Siberian Treasure

14

Junie Peters woke in darkness.

At least, it appeared to be dark until her eyes adjusted to the faint light and she realized she was in a hospital room. The telly mounted on the wall in front of her, near the ceiling, and the tubes attached to her wrist were the first indications. Something protruded from her nostrils, too; she reached up to touch it gingerly and found a small plastic curl attached to a long tube that fell away into the nothing next to her narrow bed.

The faint bong from the other side of the wall sounded like the subtle cue for a nurse or physician to attend to a patient’s call. The crack of her door allowed the low light to come in; the windows were shaded, but even so, it was clear it was night.

Junie frowned, trying to recall how she’d come to be there. She blinked, trying to shake off the weariness and the fog that surrounded her.

And just as memory flirted with the edge of her mind, a shadow in the corner of the room moved.

She would have screamed only because the sudden movement startled her, but the face that came close was appallingly handsome and even in the grey light shone with concern. Relief.

“You are awake.” His voice, smooth, carried a breath of an accent that she couldn’t place; it wasn’t American, yet he spoke English perfectly. “I can remove this now.”

Listing to one side, he bent down next to her bed. Junie became aware of the soft rumbling sound only when it stopped. Then the man reached over and gently plucked the curving plastic from her nose. His face was illuminated for one instant.

“Who are you?” Junie was surprised that her voice came out easily.

“The only person who could help you. And now you will recover completely.” He wrapped the long, slim plastic cord around his wrist and tucked it into his pocket; bent to lift a small machine.

“I don’t remember what happened — the oil spill.” Suddenly, she remembered, and the impossibility of it shocked her anew. “It … disappeared.”

“It did indeed. You happened upon the scene too soon after the cure was applied. I am sorry for that; but you will recover completely now.”

“But … how? And who are you?”

But he did not answer; instead, he turned and slipped out the door.