5

Broken Family

Daniel Charles stepped into the elevator and removed his glasses. He let them fall down at his chest as he knew that the string around his neck would protect them from harm. Closing his eyes, he reached up to rub at his aching forehead with a miserable sigh. His back was aching from his bad posture and he had hardly gotten any sleep since Robin left the state and Sarah Reese's breakdown.

To his pleasant surprise Noah Sexton had supported Sarah beautifully throughout the first 24 hours and for that he was truly grateful as he knew Sarah didn't really have someone to confide in. Her mother seemed to use money as a substitute for love and caring and her father was nowhere to be seen – hadn't been for many years.

Daniel deeply regretted he hadn't seen the change in her lately, hadn't trusted his own gut feeling that something was off with her. She had trusted him and he had done nothing to help her deal with her patient anxiety. He couldn't believe he had let it come to this. Well - if he was honest with himself - he had seen the change but every time he had offered her help and support in any way, she had stood him up, insisting that nothing was wrong and he had trusted her to deal with it alone. That had been his mistake – he saw that clearly now – and he didn't trust himself to work as her mentor anytime soon.

The sharp ping of the elevator brought him out of his dark musings and self-doubts as he opened his eyes and stepped out onto the ground floor.

"There you are," Ethan Choi said as he nodded toward the patient in treatment room six. "I need your help with a patient. His name is John Rogers. He was involved in the same traffic accident as Connor."

Daniel returned to his professional Doctor Charles persona and straightened as he followed the ED doctor down the corridor toward the trauma bay.

"I'd be glad to help. What is it you're expecting me to find?" he asked curiously.

"I don't know yet," Ethan admitted. "Maybe Sam is right, maybe it's nothing, but I want you to have a look as well. Something seems amiss. I can't explain it."

Doctor Abrams frowned as Doctor Charles sauntered in and merely nodded in acknowledgement. The neurosurgeon turned to look at Choi. "My diagnosis still stands," he said somewhat arrogantly.

Daniel tilted his head as he looked at the patient; assessing him.

The scrutiny made the man nervous and he began to fiddle with the edge of his blanket.

Daniel smiled kindly at him as he took a step forward. "Mr. Rogers. My name is Daniel Charles. I am the Head of Psychiatry. Listen, I just wanted to drop by and see how you were doing."

The man smiled wearily and gave a faint nod at the doctor. "I am doing fine, doc. Just a little shaken up I guess," he offered sheepishly. "It's just not every day you kill someone."

Choi and Charles exchanged a sad look. The sportscar had been wedged beneath Rogers' semi-trailer.

"Mr. Rogers. First of all, you need to understand that none of it was your fault. I hope the police made that very clear to you," Daniel said seriously.

"Doctor Charles. Can I talk to you for a second?" Choi asked carefully and motioned outside the room.

"Of course," he said as he made to follow his colleague out. "I'll be back shortly."

"He came here in cuffs," Ethan explained. "Apparently he stumbled out of the truck on unsteady feet and the arresting officer immediately assumed he was drunk."

Charles harrumphed. "I don't know about you but I'd think it would be pretty normal to stumble out of your vehicle when you've been involved in a major car accident. The shock alone could give you that kind of symptoms."

Choi nodded as he crossed his arms over his chest. "When the drug- and alcohol tests came back negative, the police stood down but his symptoms still have me worried."

The psychiatrist adjusted his glasses with a curious look.

"He's got a headache, apparently it comes and goes. His hands and feet are slightly numb and he says he's no longer bothered by the cold weather the way he used to be. I've run a battery of tests – thinking it might be arthritis at first or something related to the trauma – but after having consulted Doctor Abrams I was told it was diabetic neuropathy."

Daniel arched a curious eyebrow. "Really?"

Ethan nodded sadly. "I am inclined to agree with him. The trouble is that the discovery would most likely lead to my patient losing his job."

"Hold on a moment," Daniel cautioned. "You know as well as I do that the disease can be kept in check."

"Doctor Charles, with all due respect – there is no cure," he insisted.

"If he takes proper care of himself. If he eats regularly and ingest healthy food, keep his blood sugar level in check, stay off alcohol, make sure to get some regular physical activity-,"

"He's a delivery man. He usually spends the entire day on the roads, he eats when there is time. There are antidepressants and antiseizure drugs that can be taken to help with the pain but we both know that he can't take such things and continue to drive a large semitrailer."

Charles reached up to scratch his forehead.

"I know it's a longshot but I want you to assess him. If you reach the same conclusion – diabetic neuropathy – then I need your help to break it to him," Ethan said. "After everything he's been through tonight, the last thing I want is to tell him that he would most likely lose his job when this disease progresses."

The psychiatrist sighed and took a deep breath. "Okay, I'll see what I can do," he promised. "Just before you go – why did Sam insist his diagnosis was still valid?"

Choi snorted. "I didn't believe him at first," he admitted. "Perhaps I wanted it to be something else."

OOOOOO

Claire Rhodes absentmindedly dabbed the moist area under her left eye with her fingertips while she was scrolling down the list of calls that she'd missed for the last hour. One was from Russell, two were from the department store's front desk and one was from her best friend, Clara. Then she visibly paled – if that was even possible at a time like this to get any paler than she already was – as she noticed seven voice mails from her father. She steeled herself as she speed-dialed the familiar number.

A smooth voice which held the grace of authority answered on the first ring. "Rhodes," he said shortly.

"It's me, dad," she said. Not that she needed to bother because she knew that he saw who the caller was.

"I was a little concerned this morning when I got to the office and realized you weren't there. It's not like you to miss important customer meetings. My disappointment grew until Russell pulled me aside to tell me you had rushed to the hospital to see your brother. I admit I thought that was a bit overdramatic until he clarified that Connor had been involved in a car accident," he said sarcastically.

"So, you called to chide me?" Claire questioned in disbelief. "I thought you called to know how he was doing."

Realizing it may have come across as a bit harsh and uncaring, he spoke up smoothly. "Claire, dear, you know I love both you and your brother. It's just that with your brother, nothing is easy. I would have thought that he'd come around when he grew older."

"Connor is going to be fine, dad. Now, unless there is an emergency at the store, I'll be back later. I have some errands to run," she informed bitterly and terminated the call.

OOOOOO

April Sexton watched as the petite, well-tailored and rich woman flagged down a cab and got into the back. She hadn't meant to eavesdrop – in fact she didn't want to eavesdrop – but she couldn't help but overhear the conversation from where she sat; just outside the hospital.

The nurse took one last bite of the sandwich she'd bought in the cafeteria and glanced around the busy entrance. She knew that families appeared in various constellations – some big and some almost non-existent – but she'd never really contemplated about her colleagues' families. She knew Will's father still lived in Canaryville, proud and stubborn, and that he'd always claimed that his sons didn't need some fancy title to get through life. She knew Nat had the sweetest mother-in-law who was close by to help out with Owen but she also knew that the doctor's parents lived further away and that it was too far away for them to see each other regularly.

Ethan's family was still an enigma to her, all she knew was that he had a sister. Sarah Reese didn't seem to have anyone who cared close by while Maggie had a whole bunch of crazy cousins and siblings around, waiting for her to call if she needed anything.

April enjoyed her own big family and she was proud that her little brother had finally managed to become a doctor. They had never been rich but they more than made up for it with love and warmth. Of course, they hadn't always seen eye to eye and she had dreamt about becoming a doctor too but in the end, she had accepted her place as a nurse and she had come to love her job.

Her thoughts went back to Connor. Part of her had always thought that rich people – people who had it all – didn't have a care in the world. She knew now how naïve she'd been. How wrong she had been. She liked Connor but she had nevertheless considered him to be privileged. He was, after all, a white, rich male with a multimillion-dollar company behind his back. He'd grown up in a world so unlike her own yet they seemed to share the same belief that every human life was precious.

OOOOOO

Sarah Reese put her jacket on, reached for her purse and then turned to the door. She hesitated, her hand hugging the doorhandle. 'Did she really want to leave the safety of her home?' She took a moment to gather herself and then pushed the handle down before she could give it any further thought. Like a robot, she mechanically locked the door, walked down the set of stairs and headed outside. It was a rainy afternoon and the breeze was cold and raw this early in January. However, the raindrops seemed to calm her as they kissed her face on their way to the ground.

She began to walk around the block, wandering aimlessly for a while, then without realizing it she suddenly stood next to her car. It had been returned from the garage only a few days ago, looking almost as new. Gone were the dents, the broken glass and slashed tires. As she took a good look at her little car it felt like she had imagined the whole thing; like it had never been broken into. She swallowed as she glanced over her shoulder – there was no one around. Sarah breathed a sigh of relief but decided to head back to her apartment and lock the door behind her. 'Who knew what kind of crazy person she could run into?'

She let out a quivering breath and shook her head sadly. 'She was losing it,' she thought sullenly. 'Why did no one else express concerns about their safety at the hospital and life in general?' she wondered bitterly. Well, Doctor Stohl had told her that Kellogg was crazy. The Board had argued that safety should be improved by metal bars at the entrance in order to stop unwanted from getting inside with weapons. However, when it all came down to it – nothing happened. She remembered the time when she had insisted that she was a lab person and wondered why she had changed her mind.

OOOOOO

To be continued