Chapter 36
Kristin finished putting the rest of the pills safely back in the bottle; she then capped it and set it down on the table. She suddenly felt a slight pang of regret, unsure of how such a pill was going to make her feel. She decided, though, that it had to be better than anything she was feeling right now. And if it was going to help her sleep properly, then it was worth the risk. She decided to change into some pajamas, assuming she might sleep the rest of the day away.
She walked into the bathroom and undressed. As she did, she looked into the mirror once again and examined her shoulder, not that she expected the mark to reappear. She just didn't understand how it could be there one minute and gone the next, especially considering the way it looked…as though it had been burned into her skin. Something like that wouldn't fade so quickly, at least not that she'd ever seen in her years of medical practice.
Unless of course she imagined it. She sighed. She knew that's what Joshua thought, which is why he'd given the Xanax to her in the first place. She knew he must really be at a loss with how to help her, or he'd never have suggested something so rash otherwise. Sleep deprivation could certainly cause hallucinations, except there was one minor detail that contradicted that in her case: she had been sleeping. Well, it might not have been lucrative sleep, but it was sleep nonetheless. She'd gotten less other nights when she was on call and never had had such an experience. Of course, she wasn't dealing with spirits or past lives then either.
But then she didn't recall any of this with Lillian, not that she could remember a lot with her. Lillian literally took over; it was a strange feeling, not one she could really describe in words. She really had no control over words or actions, and when it was all over, she had to rely on the others to tell her what had occurred. She still had little memory of the events on the George, even after Lillian left her body. Her connection with Lillian ended the moment that Lillian crossed over. All she had left was her dress, but she never felt like there was more to be done with her. She never felt Lillian, not the way she could feel Sylvia.
Not that she didn't feel something after the experience on the George. She definitely did. It was more the fact she had been dealing with the possession both mentally and emotionally. For the longest time, she'd believed nothing like that could ever occur, and then some bloody spirit had to prove her wrong. In the weeks after the possession, she'd thought a lot about Lillian, wondered if she was happy, wondered if she might ever come back. She'd assumed that she was indeed happy. She'd looked happy in Robert's arms that day. After a while, she'd pushed all thoughts of Lillian aside; she'd packed her away along with that white dress, stored in the back of her closet.
She never dreamed in a million years she would go through something like this again. Well, actually, she might have welcomed another possession. That was easy. That was cut and dry. That was just a spirit using her body for a little while. While rather disturbing, she could have dealt with it again. But this thing with Sylvia…whatever it was…was entirely different. Sylvia was still with her. It wasn't over, and…
Her train of thought was pushed off its track as she suddenly felt strange…almost as though she were drunk. It dawned on her that the pill must have kicked in. Dressing in her pajamas was now a chore, and although she couldn't even make out the clock, she surmised it took much longer than it should have. Hanging onto the walls for support, she made her way back to the bed. She muttered a, "Thank the Lord," when she finally made it there without incident, laid down, and promptly fell asleep.
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"I really can't thank you enough, Captain," Lucas said with a grin as they began walking back to the hotel. They'd gone to see the new Avenger's sequel at the multiplex and after that, they got a couple of hot dogs from one of the local vendors. "This was seriously one of the best days I've ever had."
Nathan put his arm around Lucas' shoulders. "It was my pleasure, kiddo. I guess this is my way for making up for the past week and half. I know I wasn't exactly there for you and-"
The younger man waved a hand. "But it's not like you could really help it. I know you weren't trying to push me aside. I…I know you and the doctor have become close, and I'm really glad to see that, actually."
"You are?" Nathan asked in surprise.
"Of course. I am seventeen. I'm not blind, you know. I can see the way you two look at each other," he said with a laugh.
"Well, I guess it's not much of a secret anymore," Nathan admitted.
"It really hasn't been for a while, though I think you were one of the last to know," the teen teased good-naturedly. He nudged the captain's arm with his elbow.
Nathan laughed at this. "Maybe so. So you're really okay if the doctor and I…if we…"
"Take things to the next level?" Lucas finished. "It's really not my business what you do." He thought for a moment. "As long as you don't neglect me like my parents, I am completely okay with that."
"I promise we won't." He paused for a moment. "About your mom and dad, Lucas, I-"
Lucas shook his head. "Don't worry about it."
"No, I am worrying about it," Nathan insisted. "I haven't had a face to face conversation with your father since the beginning of the tour, and I've never had the pleasure of speaking with your mother."
"Mom's not really a hands-on kind of mom. She never was," he said quietly.
"Lucas, do you want me to talk to them?" Nathan pressed.
He thought for a few minutes. "I'm not sure it would do much good."
"Lucas, we're on shore leave in Pearl Harbor. If you want to see your father, whose power plant is only a short distance away, I'm sure we could arrange something. It can't hurt to try."
After a moment, Lucas nodded. "Yeah, okay, I would like to spend some time with him. I tried to tell him that, but it kind of went in one ear and out the other. I…I know he's busy, but can't he spare a few hours for lunch or something?"
"I'm sure he could," Nathan agreed. "I'll give him a call."
The teen smiled. "Thanks. Uh, don't worry about talking to my mom. She's not… It's no big deal."
"If that's how you feel."
"It is," Lucas said with a nod.
"Okay. Well, now that that's out of the way, I was wondering if you might want a little project while we're here."
"What kind of project?"
"Well, for you, I doubt it'll feel like work, but I want you to search the Internex and see if you can't find what might have happened to Admiral Frank Beatty's desk."
Lucas gave him a questioning look. "Why?"
"It's kind of a long story, and I promise you'll be let in on the why very soon. But do you think you could take a look in your spare time?"
"Yeah, sure; it'll be a piece of cake."
"I hope you're right."
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They spent the rest of the time chatting about anything and everything until they reached the hotel lobby. Once inside, they ran into Ben, Tim, and Miguel. They were dressed in swimming trunks and carrying towels.
"Hey, there, kid," Ben greeted. "We were all going to the beach. You want to come along?"
Lucas hesitated. "I kind of have this thing the captain wants me to work on..."
"Oh, you can always do that later…or tomorrow. There's not a huge rush on it," Nathan assured him. He nodded his head towards the others. "There are still a few hours of sunlight. Go on; have fun."
"Really?" Lucas asked hopefully.
"Really," Nathan told him.
"Just give me a few minutes to change. I'll be right back," Lucas announced; he then ran off toward the elevator.
Nathan turned to the others. "You make sure you keep an eye on him then."
Ben gave him an innocent look. "Of course; you have nothing to worry about."
"Just stay out of trouble; Lucas hasn't had the best morning, unfortunately. His parents are being their usual selves."
"We'll be sure to make sure he has a good time," Miguel promised.
"And we'll keep Ben in line, too," Tim added, giving Ben a look.
Nathan smiled. "Thanks; I appreciate that. You three haven't seen the doctor at all, have you?"
"I haven't seen her come out of her room at all today," Tim replied, "though I did hear her."
"What?"
Tim sighed. "I needed more sunblock, so I went back to my room earlier, and I heard her and Dr. Levin having a bit of an argument. Then I heard the door slam and ran into Dr. Levin in the hallway, leaving the room in a bit of a huff."
"Oh, no," Nathan muttered. "Uh, thank you. I suppose I better go see what happened then. I'll see you later."
The three men bid their goodbyes as Nathan started toward the elevator.
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By the time Nathan reached the room, Lucas was already on his way out.
"See you later," Lucas said.
"Did you happen to notice if the doctor was in there?" Nathan asked him.
"Oh, sorry; I didn't even think…"
"It's fine, kiddo. Have fun."
Lucas nodded. "Later."
Nathan sighed and closed the door behind him. "Kristin?" he called as he walked over to her side. He felt a little more relieved when he saw her curled up, fast asleep on the bed. He noticed she'd fallen asleep without any blankets on, so he lovingly laid the comforter over her. As he did so, however, he happened to notice the bottle of pills on the bedside table.
Curious, he picked it up and read the label. Immediately feeling panicked, he shook her shoulder gently. "Kristin? Kristin! Wake up, please?"
"Mmm," she mumbled softly, making no attempt to open her eyes.
"Kristin? Did you take any of these pills?" he demanded. He tried not to sound so upset, but he knew his tone of voice betrayed him.
"Wha-?" she mumbled, scarcely opening one eye.
"These pills?" he asked again. He snapped his fingers, noticing Kristin wasn't really focusing on him. "Did you take any?"
She gave a slight nod. "Tired," she muttered. She closed her eyes once again.
But Nathan wasn't finished. "Did Joshua give them to you?"
No answer.
He shook her shoulder again. "Kristin, please, did Joshua give them to you?"
She gave another small nod, but this time, she didn't speak.
"Damn it," Nathan swore in frustration under his breath. He put the bottle into his pocket and started off towards Joshua's room. He needed to get to the bottom of this.
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Nathan gave three loud knocks on the door and waited.
As soon as Joshua answered, Nathan held the bottle of pills out for him to see. "Really, Joshua? This was your answer?" he asked bitterly.
Joshua frowned. "Well, hello to you, too," he replied, stepping aside. "Come in, and let's talk."
Nathan walked in, but refused to sit. "I told you to talk to her, not to drug her. And Xanax? Come on. Do you really think that's wise, considering-"
"Nathan, calm down. You're acting like I just walked in there, handed her the pills, and left. That isn't what happened."
"Enlighten me then," Nathan demanded.
Joshua took a breath. "I went over there to give her an examination, but really, she knew that's not why I was really there. Her bump is fine; she's going to be fine physically. She then expressed to me her fears, her concerns, many of the same things you had already told me."
"And?" Nathan pressed.
"Did you know about the dream she had?"
"What dream?"
"She told me about this dream she had about Frank Knox…that he was in the room with her. She said she dreamt that he was trying to drown her. And when she woke up, she had a handprint on her shoulder."
"I didn't know about that," Nathan said quietly.
"Well, I asked her to show me, and it wasn't there. Look, you seem to forget I am her doctor. I know her medical file front to back. Mentally, she's one of the most stable individuals on the boat. She has no history of mental illness. However, she's obviously had a very traumatic experience. This traumatic experience is causing her not to sleep well, and in turn, she's obviously having hallucinations. It's common. The point is, save for getting her professional psychological help…and you don't want to do that, by the way, or they'll relieve her of duty…this is the next best option. It'll help her relax and get some rest, which is what she needs. I wouldn't have given it to her if I thought it would harm her in any way. It's only temporary. But you don't have to worry anyway because she already told me she won't take them. She threw me out of the room after that."
Nathan laughed slightly. "I wish I could have seen that, but you're mistaken."
"What?"
"She told me she did take one…well, hopefully, it was just one. She's kind of out of it."
Joshua smiled. "Good; I'm glad she listened to reason then. And I am sure she only took one."
"You call this…" He held out the bottle of pills. "…listening to reason?"
"Look, Nathan, I understand your concern; really, I do. I honestly felt this was the best option for the time being."
"So what do you suggest now?"
"I suggest we wait and see. She might be better in the morning. Who knows? No, all the problems aren't going to go away, but I will guarantee she'll feel a little better in the morning, at least. And I doubt she'll have any more dreams like that," he assured him. "I honestly was doing what I felt is in her best interest. You trust me?"
Nathan nodded. "Yes, I do trust you, Joshua, and I'm sorry if I implied otherwise. I was just…"
"I know," Joshua interrupted. "I understand. We'll talk tomorrow then?"
"Tomorrow," Nathan promised before leaving the room.
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Once back in his room, Nathan felt a little sad, though. He'd thoroughly enjoyed his time with Lucas, and he'd known Kristin was right: Lucas needed that time. But when Ben, Tim, and Miguel offered to take him to the beach, Nathan had hoped that would mean he'd have a little alone time with Kristin. They'd barely spent much time together since their leap back into their own time, but he desperately wanted to. Even if they didn't say or do much, he wanted to be with her.
Oh, he was happy she was getting rest, and he hoped that Joshua was right: that she would be a little better in the morning. But being in that room, knowing she was on the other side and oblivious to the world around her, he couldn't help but miss her. He walked to the door dividing the two rooms and stood in the doorway to check on her.
She was exactly how he'd left her. He noticed that, indeed, her face looked peaceful, so he did feel a bit more at ease about what Joshua had done. He watched the gentle rise and fall of her chest for a few minutes, as if he needed confirmation that she was just fine. He sighed softly. "Sleep well, sweetheart. I'll see you in the morning." He then turned to leave, closing the door behind him, though he was sure to leave it open just a touch…just in case.
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Lucas returned a few hours later, surprised to find Nathan awake and alone, watching some old movie on the vid-screen. "You should have seen it!" he greeted enthusiastically. "We-" He stopped mid-sentence when Nathan put a finger to his lips.
"Shh. The doctor's sleeping."
Lucas nodded. "Sorry." He made sure his voice was lower this time.
"Don't worry. So you had a good time, I take it?"
"Oh, it was great. We had played volleyball, and then we went surfing. And we got to see Darwin. And then we went out to dinner. And…" He showed Nathan his arm, which had seven numbers written on it in black ink.
"What is that?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.
"That is Veronica Watson's phone number," Lucas said with a grin. "We met on the beach, and she's my age. And she hopes she and I can get together while I'm in town. Do you think that'd be possible?" He gave Nathan one of his famous 'please, can I go?' looks.
Nathan sighed. "I thought you wanted to spend time with your father?"
"I do," Lucas replied, "but you and I both know how reliable he is. Even if he agrees, he won't be able to take that much time off of work. And this is a vacation, isn't it?"
Nathan couldn't argue with him there. He sighed. "Fine…we can arrange for you and this Veronica to go on a date…as long as you're responsible and stay out of trouble."
Lucas held up a hand. "I swear I'll be a perfect gentleman."
"Right…well, I just don't want a Julianna repeat, if you know what I mean."
Lucas blushed and grinned sheepishly. "Uh, yeah…don't worry. And don't worry about Veronica. She knows pretty much nothing about computers either."
Nathan laughed. "I think that's a good thing."
"Yeah, probably." He grabbed a change of clothes and started toward the bathroom. "I'm just going to go change into some PJ's, and I'll start on that little project you wanted me to work on."
A short time later, Lucas emerged from the bathroom, took out his laptop, and started tapping away on his keyboard.
Nathan tried to ignore him and focus on his movie, but when the teen uttered a, "Whoa," Nathan couldn't help but turn his attention toward him. "You want to fill me in?"
"Well, I was just doing a little research on your admiral friend first. You know he's highly decorated?"
Nathan nodded. "Yeah, I do."
"And you think he had something to do with Miss Mayfield's death?"
"Well, that's what we've been led to believe, yes. Really, all we need to know is if his desk happens to be around the base somewhere," Nathan told him.
Lucas raised an eyebrow. "Why didn't you ask Admiral Noyce?"
"Because Admiral Noyce doesn't know about what really happened over the last week and a half, and I'd like to keep it that way. And asking him where the desk might be might look a little…odd, don't you think?" Nathan stood and put a hand on his shoulder. "Besides, that's why I have you. Anyone who can hack into the World Bank undetected can certainly find a retired Navy Admiral's desk, right?"
Lucas nodded and turned his attention back to the screen. He motioned for Nathan to sit down next to him.
Nathan watched as Lucas typed and clicked, doing several searches in the Internex search bar.
After a few minutes, Lucas shook his head. "You'd think it would be right here in the Pearl Harbor Museum…but I've just looked through their archives. I don't find anything about the desk…unless we can talk to someone there and ask." He gave Nathan a hopeful look.
"That's possible, though I'm not sure they'll tell us much."
"They might…if you have a certain admiral pull a few strings," Lucas hinted.
"Lucas…" Nathan warned. "I already told you, I don't-"
"I know what you told me, and on one hand, I get it. But you seem to forget the admiral is your friend. Not only that, he knows about other things we've encountered over the last year…things that really have no other explanation, and he's kept all those things secret from the rest of the brass. Don't you think he'd give you the benefit of the doubt?"
Nathan sighed. "Although I hate to admit it, you're right."
"I know I am."
"And you're so modest, too," Nathan quipped. "You really think it might be in the archives of the museum?"
"I honestly don't know, but that seems the most logical place to start. Even if it isn't, it's possible it might be in the possession of his children or grandchildren. But I don't think they'd give that kind of information out to us, unless we had the backing of a certain admiral, whom they know and respect," Lucas hinted.
"All right; all right," Nathan replied. "You win. I'll speak to the admiral sometime tomorrow. You drive a hard bargain, you know that?"
Lucas smiled. "Yeah, but you love me anyway."
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December 8, 2019
After Lucas put his laptop away, Nathan handed over the remote to the vid-screen. It wasn't long before the teen found a Three Stooges marathon, and the two stayed up late watching it. But, finally, around one in the morning, they both turned in for the night.
Sometime later, however, a strange noise caused Nathan to stir. He sat up and listened for a minute. It sounded like…struggling. "Lucas?" he whispered after a minute.
When the boy didn't answer, Nathan flicked on the lamp next to his bed. Lucas was sound asleep and didn't even notice the light. Nathan was relieved, but he heard the noise yet again. It suddenly dawned on him that it was coming from the next room. Kristin!
He turned off the lamp and hurried over to the other side.
"No!" Kristin mumbled, obviously still asleep, but obviously in the midst of nightmare. Her arms lay at her sides as though she couldn't move. She looked as though she was being pinned down by an invisible enemy. "No, please!"
Nathan called her name gently. "Kristin, wake up. It's just a dream."
Kristin let out a scream, not even acknowledging Nathan's presence. "Get off of me, please!" she cried louder than before.
Nathan hesitated for a moment, debating if he should touch her. He knew, though, that if he left her this way, she might very well wake the other patrons on the floor, and he didn't want to explain any of this to a hotel manager. He gently touched her shoulder and was surprised by how stiff she felt, every muscle tensed. He pulled away in surprise as she struggled, her face contorted in a pained expression.
She let out a sob. "No!"
Nathan took a deep breath and touched her shoulder again, shaking gently. "Kristin, please! You need to wake up. It's just a dream!"
But Nathan's touch only seemed to make it worse. Kristin began struggling even more, screaming and crying.
Nathan watched in terror, obviously at a loss of what to do when he heard a voice that caused him to jump.
"Is she…is she all right?" It was Lucas.
Nathan turned in his direction. "I…I don't know. I can't wake her up."
"Maybe I should get Dr. Levin?" Lucas suggested.
Nathan nodded. "Good idea; please hurry."
Less than ten minutes later, Lucas returned with Dr. Levin in tow.
"I promise I won't say anything!" Kristin cried, still sound asleep.
"I can't wake her up," Nathan told him desperately. "Do you…do you think this has anything to do with the medication?"
Joshua gave him a look. "Highly unlikely." That was a lie; Xanax could cause hallucinations. However, they all knew Kristin had been having nightmares over the past week and a half. The fact she was having one now meant nothing. However, seeing Kristin in such a bizarre-looking state had him wondering. He turned to Lucas. "Maybe if we turn on the lights?"
Lucas obediently flipped the light switch while Joshua tried to wake her the same way Nathan did. And just like the first time, it didn't work.
Kristin let out another scream in response.
"Joshua, she…she doesn't look right," Nathan said worriedly. "We have to do something."
Joshua tried to wake her again, but to no avail.
Suddenly, Kristin sat straight up and let out one last blood-curdling scream. She then burst into tears, now awake.
Nathan immediately went around to the other side of the bed and sat next to her; he wrapped his arms around her while she sobbed into his shoulder.
Several minutes later, Kristin's sobs quieted.
"Do…do you want to talk about it?" Nathan asked gently.
"It…it was just so real," she whispered, tears still streaming down her cheeks. "Frank Knox…he…he…raped me. And…and…then, he forced…me into…into that chest!"
"Shh," Nathan soothed, trying to calm her. "It was just a dream. You're safe now. It was just a silly dream."
Kristin nodded and buried her face into his chest. A few minutes later, however, she pulled away and stood. "I need to go get a tissue."
Nathan cast a glance towards Joshua. "You want to explain why she keeps having these nightmares about Knox?" he whispered quietly.
Joshua shrugged. "I'm sure it's just a phase," he whispered back. "After a few days-"
But he stopped short when Kristin returned.
Nathan stood and went to her. "Are you feeling better?" he asked, concern lacing every word.
She gave a slight nod, but her face was pale and her cheeks flushed.
Nathan put a hand on her forehead. "You have a temperature," he noted. He cast a look at Joshua.
Joshua stood. "I'll go get my bag; I'll be back in a few minutes." He looked at Kristin. "You should probably lie down." With that, he left.
Kristin let out a sigh. "But I feel fine," she said to Nathan.
"Doc, you…you were screaming in your sleep," Lucas said gently. "I…I don't think you're fine."
"I'm sorry if I scared you, but it was just a silly dream," she said, taking a step toward him. She faltered a bit, however. She held a hand to her forehead. "Oh," she cried softly.
"See; you are not fine," Nathan insisted. He then noticed the sheen of perspiration on her forehead and the way her eyes rolled back. "Kristin?" he questioned.
She then fell back into his arms in a dead faint.
A/N: As mentioned in the last chapter, I am doing a bit of set up for 'A Higher Power' with Lucas and his parents. Besides her name, we really know nothing about Lucas' mother, so I would think she wasn't exactly a hands-on type. I just wanted to explain. Thank you.