Sally put up a finger. “Yes of course, Maam. No. No worries. Glad to help. Goodbye.” She placed the headset back into the cradle turned to him. “So you excited for our date tonight?”
Play it cool. Play it cool. Echoed in his head. “Yeah. Do I get to know where we are going?”
Her head tilted slightly in playful thought. Edward was on a slippery slop he felt it in his chest.
“Uhhh… no. It’s a surprise.”
“A surprise huh? I am intr-“
A hand clapped gently on his back and they both turned to see Dr. Kravitz. “Edward are you ready? We have a big morning ahead of us.”
Edward shifted his gaze to Sally, he didn’t want to the leave the conversation they were having, but he knew today was important. “Yeah. Yeah of course.”
“Great lets get going, his sedation should be wearing off. Nurse Umbridge.”
“Doctor.” Sally said stoicly. She smiled again at Edward.
He mouthed the word Sorry to Sally and began following Dr. Kravitz. “Wait, one second Winslow. I forgot…” He ran back to the desk and handed Sally the bouquet of Lilies he brought with him. “See you tonight.”
Sally took the flowers and smelled them. The rest of the nurses at the station mockingly cooed. Nurse Calvin only scowled from the other side of the room.
Edward and Dr. Kravitz made the walk down the hall to the stairs. Each time Edward made the walk Cloverdale softened in his eyes. The people that passed look less like maniacs and wild animals and more like just sick people. A change of clothes and a brush of their hair, you couldn’t tell they were patients in a mental institution. Edward wondered if this was taste of how Dr. Kravitz saw the world. Just sick people. Their ailments you could see on their skin, or even in a x-ray, but none the less they were sick. Sick people deserved help and deserved to be treated like people during their healing.
“That’s a lot of coffee, you sleep okay?” Edward asked jokingly. Dr. Kravitz carried four large styrofoam cups of coffee on a tray with sugar and cream.
Dr. Kravitz seemed distant this morning. “Actually I didn’t sleep very well. I stayed here like I usually do throughout the week, but for the life of me I could not catch a wink. But it gave me lots of time to think. There’s a few things I wanted to try with James today. See what information we can pull from him for your case.”
“Sure sounds great. I’ll follow your lead.”
Dr. Kravitz smiled warmly as they climbed the stairs. “Thank you Edward. I pray this will be done soon. I know this is an unconventional case for you.”
“It is strange yes, but it has it’s…benefits.” He smiled.
“Yes I can see you and Nurse Umbridge have hit it off. She is a lovely lady. On her way to being head nurse here at Cloverdale.”
“She does seem pretty fantastic. We have dinner plans tonight.”
They reached the top of the stairs. “That’s great Edward. Now.” He stopped Edward at the end of the hall. He gave Terrence a wave. “To use a euphemism you are familiar with: I would like you to play bad cop. Keep him talking and on his toes. I will lead the questions to where I think you can get the information you need.”
“Okay but what if he is switching channels all day and we don’t get to speak to Cole?”
“Yes I thought of that as well. We may be able to try and put him in a submissive state again.”
“Hypnosis?”
“Or pharmacological if nessacary.”
“Would that work? Drugging him?” Edward asked.
“Have I ever told you about my parents. They were hippies. Free love and all that. Well anyways, from a young age I’ve seen all kinds of drugs have interesting affects on people. Of course the government and that damn president decided all drugs should be treated as arsenic, so studying their effects is not considered…well ethically in psychology, but I personally think it has its uses.”
Edward chuckled. “Damn Winnie, I know a couple guys who would kill for you bring some of that stuff to their next party.”
Dr. Kravitz laughed as well. “I may need their legal representation if I am found out by the board. Come. Let’s get in there. Remember-“
“Bad cop.” Edward said and his face slumped. It wasn’t a frown, but he looked pissed off for being there. He hoped it would be enough. Cole was tough. And smart. Which made him dangerous.
Terrence opened the door and followed them in. “Here Terrence, have a cup.” Dr. Kravitz handed the guard a cup. The cup looked ridiculous in his meaty paws. “Good Morning James. How was your slee-“ He stopped and looked at the man who sat at the table. The eyes glanced back and forth from Edward to Dr. Kravitz and then back to Edward. “Who am I addressing?” He asked.
The man who was Cole but not Cole moved very slowly. “Is one of those for me?”
“Yes.” Dr. Kravitz said. He placed one of the cups in front of Cole. Both Edward and Dr. Kravitz sat. A coffee was handed to Edward and he put it aside as if disgusted. A pissed off man doesn’t want to sip coffee. He wants to get down to business, he thought. Dr. Kravitz sipped his. “I wasn’t sure how you liked it so I brought cream and sugar.”
Cole slowly reached across the table for the sugar. His cuffed hands clinked on the edge of the table. Each link slowly made its way forward then back down. Cole tore open three sugar packets and dumped them into his cup. Dr. Kravitz slid forward a brown stir stick.
“So who am I addressing?” Dr. Kravitz asked again.
“Its me, Dr. Kravitz. James.” He took a sip of the coffee and smiled. It was a cold. Lizard like. It seemed wrong on his face. Edward remembered that smile. He had seen it when Cole was seizing. I think he means to collect.
“Come on. I am not idiot. Do not treat me as such. Who am I addressing?”
Edward shook his head angrily. “Cole I am about done with your bullshit. I personally don’t care if you fry. This is still just a preliminary consultation for all I am concerned. I can go downstairs make a call to my firm, that this is a lost cause, not even with the publicity and I am gone back to the city before dinner. So are you gonna keep fucking us around or are you going to talk to the only two people who give a fuck?”
Cole took another sip of his coffee. “I’m not going to tell you my name. For all intents and purposes I am James Everett Cole. You are my doctor and you-” He finger left the white cup and pointed to Edward. “-are my lawyer.”
“Not for much longer if you don’t start talking.”
“Oh I think you will want to stay around. Because I have a secret.”
“And whats that?” Dr. Kravitz asked.
“Tsk. Tsk. That wouldn’t be very fun.” He put his cup down on the table. “If you can figure out who I am, I’ll tell you my secret.”
Edward scratched his cheek, he had forgotten to bring a razor with him and his stubble was beginning to become itchy. “And why would we care about your secret?”
“Because everyone loves secrets. Every one has one. Don’t they Dr. Kravitz?”
Edward looked over at Winslow. The doctors face was stone.
“And how about you? What’s your secret?”
Edward sat quietly still, maintaining eye contact.
“Can we speak to James please?” Dr. Kravitz asked. He took a drink of his coffee and flipped opened his clip board.
Cole stretched in his chair and looked up at the skylight. The sun warmed his face. “James has gone for bit. He’s a trouble young man. Are you aware of that? That sicko needs to be locked up. His mother was right.”
“Well I wanted to tell James, that a TV will be brought up to him later today as he requested. He promised me a favor.”
Cole chuckled. “I don’t think he would be into giving you the kind of favors you like, Dr. Kravitz. Though if you spoke to Roach, I’m pretty sure between you him and Nurse Calvin, you all could have one hell of a party.”
That one broke Dr. Kravitz slightly and his brow furrowed. Edward stepped up and slapped the coffee of the table. This time he was actually angry.
“Hey!” Cole cried.
“Listen to me you piece shit. After today I am done. You better hope this guy doesn’t give up on you too. He’s a better man than both of us. He’s the only one that really wants to help you. He called us in. But I am done.” Edward stood and walked for the door.
“Wait! Wait.” Cole called. “I’m sorry Dr. Kravitz. I was outline. I am not use to the subtleties of everyday conversation. I’ve been out of the game a long time. Please join us.” He said to Edward.
“Are you done fucking around?”
Cole smirked. “No. But I’ll tell you something. Cole doesn’t have all the answers. He thinks he does. He plays tough. But he doesn’t know where Sarah is.”
“You do?” Edward asked.
Cole nodded slowly.
“So where is she?” Edward asked.
“You think I give it up just like that? My mother taught me better than that. You never give it up on the first date.” He chuckled. “She was awful at following her own advice.”
Dr. Kravitz finally spoke as he stood up. “I guess we are done here for now.” He walked out of the room.
There was no protest from Cole or Edward. Edward followed quickly after. They met at the bottom of the stairs and Edward was startled to find Dr. Kravitz grinning. “What the hell was that? And why are you smiling like that.”
“That was incredible. You did amazing by the way.”
“Thanks, but can you fill me in.”
“I believe that is not one of James’ victims its something else. A different personaility.”
“So he has more than you expected.”
“No its even for than that Edward.” He place his hands on Edward’s shoulders. “That coffee I gave him, had hazelnut in it.”
“So. You gave a convicted serial killer a nice morning coffee?”
He chuckled. “No. Well yes. But James Everett Cole is severely allegric to hazelnuts. It’s in his medical file. We have adrenaline in the first aid kit outside of his room in case of reaction. The man up in that room for all accounts is James Cole. But is in terms of physiologically and psychologically, he is not.”
“So who is he?”
“That I don’t know.”
-
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