*****Dinah's POV*****
I woke up in a bedroom that I didn't recognize. The walls were white, the sheets were white, I was even wearing white hospital gown. Something seemed wrong about this place. It didn't look like any hospital I've ever been in. I couldn't pick up a constant beeping sound or the cries of someone's loved ones as they received bad news. Was I back in solitary? No. The bed in comfortable. This was like no prison I have ever been in. Where am I now?
"Welcome to Radley" I hear a girl say. "Or, as the rest of us like to call it, a living hell hole". She laying with her head up towards the ceiling, reading a book. This girl had glasses and her hair tied into a bun with as piece of the ripped curtain. "Radley? Why does that sound familiar, but wrong at the same time?" I sat up and there was heavy throbbing in my head. "Woah there, Big City. Lay back down for a bit" she cooed as she helped me lay back down. "Who...who are you?" "My name's Victoria, but just call me Tori". Before I could ask anymore questions, the door to our room was opened.
"Oh, looks like it's time for group therapy. I can take you there, if you want". I just nodded and she took my hand, walking me into the halls. There were all types of people in this place. Old woman. Teenagers. Men with a face tattooed on their face. It was like, well...a freak show. I guess everyone had finally dealth with enough of my problems. They needed space and for me to get better.
"Ya know, Tori, you still haven't told me where I am". "Radley Mental Institution. Just about 20 miles from Philadelphia and right outside of little Rosewood, PA". I felt my heart drop when she said that. "We're not in New York. When did I leave New York. How did I get here?!" I started to breath heavily, the throbbing in my head picking up. "Woah there, Big City. You gotta relax okay? If the nurses see you like this, you be locked up in solitary confinement".
I looked up and saw two nurses walk by, looking down at me. "Is everything okay here?" I just nodded and let Tori do the talking. "Everything's fine. I dropped something and she was just helping me find it". The looked like they were about to question her, but her bright smile just called all bets off. With dimples like hers, she could rule the world. "Stick with me Hansen, and your time in here will be easy".
"You think you'll be in here the whole time I am?" I ask while we're in art therapy. They had us on pottery wheels, making vases or whatever. I was just trying to learn more about this place. "Well, I'm pretty much in here for my entire life". I looked over and expected to see a sad look on her face, but she didn't look sad at all. "What... What did you do to get in here?"
"I killed someone". She said it without her reaction changing. I almost killed someone and still had nightmares about it. But here she was, the girl who I thought was sweet and innocent... was really a murderer. "I had a reason, Big City. I wouldn't just kill someone who was innocent". "Then w-" I paused to clear my throat. "Why kill them then?" She turns away fun her vases, looking towards me. "You really wanna know?" I nod and she sighs, moving her chair closer to mine. "It all started back when I was fifteen".
"C'mon Tor. We gotta get back." We were just trying to get home. We lived in a really nice foster home, my little sister Blaire and I. It was late December when it all happened". "Let's take the shortcut up the ally. We can get there quicker and before dinner time". "I had no idea someone was following us, Big City. We were just dumb kids who were hungry and oblivious to the rest of the world. I should've just took the long when. Footsteps started echoing behind us. Heavy ones, like boots against the wet street below. Too heavy to be anyone else's but a man, and a large man at that. "By the time I knew we should've been running, it was too late". "Blaire. We need to run. NOW!" "Before I could even make a run for it, he grabbed me. One day, I was having dinner with my sister and foster family. The next, I was sold to a child sex-slave ring".
My heart dropped as she continued to tell her story. She was trapped with other girls until she turned 19. During her time, she managed to help a few girls escape, but she could never get away herself. She always had to make sure the others got away, and by that time, it was too late for her to run too. At 17, she was sold to one man, who had paid with diamonds instead of money. "He believed he was my soulmate, and that I was his. The entire time he was alive and I was with him, he tried to get me to believe that he actually loved me".
At age 19, she had his child. A baby boy named Augustus, that luckily, looked nothing like him. "Everything was perfect for him, he had gotten his little family he always wanted. But I knew I had to get my baby out of there, at least". One night, she flagged down cops and had them take the baby. Before they could come in and get her, the man tried to kill her. He wanted his family and thought she was taking that from him. "So, I grabbed the closest thing I could grab". The lighter was laying right there next to the candles on the table. All this would, I could burn this place down, no problem. "So I reached over, and I grabbed it and let him on fire. I could've ran right out, but I closed the door and watched him burn through the window on it. I watched as his sanctuary became his own prison. He finally knew what it would be like to be trapped with himself. There was no way he could run too. He would burn and scream until he was dead."
"That's why I'm here now. Because I sat there and watched him suffer. I was 19 when that happened, and I'm 22 now. I've been in here for about three years now". She lifted her hand and wiped a tear from her eyes. "My sister is taking care Augustus. He's a bubbly three year old. She tells me that he's always smiling and asking about his parents. I'm waiting for the day that she comes and lets him see me. Or at least let me write back when he sends letters to Mommy. I pray that I get out of here. When I do, I'm going to go get my son and live my life. I don't have to be afraid anymore. I'm finally free".
I learned a lot of things about Tori that day. For one, her real name was Victoria Loren Kelly. If she ever got out, she would pursue a musical career as "Tori Kelly". I found out she was talented enough to make it while we were in music therapy. She sang a song for me that she wrote, and it sounded incredible. She had a real gift. I know I could use my money to help her get out, and I know Lauren could make her a star in music if she mentored her. "You have a visitor Miss" a guard called out. "Who?" I looked behind me, "Me?" He nodded and gestured for me to follow.
I walked to the visiting room, I was kinda shocked at who I saw. "I-...I-ugh. Wh_". I couldn't even form words with her standing there. "You don't have to say anything, Dinah". My mind was still blown from her standing there. "I d-didn't think I'd ever see you again" I stuttered nervously. I could feel tears start to sting at my eyes. When I looked back up at her, she had a wide smile on her face.
"I told you it wouldn't be forever".
