Chapter 17 – The Plan
1159 Words
After Andrew left, Lucy implemented the plan. No matter what her nurse said or did, she continued to stare out the window without saying a word. This was “normal” behavior for her acting like a mental patient, but she refused to take her medicine this time. Lucy never ingested the medication but would hide the pills under her tongue until it was safe to flush them down the toilet.
Now that she wasn't taking any pills, the nurse felt helpless and contacted Leo and Rosa.
"Dr. Turner, Vice President Baker, look at her. On top of not talking, Miss Yates won't take her medication or drink any water,” the nurse complained.
Rosa frowned, while Leo remained unaffected. “How long has this been going on?” he asked.
"It's been almost two days. Her body is getting weaker, and I'm concerned she won't last much longer...”
“Is there any way to get her to take her medicine? Can we sneak it into her food?” Leo inquired.
“I'm not sure. We could always try...”
“Lucy isn't your typical patient,” Rosa cut in. “We can't try to trick her. Especially if she is refusing to eat her food in the first place.”
Leo sighed. “So is our only option to watch her wither away? Maybe we should notify her family that she needs to go to a different hospital.” He was a little displeased because patients like Lucy were the most difficult to deal with. He didn't want to make any mistakes before retiring.
“Maybe... Mr. Morrow can work with her,” the nurse suggested.
“Mr. Morrow? Who is that?” Rosa asked, confused. She didn't remember any doctors with that surname.
"You mean Andrew, right? Oh, right, Rosa, he's the intern you hired,” Leo explained.
Only then did Rosa remember the young man recommended by her niece. "Does he have a way to get Lucy to take her medicine?"
The nurse had a good impression of Andrew, who was always polite to her. She usually puts on a tough exterior while she worked, so the staff, patients, and even her children were hesitant to go near her. That was, except for Andrew. He was a smooth one and often gifted her with a fruit salad while he chatted with her.
"Andrew is the only one who can make her speak. The last time he visited Lucy, they talked a lot, and he even got her to smile. Maybe Andrew is the only one who can get her to do things,” the nurse mused.
Rosa turned to look at Leo. “Really? Is this true?”
He nodded. “Miss Yates did speak with Andrew, and Andrew himself seems to be quite taken with her.”
This development surprised Rosa. Since Lucy's regular caregivers were at a loss, it was worth giving Andrew a try. “Tell Andrew to come to my office. In the meantime, keep trying with Lucy,” she told Leo.
Andrew sat on a bench in the courtyard of the first unit, a frown on his face. The last time he saw Lucy was two days ago, where he gave her the idea of refusing to eat or drink. That way, her caregivers would naturally turn to him since he was the only one who had gotten her to talk. But, Andrew didn't anticipate it taking this long for him to be contacted, and he was starting to get worried about Lucy's health.
For Andrew, the past two days were the opposite of boring. Both Cassie and Victoria had contacted him and wanted to know what he was up to. He had to give the same detailed account twice in a row and then had to listen about their lives. It was a lot of information to take in, and his perceived lack of engagement irked both the women.
Since the beginning, Andrew has been stuck in the middle between Cassie and Victoria. Cassie was easily irritated but more intelligent, while Victoria was sweeter but a little simple. Cassie didn't feel like she should “fight” for Andrew's attention against Victoria, and so she told him to contact her only when Victoria was out of the picture.
Yesterday, Victoria told Andrew that her father, Matthew, had to go to a different country to get treatment. He suffered from lung cancer, and the only effective treatment was a lung transplant. There was a hospital in another country with a more advanced technique for the operation, so Matthew took the opportunity to take his family there. Since the person behind his daughter's kidnapping had yet to been captured, he believed it was a good decision for them to be out of America for now.
To sum up, both women weren't in touch with Andrew, so he could concentrate on Lucy.
“Hey, you! Young man! You don't look pleased. Did a Russian take your girl away?” a rough voice asked from behind.
Andrew jumped before he turned to see Oliver behind him. “Oliver, come on now. A Russian wouldn't be able to steal my girlfriend because I don't have one,” he replied.
Over these past few days, Andrew had gotten to know some of the first unit patients. When they were present in reality, it was easy to get along with them. However, when they slipped back into their imaginary worlds, it was hard to know what to say.
The person that Andrew talked to the most was Oliver. The man wasn't all there, but he was always kind. Oliver would always express interest in “teaching Andrew how to fight the Russians” because he was “too skinny and would be snapped in half like a twig.” Andrew always declined such offers, though.
“Young man, just because it hasn't happened yet, doesn't mean it won't,” Oliver added. “I will do everything in my power to stop the Russians from taking over, but in the meantime, you have to be ready for anything. There are threats around every corner.”
“Threats, you say?” Andrew asked, humoring him. “How can I protect myself, then?”
Oliver's expression turned serious. “By relying on those around you when your strength has run out. Remember, I always have a weapon close by, so you can always run to me the moment a Russian soldier takes a step in your direction. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go check if there is still hot water in the taps.”
Andrew watched Oliver walk away and shook his head. The man was slipping farther from reality every day. He had just gotten up from the bench when a nurse came jogging over to him.
“You're Andrew, right?” she inquired. “Miss Baker wants to see you in her office.”
- Writer
