Della heard the tension in Ellen’s voice. She put her hand on Ellen’s shoulder and squeezed it. “Ellen, wait,” she said. “It doesn’t sound like Maggie’s sure of this. Let’s go back upstairs and see what’s going on. Maybe there was some electrical problem that switched on the light automatically last night.”
“Sure,” I agreed. “Let’s find out for sure.”
Ellen nodded, slowly “Good idea,” she agreed. “Let’s check and see.”
Something Just Doesn't Feel Right
We returned to the corridor. We found a light switch on the outside of the further door, locked behind a wire enclosure. We were at the intersection of another hallway leading to labs and offices. Della cocked her ear and listened. “Sounds busier,” she remarked. “Somebody’s having breakfast up here, too. You could get more coffee, Maggie.”
“No thanks, Della.” I said. “It doesn’t look like anyone could have turned this light on. Certainly not by accident.” I walked back into the sleeping quarters and had another look around. The only other light switch was outside of the door to the office. I clicked it on. A fluorescent light flickered to life against the opposite wall.
“Here’s one,” I said. We walked into the room and I took another look around. There was an examination table against the opposite wall. To my left was a table with a computer screen and telephone. A chair was neatly tucked in. The far left wall held a sink and counter, with cabinets above. It looked like every doctor’s office I’d ever seen.
“Could someone have come in here last night and turned on the light?”
Ellen shook her head. “I don’t see why they would. Staff here knows about the study. They’ve been instructed not to walk through the halls and I assume they know better.”
“A cleaner?”
“They don’t come until mid-day, after people leave.”
Looks Okay To Me
I looked at the desk. There were a few folders on top. I didn’t see anything else. I took one last look around the room. The sink looked dry. Several bottles of betadyine lotion were stacked up against the splash guard. The cabinets were locked. I looked up and saw a paper towel holder with its door slightly askew. I opened it, saw a half-stack of paper towels and nothing more. “I don’t know, Ellen,” I said. “I think there was a light, but I was really groggy, too.” I felt terribly guilty. “I’m really sorry. What now?”
Ellen looked pained. “Well, if someone was here then I’ll have to notify the staff and the principal investigators,” she said sadly. “It’ll postpone the study, at least.”
Della shook her head vehemently. “Wait,” she said. “It would be a shame to cancel the study based on something that Maggie thought she might have seen,” Della was determined to get her vision back in enough time to enjoy it. This research delay was not part of the plan. “Maybe we should give it one more night and see for sure.”
That seemed logical. “No point in canceling a study if I’m wrong,” I acknowledged.
Ellen’s face relaxed a bit as she considered Della’s suggestion. “I can run the study with just the blind
participants tonight and then continue again with Maggie if this is all a mistake.” She looked at me. “No point hooking you up again, since you’ll be up and expecting something. I’ll wait until tomorrow before I talk to anyone.”
We nodded our agreement and Ellen gave us both another hug before leaving. I still felt guilty. If nothing else, I had to go through with this or I’d never have peace of mind again. Della said I had an overblown sense of responsibility and was hard at work trying to fix that. That, and my sex life. I made sure she ate well and got to where she needed to go. In return, Della was only too happy to suggest my life’s course, at least when she thought she could. I’d have to find something to break this streak, or I’d be in big trouble.
“A stake-out!” Della said after Ellen had left. “How exciting. Hopefully you won’t get yourself in trouble or hurt tonight.”
Trouble? Hurt? Suddenly, I was filled with dread as well as guilt. “What? Hurt?” I repeated.
Della rolled her eyes. “Well, obviously, if it’s not a mistake then some thing else is going on,” she explained. “Maybe someone was there.”
I hadn’t considered what to do in the case of an actual intruder. At this point I thought I was wrong. I was too tired to play cops and robbers and was feeling more than a little annoyed with Della.. “Why didn’t you tell Ellen this?” I asked.
“And scare that poor thing?” Della replied. “Absolutely not!”
“But it’s okay to scare me?” I retorted.
Sleep? Sleep? Now I'm Supposed to Sleep??
Della snorted. “What else is new? I scare you all the time. Tell you what, we’ll stay in my room tonight. If something comes up then both of us can decide what to do. Sound good? I’ll take the first watch. You can get some sleep that way.”
