2010 NaNo Project Trinity Falls" Part 1

This item is COMPLETELY unedited as it's for NaNoWriMo and is a work in progress...



Trinity Falls



I’d never met my grandfather as he died while my biological mother was still expecting me and once I was given up for adoption, my family history vanished. When my adoptive parents tragically passed in a car accident, I was put into foster care at the tender age of four where I remained until I was eighteen and was thrown out into the big wide world alone. I suffered with depression and anorexia for years; never really knowing how to love myself as I’d never really felt loved by another human being. I had no desire to know my real family; being abandoned as an infant, I felt bitter and would sink further into depression if I saw a mother with her child, showing affection or even scolding. It was all so unnatural to me and yet I was curious to know what it would feel like to feel the loving touch of a father, or hear the scolding voice of a mother. I would never know these things. I hoped someday I could learn to accept it.



My thirty-sixth birthday came and went this year the same as any other. I worked my usual midnight shift in the cheese factory of the town I’d spent most of my childhood in. I still had contact with my last foster family although I’d never grown attached to Mr. and Mrs. Taylor. Mary and Jack had six foster kids at any given time when I lived there and they didn’t have time to cater to every child. I was twelve when I moved into their house after being passed around from home to home for eight years. My file would say I was distant and unresponsive; known to throw terrible fits of anger when touched by an adult, lived in a fantasy world and often told stories of strange beings and an alternate dimension. I’d sneaked a peak into my file when I was in between homes once and when I went to the Taylor family I was careful to keep to myself and keep quiet to prevent being exchanged again. I knew I’d never look upon any foster home as a family docile, so I figured I’d merely bide my time with the Taylors until I could escape the system for good.



I received a phone call at work that night of my birthday and I was surprised to hear the voice of Mary, my foster mother. She said a package had arrived for me there that day. How was I? She wanted to know. Good. It was enough to say. I told her I’d stop by in the morning after my shift. I arrived shortly before 10am and found her sitting on the front step of the house drinking a cup of coffee.



“Hello, Jane,” she said, standing and meeting me half way down the walkway. “Can I get you a cup of coffee?”



“No, thank you, Mary. I have to get home to bed or I’ll never get up for my shift tonight.”



“I’ve been dreaming about you lately,” Mary said. She looked tired.



“Oh?” I was uninterested. I just wanted my package so I could leave. I felt slightly uncomfortable in Mary’s presence.



“I never remember dreams, but these were so terrible, I woke screaming.” The hand that held the coffee cup trembled as she spoke.



“I’m sorry,” I said. “I hope your nightmares end soon.”



“Do you know a man named Elias?” She asked.



“No, I don’t know many men at all other than those on my shift at work. The midnight shift is a lonely existence.”



“If you ever meet him, run away as fast as you can and never look back. Do you hear me?” The look in Mary’s eyes frightened me a little. I nodded in agreement and took a slight step back. “I’ll get your package.” She turned from me then and I realized how thin she’d become since I’d seen her last. Her ribs showed through her tattered robe. I wondered if she was sick and hadn’t told me.



Mary went into the house and was back in a heartbeat, holding a small box wrapped in brown paper. She handed it to me and when our fingers touched briefly she pulled her hand away quickly as though she’d been shocked. Startled, I pulled my own hand away and the package fell to the cement walk between us. I heard a jingling sound as it hit and hoped whatever was in it wasn’t broken.



I crouched down, never taking my eyes off Mary as I picked up the wrapped box. I gave thanks and said my goodbye quickly, then turned on my heel and walked away, holding tight to the small package. I’d never once received a letter or package, especially on my birthday, so the curiosity was more than I could bare. The walk to my apartment felt so much longer and as I unlocked the door and raced up the stairs, I was very conscious of the smile on my face.



I threw my keys on the small table by the door and took the two steps to the couch and sat down. I was about to rip the package open when I saw the delicate printed information on the front. It read,



Miss Trinity Eve

22 Walnut Cr.

Sultana, WA



There was no return address and no zip code. It also wasn’t addressed to me. Immediately I called Mary.



“You gave me the wrong package.” I told her.



“No, it’s yours. That is your birth name. I have to get to work. I’m already late.” She hung up before I could respond.



I stared at the package. Suddenly I did not want to open it. I wondered how Mary would have known by birth name when I didn’t know it myself. How was she privy to such information when I was told my birth records were sealed. I was born in another country and brought into the US by an unknown stranger, taken directly to social services and left there without record of birth or any other information as to who I belonged to.



I set the package on the coffee table in front of the couch and began to pace, never keeping my eyes off it and the strange name on the label. I decided to go to bed and figure it out when I woke.



Sleep did not come easy. I tossed and turned and when I did sleep I dreamed of a bright triangle in a black sky. There was the sound of horses everywhere and the feeling of an electrical current that made the hairs on my arms stand on end. I woke a few hours later drenched in sweat and made my way to the living room. One again I stared down at the package and could wait no longer. I snatched it from the table and ripped open the brown paper to find a silver box adorned with little golden arrows. Carefully I removed the lid and stared down at the contents. Two silver keys laying on a small piece of paper folded into the shape of a triangle. My hand shook as I fingered the edge and slid it carefully from under the keys. I unfolded the thin paper and read the short message.



Dearest Trinity, though you are no doubt surprised to hear of this, there is a home waiting for you. A house on a hill with a winding drive, lined with twenty two walnut trees and resting before a beautiful pond and fields of grapes. Your grandfather left it to me, and now me to you. We await you with open arms...



I read it again. Then once more and another time to make sure I had read it right. What did it mean? Who was waiting for me? Where was this home and how was I supposed to get there? Was it metaphorical? A joke? It hadn’t escaped my attention that I’d lived at 22 Walnut Crescent for six years. Suddenly the door buzzer rang and I jumped. Heart racing I placed the box on the table and went to answer.



“Who is it?” I asked, speaking into the small speaker beside the door.



“I’m looking for Mary,” said a male voice. “I have your vehicle.”



“I don’t own a car,” I said. “You have the wrong person.”



“Mary Taylor?”



“Yes, that’s me, but I don’t own a car.”



“Listen, your name is on the paperwork so it has to be yours. Can you please come down and sign for it? I’ve got like, twenty-two more cars to tow this morning.”



“Fine, I’ll be right down.”



I left my apartment and headed down the stairs to the street. There, in front of the building was a black mustang. A beautiful antique of a car. I was awestruck.



“She’s a beauty, isn’t she?”



I looked to my left and saw a middle aged, but quite handsome man standing there. His hair was dark but contained bits of grey throughout. His eyes were as dark as his hair and sparkled under long lashes. He wore a dark blue uniform and in silver stitching sewn above the left pocket of his shirt was his name. Elias. I backed up slightly.



“Who are you?”



“I work for Miller Towing. Hey, I just deliver the cars. Don’t know anything about them. Can you sign for it so I can be on my way?”



Mary’s words came back to me; “Do you know a man named Elias? If you ever meet him, run away as fast as you can and never look back..” Was this mere coincidence? How many men in the world had that name? I’d guess a lot and I was also pondering Mary’s sanity at this point. Maybe she’d sent me the vehicle? But, then why wouldn’t she tell me instead of wrapping all this mystery around it. Too tired to unravel this one, I stepped closer to Elias, the tow truck driver and took the pen and clip board from him. I stared down at my name and address and looked for a sender.



“You don’t know who is responsible for sending this to me?” I asked.



“Nope. Like I said, I just deliver them.”



I signed the paper and Elias began to walk toward his truck. “What about the key?” I asked.



“Paper says you already received it.” Elias got into his truck and drove away.



I stared at the car and remembered the two keys in the small box. I darted upstairs and retrieved them, hoping one of them would belong to the mustang. I left the building once more and walked around to the driver’s side door. Choosing one of the keys, I slid the cold metal into the keyhole under the door’s handle and turned. It wouldn’t budge. I slid it out and tried the other one. Success! I opened the door and it swung wide smoothly with no creak despite the age of the car. I wondered what year it was; ‘68? ‘69?



The smell of leather invaded my nose and I breathed in deep. I was in love and I hadn’t even sat in it yet or took it for a test drive. Suddenly reality came flooding back to me and I remembered the oddness of it all. I entered the car and sat on the soft seat and began to look around. At once I was dazzled by the intricate dashboard and pristine steering wheel. The car resembled one just driven off the factory line. I knew it couldn’t be, but it appeared so new, so untouched by the years. Snapping back once again I popped open the glove box. There I found only one thing, the registration containing my name. Throwing it back in and closing the small door with a soft thud, I tugged on the visor over my head. A folded pamphlet fell onto my lap. No, it was a map. Canada and the Eastern United States. I shook my head in frustration. This thing was getting on my nerves. I was tired and all I wanted to do was crawl into my bed once more and drift off to dream. I threw the map on the passenger seat and exited the vehicle. I was nearly to the building’s entrance when something made me turn around, go back to the car and retrieve the map. I opened it up and a piece of paper fell out at my feet. A gust of wind caught it and I stumbled after it for a good ten feet before catching it. I didn’t wait; I unfolded the paper and in the same neat script as the note that accompanied the keys was written;



Have a safe trip. Don’t forget the other key.



I let out a sigh and opened the map. Someone had traced in red a very long trip from Washington State to New Brunswick, Canada. What was I supposed to do? I had nobody to call for advisement. Then again, what did I have to lose? I hated my job, my apartment, my entire existence.



An hour later I was on my way. I’d packed a small bag and withdrew all the money in my bank account. I stopped at a convenience store before hitting the highway and stocked up on beef jerky and bottled water. I realized as I was pulling onto RTE 22 that I was actually excited about the prospect of learning something about my birth family.



Six hours into the trip and the silence was getting to me. I turned on the radio and listened to a classic rock station for the rest of the day until I finally gave in and pulled into a motel. As I slept that night I dreamed of the place I was driving toward. A long, endless driveway that led to an old farmhouse with broken out windows and a collapsed porch. To the rear of the house was no grape field that I could see, but a small cemetery and a large stone wall with a closed gate. In the dream I walked up to the giant wooden door and it creaked open before me to reveal a black tunnel.







I woke to the sun peaking through the curtains into the small motel room. I sat up in the uncomfortable bed and immediately regretted it. The room began to spin and a terrible throbbing in my head made me lay back down again. It took me a few minutes to settle my eyes and once more I attempted to sit up. This time I wasn’t nearly as dizzy. I swung my legs over the side of the bed and was about to stand when a loud knock at the door startled me. I stood and walked slowly to the door. I tried to see through the peephole but saw only darkness. I turned the knob slowly and suddenly something forced the door open, sending me to the floor. I landed hard on my elbows and winced. Looking up at the open door I saw a swirling black void before me. I felt compelled toward it and tried to stand. At once, a hand reached through and pulled me into the darkness.



When I woke the second time, I instantly heard the wind and rain outside the motel. I had no trouble with dizziness but was struggling to catch my breath as I attempted to calm myself after waking from such a dream. I stood and walked to the window, drawing the curtains aside and looking out across the parking lot. I saw my new car sitting proudly in front of the motel and cursed. I’d left the window down on the driver’s side. The seat would likely be soaked and I still had a long drive ahead of me.



After running out in the rain and rolling up the car window, I decided a hot shower was in order. The water felt heavenly as it soaked my head and ran down my back. As good as it felt though, I had to make it short as I had many miles to drive and not many daylight hours left to complete the journey. I stopped at the motel’s café and grabbed a muffin and coffee to go before heading back out on the road.



At some point on the road I realized I hadn’t once looked at the map I’d been provided with. Feeling a little panicked at the thought, I pulled over to make sure I was still on the right track. As I sat looking at the map I could feel the wind pulling and shoving the car as I sat on the shoulder of the highway. The rain was getting heavier and I contemplated staying put until it let up, but in the back of my mind I was worried another driver may have trouble seeing the dark car in the rain. Quickly I put away the map and checking my mirrors, pulled back onto the road.



Before I realized how far I’d driven, I was pulling up to the Canada/US border. After a brief conversation with a border patrol officer, I was once again on my way. My heart began to race as I realized how close I was to finally gaining the knowledge of my birth and answers to the questions I’d never been able to ask for the past thirty-six years. I found myself smiling; an act that was normally foreign to me, but I couldn’t help myself. Suddenly I had a vision of my mother standing in front of the broken down house in my dreams. She had long dark hair like mine and was wearing a yellow sun dress and waving to me as I drove up the endless driveway. As I drew nearer to my mother, the house began to fall to pieces behind her. She continued to wave as the house disintegrated and quickly disappeared into a cloud of dust and debris.



I heard a horn honking somewhere in the distance as I accelerated the car to try and save my mother. Suddenly a bright set of lights blinded me and I was forced back to reality. I slammed on my breaks and began to hydroplane on the wet pavement. Instinct setting in I took my foot off the brake pedal and tried to turn into the skid. It didn’t work. I was aware of the car spinning round and round and then reversing and then the sensation of falling backward until I felt a violent jerk and the car finally stopped amid the sounds of crunching metal and breaking glass.







This time the dream was pleasant. I was walking barefoot with my mother through a green field dotted with daisies and dandelions. The warm sun beamed down on us as we strolled along hand in hand, smiling into each other’s eyes. A fragrant breeze blew through my hair and tickled my chin and I marveled a the soft grass beneath my feet. There was no pain and no sadness here. I was about to ask my mother where we were when she suddenly let go of my hand. Once again I had the sensation of falling and I closed my eyes. A sudden pain in my head made me jerk awake and I heard voices outside the car. A flashing red light and then the sound of something ripping apart above my head was all it took to bring me back to reality.



“She’s awake!” I heard a man cry out. “Get that stretcher over here!”



“She looks bad.” A woman spoke this time. “Hard to tell with all the blood. How much time until you can get her out?”



“Nearly there,” another male voice said. “Get that guy away! Jesus, where are the cops?”



I heard other voices. Hang in there. Where’s that stretcher?! You’re going to be fine. I didn’t believe it somehow. I felt myself falling backward again and struggled to keep my eyes open. I didn’t want to be in this moment though. I wanted to go back to the meadow and my mother. I closed my eyes and let myself fall.



I was back in the field of daisies but I was alone. I looked around me and a cool wind breezed by and I crossed my arms as it chilled me instantly. Across the field I saw my mother. The color of her dress began to dull as the daisies wilted before my eyes. A hole opened in the ground between us and I started to run toward her. She was yelling out to me but I couldn’t hear her over the wind. It began to rain and the hole grew larger until there was a great void between us. I peered over the edge and saw only darkness below. I looked toward my mother once more and she was gone.





“Miss? Miss, can you hear me?” A voice called to me in the distance. I looked behind me and saw only darkness. Suddenly I was scared and crouched on the ground. The grass was brown and course under my feet. It felt like needles stabbing into my skin as I wiggled my cold toes. The ground beneath me trembled and the edge of the hole began to crumble and fall into the darkness below. I fell back on my rump and tried to scramble away from the disappearing earth, but my feet were getting caught up in something. The wilted daisies were reaching toward me and wrapping their stems around my ankles, pulling me back toward the hole as it grew larger and closer to me. I felt helpless and scared. I fought to break free from the dead flowers but I was too weak. The edge was an inch from my toes and I’d backed myself up against a hard surface. I turned to see a tall wooden door behind me. I was about to fall into the hole when the door opened and I fell through into safety.





I woke in the bed of a community hospital in a small town a few miles from my destination. I’d been in and out of consciousness for a few days and had trouble remembering the details of the accident once I was fully awake. The doctor on call that day was a thin woman with red hair. She wore no makeup and her freckled skin looked to have spent a great deal of time in the sun.



“How are we feeling today?” She asked as she held a pen to paper, waiting for the nurse to give her my blood pressure reading.



“172 over 82,” the plump nurse spoke in a soft voice.



“Thanks, Nancy,” the doctor said without looking at her. The nurse left the room and repeated her question to me. “How are you feeling?”



“Been better,” I croaked. The sound of my voice scared me a little.



“Do you remember the accident?”



“It was raining.”



“Yes. We had a lot of flooding with that rain.” The nurse stepped back into the room then and requested the doctor’s assistance with another patient.. “ I’ll come back and check on you later.”



“Wait,” I said, but she’d already gone out the door.



The next few hours I spent in and out of sleep, in and out of dreams and with a nagging feeling in the pit of my stomach. I was filled with the desire to get out of the hospital bed and get back to my life. The next time the nurse came in to take my blood pressure I asked about my car.



“I’m not sure, Hunny, but once you get out of here tomorrow you’ll find out.”



“They’re releasing me tomorrow?” I asked. Suddenly the room seemed a little brighter.



“We’ve got a shortage of beds so a little bump on the head won’t keep you here. I imagine you’re looking forward to getting home to your own bed. Your fiancé was telling us about your plans to renovate the old Eve House. You must be so excited to get started.”



“My fiancé?” I asked.



“Yes, Elias has been keeping vigil the last few days. I can see how much he loves you and you couldn’t ask for a better partner in life. All the ladies in town were quite disappointed when they found out he’d finally decided to settle down.”



The nurse had said it herself; it was just a small bump to the head so I wouldn’t have forgotten a little thing like being engaged to someone. Aside from that, I thought it was quite the coincidence that the name Elias had appeared once more. I decided to play along.



“Has he been here today?” I asked.



“He was here this morning, but said something about an errand in the city,” she said. “He’ll be back in the morning I imagine. And I’ll see you again in a few hours. Why don’t you get some rest now.”



“OK, thanks,” I said. I had so many questions but was unsure how to ask them as I watched her ample frame waddle out the door. I decided to follow her advice and get some sleep.



Sleep was a mistake. I dreamed about driving up to the house again toward my mother only this time, instead of the house collapsing to the ground, it rose up in a ball of flames and exploded around me as I watched helplessly from my car. My mother stood there waving as in the other dream, her entire body an unrecognizable mass of burned flesh. I woke with a start. If the nurse had been in through the night I hadn’t heard her. It was day now and the sun was beaming into the room. There was a large window in the room and from my bed I could see a beautiful view of mountains in the distance. Lush hills peppered with color rose and fell like a wave of autumn splendor. My attention was diverted from the view to the door as someone entered the room. I looked to find my doctor standing beside my bed with a clipboard.



“Good news,” she said. “You’re going home.” She handed me a pen to sign my release form.



“So soon?” I asked.



“You’re fine,” she said. “Be sure to get lots of rest when you get home though and if you have any problems you can see me in my office. Elias has been seeing me since he was a boy so I’m sure I can find room in my appointment book for you.” Her smile she gave me then appeared forced and the act made every crease in her face stand out.



“Is...Elias here?” I asked.



“No, he called this morning and said he’d see you at the house later. He got caught up in the city, but we’ve got a cab coming for you.”



“Thank you,” I said.



“No problem, just be sure to take care of that bump.”



Nurse Nancy came in a few seconds later and helped me get dressed. “Where are my own things?” I asked when I didn’t recognize the articles of clothing.



“I’m afraid they didn’t survive the accident. Elias brought these in yesterday. Are they not yours?”



I looked at the sweatshirt and jeans and realized they were from my overnight bag I’d had with me in the car. “Yeah, I was just curious about my other clothes. I was wearing my favorite shirt.” I didn’t want anyone to think I wasn’t who everyone thought I was. At this point, I didn’t even know who I was, or who I thought I had been if that makes any sense.



“No problem, Hunny. I understand that. Just the other day I was wearing my favorite scrub uniform and the one of the new pups from the hudorla litter down the hall leaked lendub all over it. That stuff just never comes out of clothing. No amount of bleach will remove that orange goo.



“Hudorla litter?”



“Yes,” she said brightly, “I suppose you’ve been away so long you didn’t know. We all thought they were extinct when the great plain flooded back in ‘74 but then about three years ago three new hudorla families wandered back into town and since then a lot more have arrived. All kinds of new litters every month. Makes you wonder where they all went but since we can’t speak their language, I guess we’ll never know.”



I was waiting for the punch line and expected the rotund nurse to burst into giggles at any time but instead she merrily hummed as she finished helping me with my clothes and then stripped the sheets off the bed.



“All set?” She asked.



“I guess so.” I was a little light headed but anxious to get out of the Twilight Zone. I was afraid that little bump on my head was worse than the doctor realized yet insanely curious as to what was going to happen once I left the hospital.



The next bit was uneventful. We walked to the nurses station where I waited for my cab to arrive. I looked around me not seeing anything out of the ordinary, but then I heard an odd noise coming from a hallway just to the left of the nurse’s desk. A shuffling sound followed by a mild curse and immediately after a clanking sound as something hit the floor.



“By the sound of it, I guess it’s a good thing you’re leaving before meal time,” the blonde at the desk said. “Those hudorlas are a clumsy race, although they are a whiz in the kitchen.”



I took a few steps to my left and peaked around the corner to where the noise came from. A strange sight greeted me as I looked upon the stubby tailed back end of a small hairy creature struggling to clean up a mess of broken plates, spilled food and utensils. I could hear him cursing repeatedly about someone not showing up for work and not getting any help from what he called, “human horse eaters”.



Curiosity was getting the better of me and I told the nurse I had to use the washroom which was across the hall from where the furry being was still attempting to clean up. I walked cautiously up to the creature and tried to think of something to say.



“Do you need any help?” I asked.



The hudorla startled and turned around toward me. It had a long snout and fanged mouth but its ears and eyes appeared strangely humanlike. I could see at once why it was having trouble with the mess; the little beast had no hands, or at least no digits capable of picking things up.



“Stupid horse eater,” it said in a low growl, turning and attempting once again to clean the mess.



“I’ve never eaten horse meat,” I said. It was all I could think of to say.



“Right, right; I believe that never,” the hudorla grumbled. Suddenly it stood up straight and turned toward me. “You are understanding me?” It asked.



“Yes, you are speaking English, are you not?”



“I speak of no English,” it said, shuffling toward me. Suddenly I realized that “it” was definitely a “he” as he got closer to me and I was aware of the very naked male anatomy below the creatures round belly. “ I speak the ancient language of the hudorla culture,” he said. “How is it that no horse eater has ever been able to learn our language and you appear fluent?”



“I’m sort of new here,” I said. “It was the only excuse I could come up with.”



I heard a flush just then and a moment later Nurse Nancy came bounding out, still humming the tune she’d been annoying me with earlier. She saw us standing face to face in the hallway and stopped humming. “Is the hudorla bothering you, Hunny?”



“No, not at all,” I said. “I was trying to help him clean up his little mess.”



Nurse Nancy walked over to the hudorla and with her hands on her ample hips, she stared down at him. “You clean up this mess at once and leave the patients alone.”



“He wasn’t bothering me,” I said.



“They’re not very bright I’m afraid. If I had a dollar for every hudorla like him, I’d be a millionaire.” Nurse Nancy walked away and began humming once more.



“Stupid horse eater,” the hudorla said.



“I’d say she enjoys horse very much.”



The hudorla laughed suddenly; a growling, snorting, high pitched sound that couldn’t have been identified as laughing any other way other than the look of joy on his furry face could identify. “I like you horse eater,” he said.



“I told you, I don’t eat horse meat.”



“Then, what do you eat?”



“Cows,” I said.



This statement made the hudorla laugh again and I found myself laughing with him. I crouched down then and began picking up the broken plates and utensils. Nurse Nancy appeared a minute later with a mop and I took it from her and smiled though the look she was giving me was one of confusion. She slowly turned and walked away, looking back twice and regarding me as though I’d suddenly sprouted a second head from my neck.



“I thank you for your help,” he said. “My name is Frilot.”



“Nice to meet you. I’m Jane.”



“You are a rare human, being able to talk to us lowly hudorlas. I’ll be sure to ask for blessings in your honor at the Gate of Eve when I arrive home this night.”



“The Gate of Eve? What is that?” I asked.



“Ah yes, you said you are new. There is a library in town. You should go there and prepare yourself for living in this place.”



“Maybe I will. It was nice to meet you, Frilot.”



“You as well. I must return to my duties now, before the horse eater returns.”



I watched Frilot shuffle back down the hallway with his wheeled cart and disappear around a corner. I turned and walked back toward the nurses desk and found an elderly man leaning on the counter. He turned toward me and stood up straight. His face went white and he mumbled, “By Shanlar’s might, you are the spittin’ image of Janella Eve.”



“Who is Shanlar? Wait, did you say, ‘Eve’? I’ve been hearing that name a lot lately.”



“Sorry, I’ve forgotten my manners. I’m Scottie, y’er driver.” He removed a straggly ball cap from his head and extended his hand. “I suppose, if y’er livin’ in the Eve house ya must be distant related in some form.”



“So, I’ve assumed,” I said, shaking his hand. At that we turned toward the exit and as we walked out into the sunshine, I heard a voice. It sounded far away yet close, like an echo both behind and in front of me.



Can you hear me? Jane?



“Did you hear that?” I asked Scottie. He didn’t answer. Instead he stared at me and I could have sworn his face flickered like a television channel losing a signal.



She’s coming out of it.



I looked around but all I could see was Scottie and the parking lot. Then the mountains began to flicker and I heard a steady beeping sound. Suddenly everything went dark. I stood perfectly still and silent. I was aware of my rapid breathing and my heart felt like it would jump out of my chest at any moment. I blinked and the light came back into the world.



“Jane? Can you hear me?” A grey haired man in a white coat was standing over me, shining a light into my eyes. I turned my head away from the light and realized I didn’t remember falling but I was laying down.



“What happened?” I asked. My voice had that same groggy sound as when I’d woke in the hospital.



“You are in the hospital. You were in an accident and have been in a coma for nearly a month,” the man said.



“No, I woke up. I was on my way home.”



“I’m afraid not, Jane. You had quite the bump on your head.”



“No,” I said, attempting to sit up. The instant I lifted my head from the pillow I regretted it. The room went dark again.





I woke sometime later to an empty room and could hear a steady beep beside me. I turned toward the sound and saw someone standing in the doorway of my hospital room. My vision was a little blurry but I was sure it was Elias, the tow truck driver. He quickly backed out of the room before I could call out to him. A thin blonde nurse came in just then and smiled brightly at me.



“Good to see you awake,” she said.



“There was someone at the door.”



“No, I don’t think so,” she said looking back toward the entrance. “A bump on the head will make you see funny things sometimes. You are lucky to be alive.”



“My head hurts,” I said.



“I can give you something for the pain if you like.”



“No, I don’t want to sleep anymore. I want to know what’s going on.” I tried to sit again and this time managed to much easier than last time.



“Take it easy,” the nurse said, propping my pillows behind me.



“When can I go home?” I asked.



“Just as soon as we figure out where your home is,” she said. “You didn’t have any identification on you.”



“The doctor knew my name,” I told her.



“Anyone without ID is labeled Jane or John Doe.”



“My name is Jane,” I said. I couldn’t help but smile.



“Well, then,” the nurse laughed. “I guess we weren’t too far off.” She had a pretty smile.

“Where am I?” I asked. “I mean, what town?”



“Mapleton,” she relied.



“Do you know where the old Eve house is?”



“The house on the hill that burned down last month?” The nurse began to take my blood pressure.



“Burned....down?” I asked, nearly choking on the words.



“Yes, just before you arrived as I recall. They did their best to save it but every time those flames were put out, another spark flared up and burned more and more of the house until there was nothing left but a pile of black ash.” She looked at me then. “Why do you ask?”



“I own that house,” I said quietly.



“But, it’s been empty for nearly forty years,” she said. “I thought the family was dead and gone.”



“No. I was adopted. It was my grandfather’s house.”



“I’m very sorry,” she said. “I hope there was insurance on it.”



“I don’t know,” I said, trying to hold back tears.



“Listen, a friend of mine owns one of the local hotels in town. I bet I can get you a free room for a few nights until you can get on your feet.”



“Thank you, I appreciate it.”



“My name is Nancy, by the way,” she said smiling.



“There was another nurse with the same name,” I said.



“Not at this hospital,” she said. “Well, not for a very long time anyway. I was named for my Aunt and she was a nurse but she was long gone before I was born.”



“Was she a large lady?” I asked.



“Yes, she was. How did you know?”



“I think I dreamed of her,” I said, not knowing any other way to explain it. “How did she die?”



“She was declared dead a few months after disappearing. She left work one night and nobody ever saw her again. Uncle Earl still swears sometimes he hears her, but he’s getting up there in age. I think a little senility is kicking in.”



“I’m sorry,” I said.



“Oh that’s OK. I never met her, and I’ve been told she was a difficult woman to love.” Nurse Nancy looked at her watch. “Oops! I was off five minutes ago. I better run. Another nurse will be in soon to see you. I think Sally is on and I’ll be back in the morning.”



“Thank you,” I said as I watched her walk toward the door.



“No problem,” she said looking back at me over her shoulder. “See you tomorrow.”





I didn’t see much of Nurse Sally that night. I fell asleep not long after Nancy was off duty and didn’t wake again until nearly nine o’clock the next morning. By then, Nurse Nancy was back on duty and chipper as ever.



“Well, good morning, Jane,” she said cheerily. “I hear you had a nice sleep last night.”



“The night went by in a blink. I feel a lot better for it this morning.”



“A little birdie told me you might get out tomorrow,” she said. “And, I talked to Ray about the motel room and he said to tell you you are welcome for as long as you need a room.”



“Thank you,” I said. “I’m not sure how long I’ll hang around for. There’s not much left for me now.”



“That’s too bad,” the nurse said. “You know, the caretaker spent a lot of time at the Eve house. He lives just down the road; I’d bet he’d be able to tell you a bit about the family.”



“I wouldn’t mind talking to him.” Suddenly the day got a little brighter. “What is his name?”



“Elias Walkerton. Nice looking man, but he keeps to himself.”



“Elias? “Are you sure that’s his name?”



“Yes. He moved here about twenty years ago; was in the same class as my oldest brother. Tony tried to set us up once but he said he had a girlfriend who lived away from town. Never saw him with a girl though.”



“Interesting,” was all I could muster. “Maybe you could give me his number?”



“I’ll call him for you if you like.”



“That would be great,” I said. “Thanks.”



“No problem.” She left the room.



I didn’t see Nancy again for the next couple of days so I didn’t know if she’d called Elias Walkerton or not. I wasn’t released the next day as suggested because I was having frequent dizzy spells. It was three days in fact before I was able to leave the hospital and when Nancy showed me to my cab, she informed she she’d not been able to get hold of Elias.



“I’ll give you his number,” she said. “You might have better luck calling him. Then again, now that the Eve house is gone, he’s out of a job. He may have left town already.”



“Thanks,” I said.



“Good luck,” Nancy said as I got into the cab. “I’ll stop by and see how you are doing later tonight when I’m off. Tell Ray I said hello.”



“I will. Thanks again.”



“Bye,” she said smiling.