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The Kirghiz Steppes - Chapter 3

Author - Mctrip7
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The Kirghiz Steppes


By Mctrip7


Rating: PG-13
Genre: Suspense, Angst, Romance
Archive: Trip
Disclaimer: I understand that all the characters belong to Paramount and will not be sold.
Summary: It only takes a moment . . .


~~~~~

Chapter 3

Katya had that strange feeling when you just know somebody is looking at you. She continued what she was doing but slowly turned her body around and sure enough, her patient was watching her. He had the bluest eyes and the most adorable smile. She smiled back.

“How are you feeling?”

Trip’s forehead creased slightly. “N’t s’re.” Trip answered, not quite sure what she said.

“Let me get Maman. She will know if you can have something to eat. Are you hungry?”

Trip nodded as he realized she hadn’t understood his first response. He wasn’t sure he understood her question, either; but she had pointed to her mouth.

Katya finished drying his chest with the towel and then pulled the cover over him to keep him warm. He attempted to help her with the blanket, but his arm wouldn’t move. He frowned as Katya completed her task. When she saw his expression, she turned the blanket down, thinking he was too warm. He moved his head slowly from side to side. There were unshed tears in his eyes.

“Did I hurt you?” she asked. “Are you in pain?” “Maman, please come?”

“What is the matter, Katya? Oh, I see your patient is awake.”

“Maman, I have hurt him. There are tears in his eyes, and I can not understand what he is saying.”

“Are you in pain, young man?” Maman asked in her perfect Russian.

No response. Only sad blue eyes following her as she moved.

"I . .d o n ‘ t . . . u r . s t n d” Trip struggled to say.

“You speak English. I have not spoken that language for many years; but if you speak slowly, I think I can follow.” Lara responded. Both she and her husband had learned English when they were in medical school.

Trip said “c a n ‘ t . . m v e. W h a t . . apn’d . . t’m e? D o n ‘ . . . f e e l. . . e g s!

His voice was getting louder as panic began to set in.

Lara immediately took his face in her ample hands and turned it to her. “You are going to be fine. These functions come back slowly. You must learn to have patience.”


The panic in his eyes began to subside slowly. “W h ‘ r e. . .? ‘ o w . . .?

“We were hoping you could give us some answers.” Lara said as she released her patient. She was surprised to see that he had already lost consciousness.

“Is he still breathing, Maman?” Katya wanted to know.

“He is terribly weak. Sleep is the best thing for him, now. He does not seem to be in any pain. Your father will know what he needs when he gets here.

“Maman, how badly is he hurt? Do you think he is paralyzed?”

Answering in Russian, Lara said “I do not know, Katya. We can only hope that we can help him. When he awakens again, he can have a little broth.”

“Maman.” Both women turned to see the source of the voice.

“Yr . . n a m e ..”, Trip mumbled again. “Maman.”

Lara smiled, “You may call me Maman if you wish. In Russian it means Mother. My given name is Lara if you would prefer to use that. I have some broth for you but you must sip it very slowly. Would you like to try it?

A slight smile and a nod was all Trip could manage.

As Katya left to get the broth, Lara took Trip’s hand in hers and asked “Do you have any idea how you came to be in the hay pile? I don’t believe I have seen you in our Village before.

Trip moved his head from side to side very slowly.

As Katya reappeared with a small steaming bowl, Lara said “We’ll talk more about this

later. Right now you need some nourishment. Katya, we will need a straw as he cannot be moved.” Turning to Trip she cautioned him not to take a big sip in the beginning.

Following Lara’s instructions, the young officer found the warm broth very soothing to his mouth; however, swallowing it was a real challenge. At first he couldn’t make his throat work, then he began to feel the warm liquid trickle down. He tried another small sip. This time his throat seemed to know what to do. A smile came to his face.

Lara, who had been anxiously watching him, smiled back, nodding her head. “You’re going to be fine. Let’s finish this bowl and in a while you can have a little more.”

It was almost morning when Dr. Chekov and Alexi returned. They were loaded down with medical supplies. Before Lara could say anything, Dr. Chekov said “Don’t be alarmed, Lara. The hospital was quiet as everyone was asleep, including the monitors.

Pav and Cedrick were on duty; so they helped me. Tomorrow night I may be able to slip our patient in and get an x-ray. I really need to know the extent of his injuries.”

Lara just nodded. Through the years she had learned that when her husband made up his mind to do something, there was no stopping him. She had to admit, though, that he was always prudent and did not take unnecessary chances.

Their life together had been eventful, full of challenges and wonderful surprises. Both came from loving and caring families, neither rich nor poor, but comfortable. They met while at the University – she studying nursing, him to be a doctor. He wanted to be a family doctor and she wanted to be his assistant; however, with his grades and ability, he was destined to become a surgeon, a famous one. Because of the many new procedures he developed, he lectured throughout Europe.

They were married as soon as he graduated and she was able to travel with him until the birth of their son, Alexi, who was now twenty-two and studying medicine himself. They had such wonderful times and such a happy life until the strangers came. Quietly, Lara and Anton, together with their little family which now consisted of Alexi, his brother Sergi and his sister, Katya, left Moscow and headed for the farm they had inherited from Anton’s father in Kazakstan on the Steppes. Their neighbors knew them as Dr. and Mrs. Anton Chekov, prosperous farmers, whose son was studying to be a doctor. Alexi worked part time at the local hospital. Once while visiting his son, Dr. Chekov recognized two former classmates from the University, Doctor Pavel Asamov and Doctor Cedric Yelsen. He made arrangements to join them. They all shared the same outlook concerning the strangers; so they decided to keep a low profile and see what developed.

“Anton, do be careful. We know so little about these strange people.” Lara said as she helped with the packages he had brought.

“I am always careful, my dear. How is our patient?”

“He is sleeping now. He tried to talk but only made gurgling sounds until after he drank a little broth.”

“He was able to swallow? And could he keep it down?” As Lara nodded ‘yes’ to each question, Dr. Chekov smiled as he said “That’s good news. I believe he will be strong enough to go to the hospital as soon as we can find a time.”

“Anton, also, I learned that he speaks English. I’m a little rusty, but he understood me. His voice is raspy; so I did not try to engage him in a conversation”. Motioning, Lara said “We need to turn the lights out and you need to rest. I’m glad you are home.”

They awoke to sounds of someone thrashing around, then cries for help followed by moaning. Lara was out of bed in a minute heading for the source of the noise. She arrived just in time to see Trip waving his free arm and calling for help.

She grabbed his arm saying “Trip, Trip, it me, Lara. Wake up, you’re having a bad dream.” He opened his eyes, staring at her with the most terrible look on his face. “It’s me, Lara,” she repeated, not sure he was actually awake. He made some kind of a guttural sound and started coughing. She gave him a swallow of water. He looked terrible, all sweaty and tangled up in the covers. As she looked closer she saw that his clothes were soaking wet with perspiration. She decided that he was reliving whatever tragedy he had experienced.

“We need to get those wet clothes off of you, and get some clean dry linens, too.” As she turned to leave, she saw Katya coming out of her room.

“What happened, Maman? Is he alright?

“A bad dream. He’ll be fine but we must get fresh linen. Will you get that for me, Katya?

Katya turned and headed for the linen closet. “Will you need towels, too?” She asked.

“Yes, and will you get one of your brother’s old shirts, too. We don’t want him to get chilled.”

Lara turned back to Trip, only to see tears making their way down his cheeks. “Don’t be alarmed, this is very normal. You’re very weak right now and everything will seem like a crisis to you. I think you were experiencing whatever tragedy brought you here, all over again. Can you tell me about it?”

Trip managed a little smile as he said “don’t know . . where. . was. . . . Had . . feelin’. . was fallin’. . . fallin’. . . Couldn’t find . . anythin’ to grab hold of. . Then . .somethin’ black. . swallowed . . me up. . . Was. . . terrifyin’.”

“Could you have fallen out of an airplane?” Lara asked as she rubbed his arms and shoulders with a towel. I thought I heard you mention the word “Trip”. Does that mean anything to you?”

His creased forehead told Lara that it did, even though he couldn’t place it. “Was that your name? May we call you by that name.”

Trip nodded slowly. “OK” was all that he said.

Lara placed the dry linens under his head and shoulders and fitted them right next to his body down his sides. She did not want to move him until Anton had a look at him. Katya had returned, this time holding a cup of warm broth.

“It would be alright for him to have a little broth, wouldn’t it Maman?”

Trip was smiling now, as he nodded to Katya.

“It would be fine. Did you bring a straw?”

Katya produced a straw and smiled as she approached Trip. “I hope I didn’t hurt you last evening. I didn’t mean to.

Maman quickly translated for her.
Trip smiled and said no she hadn’t hurt him and thanked her for the broth. Katya placed the straw in Trip’s mouth and he began to sip the broth. It tasted so good to him. He wondered if by tomorrow he might be able to have meat and potatoes. He was beginning to feel hungry, but the dark spot was still there. He had no memory of being in a plane, only of falling through the sky. He wondered where he came from. Since his new friends were so secretive, was he a criminal, an escapee – but from where?

~~~

Several days passed. Dr. Chekov continued to monitor Trip. Each day his nourishment was increased, and his strength continued to increase. He began to have some feeling in his arms and legs; however, Dr. Chekov cautioned against moving until he was able to see the x-ray results.

Trip was putting words together, but at times he would appear to be staring off into space. Maman continued to converse with him and Katya added a few words to her English vocabulary.

Finally, one evening Dr. Chekov announced that he and Alexi would be taking Trip to the hospital sometime after midnight. He said his colleagues would have everything ready when they arrived.

The legs were removed from the table and Trip was carried to the waiting truck. Everyone knew how dangerous this would be for each of them.

“Do be careful, Anton,” Maman couldn’t resist saying. “And, Trip, try not to move at all.”

“Lara, we’ll be fine. Don’t worry.”

The three mile journey would take some time; so they got under way. They reached the hospital at 2:30 a.m. Dr. Asimov and Dr.Yelsen were waiting for them with a gurney. The table top was placed on top of the gurney as they hurried to the Radiology Department. Dr. Chekov had given Trip a mild sedative; so he was still groggy. They made Trip’s sheets taught and lifted him on to the x-ray table. A little ‘yipe’ from Trip told them there was still a problem.

When the x-rays were finished, Dr. Chekov began a more thorough exam. The cuts and bruises appeared to be healing nicely; but he was astounded at what the x-rays revealed. Almost every bone in Trip’s body showed a crack of some kind. Some appeared to already be healing; but others were more severe, particularly those in the spinal area - just touching that area caused Trip to wince. Further study revealed that his vertebra was still in tact, which brought a sigh of relief from the doctor. His tailbone showed a few chips in the area. His left thigh had a greenstick fractures and his left ankle was broken. Trip’s right shoulder was dislocated and that wrist had a bad sprain. A couple of the burns were 3rd degree but most were 2nd degree and seemed to be starting to heal.

“Son, I don’t see how you have been able to stand this. You must be in excruciating pain,” Dr. Chekov said as he was putting him under. Trip gave him a weak smile as he drifted off.

Assisted by Drs. Asimov and Yelsen, Dr. Chekov finished treating his patient before dawn. “We’ll need to keep him here a few days to monitor the infection. Give him a name and report it as tractor accident on a steep incline. Hopefully he can be out of here before he’s reported missing. One of us must be on duty at all times. I’ll take the first shift. You and Pavel get some sleep.”

By the end of the 3rd day, Trip was becoming restless. Dr Asimov knew he was beginning to feel the extensive surgery required; however, they had to cut down on the drugs or it would draw the attention of the hospital administrator who was a member of the “Others”.

As he was being bathed the next morning, Trip opened his eyes. Before he could speak, the nurse left. She returned shortly with Dr. Chekov.

“Thank you, Miss Bransky. I’ll finish up. I need to examine him while he is awake.”

Trip’s head and part of his face were covered in bandages – for medical reasons as well as to cover his blonde hair and fair skin.

“I feel like I’m on fire, Doc. There isn’t any place that doesn’t hurt.”

“You’re going to be in for a rough few days. The infection is responding to the antibiotics; but I don’t want to send you home until its all clear. That also means your body has to fight it and you can’t do that if you’re unconscious.”

“Do you all have movies here in the hospital,” Trip asked.

“I’m afraid the only TV here is broken. I’m sorry, son.” Finishing his exam, Dr. Chekov told Trip he would check back with him later.

Nurse Bransky returned and began straightening Trip’s covers. “I’m afraid doctors don’t make very good housekeepers,” she said as she smiled at him. “Can I get you anything?”

Trip just realized that he understood every word she said. “You speak English?” he smiled back.

“Yes, I took my medical training in London. We had to learn English.”

“Talk to me, will you? Just describe where you lived, what you did, anything.”

Trip pleaded. “I need to concentrate on something besides how I feel. I don’t know how long I can stand this pain!”

Anna knew the pain must be excruciating since he could have so little morphine. “Please try to relax. The stitches won’t pull as bad if you are relaxed.” She proceeded to tell him about London. “I lived in a small village called Bedfordshire, just outside London. It was about a 40 minute ride to Victoria Station. The hospital was only a few blocks away. My friend Nancy and I shared an apartment. She was studying to be a therapist.” Anna stole a peek at Trip. His face was drawn and his hands were tightly rolled into fists.

Though his eyes were now closed; when she stopped talking, he said “and . . .”

“We had classes from 8:00a.m. to 5:00p.m.. On Thursday we had ‘Clinicals’; we got to make the rounds with one of the doctors. Each time it was a different medical field. We really learned a lot.”

“Why did you decide to come here?” Trip wanted to know.

“Dr. Asimov is my father. He had told me about the shortage of medical personnel here at the hospital; so I came.”

Trip opened his eyes. “But you’re name is different. Are you married?”

“No. Because of the local situation, my father thought it best for me to use a different name.”

“I’ve never been to London. What’s it like?”

“Any big city, a very big city. You just stay in your area and hope you don’t have to leave it!” Again, Anna smiled at him.

She had such a disarming smile, Tucker thought. He could see why she would make a good nurse.

“I think you should try to rest now. We’ll talk again later,” Anna said, offering him some water.

“OK. I’ll be right here when you come back,” Trip said as he managed a ragged smile.

Anna came by to see him, officially, every hour when she was on duty. Other times she would bring a book and read to him. Sometimes it was only a medical manual; but he said he liked reading manuals, though he wasn’t sure why.

The tap on the door was right on time this day. Anna always came at 3:00p.m. She would have just finished her shift. Trip’s smile told her he had been waiting for her.

“You are in good spirits today,” she said to him in greeting. “Have you been following your doctor’s orders?”

“To the letter,” he answered.

“Then maybe you can sit in your chair while I read the rest of our story.”

As Trip struggled to raise up, she slipped her arms around his torso allowing him some support. He grasped her arms and swung his legs over the edge of the bed. Their eyes met.

“You’re doing very well,...,” she encouraged.

Trip noticed her hesitation. Smiling he said "I'd like it if you called me "Trip".

“Alright then, Trip it is. Can you take several steps to the chair, or have you tried that yet, Trip?”

“I’m willing, if you’ll stay close by.”

As Anna helped him to the chair, Trip was aware of her fragrance.

“Your perfume smells nice,” he commented. “I think I’ve smelled it somewhere before. The bare white room flashed before him - then it was gone.


TBC


Continue to Chapter 4

Return to Chapters 1 and 2

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Four of you have made comments

How did the nurse know his name was "Charles"? Reading the first 3 chapters, "Trip" is the only name he has given.

Thanks for catching my slip. I think it will look better now. Hope you like the story.

Is he on Earth? Well, my last comment just shows how observent I am.
Great story. Fast up-date, yay! pls up-date fast again! ooo, wil tehy find out who he is? will he find out who he is?

Really enjoying your story hope you update really soon