Chapter 40: Renovations in Action
Back in pack territory, Serena went back to her life and her routine. The kids continued to talk about
their journey for days, always bringing up the park and their trip to the zoo with Logan. The Alpha had
been a little concerned about all the animals in captivity, but he hadnât made a scene or done anything
that was too suspicious.
With her newly acquired resources, Serena busied herself with making deals and getting the equipment
ready to update the hospital. Adriana was busy with handling the renovations of the rooms and offices,
all the interior work. The exterior had been repaired, the interior had been painted, and Adriana had
gotten the furniture and appliances in the lounges and offices updated. She was still trying to plan when
the lighting systems could be updated, which was harder to orchestrate. âThese renovations are
interfering with every day patient care,â Adriana whined, coming up to the nurseâs station. Serena was
checking the boxes on yet another order form for updated monitors and lead lines. âIt is more work,â
Serena admitted. âBut the two of us can work it out.â
âYou have practice, being a single mom and a med student and everything,â Adriana pointed out.
Serena chuckled. âMaybe, but youâre a doctor, used to the stress of emergencies,â she said. âYou can
get it done.â
âYouâre right, youâre right,â Adriana said. âSpeaking of the renovations, how was your trip to the human
world, with the Alpha?â Serena rolled her eyes, dropping the order form in the delivery box. âIt was
fine,â Serena said. Adriana gave Serena a sharp look. âUh-huh,â she said teasingly. Serena rolled her
eyes. âWhat is that supposed to mean?â she asked. Adriana shrugged. âYou donât do a weekend away
with the Alpha and your kids without something happening,â Adriana pried. Serena gave a humorless
laugh. She was being honest when she said nothing happened. She couldnât tell Adriana that the
weekend had felt like a family vacation. âLook, the kids love Logan,â she said. âThey call him their
âuncleâ sometimes. He loves them too, and his mother has been so great at helping out while weâve
been waiting for my house to get fixed.â âI think there is more to it than that,â Adriana said. Serena
shook her head. âYouâre seeing things that arenât there,â she said, grabbing her clip board and heading
down the hall to a patient she needed to check on. Adriana followed her. âCome on,â she said. âPlease
give me the details on what happened while you were in
a hotel with him.â Serena rolled her eyes again, stopping with her hand on the doorknob to a patient
room. She turned around to smile at her friend. âAdriana, nothing happened,â she said. âWe went to a
zoo to look at captive animals, which Logan didnât understand as a human past time, and the kids had
fun. I showed him about delivery food and fed him fried dough. He was very confused when we got
back.â
Adriana laughed, shaking her head.
âYouâre talking about him like he is another one of your children,â she said. âI know Logan has gone out
of his way to be nice to you, but youâve been so resistant.â âWhat are you trying to say?â Serena asked,
raising an eyebrow. âDo you have some kind of history with the Alpha?â she asked straightforward.
Serena sighed heavily, looking at her patientâs room door again. âWe crossed paths a few times at pack
parties when we were younger,â she said. âNothing worth bringing up.â She hated lying to Adriana, but
her friend was already asking prying questions. She didnât want to let it get too far.
âWell, I canât deny that you and the Alpha have some kind of chemistry,â Adriana said. âWe work
together,â she said. âSo, can I do my job?â Adriana laughed and nodded. Serena went into the room to
look at her patient. She checked the patientâs vitals and bandages. Nothing needed to be changed or
altered, so she made notes in the chart and moved on.
Back that the nurseâs station, Serena sat at a computer and pulled up an order form for new computers
with updated operating systems and new medical programs. She was also ordering scanners and
copiers to help digitize everything. Serena spent her days checking on patients and doing routine
exams, and then quickly filling out order forms and followed up on deliveries. A couple delivery men
came in and headed to the reception desk. âWe have a delivery,â they said, handing the nurse at
reception a delivery form. Serena jumped up and went to intervene. âHow big of a delivery is it?â she
asked, taking the order form and scanning what equipment was coming in. It was a shipment of new
hospital beds and mattresses, the kind of beds that were adjustable with a remote control. âPretty big,â
one of the delivery men said. âWe can get it all in, but it will take a few trips.â âCan you bring it in around
back?â Serena asked, signing the delivery form. âThere is a service entrance back there.â âYea, weâll
bring the truck around,â the delivery man said.
âGreat, thank you,â Serena said with a nod. âIâll meet you back there.â Serena grabbed her own folder
of renovation plans, which was so thick sheâd need to transfer it to a binder soon, and took off to meet
the drivers around back. They were already unloading the beds through the service entrance. âPlease,
just push them up against the walls, here,â Serena said, directing them to put the boxes to one side of
the hallway. Adriana joined her, checking the box stickers to make sure they were the right products.
âThis is really great,â she said. âIt is going to be fun scheduling a shift in all the beds and patients to get
these things unpackaged and situated in every room.â âThis isnât the first big overhaul weâve done,â
Serena pointed out. âRemember when the painters were here?â Adriana laughed, shaking her head.
âOh, yea,â she said.
Getting the bed delivery squared away was just another step to getting the hospital renovated. As
much as Serena liked seeing her facilities get updated, she was working long hours and she was
completely ragged by the time she got home. Olivia and Oliver were happy at daycare and happy with
Flo and Logan, but Serena felt like she was missing time with them. She was looking forward to when
the renovations would be done and she could relax a little bit! âCome on, letâs grab some lunch before
we have to get back to work,â Adriana said, taking Serenaâs hand and leading her in the direction of the
cafeteria. It wasnât the best food, but at least it was quick. âFortunately, that is the biggest delivery this
week,â Serena said, grabbing a salad and some soup for herself while Adriana got a large sandwich
and a cookie. Serena, having second thoughts, grabbed herself a slice of pie too. âYes, I feel the pie,â
Adriana said, trading her cookie in for pie. Serena chuckled. âAt least, once it is done, this hospital will
be completely sate of the art,â she said. Adriana nodded. They got themselves seats in the cafeteria;
Serena set her phone on the table so she could see if any urgent texts came in. âEnjoy this moment
with me,â Adriana said. âAt least, when I get home, I get to rest.â Serena chuckled.
âMy kids have so much fun without me around,â she said, shaking her head. âThey are kept busy. I
miss having time with them though.â âWell, I know you are already putting so much time into this
project, but weâve hit another snag,â Adriana said. Serena paused in chewing her salad. âWhat now?â
she asked. Sheâd been meticulous with her ordering and monitoring the deliveries. If something had hit
a bump, she hoped it was something that was easily
fixable.
âSo, some of the nurses and other medical staff arenât very versed with using the new equipment,â
Adriana said. âDo you think you couldâ¦help teach them how to use the new stuff?â Adriana batted her
eyelashes hopefully. Serena laughed and shook her head.
âYes, I can put in some extra time and teach them how to use the new stuff,â she said. âThough, the
new computers, Iâll have to brush up on my skills with those too. The software has been updated since I
left school.â
âOh, this will be fun,â Adriana said slightly sarcastically. Serena rolled her eyes. Her phone began to
vibrate as she was polishing off her salad.
âOh, Iâve got to run,â she said. âI have a patient who needs an abscess drained.â Adriana cringed, but
nodded. Serena grabbed her phone and her files and took off to get back to work. With a deep breath,
she composed herself. Teaching nurses and medical staff was a new experience, but she would do it if
it meant the hospital would get back to full operation sooner.
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