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KIM BALDWIN. keep you on IV antibiotic therapy for at least another forty-eight hours or so.”
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keep you on IV antibiotic therapy for at least another forty-eight hours or so.”
Gable grimaced.
“She hates hospitals,” Erin said.
The doctor smiled. “I would wager you’re going to get treated quite exceptionally well during your stay with us. Now I want to take you off the respirator, but we have to make sure your lungs are strong enough to stay off the vent. Do you understand?”
Gable nodded.
He put a meter on the tubing between the machine and Gable. “I want you to take a few deep breaths, so I can make sure you can pull enough oxygen on your own. Any time you’re ready.”
Gable took several long, deep breaths.
“Good. Very good.” The doctor reached for the junction of the tubing and unhooked it. “Okay, I want you to blow out a big breath for me.”
She exhaled, wincing as the doctor withdrew the tube that had been down her throat. She started coughing as soon as it was out, and a spasm of pain rolled through her chest.
“Easy,” the doctor said. “Try to relax.”
The coughing abated and she sank back against the pillow. Her mouth and throat were swollen and raw, and her chest felt as though someone were sitting on it. “Thanks,” she croaked.
“You’re welcome.” The doctor poured a paper cup of water as he pressed on a foot pedal to raise the head of the bed slightly. “Here, sip this. Just a little.” He put a straw in the cup and held it to her lips.
She took a few tentative sips, which eased the soreness in her throat.
The doctor glanced over his shoulder at a nurse who was hovering nearby. “Get some ice chips, will you, please?”
“How long…” Gable coughed again. The doctor gave her another sip. “How long have I been here?”
“The accident was yesterday morning. It’s”—he glanced at his watch—“about two-F fteen in the afternoon on Tuesday.”
I’ve lost a whole day and then some. Where was I all that time?
Gable couldn’t remember anything beyond deciding to F nally let go of that last breath.
• 230 •
FORCE OF NATURE
“You’re out of immediate danger,” the doctor continued, putting on his stethoscope and warming it before he laid it gently against her chest. “But we want to keep you in here a couple more days and keep an eye on you. Make sure there are no complications with your lungs.”
He listened for a moment, then took off the stethoscope with a satisF ed expression. “Thank God the water was as cold as it was. You should make a full recovery.”
“Great,” she rasped.
“You got some frostbite on your hands,” he said, prompting Gable to glance down at them for the F rst time. The left one was entirely encased in gauze, the right lightly bandaged, leaving her F ngers exposed. She wriggled them. They felt a little stiff but not too bad, all things considered.
“They’ll take a while to heal, but I expect no permanent damage.
And you have some bruising around your waist from the rope.”
Pretty minor stuff when you really should be dead. She glanced at Erin, and her heart F lled with joy and gratitude that she’d been spared yet again. Thank you for giving us more time together, she prayed.
“That was a very heroic thing you did.” The doctor rested a hand brief y on her shoulder. “If you promise not to talk much, I’ll let in a few of your visitors. But I’m going to tell them to keep it veryvery short. You need your rest.”
v
The doctor hadn’t been exaggerating when he said a crowd was waiting to see her. More than half of the F re squad was there, including Carl and Tim, and June had called in sick at the pharmacy so she could be there when Gable woke up. The most tearful visitors were the parents of the boy she saved.
The nurses enforced the doctor’s order and allowed them to visit only long enough to wish Gable well. Once the crowd had gone, Gable sent Stewart on his way too, under protest. He agreed to go home to Kalamazoo only because she insisted, and Erin promised to keep him informed of every development by cell phone.
Once they were alone, Erin sat on the edge of the bed and put her hand on Gable’s thigh. “How do you feel?”
• 231 •
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