For a second time Stuart woke up in a strange bed. However, unlike the previous occasion it did not take him long to work out where he was. There were a number of wires leading from pads on his chest to a machine at the side of the bed. A tube protruded from a patch of plasters on the back of his hand and led to a bottle of clear liquid dangling from a stand. Considering recent events, he was not surprised to find himself in hospital connected to a drip and a heart monitor. He still had no idea what was going on but he recalled the previous day’s events with crystal clarity, right up until the point when he discovered there were complete strangers occupying his and Lauren’s home. Lauren, where is Lauren? he thought. Has anybody told her I am sick? She will be worried and she’s in no fit state to be worrying about me.
He raised his head gingerly, expecting the throbbing pain he had experienced the previous morning but it never came. He still felt woozy but at least the headache had gone and he was not feeling sick. He threw back the covers and swung his legs over the side of the bed. There was a small table with a jug of orange juice and a glass on it. He poured himself a glass and gulped it down. At the foot of the table, he found a backpack on the floor leaning against one of the legs. He leaned over to open the bag but had to stop as the blood rushed to his head, making him feel dizzy. He opted instead for lifting the bag onto the bed and turning it upside down to spill out the contents. It contained three pairs of underpants, three t-shirts, a bundle of letters bearing his name and the address of the house he had woken up in, a phone and a wallet. None of the items from the bag belonged to him. He recognised the phone and the wallet from the house but they were not his. He opened the wallet and inspected the contents. Just as Dave had done previously he removed a number of cards bearing his name. In addition there was £70 in £10 notes, a couple of business cards from people whose name he had never heard of and a couple of credit card receipts for items he had never bought. He threw the wallet aside and buried his head in his hands. “What is happening to me?” The muffled words filtered through his fingers and hung in the air unanswered.
He attempted to stand up but he was too weak, the fatigue forcing him to lie back onto the bed. Before long sleep took hold of him again and he drifted back into a deep slumber.
Several hours passed before he woke again to the sound of voices in the room. A nurse stood at the foot of the bed writing notes on a chart. Just behind her stood his brother, talking to a man in a white coat who Stuart assumed was a doctor. The nurse was the first to notice he was awake and quickly drew everyone else’s attention to the fact. “Dr Benton, our patient has opened his eyes.”
“Hey Stu, thank God, welcome back, how yer feeling man? You scared the shit out of me,” Dave said as he stepped forward toward his brother’s bed. Before he could get there the doctor held him back. “Give the patient time to come around and adjust to his surroundings, David,” he instructed in hushed tones.
Stuart did not need time. He was fully aware of his surroundings. He needed answers, many answers too many questions but to one question in particular. “Is Lauren here Dave?”
Dave turned and looked back at the doctor who nodded to him in a gesture that meant engage. “Do you mean the girl you met in the bar Stu? Her name was Angela not Lauren.”
“No, I mean my wife.” he replied raising his voice to show his annoyance. “Where is my wife?” The doctor stepped forward holding up his hand in a calming gesture.
“Take it easy Mr Milton. You have been through a lot over the past two weeks. Allow yourself time to come around properly.”
Something in the doctor’s statement did not make sense, but Stuart was more interested in finding out what was going on so he pushed the niggle aside. “What is it then doctor, alcohol poisoning?”
“No, no, on the contrary. We tested your blood for drugs and alcohol and there were no traces whatsoever. According to the test results you hadn’t consumed any inebriating substances for at least seventy-two hours prior to your arrival here.”
“I still don’t understand how that can be?” Dave cut in, “I was out with him the night before he collapsed and he was knocking back the drinks like there’s no tomorrow.”
“Yes, well some people do assimilate alcohol quicker than others but it’s highly unusual for it to disappear without a trace in such a short time. All of our results indicate the symptoms Stuart is displaying are not the result of any kind of chemical stimulus. Nor is there any evidence of external or internal trauma to the head or neck?”
“What symptoms am I displaying?”
“Well, prior to you collapsing into a coma your brother informs us that you were confused and delusional.”
“Whoa there, coma, I’ve been in coma, for how long?”
“You’ve been out cold for two weeks Stu. We thought we were going to lose you a couple of times. Scared me shitless you did.”
Stuart looked at the doctor “Two weeks? And what about the delusion? Are you referring to the fact I want to find my wife who for some reason my brother denies the existence of? If I’ve been missing for two weeks she’s going to be worried sick and my brother here is not even trying to help. Have you considered he might be the delusional one?”
“Yes, as a matter of fact we did consider that.”
“Sorry?!” Dave said, looking at the doctor in complete surprise at this revelation. “We consider all possibilities in a case like this but the evidence shows you are the one who is confused Stuart. We checked the electoral register, land registry, post office and many other sources and none of them indicate you have ever lived at the Cromwell Rd address you claimed to be your home. We have also checked registry office records and there is no evidence you have ever been married, a fact supported by the information held by the Inland Revenue. We have tried to connect you to anyone that holds the name Lauren Milton but there’s no one in this district and of those with that name nationwide there is no connection. On the other hand, a number of records do show the house your brother claims is your home is in fact where you have been living for the past three years. Alone.”
“No, that’s bullshit. I have spent the last seven years of my life living with Lauren, my wife. Come on Dave tell him, back me up. You know Lauren. For god sake, you were best man at our wedding. Stop messing around and tell him.”
Dr Benton walked over to a chair by the door and dragged it to the side of Stuart’s bed. He sat down, leaned forward toward him, and spoke in soft, reassuring tones. “I do not doubt for one second that everything you are telling us is true, in your mind. I have seen many cases were patients who have suffered head trauma have claimed to be leading completely different lives to the ones they are actually leading. We do not yet have a cause for your confusion but we will continue to do tests and monitor your situation. In the meantime, I would like you spend some time with a colleague of mine, Dr Catherine Carson. She will help you to try and differentiate between what is real and what you believe to be real.” Stuart looked at his brother who was nodding his head in agreement. He looked up at the ceiling letting the doctor’s words roll around in his head for a moment. His life was being explained away as some kind of delusional episode. He tried to entertain the notion but his whole being stood in the way of him accepting the possibility that what they were suggesting could be true. He let out a long sigh and turned his gaze from the ceiling back to the doctor. “Ok, I’ll speak with your colleague.” He knew there was no point in trying to convince them any further so he decided to go along with them. At least until he was fit enough to find out the truth for himself. “Very good Stuart, I’m sure you’ll find your time with her worthwhile.” The doctor patted him on the leg. “You must be hungry. Nurse, can you get Stuart some tea and toast? Maybe you would like some too David? I will arrange for Dr Carson to come and see you in the morning. In the meantime, Nurse Smith here will attend to all your needs. Try to get some rest but also get some food inside you, lots of little snacks rather than large meals. You need to build your strength back up gradually.”
He stood up and gestured for Dave to take his place in the seat before leaving the room with Nurse Smith following closely behind him.
“Tea and toast, I’m ready for a bit of that are you?” Dave asked as he took the seat by his brother’s bed. Stuart looked toward the door to make sure the others had left the room. He turned to his brother and spat words at him in anger. “What the fuck Dave, why are you making me out to be a liar?”
“Stu calm down, you’re sick, sick and confused. These people are going to help you. I’m going to help you but you need to listen to what they’re saying.”
“Listen to what they’re saying? They’re saying I’m crazy, that my wife doesn’t exist. You’re saying my wife doesn’t exist. If you want to help me stop playing fucking games and tell them the truth. Why are you doing this anyway?”
“You’re not to get worked up Stu it’ll just make you worse. Just try and put this woman out of your mind.”
“This woman? Why are you talking about Lauren like that, like you don’t know her. You know exactly who she is.” Stuart held his hand out to his brother.
“Give me your phone.”
“What?”
He said it again but this time slowly through gritted teeth. “Give-me-your-phone.” He took the phone from his brother and dialled Lauren’s number. There was a vibrating noise from the bedside cabinet and the familiar cricket theme started to play from the phone he had put there. “What the—” He hung up and dialled the number again. Same tune, same phone. Stuart threw the phone back to his brother who caught it and put it back into his pocket.
“Stu, calm down mate and think about what’s going on. Let the doc help you. He’ll suss out what’s wrong, just give him time.”
“Fuck off and leave me alone Dave.” Dave was just about to speak again but Stuart turned his back on him and lay down with his head on his hands on the pillow. He stood for a moment looking at his older brother curled up on the bed. He felt helpless not knowing what to do or what to say to try to get through to him. He decided to do what his brother had asked him, he left him alone.
When he heard the door close Stuart rolled onto his back and scanned the empty room. He assessed his situation the best he could but he could not get past the lack of support from his brother. He was livid. He had wanted to grab him and shake the truth out of him but he did not have the strength. What possible reason could he have for lying to everyone and adding to the insurmountable body of evidence already stacked against him? Everything else could feasibly be the result of some kind of coincidental, cruel chain of events. Everything is linked these days he thought, what if one computer glitch resulted in a cascade effect resulting in his identity being changed on other databases and computers. He could even explain the confusion over the strange family at his home. He had felt so ill and confused when he had woken up that morning he may have taken Dave to the wrong house. All those streets and houses look the same. But why would Dave not substantiate his claims? Could he be the one orchestrating the whole thing, taking accounts in his name, changing public records? But why would he want to do this? He considered a number of explanations for his brother’s behaviour but they all seemed too farfetched. The most plausible one, but the one he could least accept, was that Dave had harmed Lauren in some way and was covering it up by getting rid of all trace of her. No, that could not be it, there was too much of a trail to get rid of. Yet the trail had gone as no one else could find her either. The other option was they were in it together, they had plotted the whole thing to get Stuart out of the picture so they could be together. This seemed even more ridiculous. Finally, what if something had happened to all three of them and Lauren was out there by herself trying to figure out what was going on? No, he could understand why everything was pointing toward his sanity but they did not know what he knew and they did not feel what he felt. It went beyond a state of mind and he knew there had to be some other explanation. He was determined to find out the truth but in order to do this he would have to show some acceptance of their diagnosis and go through the motions of the treatment they prescribed. He might even feign a slow recovery but he would have to tread carefully so as not to give anything away.