text: It had rained the night before and I had forgotten all about the drying laundry outside. It rarely rained in Autumn, but when it did, the thunder that came tended to aim for power lines. It was not until my daughter woke me that I realized my alarm clock hadn't gone off. "C'mon Dad, I don't want to be late again!" Nell was in such a hurry she managed to button up her shirt wrong. I rose out of bed and yawned as my daughter ran around the house, getting ready for school. Nell was already waiting for me in the car when I got on, urging me to hurry with her eyes. "Dad, I left your sandwich on the table," "Thanks sweetie," "And don't forget I'm going to Ashley's house today after school," Nell said. "Tel Mrs. Davis to call me when you're done," I said. "Okay Dad," Nell answered. The woods surrounding Bakersfield hid our secluded home well and protected it from flooding, however it did little to stop the dirt road leading into town from turning into mud. The track into town took longer than usual, only to be slowed down further due to the almost complete loss of power in town. Most stoplights were turned off, and those with energy flared in and out of existence at random intervals. I parked outside of Nell's school, making sure to fix her shirt before walking her into class. As we approached Nell's classroom, I was preparing for my meeting with the infamous 7th-grade teacher Mrs. Varela, rumored to have been around longer than the decrepit building she taught in. "Mr. Richardson, this is the third time this week your daughter will be late to class. It's at least good you showed up, even if you're late as well." Mrs. Varela said, looking discontent as I had always seen her, standing in front of the doorway to her class. "I apologize once more, Mrs. Varela, my alarm clock didn't go off this morning," I said. She did not look amused in the slightest. "Go on Mrs. Nell, I’ll start class in a minute," Mrs. Varela said as she ushered Nell into her class. "Mr. Richardson, It is my understanding that you are set to take care for your daughter, however I am starting to believe she is the one set out to take care of you" Mrs. Varela continued without letting me speak a word, " I understand you are acting as a single parent, however that does not excuse you from your responsibilities. If you really care about your daughter and her future, I recommend you get your act together." Mrs. Varela said. I had recently lost my job working as an electrician, and with the bills lining up to take pieces of me, I had been forced to take a night job as a security guard at a local superstore. "I will, things are just difficult at the moment." I told her. "I really hope so, Mr. Richardson, have a pleasant day." Mrs. Varela said before abandoning me in the hallway. I quickly left the school, my shift didn't start until 10 pm, so I headed home to get some more rest. When I got home, I went straight to the backyard and put all the still wet clothing into the dryer. It wasn't until I realized the power was still gone that I gave up and headed to bed. I was awoken by the hum of the dryer as it stirred to life. The sun was close to setting, and my stomach craved food. I headed to the kitchen and ate the sandwich Nell had made me. I began preparing Nell's dinner and turned on the television in the kitchen. As I boiled some water, I switched between channels looking for something to watch until I came across the local station covering breaking news. "...appears that two of the three patients have been apprehended. Police are still on the lookout for the third escapee from Bakersfield county psychiatric hospital. We will bring you updates..." I was startled by hissing and turned towards the stove to turn it off. I continued preparing the meal until I was once again distracted, this time by my ringing cellphone. "Hello?" I asked. "Ah yes, Richard, is Nell still coming over today? Ashley hasn't stopped asking since we got home," Mrs. Davis said. "...What do you mean?" I asked. "I waited for her after school but when she didn't show up, I assumed she didn't go today. Wait, it was today right? I always mix up the days." My breathing stopped, but my brain was speeding up. "Richard? Hello? Are you there?" I couldn't process what I had just been told, and when my lungs reached for air once more, I began hyperventilating. I sat down in the kitchen floor, next to the television, Mrs. Davis still on the other end of the line. I began to think of any and all possibilities of Nell's current whereabouts. Could she have forgotten to tell me about an event? Had my late arrival to her school have earned her detention after school? I was beginning to calm my breathing when I caught a snip bit of the still ongoing breaking news. "... confirm that the suspect is one 32-year-old Jane Richardson. She is to be considered hostile and under no circumstances should anyone..." "...Oh god, no," I whispered to myself. It had been raining for the past hour as Jane sat in her bed. She once again began to make shapes out of her padded cell walls as the minutes ticked by. Jane would sometimes see a tree, a pair of scissors, or a face, mainly that of her daughter. It was when she saw her face that Jane's thoughts calmed. Occasionally she would also see *his* face, on dark, decrepit nights, like that night. Jane really tried not to get angry as his face managed to appear in the seams of the padded wall, but she couldn't help herself. The head nurse rushed to Jane's room as she heard Jane breaking down again. As the nurse neared the cell, she spied on Jane through the door, as Jane hit the cell wall over and over with her head and bound torso. The nurse was familiar to the rage poor Jane would exhibit on certain nights. She had seen Jane doing the same thing over one hundred times, and as habit dictated, prepared a good enough dose of medication to get Jane through the night. Poor Jane was never able to let go of her past, from what little the nurse had heard about it. From one day to the next, Jane had gone mad and had lost everything she knew and was now stuck here. At least that's what the nurse heard the other nurses said. As the nurse headed inside, she approached Jane, prepared to lull her to sleep with an injection. At that precise moment, not very far away from the psychiatric hospital, a ray of thunder dashed through the rain. It hit an electricity pole, splintering it into millions of pieces, knocking out power to most of the nearby town, including the psychiatric hospital. Darkness inundated the room as the nurse stood still. Fear began creeping into her. Poor Jane had always been docile, unless it came to her anger attacks. That did not stop the nurse from shaking. It took 5 seconds for the backup generators to kick in, illuminating the room once more. Blinded temporarily by the sudden rush of light, the nurse held her breath as all she could hear was the rain outside. When her vision came back to her, she was met by poor Jane's face, not 5 inches away from hers. That was the last thing she saw before she was knocked unconscious by a headbutt. Jane felt good after being the one to put the nurse to sleep, not the other way around. She then realized the nurse had left the door to her cell open, with no one about until morning to stop her from going after him. Anger fresh on her mind, Jane ran out of her room and headed for the exit she had seen the nurses use to leave at night. It was controlled by a small terminal, which was usually operated by the unconscious nurse in her room. Without knowing how to work the console, and having her arms bound by a restraining jacket, Jane sat on the console, hoping to hit the right switch. She got it on the first try, unlocking some cells down the hall, but she didn't care. All she cared about was getting to him.