by Clara Martin
The car pulled off to the side. It was an older-model red Ford Focus. The driver was an older woman in her sixties with steel-gray hair and a forbidding face.
“Ma’am,” Charles said politely, “I was out with my fiancée and my friends for a hike, and our car broke down. My fiancée needs medical attention. Would you be willing to drive us to the hospital?”
The woman eyed us for a moment and then nodded and waved us into the car. “My name is Felicity,” she said once we got in. “What’s yours?”
I opened my mouth to speak, but before I could, Charles interjected.
“I’m Ralph,” he said. “My fiancée is Joanne. This is Ang” – he pointed at Vu – “and that’s Nate” – he pointed at Jim. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Felicity.”
“Likewise.” We drove in silence for a time. “What’s wrong with Joanne?” Felicity asked, glancing at me.
“Bipolar disorder,” Charles said quickly. “She forgot to take her meds and is having a manic episode.”
Felicity raised her eyebrows. “She doesn’t look manic to me.”
“Looks can be deceiving. Trust me, she’s manic.”
“You’re not manic,” Emma’s voice interjected. I looked around and saw her standing outside the car as we drove by. She was next to Sheldon. “He’s lying to make you look crazy. Be careful of him,” she said earnestly. “He’s just going to hurt you.”
“He’s not going to hurt me,” I said, my voice wavering.
Felicity looked at me. “What?”
“Part of the mania is hallucinations,” Charles said sadly.
Felicity raised her eyebrows again. “I see.” She pulled into a small hospital. It read “Waynesburg Regional Hospital” on the side.
I hesitated when getting out. Charles came around and pulled me firmly out. “Do you want me to carry you in?” he asked firmly. I shook my head and stood. He looped his arm through mine and walked me in. “I’ll be with you, every step of the way.”
“We will, too,” Vu chimed in from behind me.
“We won’t leave you,” Jim promised.
I began to shake. “Charles…” I said, my voice breaking. “I don’t want to be hospitalized.”
We walked over to the charge nurse. She looked up, smiling. “How may I help you today?”
I hesitated. Charles gently nudged me. “Charles – Charles thinks I’m psychotic,” I said, my voice halting. “But I don’t,” I added quickly.
“I see,” the nurse said. She smiled at me kindly. “Do you have schizophrenia or bipolar disorder?”
“I have schizophrenia.”
“Got it.” She gestured to the waiting room. “What’s your name?”
I hesitated.
“Give them your real name, my heart,” Charles said quietly. “It’ll get you better care.”
“Eileen,” I said slowly. “Eileen O’Donnell.”
The nurse nodded. “Go sit down – someone will be with you directly.”
Charles and I sat down together. Vu and Jim sat near us, talking quietly. Charles kept hold of my arm and started stroking my hand gently. “This is much better than the last time we were in the hospital together,” I joked weakly.
He frowned. “When were we in the hospital together?”
“A fae was disguised to look like you,” I explained. “I was wounded from another kidnapping attempt – a fae came in and tried to kidnap me again.” I moved closer to him, sinking into his side. “I tried to fight him off, but a doctor still died.”
Charles draped his arm over my shoulder. “Sounds like an eventful few days. I see I missed a lot.”
“You did.”
“Don’t tell him,” Sheldon warned me. I looked up. He was sitting directly across from me. “Remember, all that will happen is that he betrays you.”
I frowned. “I don’t think Charles will betray me.” Charles stiffened next to me.
“You’re dead wrong,” Sheldon said direly. I frowned.
“Eileen O’Donnell?” The nurse called from the door. I stood. Charles remained sitting, so I pulled him up with me. “You might as well come, too,” I insisted. He rose. We walked together to the nurse.
“First is just triage,” she explained. “Then we’re getting the social worker to come and talk to you.” Her eyes flicked to Charles. “Are you comfortable with him being here?”
“No. But he might as well wait outside. He’s the only reason I’m here.”
“I see.” She made a note on my chart. “This way, please.”
We went down to the triage room, where she took my weight and blood pressure. Then she looked up with a frown. “I see the social worker is already here,” she said with some surprise. “Let’s go.” She looked at Charles. “I’m sorry, sir,” she said apologetically. “But you can’t be there for the interview. The social worker will come out and speak to you afterwords.”
He nodded and rose, squeezing my hand. “I’ll be right outside,” he told me. “Remember, I may be out of sight, but I’ll never leave you. I’ll wait for you.” His eyes were full of significance.
“Charles…” I said, my voice breaking.
“Eileen,” he said softly, “like I said in the forest – if you were in your right mind, I’d kiss you right now.” He bent down and gave me a gentle peck on the cheek instead.
A perky voice came from the door. “Am I interrupting?”
“No, ma’am,” Charles said, standing. “I was just leaving.” He gave my hand a final squeeze and left, not looking back.
I folded in on myself, shivering. The social worker walked in, smiling. She was short, with dark-brown hair and light-brown skin. She had a soft accent, somewhere from Jamaica, and a soft smile.
“Hi, Eileen. I’m Norma. I’m a social worker here at the hospital. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” She extended her hand, and I shook it. “You look worried, Eileen,” she said gently. “What’s wrong?”
“I don’t need to be here. I’m here because Charles made me come.”
“I see.” She nodded and sat down next to me. “Why did Charles make you come?”
“He says I’m psychotic. But I’m not!”
“Are you on medication?”
I nodded. “I am.”
“How long has it been since you’ve taken it?”
“About seventy-two hours, I think? I don’t quite remember.” Behind the social worker, Emma put her finger to her lips and winked. I smiled at her and nodded.
“Who are you smiling at, Eileen?” Norma asked.
“No one,” I said softly. Emma gave me a thumbs up. I smiled again.
“I see.” Norma made a note on her clipboard. “Are you seeing things, hearing things?”
“No,” I said firmly.
Norma nodded. “All right. I’m going to go talk to Charles now. I’ll be back.” She left.
I stared at the wall.
“You know he’s going to have you committed,” Emma said. She was now standing next to me.
“There’s no reason for it,” I said absently. “I’m fine.”
“Yes, you are. You’re perfectly healthy. But he wants power over you. He’s crazed. Delusional. You won’t be safe.”
I frowned.
“You really won’t be,” Sheldon said from behind me. “Charles Talbot is a dangerous man. You shouldn’t trust him.”
“Don’t trust him,” Joe whispered next to me.
“Don’t trust him,” Emma echoed.
The door opened, and Norma walked in, looking serious. “Eileen,” she said, sitting down, “I’ve spoken to Charles.” She hesitated. “Would you agree to voluntary inpatient mental health treatment?”
“Absolutely not,” I said angrily. “I told you I don’t need it. Charles doesn’t understand mental health –”
Norma sighed. “I’m sorry, Eileen,” she said gently. “If you won’t consent to voluntary mental health treatment, I’m going to have to insist on involuntary treatment.” She signed something on the clipboard
in front of her and gestured at the guard standing outside the door. He walked in and snapped a handcuff around my wrist.
“You’ve got to be kidding,” I said, shocked. “You can’t do this –”
“Eileen, you’re hallucinating.”Norma said, her voice still gentle. “It’s unsurprising – between your schizophrenia and the trauma you’ve recently been through, I’d be surprised if you weren’t. But you need help, and it’s good your boyfriend brought you in in time.”
“He’s not my boyfriend,” I said, furious. “I never want to see him again.”
“I hope,” Norma said softly, “that you reconsider that eventually. He cares a great deal for you.” She stood. “The guard will take you to our inpatient ward. Feel better, Eileen.” She walked out.
The guard took me by the arm. I wrenched free. “I can walk, jerk,” I snapped. I stormed out. Charles was standing by the door. There was pain in his eyes. “You,” I said ferociously. “I never want to see you again.” I turned my back and stalked away.
“I’ll be by to see you tomorrow, Eileen,” he called, his voice cracking. “I’m not giving up on us.”
“Don’t count on me seeing you!” I spat.
“This way, ma’am,” the guard said quietly. I stalked on.
The guard took me up the stairs to a double-locked door. He placed his hand on a magical scanner, which buzzed as it unlocked. “Come on in, ma’am,” he said. I stormed in, stopping at a desk. It had a chair and a camera in front of it. “Please sit.” I sat.
He took my picture, quickly printing and attaching it to the front of my file. “For your records,” he explained.
“I’ve done this before,” I said curtly.
The guard nodded politely. “Yes, ma’am.” He guided me to the charge nurse’s station. “New admit,” he announced. “Involuntary.”
The charge nurse looked up. “We just got the call,” she replied. Her hair was carelessly pulled back in a low ponytail, and her eyes were tired, with black smudges beneath them. “Eileen O’Donnell?”
The guard nodded, handing over the folder. The nurse took it and flipped through it. “Got it,” she murmured. “Showed up for a voluntary evaluation but committed involuntarily. Hmm. Okay. Let’s do the search. Paul, take her to Exam 1.”
We walked to Exam 1, where the guard uncuffed me. “Good luck, ma’am,” he said, stowing the handcuffs. “Feel better.” I felt tears prick my eyes and gave him a stiff nod. He smiled and walked away.
“I’m not feeling bad,” I informed the nurse as she sat at her computer. “I don’t know why I’m here.”
She nodded vaguely. “I understand, honey. Let’s search you and get you a hospital gown, and then we can start getting you out of here, hmm?”
I swallowed. I remembered what came next, and I hated it.
“Take off your clothes, Eileen,” the nurse said gently. “We have to search you.”
I grimly took off my pants and shirt and stood there, arms crossed.
“Bra and underwear, too, Eileen,” the nurse said.
I took them off and threw them on the ground. “This is utterly undignified,” I snapped. “You realize what I’ve been through over the past seventy-two hours? And now to subject me to this, too?”
“I’m sorry, Eileen,” the nurse said gently. “It’s protocol.”
“What’s your name?”
She blinked in surprise. “Hannah.”
“Well, Hannah,” I spat, “You can bet that I’ll be complaining when I get out of here. This is just wrong.”
“We just need to make sure you’re safe, Eileen,” Hannah replied placidly. She typed on the computer for a few moments. “I’ll need to collect your clothes now. They’ll be locked away until you’re discharged, and I’ll give you a hospital gown.” She picked them up and placed them in a brown paper bag, writing my name on it in black marker. She handed me a green hospital gown. “Put this on.”
I inspected it. It was an ugly thing that snapped up the back. Glaring at her, I put it on backwards so that it snapped up the front. I would feel too vulnerable otherwise. Hannah nodded.
“I’ll show you to your room. You’ll see your doctor in the morning.”
We walked down the hall, a white, sterile, ugly environment. The hall was lined with doors, all closed. Hannah stopped at one and opened it. “Here you are,” she said. “You don’t have a roommate right now.”
I nodded silently and walked in, arms across my chest.
Emma appeared in front of me. “I told you you couldn’t trust Charles.” She sat on the bed.
“Yes, you did.” I sat down.
A different voice spoke. “Eileen.” I turned around. Eamon hung in the air, surrounded by golden fire. His eyes narrowed. “Where are you?”
“The hospital,” I said bitterly. I sat down next to Emma. “Are you going to tell me I’m crazy, too?”
“Yes, actually,” Eamon said promptly. “I knew you’d need care when I learned you didn’t have your medication.” He paused, his nostrils flaring. “This actually works rather nicely. No fae could penetrate a locked hospital wing.”
“Why not?” I demanded. “There are shapeshifters –”
“Not that many,” Eamon said. “The one who attempted to kidnap you – they must’ve been truly desperate. I doubt they’ll have the resources for another attempt like that for a very, very long time.” He smirked. “The only shapeshifters come from the Northern Wild, and they are notoriously difficult to find and work with. I hate to think of what they promised that one to entice him down here.”
“Who’s ‘they’?” I asked, frowning.
Eamon smiled. “Straight to the point, aren’t you, And that, my dear, is a very, very good question.” He sighed. “You know from Sarah that there are two factions in Northern Sun – that of l’Inconnu, who is the leader of the rebels, and Prince Faolain. Northern Sun is restless.”
I nodded.
“A part of Western Wind is allied with Prince Faolain – but a part of it is simply working to bring him down. I suspect that faction is the one you ran afoul of. At the time, you were bonded with Prince Faolain – and that would’ve been a powerful tool, indeed, to use against him.”
I frowned. “Are you l’Inconnu?” I asked again. “Because, honestly, I’d suspect that l’Inconnu would be the prime suspect in wanting to kidnap me.”
“You forget,” Eamon said softly, “that you are now bonded to me, Eileen. I have a good reason for wanting to keep you safe. And, perhaps, a more personal reason.” He looked at me gently, but also slightly mockingly.
I laughed. “You’re joking!”.
“Am I?”
“You can’t possibly mean…that…you have a crush on me!”.
“A crush? How very provincial,” he murmured. “I admire your bravery, Eileen. Your dedication. Your stubbornness. Your ability to persist, to thrive without magic in a world where magic is everything.” He shrugged slightly.
“You have some ulterior motive for telling me this,” I said slowly.
He laughed. “Oh, Eileen.” There was a bit of admiration in his voice. “I do enjoy you. Do tell Charles about this. I’d love to see the look on his face.”
The door opened, and he vanished. A nurse poked her head in. “Who were you talking to, Eileen?”she asked, smiling.
“No one,” I replied grumpily.
She nodded. “Well, you should try to get some sleep. Breakfast is at eight o’clock, and the doctors start coming at nine.” She shut the door firmly behind her.
I sighed and lay back, pulling my feet up in the bed. I had no job. I had no boyfriend. Not anymore, I thought angrily. I was once again locked in a mental hospital. The fae were probably still after me. What was I going to do?
With that last, discouraging thought, I drifted off to sleep.
Chapter 4
I woke the next morning to a rap on the door. “Good morning, Eileen,” a voice said brightly. I peered up blearily. It was a male nurse, Filipino, with
a slight accent. I groaned and pulled the pillow over my face. “It’s time for breakfast,” he said. “Unfortunately, since you’re here involuntarily, you can’t go downstairs – but you can go in the TV room and get it there, and maybe watch the news. Wouldn’t that be nice?”
“No,” I snapped, sitting up. “I’d rather sleep.”
“The doctor is coming at nine,” he said firmly, “and it’s important that you be ready for her. Come, now. Up you get.” He clapped his hands. I groaned again and sat up, straightening my gown.
The hall outside was full of people, with some staring at the ceiling, looking drugged, others talking to the air in front of them, and others standing quietly, waiting for the line to move. Some wore regular clothes, and some wore hospital gowns. “Why do I have to wear a hospital gown?” I complained to a passing nurse.
“You must be an involuntary admit,” she said distractedly before moving down the hall. I scowled.
“You must be new,” a voice said. I turned and saw a young woman standing next to me. She extended her hand. “June. June Sanders.”
“Eileen. Eileen O’Donnell,” I replied, shaking it. June was short, barely five feet, with a pixie face and long brown hair. I smiled tentatively. She smiled back.
“So, what are you in for?” she asked.
“My ex-boyfriend is an asshole who convinced the hospital I was hallucinating,” I said bitterly.
Her eyes widened. “Seriously? I’m here because I’m bipolar. I’m coming off a manic episode.” She frowned. “So…you’re not hallucinating? But you’re here anyway?”
“I’m perfectly fine,” I said fiercely. “Emma says that Charles just wants to control me.”
“Who’s Emma?” June asked.
I pointed at Emma, who had appeared right next to her. June looked and frowned. She opened her mouth to say something, but the line started to move. “Time for breakfast. See you later!” she said with a wave. Sighing, I watched her go.
Breakfast was quiet. I picked at my food, watching the other people in the room. Most of them were muttering to themselves. The rest avoided my gaze.
A nurse appeared at the door. “Eileen O’Donnell?”
I rose, frowning. “What?” I asked, throwing away my cereal bowl.
