Duskwood: And Beyond

44. Breaking Into More Places

Oryn

It was the first light of the day. Ashton did take me to the closest hospital. He helped me into the emergency room.

The hospital was busy, with nurses and doctors rushing around attending to patients. The bright lights and sterile smells made you feel slightly dizzy and disoriented.

Ashton approached the front desk and spoke to the receptionist, explaining my injuries. The receptionist quickly took down my information, which I mainly lied about. He then directed us to a private room, where a nurse came in to take my vital signs and get more information about my injuries. She asked me several questions about how the injuries happened, and I repeated the story Ashton and I had agreed upon.

After the nurse left, we waited for a while until a doctor arrived. He examined my ankle and arm and asked me more questions about the injuries. I repeated the same story and tried to act as convincingly as possible. The doctor seemed to buy our story and ordered a series of tests to ensure that I didn't have any serious injuries or infections.

While we waited for the test results, I was given pain medication and my arm was cleaned and dressed. Ashton quickly called Jake and told him that I was in a hospital. After that, he sat in the corner and tried to get some sleep. The room was quiet, and I could hear the sound of other patients and medical equipment in the hallway.

After several hours, the doctor returned with the test results. He confirmed that I had a sprained ankle - but nothing was broken- and a deep cut on my arm that required stitches. He also confirmed that I needed a tetanus shot. The nurse came in to administer the shot, and the doctor left to prepare for the stitching procedure.

I felt a sharp pinch as he started stitching, but the pain soon subsided. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the doctor finished stitching my arm and bandaged it up. The nurse told me that they were going to keep me overnight.

Around this time, Anabelle and Jake rushed to my room. They were both wearing matching black hoodies and black jeans. I couldn't help but smile. Ashton quickly explained what happened. He and Jake left the room to discuss our findings. I was grateful to be alone with Anabelle.

She looked at my bandaged arm, "That's going to leave a scar."

I laughed, "I'll have a cool story to tell."

I wanted to talk to Anabelle before the boys returned so I got to the point, "Ana, this is the closest hospital to Grimrock."

"You want me to break into their records and see if there is a patient with a bullet and burn wound?" I loved how she immediately knew what I was going to say.

"And a cut like mine," I added. She seemed intrigued but then Jake and Ashton returned back to the room.

"So, I am heading out. I'll visit you at home tomorrow." Ashton took his jacket and started leaving.

"Can you return the bike as well?" I asked. He nodded and left.

Jake told us that only one person was allowed to stay with me through the night and Anabelle argued that he had to track Hannah so she was staying. Eventually, Jake agreed. Anabelle staying with me would make our break-in mission easier. The downside was that she was not allowed to leave my room through the night. It already had a bathroom and a spare bed, and the food was distributed accordingly.

We spend most of the day together, I slept while they talked and it was generally okay. The food was disgusting and I now had new sympathy for Dan but other than that, everything was fine.

As the afternoon approached Jake excused himself, gave me a deep kiss, and left. We were left with Anabelle. She climbed next to me and we watched a random show until it was nighttime and most of the hospital personnel left.

"I guess I should go now," Anabelle said as she got up and put her hood up.

"Good luck," I said as she sneaked out of my room.

I was left alone in the room, except for the occasional check-ins from the nurses. I tried to sleep, but my mind was racing with thoughts of Ana and the potential risks involved. I couldn't shake the feeling of dread that was settling in my chest.

________________________

Anabelle

As I sneaked out of the hospital room, I felt a surge of adrenaline. I made my way down the hallway, keeping my hood up to avoid drawing attention to myself.

In all honesty, I probably looked even more suspicious as a hooded person walking around the hospital in the middle of the night. At least the cameras would not see my face.

I made my way to the receptionist and tried my luck with the computer. And of course, it was not going to be as simple as the computer prompted me for a password. I tried a few combinations from the clues around the place, but none of them worked. I realized that I needed to find another way to access the information I needed.

I knew that the doctors and the nurses had written documents that they use during their visits. I assumed those were then put into the computer but I knew there would be an archive.

After approximately thirty minutes, I managed to find the archive. It was locked but at this point, I was used to breaking locks. There were medical records with the names of the patients and the personnel assigned to them. I scanned the list, looking for any names that stood out.

At first, there was nothing. Then, I noticed something odd. There was a patient listed under the name "Ryan Ryder" who had been admitted the next day to the events of Grimrock. Really Ryan Ryder? I thought. The name was obviously a fake so I assumed that this could be Richy.

Ryan Ryder or Richy had suffered a gunshot wound and severe burns, which required immediate medical attention. He also had a cut on his shoulder that needed stitches. I checked his admission date and noticed that he was discharged from the hospital after a week. He was picked up by his sister. Richy didn't have a sister. My mind was racing with questions. Where could he have gone? Was Hannah involved in his escape?

I knew that I had to find out more, and the only way to do that was to track down Hannah. I quickly took some photos and rushed back to Oryn's room. She was waiting for me as I expected and I immediately told her what I found.