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Breakfast wasn’t as good as I thought but it was better than anything at Father Muller so no complaints. The other doctors were very silent, was it the early morning daze or were they really this dead? I think I would have rather been on the other side of the glass partition, with the patients. At least the conversations were entertaining.
‘Good morning, Dr. Grayson. mind if I join you?’
That came out of nowhere, from a person I did not know but I was bored out of my mind so I gestured at the white chair in front of me ‘Please’.
‘I’ve heard a lot of about you, doctor. Sam. Grayson. Head of the Psychiatry Department at Father Muller by 27, impressive. How did you manage that?’
I shrugged ‘Maybe I just understand the patients better than other psychiatrists’
I cracked a smile at the man, who I later learned was Dr. Thomas, another psychiatrist at St. Dymphna. He had joined only two years before I did and while everybody smiled at him and appeared to respect him, he hadn’t really won the fancy of most other doctors here. I can see why. I didn’t even know the man’s name but here he was, quizzing me about my life. I didn’t quite appreciate him knowing so much about my past before I even knew he existed. I wondered what else he knew about me, it freaked me out a little.
‘I understand them better than I understand other psychiatrists anyway.’
I went back to staring at my breakfast.
Dr. Thomas laughed a loud, deep laugh. Very fake. He put his arm around the back of his chair and with a toothy grin said, ‘Yeah, we aren’t very easy to understand. You’ll find out soon enough. Psychiatrists are a very strange breed.’
‘Yes. I am aware. I am also one of you now. And you’re right. Psychiatrists are a strange breed.’ I looked up at him, ‘Some stranger than others’.
His smile slowly faded from his face. His eyes did not, however, move from me.
After a good minute of staring at him piercing my soul with his eyes with his tongue pressed up against his molars, he broke the silence.
‘Why were you in the storeroom last night?’
‘What?’
‘I saw you sneaking off after dinner. You know, you didn’t have to do that, your patients’ files would have been given to you in the morning. Why couldn’t you wait? What were you looking for?’
‘That wasn’t me. Are you sure you saw me going in there?’
I could feel my face becoming warm. God, I hate this man.
‘Yes, I’m sure it was you going in there, doctor. And I’m also sure I know what you were doing in there.’
I put my fork down and sighed
‘And what would that be?’
‘You were trying to find the file on patient 263, what was the name...Charlie...something. That’s what you were doing in there doctor, weren’t you?’
My face was positively red now, I stared at him harder than before, unblinking.
‘Yeah...let me tell you something Sam Grayson, you’re not the first enthusiastic doctor to come here and solve the mystery of St. Dymphna. I also thought I had what it takes to crack the case, so let me make one thing very, very clear. You’re in way over your head if you think you can do anything about this. You’re better off sticking to the patients you’ve been assigned. Don’t try to be a hero here Sam. I’m telling you this for your own good. I have nothing against you, I’m just being firm because that is a deep rabbit hole. I just about managed to pull myself out of it, you might not be able to.’
‘I wouldn’t worry. I’m not trying to “solve” anything, I’m not falling down any rabbit hole, and I’m definitely not trying to be a hero. You can relax’
‘Hmm. Good then. You seem to know what you’re doing. You clearly don’t need any guidance. All the best Dr. Grayson. Have a great first day.’
He stood up, picked up his tray and turned around so quickly it made me smile.
‘Uh, doctor?’
He whipped his head around
'Turner'
‘What?’
‘Charlie Turner. Patient 263.’
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