Up in the Air

Chapter 9

Garrett sat in a daze. She’d been warned of the defense attorney’s tactics to try to get their clients off the hook, but the surgeon never thought that they would resort to something so low. She stared mindlessly out of the car window as they traveled back to Pittsburgh from their court date in Fayette County. She wasn’t even sure who it was that was driving, all she could think about was how could she have let herself fall right into their hands. ‘If it hadn’t been for the District Attorney protesting the line of questioning, I could have been the one that damn lawyer said tried to rape the waitress.’ There were so many questions and the answers that the slick lawyer demanded really had no bearing on the case except to find anything that he could about the surgeon and discredit her testimony in the eyes of the jury.

Garrett sighed as she watched the world go by around her. ‘Is that what I’ve been doing all of my adult life…watching everything go by?’ His questions and her testimony had given her a lot to think about and it wasn’t all cut and dry like she had thought her life to be. You either were or you weren’t, but what if you didn’t know? She could see now, reflecting back on it, how he had pulled the answers that he was looking for out of her. ‘How could people stoop that low?’ Her mind traveled back to the events of earlier that day.

The huge wooden doors opened up and she was beckoned to enter into the courtroom. The prosecution called her as a material witness and it was now her duty to give testimony to the collection of the samples from the body of Leza McCoy, the waitress that she had treated as a trauma patient.

Garrett was the last of the medical personnel to be called to the stand. The others had been called one by one as to their importance and involvement in the participation of the collection of evidence from the patient. Each one had remained in the gallery of the courtroom when they were dismissed from the stand. Whether it was for support of the next one to be called or just the interest in the case itself, it didn’t matter, it just let the number of witnesses in the hall dwindle down to the most significant, namely Dr. Garrett Trivoli. The lone survivor, again.

The surgeon took in a deep breath and started her walk to the front of the courtroom. Taking her place at the empty chair next to the bench, Garrett waited for the Bailiff to swear her in, then as she lowered her hand from the oath-taking position, took her designated seat. Once settled in, the smiling face of the District Attorney met the surgeon.

The polite mannerisms of the man made it obvious as to the reason for his early rise in the power structure of the county’s judicial system. The prosecutor’s first questions were ones of verification as to who she was and what her qualifications were on the night of the alleged crime. His boyish charm put Garrett at ease as he asked the pointed questions associated with the collection of the evidence from the victim’s body and the handling thereof as it was readied for the crime lab. When the events of that collection were relayed to the courtroom for the jury to hear, the young man courteously thanked her for her time and assistance in the trial. Having no more information to extract from her, the lawyer stated, "It’s your witness," nodding to the defense table. Then he turned and sat down pleased with the surgeon’s testimony.

The judge looked out over the jury and then announced, "It’s now the Defense’s turn to question the witness."

Garrett let her eyes drift over the courtroom while she waited for the defense to cross-examine her. The sight of blonde hair drew her attention to the last row where Danni was seated with Mom and Rosie. ‘Just a few more minutes and we’re on our way home. I’ve got to remember to check on Chris before I head home from the hospital. Don’t want to…’ Garrett’s thoughts were disturbed as she heard her name being called out by the Adonis of a man in the suit that was standing in front of her.

"Miss…I mean…Dr. Trivoli," the intense looking dark-haired man flashed his well rehearsed grin at her, "Isn’t it a little unusual for someone of your age and experience to be assuming such an important role in the Trauma Center?"

The question caught Garrett off guard. "Huh, what does my age have to do with it? I have plenty of experience."

He laughed and let his right hand slide smoothly into his suit jacket pocket. "I ask the questions here and you answer them, Doctor." He turned and played to the jury acting like the woman on the witness stand had no courtroom savvy. It would be his first attempt of many to discredit her testimony. "Then, can you tell us non-medical people exactly what is considered a trauma in the world of medicine?"

The surgeon didn’t need to think about this answer at all. It was her life and rolled off her tongue as though she penned its definition. "Trauma is any body wound or shock produced by physical injury, as from violence or an accident."

"Now, are you stating for the court that you have experience in handling traumas, such that are indicated in this case?" He watched her as though he was waiting for a child to answer.

"Yes," Garrett nodded slowly, "It is my testimony that I have experience in handling traumas."

"Where did you acquire your trauma experience?"

"In the United States Navy, as a Lieutenant."

The Defense Attorney strutted up to the front of the courtroom. "Dr. Trivoli, you tell us that you were a Lieutenant in the Navy. Where exactly were you stationed during your time with the Navy?"

"I was stationed onboard two or three aircraft carriers as a Flight Surgeon after my basic training."

"Can you tell me how the women onboard those vessels were treated?" He tilted his head as if really interested in her reply.

"They were treated like sailors, sir. We were all there to do our assigned jobs."

He stood before the jury, letting his right hand slowly play along the railing in a thoughtful pattern. "Were there any…oh, let’s say, fighter pilots that were female under your care?"

"No, not on my deployments to sea. Some were cooks, computer specialists, communication specialists, nurses."

"And, of course, you, the only surgeon onboard." He looked directly into her eyes and smiled. "It was your responsibility to treat the entire crew for any health concerns or accidental injures, is that correct?"

"Yes, I was the only surgeon paired with a general practice physician."

"Then tell me, Doctor, during those years in the Navy, how many rape victims did you treat?"

"None."

"How many did you see someone else treating during that time?"

"None."

The Defense Attorney turned to the jury and smiled charmingly at them one by one. "Dr. Trivoli, have you ever been raped?"

"No!"

"Have you ever witnessed a rape?"

"No!"

"Have you ever raped someone?"

The answer was prompt. "NO!"

The District Attorney stood, "I object, Your Honor."

The Council for the Defense was quick to begin a reply to the Judge, "Your Honor…"

The Judge tapped his fingers on the handle of his gavel. "The court will take a ten minute recess." Then looking from one attorney to the other, "I’ll see you both in my chambers, now!" He then got up and left the bench, retreating into his chambers with the two opposing lawyers not far behind.

Exactly ten minutes went by before the three men returned to the courtroom. The disgruntled look on the face of the Prosecutor was all anyone needed to see that, at least for the time being, this line of questioning would continue.

"Doctor, if you have never been raped, witnessed a rape or have raped another person, how would you know to identify a rape trauma, from any other trauma?"

"The introduction of bruising around the vaginal area, the teeth marks on the breasts, and the multiple contusions on the victim that would align with the placement of hands."

The Defense Attorney appeared to become very confident, his posture straightened as if he grew another six inches. He stood over Garrett in the witness stand asking, "Dr. Trivoli, have you never heard of sex partners that enjoy a variety of methods to become fulfilled? Such as sadomasochists?"

Garrett’s eyebrow quirked when the question was asked, yet she responded quickly. "Yes, I have heard of such practices, but that wasn’t the case here."

"Doctor, how can you be sure that wasn’t the case? Aren’t you the first one to mention the need of a ‘Rape Kit’?"

"Yes, I was in charge of the Trauma Room. I called for the Rape Kit."

"Did you ask all the males to leave the room?"

"Yes."

"Why was that?"

"To give the victim the privacy she deserved. She had been violated once. Having men in the room during the processing of the Rape Kit would be like having it telecast on TV, thus violating her again. I did not feel that the men needed to be in the room. She had been violated enough."

"Your Honor, would you please direct the witness to just answer the question and NOT add her own commentary."

The Judge smirked. He didn’t like the way the Defense Attorney was handling such an esteemed doctor. "Mr. Hanington, you asked a vague question, she seemed to answer it appropriately."

The Lawyer for the Defense felt that he was losing ground and attempted to discredit her answer. "Isn’t it true that you told one of the men who was in the room that you never wanted to see him step foot in your Trauma Room again?"

"Yes."

The slick attorney smiled to the jurors and asked a series of rapid-fire questions. "Isn’t it true that the real reason you asked those men to leave was because you don’t like MEN?"

"No!"

"And you feel you are superior to them in EVERY way?" Both his eyes and tone emphasizing the word.

"Why that’s absurd!"

"Doctor, that doesn’t answer the question. Don’t you really think that men are the weaker sex?"

The District Attorney stood up to object just as the final question was being asked. "Wouldn’t you just prefer to not have men around at all?"

Garrett’s response was quiet, her throat parched from all of the answers she had given. "No."

Just as the District Attorney got the words, "I object" out of his mouth, the petite blonde woman in the back of the gallery was standing up yelling. "Stop! Just stop it!"

The surgeon’s eyes adjusted to the figure in the distance off to the right of the Defense Attorney. There stood Danni, protesting the injustice that was befalling one of her menagerie, the most cherished one of all.

The Judge slammed his gavel down on the bench looking for compliance in his domain. "Order! Order in this courtroom."

"But Judge, they are lies, they are all lies." The petite nurse leaned over the chair in front of her, her arms now supporting her weight. "He doesn’t know her like I…"

"Young lady, if you don’t sit down and be quiet, I’ll throw you right out of this courtroom." The Judge banged the gavel once more for emphasis to his statement. "Not one more word, Miss." He cautioned her.

Karen and Rosie both reached up, grabbing onto Danni’s tensed arms and pulled her down into her seat. The small body plopped into the hard wooden chair in disgust.

"Hey, what are you trying to do, get us thrown out of here?" Rosie’s eyebrows were furrowed deep with concern for her friends. "She needs all of our support in here, where she can see us, not standing out in the hall behind closed doors." The blonde sighed and crossed her arms over her chest in a defensive positioning.

Mom leaned into Danni’s ear and whispered softly to her. "Do you want to give them more ammunition to use to discredit her?"

The young woman froze in the realization. Her green eyes grew wider and she found herself locking gazes with the raven-haired woman on the stand. Trying to draw no more attention to her, or Garrett for that matter, Danni closed her eyes and shook her head. "No," she whispered and then closed her eyes to the pain that was gathering in her being.

Danni’s face registered disbelief that anything Garrett said could or would be taken out of context. But the lawyer was doing a fine job of twisting everything that Garrett would answer to use in his favor. Danni sat riveted to her seat watching it all unfold.

Garrett let her eyes stray from the sparse country landscape outside of the car and turned her head only enough to bring Danni into view out of the corner of her eye. The blonde woman had been sitting quietly in the rear seat with the surgeon. ‘I guess she has a lot to think about, too!’ It wasn’t like Danni to travel this long and not try to get a conversation going, especially with the likes of Rosie and Mom in the front seat. The surgeon wondered if the four of them would ever be that friendly again after what had transpired in the courtroom today. She’d surely understand why if they chose not to be with her again.

The surgeon let her head drop and rested it in her hand, wiping her forehead as she tried to ward off the ensuing headache. When did everything start to go wrong? She loved her work, she was feeling comfortable in the hospital, and she was finally making friends, even letting one small blonde nurse begin to touch her heart. She’d never felt that comfortable before, no matter whom she was with. Now, in the matter of several minutes of courtroom interrogation, she felt like she was losing it all. She closed her eyes and let her left hand slide off her lap, coming to rest on the seat. She was just so tired from the night of surgery that the tension from the courtroom only made it worse. She felt as if all of the life had drained out of her being, leaving nothing but an empty shell.

Danni hurt for her friend. She could see the torment written in the tense muscles of Garrett’s face. She wanted to do nothing more than reach over and hug the woman, soothing her pain. The nurse wondered at this point how wise that might be. She had to do something to show the surgeon that she was not alone. That’s when she saw Garrett’s hand slip onto the seat. Reaching with her right hand, she let it worm right under the large palm and slide smoothly into place, locking their fingers together. Danni held her breath waiting for Garrett to notice her touch.

The surgeon cast her eyes down to her right hand. There she could see the petite fingers and thumb clutching onto her. The warmth that it brought with it seemed to invade and pulsate outward into the drained woman. Like a tiny battery it began its charging of Garrett’s depleted soul. ‘She’s wormed her way into my grasp just like she wormed her way into my heart.’ The surgeon could feel her heart warming and the love being poured into it. ‘To be there for someone when they are down? When there is no one else to stand by you? Is this what love is really all about?’

Garrett sighed. ‘Sex, is that all everybody ever thinks about? Is that all that love is really about?’ Hell, she was not a stranger to the mechanics of making love. ‘No,’ she thought, ‘not love, but rather the act of sex, itself.’ She was a doctor, for gods’ sake. They had made her well aware of anatomy and its uses in medical school, even in her early level biology courses. Then, who could forget the health classes that were a part of her high school years? They were all meant to prepare her for life…for love, whatever that was. She felt a sinking feeling in her stomach, a single thought raced through her mind. ‘Am I in love?’ Terror gripped her heart causing her eyes to widen, allowing the whites to show completely around the shimmering blue. ‘I’ve just learned…I’m still learning to be a friend. How could I possibly be in love?’ She fought back her fear. The idea of being intimate, that close to someone, letting that person know you sometimes better than you know yourself scared her. They said that you lost all control when you were in love, and control was one thing that the surgeon loved to be in. ‘Besides, who would I possibly be in love with…Danni?’

The surgeon lifted her eyes to gaze at the woman next to her. The concern and thoughtfulness of Danni’s small action was feeding into Garrett’s own insecurities about what love was supposed to be. It slowly became evident to the surgeon that love was a feeling that reached deep into your soul and gave your being the strength to survive. If that was what she was truly feeling now, it could be compared to the jump starting of a dead battery with one so full of energy.

She had thought of herself as incapable of love, well, at least in that sense of the word. Sure, she had experimented in college, just about everyone did. Heck, they were all young adults still searching for the meaning of life and love. But the few attempts had all been so meaningless, devoid of emotion. Maybe that was why the experiences were only that and nothing lasting had ever become of them. Perhaps it had not been the partners that she had paired herself with, but rather that she was primarily the cause of the lackluster couplings. There never was any passion or unbridled sentiment in it, just the mechanical couplings and manipulation of highly sensual areas. Besides, it didn’t seem to matter what the anatomy was. They had done nothing for her but reaffirmed her solitary life, spurring her unquenchable thirst for the knowledge that would be necessary for a stellar career as a surgeon. That seemed to be the only place that brought meaning to her life. It was the place where she found her passion giving her a sense of fulfillment. But now, she drew in a deep breath, was she indeed in need of something more, something that had always alluded her before?

This year of Fellowship was turning out to be more than she had anticipated. She closed her eyes, wishing that her life were not as complicated as it was turning out to be. ‘Thank the gods that this year would soon be over. Maybe then I can get some semblance of normalcy back,’ she mused. ‘Damn you, McMurray! This is all your fault.’ She cursed the man who was making her stretch herself into places, feelings and things that she had never thought of before coming here to the ‘Burgh.

‘The ‘Burgh,’ she chuckled to herself and wondered when her mind had grasped onto that hometown concept. ‘I never really associated myself with any one place before. Well, except for San Francisco were I grew up as a child.’ Then visions of a sparkling, slowly growing smile crossed her mind and she knew. Garrett turned her head, stealing a look at the woman whose hand was holding onto her own. ‘Could I actually be falling in love?’

Danni caught the last few seconds of the stolen glance and met it with one of her own. ‘By the Gods, I love the sensation of just holding her hand.’ Then to prove that it was not a dream, she gently squeezed her fingers and found the touch to be returned and very real. She closed her eyes, and savored the moment.

The last thing that Danni wanted to do was to leave Garrett’s side. Slowly she slipped her hand out of the surgeon’s as the car slowed to a stop in front of the Hospital.

Karen turned to view the occupants of the rear seat. "You two going to be alright to drive home?"

"Yeah, if you want I could drop you off at your door." Rosie chimed in. Her eyes searched the rearview mirror for any indication of acceptance to her proposal.

"No," Garrett cleared her throat. "I have to check on my patient. Thanks for the offer Rosie."

"Hey, Doc, I don’t care what they asked you today, we’re still friends, right?"

The surgeon nodded her head slowly and then got out of the car. She couldn’t stand to be confined by the vehicle any longer and needed to be out in the open, free without any constraints. Garrett got out and headed into the lobby of the building, so thought of as home.

"Thanks, Rosie." Danni scurried across the seat and stood outside the door, ready to close it. "She’s had a tough day. I think it’s going to take some time for her to get it all together again. I’ll get her home, don’t worry."

The nurse closed the rear door of the car and followed the surgeon’s path.

There was a moment or two of silence in the car before either of the women spoke.

Rosie rolled her eyes then whistled a few notes slightly off key. "So, do you think Garrett is gay?"

"The only one that can answer that is Garrett. How about I let you be the one to ask her?" Mom stared at the driver of the car, challenging her to cross paths with the already emotionally charged woman.

"ME?" Rosie grabbed tightly onto the steering wheel and began shaking her head. "Don’t make no difference to me. She’s not my type anyway."

"Didn’t think you were a fool either, Rosie." Karen winked. "Either way, our Doc’s in good hands with Danni." The older nurse pried herself out of the front seat and closed the door of the car. She waved as Rosie pulled out into the flow of traffic. ‘God, Danni, I hope you get the answer you’re looking for.’

Once inside the building, the old façade of the stoic surgeon was pulled in place. The air of arrogance that accompanied it was evident by the aggressiveness displayed in her walk. Reaching the information desk in the lobby, Garrett picked up the house phone and called directly into the Intensive Care Unit that she had admitted Chris to earlier that morning. After a few brief words with Chris’s nurse, the phone was replaced on its cradle and Garrett charted her course for the elevators.

"Gar, wait up!" Danni’s short legs worked double time in an effort do so. The nurse finally reached her as they stepped onto the elevator together. "Is Chris alright?"

Garrett nodded her response, keeping her thoughts to herself.

"I’m sorry for what happened today. You didn’t deserve to be verbally battered by that…" Danni found herself becoming embittered with her resentment of the defense lawyer. "Why I should have just…"

Garrett turned a weary eye at the nurse, "Danni getting yourself thrown out of court would have done nothing to stop him. I’m a survivor, don’t you know that by now?"

"But it didn’t make it right, what he did, I mean."

"No, I agree but it wouldn’t have stopped him either. He had a job to do, I was the one in his way." Garrett shrugged her shoulders. "It doesn’t matter anyhow."

"Doesn’t matter! Doesn’t matter, it matters to me and it should matter to you, too." The nurse was letting go of some pent up steam.

"It’s over, Danni." Blue eyes looked into green letting the calm after the storm penetrate the blonde. "It’s over." Her words were but a whisper that gave way to the sound of the elevator doors opening on the ninth floor and the tall woman stepped out onto the floor.

"Gar, I thought you were going to check on Chris?" Danni looked puzzled. "Isn’t she in the ICU on the Fifth floor?"

"Yes, but the best medicine in the world for her, is here on the Ninth Floor."

"Gar, pharmacy is on the…" Then it hit Danni. "This is the observation floor. You’re going to take Marie down to see her, aren’t you?"

The surgeon’s eyebrow rose. "I always thought that you were a smart nurse." Garrett let the corners of her mouth turn upward. "First I’m going to check her out and discharge her. Then, I’ll take her to see Chris."

The petite woman smiled. "Mind if I tag along?"

"No, not at all." The surgeon turned and started down the hall. "I was kind of hoping that you would."

Danni fell in step as they continued down the hall to Marie’s room. The blonde wondered what had gotten into the surgeon, but thought it best not to ask.

"You seem to have a pretty good rapport with her, perhaps you should go in first." Garrett stopped outside the door to Marie’s room. "I’ll go to the nurse’s station and get her discharged."

"Okay, but what should I tell her?"

"You’ll know what to say, you always do." Garrett let the lopsided smile come forth for the first time all day, then went about her duties, leaving Danni standing alone at Marie’s door.

Knocking gently first, Danni entered. "Hey!" She smiled at the woman sitting in the bed. "Care for a little company this evening?"

Marie’s face brightened immediately, seeing who it was. "Nurse Danni, come on in." She looked past the blonde and waited for a moment before speaking again. "You didn’t bring anyone with you? I was hoping you might."

"If you’re talking about Gar, I did. She’ll be in after she gets your discharge papers going."

"Discharge? I’m being let go?"

"Yeah, this is only a 23 hour observation unit. We kept you here just to make sure that nothing was missed last night. Besides, with the blood that you lost it was a good idea to keep an eye on you for a while." Danni studied the face of the older woman. Her hazel eyes darted back and forth in a worried motion. "Marie, is something wrong?"

"Nothing, really. It’s just that I didn’t want to be at home without Chris."

"Hmmm…I think that we might be able to get you in to see her. How’s that?"

"You could? That would be great." Her mood definitely perked up at the possibility of seeing her lover. "Will it be alright?"

"Gar, will make it alright." Danni winked and walked over to the closet in the room. "Let’s see about getting you dressed to leave. What do you say?"

The nurse opened the closet door revealing nothing but empty hangers. "Well, looks like you might just have to stay here until morning with nothing to wear but that "air-conditioned" gown."

"Okay, Marie. You’re all set to get out of here." Garrett came bounding into the room. She was excited about getting the two women back together. "I’ve taken care of the paperwork and all you’ll have to do is sign them."

"Thank you, when can I see Chris?" Marie got up off the bed in anticipation of leaving.

"Whoa, wait a minute. Let me get a wheelchair first." The surgeon motioned her to sit back down. "You lost a lot of blood yesterday, don’t go getting up that fast."

"I’ll be fine once I see Chris."

"Gar, we got a little problem here." Danni motioned toward the empty closet.

"Hmmm…I see." She thought for a moment then held up an index finger. "I’ll be right back." Then as fast as she said it, she was gone.

The nurse just shook her head in total amazement of her friend as a smile slowly stretched across her face.

"She is a beautiful woman. You’re very lucky to have her as a friend." Marie sat watching Danni begin to blush.

"Well, she is fun to be around when there’s nothing pressing that needs her attention."

"I can see that. Well, speak of the devil."

Garrett entered the room with a set of O.R. Scrubs in her hand. "Well, they’re not a brand name, but at least you won’t feel a draft." She handed them over to Marie. "I took a guess on the size. If they don’t fit, I’ll…"

"Thank you, I’m sure that they will be fine." She held them up and measured them against her body. "Yep, couldn’t have picked better if I did it myself." Marie headed toward the bathroom. "I’ll go change."

Danni waited until Marie had closed the door before she pulled Garrett toward the hall. "Gar, I think she really doesn’t want to leave without Chris."

The surgeon puckered her lips and thought for a moment with her index finger tapping on them. "I have an idea. Let me go check out Chris myself. I’ll meet you two up there."

"Okay, but what are you going to do?"

"You’ll see." The tall surgeon winked and took off down the hall.

By the time that Danni had wheeled Marie to the ICU, a good twenty minutes had passed since she last set eyes on the surgeon. Stopping at the entrance to the ICU, the nurse picked up the courtesy phone and spoke to the nurse at the desk. Marie watched as Danni’s brow crinkled with lines as she listened to the voice over the receiver.

Starting to worry, the newly released patient fidgeted in her seat. "What’s wrong? Is something wrong with Chris?" The woman’s voice was full of concern.

"No, it seems that Dr. Trivoli thinks that it’s time to move Chris out of the ICU." Danni hung up the phone. "She’s in there ordering everybody around to get your friend moved. They want us to wait and accompany Chris to her new room."

"That’s good isn’t it?"

"Very good." Danni smiled and patted the woman’s shoulder.

No more than ten minutes passed by when the automatic doors of the ICU sprang into action. Danni instinctively pulled Marie’s wheelchair out of the way, knowing what to expect from the demanding surgeon. Marie’s mouth dropped open at the sight. There, pushing the bed herself was Garrett Trivoli. Her mouth spouted off orders as she moved ever-forward stopping for nothing and no one in her path. Danni hid her eyes and chuckled at the sight of the Charge Nurse from the ICU running after her, demanding to know want kind of medicine couldn’t be given in her ICU. The blonde nurse just shook her head as she listened to the surgeon’s reply.

"I told you before," Garrett’s strong voice bellowed, "it can’t be given in your ICU and I’m taking her to someplace that it can."

"I’ll…I’ll…" the flustered nurse was becoming winded.

"You seem to forget who the doctor is here. It’s me and I’m doing what is best for my patient. End of story." Garrett stopped only long enough to cast an evil eye at the ensuing nurse. "Do I make myself clear?" The surgeon’s eyebrow rose nearly into her hairline.

The Charge Nurse skidded to a stop. "Clear, yes, perfectly clear, Doctor Trivoli." She turned around and headed back into the unit, muttering as she did.

"I heard that, Nurse." The surgeon yelled over her shoulder. "The "R" for my middle initial does not stand for Royalpainintheass."

Danni and Marie could hear a muffled scream coming from the unit as the doors closed sealing the unit off from the outside world and found it impossible to keep from laughing.

"She is a card, I’ll say that."

Danni smiled, nodding her head as she started to follow the surgeon and bed ahead of her. "That, she is."

The reuniting of the couple was a tender scene to watch as each one greeted the other with whispered words and loving touches. Marie stood, bending over to give a gentle kiss to Chris’s forehead then sat back down letting her hand nestle into her lover’s hand. Just the idea of them being together was the best medicine of all for the both of them. Their faces brightened and the worry lines eased from around Marie’s eyes. They were home with each other and that was exactly what they both needed.

"Chris, you look so pale, I…"

"Now, Marie, you start that babying me and I’ll get Dr. Trivoli to take me back to that ICU." The skinny woman in the bed winked at her lover. "I understand that it was your fault that I got the best damn surgeon in the building to work on me. Thanks, Marie." Her voice softened and she brought Marie’s hand to her mouth and placed a gentle kiss upon it. "I love you."

Marie stood there like a schoolgirl and blushed at the blatant display of affection. The words were as welcome as the touch of her lover.

Garrett and Danni stood by the door mesmerized by the scene that they had brought about. Finally, Danni whispered, "Chris seems to be looking better already."

"Yeah, I guess that handholding is the best medicine that I could have ordered for her." Garrett moved her hand to Danni’s and squeezed it gently. "Providing that it’s with the right person, of course."

The nurse looked up at the tall surgeon and smiled. "You’ve got that right." Danni returned the squeeze with one of her own and turned for the door. "Let’s give them their privacy."

Garrett nodded and followed the blonde, closing the door after they were out. "I’ll just tell the nurses that if Chris needs anything, she’ll ask for it."

"Good idea." Danni winked. "I’ll meet you at the elevator."

The nurse couldn’t believe what she had felt. ‘Was that Garrett who just squeezed my hand or was I just imagining it?’ Either way, it sure felt nice.

Danni followed Garrett as they each drove their own cars home. Between the rush hour traffic and the events of earlier that day, sleep was a much-needed thing. The nurse noticed the tired look on the surgeon’s face as she opened the front door of the house to enter.

"Gar, you’re looking really tired. Why don’t you get some sleep? You know, you didn’t get more than a couple of minutes last night at the hospital."

The tall woman smirked then nodded. "You going to tuck me in, too?" It was a feeble attempt at humor.

"Yeah, I might just do that." She feigned swatting the surgeon’s behind stating, "Now off to bed with you. I’ll be up in a minute to tuck you in."

"Yes, mom." The tired surgeon pulled her body up the stairs one at a time using the railing to help her. "I’ll brush my teeth, too!" She teased.

Danni grabbed the mail from the box and closed the door. Sorting through it she noticed that most of it was for Garrett. "Hmm…interesting." She put them on the desk and took her coat off.

"Okay young lady, I’m coming up to check on you." Danni announced as she started up the staircase. "You better be in bed and fast…" By this time Danni was standing at Garrett’s wide open door. The woman was stretched out across her bed still completely dressed, but deep in slumber. "Asleep," she whispered. Walking into the bedroom, Danni took the ends of the comforter and covered her tall friend. Bending over, she lightly kissed the tension-lined forehead and whispered, "Sleep well, Gar." ‘I love you.’

Danni walked back to the doorway and leaned up against its framework. ‘How could anyone think you to be a monster of any sort? Why, if he was here right now…’ The nurse thought about what she would do to the weasel of a man who thought himself to be some god-brandishing hypocrite. She’d seen his type before. They do anything to get their clients off, no matter whose reputation they destroyed.

She watched the gentle giant sleeping and her mind began to relive the courtroom all over.

"Doctor, before that unruly outburst, you stated that you don’t have a problem with men, is that correct?"

Garrett glared at the attorney for his jab at her friend’s behavior. "Yes." Her voice was strong and vibrant now. The glass of water that she had found during the chaos helped her immensely.

"Doctor, if you don’t have an issue with men, then are you currently in a relationship with a man?"

"Objection, Your Honor!" The District Attorney stated.

The Defense Attorney smiled at the Judge. "Your Honor, it is my intention to show a pattern that will indicate that the witness does have a problem with men."

"The objection is over-ruled." The Jurist turned a wary eye to the Defense Attorney. "But, Mr. Hanington, don’t stray too far."

"That won’t be an issue, Your Honor." The attorney replied smiling cockily at the jurors. Turning back to the witness, the well-manicured man asked. "Do you have somebody that you date occasionally, say a boyfriend, Dr. Trivoli?"

"I don’t really have much free time for relationships." Garrett glared at him wondering what right he had to pry into her life. She wasn’t the one on trial.

"NO?" He looked puzzled for a moment, and then a look of revelation came over his face. "Are you married?"

"I object, Your Honor, relevance?" The quick voice of the District Attorney could be heard.

"The objection is again over-ruled. We have to give the Defense the opportunity to prove the point he stated that was his purpose for questioning the witness."

The Defense Attorney was getting smug. "Doctor, please answer the question. Are you married?"

"No."

"Doctor, is there ANYONE in your life now? Are you perhaps living with someone?"

The look on Garrett’s face indicated that she was taken aback by the question. She eyed the blonde in the back row. "Yes, I currently share a house with a friend."

"Have you slept with your ‘FRIEND’?"

The surgeon paled at the question, it was as if she was struggling to answer the question. "Yes, we have shared a bed if that is what you mean."

"So, Doctor," he strolled over to the jury box, "is your FRIEND a man,"

he adjusted his tie, "or a woman?"

"A woman, but it’s not the way you are implying." Garrett gazed at Danni while she was answering the question.

The blonde woman thought about the look she’d seen on Garrett’s face when their eyes had met for that brief second or two, it was almost apologetic for some reason. ‘No use in speculating, Danni, it’s her past and you weren’t part of it.’ Her mind drifted back to the courtroom.

"Doctor, what is it exactly that you think I am implying?" He looked, at her wide-eyed and innocently.

"It appears, sir, that you are implying that we were intimate, which isn’t the case. We were stranded at a ski lodge due to the weather. There was only one room left, and it had only one bed."

"Thank you Doctor, but it appears that you are rather defensive on this issue. Have you ever been in intimate contact with one of your ‘FRIENDS’?"

"Only as far as giving one a massage after a particularly hard day at work."

"Let’s be honest here, shall we? Isn’t it true that the real reason you aren’t in a relationship with a man is because you don’t WANT to be with a man?"

"No!" Garrett let her eyes dart between the two attorneys. "As I stated before I don’t have time for ANY relationship right now with my career."

"Career, yes, your career…" he thought out loud as he planned his next attack. "Doctor, do you think that the so-called ‘Glass Ceiling’ actually exists?" He smiled coyly at the jury stand. "You do know what I’m talking about don’t you?"

"Yes, that women only rise to the point of the ‘Glass ceiling’ in the workplace while men continue to rise above it."

"Why is that?" The Defense Attorney slowed his step and looked directly at her.

"It seems that there continues to be the ‘Good Ol’ Boys Network’ in play for all areas of the workforce."

"Does that bother you, Dr. Trivoli?"

"Of course it bothers me."

"Isn’t it because you feel that men are held in higher esteem than women?"

"To a certain extent, yes."

"Isn’t that the reason you got the position of Flight Surgeon on your deployments to sea? They thought that by the sound of your name that you were a male."

"I didn’t make that decision."

"But you did make the decision to ask for the Rape Kit, because you felt that this was a way to get back at a man, for all the injustice that happens to women. Didn’t you?"

"No!" The surgeon was distraught, her hand playing nervously with the contents of her pocket.

"Your Honor, I object to this line of questioning. The Defense has yet to get to his point."

"The objection is sustained. You have had plenty of time to make your point, Mr. Hanington, that’s enough. Either move on or dismiss the witness."

"Your Honor, I will only be questioning this witness for a short time longer."

"Mr. Hanington, this is your final warning." The Judge settled back into his chair, his eyes stern and full of admonition.

"Yes, Your Honor." The Defense Attorney turned to the witness. "Isn’t the real reason you left the Navy because you couldn’t stand the fact that it was predominantly men?"

Garrett smiled slowly. "I never left the service, sir. I’m still an active member of the U.S. Navy for the next two years." The twinkle in her eyes danced in delight as she leaned her elbows on the railing of the witness stand and rested her chin in her hand waiting for his reaction.

The Defense Attorney looked like a deer in front of headlights. He was in shock. Defeated by his own line of questioning, he swallowed hard. "No more questions for this witness."

The Judge smiled at the witness. "You are excused."

Sighing, Danni shook her head. "If looks could have killed, I think both of us would be up for murder right now, Gar." She thought aloud in a hushed tone, not wanting to disturb the sleeping woman. ‘How does he know what you are like. I do. I’d trust my life in those hands of yours a million times over.’

Lost in her dream of Garrett’s hands, Danni jumped when she heard the sound of the ringer on the phone. Racing down the stairs, she grabbed it on the end of the second ring, not wanting the sleeping woman to be disturbed.

"Hello," she hoarsely whispered.

"Danni, are you feeling alright? Are you sick?"

"Brie! No, I’m fine…well, actually I’m a little sick to my stomach right now but I’m getting used to that. Why do you ask?"

"Your voice, why is it so hoarse?"

"I was…a little vocal at the court case today. I must have…"

"Court case? What court case?"

"Brie, nothing for you to get worried about. It was a case that Garrett got summoned to. It was a rape trial."

"Rape trial? Was it someone you know?"

"No, a patient that we worked on together. They really grilled Garrett though. You would have thought Gar was the one charged with rape the way the questioning was directed from the defense attorney."

"Danni, it was good that you were there for support. That sounds like it was some kind of hell."

"Yeah, well, it still plagues us now. We were up all night with a disaster and Gar was in surgery until the early hours of the morning. It didn’t leave much time for us to sleep." Danni let her voice trail off. "Sis, was there any reason why you called?"

"Oh, I was…was going to be in town tonight and I thought that maybe I could meet that surgeon of yours."

"Gee, Brie, I don’t know. Gar is sacked out across the bed too tired to even get in it. Another time might be better." Danni sighed. "This court thing really got us both pretty beat."

"Danni, you are taking care of yourself, aren’t you. I mean, you don’t want to be losing any weight right now."

"No way, Sis. I’m starting to fill out that Flight Suit quite nicely. I’ve been getting enough exercise to carry those few extra pounds of muscle that I’ve picked up since I teamed up with Garrett."

There was silence on Brie’s part as she thought of what few extra pounds her sister might be talking about. ‘The baby or certain parts of Garrett’s anatomy?’

"Hey, Brie. I think I really need to sit down and rest for a while, I’ve been on the go for the last 36 hours or so."

"Danni, get off your feet and rest. You take care of yourself and Garrett, too, mind you."

"Sure, Sis. Talk to you soon. Bye."

"Bye!" Brie hung up the phone. "I’ve really got let Mother know about Danni’s situation otherwise, she’s going to have a bird getting two grandchildren in the same year. Good thing I’m meeting her for lunch next week. This may go over better in person." Brie rubbed her own extended stomach. "Yes, my little one, you’ll have a cousin your same age. I can’t wait to see Mother’s face when she finds out that her precious Danni is going to give her everything that she wants…but in the wrong order." There was a gleam in the pregnant woman’s eye with that thought. "I’ll be your favorite for sure then."

Garrett woke up with the weirdest sensation that she had ever had. She felt like a mummy that had been left out of its tomb, alone, after it was sealed. Ready to fight the material that surrounded her, she slowly found her freedom from the confining wrap. With one eye opened, she looked for something that would tell her where she was. It was dark, darker than most mornings when she got up. Then she saw the illuminated digital readout of the alarm clock. It was 2300. She was nowhere close to morning, yet her body was telling her that she’d slept long enough.

Letting her fingers sweep over her body she realized that she was still fully dress, sans her shoes. "Damn! I must have been so tired that I didn’t even get changed." She rolled over and pushed herself up off the bed, scanning the nightstand for her beeper. "I wonder if…" fumbling with the beeper she found that it was still turned off. ‘I guess that wasn’t what woke me then. I wonder if Danni told them we were available for flights? Guess not!’ The surgeon flopped back on the bed. "I’m up now. Guess I’ll go call us back in service." She sat up and let her legs slide over the edge, then down onto the floor. The carpet felt good under her stocking feet as she made her way into the hall.

‘Looks like Danni is still awake, the light’s on in her room.’ Garrett touched the door lightly with the back of her knuckles and it opened slightly. Shrugging at the door, she pushed it more fully open and stuck her head in. "Danni?" She spoke softly. "Danni, did you…" She stopped and peered in at the sleeping woman who was sprawled under the covers, her fingers tightly clenching onto her journal. "I guess you didn’t."

It was a beautiful sight, the petite woman looking more like a child than anything, lost in the confines of the queen size bed. ‘It didn’t seem that big the other night when I slept in it with her.’ Garrett thought about how good it felt to wake up beside this woman the next morning. It was almost like she had done it hundreds of times before. It was such a natural thing to do.

‘Mom, is this what you were laughing about when you told me all those pot o’gold stories when I was a kid?’ Garrett wished she could turn back the hands of time and have her mother here to guide her. Just this one time she wished for someone else’s wisdom to guide her life. It was so easy when she was a child. You just did what you were told. But now, as an adult, no one told you how to live, you had to do that for yourself. And contrary to her beliefs as a child, those decisions didn’t get any easier with age. In fact, they just got more complex and compounded by the reaction that they would have on the world around you.

How could she give up her friendship with Danni in the hopes of having something more? She knew the friendship was strong but would it be strong enough to withstand an invitation for love on a higher plane? Especially if that was not what Danni was after.

Then her mind began to wonder. ‘Could I still be friends with her if she didn’t want to pursue that type of relationship?’ She thought of David and the gnawing pain that she felt each time that she pictured the two of them together. No, to Garrett Trivoli, the names of Danni and David did not belong in the same sentence let alone the same lifetime together.

The surgeon entered the room and crossed the floor to the side of Danni’s bed. She stared down at the woman sound asleep, gauging the space left in the bed. ‘There’s enough room. I could just lie down beside her and…’ Garrett shook her head and let a lung full of air escape out of her mouth. ‘What are you thinking, Trivoli. Don’t be stupid.’

She picked up the journal from Danni’s hand and tucked the covers around the young woman’s body. "Night, my friend," she whispered and smoothed out a stray lock of hair on the blonde’s forehead. Turning to the nightstand, she flipped over the journal and started reading the lines on the page where Danni had left off before sleep overtook her.

The two bodies seemed to morph from one into two and then back again. Each time, a little more of one became part of the other until after a while they could no longer be seen as two distinct people but rather only as one soul, housed in two bodies.

Garrett set the book down, but the words kept running through her head. Her blue eyes drank their fill of the woman in the bed. The surgeon started taking stock of herself and how much she had changed in the last eight months since meeting Danni. It seemed to be funny, as she was changing, so was the nurse who now took chances that she would have walked away from before. The surgeon looked back to the journal and the words came to haunt her again. ‘No longer be seen as two distinct people but rather only as one soul…’

Wasn’t that what they had become when they responded to a call for assistance? The Flight Team was the embodiment of their soul and even though they were two distinct people, they acted more like a single unit with one mind.

Garrett closed her eyes, trying to calm her fast-paced mind. She felt like the walls were going to crash right in on her. It was time to get out into the open and let her mind think about the whole thing without being pressured. Without the woman that tormented her soul being so close at hand. The surgeon turned off the light on the nightstand and let the light from the hall be her guide away from this Garden of Eden that was so ripe for the taking.

The nurse stirred as she heard the sound of the front door closing and the locks clicking into place. Gazing over at her bedside clock, Danni saw that it was only 2330. She put her head back down on her pillow and began to burrow into it when the sound of Garrett’s Blazer being started made her sit up. Leaving her bed and looking out the window, Danni could just make out the set of taillights as they drove off down the street.

The young woman sat back down on the bed, her heart sinking with the pain that her friend must be in. "Please, keep her safe and help her to weather this storm," she prayed to any deity that would listen. "Let her eyes be opened to what is in my heart. But most of all, let her find what is true and right in her own."

Driving around aimlessly in the night, the surgeon found herself at the one place that she always considered as her domain. She was the authority figure here and that never changed. It was one world of hers that had not been rocked by the turmoil she now was confronted with.

Throwing her Blazer into park, she jumped out, leaving the vehicle haphazardly placed in one of the on-call spaces right outside the door to the E.R. Striding with an air of purpose in her steps, Garrett breezed by the waiting room and the nurse’s station on her way to nowhere. She needed time to think, and people, well, they would only get in the way and confuse her all the more. The surgeon made her way to where she always thought the best, the O.R.

Changing into a set of scrubs, she stepped into the first empty surgical theatre and just let the aura of the room seep into her being. She thought about her many hours spent in rooms just like this one and all the patients that had benefited from her skills, her confidence in her own judgement. From that first simple appendectomy when she was just a budding Medical Student, to the woman she had worked on the night before where all of her experience was needed to keep her alive. What would they think of her now if they were privy to her mind? If only there was someone that she could talk to. Then it dawned on her. Perhaps it was time to check in on her patient, Chris.

Garrett stopped in at the nurse’s station, taking time to check Chris’s chart. She made every effort to act more like a doctor than she could admit her mind was presently capable of. The few minutes that she spent perusing the chart afforded her the time to muster her courage for what she intended to do. With a steady gait and a determined purpose, the surgeon strode to the patient’s room, where she knocked first before entering.

The short curly ringlets of hair stood every which way on the head of the woman in the bed. Her thin wiry build gave her a comical cartoon look.

Garrett was nearly to the bed before her eyes opened and she greeted her savior. "Hey, Doc. Thought only those students keep these late hours. You didn’t have someone up in the O.R. did you?"

Garrett shook her head. "No, just came in to check on you." The surgeon fiddled with the I.V. line acting as if it was customary for her to do so. "Besides, I didn’t want anyone else to come in her and disturb you and Marie."

"Hmmm…sounds to me like you got some things weighing on your mind." Chris watched Garrett’s expression as it changed to one of almost startled disbelief. "I guess that just goes with the job, though. Don’t it?"

The surgeon cleared her throat. "Ah…yes, I believe it does." She smiled weakly and then motioned to Chris’s abdomen. "Mind if I take a look while I’m here?"

"Heck, Doc, you know me inside and out." She giggled and looked over to the sleeping form of Marie in the chair next to her. "Almost as good as her, except she’ll tell you that she don’t know me at all sometimes." The thin lips of the patient pressed together and formed into a smile.

"I guess that comes from living so closely with someone. My friend says that she seems to know me better than I know myself, then out of the blue I do something that completely baffles her." Garrett drew in a breath. "Say, Chris, how did you and Marie ever get together? You seem so different from each other."

"I just held my breath and waited her out. I wasn’t the kind to strike up a conversation. I guess she knew it, too. It took her nearly a whole month before she spoke those first words to me."

"What were they, something philosophical?"

Chris looked over at Marie and stroked her hair. "No, she asked me what I was using for bait."

"Bait?" Garrett raised her eyebrow in response. "Was she referring to you cologne or your style of dress?"

"Neither, I was sitting out in the morning sun with my feet dangling over the edge of the wharf with a fishing pole in my hand." They both smiled at each other for a moment while Chris waited for the next question from the surgeon.

"Was it love at first sight or did you have to think about it for a while?"

"Hmm…now that’s a tough one. In my heart, I think it always was love, even before we talked. Now, my head, well let’s just say that I could have known her more closely for a lot longer if I’d listened to my heart."

"You’d choose going with your heart, then?"

"Every time! It has a funny way of knowing what it needs."

"Then you never regretted…"

"Life’s too short for regrets, Doc." The thin woman motioned to her own body. "Look at me. I don’t regret you being here yesterday. Why should you regret something that reaches out and acts like a life preserver?"

"Life preserver? I’m not following you."

"Love, Doc, love. It can get you through the low times and help to keep you grounded when the world keeps pushing you higher." She winked and nodded toward Marie. "She’s my anchor. Keeps me from running aground in high seas, and stands waiting for me like a homing beacon when I’m running off on a tangent."

Garrett cleared her throat as she made an attempt to look at the incision site. "Well, that seems to be healing nicely." The surgeon hoped that Chris would welcome the change of subject. "Maybe in a day or so we might be able to get you two home. What would you say to that?"

"Grateful, that’s what I’d say. Truly grateful."

Garrett smiled and put the bandages back in place. "Thanks, Chris. You’ve been a wonderful patient to take care of. You and Marie, both."

"Well, it wasn’t our doing to be in here but I’m glad that if I had to, it was you and that little blonde nurse…"

"Danni." The surgeon smiled just saying her name.

"Yeah," she smiled, "Danni took care of us. Marie was telling me about how you each stood watch over us last night. I appreciate that."

"I only do it for special patients, you know." Garrett winked and laughed with the older woman. "Thanks for talking to me. I’m going to think about what you said."

"Don’t mention it, Doc. You’re a good woman. I’m sure that you’ll know what’s right if you just follow your heart."

"You," the surgeon pointed directly at Chris, "get some sleep now." Garrett patted her hand. "I’m going to go listen to my heart."

The surgeon stepped away from the bed and out the door leaving the two women to bask in the love that had filled their hearts years ago.

The chilly air of the predawn hours did wonders to clear Garrett’s head as she got into her Blazer. It was always darkest before the dawn and the surgeon was hoping that with the rise of a new day, her last twenty-four hours would be her darkest for years to come.

Perhaps it was the quiet of the late night hour or the solitude but Garrett could sense that things were going to become easier for her, especially after talking to Chris.

She turned the key in the ignition and put it into gear as she charted her course for home. ‘I’ll call command when I get home and tell them to put us back on as of 0700. Danni needs the rest.’ It amazed her, how many times she thought about the nurse lately. It seemed to be the one thing that she honestly could say was a constant in her life.

"Okay, Trivoli, now all you’ve got to do is listen to your heart. Well, that’s as soon as you find it."

The tall surgeon pulled out into the sparse traffic and headed home, still searching for her pot o’gold.