Sam and Colby: The House

43

"Yes, lucky indeed," a man said. I opened my eyes, then immediately shut them again when I was blinded by bright white LED lights. Where the fuck was I?

"Mmm," I groaned, pain suddenly filling my head.

"Vanessa?" the man's voice asked. I felt a warm gloved hand on my face and then something lifting up my eyelids, an even brighter light shining directly into my eyes.

"Fuck off," I mumbled.

"Just relax, sweetheart," the man said. He repeated the process with my other eye.

"I'm going to lift your bed up to a sitting position, okay?" he asked.

"Mhm," I said. My head was pounding with pain, my thoughts jumbled and words not working. I heard the whirring of a mechanical bed as I slowly got raised up into a sitting position.

"Is there anyone you want to see?" he asked.

"Who're you?" I asked.

"My name is Dr. Cotton, okay? I'm here to hel—,"

"Get away from me!" I screamed, reaching out to aggressively swat away the hand that was placed on my shoulder. "What is wrong with you? Why would you do that to him? Henny was your fucking son!" I shouted.

"I—,"

"Get out!" I screamed.

"Okay, okay," the man said calmly. I heard footsteps leave the room and then heard someone else walk in, their weight sounding different on the floor.

"Vanessa? Hi, my name is Nurse Ally," a woman's voice said softly.

"Do you work for that monster?" I asked.

"Dr. Cotton? No, I don't work for him. Just for the hospital," she said.

"Do you know what he fucking did? Why am I in Massachusetts?" I asked.

"Honey, calm down. It's alright. You're in Wisconsin at the Gundersen Moundview Hospital," said Ally.

"In Wis—I'm not in Taunton?" I asked.

"No, honey. Where is Taunton? Is that where you're from?" she asked.

"No, no," I said.

"Can you open your eyes?" she asked.

"No. Too bright," I said shortly.

"If I turn off the lights, will that help?" she asked.

"Mhm," I said. The light behind my eyelids changed from a harsh yellow to a soft blue. I slowly allowed my eyes to open, seeing the hospital room I was in. "Why am I here? Where's Sam?"

"Sam?" she asked.

"Yes, Golbach. Is he here, too? He needs help," I said.

"I don't know all of the patient's names, can you describe what he looks like so I can try to help you?" she asked.

"He had a branch stuck in his back. It didn't hit his abdominal aorta, did it?" I asked.

"Oh! The young blonde man? Yes, he's here. He's just fine, his aorta is intact. It was a shallow wound, we just stitched him up," said Ally. "Did you have some other friends that came in with you?"