by Aiden Bates
Hopefully, they had family nearby. Her husband was beyond helping her now.
He scrubbed out of that surgery to go back to the ER, where he treated an elderly patient for a fall and a teenager for pneumonia. It was an advanced case, since the Urgent Care doctor who had originally seen her had initially diagnosed her with mono, but she'd probably pull through after a little while in the hospital.
A nurse approached him after he got that teenager admitted. "Dr. Brennan, I've got a woman here with a young boy asking for you specifically."
Alex shook his head. "That's not how it works in the ER. People don't get to decide on their personal trauma doctor."
"I know, I know. For what it's worth, it looks like her kid does need an actual medical doctor. For whatever reason, she's decided it should be you."
Alex glanced out toward the waiting room. "Fine," he said, and threw his hands up. "Fine, whatever. If it keeps the line moving, I guess it doesn't really matter."
He let the nurse go and escort his latest patient in while he went to clean up and take a look at the case. He couldn't help but be annoyed by the breech of protocol. The ER worked the way it did, and if the patient wanted a specific doctor they should make an appointment with their primary care doctor.
At the same time, Alex was intrigued. ER doctors didn't usually get asked for by name. He took a look at the patient's chart. Joey Smith, ten, probable broken arm with complications. Okay, that did require surgery more often than not. He headed down to the treatment bay to meet his mystery patient.
Once he stepped into the bay he could see he wasn't dealing with anyone named Smith. Joey's arm was definitely broken. Alex could see the bone sticking up through the skin, which needed to be dealt with sooner rather than later. But he had his father's small, dark blue eyes and his bushy eyebrows.
Alex turned to Joey's mother. "You've got a lot of nerve coming here, and asking for me."
Veronica, Joey's mother, gasped. "You know who I am?"
Alex barked out a little laugh. "Oh yeah. I know. Ivy knows. Not sure about Ayla. Pretty sure Mom knows, although I can't be positive. We try not to bring you up." He shook his head. "Veronica, seriously, why would you come here?"
"I didn't want to. I didn't have any choice." She turned her head away. "I didn't have anyone else I could trust."
Alex’s mouth went dry as he looked from his father's mistress to his half-brother's broken arm and tear-streaked face. He took a deep breath. "Okay. Okay. First things first, does Joey know who I am?"
"Mom told me on our way over." Joey sniffed and wiped his nose on his good arm. "She said you're my big brother and you'd fix me all up."
Alex closed his eyes. Clearly Veronica had never heard of medical objectivity. "Okay. Listen, Joey, your mom is right. Now, I'm not supposed to work on any friends or family. That's because in theory, we're supposed to be so close it would make me too worried about you to do my job. But since we just met, I think I can probably get away with it just this once, right?"
Joey nodded, and even managed to give a smile through the tears.
"Okay, so what we're going to do is we're going to take some pictures of your arm so we can figure out exactly what we're dealing with. I'm going to pull in a pediatric orthopedist, because while I can set the bone my buddy Harris can do it better. I'll still be in there, helping out. And we're going to have you out nice and cold, so it's not going to hurt you a bit, okay little bro?"
Joey beamed at Alex, and Alex’s heart melted just a little bit. "Okay. Let me see who's available. I'll ask Linda to come in here and get you ready for surgery. Do you mind if your mom comes out and talks with me for a minute or two?"
Joey nodded. Veronica grimaced, but she followed Alex out into the hall. Alex didn't address her until he'd ordered Joey's X-rays and had Linda reach out to the orthopedist. Then, he led Veronica into an empty room.
"Okay. Veronica. Look. I've got a really ugly picture in my mind right now."
Veronica looked away. "Okay, you're probably not far from the truth. He's been… off… for the past few months. Three or four, I guess." She looked down. "I put it down to stress, but it's been getting worse over the past couple of months." She looked up at him. "I don't know why. I asked him, but he said it was none of my business. His 'first family' and our family were supposed to be separate."
Alex sucked in his cheeks. "Yeah. He thinks we don't even know about you." He didn't want to look at this woman, who had taken Dad away from Mama. It was more complicated than that, though.
And if Dad was acting out against his precious "good" family, then the problem went deeper than he thought. "Okay," he said, mind racing. "Well, the first thing is I'm a mandated reporter, Veronica. I don't have a choice here."
Veronica's sharp jaw dropped. "You'd turn in your own father for child abuse?"
"Absofrickenlutely. The way that arm was broken? Oh yeah. I already know the child advocate I'm calling for Joey, too. Brace yourself, it's Ayla, my sister."
"Oh my God." Veronica covered her face with both hands. "I trusted you."
"And you were right to. Ayla is Joey's sister too, and she is not Dad's friend right now." Alex bit the inside of his cheek for a second and braced himself against an empty bed. "Look, Veronica, the way Dad's been acting, that's not unique to you and Joey, okay? We didn't know he was doing it to you, too, or we'd have done something about it by now. We might resent you, but he's a kid. He didn't ask for any of this." Alex rubbed at the back of his neck. "This personality change, though. It's concerning. We've seen less and less of Dad since…"
"Since he and I got together." Veronica's lip curled.
"I was going to say since my sister was abducted." Alex managed a smile that had very little humor to it. "You came along a few years after that, but yeah. We saw even less of him after that."
"You blame me." Veronica stiffened her back.
"It's not like you didn't know he was married, and had a family." Alex shrugged. "But right now, we need to keep Joey safe from Dad."
"That's his father. His family! You can't honestly sit there and think it's okay to separate a father from his son." Veronica stomped her foot. "I brought Joey to you because I thought I could count on you, to do what was right for the family. I thought your father had raised you right."
Alex stiffened. "My mother raised me to do the right thing by people who aren't able to defend themselves. In this case, that person is Joey. Joey, who is my little brother. It doesn't matter that we haven't met before. It doesn't matter that I don't approve of the way he was born. He's here, he's alive, and he's suffering. He deserves better. That's my job as a doctor, and that's my job as his big brother."
Alex stalked out of the room. He grabbed Linda and asked her to call Social Services and start the reporting process, only to find out that Dr. Harris had already taken care of that.
Well, that took care of one thing. At least Alex wasn't going to have to call Social Services on his own father. That would be awkward.
He headed down to Radiology to consult with Harris. The break to Joey's arm was severe, and setting it was going to be complicated. They scrubbed up and got ready to operate, while anesthesiology got Joey ready. Then it was showtime.
Alex hated operating on kids. Joey was no different. This kid was his own flesh and blood, but he was a stranger. He was just another tiny body, hurt by something that wasn't his fault. A broken arm to an adult was bad. A broken arm to a kid wasn't just a hundred times itchier and more painful, but it could have serious repercussions for the child's growth down the road.
They put the bone back in place, and used metal plates and screws to hold it together. Then they got the cast on him, and sent Joey off to recovery. He'd spend a few days on the pediatric ward being observed for infection, because a bone had been sticking up out of his skin and bone infections got nasty quick. Then he'd go… somewhere.
Alex called Ayla as soon as he was dressed. "Hey, little sis. I have a new client for you."
Ayla let out a little growl. "You do realize, big brother, that you don't assign child advocates to clients?"
"This one's special." He swallowed. "He's our brother. Our half-brother. And, ah, my patient, courtesy of Dad."
Ayla cursed. "I'll be right there."
Alex went out to social services, where Veronica was speaking with Ms. Myles. Myles gave Alex a look of the most profound exhaustion. "It seems like every time I look up lately, someone connected with you is in my office. Your neighbor. Your sister. Now your father's mistress."
"Excuse me!" Veronica smacked her hand on the desk.
"What, you'd prefer side chick?" Myles turned her disdain onto Veronica. "Look, we're here to help you and your son, but own it, sister."
Alex pinched the bridge of his nose. "Look, can we not? Yeah, I'm mad about what she and Dad did, and how that affects my mom. That's not something I can do anything about, and it's way too complex to unravel right now. Either way, it's not right to sit here and fight about anyone's sex life when it's not relevant to the case. Anyway, we need to talk about the father. About Simon Brennan." It was easier to discuss it if he didn't think of Simon as Dad.
"You're right. I apologize." Myles gave him an approving little smile. "I assume you've already called Ayla?"
"Of course." Alex grinned. "She's the best." He turned to Veronica. "I'm not just saying it because she's family. She's truly incredible at what she does. As a children's advocate, her job is to make sure that Joey and his best interests are represented throughout whatever happens next. She'll be able to keep things separate. She's not Dad's biggest fan, but she can separate work from home." He rubbed at his jaw for a second. "I'd like Simon to see a gerontologist. Maybe a neurologist as well."
Myles folded her hands on her desk. "Because all abusers get to just wander from doctor to doctor?"
Alex sighed. "That's the thing. This is new behavior. He always had a controlling side, but in the past few months it's definitely changed. I've noticed extreme emotional reactions to things that wouldn't have bothered him in the past. He tried to arrange a marriage for me, and for crying out loud this is modern America not a Regency drawing room. He tried to bully Ayla into something, and he slapped me over something foolish. While he was driving."
"You think a slap of a grown man was abusive?" Veronica tossed her head. "He broke my son's arm!"
Alex rolled his eyes. It wasn't a competition, for crying out loud. "That's my point. Had he ever been violent with you or Joey in the previous ten years?"
"Not before his behavior shifted. He could be insensitive, and kind of an ass, but he was starting a new family while still married. I didn't exactly expect Prince Charming." Veronica sighed. "I still loved him, though."
"That's great, Veronica. My point is that he's experienced a very sudden shift in behavior. We see that sometimes in patients with frontal lobe dementia."
"Oh." Myles' mouth made a perfect o. "That makes a lot of sense, actually. You're probably right. We can't force him to sit down for the appointments though."
"Actually you can." Alex gave her a grim smile. "He's proven now that he's a danger to himself and others. It's not okay for him to sit there and beat up poor Joey. What's next? He gets volatile again and chucks him down the stairs? He decides to take out one of my sisters for some imaginary failing?"
"You've got a point. I'm sure Ayla will be more than happy to insist on charges being filed against Simon." Myles stroked her chin. "Oh my yes. Then the police will bring him in for an evaluation, and we'll know."
Veronica's eyes blazed. "You'd do that to your own father?"
"For my brother?" Alex met her gaze. "Absolutely, without thinking twice. If Simon has the problem that I think he does, then he's absolutely a threat to himself and the people around him. As his child, it's my responsibility to care for him. If he's in good health, then my responsibility is solely to Joey. He is my patient and he is a child."
"But you don't think your dad is healthy." Myles shook her head.
"I don't." Alex didn't know if he'd be happy or sad with the results of the specialists' exam. As long as Joey was safe, he guessed that was all he needed.
Chapter Thirteen
Sunday rolled around, and Derek decided he was going to go ahead and put his feet up. His ankles had been swelling for a few days now, and all he wanted was to get off of them and let them drain or whatever it was ankles did. Let Alex figure out what was going on with them. That was his job, right?
Alex did come over on Sunday, and he looked like Hell. His week seemed to have been comparable to Derek's. Apparently he'd been forced to report his own father to the authorities for child abuse, against Alex’s illegitimate half-brother. "So after Ayla got taken, your dad just went off and started a whole new family?"
"Basically. He started running around, anyway. Technically he and Mom 'opened up their marriage,' whatever that means, but he was the only one allowed to run around. Then he met Veronica."
"You don't like her." Derek should have popped some popcorn. This was too good.
"I resent her." Alex closed his eyes. "I do. I resent her because of what her being with my dad does to my mom. I don't really know her. I know she's not the kind of woman my dad would marry, not ever. Joey's not allowed to have the Brennan name, and what kind of a pig does that make my dad?" Alex glanced over to Carmela. "If you ever decide to get married, or date, don't marry a guy like my dad. Just don't, okay? Marry someone who values you, who'll give you his name. Who'll marry you, for crying out loud, and who'll honor that marriage even when things go south."
Derek rolled his eyes. It took an impressive lack of self-awareness for Alex to spout a statement like that.
"Anyway, we've been able to get a restraining order for Joey against Dad. I like the kid." Alex grinned and shook his head a little. "I shouldn't, you know? He's the result of everything that's gone wrong in our family."
Derek made a face. "That's not his fault. He's just a kid."
"I know, right? And he's sweet, and he's brave, and he's full of smiles. He's pretty smart, too. I'm proud of him. I shouldn't be." Alex sighed. "Anyway, I'm worried about Dad. We told him we got a restraining order against him on Joey's behalf, and he didn't even process that he was banned from seeing Joey. He was furious that we'd interfered with his affairs."
Derek shrugged. "That's kind of typical for an abusive man. Sorry to say it, but it's the truth."
"Here's the thing, though. Dad was always a little controlling, a little tough, but he wasn't ever abusive. He didn't hit us. He sure as hell didn't break any of our arms bad enough that the bone tore through the skin." Alex’s eyes burned bright. "We've all been noticing some pretty serious behavior changes over the past few months." He glanced at Derek. "You didn't know him before. You still wouldn't have gotten along, but it would have been different."
"Good to know." Derek sat back as a minor wave of nausea washed over him. It wasn't all that bad. He could keep things down. It was just enough that he noticed it, and he chalked it up to stress. "So do you think it's drugs? Booze? Because both of those can have a kind of Jekyll and Hyde effect."
"No." Alex shook his head. "He despises anything to do with addiction. He drinks, but not like that. No, I think Dad's suffering from frontal lobe dementia."
Derek rubbed his tongue ring against his teeth for a second. "Okay. You're the doctor here, and you know your dad. I'm just a guy." He put his hands to his chest. "The thing is, you're pretty close to the case. It's easy, when you're close to something like this, to kind of… well, to rationalize away some kind of bad behavior. My mom used to come up with all kinds of reasons my dad was doing the things he did, but really it was just that he was a drunk asshole."
Alex’s eyes unfocused for a moment. "I was a little worried about that," he admitted in a quiet voice. Derek knew that was a big admission for Alex. He didn't allow himself that kind of vulnerability very often. "I ran it past Ms. Myles at the hospital, and we brought in a neurologist an
d a gerontologist. We have a few theories we want to run through. To get that done, we need to get him in and agree to examination."
Derek put a hand onto his queasy stomach. "Yeah. Yeah you do. The thing is, you can't force him into treatment."
"We can, actually. When he broke Joey's arm, he showed himself to be a danger to himself and others." Alex brightened a little bit, but then he deflated. "It's better if he cooperates, of course. The problem is that right now he doesn't think anything's wrong."
"Of course he doesn't." Carmela tossed her hair over her shoulder. "He's not that guy. He wouldn't have been before he got sick." She spoke in English, with only a few Spanish words mixed in. Derek beamed with pride.
"No." Alex grinned at her. The expression was tinged with sadness, because her words were true, but he was proud of Carmela too. "No, he wasn't."