“These are three distinct fractures, Mr. Vance,” Dr. Morris said, her voice cool and clinical. “And they healed at different intervals over the last three years.”
Daniel tapped his gold watch face twice with his index finger. The watch was silent, its hands frozen at 6:42, but he kept his finger pressed against the glass as if he could force the time to move.
“My wife has a history of being clumsy,” he said, and his voice went flat, losing the warm pitch of his sales meetings. “She does not always watch where she is stepping when she is busy with the household chores.”
I kept my hands under the thin white hospital sheet, my thumb rolling the gold wedding band around and around my ring finger. The metal felt hot against my skin, a tight circle that refused to budge.
Dr. Morris picked up her black pen and rested it on the corner of her desk. She did not write anything, but her silence filled the space between us like cold water.
“An untreated fracture to the wrist does not usually result from a simple trail slip, Mr. Vance,” Dr. Morris said. “There would have been significant swelling and pain.”
“Elena insisted she was fine,” Daniel said, his voice tightening at the edges. “She did not want to make a fuss over a simple bruise, did you, sweetheart?”
I did not answer him. I kept my eyes on the small black pen resting on the desk, waiting for it to move.
“We will need to document the healing patterns for the official record,” Dr. Morris said.
Daniel shifted his weight, his leather shoes squeaking on the linoleum floor. He glanced toward the heavy wooden door of the consultation room, his chest rising and falling in quick, shallow breaths.
“We have a family vacation scheduled for next week,” he said.
“The patient is not in a condition to travel,” Dr. Morris said.
She stood up, her white coat rustling, and pointed toward the door.
Daniel walked out of the consultation room first, his stride long and angry. I followed him slowly, holding the front of my hospital gown closed while the nurse guided me back toward the curtained bay.
Through the gap in the blue privacy screen, I saw Daniel stop near the public drinking fountain. He pulled his phone from his pocket, his thumb sliding quickly across the glass screen.
