Patriot games - Tom Clancy [138]
"Heads up, we have an emergency coming in from ER. Major eye trauma to a ten-year-old." Lisa-Marie was already moving. Cathy walked to the wall phone and punched the number for surgeons' lounge. "This is Ryan in Wilmer six. Where's Bernie?"
"I'll get him." A moment later: "Doctor Katz."
"Bernie, I have a major eye trauma coming into six. Gene Wood in ER says it's a baddie."
"On the way." Cathy Ryan turned.
"Terri?"
"All ready," the anesthesiologist assured her.
"Give me another two minutes," Lisa-Marie said. Cathy went into the scrub room to rewash her hands. Bernie Katz arrived before she started. He was a thoroughly disreputable-looking man, only an inch taller than Cathy Ryan, with longish hair and a Bismarck mustache. He was also one of the best surgeons at Hopkins.
"You'd better lead on this one," she said. "I haven't done a major trauma in quite a while."
"No problem. How's the baby coming?"
"Great." A new sound arrived, the high-pitched shrieks of a child in agony. The doctors moved into the OR. They watched dispassionately as two orderlies were strapping the child down. Why weren't you in school? Cathy asked him silently. The left side of the boy's face was a mess. The reconstructive teams would have to work on that later. Eyes came first. The child had already tried to be brave, but the pain was too great for that. Terri did the first medication, with both orderlies holding the child's arm in place. Cathy and Bernie hovered over the kid's face a moment later.
"Bad," Dr. Katz observed. He looked to the circulating nurse. "I have a procedure scheduled for one o'clock. Have to bump it. This one's going to take some time."
"All ready on this side," the scrub nurse said.
"Two more minutes," the anesthesiologist advised. You had to be careful medicating kids.
"Gloves," Cathy said. Bernie came over with them a moment later. "What happened?"
"He was riding his bike down the sidewalk on Monument Street," the orderly said. "He hit something and went through an appliance-store window."
"Why wasn't he in school?" she asked, looking back at the kid's left eye. She saw hours of work and an uncertain outcome.
"President's Day, Doc," the orderly replied.
"Oh. That's right." She looked at Bernie Katz. His grimace was visible around the mask.
"I don't know, Cathy." He was examining the eye through the magnifying-glass headset. "Must have been a cheap window-lots of slivers. I count five penetrations. Jeez, look at how that one's extended into the cornea. Let's go."
The Chevy pulled into one of Hopkins ' high-rise parking garages. From the top level the driver had a perfect view of the door leading from the hospital to the doctors' parking area. The garage was guarded, of course, but there was plenty of traffic in and out, and it was not unusual for someone to wait in a car while another visited a family member inside. He settled back and lit a cigarette, listening to music on the car radio.
Ryan put roast beef on his hard roll and selected iced tea. The Officer and Faculty Club had an unusual arrangement for charging: he set his tray on a scale and the cashier billed him by weight. Jack paid up his two dollars and ten cents. The price for lunch was hardly exorbitant, but it did seem an odd way to set the price. He joined Robby Jackson in a corner booth.
"Mondays!" he observed to his friend.
"Are you kidding? I can relax today. I was up flying Saturday and Sunday."
"I thought you liked that."
"I do," Robby assured him. "But both days I got off before seven. I actually got to sleep until six this morning. I needed the extra two hours. How's the family?"
"Fine. Cathy had a big procedure today-had to be up there early. The one bad thing about being married to a surgeon, they always start early. Sometimes it's a little hard on Sally."
"Yeah, early to bed, early to rise-might as well be dead," Robby agreed. "How's the baby coming?"
"Super." Jack smiled. "He's an active little bugger. I never figured how women can take that-having the kid kick, turn and like that, I mean."
"Mind