Chapter 3

          I sat there shivering in the middle of the Red Shield Medical Center’s Psychiatric Wing’s hallway with an oversized Red Shield jacket over my shoulders. I stared at the floor, because that was the only thing that didn’t bring back those heart ripping flashbacks. If you listened closely, you could hear other kids in the rooms behind me banging on the walls, screaming for their parents, crying, and some mumbling to themselves. I could swear that I even heard one humming some sort of lullaby.

          “She’s suffered some serious mental trauma which she may never get over. We found some minor bruising on the back of her head and some on her arms and legs, which may need attending to. Besides that I think she escaped without getting infected, but she needs to be under close supervision for the next few days just to be safe.” The doctor in the next room said to the officer that had leant me his jacket.

          “How is her father?” The officer asked in a hushed tone, obviously thinking I wouldn’t hear. I did.

          The doctor sighed. “We’ve quarantined him. He’s certainly too far in the process for us to save him. He tried biting one of the doctors during inspection and his heartbeat has stopped. He, I’m afraid to say, is a lost cause.”

          “I see. So what do I do with the girl? All the boarding rooms are filled up.”

          “Take her to your room.” The doctor advised. “She should be safe there. You live alone anyway, you might like the company.”

          “What about work? I can’t leave her home alone.” The officer protested.

          “Take her with you. It might be a good thing for her to learn some self defense after what happened.”

          “Yes sir. Good evening.” The officer said and came out of the room with a weak smile on his face. He kneeled down so that he was at my eye level and put his hand on my knee. “How you holding up kiddo?”

          I shrugged.

          The officer patted my back. “How about we go get you something to eat. You must be starving.”

          I shrugged again.

          He helped me up, and we began walking toward the main exit. “My name is James by the way.” He said politely and ran his fingers through his short, thick brown hair.

          “I… I’m… Lot… Lotta…” I stuttered under my breath.

          “Nice to meet you, Lotta.” He smiled and pushed the front door open for me.

 

           We walked down to a nearby noodle stand and he bought me a large bowl of chicken noodle soup and a coke. I sat at our table just staring at the noodles and chicken go round and round as I twirled them with my fork.

          Officer James, which is what I had decided to call him, cleared his throat and shifted uneasily in his seat. He had apparently never had to take care of a child, and he looked like it too. He was well built but not bulky, his hair was neatly cut, just wavy enough to drive any 20-50 year old woman insane, he had slight stubble that gave him that handsome rugged look, but I was 13 so I couldn’t have cared less. He looked about 20 years old, maybe even 22, but not older. His smile was very nice, his teeth all pearly and perfectly aligned.

          “So, Lotta… What do you like to do for fun?” He asked, trying to make polite conversation but failing miserably.

          I looked up and stared at his silvery eyes. “I draw a lot…” Then I went back to staring at my soup.

          Officer James followed my gaze and his eyebrows furrowed a bit. “That’s cool. I used to draw a lot. In fact, I might let you use the studio I have in my apartment. I live in a loft so I have plenty of room.”

          This intrigued me. Suddenly he’d become barely more interesting than soup. “Really?”

          He looked shocked at my reaction at first, but then grinned widely and leaned back in his chair, arms behind his head and legs crossed under the table in a very manly fashion. “Yeah. You can paint, draw, and sculpt, whatever floats your boat.”

          “When can we go?” I asked, my voice hoarse.

          “As soon as you eat your soup. I don’t want you waking my neighbors in the middle of the night with your stomach growling.” He chuckled, which was a nice sound. I smiled weakly and started wolfing down my food. When I finished, we walked across the street to an old apartment building and went upstairs to his house. Before he could even show me where everything was, I collapsed on his couch and fell asleep. Officer James sat down next to me, put a large quilt to cover my shivering body, and then fell asleep on the opposite side of the couch.

 

          I woke up to the scent of waffles, but they weren’t the Red Shield kind. They smelled like real homemade kind. I let my nose lead me, taking me to his open kitchen right next to Officer James’ living room. I sat down at his bar table and watched him work.

          “So you’re up. I’m making waffles. Hungry?” I nodded eagerly and gasped as he tossed a waffle up in the air. Then he slid a plate in front of me, and the beautiful waffle landed right smack dab on top of it.

          “How’d you do that?” I asked before tearing into the delicious waffle.

          “It’s something I learned from my m- my friends. I have three friends and all of them weigh over 300 pounds. If you want I can take you to meet them later.” Officer James said while tossing another waffle onto my plate.

          I finished the bite I was on, swallowed it, and then nodded. “If they all cook this well I’d definitely want to meet them.”

          Officer James chuckled. “Alright kiddo, but first you need to take a shower. I had Doctor Ebron bring some clothes for you since your old ones are kind of… well… torn. I also had him bring an extra towel for you. And some… feminine… supplies…” He blushed.

          I laughed. “Thanks.” I scarfed down another three waffles and then ran down the hall to the only door I could find other than the doors marked Studio and Jim’s room. I found it amusing that a 20 year old still put signs on his doors. “This is the bathroom right?” I called to him.

          “Yeah, the towels and everything are already in there for you.” He called back

          I stepped inside and marveled at the sleek, white tile all around me. One of the bathroom’s walls was covered in mirrors, and at the end of the long room was a door that I assumed led to the shower. I was wrong. That door led to a sauna. There was another door, and that was the door to the shower. A clean stack of clothes, a box of miscellaneous objects and a towel were stacked on top of each other next to the shower, and I disposed of my old clothes in the trashcan. The only things I kept were the map and the photograph.

          Then, in what felt like ages, I took a shower. I cleansed myself of all my pain, my tears, and sorrow. All that was left was… silence.