Chapter 7

Paul was feeling much better, by the time they reached the mansion, though Carlee, Liz, and Devon all insisted that Dr. Wesley check him over.

The infirmary was more like a small hospital than anything as simple as an infirmary. There was medical equipment, gurneys, a lead shielded area for taking X-rays, and privacy curtains hanging from the ceiling around two hospital beds.

Dr. Wesley set down the file he'd been studying, and rose from behind his neatly organized desk, as Carlee led Paul and Liz in.

Shaking Paul's hand warmly, Dr. Wesley smiled, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Paul!"

Paul returned the greeting, as he studied the doctor.

Graying hair and weathered wrinkles told Paul the doctor was edging towards retirement age. A wrinkle free lab coat worn over an equally wrinkle free brown suit told him of a pride in professionalism. An easy smile that reached the doctor's brown eyes set Paul immediately at ease.

Liz's gaze moved worriedly from Paul to Dr. Wesley and back. "I'll stay with you, if you want me to," she murmured quietly, her hand resting reassuringly on his arm.

Paul smiled down at Liz, no fear in his eyes. "I'll be fine. Dr. Wesley won't hurt me."

Her eyes still filled with worry, but resigned to follow Paul's wishes, Liz whispered, "Sometimes you're too trusting," before she turned to follow Carlee into the hallway and back to Devon's office.

Once the door closed behind the two women, Dr. Wesley motioned towards an exam table. "Have a seat please."

Paul noted that the doctor's expression had turned professional, but held no malice.

After listening to Paul's heart and taking his blood pressure, Dr. Wesley pulled a rolling stool over and settled himself on it. "Your vitals are good. If you don't mind, I'd like to draw some blood to make sure you don't have any infections."

Without hesitation, Paul responded, "Okay."

Standing again, Dr. Wesley went to a cabinet and pulled out blood draw supplies. As he pulled on a pair of latex gloves, he said, "I read in your file that you saved George Fox's life. Would you be willing to indulge an old doctor and tell me how?"

Holding out his arm, as the doctor tied a rubber tourniquet around it, then wiped an alcohol soaked cotton swab across a vein, Paul replied, "His heart was beating too fast, and irregularly. I knew enough about how the human heart works to be able to fix it with my sphere."

"Fascinating!" the doctor exclaimed, as he pushed the needle into the exposed vein.

Paul winced at the pain, but it quickly faded. His gaze moved from the vial filling with blood to Dr. Wesley's face. His blue eyes went unfocused, as he gazed into the past. "A few months after I came back, Scott and I met a young lady. She'd been blind since birth. She had an accident with some acid. Spilled it on her hands. I used my sphere to heal them. I knew she'd figure out what I was, but I had to help her. She wanted me to heal her eyes. All she wanted to be able to do was see. I can't fix something if I don't know what's wrong, though. I felt so helpless!"

The vial now full, Dr. Wesley pulled the needle from Paul's arm. Pressing a cotton swab over the spot with his left thumb, Dr. Wesley squeezed Paul's upper arm reassuringly with his right hand. "Welcome to a doctor's world, Paul."

After wrapping a pressure bandage tightly around Paul's elbow, Dr. Wesley took a seat on his rolling stool again. "Now that there's an end in sight, have you given any thought to the future?"

"Being here for those initial three days changed me, and I've continued to change since I returned. I couldn't go back, even if I wanted to," Paul paused, lost in though.

Dr. Wesley took silent note of Paul's failure to say home.

"Jenny and Scott have filled a part of me I never thought would be filled. My people don't have love the way humans do. From the moment we come into being, we spend our existence looking for the other half of ourselves. Soul mate is as close to the concept as human terms get. I have witnessed 'people' I knew slip into despair because they hadn't yet found their soul mate, their glow growing dimmer and dimmer. The only thing keeping me from that level of despair was my map making. Then I crashed and found Jenny. I didn't realize the depth of her effect on me until I had left.

"At that point, had I stayed, I would have died. Scott Hayden's body, as I had cloned it, was not able to maintain itself with my energy inside it. When I cloned Paul Forrester's body, I was able to compensate, so my energy won't burn this body out. It will last for a normal human life span." Paul held his hands out in front of him, palm down, then flipped them over, as he marveled.

"The human body is a remarkable piece of machinery, isn't it?" Dr. Wesley said, smiling warmly.

"The leaders of my people didn't think so. When I realized Jenny was my soul mate, I begged to be allowed to return, but they refused. I could feel my glow begin to dim. Then Scott called for help, only it wasn't just me who heard. His call disrupted everyone's lives. I was allowed to return long enough to help Scott, then I was supposed to return, never again to leave my people. The other half of me is here, though, so this is where I'm staying."

After a moment's pause, Paul continued, "I plan to spend lots and lots of time with Jenny and Scott. I don't know if I'll continue with photography, though. I've gotten quite good at it because I didn't have much choice, since I had so much to live up to, but it was the real Paul Forrester's job."

"You could go to medical school. If you know what's wrong, you can heal a lot of people." Deciding to leave their conversation at that, Dr. Wesley stood and gestured towards the door. "Now, fluids, good food, rest, and let Carlee and Devon worry about Scott for a while. Doctor's orders."