She stared at the ceiling and almost laughed at the question because of how clueless she was. This was her lying down here thinking that the doctor or nurses would have some insight as to what had happened to her. How could she know? How could she tell when her mind was as blank as a new paper?
"Do not struggle with your thoughts, Miss Caitlin," Mark said. He glanced at the drip and noticed that it would soon finish and that meant that she would soon be discharged. But there were things that they had not yet settled and which needed to be addressed before they would let her go to be with herself again.
"I would give you something for your headache…we didn't find an injury but I'd be rest assured if we take you in for a CT Scan so that I'll cancel out any suspicion of internal injury or bleeding."
Caitlin didn't say anything – not because she didn't want to but because she didn't have anything to say. She had lots of questions but wasn't sure that they could answer them. However, Caitlin asked; "Please I'll need some water."
"I'll get some for you…" the nurse said as she hurried out of the room.
Caitlin needed some privacy with the doctor as she felt that she could speak with him – she felt she could open up to him about certain concerns that she had.
"Why was I bound?" Caitlin asked Doctor Mark with a creased brow as she tried to moisten her dried lips.
He sighed and drew a long breath in before he answered her There was time on his hands as there were no emergency cases and other doctors were handling the rounds for the rest patients that were admitted to the hospital. Mark couldn't tell, but he felt drawn to this patient and was determined to get to the bottom of what had happened to her.
"You were pulling at your hair…" Mark said.
She gawked at the doctor and realized that was why she was having raw pain in her scalp. "That explains a lot…" Caitlin finished in a low tone as her hand grazed her hair gently and felt how sore every touch was. It was as if she had braided her hair and the hairdresser had made it so tight that her scalp had been scraped.
The nurse returned with two bottles of water and set them on the bedside table that was near Caitlin. "Here… should I open one for you?"
Caitlin nodded.
The nurse smiled sadly, as if trying to reassure Caitlin, and popped open the cover that was on the bottle. She handed Caitlin the bottle and walked out again after reading the room and noticing that Doctor Mark and Caitlin had been having a conversation before she returned. Just as she got to the door, the nurse stopped and turned around; "You can page me when you need my assistance, Doctor."
Mark nodded with his usual warm smile before he faced Caitlin and said to her; "They cleaned you up and changed your clothes while you were out of it, Miss Caitlin…" Mark began but stopped to hear what she'd say in response to his statement.
"Yes? I noticed," Caitlin said as she looked down at the hospital gown that she was putting on.
"They noticed some marks on your body that I would like to see for myself…" Mark said. "There are lots of gaps that we would need to fill, Miss Caitlin. I need to know that you're safe to be discharged from the hospital."
"Wounds?" Caitlin asked. Her eyes widened and narrowed at the same time. There could be no way that she had been wounded. Who would have done that to her? Where and how could she have gotten injured?
"Where?" she asked in disbelief. As she tried to sit up, she felt a pain in her back and her shoulders.
Caitlin closed her eyes and shook her head.
"Why can't I remember anything?"
"Your thoughts are being blocked," Mark said as he stood up and untied the knots of ropes that were at the back of Caitlin's gown. He saw the scratches that indicated she had been dragged somewhat and had suffered from some kind of beating or struggle.
"And that happens when the person has been traumatized by something…"
"Traumatized?" Caitlin asked.
"Hmm hmm…" Mark said while he tied the ropes of the hospital gown and arranged the pillows so that Caitlin could rest on them again. The wounds had been cleaned by the nurses and were left open to dry up. They would be cleaned again in a few hours as they weren't that deep but the fact that they were there was cause for concern.
"Do you know Mr. Carl?" Mark asked, taking his seat again and crossing his legs with her chart set on his lap.
"Mr. Carl?" Caitlin asked as she turned to face the doctor. "No…"
"Doesn't ring any bells at all?" Mark asked.
"Not at all…"
"He was the one that brought you here…" Mark said. "According to the nurse that was on duty when you were brought in, she described him as a tall man with good looks with a scar on the left side of his chin. He was well built and had a cut that seemed like he was military."
Caitlin's frown deepened. There was no one that she knew that had a scar on his chin. A scar that was so noticeable that it was used to describe him would have stuck to her memory as well. She had no friends with such or even neighbors.
"So you don't know this person?"
Caitlin shook her head.
Mark scribbled something on the back of the paper that was attached to the board in his hands. They had been of the opinion that Carl might be a suspect as to who had caused Caitlin to be in the state that she was. Sometimes, it was the perpetrators of abuse that usually brought their victims to be treated in hospitals.
"How about your husband? Any children?"