Mr. Donwood's consciousness was muddled by echoing noises of anxiety, panic, and tamed professionalism, and he struggled to determine if the voices were male or female. The voice attempted to calm someone who appeared to be sobbing.
"Is daddy going to be, okay?"
If he still had control over his body, Donwood's eyes would be wide open with surprise and reverie as he tried to speak the little girl's name:
'Allie, honey, daddy is here.'
He wanted to reassure the doctor he was fine, but he couldn't move certain portions of his body without pain. He couldn't react yet because one of his fingers was raised slowly and vibrated, attempting to get their attention.
"Doctor is my husband, okay?"
Nobody noticed this because everyone was busy working, but the doctor sounded like he was taking the girl and woman away with some reassurance as the man was taken on a stretcher at a rapid rate.
The man's mind raced as he attempted to say anything, but he couldn't because he had just gotten them back and didn't want to lose them again. He wanted to apologize and hold his daughter one last time, so he begged and prayed with confidence, feeling as if he was crying after such a long time.
When he implored the deities for a miracle, he felt a tinge that made him feel alive and tempted to ignore it. It appeared as a light that attracted Donwood in, allowing him to grab it.
He lunged forward; hand raised. Wait, how can he move so suddenly? He asked himself.
His eyes were enough to paint walls with a TV attached, a window to his right, and a door to his left. His ears could hear the repetitive noises of the beeping machine he was connected to, and he lifted his right hand to reveal tiny translucent wires pouring fluid.
He touched his nose to feel the second tube connecting to his nostrils, then used both hands to feel himself. The scars were there, but the wounds had healed, and he could breathe a sigh of relief as he realized he was no longer in that place.
He was relieved until he heard a familiar voice... His skin crawled with remorse and anguish as he heard a child's terrified voice and repressed sobbing.
Donwood carefully got out of bed and proceeded toward the door after removing the patches from the heart monitor, clutching the stand that had the Hydrated solution in a bag, the tube remaining on his skin. He walked slowly, his dry mouth attempting to form a phrase.
'A…All…Allie'
His voice was not yet audible, but he approached the door and spun the handle before pushing it open, falling to the ground. He was still holding onto the stand, which he utilized as a balancer.
He attempted to stand up as he heard a concerned voice say:
"Sir, you cannot be walking. You need to rest.
The disturbance caused people in the hall, and suddenly, the sounds of small feet in shoes made their way to the man, as a child voice said:
"Daddy"
The man knelt and caught the fleeing girl with his arms raised for an embrace, resulting in a strong clash of emotions.
He stroked her long hair and closed his eyes, letting the water flow. He repeated the statement when he felt another embrace from his wife, who was running with his daughter.
"Joseph you are awake, thanks the gods you are alive"
The man sobbed in a hoarse voice, causing the hall to reverberate, as nurses and physicians sought to reassure the family that the man still required treatment and rest.
After a while in the patient room.
A man sitting on a chair wearing an enforcer uniform and clutching a notepad was writing something down, as the wife stared at him with disgust and added:
"What more do you need him to say officer?"
"Mary, he's just doing his job," Donwood assured his wife, softly holding her hand. Mary remained calm as the officer asked:
"Mister" Donwood I'm going to require some information on what happened to you there, but since it's such a hard subject to relate, I'd like to ask you about the stranger who saved you. "Is that okay?"
When he glanced at his wife and husband, Joseph nodded and added:
"I don't know who he was, and I attacked him when he asked me a question and when I saw that he had that picture of you and Allie"
The wife raised her eyebrows and asked:
"Which picture?"
"The one we put at the living room counter from that trip in the Bellows" answered the husband.
"The picture is still there at home, where did he get it?"
The wife was deep in thought as she sought to piece together what had happened, who the stranger was, and why she should help them. The officer wrote down the statement when his quiet daughter responded in a happy tone:
"Yay Mr. Maddison kept his promise"
The officer looked at the girl and was astonished to see that her parents looked similar. They were astonished by the girl's reaction to the oppressive environment, so the wife asked in a gently tone:
"Who is that sweetie?"
"The man who sleeps with the trolley, under the park trees"
The wife then recalls something while pinching the bridge of her nose:
"Yes, we allowed him to use our bathroom to clean himself and even eat himself. What promise has he kept?"
She asked the daughter, and Allie replied:
"He said he will find out treasure as a repayment for the kindness"
This astonished the officer, and he asked:
"What was his first name?" His body trembled as he asked, making the husband flinch.
The small girl said innocently, "Jerry." His name is Jerry Maddison.