Page 11 of Ash and Poison

“What do you think of him?” I asked right when Doctor Camille Adams walked into the facility. She stopped next to me with a smile.

“Asher was popular at school. I was a year above him, and every girl wanted him,” Camille said and then slapped a hand to her mouth, eyes wide.

If she could hear my thoughts about that asshole, she might die of asphyxiation.

I smiled, despite my urge to scoff.

Camille shook her head, her eyes shining as if she wanted to tell me more, but she didn’t. Giving me and Becca a wave, she walked away.

Becca turned to me, her eyes narrowed.

“Did he give you any trouble? He has always been quite compliant. Do you want me to talk with him?” she asked, getting ready to defend my honor.

“No, please. It’s just… I know he came to the hospital five months ago, but there’s not much detail about the causative factors behind his breakdown. I’m working on developing a personalized treatment plan, and having that information would be helpful. He’s making significant progress, and I didn’t want to risk triggering him by bringing it up too soon.”

“He… he found his best friend’s body when he was twenty,” Becca said, her face pinched. “Then, he came back to Hollow Heights five months ago to sell his parents’ old house and witnessed another gruesome murder. It must have triggered the past trauma. He stopped talking. Doctor T said it was a stress response.”

I didn’t know how much of Becca’s story was the actual truth, and how much was made up, but there must be some semblance of truth in his story.

“What was his friend’s name?” I asked.

“Riley…” Becca trailed off, a frown on her lips. “She-she was in Hollowhaven for drug addiction, delusional thinking, and bipolar disorder. She killed herself.” Becca winced, rubbing her face.

“She was a patient?”

“Yes, she was Doctor T’s patient.”

The final piece of the puzzle.

It was all slowly beginning to make sense.

“Thanks, Becca.” With a wave to her, I went to my office, and grabbed Asher’s medical file, leafing through it, trying to understand more about him.

He was here for Riley. Something had happened to her, something truly awful.

When the clock struck nine, I stood up and walked toward the massive hall where the group sessions were held.

There was Sarah, who always clutched a worn-out teddy bear like her life depended on it. Next to her sat Michael, muttering something, his eyes distant, talking with the ghost of his wife only he could see. Across the room, Millie was sketching furiously in her notebook, her art desperately chaotic. Next to her, Jimmy was humming a song, this one about five girls in a graveyard, and next to him was Asher.

The cold look in his green eyes intensified as soon as he noticed me.

Michael gave me a smile before retreating into his own world. Sarah sank back into her chair, and Millie murmured something before going back to her drawing. Asher remained motionless, still as a fucking statue carved from stone, his eyes following me. Stalking, hunting, and threatening.

Bastard.

“How are you on this fine day, Doctor?” Jimmy asked.

“I’m good, thank you, Jimmy. How are you all today?”

There was a chorus of replies. Looking straight at Asher, I opened my leather diary and sat down on my chair. If he thought he could scare me away, he had another thing coming.

“We will talk about old friends today. Do you want to start, Sarah?”

His body went rigid. I was poking the fucking hornet’s nest and I might get stung, but… I just wanted to see if he’d play along.

He didn’t look like he wanted to.

Sarah clutched her teddy bear tighter. “Mr. Kensington is my best friend.”