The Shadow Doctor

Dr. Harris wasn’t a bad man. Not in his mind anyways. Then why hide in the shadows? Well, his patients at the Perkins County Asylum were not docile creatures and his tactics did not always have soothing effects. He had his own safety to consider and so he kept the lights dim and his face hidden behind a mask of imperceptibility.

It was a practice that had served him well for many years. His patients received their treatments, some showing positive outcomes, some remaining unresponsive, and others had … adverse reactions. And to all of them he was known only as a nameless silhouette. They called him the Shadow Doctor and he liked it that way.

So as he readied himself to meet a new patient he took all the usual precautions: curtains closed, lights extinguished except for one dim orange bulb in the corner, and his chair angled at a diagonal to the patient’s seat.

The door opened and three sets of footsteps sounded in the quiet room. There was a rattling of a chain. Two escorts and a restraint. This would be a challenging one.

There was a grunt and a thump as the patient was forced into his seat beneath the one light. Then the two escorts departed.

“Corbin Hunt, that’s your name, correct?” Dr. Harris asked.

“Yes, sir,” replied a meek voice.

He sounded so young, which he was, just ten years old according to his file.

“You’ve been giving the night nurses trouble, Corbin,” Dr. Harris stated.

“I – I didn’t mean to,” Cobin said. The boy's pale eyes were glistening and his chin trembled.

“Do you know why you’re here?” the doctor asked the boy.

There was a pause. Then the boy spoke in a voice barely above a whisper, “I’ve been hurting people, but I don’t remember doing it. They said I hurt my sister. That I hurt her really bad. But I can’t remember it.” The boy began to sniffle and sobs threatened to break free from his chest.

“What do you remember?” Dr. Harris asked.

“It mostly happens at night. I do things in my sleep. When I wake up things are different. Sometimes I’m in a different place or the people I was with are gone and there are other people around me. And sometimes if I get angry or scared everything goes dark and it's like my mind falls asleep, but my body doesn’t”

“Tell me what happened at the fair,” Dr. Harris directed.

“I was just waiting in line to buy some fairy floss,” Corbin began, “And then Jack Torrance pushed me down so he could take my spot in line. I could feel myself getting angry and then everything went black. When I woke up I was locked up in a cage for one of the animals. I had blood all over my shirt and face. They said I tried to bite Jack’s arm off. But I swear I didn’t do it!”

"And what about your sister? What happened to her?"

"She got burned all over. They say I set her bedroom on fire while she was sleeping. But I was asleep too!"

Dr. Harris was intrigued by the boy. He seemed coherent and honest, but the file was full of gruesome incidents of which Corbin was undoubtedly the perpetrator. There had to be something under the surface of the boy’s placid exterior. He would have to do something to draw it out.

“I believe you, Corbin. These reports are clearly false. It’s absurd to think a boy your size could do any of these things.”

Corbin was silent.

“I mean look at you. Nothing impressive to see. It’s no wonder Jack Torrance pushed you down so easily and that your little sister managed to steal your favorite teddy bear. You’re not a threat at all are you, Corbin?”

The boy began to twitch in the chair.

“Absolutely pathetic. That’s what you are. Weak and spineless. I bet your parents were just so embarrassed by you they made up these stories so they could abandon you here.”

“Shut up,” barked a deep gravelly voice.

Dr. Harris recoiled at the sound of it.

He studied Corbin’s face. The boy’s eyes had become dark and his mouth was twisted in a savage snarl.

“Corbin?” Dr. Harris asked, trying to keep his voice steady.

“Corbin’s not here,” the boy hissed.

“Then who are you?” the doctor asked.

The boy chuckled sinisterly. “Wouldn’t you like to know.”

Dr. Harris gulped. He’d come across some strange cases before but nothing this demented. “Where’s Corbin?”

The raspy voice slithered through the room like a loose serpent, “Tucked away somewhere safe.” The boy raised his bound hands to tap his forehead.

“And when will he return?”

“When I’m finished.”

“Finished with what?”

“Giving you a gift.”

Dr. Harris paused. “I don’t think that will be necessary.”

“But, Shadow Doctor, I insist.” The boy began to squirm and something small fell from his sleeve into his palm. The boy gripped it in his fingers and flicked it across his pants. A flame burst forth and the boy extended it to the nearest curtain. The fire caught at once and the room was filled with light.

Dr. Harris yelled out for the escorts, who opened the door and then shouted behind them for someone to bring water.

“Get the boy back to his room! And do not unbind him no matter what he says!” Dr. Harris commanded.

The escorts began to lift the boy who was smiling wickedly at Dr. Harris. “I see you. No more hiding in the shadows, Doctor. It’s time to come out and play.”

Dr. Harris shuddered as the boy was dragged off, his manic laughter gradually fading away.

The fire was put out quickly enough and the smoking remainder of a lucifer match was stomped out on the floor, but for the Shadow Doctor, the nightmare had just begun.

Word Count: 987

Author's Note: This piece was created for Kenny Penn's "Frighten Me! Please?" Challenge. Check out the details in the story linked below.

This piece also connects to my entry for the Spooky Micro Challenge. If you're interested in checking it out it's linked below.