You're Cute When You Scream

Room 231 was a mess after Synyster stormed off with Myra and that other guy…I guess his name was Ronnie. I didn’t need to worry about explaining this mess to anyone because I was the head doctor here.

Yet I’ve managed to successfully go against my own conscience and dreams to protect myself knowing full and well that it was actually putting several people in danger. What kind of man am I? I chose the profession of saving lives, and here I am selfishly inflicting suffering.

Angrily, I slammed my fist into the heart monitor nearby, causing it to collapse into a heap of static metal. My actions had startled the nurse who had just recently stepped into the room.

“What is it?” I sighed.

“I just wanted to make sure you were okay, doctor,” the nurse replied, stepping closer and resting a compassionate hand on my shoulder.

I nodded, “That’s kind of you, but I think I’m just going to go rest in my office. Will you ask Doctor Montgomery to take over for a moment?”

“Of course.”

As I closed the heavy wooden door behind me, I let out a stale sigh, sliding down the length of the door until I reached the floor with a hard thud. What am I supposed to do now? I doubt that those monsters would let me take back my half of the deal, even though something told me they’d have no problem resigning their offered protection.

At the time, the sound of guaranteed safety sounded incredible and irresistible, it seems to be devalued more and more each time Myra or one of the others girls are brought here with all their horrible injuries intact. I don’t deserve this position.

Aimlessly, I shrugged out of my white jacket and stared at the locked safe across the room. For all the suffering that I have single-handedly helped inflict, I don’t deserve to live. I crawled across the floor and punched in the combination with trembling fingers. I cradled the .45 mm in my hands as I loaded a single bullet. My arm began shaking horribly as I raised the gun to my temple.

Is this really how it’s all going to end?

What turned me into such a shallow, fearful man?

What I would assume to be a “last moment on earth” experience suddenly began taking place in my head.

Attending college, feeling so determined to meet excessive partying with success in class. Making what I thought would be the best of my friends the summer before I began Med school. Suddenly losing touch with everyone and everything focusing only on schoolwork. Getting married after scoring a job at a local LA hospital. Doing everything in my power to save my wife after she discovered that she had breast cancer. Watching the one person I truly ever loved with all my heart die before me. Channeling my anger, sadness, and regret into perfecting my work.

And then…just as my forefinger was about to collapse around the trigger and end every final ounce of my miserable life, I remembered the day Randi had come to this hospital. I remembered how happy it felt to reminisce about the days when I knew her father. And, I also remembered that I promised to make up for my horrible failure back when I first met Myra.

I promised her that I’d save them.

If I need to die so badly, then the least I can do is make things right before I go. With a grin on my face, I delved into the depths of my file folder, containing all the information on my current patients. I pulled Myra Thompson’s folder from the stash and searched for her home address.

I jotted the information down and sped down the forested roads with New York City in my sights.

*Katie’s POV*

Involuntarily, my chest began heaving up and down as my lungs drew in deep breath. Shadows was coming closer, and I had yet to think of a strategy other than shouting my strong feelings of frustration and pain.

Shadows was bulky in his shape, which kind of suggested that his assaults may be slow enough for me to dodge. But how long could that honestly save me? Regardless, I swallowed my doubt and firmed my stance.

“Your little physical threats won’t scare me away. Not anymore. You’ve done more than enough damage to poor Randi. I will not sit by and watch you hurt anyone else!”

Shadows shook his head and chuckled. “You’re a stupid little bitch to think for even a second that you could stand up to me.”

He lunged forward and lashed at me with his fists. I sidestepped his initial punch and instead latched my fingers deep inside the scabbing hole Randi had made in his ear. I cringed as I felt a new wave of fresh blood seep onto my fingers, but pushed past that detail before tugging on the healing skin, creating an even larger addition to Randi’s work.

Shadows moaned in pain as his stance faltered, giving me a brilliant opportunity to shove my knee directly into his face, which had to have been painful because my knee was incredibly bony. He finally dropped down to both knees, clutching his face as blood spilled from his mouth and ear.

For the slightest moment, I reveled in watching him squirm below me. And that slight moment gave me just a bit of insight into understanding why they do what they do.

I would’ve felt absolutely horrified upon thinking like that, but I wasn’t provided the proper amount of time to do so because Shadows had recovered much quicker than I anticipated.

*Doctor Manor’s POV*

Knowing that Myra, and presumably the other girls, lived in New York City was really all the information I needed. I wouldn’t be able to do much good stumbling around their apartment like a creep. So, I headed directly for the police department.

I fumbled with the keys in my pocket as I nervously stepped into the station, unsure of where to go other than the first desk I saw. “H-hello, I live about 30 miles north of here and I believe I have some information on a high profile kidnapping case,” I mumbled.

The secretary gave me a suspicious look before calling on an Officer Peterson. “Follow me please,” the officer said, leading me to one of the offices in the back of the building. “I’m going to need some information. Let’s start with your name.”

“Richard Manor. I’m a doctor at St. John Hospital, about 30 miles north of here.”

He nodded, thoughtfully. “Alright, Richard, what information do you have?”

I swallowed the lump in the back of my throat, not really believing what I was about to do. “The members of Avenged Sevenfold have visited my hospital on a regular basis. I already knew Myra because she had come to my hospital, ironically enough, back when I lived in California. In addition to the three girls missing from this area, they have kidnapped a nurse from my own hospital and another girl from the woods. I can show you where they live. Please, you have to let me help this has been weighing on my conscious for far too long!”

Officer Peterson carefully wrote down the details of my testimony. “If it was such a guilt, then why have you waited so many months to come forward?”

I began fiddling with my keys again. “You don’t understand what these men are capable of! I feared for my life every single time they brought one of those girls in…the injuries were always so hard to even look at…”

Before the policeman could continue with his interrogation, two boys burst into the room, practically stumbling over each other in the process. “We came…as soon as we heard…that there was a witness!” the Mexican boy breathed out.

“Chris, Pablo, I’m glad you guys could make it. This is Richard Manor; he works at a hospital out in the woods. He’s treated your friends several times.”

“Where are they? Are they okay? Can you lead us out there?” the one presumably named Chris demanded.

“Easy there, son. First we need Doctor Manor to sign a few documents before we can proceed with the search.”

A file folder containing official looking documents flew across the table and landed in front of me. Here it was…the moment of truth. I shakily reached for the pen as I began to scribble my signature across the dotted line. It’s quite possible that in doing so I may very well be signing my own death warrant.

Then again, I’d rather die doing the right thing, than be killed as a selfish, shameful bastard.

“There you are, officer. Now whatever you need from me just ask. I’ll give you anything to get those girls out of that house.”

Even just the look of hope and relief on Chris and Pablo’s faces was enough to assure me that I was in fact doing the right thing.

*Katie’s POV*

Shadows’ hand lurched forward and constricted around my throat, easily making it even harder to breathe than before. I caught a glimpse of murderous intention in his eyes. Was it a mistake taking such a stupid risk and standing up to them?

No…if I wouldn’t have said anything then Ronnie and Aliza would’ve gotten punished for being related. That’s just overly pathetic and unnecessary! It’s been practically a year now, and we’ve done nothing but sit back and take it. If we don’t take a stand then we’ll never make it out of here.

My fingernails were practically razor sharp by now since it’s been such a long time since I’d been able to properly take care of them. Using this little detail to my advantage, I sunk my nails deep into Shadows’ flesh, feeling his blood bubble beneath my nails, which felt incredibly disgusting.

I retreated my fingers just as he pulled back his hands. I was about to smile in victory, but the smile quickly fell once I saw him pull a gun from his pants.

Time seemed to freeze entirely as my eyes focused solely on the narrow, black hole deep inside the barrel of the gun. The air grew cool drastically, almost as if death itself had descended upon the room.

“Do it, Shads,” Syn spat, giving me a nasty look as he stood beside Ronnie who was still sprawled on the ground, so close to passing out.

“You wouldn’t kill me,” I said calmly, “that wouldn’t do you any good.”

Shadows scoffed, “What the hell do you think would happen to bitches who act out of line. In case you forgot, I had no problem whatsoever killing your friend.”

Anger shot through me as I leapt up to my feet and challenged him. He shrugged off my efforts before turning the safety off and positioning his hand perfectly over the trigger. “It’s been fun,” Shadows said with a demented grin before firing the gun.

A black flash registered in my vision suddenly as Zacky jumped in front me, taking the bullet in his shoulder. He collapsed onto the ground in front of me in a heap. His facial features looked pained as he gripped the location of the wound.

Tears brimmed my eyes as I knelt down beside him, ripping the fabric of his shirt aside so I could assess the damage to the best of my ability, with Nikki soon joining my side to help.

“I can’t fucking believe it,” Gates muttered, his eyes burning in our direction.

“Zacky…you…you traitor!”