Chapter 2 - The Silent Diagnosis
The frosted glass doors of the emergency room swung open, and a tired-looking doctor in green scrubs stepped out, scanning the waiting area.
"Family of Claire Bennett?" the doctor called out.
Nathan stood up immediately, guiding the twins with him. "I'm her employer, Nathan Whitmore. I brought her in. What's her condition?"
The doctor looked at Nathan's tailored navy suit, then down at the two boys clinging to his legs. His expression serious. "Mr. Whitmore, Miss Bennett is in severe hypovolemic shock brought on by acute dehydration and extreme physical exhaustion. But that's not the primary issue. Her lab work indicates advanced nutritional deficiency and a dangerously low red blood cell count. Her body has essentially been consuming itself to keep going."
Nathan’s chest tightened. "Is she going to make it?"
"We've started her on aggressive IV fluids, blood transfusions, and a regiment of intravenous vitamins," the doctor explained. "She’s stable for now, but she won't be waking up for several hours. Her body has forced her into a deep sleep to survive. She needs weeks of absolute bed rest. No working. No stress."
"She will have whatever she needs," Nathan said firmly, pulling out his black American Express card. "Move her to a private suite immediately. I want the chief of internal medicine on her case. Bill everything to me."
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The doctor looked surprised, his demeanor softening. "We can do that, Mr. Whitmore. But she’s going to need a designated caregiver when she wakes up. She kept murmuring a name before she lost consciousness entirely. She kept calling for 'Lily.'"
"I'm handling Lily," Nathan said, his voice ringing with a new, unshakeable authority. "Boys, we're going to make a trip to Queens. We have a little girl to bring home."
