shades of black, yellow and green. He moved on. Knowing
that avoiding looking at the wound wasn’t going to make it disappear, he turned
his attention to his scar.
He shifted his
head to the side so the stitches were on full display. He had never seen
anything like it. A row of black sutures was interspaced from the bottom of his
left ear, along his jaw and down across his throat. His attacker had only
managed to miss his jugular vein by sheer luck, or if one believed in fate—it
just hadn’t been his time to die.
Shane wasn’t angry
at what he saw. In fact, he felt nothing. It was as though all his emotions had
disappeared and all that remained was a feeling of numbness. Seeing everything
he wanted to, he placed the mirror face down on the bed and looked at the
doctor.
“Do you have any
questions for me, Mr. Tierney?” Doctor Imran asked.
“How much longer
do I have to stay here?”
“I’m afraid you’ll
be with us for a while longer. That cut was very close to being fatal. We need
to make sure that the stitches hold and that you don’t contract an infection.
Once we’re satisfied that you’re in the clear, we can discuss your leaving us.”
Shane wanted to
swear at the doctor, her false look of sympathy and the way she dragged out her
words were driving him crazy.
“What if I just
get up and leave?”
Doctor Imran
frowned at him and he held her gaze with a stubborn unwavering look.
“Of course if that
is what you choose to do, I or my colleagues could not stop you. However, I
strongly recommend that you remain with us for a while longer, okay.”
“Will ya stop
talking about this place like anyone in their right mind would want to stay
here longer than they bloody well had to! ”
“I understand how
upsetting this must be for you–”
“Ya don’t
understand shit about me, so why don’t ya just piss off!”
“Mr. Tierney, I
under… I can only imagine how upset you must be at seeing your injury for the
first time. However, neither my staff nor I will tolerate abusive behavior.”
That she spoke to
him as though he were a wayward child stopped him from saying anything else.
There was no point. He wasn’t angry at the hospital staff. He wasn’t even angry
at his attackers. His only emotion was a growing fury at Crystal and her
continued absence. Taking it out on the people who were helping him wasn’t
going to change his situation.
“Okay, I hear ya.”
“Good, now if
there’s nothing else I can help you with…” The doctor trailed off without
asking a question.
“Nothing.” Shane
responded tonelessly.
“We’ll speak again
later, Mr. umm…” the doctor broke off and glanced at her chart. “Mr. Tierney.
Try not to worry, I can assure you, your wound looks healthy. Just keep resting
and you should be out of here shortly.” Looking over at the nurse, doctor Imran
offered up a slight movement of her lips that could be
interpreted as a smile. “Nurse, umm… the nurse will replace your
dressing and I’ll see you soon. Okay?”
About to pat his
hand, he moved it out of her reach. And he was just in time to see the nurse
roll her eyes at the forgetful doctor.
Throughout the
redressing of his wound, Shane became increasingly uneasy. The nurse did
nothing overtly inappropriate. However, he was getting a vibe from her that he
didn’t like. When she stepped back after her task was completed, he breathed an
inaudible sigh of relief.
“There you go. Now
that’s all done, how about I give you a bed bath?”
“Are you fucking
joking me,” Shane raged through clenched teeth. “I’ve been bathing meself for the last two days!”
“Please keep your
voice down,” the attractive nurse pleaded, pulling back the curtains to see if
anyone was paying attention to his raised voice.
“If you’re that
desperate to see me dick, this ain’t ya lucky day!”
“Mr. Tierney, I’m
a professional, please remember that!”
“Well, bloody well
act like it then. Why don’t you just
that avoiding looking at the wound wasn’t going to make it disappear, he turned
his attention to his scar.
He shifted his
head to the side so the stitches were on full display. He had never seen
anything like it. A row of black sutures was interspaced from the bottom of his
left ear, along his jaw and down across his throat. His attacker had only
managed to miss his jugular vein by sheer luck, or if one believed in fate—it
just hadn’t been his time to die.
Shane wasn’t angry
at what he saw. In fact, he felt nothing. It was as though all his emotions had
disappeared and all that remained was a feeling of numbness. Seeing everything
he wanted to, he placed the mirror face down on the bed and looked at the
doctor.
“Do you have any
questions for me, Mr. Tierney?” Doctor Imran asked.
“How much longer
do I have to stay here?”
“I’m afraid you’ll
be with us for a while longer. That cut was very close to being fatal. We need
to make sure that the stitches hold and that you don’t contract an infection.
Once we’re satisfied that you’re in the clear, we can discuss your leaving us.”
Shane wanted to
swear at the doctor, her false look of sympathy and the way she dragged out her
words were driving him crazy.
“What if I just
get up and leave?”
Doctor Imran
frowned at him and he held her gaze with a stubborn unwavering look.
“Of course if that
is what you choose to do, I or my colleagues could not stop you. However, I
strongly recommend that you remain with us for a while longer, okay.”
“Will ya stop
talking about this place like anyone in their right mind would want to stay
here longer than they bloody well had to! ”
“I understand how
upsetting this must be for you–”
“Ya don’t
understand shit about me, so why don’t ya just piss off!”
“Mr. Tierney, I
under… I can only imagine how upset you must be at seeing your injury for the
first time. However, neither my staff nor I will tolerate abusive behavior.”
That she spoke to
him as though he were a wayward child stopped him from saying anything else.
There was no point. He wasn’t angry at the hospital staff. He wasn’t even angry
at his attackers. His only emotion was a growing fury at Crystal and her
continued absence. Taking it out on the people who were helping him wasn’t
going to change his situation.
“Okay, I hear ya.”
“Good, now if
there’s nothing else I can help you with…” The doctor trailed off without
asking a question.
“Nothing.” Shane
responded tonelessly.
“We’ll speak again
later, Mr. umm…” the doctor broke off and glanced at her chart. “Mr. Tierney.
Try not to worry, I can assure you, your wound looks healthy. Just keep resting
and you should be out of here shortly.” Looking over at the nurse, doctor Imran
offered up a slight movement of her lips that could be
interpreted as a smile. “Nurse, umm… the nurse will replace your
dressing and I’ll see you soon. Okay?”
About to pat his
hand, he moved it out of her reach. And he was just in time to see the nurse
roll her eyes at the forgetful doctor.
Throughout the
redressing of his wound, Shane became increasingly uneasy. The nurse did
nothing overtly inappropriate. However, he was getting a vibe from her that he
didn’t like. When she stepped back after her task was completed, he breathed an
inaudible sigh of relief.
“There you go. Now
that’s all done, how about I give you a bed bath?”
“Are you fucking
joking me,” Shane raged through clenched teeth. “I’ve been bathing meself for the last two days!”
“Please keep your
voice down,” the attractive nurse pleaded, pulling back the curtains to see if
anyone was paying attention to his raised voice.
“If you’re that
desperate to see me dick, this ain’t ya lucky day!”
“Mr. Tierney, I’m
a professional, please remember that!”
“Well, bloody well
act like it then. Why don’t you just
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