Straightjacket by Meredith Towbin

doing. So he wasn’t quite alone. They were watching and he was blind.
    The soreness had snuck up on him. He’d taken some strong punches to the stomach and face. His right side hurt badly, and he gently poked each of his ribs, trying to locate the exact injury. A pain radiated inward when he touched them. There was no mirror to see the extent of the damage to his face, so he used his fingers. He felt around his right eye and found that the skin was already brutally swollen. He moved his sore jaw from side to side as he cupped his hand around it, searching for broken bone. Dry, crusty blood stuck to the skin underneath his nose and he attempted to wipe it away with the bottom of his T-shirt.
    The only thing to do in the room was to stare at the walls and terrorize himself with images of Anna’s limp body lying on the ground. He was desperate to see her. He’d meant to get her to talk—for the sake of the mission—but now he couldn’t care less about what he was supposed to do. He was going out of his mind, not knowing what happened to her. He wished that maniac who’d hurt her was in the room with him so he could pick up where they’d left off. Instead he was probably dozing in a peaceful medicated stupor. He could only hope he’d wake up to find himself strapped down in a room like this.
    At one point, the door opened and Dr. Blackwell stepped in. Caleb stood up and faced him squarely. The panic he’d tried to beat down rose up again.
    “Anna—how’s Anna?” Caleb asked with no attempt to hide his desperation.
    “Caleb, calm down.”
    “Just tell me if she’s okay!” He took an aggressive step forward.
    “Caleb, I’m warning you. Stop yelling and try to control yourself, or I’ll have to leave.” He wanted to punch Dr. Blackwell, beat it out of him how Anna was. His fingers rolled into his hands to form fists, but he backed away slowly. He decided to obey until the moment that Dr. Blackwell wasn’t cooperative. Then he’d fight his way out if he had to and find Anna.
    “Thank you. Now please tell me what happened.”
    “Please,” Caleb said softly and with great control, “please tell me if Anna is okay.”
    “Yes, she’s fine. She’s currently in a room in the main hospital.”
    “Why? What did he do to her?” He took a quick step forward.
    “Back up.”
    Caleb glared cruelly at the doctor but took a step backward.
    “She has a broken collarbone, but she’s going to be fine.”
    “A broken collarbone? No, no,” Caleb muttered to himself. “That bastard. The next time I see him, I’m gonna kill him.”
    “No, you won’t,” he said. “We’re dealing with him. You need to worry about yourself, Caleb.”
    “What kind of place is this? You let some psychotic maniac roam around, beating up innocent girls, and I’m the one who’s in trouble?”
    “We have zero tolerance for violence here,” Dr. Blackwell said. “No matter the circumstances, you engaged in a fight with another patient. We can’t overlook that.”
    Caleb dropped his head in his hands, with his fingers resting on his temples. “Well you’ve already put me in isolation for…I don’t even know how long. What else are you going to do to me?”
    “This is your first offense, so you’ll be released back to your room shortly after a doctor examines your injuries. But you need to stay calm. Are we clear?” Caleb glared at him and didn’t answer. “Are we clear?”
    “Yes,” Caleb whispered, lowering his head. The doctor turned around and headed toward the door.
    “One more thing,” he said, turning back around. “We’ll have to notify your father about this.”
    Caleb didn’t look up from the floor. “Is that really necessary?”
    “It is. That’s what you agreed to.”
    Caleb knew Dr. Blackwell had walked out because the room was quiet again, but moments later he heard a different voice.
    “Come on.” One of the Bouncers waited at the door for him. “And don’t try anything or you’ll be right back