Sidney Sheldon - Nothing lasts forever

A resident looked at the monitor and called out, “Blood pressure is falling.”

Paige was working frantically to stop the flow of blood. She looked up at Koch. “Too much flow! I told you to …”

The noise of the heartbeat on the monitor suddenly became chaotic.

“My God! Something's gone wrong!”

“Give me the defibrillator!” Paige yelled.

The circulating nurse reached for the defibrillator on the crash cart, opened two sterile paddles, and plugged them in. She turned the buttons up to charge them and ten seconds later handed them to Paige.

She took the paddles and positioned them directly over Kelly's heart. Kelly's body jumped, then fell back.

Paige tried again, willing him to come back to life, willing him to breathe again. Nothing. The heart lay still, a dead, useless organ.

Paige was in a fury. Her part of the operation had been successful. Koch had overanesthetized the patient.

As Paige was applying the defibrillator to Lanct Kelly's body for the third futile time, Dr. Barker stepped up to the operating table and turned to Paige. “You killed him.”

Jason was in the middle of a design meeting when I his secretary said, “Dr. Taylor is on the phone for I you. Shall I tell her you'll call back?”

“No. I'll take it.” Jason picked up the phone. “Paige?”

“Jason … I need you!” She was sobbing.

“What happened?”

“Can you come to the apartment?”

“Of course. I'll be right there.” He stood up. “The meeting is over. We'll pick it up in the morning.”

Half an hour later, Jason was at the apartment. Paige opened the door and threw her arms around him. Her eyes were red from crying.

“What happened?” Jason asked.

“It's awful! Dr. Barker told me I … I killed a patient, and honestly, it … it wasn't my fault!” Her voice broke. “I can't take any more of his …”

“Paige,” Jason said gently, “you've told me how mean he always is. That's the man's character.”

Paige shook her head. “It's more than that. He's been trying to force me out since the day I started working with him. Jason, if he were a bad doctor and didn't think I was any good, I wouldn't mind so much, but the man is brilliant. I have to respect his opinion. I just don't think I'm good enough.”

“Nonsense,” Jason said angrily. “Of course you are. Everyone I talk to says you're a wonderful doctor.”

“Not Lawrence Barker.”

“Forget Barker.”

“I'm going to,” Paige said. “I'm quitting the hospital.”

Jason took her in his arms. “Paige, I know you love the profession too much to give it up.”

“I won't give it up. I just never want to see that hospital again.”

Jason took out a handkerchief and dried Paige's tears.

“I'm sorry to bother you with all of this,” Paige said.

“That's what husbands-to-be are for, isn't it?”

She managed a smile. “I like the sound of that. All right.” Paige took a deep breath. “I feel better now. Thanks for talking to me. I telephoned Dr. Wallace and told him I was quitting. I'm going over to the hospital and see him now.”

“I'll see you at dinner tonight.”

Paige walked through the corridors of the hospital, knowing that she was seeing them for the last time. There were the familiar noises and the people hurrying up and down the corridors. It had become more of a home to her than she'd realized. She thought of Jimmy and Chang, and all the wonderful doctors she had worked with. Darling Jason going on rounds with her in his white coat. She passed the cafeteria where she and Honey and Kat had had a hundred breakfasts, and the lounge, where they had tried to have a party. The corridors and rooms were full of so many memories. I'm going to miss it, Paige thought, but I refuse to work under the same roof as that monster.

She went up to Dr. Wallace's office. He was waiting for her.

“Well, I must say, your telephone call surprised me, Paige! Have you definitely made up your mind?”

“Yes.”

Benjamin Wallace sighed. “Very well. Before you go, Dr. Barker would like to see you.”

“I want to see him.” All of Paige's pent-up anger boiled to the surface.

“He's in the lab. Well … good luck.”

“Thanks.” Paige headed for the lab.

Dr. Barker was examining some slides under a microscope when Paige entered. He looked up. “I'm told you've decided to quit the hospital.”

“That's right. You finally got your wish.”

“And what was that?” Barker asked.

“You've wanted me out of here from the first moment you saw me. Well, you've won. I can't fight you anymore. When you told me I killed your patient, I …” Paige's voice broke. “I …1 think you're a sadistic, cold-hearted son of a bitch, and I hate you.”

“Sit down,” Dr. Barker said.

“No. I have nothing more to say.”

“Well, I have. Who the hell do you think you …?”

He suddenly stopped and began to gasp.

As Paige watched in horror, he clutched his heart and toppled over in his chair, his face twisted to one side in a horrible rictus.

Paige was at his side instantly. “Dr. Barker!” She grabbed the telephone and shouted into it, “Code Red! Code Red!”

Dr. Peterson said, “He's suffered a massive stroke. It's too early to tell whether he's going to come out of it.”

It's my fault, Paige thought. I wanted him dead. She felt miserable.

She went back to see Ben Wallace. “I'm sorry about what happened,” Paige said. “He was a good doctor.”

“Yes. It's regrettable. Very …” Wallace studied her a moment. “Paige, if Dr. Barker can't practice here anymore, would you consider staying on?”

Paige hesitated. “Yes. Of course.”

His chart read, “John Cronin, white male, age 70. Diagnosis: Cardiac tumor.” Paige had not yet met John Cronin. He was scheduled to have heart surgery. She walked into his room, a nurse and a staff doctor at her side. She smiled warmly and said, “Good morning, Mr. Cronin.”

They had just extubated him, and there were the marks of adhesive tape around his mouth. IV bottles hung overhead, and the tubing had been inserted in his left arm.

Cronin looked over at Paige. “Who the hell are you?”

“I'm Dr. Taylor. I'm going to examine you and—”

“Like hell you are! Keep your fucking hands off me. Why didn't they send in a real doctor?”

Paige's smile died. “I'm a cardiovascular surgeon. I'm going to do everything I can to get you well again.”

“You're going to operate on my heart?”

“That's right. I …”

John Cronin looked at the resident and said, “For Christ's sake, is this the best this hospital can do?”

“I assure you, Dr. Taylor is thoroughly qualified,” the staff doctor said.

“So is my ass.”

Paige said stiffly, “Would you rather bring in your own surgeon?”

“I don't have one. I can't afford those high-priced quacks. You doctors are all alike. All you're interested in is money. You don't give a damn about people. We're just pieces of meat to you, aren't we?”

Paige was fighting to control her temper. “I know you're upset right now, but—”

“Upset? Just because you're going to cut my heart out?” He was screaming. “I know I'll die on the operating table. You're going to kill me, and I hope they get you for murder!”

“That's enough!” Paige said.

He was grinning at her maliciously. “It wouldn't look good on your record if I died, would it, doctor? Maybe I will let you operate on me.”

Paige found that she was hyperventilating. She turned to the nurse. “I want an EKG and a chemistry panel.” She took one last look at John Cronin, then turned and left the room.