Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
Based on the characters created by Stephanie Meyer, in her Twilight Saga series of books
WARNING: This story will contains scenes of domestic violence, strong language and other forms of physical violence, up to, and including death.
Chapter 12
Descent
The coach rocked along the roads, both stone and dirt. Mary Alice woke slowly, as the coach bounced along a particularly bad stretch of gravel road. She felt the movement of the coach. She caught the smell of tobacco burning, and she saw the silhouette of the man sitting beside her. She moved slowly, frightened by her surroundings, but not surprised.
"You can sit up if you like." The man told Mary Alice. "Then we can talk for a little while."
Mary Alice swung her legs out of the quilt, and off the bench seat of the coach. She pulled the warm quilt around her shoulders, against the chill of the early morning air.
"Will you tell me your name?" The man's voice was gentle and soft.
"Mary Alice Brandon." Her voice was small and tired.
"Very good," the man said. "My name is Dr. Hadley. It's very nice to meet you." He held his hand out for Mary Alice to take. Tentatively, she placed her tiny hand in his.
"It's nice to meet you, too."
"Your father tells me that you are having some difficulties?"
Mary Alice still could not see the man's face, and she didn't like that.
"My daddy wants to kill Rita." Mary Alice stated firmly. "My daddy is in trouble with some bad men." She started to become frightened, but she couldn't stop herself from telling this stranger what she knew. "My daddy hurt my mother, and she died because of it. My daddy wants to kill my grandmother." Her fright was quickly turning into panic. "My daddy is going to die. Two men are going to kill him." Her eyes began to roll back into her head. "My daddy wants you to kill me. My daddy hopes you drop me into a hole and I am never heard from again."
She began to shake, as the doctor grabbed a hold of her and stabbed her arm with a large syringe. Mary Alice screamed, as the tranquilizing drug was shot into her arm.
"It will only help you to relax, child." Mary Alice noticed how soft his voice was, as she fell into a darkness that terrified her.
"But I'm afraid of the dark," she whispered too softly for him to hear.
#
Mary Alice was in a white room when she woke up. She was on some sort of bed. It was only a thin lumpy mattress placed over a flat wood base with legs. There was a wooden straight-back chair, and a small two drawer chest. The sheets on the bed were washed but stained, and Mary Alice thought they smelled bad. She tried to sit up, but her head began to swim so she laid her head back down, onto the hard, lumpy bed. Laying on her side, she was able to look out the small window that was placed high on the wall, across from her bed. Through the bars on the window, she was able to see the blue sky. She watched the sky, and the clouds as they drifted by, and worried about her grandmother.
"Little girl, little girl, little girl?" Came a sing-song voice from the small window in her large metal door. Her head lifted enough to see the eyes of the man at the door. "We like little girls around here." He laughed as he said it.
Mary Alice's eyes rolled back in her head again, and she saw the man. She saw how he had killed his wife, with a large rock he had found in his yard. She saw how he had bathed in her blood, and laughed. And she screamed at the sight. She saw what he wanted to do to her, and she screamed louder. She heard the attendants running toward her room, and she screamed. She heard them shoo the laughing man away, and still she screamed. She felt their hands trying to hold her down, and she screamed and rocked. She saw one of the attendants sneak into one of the women's rooms, and do to her what her father had done to her mother, and she screamed and fought. Finally she felt the sharp jab of a needle, and slowly her screaming stopped. She stopped fighting, and rocking. All she could do was lay still and watch, as the tranquilizer took her, again, into the darkness.
#
It was dark when Mary Alice woke again. She raised her head slowly, and the room began to spin. She fought the feeling, and tried to look around the room. She thought she caught the scent of food from the other side of the room, and sniffed the air to try and locate it. Slowly and carefully she stood up, and reached toward the chair next to the two drawer chest. She found the tray of food, and knelt on the floor to use the seat of the chair as her table. She found a thick slice of bread, and a thin stew in a small bowl. She felt around the tray and found the soup spoon. Mary Alice's hands searched the tray again, looking for a napkin, but found none. As she picked up the spoon, and brought the first dram to her mouth, her stomach rolled with a growling vengeance. She pulled herself closer to the chair, until her chin was resting on the tray. She worked the spoon as quickly as she could, while trying to remember her manners. When she had gotten as much of the thin meal as she could, with the spoon, she tore off pieces of bread and used them to mop up whatever was left in the bowl, and whatever had spilled onto the tray.
When Mary Alice was finished eating, she looked around the small room for something to wash her face with. There was nothing in either of the two drawers, they were completely empty, nor was there anything on top of the chest. There was nothing on the back of the chair, or under the tray. In desperation, she pulled up the ruffle at the bottom of her night dress, and used it to wipe her mouth. When she was done, she looked around her dark cell for something to give her comfort. There was nothing. Finally, she climbed back onto the bed and looked for a blanket to cover herself with. There was none. Mary Alice curled herself into a ball, and began to quietly cry. Tears flowed from her eyes to the dirty sheet that covered the lumpy mattress. She cried for her grandmother, and for Callie and Molly. She even cried for Cynthia. She cried until her sheet was soaked as well as the mattress beneath it. She cried until she had cried herself to sleep. And in all that time that she had cried, she never made a sound.
It was daylight when Mary Alice woke. There were people outside her door talking about her. Mary Alice stayed curled in a ball, with her eyes closed, listening to them.
"She's just too young to be here." The woman said.
"It was the father's wish that she remain confined until such time as she shows enough improvement as to be able to exist in civilized society." Mary Alice recognized Dr. Hadley's voice.
"You know that's not true." The woman sounded angry. "She's an embarrassment to him. He'll never allow her to be released. Besides, we had to tranquilize her again yesterday."
"She ate during the night, and she was quiet. We'll see how things go today. Make sure there is staff with her at all times. Keep the others away from her. If there are any difficulties, call for me immediately." Then Mary Alice heard footsteps moving away from her door.
She heard the key in the lock, and the door opened slowly. Mary Alice opened her eyes as the middle aged nurse entered her room. Her hair was pulled back in a tight bun, with her nurses cap pinned firmly in place. She smiled at Mary Alice as she stepped quietly toward her bed.
"Hello Mary Alice. I'm Nurse Carver." Mary Alice didn't believe her smile, but she sat up on the edge of the bed anyway. "I'll be taking care of you today. Would you like to come with me, and get some breakfast?"
She held her hand out for Mary Alice, but she refused to take it. Instead, she stood in front of the woman, and looked up at her. Her face was streaked with the tracks of last night's dried tears. Her night dress was rumpled and dirty. But Mary Alice stood straight and faced the nurse.
"May I use the bathroom, please." Her tiny voice croaked from an over dried throat.
"Of course, dear."
Mary Alice followed the tall nurse to the communal bathroom. She still refused to touch the woman, and had to turn sideways several times to avoid touching the other patients. Mary Alice knew that touching them would bring on a vision. And a vision usually brought on the uncontrollable fear. And that would bring on the screaming, and the injection would follow shortly after that. And that would send her into the darkness. Mary Alice tried to hurry, but the nurse became impatient and left Mary Alice, promising to return in a minute. Mary Alice finished and cleaned herself up, then stood waiting for the nurse.
A woman came into the bathroom. She was very thin, with stringy light brown hair. Her eyes were open wide, and frightened Mary Alice. She moved backwards as the woman approached her.
"Are you my Gina?" She croaked at Mary Alice. "My little Gina!" She held her hands out like claws, and her smile showed her black and rotted teeth.
Mary Alice walked backwards, until her back connected with the far wall from the doorway. As the patient reached for her, Mary Alice saw her fate. She watched as the wires were connected to the woman's shaved head, and she stiffened and arched off the table. Mary Alice screamed as she saw the woman's fear and pain, as the electric current passed through her body. Her eyes rolled back in her head, and she collapsed into the floor, screaming and writhing from the vision. The woman tried to grab at her, but Mary Alice fought her hands away. But her screams had not gone unnoticed. Soon more patients wandered into the bathroom, lured by the sound of someone suffering; someone other than themselves.
As hand after hand touched Mary Alice, visions of pain and suffering filled her mind. She saw horrors that she never knew existed; not in the protected world of her family home. As she continued to scream and thrash at the hands trying to touch her, Nurse Carver struggled through the patients that had gathered around her. When she reached Mary Alice she grabbed a hold of her, pulled her to her chest, and carried her from the room. Mary Alice continued to scream and writhe, as the visions continued to flash persistently in her mind. Before long, she felt the sting of the needle and, once again, she began to sink into the darkness that usually terrified her, but this time it was a relief to escape the visions.
#
The room was darkening, but still light enough to see clearly. Mary Alice woke, but didn't move. She curled herself into a tight ball, and began to cry. The fear of this new place, the fact that she was so very hungry, and there was a strange man dressed in white, sitting across from her, were just too much for her child's mind to absorb. It was all happening too fast, and she was lonely.
"You can talk to me." The man's voice was harsh and deep. "I won't hurt you. I've been told that you have problems when people touch you. I won't touch you unless I have to. But we can talk."
Mary Alice opened one eye, to peek at the man. His voice seemed nice, for a man. Slowly her crying stopped, and the sobs lessened. She watched the man the whole time. She saw how he watched her. She studied his smile, and the way he moved in the uncomfortable chair. As her sobs stilled to silence, she felt brave enough to ask him some questions.
"Can I please see my Grandmother?" Her throat was so very dry, her voice sounded more like a frog croaking.
The man reached over to the chest of drawers and grabbed a metal glass. He leaned forward and handed it to Mary Alice. She sat up and took the glass in her two hands. As she did, she got a vision of the man. She saw him with two girls and a woman. They were flying kites on a hill at a small field. Mary Alice didn't recognize any of it, but she was glad for the happy vision, for a change. She drank all of the water in the glass, then handed it back to the man.
"I'm Mary Alice." She introduced herself.
"Hello Mary Alice. I'm Mark Lewis. I'm very glad to meet you." He smiled at her.
"I'm very hungry." She looked at him hopefully.
Mark chuckled and stood up. He reached for the tray that had once contained the glass of water. He moved slowly, so as not to frighten Mary Alice, and slipped the food tray onto the bed next to her. She tried to remember her manners, but she was far too hungry. She grabbed the thick slice of bread off the tray, and stuffed a large portion of it, into her mouth. Then she picked up the bowl of soup and drank from it. When she had finished drinking the liquid from the soup, she began to spoon the vegetable pieces into her mouth. She was half way done, before she slowed down. She looked over at Mark sheepishly.
"I'm very sorry." she said softly.
"It's alright." Mark told her. "I know you've missed several meals, in the last few days." And he chuckled quietly.
"Are you this nice to your two daughters?" Mary Alice asked.
"How did you know that I had children?" Mark asked, suspicious of the information that she had, yet curious as to why such a young child would be placed in this hospital.
"I had a dream," she started, "when you gave me the glass."
"You were awake then."
"I know." Mary Alice sighed heavily. "I sometimes have dreams when I'm awake. Sometimes I see very bad things. Things that make me cry."
Mark watched as her eyes filled with tears, but had no idea how to soothe this odd child.
"Would you like me to hold you?" He asked her.
"No." She was adamant. "I don't want to see anything bad about you." The tears began to fall. "There's always something bad. Someone always gets hurt, or dies. I don't want to see it anymore."
Mark swallowed the lump that had developed in his throat before he could talk. He could not fathom the world that this child lived in; that would make her believe such things. He was sure that any parent that would send their child to this place, must have instilled, in that child's mind, all sorts of nightmares. But still, she did know about his girls.
"Maybe you should finish your dinner?" He suggested. "Then I'll see about getting you some cake."
"I like cake." Mary Alice smiled at him, then she turned to her tray, and finished the small meal.
Good as his word, Mark brought her a piece of cake, after he took her empty tray to the kitchen. He watched her eat in silence, using her best manners now that she didn't feel as if she were starving.
"I'm going into the dark soon." Mary Alice told him, when she had finished her cake.
"Why do you say that?" He asked, as he placed the empty plate in the dresser.
"I just know. I don't like the dark. I'm afraid of the eyes."
"The eyes?" He leaned forward with his elbows on his knees. "What eyes?"
"They are red. They look at me in the dark." Mary Alice shivered at the memory of the vision.
"Red eyes?" Mark smiled at Mary Alice. "It does sound terrifying."
"I know you don't believe me." Mary Alice began to pick at the stains on her night dress. "My Molly believed me."
"Your Molly?"
"Yes. She worked in the kitchen. She would give me a treat whenever I had a dream." Mary Alice lifted her head to look out the small window, as the memory of Molly's kitchen flooded her mind. "I miss Molly. She had the best treats."
"How old are you?" Mark asked.
"I'm four. I'll be five in August." She told him. "When is August?"
"Not for another eight months. It's just after Christmas. New Years is just a week away."
"Oh, Christmas!" Mary Alice brightened at the thought of Christmas. "Did my Grandmother bring me a present? Callie was making me a new dress."
"I'm sorry, Mary Alice. As far as I know, on one has come to see you, or brought you anything." Mark wondered at the people that could just forget about this amazing child. "But you've only been here for a few hours."
"Oh no," Mary Alice told him. "I was here yesterday. Dr. Hadley brought me here. Nurse Carver watched me yesterday."
Mark looked down at his hands, and frowned. He knew a Nurse Carver. She worked at another one of Dr. Hadley's hospitals, in Jackson County. He couldn't help but wonder why they were shuffling this child around. Who they could possibly be hiding her from.
Mary Alice was getting nervous. She looked around the room, and at the small window. Mark's reaction to her assurance that she had been there for two days, was confusing her. And scaring her.
"Please, let me talk to my Grandmother." Mary Alice pleaded with him.
"I'm really very sorry Mary Alice, but Nurse Carver works at another hospital, in Jackson County. Your paperwork lists you as having only a father. It says that you have no other living relatives."
Mary Alice burst into tears. She curled up on the bed, covered her face with her hands, and sobbed. Mark wanted to comfort her, but without touching her, there was nothing he could do. This child, old beyond her years, was breaking his heart, and there was nothing he could do to help her. Never in his career had he ever felt so useless. All he could do was offer her words of solace as she cried herself out, then keep watch over her as she slept.
After Mary Alice was sound asleep, Mark pulled his notebook from his back pocket, and he began to take his notes for the paperwork, at the end of his shift. He documented everything that Mary Alice had said, as well as his responses to her. As her nightmares began to cause her to talk in her sleep, he documented that as well. He could understand why the powers-that-be, had decided that she needed to be confined, but he could not understand why they had placed her here. Beauvoir Soldier's Home was for Confederate soldiers and their families. But it was not his place to question orders. It was his place to follow them; and follow them he would.
Mary Alice woke early the next morning. Mark was no longer sitting in the chair. There was another woman. She was an elderly with snow white hair, pulled back and wrapped into a net at the nape of her neck. She sat in the chair knitting, with a bag of yarn on the floor by her side. Mary Alice yawned and stretched, then sat up on the edge of the bed.
"Good morning," she greeted the woman. "I'm Mary Alice." She gave the woman her most winning smile. "What's your name?"
"Children should be quiet in the presence of adults." The woman said without taking her eyes off her knitting needles. "They should not speak unless spoken to. Do you understand me, little girl?"
"Yes, ma'am." Mary Alice spoke softly. She looked down at her hands in her lap. She swung her legs as she waited for the woman to say something, so she could ask to use the bathroom, or to eat breakfast. Mary Alice tried to be patient, but as the minutes stretched, the need to do something became more immediate.
"Please Ma'am," she started.
The woman slammed her knitting into her lap and glared at Mary Alice. "Yes child, what is it?" She demanded.
"May I use the bathroom, please?"
The elderly nurse jammed her knitting into her bag and grabbed Mary Alice by the wrist. At the woman's touch, the vision began. She saw her crossing a street. The nurse unlocked the door, and pulled Mary Alice through it, into the hallway. She saw a horseless carriage come around a corner, honking it's horn, and frighten some horses. The nurse pulled her down the hallway, toward the bathrooms. She saw the horses, pulling a wagon filled with heavy wooden barrels, go wild and run the woman down. The nurse reached into her pocket for the keys to the bathroom. She saw the blood, and bones and flesh of the woman, and she screamed. As Mary Alice screamed, her need for the bathroom became a moot point, and the woman began to yell at her. But Mary Alice was too far into the vision to care about what the woman had to say.
Her screaming, and the woman's yelling at her, brought others into the hall. Soon there were several people trying to sooth Mary Alice, as the visions escalated with each touch of a hand. She saw the war, and the injuries the men suffered. She saw the treatments some of them had at the hospitals close to the fighting. And she screamed until the familiar stab of the injection carried her away, into the darkness.
Thank you Brenda, for making me laugh this morning. That's the reason I posted early.