The wind whipped mercilessly around Mandy Lynns ankles as she hurried out from the employee exit at the rear of Monte Rose General Hospital, a violent shiver racing down her spine. She pulled the collar of her greying wool jacket up around the slender column of her neck and without a second look back, began the 20 something block trek back to her apartment (the Winchester Townehouse Suites) in the eastern end of town.
It had been a long day, fatigue from registering countless injured, sick and dieing brought to the emergency room now showing plainly upon her tired features. Monte Rose General was the only trauma equip hospital within a 40 mile radius in the area, so most souls requiring treatment often suffered the journey there, no matter the distance. Other facilities were either under-funded (having closed their doors forever) or under-manned. And while the General had no shortage of employees, it was sadly one of the many hospitals facing financial hardships.
Tucking chilled hands into her woolen pockets, Mandy hurried along the desolate street, the biting wind refusing to reduce its attack. Her pace was deliberate and steady, a power walk of sorts. She`d developed speed over the years as a matter of necessity...wonderful as the downtown district was, it was no longer one of the safest areas in town. Strange murders and attacks (which always seemed to occur during the night) had come to be a near weekly occurrence in her neighbourhood, the bodies often discovered among trash cans in alley ways or within the ruins of failing buildings. And yet, distressing as these crimes often were, few took any real notice of them. The victim was almost always a wanted drug dealer, and ex-arms supplier, even convicted murderers themselves. Local law enforcement merely viewed the killings as perhaps the work of a fed up self-proclaimed vigilante, often turning a blind eye to the crimes. After all...it did appear as though the majority of city dwellers had nothing to fear from this killer(s). However justified their rational was, this assumption came as little comfort to Mandy Lynn who usually worked the late shift and had to walk home alone every night. The sooner she got in after dark and locked the door behind her, the better....or was it?
As of late, she had been having the strangest dreams, the same dream actually. It was boarder line nightmare, though something always kept it from reaching that terrible element of fright. At first, it came only once in a great while, but as time went on, its frequency began to increase. Where once she might have had it every other month, it now came every other day and it was always the same. As though beginning at the middle of a dream already in motion, a shadowed man would suddenly appear over her (was she laying on the ground?) and reach out his hand - it was covered in blood. Did he her need help? True she worked at a hospital, but she was no nurse! She would try to take his offered hand, perhaps she could find him aid... but then the strangest sensation would fill her. A hypnotic, euphoric trance...he doesn`t need her help at all...
The dream always ended there. It couldn`t be more than a few minutes in length, but it always felt like an eternity until she woke. What did it mean, and why did she keep having it? With extra effort in her step, Mandy cleared herself of such thoughts, focusing instead upon the task at hand....getting home and out of the cold of night. God only knew if the mystery killer or killers of the inner metropolis area was out on the prowl again tonight.
