"Eva, there's a patient in room six that needs stitches for several abrasions. I'm up to my eyeballs in upper respiratory infections. Can you see him on your way out?"

Looking at the clock, it was 4:45 a.m., and her shift ended in 15 minutes. Dr. Eva Hadley folded the newspaper she'd been glancing over and placed it on the nurses station desk with a cheeky smile.

"Oh, come now, Mildred. You act as if I still have shift left."

The older nurse laughed a bit and handed her the chart, then headed for the supply closet. Eva ran a hand through her dark, wavy hair, and pulled her lab coat back on. Stitches, to a surgeon, are something that can be done in one's sleep practically. Quickly, she washed her hands and then proceeded down the ED corridor. The door to the patient room was partially opened, and two large men stood shoulder to shoulder in front of the door. Dr. Hadley raised her eyebrows as she approached, keeping a cool and friendly tone.

"Can I help you, gentlemen?"

They both seemed to stiffen as she approached. One spoke, rather sharply.

"You the doctor?"

Eva glanced down at her coat, indicating the name "Evelyn Hadley, M.D." embroidered over the chest, and gave a matter-of-fact reply.

"Well, I didn't pick this up at the flea market, did I? Now, are either of you my patient, or are you both in my way to get to my patient?"

She crossed her arms in front of her with the patient's chart pressed against her, looking expectantly at them. The men glanced at each other, then stepped aside. Eva gave them a nod and walked into the room, shutting the door behind her.

"Hello, I'm Doctor Hadley, and you're...."

It wasn't until she looked up from the chart that she saw the patient- a young looking man sitting on the edge of the bed with his forehead resting in his hands and his shoulders slumped. He looked utterly defeated. Eva's eyes softened immediately, as did her voice.

"...Mr. Mastrosimone?"

Billy looked up.

"Yeah. That's me."

His eyes were bloodshot and his hands damp from tears. This was the first room he had been in alone in and he took advantage of the solitude to let himself feel something. He had to be the boss outside. He had to be the asshole who taught everyone else a lesson and who avenged his sister. In here? In here he could just be a grieving brother.

"Well, you're not from around here are you?"

He asked plainly, trying to break the ice as he wiped his face with his hands.

"I figure you can spot my problem already, but just in case, there's a hole, and a scrape I can't get to stop. I had half a bottle of scotch while a friend tried to, but well."

He shrugged and gestured to his arm.

"Didn't help. So you think you can fix me up doc and I can get out of your hair?"

The thing about being a doctor, if you're a good one, is that you can always tell when a patient is in more pain than they are letting on. Eva had an uncanny empathetic nature, but it didn't take that too see that the man before her had been crying. 

She began to pull implements from the drawers and cabinets as she listened to him and place them on a metal tray beside the bed. 

"I can tell there's a hole, but I'm not sure it's the one in your shoulder I should be worried about."

She gently lifted the sleeve of his shirt to examine the wound. The stitches, or what was left of them, were fairly even, but not done with a steady hand. The amount of blood dried around them was telling, and Eva started to soak several gauze pads with antiseptic.

"This is going to be cold, I'm sorry."

Pressing the gauze to the first open wound, she tried to casually learn more about his situation without seeming to pry. 

"Can you tell me how this happened? Not many of my gunshot patients are so tough to be up and talking like you."

​​​​​​

​​​​​

​​​​​​

Billy winced at the cold a little but in truth it was more shock than anything.

"These were hours ago. Governor had a fundraiser. I was there and there was some guy trying to kill a woman, he hit me instead. Not a big deal, was doing fine, except that they opened back up."

He looked at the doctor.

"I been shot before, worse than this. Those other patients you're talking about? Big babies. Just like I was told earlier tonight when I was getting stitched up. I was being a big baby about it. She was right too."

He nodded and looked out the window into the dark sky. It was going to start to lighten up soon. Billy decided in that moment that, short of maybe helping to arrange a funeral that he wasn't sure he had any business doing, he was going to spend the day in bed. And so was Integra. Same bed, same room, just them and the quiet.

"So, am I gonna die doc? Are you just not good enough at your job to save me? Should I call my next..."

A lump caught in his throat. Next of kin was one step too far.

At exactly the same time he stopped, Eva poked a needle into the man's shoulder and pushed the plunger down steadily.

"There. That should numb you up well enough that you don't have to worry about being a baby. But don't worry, I'm a surgeon. Stitches are sort of my specialty. You won't die."

She gave him a light smile and threaded needle while the numbing medication began to spread.

"Sounds like you lead a rather exciting life. Are you a bodyguard? You're certainly built like one. I had heard that there was some excitement at that fundraiser. I'd assumed the politicians were shooting at each other. That would have been a lot more interesting to read in the papers."

With fresh gauze, she began cleaning the rest of the area. The way he spoke- cracking jokes to try and mask the tear tracks on his face- it tugged at Eva's heart strings in a way that she didn't normally experience. 

"Alright, Mr. Mastrosimone, you shouldn't be able to feel anything now. Lie back and rest your arm here."

With a careful, guiding hand, she took his arm and extended it out just a bit. Her eyes focused on his shoulder, first removing the broken stitches, then beginning a row of neat stitches along the smaller gash. It didn't take long to deal with that one, and then she prepared to stitch up both wounds from the through-and-through. Before she started, though, she glanced up at him.

"You know, sometimes the things inside that don't bleed hurt us more than the ones on the outside that do."

Her voice was soft and unobtrusive.

"If you want to talk about it..."

Billy stared at the doctor. How did she know? Did she see him crying?

"You got any siblings doc? Cause I only got one left after tonight. One sister left."

He turned his head away from the doctor as she went to work on his body.

"And no, I'm not a bodyguard. Some folks call me by Don."

Billy could feel the heat of tears stinging his eyes and running down his face. He did not want to talk about this anymore. He didn't want to relive anything again.

"Do you like what you do doc? Lots of people would tell you that you should stab that needle into my eye and rid the world of a bad man. I try real hard not to be the bad guy doc. I haven't had to yet, but I'm not sure how much longer that can be the case."

Very briefly, Eva's eyes widened she worked on the entry wound. Don...Mastrosimone.  He was Italian, and one of their respected men. Despite the heavy feeling that formed in the pit of her stomach, she kept a steady hand.

"You lost someone. A sister? And just tonight?  I'm... I'm so very sorry."

Her mind was already spinning between the realization of this man's occupation and the voice of her mother checking off symptoms of anxiety and depression. 

The entry wound was done quickly enough, and before she moved to the exit wound behind him, she moved to look him in the eyes. 

"There are no bad men, Mr. Mastrosimone, only broken hearts rattling around inside broken men. I may not know you at all, but you are not yet broken."

She returned to her stitching and continued to keep him at least engaged so she could further asses his mental state. 

​​​​​​"What was her name?" 

Billy looked at the doctor.

"It's Kenzi. Kenzi Carver. You'll read about her in the papers tomorrow too I'm sure. She was gonna get married."

He made a mental note to have one of his guys go pick up her wedding dress later that day. Joey would probably have forgotten about it, and he should have something to remember her by. Billy thought that would be a nice gift.

"She was always so happy. Not like me. She wasn't my sister by blood, but I gotta tell ya doc. I would do anything in the world to bring her back right now. I'd give up everything I got and then some."

He winced for a second as she hit a nerve that might not have been numbed all the way.

"What's your name doc? If you don't mind my askin'."

"Sorry...almost finished here."

Two stitches left, and she felt like she had cotton in her mouth. On one hand, she felt awful for her patient. The pain in his voice was palpable when he spoke, and she could tell that the recently deceased meant the world to him. On the other hand, she wished she had clocked out before Mildred had a chance to hand her the chart.

Clearing her throat lightly, she replied quickly. 

"Evelyn. My name is Evelyn, but most people call me Eva."

Her dedicate and skilful hands worked quickly to close off the exit wound. Gently, she cleaned up her precise stitch work and began to apply bandages. 

"You're all finished, Mr. Mastrosimone. These bandages need to be changed every two days, and kept as clean as possible. More importantly, you should try to take it easy so as not to rip out these stitches. If you notice any redness, swelling, or drainage from the wounds, come back to the emergency department immediately."

All finished, Eva walked back to the counter and began jotting things down in his chart. The door opened slightly and Mildred poked her head in. 

​​​​​​"I went ahead and clocked you out, Dr. Hadley. Please enjoy your evening."

"Thank you, Mildred."

With a small slip of paper in hand, Eva approached her patient one last time. She gave him a look filled with sympathy, hopefully enough to hide the anxious feeling in her stomach. 

"This is a prescription for a painkiller, if you need it."

Eva rested a reassuring hand on his shoulder. 

"There's also a prescription for klonopin; in case you have trouble sleeping in the next few nights. I know it's going to be difficult."

She offered him a soft smile, then made her way to the door. Before leaving, she paused and looked back at him. 

​​​​​​"If you need anything, don't hesitate to call the hospital. If I'm not here, they can find me."

​​​​​​

Billy nodded.

"Hey doc. One question for ya."

He started to put his jacket back on.

"Two actually. First one should be easy. How much booze is allowed? Cause I have a feeling you're right about the sleep, but I'm not one for pills."

He had his jacket on then, and stood up, his full height and size dominating the small room they were in.

"The second one is, why didn't you stab me in the eye with that needle you had after you found out who I was?"

"Because I need you" she thought to herself; a dark thought hidden behind a kind facial expression. 

"You're not bleeding anymore, so a few drinks won't hurt- especially a gentleman of your considerable stature.  Just...don't overdo it. Rest will help your mind and body heal better than booze."

She paused, considering her next words carefully.

"I'm a doctor, Mr. Mastrosimone. I don't stab people unless they ask me to and pay me for it; and only then if it helps them. But, I also don't stab people for having ambition...or a broken heart."

With that, Eva gave the Don a nod and slipped out the door. Without stopping, she dropped the chart onto the nurse's station counter and practically ran for the back exit, leaving her coat and purse in her office without even a thought.

Outside, just as daylight began to break, she saw the blue Chrysler waiting in it's usual place. The driver, a young man named Ilya, with blonde, curly hair, stood propped against the back passenger door smoking a cigarette. He stood up when he saw her coming.

"I was beginning to wonder if I was going to have to come in and find you. Ready to go home?"

He opened the door for her. Eva shook her head gravely.

"No. I need to see Alex."

As Ilya started the car, Eva looked out the window toward the patient parking lot. She wanted to hide in her seat, terrified that she'd see him leaving- or worse- he'd see her. She looked down at the floor, letting her hair fall in front of her face.

Billy watched as the Doctor left the room and then headed for some back door. He looked to the boys he had with him.

"Charlie, the car. Ricky, make a phone call to my flower shop. I want a bouquet here every other day for at least a week for Doctor Eva. Card is just to say 'Thanks for not stabbing me Doc.' You got it?"

He watched as Ricky nodded. In that moment Billy decided he was going to need a third bodyguard at all times so he had two with him and a runner. Ricky was too well seasoned to be a runner, Charlie would become his body man, Ricky would start driving, and someone else. Maybe the girl, Marie, she could be his new runner.

"Charlie, when we get back to the apartment, get Marie to come over. She's on my personal detail from now on. I don't want Ricky doing my running around anymore, that's her job now."

Billy got into the car he noticed a blue one leaving another lot. It wasn't every day you saw a blue car around Detroit. He wondered absent mindedly who owned that thing.

Ricky got in a moment later and the started heading home in the breaking light.