Abortion and Contraception Clinic

“I better get a promotion for doing this shit, Blake,” Cassidy complained to her camera-man. Blake nodded his head and began to laugh.

“You’re telling me!” Blake chuckled.

“I’m serious Blake. I can’t believe they assigned me to this crappy story. I mean, an abortion clinic’s one thing, but the fact so many people have seen crazy shit here? I don’t know, it just isn’t right,” Cassidy said nervously.

“Yeah, let’s just go. I mean, the quicker we get it done the quicker we can go,” he said, and they turned around towards the enormous sign on front of the grey building which read “Abortion and Contraception Clinic”. Cassidy shuddered and hurried up the stairs, clutching her microphone in her right hand. Blake followed swiftly.

As they walked in through the old doors, Cassidy noticed a smaller sign in red writing. It stated that the clinic had been operational since the 1960s. She walked quickly past it, desperate to ignore anything that might enhance the disturbing atmosphere any further.

“We’re supposed to meet this Doctor Schulz guy somewhere in here, right?” She asked Blake without looking at him.

“Yeah, that’s right. He said he’d be in the waiting area at ten-thirty. I guess we’re a little early,” Blake responded, his camera resting on his shoulder.

Blake and Cassidy turned down a long corridor. One wall was white, the other a pale yellow. The yellowed wall had a patch directly in the middle where the paint had begun to peel away, revealing the black wall underneath.

It was almost as if the wall was not actually a wall at all, but rather a jaundiced eye; the black patch at the middle acting as the never-blinking pupil. Cassidy began to run through the corridor, wondering why anyone still came to this disturbing clinic.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” Blake called out to her, and she turned around to look at him. Just as she was about to tell him some made-up excuse, she crashed into something and she was stopped.

A man with glasses and short white hair loomed over her. He was easily well-over six feet tall, and his arms were folded across his chest.

“Oh my goodness, I’m so sorry doctor,” Cassidy felt her cheeks glow red with embarrassment. The man’s eyes did not waver from hers.

“Do not apologise, young lady. This corridor is known for invoking irrational fear into most people who pass through it,” the man spoke in a thick German accent. “Welcome to the clinic.”

“Oh...I....um,” Cassidy was lost for words. Her emotions were completely jumbled. She was happy to learn that she was not the only one to feel uncomfortable in the corridor because it meant she wasn’t alone. But Cassidy thought she would’ve much preffered to be alone in that moment than in the Doctor’s company.

“We’re the television crew. I’m Blake, this is Cassidy. Nice to meet you Mister Schulz,” Blake shook the tall man’s hand as he continued to stare straight down at Cassidy.

“That’s Doctor Schulz to you. I am the head medic at this clinic. It is also nice to meet you both,” the doctor spoke evenly, his gaze finally lifting from Cassidy and onto Blake. “Follow me.”

He led them through the empty waiting room as Cassidy tried to steel her nerves once again. They turned a corner and ended up looking straight into darkness.

“Are you filming now, Blake?” asked Docter Schulz, “because if you aren’t, you’re going to want to now.”

Blake looked nervously towards Cassidy, and she nodded and turned back towards the darkness once more. Suddenly, a barely audible singing voice floated through the darkness towards the group of three.

“What the hell is that?” Cassidy turned towards the Doctor, but he did not return the favor. He continued to look straight ahead.

“No one knows for sure, entirely. This is a place of death afterall. About seven months ago the lights in this corridor just stopped working, and the darkness seemed to...condense. It grew thicker and soon enough, it became this. Nothing can penetrate it,” Doctor Schulz told Cassidy, but his voice had quickly faded to the background.

The singing voice had gotten discernably louder as the Doctor rambled on. Now a clear tune was audible, and the voice sounded like a young girl. She was singing something soft and sweet. Cassidy slowly reached for her notepad and pencil to jot down the lyrics.

 

“Some day I will play again,

I'll write my thoughts out with a pen.

But mother did not want me to,

She squeezed my neck till I was blue,

Killed me before I could crawl,

When I get out, I’ll kill you all.”

 

“Time to go,” Doctor Schulz grabbed Cassidy’s wrist and yanked her away from the darkness. Blake followed swiftly. Cassidy couldn’t take her eyes off the blackness that had enveloped the hallway. Just before they turned the corner again, she thought she heard the young girl chuckling.

“Okay, how’d you do that man? That was crazy scary!” Blake ran to catch up to Doctor Schulz.

“I will answer your questions in the interrogation room, follow me,” the Doctor didn’t let go of Cassidy’s hand until he dragged her into a small, stuffy room with red wallpaper falling off the walls.

The Doctor slammed the door shut and sat down in his chair. His eyes were calm and he slowly turned towards the two reporters who were out-of-breath and wide-eyed.

“I didn’t do that,” the Doctor finally breathed out, “I have never seen that before in my entire service at this clinic. I’m not sure what that was.” Cassidy looked at the man, and stood in silence for a short time. Then she began to laugh.

“Okay, okay, we get it. We already knew this place was a freak show; all we wanted was an interview. We didn’t need this performance, Doctor. I’m cold and tired and I want to go home. Can we please stop the theatrics and get on with the interview now?” Cassidy stared the man straight in the eyes, but he didn’t crack.

“I will not tell you again, Frauline. I didn’t do that. You want to know something for this ‘interview’ of yours?” The Doctor looked at Cassidy and didn’t blink. Cassidy spoke.

“Go ahead, camera’s rolling.”

“This place didn’t use to be like this. At least, not until about 10 years ago. A woman came in here complaining about her unborn baby singing to her during the night. It used to kick her viciously from the inside at every appointment she made with her doctor. We all believed she had gone mad after her husband left her, I mean, fetuses don’t SING! Her story was absurd! She went through with the termination, and it was successful. Then everything began to happen here,” Doctor Schulz spoke slowly and with purpose. When he was finished he looked Cassidy in the eyes.

“Okay, we’re done here. Let’s go Blake. I’m going to kill the producer when we get back to the studio,” Cassidy picked up her microphone and began to leave the Doctor’s office, when he spoke up.

“I assure you that nothing has been a lie so far. You are making a terrible mistake by questioning me,” Doctor Schulz spoke evenly. “Cassidy, I could sense it on you when you walked in. I know it now to be true.”

“What? What’s true? What are you talking about?” Cassidy whirled around angrily.

“It’s why you didn’t want to come in, isn’t it. They tell me everything, Cassidy. The spirits, I mean. It’s so unfortunate, too. Such a tragedy. She would’ve been a beautiful little girl,” the Doctor smiled at Cassidy and she narrowed her eyes.

“How the hell do you know I miscarried? How could you know that?!” Cassidy screamed, and Blake grabbed her arm and pulled her out the door. “Don’t you dare talk about that you creep!”

“Would you like me to show you out?” The Doctor asked politely, Cassidy still thrashing under Blake’s strong grip.

“I think we’re okay, thanks,” Blake said sarcastically, and they began to walk down the hall. “What a shit-heap he was.”

They walked through the long corridor and as they began to approach the corner where they heard the singing coming from previously.

“Hey, do you reckon the staff is all on holiday or something?” Blake asked.

“What do you mean?” Cassidy asked angrily, though her anger was not directed at Blake.

“Well, have you seen anyone else here? All I’ve seen are empty corridors,” Blake said as he looked around and behind him. Cassidy looked up at Blake, eyes wide. Suddenly, she heard the Doctor’s voice.

“There are faster ways around this building. You should’ve let me show you out,” Doctor Schulz stood in between their escape and began to walk towards them. He was holding a knife. They backed away. “I assure you, nothing today has been a trick. Except your friend.”

"Sorry Cass. They gotta eat too, you know," Blake turned towards Cassidy.

She felt Blake's foot slam into her stomach and she fell backwards into the darkness. She stood up to walk out, but found there was no way she could get back to the clinic. She began to pound on the thick black wall that stood between her and her escape.

Suddenly, she heard something dragging itself up the black hallway behind her. The singing voice began again. Cassidy pounded harder on the darkness.

“When I get out, I’ll kill you! Do you here me, Schulz!? When I get out, I’ll kill you all!”