A nurse entered and asked him to step outside while Sadie rested.
He left without arguing.
As soon as the door closed, Sadie reached beneath her pillow.
“Mom, I have something.”
She pulled out a folded piece of paper.
I recognized the clinic’s letterhead.
“Where did you get this?”
“It was in Dad’s jacket pocket when he came to the hospital. I saw it fall when he put his keys down.”
I unfolded it.
It was a copy of the clinic’s initial report.
The findings were clear.
A large right ovarian mass had been identified.
The physician had recommended urgent hospital evaluation and warned about the risk of torsion.
At the bottom was a section marked:
Disposition: Patient’s guardian declined recommended transfer.
Below it was Curtis’s signature.
I stared at the page.
He had not simply forgotten what the doctor said.
He had signed a document refusing the recommended transfer.
