when morning comes; a family affair novel

822019 When Morning Comes A Family Affair Novel

httpslidepdfcomreaderfullwhen-morning-comes-a-family-affair-novel 112



This is a work of 1047297ction All of the characters organizations and events

portrayed in this novel are either products of the authorrsquos imagination or

are used 1047297ctitiously

983159983144983141983150 983149983151983154983150983145983150983143 983139983151983149983141983155 Copyright copy 2012 by Francis Ray All rights

reserved Printed in the United States of America For information address

St Martinrsquos Press 175 Fifth Avenue New York NY 10010

wwwstmartinscom

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Ray Francis

When morning comes Francis Ray mdash 1st ed

p cm

ISBN 978-0-312-68162-3 (trade pbk)

ISBN 978-1-250-00986-9 (e-book)

1 NeurosurgeonsmdashFiction 2 AdoptionmdashFiction

3 Domestic 1047297ction I Title

PS647A35W47 2012

81354mdashdc23

2012004639

First Edition June 2012

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1



One

S

abrina Thomas clutched the leather-bound notebook to

her chest and tried not to be impatient as the elevator in

the south tower of Texas Hospital near downtown Dal-las stopped once again on its climb to the eighteenth and top

1047298oor But it was diffi cult

Dr Cade Mathis the bane of her existence would reach

Mrs Wardrsquos room 1047297rst and then therersquod be hell to pay Sabrina

jabbed the button to close the doors as soon as the last person

stepped onto the already crowded elevator Evenings were al-

ways busy at the hospital with the staggered change of shiftsand people dropping by to visit after work Usually she didnrsquot

mind the crowd but today wasnrsquot usual

Dr Mathis wasnrsquot going to be happy with Mrs Wardrsquos

decision to postpone her surgery and he wouldnrsquot be shy about

voicing his opinion

The elevator 1047297nally stopped on the eighteenth 1047298oor As soon

as there was enough space to allow her to slip through the doors

Sabrina stepped off the elevator excusing herself as she brushed



6 F R A N C I S R A Y

by people trying to get on Hurrying down the hall she almost

groaned on seeing Dr Mathisrsquos tall imposing 1047297gure At six foot

three he moved with a smooth unhurried grace as he entered

Mrs Wardrsquos room

Sabrina increased her frantic pace

Cade Mathis might be the best neurosurgeon in the country

but unfortunately too often he had the disposition of a warthog

in heat And no one at least as far as Sabrina knew questioned

him or went against his medical dictates The hospitalrsquos board

had gone all out to woo him from the Mayo Clinic Housewife

Ann Ward in her mid-twenties and her loving blue-collar

worker husband a few years older wouldnrsquot stand a snowballrsquos

chance in hell of standing up against him

No one on the staff even tried As patient advocate for Texas

Hospital it was Sabrinarsquos job to try Her eyes narrowed Shersquod

do more than tryTwo steps from the door she heard Dr Mathisrsquos clipped

precise voice that could be as lethal and as cutting as the scalpel

he wielded so skillfully She didnrsquot waste time knocking she

just went in What she saw con1047297rmed her fears

Ann in a patientrsquos gown was sitting up in bed Her hus-

bandrsquos work-worn hands clutched hers as he hovered over her as

if to protect her from Dr Mathis Unfortunately it would do nogood Dr Mathis was a law unto himself and listened to no one

but that wouldnrsquot stop Sabrina

ldquoHello Mr and Mrs Wardrdquo Sabrina greeted ldquoDr Mathisrdquo

The Wardsrsquo frantic gazes swung to Sabrina clearly begging

her to intervene Dr Mathis hands on his lean hips didnrsquot

even glance in her direction Clearly he thought her insigni1047297-

cant Tough ldquoIs there a problemrdquo

Ann nodded swallowed a couple of times before she could



W H E N M O R N I N G C O M E S 7

get the words out ldquoI-I just told Dr Mathis I want to postpone

my surgery like I mentioned to you yesterdayrdquo

Finally Dr Mathisrsquos gaze cold and cutting swung to Sa-

brina Since shersquod been subjected to his disapproval before she

didnrsquot cower as most of the staff did Her 1047297rst responsibility was

to the patient A fact that had put her at odds with her last

supervisor and the reason she had made the diffi cult decision

to transfer from a Texas Hospital affi liate in Houston to Dallas

six months ago

ldquoYou knew about this yesterdayrdquo he accused

ldquoYesrdquo she admitted aware that her chin had jutted

ldquoAnd did she tell you whyrdquo he asked his tone no less cut-

ting

ldquoHer daughterrsquos birthday party is Saturday the day after

her surgery and she doesnrsquot want to miss itrdquo Sabrina answered

Dr Mathisrsquos midnight black eyes narrowed then turned tohis patient ldquoYou have a tumor in the brain Every second we

wait to go in is a second too longrdquo

ldquoI feel 1047297nerdquo Mrs Ward said seeming to draw strength

from her husband who now had his arm around her shoulders

ldquoThe medicine yoursquore giving me is helping the headaches and

my other symptoms Clarissa my little girl wants me there with

her Saturday Irsquove missed so much because I was sick for so longand could hardly get out of bed let alone play or take care of

her I canrsquot disappoint herrdquo

ldquoIf you donrsquot have the surgery you might not live to see her

have another birthdayrdquo Dr Mathis told her

Annrsquos lips began to tremble tears 1047298owed freely from her

big hazel eyes She burrowed into the arms of her husband and

sobbed Her husband looked scared and angry

ldquoDr Mathismdashrdquo Sabrina began only to be cut off




ldquoThe next time one of my patients makes a critical deci-

sion Irsquod advise you to tell me and not wait for the patient to

call me less than sixteen hours before the surgeryrdquo he said to

her then strode from the room

Sabrina considered throwing the notebook at his retreating

back then wisely went to Ann to try to console her

ldquoWhat kind of doctor talks to a patient like thatrdquo Mr Ward

asked his body trembling as much as his voice ldquoDonrsquot listen to

him honey Yoursquoll be there to dance at Clarissarsquos wedding Isnrsquot

that right Sabrinardquo

Two pairs of eyes begging for reassurance 1047297xed on her

face ldquoI hope yoursquoll invite merdquo Sabrina told them Shersquod made

it a practice never to lie to patients They had to trust her She

just hoped the evasive answer was enough

ldquoLet me talk to Dr Mathis and Irsquoll be right backrdquo Sabrina

left the room and went straight to the charting area for doctorsbehind the nursesrsquo desk Dr Mathis was there his broad shoul-

ders rigid his mouth set in a tight line The charge nurse stand-

ing beside the secretary kept throwing troubled glances at him

When Dr Mathis was unhappy heads rolled Two other nurses

decided they could 1047297nish charting elsewhere and moved their

carts away Sabrina didnrsquot hesitate

ldquoMrs Ward was frightened enough without you addingto itrdquo

Dr Mathis 1047297nished making his notation on a chart in quick

slashing motions before looking up He stared at her as if she

were some icky bug that had dared cross his path The look an-

gered her just as much as the annoying unsteady pulse He might

have the manners of a warthog but he was as gorgeous as forbid-

den sin




ldquoItrsquos critical that Mrs Ward have surgery sooner rather

than laterrdquo

Sabrina trusted his knowledge It was his professionalism that

set her teeth on edge ldquoYou could have told her differentlyrdquo

Dr Mathis slowly stood towering over her 1047297ve feet four

inches his unblinking black gaze locked on hers ldquoShersquos play-

ing Russian roulette for a birthday party that can just as easily

be postponed The surgery canrsquotrdquo

ldquoShemdashrdquo

ldquoIs dying Ms Thomas Enough time has been wasted al-

ready Patients are too emotional They donrsquot always think

clearly I thought it was your job to help not make matters

worserdquo he said

Her temper spiked at his accusing tone Knowing she

shouldnrsquot didnrsquot stop her from stepping into his space ldquoMak-

ing things worse is your specialty Dr Mathisrdquo She spat out thelast word as if distasteful Clutching the notebook she spun to

see two other doctors there Disapproval was clearly visible on

their shocked faces

Sabrina cursed inwardly In the short two years Dr Mathis

had been at Texas his reputation as a top neurosurgeon had

grown He was revered as much as he was feared No matter

what Drs Mims and Carter might personally think of DrMathis doctors stuck together against the lesser mortals on

the hospital staff Doctors were never reprimandedmdashand cer-

tainly not in public

And before now shersquod had a good relationship with both

doctors Her rash actions might have endangered that rela-

tionship Even the charge nurse frowned at Sabrina

One thing life had taught her early was not to falter over




what couldnrsquot be changed Head high Sabrina walked from the

nursing station aware that the effi ciency of the hospital grape-

vine would have their conversation all over the hospital in a

matter of hours

She didnrsquot have time to think about it Right now a fam-

ily needed her help But how She loved her job as patient

advocate but it wasnrsquot an easy one Often there were hard

choices to make Her job was to ensure that patients had the

information needed for them to make the best possible deci-

sions

She knew 1047297rsthand how important that was If someone

hadnrsquot been there to speak for her when she was too young to

speak for herself she wouldnrsquot be alive today

Stopping in front of Mrs Wardrsquos door Sabrina took a calm-

ing breath The patientrsquos decision had been based on emotions

but reasoningmdashnot angermdashwas needed to help her decide if herdecision was the best one She opened the door and wasnrsquot sur-

prised to see Mr Ward still holding his softly crying wife in his

arms He glanced up

In his gaze she saw helplessness fear with a good dose of

anger ldquoHe had no right to upset Ann like that Irsquom reporting

him to the medical associationrdquo

Sabrina let the door swing closed ldquoDr Mathis is brusque buthersquos also the best neurosurgeon in the state possibly the country

He was at the Mayo Clinic for three years before coming to

Texas two years ago Patients come from all over the country to

see himrdquo

ldquoThat doesnrsquot give him the right to scare my wiferdquo Mr

Ward said clutching his wife closer

Sabrina knew he was doing his best to hide his fear ldquoDespite




Mrs Ward doing better Dr Mathis believes itrsquos in Mrs Wardrsquos

best interest to have the surgery tomorrow as scheduledrdquo

Sabrina stopped at the foot of the hospital bed

Mrs Ward lifted her tearstained face from her husbandrsquos

chest ldquoWhat do you thinkrdquo

Sabrina had been asked her opinion many times in her job

and always answered truthfully ldquoDr Mathis might not have the

best bedside manner but few neurosurgeons have his skill in the

operating room He was sought by some very prestigious hospi-

tals Texas is fortunate to have a man of his gifts and accom-

plishmentsrdquo

ldquoHersquos ruderdquo her husband snapped clearly not wanting to

let go of his anger

ldquoAnd gifted as I said He diagnosed your wifersquos condition

when no one else had been able tordquo Sabrina reminded them

gently Grudgingly she had to give Mathis points for not point-ing that out to her during their conversations Shersquod never heard

of him bragging His accomplishments spoke for him

Mrs Ward glanced at her husband then tucked her head

ldquoThe surgery has risks He told us that I just wanted to be there

for Clarissarsquos birthdaymdashin casemdashrdquo Her voice broke trailed off

Her husband pulled her closer

Sabrina went to the bedside ldquoI might not have any chil-dren but I understand why you made the emotional decision

Dr Mathis made his decision based on your test resultsrdquo

ldquoIf you needed a neurosurgeon would you use Dr Mathisrdquo

Mrs Ward asked staring at Sabrina intently

Sabrina didnrsquot even have to think ldquoHersquod be at the top of

my very short listrdquo

Mrs Ward looked at her husband then spoke to Sabrina




ldquoThank you If you donrsquot mind Irsquod like to talk to my husband

alonerdquo

ldquoOf course If you need anything else just have me paged

Good-byerdquo Sabrina left the room hoping that she had helped

annoyed with herself that she hadnrsquot handled things better

with Dr Mathis and even more annoyed with him

Sabrina Thomas annoyed the hell out of him Cade thought as

he went through the hospitalrsquos double exit doors and headed

for his car He paid no attention to the hot blast of June air that

enveloped him He might not have been in Texas for long but

he was used to the sti1047298ing heat What he wasnrsquot used to was

being questioned

His mouth tight he activated the locks on the black Lambor-

ghini No one at Texas Hospital not even the chief of staff hadquestioned Cade in the years hersquod been associated with the hos-

pital Doctors from all over the country sought his advice He

was respected feared revered He knew he was malignedmdashbut

never to his face

Except by Sabrina Thomas

Yanking open the door he slid inside and started the engine

His mind stil l on Sabrina he backed out of the space and headedfor the exit gate At 1047297rst hersquod thought she was on a power trip

until hersquod seen her more than once holding a less than clean

child while talking to a patient or family member or buying

food from the vending machine for patient family members

Dirty bedpans didnrsquot even faze her She didnrsquot appear to mind

doing menial things for patients or working late to push depart-

ments and agencies to help a family in need

Sabrina Thomas cared about her patients But she had to




understand that patients didnrsquot look at their medical conditions

logically Unfortunately neither did she which made for a bad

combination especially since he preferred a calm nonconfron-

tational life at work and at home His life had been too chaotic

and uncertain growing up not to crave peace He wasnrsquot going

to get that when they had the same patient

The ringing phone interrupted his thoughts He pushed

983137983139983139983141983152983156 on the wood grain control panel ldquoDr Mathisrdquo

ldquoDr Mathis you have a call from Mrs Ward She says itrsquos

urgentrdquo came the cool effi cient voice of his offi ce manager Iris

through his radio ldquoYour three late appointments just signed inrdquo

He stopped at a red light ldquoPlease tell them Irsquom on the way

and put them in a room Irsquoll be there in less than 1047297ve minutesrdquo

Some of his patients had diffi culty getting off work so he had

late appointments one day a week ldquoPut Mrs Ward throughrdquo

ldquoDr Mathisrdquo came the tentative voice By all rights sheshouldnrsquot be alive Hersquod stopped believing in a higher power for

himself long ago but he realized that for others there was such

a thing

He was different He ruled his destiny not some unseen

force

ldquoYes Mrs Wardrdquo She sounded shaky ldquoAre you feeling all

rightrdquo As much as he disagreed with her decision she was stil lhis patient and deserved his best He never wanted to give less

Hersquod gone into medicine to show a man he hated that he

wasnrsquot worthless as hersquod been told all of his life Yet somehow

along the way hersquod learned he could make a difference in

peoplersquos lives and perhaps make up for the fact that no one had

been there to make a difference in his

ldquoYes I-I rdquo

ldquoMrs Ward I have patients waiting at my offi cerdquo




ldquoIf itrsquos not too late I want to have the surgery in the morn-

ing as scheduledrdquo

Frowning he pulled through the light ldquoI havenrsquot taken you

off the schedule so there shouldnrsquot be a problem What changed

your mindrdquo

ldquoSabrinardquo

Surprised he turned into the underground parking lot of

his offi ce building ldquoMs Thomasrdquo

ldquoShe said if she needed a neurosurgeon you would be at

the top of her very short listrdquo

Stunnedmdasha rare occasion for himmdashCade was momentarily

at a loss for words an even rarer occasion Hersquod had the impres-

sion that Sabrina Thomas didnrsquot think too highly of him He

hadnrsquot minded Usually he could care less what people thought

of him Never had Had always thought he never would ldquoIrsquoll

see you in the morning Good-byerdquoldquoGood-byerdquo

Cade disconnected the call pulled into his reserved parking

spot and got out of his car He had patients to see and then he

was going to track down Sabrina Thomas They were going to

1047297gure out a way to work together without all the friction

Which meant she wouldnrsquot interfere with his patientsrsquo care

and he would have his calm quiet life back just the way it wasbefore shersquod come into it



This is a work of 1047297ction All of the characters organizations and events

portrayed in this novel are either products of the authorrsquos imagination or

are used 1047297ctitiously

983159983144983141983150 983149983151983154983150983145983150983143 983139983151983149983141983155 Copyright copy 2012 by Francis Ray All rights

reserved Printed in the United States of America For information address

St Martinrsquos Press 175 Fifth Avenue New York NY 10010

wwwstmartinscom

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Ray Francis

When morning comes Francis Ray mdash 1st ed

p cm

ISBN 978-0-312-68162-3 (trade pbk)

ISBN 978-1-250-00986-9 (e-book)

1 NeurosurgeonsmdashFiction 2 AdoptionmdashFiction

3 Domestic 1047297ction I Title

PS647A35W47 2012

81354mdashdc23

2012004639

First Edition June 2012

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1



One

S













voicing his opinion










Mrs Wardrsquos room





































six months ago




ting















































den sin





than laterrdquo







ldquoShemdashrdquo




worserdquo he said





their shocked faces

















matter of hours






sions








arms He glanced up







see himrdquo

















plishmentsrdquo


let go of his anger




















alonerdquo










being questioned





never to his face































a thing


force








ldquoYes I-I rdquo









your mindrdquo

ldquoSabrinardquo



















One

S













voicing his opinion










Mrs Wardrsquos room





































six months ago




ting















































den sin





than laterrdquo







ldquoShemdashrdquo




worserdquo he said





their shocked faces

















matter of hours






sions








arms He glanced up







see himrdquo

















plishmentsrdquo


let go of his anger




















alonerdquo










being questioned





never to his face































a thing


force








ldquoYes I-I rdquo









your mindrdquo

ldquoSabrinardquo























Mrs Wardrsquos room





































six months ago




ting















































den sin





than laterrdquo







ldquoShemdashrdquo




worserdquo he said





their shocked faces

















matter of hours






sions








arms He glanced up







see himrdquo

















plishmentsrdquo


let go of his anger




















alonerdquo










being questioned





never to his face































a thing


force








ldquoYes I-I rdquo









your mindrdquo

ldquoSabrinardquo




























six months ago




ting















































den sin





than laterrdquo







ldquoShemdashrdquo




worserdquo he said





their shocked faces

















matter of hours






sions








arms He glanced up







see himrdquo

















plishmentsrdquo


let go of his anger




















alonerdquo










being questioned





never to his face































a thing


force








ldquoYes I-I rdquo









your mindrdquo

ldquoSabrinardquo















































den sin





than laterrdquo







ldquoShemdashrdquo




worserdquo he said





their shocked faces

















matter of hours






sions








arms He glanced up







see himrdquo

















plishmentsrdquo


let go of his anger




















alonerdquo










being questioned





never to his face































a thing


force








ldquoYes I-I rdquo









your mindrdquo

ldquoSabrinardquo





















than laterrdquo







ldquoShemdashrdquo




worserdquo he said





their shocked faces

















matter of hours






sions








arms He glanced up







see himrdquo

















plishmentsrdquo


let go of his anger




















alonerdquo










being questioned





never to his face































a thing


force








ldquoYes I-I rdquo









your mindrdquo

ldquoSabrinardquo























matter of hours






sions








arms He glanced up







see himrdquo

















plishmentsrdquo


let go of his anger




















alonerdquo










being questioned





never to his face































a thing


force








ldquoYes I-I rdquo









your mindrdquo

ldquoSabrinardquo






























plishmentsrdquo


let go of his anger




















alonerdquo










being questioned





never to his face































a thing


force








ldquoYes I-I rdquo









your mindrdquo

ldquoSabrinardquo





















alonerdquo










being questioned





never to his face































a thing


force








ldquoYes I-I rdquo









your mindrdquo

ldquoSabrinardquo





































a thing


force








ldquoYes I-I rdquo









your mindrdquo

ldquoSabrinardquo
























your mindrdquo

ldquoSabrinardquo

















when morning comes; a family affair novel

Documents