Alice2 was furious at being made to leave the hospital. Who did that Edwards man think he was? They were paying for the care of her sister. Well, her parents were, but it amounted to the same thing. The family was. From the doctor's point of view, Alice2 and her mother were synonymous. They were two sides of the same coin, and she would flip it in his face and catch it on the rebound. Escorting her. Forcing her to leave. Accusing her.

Alice2 had to admit the accusation wasn't too far from the truth. She had been goading her sister. It was too easy. Alice was too quick to grab hold of the bait her twin would dangle. At first, it was unintentional but, as time went by... How could she resist? Once, she'd been caught pulling the legs off spiders and flies - Alice2 had always been adept at plucking flies from the air with a whip of her hand - and had been punished for it. It was, perhaps, the only time her father had ever raised his voice to her.

"There's enough death and suffering in the world without you adding to it," he said to her. "Look at your sister. She can't help being odd. You're better than that. Leave the poor creatures alone."

He had been referring to his youngest daughter as well as the spiders and flies when he said 'creatures,' but he wouldn't admit it to himself. Well buried beneath the pride and love he had for his first born, he knew Alice, if she'd been a dog, would have been the runt of the litter. Maybe even put down. Flushed in the toilet as a mercy to both it and the bitch who bore her. Not that his wife was anything close to being likened to a female of the canine persuasion, of course. Usually, at least. The downtreading of Alice was so common it was habitual. He didn't think twice about a reprimand or an insult. It was simply what was done. The way it was. Like shouting at the television during a football game or always having room for dessert. Still, he would rather his beautiful baby girl would remain normal and the delight she was without being tainted by the other one.

Although the punishment was light (no ice cream after dinner), Alice2 realised she needed to be more cautious when it came to playing out her hobbies and games. The thrill of leaving insects as little more than a rabbit dropping with eyes increased each time she separated them from their legs. It gave her a wicked tingle along her spine and the feeling of a white hot blade running across her throat. She would giggle and, when asked what she was doing, just say she was laughing at something one of her friends had said. She had so many friends, one of them could easily have made a joke funny enough to warrant the punchline's return hours later. They'd be like cucumber repeating but without the bad taste in your mouth. It would keep popping into your head making you smirk or laugh for days afterwards.

Her father - their father but without the mutual feeling of family for Alice - would smile to himself, happy that his daughter was happy.

Teasing and provoking became more than a game. More than a desire. It was a need. It was as if she held a needle and, rather than having a voodoo doll to impale, she would poke it into her sister at every opportunity in the sure knowledge her parents would neither notice or really care.

Perhaps she had possibly gone too far at the hospital. Maybe. She couldn't help it. She was on a rollercoaster of spite and the ride was so enjoyable she wanted to go around again and again. And the silly girl would always lunge at the offered olive branch without noticing it was actually covered in poison ivy. Her sister was a spider she couldn't pull the legs off so she had to find other ways to entertain herself. Now she was at the mental hospital after going all fruit of the loom, with her thread unravelling and tangling around her ankles, Alice2 had lost her play thing. She'd been overzealous, she knew. Dr. Edwards had been right to step in but to effectively eject her from the building with his boot up her backside? She did not deserve that. She was there visiting her poor sister, for all he knew. The poor sister she loved and was missing. They were twins and had a special relationship which he wouldn't understand.

Of course, Alice could have spilled the beans. She could have told the doctor all her woes, but what woes did she have? Not being as good as her older sister? Being inferior in way and shape? How could Alice2 help it if she'd somehow managed to get all the decent DNA whilst in the womb and Alice had been left with the remnants? Was it the fault of the sane, responsible and reasonable one or was the lunatic to blame?

Exactly.

Yeah. She'd pushed the needle in just a little too far. But hey, it was just a bit of sisterly fun! The doctor wouldn't get away with it!

She was already in her car, through the hour's journey and storming into the reception area of the hospital practically before her mascara had dried. She loved her long eyelashes and intended on using them to their fullest effect on the doctor. He would apologise and give her the chance to have some alone time with her sister. She had unfinished business. She had a little revenge to enjoy for the rude ejection.

The receptionist appeared nervous when Alice2 announced who she was and the patient she wanted to see. Good. Perhaps a little rage would help her case along. Let the woman be afraid. Alice2 chewed on the fear and swallowed it, enjoying the flavour. It was like a nice steak where you savoured the last bite because you didn't want the meal to end.

"He's unavailable, madam."

"Unavailable? He should be permanently available. Kindly tell him to drop whatever looney he's playing with and get here."

"But miss..."

The woman, who was far more anxious than she should have been even given the anger twisting the face which had suddenly appeared a breath away from her own, caught any more words before they could tumble from her mouth and give anything away. She wasn't paid enough to deal with vicious visitors - even if their family members had gone missing. Dr. Edwards was a nice man. Pleasant, not unattractive, able to take a joke as well as act the clown. But he'd never lost a patient before. They'd hoped the girl's family wouldn't come a-knocking before they managed to find her. Clearly, their hope was hiding behind the door laughing at them. She was nowhere to be seen. When Edwards had led the girl into the room, all had been well. When the orderlies had gone to retrieve her, the room had been empty.

Now Katheryn, the receptionist, was a fan of murder mysteries. She regularly attended weekends with her husband at hotels, dressing up in period costumes and trying to discover who the murderer had been. More than one had included a 'locked room' puzzle. She'd never, however, actually been involved in one.

The sister's face being thrust into hers served to kick-start her attitude. She and it had been taken by surprise by the unexpected appearance of someone who was so close to looking like the person they'd... misplaced, she could almost believe the girl was having some strange version of fun and was, in fact, asking to see herself as she was the patient in question. Katheryn slammed her palms down on the desk and stood. It was enough to make Alice2 take a step back.

"The doctor is unavailable, as I have said." It was her turn to lean forward and Alice2's to be wary. "I suggest you go home and he will call you when he is able."

Alice2 wasn't used to people standing up to her. She usually said and it was done. The way her parents fawned over her, she had them so well trained she felt sure they'd roll over and play dead if she asked them to. This woman, this receptionist, dared to speak to her in such a way?

She turned sharply and moved over to a row of chairs by a coffee table. Neat piles of magazines were spread fan-like on its surface and coasters were placed strategically to ensure anyone sitting would have somewhere to place their drink. A coffee machine - the sort you had to spend ten minutes staring at before you figured out where to put the pod - was on a cabinet close by. She thought about making herself one and deliberately placing the cup on the highly polished surface. Being the nice, pleasant person she believed she was, she decided to not stoop to the level of the hired help and simple crossed her arms and legs.

"I'll wait."

Katheryn returned to her own seat, ignored the statement and started tapping away at the computer.

"Aren't you going to tell him I'm here?" Alice2 asked, keeping her voice level and calm despite the ice freezing the words into shards as they drove at the woman.

"He knows," Katheryn said, glancing briefly to the upper corner of the room.

Four floors up from the two new best friends, Dr. Edwards was standing in a room. It felt unlike any other, seeming both warm and chill at the same time as if the burning feeling of freezing cold had eased in its old age and was now a more undemanding paradox of temperatures. It regarded the psychiatrist with its myriad eyes as he stared back. Given that each mirror reflected all of the ones opposite, it took a great effort on Edwards' part to not feel as if he were being broken apart into as many fragments as the room had eyes.

He walked over to the wall where he'd seen Alice disappear. Hidden cameras were one of the best inventions of the modern world, he was sure. He reached up and touched the glass. It was cold and firm. Unrelenting.

He stepped back and began to laugh.

Oh, how he laughed.