Chapter 33
An hour before the women should arrive at the airport in Houston Olivia had an other pain attack. Angie gave her an injection, twice, but it didn't help. So Angie had no other choice then to sedate Olivia again. This time the Detective didn't woke up right away. As soon as the jet landed Olivia, Alex, Casey and Angie were brought to the MD Anderson Cancer Center. The team who would treat Olivia were up to date since Angie faxed all the information to them. She gave them a last update and they decided to perform a surgery right away. Olivia was taken to the OR and they let Alex with her wife for a few minutes, while they got everything ready for the surgery. Angie would be staying with surgery to assist if needed. Then Alex was brought to the waiting room for emergency surgeries. Casey was waiting for Alex there.
The first hour Alex managed to stay calm. There were things that needed to be arranged. Forms needed to be filled. Their staying at the clinic. Casey's accommodation, which was close to the clinic. A minute or two walking. Casey called Abby while Alex was filling in the forms, to keep the Texan up to date. Now she had time for it. Once Olivia was out of surgery she wouldn't know when she had the time to call. But once everything was done, both Alex and Casey were a bit nervous. Well Casey was a bit nervous, Alex was nervous as hell and worried. She knew that the best surgeon possible was doing the surgery and that Angie was there too. But still, it was the Detective's head they were performing a surgery on. After half an hour of pacing from the blonde ADA, Casey decided to stop Alex pacing around, or at least try to make the blonde ADA stop pacing.
"Alex, honey, you're gonna burn a hole in the floor if you keep pacing like that. I know that you are worried about Liv, and that's completely normal but can you try to sit here next to me for a while? I'm sure that as soon as it's possible Angie will come and talk to us." Casey asks.
"Aren't you worried about Liv? There are so many things that could go wrong. What if they can't remove the tumor? What if it is worse then they thought it would be and she can't be cured. What if she dies on the table?" Alex asks, firring question at the Redhead, as she sit down next to Casey.
"Of course I'm worried. But there is nothing we can do right now. She is in the hands of the best surgeon there is, Angie is with her. They will do anything they can. Besides both Angie and the oncologist in New York thought that Liv's tumor would be able to remove and that treatment is possible. We have to wait until Angie or anyone else comes here to talk to us. I know this hell for you right now. But these kind of surgeries takes time. Even if everything is going like it should be. And your Detective is a fighter. She won't give up, Alex. And certainly not now, now that you are her wife." Casey answers, petting Alex on her knee.
"I'm scared, Casey. I know that she is in the most capable hands, but that doesn't change the fact that I'm worried as hell. This surgery is different then the others. More risks. I know Liv is a fighter. And that she will fight for me. But I won't stop worrying until she wakes up and looks and talks to me, and it will be alright." Alex softly answers.
"I know this surgery is different. But they will do what they can. They won't take any risks. They know what they are doing. We have to trust them. How about we gonna get something to drink? They have both our cellphone numbers and we won't be gone long?" Casey asks.
"I don't know, Casey. What if they are coming here and we are not here?" Alex asks.
"Then they can call our cellphones and we will be back in a minute." Casey answers.
"Alright. But we only are getting something to drink and then we go back." Alex answers hesitatingly.
"I promise, we will go straight back." Casey answers.
The two women walk to the reception desk and say to the nurse that they only will be gone for a few minutes to get something to drink. That if someone comes she needs to call them immediately and they will be back there in a minute. The nurse tell them that she will call them if needed. They walk to the cafeteria and order coffee for the both of them. When their coffee is ready the walk back to the waiting room. Just when they finished their coffee Angie comes trough the doors and enters the waiting room. She walks to Alex and Casey.
"So far the surgery went well. They are closing Detective Benson's head as we speak. Now I can't give you any details about the diagnose. Prof. Taymar will come here to explain everything when he is done with the surgery. When they are done, Detective Benson will be transferred to ICU for at least until tomorrow. If everything is alright then she will get a private room. But it depends on how she will recover. Alex you are allowed to stay with the Detective 24/7. Casey, they allow you to stay longer then the visiting hours but you need to leave an hour after visiting hours in the evening. You can come back in the morning. That's the best I could get for you ladies." Angie explains.
"How is Liv doing, Angie?" Alex asks a bit nervous.
"Hard to say now, Alex. They surgery on itself went well, but we have to wait for the results and how Detective Benson will be or act when she wakes up. Prof. Taymar can tell you more about the results, she should be fine. But as O said, we need to wait until she wakes to know how she is really doing." Angie answers.
"Ok. Thank you for informing us, Angie. I was starting to get crazy here." Alex says.
"You mean you were pacing a hole in the floor and drove me and everyone else waiting here crazy. All though I do understand it, Benson. Thank you for coming to us, Angie." Casey says, winking at Alex before turning to Angie.
"I was really nervous. Still am. I guess I probably will be nervous until Liv wakes up and talks to me and she turns out to be fine." Alex answers.
"That is completely normal, Alex. This surgery is different then the two she had before. Now if you have any other questions, I suggest you should ask me now. After that I'm heading back in. I'll stay with Detective Benson until she is at ICU and you are coming there." Angie says.
"Do they keep her in a coma or should she wake up soon?" Alex asks.
"No they don't keep her in a coma, she should wake up at some point today, maybe tomorrow. But knowing your wife a bit now, I think it will be today." Angie answers.
"Ok. Thank you. Go back to Liv, please. I will be more comfortable knowing you are staying with her until I will be able to stay with Liv." Alex says.
"Alright, Alex. I think it will be half an hour before Prof. Taymar will be here." Angie says.
"Ok, it's not like I'm going anywhere anyway." Alex says.
"I didn't think you would leave let alone go anywhere. Alright, I'm going back now. See you two later." Angie says and leaves the room.
It was an hour later after Angie had left when a man in scrubs came into the waiting room.
"Family of Detective Benson?" The man asks.
Alex and Casey stand up and walk to him.
"I'm Alexandra Benson-Cabot, Detective Benson's wife. This is Casey Novak, her second MPA." Alex introduces them both.
"I'm Prof. Luis Taymar. I performed the surgery on your wife. My apologies for having you waiting for me so long, but I wanted to wait until the results were back. Shall I start explaining or do want to ask me some questions first?" Prof. Taymar asks.
"Tell me what you know first. If I have questions after that I will ask them then." Alex answers.
"Alright. The surgery on itself went very well. No complications. But I wasn't able to remove the tumor completely. Prof. Cavanaugh and the oncologist in New York made the right diagnose though. Now I have good news and some bad news I'm afraid. The good news is that in your wife's case treatment is possible. She will get Proton therapy and chemotherapy. We chose for this combination so that if everything goes like it should your wife will be able to return to her job. We, the whole team, know how important that is for a cop, well a Detective in this case. I'll explain what Proton therapy means or is. Proton therapy delivers high radiation doses directly to the brain tumor, with no damage to the nearby healthy tissue. This type of treatment gives a better treatment for the cancer with less side effects. The cocktail we will use for her chemotherapy will be aggressive but with less damage to her longs. So that if, or when actually I think, she will recover and getting treatment, her longs won't have a lot of damage and she can go back to her job. We will start with the therapy as soon as Detective Benson has woken up and is alright. With the results the results from her blood came back too. Even though for her options for treatment it's better, I'm sorry to need to tell you that your wife isn't pregnant. I was informed to test for pregnancy too. I'm really sorry that I need to tell you this." Prof. Taymar finishes his explaining.
Hearing that Olivia wasn't pregnant and ended that nightmare for Alex and Olivia, Alex starts crying, but they were happy tears. Casey takes Alex in her arms and starts sniffing herself. Prof. Taymar didn't know why he needed to test Olivia's blood for pregnancy so he assumed, wrongly, that Alex was crying and Casey sniffing because Olivia, his patient and Alex's wife, wasn't pregnant.
"I'm really sorry, Mrs. Benson. But like I just said, for her treatment it's better that she isn't pregnant. I don't think you want to hear me saying this now, so I do apologize." Prof. Taymar says.
Alex looks at the Prof. and takes a deep breath before answering him.
"Don't be sorry, Prof. These tears are happy tears. I'm just relieved that she isn't pregnant, my wife will also be very relieved she isn't pregnant. I can't tell you what exactly happened. But trust me this is very good news, not bad news." Alex explains.
"Well in that case, I'm happy that I was able to give you the good news then. Alright, as we speak they are getting your wife ready and then bring her to the ICU. As soon as she is there will be coming a nurse to get you and bring you to your wife. Until you are there, Prof. Cavanaugh will stay with your wife, but perhaps she did tell you that already." Prof. Taymar says.
"Yes, she did. How long will it take before I'm able to see my wife?" Alex asks.
"I think between half an hour and an hour from this moment on. We will make a schedule for her treatment so that when she is awake and alright, we can start with the treatment. The chemotherapy she gets, she will get it trough an IV. But we will explain everything, when, how and what we are doing, if your wife is ready for it." Prof. Taymar answers.
"Alright. Thank you Prof. for the explanations. I know Prof. Cavanaugh arranged that I can stay with my wife the entire time, but don't aspect me to leave her side till we are leaving to go back to New York." Alex answers.
"Alright, I won't and I will make sure that everyone involved with your wife will know that. Now if you will excuse me, I need to go." Prof. Taymar says.
"Thank you." Alex says.
"Mrs. Benson, Ms. Novak." Prof. Taymar says, nodding to both women and then leaves the waiting room.
"Thank God, finally some good news. Treatment is possible and Liv's not pregnant. I can't wait to tell her the good news when she is awake." Alex says.
"Yes, very good news it is. I'm so happy that Liv is not pregnant. And I'm also very happy that she can be treated." Casey answers.
"I'm so happy too. It is really good news that Brown didn't succeed. That she didn't get Liv pregnant. And it is even better, more wonderful, news that it is possible for Liv to get a treatment. "Alex says.
Being a bit more relaxed and certainly relieved, both women wait until the nurse comes to bring them to Olivia. Alex can't wait till she is able to be at her Detective's side again and hopes that Olivia will be awake soon.