Midnight Dolphin

by James Carmody

  ‘When we first spoke together Lucy, you told me that your name meant light. I need you to live up to your name now for me Lucy.

  ‘I’ll try Spirit. I’ll try’ echoed Lucy’s voice through the dark void.

  ‘You can do it Lucy’ he urged her. ‘Come back to me now.’ Suddenly there was a change in the atmosphere around him. Energy seemed to pulse across the black void and tiny lights began to appear all around him, flickering at first and then in stronger waves.

  Suddenly Spirit was back with the others all gathered in a circle focusing their attention on Lucy in the water. She looked up and glanced round at all of them.

  ‘It’s okay’ she said. ‘I’m feeling better now I think’ she added, struggling slowly back up to them all.

  Chapter Eight

  Dad walked down the corridor from the vending machine, a polystyrene cup of coffee in his hand. ‘Why is it that these places always sell such bad coffee?’ he asked himself as he walked back towards Lucy’s bed. It was the middle of the night, yet the neon strip lights in the corridor were as bright as day. A nurse bustled along with a clipboard in her arms. His eyes felt tired but mostly he felt emotionally exhausted. He’d been sitting by Lucy’s bed for hours now but no one quite seemed to know what was the matter with her.

  The doctors said that Lucy was badly concussed but that she’d probably wake up soon enough. There was a risk of swelling to the brain or other complications but it was too early to say, they told him. It was a matter of waiting and watching, the doctors had said earlier in the evening. Her form teacher Mr Baines had left hours before and he’d been on his own by Lucy’s bed side for some time now. The junior doctor on duty seemed as tired as he felt but was constantly on the move, making her way from one bed to another. Dad didn’t like to disturb her as she did her rounds and when she did come up to Lucy’s bed she just checked her blood pressure and pulse briefly and then moved on again.

  There’d been a period earlier on in the day when Lucy’s heart-beat had dropped to a dangerously low level and the doctors had started to get worried. Then after a while, for no obvious reason, her vital signs had stabilised again and the doctors had shrugged their shoulders and moved on to the next patient.

  It was the not knowing that really got to Dad. If he knew that Lucy would regain consciousness at ten am the next morning, it would be easy for him. If he knew that she was brain damaged, at least he’d know what to feel. Yet he felt caught in a kind of emotional limbo and didn’t really know how to react at all. On the one hand he wanted to be upbeat and positive. On the other hand, he wondered whether he should ready himself for more bad news if Lucy didn’t recover consciousness quickly.

  Dad glanced out of the window. The street lights glowed dimly and he watched a night bus rumble slowly along the street. He returned to Lucy’s bed. If it weren’t for the wires linked up to the monitors, he’d think she was just asleep. Even the bandage over the gash to her head didn’t spoil the effect. They’d had to stitch it up but fortunately the wound was in her hair line so even if it did scar, Lucy’s hair would cover it up.

  Dad glanced at the monitor to the side of Lucy’s bed. He’d be worried if any of the lines went flat, but apart from that they didn’t mean much to him. As it was, he was reassured by the regular beep that it emitted.

  It was when Dad’s eyes were starting to droop that Bethany appeared at his side. He jumped up with a start.

  ‘Bethany!’ he exclaimed in surprise, ‘it’s four in the morning.’

  ‘I didn’t get your message until quite late’ she explained. ‘I just felt I had to drive up straight away.’

  ‘You must be exhausted’ Dad replied. He didn’t always see eye to eye with Bethany, but her commitment to Lucy was unwavering. Bethany’s eyes looked red and tired from the driving and her mass of unruly blond hair was even more unkempt than usual. She wore a shapeless pullover over her jeans.

  ‘You look pretty tired yourself John’ she replied eyeing him in the same way that he had just regarded her. She stood and looked for a long calm moment at Lucy lying there unconscious in the hospital bed.

  ‘How’s the patient?’ she asked. Dad filled her in as best he could. Bethany went to the side of the bed and took Lucy’s hand in hers. ‘You can do it Lucy’ she said quietly, willing her niece to regain consciousness.

  They sat and talked quietly for a while before both Dad and Bethany dozed off in the chairs they were sitting in next to Lucy’s bed. By seven o’clock the ward was beginning to get busy again and they both woke up stiff-necked as a trolley rattled by in the corridor. A fresh-faced young nurse who had evidently just started her shift came up and checked Lucy’s monitors.

  ‘No sign of movement?’ she asked Dad. He replied that he hadn’t seen any. In fact, he reflected that Lucy was unnaturally still. Someone who’s merely asleep tends to shift around all the time. Lucy on the other hand hadn’t moved a muscle.

  Bethany yawned and stretched lazily.

  ‘Well I still feel wiped-out, but maybe not quite as knackered as I felt three hours ago’ she said. She went down the corridor to get coffees from the vending machine and Dad went to the bathroom to freshen up. When he got back, another doctor was examining Lucy, shining a pen-light into her eyes as the other doctor had done before.

  ‘What do you think doctor?’ he asked nervously.

  ‘Well she’s still out cold isn’t she’ the doctor replied, looking at the notes in his hand. ‘How long has it been now?’ Dad told him that it was about eighteen hours since the accident had happened.

  ‘Is it unusual to be so long?’ he asked.

  ‘I should emphasise that I’m not a neurologist’ the doctor replied. ‘We’ll have to get the consultant in for a proper opinion. But yes, it is unusual for it to take so long for a patient to regain consciousness. The failure to come round suggests a more deep-rooted problem. The MRI scan didn’t reveal any significant abnormalities, so we’ll have to look at some other options.’

  ‘Is she in a coma?’ Dad asked. The doctor gave him a sympathetic smile in reply.

  ‘Let’s not jump to conclusions now’ he replied, trying to reassure Dad. ‘The consultant neurologist will be around to examine your daughter later. She’s highly respected in her field. She’ll get to the bottom of this if anyone can.’

  Just after the doctor left, Bethany came back with the coffees.

  ‘I had to go downstairs to the cafeteria in the end. That machine down the corridor’s out of order now. I got a couple of croissants for us while I was at it. I reckon we both need a bit of sustenance to keep us going.’ Neither of them were hungry though and in any case Dad wasn’t listening to her. He was becoming more worried about Lucy with every hour that passed.

  They sat in silence for a while, sipping their tepid coffee.

  ‘You know’ said Dad, ‘when Lucy was a baby Megan and I would sometimes lay her down on our bed for a nap in the afternoon. It was a double-bed of course, and so she was a long way from the edge. One afternoon when Lucy was sleeping there in the middle of the duvet, her arms splayed out, I had to go and answer the phone downstairs.’ Dad paused and stroked his stubbly chin. ‘I was barely gone a minute when I heard a thump and Lucy started crying her head off. I rushed upstairs and of course she’d fallen off the bed flat on her face. She was such a wee small thing I was convinced she’d been terribly injured. She just wouldn’t stop crying so in the end I bundled her into the car and drove like a madman to Accident & Emergency at our local hospital.’

  ‘What did the doctors say?’ asked Bethany curiously.

  ‘Oh, the doctors looked her over and gave her a clean bill of health. She had a bruise on her forehead but they didn’t seem worried about that.’ Dad paused. ‘But I felt terribly guilty afterwards’ he said. ‘I thought I’d almost killed my baby daughter by carelessness. I just looked away for a moment and….’

  ‘But it’s not like that now John’ said Bethany quietly. ‘You can’t keep your eye on her all the ti
me. She’s growing up you know. She’s finding her own way in the world.’ Dad turned his head to look out of the window as though he were trying to hide his emotions.

  ‘Oh I know’ he said eventually. ‘I’m just being stupid. Sitting here brings the memories back to me you know. It’s the same hospital. Lucy was seen just down the corridor last time.’ Bethany smiled and clutched her knees. She looked at Lucy lying peacefully next to her. She wanted to tell Dad that Lucy would be fine, but she simply didn’t know.

  Just then a slim woman with grey hair in her fifties and wearing a white coat appeared at the bedside.

  ‘Mr and Mrs Parr, I’m Natalie Goodman, a consultant neurologist at the hospital. I’ve come to examine Lucy.’ Bethany suppressed a look of embarrassment.

  ‘It’s good to see you Dr Goodman’ replied Dad, ‘but this is not my wife. This is Lucy’s aunt Bethany. Her mother passed away just over a year ago.’

  ‘I’m sorry to hear that’ said Dr Goodman sympathetically. She consulted Lucy’s chart and monitor and then pulled the curtains round so that they were in privacy.

  ‘I’m just going to do a few tests’ said Dr Goodman thoughtfully as she glanced at Lucy’s scan results. They won’t take long. You’re quite welcome to stay.

  ‘It’s okay’ replied Dad. ‘I’ll just step outside. I’ll only get in the way otherwise.’ Bethany followed him outside the curtain round Lucy’s bed.

  ‘Truth is I feel nervous’ confessed Dad. ‘I’ll be happier if she just tells us what’s wrong with Lucy after the examination.’ Bethany glanced round the curtain. Dr Goodman was gently pressing the tip of her pen into Lucy’s palm to see if there was any reaction. She nodded to Dad.

  ‘Probably for the best’ she said. Presently Dr Goodman put her head round the curtain.

  ‘All done’ she said, drawing the curtain back round. Dad and Bethany sat down. ‘Well I’m pleased to confirm the opinion of my colleagues that there doesn’t appear to be anything that suggests abnormalities or damage to the brain. I just carried out a few basic tests but the real diagnostic tool is the scan that Lucy had last night. The results are right here’ she said, holding up the print-out briefly.

  ‘The main problems we commonly see in injuries of this type are swelling to the brain or internal bleeding. Neither of those conditions are revealed by Lucy’s scan. Nor is there any apparent damage to the spinal column or brain stem which might suggest a condition such as cerebromedullospinal disconnection, or locked in syndrome. Brain activity is consistent with someone who is conscious, but none of the attendant symptoms are present.’ Both Dad and Bethany visibly brightened when they heard the doctor’s prognosis.

  ‘That’s the good news’ the doctor continued. ‘The not-so-good news is that I can offer no good reason as to why Lucy has not yet emerged from her unconscious state. In layman’s terms, if she’s merely deeply asleep and I give her a good old fashioned prod, I’d expect to see a physical reaction to the stimulus. Lucy does not respond in that manner. Concussion, or mild traumatic brain injury as we call it nowadays, should not result in loss of consciousness for this length of time. Furthermore the brain activity we’ve picked up is not consistent with MTBI.’

  ‘So what’s your best guess?’ asked Bethany.

  ‘If anything since we’ve excluded locked-in syndrome, the electrical activity in the brain is most comparable to REM sleep. However as I said, Lucy’s reactions are not consistent with a sleeping state.’ She paused. ‘It’s almost as if…it’s almost as if Lucy’s brain is taking a short holiday somewhere else.’ Dr Goodman smiled.

  ‘At this stage I can only suggest that we keep Lucy under close observation for a few more hours. Unless she regains consciousness again by five pm we’ll get her back for another scan to see if anything’s changed.’ She paused again. ‘Hang on in there you two. You both look like you should go home and get a few hours sleep.’

  ‘I think I’ll just stick around here if that’s alright with you doctor’ said Dad.

  ‘Me too’ added Bethany.

  ‘Well that’s not a problem for the time being’ replied Dr Goodman, but if we transfer Lucy onto the general ward the nurses will evict you until visiting time.’ She smiled just before walking off. ‘I’ll be back in the afternoon.’

  ‘But I don’t want to go back’ said Lucy defiantly to Spirit. ‘I want to stay here with you.’ Spirit glanced at his mother.

  ‘Listen Lucy’ said Star-Gazer. ‘You know it’s wonderful to have you here, it’s just that we’re worried about you. You need to go back.’

  ‘You can’t make me!’ exclaimed Lucy, gliding off away from them. Spirit swam after her, but Star-Gazer stayed where she was. She knew that she’d better ease off for a little and let Lucy and Spirit have their time together. She’d speak to the young girl again later. Lucy had helped save Star-Gazer’s life and she wanted to make sure this slight human child didn’t do anything that might risk her own.

  Lucy skimmed the waves alongside Spirit. Light played on the surface of the water as they sped along.

  ‘I can’t believe they want me to go back’ she said. ‘I’ve barely got here. I’ve never been able to remain here with you for so long, and before my accident I thought I’d never see you again. Maybe it’s a good thing I got knocked out like that. Maybe I’m meant to be here with you.’

  ‘You know Star-Gazer just wants to make sure you’re okay’ replied Spirit. ‘But it is good to have you here next to me. I feel complete somehow.’

  ‘Then you think I should stay too?’ asked Lucy eagerly.

  ‘I’d like you to stay’ replied Spirit, ‘but if your body’s sick, that’s not good is it? Like I told you, I was able to use my mind to stretch out to you in the same way that you reach out to me. You were in a big white square place with other humans and stuff around you. I think one of them was your father. You were lying on a flat thing and there were different coloured lines connected to your body. There was a beeping noise and you looked like you were asleep.’

  ‘From what you said Spirit, it sounds like my body’s in hospital. They’ll take good care of me there. I’ll be alright. Let’s swim.’

  It felt so good to be gliding free in the ocean with Spirit. It was so effortless and natural. Lucy felt the sharp coldness of the salt water against her face and skin but it just made her feel more fresh and alive. All the worries of life in the human world seemed to have dropped away from her. It was exhilarating to speed along the tips of the waves together.

  Later, as dusk spread across the sea the dolphins settled down to rest. Only Spirit, Dancer and Star-Gazer were able to speak to Lucy while Storm and the rest of the pod could merely observe from a distance. The sea was calm that night and the dolphins swam in slow lazy circles as they talked amongst each other and told stories to entertain themselves.

  ‘Lucy, what do humans say about the sun and stars?’ asked Star-Gazer, staring up at the star-laden night sky. ‘Breeze over there thinks that stars are just pricks of light that penetrate through a huge clam shell. But I think they must be suns like ours, just a long way away.’

  ‘That’s what scientists think’ replied Lucy in agreement. ‘There are millions of stars out there, each of them like our sun, but far away. ‘They say that there are planets circling those stars, and some people think that they have life on them just like our world.’ Star-Gazer nodded.

  ‘And do humans agree that the Moon goes around our planet?’ she asked.

  ‘Yes that’s right’ agreed Lucy. ‘Humans have been to the moon and put a flag there.’

  ‘But how is that possible?’ asked Dancer incredulously.

  ‘In spaceships that go thousands of miles through space to get to their destination’ replied Lucy. She only half-understood how it was possible herself.

  ‘Are those the metal birds that we often see flying over the ocean?’ asked Spirit.

  ‘No those are just aeroplanes. They just fly round the world. They don’t go off into space. Only a few people
have been to the moon.’

  ‘Do you think that dolphins could go to the moon?’ joked Dancer.

  ‘Well in a way you’d do better up there than we humans would’ laughed Lucy. ‘There’s no gravity up there, so everything floats around.’

  ‘What do you mean by gravity?’ asked Star-Gazer seriously. She was far too interested in the subject to joke about it.

  ‘Well you know for example the Moon exerts gravity on the Earth’ said Lucy, thinking hard how to explain a concept like gravity that she so took for granted. ‘It’s the moon that pulls the oceans and gives us tides. If there was no Moon there would be no tides’ she went on.

  ‘But how can the Moon pull the tides?’ asked Dancer still laughing. ‘They’re not attached to each other.’

  ‘Not in any way that we can see perhaps’ broke in Star-Gazer, ‘but haven’t you noticed how the tides are strongest when the Moon is full in the sky. The Moon traces an arc in the heavens and the tides follow the same pattern. That shows that perhaps the Moon and the tides are linked somehow as Lucy says. I had noticed that the tides and the Moon were connected, but I could never understand why. Humans have figured out some things then’ she went on.

  ‘Well you know what Storm says’ said Dancer. ‘He thinks that humans are clever but dangerous. He thinks we should stay away from all humans.’

  ‘Even me?’ asked Lucy, glancing warily around in the direction where Storm was resting peacefully.

  They continued to talk idly as the night settled like a blanket over the sleepy waters of the ocean. Sometimes dolphins hunt at night when their echo-location allows them to see where their eyes cannot. Not tonight though. The pod settled down to rest and one by one slipped into their waking sleep. Lucy became more agitated and nervous though as the others dozed off.

  ‘What’s the matter Lucy’ asked Spirit stifling a yawn. ‘You really ought to rest you know.’ Lucy looked at him anxiously.