Rico's Recovery (Detroit Heat Book 2) (2 page)

“Have they been in here since I got admitted?”

“In the room?” Rob shook his head “No. You were rushed straight into surgery, and we didn’t want to allow them in until you woke up. You were in serious condition upon arrival. If you want, I can let them in here and give you some time.”

“Yeah, I’m sure they’re worried sick. Thanks for screwing me back together, Rob.”

“No problem, Rico. I was just doing my job. I’ll be back to check on you later this evening.” He stood up and turned around before walking out the door. “Don’t let them get you going too much. They seem like an energetic bunch.”

“You have no idea.”

He gave me a wide-eyed look and laughed as he walked out. I could hear my mother’s voice. “Can we please visit with our son?”

“Of course, Mrs. Baggio, but he will need his rest. Your son’s been through quite an ordeal.”

Ma ran into the room with my father and my little sister in tow. I could see the tears begin the instant she saw me, but her cheeks were red and her eyes were already puffy. Ma had done plenty of crying even before this moment.

“Hey, Ma. It’s all right.”

She buried her face in her hands and collapsed into the chair that Rob had been sitting in. My pop had a sad smile on his face. My little sister was clinging to his leg. I gave Sara a wave. “Hi, sis. Rico’s just fine, see?”

“You don’t look just fine.” She looked like she was about to follow in Ma’s footsteps and break down. She turned and buried her face in Pop’s side. My heart ached and the lump in my throat grew. My family worried about me day in and day out because of possibilities just like this.

“Good to see you, Ricardo.” I could even hear emotion in my pop’s voice. He was normally hard to read, but I could see the concern and relief on his face. He nodded as he held my sister and laid a hand on my mother’s back. Guilt made my heart pump even faster. I hated myself for what I had put them through.

“I’m sorry, Ma.” That only made her wail. “Ma, look at me.”

After a few seconds, she looked up and uncovered her face. I smiled at her, realizing that my face was probably fairly cut and bruised. I was sure I looked like I’d just been in a boxing match. “It’s all right, Ma. I’m here. I’m alive.”
 

A tear fell down my cheek and I raised my right hand to wipe it away. “I’m going to be just fine.” I reached across my body to take her hand. I thought for a second that she might not let me, but she did. She squeezed it, and I felt a little better.

Pop spoke. “The doctor says you’ll stay here for observation for a few days before they move you to a more long-term room. Your chief was here. Clay, right?”

I nodded. It was good to know that he had been here. Not so much for me, but I was sure it was a comfort for my parents. Most of my income went to them, and I knew the second they’d found out that I’d been hurt, panic had set in. The last thing our family needed was someone else on disability.

Ma yanked on my hand a little too hard, and the twist sent pain shooting through me. “Oh, God. Sorry, Rico.” She let go of my hand and patted me.

“It’s all right, Ma.”

“I just thought of Susanne.” Ma’s eyes were open wide.

I shook my head as much as I could. “Don’t bring her into this, Ma.”

“Why not? You two dated for two years. She ought to know.”

The last thing on my mind was my ex. It was true: we had dated for two great years. She supported my dreams of becoming a firefighter. She supported me all the way through academy and assignment, but as soon as things got hard, she split. Her exact words were, “I want you all the time, not for two days at a time.” Despite everything I had explained to her before getting hired, she didn’t seem to understand the life.

“Ma, we haven’t talked in three months. I don’t think she gives a flying fuck if I’m dead or alive.”

I turned to Pop, about to apologize, but it was too late. “Language. Christ Almighty.”

“Sorry, Pop.”

He looked down. “Don’t apologize to me.”

I leaned down as much as my body would allow. “Sara, Rico got mad and said a bad word. Don’t let them catch you saying that at school, or you’ll have to deal with Ma when you get home, huh?”

My little sister peeked out from behind my pop. It hit me that she was scared of me. The lump returned to my throat. I gave her my best smile, knowing that it probably made me look like Quasimodo. “I know I don’t look too good right now, but that’s because I took a nasty spill. I’m gonna get better, though. You know that, right?”

Sara was small for an eight-year-old, but she was bright. When she listened, she understood more than some adults. For a second she stared at me, and then she nodded. “The doctors are going to fix you?”

I raised my casted and bolted left arm. “They already started. I’m going to set off every metal detector from now on, but it’s still your big brother.”

She smiled, and it was like the first sunny day of the year. Sara was the love of my life. She was the reason I was a firefighter. My heart ached, and another tear fell.

I looked back to my mother. “Ma, just promise me you won’t tell Susanne. I don’t need any drama.”

It was my pop who answered, though. “Yeah, I’d say you’ve had enough of that.”

“Harry, you’re going to give me everything you’ve got today, right?”

He had one week left in his physical therapy before he went home, and in a way, I was going to miss him. He was practically a model patient. He never complained about how hard I pushed him, and besides that, he had great stories from the Korean War. He was eighty, and if not for the broken hip, he could have passed for someone twenty years younger.

Harry smiled and set his walker aside. “One hundred percent. Right, Lizzie?”

I smiled back. “Right. Why don’t we start with the squats?”

He nodded. We got him set up on the machine and I set it for forty pounds. Once he was secured, I asked, “Ready?”

“Ready.”

“All right. Fifteen down and fourteen up. You got this, Harry. I want that walker back in the closet with all the other trophies.” I watched as he began, and then I headed into a side room off of the physical therapy gym.

Alan was sipping on some coffee and raised his mug when I walked in. “Fresh pot.”

I spun in the direction of our small kitchen. “You are a life-saver.”

He followed me into the break room as I dug out my Disney mug. “Late night?”

“You know it.”

Alan shook his head. His voice dripping with sarcasm, he said, “Lizzie, I don’t know how many times I’ve told you to stop going clubbing on school nights. Your teachers are going to be so disappointed in you. I can already tell that your grades are slipping. I hope you’ve at least met some rich suitors.”

I let Alan have his fun. If he knew the truth, he’d make fun of me even more. For the last two months, I’d been working on a paper on attitude and patient recovery times for the Journal of the American Physical Therapy Association. I’d let Alan believe that I was out dancing with rich men instead of pouring over research late into the night.

Maybe he knew I was one step above a shut-in, but I didn’t mind. I loved my work, and I wanted to be able to frame something on my wall besides my degrees. I wanted that elusive published article. In the meantime, Harry’s enthusiasm would have to suffice.

As I stirred the creamer into my mug, I headed back to the gym to check on him. A few of the physio assistants were around, just in case anything happened. The gym was also attached to the hospital, making it about the safest place for PT in the area.

“What’re you at, Harry?”

He grunted out a reply. “Two to go.”

I smiled his way. “Add five more and you can take five minutes.”

“You’re on.”

I winked at the wonderful old man just as I heard my name behind me. “Elizabeth?”

I turned to the double doors leading to the hospital. “Lizzie. Yes?” I didn’t recognize the nurse, but there were so many, and they worked between so many different hospitals. Except for some of the older ladies who were nurse supervisors, I didn’t know the names of more than three nurses.

She stepped through the door, letting it close on its own. I saw the file she was carrying. It had more than the usual amount of X-rays for just one person; far more, in fact. I gave it a sideways glance before looking up.

I motioned her back toward the break room. “What can I help you with?”

“I’m Marnie Edwards, a nurse in ICU. I was told to find you.” She looked fresh out of nursing school. She also looked eager, which explained why she was in the ICU.

I laughed. “I can only imagine why.”

She must not have been much for humor. She gave me a blank stare for a second. Then, “I was told you are one of the best in PT when it comes to…um…tough patients.” She looked uncomfortable, and that piqued my interest.

I reached for the folder. The patient had obviously been in a bad accident. I couldn’t count the number of X-rays there were. The date on the file stuck out to me.

“The patient was just admitted a few days ago? I wouldn’t even start to work with them for weeks.” It didn’t make me any less interested, though. If anything, I wanted to know more.

“Yeah, I know,” she said, “but I think this case will be especially hard. The patient fell twenty-five feet. Multiple breaks and fractures.” She leaned in, smiling for the first time. “And get this: he’s a firefighter.”

Marnie gave a little giggle that made me want to roll my eyes out of my head. I
 
wanted to know how he got hurt, but his profession didn’t do much for me. The nurse was young, and maybe she’d forgotten that there were rich doctors walking around the whole hospital. Someone’s job didn’t do much for me.

I shrugged. “Let’s see what we’ve got.”

She handed the files over after a slight pause, maybe a little hurt that I hadn’t engaged on the firefighter thing. Flipping the folder open, I began to take in just how extensive his injuries were. Both legs were screwed in place, there were fractures near his hip, and his left arm was bad, too.

Marnie watched me, her arms across her chest. She was eager to know what I thought. I had to give her something, or she wouldn’t be satisfied.

I sighed. “I don’t know if he’ll ever walk again, Marnie. He’s suffered some serious injuries, and he’s got more surgeries to go. Even if he does get back up on his feet, I’m afraid his days of fighting fires in the D might be over. He’s going to lose so much mobility and speed.”

She looked at me as if it was the last thing she wanted to hear. “I didn’t realize it was so bad.”

I nodded, sliding his left forearm X-ray back into the folder. It looked like a map of a series of islands, none of them touching. “It’s bad. Thanks for showing me. I’ll start coming up with a strategy, and if the doctor doesn’t mind, I’ll probably be up to see the patient…” I glanced at the tab on the folder “…Ricardo early next week.”

The nurse smiled at me. It was the sad smile patients gave me when they’d lost hope. I couldn’t count the number of times I’d seen it. I put a hand on her arm.

“Hey, I’ve seen people come back from things worse than this.”

It wasn’t exactly true, but it was what Marnie needed to hear. In that moment, she was no different than the defeated patient or the forsaken family member I’d worked with over and over again. She needed to hear something that would keep her moving forward, even if all she was doing was keeping an eye on Ricardo. I believed that everyone associated with the patent had to maintain a positive outlook to offer the best chance of a full recovery.

I smiled at the young nurse, “Give him time. There’s a reason that they recommended me for this.” I leaned in so Alan wouldn’t hear. “I’m the best there is.”

With her confidence restored, Marnie giggled again. “That’s great to hear. I know he has a long way to go, but just between you and me, I’m really pulling for him.”

I smiled.
I bet you are,
I thought. The infatuation was obvious. They had probably done a story on the news about the accident, and I could imagine a picture of Ricardo before his fall, dressed in his blues with his cap on. As the younger nurse walked away, I shook my head and set my coffee down.

Harry’s five-minute break was over, and it was time for him to do some stretches. I was going to work him hard in his last week. I would encourage him to stay strong so he’d never have to return to my PT gym again.

I wondered if Ricardo would ever even make it down to physical therapy. Many patients chose to transfer to long-term care facilities, which usually spelled disaster. I had definitely exaggerated my confidence with the nurse, but I thought I could get Ricardo up and on his feet again.

I remembered the multiple breaks in his left leg. I’d seen men and women far older than him get through it. If he was truly the man that Marnie made him out to be, he could do it. But he’d have to learn how to walk again, and it would be the hardest, most painful thing he’d ever done in his life.