“Just how much did you come in with?” Dr. Hernandez asked, as he attempted to stuff the quilt and a few other personal belongings Alex had into a small suitcase.
“Leave him be, Doctor. The kid can bring the whole damn room if he wants.” Dr. Stewart turned to Alex and smiled, “Though, I doubt he’ll want to keep anything that’d remind him of this prison.”
“Thanks, Bethany.” He smiled as well, “It wasn’t all bad. I came to know you guys.”
“And don’t you forget us!” She rustled his hair, “I certainly won’t forget you. When will the police be able to tell us where to come visit you?”
“I-I’m not sure. Maybe in a month? It’ll probably be open to the doctors on the project earlier. You know, for tests and stuff.”
“Well, I’m just glad they’re finally getting you out of here, even if it is for awkward reasons.”
Alex smiled a little sadly. “I guess it’s hard to operate a business if there’s a walking safety risk staying indefinitely there.”
Dr. Hernandez unceremoniously jumped onto the suitcase and finally managed to get the unruly quilt into it, with only a small bit sticking out between the double locks on the clasp. He breathed a sigh of relief and turned to Alex.
“Silver linings, Alex.” Dr. Hernandez winked at him, “You get to leave. Eventually, things should return to normal. Plus, no more cafeteria food. On that part, I’m jealous.”
Dr. Hernandez picked up the suitcase, walked over to Alex. He put a hand on his shoulder, thought for a moment, and decided to instead hug him.
“It’s been wonderful being your psychiatrist for this short while, Alex. I hope you get the chance to visit me again to check up sometime. But, given I’m stuck here, let’s hope it’s not anytime soon.” He smiled and then held up the suitcase. “Now, if you excuse me, I’ll drop this off with the officers and head back to my office. Never be afraid to call, Alex!”
Alex and Dr. Stewart waved goodbye to him as he headed out the door, shutting it behind him. Dr. Stewart turned back to Alex.
“Well? What’re we waiting for? Let’s get you out of here!”
Dr. Stewart turned next to her and started to unfold a wheelchair that had been propped up against the wall.
“B-Bethany! I can walk myself.”
“Oh no no no… This isn’t required but I plan to roll you out of here in style. Why do you think I personally came down here? Just to say my goodbyes and let you leave by yourself? You deserve this after what you’ve been through. Now...” She took a bow, “Ascend your throne, your majesty.”
Alex’s face reddened at the special treatment and teasing from his healthcare provider, but sat down in the wheelchair all the same. Dr. Stewart laughed as she got the exact reaction she wanted, and continued to laugh as she rolled him down the hall to the elevator and pushed the button. Even as his face continued to blush deeper, Alex was happy. He enjoyed this moment he had with Dr. Stewart, his family at this point. It occurred to him that it might be a while before he could see her.
As they waited for the elevator, Alex secretly hoped it would be a long ride.
---
Hundreds of reporters huddled together, trampling each other as a man in chains was walked to the courthouse. Dozens of police officers found themselves overrun by the mob of microphones and cameras pressing in on them. Cries came from the crowd in a wall of sound. Finally, someone managed to push through the police and held a microphone up to the man in chains.
“Sir, why did you do this? Why did you assassinate this young man?”
The man stopped walking and turned to the reporter. His voice hid nothing of the contempt he felt.
“It’s only assassination if you’re important.”
The man continued to walk into the courthouse as the throng of reporters was pushed back by the police guard. As the courthouse door shut with a loud thud, the picture quickly minimized into a smaller frame that appeared in the right-hand corner as the rest revealed a room with a man and a woman sitting behind a desk. The woman spoke first.
“Those were the only words spoken before proceedings began. Many have packed the courthouse in order to see what some are saying will be the court case of the decade. While there’s no doubt Mr. Hastings is the killer, it’ll be interesting to see what sentencing is given to him and what this will mean for the heated debate currently going on about this small group Mr. Hastings belonged to called ‘The Worth of Many’.”
The man turned to her.
“I know I’ll be glued to the headlines to see what happens, Diane. This one is gonna be a doozy.”
He turned back to the camera.
“Our reporter at the scene of the courthouse managed to get a comment from one of the jurors gathered for the proceedings about this murder.”
The camera flashed back to outside the courthouse, showing a close-up of a middle-aged man speaking into a microphone to someone off-screen. He seemed to have been caught off-guard by the camera and was obviously nervous. An infographic came up in the bottom left to state his name was Sam Harold. Next to his name, was the descriptor in bright white letters on a red panel, “The Death of Alex”.
“I-It’s sad, isn’t it? It’s sad for anyone to go like that. But I mean, uh, at least something might come out of it, right? Like, there’s silver linings here. I don’t know, I’m feeling a bit awkward. Excuse me.”
The man walked away from the street reporter and headed for the courthouse. The program flashed back to the newsroom with the two reporters looking at each other.
“Well Diane, I think we’ll all be saddened by this.”
“You’re right, John, but I think Mr. Harold might have made a good point.”
Diane turned from addressing John and looked directly into the camera.
“I think there’s at least hope here. A silver lining.”
Dr. Bethany Stewart clicked off the television. She sat on the edge of an empty bed and put the remote down. She held her head in her hands and sat in the silence of the moment. The wind picked up the flimsy piece of plastic covering the window, bringing far away sounds of the city surrounding the hospital. The world continued to turn around her as Bethany sat there.
From the open doorway, she could hear the sounds of nurses and doctors as they prepared for the autopsy. Bethany knew they would need her soon. There was a body of a boy, barely an adult, in a room down the hall. He gave everything he had, everything that he could. And the one thing he couldn’t give was taken from him.
She was going to make damn sure that it would not go to waste.
Not for the public. Not for herself.
For him.
She’d be there to work on the brain after the coroner was done. She was an expert in her field. Her hands wouldn’t shake as she held the knife, and her work would be meticulous. Bethany would perform to the highest degree, as she always did. She would put her warpaint on and soon go to work.
But not now.
Now, she wept. And it dawned on her she may be the only one who would.
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