Chapter 3:

That night Lexi spent almost the entire night searching for Caleb on the internet and was horrified when she found out what kind of a man he really was.

Four people. Caleb Castillo has murdered four females. Four innocent females.

He was, or rather he still is, a sadistic murderer who experiences sick and twisted pleasure of torturing his defenceless victims until they're on the brink of death before finishing them off by way of strangulation with his bare hands.

His methods of torture were no picnic either. From blood draining, to the infliction of 3rd degree burns as well as suffocation.

Lexi couldn't breathe. There mere thought that she had been in the same room as this man, who was a brutal murderer without knowing, suffocated her. There's a twisted joke there and had she been even a fraction of a psychopath as Caleb, she'd have voiced it at least.

Caleb certainly didn't look violent when Lexi had met him. Hell, he didn't even look like a psychopath. Sure, he was a little brooding and had hard set eyes that looked a little...angry. But he didn't look violent.

In fact, if she hadn't googled him to find all these horrifying autopsy photos, she never would've believed some handwritten file about him being a serial murderer.

Lexi knew there must've been something wrong with him to have been admitted to a sanatorium. But this? This was beyond wrong. This was absolutely goddamm disgusting on a whole other level.

She was genuinely scared when various internet links proved just how messed up Caleb Castillo was. But she physically couldn't bring herself to refrain from looking at the computer screen. It was as if her eyes were stuck there.

First victim: Veronica Miles. 25. Female. British. Light skinned and dark haired. Height and weight. 5ft3 and 8stones. Death caused by 3rd degree burns and strangulation.

Second victim: Tori Saunders. 24. Female. British. Light skinned and dark haired. 5ft5 and 9stones. Death caused by dislocation of limb and strangulation.

Third victim: Alexandria Manelli. 26. British-Italian. Tan skin and dark haired. 5ft1 and 7 stones. Death caused by several fractured bones and strangulation.

Fourth victim: Jessica Byron. 27. British. Light skin and dark haired. 5ft4 7 1/2 stones. Death caused by several stab wounds and strangulation.

Lexi couldn't believe it. She forced herself to tear her eyes from the computer screen but only succeeded for a second when they glued back onto the shocking sight.

She thinks to herself that this couldn't possibly be true. She begs for it not to be true. How could someone do this? How could anyone do this? She had went and seen this man for herself. He seemed harmless. He didn't seem like he was capable of such unspeakable, unthinkable things. He wasn't even capable of speaking for gods sake.

Lexi googles his victims too. It's too hard not to when there's no explanation for any of the deaths. Each girl she searches comes up with a few British newspaper articles about them and as she gets to the last few articles about his latest victims, the articles seem to conclude that the killings were random but Lexi begs to differ.

It was uncanny how alike the victims looked.

Lexi prints pictures of all four of them and lays out in front her the order they were killed.

Her eyes slide slowly, almost sluggishly over the features of each woman and the resemblance scares her. Each have long brown hair, big brown eyes, pale but perfected skin tones and almost identically built bodies. All short and skinny.

Lexi forces away the unwanted and uneasy feeling at the pit of her stomach when she realises that she too has similar characteristics to Caleb's victims. But she concludes that she's just being silly and it's this new found hatred and information about a psychopath whom she has to observe that makes her paranoid.

Besides, she's has more differences to the victims than similarities. He seems to go for those over 25 and Lexi is only 19. Lexi's face is also much rounder than any of the victims and she's pretty sure her hair colour is much lighter too. Yeah, definitely. She's just being paranoid.

She carried on researching the women until she comes across an autopsy of one of the victims and if felt like a knife had gutted her in the stomach.

With her mouth still agape and unable to process picture properly, she slammed down the laptop screen in order to escape from the brutal images she had just witnessed.

Lexi knew she was now scarred for the rest of her life. She knew that she could never go back to Riverfield Sanatorium again, even if it meant failing college. She could always work something out with professor Collins right?

• • • • •

Wrong.

"Us professors work extremely hard for you students to make sure you actually do well in college and pass the syllabus Miss Reid. So we don't appreciate when you're being lazy and slacking off." Professor Hellins- No Collins lectures her without so much as sparing her a glance. He's too busy tapping away on his computer whilst also trying to chew on an apple.

But she's not slacking. She's scared. Though Lexi couldn't exactly admit that to her professor who was currently very disappointed that she had wasted his break with what he clearly thinks to be a pointless conversation.

Apparently, there was no other way of obtaining her grade without doing the physical work placement experience, which deep down, Lexi already kind of knew.

She couldn't even use another patient because she had already be assigned. The only thing she can do is swap with someone in the class who is willing. But she tried asking, begging, everyone she knew in the seminar and they had all disagreed.

Most people had already completed their first task and switching now would mean they'd have to start again. College students are far too lazy to restart an assignment they're already struggling to do in the first place so Lexi isn't surprised when no one agrees to swap with her.

"I'm scared of my patient!" Lexi blurts out in the middle of Collins' mini lecture to her. She quickly bites her lip, as if that would prevent her from saying what's already been said.

She tried to justify it. "He's tortured people. Violently. And then he strangled them. With his bare hands."

"Then perhaps you shouldn't be studying psychology, Miss Reid. Because that's textbook definition of the word Psychopath." He says pointedly and leaves the seminar room, leaving Lexi all alone in the seminar room angered by his suggestion.

How could he just encourage her to drop the subject when she had her own personal reasons for choosing to study it in the first place. Pretty damn good reasons too. She just had to. And Collins had no right to discourage her when the knowledge could really help her figure a few things out. She would just have to prove him wrong about not being a good enough student.

She was going to have to just suck it up and visit the damn psychopath in the sanatorium and hope he doesn't attempt to kill her in the process.

• • • • •

Re had practically dragged Lexi to Riverfield the next day, insisting on helping her face her fears. She said something along the lines of "He's hot, who cares?" To which Lexi scoffed after the shocked widen of her eyes at her friends incapacity to turn off her hormones even when it came to even the most deranged of the male race.

So when the nurse had lead Lexi up the familiar white and clinal looking hallway to room 472, she felt more anxious than the last time. She felt more sweaty than the last time and more terrified than the last time. If that was even possible.

"Is he...okay today?" Lexi asks the nurse, Jill was her name, timidly.

Jill seemed nice enough to trust in this place. Far better than the moody receptionist at the front desk whom Lexi hopes never to encounter again.

"He's awake. He finished his nap and shower..." Jill says checking her wristwatch. "...so he should just be drawing on his desk or something."

Lexi takes a deep breath when they near a familiar all white door with a great big square glass in the middle, too high for her too see through.

Breathe. Relax. Press the red button if anything happens. Lexi repeats a mantra in her head as she opens the door and walks into room 472.

She hears Jill whisper 'good luck' as the door shuts and her eyes immediately meet green ones so close, that she stumbles all the way back up against the door. The stumble is more ungrateful than Lexi thought humanly possible and then she's moving slightly to her left so she's further away from the giant of a man.

He's so tall...and wet. She thinks to herself.

He must've just gotten out of the shower and though he's fully clothed in the same coloured clothing as the other day- black slacks and white long sleeve henley- his hair is dripping wet, making it look longer and softer than last time.

"M-mr Castillo." Lexi greets, trying with everything inside of her not to sound scared of him. "How are you today? F-feeling well?" She gulps.

Caleb narrows his eyes though and just stares at her. Differently from last time though. Last time was annoyance, though it was hard to tell. Maybe even anger.

But this time, it's predatory. It's as if he knows that she knows now. Knows about who exactly he is and what exactly he has done.

She looks more scared of him, no matter how hard she tries to hide it. And god is she trying.

He walks closer to her, leaving no room for boundaries and she gasps involuntarily in her place. Caleb stands so close to her that his face is now inches from hers. If she'd just tilt her head upwards a little, their eyes would meet and their noses would be mere inches apart.

The height difference helps a little. He's not exactly up in her face...but then he sort of is as well.

But she refused to look up. Her heart was beating a hundred beats per second and she couldn't tell if she felt nauseous because of his close proximity or if it was because she was genuinely feeling sick.

Maybe both.

"Why the fuck do you keep coming here?" Caleb speaks for the first time when he's close enough to her.

That voice. Oh god that British accent laced with the deepest tone of voice Lexi had ever heard. It almost made him a little bit attractive. But she ignores it and tried extremely hard to focus on the words he had just uttered.

Still avoiding his gaze, Lexi replies. "I-I told you. I'm here for my assignm-"

"Bullshit. I know exactly why you're here. They sent you. Didn't they?" He cuts her off and he is definitely angry. He so close that Lexi's pretty sure he can hear her heart thumping in her chest, begging to leave.

She finally flicks her gaze up, with a pleading look in her eyes, meeting his piercing ones. "Who are they? I swear I'm here for my assignment. I-I'll show you the papers if you don't believe me." She whispers and Caleb almost doesn't hear her.

His gaze flicks between both her eyes and once he's certain by the look in them that she's telling the truth, Caleb remains in his place, trapping her between the wall and him.

He reaches his long, callous fingers to touch a stray lock of Lexi's hair, familiarity and awe crossing his features.

Lexi cringes.

"S-stay away from me." She stutters a whisper when she's backed up against the wall knowing there's no way it'll swallow her up.

He grins at her now, predatory gaze, instead of paranoia. His eyes darken a shade and inches a little closer to her face. His whole demeanour changes and by the way her breathing went from erratic to almost nothing, Lexi notices too.

"W-w-why?" He replied with as smirk plastered on his face, mocking her.

"M-move back, o-or I'll scream."

A crazed laugh escapes his lips as her body is trapped between his and the wall.

"Do you always stutter your sentences love? Or is it simply because you're in the presence of a ruthless psychopath?"

Love.

Lexi decides to ignore his question and focusses on the nickname he had given her. "Don't call me that." She says confidently, though the sound of her voice betrays her as it comes out in a whisper.

Another crazed laugh escapes his lips and Lexi decides that she hates it. She hates that laugh. It gives her chills.

He moves himself away from her and sits on the chair by the door, a few feet away from a shivering Lexi.

Caleb sits down as if nothing had happened and picks up a pencil, appearing to be drawing something like the nurse had said he would.

Lexi's confused by his actions. She should leave, right? He obviously doesn't want to be observed. And by the way he backed her up against the wall in anger, she didn't exactly want to observe him either.

So she turns to leave, opening the big white door and stepping outside of it.

"What do you want to know?" She hears Caleb's deep voice call out when she's outside of the room and she inhales.

Whatever she chooses to do right now will impact her future in either the best or worst way. She could stay and actually try to figure out this guy, find out how and why his mind works the way it does. Or she could leave, drop out of college and spend the rest of her life miserable with shitty job and not a clue as to what happened that night two years ago. The night that haunts her everyday.

Having an inner battle with herself she takes a deep breath and steps back into the room.

• • • • •

Word count: 2410

A/N: how are u guys liking the book so far?
What do you think will happen?

Tyler hoechlin to play Caleb. But obviously you can imagine whomever you want. This is your story just as much as mine.