Then came the opening of a door, other voices, and after that an interval of quiet.
He returned to his bed, wondering who the new patient could be.
He was breathing easier after his exertion.

The fact that he was feeling keenly alive, and that the thickening in his chest was disappearing, flushed him with elation.

An unbounded optimism possessed him.

It was late when he fell asleep, and he slept late.

It was Mercer's entrance into his room that roused him.