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CZ Studio and Radio Verte presents The Wild Wind by Corey Zimmerman.

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Chapter 14.

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The Wild Wind by Corey Zimmerman.

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Soon Fanny began to show them unmistakable signs of tuberculosis as the waves spread across the

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hilltop. And Dr. Zola was incredibly paranoid, suspecting Fanny was up to her usual antics.

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And he instructed the nurses to watch to ensure she was not eating soap. However,

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Fanny's symptoms seemed genuine enough. She couldn't eat and when she did, she vomited.

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She lost weight and coughed through the night. She was feverish. And the microscope showed the

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presence of a large number of tuberculosis bacillus. It would have been impossible for

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Fanny to manipulate such lab results. So the doctor decided to send her to the

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ward for tuberculosis patients. Fanny was gracious as the colony provided her an excellent

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opportunity to demonstrate her culinary talent. And the colony ate well from the day of her

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transfer, often dining outside upon white linen under the alps.

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More tea? Fanny asked a woman who trembled so severely the cup had to be refilled every

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few moments. Shush Cecil, I'm not faking it for roast beef. Fanny, these roast beef sandwiches

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are delicious. What is your secret? A nurse asked. Ah, zhoo? Fanny replied. Ah, what?

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The nurse asked. Zhoo? Fanny replied. It was no surprise such a radical change in

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her diet and environment brought about a rapid change in her physical condition.

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She gained weight and most of her symptoms were gone by early fall.

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As Fanny's health continued to improve, vigilance relaxed. And instead of being a

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closely guarded patient, Fanny became not only a valuable aid in the kitchen,

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but in the care of the sick as well. Fanny had become indispensable.

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Hello? Hello? Can you please send someone? One of the patients has gone missing,

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Nurse Helen pleaded into the telephone. I just did the head count and I saw her

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cot is empty. I swear the last time I checked she was there. I don't know what happened.

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She was here one second and then she was gone. Her name? Fanny. Her name is Fanny.

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Unlike most of the staff, Grandma Nurse chose not to live on campus. Although

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nurses were generally expected not to marry, Grandma Nurse had been married for decades

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to a lazy man. A man who sat at home doing this or that, mostly nothing at all.

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Grandma Nurse fed and cared for him for reasons one cannot easily comprehend.

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Many were utterly surprised she had never plunged a steak knife into his heart as he

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chewed on a pork chop. He was a selfish man. He forgot her birthday so often that Grandma

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Nurse made her way that May down to Beringer's department store all by herself to buy herself

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a present celebrating her seventh decade. A lovely handbag. And each morning Grandma

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Nurse made the journey from Grandview by train. She found solace in the routine,

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in the orange hues reflecting off the river surface and in the ghee spooked by the train's

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whistle as they batted their mighty wings from the placid orange hue into the brilliant

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morning sky. It warmed her heart and she forgot all about the pork chops, if even for a time.

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Each morning she also made the arduous climb up the creaking planks of the hilltop to afford

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those pork chops. Halfway to the top, she would plop down and rest a spell on a bench to catch

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her breath, which provided the most splendid views of the dear old river below. She loved

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the vista as much as the oversized handbag which now sat upon her lap, the finest possession

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she had ever owned. As she put her mirror back in her bag after checking her silver

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hair, a young lady appeared seemingly out of nowhere and sat down beside her. Still

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a bit out of breath, it's a beautiful morning, said the lady. What a splendid view.

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Yes, it's quite lovely, said Grandma Nurse. You look very familiar, dear. Are you here

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to visit a patient? She asked. I am actually here in search of a job. I am a traveling

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nurse. And what is your name? asked Grandma Nurse. Amy. My name is Amy.

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Filling out a temporary employment form, Nurse Bird asked, and how old are you, Amy? 24.

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And where are you from? Southern Illinois. May I see your certifications, please?

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Yes, they are right here, said Amy, digging through her handbag.

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Hmm, Marion State Hospital. Well, I must inform you, we do things a bit differently here.

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When did you want to begin? Well, as soon as possible.

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I see. At some point, we will sit down and discuss our policies. But first, I assign

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you Nightwatch Shift in Ward C, and we'll see where to go from there.

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That evening, Amy arrived for her shift on time, and all went well. And after her shift,

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she returned to her room, a routine she followed day after day, rarely venturing out and never

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leaving the hilltop. Amy formed no friendships, seldom interacted with other nurses, and only

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remained in the dining hall long enough to eat a large meal, after which she returned

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to her room. Amy's reclusive lifestyle bothered no one, most assuming she was but a shy girl,

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and many failed to even notice her at all. Bookbinder, of course, noticed Amy at once.

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Their eyes first met in the dining hall. Amy spotted him staring at her from a table away.

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She gave him a tiny smile in return, and from that day forth, Book could not take his eyes

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off of Amy. Two weeks had passed without word of Fanny,

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and Dr. Zola began to desperately hope, perhaps Fanny was passing as an ordinary member of

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society undisturbed. But Fanny's antics had become a bad influence on several other patients

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by now. While most who had begun running off were perfectly harmless, a good many people

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did not feel safe with the patients wandering about their farms. After a patient or two,

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a badly frightened woman while their husbands were off in the fields.

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Hello, what are you doing here? Mr. Mann's asked the strange man he found in his barn.

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Tired in a coat and undershirt only, no pants, but wearing a pair of shoes, the man said,

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I have a dozen chickens here, dressed and ready for market, and I'm waiting for it

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to quit raining so I can take them to town. Then he asked, where's that white horse that

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belongs here? Why, it's in the pasture, said Mr. Mann's.

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Well, I want to, demanded the strange man. It's an awfully chilly morning. You better

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come to the house and get a cup of coffee before starting to town, said Mr. Mann's.

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Once in the house, Mr. Mann's was able to call the asylum and notify them a patient

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had arrived at his farm. Nurse Kate soon arrived, with a few other

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attendants, and the curious farmer offered them a cup of coffee as well.

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Then Kate explained to Mr. Mann's, his name is Sal. You used to be a farmer yourself,

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weren't you Sal? Before moving to the hilltop? Isn't that right?

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Nurse Kate instructed the attendants to stay inside and enjoy their coffee, then walked

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outside with Mr. Mann's to investigate what Sal had done in the barn. For the farmer was

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so surprised by his presence and so eager to calm him, he wasn't entirely sure.

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They found one of his horses fully harnessed, and a dozen of his best chickens with their

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heads rung off and scattered about the barn floor. But the chickens were piled together.

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It was not known how long it took Sal to kill the chickens, but they had been taken from

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another building some distance away, and it was supposed Sal carried them to the barn

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alive one or two at a time before wringing their heads off, all the while nude from the

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ways down.

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The following day, a patient named Clyde, whose legs had been amputated after having

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them frozen during an escape attempt from a poorhouse up north, was found missing. The

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night went by and all the next day, and on the third day around noon, a telephone message

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came in saying that the legless man was in a cornfield at the Walters farm four miles

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to the north of the hospital. The caller further stated the man was trying to set fire to the

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corn stalks and that he was afraid to go near him.

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Nurse Kate went to the walkers in a buggy immediately. The road was very rough, and

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the trip was a very hard one.

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When she finally arrived at the farm, Clyde was gone, and the farmer did not know what

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had become of him. By the time Nurse Kate returned to the hilltop, Clyde was back in

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his cottage.

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Clyde could evidently get over ground with his stubs, a good deal better than a horse

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with legs.

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Soon the press had begun to have a hay day with the patient's escapades, and Dr. Zola

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dropped the paper to his desk and rubbed his eyes until they were beet red. Then there

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was a knock on his door.

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What is it? he asked.

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Doctor, I have some bad news. Raymond's body was discovered at the bottom of the bluff

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in the willow beside the tracks.

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Raymond had only days prior entered a man's house, stripped himself naked, took the man's

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pipe, commenced smoking, and when asked what he was doing, answered,

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Get out the way. I'm the boss of this here place.

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The medical examiner determined that Raymond died from a major head injury, most likely

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after being hit by a train. The cerebellum was found to be softened. There was also softening

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of the gray substance of the convulsions of the cerebrum, especially on the left hemisphere,

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at its central lobe and superior surface.

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Thank you, Kate, said the doctor. Oh, a grandma nurse would like to have a word with you.

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The following day, Dr. Zola summoned nurse Amy to his office.

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How are you, Amy? asked the doctor. Very pleasant, thank you. And how are you adjusting to life

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at the hilltop with your duties?

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Well, I rather enjoy my duties, doctor.

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The doctor took a moment before pulling a letter from an envelope. I wanted to bring

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a matter to your attention, Amy. I have received a letter from your mother, and she seems to

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be awfully desperate to hear from you. She says that you left home on the first day of

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the month to work at our institution, but that you have not written a line since. Do

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you not believe you are acting a bit neglectful in your duties as a daughter?

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You should write your mother immediately, he said frankly. But, doctor, Amy began to

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rebuke, but determined to squash the petty ordeal at once. He interrupted her, again

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insisting she write the letter immediately. He opened his desk drawer, removed a piece

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of paper and pen, and set them on the desk in front of Amy. He grabbed a chair from the

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corner of his office, saying, go on, have a seat. She sat, picked up the pen, and scratched

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off a quick note.

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I am doing well, Amy. A-M-I-E. The doctor folded it and placed the letter into a stamped

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envelope, which he addressed. Now please, if you will place it in the mailbox. Amy took

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the envelope and followed the doctor to the box on the wall just outside his office. She

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looked up at the doctor as nurse Kate watched out of the corner of her eye. The doctor nodded

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his head, and Amy dropped the envelope into the box. Thank you, that will be all, he said.

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The doctor then returned to his office considering the incident resolved, and the doctor resumed

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Institutional Life's daily routine, disturbed only by the thought of the sensation Fanny

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might create while at large.

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Seven days later, the doctor once again summoned Amy to his office. As she entered, he did

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not hesitate to read off a telegram from her mother, which read,

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Letter from my daughter was not written or signed by her. I am afraid she is ill, and

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that the news is being withheld from me. I am coming at once. My daughter writes her

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name Amy A-M-Y, and the fact that the message was signed Amy A-M-I-E confirms my suspicion.

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Your mother has informed me that she will come on the first available train from Southern

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Illinois. I am sure you are aware it must be an arduous trip for her. I am sure she

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will arrive fatigued and overcome with nerves, said the doctor. I feel awful she must travel

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all this way, but I understand her worries, and I hope upon seeing you her fears may subside.

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When Amy's mother arrived, the doctor asked Nurse Kate to bring Amy to his office. The

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old woman's face was as pale as her ghostly white hair, and she wore a pair of tiny round

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glasses, and the long life in the dirt-poor South was evident by the drabbyness of her

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attire. When there was a slight knock on the office door, the doctor stepped outside, saying

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he wished not to intrude upon their reunion, and as he left, Amy walked in. She stood silently

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in the corner, and Ms. Murphy, crinkling her brow, held her old worn-out purse before her

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breasts.

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Where is my daughter? she asked, but Amy remained silent, keeping her eyes to the floor.

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Look at me, demanded Ms. Murphy. Amy looked up, and upon seeing the strange girl's eyes,

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Ms. Murphy knew something was not right. The mother stood and opened the office door and

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hollered, I want to see my daughter right now. Where is she? The doctor walked into

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the office and shut the door behind him. What's going on here? asked Ms. Murphy. The doctor

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looked at Amy with her head down in the corner, and raised his arm toward her, saying, but

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this is your Amy right here. That ain't my Amy, she said. I ain't never laid eyes on

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this girl a day in my life, and I certainly hadn't raised her. I should know, after all.

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Growing into a panic, the mother let out a shriek, causing Nurse Kate to rush into the

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office.

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Ms. Murphy screamed, that's not my daughter. My daughter has green eyes, not the black

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eyes of the devil. I will hold you all equally responsible and evoke the widow's curse upon

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your heads.

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The doctor then decided to turn to Amy for a solution. Standing at the far end of the

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room, her eyes again upon the floor, well dressed in her nurse's uniform, rather stiff

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and nervous, but otherwise unmovable by this heart-rending experience. As the doctor began

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to question her why she refused to comfort her hysterical mother, Amy let out a maniacal

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shriek, followed by a burst of hysterical laughter, before falling faint to the floor.

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As she laid convulsing, her nurse's cap came off, and a blonde wig came with it. The doctor

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then bent down and whispered in her ear, Fanny. Fanny opened her eyes and whimpered, oh doctor,

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now come out of that fit, said Dr. Zola. I just wanted to keep this up a week longer

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till payday. I was going to buy a ticket out west and never bother you again, I swear.

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How did you know it was me?

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Well done, Grandma. That will be all, said the doctor.

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Grandma nurse smiled as she removed her own wig of white hair. She let down her long silver

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locks before taking off her tiny round glasses and using a rag nurse cape provided, wiped

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the excessive white foundation from her face, instantly looking two decades younger.

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Damn it to hell, said Fanny, as a great battle of mind against mind ensued.

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Fanny, tomorrow we will surrender you to the penitentiary, the doctor said. You were only

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committed here pending your recovery, and you have failed to recover. The law must take

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its course. Perhaps while reflecting in solitary confinement, you will understand how your

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lack of proper reasoning has sabotaged your well-being.

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Don't send me back to the pen, begged Fanny. I will die in solitary. I can't live on bread

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and water alone. If you send me back, you condemn me to starving to death. Unbeknownst

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to Fanny, she had just put herself in checkmate.

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Fanny, I hear you are fond of the roast beef that we serve here at the hilltop. Are you

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not? asked the doctor.

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Why, yes, it is quite good, said Fanny with a nod.

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Oh, you got me, Doc. You got me, said Fanny, in surrender.

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It's time.

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they all died's

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still alive

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you