Status: Redo of my old story
Silence Falls
Chapter 126: What's The Verdict?
Bert was pacing back and forth between the bunk beds in their room, trying to be patient with Jack’s absence. It seemed like hours since they'd seen both Jack and Connor in the Craft room and no one knew what was happening to their cannibal friend or where they had gone. Bam had figured that Connor was undergoing electroshock therapy like he had when he had raised hell, but tallying the many hours that have passed since then...he should’ve been back by now. Cris couldn’t help but sit in his bunk and indict himself for what had unfolded earlier. If he hadn’t been so panic-stricken by those bullies heckling them and remained in his seat, Connor would still be here in this very room and he’d be...well, he didn’t really know where he’d be.
None of the boys exchanged a word as they proceeded to wait, and wait.
It eventually got to the point where they were nearly falling asleep due to the utter dreariness of their dull room, that is until they heard their cell door’s lock engage. They all sprung to their feet and watched as Jack entered the room and then locked the door behind him.
“What’s the verdict?” Bert grilled him immediately before Jack could open his mouth to say anything.
“Connor isn’t going to be back for a week, maybe more. It all depends.” Jack apprised them, running his hands over his face in a display of pure exhaustion. His day had taken a turn for the worst when he’d been called in because one of his patients took a bite out of another patient’s ear. Every disaster had to be cataloged in such painstaking detail it was enough to suck the life out of any Orderly.
“So where is he then?” Bam asked next, stepping forward to stand beside Bert.
“And what are they doing to him!?” Cris frantically demanded, desperate to know what was happening to his friend that had only ever tried to protect them and was now being smited for it like some criminal.
Jaded and grumpy, Jack helped himself to a seat on one of the bunk beds. Connor’s bed to be exact. “They’re taking a lot of his blood to debilitate him for now, then they’re going to put his head in this cumbersome metal cage so he won’t be able to bite anyone near him. In the end, they’ll chain him up in the center of a temporary padded cell with no food, and give him a daily hose down as they like to call it. I honestly don’t know which part is the worst in that particular punishment.”
Everyone went hushed, besieged by the conception of what poor Connor was enduring this very second in retaliation to a group of morons that decided to bully them.
Jack soon glanced up from his spot on Connor’s bed. “Look, you guys really need to try and stay out of trouble in this place. I’m telling you, they won’t go easy on you for much longer.” His dark brown eyes stopped to idle on Bert and changed his mind. “Well, except you Bert since your father is a supremely respected citizen of this community.”
Bert glared at the mention of his father and growled. “Yeah, keep thinking that.”
Cris plopped himself on the bed opposite of Jack, his big blue eyes filled with tears he’d been battling to hold back since their Orderly dropped in. “I need YOU to listen to me, Mr. White, and listen to me well. We don’t belong here in this shithole, and neither do you! Please, we need your help!”
Bam dropped down right beside Cris and placed a supportive hand on his shoulder, his blue eyes locking onto Jack as well. “We need your help on getting the fuck out of this fucking Hospital!”
Bert let out a crushed groan, and rubbed his hands over his face. He should’ve seen that today’s crisis would have been the last straw for Bam and Cris. All three of them have been going at Bert for days, pressuring him to formulate a plan of escape or coerce Jack to align with them. They were becoming unhinged with every passing day, and were having trouble sleeping at night. Bert couldn’t blame them since this place was 10x worse than the Medical Facility had ever been even on it’s bad day. He never thought he’d ever catch himself saying this, but he’d rather be back in the Facility again than this hellhole.
“Wait, you want me to help you with what?” Jack echoed, his voice thick with lethargy and bemusement. He blinked his eyes a few times and shook his head to make sure he wasn’t dreaming of this conversation.
Bert leaned himself against the wall, his arms crossed over his chest as he eyed Cris and Bam tackle to convince their Orderly to help them break out of the very Psychiatric Hospital he worked in. He didn’t know if they would be able to achieve the impossible, but he was intrigued to watch anyway.
“We need your help in order to get out of this place! Don’t give us that look, you know that we’re not mentally insane! We don’t belong here!” Cris tried to hastily expound on only for Jack to cut him off before he could finish.
“You’re not crazy?! Are you kidding me here?” Jack lurched up from the uncomfortable bunk bed, and spun to confront the two blue-eyed boys with annoyance in his voice now. “Did you not see what just happened back there? Connor tried to eat another patient’s EAR!! And let’s not forget what those files state about the rest of you! Cris, you PROTECTED a cannibal that ate the corpses of his own infant siblings! Connor IS a fucking cannibal, you’ve seen so yourself! And you, Bam, you KILLED your pregnant wife and your unborn twins! YOUR own children!”
Bert narrowed his eyes at their Orderly and straightened himself up to front Jack from over his shoulder. “And what about me? What was my crime for this life in prison, hmm? I saved a young girl from being beaten by her abusive father and what is the thanks I get? I get tossed underground, and now thrown into a hospital of mental patients that are tortured as punishment for fucked up reasons! How do I deserve to be here, Jack? Tell me! Cause I really want to fucking know!”
Jack sighed heavily, running his fingers through his inky black hair. Bert had a strong point that he couldn’t wrangle against. His file was the only file Jack had ever come across that really made no sense. A lot of the patient’s files that came through didn't seem to have defensible reasons to be incarcerated in a place like this, he can admit that, but he’s never read of a patient being imprisoned for SAVING a person before. If there was one person that didn’t belong here, it would be Bert McCracken. Period.
“You’re right. You don’t deserve to be here, Bert.” Jack expressed softly, his fatigue and annoyance cooling down. “I don’t even understand their reason for bringing you out here in the first place. You didn’t deserve to be put down into that Facility from the beginning, nor that girl you saved. Neither of you deserve to be in this fucking swamp as far as I’m concerned.”
Bert couldn’t curb himself from spouting out. “Then get us out of this place, damnit!”
None of the boys exchanged a word as they proceeded to wait, and wait.
It eventually got to the point where they were nearly falling asleep due to the utter dreariness of their dull room, that is until they heard their cell door’s lock engage. They all sprung to their feet and watched as Jack entered the room and then locked the door behind him.
“What’s the verdict?” Bert grilled him immediately before Jack could open his mouth to say anything.
“Connor isn’t going to be back for a week, maybe more. It all depends.” Jack apprised them, running his hands over his face in a display of pure exhaustion. His day had taken a turn for the worst when he’d been called in because one of his patients took a bite out of another patient’s ear. Every disaster had to be cataloged in such painstaking detail it was enough to suck the life out of any Orderly.
“So where is he then?” Bam asked next, stepping forward to stand beside Bert.
“And what are they doing to him!?” Cris frantically demanded, desperate to know what was happening to his friend that had only ever tried to protect them and was now being smited for it like some criminal.
Jaded and grumpy, Jack helped himself to a seat on one of the bunk beds. Connor’s bed to be exact. “They’re taking a lot of his blood to debilitate him for now, then they’re going to put his head in this cumbersome metal cage so he won’t be able to bite anyone near him. In the end, they’ll chain him up in the center of a temporary padded cell with no food, and give him a daily hose down as they like to call it. I honestly don’t know which part is the worst in that particular punishment.”
Everyone went hushed, besieged by the conception of what poor Connor was enduring this very second in retaliation to a group of morons that decided to bully them.
Jack soon glanced up from his spot on Connor’s bed. “Look, you guys really need to try and stay out of trouble in this place. I’m telling you, they won’t go easy on you for much longer.” His dark brown eyes stopped to idle on Bert and changed his mind. “Well, except you Bert since your father is a supremely respected citizen of this community.”
Bert glared at the mention of his father and growled. “Yeah, keep thinking that.”
Cris plopped himself on the bed opposite of Jack, his big blue eyes filled with tears he’d been battling to hold back since their Orderly dropped in. “I need YOU to listen to me, Mr. White, and listen to me well. We don’t belong here in this shithole, and neither do you! Please, we need your help!”
Bam dropped down right beside Cris and placed a supportive hand on his shoulder, his blue eyes locking onto Jack as well. “We need your help on getting the fuck out of this fucking Hospital!”
Bert let out a crushed groan, and rubbed his hands over his face. He should’ve seen that today’s crisis would have been the last straw for Bam and Cris. All three of them have been going at Bert for days, pressuring him to formulate a plan of escape or coerce Jack to align with them. They were becoming unhinged with every passing day, and were having trouble sleeping at night. Bert couldn’t blame them since this place was 10x worse than the Medical Facility had ever been even on it’s bad day. He never thought he’d ever catch himself saying this, but he’d rather be back in the Facility again than this hellhole.
“Wait, you want me to help you with what?” Jack echoed, his voice thick with lethargy and bemusement. He blinked his eyes a few times and shook his head to make sure he wasn’t dreaming of this conversation.
Bert leaned himself against the wall, his arms crossed over his chest as he eyed Cris and Bam tackle to convince their Orderly to help them break out of the very Psychiatric Hospital he worked in. He didn’t know if they would be able to achieve the impossible, but he was intrigued to watch anyway.
“We need your help in order to get out of this place! Don’t give us that look, you know that we’re not mentally insane! We don’t belong here!” Cris tried to hastily expound on only for Jack to cut him off before he could finish.
“You’re not crazy?! Are you kidding me here?” Jack lurched up from the uncomfortable bunk bed, and spun to confront the two blue-eyed boys with annoyance in his voice now. “Did you not see what just happened back there? Connor tried to eat another patient’s EAR!! And let’s not forget what those files state about the rest of you! Cris, you PROTECTED a cannibal that ate the corpses of his own infant siblings! Connor IS a fucking cannibal, you’ve seen so yourself! And you, Bam, you KILLED your pregnant wife and your unborn twins! YOUR own children!”
Bert narrowed his eyes at their Orderly and straightened himself up to front Jack from over his shoulder. “And what about me? What was my crime for this life in prison, hmm? I saved a young girl from being beaten by her abusive father and what is the thanks I get? I get tossed underground, and now thrown into a hospital of mental patients that are tortured as punishment for fucked up reasons! How do I deserve to be here, Jack? Tell me! Cause I really want to fucking know!”
Jack sighed heavily, running his fingers through his inky black hair. Bert had a strong point that he couldn’t wrangle against. His file was the only file Jack had ever come across that really made no sense. A lot of the patient’s files that came through didn't seem to have defensible reasons to be incarcerated in a place like this, he can admit that, but he’s never read of a patient being imprisoned for SAVING a person before. If there was one person that didn’t belong here, it would be Bert McCracken. Period.
“You’re right. You don’t deserve to be here, Bert.” Jack expressed softly, his fatigue and annoyance cooling down. “I don’t even understand their reason for bringing you out here in the first place. You didn’t deserve to be put down into that Facility from the beginning, nor that girl you saved. Neither of you deserve to be in this fucking swamp as far as I’m concerned.”
Bert couldn’t curb himself from spouting out. “Then get us out of this place, damnit!”