“Mr. Orenbluth, it’s Dr. Apter. We spoke on the phone this afternoon.” Robert heard shuffling behind the door. Was he really going to have to coax this man like a stray alley cat? “Sir, I am only here to help you. I drove out of my way after a long day of work so that we could talk. Please, open the door.”
“Just talk?”
“Yes, sir, just talk.”
The door opened a crack, with the chain still on. “Then why do you have that thingamajig machine next to your feet?”
“Don’t worry about that; I have that with me in case you’d like some help to feel calmer. I know that this procedure can seem frightening, but there really is no reason to worry.” Robert leaned in, toward the small opening, and forcefully whispered, “Sir, I am sure you do not want the other occupants of this establishment to know your business so, please, let me in and we can go over this in private.” He heard the chain slide, and the door opened. An overwhelming stench of mold, cigarette smoke, and stale alcohol immediately hit him. The man sat down on the unmade bed. “Mr. Orenbluth, I can tell that you are suffering. Lobotomy will make you better. Isn’t that why you agreed to have it done?”
“Yeah, it is.” He looked down at the ground and kicked a beer can under the bed. As if he could hide it there. “But I dunno. Cuttin’ into people’s brains. Doesn’t seem right somehow. It’s ungodly.”
Robert winced. He detested that turn of phrase. God had given man the ability to reason, and Robert had used this gift of reason to develop a miraculous way to ease suffering. It was religious poetry, that’s what it was.
He noticed an overflowing ashtray on the small desk. He needed to get out of this filthy place as soon as possible. “Mr. Orenbluth, may I call you Sam?” The man nodded. “Sam, did your doctor at the hospital explain the reason for lobotomy to you?”
Sam nodded again slowly—it seemed he was hesitant to admit too much.
“From what I see in your file, there is a strong chance that you will be placed in lockdown at an institution based on your recent behavior. Did the doctor tell you that?”
More nods.
“So, you understand that this is going to help you? To let you have a life? To keep you out of prison?”
“Yeah. But what kinda life will it be without all of my brain?”
“I think you misunderstand. You will retain your brain. You will just lose the connections that make you do the bad and violent things, like breaking a beer bottle and holding it at the bartender’s throat for giving you the wrong change.”
Sam looked down in shame. “I wasn’t really gonna hurt him. Just wanted him to know he couldn’t mess with me.”
“Whatever the details of that event, they led you to the hospital where you ended up on my schedule. I am only in town for one more day, Sam. And I am the man who invented this procedure. I have performed more of them than anyone else in the country. My understanding is that the state wants you to have a lobotomy one way or another. So, would you rather come to the hospital tomorrow and have it done by the country’s expert, or wait longer and let one of the staff members, who I will have just trained, stick an ice pick in your brain?”
“Stop! Stop talking about it! I don’t want it! I’ll be better. I promise.”
Robert looked at the man in front of him. He wasn’t tall, but he was quite solid and a bit overweight. He could hurt Robert badly if he wasn’t careful. Robert bent down and opened the top of his electroshock machine and plugged it in. It began to hum.
“What’s that? Whatcha doin’？ Don’t hurt me!”
“It’s okay, Sam. It’s okay.” Robert looked at him with his kindest and gentlest smile. He needed to get him sedated before things got out of hand. “This is simply a tool that I use to help patients who are feeling very worried. Come sit here on the floor with me and have a look. See, these coils hold electricity, like inside of a light bulb. Sometimes I use it on myself for a headache; it feels lovely, really. A small tickle that just makes my body relax.” He lifted the two metal cups and held them on either side of his temples. “I just place these little cups here, like this, step on that pedal there, and the next thing you know, you will feel calm and peaceful. You probably won’t even remember what you were worrying about.” Sam seemed to be calming down just by listening. “This is such a good treatment that you will feel relaxed and fearless all the way until tomorrow, when I will see you at the hospital, and if you want, I can use this again. Would you like to try it?”