Room 303

Chapter 20

Patrick

Patrick woke up with a strong headache. He was unable to sleep after the incident that happened with Andrew. He even had nightmares about it. It wasn't the first time he saw patients dying, but it was definitely the first time he witnessed a murder. He sat up on the edge of his bed wiping away the sweat from his forehead. The clock read 6:30 a.m. He hadn't slept well all night. He reached out to the drawer on his bedside and took two paracetamol pills to supress the pain. He had to distract himself from thinking about Andrew. He put on his white coat and made it down the corridor. He didn't mean to eavesdrop. It all just happened. Even back then when he was young and heard his mother arguing with doctor Steven, he had not meant to eavesdrop. Perhaps he was destined to hear what he heard. Life always has a way of testing people and rewarding them. This might be his reward. He inspected his surrounding making sure it was clear. He leaned in close to doctor Steven's office which was left ajar. Who was he talking to at this hour?

"It was a major failure. I am very disappointed. I was so close to getting the result I had been working on for decades," said doctor Steven.
"Don't beat yourself about it. You can still achieve the result you always wanted. We have many more patients," said Maria.
"Damn right I will!" He snapped. "I have been waiting all my life for this. I didn't work that hard to fail. I would love to see their faces when I succeed."
"Their faces?"

"The old board at the hospital. It was all their fault. I had worked hard for years to form a plan for the treatment of Schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, but I wasn't backed up. I didn't have enough money to go on with it. I presented my work to the board at the hospital. Few days later, they called me back and told me that I should improve my thesis, that they weren't convinced. I worked for days and nights to improve it. When I got back to them, they sent me away. I asked for an explanation and they said that my proposal wasn't good enough to be funded. Just like that. Looking back at it now, I think they never even trusted that I could do it. They didn't see it in me. They threw away years of research and hard work. I wasn't given a second chance. I knew I was going to succeed someday, so I decided to make it on my own at any cost. I started gathering information and using tools from here and there without their knowledge or consent. I forged papers and did many illegal stuffs, but none of that matters anymore. Not now that I am so close to achieving my goal. Rachel is going to be the one. I know it deep down. She is perfect for the trial, unlike that worthless man. She made it through most of my check list. She has to be the one."

"Rachel?" Asked Maria.
"Yes Rachel, who else would I be talking about?" He said with irritation.
"She is a perfect subject. I'd want to begin as soon as possible."
"Don't you think we should give her a couple of days until she recovers from the ECT? We both know it wasn't an easy session. You can have her by the end of the week. She would be fit by then," said Maria.
"My trials should have been a success a very long time ago if it wasn't for Katherine. The doctor of the century, pffttt," he said sarcastically.
"She would have never gotten involved. You know that," said Maria.
"She was stupid. It would have made us very rich. We would have made it good together."
"Do you still love her?" Asked Maria.
"It doesn't matter. We would have never gotten along. Her conscience would have stood in the way every time. She would have ruined everything. I am glad she is no longer with us. Good riddance!"

Patrick leaned back on the wall to support himself. His breathing deepened and his heart raced faster. He had always felt that someone had attempted to murder his mother, and now he was sure. There was no doubt about it. Doctor Steven and possibly Maria had tried to kill his mother. Anger took over him like a wave of fire. He wanted to thrush in and punch doctor Steven with all his might. He wanted to beat him up until he bled to death. Nothing can put out the fire in him. Perhaps nothing but revenge. He had set up his mind. He was to avenge his mother, but he had to think it through. He shouldn't allow himself to make mistakes and let doctor Steven get away with what he did. All the innocent patients and his mother were victims of a sociopath. He has to pay for his crimes. I have to make him pay.
Doctor Katherine was known as the doctor of the century back in her days. She was the known for her remarkable skills and determination. All the doctors wanted to be like her, and all the hospitals would have paid fortunes to make her join their team. Patrick didn't know why she would choose to stay in this asylum when she could have made it big somewhere else.

The conversation had subsided between Maria and doctor Steven. Patrick hurried down the corridor away from the office. His panting deepening with every pace he took.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
"Stella open the door please."
Knock. Knock. Knock.
"Stella!" urged Patrick.
"Hey, what's the matter?" Asked Stella as she frantically opened the door.
"I need to talk to you. Can I come in?"
"Sure," she pushed aside to let him in.
"It is only 7 a.m." she said as she read the clock on the wall. "Is everything alright?"
"It was him Stella, he did it."
"What are you talking about? I don't understand.

"He tried to kill my mother. All this time I was certain of it, I just wanted to be reassured. Today I got my reassurance."
"Slow down I don't follow you."
"Doctor Steven. He had tried to murder my mother. He was just talking to Maria about it. They might have both conspired to eliminate her. As far as I know, they had something to do with it."
"How did you learn all this?" she asked.
"I heard them talking while I was passing by his office. The door was ajar."
"You eavesdropped?"
"That is not the point! I am telling you he tried to murder my mother."
"How did you know he was talking about her? Did he mention her name?"
"Yes. He said Katherine. That is my mother's name."
"It could have been another Katherine they were talking about."

"No, it was her. He called her the doctor of the century. It was a name given to her by a late professor who taught her at university. She was a brilliant student always acing every paper given to her. He even announced it during her graduation as part of honouring her. She once told me this story after I heard some colleague of hers call her by that name. There is no doubt Stella. He did it. I have to make him pay. I won't let him get away with it, not this time."
"Alright then let's call the police."
"And tell them what? You know they wouldn't believe us. We need to find evidence to detain him. I need to find files or records or anything related to the experiments he had been carrying on his patients."
"What are we waiting for? We should start looking."
"We will, we just need to come up with a plan before it is too late, before he uses her."
"Uses her?"

"Yes, Rachel. He said that Andrew was a failure, but Rachel will be a better candidate. He is very close to achieving his goal, and I will not let that happen. I will not allow him to walk triumphantly from all this."
"He killed Andrew, and now he is after Rachel?! We can't let him do that."
"I know. I just need to think as quickly as possible."
"How much time do we have?"
"A couple of days. Until the end of the week. By then Rachel would have recovered. That was what Maria said. We have to find a plan."
"Patrick I'm freaking out! What if we couldn't find a way to stop him? Rachel would die!"
"Don't you worry; I think I have a plan."

The final 10 chapters will be uploaded this weekend
Thank you for reading!