In Malevolent Hands by John A. Connell

Author:John A. Connell [Connell, John A.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: NailHead Publishing
Published: 2019-05-25T22:00:00+00:00

8

It was late afternoon by the time Mason returned to the ward. He acted as though everything was fine as he greeted the nurses and some of the other patients, but he was more than ready to pull off his uniform, get into the hospital pajamas, and crawl into bed. The burst of activity had left him exhausted. He’d come a long way in recovery from the first few days after liberation, but at that moment, it appeared he had some time to go before he was in full form.

After changing in the locker room, he crossed the ward to his bed. That’s when he saw that DeAngelo had turned pale and stared up at the ceiling as sweat beaded on his forehead.

Mason stood over DeAngelo’s bed. “Frankie, are you okay?”

DeAngelo opened his glassy eyes to peer at Mason. “They poisoned me,” he said weakly.

“So, not so good. Have the nurses been looking after you?”

DeAngelo furrowed his brows. “Who do you think gave me the poison?”

Mason leaned over and felt DeAngelo’s forehead. It was hot to the touch. He walked over to Nurse Vinings, who was taking the temperature of another patient. He cleared his throat to get her attention.

When she turned to him, he said, “DeAngelo looks pretty bad. He’s hot to the touch. What’s happening to him?”

“A secondary infection is causing the fever. But he also went raving mad when an orderly tried to give him lunch. He jumped out of bed and thrashed around, tearing his stitches and banging the back of his head. The doctor thinks that outburst caused a blood clot to move.” She signed and looked concerned. “You’re his friend, right?”

“Yeah, we get along fine when he’s in his right mind. I wouldn’t want to wake him out of deep sleep.”

“Has he been talking to you or done anything other than just lie there?”

Mason wasn’t about to tell her that DeAngelo thought they were poisoning him. “Not much in the last two days. I don’t know why. Maybe he’s upset that I’m getting better.”

“You’re not the only one. He hasn’t spoken to anybody. He seems really down in the dumps, and I think his condition has gotten worse because of it. It’s like he’s lost his will to live. I’ve seen it before. Sometimes, when a patient gets to that state, they can pass when there’s nothing seriously wrong with them.”

Mason glanced back to DeAngelo. “Keep an eye on him, would you?” he asked the nurse.

Nurse Vinings nodded, and Mason went back to DeAngelo’s bedside. “Hey, Frankie. You’ve got to get your spirits up. It’s not good for your health. And you’ve got to stop going on rampages like that.”

DeAngelo said nothing.

“Can I do anything for you, buddy?” Mason asked.

DeAngelo came out of his stupor as Mason had uttered the magic words. “You can find out who poisoned me,” he said.

“I don’t think anyone poisoned you.”

“They keep giving me shots. Who knows what’s in them?”

“The nurse says you’ve got an infection. It’s probably medicine to make you feel better.

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