Mac stood up. "Nettie, let's leave mother here with the girls. Come on," he said, taking her arm. "Gregg and I'll buy you a drink and fill you in." With the offer of a drink on the table, Jeannette bade Pat farewell with another hug and a promise to stop by next week.
"Just remember, I'm here for you, Patti," she fairly shouted over her shoulder.
"Who is she?" Lisa whispered, watching as Mac and Gregg led the woman away.
Anne started to explain, but Pat never heard.
No, not instantly.
The doctor sat down at the end of the conference table and Pat sat across from Katie and Bob. He began a clinical review of Sam's situation.
"Your husband was brought to County about, ah, 90 minutes ago, Mrs. McGrew," he said, glancing at his watch. "A witness told the police he was jogging along the river path when a car veered off the road and hit him from behind. The driver was apparently distracted - one of those big paddle-wheel boats was coming up the river on a fall leaf excursion or something, not an everyday event. In any case, your husband never saw the car, never had a chance to jump out of the way. He suffered severe head injuries and was taken immediately to the trauma unit. The paramedics performed CPR all the way from the accident site, but when he arrived here he had no pulse."
"You mean he's dead?" Pat asked, catching her face in her hands and a breath in her throat.
"Well," he continued, "the trauma team worked on him for some time and was finally able to get his heart beating on its own again. They opened an airway in his trachea and intubated him. That's the way things stand now. We're breathing for him."
"Can he recover?"
"It's very severe, Mrs. McGrew, his skull's been crushed and he has a number of other injuries. We haven't completely determined their extent yet."
Pat felt herself go numb. For a moment she felt confused. No thoughts would come together. Then anger welled in her chest. "Then for God's sake, why did you revive him?" she asked, her voice trembling, yet almost inaudible.
"It's our procedure," he said. "We work to restore the vitals first. Once they're functioning we move on to other organs."
"You don't consider the brain a vital organ?" Pat asked in astonishment.
"Of course we do, but without heart and lungs it can't perform at all."
"Can I see him?"
"I think you should..."
"I think we should go find the guys and get out of here. We have an early flight tomorrow," Anne said, finishing the last of her coffee. "And I want to make sure Allison is asleep. Otherwise she'll be a crank on the plane."

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