David Larson (The Psychopath)

Chapter 1

Ang Saint Jude Asylum for the Criminally Insane ay hindi lugar para sa mga mahihina ang sikmura. The air inside the subterranean Ward 4 smelled heavily of industrial bleach, old sweat, and an underlying scent of cold, metallic dread. normal people called this place hell; Dr. Dianna Montevar called it her laboratory.

As a clinical psychiatrist specializing in extreme psychopathy, Dianna had spent her entire career trying to dissect what makes a monster tick. She wasn't afraid of blood, nor was she easily swayed by the manic screams echoing through the padded corridors.

But today, the folder resting on her mahogany desk felt unusually heavy.

Dianna adjusted her glasses, her sharp eyes scanning the profile of her newest assignment.

PATIENT FILE: #0994

Name: David Larson

Diagnosis: Severe Antisocial Personality Disorder, Malignant Narcissism, Unspecified Psychotic Triggers.

Status: Maximum Security / Solitary Confinement.

Warning: Extreme danger to medical staff. Has successfully orchestrated the deaths of twenty-six previous psychiatrists.

Twenty-six.

Hindi lang basta pinatay—bawat isa sa mga nakaraang doktor ay dumanas ng matinding psychological torture bago tuluyang pinatapos ni David ang kanilang sariling mga buhay, o kaya naman ay pinatay sila gamit ang mga pinakamalupit na paraan sa loob mismo ng examination room. The facility was desperate. They didn't want to fix him anymore; they wanted him sedated until he rotted. But Dianna refused to let a mind like that go to waste. She was determined to be the one to break him. Or fix him. Whichever came first.

"Doktora, sigurado ba kayo rito?" tanong ni Officer Santos, ang chief security guard, habang naglalakad sila patungo sa pinakadulong selda ng basement. Ang kanyang kamay ay mahigpit na nakahawak sa kanyang baton. "Larson isn't like the others. Hindi siya nagwawala. He plays with your mind until you want to rip your own throat open."

"I didn't spend a decade studying the psychotic subconscious just to be intimidated by a body count, Santos," Dianna replied, her tone icy and professional. "Buksan mo ang pinto."

The heavy, reinforced titanium door slid open with a depressing, hydraulic groan. Inside, the cell was spacious but completely bare, illuminated only by a single, harsh fluorescent light from above.

In the center of the room sat David Larson.

He was restrained to a heavy steel chair by five separate leather and iron straps—two on his arms, two on his legs, and one across his chest. Despite his confinement, he didn't look like a defeated prisoner. He possessed a terrifyingly symmetrical, aristocratic face, with dark hair falling slightly over his forehead. But it was his eyes that made Dianna’s pulse jump—a pair of piercing, his crystalline hazel eyes that looked completely calm, intelligent, and devoid of any human empathy.

When David saw her, a slow, predatory smile stretched across his lips.

"Ah... a new face," David’s voice was a low, velvety purr that resonated through the sterile room. It didn't sound like the voice of a madman. "And a very beautiful one at that. Tell me, Doctor... did you draw the short straw, or do you just have a pathetic death wish?"

Dianna didn't flinch. She walked inside, ignoring the way her instincts screamed at her to turn back. She sat down on the solitary chair opposite him, placing her clipboard on her lap.

"I am Dr. Dianna Montevar, David. And I requested your file personally," she stated, her voice steady, locking her gaze directly with his. "I don't believe in death wishes. I believe in behavior modification."

David let out a soft, genuine laugh that sent a cold shiver down her spine. The chains around his wrists rattled slightly as he leaned forward as much as the restraints allowed.

"Behavior modification? Ang cute mo naman," untag niya, ang kanyang mga asul na mata ay tila hinuhubaran ang kanyang buong pagkatao. "The last twenty-six idiots thought the exact same thing. They wanted to analyze me. They wanted to put me in a neat little diagnostic box. Do you know where they are now, Dianna? Pinasabog ko ang mga utak nila gamit ang sarili nilang mga lihim."

"I am not like them," Dianna countered, leaning in closer, refusing to let him dominate the psychological space. "You use charm and manipulation to mask your fear of being understood. You kill your doctors because if they look too closely, they’ll see how fundamentally empty you are."

The smile on David’s face didn't vanish, but something dangerous flickered in his eyes. A dark, suffocating tension filled the gap between them.

"Empty?" David whispered, his gaze dropping to her lips, then down to the frantic pulse beating against the skin of her neck. He could see it—she was putting up a brave front, but her body was reacting to him. "You think you know me because you read some papers written by dead men? No, Doctor. You have no idea what's inside me."

Suddenly, David lunged forward—the leather straps groaning under the sudden, violent tension of his muscles. Despite of the sheer force of his movement, Dianna didn't move in her chair.

Officer Santos immediately drew his taser, stepping forward. "Larson! Don't move!"

"Ibaba mo 'yan, Santos," mabilis at mariing utos ni Dian. She kept her eyes glued to David.

David ignored the guard completely. His gaze remained locked on Dianna, his lips just inches away from her face. The scent of him—something clean but dangerous, like rain before a thunderstorm—invaded her senses.

"You're different, Dianna. I can taste your ambition. You want to fix the monster so you can feel like a god," David whispered darkly, his voice laced with a strange, erotic intensity that made her core tighten against her will. "I’ll let you try. But remember this... once you enter my mind, you don't get to leave. Ikuwento mo sa akin ang mga madidilim mong sikreto, Doktora... at titingnan natin kung sino sa atin ang unang mababaliw."

Dianna swallowed hard, but she didn't look away. For the first time in her life, she felt a dangerous, intoxicating thrill. She smiled back, a sharp, challenging expression.

"Mag-umpisa tayo bukas, David. Huwag kang mag-alala... marami tayong panahon."

As Dianna stood up and walked out of the cell, she could feel his crystalline hazel eyes burning through her back. The game had officially begun—and she had just stepped right into the spider's web.