❝ –– perhaps it’s true that things can change in a day. and when they do, those few dozen hours, like the salvaged remains of a burned house—the charred clock, the singed photograph, the scorched furniture—must be resurrected from the ruins and examined. and suddenly, they become the bleached bones of a story.
Carter groaned and threw her head back onto the gurney. The threat of calling her mother was enough for Carter to calm down enough to where she could at least be looked over by Teddy. She didn’t want to be at the hospital, let alone in the damn ER where her mother was only a floor away. “I’ll cooperate,” she muttered, looking up at the doctor, “As long as, you don’t tell my mother that I’m here. You can’t do that, I don’t cooperate.” The words made sense inside her head, but that was about it.
“I’m glad we’ve come to an understanding,” Teddy smiled amicably. Besides, she always had four-point restraints on her side. Teddy had never been one to let a
patient push her around, much less a friend’s daughter. So, with a little more authority in her voice than was necessary, she continued: “Now, sit back so I can check your vitals. The longer you spend negotiating with me, the longer you’ll
be stuck in here — and I know you don’t want that.
