Tiit For Tat - S01 E18

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3 years ago

Tiit For Tat - S01 E18

Read Story: SEASON 1 EPISODE 18

Meeting Nurse Cassandra

. “The only true test of loyalty is fidelity in the face of ruin and despair.” – Eric Felten

***

~~In the Hospital~~

In all honesty,I don’t know how I drove the car to St. Paul Missionary Hospital. It was the hospital with the shortest distance in that area.

The taxi entered the hospital with an extreme sense of emergency.

Two nurses quickly came out from the hospital with a stretcher.

They placed Tife on the stretcher and wheeled him into the emergency unit for a surgery to be done to remove the bullet lodged in his abdomen.

He was fast loosing blood.

Tears trickled down my cheek, my head burnt with guilt. I knew he was shot because of me.

It was noteworthy to say the speed at which the nurses dealt with the situation showed the mark of true professionalism .

One of the nurses at the emergency asked me, “Are you related to him?We need someone to endorsed these forms for him.”

“Ermm,Yes,he’s my family friend,”

I finally managed to say.

“Okay then ,fill this form and sign.” the nurse instructed.

Without hesitation,I began filling the form.

After that I was asked to sit at the waiters’ lodge. My eyes landed on the hospital chapel and I found myself walking closer to it.

I stood at the entrance of the

chapel, watching people pray

for their loved ones, tears

dropping from their eyes, as they knelt down.

I walked over to the altar and knelt, unsure of where to start. My voice shivered and shook when I managed to say, “Lord, Heal him with your hand of mercy. I tried

to say something else, but no word left my knotted throat. I walked back to the waiting area.

Tife was seriously wounded by a

•20 Long Rifle bullet that ricocheted off the side of his taxi and hit him around the abdomen , breaking a rib, puncturing a lung, and causing serious internal bleeding. He was “close to death ” having lost a lot of blood.

A lot of machines were fixed on him to stabilise his blood pressure.

An electrocardiogram was used to measure his heart’s electrical activities, and a sensor pulse oximeter, painlessly attached to his fingertips measured his pulse. Doctor Draignon now switched to operation mood, been assisted by his nurses, each carrying specific instruments.

To assess the extent of damage to his internal organs,he performed an MRI . He then underwent emergency exploratory surgery, a bronchoscopy to repair the damages done to his lungs.

Then the Doctor said ,” His situation requires Divine intervention. Let’s put him in the hands of the Almighty God.”

About one and a half hour later, the door swang open and the doctor

came out. Mike’s eyes drippled with raw fear. His heart skipped a hundred beats as the doctor walked towards him. His breathing

stiffened, his lungs refused to accept any air coming into them.

He gulped as the doctor got nearer to him, something about his sleek

black eyes terrified him.

Dr. Draignon glanced at him quickly,

his composure was very shocking.

Mike expected to see signs of urgency in his eyes but saw none.

The doctor wasn’t bothered by his frightened eyes. Dr. Draignon

took a long gaze at the white sheet pinned to his note pad.

With Mike’s heart beat increasing every second, he squeezed his own fingers between his palm and hope that all his negative thoughts were proven wrong.

Unable to wait for him to give out

the information, Mike asked him, “How is my friend, Doctor?”

The doctor looked at him , a gentle smile lurking on his lips. “We have done a surgery for him and remove the bullets. By God’s grace, he’s fine now.Be thank for making it here in time, a few more seconds’ delay and he may have been history.”

Mike closed his eyes,streams of relief soothed his nerve like the peaceful waves of the dead sea.

“Is he awake?” He asked, “Can I see him?”

“He’s conscious now but asleep now.Don’t worry, you will see him soon, probably in forty minutes time,” said the Doctor.

“Thank you, Doctor,” Mike shook the doctor’s hand.

“Don’t thank me, it’s by the abundance Grace of the Lord,” he pointed to the hospital chapel.

Mike’s eyes were flooded with tears

of Joy. He went to the temple and

prayed to God. It’s a Prayer for Healing and Recovery;..

..By the light and truth of Jesus

I lift my Tife to you.

By the hope of the Redeemer,

I pray for your healing power

to break through.

By the peace and the grace of the Living one,

I place Tife’s safely in your care.

By the death and resurrection

of the King of Kings

May your restoration now flow

through my prayers.

By the hope and strength of the living God,

I place my trust and faith in you.

After 40 minutes

“You can now see him Sir,” a well dressed nurse in her early twenties informed Mike. He was dazed by her sheer beauty of the nurse for a few minutes and was totally locked in a circle of oblivioness.

“Sir…I said you ……”

“Yes,Yes,Madam,I hear you, ” Mike cut in.

She looked at him and smiled. “Please follow me,”she requested politely, “I’m Cassandra Adewole.” You can simply call me ‘ Sandra’

“Ok. Madam Sandra…..”

“Sandra! Not madam Sandra,”She corrected Mike.

When Mike finally saw Tife, he was so excited that he hugged him on the hospital bed before realising he had a gunshot wound. Tife shouted involuntarily,”Ousssshhh!”

Mike drew back and said ,

“Sorry,Tife.”

“I was told you rushed me to this hospital. “Thank you,” he said.

“Thank you too, Tife. Those gangsters after my life could have killed me if you have not shown up in the nick of time”, Mike said.

“It’s God’s will,”Tife said weakly.

“Alright Mike,” Cassandra

interjected their conversation, “He need to rest now. Come back later in the day or in a few days time. We would take care of him.”

“Okay..Mada….”

Cassandra,” she cut in again to correct Mike.

“There is one more thing I think I have to tell you and I knew it would take you by surprise, ” Sandra said.

Immediately Mike became very attentive. What is it?

“Ermm,You know,I’m telling you this because I like you and you don’t look like a criminal?”

At the mention of the word ‘Criminal,’ Mike became quite anxious and asked Cassandra, “What is it? Please tell me.”

Sandra said, “You know,this is a missionary Hospital. It is the policy of the Hospital to report all suspected Criminals to the police for further investigation. When your friend came in with gunshot wounds,it is highly suspicious so the hospital administrator informed the …………?

POLICE? Mike exclaimed almost involuntarily. Cassandra was taken aback.

“Why,why are you afraid of the police.? So it’s true,you people are criminals?”

Mike exclaimed again,”NO!!,Sandra,

we are not.We have been chased by the criminals and in the process of escaping,my friend was hit by their bullet. Do you know what your administrator have done?!,he had compromised our location and I can assure you your hospital would soon be under attack. This criminals are in bed with the police.”

“Oh,my God” shouted Sandra.

“Your administrator has compro

mised our location. You need to hide Tife somewhere. Those gangsters would burn heaven and earth just to capture us,” Mike advised Sandra.

Cassandra looked at him amazed and say, “Are you sure of what you are …”

***

Jackson was the leader of the black cobra. His boss Supremo (Zolabin) wanted him to capture Mike. The price was very high. He could risk his life for it.

When they went to his aunt’s residence, he had underestimated Mike’s intelligence and agility. Though they managed to take out the security dog, the deep dog- bite wound on his arm was an attestation of how wild that dog was. Their security man was just piece of cake. They shot him without much difficulty.

Mike managed to escape.

Now Jackson and his thugs Razak,Ferro, Calculla,Eastman, Tenah and Tiana were searching

through every nook and cranny for them.

Jack knew there was an alternative plan to draw Mike to the open like using his …… “Well. Never mind.

He wanted to capture him physically in order to win his boss’ approval.

He wanted to be a result oriented leader to avoid finding himself in Roberto’s situation.

As it stood , it looked like they had to use the Plan B. His colleagues Razak, Ferro and Eastman were also greatly disappointed. It was becoming obvious they lost Mike again.

They promised “Supremo” that they would capture Mike alive and bring him to his abode.

Now they didn’t see how they could fulfil that promise.

They were just returning home when the Lagos State Police Commander Eric Adebola phoned them. He said the administrator of St.Paul Missionary hospital reported to his outfit that two young men came to the hospital,one sustained serious gunshot wounds.

Their hopes were rejuvenated and they sprang back to action. They headed towards the hospital. Jackson encouraged his colleagues with their slogan.

The black Cobra!!

One deadly strike!!!

The black cobra!!

One deadly strike,they said in unison. Having lifted their spirits, they were poised for action.

***

Will they catch Tife and Mike at the hospital?

Hmmmmm. The dangerous clouds are gathering.

Watch out in EPISODE 19

***

Glossary

*Electrocardiogram

A record or display of a person’s heartbeat.

MRI

Magnetic Resonance Imaging

(MRI) is a medical imaging technique used in radiology to form pictures of the anatomy and the physiological processes of the body. MRI scanners use strong magnetic fields, magnetic field gradients, and radio waves to generate images of the organs in the body.

*A pulse Oximeter

A pulse oximeter is a tiny device that usually slides over your fingertip or clips on your ear lobe and uses infrared light refraction to measure how well oxygen is binding to your red blood cells.

*Bronchoscopy

Bronchoscopy is an endoscopic technique of visualizing the inside of the airways for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes.

Doctors use bronchoscopy to detect the cause of breathing difficulties and lung problems, such as tumors, infection, and bleeding.

*Oblivioness

The state of forgetting completely, of being oblivious, unconscious, unaware, as when sleeping, drunk, or dead.

***