X-Men: Dark Mirror by Marjorie M. Liu Page A

lock turned, the door opened, and an unfamiliar man in a white nursing uniform peered into the room. He had brown eyes, brown hair, and an unmemorable chin.
    "Hey, Jeff. How you feeling?'
    "Fine," Jean said, still amazed at her new voice. "I'm very sorry about last night. I don't know what came over me. I woke up frightened. Is that man . . . will he be all right?"
    "Just peachy." The nurse gave her a strange look. "Has Maguire been doing a Henry Higgins on you?"
    "Excuse me?" Her head hurt so badly she wanted to scream.
    "Your voice. You're talking different."
    "Oh," she said. "Well . . . Maguire tries to do a lot of things to ... help."
    "I guess so." The young man entered the room, glancing over his shoulder at the hall behind him. "Just between you and me, Jeff, this time you really fucked up. Maguire had the administrator all convinced that you shouldn't be transferred—and boy, was the doc pissed when they suggested it—but after last night . . ." He moved a little closer, smiling. "Well, you know. Easy come, easy go. I think they're going to do it fast, in the next couple of days before Maguire comes back. Easier on him if he's not here to see it."
    Easier on the administrator, who would not have to deal with any immediate protests. Jean studied the young man's uniform, recalling her previous night's encounter. She most certainly was inside the mental hospital. Why was another matter entirely—but if she was here then the others might be, too. The problem was finding them.
    "Why are you telling me all this?" she asked, not liking the smile on his face.
    "Because I want to see you squirm." His smile widened.
    The long hall felt like an extension of her room, a prison nightmare of doors and barred windows. The air smelled like disinfectant: stale, chemical.
    The nurse did not turn his back on her. He kept his distance, walking several steps behind with a rolling gait that felt like he was winding up to hit something. She glanced over her shoulder.
    "I'm having trouble this morning," she said. "I keep forgetting things. How long have I been here? Why was I seeing the doctor?"
    He laughed. "They must have cracked your shit up last night. Damn. What do I tell you, Jeff? That you're a junkie? That you almost beat a man to death for not giving you the time of day, because that's how much you needed to know if you were late for meeting your dealer? Yeah, you're a real angel. I don't know why Maguire wasted his time on trying to iron you out, but he had his favorites, and man, when he latched on, there was no changing his mind."
    "Who else were his favorites?" Jean asked.
    He gave her a strange look and said, "Here's the bathroom."
    The bathroom was a large space, with stalls on one side, a row of urinals on the other, and an open cattle shower between them.
    "You need to crap?" he asked.
    "No." She wondered if that was a mistake. Perhaps he would take his guard down if she sat on the toilet. She could try to subdue him—
    Too late. He pushed her to the urinals.
    "I'll try to be gentle." He grinned and unzipped her pants. It was a horrible sensation, feeling his hands down there, and even though this was not her body she felt indignant for herself, for the man she was, and stared at the wall as he shook her loose.
    "Well, come on." He looked down, and then up at her face. "We don't have all day, Jeff."
    Her bladder ached but this did not feel natural. She had trouble relaxing that part of her body.
    "Don't mess with me," said the nurse. "I'll take you back to your room."
    "Wait," Jean said. "Please. Just. . . turn your back. I need a minute. I need some privacy."
    "Right," said the nurse. "You just want to kick my ass. Oh, but wait—your hands are tied. Tough, man. Real tough."
    Jean grit her teeth. "Fine, don't turn around. But step back a little. I can't go with you watching me."
    "Aw, you're shy like a little girl. Okay, Jeffy. If it makes you feel better, I'll ease back a little. Just so." He moved. She turned back to