Innocence || Gotham

FOUR

The stitches in her cheek burn anytime she attempts to protest. With her will to speak back, Evelyn wants to scream and shout every chance she can. The badly done cross-stitch on her cheek leaks with blood anytime she comes near to ripping the stitches.

Six days in solitary did not do her well.

Now, handcuffed tightly, she's being led to her least favorite room of the asylum. She can already hear the electricity buzzing in her ears as the two giant "nurses" shove her towards the doors.

"Miss Carter," Professor Strange hums when she enters the room. Evelyn pays no attention to the voice as the male nurses lift her into the electroshock chair. "I hear you've got your voice back."

"Let me go!" Evelyn seethes through her teeth, attempting to kick anyone she can as they strap her to the black leather seat.

"I've created a new sort of...treatment, if you will. This one should help heal your mind much faster than plain old electroshock," he announces through the microphone. Evelyn tries to glare at him, but the tinted window makes it hard to see him and his assistant. "You get to be my first subject."

Evelyn's brows furrow as a weird mask is placed over her eyes. It's almost like a virtual reality game, but much more dangerous.

Evelyn struggles against the restraints, trying to break free or do something-anything- to get the mask off. "I'm not crazy! Stop!"

"You're a psychopath, Miss Carter. Like it or not, it's my duty to treat your condition."

With the flip of a switch, Evelyn's screams fill the entire room. Her stitches rip, allowing blood to flow freely down her cheek and she's thrown into the sea of memories.

six months ago

The cold metal of the chair scares Evelyn every time she leans back. Her hair, dyed a natural black, is pulled into a short ponytail. Tear trails stain her cheeks. Splattered blood coats her hands and neck. The ambulance gave her a new shirt because the old one was covered with too much blood. She taps her fingers against the table as she waits for whoever's supposed to be questioning her.

The door creaks open, forcing Evelyn to look up at the man. Blue irises inspect the person before him, finding anything and everything he could use to get a conversation out of her.

With a sigh, he sits down in front of her. A few moments of silence pass between the two, causing Evelyn to raise an eyebrow.

"I'm detective James Gordon," the man finally greets.

Gordon, she thinks bitterly, the "hero" of Gotham.

"I've seen your face before," Evelyn mumbles, almost incoherent. "On the news. You're supposed to be some sort of hero, yeah?"

"I just do what right for the city," Gordon answers, not denying the question. "Your name's Evelyn, yeah? Wanna tell me about yourself?"

"Why should I?" Evelyn questions, almost sounding miserable, "that file should say everything about me."

Gordon raises an eyebrow before opening the file. "Your name is Evelyn Carter," he reads, looking up at her between each sentence, "born January 13, 1997. Your mother's an immigrant from Russia and your father was a national drug dealer from a small town in Ohio. You have two siblings, Reece and Amara Carter." Gordon closes the file, looking back at Evelyn. "Well, had. You've only got the one now."

"What do you want?" Evelyn sighs, her blood-coated fingers tapping the metal once again. "A confession? You already know I did it."

"Yeah, I know," Gordon admits before leaning back in his seat. "I just wanna know why."