Chaotic (sequel to Psychotic)

Chapter 10

GRANT'S POV 

Harry Styles, twenty-two, born February 1, 1930, first bound to Wickendale when he was twelve for burning his father alive, later convicted of skinning three women. Rose Winters, twenty-one, born November 20, 1931, a former employee of the institution when her relationship with patient Harry Styles spurred and things took a mental toll on her. She became confused and her behavior had turned violent, so she was later admitted into the institution. 

I knew these cases inside and out. I studied their records and looked through every personal file we could scrounge up the first day I was assigned to this case. But I did not know a thing about this Rose and Harry, not as people. Not about the way they acted, their motives, what would make them stand out of the crowd, which were all essential to this case. So I started with the warden. 

My fist tapped on the door to her office. I waited for a moment and heard nothing, so I tried again. 

"Come in," an unwelcoming voice said, words muffled through the wooden door. 

I entered slowly, taking my time to open it and move to her desk. I examined the room. Books on a small shelf against the left wall. Next to it were drawers, a sort of wardrobe on the opposite side. Two maroon chairs sat in front of an elegant desk, with carvings and designs imprinted into the surface. My eyes traveled up to the stack of papers atop the mahogany, and then finally to the woman to which they belonged. And a striking woman, she was, but not in a good way. Her hair was a whitish blonde, and she had a set of icy blue eyes that were almost hostile. 

"Hello, Linda Hellman, I'm detective Grant," I said, extending out my arm for her to shake my hand. She didn't. 

"It's just Ms. Hellman," she replied, hardly looking up at me as she sifted through some papers at her desk. 

"Sorry, Ms. Hellman." There was a slight edge to my voice; I could already tell I did not like this woman. "I've recently been assigned to the case of your three runaways." 

She let out a long sigh and tapped a few papers on the desk to line them up. She took her time in setting them down, waiting several seconds before giving me her attention. "Well there's not much of a case if they're all dead, now is there?" 

"What?" 

"The patients," she said. "Nobody has ever escaped my institution. There is a cliff surrounding the back of these grounds, and the streets line the front." She was looking right at me now, straight into my eyes. "There's no way they could've gotten very far. I can almost guarantee they're dead." 

"Almost guarantee. But you don't know," I clarified. 

"Well I highly doubt-" 

"Ma'm, I understand this place means a lot to you. I know you have a spotless reputation and don't want their escape getting out, but we have to investigate this thoroughly. There's no evidence to prove anything yet, so I would really appreciate it if you would work with me on this." 

She looked slightly irritated, probably because she knew it was true. "I doubt you'll find anything but dead remains." 

"That very well could be it," I agreed, although I didn't believe my words. I just didn't want to piss her off right off the bat. "But we need to find something. And I'll need your cooperation to do that, to learn about the two patients, uh . . . Harry and Rose. I'll also need more files on that third patient, I barely have any of her information." 

Linda - or, Ms. Hellman - exhaled a deep sigh and slowly stood, brushing off her pants. "I want full knowledge surrounding the case. Any leads must come to me, and I should have full access to any information found about my patients."