Page 105 of Reckless Skye

But here, now, with Skye, TJ felt a glimmer of something. It wasn’t hope. It was peace. Or, maybe, relief.

Outside his curtain, he heard someone say, ‘You must be TJ’s girlfriend?’

TJ held his breath, and when Skye didn’t correct the doctor, just said, ‘Yes,’ he slowly exhaled.

‘I’m Dr Harris, the Chief of Orthopaedic Surgery here at Denver Medical. Apologies for the wait.’ The doctor approached the curtain, said, ‘Knock knock,’ in lieu of any door.

‘Yeah,’ TJ replied.

The doctor and Skye stepped in, and Dr Harris introduced himself to TJ, then settled down on the wheeled stool in front of the bed. He read the form Skye had filled out. ‘It says here that your spinal cord injury was the result of trauma from a bull in 2025?’

‘Yes.’

‘Could you give me as much detail as you can?’ the doctor asked.

‘The damage was mostly to T12 and L1. My SCI is classified as incomplete.’

‘And the pain?’

‘Permanent.’

‘On a scale of one to ten, where does the pain level stay most often?’

‘Eight.’

‘How many hours of sleep do you get a night?’

‘Three or four, in clusters of twenty to thirty minutes at a time.’ And Christ, just saying it aloud had that fatigue creeping up on him and threatening to drag him under.

‘What does your current rehab programme look like?’ The doctor was taking notes as he worked, but when TJ didn’t answer immediately, he looked up.

‘I’m not doing rehab or physio anymore,’ TJ said firmly.

The doctor lowered the clipboard. He levelled intense brown eyes on TJ. ‘Are you on meds for the depression?’

‘Yes.’ That one hurt to admit in front of Skye.

‘SNRI?’

TJ nodded. ‘Duloxetine.’

‘What does your everyday look like?’

‘I’m travelling with the rodeo at the moment, so it’s long days in the truck moving to the next location and then working with the horses until Skye races. Then we pack up and head to the next.’ He shrugged. ‘The season’s just starting, so we’re only at our second rodeo right now.’

The doctor nodded kindly, but his voice was firm when he said, ‘TJ, you already know what I’m going to say. I don’t even have to do an X-ray or get your medical records to know at least part of where you’re going wrong.’

That panic gripped TJ by the throat, but still, he argued, ‘It didn’t work. I gave it a year the first time.’

‘Considering the extent of your injury, a year isn’t even scratching the surface. Rehabilitating an incomplete SCI isn’t easy; it’s a miracle of science. It takes time. But the technology is available – and it’s only getting better. You have to commit to the process.’ The doctor sat back. ‘With your permission, I’d like to get the rest of your medical records sent here tomorrow. Tonight, we’ll update your X-rays, confirm what we already know and then give you an epidural shot straight into the spine so that you can reach a level of comfort that allows you to start physical therapy again.’ He tipped his head. ‘Maybe you could even start sleeping.’

TJ opened his mouth to argue, but Skye stepped to his side. She placed one hand on his shoulder, asked the doctor, ‘Could you give us a minute?’

‘Of course.’ Dr Harris stood. ‘I’ll be back in five to prep you for the X-rays.’

He left, closing the curtain behind him.

‘I’m not doing it.’ The words left TJ’s mouth before Skye had even started her argument.