by Ron Ripley
Excellent. Keep me informed.
The watcher erased the text message, returned the phone to his pocket, and focused his attention to Matias’ door.
Chapter 34: Matias, Sanford Hospital, March 10th, 1998
He was angry. Angrier than he had ever been in a long time.
“Dad,” Michael said, “I’m sorry, but Patricia doesn’t want you in the house. She says she can’t parent when you’re there.”
Matias looked coldly at his son.
“Michael,” Matias said bitterly, “your wife lacks any sort of ability in regards to parenting. My presence has no bearing on the issue.”
Michael’s face reddened and his lips tightened. Oscar turned away, hiding his smile. Michael glared at his younger brother but didn’t say anything.
“Do not attempt to make excuses,” Matias continued. “I know I am a burden, and especially so to your wife. However, I do wish I had been given a little more advanced warning about what was going to happen. I would have preferred to have been placed in a home a little further from New Hampshire.”
Michael nodded, and Oscar looked at Matias.
“Dad,” Oscar said. “We made the decision, Michael and me, to put you here in Sanford. When I get discharged, I’ll be back in New Hampshire. Plus, whether you like Patricia or not, she is the mother of your grandchildren. I know you’ll want to see them. And Michael too once you’re done being mad at him for not letting you stay at his house.”
Matias knew Oscar was right, but he was still angry. Glancing at Michael, Matias asked, “Will you bring the children to see me?”
“Dad,” Michael sighed. “Of course I’m going to bring the kids to see you.”
Matias was partially mollified by the new information. He took a deep breath, let it out slowly and said, “I understand why I can’t stay with you, Michael. I do. Your wife irritates me. I am afraid I let it get to me.”
“Don’t worry about it, Dad,” Michael said.
“Hey,” Oscar said, reaching into a pocket. “I picked something up for you.”
Matias watched as his youngest son took out a pack of Bicycle Playing Cards. Oscar deftly tore the plastic wrap off of it, broke the seal with a thumbnail and handed it to him.
“Thank you,” Matias said. He slipped the cards out and enjoyed the feel and the smell of the new deck.
“Listen,” Oscar said. “Michael and I are going to make a run down to Manchester for a few things. We’ll be back soon, okay?”
Matias nodded, forced himself to smile and said, “Yes. Sounds fine.”
He watched his sons leave the room and close the door behind them. After a moment, Matias removed the jokers and the introduction card and set them aside. He shuffled slowly, the cards slick against his fingers. Once he had them thoroughly mixed, he dealt out a solitaire hand on the bed tray and began to play.
The temperature in the room dipped slightly, and Matias shook his head.
Can’t the VA ever get anything right? he wondered, focusing on the cards and trying to ignore the new chill.
“I know you,” a woman said.
Matias straightened up, surprised someone had managed to get into the room unnoticed. He turned around and stifled a gasp. Matias clutched the remnants of the decks of cards as he looked at the dead nurse he had seen years before.
She eyed him carefully, nodding to herself.
“Yes,” she said. “I have definitely seen you before. It was here, was it not?”
“It was,” Matias said, surprised at how steady his voice was.
“You have come back.”
He nodded.
“How interesting,” the nurse said softly. “Don’t you agree?”
“What is?” he asked.
“How you’ve come full circle,” she said, smiling. “This is where you’ll die. Didn’t you know that?”
Matias had feared the same ever since Michael had told him about the move to Sanford.
“Yes,” Matias said in a whisper. “Yes, I suppose I did know it.”
“Oh good,” the nurse said happily. “It always makes me sad when people don’t believe me.”
“Is it today?” Matias managed to ask.
“No,” she said, smiling. “Not today. I’m not sure when. But it is not today. Does that ease your conscience?”
“A bit,” he said, his mouth dry.
“Very good. I will see you on occasion,” she said, and she turned and left the room.
Matias sat in silence, and for the first time in a long while, Matias felt fear.
Chapter 35: The Forces Gather
The small room was crowded. Shane stood with his back against a wall while Dom Francis sat in the room’s only chair. Matias reclined on his bed while Brett and Doc used the other as a couch. Shane’s backpack was on the floor between them all.
Introductions had been made, and an awkward silence filled the room.
“Let’s not all talk at once, eh?” Matias asked.
Shane could hear the trace of a foreign language in the man’s words. English was not Matias’s first language, nor the only one he spoke.
“I think perhaps Shane should lead off here,” Dom Francis said, and he sounded more like a combat veteran than a Benedictine monk.
All of the men looked to Shane, and he inclined his head towards them.
“I’ve brought with me a few tools that I know work for certain,” Shane said, gesturing toward the pack on the floor. “Inside there’s salt, flammables, a shotgun with shells loaded with rock salt, and something new.”
“I’ll bite,” Doc said. “What’s the ‘something new’?”
“I’m very glad you asked,” Shane said. “It’s a herb called Betony. The lore on the plant says it can stop psychic attacks in your sleep if you sprinkle it around your pillow. I’m figuring if we spread it around your beds as well, you’ll be safe.”
“Psychic attack?” Matias asked. “I don’t know of anyone who has been assaulted in their sleep.”
“I have,” Shane said. “When I was here and fell asleep on E Ward, the Nurse came into my dream. She was definitely looking to do me some harm, and if I hadn’t woken up, I know she would have.”
“You’ll leave the betony here for Doc and Matias?” Dom Francis asked.
“Yeah,” Shane said. “At least I planned on it.”
“What else are you thinking?” Dom Francis said.
“I’m not scheduled for my skin graft,” Shane continued, “but I’m not exactly thrilled with the idea of going home and leaving you all to the tender mercies of the Nurse.”
“Appreciate it,” Doc said.
“You’ll stay somewhere close by?” Matias asked.
“Yes,” Shane said, nodding. “I’m going to stay here in the building. Up on E Ward. She obviously likes to visit there more than anyplace else. I’m going to try and figure out a way to draw her out. I think that if I can get her out, talk to her a bit, I might even be able to find out where she’s buried.”
“And if she doesn’t want to talk?” Doc asked. “If she just wants to kill you?”
“That’s what my bag of goodies is for,” Shane said. “I’ll at least be able to protect myself. Give me enough time to get out if I need to.”
Shane looked over at Brett. “So, Doctor, what’s the deal? Do you think I could sneak into a room here?”
Brett shook his head. “No.”
“What?” Shane asked.
“You can't,” Brett frowned. “Listen, security has tightened up over the past couple of days, and I don’t know if it’s because of the increase in deaths or not.”
“Do you think security is in on it?” Doc asked. “I mean, it seems to me like there are more people who know about the Nurse than we thought, right? How else would she get away with this mayhem for so long?”
“Damn it.” Shane rubbed the back of his head. “I really thought I could grab a bed here somewhere. Anywhere.”
“No,” Brett apologized. “We have a few empty be
ds, but security has actually been checking everyone’s pass cards, IDs. You name it, they’re checking. A couple of the staff who regularly park in the visitor section at night had their cars ticketed. So I’m going to go out on a limb here and say you’d probably get tossed out on your ear, if not arrested for trespassing.”
Shane groaned and shook his head.
“What now?” Dom Francis asked.
“Evidently,” Shane said, “I sleep in my car. I was hoping to bunk down in here, and that way set up some sort of watch. Do you guys think you could swing that yourselves?”
“I think so,” Brett said, nodding. “I can try and have Doc and Matias here room together, at least for tonight, then we can work on stretching it out if we have to.”
“Is there anything else we can do to protect ourselves from her?” Matias asked, looking at Shane.
“Two of the big things are iron and salt,” Shane answered. He looked around the room, examining it. “The problem is, the Nurse pretty much comes and goes as she pleases. She moves through the doors, which means we could have the thresholds salted. But when I look at the ceiling, I see the vents. The heating system. The AC. You’ve got cables and wires running out of the walls. Hell, I bet the drop ceiling just cuts straight across the whole ward. I don’t think there’s any real way to stop her from entering the room.”
“So how’s the betony going to help?” Doc asked, a note of concern in his voice. “Seriously, why is she going to bother going into our heads when she can come into the room?”
“I don’t know,” Shane replied. “I’m trying to close off avenues of attack for her. If one of you stays awake and she shows up, I’m hoping you can scream for help.”
He looked at Matias and Doc. “Let’s be honest, this entire situation is terrible. Her decision to not kill you tonight is pretty much up to her; and whether or not you two can get away. The last thing I can do is leave either my shotgun or my knuckledusters.”
Matias laughed and Doc shook his head.
“No,” Doc said. “Pretty sure they’d throw us out, dying or not, if they caught us with either one of those things. We’ve lasted this long.”
Matias nodded. “We shall last a little longer. We’ll keep watch and use the betony to sleep as peacefully as we can.”
“Which brings us back to the question of where you’re going to stay,” Doc said.
Shane shook his head. “I don’t know. I suppose in my car, in the visitor’s lot. I don’t want to drive back to Nashua only to drive back in the morning. If something happens I want to be nearby. I’ve already given my number to Brett here.”
“May I have it as well?” Matias asked.
“Yeah,” Doc added, “we should all have it.”
“Will do,” Shane said.
“Hold on,” Brett said, looking at Dom Francis. “What about religious items?”
“I’m not sure,” the monk answered. “I don’t think they would do anything to prohibit the Nurse or any other ghost who chooses to come in. The items might offer you spiritual comfort, but since the Nurse doesn’t seem to be a demon, I don’t believe your religious faith will have any effect on her.”
“Great,” Brett muttered.
“Sorry,” Shane said. “I do have a question for you guys, though. Does anyone know where the Nurse is buried?”
None of them did.
“Alright,” Shane said. “Do you think there’s any way one of you can find out more information about her?”
“I might be able to,” Brett said. “I mean, if she worked here, which she must have at some point, then there should be something in the system about her. Sanford managed to put all of its records in the online database last year. I can do a search, see if anything comes up.”
“Good,” Shane said. “I couldn’t find anything online as to where she might be buried. If you can dig that up, it’ll work out a lot easier for us.”
“How so?” Matias asked. “How will knowing where her body lies help us?”
“Because then we’ll be able to stop her,” Shane said.
“I’m sorry,” Matias said. “How exactly will we stop her again?”
“We find her,” Shane said, “dig her up, salt her bones, douse them with lighter fluid and then light her up.”
“And that will stop her?” Matias asked.
Shane nodded. “Yup. And there’s a bonus to it too.”
“What’s the bonus?” Dom Francis asked.
“It’ll be a bonfire,” Shane said, grinning. “Hell, we could even bring marshmallows if we want.”
No one thought the joke was funny.
Chapter 36: Who is the Nurse?
Brett wanted nothing more than to clock out. He was stressed and ready to go home.
With a sigh, Brett signed out and he headed for the back stairs. He stifled a yawn as he pushed open the door and walked the six long flights to the hospital’s basement. When he reached the bottom landing, Brett took out his key card, swiped it, and let himself in to the rarely-used portion of Sanford.
A long, narrow corridor, lined with too many doors and populated by few lights, stretched out in front of him. No one else was in the basement with him, and it made him feel worse.
Should have brought some coffee with me, he thought. Brett stepped into the corridor, let the door click shut behind him, and he walked to the far end. He found the records room unlocked, and he let himself in. His hand groped along the inside of the wall until his fingers discovered the light switch. Closing his eyes, Brett turned the overheads on. The bright gleam of the fluorescents penetrated his eyelids, and he turned away in spite of his preparation.
When he dared to look, he found the room smaller and more cluttered than he remembered.
Someone had left half a donut on a paper plate, and the sight of the stale pastry made his stomach rumble, reminding Brett of how hungry he was.
Quiet, he told himself. You’ll eat soon enough.
He went to the desk, pulled out the chair and sat down. Quickly he powered up the computer, the ancient desktop’s tower whirring and clicking. Brett rolled his eyes, threw away the old donut and waited several minutes until the monitor flickered to life. Once it seemed properly warmed up, he logged in and gained access to the hospital’s record system.
He would have preferred to have done the research upstairs, but the idea of someone looking over his shoulder didn’t please him. The fact that there was a living breathing person helping the Nurse sent a shiver down his spine. Brett could understand how a ghost would help her, but not how someone still upright and taking in air could.
Don’t worry about it, Brett told himself. Let’s get the information and be on our way.
He tapped his fingers on the desk, looked at the computer, and then brought up the search screen. He thought about how to research the Nurse, and then he thought, Why not try her name?
Brett typed in ‘Ruth Williamson’ and hit ‘enter’.
The screen went black, flared white, and then showed a screen with a blank entry form. It asked for the password.
Password? Brett thought. How do I know what the password is?
He rubbed the back of his head, stared at the computer and thought for several minutes. Brett typed in all of the basics from around the hospital. “Surgical1”, “Admin1”, and “Sanford2016”. Finally, Brett shrugged and typed in ‘The_Nurse’.
The screen flickered, and a document appeared.
It was simply titled, The Nurse.
Brett leaned forward and began to read.
We welcome you to a Brotherhood of like-minded caregivers. By your dedication to the lives and deaths of our Veterans, you have been selected to join a group which has existed since the end of the Great War. While it is no easy task to care for our wounded Veterans, those whose protection President Lincoln charged the Department with, it is far more difficult to have the strength to help usher our wards into the next life.
Here, in Sanford, where the sick and the cast-off are gathered
, it is sometimes necessary for us to be the merciful hand of Death. You, at some point, have done this task, on your own, and it has been noticed. You may have believed yourself to be acting in the dark, but it was not so.
She noticed.
The merciful Angel, the Nurse, our beloved Ruth Williamson.
It was she who first took up this burden when the men had returned from the Great War. The men broken by combat, sick to death from gas and wounds which would not heal. Then came Influenza, and death nearly as terrible as that upon the field of battle.
Trapped here as they were, weakened as they were, our Veterans were all too easy prey for Influenza, and a thousand other lingering deaths.
The Nurse took the burden of death upon her own frail shoulders. From the first case of Influenza, she realized what needed to be done. She knew she alone had the strength to choose who lived and who died.
Several of us rallied to her, and under her careful leadership, we began to winnow out those who she knew would not survive. We helped her and stood watch outside of rooms as she entered and removed the chaff. We found whatever it was she might need; hypodermics, scalpels, poisons. If she requested an item, we would procure it.
She, alone, had the strength to serve as God’s Angel of Death.
A terrible and glorious strength was in her.
Never did the doctors suspect her. They believed, in their arrogance, that nothing could have been done to help those who died.
Our beloved Nurse was not long for this world, however. In 1920, shortly after the crisis had passed, she was killed by a patient. It is a statement of how much the Veterans loved her that she was buried in the cemetery at the edge of the grounds, beneath the shade of the graceful elms.
She lies with many of the men she had cared for and many more of those she had chosen to move on into the next life.
Brett pushed himself back from the monitor.
She’s here, he thought, blinking. She’s buried in the lot.