North Oak 4- To Bottle Lightning by Ann Hunter

Author:Ann Hunter [Hunter, Ann]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: E, YA
Publisher: Rebel House Ink
Published: 2016-09-29T04:00:00+00:00

PAY IT FORWARD

Twenty years prior…

Dot sat on the examination table in her favorite dress. Joe tried not to notice the strain etched in her pale face, or the way she stared blankly at the floor, but it was impossible not to glance over the edge of the Sports Illustrated magazine he held. How many times had he read the same damn sentence?

“Are you cold?” he asked, wishing there was more he could do to lighten the thick blanket of gnawing nervousness settling into the room.

She shook her head, wordlessly.

Joe snapped the magazine, not that it made the pages any less wrinkled. He’d soon rub the picture clean in this dog-eared edge here. What would the doctor tell them about the blood Dot had been coughing? He swallowed, trying to convince himself it wasn’t anything serious. That they hadn’t found anything wrong in the CT scan. How long had Dot been staining her kerchief and not telling him? She wasn’t the type to keep secrets, but she was the type of person that wouldn’t want to burden you.

Joe tossed the magazine aside and rose. He removed his light jacket and wrapped Dot up in it, then stuffed his hands into his pockets with a deep sigh. They’d been waiting forever. Why did the nurse always rush you in, only to wait for an hour? All the waiting wasn’t helping the situation. Joe smoothed his hand over his hair. He and Dot had barely spoken.

Finally they heard a scrape against the door, and the handle jiggled. A young man, at least by Joe’s standards, entered the room in a white lab coat. He filed through a manila folder without even looking at them. “Dorothy Hendricks?”

The one and only; Dot lifted her hand. Like it wasn’t obvious. Like Joe was invisible anyway.

The doctor offered a smile, but it was brief. “Hey, Doll.”

Joe frowned. Young sprout had some nerve. “Get on with it,” Joe muttered.

“I’m Doctor Wade.” He shook Joe’s hand, then sighed. “There’s no easy way to say this. I was hoping for a better result.” Joe grit his teeth, bracing for the worst. “Well?”

Wade glanced between them. “Stage three small cell carcinoma. It’s spreading through her lungs and lymph nodes. There are treatment plans we can consider to extend the life she has left.”

Dot dropped her head into her hands, covering her face. Joe was swift to her side. He took her hand and rubbed her back. Lung cancer. How could this be? She’d never smoked a day in her life. “This can’t be right. You got the wrong file.”

“I’m sorry.” Doctor Wade turned to Dot. “I know this is not good news for you. It’s time to set your affairs in order.”

She covered her mouth, nodding.

No, no. This wasn’t happening. Joe’s hand couldn’t help but clutch his coat on his wife’s back, crinkling it in his fist. The diagnosis couldn’t be right.

“At some point, treatment may do more harm than good. When that happens, I promise I will do all that I can to ensure your comfort and dignity.

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