It was pretty dark in the emergency room, but he was sure that's where he was. He was lying back on a gurney staring up at the ceiling with a vague sense of déjà vu. He wasn't wearing a hospital gown, but was still in his own clothes.
Someone was with him. He caught a flash of red material. A glimpse of a woman moving toward him across the room.
"I see you're awake." she said gravely.
"How did I get here? I was looking for help…in the church…and then my head…this tremendous pain. I must have passed out. I was talking with an old lady when it happened. Did she call for an ambulance?"
"I don't know. I'm sorry."
"Did anybody mention my friend, Lydia Findly? She was hurt pretty bad, back in the school."
"I can find out for you, but we'd like to make sure that you're okay first. Can we talk for a minute?"
"Okay."
She turned on an angle poise lamp on a desk on the other side of the room. He felt the déjà vu again. This was the nurse from his dream. The one who didn't exist. Her name eluded him. When he woke after the crash, she had been the first one to see him, not Nurse Mahoney.
"Lisa?" he guessed.
"Lisa Garland, that's right. How do you know my name? Do I know you?"
"I was a patient here. I was brought in a couple of weeks ago with injuries from a car crash. Don't you remember?"
"No I'm afraid not."
"Harry Mason…I talked to you about my daughter, Cheryl. She's missing."
"Your daughter's been missing for two weeks? I think I would remember something like that Harry. Are you playing around? Did Rachel put you up to this?"
"Nurse Mahoney?"
"She does like to pull pranks, but you can tell her I was wise to this one."
"It's just that I mentioned you to her and Doctor Kaufmann during my treatment. They didn't know who I was talking about."
"Okay Harry, you had your fun. Let's drop it now, okay?" snapped the nurse.
"I'm serious Miss Garland. I suppose I didn't mention your name, I couldn't remember, but the doctor suggested that you were a product of my brain injuries."
"Yeah well…he's an ass too. In fact, I don't know how he gets away with treating his nurses like he does. I've a good mind to report him for his behavior you know. You can pass that on too."
"Look…I didn't mean to piss you off, it's just that I remembered you. I guess you have a lot of patients come through here."
"Please, let's leave it there Mr. Mason. How's your head now?"
"It feels a little like its being squeezed. There's still this dull pounding."
"It hurts?"
"Not so much. Not if I don't move around."
"Have you taken a blow to the head recently?"
"Not since the crash. That was two weeks ago."
"Are you sure that this isn't some kind of sick joke?"
"I'm not playing games."
"Have you been having headaches and blackouts since then?"
"This was my first blackout since I was discharged. The headaches have been pretty constant, but nothing like this."
"Anything else? Any dizziness or nausea, blurring of vision?"
"Again, not since I was here last. Although I have seen a lot of stuff that didn't make any sense in the last forty eight hours."
"Such as..?"
"You wouldn't believe me. I really need to talk to the police. My friend -"
"The things that you saw could be the result of a neurological disorder brought on by your injuries. You need to talk to Doctor Kaufmann, not the police." the nurse scolded.
"That's what Kaufmann said about you. But now you're sitting here in front of me as real as any woman I ever saw."
She stood up.
"I'll fetch the doctor. If you aren't prepared to answer my questions then there's no point in continuing. And I don't appreciate being made fun of."
She walked away from him.
"Lisa wait…"
He tried to sit up, but the movement unleashed a vertiginous wave. His head started to throb again. Liquid spewed violently from his mouth. He pressed his eyes shut tight and slumped back on the gurney. Lisa was calling for a doctor but her voice seemed further and further away.