Claire wasn't certain if the afterlife was filled with blackness and occasional flash of white light, but a pain that suddenly shot through her reminded her that she was still very alive. This time she didn't hold back but wailed on top of her lungs, trying to curl up.
"You're going to be fine." A woman's voice sounded next to her.
"Rosa?" She asked but there was no answer. She screamed again feeling that she was constraint to some form of stretchers. "Gabriel?" She managed to ask but again there was no answer. Someone jabbed her into her abdomen and she went back into a comforting slumber.
Claire opened her eyes. The bright light was blinding and she struggled to adjust to it. She long lost a concept of time. It could've been any time or day. She didn't feel the excruciating pain who he as the last thing she recalled from before losing consciousness.
Her eyes slowly adjusted and she looked around. She was in a simple light room. It reminded her of something. It was similar to a hospital but not exactly.
"Miss Cooper." A woman in a nurse's uniform that was entirely white smiled at her as she entered the room.
"Where am I?"
"This is a sanatorium." Nurse replied. Claire's mind struggled to piece that information.
"What day is it?"
"Today is 15th of July."
Claire's heart sped up. She had no recollection of the last two and a half months. There was nothing beside some surreal and dream like glimpses.
Claire tried to sit up. To her surprise, all her broken bones and skin seemed healed. She felt tired and as if her muscles vanished, but otherwise… she stood up and walked up to the mirror. Her head was spinning but she ignored that feeling. In the mirror, she was able to observe two things. Her appearance was back to normal. More than normal. Her blonde hair was back and the hair dye was gone. Her hair wouldn't have been able to grow that quickly. Either someone dyed her hair or was able to strip the hair dye out of it. Not only that, her appearance was very normal. Not a single sight of a bruise, cut, or scar. This extended to her mouth. She was certain that she crushed her own teeth and chipped them when….
Well, her teeth were intact now.
Second observation, the mirror was definitely not glass. The reflection seemed slightly distorted.
"Now, you have been asleep for a while. I'm sure you could use some energy. I'll bring you some breakfast. Do you prefer tea or coffee?"
"I-…" Claire stuttered. Shit, she was alive. It was some effing miracle. "I don't care." She looked down at herself. She was dressed in a paper like hospital gown.
"I'll bring you some clothes after breakfast? Do you feel well enough to walk or shall I bring you the walked or wheelchair?"
"I think I'm fine." Claire took another step and her dizziness made her wobble.
"I'll bring both and we will see what you find more comfortable." Nurse decided as she left the room. When left alone, Claire lifted her hospital gown in search of any marks on her body but there was not a sign of bullet shots that Michael fired at her.
Her thoughts were racing but struggled to form anything coherent as the brain fog felt like a blanket over her mind.
"I thought that it might be worth starting with a plain and simple to get your stomach back up and running. I've brought some chamomile tea, toast with a choice of spreads, and a vanilla yoghurt. Just try to eat something. It'll help with the nausea." Nurse smiled again. She was elegant in her way. She seemed definitely too elegant. She reminded Claire of the nurses that surrounded Gabriel in the VIP suite. It was a special breed. Her uniform was perfectly ironed, with every crease seemingly calculated. Her brown hair was tidy in a flat bun. She was professional, clean and tidy. She had a bit of an accent as she spoke to Claire but she was fluent in English.
"How did I get here?" Claire asked with her eyes wide open.
"Miss Cooper, I am sure that you have a lot of questions as you seem particularly aware today. Dr Wagner will see you later today and I'm sure that she will answer them all."
"Who is Dr Wagner?"
"She is your doctor and she has been taking a good care of you for a long while."
"When I was brought here… so you know of a man that was with me? Do you know if he is alright?"
"Dr Wagner will answer all of your questions." Nurse repeated. "If it is any reassurance, everything is fine now."
"Fine?"
"As fine as it can be." Nurse pursed her lips briefly as she moved around the room opening the cream coloured curtains. The sun broke free throughout the room.
"Isn't this a lovely place?" A nurse asked with a sweet smile returning to her face. Claire looked outside, astonished with the view. It was nothing like she ever saw before. Green sharp peaks created the perfect landscape. Claire stood up and walked up to the window/
"Where am I?" She asked again. "Where is this hospital?"
"Swiss alps." The nurse replied to her question. She seemed to be telling the truth. But yet, Claire had more questions than answers now.
"I thought sanatoriums were used mostly for treating tuberculosis?"
"Once upon a time. Nowadays it is a combination of a health care facility where you get a medical treatment as well as a health retreat in one."
"Why am I here?" Claire whispered.
The nurse tilted her head.
"You were well battered up. This is a perfect rehabilitation centre."
"I don't think I understand what has happened."
"Dr Wagner will speak with you today." The nurse let out a sigh. "But I can see that it is confusing to you. From what I understand, you had a bit of an accident."
"Accident?" Claire repeated. What happened to her was hardly an accident.
"Some time ago now. It seems that the treatment has worked. I'm sure Dr Wagner is going to be ecstatic."
"What treatment?" Claire asked but was met with nurse's gaze that tried to conceal that she was getting fed up.
"I have brought you some clothes you can change into. Your bathroom is just across the corridor. Ring the button by your bed if you need any more help."
Claire nodded. She hesitated. She didn't trust anyone. Not after everything that she has been through. She sniffed the bread and licked it. Nothing tasted odd. She risked a bite. Then another. That was as much as she could stomach.
Another nurse walked in with a small paper cup as soon as Claire changed into clean underpants, sweatpants, white t-shirt and white socks.
"Good morning, Miss Cooper." She smiled with equally sweet smile to the other nurse. "Here you go." She passed Claire the paper cup. Claire took it and looked inside finding a few tablets in it.
"What are these?"
"Your medication?"
"What medication?"
"It is a medication prescribed to you by your doctor."
"Doctor Wagner, is it?" Claire tilted her head. "What's the name of it?"
"Well…" the nurse hesitated. "I can't see how it'll help you to know it's exact name."
"It would."
"It's Setraline, Olanzapine, Metoclopramide, and Benzodiazepines."
Claire hesitated. She recognised at least two of the names.
"I want to see Dr Wagner first." Claire said as she put the cup down.
"Delaying the medication after continuous use will likely cause you a lot of bad symptoms. Staying on schedule will have the best results."
"I haven't taken them before." Claire grumbled.
"Well, you have. For a long time." The nurse said. "I'm sure that your primary nurse mentioned that you're scheduled to see Dr Wagner throughout today. You can discuss your future treatment with your doctor then." Nurse's smile vanished as she started to get agitated.
"What if I do not take it?"
"I'm afraid that it is not an option. To ensure the best treatment for you, we will need to get this into you in one way or another."
Claire didn't like the threat. She put the tablets in her mouth. The nurse waited for her to swallow and gestured her to open her mouth so that she could check if Claire indeed swallowed it.
Claire did swallow it but barely. She passed the check and as soon as the nurse left, Claire rushed to the bathroom running across the corridor. She gagged until the tablets came out almost completely intact.
The bathroom was unlock-able. It held to the doorframe on the magnetic strips. In that moment Claire had a bad feeling over where she was. She recognised the soft padding on the showers.
She left the bathroom and stood in the middle of the long corridor. She shuffled down the corridor towards what seemed like a living room. There was a tv, art corner, some board games and table football. There were two people sitting and watching some soap opera on the tv. They had equally distant gaze in their eyes. Claire looked around feeling panicky.
She was in a psychiatric hospital, potentially in Switzerland. They might've given it a fancy name but the glass was non existent in that place. Even the tv was behind a shatter resistant screen on the wall. No hanging cables. No proper blankets. No proper mirrors. No way to lock the doors.
She was a prisoner, whether it was for her own good or not. She didn't need to be there.