Dr. Paula sighed as she finished writing her casefile. She had been properly warned before taking this job that mental institutions were far harsher than basic child psychology, but nothing could have prepared her for seeing it herself. She hadn't even known so many people in Elwood City under the age of eighteen were declared insane. Each case seemed a bit stranger than the last, but she at least knew they were good kids who just needed a lot of help.
Not this girl that burned her house down, though. Unrepentant and entitled, Dr. Paula had never seen anything like her. Frankly just talking to this Read girl sent chills down her spine.
"Dr. Paula?" Mr. Larsen, the director of the Elwood City State Hospital, walked into her office.
"Hello, Mr. Larsen," Dr. Paula greeted. "How may I help you?"
"I just came to see if you had finished your diagnosis of Miss Read?"
"I have," Dr. Paula responded, handing him the file. "While I feel we need more tests to fully grasp Ms. Read's full mental state, judging by interviews with her nurses and my discussion with her she clearly meets all the DSM symptoms for Narcissistic Personality Disorder or NPD."
"Narcissistic Personality Disorder?" Mr. Larsen repeated as he glanced at the file.
Dr. Paula nodded. "It's a clear case, even when taking into account the complexity of diagnosing children. Miss Read fits both all nine major symptoms and associated minor features. She also meets several traits of histrionic personality disorder but the correlation with narcissism is stronger."
"I'm afraid it's been some time since I read about narcissism," Mr. Larsen responded. "What is the treatment?"
"There is no known medical cure for NPD at the present. The main treatment is generally psychotherapy to promote empathy, often through group therapy."
"How did Miss Read address the fire in your interview with her?" Mr. Larsen asked.
"She deflected the subject every time it was mentioned." Dr. Paula responded.
"Buster was so sad yesterday," Muffy reported at the dinner table. "Nobody had told him about the fire."
"That's a shame," Millicent responded.
"I knew that lazy Jane was parenting wrong," Ed voiced, "that DW was always bratty whenever I asked her to do my taxes."
"Yeah, same thing whenever I saw Arthur," Muffy said.
"I wonder what she and David are doing know?" Ed asked to nobody in particular.
Muffy shrugged. "Francine heard a rumor Mrs. Read went to her Dad's farm. But rumors aren't always true.'
"Wise words indeed, Muffy," Millicent responded. "I recall back when-"
The phone interrupted Millicent. Millicent walked up and answered. "Hello? Yes. Oh, why not? Mr. Ratburn? No that's crazy... he did? Mr. Ratburn? I can't believe it! It doesn't sound like him at all!"
"What's going on?" Ed inquired.
"Mr. Ratburn has been arrested!" Millicent answered. "He stole old Mrs. Tibble's credit card number!"
"What?" Muffy uttered in disbelief.
David laid on his uncle's sofa lazily as he watched yet another infomercial. David had learned earlier about the benefits of buying a hot tub and was now seeing a program for a pan that apparently was so unbreakable you could over with your car without causing a scratch.
It figured that Jane hadn't remembered that his uncle had died a month ago and left his house in equal shares to him, Loretta, and Bonnie. He had been in discussion with his sisters about whether to sell the house when D.W. burned his house down. Oh, well, for the time being this would be his new house.
What was David to do with his life now? He wasn't sure. He had enough money in his savings account that he could hide in his uncle's house watching infomercials and ordering delivery Chinese/pizza/sandwiches for another two months or so. After that? David had some passing thoughts about maybe going back to culinary school or restarting his catering business someplace else, but it seemed so pointless. David wasn't ready to restart his life at only forty-two years of age. Particularly when it had been going well. Well, mostly well.
Jane? She was at her Dad's farm. Would he contact her? Probably not. What would he possibly say?
Arthur and Kate. Just thinking them made David's stomach turn with guilt. He wasn't allowed contact with them for three more years. Did Arthur hate him for what happened? He hoped not. And Kate wouldn't even remember him. What kind of things would Arthur tell Kate about him if she asked? At least he knew Loretta and Ben would be good adoptive parents.
Better than us at least, he thought bitterly.
D.W.
He knew, even if he wasn't ready to admit in in words, her actions were as much his fault as Jane's. Sure, his wife never disciplined his daughter, but neither had he until the very end. And by then it was too late. He only toughened up when she had already become broken.
"DW, I will not tolerate any more of this foolishness," her teacher snapped in a tone of venom. "Now go play nicely."
"Make me, honey." DW sneered.
The kindergarten teacher took every bit of will power she was cable of not to swear at the brat. DW was the worst child she had ever taught by far.
"Go to your seat, DW."
"No way."
"Fine, I'll just ignore you for the rest of the day," she responded coolly.
"Oh, yeah?" DW asked. No response. "OH YEAH?" she repeated much louder.
The teacher didn't look up from her paperwork.
DW stomped away furiously. She thought it would that easy to ignore Dora Winifred Read? HA! She'd show her. But how?
DW suddenly noticed music was playing quietly from the stereo that connected to the radio. Perfect! She'd crack the volume up to the max.
DW walked over to the boom box. "Think you can ignore Dora Winifred Read? Think again!"
DW turned the far as far as she could. The once peaceful music now exploded throughout the room
"DW turn that down!" the teacher roared. as she ran over to the radio. DW complied.
"So much for ignoring me," DW said smugly.
A loud cry from the other side of the room turned everyone's attention away from them. It was Tommy Tibble sobbing loudly.
"I can't hear anything," he cried, "The music made me deaf!"
"Oh, my," the teacher said, "we need to get him to the nurse. He may need to be hospitalized. Shame on you, DW."
"It wasn't my fault," DW insisted, determined to avoid looking at Timmy, who was staring daggers at her. "I tripped."
"She did not trip," Lisa piped up, "She did it on purpose. She even yelled about it."
"Lisa's lying because she's out to get me!" DW argued, "she didn't even invite me to her birthday party."
"Will you stop talking about that all the time?" Lisa asked, "and I invited you to my fifth birthday party the next year, and you were a total brat at the party!"
"Was not! I'm a well-behaved girl."
Everyone in the class began laughing except Timmy, who still looked enraged; Tommy, who was still sobbing; and Emily, who shook her head in disapproval.
"DW, once I take Tommy to the nurse I'm taking you the principal's office!"
"That's not fair!" DW whined.