On Trial

Mr Trellis

Before this chapter begins, I just wanted to thank you all for 4K views! That's insane! 🥳🥳🥳

Madeline checked her watch, again.

Cassandra had been in the infirmary for just over an hour. Madeline could hear her desperate cries from the other side of the wall.

The urge to jump up, run in and comfort her, grew stronger and stronger, but despite how much she'd argued with the medical staff, they refused to let her in.

"D-dad!"

Madeline's heart shattered. The woman was begging for her father, who she hadn't seen or heard from, in months.

"Dad!" Cassandra howled again, before a medic told her to "calm down".

The door opened, and Madeline turned to see a nurse, staring at a clipboard.

"Can't you let me in, for just ten minutes? She's terrified!"

"I'm sorry, Ma'am," the nurse replied, tapping a pencil against the clipboard, "but we've already told you, that only a relative of the prisoner can be in with them, during the testing."

Madeline sighed.

"Alright, just tell her that I'm right outside, and give her some comfort. She needs it."

The nurse merely nodded, before strolling in the opposite direction.

Cassandra's world was a blur of pain and fear. Her chest was throbbing, her head was spinning, she was coughing up so much gunk, she'd made herself sick, and she was boiling, despite her violent tremors telling her otherwise.

"DAD!" She screamed for the hundredth time, squeezing the balled up, handkerchief in her pocket.

"We've already told you, 789, your father isn't here, now would you please stay still?!" A medic, who Cassandra had learnt was called, "Dr Michel Trunt", yelled, "you're making our job really hard!"

Cassandra couldn't stay still. She kept shifting around on the bed, uncomfortably, continuously kicking the blanket away, only to have someone pull it back over her, again.

"Doris!" Dr Trunt, called out, "pass me that rag and that bucket of water!"

Cassandra whimpered and flinched as Dr Trunt, moved her hair back, ready for a wet cloth to be placed on her forehead, a moment later.

What seemed like torturous hours of screaming, crying, begging, coughing and puking, went by, for Cassandra, before the medics finally came up with a diagnosis.

"789, we are sorry to inform you that you have Chronic Bronchitis," Dr Trunt said, "we'll need to keep you hydrated, fed and well rested. We will also need to give you a lot of medicine. I don't want any fussing from you, do you understand?"

Cassandra nodded, slowly. She couldn't believe this was happening to her. Why did she have to have this, on top of everything she was already going through?

At that moment, she couldn't do anything, but bury her face in her hands and cry in frustration, causing her to launch into a coughing fit.

"Don't start with the waterworks, young lady!" Dr Trunt scolded, "you need to grow up and learn to take things on the chin! Now, it's getting late, and you need to rest."

Cassandra turned towards the tiny window, beside her bed. The sky was pitch black and the stars were bright. Dr Trunt was right, it was late.

"She has Chronic Bronchitis."

Madeline stood up and frowned at the nurse.

"N-no! Oh, that poor girl! Please, let me see her!"