Dr. Brown directed Richard out into the hall, and shut the door behind
them. "As I'm sure you know by now, Whitney has suffered a temporary loss
of memory from his accident. Other than that, he has no visible signs of
injury."
"Wait a minute, Whitney didn't just have an 'accident', he died, ok? He died in Indonesia from a mortar shell. There's no way he can be alive, and not have any injuries! I was there, I saw what happened." He was almost shouting. It was just too much for Richard to take. It didn't take a rocket scientist, or a doctor to know that you can't have a bomb dropped on you and survive, without injury.
The doctor gave Richard a strange look. "You must be mistaken. Yes, Whitney has suffered a slight trauma to the head, but nothing more. Although."
"What?" Richard asked.
"When we took some x-rays, we found an object lodged deep into his chest, a necklace. The surgery was risky, but it would have been more dangerous to leave it inside, because the metals could have caused a severe infection. Whitney was sent to the ICU after the operation because his left lung was affected slightly by the surgery, and we didn't want to risk it collapsing, or filling with blood. After a few hours of observation, and another x-ray, he appeared to be fine, which is why he's here now."
Richard was still puzzled. "You found a necklace in his chest?" His eyes widened. Suddenly, he recalled Whitney showing him, time and time again, the necklace that Lana had given him before he left Smallville. Whitney had mentioned it was made of the meteor rock that killed her parents. He had also described a theory that had been floating around Smallville that the meteor rocks were the cause of a lot of strange happenings. Could that be the case? Richard had always laughed at Whitney's stories of Sean the ice- boy, and Tina the shape-shifter, who had even impersonated Whitney once. The idea seemed bogus to him, but it might have just been the answer he was looking for. "Uh, do you have the necklace here?"
Dr. Brown shook his head. "No, it was sent away to S.T.A.R. Labs to be tested, to make sure none of the metals were poisonous to the blood stream. We received the results, but they don't often send things like that back. I'm sure if it was something precious, you could contact them to see if they could return it."
"Ok. Then um, what did it look like?"
"It was a green rock with a gold coloured chain, I think." The doctor replied.
Suddenly, Richard spotted Mrs. Fordman running up the hall with a small duffel bag over her shoulder. She approached the doctor and Richard and spoke breathlessly. "Lana called and told me. Is. is it true?"
Richard nodded, but Dr. Brown began to speak. "Are you Mrs. Fordman?" He asked.
"Yes, I am Mrs. Fordman. I assume you're Dr. Brown?"
The doctor and Mrs. Fordman were soon walking down the hall in discussion about Whitney's situation. Richard was left alone outside of Whitney's room. He didn't know if he wanted to go back in and talk with Whitney. It was just so weird. What was the point of talking with him if he couldn't remember anything? Richard knew it would be boring just to sit there and tell Whitney about the Marines. He decided to go look for Lana. She couldn't have gone too far, the waiting room perhaps. Besides, he thought, Mrs. Fordman would be back soon enough, and she'd want to spend a lot of time with Whitney.
"Wait a minute, Whitney didn't just have an 'accident', he died, ok? He died in Indonesia from a mortar shell. There's no way he can be alive, and not have any injuries! I was there, I saw what happened." He was almost shouting. It was just too much for Richard to take. It didn't take a rocket scientist, or a doctor to know that you can't have a bomb dropped on you and survive, without injury.
The doctor gave Richard a strange look. "You must be mistaken. Yes, Whitney has suffered a slight trauma to the head, but nothing more. Although."
"What?" Richard asked.
"When we took some x-rays, we found an object lodged deep into his chest, a necklace. The surgery was risky, but it would have been more dangerous to leave it inside, because the metals could have caused a severe infection. Whitney was sent to the ICU after the operation because his left lung was affected slightly by the surgery, and we didn't want to risk it collapsing, or filling with blood. After a few hours of observation, and another x-ray, he appeared to be fine, which is why he's here now."
Richard was still puzzled. "You found a necklace in his chest?" His eyes widened. Suddenly, he recalled Whitney showing him, time and time again, the necklace that Lana had given him before he left Smallville. Whitney had mentioned it was made of the meteor rock that killed her parents. He had also described a theory that had been floating around Smallville that the meteor rocks were the cause of a lot of strange happenings. Could that be the case? Richard had always laughed at Whitney's stories of Sean the ice- boy, and Tina the shape-shifter, who had even impersonated Whitney once. The idea seemed bogus to him, but it might have just been the answer he was looking for. "Uh, do you have the necklace here?"
Dr. Brown shook his head. "No, it was sent away to S.T.A.R. Labs to be tested, to make sure none of the metals were poisonous to the blood stream. We received the results, but they don't often send things like that back. I'm sure if it was something precious, you could contact them to see if they could return it."
"Ok. Then um, what did it look like?"
"It was a green rock with a gold coloured chain, I think." The doctor replied.
Suddenly, Richard spotted Mrs. Fordman running up the hall with a small duffel bag over her shoulder. She approached the doctor and Richard and spoke breathlessly. "Lana called and told me. Is. is it true?"
Richard nodded, but Dr. Brown began to speak. "Are you Mrs. Fordman?" He asked.
"Yes, I am Mrs. Fordman. I assume you're Dr. Brown?"
The doctor and Mrs. Fordman were soon walking down the hall in discussion about Whitney's situation. Richard was left alone outside of Whitney's room. He didn't know if he wanted to go back in and talk with Whitney. It was just so weird. What was the point of talking with him if he couldn't remember anything? Richard knew it would be boring just to sit there and tell Whitney about the Marines. He decided to go look for Lana. She couldn't have gone too far, the waiting room perhaps. Besides, he thought, Mrs. Fordman would be back soon enough, and she'd want to spend a lot of time with Whitney.