King of My Heart

Chapter 12 - Little Maisie

*Jenn Haines's Hospital ER*

Claire Kinsley's POV

"What do we have here?" I asked as I took wide strides alongside with the nurse who pushed in an unconscious squalid looking young child on a stretcher from the ambulance.

"Patient was found unconscious on the bed after running days of high fever with complaints of vomiting, diarrhoea, body aches and chest pain," The nurse reported.

"And... bluish skin with laboured wheezing breathing, a suspected case of pneumonia, please get the bronchodilators ready," I instructed the nurses as I continued to diagnose her when she was parked into the emergency room.

I had been rushing here and there all over the ER department since this morning, a routine which I'm beginning to accustom to as an ER doctor. Despite it all, I still enjoyed coming to work because the sense of fulfilment to save lives is just unrivalled.

I picked up the data board and took a look at her name before finally informing the nurses of the good news, "Ok, the condition of little... Maisie here is finally stabilised, please inform her parents or guardian about it, thank you."

"Erm... Dr Kinsley, I don't think it's a good idea for them to see the patient now," One of the nurses replied me.

"Oh, why not?" I asked.

"Apparently, she is under the care of foster home now. The guardians who took her in are demanding that she gets discharged immediately because they do not want to pay for the costly medical bill," The nurse replied.

"Seriously? That's ridiculous, I will talk to them." I replied, feeling incredulous.

The nurse then ushered me to where her guardians were. Both of them were bulky looking in their oversized rumpled clothes.

"Hi there, are you guardians of Maisie Peterson?" I approached them.

"Yea, who are you?" The woman who had a head of unkempt hair replied me, sounding confrontational.

I swear that would have earned her a backhand slap of mine on her face if I was allowed to do so.

I took in a deep breath before putting on my professional front tone, "Well, I'm Dr Kinsley, I was the one who attended to Maisie and I would like to inform
you that her condition has been stabilised, however..."

"Yea, whatever, just send her out already, we ain't got the whole day here," The burly man who stood next to her cut me off before I could even finish my explanation. The flash of his decaying set of teeth coupled with that waft of sordid breath from his mouth was just off-putting.

Now I'm not surprised how Maisie ended up so sick under their care.

"I meant to say she will still need to be hospitalised until further observation because it is still not advisable for her to be discharged at this moment," I explained to them, stressing the importance on the care for the patient.

He continued to yell back crudely at me, "Come on, I know y'all hospital just like to rob us blind!" He then lifted his fist up, threatening to land it on me, "I SAID DISCHARGE HER AT THIS MOMENT OR I SHALL..."

"Shall what?!" Liam snapped back at him with his masculine commanding presence as he grabbed the man's arm with one just hand.

"And who da f**k are you?" The man continued to push his luck as he tried to loosen his arm from Liam's grip.

"Sir, I'm sure we can communicate in a civilised manner, can we?" Liam tightened his grip around his arm, almost twisting it as he shot back at the man with his deadpan look and clenched jaw that strikes fear right to one's core.