In The End
“He keeps talking about Bigfoots and Sasquatches.”
“So does his wife.”
“The EMTs said something about the ambulance being attacked.”
“The back doors were pulled off.”
“Shit.”
“I feel bad for the guy. Broken ribs, fractured collarbone.”
“The one EMT said the thing punched him in the shoulder. He’s lucky the ribs didn’t pierce his heart or lungs.”
“Lucky bastard.”
Later …
“Mr. Sandyk?”
Rich opened his eyes. It hurt to breathe. A machine beeped. An IV ran into his arm. He was in a hospital room. He had on one of those ridiculous backward gowns. He couldn’t move his left arm. When he tried to, pain shot across his chest and he gave up. Kara sat at the side of the bed holding his hand. A man in his twenties stood at the foot of his bed in a white coat and glasses. He may’ve been Middle Eastern. Rich wasn’t certain. He couldn’t read his name tag.
“My name is Doctor Anzaria. You’ve been through quite an ordeal. There wasn’t much we could do for you. The ribs will heal, as will your collarbone and your leg. You must’ve been in quite the fight.” He smiled, as if this was some kind of joke.
“I was punched by a Sasquatch.” Rich tried moving in bed, but when lances of pain shot through his shoulder, he winced and stayed where he was.
“It’s going to take time to heal,” the doctor said.
“How long?” Kara asked.
“It may take several months before he’s fully healed. He’ll have to take it easy and then there’ll be physical therapy, but he’ll be fine.” He smiled again. “I just wanted to stop in and introduce myself. I’ll be looking after you while you’re here. Do you have any questions for me?”
“Where am I?” Rich asked. He remembered the ambulance under attack, passing out and … waking up here.
“You’re in Eastham General. It was the closest hospital to the park. You’re in good hands here. If you need anything, you can call the nurses’ station.” He nodded. “Rest easy.” Then he was gone.
With effort and too much pain, he turned his head to Kara. “Are you all right?”
“A little banged up, but otherwise I’m good. Elizabeth and the kids are here, too. They’re okay physically. I think they were in shock.”
“They’ve been through a lot.” He squeezed Kara’s hand. “We all have.” He glanced past her and out the window. It looked like dusk outside. “Do you know what happened? I mean, did the police come and tell you what they found?”
“There was an officer here, but you weren’t coherent enough to answer questions. I told him as much as I could. He said he’d be back.” Kara smiled at Rich. “I’m so happy to see you awake. When that thing hit you, I thought you were …” A sob caught in her throat.
“But I’m not. I’m okay.” Rich gave her his best reassuring smile. “We made it through, Kara. We’re going to be all right. There’s a lot ahead of us, but we’ll get through it together.”
“I know.” She cried. “I know.”
Rich stared past her, out the open window that looked over Eastham, New Jersey. Somewhere out there, those creatures lived in the woods. Maybe they’d go back into hiding, though with the crime scene, police would be all over the place. Either they’d go deeper into the woods or … He didn’t want to think of the alternative. Right now, he had Kara, he would heal and life would go back to as normal as it could get.
In the silence, he thought he heard a whooping out in the wild, but he was sure it was only his imagination.