"What's this emergency meeting about?" Derek asked

The members of the board all sat around the rectangular table, waiting to hear the purpose of this meeting.

Jackson had overheard what Mr. Martel had said to his wife and he wasn't taking it lightly. He knew that he had to bring it to the board immediately.

"Some of you may be aware of this, others not, but there's a patient here by the name of Mason Martel" Jackson began

"Isn't he your patient?" Callie asked turning to her wife who was sitting next to her

"Yes, he's April and I's mystery patient. We still haven't figured out what's going on with him" Arizona answered before turning back to Jackson "What does Mason have to do with this?"

"His father showed up at our apartment this morning, telling April that he'd sue her and the hospital"

"Sue? Why?" Cristina asked

"Cause we haven't figured out what's wrong with his son yet?" Meredith added

"No, he claims that we're the ones making him sicker than he already is" Jackson answered

"Is he going to sue me personally too?" Arizona asked. He was her patient too after all

"I don't know, he never mentioned your name" the plastic surgeon answered

"So what do we do?" Meredith asked

"I suggest we consult our lawyers" Owen spoke "They'll be able to tell us if this man has a case or not"

"That's a good idea," Derek said, the others nodding in agreement

"Then it's settled, I'll call them right away," Owen said before stepping out of the room pulling his cell phone out

________

Like her husband, the thought of being sued was heavy on April's mind. The difference was that she wasn't as worried as her husband was. At first, she was. The thought of possibly losing her job haunted her as she dropped her daughter off and ran her errands. But as the day went along, her feelings changed. She had put herself in Mr. Martel's shoes, and understood the frustration he must be feeling. Who wouldn't be if there child was sick and no one knew why or how to fix it? She figured if she could just get a chance to talk to the father, she would be able to smooth things out.

And that was what she was about to do when she bumped into her husband in the hospital hallway.

"Hey, what are you doing here?" he asked but spoke before she could answer him "By the way, I spoke to the lawyers, they're ready to talk"

"We won't be needing them Jackson," she said

"And why's that?"

"It's all just a misunderstanding"

"Misunderstanding? April the man wants to sue you. You can lose your license"

"I know. But he's just angry and frustrated with the situation Jackson" she said "If I just get a chance to talk to him, he'll change his mind"

"You don't know that April"

"Well I won't know if I don't try," she said, ready to walk past him

"Wait, where are you going?"

"To talk to Mr. Mertel"

"Right now?"

"Yes right now"

"April..."

"Jackson, it's not a big deal"

"Yes it is" he argued

He was frustrated now, why couldn't she see how serious this was? He knew he couldn't stop her from talking to Mr. Martel, but he was still worried about her reputation.

"How about we go talk to the lawyer first, and then you'll go talk to Mr. Martel. It might make things easier if a professional is giving you advice"

April thought for a moment. She wanted to talk to the father, but her husband had a point. Maybe talking to a lawyer first may make their conversation easier. And she knew Jackson wouldn't rest until she did.

"Fine" she finally answered

"Good," he said relieved "This way" he added leading her to one of the small conference rooms

The lawyer was sitting at the table in the room. The board members were scattered around the room, some sitting while others stood. Arizona was sitting at the table in front of the lawyer. April took a seat next to her.

"Is this everyone?" the lawyer asked and Jackson nodded. She turned her attention to the two doctors sitting before her "So, tell me what happened"

April and Arizona recalled all that had been happening throughout the weeks, trying their best not to leave out any details. After they were done, Owen stepped in.

"So what do you think? Do these parents have a case? Can they win?"

"Well it all depends" the woman answered

"On what?" Jackson asked

"Well, they have to prove that whatever you did caused their son to get sicker" she answered "And that may be difficult to prove"

"So does that mean we're good?" Arizona asked

"Not really" the lawyer answered "Even if they can't prove you did something wrong, you also have to prove that you did nothing wrong, and that too may be hard to prove"

Frustrated sighs could be heard around the room.

"So what do you suggest we do?" Derek asked

"The rest of you should just go on about your business the time being. I'll work with Dr. Kepner and Dr. Robbins on the case. We'll have to go over charts and get our hands on that medical history. They haven't filed yet, but the least we can do is be prepared"

The doctors dismissed themselves, leaving April and Arizona to talk to the lawyer. The redhead sat there and watched as her friend frantically talked to the lawyer. Was she the only one who thought this could be solved with a conversation? It appeared so. She needed this little meeting to be over though, she had a worried father to talk to.

________

Jackson peeked into the room and saw Mr. Martel sitting on a chair next to his son's bed. He seemed to be calmer now.

April's words were playing over and over in his head. What if all this could be settled with just a talk? Now, as he stood outside the boy's room, he was hoping she was right. And maybe this conversation would go better if the head of the board was the one doing the talking and not the doctor.

He took a deep breath and knocked on the door.

"Come in" he heard the man say

Jackson opened the door and stepped in.

"Hello, I'm Dr. Jackson Avery" he greeted with a polite smile

"Hello Dr. Avery" the man smiled back "Are you Mason's new doctor?"

He had requested that his son got a new doctor and was waiting to meet them.

"Uh no. They should be here soon though"

"Then why are you here Dr. Avery?"

"Well, I'm the chairman of this hospital's board and I'm here to...talk"

Mr. Martel gave an annoyed smile.

"I see Dr. Kepner has told you what we talked about"

"Well..." Jackson began, wondering if he should mention that that wasn't the case

"Look, Dr Avery, there's nothing you can say that will make me change my mind about it," he said "My son came here for a simple stomach ache and now look at him" he added pointing to his son "He's hooked up to machines"

"I assure you, Mr. Martel, Dr. Kapner was doing her best to figure out what was going on with your son"

"Figure out?' he repeated "Did it ever occur to you that she caused this? That she's incompetent?"

"Dr. Kepner is in no way incompetent" he quickly defended, his voice raising "She's a great doctor"

"Do you know that for sure?" he shot back "Do you even know this woman or did she have a pretty resume so you hired her?"

"I know her...very well"

"Oh really?" the father asked shaking his head

Jackson could tell that the man did not believe him.

"She's my wife" he admitted

Mr. Martel shook his head again, adding a chuckle this time.

"I should have known," he said "You're not just here to protect your precious hospital's reputation, you're here to defend your wife too"

"Mr. Martel..."

"Is this something you two do all the time?" he questioned, "She messes up and she runs to her husband on the board and he cleans it up?"

"Excuse me?" Jackson said, mock amusement and anger on his face

"Listen, Dr. Avery, I've said it before and I'll say it again. Nothing you say to me will change my mind. Expect to get a call from my lawyer soon"

With that, Mr. Martel turned his back to him, his full attention now on his sleeping son. Jackson turned and quickly left the room, wishing for the first time that he wasn't right.

Once outside he looked around, wondering if anyone had heard them. Instead of finding the judging eyes of the nurses on him, he spotted the receding form of his wife quickly walking away, down the hallway, away from him.

"Crap" he cursed

The nurses weren't the ones he had to be worried about.

________

And there you have it y'all, Chapter 24. I don't really know much about the law and what being sued entails, so forgive me if my writing isn't accurate. I'll accept any corrections if you guys have any. Don't forget to vote and comment! Until next time.