…quite an interesting combination of symbols; the Caduceus and the Rod of Asclepius. The Caduceus, of course, belonged to Mercury. Mercury as an element suggests a rapid change from one form to another. As a god he was said to possess the ability to waken or render unconscious, to kill or revive with a touch of Caduceus.
Asclepius was associated with medicinal practices in ancient Greece. It is significant here in terms of the snake. It is a recurring theme in the rituals of this region. Skin shed and renewed can mean regeneration or transfiguration. The venom is also symbolic as it can help or harm dependent on the giver and their intentions.
Indeed the root of the word pharmacy comes from ancient Greece also. One, pharmakos, meaning being as a transformer, to change from one state to another. Whether that was for good or ill is not clear from the word alone. Both poison and medicine could be described by the same word.
In patient care these meanings are mostly clear and understandable. In ritual, however, they can take on another. Indeed another word from which pharmacy is descended, pharmakoi, was applied to those ritually harmed for the good of the community…
-Leonard Rhine, The Monster Lurks
Harry had been moved from ICU to a different part of the hospital. He was staring out of the window, enjoying the sunset and dreading nightfall equally.
The second hand of the clock above him seemed to be getting slower, every tick taking longer than the last. The hush between each second was unbearably excruciating. The odor of disinfectant hung in the air. It reminded him of hospital visits to Heather, before she got really ill. The hospice where she had stayed for a few weeks before the end, before they took her home, had smelled differently. The Alchemilla didn't wear a bouquet of death in the same way as St. Andrews. Hospitals had an air of fear and hope about them, hospices an air of inevitability and despair.
A woman had been brought in an hour or so ago...Harry hoped it was Lydia. None of the staff could tell him who she was, where she was being kept or what condition she was in.
He was expecting Cybil to be his first visitor, but she hadn't come. No one had come at all. Not even a doctor or a nurse since his move from intensive care. The porter who moved him, Al, knew nothing about the hospital at all. They got lost twice on the way to Harry's new room. He answered most questions with a vacant stare and a shrug of the shoulders.
Harry was desperate for answers, conversation or company. Even if the porter could sit in the brilliant orange plastic chair in the corner and shrug his shoulders occasionally, it would help to pass the time.
Doctor Kaufmann passed by the open doorway, taking him by surprise.
"Doctor!" he called.
Kaufmann's loafers stopped and could then be heard padding back towards Harry's room. He halted in the open doorway.
"Good evening Mr. Mason." the doctor forced through his teeth.
"I'm glad to see you doctor." sighed Harry.
The orange chair squealed as its legs were dragged across the scarred linoleum.
"Is it the head? Any pain since you came to?" interrogated a terse Kaufmann.
"No, it's been fine since then. I was after some information."
"I'll help you, if I can."
"Is there any news of my daughter?"
"I have gleaned from staff tittle-tattle that she was found alive and well at the Midwhich Elementary School yesterday."
"She's nearby? Can I see her?" beamed Harry, his heart soaring.
"I'm afraid she gave Silent Hill's finest the slip."
"She gave them the slip? How in the hell – she's only seven!" he spat, "Where is she now?"
"I'm afraid I can't answer any of those queries for you." replied the unmoved doctor, "Detective Briggs may be able to inform you better on that topic, though I believe he is occupied at present.
Is there anything else Mr. Mason? Would you care to discuss your condition before the end of my shift?"
"The woman that was brought in about an hour ago-"
"Really, Mr. Mason, if this is not a medical issue…I'm a busy man."
"I'm asking about Lydia Findly. Is she here?"
"Yes." Kaufmann grumbled, "She's up in the ICU, in much the same state as you were."
"What do you mean? What state?" he panicked, "Is she okay?"
"She is catatonic. Also like you she has received a nasty blow to the head."
Harry winced as images of Lydia being attacked with a hammer flickered through his mind like a macabre zoetrope. His heart beat a little faster. He began to sweat. Though he could read no indictment in the doctor's comments, he felt accused.
"Mr. Mason, are you with me?"
"Yes…I'm sorry. I have a lot on my mind. How is her other wound?"
"Other wound? There were no other wounds." admonished the doctor.
He was there when the knife pierced her belly, dressed her wound, held her hand and told her everything was going to be okay. Her blood had been everywhere, from a deep cut. An injury like that should be hard to miss. Harry was no longer certain of what happened.
"Mr. Mason, it would help us if we knew what happened to you and Miss Findly in that school. If we could ascertain how she was injured…"
"I really can't remember." lied Harry. The sound of Lydia's skull cracking repeated in his head with every tick of the wall clock.
"Perhaps you should think about it." said Kaufmann standing, "I know Detective Briggs would like to take a statement. He should be coming by later."
His insides turned to water. The police would want to know everything that had happened. Could he tell them the truth?
Kaufmann turned at the door;
"Also, if you could refrain from upsetting Nurse Mahoney it would be most appreciated."
"Rachel? What did I - "
"I'm not sure what you think you saw Mr. Mason, but the nurse you claim to have been speaking to has not worked at this hospital for some time. Lisa Garland is listed as a missing person. No one has seen or heard from her for nearly seven years. Perhaps you have seen her picture in the national press. I believe one was released some months after her disappearance. For all we know she may be dead and, accordingly, Nurse Mahoney has not come to terms with the loss of her good friend.
This confusion may be a result of your head injuries from the crash. You may have experienced others. Hopefully they will wear off as your recovery continues. However, if you continue to upset my staff with your delusions I may have to consider transferring you to Brookhaven Hospital or perhaps even Cedar Green sanatorium. The psychiatric facilities they possess there would be better equipped to deal with you."
"Psychiatric facilities? Cedar Green is…" Harry realized what he was being threatened with, "Doctor you don't have to send me to a mental hospital, I'm not crazy!"
"That remains to be seen." reproved Kaufmann, "Good evening."
He swept out of the room, leaving Harry in fear and doubt. His mind felt as though it were made of glass and one more tick of the second hand on the wall clock could shatter it into a million pieces. Closing his eyes, he tried to gather his thoughts, confused as they were. When he opened them again, several minutes had passed. Someone else was by his bed.
"Hello Harry." said Detective Briggs, "If you feel up to it, I've come to take your statement"