The Dead House

She rushes down the fire escape and into the woods.




15 November Clip #2, 2:47 AM

“Oh, my God,” Naida whispers. Now and then, we see a flash of her hand as she tries to shield the camera from the rain, which falls like bullets. Her voice is obscured by wind in the speakers, but we hear her mutter, “Oh, Kaitlyn… no. Please, Kaitlyn…”

At last, the rain ebbs and Naida lifts the camera, pointing it up to the roof of Elmbridge’s west wing. Kaitlyn balances on the steep surface, her feet bare on slippery slate tiles. She wears nothing but a white tank top, which the rain has rendered transparent against her skin, and wet cotton sweats that cling to her legs. Thunder cracks across the sky, almost exactly as Naida yells Kaitlyn’s name.

Kaitlyn stumbles, rights herself, and, oblivious, stands at the very end of the roof, staring out into the night as though searching for something. She sways.

Naida screams, “Kaitlyn!”

There is vivid movement and muffled sounds, and then we are inside, running along the corridor of Magpie House, the image snapping back and forth. Naida’s gasps for breath are loud in the microphone as she runs. She dumps the camera on a table next to a phone, and we see Naida grasp the receiver and pull it out of the shot.

Silence holds for a moment, and the curling cord of the telephone dances as Naida waits, her breaths forcefully punctuating the silence. In. Out. In. Out.

“Hello! There’s a girl on the roof, I think she’s going to jump! Come fast, please!”

[Silence]

“Yes, Elmbridge, main building—hurry! No—no, I can’t stay on the line, she’s going to jump!”

The receiver falls, and footsteps recede. In the silence that follows, we can hear the emergency operator on the line.

“Caller? Caller, are you there? I need you to stay on the line—”

[END OF 15 NOVEMBER CLIP #2]





41



On 15 November 2004, police were called by Naida Chounan-Dupré to investigate a jumper on the roof of Elmbridge High. Police arrived on the scene at 3:15 AM, and Carly Luanne Johnson was forcibly taken into custody.





Hell is empty,

And all the devils are here.

—William Shakespeare, The Tempest, Act 1, Scene 2





Rage, rage against the

dying of the light.

—Dylan Thomas





42



In news journals and articles that followed the arrest, witnesses attest that clips of Carly being carried from the roof by a fireman and subsequently led to a police vehicle were shown on the nine o’clock news that night. To date, no such footage has been found.

On the afternoon of 15 November 2004, Carly Luanne Johnson was involuntarily readmitted to Claydon Youth Psychiatric Facility. Such reports as could be sourced indicate that her doctors worried she may have suffered a psychotic break of the persecutory type.

After readmission to Claydon, a string of therapy sessions commenced, wherein doctors (headed by Dr. Annabeth Lansing), attempted to understand why a seemingly integrated Carly failed to react in the manner expected.



Inpatient Session Recording #52 [Ref: Johnson-Inp-0033]

Tuesday, 16 November 2004, 10:24 AM

Claydon Youth Psychiatric Facility, Somerset

Dr. Annabeth Lansing (AL) and Carly Luanne Johnson (CJ)

(AL): You seem distressed again. Can you tell me what’s going on?

[Silence]

Carly? Are you doing okay? Do you feel like talking?



(CJ): [Strained] You won’t listen.



(AL): I always listen, Carly. You know that. [Pause] Why were you on the roof? [Pause] Carly?



(CJ): Stop. Calling. Me. Carly!



(AL): Am I speaking with Kaitlyn?



(CJ): Yes, for God’s sake.



(AL): So talk to me, Kaitlyn. Please.



(CJ): [Lengthy silence] Carly didn’t check the Message Book the night before it happened… she’s been… silent. For a while. It worried me.



(AL): The night before what happened?



(CJ): The night before I… I woke up, and it was… morning.

[Pause]



(AL): That must have been frightening.



(CJ): That’s a total understatement. Everything is wrong. She’s just… gone.



(AL): Integration is alarming. She’s not really gone. Just… working the way she should. But you need to accept what’s happened.



(CJ): [Laughing] “Trust me, I’m here to help you.” How can I when you won’t believe me? You think you see? That’s crap—you don’t see. You think you do, but you’re all bloody clueless! You won’t listen—you don’t believe! [Beginning to cry] Carly’s gone. I’ve written, I’ve—I’ve—I’ve—[Sobbing] I’ve t-tried to discard—she won’t come! I can’t find her, I—

[Gasps, sobs]



(AL): Calm down, Kaitlyn. It’s okay. Take a deep breath, and let’s talk about this rationally. [Pause] Okay. Tell me what happened.



(CJ): [Shrieking] I can’t breathe!

[Gasps, choking sounds]



(AL): Kaitlyn, calm down. Kaitlyn, breathe—

[Choking, gagging]



(CJ): He’s—here—

(AL): [Away] Sedative!

[A door squeaks; there are footsteps, gasps]

[Thud]