Chapter 1

Derrick Johnson drifted peacefully on a floating pool chair sipping on a freshly squeezed lemonade his pretty wife Karen had brought to him, and listening to the faint sound of thunder coming from the far southwestern sky. This was the fourth consecutive day that rain and thunderstorms had been predicted, but as of yet only a few drop of rain actually fell, and the current warning didn't get much of a second thought. It wasn't until the skies had blackened and the wind began to howl through the tall cedar trees did he start to make a move to the edge of the pool.

As he made his way towards the patio Karen yelled out to him to take down the large table umbrella before the winds took it away. After lowering the umbrella, he grabbed the aluminum pole and started to lift it from the table when the first blast of lightning violently shattered a large oak tress a few housed away. The sound was like that of bomb going off, followed by a second and third blast. His ears were ringing from the explosions as he fought against the wind to get the umbrella into the garage before it became a wind blown missile. A fifth bolt of lightning stuck a tree close to the garage that shook the ground below him, and Karen's screams to get into the garage could barely be heard. A sixth and final blast from the fast moving storm cell caused Karen to scream in horror, a blast that Derrick didn't hear.

Karen rushed from the house to Derrick's side where he lay lifelessly at the spot where the last bolt of lightning had propelled him. "Derrick!! Derrick, are you all right? Oh my god Derrick please answer me."

Her screams were heard by their neighbor John Williams, a local firemen, who quickly hopped the short fence to offer any assistance he could. He could tell that Derrick was still breathing, and appeared to have a pulse and heartbeat, but knew that Derrick needed medical attention, and fast. "Karen, quick. Call 911 and get an ambulance here. Hurry Karen, hurry."

When the ambulance and paramedics arrived, they too saw that Derrick was breathing easily, and had a strong pulse and heartbeat, but was totally unconscious. After the quick examination, they placed him on the stretcher and began transporting him to the emergency room of the local hospital.

Upon the arrival at the hospital, the E.R. doctors discover that Derrick had been struck in the back of the head near the base of the skull, but since they couldn't find the "exit" point it was assumed he had been hit with a "glancing" blow. If the lightning bolt had traveled through his body, he more than likely would have been killed, but with his vital signs so strong, this was there conclusion. Truly lucky to still be alive, but the problem now was the comatose state he was left in. When and if he would come out of it was not questions they could answer at that time.

It took almost three full weeks before Derrick showed signs of coming around. He opened his eyes and tried to focus on the sounds he was hearing, but quickly drifted back into unconsciousness. Later that morning he again came out of the coma, but this time he appeared to be totally awake. As the doctors examined him and were about to explain just what happened, Derrick could hear voices, voices other than those of the doctor and nurse in the room. When he mentioned this to the doctor, the doctor dismissed it as a result of the head trauma, and was more than likely some hallucinations from the injury and the medicine that had been administered to him. Derrick was assured that within the next few days he would be back to normal when he body had flushed out the medicines.