He took a silver pen from his pocket.

“I’m calculating the deductible limit,” Richard said.

I tightened my grip on the plastic armrests.

I thought he was just being thorough with the medical forms.

Hours later, the loud crinkle of a plastic mattress cover echoed through Room 314.

I lay under a thin cotton sheet, shivering in the sterile air.

A woman in dark blue scrubs stepped into the room.

Her rubber-soled nursing shoes squeaked softly on the polished linoleum.