A BILLION HARD TIMES

THE PSYCHO

CHAPTER 2

THE PSYCHOPATH

The car sped into the quiet dark night along a bushy, lonely road. All the trees are gone to sleep and the chuckling birds remained quiet in their little nests covering their tiny eggs beneath. The breeze swayed the leaves and soft plants to the left and to the right.

The atmosphere was stilled as if there were no habitants on the surface of the earth. The driver looked at Meshach from the rearview mirror with a concerned feeling. He shook his head in sympathy and continued driving.

Meshach tried to speak but the cellotape across his mouth wouldn't let him. He tried to fold his two hands into a punch but he couldn't.

His arm revealing the veins in arms, he felt helpless just like his father and this made him weep silently with tears dripping down his face.

The driver (Pluto) looked into the mirror again, he saw Meshach crying and turned to look back at him. One of the men at the back strecthed his hand and slapped him.

'In life, wherever and in whatever you find yourself, always learn to mind your business' Not minding your business can put you into trouble. He screamed at Pluto.

'I'm so sorry sir.' Pluto responded. Good boy, so keep moving this mother f*****g car'. The man (Officer Ruby) screamed.

They got to a tarred road and lights shone everywhere. The car suddenly stopped at the front of an ugly, old and tartarred building.

Officer Ruby and the other two men opened the car door, came down and dragged Meshach out of the car and into the building. Pluto the driver remained in the car and later drove off.

They took Meshach straight to the reception and straight to the counter. A female nurse (Anita) welcomed them. He is one of them, take care of him immediately so he won't run away.

Officer Ruby ordered and went into one of the offices. Ok sir, Anita responded as she prepared a small tray containing an injection, a small piece of cotton wool soaked in spirit and a syringe.

She came closer to Meshach while the two men held him tightly and also removed the tape on his mouth.

Meshach began to scream when he realized the nurse wanted to inject him. He had seen the sign board at the front of the building and read it's content ' BLAIRE PSYCHIATRIC HOSPITAL'. I'm not mad. I'm not insane! I'm not a psychiatric patient' He screamed.

Anita(the nurse) smiled. The very reason that you are shouting makes you one. You are indeed mad. Your fellows are in the ward sleeping peacefully, do not wake them.

She said as she injected him immediately by stabbing him with the filled syringe. He screamed noooo!!! He became calm immediately and just starred while looking staright ahead.

You can take him to the ward now. Anita said while she adjusted her gown feeling satisfied with her job while the two men took Meshach to the ward, they heard another patient singing loudly in the next ward

'Old soldier never dies!

Old soldier never dies!

I can never die...' He sings.

Anita quickly prepared another dose of injection in her small tray and rushed to the ward. She met the elderly man in his 50s standing, singing and matching at such a time in the mid night.

Anita approaached him backing her while facing the window, still matching with his hands straight by his sides and singing.

She put the tray on the bed and stabbed him with the injected syringe. The man screamed 'I can never die' then became quiet and still. Anita ordered him to lie down and supported him. He lied down gently and closed his eyes and then he slept off.

She turned to pick the tray when she saw another patient crying silently. 'Please, give me my properties! They are mine. You stole them from me'.

She took the left over dose she had brought along in the tray and stabbed him too. He slept off too. Anita took a deep breathe and left the ward.

Meshach layed on the bed looking straight ahead and soon slept off. The two men looked at each other, nodded right and then left the ward. Anita had taken a new file to put Meshach's details in there.

The men glanced at each other, one of them took a piece of paper out of his pocket and put it on the table. Anita gave them a strange look as they both went to meet the driver and found out he had gone.

She opened the paper and copied the details she saw in it.

Name - Meshach

Age - 21

Origin - Asia

Condition - Highly psychiatric

Then she read out some words that says 'keep him with you, do not let him go. If he does, you shall replace him with your life.

She began to panic and shivered a little. What's this? Who is he? Ah! She exclaimed. In all my years of experience, this is the strangest.

Morning arrived sooner than expected. Meshach was awakened by some loud noises. He gently opened his eyes and saw some of the patients displaying their lunacy

One was crying, another was drumming, another was dancing like a woman as he puts his hands on his waist and began to twerk.

Another one put an old pillow on the his hand, tied his bedsheet to it and patted it like a baby, another faced the wall and was teaching invisible students taekwondo and gesticulating with hands and legs.

They are six in number. He began to wonder about the kind of life that existed in the psychiatric hospital. The is another planet entirely, he chuckled inside him.

I never imagined I would one day be in this kind of place. I'm not mad, I'm not a lunatic, I'm not insane! How did I ever get here?

While he was lost in thought, the one who was gesticulating with taekwondo raised his leg and hit his face. Are you mad? The man asked. I don't know. Meshach replied. Then you are mad!!! The man screamed at him.