Inside the Asylum (Book 1)

Chapter 11 - White Hot

When I gave Grace and Max their letters, they were so happy and grateful for them. Seeing their faces light up as they read them made my day. At that point I felt like the luckiest person on the planet! I had the best friends!

As a group we decided that they would help me learn more words so my witting was more mature, more at the level it should be for my age.

Grace came back later on that day and brought pens and paper as a board which had special wipe off pens, she called it a 'white board'. She said she could help me teach me words. It also meant I could practice when I was on my own.

It was very cool because we could rub off the words as I learned them, however, she did test me on how to spell them by rubbing the word off of the board then once I had correctly written it she would write it out neater next to my writing. She would then make me use them in a sentence just like I used to do in school.

Every day I would practice the words in the board for hours. Wanting to learn more and more.

One day the man who chose Daniel to go free entered my room with another man whom I recognised but did not know why. Grace's mum followed silently. Clearly whoever this man was he was important. I sat silently in my corner waiting. I look up at Grace's mum, but she wouldn't look at me which scared me a little. Okay a lot but still. The man walked further into my room and every footstep felt like an earthquake. I tried to hide my fear as best I could. I didn't want him to know he was scaring me. What did he even want from me?

Slowly the three of them came to a stop in front of me. I keep my eyes on the floor too frightened to look at him. The man bends down until he is at the same eye level as I am and speaks softly.

"What is your name?" I don't answer him and sit as still as possible. I refuse to react and stay silent. He turns to Grace's mum.

"Why won't she answer me?" Without missing a beat, she answers him.

"She hasn't said her name since she got here. We have tried to get her to tell us, but she won't. Even after all this time. However, her mother and brother were happy enough to tell us, so it is already on all of the files. "She looks at me as I look up slightly. I look down and pull my legs closer making myself smaller if that was even possible. The man looked at me and then leans so close I could feel his breath on my face. It was disgusting! I just wanted him to move away from me.

"So, you are the most dangerous? You don't look dangerous." He continues, clearly ignoring the warnings of Grace's mum and the inspector.

"You seem very quiet and gentle so I doubt you could do anything to me." I looked at him furious. I was not sure what he knew about me or my past, but he was trying to push me and everyone else in the room knew that if he continued, I would explode and something bad would happen. I didn't want that to happen. By now both Grace's mum and the inspector were edging to the door, while the other man was inching closer to me almost daring me to do something. I look past him for a second and see Grace's mum shaking her head discreetly telling me not to react to him.

Trying my best to stay calm I look at the floor and take a breath. He moves away laughing. "She is not the most dangerous. This is not what I was promised. Why is she so calm?" I almost laughed. I wasn't calm right now. I was scared! I was shaking both from fear and anger. He came too close and now he had the cheek to say I wasn't what he was "promised". What right did he have to me? What had he been promised? The only person in charge of me is me. He moves closer to me again scrutinising every inch of my face then my hands, he continues this even collecting my height and weight. What was he doing that for? He steps back away from me at Grace's mum and the inspector.