I nod in agreement. What else can I do anyway? After Tucker leaves, I pull out my hospital discharge papers and consult the over the counter pain medications I can safely take during pregnancy. The nurse also wrote that gargling with warm salt water might help soothe my throat, so that is my first order of business. Not being able to talk is the fucking pits.
After sleepingwith a frozen gel pack over my eyes all night, the swelling is considerably better this morning. The bruising is still just as ugly, but there’s nothing I can do but let time and vitamin C heal it. Since I can’t talk enough to call anyone, I decide to drive to my doctor’s office to make an appointment.
Arriving just as the doors are unlocked, I approach the receptionist’s desk. Her smile quickly fades as she takes in my injuries. I give her a rueful smile and, after the best round of charades ever played, I have successfully conveyed my situation and what I need. A few clicks on her computer and a few seconds later, her smile spreads across her face.
“We had a cancellation call late yesterday afternoon and that spot hasn’t been filled. I can get you in with Dr. Tabitha Perry right now. Do you feel up to doing it now?”
Nodding eagerly, I can’t hide my excitement. I’m so ready to be checked out and hope to get some reassurance that the baby wasn’t injured. Before bed last night, I wrote out several questions for the doctor to answer for me. In hindsight, I probably should’ve done the same for the poor receptionist, too. She hands me a stack full of paperwork to complete and I take my seat in the waiting room. Taking a blank sheet of paper with me, I jot down the pertinent details of my injuries since I know I’ll be asked about them more than once.
As I’m filling in the blanks in the patient chart paperwork, a thought pops into my head from nowhere and I have a moment of panic.Is Tucker still following me? Does he know I’m here?Shaking my head to clear the thoughts, it occurs to me that there’s no doubt he is patiently waiting outside. Just because I’m in my OB/GYN’s office doesn’t automatically mean he would know I’m pregnant.
Still, I’m sure he is uber-diligent and thorough with his research of me now that I’ve betrayed Dominic. These thoughts continue to haunt me as I finish all the paperwork and turn it in to Shelly, the receptionist. I’m lost in my own thoughts of how Tucker feels betrayed by me, but he also must thinkhelet Dominic down. That somehow he didn’t do his job and protect Dominic from me. When all this started, I never considered all the implications of my actions. My tunnel vision blinded me, keeping me from seeing the truth, and I made the worst decision of my life.
“Sophia Vasco,” the nurse calls from the doorway.
Standing, I walk toward her and, as expected, she looks at me with dire concern. “What happened to you?” she exclaims, her voice thick with concern.
Handing her the detailed note I wrote, her eyes quickly scan the details and her head occasionally nods as she takes the information in. When she finishes reading, she looks up and smiles at me.
“No talking, huh?”
Pursing my lips to show my frustration with it, I shake my head from side to side in response.
“I had laryngitis once that lasted for a month! I know a little of how frustrating it is to not be able to speak,” she sympathizes. “No worries. We’ll take good care of you.”
I’m escorted to the lab area to have blood drawn and the lab technician hands me a cup and shows me to the bathroom. Once I’m in the patient room, the nurse regurgitates everything for the doctor. After enduring the usual pelvic examination, and a lot of note taking by Dr. Perry, she helps me to sit up on the exam table. Reaching over to pull my list of questions out of my purse, I hand her the paper as she sits in her chair beside me.
“What have we here?” she says warmly. After silently reading through the questions, she smiles at me when she says, “You’re very thorough.”
Returning her smile, I nod and shrug my shoulders. I mouth the words, “It’s my job to be.”
“Your first question is if the assault could have hurt the baby. Did he hit or kick you in the abdomen at any time?”
I shake my head ‘no.’
“All of your injuries were sustained on your face and head?”
I nod ‘yes.’
“Then, it is highly unlikely that your baby would be affected. It’s smaller than a pea right now, enclosed in an embryonic sac that is filled with fluid. The sac is inside your uterus, which is protected by layers of fat, muscle, and skin.
“We can do a transvaginal ultrasound to look, if that would make you feel better. But, I have to warn you that at this early stage it isvery likelywe would only see the sac. Ultrasounds are typically performed with an overly full bladder to give us a better picture of the internal contents,” she explains. “If you want an ultrasound, I just want you to know that the lack of seeing a baby or a heartbeat doesnotmean there’s anything wrong. Understand?”
“Yes,” I mouth.
“Do you want to have an ultrasound today?”
“Yes,” I mouth and nod to make sure she understands.
Picking up the phone, she dials an extension and orders the ultrasound technician to prepare the ultrasound room for me. Sighing, I’m both relieved and anxious. Keeping her warning in mind isn’t as easy as it sounds. If there is no baby, and no heartbeat, I’ll worry constantly.
“For your next question regarding medications to help the swelling and bruising heal faster, we recommend avoiding any over the counter medications if at all possible. You can take ibuprofen occasionally, or acetaminophen more regularly, if needed. Never aspirin. But if you can do without them, I would recommend that. Are you in a lot of pain?”
Shaking my head ‘no,’ I point to my throat and shrug one shoulder.
“Your throat hurts the worst?” she asks to clarify and I nod. She suggests the salt-water solution to gargle and the throat lozenges with extra vitamin C.
“And, the last question is about your number of weeks gestation. We may not be able to get an accurate measurement until your next ultrasound. Your notes say you had the implant in your arm but it’s not found now?” she clarifies and I nod. She conducts much the same examination as Dr. Fallon did but comes up with the same results.
