Will's POV

I felt a sense of uneasiness growing stronger over me, as Jack and I pulled up to the Baltimore State Hospital For The Criminally insane, as I always do with these kinds of places.

Jack was the first to step out of the car. "Freddie Lounds ran an unconfirmed story that the Chesapeake Ripper may already be in custody."

I looked to him, surprised by his statement. "Unconfirmed? Am I confirming? Fact-checking for Freddie Lounds?"

"You're fact-checking for me." He corrected.

"I always feel a little nervous going into these places." I admitted.

"Why's that?"

"Afraid they won't let me back out." I sighed.

"Don't worry, I won't leave you here." He tried to reassure me.

"Yeah, not today…"

Dr. Chilton, of course, took it upon himself to begin analyzing me in our meeting with him.

"Ah, yes. That thing you do." He marveled. "You are quite the topic of conversation in psychiatric circles.

"Am I?"

"A unique cocktail of personality disorders and neuroses that makes you a highly skilled profiler." He stated.

"Mr. Graham isn't here to be analyzed." Jack defended.

"Perhaps he should be." He finished, redirecting his attention back to me. "We're woefully short of material on your sort of thing, Mr. Graham. Would you mind talking with some of the staff - no, no, not this trip. Dr. Bloom was very severe with me on that point. We're to leave you alone. Maybe a special visit?"

I didn't even dignify that with a response. "Thank you, Doctor Chilton. I'd like to see the crime scene now."

"Gideon was restrained?" Jack asked, as Dr. Chilton led us down the hall.

"Handcuffed." Dr. Chilton specified. "He concealed a fork tine under the flesh of his palm and used it to pick the lock."

"Where is he now?" I asked.

"In his cell. You'll note the removal of organs and abdominal mutilations are all consistent with the Chesapeake Ripper.

"As is the distinctive brutalization of the corpse." Jack added, remaining persistent. "But that doesn't change the fact that the Chesapeake Ripper is still at large."

But Chilton was persistent too. "Jack, what I'm about to show you will suggest otherwise."

"Dr. Chilton consulted on the case when we failed to catch the Ripper after his last series of murders." Jack explained to me.

"Next to a battle lost, the saddest thing is a battle won." Chilton added, puzzling Jack.

"Meaning?"

Chilton showed us to the room in which the nurse was impaled on the broken frames of several privacy curtains that had been fashioned into spears. They protruded from wounds over the entire canvas of her body. Additional shards of wood and metal propped her organs above her corpse, giving them the appearance of floating outside her body.

"The reason you failed and kept failing to catch the Chesapeake Ripper is I already had him." Chilton insisted, once again.

I see myself lying on a gurney that's being wheeled down a long hallway, while an oxygen mask covers my mouth and nose, my eyes lolling and rolling in a daze.

The overhead lamps that hang streak light in lazy strobes across me while I'm pushed under them.

When we finally reach the room, I carefully slip the fork tine from the flesh of my palm while the nurse has her back turned to me.

I break free from my restraints to knock her out by striking her in the throat with the palm of my hand.

The blow crushes her throat, blocking her airway, and reducing her scream to a painful gurgling. She stumbles back against a medicine cabinet. Eyes wide with fear and pain.

I force my thumbs into her eye sockets.

While she slumps to the ground, I look at the blood on my hands.

I strip the fabric from the privacy curtains, as the nurse attempts her escape, and I break the frame over my knee to create a spear.

As the nurse continues to crawl, she finds that my shoes are blocking her way and I drive the spear down into her.

I turned to Jack, after giving myself a minute to bring myself back into reality and collect myself accordingly."

"As far as we know, the Chesapeake Ripper hasn't killed in over two years. When was Gideon admitted?"

"Two years ago." He answered.

When I got back home, Joan was outside and squatting next to a bush. Her attention clearly focused on whatever was, or may have been, behind it.

"Lose something?" I chuckled, nervously, somehow being caught off guard. "...or someone?" I glanced to the window, where the dogs were anxiously awaiting my return. None of whom appeared to be missing.

She shook her head. "Found someone...or may have, anyway."

"New dog, then?"
"Could be. …" She answered with a shrug. "I don't know, she ran off, somewhere behind this bush when she heard you coming."

"My apologies then."

She chuckled. "I didn't mean it like that. You didn't know."

I nodded. "What happened to Jocelyn? I thought you said she was spending the night."

She stood up, brushing some of the dirt off her jeans. "I did...She went back home to grab her jacket, she'll be back."

"I thought you said she left it here last time." I reminded her.

This seemed to amuse her for some reason. "She did…..I'm waiting for her to figure it out."

I nodded, looking back at the bush again. "You want me to grab some treats from inside, see if she'll come out while you wait?"

She smiled. "I assume we're back to talking about the dog again."

"Yes."

"I'll go with you." She answered.

"So, this one's a she, huh?" I asked as I followed her in the house, to the excitement of the rest of the pack.

"Could be." She shrugged. "I don't know, I guess I have a hunch about this one."

"Well, your hunches have been right so far."