A Five-Minute Life

Asp rasp gasp last late hate help hell fell flesh flush force flow know no no no

That collection of words made my throat go dry. Help. Hell. No.

I went back to the word chain. Round and round the coil. I had to hold the phone still and tilt my head, reading upside down and sideways.

Touch much crush creak weak wake why cry stop stop stop

My heart began to pound so loud that blood thrashed in my ears.

Cleopatra was alone, Thea had said. She put her hand in the snake’s basket to end the pain.

“What pain, Thea?” I whispered.

I put the phone down on the table and walked around the image, as the chain kept coiling tighter and tighter. The words lashed out at me, piercing my heart.

Hand man pan pant grip grope groan lone alone alone alone

“No,” I whispered, the blood draining from my face. “Holy fuck, no.”

I hit Call on my phone. It rang once and Rita picked up.

“Jim, I’m going home,” she said. “Enough. It was the painting. You… we shouldn’t have messed with it. And I shouldn’t be sending you photos—”

“You said she was better this m-m-morning,” I said, cursing my goddamn stutter. Inhale. Exhale. “But last night, she was watched, right? A n-n-nurse was in her room?”

He’s been going in her room.

“Yes, but—”

“That’s why she was better,” I said, rage and horror flushing through me, washing out my stutter, flooding every particle of my being. “Because he couldn’t get to her. But the nights before that…”

“What are you talking about?”

Brett Dodson’s lazy smile rose up in my mind, along with his promise that he’d find a way to keep his night shifts interesting.

Fuck, what’s he been doing to her?

Words flashed before my eyes.

Flesh. Force. Grope. Stop.

Three times, she’s screamed stop on the page. And no. She screamed no.

I was holding the phone so tightly; it was in danger of being crushed. I squeezed my eyes shut against the constriction in my chest.

“He couldn’t get to her, Rita. But tonight he can.”

“Who?” Rita asked. “No one can get into resident rooms. They’re locked. Only the duty nurse has the key.”

“Mary Flint?” I shouted. “She sleeps all night. He took the key. He’s been going in her room.”

“Who?”

“Brett Dodson,” I said. “He works the n-n-night shift…”

I couldn’t get another word out. God, I was so fucking stupid. He all but told me his plan, and I hadn’t heard. But Thea told me… Told all of us.

Inhale. Exhale. “Go back,” I told Rita. “Please, go back to her room.”