"Okay," Sherm said to Faith gently. "We'll leave. And I just got off the phone with the police--they're coming to haul him away, and I called an ambulance too. It's gonna be alright now."
He went in to hug her, but Faith flinched and stepped back. "Careful--I need to turn the safety off this gun." While that was true, she also didn't think she could handle being touched right then, given how the last two men that had supposedly tried to comfort her had only intended to harm her. She hoped Sherm would never betray their friendship, but she would have to be mentally prepared for if that day were ever to come. Maybe even for Sheena or my parents, too.
Once the safety on her gun was turned back on, Faith walked over to the back corner to reclaim her belongings and slip her weapon back into her purse. She would give Aaron's motionless form a wide berth just in case he were to somehow suddenly regain consciousness.
If Faith's legs had allowed her, she would have run towards the exit sign that came into sight as they walked if she had been physically able. She hoped the sign in front of them was real, and not just another trick orchestrated by someone. As they stepped outside, they were met almost immediately with a red, white, yellow and blue light show. But are they really coming to help us? What if they're coming to arrest me along with Aaron? Were Brooke and the S.A.S. just using me the entire time?
"Sherm?" Faith uttered, wondered just what all she could safely tell him, if anything at all. She was too exhausted and injured to run anymore, and the emergency vehicles had gotten much too close anyway by now. In fact, she would need to find somewhere to sit down soon, as even standing was becoming difficult for her. But I don't understand--I never actually took any of that chloroform, or whatever was in that bottle.
"Faith!" Sherm yelled as she stumbled to the ground and the colored lights began to blur into vague bright shapes that danced in front of her.
The next thing she could remember, she was laying on some sort of cot, with medical supplies and screens surrounding her, but thankfully her childhood friend was right beside her. That made things better already, regardless of where they were or whose mercy they were at. The space was cramped and devoid of any warmth, and it turned out there was a third person with them: a middle-aged man in an official-looking uniform, and Faith's first thought was that he was a police officer. She started to sit up, only to realize a combination of intense soreness and some sort of restraints kept her from doing so.
"I'm David," the man introduced himself. "I'm an EMT and you're in an ambulance, on a stretcher. You're safe now. We're almost to the hospital."
Sherm offered her a reassuring smile. "See? I told you it was gonna be okay. We're getting you some help now, like you said you needed." He appeared relieved himself, as though he hadn't been so certain of her wellbeing before now.
"Help? What kind of help?"
"Well, before we can answer that, can you tell me what day it is today?"
Faith gave him a puzzled look. "Um, okay? It's..." Wait--what day IS it? And did we ever finally get Happy Scoops closed down? Saturday had been such a long day. "Sunday, I guess?"
The EMT smiled sympathetically and shook his head. "You're close. It's still Saturday, so it sounds like you've had an even longer day than you thought."
"You mean you don't remember?" Sherm now cut in. "Aaron caught you and took you to his warehouse, and then I showed up--"
"Uh, sir--please. Let me handle this," David cautioned Sherm. "Now, tell me this: are you in any pain right now? And if so, how severe is it on a scale of one to ten?"
"Warehouse?" Faith uttered, deciding for now to just answer the paramedic's question. "Ugh, well--I feel a bit sore all over, but mostly my stomach and arm." Just as she said that, Faith noticed a bandage that had already been wrapped around her upper right arm. "I guess a three."15Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQYKLXqeRri
"You fell out a few minutes ago, but you're awake now, so that's what matters."
"Okay, but...when did I say I needed help?" Faith asked. "And...why? Are my parents okay? Did they ever find Rowan?"
Sherm's brows furrowed, the concern returning to his face. "You really don't remember, do you?"
"No..." In fact, the more she thought about it, the less she realized she actually remembered at all about what exactly went down inside that warehouse, except that Happy Scoops had been shut down and Aaron suspected her involvement. "I mean--did I faint or something?"
"I think so--outside the warehouse once we left," Sherm replied. "Don't worry though--you're just getting checked out to make sure you don't have any organ damage, and they've already patched up that grazing wound."
Faith eyed the gauze wrapped around her arm, wracking her brain for any reason why she would have organ damage. She would have remembered something like that...right? "Sherm--was I out of it like this when you first got to Aaron's warehouse?"
"No. Like I said, you fainted after we left."
"So I must have still had my memories then, before I passed out," Faith decided out loud. So at least that probably means I wasn't drugged or poisoned. "Aaron...where is he? I mean--did they catch him?"
"Uh, I guess he's headed for the hospital too, assuming you didn't--" Sherm paused, glancing at the paramedic who was staring intently at the both of them now. "Look, don't overthink anything, alright? Just rest right now. I'm sure everything will come back to you eventually. You're in good hands."
I hope he's right. But what did he mean? Why wouldn't Aaron be heading for jail or prison by now? I guess Sherm and I will just need to finish this once we don't have any third parties listening in. "I'll try." However, Faith found she wouldn't have to try that much, content to simply stare at the ceiling of the ambulance. Right now she had no responsibilities and no one was trying to hurt her. She repeatedly reminded herself that regardless of what had happened, there was no evil underground organization trying to experiment on her or Rowan. And even if Aaron had tried to hurt her, she knew she would still be believing Rowan's lies had it not been for him. So many things still didn't make sense, but she would allow herself to feel safe for now.
Upon confirming Faith was able to walk, she was helped by Sherm to the receptionist desk, where she came to yet another realization. "Sherm--I don't have my purse. Do you know who took it?"
"The police took it--for safekeeping, they said. Just give them what information you can. I'm pretty sure they'll let you pay later." Sherm paused. "Don't worry--I explained what I could to them. They want to document any of Aaron's fingerprints that might be found on your belongings so they can charge him."
Upon being handed the obligatory paperwork, Faith managed to give some general details about what happened. She hoped the rest of her memories would come back to her soon--as in within a few minutes--but she simply couldn't recall any actual details about anything that was said or what might have been done to her inside that warehouse.
"Is it coming back to you now?" Sherm asked her once they sat down.
"No. I really won't know what to tell that doctor when they're ready to see me."
"Just start with what you know, and the rest of the way just give them an educated guess for what you think happened. They'll take it from there," Sherm encouraged her.
Given the amount of paperwork she was expected to work on, she was grateful to have Sherm help her to fill it out. Eventually, she asked him more about what he remembered surrounding that which she couldn't, though unfortunately it didn't tell her much. She already remembered their last phone call and how she had tried to meet him at her parents' house, as well as Aaron "rescuing" her from his crooked officer friends and taking her to the warehouse. If there was anything new she could remember, it was that he didn't seem to actually want to kill her. Either way, she had apparently made him hesitate long enough for some form of help to arrive.
Once she had finally managed to finish all of the forms and hand them back in, she returned to her seat and continued to try and remember something, anything. Faith may have been sore, but not desperately so, and she didn't mind the wait. She wasn't sure how long they waited in that room, but even if it had been hours, she probably would have felt like her turn would have come too soon.
"Salter?" Faith jumped slightly at a door suddenly squeaking open nearby and a solemn female voice calling her name.
Faith didn't want to go, but she knew she had to. Seeing her hesitation, Sherm raised his hand and asked, "Can I come too?"
"Yes, if it's alright with the patient," the nurse at the door replied.
"I would prefer that, yes," Faith confirmed.
"Alright, we're gonna go straight down this hallway and then turn left," the woman told them as the door abruptly closed behind them. Faith had hoped that mildly unsettling sound would trigger something in her memory, but it did not. Upon turning left, the woman stopped in front of a door and turned the knob. "I'll just need you to have a seat in here, okay? We're gonna take your vitals again, and then the doctor will be with you shortly."
"Okay."
Once the nurse had taken her blood pressure and temperature and left them alone once again, Faith searched the walls for anything comforting to look at, but the bare walls and lack of windows made that difficult. At least the screensaver on the computer next to her had a nice calming shade of blue to it.
"Alright, Ms. Salter," the doctor said upon entering the room. "How are you feeling now?"
Faith hesitated. "Well, confused, mostly," she said honestly. "Confused and sore."
"Okay. Well, what I'd like to focus on first is your stomach. It says on your paperwork that you fainted shortly after telling your friend you'd been punched in the stomach, which I did find somewhat concerning. I'm gonna examine the area, and you'll need to let me know if it hurts anywhere. Okay?"
Faith glanced uncomfortably at Sherm, but he quickly looked away, as though to assure her he wouldn't be looking at anything he shouldn't. Sure enough, she found herself drawing in a sharp breath once the doctor reached a tender spot on her stomach.
"Did that hurt?" the doctor asked.
"Yeah."
"Okay. So in this case, what we're gonna do is keep you for observation, to make sure the condition doesn't worsen."
"And how long does that take?" Faith asked warily.
"Twenty-four hours."
"Oh... Well, what about my memory? Obviously there might be risk for organ damage, but I still don't know how exactly it happened."
"We're gonna do some tests related to memory function too, but right now we need to make sure your internal organs are stable," the doctor explained. "In the meantime, it's possible your memories could still come back to you on their own, once you've had some proper rest."
"What kind of tests are you going to do?" Faith asked.
"We'll start with some blood tests and an ultrasound, and possibly a CT scan if we see anything out of the ordinary. So we're gonna go ahead and send you to the lab area."
As the doctor led them down the hallway, the three of them moved aside for a group of doctors and nurses who were quickly wheeling a patient past them in the opposite direction. But when Faith got a closer look at the patient, she felt her blood run cold. His dark hair was mostly covered by a bandage wrapped around his head, but she recognized him all the same. A bandage also covered his chest and right shoulder.
"Hey--isn't that...?" Sherm started to say. He gave her a wide-eyed open-mouthed look as if to say, Just what exactly did you to do him back there?
"I think so," Faith muttered. She kept expecting those eyes to snap open, to rip those restraints off and leap off of that stretcher...but he didn't. She didn't think he was capable of appearing so lifeless, and all she could do was quicken her steps. She entertained the thought of trying to ask those medical personnel to confirm it was him and whether he was going to make it, but she knew she couldn't. None of them would be able to legally tell her anything even if they wanted to, not to mention making a scene could equal incriminating herself for something she didn't even remember doing. The name of the game now would be to quietly figure things out without drawing too much negative attention to herself, hopefully with some continued help from Sherm in filling the gaps. Nothing about this makes sense. Why do I even feel bad for this man to begin with? Or maybe I'm just scared of him dying because then I might lose my newfound freedom, if I'm indeed responsible...
The next 24 hours were a blur for Faith, as she drifted between resting and trying to mentally piece her situation together from her hospital bed. All she could really do was wait, until her toxin screening and other lab results came back. Her ultrasound had shown some internal bleeding, but thankfully no organ damage. Sherm had finally gone home to rest for the time being, mostly per Faith's insistence that she would be fine once she was stable in her bed. She couldn't say this experience was entirely negative, with plenty of TV channels at her disposal for all of her distraction needs if she should find herself needing a third option aside from sleeping or wracking her brain for any new information about what had happened to her.
Of course, the police had just as many questions as she did about what happened inside that warehouse, but Faith had one word and one word only for them the one time they visited her with the intent of questioning her: "Lawyer." Fortunately, they agreed not to pursue the matter any further until she had obtained what she asked for.
However, her family would be a different matter once they came to visit. "What happened, Faith?! Is your stomach alright? And why would you need to ask for a lawyer? You didn't do anything wrong, right?"
"Holly, calm down. Don't overwhelm her," Faith's father cautioned.
"I'm fine. All the tests came back mostly normal," Faith said quickly, pointedly ignoring her mom's question about the lawyer. She didn't know much yet, but between Sherm's account of what happened and the possibility of the unconscious man on the stretcher that she and Sherm both saw yesterday being Aaron, a lawyer sounded like an increasingly good idea to her.
"Mostly?" Mark questioned.
"Well, they said I have a small hematoma--basically a hard bruise--but other than that I'm expected to heal normally."
"Huh," her father uttered simply. She noticed his fists were buckled and his knuckles were white, as though imagining what he would do to the one who did this to his little girl. She could tell what he had his mind on, because in spite of what Mark had just said a few seconds ago about not bombarding her, he began looking around the room as if wanting to make sure no one outside of the family was listening in on what he was about to say next. "So, Faith...where's the gun?" he mouthed to her in a near whisper.
"The police have it. Sherm said they took it for evidence."
Nodding slowly, Mark mumbled, "Of course." Looking around once more, he regained his bedside manner by adding, "Well, as much as I wanna get to the bottom of this--as I'm sure we all do--at least you're okay."
"If there were other witnesses, maybe the police can use it to speed things along, and maybe even help refresh your own memory," Holly chimed in. "Just give your mind time to rest and don't try to force anything, okay?"
"I'll try," Faith said as her mother came over to give her a loving peck on the cheek.
"Even I'm still trying to process all this," her mother added. "But the fact is, not many people would do something like you and Sherm did and come out completely unscathed. But you've probably saved a lot of people from getting hurt a lot worse. So..." Holly smiled at her, but Faith could tell the whites of her eyes were bloodshot from stress. "...Now that you've done it once, please don't ever feel like you have to put yourself in harm's way like that again. Okay?"
"Yeah. Please," her dad murmured in agreement. For once, Faith was glad to be in this huge hospital full of sterile rooms and loud, beeping equipment. Because if they had been at home, her parents may not have been trying as hard to be this calm for her.
When it came time for Bethany's turn to come into the room, Faith felt herself relax a little more, allowing herself to be more open about what she did know about her current situation. Her parents were retired and world-weary, and likely just wanted to put Rowan and the chaos surrounding him behind them as soon as possible, but for Bethany, being part of such excitement was probably just another Tuesday for her. "I'd say you made the right call about gettin' a lawyer," Bethany assured her. "Even innocent people should have a lawyer just in case, depending on the situation. You just focus on one job at a time. You'll get your memories back, and then you'll be able to think more clearly when it's time to give your testimony."
"I don't know," Faith sighed. "I remember hearing the news of Happy Scoops getting closed down, and trying to get to my parents' house, but obviously I never made it there."
Faith's cousin paused thoughtfully. "Do you remember calling me though? Maybe we could have that to go on."
Faith's face brightened for a moment. "Maybe. I myself don't remember the call...but how did the conversation go? What mood was I in, and--what did we talk about?"
"Honestly? You sounded like you'd been crying, like you were struggling to hold it together. You said it was just 'cause you were sad about Rowan, and then we talked about organizing a family get-together sometime soon. We really didn't talk long, though."
Faith's face fell, wondering how much that really was to go on. Rowan couldn't have been the only reason I sounded that emotional over the phone with everything else that's been going on. Unless of course...I was forced to lie. "Well, anyway, I'm glad we finally got to talk things over. I don't know as much as you do about the body's healing process, but maybe more things will come back to me the more my stomach and everything else recovers."
"Your stomach better recover, if we're gonna stuff ourselves this coming weekend!" her cousin chimed in playfully. Those who didn't know Bethany might have assumed she was making light of the entire situation, but Faith could see relief in Bethany's eyes behind that playfulness--the kind of relief that comes from getting to visit a loved one in a hospital room instead of a funeral home.
"Do you give your patients similar advice when they've been punched in the stomach?" Faith quipped.
"No," Bethany replied. "But then again, I'm a cardiology nurse, not a GI nurse. Now smile! You're safe, you're alive, and Aaron's goin' to a place where he can't hurt you anymore. You can focus on you right now. In other words, don't let it get your blood pressure up."
Faith flinched slightly, not wanting to think about hypertension on top of everything else going on in her life right now. She recalled how her bottom number had still been somewhat high the last time her blood pressure was taken here, but was told it was likely due to the extreme stress she had been under. "Smiling just feels wrong right now. I mean, I want to believe there's still good in the world, and that not all kind people are fake, but..." Faith sighed, looking away. "Just give me time. Maybe eventually I'll learn how to smile again."
"Well, hopefully it's soon," Bethany shrugged. "But in the meantime, how about just a hug before I have to head out?"
Faith paused briefly before giving a nod. "I'd like that." She reached out her arm for a casual side hug, but Bethany growled with humorous mock anger, "We're family, Faith--get in here!"
Faith may not have been smiling outwardly, but she felt some amusement at her cousin's goofiness nonetheless as she threw her other arm around her. Maybe it's true--maybe they genuinely love me, regardless of how different I am now compared to who I was years ago.
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