And A Child is Born - 15. The Aftermath

“Todd, that was rather harsh.”

“He’s tough; he’ll get over it. He and Matan bring nothing but craziness into our lives. I don’t understand why we have to deal with their bullshit all of the time. Don’t you get tired of always worrying whether Yonatan is going to have one of his seizures, or that some supposed underworld person is out to nab him and put him into some slavery thing in some unnamed third world country, or the fact that when they get upset, they can just order a jet and fly wherever the fuck they want? Yonatan is good about running away but not facing life when he hears an unpleasant truth. Maybe he is making up all of this shit. Have you thought that maybe he is a total fraud? How did we even get mixed up in their world?”

Erick realized his mouth was hanging open as he was staring at Todd. Todd’s look was defiant when Erick dared to try to look him in the eyes. Todd’s body posture indicated he was spoiling for a fight - a physical fight. Erick was crushed because he had put his partner on a pedestal and he had just witnessed the entire plinth crumble in front of him. Who was this man he had recently married? How had he totally misread the fundamental nature of Todd?

Erick looked at Todd and said he would spend the night in a guest bedroom because he needed time to think. As Erick was walking up the stairs, the final assault hit him in the back.

“Yeah, you just walk away also when you hear the truth. Just like your friend, Yonatan. Sleep in the guest room. Perhaps we should nail a sign on the door with your name on it, so you will know where it is in the future.”

The implication of the statement was not missed.

The phone rang as Erick walked up the stairs. He didn’t care who was calling; he needed to get away from the poison coming from Todd so he could think. He walked the upstairs corridor and heard Jan crying in her room. He had nothing to offer and instead opened the door to a room he knew was empty. Erick didn’t bother to turn on the light as he stumbled until he found the bed. He fell across the bed and let his overwrought emotions start to drain away. He heard the door open, and a sliver of light came through before it closed again.

“Go away. Just please go away.”

He felt the body climb onto the tall post bed and wrap itself around him. That was when he started crying. He realized the person wasn’t Todd.

“I am sorry my brother has hurt you so badly. Erick, something’s not right. That person downstairs is not my brother; something is very wrong.”

Erick didn’t answer. Let Tayloe believe that if he wanted to. He was protecting his brother.

“You need to pull yourself together because you have to drive us to the Medical College Hospital in Richmond.”

“Let him sleep it off.”

“No, it is not about Todd. The Commander just came in and told us that Nash had been flown to the hospital in Richmond. He is in very bad shape. He has been broken to pieces. He is going into surgery, and they are having a difficult time controlling his respiration and pulse. He loves you more than anyone else, and the last name he spoke before they had to sedate him was yours. He needs you, Erick.”

Erick processed what he had heard and sat up in bed.

“I can’t go if Todd is going with us.”

Tayloe looked at Erick.

“He loves you. Something is wrong with him. I don’t know what, but those are not my brother’s behaviors or words.”

“Tayloe, I love Todd with all of my being. But I also have some self-respect and need to protect what little dignity I have left.”

“Okay, you and Eron go, and I will stay here with Todd. I only know that if you don’t go to Richmond, there is a high chance that Nash will have no reason to live and will not survive the surgery.”

Erick got up and followed Tayloe down the hallway. Jan opened her door and asked what was wrong. Erick looked at her and knew that she needed to be there, also.

“Grab your purse. We have to go to the hospital. It is Nash.”

By the time he got to the front door, Jan was racing down the steps. Eron had his coat on and said he was ready to go. In the dark of night, on long country roads, the three made their way southwest to Richmond. They didn’t say anything because they were all carrying hurt and didn’t have the words to articulate their feelings. As they approached Richmond, Eron became the navigator and told Erick how to get to the parking garage for the hospital. Once they entered the facility, Erick was sure that people were joking with the craziness of directions they were given. They weren’t. They finally found the waiting room for the surgical unit. They checked in and found out that Nash was still in surgery. When the nurse heard Erick’s name, she looked at a sheet and asked him to follow her. She had Erick don a mask and gown before she walked him into the surgical suite. She told him this was unusual, but they felt his presence was needed to keep the young man alive. A gruff doctor told Erick to take a seat in a chair that had been put next to the patient’s head at the surgical table.

“Talk to him. I don’t want a lot of yammering that I can hear because I need to concentrate. The nurses talked me into this shit. Some new experimental trials here at the hospital. Talk to him, hold his hand, or whatever. I have to focus on my work. Just don’t get in my way, or you will be out of here.”

Erick didn’t know what to do, so he reached out and held Nash’s free hand. The other hand and arm were riddled with needles, lines, and cuffs.

“I’m here, Nash. It’s Erick. You are safe.”

Everything in the room stopped as Nash let out a large sigh. The numerical indicators on the monitor suddenly fluctuated. Everyone waited as the anesthesiologist asked them not to proceed until he checked everything and gave them the clear to continue. Nash calmed and then moaned. His body relaxed in a way it had not since he had been put on the table. It was as if he had been fighting the sedative drugs, and now he felt comfortable and safe.

“Keep talking to him, whoever you are. Damn, I’ve never seen anything like this.”

The anesthesiologist said for them to continue, and the surgical team started again. Erick could hear what they were saying but didn’t want to. He didn’t want to think his student was in this bad of shape. Erick couldn’t think of what to say, so he started to give his lectures on the Roman Empire. He quietly talked through the history as if he was tutoring Nash. He would emphasize specific points and explain why things were important. He would squeeze Nash’s hand when he made certain statements and asked him if he understood. It was a one-sided conversation that went on and on and on. Erick focused solely on what he needed to do and wasn’t paying attention to the clock on the wall. He was surprised when the surgeon said they were finishing and cleaning up the patient.

Erick looked up at the team of medical professionals and had to adjust his vision as he had only looked at Nash for the past four hours. They were all a blur, and he realized he had been staring intently at Nash’s face the entire time. He blinked a few times and then started smiling when he saw the smiles on their faces.

“When do we get the rest of the history lesson?” The doctor chuckled. “I actually found it helpful to listen to you talk about Roman history while doing some of the more complex aspects of the surgery. I could hear you and absorb what you were saying while doing the muscle memory work. I can’t remember it ever going so smoothly. Who are you?”

Erick introduced himself and was careful not to say he was Dr. Erick Emmanuelson-Reynolds. He knew medical doctors could be rather prickly about PhDs using the title of Doctor. Erick didn’t want to piss off this man who ruled the surgical suite. When talking with other professors, he would always use the terms MD2020 or Mad Dogs when referring to medical doctors.

When Erick stood, he realized that he had to get his balance because he had been sitting so long. Plus, he hadn’t eaten since lunch the day before.

“Dr. Emmanuelson-Reynolds, can you join me for a cup of coffee? It will take a few minutes for staff to get your friend cleaned and moved to the ICU.”

Erick was pleased that the surgeon had invited him for coffee and had used his professional title. When they walked down the hall, the surgeon saw Eron and did a double-take.

“Twins?”

“Yes, this is my brother Eron, and this is Jan Chamblee.”

“Come with us for coffee - my treat. I need to know what the hell happened to my patient. I mean, I know what medically happened, but I need to know who would do such a thing to a person.”

They went to the cafeteria, and the trio explained what they knew, which was very little.

“Whoever did that worked with precision. Your friend will have a long, difficult recovery. He will walk again if he puts in the work, but it will be a while. To have all of the leg bones broken is so unusual. I will let the therapist decide the best course of rehabilitation, but my guess is it will be much like what we would do for someone who had both legs amputated. Only worse. He will be in a lot of pain for a few weeks, both from the breaks and the surgery. His legs are a series of incisions. All of those surgical wounds need to heal, and I pray he doesn’t develop any wound infections. I don’t ever remember cutting on someone for broken bones like I had to do tonight.”

The doctor’s pager went off, and he said that Nash was in the ICU and that only one person at a time was allowed onto the unit. Erick asked Jan if she would like to go in first. Erick needed to talk with Eron.

“Brother, I have to be at school this week. I will come to Richmond each night, so I need to ask a huge favor. You know we could always fool other people about who we were. I need you to do this with Nash. Be me. It was unbelievable how he changed for the better when I went into the surgery. Try it after Jan comes out. Will you do that?”

Eron nodded and said he didn’t know Nash well at all.

“Pretend to be a teacher. Talk to him quietly; he responds best that way. He is sedated, but he hears and feels everything. Tell him you are teaching him the history of law. Or teach him the law. He responds very well to a calm, steady tutoring-style voice. Steady and slow. Hold his hand.”

Eron did precisely that when he visited Nash. He was amazed at all of the medical equipment. Eron watched as Nash’s demeanor grew calmer and how he craved his teacher’s touch. When Eron was going to leave, Nash didn’t release his hand. Eron leaned over and kissed Nash on his forehead, chuckled, and said the next history of law class would be later in the day after he rested. Nash slowly released Eron’s hand and floated away in his world of sedation.

At Cameron Farm, Tayloe was up early to make coffee. He kept expecting Eron to call him, but the phone was silent. Tayloe hoped that no news was good news. He went upstairs to ask Todd what he wanted for breakfast and found his brother still asleep. Tayloe had a fun thought and decided he would treat his brother like he did when they were children. He jumped on Todd’s bed and yelled, expecting Todd to jump up and chase him out of the room. Instead, Todd lay there. Tayloe grabbed Todd and shook him, and found his brother unresponsive. Tayloe ran downstairs, out the front door, and saw a soldier. Tayloe yelled that his brother was dead. The soldier called a couple of other soldiers, and they ran into the house.

Tayloe dropped on the front steps and sat crying. How could his brother die? Why did he leave Todd alone when he put him to bed? How would he ever explain what had happened? He needed Eron. Another group of soldiers was running past him with a stretcher, and Tayloe still did not move. Todd was the strong brother and was always the one to gather everyone and put things right, and yet it was his brother upstairs dead in his bed.

The soldiers bore the stretcher through the door, and Tayloe saw an IV bag attached to a pole and lines inserted in Todd’s arms. They wouldn’t put IVs in Todd’s arm if he were dead. A military ambulance pulled up, and Todd was loaded into the back.

“Where are you taking my brother?”

“To a helicopter landing zone. There is a designated spot a mile down the road. You need to get ready, and we will drive you to the hospital.”

“What is wrong with him?”

“We are not completely sure, but we think it is a drug overdose of some sort. Your brother is breathing, but barely.”

Tayloe got up and ran into the house. He was taking off his pajamas and putting on a pair of jeans when the telephone rang. It was Eron giving him the good news. Tayloe could hear the joy in his voice. Nash had survived the surgery. Then Tayloe swallowed twice and told Eron about Todd. The line went silent.

“Eron, you need to tell Erick. I don’t know which hospital we are going to, but I will find you. I promise. Call my parents and tell them we need them. I love you. I need you.” Two men were crying on the telephone when Eron said he would tell Erick.

Eron hung up the telephone and turned to find Erick standing behind him. Eron couldn’t look Erick in the face, but he fell against his brother and started sobbing. Eron couldn’t get the words out at first, and then he stumbled as he spoke.

The world as they knew it had ended.