On the Edge of Humanity Read Free Page A

door with the word bathroom on it appeared in the distance. An alcove framed a small window to my left with blinds that were creased together. On my right, a curtain separated the room in half and an IV pole stood tall next to me. The only people in the room I could see were the doctor and the nurse. Maybe Sam was on the other side of the curtain and they didn’t want me to see him.
    Then it occurred to me. Was Cliff dead? Maybe he was in the bed next to me. Oh shit! I tried sitting up, slowly this time, but the pain in my ribs was still there. I took in a breath and another burning sensation slithered down inside me. I touched my left side, then my right. I was wrapped in a thick layer of bandages. Blood rushed to my face. The pain on my left cheek pierced through me as if the knife were slicing through me all over again. I winced and my heart raced as if it were trying to beat an opponent to the finish line.
    Suddenly, the monitor near my head accelerated and chirped frantically. The nurse approached.
    An object in the distance thudded to the floor. The room went silent except for the monitor, which was still belting out a fast cadence in line with my heartbeat.
    A door opened. The heels of someone’s shoes scuffed against the tile floor as leather rustled together. A tall black man appeared around the curtain dressed in dark blue pants, a light blue shirt and a leather jacket with a badge on the outside.
    “Is there a problem in here? I thought I heard a bang,” the officer said. He walked up to the bed, scanning the room, and his gaze rested on the bathroom door.
    I silently recited the Hail Mary, praying Sam wasn’t in the room. The monitor slowly decelerated. My heartbeat slowed and my brain screamed, Amen .
    Why was there a cop outside the door? I didn’t do anything wrong. Maybe Hilda told the cops something different. But how would she know? She didn’t come to my rescue.
    I closed my eyes and dipped back into my memory. The sensation of Cliff slicing the knife through my cheek sent a chill down my spine. I opened my bottom jaw and moved it side to side. As I moved my jaw to the right, the tightness eased and warm liquid seeped out. It soaked the edge of the bandage near my mouth and a drop of blood dribbled in.
    The blood touched my tongue and it danced around my palate. Visions of what happened earlier tonight came soaring back. My mind blurred. The desire for blood overwhelmed me, and I screamed.
    Everyone turned and looked at me. The cop sprinted over to the bed. The doctor just walked, as if he didn’t care. The EKG machine picked up speed again and my breathing grew shallow.
    “What’s going on?” asked the cop.
    “Please wait outside, Officer Bradley.” Dr. Case’s voice had a stern tone to it. “Nurse Grey, please get me two ccs of diazepam, stat.
    It was weird how one minute the doctor didn’t seem to care and the next minute he was barking out orders.
    The nurse’s brows lowered and she squinted at Dr. Case. “But, Doctor, you don’t know how it will react—”
    “Get it now, Ms. Grey!”
    As I savored the drop of blood, I watched the nurse run out of the room behind the cop. The doctor looked at his watch as if he were late for an appointment. This dude is one weird doc! Is he nervous about something?
    Then Dr. Case grabbed his stethoscope. “Where does it hurt, Ms. Mason?”
    I looked up and our eyes met. A look of terror was etched on his face.
    Now I was convinced he belonged in a hospital but not this one—one for the insane, and he should be the one behind bars.
    As I stared at the crazy doctor, I reached up to touch my face, just to be sure Cliff hadn’t carved a Frankenstein look on me. All I could feel was the bandage on my left cheek and smooth skin on my right.
    So, if not that, what were his brown eyes silently trying to tell me?
    My insides were about to burst with the desire for blood, and the pain in my chest was about to explode.
    “Is something wrong?” I asked.
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