"Ryan...h...how...but you're dead, you're supposed to be dead," Lulu stammered, as she took another step backward and felt the edge of her desk, reaching behind, her fingers fumbled around, desperately searching for something, anything, to hit, stab, throw at Ryan.
"Oh Lulu, you really are quite the detective," Ryan mocked.
Right before he plunged the knife into Lulu's chest.
Lulu's vision blurred, and she collapsed, falling into darkness.
…
Lulu started awake.
Ryan, but was it a dream, or a memory, no, something told her it was a memory...Lulu climbed out of bed, and rushed to her laptop, opening it up, the PCPD had already looked through the files on her computer, but maybe they had missed something...there was something there, she could almost remember, what was it, 7...the number flashed like a neon sign in her mind's eye, she had been looking into the number of people Ryan had killed.
"That's it," Lulu whispered to herself, as all of a sudden the conversion she had had with her mother flashed across her mind, and then she saw him, Kevin...no Ryan, standing at her door, she had let him in, he followed her back to her desk, something he said scared her because she jumped up from her chair.
"Ryan Chamberlain is alive," Lulu gasped, closing her laptop.
"Oh no, no, no…" Lulu said to herself, as she hastily grabbed her car keys, her purse, and her phone from the side table, and headed out the door.
…
Kevin lowered his head down, hitting it repeatedly into the soft pillow, anything...anything to make the pain go away, his head was splitting, he couldn't see anything, he was stuck in this hell hole, and all he wanted to do was sleep...he could feel himself drifting off, farther and farther away.
Judy, the red haired head nurse at Ferncliffe, unlocked the door to Wilson Ritter's room, bringing her patient his morning medication, and a strong painkiller, Dr. Collins hadn't prescribed any painkillers for Mr. Ritter, but it had been days since he had come to see his patient, the staff had tried to get a hold of him with no avail, and Mr. Ritter was getting worse, complaining of a painful headache that would not go away.
"Wilson, time for your medication," Judy said, setting the tray down on the table, before taking the paper cup with the medication over to her patient.
"Wilson, come on, sit up," Judy said, gently shaking her patient's shoulder.
"Get help, Wilson isn't waking up," Judy called to the male nurse outside the door to her patient's room.
"Are you sure he's not faking?" The male nurse, whose name was Orson, asked.
"No, he's not," Judy shot back, taking her patient's pulse, it was weak.
"Should we try getting a hold of Dr. Collins again?"
"No, no we're going over Dr. Collins head and transferring Wilson to General Hospital," Judy told Owen.
She didn't care if she lost her job, she was getting Wilson help, weather Dr. Collins liked it or not.
…
Laura, since she was the mayor, and because of the fact that she had inquired about a patient out at Ferncliffe by the name of Wilson Ritter, was notified that he was being taken to the hospital.
The sliding doors opened, and Wilson Ritter was wheeled in on a gurney, he was still unconscious, but was wearing leather restraints, that were attached to the side railings, around his hands, just in case he woke up and became agitated.
Griffin rushed over.
"Okay, what have we got...Kevin?" Griffin asked, as he looked down at the unconscious man before him.
…
A few minutes later, Laura stepped off of the hospital elevator, she turned and walked toward the nurses' station, where she was greeted by a smiling young nurse, with light brown hair, Mckenna...that's her name, Laura thought to herself.
"Hi Mckenna, umm...a patient from Ferncliffe was just brought in, and I'd like to be apprised of his care, could you tell me which room he was taken too? " Laura asked, with a smile and her usual cheerful, yet authoritative voice.
Mckenna looked strangely at Laura, just as Griffin came up and placed his hand gently on Laura's shoulder.
"Thank you, Mckenna, Laura, can we talk?" Griffin asked, leading Laura into a nearby empty patient room.
"Griffin, as the mayor and an advocate for mental health, and with an investigation into patient care having been opened at Ferncliffe, I would like to be kept apprised of Mr. Ritter's care," Laura informed Griffin.
"I know, Laura, the hospital has been informed of the investigation, and you will be apprised of the patient's condition but...Laura, there's something you need to know about Wilson Ritter," Griffin explained, as he gestured toward a chair in the corner, for Laura to have a seat.
Laura sat down in the chair, and listened to Griffin.
"Now, this morning, Wilson Ritter was transferred to General Hospital from Ferncliffe, he was unconscious when he was brought in, and the nurse admitted to me that he has been getting worse for the last couple of days."
"Worse...worse how?" Laura asked.
"Almost a week ago he went blind, for no apparent reason...,"
"Blind...just like Anna and Kevin?" Laura asked.
"Yes, but Laura, when I saw him, he looks exactly like Kevin, and his doctor, according to his chart, is Dr. Kevin Collins, Laura, what's going on?" Griffin asked.
Laura was in shock, she was glad she was sitting down, because if she wasn't, at that particular moment, she surely would have fallen.
"May...umm, may I see him?" Laura asked Griffin.
"Yes, he's still unconscious, I've ordered some tests and a CT," Griffin explained.
Laura was only partially listening to Griffin at this point, as she grabbed her coat and purse, and ran out of the room, Griffin following her, he directed her to Mr. Ritter's room.
Laura followed Griffin into the patient's dimly lit room, she walked beside the hospital bed, and her breath caught in her throat when she looked into his face.
"Kevin," she breathed, as she gently ran her fingers through his hair.
Something inside her told her that this man, who everyone was calling Wilson Ritter, was really her husband.
Laura brushed away a stray tear, as she held her husband's hand, and looked up at Griffin.
"Call Jordan!"
…
Jordan and detective Chase came down to GH, and after taking the patient's fingerprints and running them through the police database, it was confirmed that the unconscious patient from Ferncliffe was really Kevin Collins.
"H...how did this happen?" Laura asked, as she looked down at Kevin.
"We don't know yet, we're still figuring all of this out," Jordan began, "But Lulu came down to the PCPD this morning and said that she remembered Ryan Chamberlain as the one who stabbed her, she said that Ryan took Kevin's place, and I think Kevin being held at Ferncliffe under the name, Wilson Ritter, confirms Lulu's story."
When Jordan and detective Chase left, after assuring Laura that they would post a guard outside Kevin's hospital room door to make sure that when, Ryan realized that he had been found out, didn't come back to kill his brother.
"Thank you, Jordan," Laura said, as she felt tears spring to her eyes.
Laura looked down at Kevin, who was still unconscious, he had not stirred since being brought to General Hospital.
"It's been months since Mary Pat was murdered, and he's been there this whole time," Laura said in a hushed voice, brushing away the tears that were falling from her eyes.
"I was there, oh my God, Griffin, I was there, and...and I didn't see him."
Griffin walked over to Laura and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, and she looked up at him with tears glistening in her eyes.
"All that matters now is that we know this is Kevin, he's out, he's safe, and we're going to do everything we can to help him, but, Laura he needs you too, and he doesn't need you blaming yourself for what's happened," Griffin told her.
"Okay...okay, you're right, I can't fall apart right now, Kevin needs me, thank you Griffin," Laura said.