It had been one hell of a day for Dr. Culver. First, the session with Rachel had ended in total mayhem. It would have been better if they had never had one, he surmised. Instead of moving forward they had taken a couple of steps backward. He was now losing not only time but ground as well. Then after that he had a meeting over the whole Rachel incident. State officials wanted to bring in a third party, "to aid him in his treatment with Rachel," they had said. The gall, Dr. Culver thought to himself. If he felt that he needed help he would have asked for it. He was feeling better now that he was at home though. Home sweet home, he thought. What he needed now more than anything else was some dinner, and a nice, juicy steak sounded pretty good.
Once refreshed from the hearty meal he prepared himself, Dr. Culver wanted to review the meeting in more detail. He still had his micro-cassette recorder with him at the time and had recorded the conversation. He felt it definitely needed reviewing, because after they dropped the bomb about the third party his brain just shut down due to shock. He couldn't even remember the name of the third party. That's right, they had someone already picked out. He couldn't believe it. They must have been preparing for this for a while now. The gall!
Taking a seat in his favorite recliner, Dr. Culver fired up a cigar, gathered his notepad and pen, and picked up the recorder. He took several puffs off of his stogie while the tape rewound. He took one last puff, stopped the tape, and pushed play.
"if it were true then I would still have my son, wouldn't I? WOULDN'T I, YOU SMUG-ASS..."
Click. He stopped the tape. He had rewound it too far.
I am not a smug-ass prick. I do care about her and her son, he thought to himself, remembering Rachel's outburst. I only care about Samara because that is where all the answers lie. And if she wasn't so damn crazy in the first place then Rachel would realize that she is Samara and caring about Samara is actually about her. Crazy-ass bitch. Oh yeah, nice attitude there, doctor. No wonder they're bringing in a third party. Quiet! You're supposed to be on my side, remember?
Even though he would never admit out loud, Dr. Culver was hurt by the accusations that Rachel had thrown at him. That is why he decided that he would listen to the rest of Rachel's session on double speed. He was so close to the end of it that he didn't want to fast forward and miss the beginning of the meeting and then have to rewind again which held the possibility of hearing Rachel call him hurtful names once again. His day had been bad enough already without hearing them again. It amused him anyway listening to people on double speed. They sounded like cartoon chipmunks he had seen as a kid.
"SAMARA! SAMARA! SAMARA!" the cartoon chipmunk squeaked.
Dr. Culver chuckled at it. But then...
"What the hell was that?"
He stopped the tape yet again and inexplicable fear grew within him. Laying the recorder on the table next to him, he got up and backed away from it. You're being silly, he thought to himself. Silly? You heard it too. Don't deny it. That was a voice and you know it. And it sure as shit didn't sound like a cartoon chipmunk, did it? No, it didn't, he agreed with himself.
After pacing for several minutes Dr. Culver returned to the recorder and fast-forwarded the tape for a good length of time. He no longer cared if he missed the beginning of the meeting. All he cared about was making sure he got past that voice.
Once refreshed from the hearty meal he prepared himself, Dr. Culver wanted to review the meeting in more detail. He still had his micro-cassette recorder with him at the time and had recorded the conversation. He felt it definitely needed reviewing, because after they dropped the bomb about the third party his brain just shut down due to shock. He couldn't even remember the name of the third party. That's right, they had someone already picked out. He couldn't believe it. They must have been preparing for this for a while now. The gall!
Taking a seat in his favorite recliner, Dr. Culver fired up a cigar, gathered his notepad and pen, and picked up the recorder. He took several puffs off of his stogie while the tape rewound. He took one last puff, stopped the tape, and pushed play.
"if it were true then I would still have my son, wouldn't I? WOULDN'T I, YOU SMUG-ASS..."
Click. He stopped the tape. He had rewound it too far.
I am not a smug-ass prick. I do care about her and her son, he thought to himself, remembering Rachel's outburst. I only care about Samara because that is where all the answers lie. And if she wasn't so damn crazy in the first place then Rachel would realize that she is Samara and caring about Samara is actually about her. Crazy-ass bitch. Oh yeah, nice attitude there, doctor. No wonder they're bringing in a third party. Quiet! You're supposed to be on my side, remember?
Even though he would never admit out loud, Dr. Culver was hurt by the accusations that Rachel had thrown at him. That is why he decided that he would listen to the rest of Rachel's session on double speed. He was so close to the end of it that he didn't want to fast forward and miss the beginning of the meeting and then have to rewind again which held the possibility of hearing Rachel call him hurtful names once again. His day had been bad enough already without hearing them again. It amused him anyway listening to people on double speed. They sounded like cartoon chipmunks he had seen as a kid.
"SAMARA! SAMARA! SAMARA!" the cartoon chipmunk squeaked.
Dr. Culver chuckled at it. But then...
"What the hell was that?"
He stopped the tape yet again and inexplicable fear grew within him. Laying the recorder on the table next to him, he got up and backed away from it. You're being silly, he thought to himself. Silly? You heard it too. Don't deny it. That was a voice and you know it. And it sure as shit didn't sound like a cartoon chipmunk, did it? No, it didn't, he agreed with himself.
After pacing for several minutes Dr. Culver returned to the recorder and fast-forwarded the tape for a good length of time. He no longer cared if he missed the beginning of the meeting. All he cared about was making sure he got past that voice.
