Part 16 (1/2)
David stopped himself from automatically moving into a therapeutic stance with this patient and said simply, ”We can talk tomorrow.”
”With you? You're a waste of s.p.a.ce.”
”All right, then, with Dr. Hunt or one of the psychologists, as you prefer.”
Leaving the patients to the nurses, he went into the infirmary.
Linda Fairbrother was lying quietly as Marian Hunt applied leads to her chest from the EKG machine.
”They're coming for me,” Linda said.
”Who is?”
She snapped her jaw shut.
He would once have thought that this was yet another patient struggling with inappropriate thoughts, but as she was a member of the cla.s.s, he wasn't sure what was meant. He wanted to ask her more. He remembered those two glyphs on her record. There was something special about her.
”Linda, tell me what's troubling you? Who's coming for you?”
”I got a message.” Her fist closed on his s.h.i.+rtfront and she pulled him face-to-face. ”I don't think Tom can go.” Her voice dropped to a whisper. ”Never tell anybody this, but he has this blackness on his back and side, and it's growing.”
David's mind went to the notion of judgment. Could those who had done evil be actually, physically marked? It seemed impossible, but all the rules were changing now. Perhaps bodies were becoming mirrors of souls, our flesh no longer concealing our truth. But what had Tom Dryden ever done, that innocuous little man? All he could think was that people tend to keep their evil acts secret.
Marian came up to him with the EKG tape.
”This is normal,” she said.
”Can we e-mail it to a cardiologist?”
”If the Net comes back. But we'll get a normal report, no question.”
David looked at the tape. He had been a.s.suming that this was an episode of sudden arrhythmia death syndrome that had been interrupted by timely action.
”No Bruguda sign,” he muttered, ”no fibrillation.”
”No arrhythmias at all, in fact.”
”I think we need a deeper study on this woman. Hearts don't just stop. And we want her under close observation until we can get her into a cardiac unit.”
”David, I've been exploring unexplained cardiac arrests. Bangungut Bangungut and familial long QT syndrome are possibilities.” and familial long QT syndrome are possibilities.”
”And Bangungut Bangungut is?” is?”
”A type of nightmare so intense that it can cause death. Common in parts of Asia.”
This staff was out of its depth. No specialist would even bother to think about something so irrelevant.
”And familial long QT syndrome? Any symptoms?”
”There's no heart abnormality or defect. A little crud in the arteries, nothing to get excited about.”
”And how do we know this? Do we have doc.u.mentation?”
She paused for a moment, then said more quietly, ”She's presented this way before.”
”So was there follow-up?”
”Of course there was follow-up! We could get out of here then. She was worked up at Raleigh County. The heart muscle was healthy.”
”So she can stop her heart at will?” He looked down at her. ”Can you do that, Linda?”
”I'm afraid you won't let me go home. I have nightmares about it.” Her eyes bored into his. ”I'm not like the rest of you. It's time for me to go home.”
”Linda, normally you'd be free to leave. It's just that current conditions make that difficult. n.o.body's holding you against your will.”
”Doctor, when the time comes, I will have only a couple of minutes. And all these doors in this place-oh, G.o.d, how I hate the Acton Clinic!”
A voice came from the doorway. ”We'll take care of you,” Caroline Light said. She addressed David. ”When she wants to go outside, let her.”
”So now the patients are the doctors. Fine.”
”Will you wake up, David!”
”I'm awake.”
Linda said, ”Caroline, let him be.”
”He's an idiot! He won't wake up!” She strode in, got right in his face. ”Wake up,” she shouted.
He looked past her to Katie. ”Nurse, get this patient under control.”
Caroline slapped him so hard that he saw stars.
For an instant, there was rage and he grabbed for her wrist. But then he stopped. His mind had gone silent. Clarity came.
”What was that supposed to be,” he muttered, ”a Zen slap?”
”That's exactly what it was.” She turned and stalked out of the room.
”Confine her again tonight,” he said.
”Oh, shut up,” Marian replied.
”What?”
”Will you people stop!” Linda said.
He was appalled at himself, realizing that he was doing this in the hearing of this patient. It was grotesquely unprofessional. Katie was right, the world was falling apart, and not just the outside world. He drew an unwilling Marian Hunt out of the room.
”Hold your tongue in front of the patients, Marian.”