Love in the Falls (4 page)

“Alright. Let me bring you both up to date. Sam suffered an ischemic stroke. As you may know, a stroke is nothing more than a lack of oxygen to the brain. The brain is the most sensitive organ in the human body, so it immediately starts reacting to any amount of deprivation. Basically, one of Sam’s vessels became clogged and prevented blood flow.”

Camden could see Drake starting to wring his hands and fidget. As a doctor, this information was not particularly startling to her yet, but she knew that Drake was beside himself.

“I don’t understand. Why would someone so young have a stroke?” Drake asked.

“Was he under a lot of stress recently?” the doctor asked.

“Well, yes. He lost his father a few months ago, and he is running a big farm. He has a lot of responsibility on his shoulders.”

“There is no way to know for sure, but he could have had a genetic issue that caused it or even just the amount of stress could have precipitated it…” the doctor said looking back down at the file.

“Will he be okay?” Drake asked softly.

“As Doctor Lane here already knows, the first twenty four to forty eight hours after a stroke are critical. He is still unconscious, but we were able to administer a thrombolytic agent to dissolve the clot. That seems to have worked, but we really won’t know the extent of the damage, if any, until he wakes up.”

“Did you do an MRI or a CAT scan?” Camden popped up. She wanted to make sure that the hospital knew how to properly diagnose the stroke.

“Yes, we did a CAT scan as soon as he came in. That’s how we knew it was an ischemic stroke and not something else entirely,” he said.

“So, we just have to wait?” Drake asked with frustration in his voice.

“Yes. It really is a waiting game. But, you are welcome to sit with him for awhile if you’d like.” The doctor stood up and led them down a hallway to the right. He pulled back a curtain to reveal Sam lying on a bed with tubes coming out from everywhere. He was still wearing an oxygen mask.

Camden was struck by how handsome he still was, even hooked up to contraptions in the ER. She shook her head to get the thought out. She didn’t know this guy, and he might not even survive the night. What was wrong with her?

She took a seat against the wall across from the foot of the bed. Drake walked to his bedside and looked down at him. He immediately turned with a sharp intake of breath and looked out the window into the darkened Georgia sky.

“You okay?” Camden asked as she stood and walked to Drake.

“Of course I’m not okay. He’s like a brother to me. We’ve known each other almost our whole lives. If he doesn’t make it…”

“He will make it,” Camden said putting her hand on Drake’s arm.

“How do you know?” Drake asked turning to Camden, his eyes searching her for comfort.

“I’ve seen this a lot in my line of work. I’ve worked in the ER, in hospitals… I believe he is strong enough to survive this and recover well,” Camden said looking Drake square in the eyes.

“You aren’t just saying that?”

“No. I would tell you if I thought he wasn’t going to make it. I would.”

“Well, I don’t really know you very well, but I am inclined to believe you. Maybe I am just trying to hold out hope…” Drake said turning to look at Sam again.

He did look helpless with the IVs in his arm and the oxygen mask covering his face. Camden had seen her share of trauma and emergencies in her life, but it was hard for her to believe that just a few hours ago he was smiling and tipping his hat to her in the parking lot.

“Can you tell me what happened?” Drake asked turning back to Camden.

“Yes, but not here. Let’s go get some coffee.”

“Why?” he asked.

“Because I wouldn’t be surprised if he can hear us, and I don’t want to stress him out.” She pulled on Drake’s sleeve and led him toward the door.

***

Camden and Drake made their way down the hall to the refreshment area. She got a cup of hot cocoa while he made himself a cup of black coffee. They sat down across from each other in the small waiting area.

“So? What happened, Camden?” he asked taking a sip of the steaming coffee. He made a face and appeared as if he was going to spit it out. “Sorry. Bitter. Yuck!”

Camden smiled for the first time in hours. “Yeah, hospital coffee is not known for its great flavor.”

“Anyway, go on…”

“My friend, Natalie, and I were taking a hike up to the falls. When we came down, we saw Jenny trying to hold Sam upright. We ushered him to a bench, and I administered some field tests for stroke victims. He was glassy eyed, couldn’t stick out his tongue…”

“His tongue?”

“That’s one of the symptoms of a stroke. You often cannot stick out your tongue,” she said. “We called 911, but it took them a good thirty minutes to get up the mountain. I am sure there was at least some damage done while we waited.”

“I hope not. Sam is a great guy. I love him like a brother,” Drake said leaning forward with his head in his hands.

“Jenny said this was their first date?”

“Yep. I set them up. But, I could tell by looking at him when they left that he was not interested. She’s too young and immature,” he said.

“I can see that. She freaked out when he had the stroke. She was beside herself with panic. That’s why I insisted on riding with him in the ambulance,” Camden said.

“Well, thanks for that. Having an extra doctor around is very helpful right now. I know you are just being nice, but I appreciate it.” Drake smiled half-heartedly.

Camden wasn’t sure she was just being nice. She had an obvious attraction to this stranger in the mountains, and now he was clinging to life down the hall. She knew she should go home to Preston, but she just couldn’t pull herself away. She didn’t know why, but she felt like she was making a choice that she couldn’t undo.

Camden and Drake spent most of the night sitting in the uncomfortable chairs around Sam’s bed. He was still unconscious when Camden woke up around 6 AM. Drake was sacked out asleep, so she quietly got up to check on Sam. The nurses had been in and out all night long, which was customary in cases like this.

As Camden approached Sam’s bed, she swore she saw his eyelids flutter a bit. Was he dreaming? She had no way to know if that was a neurological thing or not. She had been trained in emergency medicine, but Preston was the neurology expert. Too bad she couldn’t call on him for his opinion. Even though he was working in the ER now, he had a lot of background in neurology because of his father.

“Sam?” Camden whispered as she leaned over his bed. She looked down at his rugged, masculine hands. They could tell stories about the rough farm life he had experienced. She could see calluses and dirt under his nails, yet he was well groomed.

She looked around the room before reaching down and taking his right hand in hers. It practically swallowed hers whole. “Sam? Can you hear me?” she whispered a little louder.

To her shock, his eyes popped open. He looked scared for a moment, and then his eyes softened a bit when they fixed on her. Not sure what to do, she continued holding his hand.

“Everything is okay. My name is Camden. You’re in the hospital, but you’re going to be fine. Squeeze my hand if you can hear me, okay?” Slowly, Camden felt a light squeeze of her hand. It wasn’t a strong squeeze, but it was enough for her to know that he was understanding what she said.

“Is he awake?” Drake asked shooting up out of his chair in a groggy haze.

“Yes. He is looking at me and squeezing my hand. He understands me. That’s a good sign,” she said smiling back at Drake. He moved to the other side of the bed to get a better look.

“Hey, man. It’s Drake,” he said grabbing Sam’s other hand carefully. “Can you look at me?”

Slowly, Sam’s eyes moved from Camden to Drake. He looked confused and dazed. Drake asked him to squeeze his hand, but Sam didn’t. Camden believed that he might have some paralysis on his left side.

“Drake, why don’t you go let the nurse know this good news?” Camden said with a slight smile.

Drake left the room looking for the nurse and the doctor. Sam turned his eyes back to her. He squeezed her hand again.

“Sam, do you need something?” she asked knowing that he probably could not answer.

He looked at her with such pleading in his eyes. She felt helpless. What did he want? Was he in pain? Scared?

“Do you want me to talk to you some more?” she asked pulling the chair up behind her with her foot. He squeezed her hand, which she took as a yes.

Camden sat down and inched closer to the bed. She had a great bedside manner according to all of her professors. That was something that couldn’t be taught in medical school. You either had it or you didn’t. She honestly didn’t see that trait in Preston, but he was super smart and wildly sought after by patients.

“Okay… I met you up in the mountains near the falls. Do you remember seeing me and my crazy friend in the parking lot, Sam?” she whispered. He lightly squeezed her hand. “Do you remember taking Jenny to the falls?” This time he squeezed her hand and closed his eyes for a moment. It was almost like he was trying to roll his eyes, which made her giggle. He was apparently embarrassed at his choice of dates.

Just then, the nurse and the doctor entered the room, and Camden released Sam’s hand. She moved back to give them space, but Sam grunted. He kept grunting over and over. Was he looking for Camden?

The doctor and nurse continued hovering, but Camden moved closer where he could see her. She touched his blanket covered foot in the hopes that he could feel it.

After talking to Sam and checking out his vitals, the doctor motioned for Camden and Drake to come into the hallway. Before she left, Camden went to his beside and said, “I will be right back. Don’t worry, okay?” He looked at her, but there was no way for him to speak.

“We aren’t out of the woods yet, but I think he is recovering very well,” the doctor said.

“Thank God. When can he go home?” Drake asked.

“Home? I don’t know if he will ever go home…” the doctor said.

“What?” Drake asked.

“Well, we don’t know the extent of his impairments. We know he can hear you and understand. We know he has some feeling and strength in his right hand. But, we don’t want to stress him out less than twenty four hours from a stroke. After a couple of days, we will send in the specialists to assess him. Physical therapist, stroke specialist, speech pathologist…”

“Doctor, when will Sam be moved to a private room outside of this ER?” Camden asked.

“If he continues to do well, I think we can move him within the next couple of days,” he said.

“Great,” she replied.

“He seems to really love you,” the doctor said.

“What?” Camden was shocked by the comment. This was not the same doctor who had originally treated Sam, so he didn’t know that Camden was a relative stranger.

“Your boyfriend, I assume?”

“Um… no. I just helped him when he had the stroke… at the falls,” she stammered.

“I’m so sorry! I thought from the way he was looking at you and his reaction when you moved away from the bed that…”

“It’s okay. I am a doctor as well. I think he is just attached because I was the first face he saw when he woke up,” Camden said.

“Well, whatever the case, if you can stay around it would be helpful to him, I think.”