The Aftermath (Sam)

Normally it would have been a fairly average, run-of-the-mill vampire hunt.  Okay, just saying 'vampire hunt' and 'run-of-the-mill' in the same sentence didn't make much sense, at least not to a normal person.  But to a hunter with any experience whatsoever under their belt, normal was pretty much exactly what it was.  The problem for Julia was that it had been her first vampire hunt without her brother there by her side, and although having a spirit guide like Maggie provided her with a wealth of information, the ghost of a teenage girl really didn't provide the backup that a 6'3" solid wall of muscle and firearms that was her twin brother did.  Julia had barely managed to escape that vampire nest and had collapsed on the front lawn of the nearby farmhouse from the blood loss before being discovered a short while later by the farmer's wife and sent to the hospital in an ambulance.

That was two days ago.  Now Julia laid awake in the hospital bed, boredly flipping through the channels on the little television on the opposite wall as the nurse came in to check her vitals for the uimpteenth time.  She rolled, twisted and lifted whatever body part was necessary for the young woman to do her thing, but she wasn't really paying attention, even as the nurse tried to make small talk.  She just wanted to get out of there but up until now she had felt too weak to really get far, and she wasn't sure if it was due to the blood loss she had suffered or the pain medicine... maybe a little of both.

But she did take notice when the nurse was stopped on her way out the door.  Julia furrowed her brow and tried to listen to what was being said but her brain was still fuzzy and she was having a hard time making out the words.  Lucky for her, though, Maggie was listening quite closely, and the young ghost hovered invisible next to the nurse, reading the chart of the man who occupied the neighboring room as the nurse confirmed a phone number to the man.  When they left, she came in to report her findings to Julia.

Julia couldn't help feeling suspicious upon hearing the man's symptoms.  It was a long shot, but something about it screamed supernatural to her.  Ever since being opened up to the world of the paranormal, it had become her go-to for anything that couldn't really be explained.  So Julia gathered up whatever strength she could muster and climbed out of bed, taking a moment to stretch a bit as two days in bed had left her stiff and sore.  She then reached back with one hand to hold the back of her hospital gown closed and wrapped her other hand around her IV stand, pulling it with her as she made her way to the door.  She peered out into the hallway, making sure it was empty before slipping into the room next door, quietly making her way over to the man's bed.

"Pssst," she whispered loudly, not really expecting a man who had been in a coma for the last three days to respond, of course.  Julia glanced at the machine that monitored his vitals and tried to think of some way that she could get him to snap out of it.  She wondered if having Maggie possess his body would get him to wake up...