Chapter 32
By the time the supper trays arrived, Matt and Rachel were the only ones in the room. Rachel paced back and forth in front of the HD screen, munching on a cookie, reviewing the new surgical specs for a third time.
"What are you thinking about?" Matt asked.
She wagged her finger at the screen. "This procedure has been successful for 54 patients at Bassingford. This Commodore is the most experienced ortho surgeon on Manticore, and she's Beowulf educated and trained. I won't even notice 30 extra grams, and I'd be the first Grayson to undergo the procedure."
17 Februaryth, 1926
That morning, Rachel suffered a setback.
She woke when she heard the service trays rolling around in the corridor. Her midsection hurt and she urgently needed to use the toilet. She shuffled to the bathroom, wincing in pain. She felt her bladder might burst, so she sat on the toilet. Nothing happened. When she tried to urinate, it hurt so bad she felt dizzy. Hipper felt her distress and tried to open the door, but it was too heavy. He saw the door panel, stood on his back feet, and pushed against it with his upper truehands. The door beeped and opened. He hopped up on the sink counter next to her, crooning and purring, trying to comfort her. She heard the door to her room open and her nurse say, "M'lady?"
"In the toilet," Rachel called out and then cried out when she tried to urinate again.
Nurse Riley appeared at the door and Rachel heard drops and looked in the toilet, where she saw mostly blood.
"I need help," she groaned. "I can't go, but I have to go so bad… it hurts… and it hurts here too," she said and touched her upper abdomen. "And there's blood in the toilet."
"Is it time for your monthly cycle?" the nurse asked kindly and grabbed some antibiotic cleansing tissues for her.
Rachel shook her head and wiped herself.
"Now, let's get you back to bed… wait right here, I'll move the other bed closer to the door."
When she got Rachel back in bed, the nurse took her vitals and saw that her blood pressure and temperature was high. She pressed a button on the panel above the bed. The other end responded, "Petty Officer Reynolds."
"This is Nurse Riley, please page Commander Kendrick to room 204, thank you."
Half a minute later, Commander Kendrick walked in. "What seems to be the problem?" he asked kindly.
Rachel was curled up in pain and shuddering while the nurse explained what had happened. The commander reviewed her patient file as the nurse spoke.
"Get some blood drawn, I'll send her for an abdominal scan," he said.
#
Matt arrived and saw the uneaten breakfast tray, missing bed, hoverchair, and Hipper on Rachel's bed.
"Where is she?" Matt asked, and Hipper started signing.
Feeling pain here, he signed, tapping his belly. They took her from the room. The floor nurse came into the room.
"Mr. Goodson?" she asked.
"Yes ma'am."
"Rachel was taken for a laparoscopic procedure this morning."
"What happened?"
"A urinary tract infection, and a blood clot was found in her liver."
And she had been doing so well! He took his uni-link from his pocket and sat down to make a call.
#
Rachel slowly woke from haze of general anesthesia. She noted that her abdomen wasn't painful anymore, but still sore. Then she noticed an IV bag hanging from a pole connected to her good arm. She heard chirping and looked to see Hipper sitting on her mother's lap.
"What's wrong with me now?" she asked wearily.
"You had a blood clot in your liver and a urinary tract infection," Katherine said. "Be careful of those," she said and gestured to the IV and catheter bags.
"I can't catch a break," she mumbled.
Matt came into the room, saw that she was awake, and gently kissed her. "You've had a rough morning."
"I feel better now."
"The orthopedist will come and talk when you're up to it," he said.
"This morning, how did it happen?" Rachel asked.
"The blood clot occurred where the laceration is healing, so they're going to give you blood thinners for a few days. Where the artificial kidney is attached to the ureter was inflamed, causing the infection. The doc treated it and it shouldn't happen again, and you'll be on a course of antibiotics for five days."
She sighed and nodded.
"Sorry to say, you'll be on that soft diet again."
She sighed in exasperation and gestured for her tablet.
#
After her lunchtime broth, Commodore Pressley knocked on the door.
"Come in," Rachel said.
She came inside and nodded to everyone.
"Ma'am, this is my mother, Katherine Mayhew."
"Pleased to meet you, Lady Mayhew," the commodore said and turned her attention to Rachel. "I understand you've had a setback this morning, how are you feeling?"
Rachel shrugged. "Better, ma'am."
The commodore scrolled through some information on her tablet. "Blood thinners… antibiotics for five days… have you given any thought to the procedure I described?"
"Yes ma'am, I'm all in."
"Good. I can let your treatment team know, get their input, and schedule the procedure. How does that sound?"
"Great, thank you."
The commodore wished everyone a good day and left.
"So, what's been going on outside of this hospital?"
Katherine spoke. "Hmm… Honor is excited that softball season has started. They lost the championship game last season, and the team wants to win it this year, especially the seniors. Their first game is this Saturday."
"Jeanette is having the final fitting for her dress next week. She wonders if she needs to look for a bridesmaid if you won't be well enough for it."
Rachel shimmied to sit up, so Matt pushed a button for the bed controls to incline it. "You can tell her I'll be up and on my feet by April third. I'll be in physical therapy, but able."
"You can tell her yourself. If you're up to it, everyone wants to come and see you Saturday after Honor's game."
"I'll be up to it."
Rachel looked to Matt. "My family wants to come and see you too."
February 23, 1926 P.D.
The day after her shoulder surgery, Rachel was transferred to the Physical Therapy and Rehab wing. It was a building adjacent to the hospital with an enclosed gym, indoor walking track, and patient dorms. Matt made the walk with her to the wing with Hipper on his shoulder, escorted by a sick bay tech with a hoverchair in case she needed it. Behind her, Nate and Robert completed the formation. She was happy to leave the hospital room and make the admittedly slow walk.
"Tired?" Matt asked.
She nodded. "Some."
"That's what therapy is for; to get your strength and energy back in a safe, supervised environment," he replied.
They entered the PT wing and saw a sick bay attendant with a clipboard, observing a few spacers walking around the track. He saw the arrivals.
"Lieutenant Goodson?"
She nodded. "That's me."
He pointed to an office at the far end of the gym. "You're expected, ma'am. You're to see Commander Brown."
"Thank you," Rachel said and started toward the office.
A commander stepped from the office and gestured for her to step inside. "I'm Commander Brown, the OIC here in physical therapy. Have a seat, lieutenant."
He looked to Matt. "We've got it from here, she'll be well cared for."
Matt winked at her, wished the commander a good day, and left the building. The commander returned his attention to her, and nodded to the 'cat on her lap.
"How do you feel, lieutenant?"
"A little tired, sir."
"Well, I'm not surprised. You made it from the inpatient wing to here, so good job on that."
He glanced outside and gestured at someone outside. A senior chief appeared at the door.
"This is Senior Chief Bell, my right hand man here while Ensign Shifflet is away."
He looked through her medical record, nodding and making notes with a stylus. "I have a plan in mind for your therapy and rehab. I'm expecting another patient, so we'll start the orientation for you both after lunch."
So after lunch, she and a Weapons spacer were assigned their rooms, given a tour of the facility, and their daily schedules. The rooms were two-person rooms, but unless another female arrived for therapy, she would have a room to herself. There was also a patient lounge with adjoining dining area. Commander Brown arrived to outline their physical therapy regimen.
"For the first two weeks, you will be housed here for your health and welfare during therapy. Your diet and medication intake during this time of therapy and recovery can be best monitored in residence. After two weeks, we will determine if you can be released back to duty, with or without limitations."
"I want you both to change into exercise clothing… I assume you have something?"
Rachel nodded, but the spacer shook his head.
"All right, we have something for you here…"
He gestured for Chief Bell to get something from the inventory closet.
"Do you need assistance with the sling?" he asked her.
"No sir."
She emerged from her room in her old but comfortable academy sweats. The spacer was dressed in basic gray hospital-issue sweats and talking with Chief Bell.
"Good, let's get started… observe the walking track around the perimeter of this gym. Three laps is a quarter of a mile, so you'll start with that this afternoon. No speed walking and you can stop at any time. Just do what you're capable of at this time. If you need help at any time, simply raise a hand. You'll be timed so that we can have a base time to build on your strength and stamina. Questions?"
They shook their heads.
"All right, begin."
The spacer bent over to check his left knee and ankle brace before he started. Rachel adjusted her sling, took a breath, and began. Hipper bleeked in question and walked with her.
#
That night, Rachel sat in her room with a cup of water and talked to Matt.
"… and after my walk in the morning, I'm to start rehab without the sling."
"You sound tired."
"Because I am."
"What did you have for supper?"
"Low-sodium salisbury steak and mashed potatoes with light gravy, and a roll."
"Who else is there doing therapy?"
"Well, we're a limping, slow bunch here in residence. There's Spacer Holland, who also arrived today from Weapons Squadron; his left leg was crushed by a falling pallet. There's PO Burns who almost had his back broke from a fall a couple of weeks ago. Then, PO Yates who recently returned from having his left arm regenerated. Rounding out our happy group is Lieutenant Sims, recovering from a hip replacement and plasma burns on Yanakov Station. There's others, but they've been released to limited duty to their units, and they return here three to four times a week for therapy."
The next morning, Nat Stratton came for a visit just after she finished breakfast. Hipper greeted her with chirps and bleeks.
"Walk with me," Rachel requested. "It won't be fast, but the goal is to keep a steady pace. I need to stretch first, though."
"I heard you're a good runner," Nat said and watched as her friend stretched, ready to help if the need arose.
"Not right now, but I'll get back to where I was… okay, three laps, here we go."
As they walked, Rachel talked about her sister's upcoming wedding, Matt's classes, and her sister Honor's plans after high school. Nat talked about the Katana scrubber refits, Lt. MacLeod taking over for Lt. Hardin, and she and her husbands pending purchase of an air car.
"We take the shuttles everywhere, and we're grateful for them, but it would be nice to have a car of our own."
"Why didn't I think of it before?" Rachel mumbled.
"Think of what?" Nat asked.
"Periodically, the steadings have auctions of cars, lorries, and sting ships. You might find something you like at a good price," Rachel answered.
Nat took her leave after the laps and Rachel waited for instructions on her upper body work.
"Your shoulderblade and collarbone are healed; it's the muscles that need work. These first two weeks, you'll be performing shoulder stretching, gentle joint movements, and receive tissue massages."
"After that, according to your capability, working to strengthen the muscles of your abdomen. Isometrics are boring, but it's beneficial for your core, which took a beating."
He pointed to a screen on the wall. "Press on the green sensor at the bottom right-hand corner and find your name from the list. You'll see stills and video that demonstrate your routine. You're welcome to reference them at anytime."
When the group's supper trays arrived, Commander Brown spoke to the group.
"For the new arrivals, good job today, and a warning that you're probably going to be sore tomorrow. Also, dependent on your physical condition and living situation, you might be able to spend the weekend at home."
Rachel insisted that the lieutenant recovering from a hip surgery sit down, as he looked more exhausted than her. She retrieved his tray from the cart, then her own.
"Thanks."
"You're welcome."
She sat down, said a brief prayer, and took up her fork.
"How long you been married?" he asked.
She finished chewing before she spoke. "Almost four months."
"Newlyweds then."
"That's what everyone says."
That night, Rachel relaxed on an easy chair in the lounge, watching a baseball news program. She spoke to her mother about what was going on at rehab and finalizing the arrangements of Jeanette's wedding. Next she spoke to Matt about her day and some funny things the other patients had said.
"… and the massage device spins, presses down, and applies heat all at the same time. When he said massage, I thought of a masseuse," Rachel said. "Enough about me, what's happening at home?"
"Hmm… Mrs. Cordell said that Johnny's regen is going well and on schedule. He won't be able to leave the regen center on the weekends though, it has to be done everyday. Speaking of leaving for the weekend, what do you want for supper while you're home?"
"Steak and spaghetti," she replied.
"Done, and it'll be so good to have you home, if only for the weekend."