The Erotic Mind-Control Story Archive

11:55PM

“What?” Ivey Parkinson asked, not sure of her ears. “You want me... to kill you?” She laughed, and laughed again, slapping her thigh. “Wow... you really had me going. After all of this... everything you’ve put me and the city through... and this great scheme you came up with is for me to shoot you dead?” She shook her head, wiping away the tears. “As a psychiatrist, it’s really improper to say this about someone... but Jacob, you are crazy as batshit!”

“That... is probably true,” Thorton conceded, walking back to the front of the car. “And yet, I am also completely and absolutely rational in my decision.” He reached inside the car, turning on the headlights. “Do you see that small orange plastic buoy floating out there in the middle of the reservoir?” he asked, pointing. “That, my dear Ivey, contains a few hundred gallons of a special psychotropic compound that I’ve been tinkering with the past several weeks. At exactly midnight, the device will explode, dumping my little cocktail into the water supply for the entire city. Anyone who gets my little toxin in their blood stream can look forward to a lifetime of vivid hallucinations, schizophrenia, and paranoia as the formula slowly dissolves away the logical portions of the brain.”

“But... I thought that was the point of those brain scrambling devices you had hidden all over the city...” she said slowly. “Unless... you didn’t... that whole thing was just a diversion?”

“Nope,” Thorton replied, pulling a quarter out of his pocket, tossing it randomly into the air, and catching it again. “Those devices were real enough. And however many of them are left and active in the next—” glanced down at his watch “—four minutes will go off just as scheduled, microwaving the soft tissues of the brains of anyone in the vicinity.” He tossed the quarter again, catching it between his index and second finger. “A perfect double-sided scenario... with a two-pronged plan of attack. I let the police in on one side, to keep them busy and out of my hair, and, on the unlikely yet possible occurrence that they manage to deactivate all of my hidden treasures in time, I still have my backup plan in place, ready and rearing to go.” He flipped the coin one last time, catching it on his knuckles, letting it flip and slide down each separately one by one.

“Well,” Ivey said, hesitantly, still holding the gun in her hands. “Well... you can just... call off the countdown!” she said with force, aiming the gun at him. “If this is what you wanted, then find. Stop the countdown, and I’ll give you... what you want.”

Jacob chuckled softly, shaking his head. “You’ve got a lot of gumption, kid. Moxy. Sprit. You’re one brave woman to come all the way out here by yourself. Very clever too, being able to figure out where I was. I had to practically send Chiefy Weefy a map! Still, one of the few things you are lacking in... is a good poker face.”

Ivey blinked. “What?”

“Your ability to lie,” he said patiently. “You’re a terrible liar. You have no intention whatsoever of shooting me... not without a lot more incentive.” Reaching down, he pulled his sweater up over his head and off, then began unbuttoning his shirt. “Let’s see what we can do about that.”

“Oh my God,” Ivey gasped, taking a step back. “Wh... what did you do to yourself?”

“Like it?” he said with a wicked grin. “My own little design. It’s not original, I’m afraid... got the idea from some sci-fi movie or video game or something. Still, it is rather special.” Running a hand along his chest, his fingers gently caressed the protruding glass and metal embedded deeply in his flesh, with the myriad number of wires and tubes spread out from it. “Not a lot of people know my heart was nicked during that unfortunate business with my former patient. Sliced right through a ventricle. Practically a one-in-a-million shot if he’d attempted to do so on purpose... but hey, chaos and unpredictability is the way our universe works! The end result was a slow but steady degradation of my heart’s ability to pump. With all the damage to my lung cavity from the other wounds, no surgeon was willing to risk trying to stick in an artificial heart, so a digital pacemaker was their solution... a little something to keep me going until they could come up with something better.” He shrugged. “That’s Doctorspeak for ‘You’re gonna die, it’s only a matter of time, but at least we can say we did our best so no one tries to sue us’.”

Ivey merely stood there, stunned at the unmitigated mess of her former colleague’s chest. “It looks like... you did that yourself...” she whispered.

“I did,” Thorton said proudly, still grinning. “Nurse Barbara assisted a little, but it was mostly me. I have a degree in electronics as well as psychology, after all, though I really never thought about using it in this way before. And aside from keeping my blood pumping, and my libido thumping,” he said with a lewd thrust of his hips, “it also acts as the triggering device for both the brain scrambling transmitters and the explosive device attached to my chemical cocktail floating in the middle of the reservoir. And here’s the kicker! You’re the only one who can stop both of them from activating!” He laughed. “All you have to do is kill me... shoot me dead, and stop my heart before the deadline, and you save everyone from ending up as crazy as me!”

11:57:13PM

Barbara Gordon groaned softly, fluttering along the edge of consciousness. She hurt all over... and not in a good way. She was cold; she was lying face up on the hard asphalt ground. And... she had been shot!

Dammit... she thought to herself, forcing herself to try and focus through her pain. Master.. shot me... tried to kill me... must have figured out... what my surprise was...shouldn’t have tried to... hide it behind my back... while standing in front... of that mirror...

She sighed softly, blanking out for a moment... only to fade back in at the sound of her Master’s voice. “...all you have to do is kill me... shoot me dead, and stop my heart before the deadline, and you save everyone from ending up as crazy as me!”

A fire burned in Barbara’s blood at those words. Kill him? My reason for living? The man who made me the woman I am today? No. NO! I won’t allow it. Not as long as I am still alive! If that bitch want’s his heart, she’ll get it over my dead body! Her hand, covered in her own blood, flexed, and clenched. Good. I can still move. Moving slowly, painfully, bit by bit, she rolled over to her side, pulling free the Beretta nine millimeter she’d had strapped to her back, and flicked off the safety.

One good shot, she said to herself, panting, nearly gagging as blood began to fill her lungs. All I need... is one good shot...

11:57:49PM

Chief Burrows’s eyes fluttered open. He’d passed out, he realized suddenly, to his embarrassment. He hurt... Lord Almighty, did he hurt! But pain was your friend, it let you know that you were still alive. and while you were alive, the fight was never over. He tried to roll over onto his side... gasped and wheezed softly, as everything went red, then black... then cleared, second later.

Shit. Wrong arm. Was shot in that shoulder. Stupid, Eddie. Nearly lost it there from the pain. Do that again, and you lose the whole ballgame. Gotta be smart. Gotta be slick. Glancing down at his legs, he winced slightly. His left leg was mess; likely nerve damage was well as vascular trauma, by the lack of feeling in that limb. Oh well. Not as if I was planning to spend my night’s dancing the Charleston anyway. The important thing is that I’m still alive. Still useful.

Slowly, painfully, he lifted his right leg, shaking it briskly, causing his pants leg to slide down, revealing his backup piece strapped to his ankle. Lowering the leg again, he twisted the leg, wedging the holster tightly between the pavement and his leg, then slowly pushed forward. The gun slipped free, and he let out a small sigh of relief.

Alright. Good job, Eddie. You can do this. You’re old, but you’re not in the grave yet. Reaching down with his good hand, he grasped the snub nose pistol, and slowly, carefully, took aim.

All I need is a chance... just one. Just... one... good shot...

11:58:11PM

“I... I can’t,” Ivey said miserably, lowering the gun. “Damn you, Jacob! You know about my past! You know how my parents died! I can just stand here and shoot you in cold blood! If you want to die so badly, why don’t you just kill yourself? Why go through all of... this?” she said, gesturing outward. “And... why me? Why put me through all of this?”

“Why. The eternal question. Mankind’s vocalized expression for knowledge, the great unknown that haunts every being that has ever walked the earth. It’s our nature to want to know things. It was our undoing in the Garden of Eden,” he said offhandedly, “if you believe such things. “Man was seduced by the Serpent, and bit into an apple. He got just a taste of the tree of knowledge... just enough to whet his appetite... and he wanted more.” He grinned. “Then God said, ‘Sorry, the first one’s free, you gotta work for the rest’, and booted Adam and Eve the hell out.” He frowned slightly, considering. “Or... something like that. At any rate, ever since then, man’s thirst for knowledge has haunted him, sometimes propelling him forward, sometimes holding him back.” He sighed. “And now, here, at this time, at the moment of testing, you ask me, ‘Why’? Such a simple and yet complex question, Ivey. But as a kindness to you, I will attempt to answer.

“Several years back, a young man arrived at his job, ready to work, only to be informed that the plant is shutting down, the business has been sold, and he is out of a job. He leaves, and heads home, stunned, sad, and discouraged, yet still hopeful that somehow things will work out, that he will find another job. On the way home, his car breaks down, the car he has paid on for years, to the point he is only one payment away from paying it off. Dejected, he gets out of the car and starts walking, determined to simply make it back home where he can finally relax, finally let the stress and pain of this day go. On the way home, he gets lost, and ends up in the bad side of town. He runs into a group of street punks who beat him up, steal his wallet, and even take his shoes. Hurt, humiliated, he continues on, managing to make his way home. Once there, he walks inside... and finds his wife in bed with another man. That proves to be the final straw. He snaps. And takes a butcher knife to his wife and her lover. ”

“And that’s what happened to you?” Ivey asked.

“Nah,” Thorton shook his head. “I think that was actually the plot to the movie ‘Falling Down’ with Michael Douglas... except for the last part, which I think came from that Eminem song, ‘Guilty Conscience’. Anyway... it wasn’t what happened to me. It happened to Rudy Miller, my former patient. The point is, all it took was one really bad day to completely destroy his life, to turn him into a monster. It took one really bad day for me to totally flip my lid.”

He moved to stand directly in front of Ivey, reaching out to place the gun directly in front of his heart. “So, tell me, Ivey... given everything you’ve had to endure today... the terror of your escape, the humiliation you suffered, the degradation... particularly in using the key to ‘unlock’ the information I had hidden inside your mind... what more will it take? You’ve already given up on your morals in seducing and using an innocent victim of my machinations in order to escape. You turned one of your colleagues into a basket case with a need to mutilate himself. You willingly allowed yourself to be violated sexually, in public, just to find a way to stop me. You’ve lost everything that supports you, that comforts you, that keeps you stable. So... what will it take to push you over the edge?”

11:58:53PM

Ivey stood there, paralyzed with indecision. Movement to her left grabs her eye, and she spies the annoying shadowy version of Thorton, floating eerily behind him, holding up a small sign with glowing numbers counting the time: 11:58:59... 11:59:00... 11:59:01... 11:59:02... As if she needed another reminder of how little time was left. The gun shook in her hands.

“Jacob! Stop this! Please! We don’t have to do it this way! We can.. we can talk about this, just the two of us! Please... don’t make me do this!”

“Sorry, Ivey. The time for talking is over.” He glanced down at his watch and shook his head. “Ohhh! Less than a minute left now. Tick tock, tick tock...”

“STOP IT!” she pleased again. “Stop the countdown! Or... or...”

“Or what? You’ll kill me? That’s what I WANT, Ivey. I want you to end my miserable excuse for an existence. C’mon... it’s simple. Just pull the trigger, and it’s all over.”

“I can’t!”

“Yes, you can,” Thorton scowled. “You just don’t want to. You’re thinking about your parents, your mom and dad, in their little corner grocery store...and the robber that snuck in that night and shot them right before your eyes. Your sweet, darling, pacifist father, who so ingrained the idea of non-violence into you that even in the face of a crack-addicted cold blooded killer with your parents’ blood in his hands, all you could do is stand there watch him run away instead of doing what needed to be done...”

“Damn you! Stop this!”

“...putting him down like the dirty filthy rabid dog he was...”

“Don’t do this!”

“...and ending his pitiful life!”

“I can’t!” she screamed, tears flowing from her eyes. “I can’t... I can’t kill someone. I can’t do it alright? I CAN’T DO IT!”

“But you MUST DO IT!” Thorton roared back. “If you don’t kill me, then everyone in this city will suffer. Tick tock, Ivey. Thirty seconds left. There are... what? Roughly one point two million people in the greater Jacksonville area. Tell me...is your sense of moral outrage worth the lives of a million people? Isn’t one life worth the lives of a million others? I guess we’re about to see in another ... twenty-six seconds, won’t we?”

11:59:35

The shadow clone, not content with playing the silent partner, moved up alongside Ivey, whispering softly in her ear. “He’s right, Ivey. You have to do this. You have to kill him.”

11:59:36PM

But, I can’t do it, she thought desperately. In cold blood. His blood on my hands...

11:59:37PM

“Don’t be so pathetic. We all have dirt on our hands. You included. Look at everything you’ve already done so far tonight!”

11:59:39PM

But this is different! If I shoot him, I’ll be a murderer...

11:59:40PM

“You’ll be a hero,” the ghost-Thorton urged her. “You’ll save the lives of the entire city. Or Maybe you think it’s better to let everyone else suffer instead?”

11:59:43PM

No! That’s not what I want! I don’t want anyone getting hurt. But...

11:59:44PM

“No ‘but’s, Ivey!” Thorton’s voice insisted. “There is no middle ground here. It’s kill or be killed. Because no matter how you want to sugar coat it, what will happen to those people if you don’t stop him will be the same as killing them!”

11:59:47PM

Is... this the only way? Ivey thought to herself. Is this the only choice? Kill or be killed? I can’t... let everyone else suffer because I was too weak... too squeamish. I have to... have to do this...

11:59:49PM

As she took aim again, steadying her grip, Dr. Parkinson imagined her father’s visage, saw the look of sadness and disappointment in his eyes. “You can’t do this, Ivey. Please! Don’t kill him. There is another solution. Think! You’re so smart, honey, so resourceful. Surely you can find a way to do this without killing him!”

11:59:51PM

“I can’t, Daddy” Ivey said aloud. “There’s no time. No other way. I have to do this.”

11:59:52PM

“No, sweetheart,” her father’s voice replied sadly. “There is always another way. We just don’t always see it in time. Please, honey!

11:59:53PM

Ivey shook her head. “I’m sorry, Daddy. I have to! I’m out of time! I don’t have a choice!”

11::59:54PM

“There is always a choice, baby,” her father insisted. “Taking a life or sparing it, is also a choice. There is never a reason to take a life, Ivey.“

11:59:57PM

“I’m sorry, Dad,” Ivey said, tears flowing freely, as she took a step back, and cocked the weapon, aiming for Jacob Thorton’s heart. “I’m so so sorry!”

11:59:58PM

“Once you cross that line, you can never go back!” her father pleaded. “Things can never be the same!”

11:59:59PM

“Then... so be it,” Ivey whispered, closing her eyes, as she pulled the trigger.

11:59:59PM

Barbara smiled with insane glee as her hated adversary took one final step back, finally stepping into view. Finally! Just the shot I was waiting for. This ends now, bitch. For Dr. T... and for myself... Taking careful aim. she lined up her shot and pulled the trigger.

11:59:59PM

Edward listened with increasing concern and worry as Dr. Parkinson descended into what appeared to be a full blown panic attack and mental breakdown at the thought of being forced to kill someone. She can’t do it, he realized grimly. That fucking prick... it was all part of his plot... putting her into an impossible situation, and watching her crack under the strain! he thought to himself, rolling gently onto his injured side, lifting his good arm just enough to lock onto Thorton’s grinning face.

She might not be able to end you, you demon, he thought dimly, feeling the last of his strength begin to ebb, But by God, I will! And with that, he pulled the trigger.

Epilogue:

11:16AM Six days later...

Eddie Barrows sat up in his hospital bed as the door opened, raising the motorized bed to help support him. He smiled slightly at the nurse arriving with his lunch and the morning paper, though the grin was aimed more towards her than the ‘food’ she was bringing. She smiled back at him, leaning over him to reach his IV bag, giving the old policeman a nice clear view of her assets. “So, Chief, how are you feeling this morning?”

“Former Chief, Debbie,” he replied, gesturing to the bottom of the bed. “Can’t exactly hold the highest level of law enforcement in this city on one leg you know.” He sighed. “But you know what? It’s okay. It was time for me to retire anyway. And, even a bit battered and bruised, the old dog ain’t dead just yet.”

“That’s true enough, Chief... oh, sorry, Eddie,” Debbie said with a grin, checking his pulse. “All your vitals seem really good, and your temperature is normal, so there’s no sign of infection. Dr. Wallace thinks you might get to go home in a day, two at the most.”

“Great! I can hardly wait to get out of here.” Seeing her look, he amended. “Not because of the company, Debbie, dear... that’s the one thing I actually enjoyed about the experience.” He gestured to the food tray in disgust. “But this? I tell ya Debs... after six days of this goop, I’m at my wit’s end. If I had to go another week without a nice juicy steak I might end up going on a rampage myself!”

Debbie chuckled, rolling her eyes. pushing the food tray into position over Eddie’s lap, before heading to the door. “Now, now, Eddie. You be a good boy and eat all of your food, and later on I’ll come by to give you your sponge bath, okay?” She gave him a naughty smile and a wink just before the door closed behind her.

Eddie sighed. “Geez. Least they could have done was to make lime Jell-O this time. I am so sick of cherry.” Reaching down, he picked up the newspaper and flipped through it, frowning as he scanned the headlines. He paused, scowling at the obituaries, focusing in on the one he’d been looking for. “’Dr. Jacob Thorton, aged fifty-eight, of Jacksonville was buried this morning in a private ceremony...’” he read aloud. “Private. Heh, I’ll bet. I can’t imagine anyone would go out of their way to attend that bastard’s funeral, other than to assure themselves that he was really dead!”

Of course, he was dead. No one knew that better than Eddie. He’d put a bullet straight through the crazy old codger’s left eye, and had the satisfaction of watching the bloody cadaver fall to the ground before his own pain knocked him unconscious.

It was a good thing I called in to the switchboard to let them know where I was heading before I confronted the damned bastard, he thought ruefully. If I’d thought for an instant that crazy bastard might be armed, I would have brought backup... and worn a vest. Not that either one would have helped the way things turned out, he added as an afterthought, running a hand along his thigh, just above the stump. But I sure as hell was grateful to the EMTs and the morphine they brought with them.

The morphine had dulled more than the pain; it had dulled his senses as well. He vaguely remembered Dr. Parkinson being put on a stretcher beside him, along with the demented doctor’s insane assistant, as if they had been injured as well, but it was all fuzzy. They’d rushed him straight into surgery when they arrived at the hospital, and by the time he was conscious again and coherent enough to think about asking, no one knew what had happened to Dr. Ivey Parkinson.

As for Thorton’s redheaded minion... Eddie sighed in regret. Despite the fact that she’d nearly killed him, despite the fact that she was reason why he’d lost his leg... he still pitied her.

Poor kid is more of a victim in all of this than any of us, he muttered softly to himself.

“Let me out of here! Let me out! Let me out!” Barbara Gordon screamed at the top of her lungs. Her bare feet slammed again and again against the soft padded walls, She pulled, struggling to slip free of the straight jacket they had placed her in, but to no avail. “Let me out! Let me out! Let me out!!”

Suddenly, the door opened, and a petite brunette nurse and two muscular orderlies entered the room. Barb stopped her nonstop screaming for a moment, and glared at them. “Finally! What are you people, deaf or stupid? Let me the FUCK out of here!”

“Now, now, Miss Gordon,” the nurse said disapprovingly. “We all know that is not going to happen. And if you keep making such a disturbance, you will be forced to gag you as well as restrain you!”

“Hmmm... kinky,” Barb replied with a savage grin, “but you’re not my type. Try putting anything near my mouth and you’re gonna pull back a nub!” Glancing up at the orderly, she smiled pleasantly. “You guys, however, feel free to poke and prod me all you want. Tee hee!”

Both of the burley men chuckled softly, only to go silent at a glare from the nurse. She cleared her throat. “Now then. It is lunch time, Miss Gordon. Can you be reasonable this and let us removed your restraints to let you eat without you trying to escape, or do we need to sedate you yet again?”

Barbara frowning, tilting her head to the side as if considering, then sighed. “Meh. Fine. I’ll be good this time.” Moving over to the corner, she sat down, cross-legged, facing the wall. Rolling her eyes, the nurse gestured, and Harry, the taller of the two orderlies, knelt down and unbuckled the straps holding on her straightjacket. True to her word, Barbara sat still, letting them remove her restraints, staying seated even after Harry moved back out of harm’s way. Turning around to the nurse, she gave a toothy grin. “See? I can be nice when I want to.”

“So I see,” the nurse replied drily. She gestured to the second orderly, Tom, who brought over a small Styrofoam container filled with soft, mashable, non-threatening food items.

“Let me guess? Mashed potatoes, mac n’ cheese, green peas, and cherry Jell-O.” Opening the container, she grimaced. “Ugh. Sometimes, it sucks to be right. Yanno, even if you don’t trust me enough to give me actual eating utensils, you could at least try giving me some food with some actual taste to it! I’m almost to the point where I’d kill someone for a hamburger about now.”

“If you don’t want the food,” the nurse said with a dark gleam in her eyes, “I can always take it away. Maybe tomorrow’s selection will be more to your liking?”

“No, no, no,” Barb said quickly, forcing a small smile. “Just busting yer chops a bit. I’ll eat it. So... do I get something to drink with me.. ahem.. ‘meal’?”

“Of course,” the nurse replied, gesturing to Tom again. He handed her a small plastic Capri Sun juice pouch and straw, with the sharp end snipped off and flattened. Seeing the look on Barb’s face as she examined the straw, she laughed. “Ah. You didn’t think I’d be stupid enough to put a potential weapon in your hands, now did you?”

Immediately, Barb’s frown turned upside down. “Well, to be perfectly honest, yes, I did!” Placing the straw to her lips, she blew, hard, shooting out a small thin dart through the tube, striking the nurse in the side of the neck. The nurse’s eyes went wide as her hand slid to her neck in shock. A wave of dizziness enveloped her, and she slumped to the ground, groaning softly.

“Wh.. what the hell?” Harry yelled, taking a step back from the widely grinning mental patient. He pulled a nightstick from his belt, brandishing it like a club. “What the hell did you do to Nurse Pritchett? Huh? Answer meeeeeeeeeegggghhnnn!!” Harry yelped, shuddering helplessly as his fellow orderly, Tom, tazered him in the back. Slumping to the ground, he let out a soft sigh, and closed his eyes.

“Nice job, puddin’,” Barb said, getting to her feet. “Very nice. You really put him down for the count. Think he’ll remember anything?”

“Nah,” Tom said, opening his jacket, tossing Barbara the blonde wig and nurse’s cap he’d smuggled in. “I’ll carry him out with us when we leave, and dump him in the lounge. He’ll just think he fell asleep. Anyway, he’s not the one I’m worried about. What did you hit ol’ Pritchett with?”

Barb held up a small clear fluid filled sack. “Just a little present from my former therapist,” she said, staring down at her feet. “Something of a... parting gift.” She shook her head to clear away the memories. “Anyway, we won’t have to worry about her. The shit circling around in her blood stream right now has her on a totally epic high that she’s never going to come down from. Right now, she’s probably dancing a jig with the Smurfs while snarfing some gnarly mushrooms with Puff the Magic Dragon!” She chuckled. “Trust me. She won’t be a problem anymore. Now, help me get her undressed so I can change clothes with her.”

Tom nodded, and soon enough Nurse Barbara was ready to make good her escape. She knelt down and placed the gag between the drooling woman’s slack lips. “Just for good measure,” she said, nodding. “It’ll be days before anyone notices she isn’t me, if they even notice at all. After all, as long as she’s not causing a disturbance, as long as you have the correct body count, who cares?” Chuckling to herself, she walked out of the room, closing the cell door behind her.

Almost perfect, Barb thought to herself as she left the sanitarium. Not perfect, not by a longshot, but almost. All I need to do now is to lose the dead weight, she thought, giving Tom a secret little smile, and track down Miss Goody Two Shoes to finish what I started. She smiled, a real smile this time, at the thought of meeting up with Dr. Parkinson again. Didn’t manage to kill you the last time... but even if I don’t kill her the next time, just maiming her should be fun! Like my Master always said: if at first you don’t succeed, try again until you do... and keep on trying even then, just for the fun of it!

Ivey Parkinson yawned and stretched, sliding out of bed. She opened the shutters of her hospital room window, letting in the sunshine. She smiled, throwing her head back, simply basking in the light. She felt good. She felt wonder. She felt so alive.

“Miss Parkinson!” Kelly, her nurse exclaimed, as she stepped inside the room. “You know you are not supposed to be out of bed yet! If you wanted something, you should have just pushed the call button.”

Ivey laughed. “Oh, but what I wanted most was to be up and out of that bed! You have had me bundled up in here for a week now! Trust me, I’m fine!”

“You are most definitely NOT fine,” Kelly harrumphed, crossing her arms. “When you were first brought to the hospital you were nearly gone! You had been shot in the head, your skull fractured, a bullet lodged in your brain! If we didn’t happen to have the best neurosurgeon in the country on staff you would have died!”

“But I didn’t,” Ivey said calmly, sitting back down on the bed, idly kicking her bare feet. “I lived. I survived a terrible, harrowing experience, and came through. Despite everything that happened to me I feel... free.” She smiled again, tilting her head to the side, as if listening to something only she could hear. “Yes. Free. Like I just shattered the last bond holding me back.”

“Uh huh,” Kelly said dismissively, rolling the lunch platter into place. “Well right now, you are holding ME back from completing my rounds. Now, why don’t you just lie back down in the bed and relax, and we’ll see what Jacksonville Regional Medical is serving today,”

“Alright,” Ivey said, sliding her bare feet underneath the covers. She picked up the paper lying in the desk, flipping through it. “Oh... how sad. It seems Dr. Thorton was buried early this morning. I wish I could have attended his funeral.”

Kelly stopped and stared at her. “Really? Are you serious? You wanted to attend the funeral of the madman who held this entire city hostage, who kidnapped and tortured dozens of people, literally, to the brink of madness, the man you yourself shot and killed point blank range in order to save all of us? And you wanted to attend his funeral?”

Ivey smiled. “You don’t understand. Dr. Thorton was a victim himself. Yes, he did a lot of really bad things to a lot of innocent people, but it all started when someone victimized him, a former patient who himself, had been victimized. Dr. Thorton took it to an extreme, but what he was trying to explain to me, and to everyone, is that anyone could become him. All it takes is one... really really bad day,”

Kelly rolled her eyes. “Uh huh Whatever. Like I would go insane and start abducting people to experiment on because of a bad day. Listen Doc. Everyone has bad days now and again. But not everyone takes a shotgun and decides to go postal in the middle of a crowded room. Thorton just had a screw loose to begin with. End of story.”

Ivey nodded slowly, thinking. Kelly’s words made a strange sort of sense. She herself might have even spoken those same words before the events of the previous week. Rationality precluded the belief that different people reacted to the same stresses differently, and that what caused one person to break could be easily weathered by another.

And yet, the world is NOT logical. It isn’t rational. Random events happen, things that no one could possibly have predicted, occur, no matter how closed the system. Chaos itself is a part of the system. Ivey sighed deeply, closing her eyes. Jacob, I understand now. I see it all so clearly... everything you were trying to explain. I get it. I really, truly get it.

She paused, frowning, slightly, considering. She understood the inner workings of a madman. Was she herself insane now? But... Ivey discarded the notion almost immediately. Insanity, by definition, precluded a solid belief in its own reality, its own rightness. By merely considering the possibility that she might be insane, she had proven herself to be completely sane. The frown faded, and she smiled again, opening her eyes.

“That is an interesting theory, Kelly,” she said, pushing her tray slightly to the side, taking the small cup of yogurt and the shiny metal spoon in hand. “I have a slightly different theory though, if you’ d care to hear it.” She paused, as if considering letting the spoon dangle slightly in her hand, letting it catch and reflect the sunlight coming from the open window. She watched the nurse watching her, noting how her eyes immediately tracked the slight movement of her hand, and the light reflecting off the spoon each time she shifted.

“Tell me, Nurse Kelly,” she asked, her smile curling devilishly, “did you ever enjoy cutting out paper dolls when you were a child?”