2
As morning sunlight cast a hazy light through the windows, using his key, Jerry went from cot to cot unlocking the restraint that secured each patient's ankle to a leg of the cot, keeping him from getting out of bed during the night.
Gavin reached down and rubbed his ankle, then sat at the head of his cot and looked out the window. Snow covered the field all the way to the frozen lake. The branches of the dead tree on the bank of the lake were bent under the weight of the snow. A gaggle of Canadian geese were huddled at the base of the tree. Beyond the lake the tops of the jagged mountains were shrouded in fog. His breath on the window formed a small pool of condensation.
“There's scrambled eggs for breakfast," Andy said, sitting on his cot with a tray of food on his lap.
“I'm not hungry," Gavin said still looking out the window.
As he put a forkful of eggs in his mouth, Andy mumbled “Mr. Whispers isn't happy."
“Why not?" Gavin asked facing Andy.
“He won't say," Andy said. “He made one of the toilets overrun. There's a mess in the bathroom."
Gavin looked at the end of the ward. Five of the patients were standing in a line at the door to the bathroom. They rocked side to side like broken mechanical toys. A few of them had the flattened expressions on their faces indicative of being very medicated on psychotropics.
“Did you see Mr. Whispers do it?" Gavin asked.
“Yes. I told Mrs. Brookings. She said I was hallucinating and was going to up my meds," he said. “More Thorazine won't make Mr. Whispers go away."
Gavin stood up. “I'm going to go wait for the day shift to come on and ask Mrs. Leslie if I can see a doctor."
“She'll just ask why," Andy said as he bit into a piece of slightly burnt toast. “They always ask why then they write what you say in your chart, but you still end up not seeing a doctor."
“I can't just rot in this hell hole," Gavin said. “Someone needs to contact my wife. She can tell them I'm not insane. If I were we have money to put me in a modern hospital."
“What, Mr. Whispers?" Andy said, tilting his head.
He looked at Gavin. “Mr. Whispers will help you."
