Flu
Chapter 4
Rick's hand tightens on Kate's when a coughing spasm convulses her slender frame. The bed vibrates as the attack becomes more intense, with a spray of blood flying from her lips. Rick desperately pounds the call button.
From down the hall, Jim spots a nurse rushing into Kate's room and hurries after her. With a shaky hand, Rick points at the red droplets on Kate's gown.
The nurse pages Kate's doctor and rapidly checks Kate's oxygenation levels and pulse, just as Jim Beckett arrives. "What's happening?" he demands.
"Tell me," Castle grits out at the nurse.
"Her lung function has deteriorated, and her heartbeat is too fast," The nurse explains, "but the doctor will be here any minute. She will be able to tell you more."
Dr. Azra Arain reaches Kate's bedside on a dead run, immediately taking in the situation. "Intravenous bolus of 5,000 units of UFH," she calls to the nurse. "You have a blot clot in your lungs," she explains to Kate, "I'm giving you some medicine to help break it up. Do you understand me?"
Kate does her best to nod.
"How did this happen?" Rick demands of Arain as the nurse administers the medication.
"Pulmonary embolisms, blood clots in the lungs, are unfortunately a complication of this type of flu. We'll have to keep up treatment, probably for 5-7 days to clear any clots and keep them from recurring. While she's on an anticoagulant, she'll need to be careful to avoid any bumps, bruises, any kind of injury. And we'll be moving her to the ICU so she'll have constant monitoring. The good news," Arain continues in a calm tone, "is that this treatment has been found to be highly effective. So, my prognosis is cautiously optimistic."
"Then, she'll be all right?" Rick presses.
"Her recovery chances are good," Arain clarifies, "but we'll have to observe her for further complications."
Rick scrubs his hand over his face. "You better believe I'll be watching."
"That makes two of us," Jim Beckett declares.
"Three," Johanna echoes, heard only by Rick and Kate.
A few hours later, Jim Beckett takes his place as guardian by Kate's side while Rick meets Martha in the waiting area outside the ICU. Rick eyes the large suitcase Martha is wheeling behind her. "That looks like as much as I take on a book tour."
"Well, I wasn't sure what you'd need. You said you could be here for a week or more, so you might as well have clean clothes. Alexis helped me pick out the shirts, but she wanted to know if there's anything else she can do."
"I don't want her anywhere near this hospital again, not even the lobby where I met her last time," Rick responds, shaking his head. "I don't know what I'd do if she… Um, anyway, just tell her I can use her skill at understanding bio-speak. If she can keep up on anything new coming out about this virus and email it to me – in English – that would help a lot."
"I'll tell her," Martha agrees. "And there's a card for Kate signed by the cops at the 12th Precinct who are still healthy. Those two detectives, Ryan and Esposito, dropped it off at the loft. It's huge, so I just put it in your suitcase."
"I'll show it to her the next time she wakes up. She'll love it."
"And Richard," Martha warns, "don't you run yourself into the ground. You could still catch this thing, and you wouldn't be any good to Kate then."
"Message received and noted, Mother. But don't you have to get to the theater pretty soon?"
"I do," Martha admits. "I don't even have an understudy anymore. The one I had is 20 years younger than I am, although, with the wizardry of our makeup artist, you'd never know it. She came down with the flu yesterday."
One side of Rick's mouth twitches upward. "I guess the virus could see through the artifice. Go ahead then, Mother. I'll be fine."
Manny Feldstein has never had much trouble in his restaurant. The quick service, reasonable prices, and generous portions encourage a lot of cops to dine there. Everyone in the neighborhood knows it and behaves around the place. Or they did until the flu hit.
Today, a man saunters up to the register and announces that from now on, Manny owes him 10% of the take for insurance. Manny has no idea what to do. His margins aren't that big. That's what makes the eatery so attractive to his customers. If he starts cutting corners, his business will go to hell, and he hates to give in to thugs. After what was left of his family made it out of the concentration camps, they swore that no Feldstein would ever be under anyone's thumb again.
One of Manny's earliest memories is hearing his grandfather reciting that oath and having Manny repeat it after him. Manny can imagine the old man spinning in his grave if he gives in to extortion. He called the police, but as yet no one has shown up. The dinner rush will be starting any minute. None of the cop regulars showed up for lunch, but maybe he'll get lucky, and a couple of them will come in for dinner. The cops love his steaks, and he made sure the kitchen has some ready to fire.
"How did today's operations go?" Jimmy Spinelli asks Vic Fratelli.
"Not all the capos have checked in yet, but so far not bad," Vic reports. "The cops are spread so thin, no one is bothering our boys. Some of our new clients may need some further convincing, but I don't expect we'll have too much trouble with that. Have you heard from Scarpella?
"He just called me. His people are doing all right too, and we've both put feelers out to the other families. By the time the police shake off this bug, business should be booming. And if we get too much resistance, there will be other kinds of booms. Scarpella has his own expert and the guy's good. The cops have never been able to track a single one of his bombs back to the family. One or two of those should encourage better cooperation. So you let me know what you hear from the rest of the capos. I'm going to open a good bottle of wine, and Verna's bringing over some of the Fettucine with her special meat sauce. She always makes plenty. We can all sit down together and enjoy."
"So much for the diet that his wife wants to put him on," Vic thinks to himself. He grins at his boss. "Sounds meraviglioso."
Kate studies the oversized card propped on her tummy. "This is so great. I need my phone. I want to text Ryan and Esposito. Didn't Alexis bring it when she brought your computer?"
"Yeah, she did. But you're not supposed to use it to keep up on policework. You need to get as much rest as possible so your body can fight this thing off."
"Wow! You're sounding like my dad again."
"And you'll hear it from your mother too," Johanna declares, shimmering into sight. "There are a lot of people who've come to The Father's kingdom over less than what happened to you. I want you to live a long and happy life, Katie."
"I second that," Rick chimes in. "Tell you what. You send your text, and I'll read you the latest Grisham. I got an advance copy to review, and Mother shoved it in my suitcase. The publishers thought a comment from me would look good in the ads. Deal?"
"You two aren't giving me much choice, and Dad won't either when he comes back," Kate grumbles. "All right. Deal."