PREVIOUSLY
Peter had thrown all of the bloody clothes and Michelle's handbag into the fire. The smoke was strong. Peter came into the front hallway to open a window. He also opened the door a crack to let out some of the acrid odor. Todd had just finished cleaning up the floor. "I'm finished. Is it all right if I go to bed?" He asked Peter. Peter looked at him and laughed. "What a wimp you are. It's not even ten o'clock yet. Was tonight too much for you?" Peter asked in a sarcastic and mocking manner. "At least you won't have to worry about that little whore ever coming back here again." Pete didn't even have to make Todd's head hurt to get out. Before Peter had a chance to say another word, Pete, with all his rage and fury, pushed Peter up against the wall. With his hands around Peter's throat, squeezing as hard as he could, Pete shouted, "HOW COULD YOU DO THAT! YOU BASTARD! HOW COULD YOU DO THAT! I HATE YOU! I WANT YOU DEAD! I WANT YOU DEAD!" Pete did not hear Sam Rappaport come into the house.
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Susannah, her staff, Viki, and Sam all sat in silence as Timmy rested. Finally, after an hour had passed since "the secret of Todd's fourteenth birthday" was reveled, Todd's body was stable enough to be moved. They decided to take him back to the hospital in Terry's station wagon. Terry folded down the back seat and spread a quilt out to make him a bed. They laid Timmy down in the back and propped his head and legs up with pillows. Susannah and Terry covered him with two blankets and a quilt. Susannah rode with Terry, Jeff and Frank, so she could closely monitor Timmy. He slept fitfully, moaning in his sleep and kept tossing around. Susannah had to keep turning him over on his back in order to keep his legs elevated. She spoke to him soothingly and stroked his head the entire time.
Terry pulled up to the ER entrance. Sam and Viki pulled up right behind them. Frank ran in to get a gurney. Susannah wanted Todd checked out in the ER before he was taken back to his room. His blood pressure had dropped again since the last time Susannah had taken it. An IV was set up. Todd was treated for shock. After he remained stable for three hours he was taken back to his room. He still had not woken up.
After getting him settled in his own bed, Susannah checked his vitals one more time. She checked the flow on the IV. She knew one of the nurses could do this. She just couldn't bring herself to leave her patient just yet. Sam and Viki were both sitting in chairs they had brought to the opposite side of the bed from where Susannah stood. They all knew they would not be going home, that they would be spending the night with Todd.
Todd slept through the night and into part of the morning. Susannah spent the night on the couch in her office, but she may as well have stayed in Todd's room. She came in almost hourly to check on him. Sam and Viki took turns sitting with Todd, and trying to get some sleep in the lounge. Sleep did not come to Sam, Viki or Susannah that night. Each of them knew that the revelation of Michelle's murder was just the start of things to come. This was not something that they could keep secret. They knew the police would have to be involved at some point. What none of them knew was what Todd's or any of the alters' reactions would be when they woke up.
Viki and Sam were both sitting by Todd's bed when they heard him start to moan softly. Viki leaned close to his ear. "Todd. Todd, can you hear me?"
Susannah was called and told that Todd was waking up. Todd opened and closed his eyes several times, as his brain tried to wake up. Just as Susannah entered Todd's room, he opened his eyes, looked at Sam, and weakly said, "Hey, Coach." They knew it was Tom.
"Hey Boomer," Sam smiled and took Tom's hand.
Tom did not feel well. He was so tired. His head hurt and he felt nauseous and dizzy. "I don't feel so good," he whimpered and looked around. He noticed the IV in his left arm. Afraid of it, he reached over with his right hand to pull it out. Sam grabbed his hand just in time to stop him.
"No, honey, don't do that" Susannah said.
"There's a needle stuck in my arm, take it out. I don't like shots." Tom cried out.
"Sweetheart, it's not hurting you is it? The part that hurts is already finished," Viki gently reminded him.
"Tom, you've had an IV in your arm before. Honey, you know that if you just leave it alone you won't even feel it. I promise," Susannah added.
"I don't want medicine!" Tom cried. A couple of large tears slid down his cheeks.
"Honey, it's just salt water. It won't hurt you."
Tom thought about it for a minute and calmed down. "Am I getting it because I don't feel good?" he asked.
"Can you tell me in what ways you don't feel good?" Susannah coaxed.
Tom ran down his list of symptoms, and asked, "Am I going to have to stay in bed? Will I be able to play with my toys and the neat new cars they have in the playroom?"
"You may have to stay in bed for today but then you'll be able to play with your toys and go to the playroom all you want, okay honey?" Susannah assured him as she stroked his hair.
"Okay," Tom mumbled. He was getting sleepy again. He smiled at them and then turned over and went back to sleep. He gave no indication of remembering anything that happened at the lodge. Of course, this surprised no one, since Tom had nothing to do with Michelle or any memories of her.
Susannah asked Frank to sit with Tom for a while. She then left an order for Compazine to be administered if his nausea persisted when he woke up. She also left orders to get her immediately when he woke up. Susannah, Viki and Sam headed for Susannah's office.
"I know none of us got any sleep last night and we are not in the best frame of mind to discuss what the next step will be. I think we have to talk about what we found out," Susannah stated as soon as she, Sam and Viki were settled around her desk.
"My God, Susannah, how could Todd ever have survived that night, even with the alters?" Viki asked. "I can't even begin to comprehend all that happened to him in that one night. He was humiliated, burned, beaten, raped, forced to witness the rape and murder of his best friend and then forced to bury her body. How can anyone survive that?"
Susannah leaned forward and stated, "Viki I have always said Todd was strong. He is a survivor. We just have to hope those instincts are still in tack."
Both women noticed Sam just sat there, listing to them not saying a word. "Sam," Viki asked and took Sam's hand. "Are you all right?"
Sam nodded and then spoke. "I was there. Can you imagine that? I was there. I saw him right after all of that happened. Hell, I saw him again the next day. Great going Rappaport! Imagine if I didn't live by my instincts," Sam said, sarcastically.
"Sam you cannot continue to blame yourself. You didn't do these things to Todd. Peter did, my father did," Viki insisted with tears in her eyes.
"Viki is right," Susannah pointed out. "You didn't do this to Todd and your guilt will not help him in any way. Sam, Todd is not only going to need you as his friend now, but also as his lawyer. Do you remember one of the things he told us? Peter put Todd's fingerprints on that bat. Buried somewhere with Michelle is the bat that killed her and Todd's fingerprints are all over it."
Sam had even more reason to doubt himself now. Not only did he fail to save Todd all those years ago, now his legal instincts were failing him. Neither he nor Viki were even thinking about the legalities of what Todd's repressed memory reveled. Their only concern had been what all this had done to Todd.
"Sam," Susannah asked, "how long before we have to contact the police and do we contact Bo or the police in Chicago?"
"What about that poor little girl's parents. All these years, wondering what happened to their daughter. Oh God, my heart breaks for them," Viki said.
"Susannah, do you believe Todd's memory of that night to be accurate. Is there any doubt in your mind that things didn't happen just the way he described?" Sam asked.
Susannah wished she had a conclusive answer to give him. "Sam, no one can ever be one hundred percent sure about repressed memories recovered through hypnosis unless they are somehow proven to be true, but yes, in my opinion, I think Todd described exactly what happened. It fits everything that we have come to know about Todd and it fits what you walked in on that night," Susannah answered.
Sam sat quietly for a moment then said, "We have to find the burial site and then we have to have the body exhumed. There might still be enough DNA evidence to prove Peter raped her. If Todd's memory pans out, we have to find her parents, if they are still alive. We have to let them know what happened to Michelle."
"Do you think Todd will be a suspect because of the fingerprints? Sam, we can't let that happen!" Viki's voice filled with panic.
Sam took Viki's hand. "Viki, I swear to you, I will not let that happen. No one, no one will ever hurt Todd again! I won't fail him again. I will take him out of the country before I would let that happen," Sam declared fiercely.
Viki and Susannah both knew he meant it. "Well, let's hope it doesn't come to that," Susannah remarked. "Sam, can we wait a few days before we do anything? You have to get the police to agree not to question Todd at this point. He is not even close to being able to handle that. We don't even know if he retained any of the memories he reveled under hypnosis. Most of what was told to us was told by the alter who also calls himself Todd but Todd himself might not have any memories of what happened. Also, physically, he is in no shape to be questioned by the police. You have to make very sure they realize this."
Sam nodded and assured her, "Don't worry, I won't let them within a mile of him. I do agree that we should wait a few days, but then we have no choice. I think my best bet would be to speak with Bo. He has been helpful to us so far. I think he has learned to be objective when it comes to Todd."
"That's more than I can say for my sister," Susannah thought. Just then, Susannah's phone rang. It was Terry. Todd was having a nightmare.
Terry, Nancy, Frank and Jeff were with Todd when Susannah, Sam and Viki got to his room. They were trying to hold him still so he wouldn't dislodge the IV. The voice they heard screaming was clearly Todd's.
"NO! NOOOO! GET AWAY! GET AWAY!" He shrieked over and over again. He was fighting the hands that held him with whatever strength he had left.
"Let's get him in restraints," Susannah ordered.
Within minutes Todd was again in restraints. Susannah tried waking him up but he was trapped in his dream. Knowing Todd's body could not handle this now, Susannah ordered a sedative. Finally, Todd seemed to calm down a little. He opened his eyes but just stared ahead, not aware of anyone or anything in the room.
"Todd," Susannah called softly. She stroked his cheek. "Todd, it's Doctor Hanen. Can you hear me?"
She got no response. Viki and Sam looked at each other, both thinking the same thing. "All that he went through yesterday and he's right where he left off. Nothing has changed."
"Todd, I want you to try to look at me," Susannah turned his face towards hers. Todd eyes were blank. He gave no indication of hearing her or feeling her touch. Susannah patted his head and said, "I'll let you rest for a while. Okay Todd? If you want to talk just tell someone and I'll come right back."
As Viki, Sam and Susannah turned to leave, they heard him call out. "Sam! Sam!"
Sam rushed back to Todd's bedside. "I'm right here pal. I'm right here," Sam soothed, taking Todd's hand.
"Sam, please, don't leave me, Sam!"
"Todd, I'm right here. I'm not ever going to leave you."
"Sam! Sam!" Todd cried out, apparently, not realizing that Sam was right next to him. "Sam please don't send me back to him. Please don't make me go there. Sam! Saaaam! Saaaam! Please!"
They had never seen Todd like this. He was inconsolable. What ever his reality was at this minute was not allowing him to feel Sam's touch or hear his words. The sedative Susannah ordered was having little effect on him. He just continued to scream and cry for Sam. It broke their hearts. There was no way to get through his suffering and help him. He was trapped in his own world with his demons and they could not reach him. Twenty minutes had passed and Todd's cries and screams for Sam were just escalating. Susannah ordered an even stronger sedative. This one finally put Todd to sleep. The restraints were left in place.
Viki could not take much more. The second they were out of Todd's room she burst into tears. Although Sam felt like doing the same himself, he took Viki into his arms and comforted her. Sam and Susannah sat Viki down in one of the lounge chairs. Sam sat next to her and Susannah knelt down in front of her.
"Dear Lord, he's even worse than he was before. Susannah, what was happening to him? Why was he screaming for Sam that way? Why couldn't he feel or see Sam? My God! He was suffering so," Viki burst into tears again.
"Do you think this episode was related to his going to the lodge? Do you think he remembers what was said? Is that why he is like this now?" Sam asked. His own eyes filling with tears.
Susannah shook her head. "I don't know. I won't know what Todd remembers until he is alert enough and calm enough to be spoken with. I do know that Todd is so fragile now that I cannot push him. I do believe that the memories that were recovered at the lodge are having some effect on him. At least on his subconscious. He should sleep throughout the day. I don't think we'll be getting anything out of him today.
Susannah was right. Todd had slept through the day and into the next. Sam and Viki had finally gone home and tried to get some rest. Susannah remained in her office. She showered in the doctor's lounge and changed into scrubs. She got some sleep on her couch. She was far more worried about Todd than she let on. Her instincts told her that something she could not put her finger on was happening to him. She was still concerned over the appearance of the two previously unseen alters. Susannah ordered staff to continue to be within arm's length of Todd at all times. He remained on suicide precautions.
Susannah realized how fortunate it was that money was not a problem for Todd or Viki. Not only didn't Viki need to depend on medical insurance to keep Todd in the hospital, but her contributions to the hospital and her position would allow Susannah to keep Todd hospitalized for as long as needed. It also allowed Susannah and her staff to treat Todd exclusively. And, Todd needed every minute Susannah put into his case. Not knowing the severity of Todd's illness, when he was first hospitalized, Susannah never dreamed he'd be here for as long as he had been. She did not want him transferred to a long-term facility like St. Ann's. While he could be kept safe there, he would not receive the intensive therapy he needed.
It was lunchtime but Susannah wasn't hungry. She headed for Todd's room. Sam and Viki had returned and were sitting by his bed. Sam was holding Todd's hand and Viki was stroking his head, speaking softly to him. Susannah was about to check his pulse when his eyes fluttered open.
"Mommy," Timmy called out. He looked directly into Viki's eyes.
"Hi, baby, it's Viki. I'm right here, Sweetheart. I'm not going anywhere," Viki stroked his head.
Timmy tried to reach out for a hug and realized his wrists were bound to the bed. He quickly realized his ankles were bound to the bed as well. The heart monitor started to go wild as panic set in. "No! Daddy, please! I'll be good. Please don't tie me up. Please don't punish me. I'll be good! Take them off! NO! NO! I DON'T WANT TO! NOOOO!"
Susannah turned his face to her. "Timmy, it's Doctor Hanen. Shhhh. Calm down, Sweetie. It's okay. I'll untie you. Timmy. Look at me, Sweetie." Timmy was trembling so hard the bed was shaking. "Timmy, daddy is not here. Just relax."
Finally, Timmy focused on Susannah's face and started to calm down. "I'm scared of being tied down," he cried, as tears poured down his face. "Okay, Sweetie, I'm going to untie you right now. Sam, can you get his ankles?"
In just seconds, they released the restraints. As soon as he was able, the still trembling, Timmy reached out and held onto Susannah. "You're safe Timmy. No one will hurt you. Shhhh, you're okay Sweetie," Susannah spoke soothingly. She rubbed Timmy's back as she comforted him.
"Was I bad?" "No, Timmy you weren't bad, not at all." Susannah answered. She continued to rub his back. "How come daddy came in and tied me up?" "Timmy, daddy didn't come in here. Remember that I told you, daddy can never come near you again. What you had on are called restraints. If someone gets very upset they might move around too much and hurt themselves. Todd could have hurt himself, so we had to help him to hold still. That's why Todd's body still had the restraints on when you woke up. Sweetie, do you understand? You were not bad. I was just trying to keep Todd safe." Timmy just looked puzzled and shrugged his shoulders.
Timmy was also afraid of the IV, and as she had with Tom, Susannah calmed his fears about it. Susannah did a brief exam. Physically he was still very weak. All he had been through in the past few days had caused his system to deteriorate even further. Susannah knew that if Todd and the others didn't start eating more soon she would have to order a feeding tube.
As if she could read Susannah's mind, Viki went to the pantry to get Timmy some chocolate pudding. "Hey buddy, would you like me to bring some of your toys to you, or some paper and crayons?" Sam asked.
"Mr. Rabbit," Timmy answered. Timmy immediately hugged the stuffed animal to himself as soon as Sam handed Mr. Rabbit to him. Viki returned carrying a bowel of chocolate pudding.
"Timmy, I have your favorite Sweetheart, chocolate pudding. Will you let me feed you some? I promise I won't let any spill." To Viki's relief, he nodded and answered "okay."
Halfway through, Timmy looked at Sam and said, "I'm glad we're not in that other place any more. It was so cold there and that big mouse was real scary." They realized that Timmy remembered his time at the lodge.
"Timmy," Susannah asked, "do you remember anything else about being at the lodge?"
"Terry and Frank and Jeff was there," Timmy remembered.
"Do you remember anything about Todd?" He shook his head.
"Timmy, do you know another boy who calls himself Todd and lives in a secret hiding place?" Again, he shook his head. "Do you ever hear someone inside, crying."
This time he nodded and confirmed, "we all hear him sometimes, but nobody can find him. Miss Perkins says not to listen."
"Timmy, do you know a little boy named Andy?" Susannah asked.
Timmy's eyes welled up with tears. They made their way down his cheeks. "Timmy, does thinking about Andy make you sad?" Timmy didn't answer Susannah's question. "Sweetie, it's okay to feel sad about someone. Can you tell us why you feel sad about Andy?"
"Daddy'll be mad."
"No, Timmy, daddy is not here. He can't hear anything you say. I promise." Susannah assured him.
Sam sat next to Timmy. He put his arm around Timmy's slight shoulders and hugged him tightly. He tried to coax Timmy. "Timmy, I'd really like to hear about Andy. Your daddy isn't here and can never come here. It's safe to tell us all about Andy." Timmy looked up at each of them. They could see great sadness in his innocent eyes. Timmy looked down at the sheets and began to tell them about Andy.
"Andy was my bestest friend. He taught me all kinds of stuff. He showed me his secret tree. Just me. I'm the only one Andy told about it. We played together all the time." Timmy's chin started to quiver and more tears fell.
"Sweetie, did something happen to Andy?" Susannah asked very gently. She wiped away Timmy's tears.
"Daddy killeded him! Daddy killeded him and he never came back again," Timmy sobbed as if his heart were breaking.
"No Sweetie, Andy's not dead," Susannah informed him.
Timmy looked up at her with pleading, questioning eyes. "Andy didn't get killeded?" Timmy sounded as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing.
"No pal. We all saw Andy here just the other day. He came out to say hello to us," Sam told Timmy. He continued to hug him.
Timmy's eyes searched out Viki. "Did you see Andy too?"
"Yes, Sweetheart! Andy was here and he even left some toy dinosaurs for you to play with."
"Andy loves dinosaurs! He knows all about them!" Timmy exclaimed.
They could all see the joy that replaced the sadness on Timmy's face. "Where's Andy? Can he come here and play with me now, or can I go play with him?" Timmy was so excited.
"Timmy, you need to rest a little and eat your pudding. Maybe later or tomorrow we can see if we can get Andy to come out an play with you." Susannah was afraid to try to send Timmy back inside. She was not sure if Andy would be there and she didn't want him to be disappointed.
Timmy seemed a little disappointed anyway, but he accepted that he had to wait a bit to be reunited with his friend. "Sweetheart, how about I feed you some chocolate pudding now?" Viki pushed. She wanted to make sure Timmy got some food in his stomach.
Timmy willingly opened his mouth for spoonful after spoonful of pudding. Without being asked he suddenly volunteered. "Daddy likes Andy best. I'm glad he don't like me best." Timmy then turned to Viki and opened his mouth for another spoon of pudding.
Like Sam and Susannah, Viki had been surprised by Timmy's last statement. It took her a minute before she noticed Timmy was patiently waiting for more pudding. "Oh, I'm sorry, Sweetheart," Viki apologized, as she fed Timmy some more. She managed to get three quarters of the pudding into him before he said he couldn't eat any more. Timmy fell sleep again. Mr. Rabbit was tucked securely in his arms. They didn't want to continue questioning him while he was eating and now he fell asleep before they had a chance to ask him anymore questions about Andy.
Connie's shift started and she sat with Timmy or a while. Sam and Viki went back to Susannah's office with her. Too much had happened in the past few days. Their minds were spinning. They didn't know what to discuss first.
"Do you think Peter really tried to kill little Andy?" Viki asked.
"Do you think there was anything Peter wasn't capable of?" Sam remarked bitterly. Both Viki and Susannah shook their heads to Sam's question.
"Susannah, do you think the alter who told us what happened to Michelle only came out for that one night? He said he loved Michelle," Viki pointed out.
"I believe that is what happened. He might have been around before that night, however, I don't think he ever came back until we were at the lodge. I believe he is the one they hear crying. I also believe Todd hears him crying when he thinks about Georgie. I am sure the association of what happened to Georgie and what happened to Michelle is the reason Todd has been in a crisis since Georgie was killed. When he saw Georgie on the floor and he saw the bloody bat and gloves his subconscious immediately made the connection to Michelle," Susannah explained.
"Do you think he has any conscious memories at all of what happened that night?" Sam asked.
"I think he remembers what happened up until he said "no" to Peter, maybe a little past that. I believe he remembers being beaten with the belt buckle, or at least the beginning of the beating. I'm certain he doesn't remember the rape or anything after that. The alter who also calls himself Todd came out and stayed out at that point. Pete came out at the end, but I do believe he remembers all or most of it. From what he said, he knows Peter killed Michelle."
"Was that Todd who spoke to us when he was talking about the ride home from the woods and about cleaning up the cake from the hallway?" Viki asked.
"I believe so, but I'm not sure. I don't suppose we'll know until he's rational enough to be questioned."
Susannah could see that Sam and Viki were as exhausted as she was. She knew they all needed some rest before they continued to discuss this. She suggested they head for the lounge and get some rest and meet with her later in the day. They took her up on her suggestion.
Sam had fallen asleep on the couch in the lounge and Viki thumbed through some magazines. Her mind too distracted to read or sleep. Susannah had not been able to get any sleep either. She sat at her desk listening to the recording she made at the lodge, subconsciously shaking her head as she listened. Interlocking the fingers of her hands, she raised them together to the top of her head and leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes. "What if Sam can't get the police to leave Todd alone? What if they insist on questioning him? There's no way in hell Todd can handle that." The phone interrupted Susannah's thoughts. It was Connie. Todd was awake.
Susannah did not stop to let Sam and Viki know Todd was awake. She felt they had enough for now and just in case Todd was highly agitated she wanted to spare them another scene. To Susannah's relief, Todd was awake and sitting up in bed. He was calm. Connie told Susannah that Todd woke up and looked around but has not been responsive to any questions. Susannah asked Connie to wait outside Todd's room with Carl. Susannah walked over to Todd and asked him how he felt. She got no response at first.
Then Todd muttered, "thirsty."
Susannah, with one hand supporting the back of his head, held a cup of water to Todd's lips. He drank thirstily. "Would you like some more?" she asked.
"Please," he answered and made eye contact with Susannah.
"How are you feeling?" Susannah asked.
"Tired, weak," Todd answered, as he drank some more of the water Susannah held to his lips. He surprised Susannah when he announced, "I want to get out of bed. I need to move around. I need to move around. I can't stand this. I'm trapped here. I want to get out of this room."
Susannah didn't understand Todd's sudden anxiety about being in bed or in his room. "I want to get out of this room! I want to walk outside, in the sun."
"Todd, you know you can't go outside," Susannah gently reminded him.
"Can't we go to your office?"
This request surprised Susannah even more than his need to get out of his room did. Todd had never asked to go to her office before. Something was definitely going on with him. "Todd, I'm not sure you're strong enough to do that yet. Would you like to try to get out of bed first and sit in the chair?" He nodded. Susannah had him sit at the edge of the bed and just dangle his feet for a few minutes. She called Connie in and they helped him to the chair.
"Why am I so weak? Have I been sick?" Todd looked at the IV in his arm.
"Todd, you do know you've been in the hospital for quite some time don't you?"
"Yeah, I . . . Hospital," he repeated after Susannah. He looked confused.
"Todd, do you know what month it is?"
He thought for a few seconds and then shook his head. "It's summer! It's summer isn't it? No wait, it's not, it's . . . You're getting me confused." He was starting to become agitated.
"Todd, it's okay, you don't have to think about it now," Susannah answered.
He stood up and said, "I don't like it here. I want to walk outside. I can walk. I want move. I hate this."
"All right, would you like to try to walk to my office?"
"Yeah," he answered.
Connie and Carl went with them. Susannah wheeled Todd's IV pole as they walked along, while Carl and Connie held on to his arms to steady him. Todd strength seemed to be coming back a little. Although the walk left him a little short of breath, he made it without stopping.
Once in her office, They got Todd settled in a club chair. "Is this better?" She asked.
"I'd rather be outside, in the sun."
"Todd, do you remember leaving the hospital at all since you've been here?" Susannah asked cautiously. Susannah noticed him looking in Connie and Carl's direction.
Susannah turned to address them. "Please wait right outside. Once she and Todd were alone Susannah repeated her question. "Do you remember leaving the hospital since you've been here?"
"No," Todd answered, then said, "you keep saying I will someday, but I'll never get out."
Susannah heard the hopelessness in his voice. "Todd, you'll get out. You're making progress. I know it's very difficult and painful for you to talk about some things, but honey, once you can talk about how you're feeling and what you think makes you feel the way you do I can help you to start to understand what some of those thoughts and feelings mean and . . ."
"No, I'll never leave here!" Todd cut her off. This time he sounded more like he was afraid he did leave the hospital than he was afraid he never would.
Susannah redirected the conversation to where it had begun. "Do you remember being at Asa's lodge?"
"You know I found Georgie there. You know I took all those people hostage there. Why are you asking me that again?" Todd asked, impatiently.
"Do you remember being there since?" Susannah pressed.
"Yeah, Asa invites me over every night for poker," he answered, sarcastically. Susannah smiled, surprised by Todd's humor.
"Todd, do you remember being there just the other day. Do you remember waking up there?"
Todd looked at her like she had lost her mind. "I haven't been to that lodge! I never want to go back there again!"
Susannah took the plunge. "Todd, you were there the other day. I took you there."
Todd stood up and started to walk to his spot by the window. Afraid he would get tangled in the IV or trip over the pole, Susannah asked him to sit down. He ignored her and continued to the window. Susannah helped him. Once she had him standing safely by the window, she again repeated, "Todd, you were at Asa's lodge a couple of days ago. Do you have any memory of it?"
"Why would you take me to Asa's lodge? I don't believe you."
"I took you there because I wanted you to remember the night you found Georgie." Susannah could see his muscles tighten. "I also wanted you to remember the night . . ."
"Why did you do that?" Todd asked, interrupting Susannah.
"Why did I do what?" Susannah asked.
"Why did you turn the lights out? Are you playing some kind of joke on me? Okay, joke's over. I don't like this. Put the lights back on. Is this some kind of test! Okay, you win! Please! I don't like being in the dark. Put the lights back on. Please!" Todd begged. He began to panic. He spun around and tripped over the IV pole and fell to the floor.
Susannah's heart was racing. She ran to where Todd sat. He was totally disoriented. He tried to stand up. "Todd, don't move. Let me see if you've hurt yourself." Todd struggled in an attempt to free himself but Susannah held him tightly. Swallowing hard, Susannah kept her voice calm. She didn't want to call for Connie and Carl just yet. She knew that would just add to Todd's panic.
"Todd I know you're very frightened, but I want you to try and calm down and tell me what you see."
"You know what I see! It's dark! You turned the lights off. Why are you doing this? I want Sam and Viki. They'll make you stop doing this. I want Sam and Viki!" Todd cried as tears mingled with the fear in his eyes.
"Todd, listen to me," Susannah spoke gently. She still held on to him tightly. "I want you to try to relax. I need you to answer a few questions. Do you feel dizzy?"
"No," he answered. He was trembling.
"Does your head hurt?"
"No," he whispered.
"Do you feel any numbness in your arms or face or legs?"
"No," he wept. He tried to reach out to feel where he was. "Please put the lights on! You're scaring me. I don't like the dark."
Susannah could hear his heart pounding. "Todd, let's get you over to the couch.
"No! First put the lights on," Todd cried out. He tried, in vain, to pull away from Susannah's tight grip.
"Todd," Susannah said softly, "the lights are still on. It's not dark in here. Now, I'm going to help you to get up and sit on the couch."
The fear in Todd's eyes turned to terror. "What do you mean the lights are on?" Todd reached up to feel his eyes. "My eyes are open. Why can't I see! Why is it dark! All I can see is black. WHY CAN'T I SEE!" Todd screamed. His breath came in short gasps.
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TO BE CONTINUED
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