"…moving…"

"Wha…"

"…FORD for sure…"

I groaned as the room swum into focus. It was far too bright, so I shut my eyes again. My head pounded worse than a bongo drum. When I re-opened my eyes, I realised there were three people in the room with me.

There was a blonde man wearing the white lab coat of a doctor, another brown-haired guy in the same attire, and …ah, finally someone I recognise.

My own Great-auntie Sally.

I had been staying with her while my parents duked it out over the divorce – you know, about who gets custody, who gets what, yada yada yada. Frankly I'd prefer to stay with Aunt Sally. She's so much nicer than either of my parents and she's into all this cool and funky wicca-type stuff – she taught me how to see auras and sense other people's intentions.

Oh yeah, that reminds me.

I opened my mouth to tell Aunt Sally about Paul and Anubis, but then quickly shut it again, glancing nervously at the two doctors. The brown- haired one seemed like he'd be okay with all the supernatural stuff, the purple and blue streaks in his coppery-coloured aura indicated this, but the blonde one was quite another matter. His aura flared and wavered with streaks and speckles of dull red like dried blood, against a background of the same angry, stormy grey colour of iron. He looked like he was teetering on the edge of insanity, and I wondered how anyone would be stupid enough to let him work full stop, never mind in a hospital.

Instead, I said "Aunt sally, what happened? Where am I?"

Sally, with a look in her eyes that said quite clearly 'tell me later', replied "You're at St Mary's, dear. You hit your head quite badly, and Doctor Hook here," she waved at brown-haired guy, "And err...Doctor…Stegman have been attending to you."

I caught the glare that passed between Stegman and my Aunt. Hook must have seen it too, because he caught my eye and smiled, putting a finger to his lips.

(hospitals smell like death)

I started and swung my head around the room but there was no-one there except for Hook and my aunt, both of which who looked alarmed, like they recognised the voice and didn't like what it meant, and Stegman, who apparently hadn't heard a thing and was now glaring at me.

(and death smells like)

There it was again. This time it was clearer, as though who/whatever was speaking was getting nearer.

(death smells like….)

A haze was forming in the middle of the room.