Page 5 of Her Wicked Plan

“I’d like to keep it that way. I’m glad you put this lock in for us.” The old guy simply nods before turning towards Dr. Bennett.

“Every nurse and doctor will need a badge or the code to enter.” He hands Henry the paper with the code written on it, in chicken scratch, might I add.

I attempt to peer around the robust man, hoping to glimpse the numbers, but I’m unsuccessful. With the way he scribbled the four... no, five, numbers on the paper, I can’t make them out. I

f the paper were in my hand and held directly in front of my eyes, I probably still couldn’t decipher the numbers he had written.

“I will get on that right away. Thank you again, Mr. Williams.” Henry flashes him a warm smile before the man leaves with a nurse, who escorts him to the next area to get one of these keypads. “Now, why are you here?”

“You and I know why I’m locked up here, Henry.” My hands unclasp from behind my back and come up to cross over my chest.

“I meant outside of the doctor's hall.”

“I have a session with Dr. Davis today. I was trying to get there on time, but now I’m going to be late because there is a door in my way.”

Dr. Bennett hums in response and then stands in front of the keypad. Glancing down at the paper, he inputs the code, and with a loud click, the door unlocks.

How in the world was he able to read the numbers? Is it because he is a man and they can read each other’s writing?

“Tell Dr. Davis to excuse your tardiness. Explain to her the door situation.” He suggests it because he knows how mad she gets when I am late. One time, I was ten minutes late. Boy, she was angry. She repeatedly made me write the same stupid sentence until my hand felt like it would fall off. I was afraid I had to ice my wrist with how sore it was.

And in this place, my hand is my best friend.

“Will do.”

Making my way down the doctor's hall, I wonder why they wouldn’t just put locks on the office doors themselves. Looking over my shoulder at the door that holds the new security measure, I can already tell that one would be hard to bust open.

It doesn’t matter to me, though. I don’t need to break into the doctor's offices. They are of no use to me.

Dr. Davis’s door is open wide, and she is sitting at her large oak desk, writing something down on a notepad.

Her black hair, which usually cascades down her back, is now tied into a low bun. The bangs framing her face are loose and falling as she glides the pen along the paper.

“Sorry, I’m a little late,” I announce myself. “Dr. Bennett had some guy install a high-tech keypad at the end of the hall.”

“Hmm?” Dr. Davis's blue eyes meet mine. “That’s alright, Veronica.”

“Really? You always love to punish me when I’m late.”

“You also never apologized for it.” She glares at me over her glasses, then plucks them off her face. She gestures to the chair for me to sit in. “We have a lot to discuss today.”

After taking my seat and getting comfortable, I wait for her to begin, seeing as that’s how it always goes. I sit down; she asks me questions, and sometimes I avoid them.

Okay, most of the time, I avoid them. However, today seems different. The air inside this large office feels thick, almost stuffy. My eyes dance across her face as I try to read her expression.

Something is wrong.

She’s never this quiet.

“Is this about the fight I got into last week?” I choose to be the first to speak because the silence is killing me. “Polly was talking shit, and somehow my fist met her face. I think I may be getting powers. I might not control them yet, but I’ll get a hold of it.”

The corner of Dr. Davis’s lips pulls upward, but she soon hides the smile. “No, Veronica, this isn’t about the fight or your alleged superpowers you are experiencing.”

“Magical powers, like a witch. Different from a superhero.” I lean forward in my seat. “What gives? You never brush off one of my fights.”

“I’m not sure how to tell you this without... well, without it pushing you over the edge.” The edge? I don’t remember climbing the mountain of my craziness and stopping at the edge.

“What do you mean?”