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“Sure, yeah.” I peered over my shoulder, knowing in my heart that I was looking for Finch but it was far too early for him to show.
“Bone marrow biopsies are done to test for a number of things regular blood tests don’t show us. Our sole purpose for this is really to make sure Milo’s bone marrow is healthy and making normal amounts of blood cells. But we’re also going to test for bone marrow diseases, some cancers, and fevers of unknown origin. This is the only way to rule a lot of things out right now.”
I tried to process everything he was saying, and though my pulse was banging in my ears, I was doing everything in my power to keep focused.
“I see, um…will this hurt, what is recovery time, and when are you planning on doing this?”
Dr. Perry squeezed my arm. “First, we need to raise Milo’s platelet count, so we need to do an IVIG—that’s intravenous immunoglobulin. What we do is hook it right into his IV, so there’s no more poking. We will give him some Benadryl beforehand to combat any allergic reactions. It should take a few hours, and he will be very sleepy. It won’t hurt, though. I’d like to do this tonight and by morning when we test his counts, they should be high enough to do the biopsy. We need higher counts, Easton.”
“And the pain, after the biopsy?”
Dr. Bay took this question. “Soreness at the incision site. Many people equate it to having a bad black-and-blue. He could feel achy. We will watch him for bleeding, but he should be okay. We can give him something if he’s hurting.”
I glanced at my watch. Why did I feel like I needed Finch here so badly?
“Can Milo finish his movie first, and then I’ll tell him?”
Dr. Perry nodded. “Of course. I will schedule the IVIG for this evening at about seven. That way if he falls asleep, he can relax through the night. That gives you time to talk with him.”
I appreciated that. “Thanks.”
“Go be with your kids. I’ll talk to you later, East.”
The three of them walked down the corridor, and I spent a good minute outside my son’s hospital room, trying to school my features and figure out how I was going to tell him.
“How you doing?” Daisy, Milo’s nurse, handed me a cup of coffee. “Looks like you could use this.”
“Something stronger maybe, but thank you.” I lifted my mask and took a sip and was surprised that it was exactly how I took it.
“I saw the orders come through on Milo, and it appears you’re freaking out about how to tell him.”
“If you can tell, he will too.”
“Pfft…look, it’s all scary until it’s not. Waiting three hours or three seconds isn’t going to make it easier. How about you go in there and watch your movie, and when it’s over present it to Milo like it’s not a big deal. He’ll feed off your emotions.”
It was great advice, and she was doing for me what I did for scared people I pulled out of burning buildings: being calm. They’d see me in a peaceful state, and they’d mirror that.
“Thanks, Daisy, and thanks for the coffee.”
“Deep breaths, Dad. You’re doing great.”
I did as instructed, breathed, and pushed open the door.
“Hey.” Tru was eying me, trying to get a read off me.
“Hi, so what did I miss?”
“Not much, just tons of action.” Milo grinned.
“What did the doctors say?” Tru quirked a brow, far too observant for her own good.
“Nothing urgent. Let’s finish the movie.”
Milo shrugged and went back to watching the destruction of buildings in New York… Seriously, why is it always New York aliens come to? Tru, on the other hand, was staring at me. I narrowed my eyes, and she got the hint not to push.
It was a good thing I’d seen the movie a few times already, because I didn’t pay attention to any of it. Through the whole thing, I kept going over in my head how to tell Milo everything without making it sound terrifying.
It was a little after three by the time the movie was over, and my time had run out.
