Under the direction of the same nurse, they began to tug at her clothing.
“No!” Cara fought with all her strength, but she was no match for the two men as they removed her clothing.
She tried to cover her nakedness, but it was impossible with her right arm in a cast and one of the men holding her left arm. She was reduced to begging and pleading with the nurse who supervised, stone-faced, immobile.
The two men lifted Cara, stretching her out on a bare mattress. As one man held her down, lying on top of her, forcing the breath from her lungs, the other pulled up metal rails, one on each side of the bed. Cara felt them tug on her legs and her left arm. Her legs were spread and a leather restraint closed upon each ankle. She felt the straps tighten as her legs were tied to the bed. The same thing was done with her left wrist. The nurse wrapped the restraint around her right upper arm and made sure the binding was short enough that Cara could not reach across her body.
She asked the men to hold Cara’s left leg. Cara tried to jerk it out of their grasp, but she could barely move. She felt a needle pierce the big muscle in her thigh. Then the three of them moved away from her and left the room, shutting the door and locking it behind them.
Cara gazed around in a state of utter despair. The walls were white, padded. The padded door was topped with a tiny barred window. To Cara’s right, beside the bed, was another barred window. The glass was opaque and was filthy. A muted sun was the only light source. There was nothing in the room aside from the bed with its bare mattress and Cara.
At that moment, she prayed for death. She prayed for someone, anyone to take her out of her body: an angel, God, or even the devil himself. She was not crazy, but she knew if they left her like this for long she would be.
Cara turned her head and stared out the small window beside the bed. She pretended she could see a hint of blue sky. She focused all her attention on that, digging deep, calling upon every single ounce of strength, every tiny bit of reserve she had, in an attempt to shut the room and her helpless condition out of her conscious mind.
She pictured Rick and thought about their night together. She relived it over and over again until at last, she was able to block out every single thing that had happened since. Cara closed her eyes. She decided if necessary she would keep them closed forever.
T he next morning a nurse entered the room and released Cara from the restraints. To her shame, Cara had already wet the bed twice during the night. She’d had no choice. She’d held it as long as she could. With the nurse’s assistance, Cara slid to the edge of the mattress. When she tried to stand, every muscle in her body cramped and she collapsed onto the floor. The nurse helped Cara to her feet, and helped her to dress, taking care not to hurt her aching arm.
This nurse was young and pretty. She seemed perturbed, apologizing over and over again about the fact that she couldn’t offer her a bath or a shower. She helped Cara to the sitting room, the room that had terrified her the day before. She unlocked the door to the Nurse’s Station and said, “Stand right here.” She returned shortly with a folding metal chair. She set it next to the door and urged Cara to sit. She said, “Don’t worry; I’ll keep an eye on you.”
One after another, the residents approached Cara, exploring her with their dirty hands, touching her hair, her face, the cast on her arm. It was as if she was a visitor from another planet. Cara cringed, but she didn’t have the strength to fend them off. The previous day and night had literally and figuratively stripped her bare.
She was terrified of what lay in store. The pain of her broken arm was negligible in comparison to that fear. Layered over all was the deep, visceral knowledge of what she’d lost. It wasn’t only Rick she’d lost. How could she return to her home? Parents didn’t
“No!” Cara fought with all her strength, but she was no match for the two men as they removed her clothing.
She tried to cover her nakedness, but it was impossible with her right arm in a cast and one of the men holding her left arm. She was reduced to begging and pleading with the nurse who supervised, stone-faced, immobile.
The two men lifted Cara, stretching her out on a bare mattress. As one man held her down, lying on top of her, forcing the breath from her lungs, the other pulled up metal rails, one on each side of the bed. Cara felt them tug on her legs and her left arm. Her legs were spread and a leather restraint closed upon each ankle. She felt the straps tighten as her legs were tied to the bed. The same thing was done with her left wrist. The nurse wrapped the restraint around her right upper arm and made sure the binding was short enough that Cara could not reach across her body.
She asked the men to hold Cara’s left leg. Cara tried to jerk it out of their grasp, but she could barely move. She felt a needle pierce the big muscle in her thigh. Then the three of them moved away from her and left the room, shutting the door and locking it behind them.
Cara gazed around in a state of utter despair. The walls were white, padded. The padded door was topped with a tiny barred window. To Cara’s right, beside the bed, was another barred window. The glass was opaque and was filthy. A muted sun was the only light source. There was nothing in the room aside from the bed with its bare mattress and Cara.
At that moment, she prayed for death. She prayed for someone, anyone to take her out of her body: an angel, God, or even the devil himself. She was not crazy, but she knew if they left her like this for long she would be.
Cara turned her head and stared out the small window beside the bed. She pretended she could see a hint of blue sky. She focused all her attention on that, digging deep, calling upon every single ounce of strength, every tiny bit of reserve she had, in an attempt to shut the room and her helpless condition out of her conscious mind.
She pictured Rick and thought about their night together. She relived it over and over again until at last, she was able to block out every single thing that had happened since. Cara closed her eyes. She decided if necessary she would keep them closed forever.
T he next morning a nurse entered the room and released Cara from the restraints. To her shame, Cara had already wet the bed twice during the night. She’d had no choice. She’d held it as long as she could. With the nurse’s assistance, Cara slid to the edge of the mattress. When she tried to stand, every muscle in her body cramped and she collapsed onto the floor. The nurse helped Cara to her feet, and helped her to dress, taking care not to hurt her aching arm.
This nurse was young and pretty. She seemed perturbed, apologizing over and over again about the fact that she couldn’t offer her a bath or a shower. She helped Cara to the sitting room, the room that had terrified her the day before. She unlocked the door to the Nurse’s Station and said, “Stand right here.” She returned shortly with a folding metal chair. She set it next to the door and urged Cara to sit. She said, “Don’t worry; I’ll keep an eye on you.”
One after another, the residents approached Cara, exploring her with their dirty hands, touching her hair, her face, the cast on her arm. It was as if she was a visitor from another planet. Cara cringed, but she didn’t have the strength to fend them off. The previous day and night had literally and figuratively stripped her bare.
She was terrified of what lay in store. The pain of her broken arm was negligible in comparison to that fear. Layered over all was the deep, visceral knowledge of what she’d lost. It wasn’t only Rick she’d lost. How could she return to her home? Parents didn’t
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