2
It was Monday night. Therapy was supposed to be the next afternoon. Grandfather usually picked Peter and Dill up from school, drove them to the appointment in Charterton, and then left. Mom would then come pick them up and drive them home afterwards.
Peter was sitting at the kitchen table picking at his meatloaf and lima beans. Mom was feeding Beth in her highchair. As usual, Grandfather was in his study.
When the phone rang, Peter leapt up from the table and ran for it – mostly to get away from his lima beans. “I’ve got it!” he cried, then picked up the phone. “Hello?”
“Hello, Peter, this is Dr. Prescott.”
Even before the psychiatrist identified himself, Peter recognized the slightly high, reedy voice. However, he was shocked to hear him over the phone, since Dr. Prescott had never called the house before.
But after he got over his surprise, Peter felt a bit smug about the smackdown he would be delivering the next day. “Oh, hi. I’ve got something to tell you about – ”
“Excellent, tell me tomorrow, please put your mother or grandfather on.”
Peter held the receiver out and looked at it with a frown. Dr. Prescott was odd, but he wasn’t rude. This stranger on the phone was kind of a jerk.
“Uh…okay,” Peter said into the receiver. “Hold on.”
He walked the phone over to Mom, who took it from him. “Hello?”
Dr. Prescott’s voice was loud enough that Peter could hear him clearly. “Hello, Ms. Normal, this is Dr. Prescott, Peter’s psychiatrist.”
“Yes, hello, Doctor.”
“I have a bit of a conflict tomorrow. I’m going to need to see Peter and Dill at a different location and different time.”
“Um…okay, I guess…where?”
“The Shadow Hills Institute at 5 o’clock.”
Peter’s eyes grew wide.
Shadow Hills was a mental hospital for crazy people.
Who had committed violent crimes.
As Dill would say, ‘the looney bin.’
Peter only knew these things through vague comments made by adults (“Oh my god, I’m going crazy, they’re gonna send me to Shadow Hills”) and whispered stories by kids at school. Some girl in Duskerville had supposedly killed her parents in their sleep 50 years ago; Peter had heard some girls singing a song about her as they jumped rope.
Janey was a little girl
Who liked to play with knives;
The day her parents made her mad
She ended both their lives.
They sent her off to Shadow Hills
They didn’t have a clue;
Cuz crazy is as crazy does
She killed the doctors, too.
After Dr. Veedermeier had tried to kill Peter and Dill, the sheriff’s department had sent him to Shadow Hills.
Dr. Prescott was a psychiatrist on staff there – in fact, he was Veedermeier’s doctor. However, Dr. Prescott normally saw outside patients in an old building near Charterton University. Other than when he testified in court during Peter’s trial, he had never mentioned Shadow Hills once.
Until now.
Mom’s eyes went wide, too. She had grown up in Duskerville, so she probably knew 100 times more stories about the mental hospital than Peter did. “Um, I’m sorry…I’m not comfortable with that.”
Dr. Prescott’s voice sounded impatient over the phone. “I assure you, madam, that the facilities are 100% safe.”
“Can’t we schedule for the next day?”
“No we cannot. My schedule is entirely full, I need to see Peter and Dill at Shadow Hills tomorrow at 5 o’clock.”
“Well then, let’s just skip this week – ”
“Absolutely not, the court ordered weekly therapy sessions for twenty weeks contingent on my final analysis. I need to see them weekly for the process to be effective.”
“I think the court would be okay with them skipping a week for emergencies,” Mom said sarcastically.
“Except you have no emergency, madam, so I will expect to see them at Shadow Hills at 5 o’clock. Drive into the visitors area, I will meet them in the parking lot.”
“Dr. Prescott, I don’t – ”
“Or I will have to report to the court that you and your son are being uncooperative, and I will recommend that the suspended sentence of two years in juvenile detention be implemented immediately.”
Mom looked like she could not believe what she was hearing. Peter stared at her in horror.
“It’s your choice, but I hope to see Peter and Dill at Shadow Hills at 5PM tomorrow.”
CLICK.
Mom stared down at the phone and said a dirty word.
“Yew said uh baaaaa’ wor’, mama!” Beth exclaimed from her high chair.
Peter was pretty taken aback, too.
Mom looked at Peter guiltily. “Sorry. But he’s being a world class…”
She searched for a less objectionable term.
“Butthole?” Peter suggested.
“Exactly,” Mom agreed, then sighed. “Sorry, kid…I guess you’re going to Shadow Hills tomorrow.”
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5 comments:
Hrmm, hidden agendas ahoy. I bet Prescott's schedule could be freed up if he cut down on his murderous rampages, or better yet his squash games.
Presumably Dr V. has something to do with the summons...
Tuent = A pirate skipping duty - it's like playing truant but without the arr.
In rl I'm sure you could contact the judge. The order probably wouldn't specify which doctor you would have to see, either, right?
That Doctor Prescott is such a snonstri.
I'd editorialize about Dr. Prescott, but already knowing he's a monster and a killer and proud of himself for it, I'm not sure there's much point.
Incidentally, welcome back!
Wow see Dr Prescott being all manipulative and blackmail-y. Lol love the skipping rhyme! I can just hear it being sung in creepy little children's voices. Oh if only I was still at school, I would totally teach everyone that rhyme!
Rubberduck -
But why would Prescott want to do THAT?
Dr. V? Have something to do with all this?!
NOOOOOOOOOO.
Um the Muse -
You probably COULD contact the judge...if you had a good reason not to believe your assigned psychiatrist...
Which Peter doesn't have. Not yet, anyway.
Todd -
Thanks! Good to be back!
Cat -
Yeah, I actually had a ton of fun coming up with that one...
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