A/N: Sorry this chapter took so long! It has actually turned out a lot longer than I expected it to. I like how it turned out. I hope you do to. There are footnotes again this time.
As usual I don't own Cyberchase.
Picking Up the Broken Glass
Kawaii Stella
Chapter Ten
Trust
Marbles stood there in shock and confusion. What in Cyberspace had just happened? Echo had violently recoiled from the softest of touches to her shoulder then had screeched at him to go away while pressing herself into the corner on her bed. She was still telling him to leave her alone and to not dare take another step towards her. Marbles took a slight step backwards. Very carefully he assessed Echo's appearance.
Very dark shadows encircled her eyes. It was a strong telltale sign that Echo had not slept in a long time. Her emerald eyes proclaimed fear and mistrust; there was not warmth to be found in the green orbs. Her skin was paler than it should be. Echo's cheeks were sunken in, which was a good indication that she had lost quite a few pounds off of her already small frame. Overall, Echo looked hurt. Behind the stronger emotions of fear and mistrust stood a lot of pain hiding in the background.
Marbles sighed sadly. It hurt him very much to see Echo this way. She had made progress prior to his departure. Now it was all for not. Any strides she had taken were reversed tenfold. Despite her pleas and commands for him to leave, Marbles stood his ground. He wasn't about to let her remain suffering like this. He would do whatever it took to right things in Echo's world.
Echo whimpered in fear as Marbles took two steps towards her, sitting himself on the bed just over an arm's length away from her.
"Echo." Marbles said softly.
"Why won't you leave already?" Echo said. Her voice cracked- she was trying not to cry. "What do you want from me?"
"I'm not going to leave you like this. I want to help you."
"That's what they all say." Echo countered, crossing her arms over her chest.
An excruciating silence filled the air. Marbles watched Echo's each movement. Her eyes were focused on him in an assessing way. From the way she looked at him he knew something else was amiss. From the look in her eyes, Marbles could tell she was trying to put two and two together. She was trying to put a name to a face. His face.
"Echo, do you remember who I am?" Marbles asked gently.
A few more silent moments passed before Echo's mouth opened to speak.
"D-Dr. Marbles?"
It was barely more than a whisper, but Marbles heard her.
"Yes, that's right."
Echo's eyes softened just a fraction of a degree. It was nowhere near a very noticeable change, but Marbles saw it. Marbles scooted a bit closer to Echo. Echo curled a little more into a ball at his approach, but now that Marbles had begun to tear down this wall she had made, he wasn't about to give up.
"Echo," Marbles began. He started to reach his hand out to her.
In the split second it took for the sight of Marbles' hand coming towards her to reach her brain, she had her eyes clamped shut and she curled completely into herself. She was bracing for impact. It only took Marbles a moment to realize that Echo thought that he was going to strike her. The fact was both shocking and saddening.
Marbles placed his hands in his lap and stifled another sigh.
She's so broken. . . Marbles thought sadly. Echo's even afraid of me now. Where did that girl, who just two weeks ago smiled and told me that she had finally stood up for herself, disappear to? Somehow, I've got to get her to remember that she can trust me. The problem is how will I do that?
Scooting a little closer to Echo, Marbles reached out and grabbed her, pulling her into him. Echo panicked and began to squirm and thrash about, trying desperately to break free from Marbles' arms.
"Why are you doing this to me?" Echo wailed. "Let me go!"
"I'm afraid I can't do that."
Every wave of struggling Echo threw at Marbles resulted in him holding her tighter. Not so tightly that it hurt her, but by the time Echo gave up her struggle she was firmly pinned against his chest.
It had taken ten minutes for Echo to finally surrender her struggle. She stayed still, rigid as a steel pole, eyes focused on the cider block wall.
"Echo."
Silence.
"Echo I want you to think. Think back as far as you've known me. Remember how we met and the days we spent together. Please, Echo, I need you to remember those times."
Marbles gave Echo several moments to think things through before asking her his most significant question.
"Look at me Echo."
Reluctantly Echo looked him in the eyes.
"Remember how you trusted me then? You can still trust me. I want you to. Echo, will you trust me again?"
That question rang louder than gunshots in Echo's ears. She looked into Marbles' honey-brown eyes. They were not full of cruel coldness. They were aglow with warmth and concern. No violent intents rested behind them. It was there Echo realized there never had been. Ever.
Thinking back, Echo remembered how Marbles had shown concern for her the day they had met, when he saw the bruise marring her right cheek and eye. He had promised her they'd get through this. Their hands pressed together on the glass. Watching the ducks in the park together and talking about all sorts of things. Never had a threat been posed or harsh words been thrown. Dr. Marbles had never hurt her and Echo knew he never would. Marbles was her friend.
Echo's eyes cleared hastily of the mistrust. Some fear remained but it wasn't of Marbles. Her eyes glossed over with a shiny film of tears.
Echo nodded her head and squeaked out a "yes."
A soft smile spread across Dr. Marbles' lips as Echo's body relaxed. The real Echo was coming back to him. Echo hesitated but went ahead and laid her head against Marbles' chest.
Resting one hand of the top of Echo's head while keeping his other arm around her, Marbles continued to hug her. She was so broken on the inside. Echo needed love; something she was being starved of.
A sharp spasm ripped through Echo's body.
"Are you cold?" Marbles asked. The temperature of the room felt fine to him. Yet Echo was wearing a sweatshirt.
"Freezing. There is no warmth." Echo said flatly.
"Oh Echo. .* . What happened to you? You seemed like you were doing so well before I left."
"A lot of things happened. I got really sick."
"How sick?"
"I was in the hospital for a week or so. I. . . I . . ." A series of rough sobs kept Echo from finishing her sentences.
Dr. Marbles switched back to holding her close with both arms, prepared to wait as long as it took for Echo to cry herself out. On the third or fourth sob, the cry hitched in Echo's chest and she quickly knew what was coming.
Echo tore herself from Marbles' arms, lunging towards the head of her bed. She grabbed the thin pillow, clutching it tightly to her chest. Into the pillow Echo hashed out a series of harsh ragged, painful hacking coughs.
By the time the coughs subsided, Echo was reduced to a small heap lying on her side, taking uneven breaths from her slightly opened mouth. The ordeal had been exhausting, thus Echo's eyelids had drifted shut as she tried to slowly relearn the basic fundamental of breathing.
Marbles then began to grasp how sick Echo had been during his absence.
Marbles eased himself off of the bed and kneeled on the floor next to Echo's head. He went to caress her face but wisely thought better. Instead he laid a hand on her upper arm, just below the shoulder. Echo's body momentarily tensed at the contact but she did not recoil as she did earlier. Once her breathing was regulated, Echo opened her eyes again. Her emerald eyes were dark, proclaiming loudly that she was in very much physical pain.
"Did you undergo surgery while you were in the hospital?" Marbles asked.
Echo nodded her head.
"Weren't you given antibiotics and pain management pills?"
"Yeah but I don't have 'em. Truehart took all my medicine from me when I got back."
Marbles was sickened by this. Abigail had overstepped the boundaries set by proper child care by a mile. Marbles wasn't sure what Abigail had against Echo, but this had gone way too far and something had to be done.
"When I came back, she said all I had to do was go to her when I needed my pills. That night when I needed them I went to go get my pills but I was locked in here. No matter how much I screamed for help, nobody ever came. . ." Echo told Marbles.
Marbles felt so extremely sorry for this poor girl.
"Obviously you need to see a doctor again. Your health isn't going to improve at all if you are in this much constant pain. You were taken to New Hope, right? Who was your doctor there?"
"Yeah, my doctor was Dr. Greg Kasal. But it's useless. They won't let me off the site."
"Don't say that it's useless. If I can't take you to Dr. Kasal, we're going to get him here."
Echo was taken aback. This guy was really determined to help her. Echo was about to say something when her stomach made a noise which can only described as a mix between a growling wolf and a mating whale.
The time was not quite yet a lunch hour, so Dr. Marbles was confused.
"Haven't you eaten breakfast yet?" he asked.
"It's over there." Echo said, nodding her head in the general direction of the little table partitioned by the Plexiglas window.
On the table saw a little plate on which little food remained.
"It seems you ate almost everything."
"That is everything. Minus a piece of burnt toast."
"Why didn't you eat the rest? All of your meals aren't this small, are they?"
"Anymore they are. It doesn't matter though. Food's not worth eating anyway. What's tolerable to eat I throw up anyway. I get to be in so much pain I lose my stomach."
Marbles took a closer look at the food on the plate and agreed it was not worth eating.
"Were you able to keep down what you did eat?" Marbles doubtfully asked.
Echo shook her head no.
Marbles stood from his kneeling position.
"Ready to go then?"
"What?"
"I figure while you eat, I'll get a hold of Dr. Kasal and get him here to see you."
"Oh. Okay."
Echo slowly rose off the bed but stumbled as she stood on her feet. Marbles grabbed a hold of Echo's elbow to balance her. The second Echo had regained a steady footing, a scowl crossed her face. Marbles quickly released his hold on Echo, thinking his touch had caused her the discomfort.
Truth was, Echo was not bothered by Marbles' touch. She was angry at herself. Angry because she could barely stand on her own. Echo was angry because she was weak.
The two made their way out of the orphanage. Both could feel the piercing stares of the other children stab into their backs.
Echo hadn't a notion as to where she was going. She simply followed Dr. Marbles. Eventually they came to a back door of a modest-sized building. Marbles knocked, already knowing who would answer.
"Well, well. Look who's back from his vacation." said a well set woman whose dark blonde hair was in a messily formed bun which had a splotchy dusting of flour.
"Hello, Martha. It's nice to see you too."
"Hmm, I can tell from the look on your face that something's not right."
"You're right," Marbles said before going into a brief summary of how he met Echo and her current situation.
"I never did like that Truehart woman." Martha said. ""I just have one question for you. Where is your Echo?"
It was then Marbles realized Echo was no longer at his side. He found her just a few feet away, hunched over a metal garbage tin.
Placing his hand between her shoulder blades, Marbles felt the tremors left from the empty heaves.
"Are you alright?" Marbles asked softly.
Pulling her head out of the trash can, Echo responded meekly.
"Yeah, I'm okay. Just dry heaves… I'm not in a lot of pain."
"You're stomach will settle once you've eaten a proper meal. Come on, Martha is one hell of a cook."
Being led into the building, Echo was introduced to Martha. The woman was well set with rosy cheeks and a sweet smile. This smile was the opposite the one Echo had seen plastered on Truehart's face. Truehart's smile was falsely warm and undeniably cruel. This smile was warm, genuinely warm, and caring. Though Echo still deemed nearly every being around her a threat, she would try hard to tolerate this woman. Martha did not harbor any cruel intent. She was a kind woman who did what was right.
Martha introduced herself to Echo and led the girl to a small table in the corner of the room. To Echo's relief, Martha did not touch her. Marbles let Echo know that he was leaving to contact Dr. Kasal but he assured her he'd return soon.
Echo watched the door intently, eyes darkening- darkening not out of anger but with a mix of sadness and fear. Martha noticed this and speedily worked to redirect Echo's attention.
"He'll be back soon, sweetie." Martha promised Echo. "While I get you a plate fixed, why don't you tell me about yourself?"
Echo was silent until Martha took it upon herself to break the ice.
"You worked at the courthouse, right?"
"Yes, ma'am," Echo answered then spoke no more.
"Have you met Marbles' girlfriend yet?" Martha asked, hoping for a lengthy response from Echo.
"Yes ma'am, Ada is very nice."
Puzzled by Echo's lack of conversation, Martha took the girl her meal.
A plate full of hearty mashed potatoes with gravy, steamed broccoli, a large flaky biscuit, and a nice sized sirloin crowded the white dish. Everything was superbly fresh, still steaming, with a tantalizing aroma enough to make even a vegetarian's mouth water. Echo wasted no time in eating.
Now, one would believe that if a starving person was given a plate of gourmet food, that person would tear into it with an animalistic behavior. Echo did not. Echo ate slowly and mannerly, knowing if she ate fast, she'd just get sick to her stomach again.
As Echo ate Martha watched her. The orphan's eyes stayed downcast the entire time. The sight was saddening. Martha had seen Echo run errands for Judge Trudy before. She'd also seen Echo while she catered to the courthouse on behalf of her little restaurant, The Front Porch.
Thinking about what Marbles had said about Echo, Martha realized that Echo wouldn't say much because she was scared to. After all of the abuse, it had been branded in Echo's head to fear all people. And Martha knew, without a doubt, it all stemmed from the actions of Abigail Truehart.
"That Truehart woman is a cruel monster." sighed Martha, not expecting Echo to speak back.
"She needs her ass-whipped…" Echo muttered, just barely loud enough to be heard.
Whaddya know? It's buried deep in her, underneath all that rubble, but there is a tiny spark o' life left in that girl. Realized Martha.
"Damn straight she does," the woman agreed, taking Echo's empty plate from her. "Now how 'bout some chocolate cake?"
XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX
Doctor Greg Kasal was now en route to Sensible Flats. He had hastily agreed to the impromptu examination of his most challenging patient. After being told of Echo's current condition, Dr. Kasal urged Dr. Marbles to do what he could to get the original two bottles of pills from Truehart. None too excited was Marbles about having to deal with Abigail more than necessary. But this was for Echo, so he would do whatever needed to be done.
Re-entering the orphanage, Marbles was immediately cornered by Abigail who led the doctor into her office. The fact that Abigail didn't care where Echo was or why she was not with Marbles did not go by unnoticed by Marbles.
"My, my. Aren't you a frequent visitor today?" Abigail smirked.
"I'm not here to socialize, Abigail." Marbles assured her.
"If you're not here to socialize then why are you here?" she purred.
It was increasingly hard for Marbles to keep a disgusted look off of his face.
"Echo has an appointment with Dr. Kasal in forty-five minutes and she needs to take her medications with her." Marbles said.
Abigail's smile slipped at the mention of Echo. She could not understand why Marbles was so concerned with that little wretch when he could be fawning over her.
"Oh the little brat's-oh I mean angel- the little angel has a doctor's appointment does she? Well, I'm sorry, but I can't let her have those pills."
"What? Now why can't she have her own medications?" Marbles asked, already more than irritated with Abigail.
"Echo, how can I put it. . .?" Abigail lowered her voice to a near whisper. "Is what we call a special circumstances child. She has issues that cause her to be volatile to others. Mixed with her "unique" mindset, she poses an immediate threat to anyone near her. That's why we had to put her in solitary confinement."
"I fail to see how that is a rational reason to keep Echo's medicine from her." Marbles stated.
"I figured you were smart enough to figure it out, Dr. Marbles!" Abigail giggled. "It's the side effects, silly! The side effects of those medicines could make her go crazier than she is now, making her more of a threat than she already is. That's why I can't let her have those pills. Plus, Echo's at a higher risk to develop an addiction to the pain pills, another reason why it's a bad idea to let her have them."
Marbles was furious. Within these bold faced lies Abigail had insulted both him and Echo. Abigail's statements were so obviously false. Marbles' wanted to counter all of these false statements with the truth. The truth was that Abigail was full of herself, not to mention a poor liar, and that Echo was not a threat to anyone and far from crazy.
But he couldn't blow this. He had to do this for Echo. Marbles painfully swallowed his pride and pressed on.
"If you won't allow Echo to have the pills, would you allow me to keep them for her? You know you can trust me."
Abigail pretended to mull things over before responding.
"Nope. Sorry honey, I can't do that." Abigail said with a smile.
Marbles, taken aback by this, continued on in attempt to determine just what was going on in that woman's head.
"Why not? Abigail, Echo needs those pills for her appointment with Dr. Kasal. You can be assured I would not give Echo the pills. They would stay with me."
"My answer is still no, Doctor."
This is becoming ridiculous. Marbles thought.
Desperate times called for desperate measures.
"Now you wouldn't want me to drag Sheriff Judy into this, would you?"
"You wouldn't dare!" Abigail squealed. Despite her attempt to keep her tone playful, the panic was detectable.
Marbles knew his plan was working.
"Why don't I just call Sheriff Judy and we can let her decide who will take the pills?"
Marbles reached for the telephone's receiver. He saw the panic consume Abigail's face, foreseeing the consequences if they decided to put her under investigation.
Just as Marbles began to lift the receiver from its cradle, Abigail pushed his hand down, putting the receiver back into its cradle.
"Oh alright you win! I must say, you're a tough one." Abigail said as she handed over the two small orange prescription bottles.
Quickly pocketing the bottles, Marbles rose from his seat and excused himself from Abigail's office. He couldn't stand to be in there for one more moment. It didn't take but a few minutes for Dr. Marbles to return to the back door of The Front Porch. Letting himself in, Marbles saw Martha, but not Echo. Martha knew that Echo would be the first thing Marbles would ask about.
"She's dozin' in the window seat," Martha said, nodding over to the window where the tiny girl was curled up.
"Did she eat well?" Marbles probed.
"Oh yeah. Little thing cleaned her plate and polished off a piece of cake too."
"That's great." Marbles said, subsequently stopped before he could say anything else.
"Now let me tell you somethin'." Martha told Marbles. "After you left, that girl," she inclined her head towards Echo, who was curled up in the soft sunshine. "Watched the door with an expression I can only describe as like a puppy that'd just been dumped by its owner. That sweet little thing relies on you and I'm glad she does. I'd be scared of what would happen to her if she didn't have you."
Marbles was speechless. When Martha spoke her mind, there usually wasn't anything else to say because of the truth to her words. So, Martha continued on.
"I've been out here a long time, Marbles. And sadly I don't think this is the first time something like this has happened. Sadder still is how those stories probably ended. Make it be different this time. Get her the help she needs."
"Believe me, I will." Marbles vowed.
Realizing how close the time was until Echo's appointment, Marbles woke Echo from her nap.
"Hey, you're back." Echo said sleepily.
"Uh-huh." Marbles gave Echo a soft smile. "Come on, Dr. Kasal's waiting to see you."
With the quickest movements she could muster, Echo got up from her seat and followed Marbles to the door. As the two were about to leave, Martha turned from keeping an eye of her sous chefs and addressed Echo.
"Girl, I know you have spunk in ya. You need to find it again."
Echo nodded and was then led outside by Marbles.
As the two walked down the street, the hood of Echo's sweatshirt slipped from her head.
Shocked by the reduced length of Echo's hair, Marbles couldn't help but ask, "Echo, what in the world happened to your hair?"
"One of the boys dragged me into the supply closet. He held me down and put a chunk of my hair in a fan without a grate and turned it on reverse. I had to cut it to get free and again to even it out. I think he broke a couple ribs too…" Echo explained, crossing her arms back over her chest.
Marbles had not known what he had expected Echo to say, but it hadn't been that. He felt so terrible for Echo. He felt this was entirely his fault because he had selfishly gone on vacation.
The silence caused by Marbles' mental berating of himself caused Echo to believe something was wrong with her.
"I know I didn't do a great job getting it even, but I tried." Echo said quickly.
"No, no. You did a good job evening out your hair." Marbles assured her. "How did this boy break your ribs?"
"He punched me where they were still healing. So really he just broke the bones where they had already been broken."
"Why were they already broken? Did someone else break them the first time?"
"Yeah, Dr. Kasal did."
Finally it clicked for Marbles.
"They cut open your ribcage during surgery," he realized.
Echo said nothing, nodding her head instead.
A minute later they were inside the small clinic. It was immediately apparent that New Hope had sent along a handful of their staff with Dr. Kasal. All visible staff wore the New Hope crest. Marbles checked Echo in and handed back her medications. They didn't even get to sit down before Dr. Kasal greeted them.
Dr. Marbles had told Dr. Kasal of Echo's current mindset; of how she was terrified of people and only really trusted Marbles. Dr. Kasal was willing to allow Marbles to accompany Echo in place of a parent so that progress could quickly be made.
Using a small examination room as a makeshift office, both doctors and Echo found a place to site before diving right into business.
"So, Echo, what problems have you been having since you discharge?" Dr. Kasal asked.
Echo was reluctant to answer but knew she had to.
"I'm in pain all the time, I'm cold, I don't sleep, I hardly eat, and I think my ribs are broken."
Echo said this all in one breath and quietly to boot. If Dr. Kasal hadn't been paying attention, he wouldn't have caught everything. Dr. Kasal carefully took notes on what Echo said.
"You've not had any medications since returning to the orphanage?"
"No."
"Were you able to bring them with you?"
Echo handed Dr. Kasal the two pill bottles.
Several basic questions were asked by Dr. Kasal. Echo answered them bluntly with answers like yes, no, sometimes, two hours. Finally Dr. Kasal decided to get on with the actual examination.
Dr. Kasal left to get his tools, leaving Echo and Marbles alone in the small room. A chill crashed down Echo's spine, making her shudder. When the shudders subsided, Echo's hands moved to resting on her knees and her head drooped. She was exhausted and felt uneasy, nervous over what Dr. Kasal would do to her.
Sensing this, Marbles took one of Echo's hands into his own in attempt to soothe the girl. Marbles was shocked at how frigid her skin was. It was like Echo had held her hands in an arctic snowdrift. When Echo had said that there was no warmth and she was freezing, Marbles had thought Echo had been metaphorically speaking when she said there was no warmth. Now he realized that she had been speaking literally as well.
While the two waited for Dr. Kasal to return, Marbles attempted to bring warmth back into Echo's hand by creating friction with his own hands [1]. Echo's right hand had disappeared into the sleeve of her navy sweater, balled into a fist. A pathetic sigh slipped through Echo's lips.
"It's going to be alright," Marbles said to his young friend.
Echo disagreed as she slowly shook her head no.
It bothered Marbles that Echo seemed so empty of hope and life. She seemed like a shell of her former self.
Dr. Kasal returned then with a stethoscope around his neck, a stack of files in his hands with a sphygmomanometer resting on top of the files.
"Okay Echo, I don't think we need to take any blood at this point." Dr. Kasal said as he sat his things on a small table. "So, I'll start by taking your blood pressure. Why don't you go ahead and take a seat on the exam table then push the sleeve of your sweatshirt up as far as you can."
As Echo did what she was told, Dr. Kasal handed Dr. Marbles one of the thicker files.
"You should probably look over this." Kasal told Marbles.
Dr. Kasal then turned to Echo. He stopped as he saw that Echo's sweatshirt sleeve was pushed up. This would normally not be an unusual thing. However, Echo pushing up her sweater's sleeve revealed a deep brown long sleeved shirt.
"I know you said you were cold but. . . How many layers are you wearing?"
"Four." Echo answered. "Tank top, t-shirt, long sleeved shirt, and sweater."
"Well, that's a problem." said Kasal. "You're going to have to strip down to layer one. Otherwise it may affect your test results."
Echo did not want to undress but grudgingly obliged. When finally down to a tank top, Echo crossed her arms over her chest; trying to hide her most vivid scar.
While Marbles read through Echo's file, starting with the primary report from the EMT's, Dr. Kasal fastened the black cuff of the sphygmomanometer around Echo's right arm. Echo's blood pressure ended up being a bit high, probably due to nerves. Her breathing was fine, letting Dr. Kasal know that Echo's lungs where doing as well as they should be twelve days after her operation.
As Marbles read the first report a pit of dread began to grow within him. Reading the blunt statements of how Echo lost so much blood from vomiting and how her only responses were to pain widened that pit and pulled at his heartstrings. That blunt report was followed by a highly descriptive one, complete with first hand EMT and surgeon reports as well as color photographs.
The EMT report did not come with photographs but was detailed enough. That report was followed by a photograph of Echo's intestines, with the white fibrous worm in clear view. Marbles' stomach churned and his heart dropped as he continued to move on.
Operation 1, Intestines-Lower, GUILT-Paraskevi: was the heading of the first operation report.
With just the first few lines of the operation report Dr. Marbles' the operation report Dr. Marbles' worst fear had been confirmed. Echo had been the emergency patient his father had spoken of. All of his worries had been accurate. And although the report was revolting and saddening, Marbles read on so he would know what happened to Echo in his absence.
After reading through the Paraskevi operation and progressing halfway through the Kyriaki operation, Marbles paused in his readings to watch Dr. Kasal to weigh Echo. There wasn't a doubt in Marbles' mind that Echo had lost weight. His concern was how much she had lost.
It was when Echo got down from the examination table that Marbles caught a glimpse of the bright pink scar on Echo's chest. Marbles then began to fret the possibilities of the circumstance of that scar's creation. Why had she needed her chest cut open during surgery? Or worse, what if it hadn't been a result of surgery?
As Dr. Kasal balanced the scale he frowned and again Marbles' heart plummeted.
"Echo, your average weight was around 95 pounds prior to surgery, correct?" Dr. Kasal asked.
"Y-Yeah…" Echo stuttered.
"This isn't good. You've dropped nearly 23 pounds." Dr. Kasal told her.
Marbles had to make an effort not to release an audible gasp.
"With this turn of events I will need to take a little bit of blood check your iron and potassium levels among other things. We'll do that after the exam. Now, Echo, before you get back on the exam table to lie down, I see that you've got more bruises on your back and shoulders. Are you still getting beaten by the other orphans?"
"Yes."
"Echo, why didn't you come to one of us for help while you were at New Hope?"
"I did." Echo said bitterly.
"Who did you talk to?" Greg asked.
"That blonde nurse… Angie. She laughed it off and tried to tell me the bruises came from the GUILT and that I'd had too much pain medicine." Echo's voice had gone to being bitter to empty.
Dr. Kasal was appalled by the behaviors of Nurse Angie Thompson. She would be severely reprimanded for her actions.
"I'll be having a talk with Nurse Thompson before I report her to the board. Her actions were unacceptable. I'm sorry Echo." Greg apologized.
Echo didn't say anything but crawled back onto the exam table instead. Marbles went back to reading the Kyriaki report while Dr. Kasal went ahead with the physical examination.
"While feeling for abnormalities in Echo's organs, Dr. Kasal checked the healing progress of the incisions.
"Look's like I'll be able to take out the stitches from the incisions over your stomach and lung, but the one over your small intestine seems to be mussing a few stitches."
"They came out when I took a shower." Echo said.
"It's not unusual for that to happen. However, since that incision still has a ways to go, be sure to keep it very clean."
"'Kay." Echo agreed.
Dr. Kasal continued to feel around for any type of inflammation but none. Then his fingers grazed Echo's left ribs.
Dr. Kasal had a split second to narrowly avoid a kick to the head. Immediately following her defense maneuver, Echo kicked herself back away from Dr. Kasal and curled herself back into the fetal position.
Again Echo clamped her eyes shut and locked every muscle. Marbles, who had just reached the start of the final operation, closed the file, set it aside, and approached Echo.
"Her strongest reactions are to pain, aren't they?" Kasal asked.
"I'm afraid so," Marbles confirmed. "Could you tell if her ribs were broken or not?"
"They're not broken, but they are severely fractured. Enough that two need to be realigned."
"How will you manage that if we can't take her off Sensible Flatts?"
"There's only one option. This office was outfitted with a bone aligner. It's primitive compared to today's options, but it's what we've got."
"I hate that's our only option," Marbles sighed. "She's already in a world of pain."
"I know she is. And somehow we need to find a way to keep a supply of medications with her. Echo can't keep going without."
Both doctors looked at the miserable little heap lying before them. After a quiet moment, Dr. Kasal spoke again.
"Can you get her to calm back down and open up again?" he asked Marbles.
"Yes. It may take a few minutes but I'll get her to calm down."
Dr. Kasal stepped back and let Dr. Marbles have full access to Echo.
Marbles put his hand of Echo's shoulder. He noticed how she protectively caged the area of the cracked ribs with her hand the second he touched her. Marbles knew she was waiting for someone else to hit her where she was weak. Obviously Greg hadn't hit her, but Echo had related it to the numerous beatings then acted instinctively.
"Echo, everything's okay. I know you felt like you were getting beaten, but you're not. You're not at the orphanage right now, remember? Echo you know neither Dr. Kasal nor I would intentionally hurt you. So please relax. You can trust us."
It seemed like an eternity Echo was silent. She did not budge or even open her eyes. Dr. Kasal began to think that Marbles had failed in getting Echo to trust him. Just as Dr. Kasal started to give up hope, Echo opened her eyes and looked straight at Marbles. From the look in her eyes, Dr. Kasal realized that Echo had been listening. It had taken a lot of internal struggling for Echo to open her eyes. Now that they were open, it was plain to see that Echo had given every little bit of trust she had to Dr. Marbles.
When Echo had returned to sitting in an upright position she apologized to Dr. Kasal for her behavior.
"No harm done," Dr. Kasal said, forgiving Echo. "Now, let's go ahead and get your blood work done then we'll realign your ribs. Then you'll have the rest of the day to relax."
Solemnly Echo nodded and slid down off the table. She stood straight with her shoulders back. With as much dignity and courage Echo could muster, she followed Dr. Kasal out of the room after giving one long last look to Marbles. It was obvious despite her rally of courage that Echo was scared.
"It'll be okay." Marbles silently mouthed.
Echo's lip quavered but she swallowed and looked away, refusing to let herself cry. Being led into another smaller room, Dr. Kasal had Echo sit in a wooden chair, laying her right arm on the desk palm up. Three inches below her elbow Dr. Kasal tied a tight tourniquet, causing the blood veins to rise. A swab of rubbing alcohol was used to sanitize the area directly below the palm where Dr. Kasal would draw blood from.
"This won't take very long. I only need two little vials full," Dr. Kasal informed Echo.
Echo nodded but bit her lip. Never had she cared for having to have blood drawn. The fact that there would be a sharp needle being thrust through her skin did not set well with her, even if it was for her own well being.
With a 23g blue winged infusion set [2], Dr. Kasal stuck the sharp pointed needle into a blood vein at a shallow angle. He kept the needle in place by firmly pinning down the wings with a thumb. Once the first flash of blood entered the tube to the vacuum vile from the needle, Dr. Kasal continued to draw blood as normal. That same first flash of blood was enough to make Echo squeamish. With a soft moan she tilted her head over the back of the chair so she could stare at the back of her eyelids or the fluorescents instead of the sight of her own blood being sucked out of her.
"It's alright. Just hang in there. You're doing great." Dr. Kasal assured her.
Meanwhile, Marbles neatly folded Echo's three other shirts and took them with him to wait in the lobby for Echo.
". . . and done." Dr. Kasal informed Echo as he sealed up the second vial of her blood. "See, you did just fine."
"Hmph." Echo muttered with some expression that resembled a scowl. She watched Dr. Kasal wrap the puncture wound with layers of pristine white cloth bandage.
"Come on now. Only one thing left to do. I want you to go with the aids and they'll escort you to the room where you'll get your bones realigned. I'll be in shortly after to sedate you. The procedure will only take about fifteen minutes. Then you can redress and leave with Dr. Marbles."
At the mention of Dr. Marbles' name Echo relaxed a smidge. She rose from the chair and followed the aids like Dr. Kasal had asked her to. They led her to a room at the very end of the hall and had her enter first.
When Echo saw the massive piece of machinery Echo hesitated. Her smidgeon of relaxation disappeared. Panic arose within her as she saw the leather straps in strategic places on the hard table beneath the massive monstrosity of metal. Echo didn't want to be here anymore. She wanted to flee back to Dr. Marbles who would protect her from this thing. As she tried to flee Echo found she was barricaded in. The aids blocked the only entryway. One aid picked Echo up and she began to struggle.
"No! Let me go!" Echo cried rather loudly.
Marbles heard Echo from the lobby. He heard the sheer panic in her voice and it began to shatter his resolve. Every instinct told him to rush in there and stop this before it truly started. Sadly, he knew he couldn't do that. This had to be done. Marbles wished he could at least stay in there at her side while she was put through that but even that was impossible. But what could he have done to prepare her for this? Telling her what it would be like would only have scared her worse and increased her struggle. All Marbles could do was sit and wait through the sounds of Echo's struggle and pray the time went by fast.
Two other aids helped the first in subduing Echo. The two helpers earned several kicks to the gut with one very close call to the nether regions. Finally they held her still while a fourth put a dab of chloroform under her nose. It wasn't enough chloroform to knock Echo out, just enough to calm her down enough to get strapped to the table. When she was strapped down a nurse came in and removed the stitches from over the lung and stomach. The nurse left Echo's tank top rolled up. There couldn't be any type of clothing over the area to be treated.
When Dr. Kasal entered the room he immediately could tell that the aids had used chloroform. Out of character for Dr. Kasal, he for once wished the effects of the chloroform would stay intact after the injection of the sedative and magnetizer even though he knew it wouldn't. Why would Dr. Kasal wish this? There was barely enough magnetizer for the procedure and not enough sedative. Even with the proper amount of sedative, having a bone realigned with this machine was a painful ordeal. Now, due to poor stocking on the behalf of the native clinic, Echo would have to be in more pain than necessary.
First Dr. Kasal injected the magnetizer, which would allow the machine to only move the fractured bone. The magnetizer was a dark graphite serum, which resembled a watered down glitter gel pen solution of the same color. When injected the serum slightly stained the veins it travelled through. He gave the magnetizer a minute to disperse so it could fully coat the cracks and fractures in the rib bones. The he injected half a syringe full of the sedative. That was all the sedative they had. For a person Echo's size, the syringe should've been full. Though it would only dull about 2/9ths of the pain a full dose would've, it would be better than having Echo go in with no sedative at all.
When the sedative was dispersed and was doing all that it was going to do, the procedure began. A small arm was lowered from the machine above and sat on the skin above the affected ribs. As it was turned on, the machine slowly began to move the bone, millimeter by millimeter. That was when the screaming truly began. Echo's screams were so chilling they could turn hot water to ice. Listening to these screams mixed with garbled pleas for it to stop was about to drive Marbles to the brink. He could hardly stay in his seat. He didn't know how much more of this he could stand. A nurse walking by at a brisk pace stopped for a second to say,
"Don't worry. Your daughter will be better in no time."
"She isn't my…" Marbles started, but by the time he said "daughter," the nurse was gone.
My daughter…
The thought didn't last long as one last piercing screech signaled the end of the bone aligning procedure. Dr. Kasal shooed his aids from the room, telling them that he would get Dr. Marbles when Echo was cleared to leave. Echo's vitals stabilized soon after and she was ready to leave by the procedural standards. However, Dr. Kasal knew that Echo wasn't ready to leave yet. She wouldn't even be able to stand up at this point. The best thing was to let her lay there and regain herself while Dr. Kasal talked to Dr. Marbles.
Marbles was eager to see Dr. Kasal enter the lobby though he was more eager to hear some good news.
"The procedure is done; her bones are perfectly in place. However…"
"However what, Greg?" Marbles said. He didn't like where this was going.
"This unit was ill-stocked. There wasn't enough sedative. But had we aborted this procedure today, her ribs would have set wrong and would have had to be re-broken down the line. So we had to do it. Echo's vitals are fine; she's just extremely shaken up. You're going to have to watch her and give her a hand for the next couple hours at least. Usually I wouldn't let her do this but give her one of her normal pain pills in about twenty minutes and another one this evening. I doubt she'll want to eat anything else tonight. I would've helped her to get up but I don't think she would've taken that well. She'll let you help her more since she trusts you. I'm sorry it had to go this way Marbles."
"As am I, but it wasn't your fault Greg. You didn't know the place was under-stocked. All that really matters is that Echo will be okay. If you'll excuse me, I'm going to go help her. Thank you for your time."
Marbles found Echo still strapped to the table, strands of her hair matted to her face by sweat. Her face was nearly as red as her hair from screaming so hard and streaked by tears that were still coming. She stared straight at the ceiling, though Marbles could tell she really wasn't seeing anything in focus. She was in too much pain.
"Echo," Marbles called to her as he brushed a strand of hair out of her face. Echo jerked at his touch, but didn't do anything else when she saw that it was him. "I'm going to un strap you, okay?"
One strap at a time Marbles set Echo free. Each leather strap from each ankle, shin, and thigh were unhooked. Then the ones over her hips and waist, as well as the ones around her wrists, forearms, and in the middle of her elbow and shoulders. When every strap had been undone, Echo rolled onto her right side, putting no pressure onto her left. When she went to sit up she faced problems, and had to sit up while holding on to Marbles' arms to keep from falling over. Once Echo was sitting up on her own, Marbles helped to redress her. He layered the t-shirt over the tank top followed by the brown long sleeved shirt followed by the navy sweatshirt, just as she had done before.
After a time Marbles realized Echo was trying to figure how to get down off the table without falling down. Being extremely cautious of Echo's tender ribcage, he slipped an arm under hers and lifted her down to the floor. Echo refused to move until she got her footing but when she did she was ready to get out of that doctor's office.
Echo figured that Marbles was going to take her back to the orphanage right away but he didn't. In fact, he led her in the opposite direction to the outskirts of town.
"Where are we going?" Echo asked.
"I thought you'd like a warm place to rest for a while. I still don't have to take you back for a few hours. Unless you want to go back?"
"No, that's okay." Echo assured him.
Echo had never seen a cybercoop before and thus was unsure of what to think of Marbles'. Marbles helped Echo slide into the seat and got in right after her. It was nice and toasty in the cabin beneath the glass dome. The heat felt blissful to Echo. Sitting back against the red cushioned seat, Echo let her eyes close and the heat absorb into her skin.
"It's so nice and warm in here." Echo said.
"I figured you'd like it. Now, I know that Dr. Kasal has already asked you plenty of questions, but I still have a few that have been left unanswered."
"Like what?" Echo asked warily.
"How did you even come into contact with the GUILT?"
"There were these researchers operating illegally in the abandoned sewage system. It was my job to drive them out of there. As I was flushing out the last one he dropped three Petri dishes. They shattered and I breathed in the toxins which happened to be the GUILT."
"I see…" Marbles said. "I'm sure this is going to be painful for you to talk about, but how have you been getting beaten? You're still in solitary."
"The day I came back, Truehart put me in the lobby to "keep me active." I got beaten up that day pretty bad and the next day too. The third day I gave up and refused to get out of bed."
Echo grew quiet as she thought about every beating and attack she had endured since day one. It was useless to her to even try to stay strong anymore. It just led to more pain and to be frank, Echo was sick of the pain.
"I don't see the point anymore." Echo said.
"The point of what?"
"Of trying to keep fighting this. Any attempt to be myself just isn't worth the pain. I don't want to do it anymore."
"Echo, I know it's painful now but eventually the pain will subside. Never give up who you are. You're individuality should be your most treasured asset. You've made it this far. You are a survivor."
As much as Echo wanted to cling to those words, she couldn't. She shook her head. "No I'm not."
"Yes you are, Echo. You survived that operation which was no easy feat."
"Well… Well maybe they should've never even attempted to resuscitate me!" Echo said. It was difficult to tell which emotion she was feeling the most. So many were thrashing about within her.
"Echo! Don't ever say something like that!" Marbles said strictly.
Echo recoiled. She had never seen Marbles that strict. Marbles instantly knew he had scared Echo by his reaction and felt awful about it. In a softer, kinder tone, he said,
"I'm sorry. Do not feel frightened. Please, tell me what you meant by that."
Echo realized that Dr. Greg hadn't told him that she had flat lined during her operation. She began to explain.
"Near the end of my surgery… I flat lined for several moments. My heart stopped beating and I was finally free. Free of all the pain, the weights on my shoulders, the chains binding me to this pain filled world. I was finally in peace. I was free from all of it! But they brought me back! They threw all of that weight and more back on me when they used that damned defibrillator on me! Apparently it was on the last try that they got my heart to start again. I was at the very edge of freedom…. I guess I'll never be able to touch it."
Marbles was thoroughly in shock. Words evaded him and he felt unbelievably guilty. All he could say was "Oh Echo…"
Echo's eyes darkened as she tried to find some way to lock up the rest of her pain. She still did not like to be touched. So she tensed some when Marbles hugged her again, but tolerated it.
"I wouldn't have even mattered if I died. Nothing's left for me. Nobody would have really cared if I was gone."
"Now that's not true. I care and so does Ada. I would miss you severely if you were gone."
"Really?"
"Absolutely! Don't give up on yourself. Remember: you're alive. That means you have infinite potential. You can do anything, make anything, dream anything [3]."
Echo took those words to heart. The warmth she had found when she first crawled into the coop was gone and the chills returned. Not quite releasing Echo from the hug, Marbles reached behind the seat and grabbed the brown carhart coat he kept for when he was in colder climates and wrapped it around her. Marbles then turned the heat on to low to speed up the reheating process for Echo.
Feeling the heat caress her skin Echo pulled out of the hug to face the air vents.
"Thank you." Echo said, pulling the coat tighter around her body.
"You're welcome. Here, you need to take one of your pain pills." Marbles handed Echo a bottle of water and a pain pill which she took without problem.
Giving the water bottle back to Marbles, Echo leaned her head back against the seat and let her eyes drift shut. She was sleepy though she was still thinking about what Marbles had told her. Eventually the sleepy part of her began to dominate as she started to doze off, her head lolling to the side. She was too tired to fight it when Marbles pulled her down to lie on her side with her head resting on his thigh. For once Echo went with the flow and just relaxed. Just before she completely fell asleep she said,
"When we get back to the orphanage, will you help me get rid of something? I don't care what you do with it; I just want you to keep it away from me."
"Of course; we'll handle that when it's time. Now you should rest. Don't worry about anything else."
It didn't take long for Echo to fall asleep. Watching Echo sleep, Marbles saw the shadows beneath her eyes begin to fade and a soft rose color return to her cheeks. The look was considerably healthier than when he'd first seen her this morning. He couldn't help but feel that this was entirely his fault. He had left her alone while he went on vacation. He hadn't done anything to get her help when she was first getting beaten. He had let it come to this before getting her help. In Marbles' eyes, he was the guilty party.
"I'm so sorry Echo." Marbles whispered to her sleeping form. "Somehow I'm going to make this right."
While trying to think of a solution for this predicament, Marbles thought back to the feelings he experienced while he was in the waiting room. It was then he realized the solution had been in front of his nose the whole time. Marbles wanted to tell Echo immediately of his plan but did not as he wanted her to get as much rest as she could. If Echo awoke before they had to go back he would tell her. If she slept the whole time Marbles would write a letter telling of his intentions to give to her. As the time passed it became clear that he would have to write the letter. As carefully as he could without disturbing the sleeping girl, Marbles reached to the glove box and retrieved an ink pen and a legal pad. He wrote the letter while listening to the soft breathing coming from Echo. He finished it just in time to fold the finished letter and stick it in his jacket pocket before having to wake Echo.
"Echo, time to wake up. It's time for us to head back." Marbles said as he gently nudged her shoulder.
"Okay…" Echo said groggily as she sat up, the coat falling off her shoulders. After rubbing her eyes she crawled out of the cybercoop after Marbles, stretching her legs as she stood.
"Here, Echo, this is a week's worth of your medicine." Marbles said as he placed a small round pill matrix in the palm of Echo's hand. The matrix had two compartments with the pain pills in one and the antibiotics in the other. "That matrix should be easy enough to hide so Truehart can't take it."
Echo nodded and pocketed the matrix, covering the pocket with her sweatshirt. As they walked back to town Echo told Marbles,
"That was the best sleep I've gotten in a long time."
"Good. You needed it."
When they finally started to approach the orphanage, Echo's heart dropped.
"I hate it here," Echo whined as they approached the orphanage steps.
It was the first time Marbles had heard Echo flat out complain about the orphanage. It broke his heart so much knowing that he couldn't just then take her home with him and protect her from having to endure this kind of hell ever again.
"I know, sweetie. I know." It took everything Marbles had to keep his own voice from cracking.
Inside they were both confronted by Abigail Truehart who coaxed the pills out of Marbles' pocket. Thankfully she did not think to check Echo's pockets. When Marbles and Echo had finally gotten away from Truehart, they slipped back into Echo's cell.
"So, what is it you want me to get rid of for you?" he asked Echo.
Echo went into the bathroom and pulled a drawstring bag from the cabinet beneath the sink. It was the same bag that had been given to her while she was at New Hope. The bag had the New Hope Hospital crest on it. Without a word Echo handed it to Marbles. Marbles was surprised by the weight of the little bag.
"What's in here, Echo?"
A distressed look crossed Echo's face and she sat down on her bed.
"Just see for yourself." She said quietly, fearing Marbles reaction.
Marbles opened the bag to first see one thin piece of paper folded into thirds and another, thicker set of papers folded the same. Then beneath those papers was a long, thick coil of knotted rope. The morbidity of the object scared Marbles to death. Especially because it had been in Echo's hands.
"Echo! Please don't tell me you were seriously considering this!"
Tears formed in Echo's eyes and she looked away. Marbles sat down beside her and gathered her into his arms.
"When were you going to…?" Marbles couldn't even bring himself to finish the question.
"Tonight, when the sun went down." Echo answered before she began to sob.
Marbles looked down and sure enough on the outside of the top note was marked with the current day's date.
"But I don't wanna go through with it anymore! I want to keep going. Until you came back I didn't have any hope… I'm just so scared of this constant darkness!"
"It's okay. Just let it go." Marbles soothed as he let Echo cry herself out.
Marbles didn't keep a good track on time as Echo cried, but eventually the sobs began to subside into sniffles which led straight into soft snores. Echo had cried herself to sleep. Carefully Marbles wiped away the last of the tears before laying Echo down on the bed. He slipped her sneakers off of her feet then covered her with her quilts. When Marbles decided things were in enough order, he closed the drawstring bag and went to leave. Just as he was about to walk out the door he remembered the note and left it on the table.
He was surprised that Abigail hadn't stopped him on his way out. It appeared she wasn't even at the orphanage at all. Marbles didn't really care one way or another. He knew she didn't give a damn about her job. Marbles had his mind set as he entered the courthouse.
Before Marbles could even utter a word, Judge Trudy said,
"I have a feeling I already know why you're here."
XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx
Once in a while, Abigail Truehart liked to ditch her duties at the orphanage for a night on the town. She had done her nails, make up, and even bought a new dress for this night. The dress was a soft ivory with a pale pink ribbon that tied into a large bow right above her derriere. A matching pink lace choker was tied around her neck. On her way into the main part of town, Abigail passed by the back entrance of the Front Porch. Martha had just opened the door to toss out the rotting scraps of the past couple days when Abigail passed by.
Martha detested Abigail, especially with what the woman did to the orphans. Her anger powered the slinging of the bucket a little more than it should've, and the contents of a three gallon bucket of scraps flew straight at Abigail.
With the most sickening of sounds the scraps hit the ground at the compost heap, as well as Abigail. The majority of the scraps had been rotting tomatoes which immediately stained Abigail's precious new dress. At first Abigail was in shock. That shock quickly changed into fury.
"What in the hell is wrong with you!?" Abigail screeched. "This is a brand new dress!"
Abigail took a step towards Martha but slipped in the remains of the slop. Falling straight on her butt, a good portion of the back of her dress was now stained with red and contaminated with a horrid stench. As Abigail landed a nearly whole tomato flew up from being landed on and landed straight in her face which left a trail as it slid down into her bosom.
When Abigail had just regained her footing, she was prepared to give Martha hell. However, just as Abigail opened her mouth, she heard,
"Say cheese!"
The flash powder went of the moment Abigail saw the local newspaper reporter.
"This is gold!" The reporter exclaimed.
"I'll say." Martha agreed with a smirk.
With a guttural growl Abigail stalked off, her night ruined. She had no choice but to return to the orphanage and scrub herself free of the filth. As she showered she thought she could have one last chance at salvaging her night. She hadn't remembered Dr. Marbles leaving. He could still be here with the little brat. Dressing in a silk nightie and matching robe, Abigail sashayed her way to Echo's cell. To her disappointment Marbles was gone and the kid was asleep. However, there was a letter on the table. It was from Marbles to Echo.
Abigail did not like what she was reading. She held on to the letter and hurried to her office. There she picked up the receiver and dialed a number.
"Solomon Quinn!" Abigail hissed. "You better hurry your hide and take care of this brat! I do NOT want her ruining things for me again!"
[1] I just wanted to make this clear because I'm not sure if it makes complete sense. What Marbles is doing here is rubbing his hands around Echo's to warm her fingers up.
[2] 23g blue winged infusion set: This is a typical butterfly needle used by doctors. 23g is the middle sized needle of the three used.
[3] "You're alive. That means you have infinite potential. You can do anything, make anything, dream anything." This is a quote I found on "To Write Love on Her Arms" Facebook page.