Lillian headed down to the ER and found one of the doctors who directed her to another patient’s room. This was a new patient, someone who had slipped and fell, but was complaining that she couldn’t feel her legs.
Lillian pulled the curtain around them and introduced herself. The woman seemed to be in a good state of mind, though in a lot of pain. Lillian asked her to move her toes, but the woman clearly couldn’t, so she pulled out her tools and started a full neurological work-up. Once she was done, she called in Dr. Hu.
Lillian determined that the woman had a slipped disc in her back, and ordered an MRI, but she was fairly certain that she would not need surgery. She made the rounds with the rest of the ER patients, checking in and seeing if they needed anything before circling back to Hannah. The woman was still asleep, and Jasmine was nowhere to be found, likely with the hospital social worker.
For some reason, Hannah pulled at her heartstrings. Maybe it was because of the difficult relationship Lillian had with her own mother growing up. Lillian had spent her life here in Los Angeles, trying to survive on her mother’s meager disability checks. Her mother had come from a small town in the Midwest, and her family had all disowned her when she decided to move to California. Like so many others, she chased a dream of acting, and was doing well for herself. She had been in a couple of movies, and even landed a long-term guest-starring role on a popular crime drama, but that’s when the voices started. Within a couple of years, her mother had been diagnosed with schizophrenia. The acting roles disappeared, and she was too proud to go back to Missouri. She still tried, still struggled, and even landed roles that she was never able to fully commit to when a predatory agent took her under his wing. It wasn’t long after that, Lillian was born, though she had no idea who that agent was. In her mother’s words, he was a monster, a demon in the flesh.
It was after Lillian was born that her mother had run from the man and tried to start her own life. She worked menial jobs—cleaning rooms, waiting tables—anything that would hire her, but her mental state would flare up and she would lose the jobs as quickly as she gained them. Still, she always tried to do her best for Lillian. She was the only thing that her mother consistently recognized, even when she was in the worst of her “episodes,” as she liked to call them, she always knew Lillian.
Lillian learned early on that she was a point of calm for her mother’s tortured mind, and from that early age she took on much more responsibility than any child should have to—but she didn’t know that until much later. Initially, Lillian had thought that she wanted to pursue psychology, but neurology began to fascinate her. She made her way through college and medical school, using scholarships and working full timeat night. Most of the other students had no idea how much she struggled, but she wasn’t going to let that show; she was determined to do the best she could.
Once she left for medical school, she had been almost forced to put her mother into a full-care facility, her mind had fractured to the point that there was almost nothing left. The only thing that brought her comfort, the only thing that seemed to calm her fear and paranoia, was Lillian. It had eaten away at her to leave her mother behind for her dream, but on the rare occasion her mother was lucid, she told her to please go. She told her that all she wanted was for Lillian to be happy, and the look of pride on her mother’s face when she could tell her about school and how well she was doing would make it all worthwhile.
Lillian choked back a sob remembering her own mother. This little girl, Jasmine, needed her mothers. They had to survive. This storm would not take this child’s parents away from her. Hurricane Kate, just like Lillian’s mother.
Her funeral had been small, only a handful of nurses from the care facility had attended. They were all terrified of a lawsuit from Lillian when she had found out during residency that her mother had taken her own life, but no matter how many times Lillian assured them that she was not going to pursue anything like that, they still treated her with a sort of detached professionalism. When Lillian had come to claim her mother’s remains, she couldn’t help but feel like her mother looked more peaceful than she had ever seen her before. She was beautiful again, like she had been so many years before. It had to be a relief from such a tortured existence.
A tear slipped down Lillian’s cheek as she looked at Hannah. The woman’s vital signs were strong, and she knew Jade was doing everything possible to see what had gone wrong and make sure that both Hannah and Stephanie were alive and well to provide Jasmine with the best life possible. It was a beautifulthing. Lillian didn’t know any of these women, but she knew that Jasmine would have the chance at a happy life with them, and she didn’t want anything to happen to either of them.
Suddenly realizing just how tired she was, Lillian looked around the ER. The lights were muted, and the patients rested as best they could. Even the crowds in the waiting areas had calmed down and were dozing in corners and on chairs. The wind still whipped around the building, and as though to make sure that Lillian stayed on her toes, thunder sounded overhead causing the lights to flicker. They flickered a second time, then everything went dark.
Machines started beeping as they moved to the back-up power, nurses and other medical staff whisper-shouted for everyone to stay calm, that the back-up generators would be coming online quickly. The emergency lighting kicked on, quieting the anxious crowd, the monitors calmed their alarms, and exhaustion fell over Lillian.
After one more check of her phone, she decided to go back up to the breakroom and get a coffee, just to find a quiet place to rest for a few minutes. The storm should be abating soon, and the ER was packed but calm. It seemed that that night was finally coming to an end.
6
Jade
The storm still howled against the walls of the hospital, and after the loss of power, anxiety seemed to heighten, but the generators were functioning as they should, and the emergency lighting was working. The staff had worked to calm the patients and the people sheltering in the hospital, and though the lights were slightly dimmer, there was not much difference.
Part of the reason for that was it was almost three in the morning, so most of the lights had been dimmed anyway. Jade checked her phone, realizing that it had been almost twenty-four straight hours since she’d last slept. While it certainly wasn’t the first all-nighter she had pulled in the hospital, and she was sure it wouldn’t be her last, she could feel her age deep in her bones. She stifled a yawn as she headed upstairs to the breakroom again. Maybe some coffee would perk her up a bit so she could ride out these last couple of hours.
She pushed open the door but was surprised to find Lillian lounging in one of the chairs in the room. Acting on impulse, Jade locked the door behind her. Lillian’s eyes lifted; she musthave been as exhausted as Jade felt. When they settled on Jade, Lillian’s eyes tightened, and she quickly averted them.
“How’s the OR?” Jade asked, trying to act nonchalant and failing. Her pulse was suddenly racing.
“Doing well, considering,” Lillian said without looking up. She fumbled with her phone, trying to appear distracted. Her demeanor was tense, however, and Jade couldn’t quite interpret the emotion that laced the lines of Lillian’s expression.
“Are you okay?” Jade asked, then immediately regretted the words.
“Fine,” Lillian said. She turned in the chair so that her back was to Jade. The gesture rankled her. She fumbled with the coffee machine, spilling her half-full cup.
“Damn it,” Jade muttered and grabbed a handful of napkins to mop up the liquid.
Lillian turned slightly but settled back into her position once she realized what had happened.
“Lillian, I…” Jade began, but Lillian turned and glared at her. She took a deep breath and tried again. “Doctor Holder, should we talk about?—?”
“There’s nothing to talk about,” Lillian said quickly, cutting her off, and Jade felt her heart twist in her chest. Maybe she had read too much into the situation. Maybe she was just some silly fantasy on Lillian’s part, and now she was just going to pretend nothing had happened.
“Okay,” Jade said and clenched her jaw. “Can we at least try to expel the awkwardness?”
“Fine,” Lillian snapped and set her phone on the table next to her. “What do you want me to say?”
“I don’t know,” Jade answered. “Something, anything, you’re so tightly wound up that I can’t tell what you’re thinking.”
“What should I be thinking?” Lillian asked, lifting her chin.
