Chapter 3

The next morning Rodney entered the infirmary.

"Where's Carson." he asked a nurse.

"In there." he said pointing to a room. Rodney went in there. "Carson some stupid idiot messed with that ancient artefact we found. I've cut my hand." Carson wasn't in the room, but the small girl was staring at him. "Oh, do you know where Carson is? We'll I guess your not going to tell me even if you do. What you got there?" he said inquiring about the laptop sat in front of her. She turned the laptop around to show a virtual chess set on the screen.

"You like chess do you?" he said forgetting his hand and sitting in the chair next to the bed. The girl returned to the game and made her next move.

"Not bad." he said as she took a piece. She smiled. Rodney saw a chess set on the side of the room.

"No point playing those computer. They don't know any tactics. You might as well play the master." the girl didn't mind as he shut the laptop and replaced it with a chess board. She took the white pieces and set them up. Rodney did the same with the black pieces. She moved first obviously knowing the whites went first, then the game was on.

Carson put the file away in his office and headed into the girls room. He saw Rodney sat on the end of her bed.

"Rodney what are you…."

"Shhhh, quiet." he said then moved the piece.

The girl quickly took his queen.

"Ah.. " He avoided swearing. "See what you made me do Carson."

Rodney moved again. The girl moved her piece and looked up with the smile Carson knew all to well.

"She's won." He said in his Scottish brogue accent.

"What? Where? She couldn't have!"

"She has. See." Carson pointed out where she had him trapped in each direction and her queen making him in check.

"How the…How did she learn to play chess so good?"

Carson shrugged.

"I taught her last night. She seems to have a knack for the game. So what are you doing in here?" Carson was actually quite amused that the little girl had taken a liking to Rodney. He thought she'd bolted if he came anywhere near her.

"Oh um." he rubbed his arm. "Oh yeah I cut myself."

Carson sighed. "I'll get the medical kit." He left Rodney and the girl. When he came back he saw Rodney trying to teach her to play a card game.
"Now to win you have to shout Snap!"

"Rodney don't be mean."

"I'm not, I'm just teaching her how to play snap."

"You know she won't shout snap. How's she suppose to win."

"Exactly"

The girl frowned and took the cards from Rodney. Her eyes flashed a blue colour.

"Did you see that?"

"See what, Carson replied."

"Her eyes, they just flashed blue, don't tell me you didn't see that."

The girl was staring at the cards with much concentration. She then shuffled the cards perfectly, folding the cards in one hand and allowing them to fall into the other. She then split them and flicked them so the corners came together.

"Where'd she learn how to do that?"

She looked up at them, slightly confused. She couldn't understand how she knew how to shuffle them. She put them down on the table and held her knees to her chest.

"Hey, it's ok. There's nothing to be worry about. " Carson said gently rubbing her back.

"I've got to get some work done." Rodney said standing up. Carson knew he was just escaping, he didn't like it when children cried and Rodney believed she was going to cry.

The little girl then rested her head on Carson shoulder. She seemed less distressed and calmed a little.

"You hungry ?" he asked. He felt her head move slightly in a nod.

He got up and called a nurse who brought a tray with some food.

John was sitting with the girl on the floor. Carson had found her sitting on the floor with her laptop earlier, obviously fed up with the bed. They were playing pairs. Once again she had been good at the game remembering exact ally where the cards where.

"I think she has a photographic memory." Carson said with a clipboard in hand.

"She can remember things easily, she remembers people's tactics when playing chess."

"It still doesn't explain how she could shuffle those cards earlier."

"Aye."

Once the game had finished she'd climbed back into her bed and was sleeping peacefully. John was chatting to Carson.

"She seems to be trusting people more, maybe we should try introducing her to more people."

John nodded . "But who."

"I think we should start with Doctor Heightmeyer. She probably the best person to help her get over all this and maybe get her speaking again."

"Yeah, that would be nice, then we wouldn't have to call her, she all the time."

Later that day Doctor Heightmeyer entered the infirmary. Carson had set it up so that John and himself would be in the room to reassure her. Things would be ok. Things however, did not go well.

As soon has Doctor Heightmeyer entered the room. The girl had jumped up quickly, not keen on her presence. When the Doctor tried to say hello, she'd ran off and hidden under Carson desk, where she still resided after two hours.

Carson had given up trying to get her to come out. He was trying to find a book on the shelf.

"You know, you'll have to come out sometime." he reached high up on the shelf.

"You'll get hungry under there, and it can't be very comfortable."

He heard a shuffle. He kneeled down and glanced under the table. A small girl sat looking very sorry for herself. Tears stained her face. She was holding her knees to her chest again. Carson wondered why she didn't like Katie and why she seemed to get on so well with Rodney. No offence to Rodney but he wasn't the best person with children.

"Come here lass." he said to the girl. She looked at him and decided it was safe to come out now. She shuffled out and Carson bundled her into a hug. She sobbed into his shoulder.

"It's ok, I'm sorry , I didn't mean to frighten you like that."

He picked her up and carried her back to her bed. He pulled the covers back and put her down.

"I know it's hard to understand, but we're just trying to help. Katie is a very nice person, she wants to help like me and John and Rodney." She hiccupped slightly and rubbed her eyes. Carson couldn't help but smile at the cute little girl.

"I won't surprise you like that again. I'll tell you what's going to happen before we do anything. If you don't want to do it just shake your head. Ok."

She nodded slightly. Carson kissed her on the forehead. She sank deep into the covers and rolled on her side.

It was late night again when Carson heard the girl stirring, she was having a nightmare again.

"CARSON!" a scared voice screamed and his rushed to her bed as she sat up. Her face covered in tears. He grabbed her close to him, hugging her.

"Please don't let them hurt me. I can't go back. Don't let them take me back." She cried.

"It's alright, I won't let them hurt you. Shhhh, it's alright, I promise."

It took over ten minutes before she had calmed down. Her dreams obviously all to real for her.

He gently led her back down in bed. She was still sobbing slightly.

"What's your name lass?" he asked in a gentle town.

"Sssarrra" she said her word slightly shaken.

"Sara, that's a pretty name." he said.

He sat in the chair next to her, holding her hand and stroking her hair.

"What was the dream about?" He asked

She shook her head, not ready to tell him.

"You can tell me when your ready ok."

"Ok" she said.

"Don't leave me." she said.

"Pardon."

"I don't want to fall asleep. The don't want to dream about it anymore."

"It's alright, I'll be here all the time. If you have a bad dream. I'll be here." She was shivering so he pulled the blanket up around her covering her arms to keep her warm.

After a while Carson could see she was losing the battle to stay awake. Her eyes were getting heavy and they soon closed.

He didn't leave her side. He kept his promise. He stayed there all night just watching over her waiting for her if she woke up with a bad dream. But she didn't have another bad dream. She slept peacefully knowing Carson would protect her.