Free Imposter by Karen Fenech

Burke’s words.  The last thing she remembered was reaching for her cell phone.
“Sounds like I was lucky that you found me and got me here.”
Burke shook his head.  “I didn’t find you.  An ambulance showed up at the cottage and the paramedics told me they’d received a distress call from that location.  I didn’t have anything to do with getting you here.  You saved yourself, Eve.”
She couldn’t remember placing the call.  The curtain shifted and a tall pear-shaped man in his middle fifties entered the cubicle.  His skin was a warm brown.
“I am Dr. Malhi.”  He smiled, exposing a crooked incisor and glanced from Eve to Burke, including him in the introduction.  “I am heartened to see you have awakened.”
“Can you tell me what happened, Doctor?”  Eve asked.
“We have only just received your test results. The blood work it has indicated that your blood sugar was extremely low.  Has your prescription insulin recently been changed?”
“No.”
“How often do you take insulin injections?”
“Three times a day.”
“Have you ever experienced a similar reaction?”
“No.”
“Paramedics retrieved your insulin medication and brought it here to the hospital.  I see that you are taking a rapid-acting insulin and a regular- acting insulin.”
“Yes.”
“The rapid acting insulin is only for your daytime use.  It appears that you administered the rapid-acting insulin a short while ago, rather than the regular insulin.  Doing so will lower blood glucose considerably and is likely to trigger the kind of episode you just experienced.  This is not a mistake to be made lightly.  Severe hypoglycaemia as you experienced can cause cardiac arrhythmia.  Frankly, you are most fortunate that this mistake has not cost you your life.”   “I did not take the wrong insulin, Doctor.  I know the risks and I’m very careful about my medication.”
“That is not what your blood has told us Ms. Collins.  When we examined  your insulin medication, we learned that the insulin bottles in the injectors did not match their prescription labels. It appears that when you replenished your insulin, you placed the rapid acting insulin in the injector labeled with the prescription for the regular insulin and vice versa.  We have corrected the error.  You are very fortunate, indeed, that all has turned out well.”
Eve frowned.  “That’s impossible.  I’ve been using those injectors for a while. I have not changed the bottles recently.”
Malhi gave her a look that spoke plainly of his doubt. “I would like you to remain with us this night.  If you are feeling well in the morning, you will be free to go home with your husband.”
Malhi glanced at Burke who nodded.  Eve supposed there was no point in clearing up Malhi’s mistake.  It hardly seemed preferable to inform the doctor that she was Burke’s charge, soon to be his prisoner.  
She’d collapsed from an injection of rapid-acting insulin, Malhi said.  Her insulin pen injectors were clearly labeled so she knew which was her night time insulin.  When she replaced an empty bottle, she always checked the labels on the new bottle and on the injector to be sure they matched.   Always.   She would not make a mistake like that. 
After Malhi left, Eve turned to Burke.  “My collapse was not due to negligence.  I don’t take risks when it comes to my disease.” 
“You’ve been under a lot of stress lately. Do you not think it could be possible that you picked up the wrong injector tonight?” 
No she did not think that was possible, but what other explanation was there?
* * *
The next morning, when she awoke, Burke was seated at her bedside.  He was awake, watching her. If he’d feared her skipping out on him, he’d spent a night in that chair for nothing.  There had been no chance of that happening.  Last night, she’d felt too weak to sit up, let alone make a run for it. 
Burke leaned toward her.  “How do you feel?” His