He told her that twenty-minute intervals meant she had a lot of time.
“Dr. Simarian?” Patty said as the doctor was about to disconnect. “Clark is out of town on a business trip. I’ll be coming in by myself.”
“Great timing!” Dr. Simarian said with a laugh. “Just like a male. They like to have the fun, then disappear when there’s a little work to be done.”
“He thought there was another week,” Patty explained, feeling like she had to defend Clark. She could be irritated at him but no one else could.
“Just joking,” Dr. Simarian said. “I’m sure he will be crushed not to be involved. When he comes back, we’ll have a little surprise for him. Now don’t be a bit alarmed. Everything’s going to be okay. Do you have a way of getting to the hospital?”
Patty said she had a neighbor who had agreed to drive her in case there were any surprises while Clark was away.
“Dr. Simarian,” Patty added, hesitantly, “with my Lamaze partner gone, I think I really am too nervous to go through this.
I don’t want to do anything to hurt the baby, but if you think I could be anesthetized the way we discussed…”
“No problem,” Dr. Simarian said, without letting her finish. “Don’t you worry your pretty little head about these details. I’ll handle everything.
I’m going to call over there right this minute and tell them that you want the epidural, okay?”
Patty thanked Dr. Simarian and hung up the phone just in time to bite her lip as she felt the beginnings of another contraction.
There was no reason to worry, she told herself sternly. She still had plenty of time to make it to the hospital. Dr. Simarian had everything in hand. She knew her baby was healthy. She had insisted on ultrasound and amniocentesis, even though Dr. Simarian had advised it was unnecessary since Patty was only twenty-four years old. But between her ominous premonition and genuine concern, Patty’s determination carried the day. The results of the tests were extremely encouraging: the child she was carrying was a healthy, normal boy. Within a week of receiving the results, Patty and Clark were painting the baby’s room blue and deciding on names, ultimately settling on Mark.
All in all, there was no reason to expect anything but a normal delivery and a normal birth.
As Patty turned, intending to retrieve her packed overnight bag from the bedroom closet, she noticed the dramatic change in weather outside. The bright September sunlight which had been streaming through the bay window had been eclipsed by a dark cloud that had blown in suddenly from the west, plunging the family room into near darkness. A distant rumble of thunder sent a shiver down Patty’s spine.
Not superstitious by nature, Patty refused to take this storm as an omen.
She edged over to the family room couch and sat down. She thought she’d call her neighbor as soon as this contraction was over. That way they’d almost be at the hospital by the time the next one began.
As the pain reached a crescendo, the confidence that Dr. Simarian had engendered disappeared. Anxiety swept through Patty’s mind just as a sudden gust of wind raked across the backyard, bending the birches, and bringing the first droplets of rain. Patty shuddered. She wished it were all over.
She might not be superstitious, but she was frightened. All the timing-this storm, Clark’s business trip, her going into labor a week earlyseemed off.
Tears rolled down Patty’s cheeks as she waited to phone her neighbor. She only wished she weren’t so afraid.
“Oh, wonderful,” Dr. Jeffrey Rhodes said sarcastically as he glanced up at the main anesthesia scheduling board in the anesthesia office. A new case had appeared: Patty Owen, a delivery with a specific request for an epidural. Jeffrey shook his head, knowing full well that he was the only anesthesiologist currently available. Everyone else on the day shift was tied up on a case. Jeffrey called the delivery area to check on the patient’s status and was told there wasn’t any rush since the woman hadn’t arrived from admitting yet.
“Any complications I should know about?” Jeffrey asked, almost afraid to hear. Things hadn’t been going well for him on this particular day.