Luke's Recovery

by Angela Franklin

  “Very well, Luke is stable for now,” The doctor began and Chase relaxed thinking that meant he was fine, “but both of his legs are broken. The left is a simple fracture that will only require a cast and time to heal. The right, however, the right tibia was basically shattered and will require a rod to fix it. Since you are his brother I need your consent to do the surgery. As with any surgery there are risks, but generally speaking this is not a high-risk procedure.”

  “Is he stable enough to do the surgery without complications?” Jacob asked. Chase was in shock at what he was being told. It was like information overload and he was trying to sort through and process what he was being told.

  “His vitals look good, he is in a lot of pain, but that is to be expected with the injuries he has.” The doctor told them looking back at Chase.

  “What about his hands?” Callie asked squeezing Chase’s hand, keeping him grounded and bringing him back to the conversation taking place now.

  “His hands are bad, but they will heal on their own. It’s his legs that will take the longest, and I know it is hard to get your mind around, but Chase I really need you to sign so that we can get him into surgery. It will take a while, but y’all are welcome to stay in the waiting room off the operating room and we will let you know as soon as he is out. We have already called in the orthopedic surgeon. He is the best in the state.” The doctor told them pushing papers toward Chase.

  Chase glanced at the papers and knew he had to do it, but it felt wrong making choices for Luke. Luke was more than old enough to make his own decisions.

  “Can he not make this decision for himself?” Chase asked hoping he could.

  “Right now, he is on a lot of pain medication and isn’t capable of making the decision. The longer we wait the more pain he has to deal with, and if we take him off the pain meds completely, he still wouldn’t be in the right frame of mind to make this decision. We really need you to do it.” The doctor told him.

  Chase looked over at Jacob, who nodded for him to do it. Then he looked at Callie, she nodded to do it as well. Taking a deep breath, he took the pen the doctor had set on the papers and signed.

  “Now, how long before you begin the surgery?” Chase asked as he pushed the papers back to the doctor.

  “The surgeon should be here any moment and they will begin prepping him for surgery as soon as I take these papers back. They will begin within the hour.” The doctor said as he stood up, and reached across to shake hands with Chase.

  “Thank you, we will be in the waiting room.” Chase said as they watched the doctor leave.

  “Alright, let’s go tell Lindy and Tray, and make our way up to the waiting room.” Jacob said moving to leave the room.

  “Can y’all let me tell Lindy? She is in a bad place right now with this, and she will need our support as well.” Callie told them both.

  “Sure, that would probably be best.” Chase said wrapping his arm around her.

  “Does any of your friends match her size, so we can at least get her some clothes? I’m sure one of your friends would be happy to help if they can.” Jacob said knowing she was only in shorts and a tank top.

  “My clothes will fit her, I will see if Taylor or Kara will go to the ranch and get her something. Maybe she will go with them and take a shower.” Callie said as they walked into the waiting room.

  Chapter 3

  Tray had been trying to talk to her since the others had went back with the doctor, but she couldn’t concentrate on what he was saying. He had given up and was just rubbing her back. In the back of her mind she knew that she had lost everything, but the only thing she could think about was Luke. She looked up when she heard Callie’s voice.

  “How is he? Can we see him?” Lindy asked, the questions coming faster than she could think them through.

  “Come on Lindy, let’s go talk over here.” Callie said pulling her over to the chairs to sit back down. Lindy noticed the guys didn’t follow but kept watch on what they were doing.

  “It’s bad, isn’t it? Is he gonna be okay?” Lindy asked as she sat beside Callie.

  “Calm down, he’s stable.” Callie said reaching over and holding Lindy’s hand.

  “Okay, now tell me what the bad news is.” Lindy said taking a deep breath, she noticed Callie was chewing on her lip, so she knew there was more to it.

  “Luke has severe burns on his hands, but you already knew about those. They will take time to heal, but they will heal on their own.” Callie told her.

  “Yeah, I know about that, but there’s more isn’t there?” Lindy asked squeezing her hand.

  “You said he threw you as he fell, right?” Callie asked her.

  “Yeah, he threw me and told me to run.” Lindy told her.

  “Well, when he fell, something fell across his legs. One of his legs will be fine with a cast, but the other is going to require a rod to fix the break. He will be okay in time.” Callie told her, keeping her arm wrapped around her to calm her as she was telling her what had happened.

  “He shouldn’t have been in there. Y’all need him, now more than ever. He is in there because of me. Callie, I am so sorry for all the trouble I have cause your family.” Lindy told her as she felt the tears start to fall. Why was all this happening? Why had that stubborn ass come after her?

  “Stop it right now, Lindy.” Chase said coming over to her and bending down to look her in the eye. “Luke saved you because it is who he is. He is going to need all the friends and support he can get after he gets out and is recovering. Can you be there for him the way he was there for you when you needed him most?” Chase asked in a firm voice.

  “It should be me.” Lindy said her voice soft and getting weak from the irritation in her throat and from her crying.

  “Lindsey, I know you aren’t in a good place right now, but you have to stop. You can have your pity party later, but right now we all need to focus on Luke and praying for his recovery. If you don’t think you can do that, I will be glad to have someone take you to the ranch, where you can get a shower and get some clean clothes.” Chase told her giving her a little shake.

  “You’re right. Luke needs us all. I will straighten up, I’m sorry. It has been a long night, but that’s no excuse.” Lindy told Chase as she straightened her spine and squared her shoulders.

  “You are still welcome to run to the ranch and shower and change.” Callie told her rubbing her back.

  “I said I would do better. He needs us here.” Lindy said cutting her eyes at her. Maybe she had already screwed up bad enough for them to send her away.

  “We aren’t trying to make you leave, but you are in pajamas and it will be a while. You can go there, or we can have someone run you some clothes and you can do a bathroom clean up job here.” Callie said moving to stand where Chase had just moved from.

  “Can you just have clothes brought here? I really don’t want to leave Luke right now.” Lindy asked them feeling a little more like herself than the broken person she was a little bit ago.

  “Sure, let me call Taylor, I’m sure she would be happy to help anyway she can. My clothes should fit so I’ll call and send her to my house. Do you need anything else?” Callie asked as she pulled out her phone.

  “No, that will be more than enough, thank you.” Lindy told her with the sincerest smile she could manage.

  Callie walked over to a quiet corner to make her call and Lindy took a deep breath. They were right, she needed to get over herself. She was perfectly fine while Luke needed surgery and was going to have a long recovery. He saved her life and she needed to do everything she could to be there for him when he needed her. They may always argue, but she did care for him. She was afraid she cared for him more than she should and that was before he had played the role of her hero.

  It was about twenty minutes later when Taylor walked in with the clothes Callie had asked for. They were up in the waiting room for surgery patients when she got there. When Taylor handed over the clothes she went to the bat
hroom to quickly clean up, so she wouldn’t miss any information on when they took Luke back. So far, they hadn’t been told anything. One of the nurses had given her a towel, wash cloth, and some soap so that she would be able to get most of the soot and ash off of her body. After cleaning up the best she could, she put on the jeans and t-shirt, they were tighter than she normally wore, but it was a huge step up from the pajamas she had been wearing, and it was great to have socks and tennis shoes on. With one more glance to be sure she looked okay she walked out to sit with the others.

  “I’m sure having clean clothes is going a long way in making you feel better.” Taylor said as she walked over to hug her.

  “Yes, thank you so much for going to get them for me.” Lindy said returning the hug.

  “If there is anything else I can do for you, just let me know. I would offer to let you stay with me, but I only have the one bedroom.” Taylor said and Lindy could tell she felt guilty that she couldn’t help her.

  “Don’t worry about that. Everything will be fine as soon as Luke is safe.” Lindy told her and meant it. She couldn’t breathe easy until she was sure he was okay.

  “Collins Family.” A nurse called out from the nurse’s desk.

  “That’s us.” Chase said as they all walked over to her.

  “Wow, this is a large crowd.” The nurse said looking nervous. “I was just notified that they had just taken him into surgery. It will be a while, but there are vending machines around the corner, and y’all are welcome to wait here.”

  “Thank you very much. Most of us will be here until he is out.” Chase said with a nod before stepping back.

  The crowd followed him back to the chairs where they all sat down. After a while Callie curled into Chase and had fallen asleep, and Jacob kept dosing off on the other side of them. Taylor had gone back home in case she needed to help with the babies the next day.

  “Come over here and lean against me.” Tray told her as she stood pacing the room.

  “No, I’m fine thank you.” She replied making another round.

  “Lindy, we will know if they come to give us an update on Luke. You have been through hell tonight. Lean against me and take a nap.” Tray said patting the space beside him.

  “No, they might need me.” Lindy said shaking her head.

  “Lindsey, you need to try to nap. What if Luke needs you here tomorrow? How are you going to stay awake if you don’t even take a nap? I promise I will wake you before I let the doctor talk to us.” Chase told her in a commanding voice. When he used that tone, she felt like she was five and her daddy was fussing at her.

  “Fine.” Lindy huffed and went over to sit beside Tray.

  “Lean over here. I won’t bite.” Tray said moving his arm for her to cuddle into him.

  Lindy wanted to refuse, but she was exhausted. There was nothing intimate about the way Tray was holding her, but it was comforting to have him there. Just the presence of someone she knew and trusted along with the sound of his steady heart beat lulled her to sleep. She didn’t know how long she had been out, but she came awake when she screamed “Luke”.

  “Are you okay?” Callie asked running over to her as Tray rubbed her back.

  “Yes, I’m so sorry about that.” Lindy said and reached up to wipe the tears she could feel streaking down her face.

  “Is there anything we can do?” Chase asked bending down in front of her.

  “No, thanks. It was just a nightmare. I will be fine when we know he is okay.” She told them giving them a fake smile that felt more like a grimace.

  “Collins.” A doctor called as he stepped through the doors of the waiting room.

  “That would be us.” Chase said as they all stood up.

  “Is everyone related to the patient?” The doctor asked and her heart stopped. She was going to get all the information second hand again.

  “Yes.” Chase replied not missing a beat. The doctor looked skeptical, but nodded.

  “Follow me please. I believe we have a room big enough.” The doctor said as he turned back toward the door. She didn’t care if she had to stand for hours as long as she was there.

  They filed into the room he took them to, and took a seat around a big round table. The doctor sat down and started moving notes and what looked like x-rays around.

  “Luke did well through the surgery and he is in recovery now. He will have to be here a couple weeks and either go to a rehab center, or have a care giver and physical therapist when he gets home. He will recover, but it will be a long road. His left leg has been casted and will take around six to eight weeks to heal. The right leg will take a lot longer.” He pulled up a couple of the x-rays and showed them the rod that was now inside Luke’s leg. “As you can see we put in a rod and some screws. Not only will he have to learn to deal with the rod and have physical therapy to help him with use and range of motion, but he will require care for the incision we had to make to put it in.”

  Lindy listened intently as the doctor spoke and her brain was going through all the things that would be required to care for him. She would have to speak to Callie and Chase and be sure they knew it would take more than an in-home-aid to care for him. One wrong move and he could get an infection. He would also probably be temperamental not being able to do much because he was a very active man.

  “I didn’t see or treat his hands, but they will also require treatment and need to be cleaned and rebandaged until they heal as well. The staff here will be glad to answer any questions and help in any way we can while ya’ll are here. Luke will be in recovery an hour or two, then he will be taken to a room. Is there any questions I can answer right now?” The doctor asked as he gather the papers and put them back in the folder.

  “I don’t think so at the moment. It’s kind of an information overload right now.” Chase said staring at the table.

  “I understand, the staff or myself can answer any questions as they come up.” The doctor nodded then walked out.

  Lindy looked around the room. It was total silence as everyone stared off into space trying to understand what was happening. She supposed if she didn’t have any medical back ground she would be with them. She sat quietly waiting to see where they wanted to go from here and if she could help in any way.

  “Do y’all need anything right now?” Jacob asked with a heavy sigh.

  “I don’t really know, but I don’t think so.” Chase said rubbing his hands over his face. Callie reached over and rubbed his back.

  “Then I will go home and check on Chasity and the babies, then take a nap and be back later. Please call me if anything changes or if you need anything.” Jacob said standing from the table.

  “Thank you for being here.” Chase said as he stood and shook Jacob’s hand.

  “Anytime, that’s what family is for.” Jacob said with a nod.

  “I want to stay until he wakes up, then I will come get the babies and go home for a while.” Callie told him as she hugged him goodbye.

  “Do y’all mind if I head out too? I have another shift tonight, and I need to get some rest.” Tray asked as he looked around the group.

  “No, thanks for sitting with us.” Chase said shaking his hand. Tray hugged Callie then turned to her.

  “Do you need me to take you somewhere?” Tray asked her.

  “Um, no. I want to wait and see Luke. Thank you.” Lindy said. She didn’t want to think about the fact that she didn’t have anywhere to go.

  “Alright. If you need anything call me, okay?” Tray said as he hugged her.

  “Okay, thank you for everything Tray.” Lindy said holding back the tears that wanted to fall again. Tray nodded at her, then he was gone.

  “I didn’t think to asked where we were supposed to wait while he is in recovery.” Chase said running his fingers through his hair.

  “We can ask at the nurse’s station.” Lindy said as she led them out. “Hey Tammy, how are you?” She asked the nurse behind the desk.

  “Hey girl, I’m good. A
re you working today?” She asked her confused.

  “No, can you tell us where we need to wait while Luke Collins is in recovery?” She asked her friend.

  “Sure. It looks like he will be on the third floor. I think Gina is up there today.” Tammy told her with a smile.

  “Thanks.” Lindy told her and turned to Chase and Callie. “Follow me. If Gina is there, we will be getting good coffee at least.” She told them with a forced laugh.

  “I forgot you work here.” Callie said as they got in the elevator.

  “I haven’t recently because I have been so busy with the boutique, but I still know a lot of the nurses.” Lindy told them.

  “Hi babe, long time no see.” Gina said as she stepped out to hug Lindy, she wrinkled her nose as she stepped back. “Are you okay?”

  “Yeah, I’m here for a friend.” Lindy told her.

  “Why do you smell like smoke?” Gina asked refusing to release her.

  “Long story short, my building burned down and Luke got hurt when he got me out.” Lindy told her and was proud of herself for keeping it together.

  “Oh God. Sit down and let me check you.” Gina told her.

  “I’m fine. The paramedics checked me.” Lindy said, but Gina grabbed her hand and dragged her over to her desk and started taking her vitals.

  “Well, your oxygen is lower than I like, and you sound like a chain smoker. Your blood pressure is also up, but I’m sure that’s from the stress. Can I convince you to put an oxygen mask on for a while?” Gina asked her.

  “No. I’m fine. I’ll go around the corner and get some water.” Lindy said standing up. Chase and Callie were watching her.

  “We should have already thought of that. I’m sure your throat is sore from inhaling all of that smoke.” Callie said turning to Chase.

  “Really guys, I’m fine. I’ll just go grab some water.” Lindy gave them a small smile.

  “I got you covered. Go have a seat in the waiting room and I’ll bring it right in.” Gina said as she walked away.