On Trial

Daphne

Thank you so much to Jess for helping me out on this chapter, especially the history of mental health side of things!

And a thank you to Alessandra, on AO3, who on Chapter 46, gave me a very brilliant plot idea! All credit goes to them!

And finally, thank you so much to you all for over 14k reads on here, that's crazy!!

Doris followed Pauline back into Cassandra's room, where the young woman was fast asleep. She had tear stains on her cheeks and her hair was a mess.
Betty was sitting next to her, stroking her thumb up and down the back of her hand. She didn't hesitate in shooting Pauline a scaving glare, the moment she laid eyes on her.

"What!" Pauline snapped, aggressively, "It's not my fault she's out of control!"

"We told you that she didn't like being grabbed and that she reacted badly to being yelled at, especially directly in the face, multiple times, but you didn't listen!" Doris snapped.

"Because I have had professional training with people like her! I know what I'm doing!"

"And you think that we don't? We've spent much more time with her, than you have, and while we don't know everything and Jones has been rather...clueless on a few fronts, we understand that what Cassandra needs is patience and gentle care-"

"No! What the brat needs is to be strictly kept in her place! See what happens when she goes out of control!" Pauline shrieked, pointing to her head.

"You grabbed her and held her down, when she was already in a state of distress! She told you so many times to leave her alone, and you wouldn't, you were invading her personal space! How would you react, if you were in her position?" Doris argued.

"I wouldn't be in her position because I'm not a frea-"

A whimper cut Pauline off and made her turn around.

Cassandra was slowly blinking, trying to get used to the light. She looked confused and a little bit pale.

Doris and Betty instantly focused their attention on their patient.

"Hi sweetheart," Doris whispered.

The words "I'm so sorry" were balanced on the edge of her tongue, but a lump in her throat was preventing them from going anywhere else.

"I-I feel s-sick," Cassandra complained.

"You're probably just feeling a little groggy, lovely," Betty said, tucking the plush owl next to her, "Do you want a glass of water?"

The brunette nodded.

Pauline straightened her back and folded her arms across her chest.

It only took Cassandra a moment to notice her. When she did, she backed herself up against the metal headboard and felt her heart flutter.

"I-I'm so-sorry." she squeaked out, "P-please, d-don't put m-me back t-to sleep!"

Pauline's stern frown, turned into a vile snarl.

"THAT'S the only reason why you're sorry? Because you're worried about what will happen to YOU, you selfish little-!"

"That's enough!" Doris bellowed.

It was at that moment that Betty came back in. She noticed the tense atmosphere and saw Cassandra's anxious expression, but decided that her questions could wait until later. She walked over to Cassandra and placed a glass on her bedside table.

"There you go, honey."

"T-thank you," Cassandra replied, quietly.

Betty was about to smile at her, when she noticed the beads of sweat trickling down her forehead.