"You don't have to go with me," I said as I opened the door.
"Nonsense, of course I'll go with you." He smiled. "And when everything checks out, we'll go back to my place and eat the dinner I fixed. I'm sure we'll be hungry by then."
The receptionist at the front desk recognized me and waved me through. Liz was in an exam room lying motionless on the bed when I sat down and took her hand.
"They took blood and they're running tests," Leslie said as she came through the curtain to start an IV. "Did she take anything that you know of?"
"No, I've never seen her take drugs or anything," I said, shaking my head. "She's been acting strange for a while, though. I wondered if she was using something, but she denied it, so I let it go."
"We'll figure it out," Leslie said with a reassuring smile. "She'll be okay. Can you call her parents?"
"I can try, but they're missionaries who live in Chile," I said. "I'm her emergency contact here in the states."
Leslie nodded before heading back to the nurses’ station to make notes on Liz's chart. I looked up at Cam, who put his hand on my shoulder and kept it there.
"Liz, can you hear me?" I said, leaning forward as I took her hand. "Liz? If you can hear me, squeeze my hand."
"Alex," she said as she weakly squeezed my fingers. "Help me."
"I'm here, Liz," I said, smoothing her hair as I held her hand. "We'll figure this out, and you'll be okay."
Liz smiled as she drifted back to sleep.
#
Leslie came back into the exam area a little while later and said they were moving Liz up to a bed in the psychiatric unit.
"She's not crazy!" I protested. "She's sick!"
"Look, I know it seems tough, but she's presenting with all the signs of someone with a drug addiction," Leslie said, patting my arm. "We'll get the results from her blood work and move her up there until she comes around. Then we'll get her started in the recovery program."
"It's not right," I said, shaking my head. "She's not doing drugs!"
"Alex, I know it's hard to accept that someone you love might have a substance abuse problem, but you need to let go and let her get help," Leslie said quietly. "We'll take excellent care of her, and you'll be able to come see her as soon as we get her back among the coherent."
I realized I had little choice in the matter, so I signed Liz into the ward and told them to tell her I'd be back in the morning. Cam wrapped an arm around me as we walked out of the ER, and I leaned into him as I tried not to break into tears.
"She's not an addict," I said once we were in the truck again. "I know she'
s not."
"Then let them figure it all out and get her the help she needs," Cam said diplomatically. "Are you hungry? I've got dinner ready at home, if you are."
I nodded as I fought back the tears as Cam simply reached over and took my hand. We drove in silence back to his place.
The house was a beautiful, little two- story on the West Side of town. Cam explained that it was nestled in a neighborhood that had seen better days but was now slowly rebuilding itself. He told me about how he'd spent hours working on the outer trim and making sure all of the elements from the roofing to the paint job were absolutely perfect.
"You've been lonely, haven't you?" I said quietly as he described the summer he spent sanding all of the gutters so he could paint them the perfect shade of cream to match the house. He didn't say anything, but I saw his jaw tighten.
At the house, he pulled into the garage and I could hear barking on the other side of the door. He smiled as he opened the door and a blur of yellow fur came tumbling out, wagging her tail and woofing a welcome.
"Alex, this is Tesla. Tesla, this is Alex," Cam said introducing us to one another.
"Hello, Tesla, it's nice to meet you," I said, squatting down so we were eye level and offering my hand to her. She looked up at Cam who nodded and then she walked cautiously around me sniffing and bumping me with her nose. I waited patiently without moving until she'd made her assessment and laughed loudly as she leaned in and licked my face.
"I think she approves of you." Cam laughed as he ruffled her fur and said to her, "C'mon, you want to go out, girl?"
Tesla ran for the back door and waited with her tail wagging. Cam turned on the backlight and let her out into the yard. I caught of glimpse of the perfectly manicured lawn and garden and wondered how long it had taken him to create that.