The Perfect Son

by Kyion S. Roebuck

“Actually, I would like to take him out alone. Often when a person has dissociative identity disorder, each identity is more or less dominant dependent upon the people they are around. From what I gathered earlier, the other identity is very dominant in your presence, and I need to interact with both identities, equally.”

  “I’m not sure I like the thought of you just taking him out of here without his guardian’s permission. Kelly informed me that you would come here to do a session, and nothing more.”

  “Observation is part of a session, but I understand your trepidation. Allow me to give her a call right now.”

  Once he retrieved his very fancy phone, Dr. Jacobs quickly started dialing, and Sister Mary Ava began second guessing her concern. Kelly had left her in charge because she had an important conference, yet here she was about to disturb her at said conference.

  “Dr. Jacobs, that is quite alright. I am acting as his guardian at the moment, so I’ll make the decision,” Sister Mary Ava said. “You can take him out alone, but I must know where you are taking him, and what time you will be returning him.”

  “Thank you, Sister. I will be just driving him around the area to give us time to talk and for me to meet both identities. I will then have him back home, safe and sound, by three o’clock. At that time, we will begin the hypnotherapy.”

  “Very well,” Sister Mary Ava said, before turning to Cody. “Be safe, and be good.”

  “I promise you I will, Sister Mary Ava,” Cody said, before he and the doctor made it out to the car. Once he was inside and buckled up, he finally addressed the man. “Where are we headed?”

  “I figured we could just drive around for a bit… Actually, to give us some direction, how about I show you a historical site most people don’t know about. It’s not too far from here, and we can talk along the way.”

  “Okay, great, I love history.”

  ***

  “What the hell? Seriously? I’m never going to get used to this,” Cody said as he looked around the car that had just abruptly stopped, jerking him awake.

  “Ah, the other identity. I’m Dr. Jacobs, and I’m pleased to finally meet you.”

  Cody looked at the man and his outstretched hand, and then leaned as far into the passenger door as he could. The last thing he remembered was feeling dizzy. Now he was with a strange man in what appeared to be Bumfuck, Michigan; at least he hoped it was Michigan.

  “Where the hell am I, and where is Nana?”

  “Your Nana, as you call her, is back at your house waiting for our return. You are about a twenty-five minute drive northeast of your home in a village in Clarkston, Michigan. As I told your other identity, I brought you here to show you a little-known historical site. That identity agreed, so here we are. I won’t move forward, however, until I have your consent as well. So, how about it? What do you say?”

  “I say that the other me is an idiot. There is no way I would have let you bring me out here if I had been in control. What does this have to do with hypnosis anyway?” Cody said in exasperation. Dr. Jacobs’ smile faltered slightly, but his face remained pleasant.

  “Actually, this has everything to do with hypnosis. In order to properly hypnotize a person, there needs to be a great deal of trust between both participants. When people are suffering from dissociative identity disorder, it is hard to build that trust because they don’t even trust themselves. Your reaction to my presence is proof of what I am saying. Therefore, I figured I would bring you to my hometown and give you a bit of its history. This way you can know more about me and where I come from, and hopefully, trust me enough to hypnotize you later on. Does that sound like a plan?”

  For several minutes, Cody just stared at the man. The doctor’s explanation sort of made sense, but he was still not happy with the situation. All he wanted was to be normal again, and each time something like this happened, he felt even further from that.

  “We’re already out here, so we might as well get this over with,” he said dryly, but the doctor beamed all the same.

  “Excellent! Let’s get started,” he said, and then jumped out the car. Cody followed with much less enthusiasm.

  “What you see here is the Sampson Estate. It was built in 1903 as a wedding present to Frederick Sampson, the police chief’s son, and Margaret Kettering, the mayor’s daughter. It is in need of a full makeover, but considering its age, it is still in superb condition. Let’s take a look inside,” Dr. Jacobs said as he hurriedly walked up the stairs.

  Cody attempted to follow him, but the minute he came in contact with the building, he felt a bone deep fear. Every hair on his body felt as though it was standing on end, and his body refused to move forward.

  “What’s the matter?” Dr. Jacobs asked worriedly when he looked back, and saw the boy frozen to the spot.

  “I’ve changed my mind. I don’t think I want to go in there. That place is creeping me out,” he said with his voice wavering. Dr. Jacobs saw the fear, and made his way over to him.

  “I know it may be a bit intimidating, but I assure you that there is nothing to fear in there. I visit this place regularly, so I know what I’m talking about. Let’s go in, have a look around, talk a bit, and then head back. What do you say, son?” he said, and then rested his hand on Cody’s head, similar to how his father used to do. Immediately, the fear receded as though it hadn’t ever been there.

  “Okay,” Cody said a bit breathlessly, before walking into the house with the man.

  ‘Maybe this will help me trust him, after all.’

  ***

  At three o’clock sharp, Sister Mary Ava heard the doorbell. Assuming that it was Cody and Dr. Jacobs returning, she opened the door without asking who it was. Instead of the expected duo, she saw a tall, slim man that appeared to be in his early fifties with salt and pepper colored hair.

  “Hello, you must be Sister Mary Ava; I’m Dr. Jacobs. I’m here to see Cody,” he said pleasantly, and the sister’s mind went blank.

  “Excuse me?”

  “I’m here to see Cody Winters. This is the Winters Residence, is it not?” he asked, visibly unsure of himself as he looked at the numbers on the house, and then turned to look at the street sign. Meanwhile, Sister Mary Ava was feeling as though the bottom had dropped out of her stomach.

  “Do you have some form of identification?” she asked, cautiously. A bit taken aback, but otherwise unbothered, the man quickly went about fulfilling her request.

  “Of course. Absolutely,” he said as he showed her his driver’s license, and sure enough, it identified him as fifty-two year old Daniel Jacobs.

  “I met with a Mrs. Kelly Winters two days ago, and she gave me this. On the back, she wrote this address. Am I in the right place?” he asked as he handed Sister Mary Ava a business card. One glance at it quickly revealed it to be one of Kelly’s, and when she flipped it over, it had the house’s address written out it Kelly’s handwriting. Upon seeing it, she had only one thought racing through her mind.

  ‘If this is Dr. Jacobs, who on Earth did I send Cody off with?’

  ***

  “This place was built as a symbol of happiness and prosperity for the town. Two very popular, powerful families were joining, and it was considered a sign of things to come. Of course, when a young man of twenty-two years weds a young woman of eighteen years, one of the things people expect to come is new life. Unfortunately for Frederick and Margaret, fertility issues loomed and nearly tore them apart.

  The first six years of their marriage produced three miscarriages and a stillborn daughter, and the townspeople began to wonder if their union was actually a bad omen. People were much more superstitious in those days, so eventually, the Sampsons’ private problems began to affect their fathers’ careers, and they spent long hours praying beside that fireplace you see over there,” the other Dr. Jacobs said as he walked through the expansive living room.

  ‘How the hell does he know all that?’ Cody thought as he followed, but didn’t voice his question. He knew that the more
questions he asked, the longer the tour would take, so he decided to keep quiet.

  “In the spring of 1909 their prayers were answered, and the following winter Margaret gave birth to a healthy baby boy. They named him Kettering Sampson in honor of their union. Sadly, the labor was difficult, leaving Margaret essentially barren, but their one son made up for that in every way imaginable. He was considered a parent’s dream; he was well mannered, even tempered, very studious and had a rapt interest in current and past issues.

  Everyone in his family could tell that boy was bright, but once he began attending school, the entire town learned of his genius. From day one, he received perfect scores on every assignment, and by the age of fifteen, he was slated to graduate early, and then attend college: a supreme honor in those days. The room we’re standing in was his, by the way.”

  Hearing that, Cody dutifully observed the space, and then let his mind wander.

  ‘I’m glad Mom isn’t here to hear this. If she had proof that a perfect son had existed, I’d never get her off my back.’

  “As you can imagine, Kettering was his family’s greatest source of pride, and no one loved and admired him more than Frederick. He often wondered just how high the boy could go, so he constantly pushed him to be even greater. Not only did he expect perfection in his academic and social life, he placed the burden of running his business, the town’s bank, on the boy’s shoulders as well. Since his son was by far the smartest person he knew, he felt like he could handle it, so he cut him no slack, the same as he would a fully grown man.”

  ‘That sounds familiar…’

  “Come along, I want to show you the office.”

  Snapped out of his thoughts, Cody caught the man’s image just as he bent the corner. Not wanting to be left alone in the estate, he quickly ran to catch up, and then followed him up a flight of stairs. For some reason, the fear he felt outside immediately returned twofold. If it wasn’t for his pride, he would have asked to hold the man’s hand.

  “This room is actually the study, but once you go through that sliding door, you’ll find the office in the adjoining room. Now where was I…?” the doctor asked. “Oh yes, Kettering handled his workload flawlessly, and was even able to bring in more business because people were so enamored by his age and skill. Unfortunately, even the greatest will wear down over time, and in his exhaustion, Kettering mistakenly calculated a slew of new accounts’ earned interest at zero point five instead of the standard half percent. By the time it was noticed, thousands of dollars had been doled out, and the once wealthy family was now in debt.

  For the first time since his son’s conception, Frederick felt disappointment in him, and it was such a foreign emotion that he lashed out at the boy. He not only verbally berated him, but physically struck him as well. Always the gentle soul, Kettering didn’t attempt to defend himself, and simply endured the abuse. However, after weeks of the same treatment, he hung himself in his father’s office. On the note he left behind were two simple words: I’m sorry.”

  Upon those words being said, the sliding door to the office flew open by itself. Instantly, Cody made a break for the hallway, but the door to the study slammed shut just as he reached it.

  “I haven’t finished my story,” the doctor said, and then gave a wry smile. “Frederick found his son the next morning. For several long minutes, he tried to revive the boy, but it was in vain. His son was gone, and he had no one to blame, but himself. So, after he laid the boy to rest, he drank himself unconscious every chance he got. Seeing the state of her husband, and reeling from the death of her son, Margaret grew ill even though nothing physically ailed her. Many people speculate that her premature death a few months later was due to a broken heart and a lack of will to live. This left Frederick utterly alone. Not only did he have to deal with the pain of losing his son, but the apparition of his deceased wife now hung over his head as well, so he decided that it was time he joined them. On what would have been his son’s sixteenth birthday, he shot himself in the head with a gun very similar to this one.”

  Cody watched as the man reached into his pocket, pulled out a revolver, and then laid it on top of the cardboard box in front of him. For the past few minutes, he had been trying to pry the door open, but it felt like it had been welded shut, so he settled on making himself as flat to the door as possible.

  “Who are you?” he whispered to who he thought was Dr. Jacobs.

  “I believe you already know the answer to that,” the man said with sad eyes, and Cody’s face instantly crumbled with tears rapidly flowing.

  “Sir, I’m not sure who you think I am, but–”

  “You’re Cody Winters,” Frederick said plainly.

  “Right, I’m Cody Winters, not–”

  “I’m not here for you, Cody. I’m here for the one inside of you,” Frederick said, and Cody’s eyes grew impossibly wide. “Kettering, come forth.”

  At those words, Cody lost control of his body, and was only allowed to look out of eyes he could no longer control. Outwardly, his head turned as he seemingly assessed each corner of the room, before finally turning to focus on the man casually standing by. Tears formed in his eyes anew.

  “Oh Father,” Kettering said as he met Frederick’s gaze. The body and face were different, but the style of speech, stance and look in his eyes were recognizable anywhere.

  “So you did hear all of that? Good, I was hoping me bringing you here would open your eyes,” Frederick said as calmly.

  “Father, what have I done? I didn’t mean for this to happen. All I remember is being lost and scared. I wanted to go home, but I couldn’t find my way no matter how hard I tried. I then heard a woman’s voice telling me to come back to her, and not to die. I thought it was Mother, so I followed it. My God, what have I done!”

  “Kett, this isn’t your fault. The fault lies in a foolish, old man who is still paying for his mistakes nearly a century later,” Frederick said as his eyes clouded.

  “What do we do now?”

  “You must leave that body.”

  “I don’t know how… Please! Take me back to Sister Mary Ava, she can call-”

  “That won’t work. Unfortunately, there is no such thing as an exorcism. When you joined with that boy, he was in between this life and the next. In order to separate, you’ll have to return to the meeting place,” Frederick said, and then handed the boy the revolver. Stunned, Kettering nearly dropped it.

  “Father, what are you saying! If I do this-”

  “There is no other way, and you two can’t stay like that. Look at him Kett; he’s suffering. His family is suffering, his friends are suffering, and you are suffering. Living in and out of mental institutions and being strapped to beds is no way to live. There are some things that are worse than death, and the reality he faces with you here is one of them. At least this way, he’ll have a chance to survive it, even if it’s slim. As it is now, it’s already written that you two will destroy each other. You must leave that body.”

  “I…,” Kettering uttered, and then stopped when his eyes landed on the gun. Slowly, he walked over to it, and let the weight settle in his palm. He then turned to his father with haunted eyes.

  “Don’t be afraid, my son. There are enough bullets in that gun for the both of us, and I will be right behind you.”

  At a snail’s pace, Kettering lifted the gun to his temple. He then placed his other hand on his chest, and felt the heart beneath beating rapidly and strong.

  “I’m sorry,” he said, and then pulled the trigger.

  ***

  “Excuse me, can you please tell where I can find Cody Winters!”

  The medical receptionist looked up at the frantic man, and could guess the answer to her question, but her job had long taught her to never assume.

  “Does he work here, or is he a patient?”

  “A patient! He’s a patient!”

  “Okay, no problem. Hang on a second,” she said as she searched the computer. She then stopped typing for
a few moments, before a frown adorned her face.

  “I’m sorry, Sir, but I can’t give out any information on that patient. His whereabouts are classified.”

  “Classified! What do you mean his whereabouts are classified. I’m his father, God damn it!”

  “Robert!”

  Upon hearing his name, Robert looked over and saw Kelly briskly walking towards him. Instantly, he gave up his interrogation of the medical receptionist, and sprinted over to his ex-wife.

  “Kelly, where is he? What the hell happened to him? What is going on!”

  Instead of responding, Kelly led him silently down the hall, down a floor, and through a maze of doors until they reached a waiting room where Sister Mary Ava sat in deep prayer.

  “There is so much I’ve kept from you, and I never regretted it. But, as I sat out here waiting for even a hint of information, I got a glimpse of what I put you through, and I can’t even comprehend how you’ve been able to bear it,” Kelly said solemnly, before she finally met his gaze. “This all started after our divorce…”

  In the span of an hour, she told Robert about Cody’s depression, his attempted suicide, the sessions with Dr. Cruson, the accident and subsequent amnesia, his fragile mental state, his kidnapping and his recent shooting.

  “He’s now in surgery to have the bullet wedged in his brain removed. They said that his chances of survival are slim, and if he does survive, the odds of him having long lasting impairments are high, if he doesn’t wind up in a vegetative state,” Kelly said as tears flowed freely. Robert just looked at her with an expression that said everything, yet nothing at all. If teased apart, anger, disgust and pain would all be present. Most prominent was the look one gives a person they’ve only just met.

  “Oh God!” he finally exclaimed, and then dropped his head in his hands as soul-crushing sobs wracked through his body. Kelly immediately squeezed her eyes shut, and brought up her hands to cover her ears as her tears flowed faster. When Robert had wronged her, she vowed to make him pay, and now that she had completely and consummately wounded him, she felt no joy. Next to her sat the man she had fallen in love with at the end of their ninth grade year. He was her first and last love. Never did she think that their union would turn out like this.