Cassie moaned, weakly, and tried to sit up. Hang on… she could see! The light was dim, the curtains drawn. For that, she was thankful. She also could seem to hear again, as she could hear people out in the corridor.

Her left arm shook violently as she lifted it toward her face. She also tried to open her mouth…

Now really scared, as her mouth definitely didn’t open, she raised her shaking hand to her face and felt the hood for the first time. She frantically tried to get a finger under the hood, to pull it off, but it was stuck fast. The heart rate monitor beeped faster and faster as she hummed loudly, trying to scream…

The monitor sounded an alarm at the nurses desk, and one of them rushed in. All she could do, however, was hold Cassie as she screamed almost soundlessly…

Cassie slumped, unconscious, the heart rate monitor going back to normal. She had been unable to cope and had passed out, her bodies protective measure for a truth too horrible to bear. The nurse tenderly laid her back down on the bed and sadly walked back out of the room.

Once outside, she called a doctor.

“Jane Doe woke up”, she said. “She had such a panic attack when she found out what had happened to her, she passed out again, though. I think she’s going to be a real problem. We might even lose her.”

The nurses fears were well founded. Cassie only woke up briefly over the next day or two, and every time she did, she just rolled into a ball and screamed silently until she passed out again, clawing at her face with shaky hands.

They had eventually managed to identify Cassie from her DNA; she had been caught shoplifting as a minor, and her DNA had been put on file. The detective investigating the case had got special permission to access the records, and Cassie had been found. They then discovered she had a living relative, a sister; she was called, and she said she’d be there as soon as she could.

April quickly arrived at the hospital; the nurse stopped her from rushing in the room, however.

“There’s some things you need to know, first”, she said, steering April to a chair.

April cried when she heard what had been done to Cassie, as well as how bad her sister’s health had been affected. The nurse also said that Cassie might even not recognise her and could be violent. April said she realised that, wanted to help and could she go and see her sister now, please?

April still put a hand over her mouth and gasped when she entered the room. Cassie was in a terrible state. Limbs shaking, even when she was unconscious. And, that horrible hood…

At that point, Cassie awoke again, curled up and started screaming silently. April put a hand on her shoulder…

Cassie’s arm flailed out, and April went flying. She landed, dazed, on the other side of the room as Cassie curled back into a ball…