The door opened and one of the officers poked her head into the room. “Miss Mabel? What’s wrong?”
Aww hell, they were seeing her crying. Mabel tried to wipe her nose with her hand to answer, still heaving and now it was just plain painful to breathe. She swallowed and shook her head.
The girl entered and sat down on her other side. Now she was sandwiched between her dog, who was getting up to lick her face and this officer who was offering the box of tissues.
“It’s okay! It’s okay, I promise. We’re not going to let them kill you.” She hugged Mabel. “Please don’t cry.”
The other looked in. “What’s wrong? Did you say something?!”
Mabel shook her head again and swallowed again. She finally replied, “Ain’t nothing y’all did.”
The guard took a tissue to Mabel’s eyes. “What’s wrong Miss Mabel?”
She gained enough composure back to finally reply, “I’m scared.”
“Scared?” The two exchanged looks and the first added, “That’s a new one.”
“I wonder if he gave her a bad prognosis,” the second said.
Mabel nodded and said, “Wants me in a clean area. Got Thread in my lungs too from that reclamation truck blowing by me too.”
The first guard hugged her a little closer. “I’m sorry, Miss Mabel. I really am. There anythin we can do?”
Mabel swallowed again. “If I do get dragged on outta here, and they do decide to execute me. If they do that, I want you to promise me it’s gonna be fast. That they ain’t going to just shoot me in the gut and let me bleed out.”
“You ain’t dying today,” the second guard said. “You got enough evidence in your favor that they ain’t going to think about it.”
“Hasn’t stopped no one before.” Mabel wiped her eyes again. “But you gotta promise me that. That I ain’t going to feel it.”
The first officer nodded and looked her straight in the eye. “If it ever came to that, which it isn’t, I swear to you that I’ll make sure that it’s as quick as can be. That you won’t feel nothin.”
The second looked around, and then asked, “Oh lord Jesus, is that a morphine drip?”
Mabel nodded. “Yeah. Yeah, Scaver’s lung is pretty painful The thread’s gonna make it worse.”
“Oh Miss Mabel… I’m sorry.”
They seemed to be genuinely upset by this. She was surprised that they did care enough to be upset by the fact she was dying.
“You were sitting here thinking about dyin, weren’t you?”
“Well, I’m facin it and it’s damn scary right now, I tell you what.” She blew her nose. “…Thankya. Didn’t even think about needing the company right now.”
The first fit the oxygen mask back over Mabel’s mouth. “You take some deep breaths. We won’t go nowhere until your doctor gets back.”
“You know, we forget sometimes that you’re pretty young. I think everyone does.”
“Yeah, You come off as bein much older,” the second said. “I think that part of it is the whole you tellin people what’s what. And you take care of everyone.”
“You gotta take some help from others sometimes,” She said. “You know, you got people who try and look out for ya because you look out for them.”
Mabel nodded, feeling the panic go down in her chest as she breathed in and out.
“Just don’t want to cause no one issues.” She said.
“What in the name of medicine are you doing to my patient!”
The doctor walked back in. “Get off that bed!”
“Hey, she was cryin so I came in to comfort her,” she replied. “She’s the best charge we ever could have asked for. I don’t wanna see her upset.”
“For being elf beaters you two are far too nice.”
“Miss Mabel’s kind to us, we’re kind back. She’s got basic decency towards everyone, unlike the others who don’t wanna cooperate.”
The second nodded. “You ready? I bet ya money someone’s already waiting downstairs to see what’s taking so long.”
The first gave her another hug and stood up. “We’ll be back to come and help you get back to your house, Miss Mabel. Don’t you worry.”
The doctor ushered them out with the clip board saying, “The sooner you two report in, the sooner I can start the discharge for Miss Corrine. I have to make sure that there won’t be trouble when she leaves the hospital.”
“Aye aye, Doctor,” The second said, ducking out of the room. “I’m hopin this doesn’t mean a complete reassignment.”
The other young lady replied, “Providing that we don’t die when we step on outside, can’t see that happening any time soon.”
The doctor sighed and asked, “Do I need to order something for you to calm down? Or are you okay?”
“Some nice herbal tea would be nice. And getting this mask off too.”
“Keep the mask on, I’ll check on the teas we have in stock to make sure that nothing will interact with the medication you’re on.” He moved to follow her officers. “It’s the least I can do after all of that.”
The door clicked shut after them. She looked down at Chunk and said, “Well, that ain’t my strongest moment, Chunk.”
She whined and licked at her again. Twice, then a third time before Mabel put her hand on the dogs back.
“Don’t you worry none, Okay? I’m gonna find you a good place to go before I kick the bucket. I promise.”
The dog grumbled as if begrudgingly accepting this. She took another deep breath and laid back. Damn introspection. The dog gave a heavy sigh and put her head on Mabel’s chest. Her fat head was heavy, but it was a comfort so she let it stay there. Mabel stroked the dog a few times and closed her eyes. Normally she’d just pull out everything, but she was tired and there was panic all around her and that got tiring too.
Seemed to only be a few seconds before she woke up to a nurse pulling the needles out of her arm. The young lady started when Mabel shifted.
“I’m sorry. Didn’t mean to wake you.”
“No, no it’s okay. I gotta get home anyway,” she replied.
“You’ll be glad to know that you’re going to be released into your own care.” She bandaged Mabel’s arm and helped her sit up. “How’s your pain?”
“Better than last time I was awake. How long was I sleeping?”
“Well, it’s morning now, so I’d say quite a while.” She crossed her arms. “Now, your pain level.”
“It ain’t nothin to worry about.”
“Oh no you don’t. You’re not doing that this time.” The nurse raised her eyebrow at Mabel. “I know that you were pretty bad when you came in. Don’t be stubborn with me again, Miss Corrine.”
Mabel sighed. “You ain’t lettin me out of this, are you?”
“No.”
“Uncomfortable to breathe in and out. Feel like my lungs are getting constricted.”
“Alright. We can get something for the pain. Not sure what we can do for the constriction. That’s probably the Thread that got in there.”
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“I suspect so. I think I might have something in my daddy’s library that might help. So I’ll check there.”
She nodded. “We got a whole lot of people from near the explosion site that just had their insides all squeezed to nothing. Most of ‘em died. Some of ‘em killed themselves before getting here.”
“Thread ain’t no thing to laugh at,” Mabel said. “Much as we like jokin about it bein not so bad, It messes people up but bad.”
“You ain’t gotta tell me,” the nurse replied with a nod of her head. “Now your daddy was a good shaman so if you find something in his books that can help us before we evacuate you let us know. We got a couple of doctors and nurses here who should be able to pull off the preparations necessary.”
“I will,” she replied. “Am I supposed to be takin anythin with me?”
“Doctor’s gonna come and talk to you.” She turned and picked up a pile of clothes. “The ESLE brought by some clothes for you. They’re gonna be waiting downstairs for ya.”
Mabel took them. “Thank ya kindly. I think that I got getting dressed handled.”
“You know how to get a hold of me if it goes south,” The nurse said. “I’ll tell the doctor you’re about ready.”
The nurse left, leaving mabel to pull on her clothes. Those girls managed to bring her some of the newer items. That was good, cause they probably ruined that last set of clothes getting them off of her to get her breathing again. They felt just loose enough. That was good. From the chair in the corner of the room, Chunk wagged her tail, not bothering to get up. As Mabel was pulling on her socks, she heard a knock on the door.
“Yeah, you can come in,” she said. “Now where in the gorram hell is my hat…”
The doctor opened the door and stepped in. “I expected you to be struggling with those clothes, I admit.”
“Life’s too short to be strugglin to dress yerself,” she replied. “You know where my hat is?”
“It’s under Chunk,” the doctor replied.
Mabel raised her eyebrows at Chunk. “Bring me my gorram hat, Chunk!”
Chunk barked at her once, howling a little at the end of it, tail wagging a little more enthusiastically. She didn’t move, however. Of course she didn’t.
“In any case, Mis Corrine. How are you feeling?”
“About as well as I expected, which is probably a bad thing.”
“Considering you really should be on bed rest, yes,” he replied. “Because I know you’re going to go and work your tail off the second you get out of here.”
“Sounds about right.” Mabel said. “So what have you got for me?”
“The nurse told me you’re going to see if there’s anything in your father’s books to relieve Thread in the lungs, So just be careful about it. We appreciate the offer of letting us know.”
“Least I can do since I can’t really do the healin myself.”
The Doctoro crossed his arms. “Let’s talk about that clean zone idea, Miss Corrine.”
Mabel sighed. “I keep tellin ya, Doctor, they ain’t going to let me in. And I still probably won’t make it.”
He sighed. “I’ve found one that will.”
“Bull shit.”
“Language.” He frowned. “I have no reason to lie to you. And I did find one that’s willing to take you.”
“Who’s actually kind enough to do that for an Elf? Really, cause it’s real hard for us to own property.”
The man raised his eyebrows. “Me. I am. It’s a clean Zone that I bought when your condition started to decline rapidly.”
Mabel paused, and stared at him. He started to pace.
“My stance on the institutional racism your kind faces has never been secret. I find it morally objectionable. No, disgusting actually.”
“Well you try tellin that to the people who think they’re right.”
“I’ve tried and I keep trying.” He stops pacing. “Your kind is dying out, Mabel. Rapidly.”
“Don’t tell me you’re trying to make a space to protect me,” Mabel said.
“Don’t be angry with me,” he said. “It’s a small area, big enough for your wagon, maybe a few other buildings and a small farm. In a clean area your medication can start reversing the damage done.”
“Why?”
“Because I want to help you. I want to help others like you. Your kind has the largest occurrence of Scaver’s lung, the highest percentage of cancers, of birth defects, of complete corruptions.” He ticked these off on his fingers. “Scientifically, we’re not even sure there are enough of your race left for the species to survive without outside help.”
“So you’re trying to keep us from going extinct?”
“Oh, this is going so horribly,” he said, covering his face with a hand. “I bought the clean space because I want you to survive. You deserve to have a full life. You deserve to be able to have the basic freedoms that humans enjoy without a second thought.”
Mabel shook her head. “You know how much I hear that I deserve better because I’m practically human?”
“I know. I’ve heard the nurses say it and I’ve corrected them many times.” He bent down. “Miss Corrine… Mabel. I’ve been your doctor for many years. Ever since your Father died and you needed someone to talk at. I don’t do things to make a point. I’m not trying to use you as a pawn, or an example.”
“Then what are you trying to do.”
“Same thing everyone else in this town did when the ESLE sent in outside officers to take care of all the elves in town. Defend you because you’d do the same for us.”
Mabel looked down. “…Then why not for the rest of them?”
“Because it's a lot harder Mabel.” He frowned. “I know they weren’t behind the plant. Investigation found that out quickly. But the officals claimed the nine of them had secured enough supplies between them to cause a similiar malfunction.”
"I keep tellin people that it's not that great out in the sticks where there families are living. Of course they gather all kinds of supplies to make their lives easier. I jus don’t understand why they’d do that to these families. Why they’d…” She sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. “No. I ain’t going to do this.”
“I’m sorry to bring it up. They haven't left town yet, if you wanted to say anything to them.” The doctor held out his hands and took hers. “THe point is, Mabel, I want you to heal. And I want others to heal. You’ve invaluably have helped my research into your condition. As distressing as it was to watch, the fast progression allowed us to connect some pieces together that we were missing. You’ve helped us pinpoint some of the chemical corruptions that cause the damage. I think that we might be able to come up with an effective reversal treatment program soon.”
“I ain’t goin to be a guinea pig if I go to your clean zone, am I?”
“No. Just like before, observations and routine medical tests. Documenting the findings. The same things you agreed to when I approached you about it before.”
Mabel sighed, and asked, “What’s goin to happen? To the survivors, I mean.”
“We’re being sent off to different cities as a temperary measure. People will be allowed to go their own way, if they so desire. As for you, however, I don’t know.”
Mabel nodded. “And I ain’t gotta pay you to get into the clean Zone?”
“No. The most I’ll ask is assistance in getting herbs and identifying them.” He squeezed her hands a little. “No tricks.”
Mabel took a deep breath. “…Got enough room there for Chunk to run around like she’s got something to chase?”
“Of course. And any livestock that survived is welcome too. I know you’re careful about your diet, Miss Corrine.”
“Alright.” SHe nodded. “It’s worth a try.”
He smiled. “Excellent. I’ll make sure all the papers are in order before I get diverted out of the city. I’m supervising the surviving patients and staff getting evacuated.”
“I’m going to be last, ain’t I?”
“Unfortunately I believe so. I’ve ordered—and gotten my hands on—a filtration mask for you with replacement filters. They’re with your ESLE officers.” The doctor stood up again. “I’m also perscribing you enough of your medication and an additional pain medication to get you to the clean zone. You may need to supplement with bush medicine depending on the day. I’ve got an interactions list ready for you.”
“I really outta just get a book,” she replied. “I don’t think my daddy ever had one.”
“I’ll see if I can scrounge up a paper copy for you,” he said. “You’re to take it easy on the road. In case of stops by police or outside ESLE officers, I’ve got papers ready for you.”
“Thank you, Doctor. I mean it.” She looked down at her hands. Gorramit, she was feeling teary-eyed. “I don’t know what to say.”
“You’ve said it already.” He sighed. “Mabel, it’s about time you got back what you give.”
“I don’t help for reward,” she replied.
“I know.” He chuckled lightly. “I’ll walk you downstairs. We’ll pick up the papers on our way down.”
“Alrigh. Chunk, we’re gonna go home. You ready?”
Chunk got up and stretched like she was a diva. She hopped down, stretching again before she turned around and pulled Mabel’s hat off the chair. Chunk brought it over and Mabel took it, making sure that the hat was over her ears.
They made their way downstairs, with the doctor insisting on a wheelchair for Mabel which she found to be utterly ridiculous. It let her look through the papers she’d been given. Medication interactions, summary of what’d been discussed, special instructions for the filtration mask she’d been prescribed and for the current situation outside. A stop by the pharmacy provided her medication and Mabel knew that wasn’t gonna be enough if she had to use her bike to get out of town. Nothin that she didn’t expect.
The two ESLE officers were waiting for her, true to their word, and chunk trotted over to greet them with enthusiasm. The first bent down to pet her as the second held out a filtration mask, fresh from the package by the looks of it.
“Here ya go. We got everything all in for you,” she said as Mabel took it. “You’re not leaving this building without it on.”
“You sure someone else ain’t just going to rip it off my face?” She asked. She was versed in putting these things on. It was a requirement to know how to use them because of accidents like this. She just wasn’t allowed to buy one because they kept thinking that she was goin to use it to do some kind of terrorist act.
“We’re sure. Most of the town has been evacuated. Going to be a few days before you can leave though,” the first said, standing up from greeting Chunk. “It’ll give ya time to get what you can together.”
“Am I going to be able to take my house?”
“If you can get the thing going. You know how to drive it, right?”
“Yeah, It ain’t much different than the trucks that the guards use,” Mabel replied, getting up. She made sure the mask was secure and sealed around her face. It wasn’t too bad of a fit for being off the shelf like it was.
“I would rather you took the chair with you,” the doctor said.
“I’ll be fine,” she replied.
“We’ll make sure she doesn’t get into trouble,” the second said. “Let’s go, Miss Mabel.”