Chapter 113

Stephanie was going to have to stay one more day, the doctor wanted to make sure the drugs were out of her system. Tony was going to stay with Stephanie while Lexie hit the local shops for some clothes, since she couldn’t live in scrubs for two days. She had called Dorothea and she was coming up to visit. It was a good thing Lexie was going to be shopping for clothes while she was visiting. She felt really rotten not warning Tony of the impending arrival of Dorothea.  Ah he’s a big boy, he can handle the wicked witch of New Jersey, Lexie thought as she ran the maze of the hospital to get to her car in the employees parking lot.  Getting in her car she pulled up the stores in the area and just decided on Walmart. She wouldn’t get recognized and she could also do some recon on her latest book to see how it was selling.  Pulling out of the hospital she took the long way just to make sure she wasn’t followed. Breathing a sigh of relief she made it to the store with no tag along.

Stephanie was watching television, and Tony was talking on his cell, when the door burst open and Dorothea stormed in like a hurricane.

“Oh my baby girl, I have been so worried since your father’s call and Lexie wouldn’t let me come right away.”  Dorothea cried as she rushed to her daughter who was sitting up in the hospital bed.

“I’m fine mommy, Jesus I just passed out, I wasn’t going to die.” Stephanie was shocked at her mother’s dramatics. 

“Why didn’t they call me, I am your mother, the woman who gave birth to you.”  Dorothea sat on the edge of the bed and grabbed Stephanie hand.

Tony got up and hurried out of the room.  He would have a talk with Lexie and then to Jon to see when he was coming home.

Back in the room, Dorothea got off the bed, and pulled the chair that Tony had vacated over to the bed.

“Mom, you might have given birth to me, but you sold away your rights for Lexie to adopt us.”  Stephanie rolled her eyes, this was what visits to her mother had come to. Every time she had met with her mother since the graduation party, her mother had harped on the fact the boys hadn’t visited. Or she would grill her on what were her father and stepmother were up to. The on top of all that, Sarah, her step sister, had turned on her since the party also.  Dorothea kept pitting her against Stephanie. Stephanie wouldn’t do that, or Stephanie would have done this that way. The straw that broke the camel’s back was, no drugs anymore in the house.

“You know why I had to sign the papers, Graham had lost his job and we were going to lose the house. I had to take your fathers deal. You wouldn’t want your mother to be on the street would you?”  Dorothea gave Stephanie her patented poor pitiful me look.  She had seen that look the whole time she was growing up.  When her dad failed to let it work on him, it was over for them. Graham had come along and he fell for the look and was caught hook line and sinker. The alimony helped sweeten the deal, till mom fucked that up too.

Stephanie grabbed the remote for the television and changed the channel. She didn’t want to get into it with her mother, again. “Maybe if I fake being tired she’ll leave, naah I’m not that lucky or I wouldn’t be where I am now.  She faked a yawn and rubbed her eyes, hoping her mother would take the hint.

Tony pulled out his cell and texted Lexie.

TBJ: You’re in big trouble sis, no warning that tornado Dotty was coming. That’s gonna cost ya.

LBJ: Would you have let me leave?

TBJ: Hell no.

LBJ: That’s why I left, but I might redeem myself with lunch?

TBJ: Hell no, but it’s gonna cost you much more than that!

LBJ:  Lunch from the hospital cafeteria?

TBJ: You trying to kill me?

LBJ:  How about a couple of burgers and fries?

TBJ: That might just save ya, sneak in a couple of beers and you’ll live.

LBJ: Deal.

A noise from Stephanie room caused him to look up.

TBJ:  Seems like Tornado Dotty has worn out her welcome.

LBJ:  Grab a nurse and send her to clear the room.  I’ll stop and get lunch, I was leaving Walmart anyway, there’s a burger place in the parking lot.  You’ll have to go out for your own beer.

TBJ: You got it Sis.

Tony closed his cell and went in search of the charge nurse.

“Why don’t you leave Mom, I’m tired and it’s almost time for my medication.” Stephanie finally got tired of yawning and listening to everything that has gone wrong in her mother’s life. Welcome to our life mom, ours wasn’t all roses and wine either.

“What type of medication are they giving you?  You just about died, should they be putting more drugs into your system?” Dorothea’s voice got louder and louder.

The room door opened and the charge nurse and a security office came in.

“Ma’am I’m going to have to you ask you to leave, we’ve had complaints from other patients and their families.”  The charge nurse informed Dorothea.  The security held the door open, indicating for her to leave.

“You can’t throw me out of my daughter’s room.”  Dorothea got in the charge nurses face.

“Mom, don’t cause problems, just leave.”  Stephanie begged her mother.

“Listen to your daughter, ma’am.  Mr. Bon Jovi has left rules that is there was a problem we could bar you from the hospital.” The security guard informed Dorothea. 

“Mr. Bon Jovi can’t bar me from my daughter’s room,” Dorothea started.

“Yes ma’am he can and with the complaints that we got, we’re going to ask you to leave now please.”  The Charge nurse informed her as she got between Dorothea and Stephanie.

“Come on Dotty, I’ll walk you to your car.” Tony came and took Dorothea by the arm and started walking her to the door.

“Go on mom, I’ll call you when I get to go home.”  Stephanie tried to appease her mother.

“I’ll leave now, only because it’s what my daughter wants.”  Dorothea informed the security guard and Charge nurse.

Dorothea stopped at the door and looked back at her daughter, smiled and left with Tony.

Tony made sure she went all the way to the car and not out to the media still camped out the front door.  Getting into her beat up Audie she rolled the window down and looked at Tony.

“Tell that brother of yours, I plan on getting court ordered visitation to see my children!  So get his lawyers to not even try stop it. Or I will go to the media and tell them what’s happening in his precious family.”  She rolled the window up and started the car and left.

Tony watched the car roll out of the parking lot as Lexie’s Mustang rolled in.

“Was that Dot?”  Lexie tossed him the bag of burgers and fries.

“Yeah, she’s talking about lawyers.”  Tony said as they headed back into the hospital.

As they approached the room there was a Jon’s lawyer Martin was outside the door.

“Hi Martin, what’s going on?”  Lexie asked the Lawyer.  Lexie got a horrible feeling.

“Stephanie’s going to be charged.”  Martin told her.

“Stephanie’s going to be arrested?” Tony and Lexie questioned together.