Ch 12 Revelation
"I increased the pain medication, I think that's all he needed," the young doctor explained as he exited the room and met Hardcastle in the hall.
"He's not worse then?"
"No, I think the pain med started to wear off and the pain from all the injuries put together just hit him all of a sudden."
"What about the pneumonia?"
"We started treating that just as it was developing, his fever's down now, the antibiotics are working," the doctor explained. Then he looked at Hardcastle's worried expression and continued in an understanding voice. "I know he's in a lot of pain from all the soft tissue injuries, and it looks like he's in bad shape, but he'll recover. The collapsed lung and pneumonia are resolving and now that the cast is on his arm, the fracture can start to heal. Your son will recover and be good as new eventually."
His son? That sounded wrong, but the judge heard himself say "thank you doc," and marveled at his not jumping in automatically to correct the error. It seemed wrong, allowing the doctor to assume he was McCormick's father, but not so wrong that he wanted to correct him.
I left McCormick alone to prove that I trusted him, but this is beyond trust… what is this anyway?
He didn't have a word for it, and right now he didn't seem to have the ability to figure it out. He would have time for that later… indefinitely had been the timetable…. and he thought he would need at least that much time to understand what this relationship was all about.
For now, he would go back to his chair beside the bed so he would be close by, in case the kid needed him.
In case he needs me? I better not overdo it or he might start thinking I need him.
Back inside, he settled into the chair and reality set in again. The loudness of the chest tube suction assaulted his ears, and his eyes took in the IV tubing that snaked over the plaster cast and allowed the life-saving antibiotics to flow into his bloodstream.
Not overdo it? I have to stay, I have no choice. I care about him. When did that happen?
There was no answer to that one.
But he realized that he had his answer about how long he would stay. He would stay until McCormick felt better, however long that would take. And he would figure out what that meant...later.
The End