shook her head. She rose from the gurney.
"No. This isn't my blood but this pantyhose is ruined!"
Kerry sighed.
"Did you come here with a friend or a relative?"
"No, I was...in an ambulance with a man who was injured," she explained. "Do you know anything about him? He's a milk tank driver. He had partial-thickness burns..."
Kerry nodded.
"He's in surgery. He's alive because of you, Miss...."
"Ceila," the girl answered.
Kerry smiled.
"He's alive because of you, Ceila."
Ceila shook her head.
"I didn't do anything. The doctors did."
Kerry smiled.
"Don't sell yourself short."
She extended her hand to Ceila.
"Walk with me."
Ceila was apprehensive.
"Why?"
"Because I am impressed with you," Kerry admitted. "I should be recommending you to the board."
"I have an interview here," Ceila revealed.
"Do you?" Kerry gushed.
This was all happening too fast. Ceila bit on her nails.
"I have to phone my mum."
Ceila ran to find a phone. Kerry strolled over the admittance desk, looked at Randi and tapped the bridge of her nose.
"That's Canadian for mom."
**
Luka ran to the lounge and got into his locker. He lifted the Polaroid from the envelope. He knew he had seen her somewhere before. He ran back to join Kerry in the treatment room.
"Hey, Luka!" Carter called out.
"In a moment!" Luka shouted out and ran to find the familiar face. She kept her head low, uttered a few words into the pay phone and hung up.
Luka lifted the Polaroid in the air.
"I know you."
Ceila seemed confused.
"Yes?"
"You are Ceila Kowalski. Dave Malucci's friend."
Ceila nodded.
"Yes."
"He recommended you come here," Luka said.
Ceila was too smitten to speak. She blushed at the Croatian doctor. He was very tall, dark and extremely handsome. His features were so chiseled one could have mistaken him for a god. His eyes were both pensive and inviting. He always appeared neat and tidy, even after a trauma rushed through like a hurricane. His voice had a lovely-velvety-gravelly quality to it. Her face was turning red and there was nothing she could do about it. He had that effect on her.
Luka extended his hand to her.
"Kovac."
Ceila gratefully though timidly accepted.
"You are a student, yes?" Luka asked.
"Yeah."
"From Canada?"
Ceila nodded.
"I ran into some people from Canada once," he admitted.
"Really?"
Luka only smiled.
"I saw you in the trauma room," Luka revealed.
Ceila waited for Luka to finish, as if to receive his approval.
"You did well," he resumed and walked away to another patient.
**
Carter watched as Luka turned away from the Good Samaritan.
"There she is!"
Carter charged after her.
"Hey, you!"
Ceila swivelled to the person calling her.
"What the hell were you trying to pull?!"
Ceila only glared at the approaching man.
"Pull?"
"Don't play games with me!" Carter snapped. "You're damn lucky that guy was negative for spinal injuries and that his pressure got back up!"
Ceila shook off his anger.
"Yeah, I guess I am!"
"I wouldn't have that attitude when Dr. Raymond gets down here," Carter warned.
"Who's he?"
"He's the guy who put the driver back together,"Carter snapped.
Ceila still did not understand Carter's animosity.
"He's lucky that there was a guy to put back together. Look- what is your problem? Seriously? Is it that I shouted at you in front of the nurses or that I pulled a guy from the brink before you got to?"
"You're arrogant!" Carter observed.
"Then I should get along very nicely with you!" Ceila returned.
"Hey!"
A doctor in surgical scrubs addressed Ceila and Carter.
"I'd like to do my dressing-down in private."
The doctor led the two into an empty treatment room.
"Is this the Good Samaritan who doubles as a cowboy?" he angrily asked Carter.
"Yes, Dr. Raymond," Carter nodded.
Ceila stood her ground.
"Tell me,"Dr. Raymond asked, "do you have a medical degree?"
Ceila drew in confident breath.
"No, but I do have paramedic experience..."
"Oh! Well, hold the phone!" Dr. Raymond exclaimed. "You're a paramedic! That trumps surgeon any day! You moved a victim without proper caution against possible cervical or spinal injury...."
"He would have burned to death!" Ceila shot back.
"I'm not finished!" Dr. Raymond snapped. "You then pulled debris from a major penetrating wound."
"I had reason to believe..."
"Reason to believe what?"Dr. Raymond queried.
Ceila bowed her head as Dr. Raymond rebuked her.
"What the hell were ya thinking? Or were you thinking?"
The ginger-haired doctor at the accident scene entered the treatment room and gave her a curt sympathetic look.
"Don't worry about it, kid."
"Don't stand up for her. Dr. Karamazov!" Dr. Raymond snarled.
Dr. Raymond now turned his fury back to Ceila.
"You're damn lucky the outcome was good. Next time, when your luck runs out, find yourself a good lawyer. But for now, stay the hell out of my way!"
Dr. Raymond stormed out of the treatment room. Carter followed him. Only Dr. Karamazov remained.
"Kid, don't let them get to you. You did what you thought was right."
Ceila crossed her arms.
"If the patient's outcome was good, why are they so mad?"
Jeff put his hands in his pockets and shuffled his feet.
"It's their show. Besides, sometimes you might get lucky, other times not so. Just keep that in mind. Medicine isn't for cowboys...or some such thing."
Ceila took that as small comfort.
"Thanks..."
"Jeff," he smiled.
"Jeff," Ceila smiled back.
He gave her a thumbs-up signal before leaving.
"Hey! Sensitive souls like us have to stick together!"
**
Ceila tried to get her bearings straight before exiting the treatment room. Luka followed her. He saw she was crestfallen.
"Are you alright?"
Ceila lifted her head.
"Yeah."
"It was Dr. Raymond, wasn't it?" Luka surmised.
Ceila rolled her eyes.
"I guess that's his name."
"Don't be discouraged," Luka advised. "Everyone gets yelled at around here, especially if they are new. I was yelled at all the time. It might have been that I parked my car in the ambulance bay," Luka joked.
Ceila laughed.
"You didn't do that!"
Luka was caught in his whimsical lie.
"No. But at least you feel better."
Ceila conceded with a small smile. She brushed loose curls from her face.
"By the way, what time is it?"
Luka looked at his watch.
"Ten minutes to two."
"Shit!" Ceila cussed.
Luka was puzzled.
"What?"
Ceila threw her hands in the air and paced.
"I'll be late for my appointment!"
Ceila looked at her clothes.
"I'm a mess!"
Luka didn't know how to respond to Ceila's distress.
"I don't have anything that fits you!"
Ceila now scowled at him.
"Huh?"
Luka was now crestfallen.
"That doesn't help?"
Ceila shook her head.
"NO!"
Ceila left the treatment room. Her eye caught her eleventh hour salvation. Immediately, she grabbed a dry-cleaning bag with a Mandarin blouse in it resting on the admittance desk. She ran to the elevator and frantically pressed her floor number. Luka followed her.
"That isn't your's," Luka pointed out.
"I know," Ceila admitted. "I'm only borrowing it for a while."
With that, she removed her blood-stained shirt and put on the blouse. Luka turned away. She quickly ran the comb through her tangled black hair, grabbed a set of wrapped chopsticks, blew away the paper and fixed them in her hair. She applied some lipstick.
"My pantyhose is ruined!" she exclaimed and removed them.
Luka had his back to her.
"Tell me when I can look."
Ceila smoothed out wrinkles in her clothes.
"It's alright."
Luka turned around. Admittedly, she looked better than when she first came in.
"You look good."
A bashful smile touched Ceila's face.
"You think so?"
He nodded
"Yes."
Luka looked at his watch.
"You have less than two minutes."
Ceila ran from the elevator.
"Thanks."
Luka watched her as she sprinted down the hall. He crouched down to pick up her discarded clothes. Another doctor stepped into the elevator and gave him a puzzled look.
"What?"
**
Ceila made her appointment on time. She noticed a name badge on the blouse and removed it quickly. She smiled quickly at the assembled interviewers. She recognized one of them- the genial red-haired doctor from downstairs, Kerry. She waved to Ceila and smiled at her. She was very eager to get everything started.
"Before we begin, I feel introductions are in order. This is Nurse Terence, head of nursing; Dr. Kayson, head of cardiology; Dr. Coburn, head of OB/GYN; and you know me. I'm head of the emergency department."
Kerry was the only one who smiled. Everyone else had a face of stone or wonderment.
"How good of you to join us, Miss....Kowalaski," Kayson greeted her cheerlessly.
"Kowalski," Ceila corrected.
She felt self-conscious about doing so.
Kayson noted what he thought was an oddity.
"Are those chopsticks in your hair?"
"No!" Ceila denied. "Why would I shove chopsticks in my hair?"
"Just have to ask," Kayson rattled off.
Nurse Terence clicked her pen and prepared herself to take notes.
"Please, in your own words, tell us why you want to be a nurse."
Ceila sat up straight. She had rehearsed this over and over in her mind. What could she say that hadn't been said or done? She wanted to be a nurse because she wanted to help. She had an aptitude for it. She could splint a leg using only hockey tape and two-by-fours. Her career as an Arctic nurse- the uber of all nurses- depended on this practicum.
"It's complex...."
**
"Thank you for coming, Miss Kowalski."
Ceila rose.
"Do I have it?"
Kerry's face neither confirmed or denied anything.
"We'll let you know."
Ceila nodded politely and left.
Kayson waited for Ceila to be out of sight before shaking his head.
"No."
Kerry was surprised.
"Why not? Her grades are the best I've seen. She certainly has the aptitude for it."
"I don't like her attitude," Kayson replied.
"Wasn't she the one who used a rude epithet to Dr. Carter earlier?" Coburn asked.
Kerry tried to explain.
"Yes, but that was..."
"Bad attitude," Coburn finished for her.
"It can be changed," Kerry returned.
Nurse Terence started to weigh in with her opinion.
"I agree with Dr. Weaver. The young woman certainly has proven herself."
Coburn huffed
"She's smart. I'll give her that, but she's sassy."
"She's not sassy, she's..." Kerry put.
Coburn was still in disbelief. She crossed her arms.
"She's what?"
Kerry bit her lip. Out of all the candidates, Ceila was the most promising. She couldn't let her slip away because of one slip of the tongue.
"She's got balls!" Kerry snapped back.
**
Luka had no idea what to do with Ceila's discarded clothes. He had no idea how long she would be or if she was even coming back. He tried to tuck the clothes into a ball and place them in the lounge but he was caught.
Abby looked at Luka.
"Why do you have pantyhose?"
He handed them to a passing Yosh and escaped.
Just then, a salvation of sorts.
Ceila emerged from the elevator. She no longer had her proud, springy gait but rather shuffled along dejectedly. Her head was pressed down to her chest.
"Ceila!"
Ceila lifted her head. She brightened to see Luka.
"Dr. Kovac!"
Luka walked over to her.
"You weren't long. You are finished with your interview?"
Ceila nodded.
"Yes, but.."
Luka was troubled by her hesitance.
"But what?"
She didn't look at him directly.
"I don't think I did well."
He only smiled.
"I think you did well," Luka assured her. "You did well today."
Ceila held her head high, as if expecting something.
"Did I?"
"Yes," Luka nodded. "Your patients survived. You did a lot for them."
She couldn't help but shrug.
"Some people don't think so."
Luka huffed.
"When you're a doctor, you have to do what you think is best."
Her brow furrowed.
"But I'm a student nurse."
Luka waived away her assertion.
"Whatever."
Ceila nodded. She bit her lip and glanced quickly to the bay doors.
"I have to go now. My ride must be here. Maybe I'll see you?"
Luka nodded as well.
"I hope so."
**
Carter pulled his locker door open. Another day, another mess. Jeff prepared himself to leave.
"New shift next week!" he piped.
Carter nodded.
"I guess you don't like working with us."
"I never said that... out loud," Jeff joked.
Carter smirked a little.
"Well, you won't have to work with all of us."
Jeff's brow furrowed.
"Are you still fried over that girl today?"
"Nah," Carter lied. "Well- yeah. A little. What do you think of her?"
Jeff huffed.
"Look, Carter, I know you don't appreciate being shown up by a student, especially a girl student, but she was right in what she did. You weren't there. I was. If she didn't act when and the way she did, we would be looking at crispy critters crisped beyond recognition."
Carter gaped.
"She's arrogant. You saw her."
"Maybe," Jeff supposed. "But she knows her stuff."
Jeff slung his pack over his shoulder.
"Till next time."
Carter bade him farewell and prepared to leave for the evening.
**
Kerry stepped out of the elevator with an air of triumph. She had done it. She won over her colleagues and got herself a new protégée. Kerry looked up the number Ceila provided and called her.
She could start tomorrow.
**
Ceila stepped proudly into the ambulance bay. The day to begin her orientation had finally arrived. Kerry came out to greet her.
"Oh good. I'm so glad you're here."
Kerry looked at Ceila's apparel. It didn't seem appropriate to wear a short-sleeved shirt and an even shorter skirt with hiking boots.
"We'll have to find scrubs for you."
A look of ingenuous puzzlement appeared on Ceila's face.
"The other nurses said I wouldn't be staying so I wouldn't need scrubs."
Kerry seemed bothered by that.
"I'll look into that for you. In the mean time, I'll give you a quick tour and set you up with the nurse manager and a doctor to observe what we do here."
Randi approached Kerry with some forms. She seemed impressed with Ceila's choice of clothing where as Kerry seemed dismayed.
"Cool skirt."
Ceila grinned.
"Thanks. It's a duway skirt. Cool for hiking in hot weather."
Randi nodded her approval.
"Is there a doctor free, Randi?" Kerry asked.
"Dr. Lewis is with a patient, Dr. Kovac is with Gallant and Drs. Chen and Pratt are with an abdominal pain patient. Dr. Carter isn't in yet. Him, maybe?"
Kerry smiled.
"Alright then. Ceila, Randi will have you fill out some forms and when you're done, we'll get some scrubs and get started."
**
Kerry stopped to get a fresh cup of coffee. Carter had just arrived.
"Oh good, John, I'm so glad you're here. I've got a project for you."
Carter started to groan.
"Please no discompunctions."
Kerry shook her head.
"No, nothing like that. More of a student/teacher nature."
That was a little better.
"Oh, yeah. A medical student?"
"No, a nursing student," Kerry provided. "I just need you to show her around. Let her know what we do here, that sort of thing. I wold have one of the other nurses do it but they're a little tied down now."
Carter nodded and clapped his hands eagerly.
"Alright. Who am I teaching? Someone from U. of C.?"
Kerry sipped her coffee.
"No. I've decided to bring on that Canadian."
"What Canadian?" Carter asked casually.
"The girl who came in with yesterday's trauma," she explained. "Oddly enough in search of a practicum. She impressed me and the board so much that we gave it to her."
Carter couldn't believe it. Not her!
"Kerry, you can't!"
"Can and did," Kerry spouted nonchalantly as she strode away. "She's a great kid, smart, on the ball."
Carter puffed heavily and poked his head out the lounge door.
"Where is she then?"
"Can't miss her," Kerry answered quickly. She waved her hand over her head. "She's got big hair and earrings and that."
Kerry made her way down the hall.
"You'd better find her. I've paired her with you for the first half of the shift."
Carter looked around the hallways. Where was this bright young student nurse?
A crushing blow to Carter's trachea felled him. He fell back after having been clotheslined. A smiling face peered at him.
"I do hope we'll be able to work together, Dr. Carter. Okay?"
Ceila sashayed away.
Carter lay on his back. Randi had since walked over and looked down on the felled doctor with her hands on her hips.
"What?"
**
Carter put on a turtleneck sweater for the rest of the morning. His colleagues thought it odd as it still was summer but there was talk of a brutal and unexpected clotheslining. Pratt was the first to notice.
"That girl hit him," he remarked to Chen.
"What girl?"
"That new one," Pratt supplied. "She's a nurse, I think. And she's got a fiiiiiine butt."
Chen rolled her eyes.
"Don't you ever have a feeling that doesn't originate in your pants?"
Pratt didn't know what to think.
**
Ceila studied the layout of the ER. She knew where the trauma rooms were, where to put finished charts, where the drug lock-up was. She would go through each and every single room and determine where everything was put.
"You done?"
Ceila turned her head to the stalwart nurse's manager, Haleh.
"Not yet," she politely answered. "I still have to remember where all the fire extinguishers are located."
Haleh was still stony-faced.
"Why do you have to remember that, child?"
Ceila was serious.
"Trust me. I do."
Haleh sighed.
"Just don't injure me, child."
Ceila nodded.
"Understood."
**
Luka walked Gallant through a patient behind Curtain Three. He turned his head slightly. The student nurse was back.
Gallant also turned his head.
"Is she new here?"
Luka smiled.
"Yes. She is a student nurse. You'll like working with her, I think."
Gallant's impressionable jaw was dropping.
"Yeah..."
Luka and Gallant regarded Ceila.
"Shouldn't she be wearing nurse's scrubs?" Gallant asked.
Luka did not answer.
"Did you do a full work-up of the sciatic nerve in Curtain Three?"
Gallant's attention was still elsewhere.
"What skirt?"
Gallant quickly caught himself.
"I mean- yes. I did! The patient still has pain so I prescribed a painkiller..."
Haleh tapped Gallant on the shoulder.
"We have an electric shock victim coming in. ETA one minute."
Luka and Gallant ran with Haleh to the bay doors.
**
Kerry supplied Ceila with the requisite nurse's scrubs- baggy light pink drawstring pants and a top.
"We're also going to have to do something with your hair," Kerry noted.
She took a hair band and pulled Ceila's hair right back and tied it up in a tight bun.
"It would also be advisable that you avoid wearing dangly earrings, make-up, nail polish, costumes, items of a symbolic or sentimental nature... Oh! And decent shoes! I can't stress that enough!"
Ceila tried to keep her sanity.
"Dorothea Dix didn't even have so strict rules."
"Yes, she did," Kerry countered.
She looked at her protégée once more.
"There. All ready."
Kerry piled charts and suture kits into Ceila's arms.
"Now, follow me and we'll take you through some traumas. Minor ones, because it's your first day."
"I can take on heavier loads," Ceila insisted.
Kerry had to gently disappoint her.
"We'll start simple for now."
Ceila lagged behind. Another nurse joined her.
"You know, if you do it her way, nobody gets hurt."
Ceila cast her eyes on the stranger.
"Does she hire people to break thumbs?"
The nurse shifted her head left and right, checking to see if the coast was clear.
"Ssshhh! Don't say anything!"
She put forth her hand.
"Abby!"
Ceila could only offer her index finger.
"Ceila."
Abby smiled a warm smile that put Ceila at ease.
"You've got lots of earrings."
"Just two on each ear."
She pointed to the markings on her upper arms.
"And tattoos. What's with the funny face?"
Ceila rolled her eyes.
"That's Malina, the woman who lives in the sun. She's a symbol in Inuit mythology."
Abby didn't understand.
"It's like Eskimo," Ceila exhaled.
Abby nodded.
"I see. Well, I feel better for knowing that."
"Ceila!"
Abby broke away from Ceila.
"You better catch up before Weaver yells at you!"
Ceila looked at Abby once more before she scurried away from the mythical wrath of Kerry.
**
Luka and Gallant started to shock the patient with the defibrillators by the time Lizzie had walked in.
"How long has he been down?"
Gallant looked at the clock.
"Fifteen minutes."
"Push five of epinephrine," Luka ordered.
"If he doesn't pull out, we'll have to do something else," Lizzie grimly suggested.
**
Kerry led Ceila (still balancing kits and charts in her arms) through the curtain area.
"This man needs a banana bag, this man is waiting for sutures. That woman's icon was positive for pregnancy. We'll discharge her in a minute."
Ceila observed the woman.
"She seems iron deficient, possibly anemic. She looks pretty pale. See her eyes? See the ring around her contact lenses? I'm sure we can enroll her into a prenatal clinic if she's willing."
Kerry beamed at her.
"You're quite observant but we prefer to let the doctors do the diagnosing."
Ceila took on a conciliatory air.
"I'm just saying."
Kerry approached Susan who was treating the woman.
"Student Nurse Kowalski has reason to believe your patient is anemic and thinks it would be wise to enroll her in a prenatal clinic."
Susan tried to bite her tongue.
"Well, Student Nurse Kowalski, we like to perform tests as opposed to just diagnosing things we read in Homeopathic Medicine Today."
Ceila still juggled suture kits and charts.
"Dr. Joseph Bell, upon which Sherlock Holmes was based, could tell what was wrong with a patient just by looking at him. And when you look at your patient, she seems kind of pale. I suppose if we ask her what her diet is like, along with the final blood work-up, we can rest the case."
Susan still furrowed a skeptical brow.
"You can join Dr. Bell if you like."
Kerry shushed Susan.
"Dr. Lewis, check your patient. If Student Nurse Kowalski is wrong, then it will be lesson for her not to diagnose. However, I think she was just offering an observation."
Susan at last bit her tongue.
"Alright, for the sake of science, I will ask my patient what her diet is like."
Susan approached her patient.
"How are you for iron?"
The patient was confused.
"You mean, like, huffing stuff? Because I stopped years ago."
Lily gave her the results of the blood work. Anemia.
Susan shut her eyes. The kid was right about something.
**
Susan slammed her chart down.
"Dammit!"
Carter sipped his drink.
"It's the student nurse, isn't it?"
Susan swivelled her head to him.
"Yes! She diagnosed anemia in my patient just by looking at her! In front of Weaver, too! Those beady little eyes of her's! She was staring at us like: destroy, my little pretty!"
Abby typed something into the computer.
"She's just a busy little beaver. Give her some time. She'll stop giving a rat's ass in the next few weeks. The other nurses and I are trying to break her spirits now. She's been taking urine samples all day."
Susan smiled.
"Good."
**
Luka applied the defibrillators to the patient's chest.
"Nothing," Lizzie noted. "We've got to put him on bypass."
Luka's brow furrowed.
"What is it with you and bypasses?"
Lizzie's eyes burned him as she phoned the SICU.
"It works. I'll deal with Dr. Romano. You know how territorial he is. Gallant, prepare to move this man."
"I'll need an extra set of hands," he said glumly.
Luka whipped off his gloves and started out the trauma room.
"I know where to get them."
"Get them before Romano arrives!" Lizzie called after him.
**
Romano charged out of the elevator.
"I swear to God everyone here has to suffer from some sort of developmental retardation! I get a skewed report about a bypass...."
Romano rammed right into Ceila. She avoided spilling the contents of her tray but dropped her charts.
"Sorry," she muttered and bent over to pick them up.
Romano was annoyed.
"In this hospital, we use our eyes if not our brain cells!"
He had a peek.
"Nice butt, though."
Ceila swivelled to him angrily.
"I'll thank you not to walk right into me and not to look at my bum!"
Romano, stung and mystified at the same time, placed his hands on his hips and held Ceila in his virile gaze.
"I've heard about you. You're the kid with a cussmouth for every chief resident and specialist who blinks the wrong way. You've got quite the wontons to stand your ground, however shaky it may be, and I can almost respect that. And as much as I truly can't stand to even hear the sound of Dr. Raymond's voice, I still can't let a little nurse like you strut around like you own the place. So, just continue..."
Romano noticed Ceila's labs collection.
"Collecting urine samples and let the grown-ups do all the big work. Okay?"
"Student Nurse Kowalski!"
She turned to a familiar voice.
"I need you to assist me in with this patient. You have to bag him. Do you understand, nurse?"
Ceila nodded.
"Yes, Dr. Kovac.
Romano looked at the lanky Croat.
"Is this the one who's assisting you on the bypass?"
"Yes," Luka lied.
Romano looked at her once.
"Don't mess this up."
As Romano left, Luka surreptitiously winked at her.
And Ceila knew.
