The doctor hung up the phone after talking with Nakia. It was nice that the woman was willing to store Alicia’s belongings for now, but she realized that she couldn’t be much help otherwise. From what Nakia said, she lived in a tiny house with very little money and a bad case of arthritis. She was on disability, and she too had once lived in Alicia’s apartment building. They’d met at the pool. But then one day, Nakia’s younger brother bought a condo and decided to rent his old house out to his sister for a bargain she’d never get anywhere else. Jumping at her only affordable opportunity to live in a house, Nakia wasted no time accepting his offer.
While Nakia may have meant well, Alyssa didn’t exactly trust her to provide proper care for Alicia once she was released from the hospital. She didn’t drive either and didn’t sound like she’d make a very competent or dependable candidate. Alyssa also suspected, based on her experience dealing with so many people as she often did in her line of work, that despite her age and arthritis, Nakia might have some emotional issues along with learning disabilities.
Alicia had emotional issues as well but didn’t come off as being below average in intelligence in any way. If anything, she was above it. At least that was the feeling Alyssa had. The problem was more about her lack of transportation and money. She didn’t know the details of Alicia’s finances, but the fact that she couldn’t remain in the apartment after the death of her uncle told her that she didn’t have enough money to support herself. The apartment wasn’t the cheapest, but it was pretty standard from what Alyssa knew of the place.
Alyssa looked at her watch. It was getting late. She headed back to Alicia’s room. A couple of nurses were tending to her vitals and whatnot.
“Just came to return her phone,” said Alyssa.
“Any luck with finding someone to help care for her?” asked one of the nurses, a petite young Black woman.
“’Fraid not. At least not yet, anyway. There are still a few names left to call, but since it’s getting late, I thought I’d wait until tomorrow. Hopefully, she’ll be awake by then and can help give me more info as to who might be the best one to call.”
The other nurse, a tall brunette with a face that looked meaner than she sounded, said, “It would be a real shame to nurse her back to health just to kick her back out on the streets.”
“Oh, I won’t let that happen. Somehow, some way, there’s got to be something that can be done for her, and I also think I can help her get some form of disability benefits.”
The Black nurse looked surprised. “You do? But she’s only got a flesh wound. A nasty one at best, but nothing that won’t heal soon enough. She was damn lucky that bullet didn’t hit bone or arteries. She lost consciousness more on account of fear and blood loss than from serious damage.”
“Yeah, I’m aware of that. But she has other problems as well,” Alyssa said, pointing to her temple, “and they may qualify her for just enough to live on.”
“Oh, that’s right,” said the brunette with a laugh. “You’re her doctor. I keep forgetting that.”
Alyssa nodded. “She’s got severe anxiety, and that right there can hinder her quality of life, which can sometimes be enough to get someone on some kind of assistance. We’ll figure that out later. Right now, the most important thing is getting her back on her feet and finding her a suitable home until she can get her own place.”
The nurses agreed.
“Then again, I’m not really sure being on her own is best for someone like her, but we’ll worry about the details later on. Is Doctor Price still around?”
Before either nurse could answer, sounds came from the bed. All three women glanced at Alicia, who was now moaning and moving her head from side to side, although her eyes remained closed.
Alyssa approached the bed and studied Alicia. She now seemed rather small and appeared much younger than her actual age. It was hard to believe she was something like fifteen years older than her, but she was.
“You sure she’s forty-eight and not twenty-eight?” asked one of the nurses, as if reading her mind.
The doctor chuckled. “Believe it or not, yes.”
“Even you look really young, Doc. Too young to be a doctor.”
“Thirty-three,” said Alyssa, as a tall, dark, wiry man in a white coat entered the room.
“Hello, ladies,” he said in a chipper voice. “How are we doing in here?”
“Well, hello back, Doctor. She moaned and turned her head a bit, as if she was having a bad dream or something,” said the Black nurse, “but there haven’t been any other significant changes just yet.”
Alyssa slipped the cell phone back inside the purse that Alicia had been carrying with her when the shooting took place.
“Should be awake in a day or two,” the doctor figured. Then he turned to Alyssa. “Any luck?”
“Not yet, no. But I’m working on it.”
More moaning and movement came from the bed. The moans then turned to desperate cries. The doctors approached one side of the bed, while the nurses approached the other.
“It’s okay there, take it easy. You’re safe now,” said Doctor Price.
Alicia’s eyes snapped open. “W-what the hell happened?”
Alyssa was quick to speak up, hoping that hearing a familiar voice would calm her. “Relax, Alicia. No one can hurt you here. You had a big scare for a while there, but you’re going to be just fine.”
Wide-eyed, Alicia’s gaze darted from one medical professional to another.
Doctor Price spoke. “You got caught in the crossfire of a nasty shoot-out, but luckily for you, you only sustained a surface wound. The bullet nicked your arm, but nothing vital. You lost some blood and required about forty stitches, but you’re going to be just fine. Worst-case scenario, you end up with a nasty scar.”
Alicia glanced at her heavily bandaged left arm.
“The nurses will give you something to help manage the pain as needed,” the doctor added.
Alicia then glanced at the windows in the room and found it dark outside. “What time is it? How long have I been out?”
“It’s about eight PM, and you’ve been unconscious for about five hours now,” said the doctor.
“What in the world happened—some kind of gang shooting or something?” Alicia asked, surprised that such a thing would happen in their small, peaceful Southern California town.
Doctor Blakely spoke up. “Unfortunately, it was a domestic dispute. A husband was stalking his ex-wife, and, well, things escalated from there…”
Alicia took a deep breath. “Was anyone killed?”
“No,” the two doctors said in unison. Then Doctor Blakely added with a reassuring smile, “No one was killed, and the man responsible is now in custody. Further down the road, however, you may be required to testify in court about what happened to you so you can help see to it that he’s made to pay for what he’s done.”
“Was anyone else hurt?”
“No.”
Changing the subject, Doctor Price said, “The good doctor here borrowed your phone to call some of your contacts. She was hoping someone would be able to help you out.”
“Oh, no,” Alicia said shyly. “I’m kind of a loner. Working at home kept me from meeting many people.”
“What do you do?” asked Doctor Price, as one of the nurses left the room after another nurse came to the door and called to her.
“I write.”
“You write?”
Alicia nodded. “I mostly write, and then I do some artificial intelligence work as well. I don’t make much money.” A burst of pain radiated from under her bandages as she tried to shift into a different position. She yelped.
The doctor stepped toward her. “Take it easy there. Not so fast,” he said.
“In truth, I have no place to go.”
“No other relatives in the area?”
Alicia shook her head. “Not even out of the area. My uncle died right after the first of last month. I was able to remain there during the month since the rent was paid until yesterday, when the first rolled around again, but that’s it. I’m on the streets now. The few friends I do have couldn’t possibly help. They’re either too far away or they have their own problems to deal with and couldn’t exactly take on mine as well. I’ll have to go to a shelter until I can work long enough to save enough to maybe rent a room somewhere.”
“Could I talk to you for a minute outside?” Alyssa suddenly asked Doctor Price.
Doctor Price looked at the younger doctor, back at Alicia, then back at Alyssa, who gave Alicia another reassuring smile and added a wink this time around.
“Sure,” said Doctor Price. “Back in a second, Miss Falkenberg.”
“Okay,” said Alicia.
Alyssa stepped out into the corridor and quickly spoke to the doctor. “I have an idea.”
“Yeah?” said Doctor Price.
“I have a very strong feeling that she may qualify for some type of disability benefits, which she once received before.”
The doctor looked at her, unsure of what point she was trying to make.
“She suffers from extreme anxiety. I’m not sure how far back this condition goes or what it stems from, but I have an idea.”
“Okay,” said the doctor, eager to hear it.
“I have a friend who’s a detective. If she can confirm that Alicia has no record—and I have a strong feeling she doesn’t—I was thinking I could step aside as her doctor and take her in until she can hopefully get her benefits reinstated and is able to support herself. I’m not so sure living on her own is necessarily the best thing for her, but I know there’s no law saying she can’t be alone either.”
The doctor took a moment to absorb Alyssa’s words. “Well,” he said hesitantly, “that’s very kind of you, Doctor Blakely, but would it really be wise to get involved personally?”
Alyssa understood the doctor’s concerns. She couldn’t have a bleeding heart for every patient in trouble. She couldn’t be expected to rescue them beyond the call of what was required of her as a doctor. “It’s certainly not something I’ve done before or would do for just anyone, but I think that as long as I drop the doctor-patient part of it… well, we’ll see,” she finished with a shrug.
The other doctor, who had been leaning casually against the wall, arms comfortably folded in front of him, said, “I can’t tell you what to do with your personal life, Doc. I can only caution you against getting too emotionally involved as a doctor. We can’t save ’em all, Doc. We can’t save ’em all.”
ns216.73.216.236da2
and then Add to home screen.