Asylum - The Case of Sophia Rourke

Chapter Four

The next morning, I awoke to loud knocks on my door. I turned over and looked at my clock, which said ten o' clock. I got up, put my slippers on, and opened my door. Brynne was standing there, a frown on her face. "You're late for breakfast."

"What's wrong, Brynne?" I asked.

She took a breath. "Every day, I ask the nurses who's died recently. This morning, I heard that an older woman from the adult's ward committed suicide..."

My heart skipped a beat. "What was her name?"

"Bernice."

My eyes got wide and I backed away from Brynne. "She didn't kill herself. She wouldn't have killed herself," I said quickly. Brynne looked sad and concerned.

"Adelaide, are you alright?"

"No. No. No. It was him!" I shrieked. I couldn't control myself. The lies surrounded me and pushed against me like waves.

Brynne is pushed out of the doorway by two nurses, who ran inside and grabbed me. I kicked my feet around and screamed. I didn't know what was wrong with me. Black shadows began to surround me. They all had blood dripping from their white fangs, and their eyes were blank as paper. I screamed louder, until I felt a needle pinch my side. My vision went black, with the exception of what looked like blood dripping from behind my eyelids.

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I awoke in a dark room, very uncomfortable. I was sitting on the hard ground, my wrists tied up with ropes. I appeared to be in the same cell Reiko was in before. Tears stained my cheeks as I looked around, wishing to see someone I knew. I did- just not someone I wanted to see.

"Adelaide," Ms. Pennridge growled, her usual emotionless expression on her hideous face. I glared at her.

"Let me go," I demanded. I feel a stinging on my face. She'd whipped me. I winced and started crying again. Then, she whipped me again. And again. My face was burning like fire. I was sure my cheeks and nose were bleeding.

"You deserve to be punished for your inappropriate actions." She was scowling at me. "You will not be permitted to have dinner tonight." She untied me and grabbed my wrists, then pulled me up off the ground. She yanked me roughly out of the cell and dragged me to the stairs. I could hear soft moans from another cell. I turned my head, tears still running down my cheeks, and looked to where the noise was coming from. The girl who I recognized as Anna was in one of the cells, bleeding from her throat. There was vomit all over the ground around her. Blood was running down her head, where it looked like someone had made a small incision. My eyes widened, but before I could react, Ms. Pennridge slammed the door and brought me up to my room.

"Your session with Doctor Wooding is in an hour," she snapped before throwing me into my room. She slammed the door shut. I started bawling my eyes out.

Knocks came from my door suddenly. I was crying to hard to answer. It opened up, and Reiko slipped inside.

"Why are you crying?" She asked. I put my hands on my cheeks. She sat down on my bed with me and put her hand on my shoulder. "Addie."

"I want to go home," I sobbed.

"Me too. But my parents don't like me," Reiko frowned. "What happened?"

"Ms. Pennridge whipped me because Bernice died...."

Reiko sighed. "You don't get dinner, right?"

"N-No..."

"I'll bring you some."

"I deserve it, it's okay... Right?"

"No. Don't ever tell yourself that. Nobody deserves this."