Chapter Forty-Three

“Fine. I’ll leave, for now,” Miss Hudson says from behind the nurse’s station. She reaches down and picks up her purse placed under the desk. “I will be back shortly though. This little plan of yours is not gonna work Reginald.”
“Oh, it will work just fine,” Officer Kirkland adds as Claire steps past him and toward the front door. Now to Billy, Reginald says, “If I can be of any further assistance just call me.”
“Thank you,” Dr. Ramsey says with a grin forming on his mouth.
“Sh-sh-she going?” Bob asks.
“Yes, Bob,” Dr. Ramsey says, comforting the patient. “Nurse Hudson is leaving and she won’t be able to bother you anymore. O.K.?”
“G-Good,” Bob says. The bald man is still holding the jagged piece of glass in his hand.
“It’s alright now, Bob. You can put down the glass,” Dr. Ramsey says.
“S-s-sorry,” Bob looks over at the broken vase broken into pieces. Some of the pieces still scattered across the desk while some made it’s way to the white, tiled floor. “I-I’ll clean it up.”
“No, it’s alright, Bob,” Dr. Ramsey says calmly. “I will take care of it. You just set that piece of glass you are holding down carefully. I don’t want you to cut yourself.” Dr. Ramsey takes a couple steps closer to Bob. “You just head back to your room and everything will be alright now. O.K.?”
“O-O. K.,” Bob says as he places the jagged piece of glass down onto the desktop. “I-I will go now.” Bob looks down at the floor as if ashamed of himself as he walks away into the direction of the stairway.
Billy takes a moment to catch his breath as he tries to grasp all that has just gone down in the past several minutes. As if dealing with Nurse Hudson wasn’t bad enough but then the incident with Bob. Billy is upset with himself for not realizing that if Bob saw the woman he would have a bad reaction.
I should have walked him back to his room myself.
Billy walks over to the desk and looks at the mess of glass scattered about.
“Nice,” he whispers to himself. The doctor carefully reaches behind the desk and lifts up the small trash bucket to the edge of the desktop and slides the glass into it with a folder. The process takes him several swipes with the folder before he gets all of the pieces into the bucket. He then kneels down onto the floor and lays the bucket onto its side and uses the folder to push the fallen pieces into it.
And then the scream from Mrs. Trask’s room. I wonder what is going on?

“I’m not sure,” Ryan answers Stephanie. “It’s impossible for someone to call into this room from an outside line if no one is at the switchboard to transfer it.” The guard looks over at Stephanie, and then a look at Violet.
“Do you think it was someone inside?” Stephanie asks.
“Inside?” Ryan had not thought of this. “You mean like another patient dialing into the room?’
“Or staff member,” Stephanie adds. “You don’t need to go through the switchboard if you are dialing room to room.”
Dr. Winters steps into the room and overhears the conversation that is in progress.
“True,” Ryan says as if pondering the idea. “But none of the other patients even know your mom, and why would another staff member call this room?”
“They shouldn’t,” Dr. Winters adds, “I’m the primary doctor for this patient. Unless it is an emergency, any consulting should be done through me.”
“I don’t know what to say,” Stephanie says.
The phone rings.
“NO! NO!,” Violet again quickly becomes agitated. “I don’t want to talk to him! Keep him away.”
“Mom, calm down,” Stephanie steps over next to her mom and places a hand on her shoulder.
“Keep your father away from me!” Violet cries out loudly.
Dr. Winters takes a few steps forward to get to the phone and picks it up.