began to feel pain. She tried to crane her head to look
at the IV source, but her head wouldn’t move, her neck
wouldn’t swivel.
SUTURE SELF
25
“Joe, get a nurse,” Judith said, wincing slightly. “I
think I’m running out of pain medication.”
“The anesthesia’s probably wearing off,” Joe said.
“Hang on, I’ll find the nurse who was here a few minutes ago.”
The next half hour was taken up with the nurse’s attempts to make Judith more comfortable, with Joe
pressing fluids upon her, and with Judith thinking that
maybe she
began to ease a bit as a result of the increased morphine dosage. Judith felt more aware, but less content.
“We’re going to move you to your room now,” the
nurse said smiling. “Once we get you in bed, you’ll
feel better.”
“No, I won’t,” Judith muttered. “I feel like bird
poop.”
“You can sleep,” the nurse said. “It’ll be quieter
there.”
Judith had been vaguely aware of the comings and
goings in the recovery area. The surgeons must have
been busy that day, since at least a half-dozen patients
had been wheeled in or out while she emerged from
her anesthetic cocoon. The noise hadn’t really bothered her, but she’d be glad for some peace and privacy.
“I saw Bob Randall after his knee surgery,” Joe said
as Judith was being trundled down the hall. “He
seemed in pretty good spirits. But then he always was
a warrior.”
“I . . . didn’t . . . know . . . you . . . were . . . such . . .
a . . . fan,” Judith gasped as every buckle and bump in
the hallway floor seemed to set her teeth on edge.
“Randall played fourteen years for the Auks,” Joe
said, hurrying to keep up. “Those were the years I was
married to Herself. Watching Randall pass for a first
26
Mary Daheim
down on third and eight was a lot more fun than watching Vivian pass out over an empty fifth.”
“Yes.” It was all Judith could manage to say as they
turned a corner on what felt like two wheels. The lingering odor of food and antiseptic seemed to chase
her down the hall like a stale wind.
A sort of shrieking reached Judith’s ears as the gurney slowed. Judith frowned but couldn’t quite manage
to lift her head. “What’s that?” she asked as the noise
grew louder.
The nurse and the orderly didn’t reply but kept moving closer to the source.
“Joe?” Judith asked as a series of obscenities assailed her ears.
The gurney was steered through a doorway. The obscenities grew in volume and ferocity. “Joe?” Judith
repeated.
