The nurse joined us. Lou said, “Right. Carol, could you get me a newspaper and a magazine and anything else you can find with a recent date on it?”
“How about a movie ticket stub?” she said.
“Perfect.”
“Lou, this is crazy,” I said.
“I know, buddy. But it is what it is. At least you’re back with us. How do you feel?”
“Pissed.”
He laughed. “Same old Creed,” he said.
Dr. Howard continued his examination. The thermometer went in, then out. Th e little thing with the light went in my ears. Then he felt my lymph nodes, checked my pulse, pushed on my stomach, looked up my nose and in my mouth.
Nurse Carol returned with enough evidence to convince me I’d been Rip Van Winkled for more than three years. I tried to get to my feet.
“Whoa,” said the doctor. “You’re still on life support. You can’t get up yet.”
Lou moved to hold me down, but I waved him off .
“Can I at least sit up?”
Lou and the doctor exchanged a look. Lou nodded.
“Lie still a minute,” he said. Th e nurse helped the doctor remove several tubes. She held some gauze against the wounds to stop the bleeding.
“I think you’re out of the woods,” my doctor said, “but I’ll need to keep the rest of the equipment hooked up for twenty-four hours. It’ll help us monitor your brain activity and let us know if you start experiencing seizures.”
“Why am I still alive?” I said.
“Because you’re receiving the best medical care in the world,” Lou said.
“That’s not what I mean.”
“I’m not sure what you’re asking.”
“Why hasn’t Darwin killed me yet?”
Dr. Howard said, “Let us finish up so you can speak freely. Carol and I don’t want to hear anything that’s unrelated to Mr. Creed’s treatment.”
Five minutes later it was just Lou and me, with the door closed.
“Catch me up,” I said, “starting with last night.”
“You mean—”
“Yeah, I mean the last night I can remember. The night Tara got shot.”
Lou took a deep breath. “Okay. Look, I’ll try to keep everything in chronological order, but I might miss a detail here and there.”
“Just do your best. We can fill in later.”
“Okay.”
“Wait a minute,” I said. “Before you start, tell me this: is Kathleen okay?”
“She is.”
