Title: What Dreams May Come
Rating: T For Teen: Strong Language and suggestive themes, Violence and Scenes of Death.
Disclaimer: I do not Claim to own any makings of Silent Hill Trademark, however I do own this story, do enjoy and any feedback will be greatly appreciated.
Silent Hill:
What Dreams May Come
The Beginning
"David, what did you see?"
He sat and fiddled with his thumbs, trying to act innocent as usual, as if nothing he done was ever wrong, that was the way he always played it, the way he knew he could get away with it, but not this time, I won't let him. I knew what he did, he hasn't spoken in 72 hours, but I could always make him talk, I knew the right buttons to push, he was my patient after all.
"David, please, was it what you always see?" I pinched the bridge of my nose in frustration.
After all the years I've done this, I'm starting to doubt myself, my teachings, and what I've learned over the years, all the failures that I've come across with David, how could I even call myself a doctor anymore?
My patience leaving me, I could tell I'm getting no where fast, it's like everything was back like it used to be when I first got David, and this is not something I can't deal with again, I already promised myself that. He struggles a bit as he tries to get comfortable with his restraints, I tense up a bit as he leans over, his mouth to my ear, he slightly frowned as his warm breath danced in my ear, "You didn't see it? You never do, no matter how many times I've showed you, you never see it."
I felt my patience snap like a string, this was it, after all the sacrifices, all the lies, this was it.
"David!" I slammed my hand down on the table, my hand ached, forgot myself and used my bad hand, "you sick bastard, you took a syringe and decided to carve her face like a piece of wood! How can you even sit there and start this again?! She's been your personal nurse for years, and she's never done a thing to hurt you, then you suddenly decide it's ok to do what you did!? After the years of work we've done, how can I even give you reports that you're rehabilitated? HOW?!" Calm Brian, as I stared at him firmly, I've never acted like this to him before, I believe he was more shocked than anything.
I watched David stare back at me with his cold brown eyes, his eyebrows slightly raised, he leans forward and puts his lips to my ear again, I held my breath, "Brian, they're back.." I felt my blood boil, the sick fuck said that one thing I couldn't bare to hear, and he knew it.
"Oh god David, we're back to the start again? After four years of treatment you go and say shit like that? Are you serious? If you are, you need to find a new doctor, I can't help you, we've worked too hard to help you with this, and now you say that, how can you even consider this? How?"
David shrugged slightly as he sat, tears start streaming down his face, keeping his head down, "You've always listened to me, you never screamed at me before."
"David, you've always had excuse after excuse with me, I'm frankly tired of it, and in fact, I could care less why you did it, I just know you did, and I've worked with you and tried to understand why, but apparently you don't want to help yourself and I don't want to help you anymore either."
I could see the rage building up in him, I paced myself a bit, after the way he carved Amanda's face, I had better cool it , and with the way he can get, the last thing I want to do before I leave this room is piss him off. I looked up at the security camera, as to signal they better watch closely. It was time, time to let him go, I knew what I'd have to do.
"Please, don't say this, just tell me it will be ok again, please." his voice trembled like my boys used to, I wanted to cry.
"I've protected you too long, I told them they were wrong, I told them they didn't know what they were talking about, but it seems I've been wrong, so wrong over these few years, I'm releasing you from my patient care, I'm no longer your doctor."
"NO!" David screams as he struggles in his chair, pulling hard against his restraints, "don't say that, you need to be my doctor, you've been the only one to understand me!"
I looked down at the floor, I was nervous, it wouldn't have been the first time he broke restraints, I'll never forget the Clemmings incident. He was only there to watch him to see over him while went to get my tape recorder I left on my desk that morning. It was for a fairly important report I was going to make to the head of the director of the hospital, why he still wasn't showing improvements.
When I had returned to the room, Bill Clemmings was in the corner fetal position, trying to fend off David, my god the way he chewed his flesh, his eyes, god his eyes, poor bastard still is in therapy after the way he screwed him up. That was two years ago. I swallowed hard, it had to be done.
"I'm sorry David. But, I can't do it anymore, I just can't, it's too painful."
I put my hand on the cold doorknob and started to head out, I took a final glimpse behind me, I tell myself because I wanted to let him know that I was sorry, but I know deep down it was fear, fear that he'd leap on me, do to me what he had with others.
"Your new doctor will be with you tomorrow, I'm reporting that I'm quitting."
I pulled the door shut behind, his scream of rage chilled me to the bone, it was a low howl, like it wasn't human, I closed my eyes, my chest heaving, I felt warm drops of tears slowly run down my cheeks, if it was tears of fear or sorrow I couldn't tell you, but just the heavy weight of being out of that room made me feel ten times better. I started to move away, but as I did so, the door shook behind me. I jumped and stared at the wooden frame as it shook again, he broke the restraints, he would have killed me if I were in there. I could hear his body pounding against the door, screaming as he did so, his inhuman screams getting louder as he pounded against the door harder me expecting it to break.
Suddenly, three of the orderlies ran by and in the room quickly, they had a syringe ready to knock him out, Bob, one of the other doctors that always acted like he was the shit, just because most of his patients always leave, as a so-called "cured" patient, and had awards for it, plus his last name was fancy for all his work, Lefuer. It just rolls off the tongue as he would say in a smug way. He looked at me with the fear in his eyes, this was the last patient he ever wanted to treat, he had told me this, but lucky for him he was the pick of the bunch, I could see a bead of sweat roll off his forehead, he held his breath and went in. I almost wanted to laugh, better him than me, but I knew better, I knew what it was like to go in there and try to restrain that monster as he was having a fit, I have bruises, fractures, and a missing molar to prove it.
The worst injury he ever done was a year ago, when he stabbed the pencil into my hand. Our session had ended with me wanting him to draw what he always saw, what he would claim to see on people's faces, what he drew was abnormal to say the least. The way he would see a face when he would "psyche out" I would call it, was horrific, something like you'd see in a Freddy Kruger movie; he drew a face bleeding black, the eyes and mouth more notable, all covered in a black goo. He said that's when the evil would swallow you, and when you were no longer be able to be saved, when you had forsaken God. Hell, who knows, maybe he was right, maybe he could see things like that, but scientifically he was called a psychopath, or mentally unstable. When I told him that his work disturbed me, he cocked his head with a jerk, and his eye twitched, the way he looked at me scared me shitless, and when he jabbed the pencil into my hand, it broke several bones and he also had struck an artery. My hand had gushed enough blood to fill two milk cartons; the ones you would get from your lunch at school. He jumped on top of me, his face with that same rage that would make your blood freeze up with ice. He would get that insane look and stare at you in the eyes, and whisper right before he'd either kill you or maul you, "Benny knows best."
What he means by Benny knows best is beyond me, but thank god the security cameras saw it that day, or I would be crippled, in a wheelchair, or worse. I always remember how Rachel would beg me to drop him as a patient before I would head off to work. How she always hugged me every morning before I headed off. "You be careful, you know I don't like you around that nut-job." she'd always say with a kissy face. I'd always kiss her after she'd say it, always with the same response, "I'm careful and love you much." and kiss her softly again before heading out the door. Now I'm mad at myself for ever defending him, maybe even more mad that I sacrificed so much, and all for nothing.
They finally got him under control, I saw them wheel David's limp body out of the room, in his wheelchair, restrained with velcro and more cloth wrappings, his body favored a mummy. It must have been bad this time, they put the mask on him, they only do that when he bites, Bob Lefuer overshadowed the door frame, and placed his arm against it and rested, he had perspired enough to fill a bucket, gasping for air he eyed me and nodded, I nodded back. I slightly smiled as I stepped away, I knew what he was thinking, "God help me."
I headed to my office and closed the door behind me, I started to gather my things, I was done, I have had enough, no longer did I want to come here day in, and day out trying to cure something that didn't want to help themselves, many had tried before, but I had told myself I would be the different one, the one saving grace the man needed. I of course failed like the others. The last man that was his doctor, Doctor Emmerson, had warned me to watch myself, that he would change you, I'll be damned if he wasn't right. As I started to clear the pictures from my desk, I grabbed the picture of my wife and boy, how I wanted to hold them both again. I stared at the picture a good twenty minutes, and finally placed it on top of the cardboard box I had filled my things with, and left out of the room.
As I walked down the hall, something caught my eye, to this day what I saw, I'll never place my finger on, but as I left out and started to near the door, a man brushed by me in a flannel shirt, his eyes caught mine, as he seemed to be crying, the black blood that David had spoke of, I saw it, or so I told myself I did, when I blinked it wasn't there. The man I remember stared at me as if I had lost my mind, maybe I had, but my head swarmed with tension, I needed relief, I needed to be alone, I left quickly, never looked back.
The drive home was a long one, never did I really pay attention to how far I lived away from work. But now I didn't have to worry about that, I was never going back there. I have no reason to now. Pulling into my driveway and going in, placing my jacket on the couch and sat down in my living room, always a mess, never had time to ever clean anything, maybe tomorrow I could start that, maybe clean up a bit. I started to reach for the remote, but my desire left me, I just sat and stared at the floor, wondering what I was going to do for money, what I was going to do now that my mind was free. Work always kept my occupied and I didn't have to think about the pain, but now that won't stop it, already I could feel the pain gnawing at me, like a savage dog to a pork tenderloin, tearing at the meat viciously until it got to the bone, and into the marrow of it. I wanted to cry, but couldn't I was too tired, too drained.
The phone rang, it made me jump in my half asleep awake doze, I looked at the caller I.D. Jennifer, she was probably worried when she heard the news I quit, I wanted someone to feel sorry for me, even though I wouldn't let anyone know it. She cared, she had lost her husband a few years ago, cancer. But not the way I lost my family, I could never forgive myself for what I had done, my own demons tore at me daily, and now they know they have me. I let the machine take my call, her voice came softly, "Hey it's me, I know you probably want to be left alone. If you need someone, you know you can call me. Please do, I miss you already, don't forget me, bye." The machine clicked and beeped as the tape turned over. I wanted to talk to her, tell her how I felt about her, how I wanted to let her know that she could have me anytime, but I'm too damn stubborn, I'll never let anyone love me again, not after all the things that's happened. I closed my eyes.
My boy, Scott, playing with him in my arms, his straight blond hair always covered his eyes, Rachel always let it get too long, but his sweet blue eyes always sparkled, he was always happy, even when he had his pains, he somehow would smile through it. I hugged him tightly, and rubbed his back lovingly, I stared at his eyes and mouthed "I love you." he nodded weakly and dozed back into his sleep. Rachel never wanted to cry around me, but she did that night, the night he left, we both cried for hours, she was never right after that, she walked around after we buried him, in a daze, always with her wine glass and sipped from it daily, all day, she would never talked to me anymore. I worked, come home, go to sleep and get up and do it again, those few days after his passing I don't think I ate or drank much, and what little I did I would puke back up.
The day I came home and saw her hanging from our ceiling, the rope tightly around her neck as her flesh overlapped it swelling up, I thought I would lose my mind, her tongue lay out of her mouth her eyes half rolled into the back of her head. I moved close to her in disbelief, and had the sudden urge to bring her down from there, as if she could still be alive, but I knew better, I sat in the middle of the floor and wailed. My only other love in my life now gone. She suddenly looked at me, I blinked and moved back, it wasn't real, it couldn't be real. I raised my hand toward her, she opened her mouth and black blood flowed, spraying at me, she gargled loudly as her eyes began bleed too, I was covered in it, I wanted to scream but I couldn't I fell to the floor.
I jerked out of my sleep, I could feel the scream at the back of my throat, it was so real. My neck was sore from how I fell asleep, slowly I rose up and brushed my hands through my hair, these nightmares will only get worse, I needed my pills. I moved across the living room to my medicine cabinet, from Zanex to any kind of anti-depressant, I had it, after trying to OD myself so many times, I don't see how I was even still living after the cocktail of drugs I took daily, it was my only escape.
I downed a couple of pills from the bottle of Zanex and followed it by a few quick gulps of water, I sighed heavily, I moved back to the couch and sat down again. I was starting to feel lightheaded, they were already kicking in, they did that on empty stomachs. Already I could feel the tension lifting from me, I was relaxed.
I stared at the TV again, could almost see my twisted reflection in the glass, then something moved behind me, fast, but enough to where I could see the shadow dance behind me. I quickly turned, and saw nothing, I moved back into place of my seat and decided to turn on the TV, the pills must be messing with me. I hit the power button and heard the static flow into the TV, it flickered on, as the picture slowly came into focus, but there wasn't anything there, just a black screen. My thumbs fooled with the buttons trying to change the channels, and it finally rested on a dull gray screen. I moved closer to maybe see if a cable was unplugged, my arm brushed against the screen, it felt as if my arm moved inside and back out. It felt cold like I had just plunged it into a pool of cold water. I looked at my shirt to see a silver liquid on it, I tried to brush it off, but it only latched on to my fingers, and smeared across the front of me.
I waved my fingers more harshly this time, but nothing was moved off my fingers, I could still see and feel it there, but it was like it was starting to spread. In the kitchen and poured some water over the liquid, but it was still there, the water just beaded up on the surface of it. I grabbed my towel I always keep next to the sink and tried to remove it, nothing. The silver was moving, I could see my reflection easily in it, slowly it started to creep down my fingers and on to my hand, screaming I fall back to the floor and begin clawing at it like a dog, but it continued on its journey, the one that would lead me to my worst nightmares. In a panic I hit it with anything I could think of, all effortless and did nothing.
Maybe I could cut it off. I grabbed a knife and slowly moved the blade around it, but it only moved it, didn't remove it, it rolled off the blade like mercury, but always found its way back to me. It was to my shoulders now, I could feel it moving down my back, replacing my skin with a silver tone, I couldn't do anything but watch. Feel myself being consumed, it was horrible to die this way, not knowing what the damn thing is, to my neck now, it started to protrude the workings of my lips, I could feel it move into the creases of my skin, and down my throat, it choked me I couldn't help but cough. It taste like a dry wad of cotton in my mouth, I felt it move down the entire length of me, I closed my eyes as it intruded and could see nothing but silver, it had took me, and god, how I wish it killed me.
Awakening
I felt my head against the concrete, it was cold and slightly damp, I could feel my eyes rolling around in my skull like marbles, seeing small glimpses here and there, all I could really see was a white fog hovering over me, like a blanket. I wanted to move and get up, but I couldn't my body wouldn't listen to my mind, I could feel a dabble of drool move down my cheek, I stirred slightly as I leaned over to the left of my and tried to push myself up. Suddenly I could hear things all around me, my blurry vision wasn't getting any better as I could see everything suddenly get dark, I could hear loud sounds like metal on metal grinding fiercely. Something brushed against me and ran by, I nearly jumped out of my skin it made a horrible roar sound, now it was all around me moving.
I ran. I didn't know where I was going but I got up and started to run blindly, I could see nothing, a loud thudding was behind me, whatever it was, it was chasing me, I didn't want to think about it, all I knew was I had to get away, and as fast as possible. My eyes finally started to adjust to the hues of black, I could finally make out the road, but my lungs felt like they were on fire from running, I always refused to exercise and god how I regret that now, I haven't ran this much since I was in track at school. You'd never know I was a regional champ the way I was gasping for air.
The Road was bearing to the left, I started down that way, I could make out a slight glimpse of a green sign. Welcome To Silent Hill. Speeding past the sign, I kept moving as fast as I could, I didn't care where I was going. Thudding of the Beasts strides were getting shorter behind me, I could hear it gaining, it was breathing harder, it was making slight grunt sounds as it was galloping. I could only imagine what is going to happen when it catches me, how it's going to rip me limb from limb, my legs were starting to give out, I could only run a short distance more, I was becoming more exhausted, before I knew it I was falling to the ground, my nose smashing into the pavement, I felt it crunch loudly. Despite all the darkness I could see stars all around me from the hit, I felt the warm blood dripping from my nose, I tried to cup my hand around it, was no use, it flowed like wine.
It was here now, I could barely see it in the dark, it was after all fairly cold, enough to see your breath, from the small glimpses I could get I could just barely make out its hulking body, it was on all fours and moved around me like a wild coyote, sizing up its prey before the kill. I reached into my pocket to feel around and found my car keys, I took them out slowly as to not make a sound while I sat there as quietly as I could, I gripped the keys between my fingers, I heard it growl low, it jumped on me with its two front paws push me back, its mouth snapping wildly at me, I struck the beast across the face with my keys as I heard it yelp and roll to the ground. I quickly got up to where it laid and kicked it as hard as I could, it rolled again and I quickly stomped my foot into its skull, it crunched under my foot, I stomped several more times, the anger in me built up and I stomped one more time as hard as I could; I could see pieces of skull and blood squirt from its head, its body twitched a few times before stopping, it was dead.
I thought of the time my father killed my dog because he had gotten hit with a car, it had broken its two front legs and laid there whining, my father could be a cruel man, instead of just shooting the poor beast, he decided to beat sense into it, he made me watch. My dog didn't have a name, he was a stray and just joined me on my outside adventures when I would play, I would always just say "Come' ere boy!" and he'd always come running, I loved that dog. My father was in a drunken stupor that day, he wanted to show the dog who was boss, who was smarter, and he thought he could prove this by beating it, he demanded that I smash its skull in with my foot, I was only eight. When I wouldn't join him in the beating of my dog, he called me a pussy and hit me, I still have a scar right above my lip where he punched me, I remember his ring came across my lip and tore the flesh, the lucky bastard got away with it too, my mom was away on business and I was on summer vacation, he made me stay in my room until it healed up, I never forgave him for that. Of course my dog died from its injuries, instead of killing it, he let it lay there and suffer and die from starvation and thirst, I hated my father.
I'm still not sure if I was laughing or crying when I started to get up and walk away, I could still feel blood pouring from my nose, I tried to sniff it up, but I gagged and spit up the remaining blood to the ground, I was moving more slowly now, my adrenalin had stopped pumping, I needed to rest. I moved to the curb near a lamp post and sat down on a bus stop bench, I sat there maybe twenty minutes, trying to regain some stamina, I just wanted to lay down and sleep, it was starting to get colder, I could see a few snow flakes moving in the air, but then it suddenly hit me, why was it snowing in July? I pulled my jacket tighter around me and got up, I saw a drink machine to my left, "thank god something to drink," I moved closer to the machine, the front of the store was old looking and dust ridden. I looked to see if the machine was still working, the power to it had been cut off, I pounded the buttons a few times, but nothing worked.
I kicked the machine in frustration and a few cuss words flowed from my mouth, I sighed heavily with anger. I looked up at the lamp and toward the sky as I could see the flakes come out of the darkness, I moved my hand along the edge of the trash can beside me as it brushed against something cold, I looked down to see a black cro-bar sticking out from it. "Thank god" I thought to myself as I picked it up, I moved to the machine and pried open the door, several drinks came tumbling out, I picked up the glass bottle and read it, "Health Drink." Not very original, but I didn't mind it, I gulped down the cold and bitter liquid in two gulps, I started to feel better already.
I chucked the empty bottle into the trash near by and bent down to pick up another bottle, but it was empty, I looked through the machine and found two more drinks inside that were still full, I thought I'd take them with me just in case I'd need them, this one after all already made me feel ten times better. I picked the cro-bar back up and started to head down the road. I started to look for answers as to where I was, and why I was here, the last thing I remembered was behind covered by that silver liquid in my home. My nose was aching from being smashed in, and the cold air wasn't helping make it feel better, I took out my handkerchief I had always kept in my back pocket and cleaned my nose some more with it. I took long strides down the road, I looked around as I tried to make sense of where I was. After about fifth teen minutes of walking I ended up in a small district of town, I saw a few places such as the Hunan Chinese Buffet, and Dorothy's Laundromat, Happy Burger was a few blocks down the road, but no one was there, the town was empty.
I looked down at my watch to see the time, but it had quit working, I was tired of walking. The light had finally returned to the sky, but it was covered by thick strange mist that blanketed the city. Why was it so cold here in the middle of summer? Was it near my hometown or at least state? So many questions yet no idea what to do. I sat down on the curb near by the bar and closed my eyes, I could feel the moisture in the air thick, it made my chest feel cold inside, I coughed slightly trying to clear my throat, the wind blew harshly and I heard a rattle of paper. I looked around and saw on a lamp post a piece of paper blowing in the wind, I picked it up and it was a map of the area, with a big red circle around a location near by, was next to McCormick Way and Rent Right Video.
Looking at the signs I saw that I was near Love St., I needed to get to McCormick and the way to do that is to take the shortcut through the alley, I pocked the paper into my back pocket and followed the sign, it lead into a dark alley, a lamp was swinging high above my head with a light squeak, it gently moved in the wind and screeched at me like it was laughing. I shivered a bit and moved down the alley, my feet sinking into the soft ground, no grass was growing here, just mud. The walls were close together, the way down the path seemed to stretch on forever, it was like the walls were stretched upward and were looking down on me, I felt small and insignificant.
It made me think back to when I was a little boy, when I would go exploring with my best friend Billy, we'd always end up lost in the woods. Worst time was when we got lost down old man Hershel's farm, the man was so pissed that we were out late tipping his cows. It cost quite a few hundred dollars to replace cows, but we didn't care, we were having fun, but as we were running away we took a wrong turn running back, we got lost in the woods for two days, we thought we were going to die out there, but a search party found us, took us back home, I got the worst beating of my life from my dad that day, my mother wasn't too happy with me either, but my dad used this opportunity to give himself a reason to beat me. I remember him slightly smiling in the background while my mom would scold me. I was grounded for two months from that ordeal, wasn't allowed to do anything but go in my room and study, I never did, I'd either go to sleep or read my comics or a Playboy I smuggled from a friend, I miss the innocent days.
I finally reached the end of the road and referred back to the map, I noticed I was on McCormick Way, now I just needed to get to Rent Right Video, I strolled down the road as the shadows around me creepily watched me, I past by the store and saw next to it was a shovel, on the pavement it was drawn in a dark crimson red, "DIG" it said. The air was now still as I looked around to see only more mist roll by me. I took off my jacket and folded it on the ground beside me, and took the shovel up. I shrugged, as if anything so far made any sense, why not do what the words tell me to do? I shoved the shovel into the ground and started digging near the sidewalk After about twenty minutes of digging through the thick clay mud, I hit something metal, I pried it up with the shovel, it was rectangular and looked like the top of a pyramid. I bent down and picked it up, and removed some of the dirt from it. It had a face, its eyes were missing, and in the two holes is where something could fit, I examined the object all over and couldn't find any clues to my new discovery. I looked down at the ground again to see if maybe I had missed a part of the object, but I found that the word "DIG" had been removed and replaced with the words, "TO LAB" the words trailed off into the grass.
Bringing the map back out of my pocket and took a look at it, I glanced over the scenery and found my destination, Silent Hill Chemical Works. As I stared at the map I just noticed that I was in the town that my two friends Rachel and Steven went to visit her best friend April. But that was a year or two ago before Steven and Rachel had died, but how could I have ended up here? My head began to throb a bit, maybe I was working too hard. I climbed out of the dirt hole I had dug, and picked up my jacket and put it back on, the metal object I found I tucked away into my inside coat pocket. I moved to the back area of the fence that surrounded the alley, part of the fence had been torn away, like something had chewed right through it, I squeezed through just barely, and moved back onto a sidewalk nearby someone's home. A car was at the end with its nose high into the air, curious as to why it was I moved closer to the car, and looked down and noticed the concrete had been torn up, chunks of rock, dirt and metal were all along the edge. I looked off the side and saw nothing but a long abyss, it was like the earth ended at this very spot and I was standing at it. I almost wanted to cry, why was I here? And why was I led to this spot?
A scuffle of feet behind me, I saw him, a little boy, he took off running. "WAIT!" I yelled but the boy didn't stop, he kept running, and into a nearby house. I took off running too, I jumped over the picket fence in the yard and rammed my shoulder into the half open door; it hit the wall with a loud thud. My eyes searched frantically for evidence of where he went, he looked so much like my boy. "This way mister!" the kid said with a slight giggle, "SCOTT!!" I yelled at the top of my lungs, my god it was my boy, my god I've finally found him, he's alive and I can hold him again! At least that's what my mind raced with, after tearing through the debris to the back of the house, I stepped outside on to the porch, I had to find him and quickly. I could see him jogging into the distance toward a building, it was so foggy I could barely see, but I jumped over the side, and took another jump over the deck tables. I tore through the opening in the fence he had crawled through, and raced as fast as I could towards the front doors. I shoved the doors as hard as I could, the metal grinded angrily at me as if it was not wishing to be disturbed. I still stepped through, as the doors slowly moved back into place, I was in darkness.
Silent Hill Chemical Works hadn't been used in years, the couches were covered in plastic, magazines covered the table in the front lobby, all covered in a dull dust. I could see the footprints of where he went, I followed them, by the receptionists desk and through the double doors. I slowly stride through them, and find myself into an open room, the skylight in the room beams down light, particles of dust dance through the air, the pillars holding up the skylight covered in a dull white tile. A wheelchair rolls itself from the back of the room and into the light, its wheels squeaked loudly as it slowly rolls, as it edges near the light it stops. It was so quiet that it was deafening. I held my breath as