Chapter Text
“Watch out with this one, he’s totally nuts.”
You pulled open the case file on the computer, clicking away at the hyperlink and scrolling all the way to the psychiatrist notes.
Becomes obsessed with male staff, infatuated to the point of sedation. Eddie Gluskin is a man who meets the requirement threshold for total grade three restraints.
“Grade three restraints, huh?” You said, curiously reading, making notes to hold on to.
“Yeah, It took three guys and two syringes to slow him down enough to get restraints on him.” The male orderly lent over the desk, stopping the creaky wheeled food cart by the desk. His head zipped back and forth in the direction of Eddie’s room down the end of the hallway. “That was after he beat an orderly to death, and after he managed to cut his dick off with a shard of glass he managed to smuggle in and we still have no idea how he got it.”
You exchanged a glance before reading further. “So only female staff are permitted to enter now.”
No male staff are permitted entry UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES, Eddie Gluskin is less inclined with infatuation towards female staff due to his isolation at Mount Massive Asylum, but must exercise caution. On good days, Eddie will usually co-operate in his restrained state.
All staff should follow grade three restraint protocols and adhere to emergency procedures should he breach his restraints. All staff are to remain in pairs or large groups after roll call via radio communication immediately, staff have access to sedation guns provided in the support call points in designated areas.
DO NOT APPROACH. Fire on site and keep a distance of no less than five metres.
Avoid using specific subjects as examples: Love, Marriage, Children, soul mates during in-person psychiatric observation.
“Why are people avoiding his triggers?”
He tilted his head with lowered brows. “What do you mean?”
“How are we supposed to treat him if we don’t talk about the things that upset him?”
“Oh…” He looked away, fiddling with his pen in an anxious rhythm. “You haven’t been on this wing yet.”
“I haven’t.”
“But you’ve heard the story of Eddie Gluskin, right? He’s the most dangerous and famous patient here. They found him over at Mount massive asylum, you know about that right?”
You didn’t take his response as an insult of your intelligence. “I’m aware of Eddie Gluskin, and where he came from. What I’m confused about is why we’re letting a man rot in a cell and we aren’t even attempting to treat him, he'll need movement eventually, he'll start to develop atrophy. This place will never release him into society ever again, but that doesn’t mean we can’t make his stay here a little more comfortable and possibly less dangerous for staff.”
That’s when he started laughing hysterically. “Oh! You really are funny- you actually think you can help that maniac?!”
“Ambitions keep societies alive, it has aided things that we couldn’t live without today.” You shrugged off his amusement and continued reading.
“But we can live without Eddie Gluskin, but I’ll let you decide. Because what do I know? I’m only an orderly who’s been here before he even got here. But go on, go find out for yourself.” He set the food tray down from the wheeled cart with a clang harder than he probably meant to.
You glanced over his extensive list of crimes and pressed ‘print’, tucking it onto the spare clipboard under the rushed written charge notes from two other patients that were neglected from yesterday. Which you filled yourself, because no one else did.
“I will. Someone has to be on his side. We shouldn’t be treating these patients like animals. They’re still human beings no matter what bad things they’ve done. They need help, not negligence.”
“Y’see, there’s that fresh shrink perspective they all have when they come in here… you’ll change that soon enough, he has a habit of changing your views.” The man leaned in, whispering as though Eddie himself would hear him. “This is a guy who cuts dudes dicks off so he can fuck them… Not sure there’s much to fix.”
You ignored him, picking up the clipboard with an air of arrogance, taking the food tray with you and leaving the desk towards Eddie’s cell. Each echoey heeled footstep growing nearer called to you, panged your gut to help him understand part of his delusion.
Sexual abuse by father and member of extended family. The main point stemming this string of ideals. You saw the notes, how he denied it, a coping mechanism of his own little world he built to protect himself.
The bride. A bride. Any bride. Eddie Gluskin had created a family ideal of marriage and children, a healthy relationship where he was the centre of his own little perfect life for a soul mate. A sad reminder at how hard he’d fallen.
As you grew nearer, his cell being at the end to the right, you heard him singing.
“I want a girl, just like the girl that married dear old Dad…” It set a precedent.
Your eyes unconsciously flickered to interests, music.
“Hmm…” A possible tool for leverage.
“She was a pearl. And the only girl that daddy ever had. A good ol' fashioned girl with a heart so true…”
Your curiosity stopped you at the end of the hall, waiting in an odd limbo to listen to him. Tiptoeing towards the door to stop the clacking of your heels from warning him of your presence. Just listening, making your own notes for your own report.
“Darling…” He stopped, eerily calling out to someone, like he knew you were there. “Are you there?”
Instinctively, you held your breath, covering your mouth and waiting for his next sentence. The silence was brutal, weighted, pressured. But it gravitated you towards his smooth syllables, his well mannered words.
Then he carried on, perhaps answering a delusion. “ One who loves nobody else but you. I want a girl, just like the girl that married dear old dad… Get married, boy, and see how happy you will be. I have-”
He stopped as soon as the deadlock turned and creaked, unoiled and going rusty, the pad beeping wearily against your key card. Silence, more stillness than you knew what to do with.
Still, you cleared your throat and remained professional, even though the plastic cup on the tray shuddered gently and sloshed. “Good evening Mr. Gluskin. I have your dinner ready.”
He said nothing, possibly bothered about another woman entering his personal space. His eyes shot you like daggers, little needles running down your back and all pointed at him. The off white, heavy duty material wrapped him like a cocoon, ankles restrained to the floor, a barbaric display of his stripped free movement.
The neutral expression he wore shifted entirely to a relieved grin. “I knew you were there, darling. Why did you keep quiet? Were you simply brimming with grandeur at my melody?”
You sat down and breathed slowly, keeping the overwhelming energy coming from him to a minimum. “I heard you singing… I see that you like music.”
“Oh… music is a window to the soul, wouldn’t you say? Da-da-dee-dee-da-da-dum-” He mumbled something incoherent. “You aren’t like the other ones, are you darling? See, you are stronger than the last one- I just know it.”
So much for leaving the staff alone… they never really mentioned anything in the notes about this. Mostly just his misogynist comments towards other women.
“How do you know that? We’ve only just met.” Crossing your legs opposite him at a distance, you brought up his file again.
“No… No, no. We haven’t. Darling, soul mates are entwined for eternity. I know you and in trust, you know me. The moment I saw you, I knew we were destined for greatness.” His eyes slopped down body with an eagerness you could only describe as predatory. “Your hips… So perfect for bearing children- that’s how I knew you were meant to be my bride.”
Childbirth, marriage and soulmates all in one sentence.
“You want to marry me?” You asked, flicking back through the notes. “I’m in my mid twenties, that’s quite the age gap.”
“No, no, darling it’s perfect! Younger to bear my children, more children. You’re well enough to hold my seed and give me strong children. Beautiful children. I’ll protect them like a father is meant to.” His grin faltered so slightly, then returned right away.
“What if I can’t have children?” Testing the waters still came with its risks regardless of his restraints. “What if I was told by a doctor that I couldn’t bear children, would you still want to be married?”
For a moment, his expression fell to the bottom of the barrel, like he had short circuited. Being faced with a dilemma like this where his primary focus to start a family was blocked, temporarily forcing him to decide whether children or marriage was his focal point.
It helped you to find a starting point with him.
“Well, are you?” He was suddenly sharp, snappy and he darkened in the soft spotlight on the wall.
“Me? No. I can, but if you were faced with that problem, what would-”
“Then why mention it, darling? If it’s no problem, then why bring it up?”
Shit. You wanted to see the extent of his anger, it intrigued you and fascinated your drive to speak with him more freely.
“I brought it up, because if you feel so strongly for me, I want to know if you would still marry me if I couldn’t have your children.”
“Why are you talking like this? Are you just saying this to leave me- to evade my affections?!”
You read the notes, and didn’t bend to him despite your heart racing. “I want to know if you’d leave me. Would you abandon me because I couldn’t have children?”
Eddie Gluskin grew violent and furious by those he deemed were leaving him, you doubted he’d ever met anyone who would accuse him of the same.
“You…” He whimpered, breathless. “No, no… Darling, I- no, I think… oh darn, I’m being so vulgar, aren't I?... In truth, it’s been so long since I’ve had been in a lovers company, I lose myself. I hope you’ll forgive me. It won’t happen again- when we’re married, I’ll be a different man, I swear. Once I’ve made an honest woman out of you.”
“An honest woman?”
There had been no prior relationship, did his delusion go that deep? Had he forged an entire backstory in his mind that made him think you and he were already entangled? You thought of all the other people he had hurt, raped, murdered, tortured. It was fascinating to see his mind turn and develop as the conversation carried on.
“Well, marriage is first. We can’t have you pregnant with my child out of wedlock. And I want you to have my baby. As many as we can with your young, fertile womb. We must make haste, though I know it’s unsightly hearing such words, it must be done. It must be planned as I see it, for our children.”
“Eddie-”
He groaned, struggled against his restraints. “Oh… I love when you use my name, darling. It stirs me up inside, I can barely contain myself. The anticipation is positively choking… now, release me so we can marry and consummate our love.”
“I can’t do that unfortunately, Eddie. You’re under grade three restraints. But if you behave-”
“So you allow this penitentiary to sever our love?! To… remove us from each other’s arms because of silly rules put there to keep soulmates apart?!”
You waited a second to gain your composure. “If you’re good, and you eat, and stop being so… vulgar. Then I’ll bring you music to listen to… Think of it as a wedding present.”
“But I- a wedding present?”
“Yes. A wedding present.” You feigned giddy laughter. “That is unless you changed your mind about me?”
“No! No… Darling, I could never. But how can I stay here knowing we’re both suffering apart when you’re gone?”
“It won’t be long, I’m working most days.” As a new psychiatrist, your hours were intense.
But it wasn’t enough for him, he growled as soon as you made a move to stand. “And in that, you’re already leaving me?! Oh, you are all the same, aren’t you?! Steal my heart and squish it like a bug beneath your shoe, then go to leave me!”
“No.” You said, pulling your little keycard out of your pocket. “I forgot cutlery. I’ll go get it and bring it to you. You must be hungry.”
Eddie stayed silent… watching you through his bloodied eyes, mouth slightly agape. You assumed it was the first time he’d ever been speechless, fumbling over his words according to the earlier transcripts you'd glossed over. Maybe, just maybe, there was an air of clarity for just a brief second.
Only a second. “I do love a wife that hand feeds her husband, such bonding, making time for each other to rile us up for consummation. Oh my pretty wife… I knew you were the one.”
"I won't be long, Eddie."
When you left, after locking the door again, you let relief drop from your chest in a slouch, a deep breath you’d been holding. Eddie Gluskin was just as intense and charismatic as the report suggested. But there was one thing you realised that no one seemed to mention in the peak of Eddie’s abuse.
He just wanted someone to love, and to love him back in return. And in love, a man like Eddie Gluskin, was easily manipulated.
Manipulated and hopefully at some point, more willing to be controlled for safety purposes.