A Tear in the Veil
Page 49
I am completely sure. I want my life back.”
Fleischmann studies Felix’s face again. “That is wonderful. End hypothetical, Felix. I apologize for making you uncomfortable.”
“I’m fine.”
The Doctor opens a drawer in his desk, takes out a few pieces of paper, and sets them on the desk in front of Felix.
“Perfect. All I need is your initials and signature and you are free to go home to lovely Audrey.”
Felix winces just a bit at the “lovely”.
“Great. Can I have a pen?”
“Of course.”
Instead of handing him the expensive pen in his hand, Doctor Fleischmann takes a blue-black quill pen out of an ornate yet tasteful holder on his desk, dips it into an inkpot, and extends it toward Felix.
As Felix reaches for the pen, Fleischmann accidentally jabs his finger with the sharp writing tip.
“Gah!”
Fleischmann jolts back as Felix’s finger starts to bleed.
“Good Lord! I apologize! Here, take it and sign while I get you some ointment and a bandage.”
Fleischmann extends it to him again with the tip facing away from Felix and Felix takes it feather-first. He can see that the tip is bloody.
“I… I might make a mess.”
“That’s not a problem. It’s more of a formality than anything else.”
The Doctor rises from his chair and crosses to a cabinet to search for bandages.
Felix initials in the first page. He can see that the writing seems to burn in subtly and the blood is sucked into the letters. The type on the paper flutters and ripples and the font becomes an unfamiliar hand-written language for just a moment. He sneaks a look at the Doctor.
Fleischmann seems to be watching Felix’s progress in his peripheral vision as he searches the cabinet.
Felix looks down again and the paper is normal. He hesitates then initials the next page and flips to the last.
Fleischmann returns to his desk with ointment and bandages. “Just sign and I will fix you up.”
As Felix signs the last page, he feels his finger go a bit cold as blood trickles out of his cut like it’s being sucked into the signature. He sees that strange handwriting again as he signs and the lights in the office dim slightly. Felix finishes signing and everything is normal again.
Fleischmann smiles pleasantly.
“Now, let me dress that wound.”
Felix uses his crutches to limp up to the internal reception desk. Peggy is at the desk and Raymond is leaning against the counter. Raymond notices Felix and smiles.
Raymond nods toward the entry doors and says, “A pretty young thing came in and signed your discharge but said she didn’t want to wait in here.”
Then what did I just sign?
“What did she look like, Ray?”
“Like I said, pretty. She’s right outside the doors.”
Felix looks toward the translucent and reflective doors and sees a vague human form made of mirror standing just on the other side holding what must be one of those Macy’s bags full of his effects.
“So, you ready to get back out into the world, man?”
Felix notices something change in the ceiling just inside the doors. After he lets his eyes relax a bit, he can just make out the top half of Grieves’s head poking out upside-down from inside the ceiling. He looks back down at the where the face would be on the mirror girl.
Felix says, “I guess that depends on how I look at it.”
Special Thanks
Neil Baker
Genevieve, Sadie, Austin, Mark II, Christopher Smith-Adair,
Najla Turczyn, Rafael Vieira, Ryan Castañeda,
The greater fam-fam,
M.S. Church,
MJ, AK, EMP, R. Battle, Nadya Lev, Black Widow,
D. Fedstov, V. & V. Spichak, P. Zacharias, Matthew Deline, M. Tonner, M. Bodenchak
R. Wingo, Bob Hurt, Tony Bill,
CPMC, SMV Behavioral Health,
John Carpenter, James Cameron, Bruce Joel Rubin, The Wachowskis
Shoji Kawamori, Carl Macek, Shinichiro Watanabe, Sunrise, Inc.,
Howard Phillips Lovecraft, Hans Rudolf Giger, Tony Scott, John W. Steakley Jr., Zdzislaw Beksiéski
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About Patrick Loveland
Patrick Loveland is a screenwriter and author from San Diego, California. He studied Experimental Filmmaking in San Francisco and worked as a projectionist and a small format film equipment instructor before moving back to his hometown in the early 2000s. He is the author of several short stories to be found in reputable modern anthologies, including April Moon Book’s Short Sharp Shocks series. This is his first novel. Patrick lives with his wife and young daughter. https://facebook.com/pmloveland