| Episode: | Season 1, Episode 1 – Chaos! At The Gala |
| Location: | Stelvik Station Prison |
| Written By: | Isabelle Duncan Riley Bennett Todd Bennett |
| Date: | 08/19/2026 |
| Word Count: | 1,196 |
Riley tried to maintain some sort of simplistic breathing pattern as the security guard led them toward the visitation room. There, as promised, was a glass pane window that separated the two children from their mother. She saw her Mom sitting there on the stool, and at first Riley hoped the calm stillness her mother was maintaining would last.
She looked over at her brother, then Riley sat down on the stool across the glass from their mother. The vocalizer that allowed them to communicate started to buzz to life. The girl took a deep breath, “Hi Mom.”
Todd heard his sister speak first as he sat down, there was something off about the way his sister was acting. But, the young ten-year-old boy said nothing about that. He looked at their mother knowing that a recorder was in the room behind them. And, this glass was supposed to be unbreakable. “Hello Mom,” He said.
Isabelle Duncan had sat through multiple sessions with the prison psychologist before this visit. There had been a small part of her that wasn’t entirely comfortable with this. But, this was the first time she’d seen her children in roughly eight years, or had it been nine? She couldn’t be sure.
Yet, there were her babies sitting in front of her. So much time had passed, she thought maybe Rhys had taken good care of them. “Hi Riley, Hi Todd.” Isabelle said, her voice soft. There was a part of her that wanted to reach out and hug the two of them.
‘Here’s your chance, if only this glass wasn’t between you and them.’ The voice that she’d not heard in quite some time started to worm its way into the center of her skull.
Isabelle ignored it, “You’ve grown so much.” She whispered hoarsely.
Riley could barely make out what their mother was trying to say to them. But, at least she seemed calm the ten-year-old felt a surge of discomfort that she tried to push down. A soft smile playing on her lips as she ignored her own swirl of emotions. “How have you been Mom?”
Isabelle heard the question over the soft roar of the voice in the center of her skull. “I’ve been well princess.” She said, “How have you both been?”
‘What are you doing?’ The voice goaded her as it slowly worked to set the corners of her brain on fire. ‘Break the glass and end them… Terminate them and prove your worth Belle!’ The voice seemingly began to seethe in her head.
Isabelle began to twitch a little bit as her body shook. She wanted it to stop, “Stop it!” She mumbled and began to tap the back of her head.
That was the first sign of trouble that Todd had noticed, but for his sister’s sake he tried his best to ignore the tic that had just happened. “We’ve been okay Mom.” Todd told her before his sister had a chance to answer. “Dad’s been taking good care of us.” He said.
The voice had begun to slowly unfurl itself spreading throughout the entirety of her skull, ‘Had you started with the boy you’d have been successful. You know that don’t you? Don’t you?’
“Stop it!” Isabelle said as she jumped up from the stool she’d been sitting on. Her voice becoming more high pitched and desperate. She began to pace back and forth and really striking the back of her head.
“Are you okay Mom?” Riley managed to whisper just loud enough. She’d started to feel a slight ebb of terror while watching the way her mother was behaving in front of her. She looked to her side where Todd was still sitting, “She’s okay right?” Riley asked desperately.
“I-I don’t know.” Todd said to his sister without looking away from his mother.
‘Break the damned glass woman, or are you just as worthless now as you were then?’ The voice hissed aggressively. It had completely taken over the insides of the woman’s head. ‘Or do you want me to show you what happens to those who are worthless?’
Isabelle continued to smack the back of her head as the voice snaked itself throughout her head. “I said stop it… Please!” She begged then it was as if an entirely different woman was standing there and her head went down. She’d stopped moving, her long curly hair falling and covering her face.
Riley stood up, “Mom?” She managed as she started toward the glass.
Todd had reached out, trying to stop his sister from getting any closer to the glass. But, Riley had gotten past the extent of his reach and so his hand met nothing but air. So Todd started reaching to his side for the safety button that he couldn’t quite find because his vision was on their mother.
Riley ignored her brother as she pressed her head closer to the glass. Her mother had stopped moving entirely, “Mom are you okay?” She asked, “Y-you’re scaring me Mom?” The girl managed to breathe.
Something inside Isabelle had exploded in that moment and she lunged forward before colliding with the glass. She started hitting it, softly at first but it was enough to echo throughout the entire visitation room on both sides. “I SHOULD HAVE KILLED YOU BOTH… I SHOULD HAVE STARTED WITH TODD!” She bellowed.
Riley gasped as she took a single step backwards, “Mom… D-don’t.” She said as something in her head tried to disconnect from what was going on. This wasn’t her mother, there was something deeply wrong and the ten-year-old simply didn’t understand.
‘Break the glass you worthless sod!’ The voice demanded.
Isabelle started hitting the glass even harder, it didn’t crack. She began hitting her forehead into the glass violently. But, there was no sound coming from her mouth just her moving lips. Somehow the vocalizer had disconnected. Warm liquid started to form along her forehead where she’d cut herself.
Riley took another step backwards, “Todd…” She managed to mumble.
Todd had finally found the safety button and hit it a little harder than he planned on. He grabbed his sister and turned her away so that she could no longer see how her mother was acting. “It’s okay Riles,” He said softly. The door behind him had soon burst open and he saw the two security officers entering.
Riley didn’t know what had happened next, she was being pulled backwards toward the exit with the sounds of her mother’s strikes against the glass still flooding her senses. She’d heard what her brother had said, but barely registered it.
Isabelle started to feel funny, there was a slight pinch in her arm as she struggled against the hands that had grasped her. Everything around her started to go completely dark and soon she felt like she was floating.
Riley found herself staring blankly, “W-what happened?”
Todd shrugged, “I don’t know Riles,” He said. And, it was true Todd didn’t know what had just happened. It was like in one moment their Mom was fine, then she started arguing with herself and then got violent. What he did know was there had to be something deeply wrong.