¡Ellas me quieren matar! Dijo Manuel casi susurrando.
Eli, sorprendida, le pregunta a quienes se refiere, pero ya el medicamento había hecho efecto y Manuel dormía plácidamente.
Pasaban los días y ella no se atrevía a mencionarle el asunto que la perturbó desde aquella noche., ni siquiera en los momentos cuando la llamaba a su habitación en la madrugada.
Pensaba que probablemente era un desvarío de su edad, pero cuando ya empezaba a disuadirse de la idea de algo terrible, Manuel le comenta..
Debes cuidarte mucho aquí adentro, aunque todos somos viejos, no te confíes de nadie.
Al día siguiente estaría libre,y luego cambiaba su guardia para el turno de las mañanas. Ya con una segunda advertencia, decidió conversar al respecto con Manuel, durante la hora de compartir en el salón general, pero él se mostró nervioso ante la pregunta de Eli, y respondió con evasivas.
Leonardo, quien no perdía de vista la conversación, desde el otro lado del salón, lo notó casi de inmediato y se acerca a ellos, con el pretexto de preguntar si podía bailar con ella.
Contrariada, acepta y se retira al centro del salón junto a Leonardo, quien hacía poses graciosas con sus pasos de salsa. Todos, inclusive aquellos pacientes que vivían ensimismados, aplaudían y reían, Manuel se retiraba en solitario al jardín, con la excusa de tomar un poco de sol.
La pesquisa
Eli no era de las personas que hacía caso omiso a sus pacientes. Aunque estuvieran bajo sedantes, estaba siempre dispuesta a escucharlos, y esta vez, a descubrir que pasaba por la cabeza de Manuel.
Ya no preguntó más, pero se dedicó con mas ahínco a observarlo, tratando de descifrar en sus acciones, la causa de ese temor que le había manifestado.
Decidió hacer un espacio en sus guardias nocturnas, para ir a hablarle, sin necesidad de esperar a que la llamara. Llevaba libros y le comentaba sobre la vida fuera del geriátrico, como para que volviera a sentir la confianza de hablarle sobre sus preocupaciones. Sin embargo, pasó el tiempo y no logró nada.
Lo que si había cambiado, era la manera en cómo la veían las mujeres del recinto. Tanto pacientes como sus compañeras de trabajo la trataban de una forma distante. Ya no habían invitaciones a tomar café por las tardes, y ante cualquier inquietud, las otras enfermeras se limitaban a responder que revisara el libro de novedades.
Al principio hizo caso omiso, pero pasado el tiempo se hacía difícil la interacción con las chicas. Sentía que la habían sacado del grupo.
Leonardo, igual la invitaba a bailar en los descansos, y aunque al principio cedía ante su caballerosa petición, ya le resultaba incómodo.
Desconfiaba de todos, aunque Manuel ya luego no dijo más nada al respecto.
Eli, quien luego de un tiempo trabajando en el geriátrico, ya había logrado solventar sus deudas, presenta su renuncia ante la directiva, pero no se la reciben. En cambio, le dan un aumento de sueldo y mejoras en sus condiciones laborales. Sus superiores estaban muy contentos con su desempeño y no querían perder una trabajadora de su nivel.
Esto, puso a Eli entre la espada y la pared, ya que no se sentía a gusto ahí. Así que pensó en pasar un mes más y luego, con la excusa de irse de la ciudad, poder terminar el contrato que la ataba, al que le quedaba muy poco para finalizarse.
Se dedicó a lo básico, como al principio, ya no trataba de encajar y ante las invitaciones de Leonardo, buscaba algo que hacer para no caer en su juego.
Comenzó a revisar las historias médicas, en sus guardias nocturnas, con la intención de saber los antecedentes de algunos otros pacientes, hasta que se topó con el expediente de Manuel. Al hojearlo no vio nada fuera de lo común, así que lo dejó de lado.
Al ver el de Leonardo, descubrió que estaba casado con Leticia, una de las señoras del ala femenina, pero a quien durante el tiempo de compartir en el salón, ni siquiera se le acercaba.
Leticia era una mujer hermosa, a pesar de sus 81 años, no se veía demacrada como las demás. Lucía siempre vestidos vintage y usaba un perfume que la delataba, incluso antes de llegar a cualquier lugar. Eliana al verla, siempre pensaba que al envejecer, le gustaría ser como ella, una diva, a pesar de tener que usar la andadera para apoyarse al caminar.
Justo en medio de esa pesquisa, suena el timbre de Manuel, como todas las noches, pero Eli, ya cansada de la misma rutina, fue solo a darle un sedante para ayudarlo a dormir.
Buscó la pastilla para Manuel, subió el volumen de su música y cuando iba camino hacia el cuarto, sintió un fuerte golpe por la espalda que la dejó tendida en el suelo. Escuchaba a lo lejos el timbre sonar nerviosamente, pero no podía incorporarse, solo escuchar el susurro de varias voces que iban y venían.
"Él no tenía por qué fijarse en Leti" le dijeron al oído antes de que se desmayara por completo.
Cuando logra recobrar el conocimiento, estaba en una de las camas del área de descanso. No recordaba cómo había llegado hasta ahí, pero el sucio en su uniforme blanco, delataba que la arrastraron desde el sitio en que había caído.
Afuera, se escuchaban varias voces femeninas, no se atrevía a demostrar que estaba consciente, pues todo era muy confuso. A esas horas de la madrugada, nunca se escuchaban ruidos, así que no sabía a qué se enfrentaba en esta inusual guardia.
Tres ancianas del pabellón de mujeres se acercan, y aunque intentó disimular, se dieron cuenta que ya estaba despierta. Eli, temerosa, les pide que no la vuelvan a lastimar, pero la expresión de ellas insinuaba que no la escucharían.
Eliana se sienta en la cama, recostada del cabecero, se pone con las rodillas apoyadas en el pecho en actitud defensiva, mientras las ancianas le dicen:
Tenías que seguir averiguando! Ese no era tu problema, Manuel solito se buscó todo. Él sabía que Leticia estaba casada, aunque no compartiera con su marido. Y nosotras estábamos viudas todas, pero se fijó justo en la que no podía.
Eliana seguía sin entender, mientras ellas proseguían: Todas necesitamos amor, pero él fue muy egoísta. Leticia no era mujer para él, podía haber elegido cualquiera de las demás.
¡Una historia de celos! ¡¡en el geriátrico!! quien iba a pensar que esas doñas que tomaban café en las tardes mientras jugaban dominó, todavía pensaban en una pareja.
Y yo que tengo que ver con eso? Preguntó Eli. Mi trabajo aquí se resume en aplicar medicamentos y atender alguna que otra emergencia médica.
Manuel, de seguro te dijo todo, y por eso debemos hacernos cargo. Un escalofrío le bajó por toda su espina dorsal. Aunque eran ancianas, su actitud la hacía temer.
El llamado de Manuel hacía cesado hace tiempo, Eli pensó que había logrado dormirse, pero su sueño no fue temporal sino permanente. Y ahora sería su turno. Una inyección letal en el corazón haría que el secreto del geriátrico nunca fuera descubierto.
They want to kill me! Manuel said almost whispering.
Eli, surprised, asked him who he was referring to, but the medicine had already taken effect and Manuel slept peacefully.
Days went by and she did not dare to mention to him the matter that had disturbed her since that night, not even when he called her in her room at dawn.
She thought that it was probably just a delirium of her age, but just as she was beginning to dissuade herself from the idea of something terrible, Manuel commented to her.
*You should take good care of yourself in here, although we are all old, don't trust anyone.
The next day he would be free, and then he would change his watch for the morning shift. Already with a second warning, she decided to talk about it with Manuel, during the sharing hour in the general hall, but he was nervous about Eli's question, and answered evasively.
Leonardo, who was watching the conversation from the other side of the room, noticed it almost immediately and approached them, with the pretext of asking if he could dance with her.
Contrary, she accepted and retired to the center of the room with Leonardo, who was doing funny poses with his salsa steps. Everyone, including those patients who lived in a self-absorbed state, applauded and laughed, Manuel withdrew alone to the garden, with the excuse of getting some sun.
The investigation
Eli was not one of those people who ignored her patients. Even if they were under sedation, she was always ready to listen to them, and this time, to find out what was going on in Manuel's head.
She did not ask any more questions, but she dedicated herself with more determination to observe him, trying to decipher in his actions, the cause of the fear that he had manifested.
She decided to make time in her night watches to go and talk to him, without waiting for him to call her. He brought books and told her about life outside the nursing home, so that she would again feel the confidence to talk to him about her worries. However, time went by and nothing came of it.
What had changed, however, was the way she was viewed by the women in the facility. Both patients and coworkers treated her in a distant manner. There were no longer invitations to have coffee in the afternoons, and in the face of any concern, the other nurses would simply tell her to check the news book.
At first she ignored them, but after a while it became difficult to interact with the girls. She felt that she had been taken out of the group.
Leonardo would still ask her to dance during breaks, and although at first she gave in to his gentlemanly request, she found it uncomfortable.
He distrusted everyone, although Manuel later said nothing more about it.
Eli, who had already managed to pay off his debts after working at the nursing home for some time, presented his resignation to the board of directors, but it was not accepted. Instead, they give her a pay raise and improvements in her working conditions.
Her superiors were very happy with her performance and did not want to lose a worker at her level.
This put Eli between a rock and a hard place, as she did not feel comfortable there. So she thought about spending one more month and then, with the excuse of leaving the city, she could finish the contract that tied her, which had very little left to finish. She dedicated herself to the basics, as at the beginning, she was no longer trying to fit in and, faced with Leonardo's invitations, she was looking for something to do so as not to fall into his game.
He began to review the medical records, on his night shifts, with the intention of finding out the background of some other patients, until he came across Manuel's file. As she flipped through it, she saw nothing out of the ordinary, so she put it aside.
When she saw Leonardo's, she discovered that he was married to Leticia, one of the ladies in the women's wing, but whom during the time we shared in the room, he never even approached.
Leticia was a beautiful woman, despite her 81 years, she did not look haggard like the others. She always wore vintage dresses and wore a perfume that gave her away, even before arriving anywhere. When Eliana saw her, she always thought that as she grew older, she would like to be like her, a diva, even though she had to use a walker to support herself when she walked.
Right in the middle of this research, Manuel's doorbell rang, as it did every night, but Eli, tired of the same routine, went to give him a sedative to help him sleep.
She looked for the pill for Manuel, turned up the volume of her music and when she was on her way to the bedroom, she felt a strong blow on her back that left her lying on the floor. She heard the doorbell ringing nervously in the distance, but she could not sit up, only hear the whisper of several voices coming and going.
"He had no reason to notice Leti " they said in her ear before she passed out completely.
When he managed to regain consciousness, he was on one of the beds in the rest area. She didn't remember how she had gotten there, but the dirt on her white uniform gave away that she had been dragged from where she had fallen.
Outside, several female voices could be heard, she did not dare to show that she was conscious, as everything was very confusing. At that hour of the early morning, noises were never heard, so she did not know what she was facing on this unusual watch.
Three elderly women from the women's ward approach, and although she tried to pretend, they realized she was already awake. Eli fearfully asks them not to hurt her again, but their expressions hinted that they would not listen.
Eliana sits on the bed, leaning back against the headboard, with her knees drawn up to her chest in a defensive attitude, while the old women say to her:
You had to keep finding out! That wasn't your problem, Manuel did it all by himself. He knew that Leticia was married, even if she didn't share with her husband. And all of us were widows, but he just looked at the one who could not.
Eliana still did not understand, while they continued: We all need love, but he was very selfish. Leticia was not the woman for him, he could have chosen any of the others.
A story of jealousy! in the nursing home!!! who would have thought that those ladies who drank coffee in the afternoons while playing dominoes, still thought of a couple.
And what do I have to do with that? Eli asked. My job here boils down to applying medications and attending to the occasional medical emergency.
Manuel, I'm sure he told you everything, and that's why we have to take care of it. A shiver went down her spine. Although they were old women, their attitude made her fearful.
Manuel's call had long since ceased, Eli thought she had managed to fall asleep, but her sleep was not temporary but permanent. And now it would be her turn. A lethal injection in the heart would ensure that the secret of the nursing home would never be discovered.
