Johnny and Bruce were again following the doctor through the hallways of
the hospital. As they followed the doctor down a maze of hallways,
something occurred to him.
"Doctor, where are all the patients?"
Dr. Simmons stopped and turned around, looking at the two of them. He didn't look surprised by the question, but sighed before responding.
"We're a hospital for the criminally insane," he began, rolling his eyes slightly. "We don't let them wander around. The front of the building is our offices, so we keep the patients at the rear of the facility. It also reduces the chance of someone breaking out. If they get through the doors, they only manage to get into our offices, not out of the building."
"Why not put a fence around the front of the building?"
"The community is unhappy enough with us as it is. If we start putting fences up, people are going to feel insecure about our being here. Fences mean escape attempts, which we've had none, so why upset the status quo we have? Now, if I've answered your questions, let's continue. The sooner we get this over with, the sooner I can get back to my patients."
Dr. Simmons spun around on the heel of his shoe, letting out a huff of frustration. Johnny and Bruce glanced at each other and shrugged simultaneously.
"I don't know about you," Bruce whispered, glancing at Dr. Simmons's back, "but I would feel more secure in the neighborhood if a fence was up around this place."
"You and me both," Johnny agreed before continuing after the doctor.
The duo followed the doctor through the maze of white corridors and soon Johnny couldn't remember which way was which. He realized that even if a patient did get this far in escaping, he probably wouldn't be able to navigate the white halls, since one looked just like any other.
They approached another barred door like the one that blocked off the entrance, and Dr. Simmons pushed the button of a little intercom box to the right of the door.
"Yes?"
"It's Dr. Simmons. I'm bringing two gentlemen in with me for a brief visit."
There was no vocal response from the intercom, but the lock on the door buzzed briefly before Dr. Simmons opened the door. He held it open for Johnny and Bruce to enter before him, and the two did, but waited on the other side for the doctor to lead the way.
Johnny heard voices behind him and turned around, seeing a small group of men sitting in what looked like a common room. There were frosted windows that let in some light, but obscured a view of the outside world.
They all wore the same clothes, light blue pants with white shirts, and Johnny guessed that was the clothing issued to all of the patients. Two of the four men he saw were huddled on opposite ends of a small couch, their eyes transfixed on the television, the source of the voices Johnny heard. By the look in their eyes, they weren't really paying attention to what was on the screen. Another man was sitting on the floor, drawing on a piece of paper with a crayon, and the fourth man was walking across the room with the help of a petite nurse dressed in white.
She appeared to be about 5'2" with brown hair pulled up into a tight ponytail. The man towered over her, but seemed more fragile than she was. He leaned to the right as he walked, taking small, careful steps. She whispered something to him, and by the look on her face, Johnny guessed it was words of encouragement, but he couldn't hear exactly what she said.
"This way," Dr. Simmons said, and Johnny turned around to see him and Bruce several steps ahead of him, heading down another blank looking hallway.
As the blond followed the other two, he began feeling a bit claustrophobic. The atmosphere seemed to suffocate him, and he wondered how patients must feel.
"This is it," the shorter man said, gesturing to a door on his left.
He stopped in front of it, but didn't move to open it, so Johnny knew this was as far as they were allowed to go. Dr. Simmons stood back, but waved towards the small window on the door, encouraging Johnny and Bruce to look inside. The two friends looked in the window that was at their eye level, but only about one square foot in size.
The room was just as sterile looking as the rest of the hospital, and that didn't surprise either of them. The walls and floor were padded with a creamy color material, and a small bed was tucked into left hand corner. Florescent lighting gave the room an eerie glow, and the light reflecting off all of the white began to give Johnny a headache. In the far right corner, there was a small figure curled up in the fetal position that if they hadn't been looking for her, they might have overlooked.
Jessica was wearing light blue hospital scrub-type pants and a loose white shirt, exactly the same thing the men in the common room had been wearing. Her long sandy hair, that looked slightly oily from lack of washing, hung down, concealing her face from view. She didn't move for several seconds, but then rocked slightly, hugging her knees up to her chest. Once she was tightly wound into that position, she stopped moving again.
"Is she always in there?" Bruce asked. "Is she allowed out?"
"Of course," Dr. Simmons answered. "However, we've had to limit her time with other patients. She seems to get overly emotional when around lots of people."
"Overly emotional?"
"She doesn't respond well to crowds and acts out. We've been trying different methods to help her socialize, but nothing seems to be working."
"Is the room always that well lit?" Johnny asked.
Dr. Simmons gave him a quizzical look but answered anyway. "Yes. She screams if we turn off the lights, so we keep them on all the time."
Johnny looked into the room again, but Jessica hadn't moved from her spot in the corner. He sighed quietly to himself, still not understanding why he was there or what he was supposed to do. He could feel Bruce's questioning eyes on his back, but he had no answers for his friend. Johnny slowly reached out for the door of her room, his hand shaking in anticipation.
Johnny was thrown back into the darkness that he had already experienced twice that day, but this time, a sense of fear filled his body. He felt scared, trapped. The world was crashing around him, suffocating him. He was dying. The loud voices swirled around him, still making no coherent words.
He tried to keep his body under control, but even that seemed to be beyond him. His body wouldn't move, and that just added to the terror. His breathing became faster and more panicked, and his body shook spasmodically. Johnny tried to hold back a scream, telling himself over and over that it was only a vision.
Suddenly a bright light appeared in front of Johnny, causing him to look away. Once his eyes adjusted to the invading light, he looked back towards it, squinting. Panic rose in his throat as he looked at the figure looming over him.
The light came from a doorway that framed a gigantic figure that towered over him, seeming at least eight feet tall. A huge monster filled the doorway, and Johnny made out four arms stretching out from its massive bulk. Johnny could no longer control the panic that filled him, and he let out a primal scream of terror.
Instantly, he was thrown back to the sterile hallway of the hospital, vaguely feeling Bruce's hand ripping him away from the door of Jessica's room. The scream died in Johnny's throat, but his rapid breathing continued, his chest heaving in an attempt to get it under control.
"Johnny, speak to me, man," Bruce said, trying to get his friend to look him in the eye.
"What is going on here?" Dr. Simmons asked, but his demand went unnoticed.
"Johnny, you okay?" Bruce asked.
"I'm okay," Johnny panted, his breathing finally returning to normal.
The doctor looked at them both and crossed his arms, glaring at them.
"I think it's best if you two leave immediately."
Bruce gave Johnny another concerned look, and his friend nodded in response that he was all right. Dr. Simmons gave them one last scowl of disapproval before leading them back through the hospital. Johnny followed him with Bruce close by his side, worry still evident in his dark eyes. The nurse in the common room looked over at them curiously as they walked by, obviously having heard Johnny's scream. Dr. Simmons waved her away, and she returned to her duties, but not without giving them one more look.
Dr. Simmons led them to the entrance of the hospital, and didn't leave until he heard the slam of the front door behind them as they left. Before returning to his desk, he turned to the secretary in the booth by the door.
"I want you to find out everything you can about Johnny Smith. There's something more going on here, and I want to know what it is."
"Doctor, where are all the patients?"
Dr. Simmons stopped and turned around, looking at the two of them. He didn't look surprised by the question, but sighed before responding.
"We're a hospital for the criminally insane," he began, rolling his eyes slightly. "We don't let them wander around. The front of the building is our offices, so we keep the patients at the rear of the facility. It also reduces the chance of someone breaking out. If they get through the doors, they only manage to get into our offices, not out of the building."
"Why not put a fence around the front of the building?"
"The community is unhappy enough with us as it is. If we start putting fences up, people are going to feel insecure about our being here. Fences mean escape attempts, which we've had none, so why upset the status quo we have? Now, if I've answered your questions, let's continue. The sooner we get this over with, the sooner I can get back to my patients."
Dr. Simmons spun around on the heel of his shoe, letting out a huff of frustration. Johnny and Bruce glanced at each other and shrugged simultaneously.
"I don't know about you," Bruce whispered, glancing at Dr. Simmons's back, "but I would feel more secure in the neighborhood if a fence was up around this place."
"You and me both," Johnny agreed before continuing after the doctor.
The duo followed the doctor through the maze of white corridors and soon Johnny couldn't remember which way was which. He realized that even if a patient did get this far in escaping, he probably wouldn't be able to navigate the white halls, since one looked just like any other.
They approached another barred door like the one that blocked off the entrance, and Dr. Simmons pushed the button of a little intercom box to the right of the door.
"Yes?"
"It's Dr. Simmons. I'm bringing two gentlemen in with me for a brief visit."
There was no vocal response from the intercom, but the lock on the door buzzed briefly before Dr. Simmons opened the door. He held it open for Johnny and Bruce to enter before him, and the two did, but waited on the other side for the doctor to lead the way.
Johnny heard voices behind him and turned around, seeing a small group of men sitting in what looked like a common room. There were frosted windows that let in some light, but obscured a view of the outside world.
They all wore the same clothes, light blue pants with white shirts, and Johnny guessed that was the clothing issued to all of the patients. Two of the four men he saw were huddled on opposite ends of a small couch, their eyes transfixed on the television, the source of the voices Johnny heard. By the look in their eyes, they weren't really paying attention to what was on the screen. Another man was sitting on the floor, drawing on a piece of paper with a crayon, and the fourth man was walking across the room with the help of a petite nurse dressed in white.
She appeared to be about 5'2" with brown hair pulled up into a tight ponytail. The man towered over her, but seemed more fragile than she was. He leaned to the right as he walked, taking small, careful steps. She whispered something to him, and by the look on her face, Johnny guessed it was words of encouragement, but he couldn't hear exactly what she said.
"This way," Dr. Simmons said, and Johnny turned around to see him and Bruce several steps ahead of him, heading down another blank looking hallway.
As the blond followed the other two, he began feeling a bit claustrophobic. The atmosphere seemed to suffocate him, and he wondered how patients must feel.
"This is it," the shorter man said, gesturing to a door on his left.
He stopped in front of it, but didn't move to open it, so Johnny knew this was as far as they were allowed to go. Dr. Simmons stood back, but waved towards the small window on the door, encouraging Johnny and Bruce to look inside. The two friends looked in the window that was at their eye level, but only about one square foot in size.
The room was just as sterile looking as the rest of the hospital, and that didn't surprise either of them. The walls and floor were padded with a creamy color material, and a small bed was tucked into left hand corner. Florescent lighting gave the room an eerie glow, and the light reflecting off all of the white began to give Johnny a headache. In the far right corner, there was a small figure curled up in the fetal position that if they hadn't been looking for her, they might have overlooked.
Jessica was wearing light blue hospital scrub-type pants and a loose white shirt, exactly the same thing the men in the common room had been wearing. Her long sandy hair, that looked slightly oily from lack of washing, hung down, concealing her face from view. She didn't move for several seconds, but then rocked slightly, hugging her knees up to her chest. Once she was tightly wound into that position, she stopped moving again.
"Is she always in there?" Bruce asked. "Is she allowed out?"
"Of course," Dr. Simmons answered. "However, we've had to limit her time with other patients. She seems to get overly emotional when around lots of people."
"Overly emotional?"
"She doesn't respond well to crowds and acts out. We've been trying different methods to help her socialize, but nothing seems to be working."
"Is the room always that well lit?" Johnny asked.
Dr. Simmons gave him a quizzical look but answered anyway. "Yes. She screams if we turn off the lights, so we keep them on all the time."
Johnny looked into the room again, but Jessica hadn't moved from her spot in the corner. He sighed quietly to himself, still not understanding why he was there or what he was supposed to do. He could feel Bruce's questioning eyes on his back, but he had no answers for his friend. Johnny slowly reached out for the door of her room, his hand shaking in anticipation.
Johnny was thrown back into the darkness that he had already experienced twice that day, but this time, a sense of fear filled his body. He felt scared, trapped. The world was crashing around him, suffocating him. He was dying. The loud voices swirled around him, still making no coherent words.
He tried to keep his body under control, but even that seemed to be beyond him. His body wouldn't move, and that just added to the terror. His breathing became faster and more panicked, and his body shook spasmodically. Johnny tried to hold back a scream, telling himself over and over that it was only a vision.
Suddenly a bright light appeared in front of Johnny, causing him to look away. Once his eyes adjusted to the invading light, he looked back towards it, squinting. Panic rose in his throat as he looked at the figure looming over him.
The light came from a doorway that framed a gigantic figure that towered over him, seeming at least eight feet tall. A huge monster filled the doorway, and Johnny made out four arms stretching out from its massive bulk. Johnny could no longer control the panic that filled him, and he let out a primal scream of terror.
Instantly, he was thrown back to the sterile hallway of the hospital, vaguely feeling Bruce's hand ripping him away from the door of Jessica's room. The scream died in Johnny's throat, but his rapid breathing continued, his chest heaving in an attempt to get it under control.
"Johnny, speak to me, man," Bruce said, trying to get his friend to look him in the eye.
"What is going on here?" Dr. Simmons asked, but his demand went unnoticed.
"Johnny, you okay?" Bruce asked.
"I'm okay," Johnny panted, his breathing finally returning to normal.
The doctor looked at them both and crossed his arms, glaring at them.
"I think it's best if you two leave immediately."
Bruce gave Johnny another concerned look, and his friend nodded in response that he was all right. Dr. Simmons gave them one last scowl of disapproval before leading them back through the hospital. Johnny followed him with Bruce close by his side, worry still evident in his dark eyes. The nurse in the common room looked over at them curiously as they walked by, obviously having heard Johnny's scream. Dr. Simmons waved her away, and she returned to her duties, but not without giving them one more look.
Dr. Simmons led them to the entrance of the hospital, and didn't leave until he heard the slam of the front door behind them as they left. Before returning to his desk, he turned to the secretary in the booth by the door.
"I want you to find out everything you can about Johnny Smith. There's something more going on here, and I want to know what it is."