To Leap From Heaven [A Romantic Thriller]

26.

After a few days had passed, Catherine suddenly opened her eyes, and staring at the ceiling remained in that position for a long time. There was no sound or movement anywhere near or around her. Her eyes became used to the dark, and she looked from side to side without moving her head. Everything seems unfamiliar, and the dim outline of foreign objects were the only things she could make out. Her mind was incapable of processing where she was, what she was doing there or why she was there in the first place. She raised her right arm, which was still weak, and felt her left arm. There were needles stuck in her arm, but for what reason she could not tell. She tried to sit up, but the effort was too much for her.

Catherine became restless and anxious. She opened her mouth, but it seemed as if her speech was gone too. She ran her tongue over her parched lips. She was thirsty but could not get a word out. Out of sheer frustration she started making incoherent gurgling noises, which awoke the nurse who was dozing off beside her bed. The nurse switched on the nightlight, and jumped to her feet.

“Thank heavens you're awake.”

She saw Catherine running her tongue over her lips and said, “You must be thirsty. Here, let me give you some water.”

The nurse poured water from a carafe on the nightstand, helped Catherine into a sitting position, and helped her drink. The water was cool and refreshing, which brought a smile to Catherine's face.

“Let me call the doctor.” She helped Catherine to lie down again, and after she had finished her call came back to her patient.

“My dear, we were really worried about you. You have been in a coma for several days, but I'm glad you're back with us. You're a strong girl, and your vitals are good, and everything seems normal. After the doctor has seen you, and depending on his decision, you may soon eat solids. That should get you on your feet in no time, but I would still recommend that you take it slowly. You have had quite a shock, and take all the rest you need. There is no reason to hurry.” The nurse chatted incessantly as she fluffed Catherine's pillows, straightened her bedsheets, adjusted the curtains, and put objects to rights, and made sure the room was in a presentable condition for the doctor's visit.

“There he is.”

She ran to answer the doorbell. The doctor arrived, checked her vitals, both on the monitor as well as physically, and sitting down on the bed he held up his index finger.

“Can you follow my finger, please?”

Catherine's eyes moved from left to right, and back again.

“Can you hear me? Nod yes or no.”
Catherine nodded in the affirmative.

“Do you know where you are?”
Catherine nodded in the negative.

“Do you know what happened to you?”
Catherine nodded in the negative.

“Can you speak?”
She tried but no sound emerged.

“You're doing well. You should be up and running in no time. I'm leaving, but I'll be back soon.”

He had a whispered conversation with the nurse after which he departed.
Catherine was exhausted, and straining her mind to think did not help either.
She fell into a light and uneasy sleep, and occasionally her body gave a nervous twitch while her head rolled from one side to the other. In a miasma of floating shards from a broken mirror she saw splintered images of her life. Despite hurting her eyes, she kept looking, almost as if she was searching for someone or something. Parts of a man's smiling face appeared, but it was so distorted, she could hardly recognize him. A name formed in her mind. It was on the tip of her tongue, but her consciousness withheld it. Bigger parts of his face appeared again, showing him standing next to a vehicle, and he mouthed a word which seemed like his name.

“Matt?” she whispered. But who was he? Images of the two of them swam in the bigger pieces of the broken mirror. The images became clearer as the parts floated together to form a whole.

“Matt,” she screamed. Her scream pierced the darkness on its way into the universe. It came from the depth of her broken soul where the pain had lodged, and finally found release. Catherine jumped out of the bed, and with disheveled hair covering her face she looked like a mad woman. She started searching the room for her dead lover. With one move she ripped the needles from her arm, and trying to walk, she fell down in a heap on the thick carpet.

She continued screaming his name. The nurse came rushing in, picked her off the floor, and helped her back to bed. The nurse had a hard time re-connecting the tubes because Catherine fought her to get out of bed. Eventually she succeeded, and the sedative took immediate effect. The nurse straightened the room after which she called the doctor and told him what had happened.

Carl had, in the meantime called on his black ops ex colleagues to help with his investigation, and they had narrowed it down to an expensive neighborhood on the East side of town. It was modest in size, and he had, at night, driven around it, taking it block by block and road by road. The properties were surrounded by high protective walls surmounted by electrical fencing, and monitored by CCTV cameras. They seemed impenetrable, but those were obstacles he could easily overcome, if only he knew which house it was. The nights were quiet, and so was the neighborhood, and nothing disturbed the peaceful slumber of its inhabitants.

One night as he was about to lose hope, he heard Catherine's scream. He stopped, and followed the sound. His patience had been rewarded, he had found his mansion. For two nights in a row he staked out the property, and observed one security guard at the gate, a cook, and the nurse. He formulated a plan which would be simple to execute. Getting past the electrical fencing and the cameras would be a bother, which left the gate as the only other alternative. Carl had found his Catherine, and he was going to drag her home, even if it meant leaving a trail of dead bodies in his wake.

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