Free Numb: A Dark Thriller by Lee Stevens Page B

that part of his spinal cord was actually visible through his shredded clothing. Throughout the rescue and subsequent admittance to hospital he remained conscious but in a state of complete shock, barely acknowledging anyone around him. He neither responded verbally or non-verbally as he was assessed and sedated before being rushed into theatre.
    “During surgery it was discovered that his injuries were not as severe as were first suspected. His several fractured bones were clean breaks that could be fixed with simple casts and one or two pins. His many cuts were considered relatively minor with no damage to underlying muscle or tendons and were cleaned and stitched. Scans also showed no apparent head trauma; no bleeding on the brain and no embedded shrapnel. Despite the gruesome injury to his spine, there was found to be no nerve or disc damage and the spinal column itself hadn’t been severed. At worst the surgeons suspected spinal shock; where the nerves are compressed and movement below the trauma site is non-existent for a period of a few days before movement returns to normal. The boy was placed in an induced sleep for several days to save him from the pain of the major skin-grafting procedure he’d required to mend the trauma to his back but the surgeons were optimistic that he would make a full recovery.
    “A week later the boy’s anaesthetics were gradually reduced until he finally regained consciousness. Once awake he did indeed regain movement of his legs and was recovering well physically, but mentally he remained... distant. He didn’t respond to anyone or anything. He just stared blankly at the walls, lost in a world of his own. The doctors and nursing staff suspected he was suffering from a form of post traumatic stress disorder and a child psychologist was brought in to help but couldn’t find a way to get through to him. He just wouldn’t respond to anyone. He wouldn’t even eat or drink.”
    Carter turned to the next page of notes. He was halfway through his speech already. He hoped there would be a lot of questions afterwards otherwise he’d never fill the allotted hour.
    “Boy D remained locked inside himself for over three months until eventually – and suddenly – he came back into the real world,” continued the doctor. “One of the nurses got the fright of her life during one late shift when she heard a series of heart-stopping screams coming from the boy’s room and hurried in to find the lad in hysterics, sitting up in bed, yelling and shouting for help. He cried almost constantly for the following three days and suffered terrible nightmares when asleep. After that, the shock now out of his system, he appeared to begin recovering both mentally and physically. And as his body continued to heal it seemed that so did his mind. He began to communicate with the doctors and nurses as well as the other children on his ward. He responded well to physiotherapy and was soon able to walk unaided. He was a very strong young boy who flew through his rehabilitation. His recovery was going better than anyone could have hoped for, apart from one thing. He revealed that he was in no pain at all; not even the slightest ache.”
    That was the main point and Carter took a dramatic pause to let it linger.
    The room remained silent, all eyes still fixed on him. Everyone seemed intrigued and Carter’s confidence in his presentation skills grew as he continued with his story.
    “The doctors and surgeons assessed Boy D again, performed scans and x-rays and found that the nerve endings in his spine were all in tact and that the boy had not lost any movement or sensation from any part of his body. He could feel touch. He could feel the healing skin knitting together. He could feel the stiffness in his injured limbs. He could control his bowel and bladder. There was just no recovery pain.
    “Because of my expertise regarding pain control, I was asked to look at him along with a neurosurgeon and several