Two Tears in a Bucket (42 page)

“
Who are you?”

She flashed the badge around her neck. “Oh, I’m a nurse. I’m getting ready to get off. I told them I would handle this before I left.”

“
Well, I’m straight now, I guess. I just took some pain killers.”

“
This is a little cocktail that’ll help fight off infections. It’ll help you relax, bitch.” She mumbled the insult under her breath as she poked the needle inside the intravenous tube, injecting the fluid.

“
What did you call…”

● ● ●

Kevin followed the nurse’s instructions and headed towards the nursery. “Here it is.” He smiled and tapped lightly on the door glass.

“
Hi, can I help you with something?” the elderly nurse asked.

“
Yes, the nurse just brought my son down,” Kevin said as he tiptoed inside the room.

“
Do you have a bracelet?”

Kevin extended his arm.

“
Hmm…Kennard,” the nurse read more so to herself.

Kevin followed her eyes to the dry erase board on the wall and scrolled down the long list of names.

Jacobs, DeChavez, Ford, Lincoln, Hampton, Byrd, Brown…. Hmm, she probably hasn’t had a chance to write his name down,
he thought to himself.

“
Um…we don’t have a Kennard yet, sir.”

“
They should be here by now. Maybe I’m in the wrong nursery.”

“
Oh, your baby was premature?”

“
Naw. Well, I mean, he wasn’t due for two more weeks, but…”

“
No, so he was full-term. The other nursery is for our preemie babies.”

“
Well, the nurse took him from us like fifteen minutes ago. He should be here by now,” Kevin said as he strolled through the rows of bassinets, scanning the name tags taped to each one.

“
What’s the mother’s last name? Maybe he’s registered under her…”

“
Miss,” Kevin sighed.

The nurse read Kevin’s uneasiness. “Sir, it’s possible that it’s under the mother’s name.”

“
She’s my wife. Her last name is Kennard, too.”

“
Well, who’s your doctor? I can page them to…”

“
I don’t remember the doctor’s name. It’s whoever’s on call for Doctor Covington. And what do you need her for? The nurse came and got the baby.”

“
Well, let me page the doctor anyway,” she said as she picked up the phone. “I’m sure everything’s okay. The nurse may have stopped for supplies or maybe she went back to your room. I’m sure they’ll be…”

“
I’ll go check my room.”

Something wasn’t right.
Why am I feeling like this?
thought as he pushed through the nursery doors and headed back to Simone’s room. His walk turned anxious.
Okay, calm down, Kevin. Calm down. You trippin’ for nothing.

Before he crossed the threshold of Simone’s room, Kevin said, “Hey, baby, did the nurse…” His eyes fell upon his wife, who was out cold with her head cocked to the side in a way he’d never seen. No, something wasn’t right. He hurried to her bedside and grabbed her cold, limp hand.

“
What the fuck,” he mumbled. “SIMONE!”

He scooped her up in his arms and patted her face lightly with his hand, but she was unresponsive. “Oh my God, baby.” He checked her pulse only to find a faint throbbing.

Kevin laid Simone back in the bed and frantically pressed the call button over and over again. He ran to the door, screaming at the top of his lungs.

“
Hey!” he yelled down the corridor. “I need a doctor in here! I need a doctor now!”

Hearing his frantic pleas, the nurse rushed from the patient’s room next door.

“
What’s wrong?”

Kevin recognized her immediately. She’d given Simone the pain pills. Without a second thought, he snatched her from the rubbery soles of her feet and pressed her into the wall of Simone’s room.

“
What the fuck did you give my wife?” he yelled as he wrapped his hands around her neck. “What did you give her?”

The nurse clawed at Kevin’s hands while gagging. “You’re choking me!”

“
Bitch, I’ma do more than fuckin’ choke you,” Kevin threatened as he tightened his grip. “WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU GIVE MY WIFE?”

“
Pain killers,” she struggled. “Her nurse asked me to bring them to her.”

Kevin loosened his grip and allowed the nurse to fall to her knees as two nurses hurried into the room. Seeing the chaotic scene, one yelled into the hallway, “Call security,” before rushing to the aid of her co-worker.

“
Oh my God!” the other cried as she stood at Simone’s bedside. “Code Blue! She’s going into cardiac arrest!”

Book Club Discussion Questions

Parent/child relationships are critical. Discuss the relationships the characters had with their parents and the impact, positive or negative, that they had on their life.

If you were Simone, could you forgive your mother?

Simone’s feelings for Kevin re-emerge during a point in his life when he has nothing to offer her other than his heart. Could you love someone who had nothing but love to offer you?

Why is
Two Tears in a Bucket
a hip-hop novel? What makes it hip-hop: its themes or issues raised, characters, scenes, language?

Why are good girls attracted to bad boys? Why do men let good women slip through their fingers? Women, discuss a love or interest you may have had with a bad boy and the outcome. Men, discuss the wifey material you let slip through your fingers.

Do the characters seem real and believable? To what extent do they remind you of yourself or someone you know?

How do characters change or evolve throughout the course of the story? What events trigger such changes?

About the Author

Traci Bee is an author and the CEO of King George Publishing, LLC, named in honor of her angel, her father George. A native of Prince George’s County, Maryland, Traci Bee enjoys creating soulful works of fiction, karaoke, and entertaining family and friends. She’s currently putting the finishing touches on two novels scheduled for release in 2011. To learn more about Traci, visit her at
www.tracibee.com
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