by E A Chance
She was so fixated on Adrian’s light that she missed the occasional business or house they passed. When she couldn’t pedal another inch, Adrian stopped and pointed to a checkpoint fifty yards ahead.
“We made it, Riley,” he said, in a hoarse voice. “Help is just beyond that barrier.”
She nodded with tears glistening in her eyes. “I wouldn’t have made it without you. I’ll never forget what you did today.”
“Thank me later. Let’s get these two to a hospital.”
“Adrian, wait,” she called out as he resumed pedaling. “What if Kearns’ people are here searching for you? What if they’ve left fliers? Should you wait here until we know it’s safe?”
“This place is so out of the way, Riley. I can’t imagine they’ve gotten this far, and we haven’t seen a military presence for days. I say we risk it.”
“Your call. Lead the way.”
She followed him the final distance to the rickety barricade blocking the road into town. A woman in her early twenties wearing a baseball cap jumped up from her lawn chair when she saw them and nudged a young man with long, black hair and multiple nose and ear piercings of about the same age. He rubbed his eyes, then got up and stood beside her.
“We have a medical emergency,” Riley blurted out before either could speak. “Do you have a functioning hospital or clinic? I’m a doctor.”
“We have a hospital, if you want to call it that,” the boy said. “Good thing you’re a doctor because we don’t have one.”
Riley lifted the barrier out of her way and motioned for Adrian to get Biscuit. “Does it have electricity?”
“Yes, the librarian taught us how to use solar panels,” he said.
“A librarian taught you how to use solar panels? Is he an electrical engineer, too?” Adrian asked as he pedaled up to them, leading Biscuit along.
“He teaches us how to do everything. He’s in charge around here.”
“What, like a mayor?” Riley asked.
“We didn’t vote him into office or anything. He’s just the smartest person around, so we do what he says. If you want anything, you have to go through him, but he shouldn’t mind if you use the hospital tonight since it’s late and an emergency.”
Riley straddled her bike and said, “Show us the way.”
“We’re not supposed to leave our post,” the girl said, “but I’ll break the rule if you’ll let me borrow one of those bikes.”
“Deal,” Riley said.
Adrian propped his bike against the cart and went to unstrap Dashay’s bike. “You can borrow this, but we need it back.”
“No problem,” she said, “but if you’re staying, you’ll have to declare all your belongings to the librarian.”
Riley thanked them and rode up next to Adrian as they followed the girl. “They didn’t react to seeing you,” she whispered. “That’s an encouraging sign.”
“And if the rest of the town is like those two, we shouldn’t have any problems. They’re lucky we weren’t hostiles.”
“Right. I could have taken both of them by myself.”
Adrian chuckled. “That paints a delightful picture. The pregnant woman taking out security guards.”
“You know what I mean, but, anyway, a town run by the librarian can’t be too menacing.”
They arrived at the hospital less than fifteen minutes later. The girl did a u-turn, and as she rode by said, “I’ll get the bike to you at the end of my shift. Good luck.”
The facility resembled the countless small town hospitals they’d passed on their journey. Riley hoped it would be well stocked and equipped enough for their needs. She was relieved to see lights shining through the lobby windows.
“Electricity is half the battle,” she told Adrian as she got off her bike and leaned it against a wall. “Wait here while I find gurneys and help.”
Dashay sat up and grabbed the side of the cart. “I can get out by myself. I’m feeling better.”
“Glad to hear but stay where you are,” Riley ordered. “I don’t need you falling over and cracking your head.”
Dashay slumped down onto her sleeping bag. “Yes, boss. Might not be a bad idea.”
Riley rushed inside and went directly to the large elderly man at the reception desk. “I’m Dr. Riley Poole. I have two critically ill patients in that cart, and I need help to get them inside. Do you have any orderlies?”
The man rubbed his chin and stared at her for a moment. “No, but we have a nurse and a janitor,” he drawled. “Will that do?”
“It’ll have to.” When he didn’t move but just sat watching her, she said, “Get them now.”
He shrugged and heaved himself out of the chair as she ran down the hallway to grab some gurneys. By the time she returned to the lobby, a teenage boy and a broad-shouldered nurse in scrubs were waiting for her. The nurse resembled the man at the desk, and Riley assumed they were related.
“I’m Jace,” he said, then cocked his thumb at the teenager. “That’s my nephew, Kip, and I see you met Grandpa. He volunteers for the night shift. We never get patients after dark, so he usually just sleeps. What do you need, Doctor?”
“My husband and friend woke up critically ill this morning. We’ve traveled all day from just outside Henderson. They need IV fluids to start and ibuprofen. We’ll go from there.”
Jace and Kip each took a gurney and ran to the cart without another word. Dashay helped them get her out of the cart, but Coop was semi-conscious and delirious. It took all four of them to lower him onto the gurney. Jace led Riley to the ER and got to work running an IV line in Coop while she took Dashay’s vitals.
“Your temp is down to 100 degrees,” Riley told her. “Excellent. The fluids and ibuprofen should get you back to normal soon. What about your other symptoms?”
“Still have the headache and my gut’s doing somersaults, but the joint pain is gone. See if they have Zofran for the nausea.”
Jace heard her, and said, “We might, but our stores are severely depleted. The rains and military restrictions have disrupted our supply network. The librarian is doing his best to solve the problem, but progress is slow. You should know, he’ll expect you to check in with him tomorrow.”
As Riley rifled through the shelves and drawers in the room, she said, “Not until my husband is stable. Your librarian can wait.”
“Fair enough,” Jace said as he handed Dashay a dose of Zofran to put under her tongue.
With Dashay settled, Riley went to work on Coop. His fever had spiked back up to 104 degrees and his blood pressure was elevated. “Do you have Toradol? I’ve got to get his temp down.”
Jace nodded and ran out of the room. While Riley waited, she examined Coop’s bites. The swelling had gone down, but a rash of flat, red spots was spreading across his torso.
Jace came back and injected the Toradol into Coop’s IV line, then leaned closer to his chest next to Riley. “What are you thinking is wrong with him, Dr…?”
“Dr. Poole. Call me Riley,” she said, as she covered Coop with the sheet. “My husband is a doctor, too. Neal Cooper. Cardiologist.”
“The Dr. Cooper? Him I’ve heard of.”
“Yes. That Dr. Cooper. I’m speculating this is a mosquito borne illness. I’m an orthopedist, so I haven’t studied infectious diseases since medical school. Is there a lab and pathologist in the hospital?”
“Lab, yes. Pathologist, no.”
“Then, I need medical books to run the tests and diagnose him myself. What about a community college that teaches medical courses and has even a small library?”
“All the books have been moved to our main town library.” He hesitated a moment before saying, “The librarian controls all knowledge in this town. He calls it our currency. He trades books and information for books and information he doesn’t have or goods he needs. If you need medical information, that’s where you’ll find it. But I warn you, he drives a hard bargain.”
Dashay had been listening to their conversation. She
sat up and swung her legs over the side of the bed. “Why does everyone just let this librarian call the shots? Is he dangerous like a mob boss or something?”
Jace burst out laughing. “Hardly,” he said when he got control of himself. “The residents were floundering here after the CME. He got us organized and set up a workable barter system. We’re indebted to him, and he distributes food and supplies fairly. You just have to pay for it with something he or the town needs, even if it’s labor.”
Riley folded her arms and leaned against Dashay’s bed. “Like those two manning the checkpoint?”
Jace smiled. “Exactly. You’re a doctor, which is a valuable commodity, but he’ll charge extra for the medical books. That kind of information is rare and expensive these days.”
Dashay hopped to the floor, then grabbed the bed to steady herself. “That’s BS. Let’s go take what we need, Riley.”
Riley rolled her eyes. “Easy there, Dashay. You can barely walk. Let me try bartering with this librarian and see where I get. If he won’t cooperate, we’ll explore other options. You should know, Jace, Dashay is a nurse, too. A damned good one.”
Jace walked over and helped Dashay back onto her bed. “Then rest and recover, Dashay. We need you.”
She smiled and dropped back onto her pillow. “I’ll do my best.”
Coop rolled onto his side and vomited over the edge of the bed. There were spots of blood in the splattered mess. As Riley rushed to his side, the lights flickered, then went out.
“What’s going on?” Riley asked in the darkness. “Get me a flashlight.”
She heard a drawer open, then Jace shined a beam at her. “This happens. Our electrical system is jerry-rigged, at best. I’ll get the battery-operated portable lights until they get the power back on. The monitors and medical equipment are on separate backup systems.”
When he handed Riley the flashlight, she said, “Wait. I can’t wait until morning to get the information I need. After you get the portable light, take me to the librarian. Dashay can monitor Coop until we get back.”
While Jace went for the lights, Riley pulled on a pair of gloves and cleaned the floor with a towel she then tossed in a bin. “Whatever this is, it’s bad, Dashay. I don’t know why Coop’s case is more severe than yours, but Jace is right. I need you well so you can assist us.”
“I’m getting stronger by the hour. I’ll be at your side in a day, at most.”
Riley reached for her hand and gave it a squeeze. “I’m counting on that.”
Adrian ran up to meet her as she came through the doors. “What’s going on in there? I saw the lights go out.”
“Shoddy electrical system,” she said. “Jace is taking us to meet the librarian. Unstrap Coop’s bike for him.”
“Don’t bother,” Jace said. “It’s only a few blocks. You can leave the horse and cart. You have my word they’ll be safe.”
Adrian tethered Biscuit to a light pole, then said, “Why are we going to see a librarian in the middle of the night? Shouldn’t you stay with Coop and Dashay, or are they better?”
Riley glanced at him, reluctant to speak the words she was thinking about Coop. “Dashay is. This librarian pulls the strings in town. We’re going to trade for medical books I need to diagnose Coop. It can’t wait. I’ll need your help to research.”
“Whatever I can do, Riley,” he said as he got into step beside her.
Jace stopped and gestured to the library sign less than ten minutes later. “Here we are.”
Riley’s eyebrows went up as she read the sign. “Why are we at the library? I thought we need to clear it with the librarian to take the books.”
Jace shrugged. “He lives here.”
“In the library?” Adrian asked. “That’s weird. But now I think of it, I’d love living in a library.”
“Why doesn’t that surprise me?” Riley said as she bounded up the steps and pounded on the door.
“His quarters are in back, Doctor,” Jace said. “This way.”
He led them to a walkway that circled around the brick building through the perfectly landscaped grounds. He went to the red painted metal door and rang a doorbell that was clearly a recent addition. When there was no response after a minute, Riley pushed the button several times.
Jace said, “Give it a second. His girlfriend says he sleeps like the dead.”
Adrian glanced at him. “Why would his girlfriend tell you that?”
“She’s my sister.”
The door finally swung open and a thin young man of no more than thirty stood in the doorway, squinting at them. He slipped on a pair of wire-rimmed glasses, then tried to flatten the mess of dark blond curls sticking out in all directions on his head. Riley had imagined him as an authoritative gentlemanly type in his fifties, not this young man wearing a superhero t-shirt, rumpled and stained pajama bottoms, and flip-flops.
His voice cracked as he glared at Jace and said, “What is this? You’re only supposed to wake me in a dire emergency.”
“It is,” Riley said before Jace could answer. “I’m Dr. Poole. I’ve two critically ill patients at the hospital with infections I can’t diagnose. I need medical reference books and I don’t have time to stand here explaining this.” She pushed past him into what looked like a studio apartment. “Show me where they are.”
“Hey, you can’t barge in here without permission,” he said as he hurried after her. “These are my private quarters.”
Riley stopped and turned to face him. “Don’t care. My husband is one of the patients and he’s dying. Are you going to help me or not?”
“I’d cooperate,” Adrian said. “She may be tiny, but she’s fierce. Her husband is a doctor, too, and the other patient is a nurse.”
“And what are you?” the librarian asked, looking Adrian up and down.
Riley grabbed the librarian’s arm and dragged him toward a door that looked like it led to the library. “That can wait. Is it this the way, Librarian?”
He jerked his arm free and stopped with his hands on his hips. “My name is Dr. Craig Himes. There’s no need for violence. I’ll help you. Just give me a second to get the keys.”
Riley took a breath and held up her hands in surrender. “Sorry. I’ve traveled all day, had very little sleep, and we’re fighting against the clock.”
“And she’s pregnant,” Adrian blurted out.
Riley let out her breath in exasperation. “He didn’t need to know that.”
Dr. Himes gave her an odd grin as he turned to get the keys.
“Does your sister live here with him?” Adrian asked as they waited.
“She lives with me. Craig didn’t want it to look like he was showing favoritism toward her.”
“How romantic,” Riley mumbled.
Dr. Himes walked back, dangling the keys in the air. “This way, Dr. Poole.”
He unlocked the door and led them into the most crowded library Riley had ever seen. She wondered how he kept track of the books. They wound their way through the racks until they reached an area behind a sign that read Science and Medicine.
“Take whatever you need, Dr. Poole.” He pulled a clipboard from a hook and handed it to her. “Record the number from the back of whatever you take. Be advised there will be a price to pay, but we’ll settle once the crisis is past. Good luck to you. I honestly hope your husband survives. Jace, take them out the front exit. Come see me after your shift.”
Jace nodded sheepishly and watched the librarian head back to his apartment. Riley noted that Hime’s request to Jace sounded less than friendly.
“I hope we haven’t gotten you into trouble,” Riley said as she searched through the book titles.
“Don’t worry about Craig. He’s a grouch when he wakes up. What are we looking for, Dr. Poole?”
“Anything that might contain information on infectious or communicable diseases. Honestly, just grab any medical books that look like they might have information we need. Pile them on the little empty table in the corn
er.”
While the three of them worked, Adrian said, “What did Dr. Himes mean when he said the books will come at a price. What kind of price?”
“I can’t answer that. Craig has a system I don’t understand, but he always makes it clear how he arrived at the price. He doesn’t barter though. What he asks for is the price. No exceptions.”
Adrian stopped and eyed him for a moment. “That hardly seems fair.”
“People usually know the price up front and can choose to pay or not. This is a unique situation.”
“No price is too high to save Coop’s life.” Riley dropped three books on the table, then said, “I’ve got to ask. Why do people put up with Craig?”
Jace watched her for a moment, then said, “Not everyone does.”
“What does that mean?” Adrian asked.
Jace gave them a cryptic smile before turning back to the shelves.
“This is enough books for now,” Riley said. “Let’s get back to the hospital.”
Dashay was propped against Coop’s bed and leaning over the arm with his IV when Riley rushed into the room. “What are you doing out of bed? How is he?” she asked as she pulled on a mask, gown, and gloves.
She looked up at Riley as she finished sticking a piece of tape to his arm. “Coop’s been thrashing around and pulled his line out twice.”
Riley stepped across from her and felt Coop’s forehead. His temperature was elevated. “I’ve got this. Get back in bed.”
“Yes, ma’am. Gladly,” Dashay said as she climbed on the gurney and slumped against the pillows.
Riley looked around the brightly lit room. “When did the power come back on?”
“About ten minutes after you left. Some guy in coveralls named Buck came in and told me the power would stay on for the duration. What took you so long? Was there trouble with the mystery librarian?”
Riley glanced at Jace as he walked in. “No trouble. I’ll fill you in later. We got the books. Think you’ll feel up to helping us research a diagnosis after you’ve had some sleep?”