...to take hostage, but they don’t call it that. They call it marriage.

Jennifer Blake is an intern at ward C one step away from the Criminally Insane. Dr._______, affectionately called Lil' Nick, told her that part of her paying internship is to pretend she is one of the patients. In the following scene she gives a description of her life that she created to gain the trust of the patients.

“I just saw the proof that the devil is running free in the world and he is destroying lives. He’s manipulating the…” “I thought you were going to tell us about Desoto?” Pierce Interjected. “It’s all the same. As a special education teacher told me in the high school, ‘the dead don’t have the same time as we do. Years are like seconds to those on the other side.’ The same devil was at Clarksdale when Desoto raped the land and is manipulating the world. It’s no coincidence that so many years later there is the ritual sacrifice of kids at a school house that is right by a Masonic temple. The kids were killed in that school because they were possessed by demons casts on them by the Masons. Now it’s no coincidence that there are gun laws being passed now.”

“Please stop talking.” Jennifer Blake muttered defeated. Just loud enough for Mr. Earnest to hear. Earnest looked to Anne Simpson for approval. She winked at him. He started again, “Yep satan wants us to kill each other. Evident by the legal right of everyone to carry a concealed weapon.” Then he became dumbfounded on what to say next. “Jennifer, please tell us a story while Ben regains his composure.” Anne said coyly. Jennifer Blake looked at her peers. She never imagined that she would be in a place like this. Pierce and Carlton were at ease. More than before. Allan “The Man With No Shoelaces” kept looking around the room as if he was pretending to see something no one else could see.

She should have known that she’d be called on to speak. It was all part of the process. “Jennifer, we’re waiting.” Anne Simpson cued.

The Man With No Shoelaces, Carlton, Pierce, and even Mr. Earnest were attentive. It was the first time Jennifer spoke like this. “He was so damn nice. But aren’t they always when you first meet them. He wanted me so bad or someone he thought was me. Someone he could take hostage, but he didn’t call it that. Society don’t call it that. They call it marriage. I refused to marry him. He treated me so good. Told myself that he wasn’t true. He was fake. In the moment of passion, in his lavish pent house in that tower, on the thirteenth floor with a beautiful view of the beaches and the Gulf of Mexico. The lit candles were in the room, the romantic music and me and him sliding on each other. Sweating, beating hearts, gasping for air. The moon light on us.” The scenes of the chamber had subtly changed to Jennifer and her man with a body and face that was so generic looking, like a pretty clone, a Ken of Barbie.

The moon light spot light shined down on their copulation…and in their careless whispers he made promises to her. “He knew just the right things to say for himself. In that eye blink, in that being out of breath, I gave in to him. I let go of my defenses-and Brady was conceived. Once he noticed that I had his child in my womb he started disappearing.” She paused with tears streaming down her cheeks. “Sometimes you have to go back to the beginning to learn something new.” The Man With No Shoelaces replied. Jennifer looked up at Anne Simpson and they exchanged the secret glances. Anne Simpson winked at her.

The scenes in the chamber changed to a baby in her womb. The sound of a heart beat mixed with a binaural hissing buzz came into the chamber and circled them. She explained how bad it went. It was the normal hack clicheic story of romance gone bad, psycho boyfriend. One of the ingredients was the two of them being out in public around friends and parents they were the perfect couple. Yet behind closed doors he abused her and tried… “He tried to break me down IN EVERY PART OF MYSELF. SO ALL I COULD DO WAS DEPEND ON HIM LIKE I WAS A PET DOG. One day he had this party. He had all of his affluent co-workers come and forced me to lock myself in his bedroom. He said, “Jen’ there’s a lot of cigarette smoking going on.” The scenes of the chamber shift, replay her words. “But I knew the truth. He was very insecure. Every time, we went out there was always a fight about why I was looking at another guy. I was going to leave him. He always was quick to remind me that without him I’d have nothing. I waited until around one am. I snuck myself a half pint of whiskey and a couple beers.

The screens of the therapeutic chamber continue playing Jennifer’s story. “Three hours after consuming the beers and booze my lovely Brady was ready to come into this world. I gave birth to her in our bedroom with help from the ambulant nurses. I remembered holding her and looking into her eyes opening for the first time. Next thing I knew I woke up in the hospital surrounded by balloons, stuffed animals, and flowers. Most of those things were left by him. It was a perfect façade. After hearing all the nurses, doctors, and everyone around condone him I started thinking maybe I should give him another chance. They’d say things like, ‘I wish my husband was like that. It’s difficult to pry him away from the TV.’ Yea, that fed his ego. He explained to me how sorry he was for ignoring me. Told me how guilty he felt for having his party and neglecting me. I knew he was lying. I wanted so much to believe his sincerity. For the first week or so, he was even better to me than when we first met. As soon as I told him, ‘I love you more and more everyday’ he went even worse than before. He’d call explaining how he had to work late. Then he’d come home and I’d smell perfume on him. At first we’d have arguments that would last for days. I decided to go to the bars. I’d drink through all those emotions of hate, joy, regret, love, and then pass out. I had taken the credit card. I think was the only thing that contained both our names. All that time in our three year relationship gave me the power to soak in my environment. When I was getting drunk in those bars I would lose my inhibitions…” “…and I did some things I am very ashamed of. As a way to let go of my rage I would force all of the men who took advantage of me to relive their worst memories. Somehow, someway my aunt found me. Told me that the father of my child was in jail for D.U.I’s. The courts had made her the foster parent for my child. I stayed at my aunt’s for about three months. Even had myself a job. Think it was one of the happiest times of my life. But he had to invade my life again.” “That man proposed to me. He was shocked, like I had wronged him when I replied, “I don’t know.” He begged me for us to dine at the most expensive restaurant in town. He insisted on us being a family. I told him we could be friends for starters, then he got furious. Said if we couldn’t be married and have a family he never wanted to see me again.

He spiked my drink so the folks in jail told me. I was covered in clumped mud and dried blood. I heard it from the guards whispering that somehow I had stabbed him about twenty times, and left him almost castrated.” Jennifer Blake finished her story at around 12:30 am. As soon as they all were leaving Ann Simpson was sure to say loud enough for all to hear, “Jennifer, I need to see you in my office for a moment.” Behind a closed door Anne Simpson had statues of Lilith like some kind of alter, along with pictures of muscular women battling in Medieval age scenes. “I am so glad you shut that psychotic History Teacher up. I didn’t think anyone could.” Anne Simpson gleefully said. “Yea, I actually saw a tear come from Carlton.” “Yea, you fooled them all.”