The Sleeping Lion - Chapter 7

Kelly functioned the next day in a daydream state. She was, she thought, on auto pilot. It was a good thing the job was easy for her. She felt grateful that she could get through most of the day without having to apply too much conscious thought. Things had become routine; a dentist needed for an abscessed tooth, a podiatrist for bunions.

Izzy, cheerfully unaware of what Kelly had been through the day before, suggested they have lunch together. They walked into the break room, chatting as usual. To Kelly, it seemed almost surreal. She forced herself to go through the motions of unwrapping her lunch and eating.

"So where were you yesterday?" Kelly asked, taking a bite of her sandwich. "You never showed up for work."

"I know. Everything took longer than we had expected. I'll tell you something, Kelly. You were lucky. You left early, and you might as well have. There was nothing to see. And the traffic! It was horrible!"

Izzy paused, fiddling with a bag of potato chips. "It was so, like, anticlimactic. What a let down!"

"What did you see?" Kelly felt a twinge of guilt. She had stolen what should have been Izzy's moment.

"Nothing. They were making this big production out of letting us take pictures of the spot where it crashed. It had plowed up some dirt, that was all. Big deal."

"Oh."

"Edgar was really bummed."

"Was he?"

"Yeah, big time. He was pissed off because they didn't have the right location. We didn't get to see the thing come in, because the mountains, of course, were blocking our view. We didn't see or hear anything."

"I'm sorry," Kelly said.

"Oh well," Izzy shrugged, and grinned. "I'll just have to get my big break some other time!"

She bit into a potato chip, chewed a moment, and then smiled. "The funny thing was, well, the thing crashed up on this hilltop. I mean, It was way, way up there! And poor Edgar."

She was laughing now, shaking her head.

"What?" said Kelly.

"Well, I'm a little out of shape. It was a tough climb. But Edgar! He's really out of shape! He's huffing and puffing. Finally, he sits down under this tree. I keep asking him If he's all right, you know? Then, after he can talk again, he looks at me, and he goes, 'Run up there and ask them where they're going to plant the flag!"'

She collapsed into giggles, and said, "It was funny. But you can imagine how P.O.'d he was when we got all the way up there, and there was nothing to see, and basically no story. It was, like, this cruel joke. I felt really badly for Edgar."

"Yeah. That is a bummer," Kelly said.

"Oh well. Better luck next time, right?"

She seemed so nonchalant about it. Well, perhaps it was better that way. It would be easier to keep the pod a secret if Izzy could put the experience behind her.

"You're awfully quiet today," Izzy said.

"I am? Oh. I guess I'm just tired."

"Everything all right with Joe?" Izzy asked, taking a sip of juice and peering up at Kelly.

"Fine. We're getting along okay right now."

"Yeah? That's good, I guess."

"Sure It's good,." Kelly said. "We're working at It. Our relationship is, well, sort of like a roller coaster. It has these ups and downs."

Izzy rolled her eyes. "I know."

"Well? What's wrong with that?"

"It just doesn't seem, you know, normal."

"Well," Kelly said with a sigh. "Define the word 'normal'."

"Right." Izzy smiled. "How would I know what normal Is? Let me ask you something, though. When was the last time he hit you?"

Kelly scowled, thinking, and finally said, "I guess It was that day we met In the bathroom, when I had the bloody lip."

"That was it?" Izzy's gaze fell on her friend's mouth. It was still slightly swollen, but hardly noticeable any more. "That was the last time he hit you?"

"Wefl, the last time he hit me, yeah. But, well..."

"Yes?"

"He burned me In the shower over the weekend."

Izzy folded her arms across the table and flung her head down, burying her face in them.

"It wasn't a big deal! I mean, I didn't really get hurt," Kelly said.

"Kelly, you are due for another fight. You guys are fighting every couple of days. One of these times, you are really going to be seriously hurt, like. you're going to end up in the hospital."

"Come on, Izzy! Lighten up! I can handle it!" Kelly pulled up her sleeve, and flexed her arm. "Just take a look at this bicep! Feel It! Go ahead."

Izzy Ignored the gesture. Her expression remained fixed, earnest. "Kelly, do you have any idea how much I worry about you?"

"Yeah. You worry too much. You have to stop worrying about me."

"You've got to get away from him."

"Hey," Kelly reached across the table and touched Izzy's hand. "Things are gonna be okay. Really."

Izzy was silent.

"Hey," Kelly said. "You wanna do me a favor? It will cheer you up."

"What?¹' Izzy said with a sigh.

"You wanna take me to go get my stitches out?"

Izzy tilted her head and sneered. "Gee, you're right. That would make me feel one hundred percent better!"

Kelly laughed. "We still have plenty of time. Come on."

She stood up, threw the remains of her lunch in the trash, and walked out. Izzy followed.

***

The hallway of the hospital echoed as they walked along the brightly waxed floors. Their nostrils tingled with the overwhelming odor of antiseptic.

"God, I hate that smell!" Izzy whispered. They walked up to the desk, but no one greeted them. A tall blond man wearing light green stood with his back to them, speaking softly into a telephone.

Izzy looked around. "Hospitals give me the creeps. Ugh. They call this an emergency room? It sure is quiet."

"That's because all the patients are dead," Kelly said.

"Stop it!" Izzy cuffed Kelly on the shoulder. "You're giving me the creeps!"

The young man hung up the phone and turned around. He gave them a tired look. "What can I do for you?"

"She needs to get some stitches taken out," Izzy said helpfully, motioning to Kelly.

"Oh, okay. I can probably handle that for you," he said. "Follow me."

He walked around from behind the desk and strode down the hallway. They followed him into a small examining room. Izzy stood by the door.

"You can have a seat right there," the man said to Kelly.

Kelly sat down and watched as he bent over and fumbled through some drawers in the cupboard. "Shoot!"

"What's wrong?" Kelly asked.

"Oh. things have just gotten a little out of order here. That's all." He smiled up at her. "Nothing to worry about."

She smiled back. He was good-looking, she decided. Nice smile. He had that little dimple in his chin. Not bad.

"Aha!" He pulled out a pair of forceps and waved them at her triumphantly. "Here we are. Now. Where are the stitches you need me to take out?"

"Right here." Kelly held up both bandaged wrists.

"Oh." She searched for a change In his demeanor, but couldn't see one. He seemed unmoved by the Implicit location of her bandages.

"Better take these things off." He reached for the bandages and unwrapped them. His hands were gentle.

"So," he said. "How are you doing?"

"Oh - um - I'm okay, I guess."

"I mean, are you experiencing any pain? Any swelling?"

"Oh. No, I don't think so. I've not had the bandages off since -- well, since I had the stitches put in," she finished awkwardly.

"That's good." He smiled at her again.

Her eyes searched his name tag, but she couldn't read It. It was hanging In a funny position, kind of bent.

He was a med student, she decided. Young. Probably in his mid-twenties. He was going to be a surgeon someday. Probably an obstetrician. Or a cardiologist.

Her wrists felt cool as the air hit them for the first time in days. Hesitantly, she looked down at the scars. Well, they weren't too bad. It only took three neat little stitches to hold them together. It was hard to believe. They had bled like geysers.

The young man bent over her and carefully removed the first one. She had the momentary odd sensation of a thread running through her skin.

"So what are you studying?" she asked.

"Me?" he said, without looking up.

He had long, soft eyelashes that curled up at the tips. She could feel his breath on her arm.

"Yeah," Kelly said. "You."

"Oh -- uh -- I'm studying pediatric medicine."

Pediatrics. Well, she had been close. Obstetrics was about the closest you could come, she thought.

"You must hate kids," she said.

Finished with the first wrist, he looked up. "Why do you say that?"

"Well, why else would you want to stick needles into them? Let's face It, they'll be your victims from now on. And It will all be legal."

He laughed. His teeth were white and straight. My god, this was the perfect man.

"Good point," he replied. "Let's see this one."

She held out her other arm. He smiled at her.

"Actually,^" he said, as he deftly pulled out the remaining three stitches. "The thing I like about pediatrics is the psychology. There's a lot to It. Kids are sort of a challenge, you know? I'm working on developing a good bedside manner."

Kelly felt her one eyebrow rising. It had a life of Its own. She couldn't stop It. A hundred comments crowded her brain, each screaming for a chance to be heard. She said nothing. He looked at her and quickly turned toward the sink. As he turned the water on, she saw the back of his neck becoming a deep shade of crimson above his collar.

"He blushes too?" she thought. "He really Is the perfect man!"

She glanced over at Izzy, who was smirking, still by the door. Izzy winked at her.

He turned back to them, wiping his hands on towel. "Well," he said briskly. "That ought to do it!"

He started toward the door. Kelly got up and him back out through the hallway to the desk. "What do I owe you?"

"Oh, it's on the house." He leaned one elbow on the desk and looked at her. "You take care of yourself."

^"Thanks a lot-- uh -- goodbye!" She turned and fled.

Izzy raced after her. "Kelly!" she whispered angrily. "What the hell is the matter with you?"

They charged through the doors and out onto the parking lot. "What are you talking about?" Kelly said.

"Why didn't you get that guy's phone number? He likes you!"

"Oh, come on!" Kelly stopped and stood next to Izzy's car. "Your Imagination Is running away with you."

"Kelly, he gave you a look. I mean, a LOOK. You saw It! I was not imagining that!"

"Why would he possibly be interested in me? I'm obviously a suicidal maniac."

"That didn't seem to bother him! Come on, didn't you think he was cute?"

"He was okay, I guess," Kelly shrugged.

"Okay? OKAY? What's the deal, are you blind? We're talking Nordic god, for crying out loud!"

Kelly laughed. "Yeah, his name is probably Thor, or something. He drinks beer out of stems and wears skins, and wants a little woman to have eight kids for him. Izzy, whatever would possess me to want to be involved with a guy like that?"

Izzy leaned against her car and sighed. "Yeah. would ever possess you to want to get involved with who's sweet, and smart, and has a good job?"

"Yeah, well then, a better question is, what would a guy like that want with me? Besides, Izzy, you seem to be forgetting a very significant factor here. And that Is, I live with someone."

Izzy's eyes rolled skyward. "You call that living?"

"Hey. Like it or not, I have a life with Joe. I've invested too much time in him to just throw it all away. Especially for some fantasy about Thor, the god of thunder and children's wellness programs."

Izzy shook her head and rummaged through her purse. "When are you gonna learn?" She pulled out her keys, opened the door and gestured to her friend.

"Thanks," Kelly said, and climbed in.

As Izzy slid into the seat next to her and slammed the door, Kelly.continued, "Thanks a lot for bringing me today. I really appreciate the lift. And I know you're just trying to be a friend, but, well, let's face It. Men are pigs. Even if I were to leave Joe, and hook up with this guy or some other jerk, it would just be something else. Maybe he wouldn't hit me. Maybe he'd be an alcoholic or something. Maybe he'd just need me to bail him out of the slammer every other week. It would be a tradeoff, you know?"

Izzy looked at her, scowling. "Do you really believe that?"

"Of course! It's true, isn't it? Men are needy. They're nothing more than enlarged children. Women are forever destined to take care of them. And If there are decent, self-sufficient men out there, they are all taken. Decent men want brain surgeons for wives. You know, women who are strong and have their own careers. And I'm no brain surgeon."

Izzy started the engine. "I see. And are you speaking from experience here, or Is this an observation based upon the lives of others?"

"Oh, It's from personal experience, of course."

"Yeah," Izzy said. "That's what I was afraid of!"

***

Kelly had thought of the photos all day, and could hardly wait to review them again. Perhaps she would see something she had not noticed before; but If not, she knew they would help her relive the wonderful, terrifying experience all over again. She had heard of people who feared cameras, with superstitions that their souls would be contained forever in their Image on the film. Originally It had seemed crazy, hut she was beginning to understand the concept now. She had captured the essence of an experience that would live with her forever. It was through the photos, and to a lesser extent, the shard, that she would always be assured that she had not been dreaming that morning.

When she walked In the door that night after work, her eyes immediately turned to the countertop where the envelope of photos had lain the night before. It was gone. She felt a twinge of confusion at first. She looked around the counter and then on the floor.

It couldn't be! They must be here! How could they have vanished? She found herself walking around the room, searching frantically through a pile of magazines that lay on the coffee table and bending to look under furniture. A growing dread filled her. She was beginning to realize what must have happened to them. She was never going to see them again.

"No!^" she said, softly. "Where are they?^"

^"What?" said Joe, moving away from her across the room. He didn¹t look at her.

Her jaw dropped. She knew the truth as certainly as If he had told her. She felt sick to her stomach. "You took them!"

"Took what, Babe?"

"Don't call me that!" Kelly snapped.

"What?" said Joe, his round face reddening

"Don't call me 'Babe' any more! And stop playing dumb! You stole from me! Now what did you do with my pictures?"

His manner changed from feigned innocence to hostility. "I don't have your stupid pictures, Bitch!"

She snarled at him through gritted teeth. "Don't call me THAT, EITHER!"

He strode across the floor toward her, threatening, fists clenched. She watched as if in slow motion, knowing what was coming, but this time, unafraid. Seeing that pod was the most Important thing that had ever happened in her life, and Joe had ruined it. Now he was going to try to bully his way out of It. Anger swelled within her, a rage awakening that was more powerful than one she had ever known; pounding, pounding In her brain like a hammer. How she hated him! She wished he was dead.

In the moment that he reached for her, she arm away with one hand and swung with the other. "The nose! The nose! The nose!" she told herself.

POP! Her fist connected, she felt it sink Into the gristle. He actually staggered back a step. She took advantage, followed him, and swung again. POP, again, this time his head snapped back. Blood spurted from his nostrils.

Pain blasted through his face like fire. How did she move so quickly? He hadn't seen It coming. He put his hand up, wiped his nose, and looked at the blood in disbelief.

"Don't call me that ever again," she said.

Anger flashed across his face

"You're dead!" he said.

She turned and ran for the door. He was right behind her. She smashed against it, turning the handle, and fell through as It opened. He was on her in an instant, grabbing her by the hair and dragging her back.

She didn't scream, kept her wits about her, and twisted around to face him.

"What can I do what can I do what can I do," the thought raced over in her mind, and she saw her opportunity. Up flew her knee and, WHACK! It slammed high into his crotch.

He gasped, let go of her hair and grabbed himself with both hands. She fled, running across the lawn and down the road. She didn't look back as he doubled over in pain and collapsed to his knees.