Alice's Asylum

Chapter Seven

Doctor White showed me through to Depth. The door labelled Depth led to a corridor. Doctor White explained that the doors led to the office of the doctor who managed Depth, Doctor Frost, to the visiting room, four treatment rooms, one staffroom and one kitchen. The last door led to another corridor. I could see the dark, bleak corridor through the glass set in the door.

Doctor White showed me into Doctor Frost's office. Doctor Frost was an elderly man of at least fifty. He had white hair on his head and a white beard. He looked similar to a Father Christmas but there was nothing kind and jolly about this man. His eyes were a harsh grey that looked straight into your very soul. Doctor White left me with him.

"Take a seat, Jasper," Doctor Frost gestured to the black chair in front of his desk. I did as I was told, my stomach clenching and unclenching in my nerves. "So you'll be working with us now?"

"Yes sir." I clutched my lunch with one of my hands. His voice was rough.

"Well, I will be taking you to see all our patients then you can watch as medication is administered." I was a little surprised at how simple the task was.

"That would be it?"

"For now yes. Tomorrow, you will be administering the drugs yourself." I felt excited at the prospect.

"Okay sir."

"Shall we go and meet the patients then?" I nodded and stood up. Doctor Frost glanced down and spotted my packed lunch. He raised a white, hairy eyebrow. "First let's put that in the kitchen."

I put my packed lunch in the kitchen. Doctor Frost then took me to the patient door. He unlocked it then opened it. I stepped inside, immediately horrified at the stone walls and corridors. The door nearest to me on my left, looked very heavy. It had a panel set in the door which was shut and a number slotted in.

"How many patients do you have?" I asked as Doctor Frost shut and locked the door behind us.

"Ten so far," He replied. He slid open the panel to the first door. "Take a look." I looked through the panel. The room was light grey stone. The only light that entered the room was from the barred window. Unlike the barred windows in Recovery which had bars on the outside, the bars were on the inside. There was a bed in one corner of the room with a few sheets for blankets. Then there was what looked like chew toys all over the room.

"Are those...?" Suddenly a pair of brown eyes and a snarling mouth filled the other side of the panel. I jumped back to avoid those teeth. Doctor Frost laughed.

"Harry. He believes he is part vampire. Used to drink blood." He chuckled and shook his head slightly. He pushed Harry's head away from the panel before shutting it.

"Part... Vampire?"

"You remember Henry in Recovery?" I nodded.

"That's his brother." Doctor Frost moved to the next door.

"His brother?!" The doctor nodded, sliding open the panel to the door.

"Yes. Here is Sophie. Sweetie?" I peered through. Sophie lay on top of a bundle of her blankets. She was shocking. She wore a dark blue vest top and black jogging pants. She couldn't have been any older than twenty but she was so skinny that she was a skeleton with skin stretched over the bones. She had dark circles under her eyes and limp, greasy hair.

"I'm awake." She murmured. She didn't look at us but she just looked up at the ceiling.

"Good. It's nearly time for medication." She folded one of her skeletal arms over her stomach in a way to hold herself in.

"Okay..." She whispered. I moved away and Doctor Frost shut the panel. I wanted to ask him why she was so unhappy with the medication but I didn't dare.

Every room was different and yet, exactly the same. The third door held a girl called Dana who had a depressed attitude to life and constantly tried to kill herself. Her room was entirely bare. Behind door number four was a girl of sixteen called Rose who was always angry. She screamed at us when her panel was open. Door number five contained a boy of eleven. He rocked back and forth, murmuring to himself. Doctor Frost told me he was tormented with voices in his head. His name was Edmund. The rest of the doors had a normal healthy looking boy called Simon who believed he was a girl, a girl called Cathy who saw ghosts, a man of thirty-five who was the same height as maybe a five year old child called Seth and a boy who was unable to read or write called George. However it was the one behind door number seven that was the real shock.

"This is Mary." Doctor Frost told me as slid open the panel. I peered into the room. There was only the bed and blankets. There was no girl.

"Where is she?" I asked. Doctor Frost sighed. He gestured for me to get out of the way. He then slammed his fist against the door. The slam echoed around the room and the corridor, making me cringe. I could feel my ear drums pop. I heard a girl gasp and a shuffling as Mary moved away. Doctor Frost gestured for me to look back in the panel. I did so and I at last saw Mary. She was so beautiful but she looked like she hadn't seen light in years. She had brown hair that was down to her waist. It was limp though and greasy. Her skin was dirty too. She had bruises over her arms and legs. She only wore a dark blue vest top and grey shorts. It didn't cover those purple blue blotches. Her eyes looked up at me. She looked... Frightened.

"Why is she here?" I asked Doctor Frost quietly.

"She has visions. Or claims to. She just needs a firm hand and therapy." I nodded. I felt torn. I wanted to stay here beside her. I also wanted to run away as fast as I could. I didn't know what to do but Doctor Frost made my mind up for me. He slammed the panel shut and that was the end of that.

"How long has she been here?" I asked. I tried to stay calm but it was clear that she was abused here.

"She has been here almost as long as our Seth. Seth had been in hiding for a long time. He had been fine until he hit the age of thirteen but that's when his growth just stopped..." Doctor Frost burbled on and on about Seth. I listened but I couldn't focus. I couldn't believe that half of the patients in Depth were actually mental. But there was something about Mary and I was desperate to see her again.

I was taken to watch the administration of the drugs. There was one nurse in a crisp, white frock and apron who gave the drugs then two big, muscly men all in black. I didn't understand what they were for until we got to the first patient. Harry's door was opened and he flew at us. The men grabbed an arm each and pinned him to his cot. He struggled but it was useless. The nurse gave the drug and Harry was still at last.

The process was similar with every patient. Sophie screamed as the nurse rammed a feeding tube down her throat. She choked but the nurse had no mercy. I swallowed vomit as I watched Sophie being force fed. Seth kicked the bodyguard's leg but he picked Seth up and the nurse jabbed him in the arm and he flopped. When it came to Mary, she put up a good fight able to block their every move. She got cornered and one of the men beat her. His fists hit her chest and stomach. I wanted to be able to get him to stop but I knew he wouldn't. I was forced to watch as she was beaten up then stabbed in the arm with a needle. She flopped and was still. Her eyes still moved but she didn't. She watched as we left her room. Her eyes met mine but I had to look away.