Chapter 2 - The Shape in the Darkness
Dr. Caldwell ordered the room cleared.
Within minutes, the treatment room contained only the essential staff.
Sarah.
Dr. Caldwell.
The pediatric resident.
The charge nurse.
And Nora’s father.
The ENT attending was on the way from another wing of the hospital.
Daniel Mercer remained beside his daughter.
He had removed his uniform jacket and placed it over the chair.
Without it, he looked less like a Rear Admiral.
More like a man who had been awake for three years waiting for something bad to happen to the only person he had left.
Sarah stood near the monitor.
The image from the inspection scope had been enlarged.
It showed the outer portion of Nora’s right ear canal.
At first glance, there was nothing extraordinary.
A narrow pink passage.
Normal wax.
A faint shadow.
Then, deeper inside, behind a curve that had hidden it from the standard examination angle, there was something else.
A thin grayish structure.
Not a piece of cotton.
Not plastic.
Not a bead.
It appeared attached.
But the image was incomplete.
“We need imaging,” Caldwell said.
“CT?” the resident asked.
“Not until ENT sees her.”
Sarah looked at Nora.
“Would the light make it worse?”
Caldwell considered.
“I don’t know.”
That was the second honest answer Daniel had heard that night.
He seemed to appreciate it more than reassurance.
Sarah approached Nora again.
“Can I ask you about the light?”
Nora wiped her face.
“It gets angry.”
“What gets angry?”
“The thing.”
“Does it move?”
“Yes.”
“How?”
Nora raised two fingers.
“Like this.”
She made a small curling motion.
Sarah felt a chill move across her shoulders.
Dr. Caldwell noticed.
“What are you thinking?”
“I’m thinking we should stop guessing.”
A few minutes later, Dr. Helena Ward entered the room.
She was the senior ENT attending at Baycrest.
Fifty-eight.
Short silver hair.
No patience for drama.
She looked at the chart for less than ten seconds before walking to Nora.
“Hello, Nora.”
Nora stared at her.
Ward crouched.
“I’m Helena.”
“Are you another doctor?”
“Yes.”
Nora frowned.
“I already had five.”
Ward looked toward Caldwell.
He looked away.
Sarah almost smiled.
Ward continued.
“And apparently none of them were clever enough.”
Nora’s mouth twitched.
The first hint of a smile all night.
Ward noticed the scope.
“Who found it?”
Sarah raised her hand slightly.
Ward studied her badge.
“Sarah Vance.”
“Yes.”
“You’ve been here how long?”
“Twenty-two days.”
Ward looked at Caldwell.
“Your new nurse is apparently paying attention.”
Caldwell sighed.
“Thank you, Helena.”
Ward examined the image.
Her expression became serious.
Then she turned toward Sarah.
“What did the child say?”
Sarah repeated Nora’s words.
It wakes up when I look at the light.
Ward looked at Nora.
“Does it only happen when you look up?”
Nora thought about it.
“No.”
“When else?”
“When I close my eyes and there’s a lamp.”
Ward stopped.
“What?”
Nora pressed her hand against her ear.
“It knows.”
Daniel looked toward the doctor.
“What does that mean?”
Ward did not answer.
Instead, she began asking questions.
When had the pain started?
Three days earlier.
Had Nora been swimming?
No.
Had she fallen?
No.
Had anything entered her ear?
Nora shook her head.
Had anyone put drops in her ear?
Daniel answered.
“Yes. The pediatric clinic prescribed them yesterday.”
“Did the pain get worse?”
“Yes.”
Sarah and Ward exchanged a look.
“Where were you before the pain started?” Ward asked.
Nora stared at her rabbit.
“At Grandma’s.”
Daniel’s head turned sharply.
“My mother’s?”
Nora nodded.
Daniel frowned.
“My mother is in Maine.”
“We went before school.”
Daniel thought.
Three days ago.
A weekend visit.
His mother lived in an old coastal house surrounded by pine trees.
Nora had spent most of Saturday outside.
“Did you play in the woods?” Sarah asked.
Nora nodded.
“Near the creek?”
Another nod.
“Did anything crawl on you?”
Nora shook her head.
Then stopped.
Her face changed.
Daniel leaned closer.
“What?”
Nora whispered.
“There was a bug.”
Ward’s eyes sharpened.
“What kind?”
“I don’t know.”
“Where?”
Nora pointed toward her right ear.
The room seemed to lose temperature.
Daniel stared at his daughter.
“You told me you had a bug in your ear?”
Nora looked confused.
“I told Grandma.”
Daniel’s jaw tightened.
“What did she say?”
Nora’s eyes filled again.
“She said it probably flew away.”
Sarah looked down.
Ward slowly exhaled.
“Get the operating room ready.”
Daniel stood.
“What is it?”
Ward turned toward him.
“I don’t know exactly yet.”
“That’s not good enough.”
Ward faced him.
“No. It isn’t.”
The room became very quiet.
Then Ward continued.
“But I can tell you this much. Something is present, and if the child’s description is accurate, it may have been there longer than anyone realized.”
Daniel stared at the monitor.
“What kind of something?”
Ward looked at Sarah.
Sarah had seen the image first.
She knew what the shadow looked like.
She also knew what she was afraid to say.
Ward spoke anyway.
“It may be a living organism.”
Nora screamed.
Not because Ward had raised her voice.
Not because anyone had touched her.
The words alone were enough.
Daniel immediately moved to her.
“My girl, look at me.”
Nora shook her head violently.
“It’s waking up!”
The monitors began beeping.
Sarah grabbed the inspection scope.
“No overhead lights!”
The room dimmed.
Nora gasped.
Then, slowly, her body relaxed.
Ward looked at Sarah.
“Explain that.”
Sarah shook her head.
“I can’t.”
But somewhere beneath the silence of the darkened room, Nora whispered.
May you like
“It knows when you know.”
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