For six years 555
Sylvia nodded and said, “Of course, Dr. Morrow. I’d be glad.”
Then she turned to Cynthia and asked, “Shall we go, Mrs. Snider?”
As they made their way to the cafeteria building, Cynthia’s eyes darted around, taking in her surroundings.
She thought that the place felt like a cage.
Electric fences lined the walls of the hospital, making escape impossible. Even without the fences, those towering walls would have been insurmountable for someone like her, who was used to decades of comfort.
Cynthia’s brow furrowed tighter.
Just then, Sylvia’s phone buzzed. It was Sawyer calling.
She picked it up calmly. “Yeah, I’m fine. Don’t worry. I’ll come find you when I get bored. Focus on your own stuff for now.”
Sawyer said something on the other end, and Sylvia replied, “Okay. I’ll take care of myself.”
Cynthia’s gaze locked on the phone. So, Sylvia really did have a phone. How was that even allowed?
When Sylvia hung up, she noticed Cynthia staring at her. Smiling, she said, “Every patient here has a phone.”
Cynthia felt a pang in her chest. “Then why didn’t Dr. Morrow let me have mine?”
Sylvia explained, “As long as you agree to stay and recover here, Dr. Morrow doesn’t interfere with what we do. If you want to go out, just notify the hospital, and friends or family can pick you up.”
Cynthia couldn’t believe that the patients had so much freedom.
Her disbelief was obvious. “What do you mean by ‘agree to stay and recover here‘?”
“You need to sign an agreement,” Sylvia replied.
They reached the cafeteria building and headed straight to the second floor. This was the VIP section.
VIPs were patients like Sylvia, or people of Cynthia’s status, who spent lavishly.
After all, their families had paid a hefty fee. Madison wouldn’t be stingy with the treatment they deserved.
All morning, Sylvia patiently showed Cynthia around.
Cynthia realized that this psychiatric hospital wasn’t nearly as bad as she had imagined.
There was a theater, a sports field, a gym, and a library. It had everything. It was just that access was strictly
controlled.
Patients who couldn’t control themselves normally weren’t allowed in.
Even those like the two of them, who were almost like ordinary people, needed to be accompanied to enter.
“Dr. Morrow must be rich,” Cynthia commented, a strange tone in her voice.
Sylvia smiled. “All of this came from donations by patients‘ families. The scale isn’t huge, but it’s more than enough for us.”
It wasn’t until evening, when they were getting ready for dinner, that the two finally stopped chatting.
After spending a whole day with Sylvia, Cynthia’s impression of her had improved considerably. After all, she genuinely liked gentle, intellectual young women.
Still, she couldn’t let her guard down completely. Sylvia was an actual mental patient.
From that day on, Sylvia accompanied Cynthia almost everywhere for over a week. They ate together, took strolls in the garden, went to the movies and the library, did flower arranging and painting, and even took their medication together.
Naturally, Cynthia refused to take her pills. She still insisted that she wasn’t sick.
That night, the summer rain poured down. During dinner, Cynthia hesitated for a long time before finally asking, “Sylvia, could I borrow your phone?”
Sylvia slowly looked up and smiled. “Of course.”
She handed over her phone. Cynthia immediately typed in a string of numbers.
The call connected quickly. Lowering her voice, Cynthia whispered, “Kate, it’s me, Cynthia. You have to come save me!”
Sylvia watched her quietly, a faint curve tugging at the corners of her lips.
Sara Lili
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.