In The Eye of the Beholder | Jonathan Crane

January 2006

You're not such an easy target

One minute I know you then I don't

        -Who Are You (SVRCINA)

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"You're still on the asylum story?" Vicki asked me. I nodded, barely paying attention to her. I flipped through the papers on my desk. Normally, it was organized. As of late, my desk had been a mess.

"What are you trying to find?"

"Anything. Something fucked up is going on at that place. Whatever it is, it needs to be stopped."

"Any leads?" she asked.

"Not any good ones. The only thing worth anything came from one of the patients. Not sure how that'll hold up, though." I said. And it was true. The information was coming from doctors and guards who didn't want to talk. And the one who did talk was insane.

"Any names get dropped?"

"Two. He mentioned there were others, but not as bad as the two he gave me. One was Jeremiah Arkham. The other was Hugo Strange," I told her. I didn't mention Jonathan had been another name.

"Hugo Strange? I've never heard of him."

"Neither have I. No one has, apparently. I've been trying to find records of him. I can't find anything," I said as I continued to rifle through stacks of paper. "No bank records, no birth records. Nothing."

"So he just appeared?" Vicki asked. "Did you ask your boyfriend about him?"

"Yeah, Jonathan said Arkham hired him. That's all he knew. Strange was hired about six months ago."

"Do you need help with the story?" she asked. I paused. It would help to have someone else looking for information.

I just didn't want her finding out about Jonathan.

"If you hear anything, let me know, will you?" I asked. "I'll credit you."

"Of course. Good luck, Amber."

"Thanks, Vicki."

I was perplexed by the mysterious Hugo Strange. I was pretty sure he was German. And everything I'd told Vicki was true. That was it. That was all I knew. It was nothing.

Dr. Arkham was the nephew of Amadeus Arkham, the founder of the asylum. He wasn't very well known either. But there were at least records of him.

Jonathan beyond the age of eighteen was unknown to me. I should have known something, but he never told me anything. I wanted to start with him, but I knew the others were more important. And less personal.

"Start at the top," I muttered. "Start at the top and it'll be easier to get to the others."

I flipped through the files on Jeremiah Arkham. He had a belief that his patients could be rehabilitated and housed in society through the use of aversion therapy. Even ones like Zsasz. He also had recently renovated the entire asylum. As far as I knew, Arkham had no previous places of employment. No employers I could talk to. The only place I could think of where someone could tell me something about him was Gotham University.

I reached for the phone.

"Hello?"

"This is Amber Connery from the Gotham Gazette. Can I speak to Dr. Long?"

"A moment, please."

I held the phone to my ear.

"He's available at the moment. Please wait as I transfer you."