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I woke up feeling as if I’d run a marathon. I was drenched in sweat. I felt something—a presence, I guess you’d call it. I wondered whether I was dead and this was my version of hell. Knowing that someone was standing over me—watching me—but being unable to see them.
They touched me on the shoulder.
I wanted to move away, but I couldn’t.
It was then that I realized they weren’t here to cause me pain.
They were here to heal …
Fallon …
SEVEN
FALLON
Orin had been restless for the past fifteen minutes—his legs jerking spasmodically, his arms and fingers twitching like he was wrestling with an invisible opponent. At first—when I touched his shoulder to soothe him—his jaw had locked, his lips peeling back from his teeth in a snarl. Stunned by the aggression, I began talking to him softly. Telling him things like it’s me, I’m here to help. His fever hadn’t broken yet, and I was terrified. I wasn’t equipped to deal with this, but I remembered Orin’s insistence that he not go to a hospital. I’m not sure why he was so against it, but perhaps he—like a lot of other people in the world—had a fear of hospitals.
Lord knew I wasn’t so fond of them. But was it any wonder? My memories attached to hospitals were of my ma going in for cancer treatments. Even setting foot into one now evoked flashes of waiting on plastic seats, of babies screaming as their parents tried to calm them in the waiting room.
“Shhh,” I soothed, stroking back Orin’s hair before placing the cold rag back to his scorching skin. I looked down at the man I had saved—twice—and who had saved me in return and wondered how long I could let this go on. There had to be a point where Orin’s wishes weren’t a good enough reason anymore. There had to be a point where his life was bigger than his ire.
I decided that in another twenty-four hours, that would be my point.
I would take him to a hospital where he could have IV antibiotics and be under the care of a professional—not just a studying nurse. Heaving a sigh, I rose from my chair. He was back to shivering, his teeth chattering ever so slightly. His eyes are still closed, his dark lashes like angry exclamation marks over his lids. Even in his sleep, he was threatening to harm people …
Everyone except me, it seemed.
I retreated from the room, keeping my gaze locked on him, willing him to open his eyes. But he didn’t, so I shut the door and returned to my puzzle.
* * *
An hour later,I was hungry again, and I shuffled into the kitchen to see what was left to eat. Opening the freezer, I found there was only one frozen meal left, along with a couple of protein bars in the cupboard. All the apples were gone. I needed to go back to the store, but the little issue of money was a problem. Orin seemed to carry cash in his front pants pocket, and as much as I didn’t want to go and disturb a fever-riddled man, necessity was calling.
Creeping back into the room, I kneeled beside the bed and lifted the sheet at Orin’s hip. I may have been in luck because the pocket closest to me had a slight bulge in it. Being as careful as I could, I slid my hand inside until my fingers closed around the notes and I pulled them out.
I drove back to the same corner store as before, pulling the car up to the curb. Rain began to splatter on the windscreen as I got out, then became a full-blown assault as I walked around the hood. The deluge hit, and by the time I made it inside the shop, I was soaked to the bone. The old man, who had been packing the shelves the last time I was there, was behind the front counter.
“Got caught in it, lass?” he asked kindly.
I pulled my soaked shirt away from my body, a shiver wracking me. “Yeah, it looks like it.”
He gave me a friendly smile and returned his attention to whatever he was reading. Picking up a basket from beside the door, I started grabbing non-perishable things off the shelves. I also picked up a fresh loaf of bread, and another bottle of milk, then took everything to the counter.
The old man put everything through the register, then asked, “Anything else I can help you with?”
I licked my lips, hesitation clawing at me. “Just curious whether there was a hospital around here?” If Orin didn’t improve, I had to know what my next move was going to be.
Bushy brows rose over rheumy blue eyes. “A hospital?” he asked. “Is everything okay?”
“Fine. Yes, absolutely fine. I just …” What? “I … I’m studying to be a nurse, and since I might be staying here a while, I just wanted to know which hospital you recommended. I wanted to see if I could do some practical work with them.”
He studied me before saying, “There’s St. Patrick’s Community Hospital in Carrick-on-Shannon.”
“How far away is that?”
“Oh, I’d say around eight miles or so.”
I nodded my thanks and slipped the roll of notes from my pocket. “How much do I owe you?”
