Once Found: The Pocket Watch Chronicles

by Ceci Giltenan

  “But you know who I am. Apparently better than I do.”

  Gabe chuckled and Jennifer smiled. “Yes, I do know who you are, but I still have to ask. It’s an extra step to make sure the right person is getting the right medicine. I know you don’t know your birthdate, but can you tell me your full name?”

  “Elizabeth Quinn.” That answer felt so odd.

  “Okay, Elizabeth. Your birthdate is January 31st, 1978. See if you can remember that for the next time someone asks.”

  “I’ll try.”

  Gabe helped her sit up and Jennifer handed her a small clear cup with a perfectly round white disk in it that was engraved with some symbols.

  “What is this?”

  “It’s the oxycodone, the pain medicine.”

  Elsie frowned at it. “What do I do with it?”

  “You swallow it.”

  “I don’t think I can do that.”

  Gabe smiled. “It’s easy. Take a drink of water first. Then put the tablet on the back of your tongue and take another drink. Just let it go down with the water as you swallow.”

  Elsie tried a couple times but the tablet, as Gabe had called it, stayed stubbornly in her mouth.

  “Try one more time. Sometimes, it helps if you tip your head back as you swallow,” said Jennifer. “If you can’t swallow it this way, we can try putting it in applesauce.”

  Elsie tried again, and it finally worked.

  Jennifer smiled at her. “Very good. It should start working soon. Dr. Soldani, if you’ll excuse us for a moment, I’m going to cap her IV and take the Foley out.”

  Gabe started to leave. “Gabe, I…I don’t want you to leave.”

  “I’m not leaving, sweetheart. I am just going to step out of the room to give you privacy. I’ll come back as soon as Jennifer is done.”

  “It will only take a minute. I promise,” said Jennifer. She proceeded to put on a pair of gloves that looked as if they were made of skin. The expression on Elsie’s face must have prompted Jennifer to explain. “These are latex gloves. They protect my hands and keep germs off of them. Here, take a look at one.”

  Jennifer handed her the flimsy glove. Elsie turned it over in her hand, looking at it. She would have tried to put it on, but with the left arm splinted, she didn’t think she could manage. “What are germs?”

  “They are organisms that are so tiny we can’t see them, but they make us sick.”

  Elsie wasn’t sure she understood that, but she didn’t ask more.

  Jennifer explained everything she was doing as she did it, making Elsie much less nervous. When Jennifer was done, she made sure Elsie was comfortable, rolled a table into position over her bed and put a packet containing two brown squares and a small clear vessel filled with an amber liquid on the table. “If you need anything, push this button and someone will come to help you. I’ll send Gabe back in.”

  “Thank you,” said Elsie. She was examining the packet when Gabe returned. “Are these the graham crackers she mentioned?”

  “Yes.”

  “How do I open the packet?”

  Gabe took it from her. “You just tear the cellophane like this.” He handed her the open package.

  “But it’s ruined then.”

  “It isn’t intended to be used again. It’s disposable.” Perhaps realizing that she didn’t know how to open the container of liquid either, he peeled back the lid and put it on the table.

  She cautiously took a bite of one of the crackers. She smiled. “It’s sweet. I like it.”

  Gabe chuckled. “I’ll have to bring you some Italian tea cookies. You used to love them.”

  She took a sip of the liquid. “Mmm. I like that, too. It’s like cider.”

  “Apple juice is cider that has been filtered and pasteurized.”

  Elsie smiled and nodded.

  Gabe chuckled. “You don’t know what that means.”

  “No, I don’t.”

  “Elizabeth, don’t be afraid to say so or ask.” He went on to explain it to her. She liked listening to his voice. She found it soothing, like music.

  “Can I ask you something else?”

  “I said you can ask anything.”

  “Dr. Levi said something that confused me.”

  “What was it?”

  “When he said I had to give my permission so he could talk in front of you, he said you had perhaps been a very good friend a few years ago. I’m certain I…I love you. Now. What did he mean?”

  Gabe took her hand, smiling sadly. “The truth is, I love you too. I have for years. We went to medical school together, and were friends for most of that time. We started dating in our fourth year.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “We spent a lot of time together. We did things together like going out to dinner or to a movie. Eventually, we slept together.”

  “Slept together?”

  He chuckled. “Made love? Had sex?”

  That’s what she thought slept together meant. “And we weren’t married?”

  His brow drew together. “No, we weren’t.”

  Perhaps Elsie should have been more shocked by that, but for some reason she wasn’t. That must be Elizabeth’s memories pushing through again.

  “But I wanted to marry you. I was working up the courage to ask. We had matched at different hospitals, but I had been trying to change. There was an opening in pediatrics at the University of Cincinnati where you had matched, which hadn’t been filled in the scramble. I was trying desperately to get it.”

  “I don’t understand anything you just said.”

  He laughed. “I’m sure you don’t. The short version is that you go to medical school for four years, and in your last year, you apply for a residency. A residency is more years of training in a specialty. You wanted to be an obstetrician—that is a doctor who delivers babies. I wanted to be a pediatrician. The whole selection process is complicated, but it’s called matching. We could have tried to match as a couple, but we hadn’t been dating long when the process started and we didn’t discuss it.”

  “So we matched at different hospitals?”

  “Yes. I was matched here at NYUHC and you were going to Cincinnati.”

  “And they are a great distance apart?”

  “Yes, they are.”

  “And you weren’t able to change?”

  “I stopped trying.”

  Those words caused a lump to rise in her throat and her heart to ache. “Why?” she asked tentatively.

  “Something happened. I said some things I shouldn’t have, and we went our separate ways.”

  “No.” That truly distressed her. She was certain Elizabeth loved him deeply. “What happened?”

  “It’s a long story.”

  “Please, tell me.”

  “Okay, but first, you need to understand who I am. My name is Gabriel Eduardo Soldani, and I grew up in a big, working-class, Italian family in New Jersey. You probably don’t know exactly what that means.” He chuckled. “Most people don’t until they’ve experienced it, but family is very important. It is a defining feature of my life. I’m Natalie and Sal’s son. I’m Joey, Nick, Tony, Luke and Angela’s brother. I have aunts and uncles and cousins too numerous to list. At some point or another, they can all annoy the life out of a person, but I love them. They are my world.”

  Elsie understood that. Clan was extremely important. “I didn’t like your family?” Elsie couldn’t believe it even as she said it.

  “No, nothing like that. You liked them and they liked you. But for some reason, you kept your family…a secret.”

  “What do you mean? How could I do that? Why would I?”

  Gabe sighed. “Elizabeth, you are the only child of an extremely wealthy and important family. Your mother is Charlotte Matheson Quinn. She is a partner with her father in a law firm that grossed over two billion dollars last year.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “They make a huge amount of money. On top of that, your father is a
very well recognized surgeon, as was his father. But every time I asked you about your family, you avoided the discussion. I had no idea who you were until the day we graduated—essentially our last day in medical school. And even then, it wasn’t you who told me. I found out from the whispers when your family was recognized.”

  “So nobody knew?”

  “Nobody. Not even the dean of the university. When I finally saw you later that day, I was angry and hurt that you had kept this huge secret from me. I thought you must have been ashamed of me, afraid I would embarrass you.”

  “Why would you think that? Did I say that?”

  “No. You said you feared they would embarrass you.”

  “Did they?”

  “Embarrass you? Not really. They were cold and formal—nothing like my family—but they were polite.”

  “If I liked your family, maybe I was embarrassed because mine wasn’t like yours.”

  Gabe just stared at her. “I—I guess I never thought of it that way.”

  “Did I give you any other reason?”

  Gabe nodded. “You said as long as people didn’t know who you were, you could just be ordinary, but as soon as they found out, everything changed. At the time, I just couldn’t understand why you would keep your family a secret. Like I said, my family is so much a part of who I am that I felt like you were hiding yourself from me. You said your family was not your identity, but I couldn’t believe that. I said goodbye to you and left.”

  Elsie’s heart broke. She was so certain they loved each other. Well, she was certain she felt Elizabeth’s intense love for him. A tear slipped down her cheek—the first one she’d cried in years. “I’m sorry, Gabe. This sense that I know you and love you is the only thing that feels real to me in this place. I thought…I thought…”

  “Oh, sweetheart, I do love you. I told you that. It’s just that it took me a while to actually realize how much I loved you and how little that argument had meant. But it had happened at a crossroads in our lives, and we had already gone our separate ways. It was too late—or I thought it was. Maybe…maybe this is our second chance. Maybe we can figure this out.”

  Elsie sighed. She was absolutely certain Elizabeth still loved him. “I hope so. I’m willing to believe God’s blessings come in unexpected ways.”

  That was true. Not only had Elizabeth saved Elsie’s life by choosing to exchange souls, she was in a place where she could use her knowledge to help Lady MacKenzie. Elsie had no such skills and had been certain she had nothing to offer Elizabeth or anyone else in this century. Perhaps this is what she could do for Elizabeth. Elsie could bring her close to Gabe again so that when she returned, Elizabeth would have this lost love in her life once again. Then Elsie would go home to the man she was beginning to love and make sure they never parted.

  Chapter 6

  Gabe didn’t believe he had ever thanked the Almighty for a snowstorm, at least not since he was a kid and had prayed for snow days, but this one could only have been a gift. Although there had been accidents, no one had been killed or even very critically injured. While he wished that Elizabeth hadn’t been injured as badly as she was, he wouldn’t have found her again otherwise, and he never would have known the deep feelings she still held for him—feelings that mirrored his own.

  He had only fallen in love twice. Once when he had been young and stupid and had fallen for a girl he could never have. The second time was with Elizabeth. It turned out he was still pretty stupid then, too. When Elizabeth, suffering profound amnesia, had not only recognized him but said, I think I love him, he had prayed this was his second chance with her. He wasn’t going to blow it. She was alone and frightened, and she needed him. He would be there for her. Dr. Sweeny had only called Gabe in as backup. Things were quiet now, so in the brief time Gabe had left Elizabeth to Jennifer’s care, he’d received clearance to sign out. He would have the next six days off.

  Christie Harper returned after she had spoken to Elizabeth’s father. “Elizabeth, your parents are very concerned about you. Your father would have liked to speak with you, but I told him you weren’t really up to talking. They will be coming up from Baltimore as soon as possible, but I doubt that will be before tomorrow morning.”

  “Is Baltimore far?”

  Christie shook her head. “No. About two hundred miles.”

  “Two hundred miles? How long will the journey take?”

  “Under normal conditions, without traffic, a little over three hours. But in bad weather, it could take much longer.”

  Elizabeth looked a little amazed and very happy, but said nothing.

  “Dr. Levi has written orders and there is a bed available in the neuro step-down unit, so we will transfer you there shortly. I think Jennifer was trying to get a dinner tray sent up for you in the meantime.”

  The tray arrived a few minutes later. Elizabeth’s brows drew together. She cautiously explored the contents. The first item to draw her attention was a white bowl of some sort with a lid. “What is this bowl made out of?”

  “It’s called Styrofoam. It keeps things warm or cool. Take the plastic lid off: there is soup in it. Sadly, it may be the best thing on the tray. Hospital food isn’t usually very good.”

  She tasted a spoonful of the chicken noodle soup and smiled. “I like this, but what are these slippery worm-like things?”

  “Those are noodles.”

  “I like them.”

  “Wait until you try my mom’s homemade pasta. That’s another word for noodles. You used to love it.”

  “If it’s even better than these, I’m sure I still will.”

  When she finished the soup, she removed the cover from the plate. “What is this?”

  “Chicken, rice pilaf, and green beans.”

  She scooped up a little rice with her spoon, tasting it. “Since those things are green, this must be rice pilaf? It isn’t bad.”

  “You don’t remember rice?”

  “No, what is it?”

  “Rice is a grain.”

  She nodded. “Like barley?”

  “Yes, like barley.”

  She tried to scoop up a green bean with her spoon.

  “It will be easier to pick them up with your fork.”

  She picked up a utensil. “Is this a fork?”

  “Yes, it is.”

  She attacked the green beans with the fork. “These are a little odd.”

  “They are better when they are fresh.”

  The holes in her semantic memory were bizarre. She clearly knew what a spoon was, but not a fork. She knew what soup was, but not noodles. She didn’t know what rice was, but she understood that it was a grain and compared it to barley.

  She had eaten a few bites of everything when she looked up at him. “I feel…I feel…I don’t feel right.”

  Gabe became immediately concerned. “What’s the matter? Are you having any trouble breathing?”

  “No, it isn’t that. I feel…sleepy and a little light-headed.”

  He smiled. “The pain medicine you took is starting to work. It has that effect on most people. How is your pain?”

  “It’s better and I’m thankful for that, but I don’t think I like feeling like this.”

  “We’ll talk to your doctor about it.”

  His puzzlement only grew when they were finally ready to transfer her from the ICU. She had no memory of elevators and as they rode in one, she had a death grip on his hand that might have been appropriate on a roller coaster. In fairness, Elizabeth didn’t like roller coasters, either.

  When she was settled in the new room, the oxycodone made her even drowsier. “This bed is nice.”

  “Really? Most people don’t find them overly comfortable.”

  “I’m having trouble staying awake.”

  “Then don’t. You need plenty of rest anyway.”

  “You won’t leave?”

  “No, I won’t.” Gabe moved the recliner closer to the bed and took her hand.

  She held on tightly. “I�
��m sorry I’m not braver. I will try harder, but everything here is so peculiar and I don’t like to be alone. It scares me.”

  “I won’t leave you alone, and you’ve nothing to be sorry for. I know how disorienting it is to be in a strange place, and I understand that you’re afraid. Everything will be okay, sweetheart.”

  She sighed. “I think it will be. I want to remember it all when I go back.”

  Gabe had no idea what she meant by that, but assumed the narcotic had muddled her thoughts.

  As she drifted off to sleep, although she continued to cling firmly to his hand, she looked relaxed and peaceful, a small smile resting on her lips.

  He smiled, made himself as comfortable as possible in the recliner, and gave in to sleep.

  ~ * ~

  Everything will be okay. Elsie wasn’t sure why she so firmly believed that. The events of the day were almost too much to comprehend. At first, it seemed to be a dreadful nightmare, but now she was opening herself to the adventure. What had changed?

  She smiled as she realized two things that helped her embrace this opportunity. First was Gabe. Not only did she feel safe when he was with her, she felt a sense of completeness she had only just begun to experience with Geordie. Elizabeth was a lucky woman, but Elsie believed the same depth of emotion would be hers as well when she returned to the man she was beginning to love in her own time.

  The second thing was the chance to experience the love of a family again. Perhaps it was silly; after all, she’d lost her mother and father so long ago and she was a grown woman now, but the chance to feel the loving embrace of parents once more was beyond enticing.

  Until recently, Elsie had existed in a world filled with duty and perhaps kindness, but not love. Today had been more frightening and overwhelming than anything she had ever experienced, but even in all its strangeness, a part of her was excited by the possibilities the next few days or weeks held. As she drifted off to sleep holding Gabe’s hand, she knew she had been given an extraordinary gift. She would partake freely.

  ~ * ~

  Several hours later, Gabe woke as people came into the room. He opened his eyes to see Elizabeth’s parents.