Chapter 8

Suzi’s senses were on high alert. The indistinct murmur of two men’s voices and the distant echo of a dog’s bark filled her ears. She strained to decipher their words, but their conversation remained an elusive puzzle. Her eyelids felt as heavy as lead, refusing to obey her command to open. A searing pain radiated from her chest, intensifying with each slight jostle of her body. It was as if she was in motion. The pain was a relentless tormentor, gnawing at her consciousness. She yearned for the sweet oblivion of unconsciousness, a wish that was soon granted as the pain overwhelmed her senses, plunging her back into darkness.

Suzi’s consciousness flickered back to life, like a candle in the wind. The pain was a constant companion, albeit somewhat dulled. Her limbs felt trapped, pinned down by an unseen force. Her right arm was an island of cold in a sea of discomfort. The sensation of movement returned, faster this time, akin to being in a vehicle. She blinked slowly, her vision clearing to reveal the sterile interior of an ambulance.

“Mrs. McCord, don’t worry. We’ve got you. Just relax,” a voice assured her.

Suzi responded with a whisper, barely louder than a breath.

“Dude, I think she just called you a ‘bitch’,” a second voice chuckled.

A force other than pain was vying for her attention, an intravenous call to surrender. She yielded to it, allowing it to sweep her away.

Awakening for the third time, Suzi initially thought the past week had been a nightmarish dream as the scene mirrored her awakening a few days prior, minus the girl with brown and green hair. The throbbing pain in her ribs shattered that illusion. She was free from her restraints, and an IV line snaked into her right arm. Glancing at her arm, she noticed the scratches from the imp’s attack had healed. They were minor injuries, but their healing indicated a passage of days.

A wave of disappointment washed over her as she realized neither Rio nor Aiden were there to greet her. Perhaps they had grown tired of her stubborn refusal to seek medical help and didn’t want to condone her recklessness. Or maybe they were out getting coffee. The room was devoid of windows, leaving her clueless about the time of day. The clock read 6:38, but she couldn’t tell if it was morning or evening. It was a quiet time for a hospital, regardless of the hour.

She lay there, immobilized by pain. The ‘Call Nurse’ button was out of sight, unreachable without causing more discomfort. She assumed either Rio or Aiden would walk through the door, or a doctor or nurse would come to check her vitals.

Time seemed to crawl at a snail’s pace. She tried to distract herself, counting the ceiling panels fourteen times, calculating the room’s square footage by multiplying the edges of the panels. She estimated it to be around 210 square feet. She attempted to count the passing seconds, closing her eyes as soon as the clock changed, counting to sixty, and checking her accuracy by the time displayed when she opened her eyes. After five attempts, she could count sixty seconds perfectly.

By 6:53, she was convinced neither Aiden nor Rio were present. She tried to lower her oxygen levels by holding her breath, but the resulting pain was unbearable.

“That’s it!” she exclaimed, immediately regretting her outburst as pain flared in her ribs.

She remembered her visit to ‘Guillermo’ while embalming Mr. McGillicuddy, without her reflection. She closed her eyes, attempting to slow her breathing, visualizing her heart rate, and willing it to decrease. Aiden had tried to teach her meditation years ago, but it had only caused her anxiety. Now, off her meds for two weeks, she was free of anxiety and depression, and she had a clear goal - Guillermo. Time seemed to pass faster there, and a drop in her vitals might bring a doctor or nurse sooner.

At 6:55, she cleared her mind, relaxed, and focused on her breathing. She inhaled the good, blue air, held it, then exhaled the bad, red air. She visualized the blue air filling her lungs, her heart pumping the oxygen-rich blood throughout her body and into her brain. Relaxed and breathing, she focused on her brain. She felt as if she was hypnotizing herself, diving deeper into her mind.

She saw nothing at first. Then she imagined a golden cord. No, she didn’t imagine it; it was there. She could feel it. She reached out to touch it, and her eyes opened - not her physical eyes, but eyes she had never used before. Before her was a vast darkness, not unlike Guillermo, but infinitely larger.

Colors exploded in her mind.

Colors she had never seen before. Pools of color, moving - swimming through space in the shapes of people and animals. Every hue imaginable and many colors she could not even name. Some were bright, almost blinding. Some were dull. Some were pinks, greens, oranges, reds, blue, light blue… even the brown colors were amazing. She surmised there were probably pools of white, but she didn’t see any. She also assumed there were pools of blacks, but they would be nearly impossible to see against the black background. Some even changed colors as they interacted with each other. Some looked like they were eating, fishing, reading, bowling, sleeping, having sex - really anything imaginable.

She thought of Aiden, and almost instantly, she was taken to a blue pool in his shape. He was sitting, tapping his foot. He was worried.

She thought of Rio and was instantly taken to a yellowish-orange pool in her form again. She was lying on a bed with a phone in her hands. She tried to call out for her, but no sound came.

She thought of Reed, Rio’s twin brother, and Suzi and Aiden’s only boy. His shape was in a pink-hued pool with a green hue pool partially on top of him with what looked like their head bobbing…

She shook her head and thought of Aiden again. He was still sitting, now rubbing his head. His color was changing from blue to orange.

She thought of Maeve, their oldest daughter. Suzi recognized her shape. Her color was somewhere between pink and purple. She was hitting something solid with what Suzi could only surmise was a hammer. She wished she could see more.

Try as she might, Suzi could not perceive her own color or brightness. When she tried to look at herself, she only saw a golden cord. It felt as though several minutes had passed, and time passed slower here, so she was guessing a few hours had passed in reality. She pulled hand over hand on the golden cord that led to her mind and quickly focused back into reality.

“What the fuck,” she whispered in quiet disbelief at what she had just experienced. Her eyes open in wild bewilderment.

She looked at the clock. 6:56.

“What the fuck!” she said in disbelief at what she felt was impossible.

The door opened, and in walked a man she would have recognized if she were blind—Aiden. He was not carrying coffee or anything else, for that matter. He rushed to her side.

“We’ve got to stop meeting like this,” he told her, smiling through tears in his eyes and putting his hand on hers.

She smiled and chuckled, then cringed. “Don’t make me laugh. It still hurts.”

“I’m glad the paramedics got to you in time. I rushed up but…”

“You rushed?” Suzi looked confused. “What day is it?”

“It’s Monday night. Rio and I left less than 48 hours ago.”

Her mind reeled.

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

“The ring indicated that there was an emergency, and the app said your breathing and pulse were low, and your blood pressure was dropping. I could not reach you, so I called 9-1-1 and dispatched them to your apartment. My fear was that you had another ‘episode.’ When I finally found out what hospital they had brought you to, they told me you had fallen on a mirror and thought it punctured your heart.”

“I’m sure it was close. Obviously, if it had, I would be dead.” She paused, looking at him, and turned her hand over in his so they were palm to palm. “Thank you, Aiden.”

“You know there is no need to thank me.”

“If it weren’t for you, I would be dead.”

“We both know you are going to live forever. You are too ornery to go to Heaven, and Satan won’t let you into Hell because he’s afraid you’d take over,” he laughed to himself, his satire in contrast to his actual beliefs.

Her eyes went wide.

Seeing the shock on her face, Aiden added. “I’m joking, hon.”

She faked a smile. “I know. I’m just tired.”

“Okay. Rest up.” He leaned down, kissed her on the forehead, then sat in the guest chair. “Oh, do you want me to call Nick and let him know you’ll need to be out some more?”

“I’ve already taken the week off.”

“Okay. Good.”

“I had an ‘episode’ at work yesterday,” she blurted.

Aiden looked concerned and angry at the same time. “We’ve got to figure out what is going on. These seem to be getting worse.”

“Who’s ‘we?’” said the hateful Judy personality.

“Can I tell you something?” she asked him.

“Of course.” He stood once again and took her hand.

“Are you going to think I’m crazy?”

“Not any more than usual.”

She sighed. “Something is going on. I’m in the middle of something I don’t yet understand.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well,” she started, unsure how to begin explaining things. “Ever since I saw Dr. Adamson get shot, I’ve been able to see my personalities in my head.”

“Like Annie, Spike, James, and everyone? Before you couldn’t see them?” Aiden already knew about the different personas Suzi carried with her.

“I could visualize them, but this is different. It’s like I can see them physically in different rooms with their different outfits and belongings.”

Aiden pondered. “Interesting. What else is going on?”

“Well, there is a new one. She is a warrior, fierce. I’m calling her Judas.”

Aiden smiled and nodded his head. “I like it.”

“I didn’t choose it. There were signs. I think she did. She is scary. I don’t think I can control her.”

“I thought you were in control of all your personalities? You got to pick and choose which aspects or who was in charge.”

“With the others, that is true. But she took over when…,” she paused, “….when I was sort of attacked.”

“What!” Aiden was angry. “Who attacked you? When?”

“That is a little more difficult to explain. It was while I was asleep. A demon attacked me.”

“You mean someone dressed as a demon broke in and attacked you?”

“No. Not so much. It was an actual demon – who attacked me. I think he came from the void.”

“The void?” He stared at her. “You’re not joking, are you?”

“Do you think I’m crazy?”

“This is a lot to process.”

“You’re telling me.”

“So, what happened with the demon? Judas kicked its ass back to the void?”

“I’m not sure. I think I passed out, but now the demon is in my head with the other personalities in an empty room.”

“Excuse me?” he asked, wild-eyed and bewildered. “I’m not sure I understand the complexities of having an empty personality room in your head or what it means to have a demonic personality.” Realizing that if anyone else had heard this conversation, they might have her committed to a psychiatric hospital, he asked, “Have you told anyone else this stuff?”

“I told Father Gil. He thinks it's trauma or PTSD or something, but he gave me a blessing to be on the safe side.”

“Well, I kind of hope you are hallucinating, and he is right.”

“So, now I’m stupid?” The Judith personally spoke out, not enjoying being told she was wrong.

“That’s not what I said. If you are right, what are the ramifications? This opens a whole world of supernatural possibilities.”

“Yeah, like if demons are real, then God is real, and everything in between?” Suzi added.

“Yeah, something like that.” Aiden swallowed hard as some of the color faded from his face. “So, all of your people are in the void?”

“No, they are in a different place, I think. I call that place ‘Guillermo,’ but I’ve only been to the void, I think, one time.”

“What did it look like?”

“Black and infinitely vast, almost like space, but the environment is there, you just see it differently. People were colors and you could travel to anywhere you can think of.”

“That sounds…. Amazing,” he said in wonder. “So, you were there when the demon attacked you?”

“No. I was asleep in my apartment. It somehow jumped from the void to me. I don’t know how yet, but the why it gave me was because my ‘aura was pretty’.”

“Well, it’s good to know that your beauty transcends dimensions,” Aiden joked. “Did you see other demons in the void?”

“I don’t think so. I don’t know. I didn’t really know what I was looking at or what to look for.”

“I wonder if…” he started, then a knock at the door and a young fit nurse, with flaming red hair, walked in.

“Hi, Mrs. McCord. My name is Sylvia. I’ll be your nurse tonight. I need to take your vitals and check your sutures.”

Aiden stepped back and let the nurse between him and Suzi.

“It’s Burch,” Suzi corrected.

“I’m sorry?” the nurse asked.

“It’s Ms. Burch, not Mrs. McCord.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. Mr. McCord here said you were his wife.”

“We are married, but I still go by my maiden name.”

“I see,” the nurse said as she continued taking Suzi’s blood pressure.

“Anyhow…” Aiden said as he circled the bed, looking slightly disappointed. “I wonder if there is someone we can consult with about…” he looked at the nurse, watching the sphygmomanometer gauge on the cuff, “…your recent trips.”

“There is, but it’s frustrating talking to them. Their voice is annoying. Kind of like a high-pitched, whiney, tiny dog.”

“A book then?” he suggested.

“Maybe.”

“Are you going on a trip?” the nurse interrupted as she pulled the cuff off Suzi’s arm. She grabbed Suzi’s wrist and started counting on her watch.

“A guilt trip,” Aiden joked.

Suzi frowned and gave him the finger.

The nurse smiled. “Everything looks good, but I am going to have to pull the gauze off to check your sutures,” she said, motioning to Aiden to leave the room as she exposed his wife’s bare chest.

Aiden left the room. The nurse began helping Suzi sit up, pulling her gown down and unwrapping the gauze from around her chest.

“So, are you planning a vacation?” the nurse asked.

“What?” Suzi asked, confused.

“You were talking about taking a trip.”

“Oh. Yeah. I’m going. He’s not. But there is a sort of language barrier, and I’m not sure where to go, or what to do when I get there,” Suzi explained.

“When my fiancé and I went to Mexico, we hired the hotel’s cabana boy as our tour guide. He had lived there all his life, so he knew all the best places and told us about the history of places and shortcuts. Stuff like that.”

She exposed the stitches to the air and lightly pressed on the area.

“These look really good. The doctor did a great job. You are already showing signs of healing after just a few hours. Very little leakage.”

She began wrapping a fresh gauze over the wound.

“A cabana boy, huh?” Suzi asked, thinking more than what she was saying.

“She fucked him,” inferred Annie.

“I bet HE fucked him,” suggested James.

“Maybe a three-some?” Suzi said aloud, caught off-guard by her thoughts and the conversation in her head.

The nurse looked at her, startled, and began to blush. “Um, excuse me?”

Suzi looked at her, surprised at what she just said. “Umm…” She was at a loss for words and her eyes were large as saucers.

The nurse paused her application of the gauze and looked into Suzi’s eyes. After an uncomfortable few seconds, Sylvia blinked and stood.

Finally, she smiled, and said, “I’m flattered. Thank you. Were you thinking you, me, and your husband, or my fiancé?”

“No. I was… asking… if you… and your fiancé…. had a three-some with… the cabana boy.”

She stumbled over her words and paused out of embarrassment, trying to think of a way out of this embarrassing conversation.

“Oh. Well, yes, we did. We like our adventure.” She quickly continued applying the gauze. “I know this is unprofessional of me. I should not be talking about this, but if you and your husband would like to swing, you are both pretty sexy. And your husband smells delicious. I want to lick him!” She giggled.

“Oh, okay. Thank you, I guess,“ Suzi said, almost as a question. “I’ll ask him and let you know,” she said quickly, knowing she would most definitely not be asking him.

The nurse smiled and taped the gauze down. Suzi surmised the tape did not need to be applied directly over her right nipple nor be rubbed down with her thumb so many times. She felt violated. Empty. Like the nurse has taken her innocence.

“That reminds me,” the nurse said, pulling a small bag of jewelry out of her pocket. “These are yours.” She smiled knowingly and sat the bag on the side table.

Suzi saw her body jewelry and the purple, iridescent ring Aiden had gotten her on her birthday two days before.

She helped Suzi slide the gown back up and opened the door. Aiden stood across the small hall from the door, looking up from his phone. She smiled at him and winked.

“You can come in.”

Suzi felt that was a bit sultry and meant in more ways than Aiden may have understood.

“That bitch!” the Suzanne and Judith personalities said at the same time.

Aiden walked towards the door, and the nurse purposely leaned her back against the door with her pelvis pushed out like she was in mid-thrust, so he had to turn sideways, his crotch very close to hers. She licked her lips.

“Everything ok?” he asked both women, confused and uneasy.

“Yes. Everything looks perfect,” Sylvia said, biting her lip and looking him up and down before leaving the room.

As the door shut, Aiden looked at his clearly angry wife, raised a questionable eyebrow, and pointed at the door with his thumb over his shoulder.

“We need to talk,” Suzi said to him, matter-of-factly.

“Okay. What’s up? Are you dying?”

“No. Two things- A. I want a new nurse and 2. We are never going back to Mexico.”