Excerpt: The Memory Monger's Keeper

The rhythmic pulse of my windshield wipers did little to calm my nerves as my tiny Civic skidded through puddles on the way home that day. I stole a quick glance to the young man sleeping in the passenger seat. With his unkempt blond hair and wiry beard, he could easily have been mistaken for a homeless man. For all I knew, he was. I had not seen my old friend Lionel in years, and I was still trying to wrap my head around our chance encounter.

“Lionel,” I said loudly, “you need to wake up. I don’t want you bleeding to death in my car!”

Lionel’s green eyes flashed open as he yawned widely. He still appeared to be crying. “Sam, I just want you to know how much I appreciate this.”

Raindrops thudded loudly against the car, filling the silence. After a pause, I finally spoke. “No problem, man. Don’t worry about it. We’ll get you taken care of.”

My old friend again winced loudly, his hands pressing harder against the make-shift tourniquet across his chest. Stealing another look, I decided he really looked more like a refugee than a homeless man. His head bobbed again. I knew he was truly trying to stay awake, but his need to sleep was overwhelming. I wondered how long he had been awake; the circles under his eyes indicated it had been days.

I slowed to wait in the left turn lane at a stoplight. Five minutes from home, I thought. If I made a right now, we could be at the hospital in less than fifteen minutes. I considered the idea again, but my promise to Lionel echoed once more through my mind. Although it was against my better judgment, I would be treating this patient out of my house.

The sound of the rain in the car was almost deafening by now. I turned the windshield wipers to full speed, but as the stoplight turned green and I eased onto College Avenue, the world became a gray blur through the window. Though I really needed to focus on driving, my thoughts continued to drift back to my coincidental reunion with Lionel.