Chapter 67
Ah-Ha Moment
Meanwhile, in the waiting room
Ana POV
As Rhi follows the nurse into an exam room, she stops and asks Kate for her paperwork. Kate hands it to her and all she says is "Thank you" and keeps walking. As she disappears from view, I look towards Kate. Slowly she looks at me and I can tell she's just as confused as I am.
"That was weird, I thought she'd at least have someone go with her." Kate says.
I nod, "I'm surprised too." I pause, thinking if there was anything that could have triggered this. "Maybe it was Dr. Wilcox that summoned only her because of the medical history? No matter what it is, I think she'll be fine."
Kate looks at me, thinking before responding. "You're right, she's a lot stronger than anyone gives her credit for. Including us." A flash of guilt flashes across her face. "Sometimes we forget that it's her life, not ours. We also sometimes forget that she's an adult and not a child. She knows what she needs and, unfortunately, if she wants to drink she has every right to do that. No matter how much we hate it." She looks at Alex, "You're not the only one learning things about Rhi today. We're learning things that we've forgotten because of what she's been through." Alex nods his head but doesn't say anything.
Rhi POV
The x-rays are up on the light box but the light is turned off. Rachel and Dr. Wilcox have gathered all the supplies and set them up where they're going to be working, on a couple of rolling trays. I'm sitting on the exam table.
"Rhi, are you ready for me to bring in Alex?" Dr. Wilcox asks.
I take a deep breath, look at him and say, "Yes."
He leaves the room for a few minutes and comes back with a worried Alex in tow.
Seeing me sitting on the table, he smiles and comes over to me, kissing my forehead, and says, "Hi baby, how are you doing?"
I look up at him and smile. "Better now that you're here."
Leaning down, he gently kisses me on the forehead.
Dr. Wilcox clears his throat and says to Alex, "You can sit over in one of those chairs." Then he looks at me, "Rhi, we're going to give you a shot to numb the pain. It's not a shot of tequila, but it is a nerve block, and we'll do your whole arm, so you won't feel anything. Hopefully."
He and I laugh at the joke. I glance at Alex who doesn't seem to find the joke funny but that's OK. He'll get over it. Rachel preps my arm at the shoulder and gives me the shot and when Alex asks how long it will take for it to work she tells him just a few minutes.
Dr. Wilcox replies, "We're going to step out while we're waiting for that to kick in." He looks at me and I'm certain he's making sure I'm ready. I nod and he flips the switch, turning on the light box and he and Rachel leave the room.
After Dr. W and Rachel are gone, I look at Alex and see him scanning the x-rays. After about a minute I see his eyes widen and he turns his gaze to me, confusion evident in his eyes. The moment of truth has arrived.