Read Radium Halos for Free Online Page B

dishwasher, the fridge, the clock on the stove, the
lights above me, a pounding creak near the stairs. Each time my
eyes settled on something, my hearing tuned into a new sound. All the normal things in my life are now enemies invading my
head.
    “Crap, crap,
crap,” I whispered, the heels of my hands covered my eyes and
fingers nails scratched into my scalp. The scraping on my skin
sounded like nails on a chalkboard. I shuddered. Even my barely
audible cry sounded like wailing to me.
    “What’s going
on, Zoe?”
    I nearly hit
the ceiling from Dad’s groggy voice. He stood at the kitchen
doorway in hospital scrubs and a creased white tee shirt. Get
outta here. Fake a yawn, go back to bed. Avoid doctor dad. His
creamed coffee colored hair had major bed head on the left side. He
walked to the fridge and pulled out a container of OJ, drinking
straight from the jug.
    As I stared at
his large, bare feet, each gulp he swallowed bounced inside my ear
canals. His heart beat between each swallow -- glug-thump-glug-thump. I swore if I concentrated hard
enough, I’d hear the blood rushing through his veins.
    He put the
juice back in the fridge, and shut the door with his heel as he
turned to watch me. The concern on his face comforted me. I relaxed
my shoulders, but felt like I couldn’t breathe.
    “You look like
you’re in pain.” He placed a cool hand on my forehead, and then the
back of my neck. “You’re a bit warm.”
    I stepped back,
out of his reach. “I’m alright.” I took a slow, shallow breath in
and out. “Just a bit of a headache.” I didn’t want him to
worry…yet.
    Too late. He
disappeared from the kitchen for a moment, and I heard him grab his
medical bag from the chair near the front door. Crap! I don’t
need this right now. I just want to be on my own… figure this
out. He reappeared and dropped the bag on the counter.
    I flinched at
the loud sound each clasp made when he clipped the bag open.
    “I want to do
some blood work on you. Who knows what got into your system at that
old mine.” He pulled out a needle and a couple of vials. “Sit.” He
pointed to one of the chairs at the breakfast nook along the wall.
“I’m heading into the office for an hour.”
    Not in the mood
to argue, I dropped into a chair and grimaced as it creaked. Slow movements, quiet as possible. How could I have
forgotten that already?
    I swear I heard
my tendons snap as I straightened my arm. Dad tied a tourniquet
around my bicep.
    “Make a
fist.”
    “I know the
drill, Dad. I’ve done this before.” Wow, we’re having a shouting
match and he doesn’t even know it.
    “Just making
sure.” He swiped the area with an alcohol swab.
    I closed my
eyes, not wanting to see the needle go into my flesh. The sharp
pinch was enough for me. A unique buzzing filled my ears, and when
the needle pricked my skin and entered my vein I flinched. I picked
up a weird sucking sound, like vacuum and then the sound of my
blood whooshing into the vial. It took everything within me not to
pull away or try to cover my ears with my free arm. Act
normal. Three vials filled; each click and popping sound
discrete to my oversensitive ears.
    I stared at the
vials and caught my Dad’s heart rate switching to a faster pace.
The blood inside had a purple tinge to it. Was that normal?
    “There, kiddo.
All done.” Dad pressed a cotton ball and bandage on my arm. He
stood and put the blood into a mini-centrifuge container he kept in
the bag. “I’m going to jump in the shower, and then head out.”
    “Do you think…”
I swallowed, afraid to finish my thought, “something…might be
off?”
    He hugged me.
“No. I just want to double check. I have no idea if there’s still
radium in the mine. There might be uranium in there and if you kids
inhaled any…” He sighed and pulled away. “Everything’s fine. I just
prefer to err on the side of caution.”
    I nodded but
said nothing. I’d heard the change in his heart rate again and knew
he