Seeking Relief

...A Lot of Things Wrong

Adam continued, “The radiologist and ICU doc agreed that you will need at least one surgery, maybe even more. But it was also agreed that you’re stable enough to not need to be in the ICU wing anymore. You’ll either be moved tomorrow or even tonight. But you’ll be referred to an ortho surgeon to take care of your old injuries.”

Jade looked at him open mouthed.

He looked at her sympathetically when he said, “I’m just going to go down the list. Stop me if you have any questions.”

Jade nodded.

“The worst, that would need immediate attention, is your left hand. You have two comminuted fractures in your metacarpal bones that are slightly displaced. Basically, they’re broken, starting break down and come out of alignment. I’m confident that the ortho will decide to correct that surgically with hardware.

“You have a small fracture in one metacarpal in your right hand. The radiologist can see a healing pattern already.

“You have two old fractures in your ribs, slightly compressed fractures in your vertebrae at T4 and T5, in between your shoulder blades. Your foot didn’t show any fractures, but I suspect some tendons have been sprained or hyperextended, I requested an MRI on that.

“We didn’t see any fractures in your skull or facial area. And there wasn’t anything abnormal about the scan of your brain. For that, I am relieved. I was very concerned about you having damage with your skull.

“Now, we are concerned about scarring on your organs from repetitive blunt trauma. So, I ordered an MRI for your abdominal area as well.

“I’ve reached out to the OB/GYN director and asked her to take you on and look at you, too. She had just emailed me this afternoon and said she’d come see you tomorrow when she’s in the office.

“I know that’s a lot. I don’t have exact answers for you, but I wanted you to know what was going on.” Adam reached for her hand.

“We’ll be here with you every step of the way. I want you to concentrate on healing and know that you’re no longer alone.”

Jade stared at him for several seconds.

“It’s not-It’s not all in my head…There’s actually something wrong.”

Adam sighed and dropped his head.

“Yea honey. A lot of the things are wrong.”

“So. Now what?” Jade asked.

“Well, we’re moving you to a general hospitalization room a couple floors down. An orthopedic surgeon will need to see you, and Dr. Lamburty, the gyn doc, will see you tomorrow. I’d expect at least one surgery, maybe up to three. Depending on what the ortho decides. We’ll do some MRI’s of your foot, abdomen and probably your hand if the ortho wants it.”

“How long do I have to stay in the hospital?”

“Well that will depend on what Dr. Lamburty assesses and what comes of the MRI’s. We don’t want to send you home if your body is in a dangerous state. We also want to confirm that all your organs are perfectly fine, too.”

“This is all just a little much. I can’t afford any of this.” Jade said in a voice that seemed a little high.

“Ah! That’s where I can be of some help.” Linn said leaning forward. “Adam, set up the Crisis Center as the billing responsibility.”

“No, Linn, you can’t do that!” Jade argued.

“Too bad. I am.”

“But the Center is nonprofit, you guys don’t have the funds for this.”

“Yes, we do, actually. We have funds that donors specifically donate to for this purpose.”

“But I don’t have any insurance! It won’t cover me for another 3 months.”

“Call your insurance to double check, but I’ve heard of some that may cover bills 3 months prior to date of coverage. If not, I’m honestly not worried about it. Because, there’s also the possibility of Victim’s Assistance in the long haul when we finally nail the bastard ex of yours to the floor.”

“I’ll get the accounting director in touch with you. I know when there’s no insurance, they’ll work a discount on the bill if they’ll get a cash payment.” Adam said.

“I’ve also seen the bills written off as a donation when the Center’s involved.” Linn said, thinking out loud.

“See Jade. It’ll work out.” Jake said, leaning forward, “Let them, and let us, help you. We’re here for you, and like you said, it’ll be beneficial to you to have us in your corner. Now, let us fight for you.”

She smiled at him and very quietly, she said, “Okay.”

Jake grinned. “That’s our girl.” And he kissed the top of her head.

The next three days passed in a bit of a blur. The gyn director came and saw her. They had a quick but thorough discussion. Dr. Lamburty didn’t have a lot of time set aside, but she wanted to come meet Jade right away. The doctor made sure that there weren’t any health issues that needed immediate attention, then made an appointment for a later date for a more thorough examination. Jade was secretly grateful so that she had time to mentally prepare for that type of appointment.

Jade had called her boss to let her know that she was hospitalized and would be out sick. Surprisingly, her work was extremely understanding and supportive of her pursuit for health. They also had the HR director talk to her. Apparently, her work has a temporary disability policy that covers the employees immediately upon employment. Jade was also provided a number that will go straight to the insurance representative for the company to discuss insurance coverage for her situation. The HR director had optimistic expectations “because (she’s) seen this before with another employee.”

Jade is pretty sure Linn had cleaned up her apartment. She had retrieved the new key from the property manager but hung on to it for a couple days. Linn had told her that she “just made sure it was spic and span and that you have one less thing to worry about when you leave here.”  Jade was determined to babysit for Linn until the kids left for college to make it up to her. And even then, Jade wasn’t sure if she’d make it up to Linn for all that she’s done.

Speaking of people who have done so much, Jade didn’t know what she did to get Jake, Emmett, Mitch, and Adam in her life, but she never stopped saying her thanks.

The men came back every day. They came at the beginning of their shifts, and when their shifts were over. Usually they show up at different times, only overlapping for the briefest of times. Her favorite moments are when she has all the men sitting around her in their own special semi-circle. Since there was no where else to go or anything to distract them, the visits have turned into a type of perverse date to Jade. They all sat around and talked. It was easy to joke with them and share in their teasing antics.

They’d either tell Jade of past experiences or asking questions about herself. Unlike how she felt with Lance, Jade found herself wanting to know everything about the guys and what made them tick. Every time she was asked a question about herself, she wanted the answer from each man to the same question that was asked of her.

The hospital setting wasn’t very romantic nor what someone would typically feel is conducive to the development of tender feelings, but Jade developed them anyways. It was because in the hospital there was no reason for putting up pretenses, they saw her darkest past from the very beginning. They were honest with her, and she was finding it was easy to be honest with them and divulge to them. And one day sitting there looking at them, she realized that there was no façade with them. They saw her for who she is, and still want to be by her side, even when she’s at her lowest.

Which was the complete opposite of Lance.

She sat there staring at all of them, basking in the realization that she developed not one but four healthy relationships. She let the warmth of her emotions for these men swirl around her heart.

When Emmett asked, “What?” She just grinned even more at them.

When she opened her mouth to tell them of her epiphany and confess her feelings, a pair of unfamiliar nurses walked in with a wheelchair.

“Hi, what do you need?” Adam asked.

“Visitors need to vacate the room and check back in with patient relations.” One of them said in a rather brusque manner.

She continued, “We’re here to escort Ms. Roads to the psyche ward”