"I don’t understand…" Danni’s brows furrowed.
"He’s saying that I’m not a people person and you are." The dark-haired surgeon matter-of-factly stated. "In other words, Danni, you’re the lead in this next mission and not me."
"Lead! Lead in what? I’m not a doctor or a surgeon." The nurse’s head spun wildly from one to the other. "Will somebody please tell me what’s going on? I thought we were a team."
"You are." His voice was gruff as McMurray made his point. He didn’t want them to think any differently. "We…ah…we need to make sure that this program doesn’t fail. That’s all." The Ol’ Cutter’s tone smoothed out. "I’ve made up a packet of informational material for each of the outlying hospitals that send us patients on a consistent basis."
"What do you want us to do…hand deliver them?" Garrett’s voice was tinged with sarcasm.
McMurray grinned at the perception the Fellow had. "Why, yes! That’s it exactly."
Danni looked at the stack of envelopes that McMurray had piled one atop the other as he spoke to them. "But that would take days."
The man only chuckled.
"Not in the helicopter it won’t." Trivoli watched as the expression on her mentor changed to one of impressiveness at her logic. ‘That’s it, they want us up in that helicopter before Sunday night.’
"What is so important that it has to be hand delivered?" Danni’s eyes glared at the Chief of Trauma Services.
McMurray played with an envelope as he spoke. "Oh, it’s just a lot of information that the physicians will need to know when they utilize our service, besides a few other associated things." His eyes twinkled with delight. "I think that they will meet with your approval."
"And exactly how long are we going to be playing meet ‘n greet?" Garrett did not look enthused.
"I’d say a day…day and a half to be on the safe side. I’ve already requested that same pilot for you from the other day. I figured that you would feel more comfortable with him."
"Cowboy’s going to be our pilot?" The blonde was showing signs of relief.
The tall woman watched and hoped that she was right. ‘Please, let it be him. I think she could be a little more comfortable now.’
"You’ll leave bright and early tomorrow morning. My secretary is already contacting the people that you need to see at each hospital and will have an itinerary ready for you by five this evening. Any questions?"
Danni hesitantly spoke. "Dr. McMurray, what exactly are we supposed to do on these little meet ‘n greets?"
The Ol’ Cutter smiled. "Why, just be yourselves. Let the directors of the Emergency Rooms get to know you. Let them see who will be coming when they yell for help. Okay?"
"That doesn’t sound too bad, does it, Gar?" Danni looked to her teammate for support but was met with only a blank stare instead.
The surgeon never liked being put on display, like a pet retriever that was being sent out to bring back the stick each time. Garrett bit her tongue. She knew that it was another way for the nurse to get comfortable with flying and far be it from her to be the one to stop it. She wanted, no, needed this team to stick together, whatever it took.
Life came back to Garrett’s eyes when, finally after a minute or two, she chose to answer the question. "No, doesn’t sound bad at all." Her eyes came to rest upon her mentor and Trivoli made sure he knew that she was on to his little plan. "When do we start?"
McMurray read her right. She knew what he was up too. He nodded in acceptance of the situation. "Tomorrow morning at eight. I’ll have the pilot waiting for you to go." The Ol’ Cutter picked up an envelope, using it for emphasis. "I’ll even have these all loaded and ready to go, myself."
"Thanks!" Danni was eagerly waiting to get to work. Her hand reached out to touch Garrett’s arm as she turned to leave. The small gesture was caught before she made contact and corrected herself. ‘By the gods, I can’t seem to keep my hands off of her since that last flight. What’s gotten into me?’ Then she remembered what it had felt like in the tall surgeon’s arms when she had been carried out of the helicopter. It was a feeling that she had always craved but never had experienced before. ‘Could this be…? Nah, who are you kidding, she’s just a friend.’
Garrett looked down at the dazed nurse. "Danni are you all right?" She snapped her fingers and waved a hand in front of her face until the petite woman came back to reality.
"Huh?" She shook the thoughts from her head as she tried to clear her mind.
"Yeah, I was…was just thinking of something. I’m okay, really."
It was McMurray who spoke now, "You two should get a good night’s sleep tonight so you look all fresh and alive for tomorrow." The man waved his hands as if to shoo them out of his office. "Now go on, I’ve got work to get done."
The pair turned and walked out of the door, each one feeling as though something had been overlooked or missed completely. Once in the outer office, Danni knew what it was that was missing. "Gar, I wonder why he didn’t show us any photographs this time? I kind of missed hearing a story about one."
"Hmm…Maybe we’ve seen them all."
"Somehow, I doubt that." The blonde thought for a moment. ‘Or maybe… we just haven’t seen it yet.’
The next morning started off fairly well with Danni up and ready to do the meet ‘n greets. Her mind was set on making a good impression and promoting her team. McMurray had given her the lead in this mission and she wasn’t about to let him or Garrett down. If she could only keep that foremost in her thoughts, she knew that the helicopter rides wouldn’t get to her.
The tall surgeon, on the other hand, was as much enthused about the mission as she was to having a hernia. Publicity was never what being a doctor was about, at least not to her. It was skill and knowledge along with the conviction to do her best for her patient. Her disdain for the promotional flight was overridden by her feeling of protectiveness where Danni was concerned. If this mission would help the young woman gain her confidence in the air then so be it. Garrett would allow herself to be put on display.
It was with those mind sets that each one had come, prepared to do whatever they could to make the team a success. Cowboy saw the look of determination in both of the women as he watched them transverse the driveway. The smaller of the two moved with more confidence than the last time he had watched her take the same path to his helicopter. Her shoulders were squared and he could see that the nurse was sporting a jacket that was very similar to the surgeon’s. The word ‘team’ immediately popped into his mind as he watched them return his ‘thumbs up’ and climb aboard. The pilot gave them a minute to get settled before he turned to greet them.
"Morning, Ladies." His smooth drawl emphasized the time of day.
"Good morning!" Danni beamed when she recognized the pilot from the other day. "Gar, look! It’s Cowboy!"
The surgeon leaned in to see the pilot. A slight wave of the hand was her only greeting. She quickly donned her helmet and buckled herself into the seat. ‘The faster we get going, the sooner this will be done.’ She never could get excited about meeting people.