The Resurrectionist by Wrath James White Page A

against his notepad, upon which he had written absolutely nothing. He hadn’t taken a single note about anything she had said.
    It was apparent to Sarah that he wasn’t planning on doing a single thing about her intruder and was just humoring her. She was almost tempted to tell him that they weren’t dreams and that she knew for a fact that she had been raped but she didn’t. She was still not sure how much of what she remembered was a dream and how much was real. She couldn’t remember a thing from last night. Not being attacked. Not firing the gun. Nothing.
    If this was all in her head and she was going crazy she’d be putting the neighbor through hell for nothing and causing him all kinds of problems. People only tended to remember when someone was accused of a crime not when they were exonerated. A rape charge might get him fired or chased right out of the neighborhood. He might even retaliate by suing them or calling the homeowner’s association on them every time they were late bringing in their trash can on trash day or when they parked on the driveway instead of in the garage or if they didn’t trim their shrubs or calling the Nevada Water Authority when they didn’t change their sprinkler clocks on drought days or calling the police whenever their stereo was too loud or any of those other petty things neighbors did to one another to make their lives hell. It might even wind up with him and Josh in a fight or worse. She thought about Josh storming out of the house with a gun in his hand. What if Dale had a gun? That could get really ugly. She definitely did not want to start a feud with the new neighbor.
    “What if she’s been drugged, and that’s why she can’t remember anything? You could do a urinalysis while she’s at the hospital.”
    “Still no way to prove the neighbor did it or that she didn’t take the drugs herself.”
    “But if they find that she’s been raped and they find some kind of date-rape drug in her system, that should be enough for a warrant then, right?”
    The policeman looked down at his patent leather cop shoes and shook his head, raising his arms in surrender.
    “All right. I’ll take you down to the hospital.”
    “I’ll get my purse.”
    Sarah walked into the living room and snatched her purse off the couch. She walked past Josh without looking at him. She was still angry that he’d doubted her about the drugs. As she walked out the door she hoped that if Dale had really drugged her, he hadn’t used meth.
    The ride to the hospital was loaded with tension as the police officer attempted to talk them out of it during the entire ride.
    “You sure you want to do this, right? These examinations can be pretty invasive. I’ll have to call a rape counselor. That’s just procedure. And she’s going to ask you some pretty tough questions.”
    “I’ll tell her everything I can remember.”
    “They might have to ask you about your marriage. You know, to rule your husband out as the rapist.”
    “My husband didn’t rape me.”
    “I’m not saying that. I’m just trying to prepare you for some of the questions they might ask you.”
    “It sounds to me like you’re trying to talk me out of it.”
    “I’m taking you, aren’t I?”
    They fell silent for the rest of the ride. Sarah wasgrateful for the break. She needed to think. She wanted to try to remember as much as she could.
    Sarah still could not remember much of the previous night. She remembered changing the sheets. She remembered surfing the Internet and then putting the laptop down beside the bed and grabbing her gun. She remembered falling asleep with the gun clenched in both hands and held tight to her chest. And she remembered waking up when Josh walked in. Everything in between was completely gone. But she could remember the previous night clearly.
    She remembered waking up and reaching out for her husband, only to feel that warm wetness and hearing him wheezing and gurgling as he drowned on his own blood.