Adapt (10 page)

Daniel puffed, breathing deep. He looked up at the building. Eyeing the handrail by the entrance and then glancing at the lip above the door. The window above the door was equipped with prison-like bars. Attached to the end of the building was a steel fence. The fence was meshed so tightly not even his little finger could fit through. The barbed wire running around the parameter atop the twenty foot barrier gleamed under the full moon. Daniel sighed as he exhaled the cigarette smoke.
They don’t want you to leave that’s for sure.
The fence was impossible to climb.
I can’t spend another night in here, I know that something went on last night,
he thought whilst touching the back of his head. The bump was encouragement, if needed, to take action. He had not seen his neck, and didn’t need to. He could feel it. He scanned the yard for an escape to no avail. The fence was designed to withstand the keenest of climbers.

Daniel looked back to the handrail with hope. The words of the old woman should be dismissed, but he couldn’t dismiss the words of the nurse:
Things are going to heat up now, you will see. We will help your mind break.
The injury to his head, the bruising down his side, pain tightening around his neck. That taste in his mouth on arising that afternoon. A taste that made his blood boil. He thought of Dr Cribson’s choice of words,
Everything is prepared for you. You can Rest. In. Peace while you are under us.
Jenny Green’s damning verdict on his request to leave,
Can’t you face the consequences of the things you have done?
There was a sinister
agenda at play, of that he was sure.
Crazy the mad woman may be, but she could have a point.
Her words rang close to his own diagnosis,
I heard them say you’re dead. It was you they said. You’re dead. Dead.

Daniel looked at his watch.
Twenty minutes is now down to sixteen before they check on me. Sixteen minute head start. If I can go across the farm opposite, follow the road for a mile, I can then cut through the nature reserve.
The nature reserve he could use to navigate through was a few miles of woodland.
Once on the other side I’m nearly home.
The reality of what may have happened last night really dawned on him. Somehow he had played down the darkness of the ward. As unbelievable as it may be, the doctor and the nurses were clearly preparing, and their preparations were not in his best interest. It was up to him to preserve his future, protect his body from further harm. His heart began to race, pounding in his chest.

Daniel hopped onto the handrail. With both feet on the rail he could reach the lip above the door with ease. A hole in the brickwork, six feet from the ground, was perfectly situated for his plan. From the moment he entered the ward his foot was destined for this chipped out brick. It was enough for his boot to gain grip. With his left hand securely positioned on the lip above the door he was able to extend his left arm fully. His foot began to slip out of the hole; edging it back into place he could drive up. His right foot secured in the wall, his left arm providing support above the door frame and his chest butting up to brick. He hoped no one would see his left leg hanging in front of the door, bait for the catch, his only limb without a task. Daniel’s right arm reached up at full stretch, his entire body precariously balanced. He gripped the bar of the window. If he was a few inches short he would have to abort. It was enough. Once holding the bar it was easy to pull his body up. Daniel’s left hand abandoned its supporting role. With both hands on the window bars his feet scrambled to the lip above the door. From here he could hoist himself onto the roof.

From atop the building Daniel’s vision was clear; he could see as far as needed.
There’s scaffolding on the other side of the building.
He hastily ran across the roof. Thankful that the builders hadn’t repaired the façade of the unit where the brickwork was in need
of care. Relieved that the scaffolding was still erected, providing a generous descent to the pavement. He was grounded within seconds. There was no time to appreciate leaving, he wasn’t home and dry. He scanned the grounds of the hospital, most of the passers-by seemed to be visitors. The race had begun.
Eleven minutes until they realise I’ve slipped out of their grasp. They will search the grounds for a few minutes more and then I’m eluding a search party. I’m not going back, they will have to make new preparations.

Daniel sprinted as fast as he ever had. His injuries vanished from thought, but the people who inflicted them were ever present. They were his motivation, his drive. If he needed to fight he could and would. The fear he felt was not of his abusers’ strengths but of their weakness. He was afraid of how weak and deceitful these people were, to drug him, debilitate him, and surrender his mind to a slumber before they moved in for the kill. A person as weak as that is frightening. A group of people with the ability to detain him using the law of the land capable of that is hell itself.

Adrenaline pumped around his body, his blood flowed to the cells in his legs providing oxygen to his quadriceps and calves. His heart levelled to a steady beat, as did his strides. Once off of the private property he continued along the road. No artificial lighting for assistance, only the moon, which highlighted the ditch at the roadside. The fact there were no streetlamps was an aid – he could see a car’s full beam a good moment before the vehicle was alongside him.
Forewarned is forearmed,
he thought.

He was depleting oxygen fast. The training he was used to was varied, which helped his muscle memory continue through the build-up of lactic acid in his legs. His body was honed for short, sharp sprints or long, arduous jogs. This was a long, arduous sprint. He needed to slow down and restore oxygen. As he slowed he noticed the cold for the first time. His nose was frozen, and still swollen around the bridge, decreasing the amount of air he could suck in.

There was a bend in the road up ahead and then the nature reserve would be before him. The bend lit up, bright as day. Daniel stopped, he didn’t have long before the light would come round the bend.
It could be them.
Daniel didn’t want to be face to
face with the car. A silhouette in the night, captured and delivered back to the ward, a lamb to the slaughter.

Diving into the ditch he felt a sudden pain in his thigh. His leg had landed on something. It was too dark to see. The car was on approach. Peering through the tufts of grass at the brim of the ditch he could see that the vehicle was travelling slowly. He ducked his head slightly, but was intrigued as to who was driving. The car was crawling. The police. Daniel moved to prone position immediately, in the hope he would hear the engine disappear into the night.
If they catch me they will take me back. They’re not going to believe the situation. An escaped mental patient, branded psychotic, fretting that the ward are preparing my execution. They will make sure I’m locked up.
The car disappeared. Daniel got to his feet and touched the area that was hurting. A tear in his jeans enabled him to poke his finger through. Blood seeped from a small laceration.

The room like all others in the building, white and bare. Clarissa sat with her hands clasped together in her lap. The door opened and there entered a police officer. As tall as the door itself he towered over Clarissa. He handed her a drink.

“Here you go,” he said.

“Thank you. They haven’t found him yet?” she asked. Clarissa was shaking.

“Not yet,” he replied, “but they will do.”

“He’s really confused at the moment. I hope he’s okay. He said on the phone that he had to leave urgently,” she said. “We were going to talk to the doctor.”

“Why was he in here?”

“He came in voluntarily. He was so anxious that he was being hacked.”

“Hacked? What, his computer or something?”

“Yes, he didn’t know what to do, he kept saying he was going to ring the police because someone was still hacking him,” she replied. The officer took a seat next to her.

“We will find him. He’s probably making his way home. Maybe we can help if he is being hacked,” he said.

“We thought this might help relax him. He usually thinks things out so well, but he couldn’t think properly,” she said.

“Once he is settled back at home and the shock dissipates he’ll be fine,” said the officer.

“Hopefully. I’m so sorry for using police resources.”

“It’s no problem. All our officers will be happy to help,” he said as he got to his feet. “Will you be okay for a few minutes? I will be back soon.”

“Yes.”

The officer left the room and made his way down the corridor. Jenny Green chased him down. “You have to bring him back tonight,” she said.

“We will see how the situation unfolds,” he replied.

“No. You must bring him back.”

“I have to go and speak to another officer. If you will excuse me,” he said as he continued to the exit. Jenny Green stormed in a huff toward the room in which Clarissa was waiting. Clarissa smiled. The smile took effort but she managed to greet the ward nurse that she had only met briefly on arrival. Clarissa and Harry turned up at seven, only minutes after the start of the hunt had begun.

“If the police don’t bring him back tonight I will have two doctors section him first thing tomorrow,” said Jenny Green. Clarissa stared at the floor in an attempt to fight back the tears. One escaped and rolled down her cheek. She stayed silent and didn’t respond. “You watch, he’ll be back here by noon and there’s nothing you can do to stop it,” she said before slamming the door. Clarissa flinched as the door closed.

Standing in the cold, the threatening ward to their backs, Harry and Matt were deciding who was going to join the search. An officer approached them after pulling up in a police car. “We’ve got the roads covered. My guess is he is avoiding the roads,” said the officer.

“It’s possible,” said Harry.

“I don’t think he will approach a police car,” said the officer.

“If he thinks you are going to bring him back he might not,” said Harry. “I’m going to take my car around the obvious routes.”

“Good idea, he may wave you down. There’s so many places he can hide in the night,” the officer said.

“It’s a cold night,” said Matt, “he wasn’t dressed for this temperature.”

“We are going to fuel up the helicopter. Once in the air we will find him quickly.”

“I think he will take the most direct route home,” said Harry.

“If he makes it home before we find him, then good. If we find him first it would help to know what frame of mind he is in?” asked the officer.

“He was only in there to help him relax. If you do find him he will co-operate with what you ask,” said Harry. “He’s reasonable, he’s just had a bad few weeks.”

“Okay, the helicopter will be up soon. If he is off-road, which I suspect he is, they will locate him,” the officer said.

“Thanks,” said Harry.

“I will go and wait with Mum,” said Matt.

“Good idea,” said Harry. “Go and see how she is. I will drive round for a while, get another car on the road.”