Page 4 of Fought and Freed

Maddy didn’t experience any of that when Mike drugged her. It had been like all her bad dreams came alive.

* * *

On Sunday, a new female nurse helped Maddy take a shower.

While she washed, Maddy learned that she’d meet the therapist on Monday.

Maddy was not looking forward to talking about what happened to her, but cleaning off all the sweat felt terrific.

After the shower, Maddy stayed up a little and watched some TV.

Early Monday morning, a male nurse brought in a tray of food. “This is the last tray you’ll have brought to you. If you want to eat after this, you’ll need to go to the cafeteria.”

He set the tray down at the little table next to the windows. “The doctor will come and get you for your personal therapy session at ten am today.”

Maddy stood and moved to the table. “Thank you.”

When he left, she picked at her food. She wasn’t sure if she wasn’t hungry because she was nervous about talking to the therapist or if it was still the withdrawal symptoms. Everything she ate tasted like sawdust.

At ten am, a knock sounded on her door.

“Ms. Walsh?” asked a cheerful voice.

Maddy stood. “Yes.”

A gentleman with a warm smile walked into her room. He was bald, and his skin tone reminded her of rich mahogany. His eyes were a warm, inviting honey color. There was something about him that made her relax.

“Good afternoon. I’m Dr. Hayes.” He took a step toward her. “How are you feeling?”

Maddy rested a hand on the table for support. “Like I’m having the worst period of my life and have the flu on top of it.”

“So, cramps, throwing up, achy, fever, all the good stuff?” He glanced at her plate. “I see you didn’t eat much. You really should try to eat more.”

Maddy shook her head. “All I would do is throw it back up.”

“You might, but your body will still get some of what it needs to get healthy,” he said. “You ready for our first session?”

“Honestly?” She shook her head again. “No.”

He chuckled. “If I had a dollar for every time someone said that, I’d be rich. Are you up for taking a walk to my office? Or would you prefer we talk here?”

Maddy’s mood lightened at the prospect of seeing more of the rehab center. “I’d like to get out of this room, if you don’t mind, so your office sounds great.”

“Good. It will give housekeeping time to change your sheets. They need the room for a bit.” He waves his hand in front of his nose before smiling. “Just joking. This way, please.”

As they walked down the halls to Dr. Hayes’s office, he started by explaining that Maddy’s case was a learning curve for him, too. “I’ve never had a patient who was forced to take drugs, and this is also the first time we’ve heard of this drug, so we’re not sure how long your recovery will take or how hard your cravings will be.”

It looked like they were in this together, after all.

“Here we are.” He stepped into an office. “Please, make yourself comfortable.”

When Maddy stepped into the room, it was nothing like what she imagined. It was warm and inviting with the space divided into two sections.

On one side was his desk with two chairs in front of it. Large windows looked out into a beautiful garden on the other side of the room, which held a living room set up.

Dr. Hayes settled into a reclining chair.

Maddy sat on the couch and grabbed the pillow in the corner, pulling it up against her.

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