Dr. Heartless, a short short story by Mallory Kane Read Free Book Online

 

    This short story is a work of fiction.  Names, characters, places and incidents are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales or persons living or dead is coincidental.
     
    Copyright © 2012 by Mallory Kane. All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce, distribute, or transmit into any form or by any means. For information regarding subsidiary rights, please contact Mallory Kane.
     
    Cover design Copyright © 2012 by Mallory Kane
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    DR. HEARTLESS
     
     
     
    “Dr. Mason, would it trouble you too much to keep up with the rest of the group?”
    Cringing at Dr. James Hartford’s sarcastic tone, Caroline Mason took another few seconds to pat the patient’s wrinkled, blue-veined hand and smile reassuringly at her.  She furtively wiped a tear from her cheek as she stepped out of the room and directly into the path of the senior staff physician’s glowering frown.
    The other second year residents stared at her in guarded sympathy.  Heat crept up her face.  “I was just reassuring her, Dr. Hartford.  She’s all alone, and she’s dying.”  Her voice broke.  Swallowing tears of sympathy for the elderly woman, Caroline steeled herself for his diatribe.
    “This is a hospital Dr. Mason.  Patients die.  If you don’t have the stomach for it, you need to be in a different line of work.”  He whirled and started down the hall, the group of residents scurrying to keep up with his long-legged stride.
    “Yes, sir, Dr. Heartless,” Caroline whispered to his retreating back.
    “I heard that.”
    Caroline jumped, even though she immediately recognized the voice.  Her friend Marlene, the head nurse on Ward Four South, came around the nurse’s desk.  “Are you okay?”“
    Caroline shrugged.  “As okay as I’m going to be I guess.  What did I do to deserve Dr. Heartless as my senior staff physician?”
    “Look at him.”  Marlene nodded toward the end of the hall, where he stood in the middle of the group of residents, tall authoritative, supremely self-confident.  “He’s one of the best looking men I’ve ever seen . . . .”
    “ The best looking,” Caroline interjected.  
    “And one of the coldest.”
    “ The coldest.”  Caroline watched him gesturing with his elegant hands as he made a point, frowning and pushing his fingers through his hair when a resident said something that wasn’t exactly correct.  Caroline knew his every movement, his every facial expression.  He’d been her staff attending physician on Four South for three months, and during that time she’d never seen him smile, never heard him utter anything more encouraging than a reluctant “good.”  
    But sometimes, deep in his blue eyes . . . .  
    “Marlene, are you sure you’ve never seen him smile?”  she asked, renewing a conversation she and her friend had had several times in the past three months.
    “No, and you won’t either.  You’d better catch up.  You’ve already missed one patient.  He’ll have your hide.”
    Caroline smiled.  “He could have it.”
    Marlene rolled her eyes.  “It’s a good thing you’ll no longer be on Medicine Service.  You go to Neurology tomorrow, don’t you?”
    “Yep.  I’ll tell the brain surgeons to remove my ridiculous notion that love could transform Dr. Heartless.”
    “I don’t think that would be brain surgery.  At this point I think we’d better call in the heart specialist.”
    Caroline blushed.  “Not a chance,” she lied.  “I’ve got better sense than that.  But still, I’ll bet there’s a pussycat under that caged lion exterior.”
    Marlene raised her eyebrows.  “A wager?  How much?  Don’t forget, you’ve only known him for three months.  I’ve worked with him over a year.”
    Caroline started down the hall, calling back to her friend.  “Dinner.”
    “Dinner once a week for a month,” Marlene