Jun 04, 2025 by Carrie Lowrance, in Read The

Read the Prologue: Finding Home Again (Steele Family Saga Book 3)

“I need a pint of blood stat!” Larsyn Steele-Garcia yelled as she assessed her patient’s situation. Mixed smells of burned flesh, blood, and antiseptic permeated her nostrils. She kept her hands on the pliable heart muscle of her patient, a six-year-old girl with two damaged heart valves, who was bleeding out fast. Her assistant put pressure, trying to make it stop. Larsyn continued to bark orders. She would not lose another one. She couldn’t, especially not a child. The sound of her nightmares rang out. Echoing through the room is the sound of a patient flat lining, that long beep. The team hustled around as Larsyn continued giving orders, trying to bring the girl back, but it was too late. She declared a time of death and covered the body while her team cleaned up the room. Other than bloodied tools clattering when being thrown into cleaning bins, the room was silent. Larsyn took a moment to compose herself and then slipped out. She took a few deep, cleansing breaths while she washed up in the sink. This was the second patient she had lost in almost a year. She splashed some water on her face and then headed out to talk with the family.

“Mr. and Mrs. Cruze?” she called. The family turned her way, and she walked over.

“How did the surgery go? How is our Sienna?” the woman asked.

“I’m so sorry to tell you this, but she didn’t make it. She started bleeding out because of the damage sustained by two of her valves. We did all we could... I’m so sorry,” Larsyn whispered. She watched Sienna’s mom crumble and her husband grab her as she fell to the ground. Larsyn turned and walked down the hall with Mrs. Cruze’s sobs ringing in her ears.

Meanwhile, two thousand miles away, the emergency room was bustling at Chicago General. It was a chaotic Friday night in the emergency room as usual. Sick adults, sick kids, stabbings and gunshot wounds. Creighton Lane was rushing around the ER, helping his coworkers and taking care of his own patients. The doors burst open, with two paramedics rushing two gurneys in. One had a little girl about six years old and the other one had a young woman on it. Creighton’s coworker, Melody Reynolds, knew who it was the second she laid eyes on them. It was Creighton’s wife and daughter. They had been in a horrific car accident, being hit head-on and then rolling several times. Creighton was with a patient on the other side of the room behind the curtain and did not know what was going on. Melody barked out orders and then paged Wes Martin, who was the head of surgery and Creighton’s best friend. A few minutes later, Wes appeared.

“Melody, what’s going on?”

“Tenley and Emma were just brought in. They were in a horrible car accident. Someone hit them head-on and then their car rolled several times. Neither are responsive. They are being assessed in two back rooms right now.”

“Oh my God, who’s with them? Does Creighton know this? Where is he?” Wes asked.

“Doctor Atwood is with them. No, Creighton doesn’t know yet. He’s with a patient,” she said, gesturing across the room.

“Can you take over for him?”

“Sure,” she said, falling into step with him. Wes poked his head around the curtain.

“I’m sorry to interrupt. Creighton, can I have a word with you? Melody can take over from here.”

“Sure, all she needs is some stitches put in,” he replied, gesturing to his notes. “Excuse me,” Wes quickly led him to the nearest break room.

“What’s going on?”

“You better sit down.”

“What’s going on?” Creighton said.

“Tenley and Emma were in an accident tonight. It was a head-on collision, and then they rolled several times. I don’t know details, but Creighton it doesn’t look good.”

“Oh, my God. Where are they? I have to go save them,” Creighton said, jumping up and heading for the door. Wes grabbed his arm.

“Creighton, you know you can’t do that. It’s against policy. You will lose your license,”

“Who is with them?”

“Doctor Atwood right now,” Wes replied. Creighton nodded woodenly.

“He’s good, but Wes, you are the best. I need you to save my family. Go save my girls. I can’t live without them-I can’t...” he trailed off, sinking into a chair with his face in his hands. Hot tears coursed down his face as the news set in. His body started convulsing with emotion. Wes sat down beside him and put his hand on Creighton’s shoulder.

“I will do everything I can to save your girls, Creighton. Don’t worry,” he said, before getting up and sprinting out of the room, the door whooshing closed behind him.

Larsyn walked into her office and shut the door. She sat down behind her desk and closed her eyes, relishing the silence. This was the second patient she had lost. Eleven months ago, a patient of hers from a hostage situation died not long after she performed his surgery. Her mind drifted back to the call.

“Hello?”

“Hello doctor Garcia, it’s Angela, one of the head nurses on the cardiac floor. I’m sorry to call you so late, but I wanted to let you know that one of your patients passed this evening. It was Mister Taylor.”

“What? No. No, that’s not possible. He was stable when I left. Things were fine. What happened?”

“Several blood clots developed, and we couldn’t dissolve them. We did all we could on our end. I’m so sorry.”

“Thank you,” Larsyn said.

She heard a noise from the bathroom in her office. A woman’s sigh and a man’s voice. She got up and crept towards the door, noticing that it was slightly open. She peeked in and saw her husband Daymond and this woman in a very compromising position. Their marriage had been disintegrating for the past few months. Their schedules ran opposite shifts, leaving their oldest children to take care of the younger ones. Daymond was a neurosurgeon at the hospital. Seeing him with this woman was the last straw. She backed away from the door and glanced up at the clock. Thank God it was time for her to go home.

Creighton sat in the waiting room on the fourth floor, waiting to hear about Tenley and Emma. They had both been in surgery for several hours. The door whooshed open, and Wes walked in. Their eyes met, but he couldn’t read his friend. He walked over and sat by Creighton.

“How are they?” he whispered.

“They didn’t make it, Creigh. Emma not only had brain trauma, but she also had a lot of damage to her internal organs. Tenley passed a few minutes after I got into surgery with Emma. I’m so, so sorry,” Wes said, putting his hand on Creighton’s shoulder. Creighton sat there, numb. They were gone. Both his girls were gone. He would never watch Emma at another ballet recital or play video games with her. He would never hear his wife tell him she loved him or feel her arms around him. They would never go out on date nights again or spend lazy Saturday mornings in bed together. He shook off Wes’s hand.

“You told me you would save my girls,” he whispered.

“Creighton, you know I did everything I could...”

“I’m sorry, but I can’t even look at you right now,” he growled, getting up and walking away. He went to his office, gathered his coat, and left. Once there, he fed their boxer dog, Zeus, and then took a hot shower and fell into bed.

Larsyn pulled into the driveway and headed into the house. The kitchen was bustling with activity from her six kids getting ready to go to school. Her two oldest girls were cleaning up breakfast and loading the dishwasher while her oldest son helped the younger ones round up their stuff. Her children ranged from seventeen to five. They greeted her with smiles and hugs, and Larsyn helped everyone pull it together before the bus came. Fifteen minutes later, everyone was gone.

She put her stuff away as usual and then went to take a hot shower. Afterward, she put on her comfiest sweats and sat down with a cup of coffee and a cinnamon roll. Larsyn let out a long breath, and the tears started falling. She mourned for her young patient. She couldn’t imagine what Sienna’s parents were feeling right now. After her emotions subsided, she put her dishes in the dishwasher and headed to the office she shared with Daymond. Their schedules had been crazy, and she needed to catch up on paying bills.

She sat down when a large manila envelope on her desk caught her eye. She opened it up and pulled out the contents. Daymond had filed for divorce. She did not feel shocked. She figured this was coming. They had been growing apart and fighting a lot. However, this was not the time for him to do this after what she had been through. She slid the papers back into the envelope to attend to later.

Just then, another envelope with her name on it caught her attention. She opened it.

Dear Larsyn,

We have been growing apart for months now and I feel it is time we went our separate ways. I’m sure by today you have seen the papers. Please sign them. I have been seeing a nurse named Shawna for the past few months, and she is now carrying my child. We wish to marry as soon as possible and move on with our lives. One more thing, I sold the house to my coworker, Drew, and his wife. They have always loved it and since I bought it before we were married; I had every right to sell it. Shawna and I will move to Wisconsin to be closer to her parents. You and the kids need to be out in thirty days.

-Daymond

Larsyn let out a gasp as she read the last line of the letter. Thirty days? Was he nuts? Where was she going to move with six children in thirty days?

The weeks passed and Creighton felt like he was just going through the motions. Having to work under the man who killed his family and reliving that night over and over in the ER didn't help, either. The tension between him and Wes was palpable, even though they barely spoke anymore. He decided he needed a change and accepted a job at Marshville General in Marshville, Illinois, which was about three and a half hours away. He cleared out his apartment, loaded up a small U-Haul, and he and Zeus headed to the small town of Peachtree where they would be living.

Larsyn and the kids looked at their home one last time. It had been a month since she lost her patient and it haunted her every day, walking the hospital halls. After a lot of thought, she resigned. She had to get away. Daymond was generous enough to let her take what she wanted from the house, so she loaded up a large U-Haul and took everything. He deserved it, the jerk. Lennox, her seventeen-year-old son, would drive the U-Haul and Larsyn was driving her Tahoe. They were heading towards Peachtree, Illinois, the one place Larsyn swore she would never go back to.

Larsyn met Daymond online and soon after moved to California to be with him, much to her family’s dismay. She was eighteen, and he was ten years older than she and an established surgeon. They had a lot in common, and he understood the dream she wanted to follow. Not long after she moved in with him, they got married and she started med school. Soon after, they had their first child and life moved right along. She kept in touch with her family, but not very often.

The Steele’s adopted her as a teen and they provided a stable, loving home life for her. Larsyn had a strong affection for her mom, Haven, and her siblings, but they didn't always agree on things. She was a rebellious teenager, wearing tight, revealing clothes and getting several piercings. Hanging with the wrong crowd. Still, her family always treated her with love and respect. Peachtree was the kind of town where everyone knew everyone. You went to church on Sunday, lived a godly life, and worked hard for what you had.

Copyright 2025 Carrie Lowrance

Larsyn agreed with the work hard part but the rest they could keep. Even though she went to church with the Steele’s, she never felt close to God. After all the things she went through growing up in her biological family, she wasn’t sure if she believed or not. On top of everyone knowing who she was, she felt smothered in that small town. Once she had the chance to leave, she swore she would never go back. Yet here she was with all six of her kids in tow.

No one had any idea that she was coming home or why. She let out the breath she was holding when they passed the sign for Peachtree. Fifty miles to go. She figured they might as well go to her mom’s house first. This was going to be interesting...

 

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