"I need your permission to take Ashley to dinner off the grounds."
"I don't think that's a good idea, Gilbert. It could be dangerous. She's already - "
"I know. But right now I'm the enemy. I want to become a friend."
"Her alter, Toni, tried to kill you once. What if she tries again?"
"I'll handle it."
Dr. Lewison thought about it. "All right. Do you want someone to go with you?"
"No. I'll be fine, Otto."
"When do you want to start this?"
"Tonight."
'You want to take me out to dinner?"
"Yes. I think it would be good for you to get away from this place for a while, Ashley. What do you say?"
"Yes."
* * *
Ashley was surprised at bow excited she was at the thought of going out to dinner with Gilbert Keller. It will be fun to get out of here for an evening, Ashley thought. But she knew that it was more than that. The thought of being with Gilbert Keller on a date was exhilarating.
They were having dinner at a Japanese restaurant called Otani Gardens, five miles from the hospital. Dr. Keller knew that he was taking a risk. At any moment, Toni or Alette could take over. He had been warned. It's more important that Ashley learns to trust me so that I can help her.
"It's funny, Gilbert," Ashley said, looking around the crowded restaurant.
"What is?"
"These people don't look any different from the people at the hospital."
"They aren't really different, Ashley. I'm sure they all have problems. The only difference is the people at the hospital aren't able to cope with them as well, so we help them."
"I didn't know I had any problems until - Well, you know."
"Do you know why, Ashley? Because you buried them. You couldn't face what happened to you, so you built the fences in your mind and shut the bad things away. To one degree or another, a lot of people do that." He deliberately changed the subject. "How's your steak?"
"Delicious, thank you."
From then on, Ashley and Dr. Keller had meals away from the hospital once a week. They had lunch at an excellent little Italian restaurant called Banducci's and dinners at The Palm, Eveleene's and The Gumbo Pot Neither Toni nor Alette made an appearance.
One night, Dr. Keller took Ashley dancing. It was at a small nightclub with a wonderful band.
"Are you enjoying yourself?" he asked.
"Very much. Thank you." She looked at him and said, "You're not like other doctors."
"They don't dance?"
"You know what I mean."
He was holding her close, and both of them felt the urgency of the moment.
"That could be very dangerous for both of you, Gilbert...."
Chapter Twenty-Five
I know what the bloody hell you're trying to do, Dockie. You're trying to make Ashley think you're her friend."
"I am her friend, Toni, and yours."
"No, you're not. You think she's great, and I'm nothing."
"You're wrong. I respect you and Alette as much as I respect Ashley. You're all equally important to me."
"Is that true?"
"Yes. Toni, when I told you that you had a beautiful singing voice, I meant it. Do you play an instrument?"
"Piano."
"If I could arrange for you to use the piano in the recreation hall so you can play and sing, would you be interested?"
"I might be." She sounded excited.
Dr. Keller smiled. "Then I'll be happy to do it. It will be there for you to use."
"Thanks."
Dr. Keller arranged for Toni to have private access to the recreation room for one hour every afternoon. In the beginning, the doors were closed, but as other inmates heard the piano music and the singing from inside, they opened the door to listen. Soon, Toni was entertaining dozens of patients.
Dr. Keller was looking over his notes with Dr. Lewison.
Dr. Lewison said, "What about the other one - Alette?"
"I've set it up for her to paint in the garden every afternoon. She'll be watched, of course. I think it's going to be good therapy."
But Alette refused. In a session with her, Dr. Keller said, "You don't use the paints I gave you, Alette. It's a shame to let them go to waste. You're so talented."
How would you know?
"Don't you enjoy painting?"
"Yes."
"Then why don't you do it?"
"Because I'm no good." Stop pestering me.
"Who told you that?"
"My - my mother."
"We haven't talked about your mother. Do you want to tell me about her?"
"There's nothing to tell."
"She died in an accident, didn't she?"
There was a long pause. "Yes. She died in an accident."
The following day, Alette started to paint. She enjoyed being in the garden with her canvas and brushes. When she painted, she was able to forget everything else. Some of the patients would gather around bar and watch. They talked in multicolored voices.
"Your paintings should be in a gallery." Black.
"You're really good." Yellow.
"Where did you learn to do that?" Black.
"Can you paint a picture of me sometime?" Orange.
"I wish I knew how to do that." Black.
She was always sorry when her time was up and she had to go back into the big building.
"I want you to meet someone, Ashley. This is Lisa Garrett." She was a woman in her fifties, small and wraithlike. "Lisa is going home today."
The woman beamed. "Isn't that wonderful? And I owe it all to Dr. Keller."