All For Anna Read Online Free PDF

saw the empty booster seat.”
    “Victoria...I hate to
stop there for today, but we are almost out of time and I have a patient right
after you. We can pick up there during our next session, but I am curious as to
your own injuries sustained that night. You said you crawled across the road?
Why was that, were you in shock?”
    I still am.
    “I didn’t care much
about my injuries. I’m a nurse, I’m trained to help others,” I said quickly,
the hardness of my tone breaking my voice.
    “But you did have
injuries, correct?” she asked, again.
    “Yes. I sustained two
cracked ribs, a laceration to my forehead along with a concussion, but nothing
major.”
    I stared at my shoes,
not wanting to see any sign of sympathy or pity on her face. My injuries were
minor in comparison, but as we both knew, there was no comparison to death.
    “I wouldn’t call that
minor,” she said, “And you still went after the other victims and treated them?
That sounds a bit heroic to me, wouldn’t you agree?”
    Heroes don’t let
innocent children die.
    The chime broke my
silence.
    Dr. Crane snapped my
folder shut and took a deep breath, as if cleansing my aura from the room.
    “I’d like to see you
back Friday morning prior to your shift. Please don’t let yourself shut down,
Victoria. I know this must be painful, but it’s an important step to retell the
details of what happened that night. It’s then that we can work through the aftermath .
I have spoken with your charge nurse, Meg Holt, regarding your schedule. You
are set to work three 12 hour shifts a week, rotating weekends like the others.
The only exception is, of course, no on-call hours or extra shifts until I sign
off. It’s important that you let yourself rest and reflect as we go through
this process.”
    “And what process is this
exactly?” I asked, looking up for the first time.
    I could not even begin
to contemplate what four days a week of no work would do to me. My brows
furrowed, pushing down the scream welling up inside my chest. I knew though, it
wasn’t meant for Dr. Crane.
    It was meant for Dr.
Susan Bradley, my friend in question.
    “Well, let’s get into
that on Friday, shall we? I’d rather have more time to discuss it with you
properly. Enjoy your first day back in Trauma, Victoria.”
    I felt the pressure
rising again in my chest as I left her office. I walked quickly to the
restroom, once there I turned on the cold water. Soaking my hands and wrists, I
stared at the woman reflected in the mirror. I leaned in to examine the aftermath on my face. It was my scarlet letter, reminding me and everyone else of the
hideous debt that forever marked my life. No amount of powder or cover-up could
erase it entirely.
    It was me now.
     
    I closed my eyes,
seeing her again.
     
    Anna .
     
    I brush her long,
blond, blood-stained hair off her face; her lips and cheek already swelling
from where she hit the ground just minutes before. She is limp and
unresponsive, and there is so much blood. The trauma that sought to tear
through her innocent body, however, had failed to mask her beauty. I have never
wanted anything as much as to see her breathe. I have never prayed for something
so hard.
    I rip off my shirt,
using it as a compress for the wound on her side. I try in vain to do CPR. I keep
going until I can’t see, can’t hear, and can no longer feel.
    And then I’m lifted.
The strong hands pull me up—pulling me off of her. I scream until my world goes
dark. I have failed.
    I found my reflection
again in the mirror.
    Only four more
sessions…and then I can bury this back down and never talk about it again…to
anyone.
    The clock told me I had
exactly 45 minutes until my first shift started. I exhaled deeply and headed
toward the elevators. All first floor Emergency Rooms have the same general
look no matter which city in the U.S. one lived. Emergency was Emergency.
    The smell greeted me
immediately, like a long-lost friend coming to visit. Other people