New Year's Eve Kill (2 page)

   As Ethel watched them disappear she felt the need to shower. The old woman had scared the tuna out of her. Trying to calm her nerves she turned and started walking back to her room. The blinking of the overhead lights seemed to be following her every step. It only helped in putting her more on the edge of sanity. By the door, she saw the white sign outside her room that stated:  S. J. Grant-bed 9E and Cunningham-bed 10F. She was exhausted from this little adventure and needed sleep.

   Once inside the room, she realized the woman had throat cancer. It made her depressed to think life could be so cruel. She did wonder if the old woman was just disjointed, or was there some truth to something sinister going on in the hospital? It dawned on her that she never got to the nurses’ station. For now she would wait.

   Ethel went to her window and watched all the apartment people getting home from work. Their faces looked tired, and some were visibly drunk. The apartments that were farther away looked like tiny dots that glowed in red, green, silver and gold colors from their decorations.

   The thought of spending New Year’s Eve in a hospital depressed her. Also the memories of the last time she stayed overnight in a medical place made her want to weep, thinking of the awful experience. Ethel had a double mastectomy a couple of years ago. Surviving cancer is what gave her the courage to move to New York in her late thirties and pursue her lifelong dream of living in the city that never sleeps.

   Sleep took over as she tried to fight it. Sleep soon won.

***

As Ethel pushed away her hospital dinner, she wondered just when the chef had lost his soul. It was always moronic of hospitals pushing health and they had the nerve to serve you processed food. Ethel was happy to have the IV gone when she woke up from her nap. Though it was strange they didn’t wake her up when they did it. There were a lot of odd things going on at Christmas hospital. Even the name was strange. The name of the hospital had previously been called Lincoln and due to financial troubles it was about to close until millionaire, Monty Christmas, bought it and saved it from being shut down. Monty Christmas might have put money into the hospital, but besides the name change, not much seemed different about the rundown medical cente
r
.
Even the Christmas decorations in the hospital looked like they should be put out of their misery.

   She was curious if Mr. Grant awoke to eat but imagined in his condition he probably had an IV. She had heard a little movement from his bed when Nurse Trish had first left her food. Now it had been quiet for over twenty minutes and she wondered if he was OK. Mr. Grant’s curtain was still around his bed.

   “Hi, I’m Missy! The night nurse. Trish has left for the evening. How are you on this New Year’s Eve?”

   Ethel almost jumped out of her skin. The bubbly nurse sported big boobs, a small nose, and poufy blonde hair.

   “I’m fine, a little pain in my head every once in a while.”

   Missy preceded to erase Nurse Trish Donohue’s name off the white board and write her name largely on it.

   “I can give you something for the pain if you want.” Missy picked up the lid off Ethel’s plate and frowned. “I see someone didn’t eat all their din-din.”

   Ethel wondered if she was on the psychiatric ward.
Did this
nurse think she was a six-year-old?

   “I wasn’t hungry.”

   “Well I’ll let you slip this time. But next time you’ll get a spanking.”

   “You spank me sweetheart and you’ll be in that bed over there with Mr. Grant.” Ethel said, half laughing.

   Missy started crying, and Ethel felt bad. She was known for her odd fashion style, and her big mouth. For a moment, she thought she heard a voice from behind Mr. Grant’s curtain. She scoffed it off and thought her imagination was working overtime.

   “I’m so sorry—I didn’t mean to say that.”

   Missy tried in vain to catch the black from her eye make-up that was running down her cheek. She grabbed tissues from Ethel’s side table and blew her nose.

   “It wasn’t what you said…I just broke up with my boyfriend and I’ve been feeling sensitive lately.

   “Oh you poor thing. Men can be devils sometimes. Sit down.”

   Ethel couldn’t overlook the fear in Missy’s eyes when she said the word ‘devils’.

   “Did I say something wrong?”

   “I should check on Mr. Grant first.”

   Missy disappeared behind Mr. Grant’s curtain and returned minutes later. “Ok, he’s good. I can chat for a couple of minutes.”

   Ethel was happy to have some conversation. Most of her Clover Court friends had come to visit her. The only person who didn’t was Detective Vince Carpino. She wondered if he was with his wife, or with some other babe. The hunky detective was a known womanizer. In the last year, they had been through so much together. Her heart still ached for him sometimes but she’d given up on falling for men who prided themselves in being bad boys. It still didn’t stop her from feeling a pain in her stomach when remembering when they had kissed.

   “—we were happy for a while until I found out he was married.” Missy sobbed again. “And I found out today I’m pregnant with his baby.”

   Ethel couldn’t help but judge Missy. If a nurse didn’t know that she should use protection when having sex, then the world was screwed. Maybe Missy thought the man would leave his wife for her? Her mind flashed back to Vince and his marriage. It was good not to think about it. Even if Vince left his wife, she couldn’t be with the kind of man Vince is and think every-day of her life that he was bedding some easy female.

   “I’m sorry, Missy. Did you tell the man?”

   “Yes, that’s why I’m so upset. See we work together…”

   “Nurse Cleveland! I didn’t know gossiping with sick patients was part of your duties.”

   Ethel looked over to see a stern looking woman with her red hair in a loose bun.

   Missy looked like she would cry again, but she left quickly.

   “Now Ms. Cunningham, I hope you weren’t leading a young girl astray.”

   “She’s already been lead, and probably ran all the way!” Ethel mumbled.

   “Excuse me?”

   “Oh nothing. I assume you are the head nurse?”

   “Yes. My name is Gita.”

   The nurse preceded to erase Missy’s name and rewrite it, but only smaller. She added hers above Missy’s on the white board on the wall. With a stiff lip, the nurse preceded to take Ethel’s vitals just as Missy had just done.

   “Here is your medicine.”

   Nurse Gita stood over her like a drill sergeant as Ethel swallowed the blue pills.

   “What were those pills for?”

   “For the pain and discomfort. And they will help you sleep.”

   Ethel didn’t want to tell the grim faced nurse that she was tired of sleeping, and really wanted to walk around.

   “Now Ms. Cunningham, I hope you have a pleasant stay with us.”

   “I hope a quick one. How is the gentleman in the next bed? He seems to be trying to talk or something.”

   Gita looked sharply towards the curtains and then faced Ethel with an odd smile.

   “Now dear, I’m sure you’re imaging things. Mr. Grant has been out for days. Bad stroke. I’ll be in to make my rounds later.” She turned on Ethel’s TV and left the room.

   Ethel thought about getting up and peeking on Mr. Grant but she did feel relaxed. There was something odd going on but she couldn’t put her finger on it. Instead she focused on a rerun of NCIS. She never watched this TV series but was always suckered into it when she was changing channels.

   A scratching on the curtain from where Mr. Grant was made her jump. When she heard the creepy sound again she took a moment to locate the call button for the Nurse. After waiting for ten minutes it didn’t seem like the button was working.

   Another scratch went down the ugly curtain or so she thought. It was hard to tell where the sound was coming from. That her mind was going wasn’t lost on her.

   Mr. Grant could be in pain or dying and it didn’t seem like the hospital staff cared, she thought. She had to do something but what? Ethel had to take her time when she tried to sit up. The room seemed to be spinning.

   Did they put something in her food to make her sleepy? Luckily, she only nibbled at the stuff the hospital called edible.
No it was the pills!
She was sick of waiting for a nurse to respond. There was something going on at the hospital and her curiosity was eating at her mind. She knew they were short staffed, due to a nurse’s strike, and it was New Year’s Eve. Still, to not seem to care about Mr. Grant. If only Anita would come and visit, Ethel thought, maybe she could help the man. But in hindsight, Anita couldn’t do much, she was the head coroner, and had no power over the doctors or nurses.

   After a minute or so, Ethel took her time getting up and out of the hospital bed. The curtain that separated the beds looked like a wall of depression with its ugly colors and stiff material. A slow hissing sound was coming from beyond the fabric and Ethel new it was now or never. With hesitation, she took four steps over to the yellow and blue curtain that separated the beds. With bated breath, she put her hands on the curtain and ripped it aside.

   Her eyes opened in terror. Was the old man dead?

Chapter Two

Ethel stared at the balding older man propped up in the bed. Mr. Grant almost looked like he was a prop and not a real human being. Tubes were coming and going throughout his body in various directions. She saw his chest breathing in and out gently, and felt relieved. Mr. Grant was alive, but how was he scratching against the curtain? He would have had trouble getting up, and she would have heard that.

   After feeling satisfied and embarrassed that she let her imagination bother an old, sick man, she quickly pulled the curtain closed.

   About an hour passed, and Nurse Missy came into the room. She was on Mr. Grant’s side for about fifteen minutes, keeping the curtains closed. Ethel was curious about Mr. Grant. How old was he, and did his family come see him? She forgot the idea when she thought of the nurse with the red hair, Dita. Ethel had seen hungry bears with better personalities. She’d hate for her to walk in and catch her asking about Mr. Grant. Dita seemed like the kind of nurse who took delight in sticking someone with a big needle.

   “How are you doing, Ms. Cunningham?” Missy asked, without much effort, quickly closing Mr. Grant’s curtain.

   “I’m feeling OK. Took another nap. How are you? I’m guessing it must suck working on New Year’s Eve.”

   “Yeah…It’s been an interesting evening already.”

   Ethel couldn’t help notice that Missy had looked over to Mr. Grant as she said ‘interesting evening already.’

   “I’m sorry to put you on the spot, but how is Mr. Grant doing?”

   “Oh—he’s doing good. A heart attack can take a lot out of you.”

   “But Nurse Gita said he had a stroke.”

   Missy’s eyes looked like she wanted to tell her something but she soon forced a smile, “Oh, don’t mind my silly head. That’s right Mr. Grant had a stroke. So sad, and in the prime of his life.”

   Ethel had got a quick look at her roommate, and the man looked near ninety-years- old. Still, vital, yes, but prime? Ethel didn’t think so. There was something definitely sinister going on at Christmas hospital besides the food. She knew now she wasn’t imagining things. She wanted to call Detective Vince Carpino and have him investigate. But what would she tell him? That the hospital was scary, and the old man in the bed next to her was being neglected in some way? Vince would tell her she had an overactive imagination. And what proof did she really have?

   “Here is your medication. It will help the pain.”

   Ethel took the pills, reluctantly. Five pills seemed like a lot of medication, but she didn’t want to fight with the nurse. Who really liked to take pills anyway, unless they were drug addicts?

   “Now if there’s nothing else you need, Ms. Cunningham…”

   “Nurse—Missy. You know if you need someone to talk to, I’m here. I’m really a good listener, and I am stuck here in this room. Mr. Grant is not much of a talker.” Ethel smiled with her eyes, and Missy seemed to relax for a moment, until she heard footsteps from outside the room.

   “I have to go make my rounds. I suggest you rest, and before you know it, your stay in this hospital will just be a memory.” Missy left the room quickly.

   Ethel spit out the melting pills that the nurse had given her in a tissue. Some of the medicine had dissolved in her left cheek where she stored them but at least she wouldn’t be totally knocked out. She felt pain at certain times on the sides of her skull but felt too anxious to be passed out in the weird hospital if she took the drugs.

   Minutes passed as she took turns watching TV and staring out her window from her bed. Her mouth was feeling dry and a little numb. Ethel was about to close her eyes, when a slow, hissing sound seemed to be coming from beyond the curtain. Ethel sat up in her bed and leaned over and tried to listen more closely. Peaking towards the door, the half view of the outside hallway looked even darker and mysterious than before. The overhead fluorescent lights seemed to be buzzing and blinking their last breaths. She thought she should just get up and leave the room now and find an exit. And run until she got a cab or a bus. The place was starting to drive her mad and she started to feel like she didn’t know what was real or fake anymore.