Cecilia stood by the door as the two friends ate together. It had been an hour since Alexander had arrived and he hadn’t been able to start a conversation with her yet. The closest he got was when Alice started singing ‘London Bridge’ and he said she had a beautiful voice. She smiled at him and went back to singing and drinking tea.
Cecilia observed Alexander carefully. She wanted to make sure he didn’t do anything to Alice. She was, after all, Cecilia’s only friend. Cecilia was always an outcast. Bullied by society. Left to fend for herself. When she found out there was a job opening in the asylum, she grabbed it with both hands. Cecilia could spend her time here with Alice and not have to deal with the outside world. The asylum is where everyone dreaded being. To Cecilia, it was a safe haven.
Alexander stood from the table and walked to where she stood. They silently observed each other for a moment, then he stuck out his hand and said,
“I’m Alexander, as I’m sure you’ve guessed. You can call me Alex, if you want.” Cecilia started at his hand for a brief second, shook it and replied,
“I’m Cecilia, Alice’s nurse.”
They both watched Alice as she sipped her tea and stared at the doll. Alex sighed and Cecilia looked up at him.
“I hate seeing her like this…” he said sadly.
“Then why did you come. Didn’t the doctors warn you?” she asked.
“Because I’m not giving up. Not now. Not ever.” he replied. He sounded so serious. Seriousness didn’t suit the boy. Alex seemed like the kind of person who may have grown physically, but mentally they were still a child.
The silence of the room was interrupted by a loud bang on the door. The lock was turned and the door opened. It was John, the guard. He stood, staring at the three of them, with intense fear in his eyes. He opened his mouth to say something, but no words came out. Just a steady flow of blood. It splashed to the ground and pooled at his feet. Alex stepped back, his face going pale. Cecilia stared at John as his knees buckled and he dropped to the ground. There was a knife lodged in his back.
Alex stepped in front of Alice, blocking her from whoever owned the knife. She didn’t even notice. Cecilia and Alex stared at the dark doorway, terrified of what would come through it.
A cold breeze swept through the room and a dark figure stepped in. Everything was silent and the figure stood still. Suddenly, with inhuman speed, the figure lashed out and flung Cecilia to the wall. She heard something crack and cried out in pain. Cecilia slumped to the floor, on the brink of unconsciousness. She watched as the figure attacked Alex. They wrestled to the ground, knocking over the table and throwing shattered crockery and utensils everywhere. Somehow, they managed to avoid crashing into Alice.
Alex threw his attacker off of himself and jumped up. He looked to where the man was, but he was gone. Alex whipped around. Alice was sat on her chair, untouched. Cecilia lay on the ground, intense pain spreading up from her ribcage. It was becoming harder to breathe. Cecilia assumed she had cracked a few ribs and they had pierced her lungs. She gave herself maybe ten seconds until blackout.
One.
Silence filled the room.
Two.
The air in front of Alex warped.
Three.
The stranger materialized in front of him.
Four.
The knife in his hands flashed and plunged into Alex’s stomach.
Five.
Blood splashed to the ground.
Six.
Alex collapsed.
Seven.
The stranger turned to Alice.
Eight.
“Hello Cheshire Cat.” Alice said blankly.
Nine.
Cecilia closed her eyes.
Ten…
