Bertha was asleep and she looked so calm and peaceful. From the time we brought her to the clinic, she hadn't woken up. She needed all the rest she could get. When we brought her here, I heard some nurses talking down the hall about how hard it was for the other nurses on duty last night to have her under control. I bet those same nurses were at home resting as well.
I was sitting on a chair beside Bertha's bedside in the ward. Regina, the Head Girl, had put me on guard duty for some reason. I wasn't up for the idea in the first place because it wasn't my responsibility. Or at least it felt that way. I had classes for crying out loud. If there was anyone who should really be with Bertha, it was any prefect or teacher on duty, not me.
I leaned back further on my chair, feeling a little frustrated. Now I understood how guards felt when they were alone with no one to talk to, some of them sitting on a chair all alone with nothing to do except keep a look out for anything strange that might happen. No wonder some of them easily fall asleep.
I wish I had a book with me to keep myself occupied. Being in the ward could be so boring sometimes. There were a few sick patients admitted in the ward Bertha was in, most of them belonged to the neighbouring community outside school. Some patients' families came to see them to deliver breakfast and simply have a chat. Others were alone and still in their beds with a nurse coming round for a routine checkup. Bertha had already been checked and the nurse said she was okay and stable. I believed her for a moment, but I became a little paranoid when the nurse went on to check the other patients. If Bertha woke up, would she be as stable as the nurse declared she was?
Time had passed and I realised I hadn't stood up from my chair ever since I got here. Sitting in one place for a really long time without doing anything didn't only make me sick of boredom, it also made me sick for sure. And the strong smell of medicine and bleach used to mop the floors was too much. I'm not much of a sport but I am also not an idle person either. I was one who liked to walk around just to stretch and exercise my legs and take a breath of fresh air. It's what I really needed right now. I couldn't stay in the ward any longer.
I stood up from my seat and made sure I gave myself a good stretch, lifting my arms in the air. It felt so good. My body felt a little relieved. I noticed a few locals who had come to pay a visit, look at me, some in a weird sort of way. I ignored them. It wasn't my fault I needed a stretch.
I turned to look at the time on the clock hang on the wall. I had already missed break time and I realised how hungry I was. It was heading to 11 and that meant I had an hour till lunch time. I wondered if I was allowed to go back to school for lunch. I was starving.
With another hour still to go, I started to walk out of the ward. I made sure I did so very slowly because I didn't want to disturb Bertha. Luckily, Bertha's bed was close to the door. When I reached it, I looked at her. She hadn't moved an inch. If you were to look at her for a really long time, you would think she was dead. But she was perfectly breathing, all right. I saw her chest rise and fall steadily. She was fine.
I felt relief when I stepped into the hall of the clinic and started to walk towards the door at the far end which led straight outside. I took in a deep breath of fresh air when I stepped out. It was just what I needed.
I took a walk towards some trees in the middle of the clinic grounds. There were a few nurses and patients walking around and in the middle of the hospital premises, was a well next to a big tree. This was where people in the community came to draw their water. There weren't many water sources in the area, so for some, drawing water here was pretty convenient for them.
As I approached the well, a strong wind came along that for a moment, I had to close my eyes to prevent any dust from entering them. And luckily, my uniform dress wasn't so flared, so, I didn't have to worry about the hem flying over my head. The strong wind was biting cold as well. I looked up in the sky and I didn't see any sign of a dark cloud anywhere. Strange. The rainy season had already passed and we didn't experience the cold season till June. Why the sudden change in weather?
I rubbed my shoulders as I looked around. Looks like I wasn't the only one wondering why it suddenly became so cold as other people outside also started to wonder. The wind continued to blow, still bringing with it the cold. It seemed best to go inside. If I had known the weather was going to change like this, I would have carried my white school sweater.
Just as I turned round to head back into the clinic, I heard a loud ear splitting scream coming from inside.
"Bertha."
I quickly ran back towards the door I had just walked out from. And just when I was about to go in, the door slammed shut in my face that my nose hit the door! I fell to the ground upon impact. I never thought that someone would close the door on me like that.
"Oh, oh, are you okay?" came a nurse behind me as she took my arm to lift me up.
"I'm fine," I replied as I held my nose that really hurt a lot. Luckily, it wasn't bleeding nor was it broken. I could still hear Bertha screaming her lungs out from inside.
"That girl is screaming again," said the nurse. "I wonder what's wrong with her now."
The nurse approached the door and tried to open it, but to her surprise, it didn't even budge. It looked like someone had locked the door from inside.
"Strange," she said. "No one is supposed to lock this door during the day. What's going on?"
I thought the same too. Something wasn't right. The wind out here continued to blow and this time, it's force became stronger. I looked up at the sky and I saw a dark nimbus cloud approaching the clinic. Was it going to rain today?
"Let's use the west wing," said the nurse.
I nodded and I followed her towards the west wing of the clinic. I could still hear screaming. Those of us outside were now entering the clinic through the door of the west wing to take cover. The nurse was a bit faster than I was and had entered through the door with the others. Just as I was about to go through, the door swung, ready to close on me, then, I held it before it banged shut on my face again. What was happening? It felt like someone was trying to push the door closed. But who?
I continued to push the door with all my might, careful enough not to let it close completely. But with each dying second, it felt like the person on the other side was pushing me back. And I could tell whoever it was was way stronger than me. I realised that I couldn't hold on any longer. My feet below couldn't take the grip I was applying onto the ground despite my tough Bata school shoes. I was going to slip and fall and the door would finally close on me. Something told me that I shouldn't give in. The air outside was getting colder and stronger. I really needed help right now.
The force behind the door became more intense and I felt myself being pushed even farther backwards. The door was going to close shut and I could see it. All that was needed was one powerful push from the other side and it will all be over.
I continued to push the door when I heard a rumbling sound above me. The dark clouds I had seen earlier were directly above the clinic. Was that thunder I heard just now? I hope not.
The dark sky was lit up by the sudden appearance of lightening. Oh, goodness. I hope the lightening wasn't going to strike me. It was hard enough to concentrate on focusing on the door. Lightening continued to show its presence in the sky with a loud rumble of thunder following afterwards. I grew scared. What if the lightening were to come down and strike me?
As if it read my mind, the lightening above me struck a few metres away from me, bringing down a tree. There was such a loud banging noise and the tree fell helplessly to the ground. I grew even more terrified and my heart was pumping so fast that I could only feel it and not hear it with everything that was going on. The loud thunder rattled my insides even more.
A few raindrops hit my head. It was going to rain soon and I was out here busy struggling with whoever was on the other side of the door. I didn't quite understand how I was still standing outside, trying to push the door open. If it were up to me or anyone else, the door would have closed a long time ago. This felt like a tag of war where it took hours just for one of the opponents to give in. With all my might, I still kept the door steady from closing.
All of the sudden, the lightening struck again. And this time, it struck the ground, away from the tree that fell and almost a few feet away from me, leaving a dark spot where it had struck. This was scary. It looked like the lightening was coming to strike me. My heart was now in my throat. The thought of me being struck was terrifying. I had to get inside no matter.
The lightening struck again and this time it was a few feet away from me. The sound of it hitting the ground, deafened my ears that there was a ringing sound in them which almost drove me mad. I could feel myself slipping back from holding the door open. It was a miracle that it took me a second to gather myself and hold the door. This was it. If the lightening was to strike again, it would be on my head.
This time, I decided to push the door with all my might. I didn't know where the sudden strength in me came from, but I managed to push the door forward even if it was just a few inches. I continued to push and this time, the door opened even further. I heard the rumbling sound of thunder above me and I knew if I didn't move out of the way now, the lightening was going to strike at me.
Just when I saw the dark clouds light up a bit, I pushed the door with my all that I found myself falling forward to the ground and at the same time, a sudden blast of light filled my vision. For a second, I thought I had been hit by lightening. But I would have felt the burning pain if I did, which I didn't. I looked around and I realised that I had entered through the door and that I was on the floor inside the clinic. I looked behind me and noticed the burnt spot where the lightening had hit. It was on the exact same spot I was on when I was trying to push the door open. What a relief. The dark clouds outside and few drops of rain had soon started to disappear outside.
"What have you been doing outside, eh?" came a familiar voice.
I went on to look in front of me, still on the floor. The nurse who I was with outside came towards me alongside a fellow colleague. I quickly got myself up from the floor.
"I was trying to open the door," I said. "Someone was trying to close it before I could get in."
"What are you talking about?" the other nurse asked. "The two of us were standing in the hall and we didn't see anyone trying to close the door."
"Uh?" I raised an eyebrow. "No one was at the door?"
"No, no one. What were you still doing outside with such bad weather?"
"I was... I...," I didn't know what to say to the nurses. Something fishy was going on and I didn't like it one bit.
Before I could utter a lie, I heard Bertha screaming again. I totally forgot why I was trying so hard to get back inside the clinic. Bertha was in trouble.
I ran past the nurses down the hall and round the corner, to the ward Bertha was in. I heard running footsteps behind me, the two nurses were following me.
Bertha's screams became louder when I got to the ward. The door was open and I went right in.
"Bertha?" I called out to her. What I saw in the room, shocked me.
Bertha was still on her bed but this time, she was being held down by nurses. Her arms and legs were being held in place onto the bed. She was trying to squirm herself away from them and she was screaming. I could see beads of precipitation on her forehead with all the struggle she was putting to get away.
"Push her down, she shouldn't leave this place," said one of the nurses holding her arm down.
"No! Leave me!" Bertha screamed out to the nurses trying all she could to get away from them.
I continued to look at Bertha and she had a horrifying look on her face, like it wasn't her. She somehow looked different. It felt like I was looking at a whole different person.
I noticed that the visitors who had come to see their sick family relatives had left the ward. They were probably terrified when Bertha started screaming.
"Is the doctor coming?" asked one of the nurses who was holding one of her legs down, staring at the two nurses who I had come in with.
"He will be here shortly with the medication," said the nurse behind me. She held my shoulder and I turned to look at her.
"You have to wait outside," she said. "Your friend isn't doing so well."
"But she needs me here," I said.
Just before the nurse could persuade me even further, there was a loud growling scream. I was surprised that Bertha had made such a noise as I turned to look at her. Something was wrong.
"Excuse me, move aside, please," said a man behind as he came over, pushing me aside. The two nurses I came in with went to join him at Bertha's bedside.
Bertha growled again. And this time, it was more terrifying than the first one. Her growl sounded like that of an angry bear held in chains and willing to get out. Her bed shook with all her movement and her weight. The nurses holding her were doing all they could. But anytime soon, she was going to break free and who knows what might happen.
"Leave me alone!" Bertha warned them. Her voice sounded strange, more deeper too. "Or else I'll destroy you all!"
That sounded strange and it didn't sound like what Bertha would say. The doctor had a syringe with him. It looks like he might have some kind of tranquilizer or something to help calm her down. But was it going to get her voice back to normal? It was creeping me out and it should be doing the same to the others too.
"Keep her down so that I can inject her with some medicine," the doctor said as he prepared the syringe.
Just when he was about to inject her, Bertha kicked out her leg, hitting one of the nurses who held her leg that she fell to the floor holding her face.
With her free leg, Bertha hit the other nurse holding her other leg straight on the head that she took the nurse down to the floor. She also managed to take her arm away that was being held and pushed the nurse away from her. With her free arm she quickly grabbed the syringe the doctor had in his hand and threw it across the room. I noticed the syringe roll on the floor and under a bed of one of the patients who was hiding in his blankets from the scary site of Bertha.
"Hold her down quickly!" the doctor warned his nurses.
But it was already too late.
With her free hand she punched the other nurse holding her other hand right in the face. The nurse backed away already holding her bloody broken nose. The two nurses I came into the ward with tried to hold her down but she was already up from her bed and she quickly pushed the two nurses back. I moved aside so as not to be run over by them. The nurse I was with outside the clinic hit her back against the wall, the other nurse hit the door with her back and in the end, closing the door. Now we were all locked in inside the ward with Bertha.
Bertha jumped on the bed and she looked at the doctor who was slowly backing away.
"Calm down, dear," said the doctor. "You aren't well."
Wasn't anyone seeing what was wrong with Bertha's appearance? She seemed to have heavy dark circles around her eyes that weren't there before. Her hair stood out and not in the shaggy way it was before, but in spikes. Her eyebrows seemed to have thickened and looked more like a mono brow when she furrowed them. When she snarled at the doctor, I couldn't help but notice her canine teeth look sharper than the usual and sticking out like that of a vampire. If anything, she looked terrifying and no one in the room didn't seem to notice.
Bertha snarled at the doctor before jumping on him and the two fell onto the floor, with Bertha on top of him and snarling at his face. The doctor tried to push her off him but Bertha was too strong. Now that she was distracted, it was now my turn to do something. I had to get the syringe.
I quickly passed the doctor, Bertha and the other nurses who were still on the floor and ran down the aisle of the ward to get to the other side where the syringe had laid under one of the beds. Just when I got there, I heard Bertha call out behind me that I paused.
"Oh, Diana," her voice was in a mocking, yet deep horrifying voice. "I wouldn't get that syringe if I were you."
I slowly turned to look at her and she was a few feet away from me. She still looked as horrifying as ever. If we ever celebrated Halloween, which gladly we don't do in Zambia, she would have won the Halloween costume of the year.
I looked at the doctor behind her who looked like he had passed out on the floor. She must have given him a knockout punch. Some of the nurses were recuperating from Bertha's blows.
"You aren't Bertha, are you?" I asked.
Bertha tilted her head to the side. Her dark eyes looking back at me. "What makes you think that?" she asked.
"You wouldn't be hurting people like you just did."
Bertha smiled and her horrifying vampire teeth stood out. "I guess you're right on that one."
All of the sudden, Bertha came charging towards me. For a moment, I didn't know what to do because she came at me so fast. The next thing I knew, I was down on the floor and Bertha was right on top of me.
"Get off me!" I shouted as I tried to push her away, but then she had her hands around my neck.
Her grip on my neck tightened and I was choking and yet trying to fight back. She stared down at me with her fang like teeth sticking out as she smiled. She was way stronger than I had expected. But then I realised something.
I was also as strong as her too.
"Not a nice way to die, isn't it, Diana?" Bertha asked as her grip became even tighter. I was now gasping for air. "You should have died when Death first came to you."
I could feel my lungs deprived of air and I had to do something and fast.
"You're right," I managed to say even on a shortage of breath. "But I'm not ready to die yet."
I swung my fist towards Bertha and hit her with huge punch on the side of her face. She was pushed aside by the force of the punch and onto the floor. I got up on my feet quickly.
Bertha was still on the floor holding her cheek. She looked dazed for a bit that I had actually punched her. She looked up at me with a surprised look on her face despite the horrible way she was looking. She soon got up from the floor.
"This is not possible," she said in her deep growl.
"Told you I'm not ready to die yet," I said, as I held my aching neck.
Bertha growled even louder and she came at me again. This time I was ready for her and I moved aside but this time, I made an extra precaution of sticking my left leg out that she tripped and fell to the floor.
I didn't waste anytime as I turned around and approached the bed where the syringe laid under. I knelt on to the floor and I was inches from getting the syringe when I felt someone grab both my ankles and push me backwards.
My whole body went to the floor, landing on my belly. I had hit my chin on the floor that for a moment, I thought it might have been smashed. I was being dragged away from the bed and I saw the distance between syringe and I widen.
"You aren't going anywhere!" Bertha said as she dragged me across the floor away from the bed.
I quickly turned, my back on the floor and I managed to free my left leg from her clutches and with it, I gave a quick painful kick under her chin. She let go of my other leg as she howled in pain. I quickly crawled away from her and back to the bed to get the syringe.
"You're going to pay for that!" came Bertha as she took hold of my legs and pulled me back like before.
When she dragged me back to the aisle, she held my short hair and lifted my head so as to look at me from above. I almost screamed because she was pulling me painfully at the roots.
"You weakling," she said as she spoke in my left ear. "I'm going to do to you what Death failed to do."
I held her hand that was holding my hair and managed to steady myself with almost half of my body away from the floor.
I took a deep breath and then said, "we will see about that."
With my other free left hand, I raised it up from the floor and stuck the syringe to her neck, pressing the plunger. Bertha growled in pain as she let go of my hair and backed away from me. I quickly turned my head to see what was going on with her. She painfully removed the syringe sticking out of her neck and she stared at it. Then she went on to stare at me in a bewildered sort of way as the syringe fell from her hand. I soon got up from the floor.
Her horrible monstrous features soon started to disappear and this time she was looking more like herself. She started to sway, the medicine taking it's course. Before she fell to the floor, I was made an effort to go and hold her steady.
"Diana?" she asked me, looking dizzy and worn out. "What happened?"
"Let's leave that story for when you're better," I said. "You need to rest."
Bertha soon blacked out in my arms and somehow, I still managed to hold her. I soon noticed the nurses and the doctor staring at the two of us with surprised looks on their faces and others with gaping mouths. It was my turn to look at them with an eyebrow raised.
"Aren't you going to help me out here or what?" I asked.
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