Page 89 of Riot Reunion
The doctor nods gravely. “Yes, and I’m afraid that is what’s happened here. The embryo in Presley’s fallopian tube grew to the point that it ruptured the tube. And because of the advanced size of the embryo, the damage has…well, I’m afraid it’s been catastrophic. Typically, with this amount of damage and blood loss, we wouldn’t expect the patient to survive. In Presley’s case, there’s a chance we might have gotten to her in time, but we need to perform surgery to stem the bleeding and attempt to correct the damage. There are some important questions we need answers to before we can proceed, and without Presley’s next of kin here—”
“What are you talking about?I’mher next of kin!”
“I’m sorry, Mr. Davis. You and Presley aren’t married. Which means that her father—”
“Fuck her father! I AM HER NEXT OF KIN!” My rage bounces off the walls, startling at least four other people, waiting anxiously for news ontheirloved ones. The doc doesn’t let my response faze him. He’s seen this all before, no doubt.
“Pax—”
“Just tell me,” I plead. “She’s lost the baby, right?”
“Yes, she has. The pregnancy was never actually viable, I’m afraid—”
“Stop saying you’re afraid!Iam fucking afraid. Tell me what you need to know before you can operate!”
The doc huffs, but a glimmer of sympathy creeps into his eyes. “I assume you’re the father?”
“What do you think!”
“Presley’s left fallopian tube is destroyed. There’s no saving that. But there’s a high probability that her uterus is damaged beyond repair as well. We won’t know until we open her up. If that is the case, we might need to perform a full hysterectomy in order to save Presley’s life.”
A full hysterectomy? Jesus fucking Christ. Scrubbing my hands over my head, I try to breathe, but I’m sealed in a vacuum. There’s no fucking air in here. I can’t.
“Sit down, Mr. Davis. Before you fall down. Please.”
I don’t get a say in the matter. The moment he guides me to a chair in the hallway, my legs crumple, refusing to keep me up anymore.
“Some women have a directive on file in cases such as these. Some women are very firm that they don’t want to accept life-saving measures if it means that they won’t be able to carry children in the future.”
“They’d ratherdie?”
The doc raises his eyebrows. “In some cases, yes. No matter how dangerous their predicament might be, some women would prefer to roll the dice and hope their outcome changes all on its own.”
“How often does that happen?” I ask numbly.
His lips pull into a tight line. “Almost never.”
“Right.”
“Did Presley ever say,mention to you what she’d like to have happen in a situation like this?”
“No. No. She…she’d want to live, though.”
“You can say that for certain?”
I look up at the doctor, a cold sweat breaking out across my shoulder blades. “How am I supposed to say anything for certain? She…”
“Was sheexcitedabout this pregnancy?”
“I—” What the fuck am I supposed to say to that? No, she wasn’t excited at all. She thought it was a burden and a nightmare, and she didn’t want it? That she was still so torn and didn’t know what to think? That she’d changed her mind and wanted to give a family with me a chance? I don’t fucking know. I’d been giving her time to think about what I said.
“It’s not an easy decision, Mr. Davis. I know. Regardless, we will still have to wait for her father—”
“Well, where the fuckishe?” I demand.
“The nurses have been trying to get through to him since you came in. We’ve left a number of messages, but as of yet, we haven’t been able to reach him. It’s Thanksgiving. And with the storm—”
“He lives five miles away! Send someone over there to hammer on his door, for fuck’s sake!”
