OS: Another Shot

"Take me back to him, take me back" A scream erupts from her, she tries to leap out of the bed but fails. "Take me back, please. Please" she begged, tears cascading down her cheeks as she tugged and failed to free herself from the bonds that tied her down to the bed. "Please... please" she pleaded repeatedly.

She didn't want to be here, she wanted to be back in her room curled up in her own bed, she wanted to feel his arms curled around her. She turned on to her side pulling uncaring of the bruising she is causing herself.

"Dr Khurana, shall I give..."

"No, we're not going to make her sleep again" Maan sighed heavily pulling off his glasses and wiped them. He stared at the young woman on the other side of the wall watching as she tugged and cried to be released.

He slipped his glasses back on, he knocked loudly to make her hear the loud sounds over her cries. She paused and looked around shifting on the bed.

"It's Dr Khurana, can I come in?" he called out.

The name was familiar, she frowned and twisted her legs back when the door opened. "Hello, Geet" he greeted with a gentle smile.

"Let me go back to him" she whimpered. "I don't want to be here" she shook her head and looked around. "Please... let me go back to him"

"To who, Geet?" he walked in slowly and sat on the chair on the other side not wanting to scare her further.

"Jay. I want to go back to Jay" she tugged at the material and looked at him silently, her eyes pleading with desperation.

"Geet, I'm only going to open one so you can sit up and talk to me" he told her standing up and moving close.

"No... No... no don't come next to me" she muttered.

Maan paused, he didn't move from his place as he waited for her next direction.

She looked surprised when he didn't continue forward.

"Would you like me to open one hand?" Maan asked when she didn't say anything, she was curiously looking at him, her body in an awkward position and her neck aching. She was lying on the hardened bed, her wrists bound to either side of the metal frame of the bed and her neck bent to see Maan near the end of her bed.

"Geet..." Maan prompted.

She nodded but didn't say anything.

Maan approached her slowly, he worked on the knots and released one arm.

Geet swiftly sat up and reached to the other side of the bed attempting to pull off the material on her other arm when he caught her wrist.

"Geet, that's not good. I freed your one hand to make you sit up" he told her not releasing her wrist. "Now, you can decide. We can both sit up and talk or you're going to lie back down, and I'm going to tie you again" he replied.

She shook her head instantly, she didn't want to be tied down and lying on the bed anymore.

"Okay" he slowly released her wrist and moved back to his chair.

"I want to go" she told him sitting up and leaned back against the headboard.

"Geet, you know we brought you here so we can make you better" he informed gently.

"No, no" she whimpered shaking her head. "I'm going to be better when I go back to Jay" she added. "I want him back" she cried rubbing her eyes with her free hand.

"I know, I know" Maan appeared to understand. "Why don't we talk about Jay?" he suggested which made her perk up.

"Are you going to take me back to him?"

"I might, tell me more about him" Maan suggested.

"He buys me sweets and brings me films when I'm good" she grinned. "We once went to the park and we played with the ducks, we played football as well" she clapped. "I won".

"And what if you were bad?" Maan questioned gently.

Her bright smile faltered, her lips trembled. She whimpered and dipped her head down. "He's mean, he hits me"

"That was wrong of him" Maan reassured.

"No! I deserve it" Geet snapped. "I make him mad, Jay does everything for me. He loves me, he gives me new clothes and I only make him sad" she mumbled. "Can I go to him now? I don't want to make Jay sad" she cried.

"Geet, Jay isn't going to be at the house you lived in" Maan leaned forward explaining to her gently.

"Why?"

"Because he's a bad man and he was taken away"

"No, no, bring him back. Jay is going to be very mad" she cried. "Take me to him... Take me to him" she sobbed.

"Geet, Geet" Maan stood, he moved to bed and sat on the edge. "Shh... Shh" he whispered gently being careful not to touch her.

"Don't he like me anymore? He says my face isn't young anymore" she cried looking at Maan.

"Don't listen to what he says, he doesn't know anything. You're young and beautiful" Maan assured calmly.

"Is it because of the baby? I hate the baby. She make me fat and ugly, Jay don't like me anymore" her shoulders shook with her hysterical sobs.

"No, no" Maan shook his head. "Geet..." he tried to find words to make her understand however she was clearly overwhelmed. He stood and walked out of the room pulling out the key and locked the door behind. He didn't want to tie her wrist again to the bed railing, to ensure she wouldn't escape he settled with locking the room door.

"Check on Geet in half an hour" he informed Amanda at the nurse's station before walking to his office. He slumped into his chair sighing heavily brushing a hand through his hair. He pulled off his glasses placing them on his desk and rubbed his tired eyes.

He pulled open his laptop and opened the client's files, he opened Geet's, he was going to scroll down and write the notes for today, however he looked at the notes at the beginning.

Background

The client is a 27yr old female, diagnosed with Stockholm syndrome.

She was recently rescued from her captivator Jay Aryan who'd held her for 6yrs. Client is a victim of sexual abuse, physical and psychological abuse. She suffers from Stockholm syndrome following the capture of Jay Aryan believing him to be her safety net. Client refuses to acknowledge anything else.

The first note written a year ago and there hasn't been much progress other than she talking a little more about Jay when he promised to release her wrist. After that, it becomes a repeated spin of her breaking down and begged to return to Jay.

His fists curls into his lap as he thought of what she must have gone through. Having to live with your captive for 6 years and unwittingly loving them without realising it.

Jay had conditioned her so much that it was hard to break the mental barriers which refused to allow any logical explanations, to the extent where she failed to recognise her children.

"Daddy" Antara excitedly called pushing the door open and entered, Maan smiled seeing his daughter skip into the room.

"Woah, you're getting bigger" Maan chuckled as she jumped onto his lap wrapping her arms around his middle. He lowered his head kissing his daughter's temple.

"I came second in my class, daddy" she informed happily.

"Oh darling, that's such great news. Daddy is going to treat you to ice cream, alright?" he asked which she'd nodded to eagerly climbing down and running to her corner to play with her toys.

"Ah there's my other sweetheart" Maan smiled as Amrita entered with Eliza in her arms. He stood and approached his sister taking Eliza into his arms. "Hey angel" he kissed her cheeks.

Eliza burrowed her face into the hollow of his neck giggling.

"Dr Khurana" Amanda knocked on the door and entered. "Oh hello" she greeted with a smile and turned back to Maan. "I've had to minister sleeping pills to Geet, she was getting hysterical and hyperventilating" she explained.

"What?" Maan handed Eliza to his sister and rushed out of the room. "How is she now?"

"She's sleeping"

"Amanda, we cannot administer anymore sleeping drugs. It's going to cause damage to her brain functions and body" he entered the room and halted.

He checked the charts and checked the machines, her heartbeats were normal and so was her breathing. "Note on the charts before administering to check with me" he told Amanda.

"Yes, Dr Khurana" Amanda nodded grabbing the charts and pulling out her pen jotting down the note.

"Maan"

He turned around curiously wondering who was calling him by his first name, no one at the clinic called him by his name. "Charlie" he smiled seeing his old boss.

He stepped outside closing the door behind him and walked down the hallway.

"You've set up your clinic nicely" Charlie glanced around.

"What brings you here?"

"I just wanted to see what my best colleague is up to, and I secretly hoped you were drowning in debt and wanted to come back and work for me" Charlie answered.

"I'm very happy here, it's my own clinic and I run it as I want to" he chuckled. "C'mon in" he gestured Charlie into his office.

"Amrita, why don't you take the kids for ice cream? I'll join you in about 15 minutes" he suggested to which she nodded and ushered Antara out with her.

"Okay, what will it take for you to return?" Charlie asked once they were alone in the office. "Look Maan, you were one of my best specialists. And I want you back"

"Charlie, right now nothing. I love running my own clinic, the hours, the flexibility and I don't have to be running back and forth a gazillion times" he reminded.

"But this is a clinic, I don't understand why you'd want to leave high paying job. 2 million, might I remind you" he frowned.

"Charlie" Maan chuckled. "You're your own boss, would you go back to the previous hospital you worked at if you weren't chief?"

"Alright, fine. I get that. I'll negotiate a new contract where on paper I'm your boss but you give me a schedule you want to work on and I'll do what I can with legal".

"I'll like you to meet someone" Maan smiled standing up, Charlie nodded and followed him down the hallway.

Maan paused at the wide square window which allowed them a view of inside the room. "You see that young woman on the bed?" he asked.

"Yeah" Charlie nodded.

"That's my wife" Maan informed. "She was kidnapped a couple of weeks after she'd given birth to our daughter, for 6 years she was held captive being brainwashed and abused every single day. I've had to diagnose my own wife with Stockholm syndrome. Her captor was only caught when there was a drug bust in his home and they found my wife in the basement with her baby, Eliza in her arms. She was brought to the city hospital, all she did was want to return. She didn't recognise the baby nor anyone in my family or even our daughter. I had her transferred to my clinic so I could watch over her and help her. For the past year, I... I have to watch her cry for her captor and tell me stories" he muttered and glanced over his shoulder at his unconscious wife. "She's the reason I'm not going to return to the hospital" he turned to Charlie.

"Oh God. I'm so sorry, Maan. I had no idea" Charlie looked at him apologetically and apologised profusely.

"Its okay" he waved it off. "But I hope you now understand the reason behind my leaving" he replied.

"Of course" Charlie nodded and glanced at the young woman. He then bid bye to his former colleague and left him.

Maan stared, he touched the glass wishing he could cradle her into his arms and take away her pain, but it was seeming further and further as each day passed.

How does he bring his wife back from this? He had no answers, for the past year he'd hoped to gain her trust enough to progress in making her remember. But it turns out, his wife was a severe case.

Maan spared a final glace at his wife through the glass window then turned walking down the hallway to meet his sister and his two children.

He was going to come back tomorrow and try again, he will continue to try for the rest of his life if he has to give his wife a second shot at life. He wanted to be able to enjoy life as everyone else, he wanted her creating memories with her children, with him, he wanted to see her smile, he wanted to hear her laugh. He was going to return through the double doors tomorrow to give it another shot.