My Kind of Town
>> Queen's Medical Center False feud
Whew, Lily Ah Sun thought to herself when Nurse Nina Ramones told her that Lily's Uncle Mits had just left the floor. "Oh well," she said. "How's Quinn?"
"Very good," Nina replied.
And he's about to get even better, Nina thought as Lily waved and started for Quinn's room. The word had gotten around the floor in record time when another nurse had walked in on this woman and Quinn, kissing and groping, clothing askew.
The nurse further reported that the patient's father also witnessed the scene, and overhearing the father make a reference about his cousin. Nina was sickened by the actions of patient Quinn Ah Sun's cousin. But Nina had been there delivering meds when they bathed patient Quinn Ah Sun. Newly divorced, she was also jealous of his cousin.
>> One of the driving forces in Quinn Ah Sun's life was making his Pop proud. And he'd never in his life really gone against his father's wishes. Sure, there were a few teenage moments of flexing his independence, but not over any significant issues. Heck, he was proud of his Pop, wanted to be like him. That's why Quinn was a cop.
But there was something about his father that was troubling Quinn. Something mysterious in his past. What was so terrible that he and his brother quit speaking? What had caused them to tear the family apart, keeping Quinn and his cousin Lily apart for 21 years? Quinn vowed to find out.
>> When Mits Ah Sun stepped onto the elevator after visiting his son Quinn, he smelled the aroma of eucalyptus and ginger and sea brine. A very unhospital smell, so full of life and light. And it hit Mits that he ought to visit his nephew Lance, who lay in a coma in the ICU. He'd never seen Lance. Now 20, he was born after Mits and his brother Sheets quit talking after that night in Waimanalo. It was a conscious decision, designed to protect them and their families from the truth.
At the time, in their panic and youth, a feud seemed to give them an excuse, a cover. The false feud had been hard on both brothers. Born just 14 months apart, they'd grown up close in Pearl City. It was because Mits had followed their grandfather's admonitions to "do anything for your family" that led to that night in Waimanalo, and thus their separation.
The scent of eucalyptus and ginger and sea brine filled his head. Surely, Mits thought, just a quick hello couldn't do anything to free the secret the brothers Ah Sun had carried for 21 years.
The elevator stopped at the lobby level, but Mits stayed inside and pushed the button for the ICU.
Don Chapman is editor of MidWeek.
His serialized novel runs daily in the Star-Bulletin
with weekly summaries on Sunday.
He can be emailed at dchapman@midweek.com