Page 23 of Straightjacket

Iris screams and I can just about see her being pulled away from the bars, the guard behind her wraps a pair of handcuffs around her wrists then yanks her backwards until she’s plastered to his chest. I watch as she tries to yank herself away from him, but his grip is firmly wrapped around her shoulders, forcing her hands to be crushed behind her back.

It takes a moment for my vision to clear, then I turn to face the guard with a shit-eating grin on my face. Blood pours from my nose like a rapid stream until it settles in my mouth.

“Are you fucking blind?” I spit. The guard puffs out his chest, his hand at the ready to swing the baton again. “Couldn’t you fucking see that I was busy?”

He scoffs, a clear sign of irritation. “I couldn’t give a single fuck if you’re busy. I asked you to put your hands behind your back, and you didn’t. Now, I’ll ask again. Hands behind your fucking back.”

Gathering the blood in my mouth, I spit it onto his shoes. It’s probably a rookie mistake on my part but fuck it felt good doing it. What doesn’t feel so good is the baton cracking against my lower back, forcing me to fall to my knees. The concrete beneath me sends a shockwave up my legs, then I’m swarmed by guards. They yank my arms behind my back, sending a shot of pain across my shoulders until I hear the click of the handcuffs locking into place.

Copper blooms across my tongue and my gaze never leaves Iris.

“I love–” My words are cut off as the bit of the muzzle is rammed past my teeth, then the plastic mask is fastened tightly around the back of my head until I’m forced to bite down.

“I love you.” She whimpers, then right before my eyes, she’s dragged out of the cell and down a corridor where I can’t see her anymore, leaving me alone once again.

This is too much, Silas. We need to get her out of here.

I nod slightly. “I’ll get her out, even if it kills me.”

Fishing the key out of my pocket, I run my thumb over the scratched keyring to feel the indentations of the numbers 1009. It’s been a while since I’ve entered this room.

Dropping my shoulders slightly, then pushing the key into the lock I listen to the mechanisms inside clicking until it unlocks, then I pull out the key and slip it back into my pocket before pushing the heavy, steel door open. White lights flicker on from the ceiling as I step inside– a motion-censor installed a while back to stop the patient from tampering with the electrics. It’s proven to be quite handy considering the patient attempted on multiple occasions to hang herself with the light string, and if that didn’t work, she’d pry the plastic casings off the switches to electrocute herself.

I simply couldn’t have that.

“Alice?” I call out as I look around the sparse room. Every wall is painted white, in the corner sits a steel toilet, a basic sink and a single bed in the middle– no sheets, again another precaution. Alice wasn’t always suicidal, but in the recent years of being under my care, she has tried multiple times.

After the incident between us, my dad was left with no choice but to have her admitted. I was only young at the time, but after what transpired between us, I made it my mission to become a successful doctor and once I achieved that, I hunted high and low to find Alice. She was the first patient that I couldn’t save and now I’m more determined than ever to save not only her, but my boy, too.

Both could thrive under my care; they just need to allow it to happen. They need to be shown that I’m the only person that they’ll ever need.

Closing the door behind me, I walk into the middle of the room, my footsteps light as a feather. “Alice, it’s me, Peter. You can come out now.”

A scuffling noise coming from underneath the bed has me turning towards it. “Is that you, my sweet boy?”

Shaking my head, I grip the bridge of my nose. Whoever this other personality is that resides next to my mothers, never allows me to speak to Alice.

“I wanted to speak with Alice, not you.” I say firmly, then crouch down until I can see the frail woman tucked underneath the bed. She turns on her side; a bright smile plastered across her greying face.

“There’s my sweet boy, come under here with momma.” She extends her hand outwards and curls her finger, beckoning me to crawl under there with her but I can’t, not again. And as much as the temptation to do so prickles at the base of my neck, I must remain professional.

“You know I can’t do that. We crossed a very large line last time.”

The smile on her face quickly turns into a pout, like a scolded child. “Ohhhh, but didn’t momma make it all better for you? Momma is good at making her sweet boy feel all better.” She coos, her tone soft and soothing but I must remain firm this time.

I shake my head at her. “You did, but I’m here for answers only. Tell me your name and allow me to speak with Alice, please.”

“Oh, it’s all about Alice, isn’t it?” She spits out then turns away from me. “No one ever wants to speak to me.”

If I push her any further, I’m not going to get anywhere with her so the only way to get the answers I need is to play the game with her, allow her to think she’s in control.

Sighing heavily, I sit down on the floor at the end of the bed. “Alright, we won’t talk about Alice, let’s talk about you instead. Could you tell me your name?” At my offering, she slowly turns over again to face me, then quickly wipes away the fake tears that I’ve come to know every time that I ask for Alice. She looks at me with soft eyes, eyes that I’ve known all my life. The more I look deeper into them, the more I can see my mother behind them, clawing to get out.

“Are you going to tell me your name?” I push a tiny bit, then allow her the space to answer.

“I might,” she says with a coy smile. “But you should know that nothing comes free in a place like this, you gotta do something for momma first.” Her eyes gleam with wicked intent and the refrain inside of me is slowly snapping because deep down, I love my momma. I’ve always loved her and it’s in my best interest, as her son and her doctor, to make her feel better, in whatever way she needs.

“You know we can’t do that again. If my staff knew–”