The 9th Life of Louis Drax Page #6

I was told you'd be expecting me.

Okay, why don't we talk in my office?

You okay?

Why don't you go back

to the room, take a moment?

Mrs. Drax. I'm Dr. Pascal.

Come with me.

I'm not insensitive to how difficult

a time this must be for you,

but I must tell you that your behavior

today is unacceptable

in a coma ward or any ward,

for that matter.

Have a seat.

Ever since Peter disappeared,

she's been trying to stop me

from seeing Louis.

Have you heard from him?

No, of course not. Nobody has.

It's not like him.

But given what happened...

My son would never hurt Louis.

That's absurd.

Are you even listening?

He loves that boy more than himself.

That's the only reason

he stayed with her so long.

Did you know that Peter

was happily married?

Caitlin was a good woman, loving, kind.

And then that b*tch came along

with her tricks and her lies...

Mrs. Drax, that's enough.

She lied to my son, to me, to Louis.

She's lying to you.

Did she tell you her mother's sick?

Or was it her father?

Did she tell you she was an abused child?

I don't want to hear any more of this.

Did she tell you she was raped?

That she's a natural blonde?

Uh, you could knock, Inspector.

Mrs. Drax, I'm sorry,

but I need a moment of your time.

Uh, we were actually

in the middle of something.

It's important.

Be my guest.

Do you know what happened?

They found a body at Land's End.

They think it might be Peter Drax.

It looks too steep to climb down.

We're not going to climb.

We're going to jump.

It won't hurt us.

I fell from this cliff before, and I died.

You can do anything.

And there'll be no pain.

I'll go first.

Hello!

Come down!

It's fine!

One...

two...

three.

They found your father, Louis.

He's passed away.

Maybe you knew that already.

I'm really sorry.

I think you're trying

to tell me something.

I'm listening.

Talk to me again, okay?

Well, this is definitely

a good place to hide.

I can't see a thing, and it's cold.

Do you get visitors?

Just you.

This is the place I told you about,

where I wrote down the name

of my wife and baby.

You have to help me find it.

How do I know where to look?

It's written on the wall.

Giant tubeworms...

- You hear that?

- It's Pascal.

He's reading to me

about monster tubeworms.

They're gross to look at

because one end's a butt

and the other's a mouth.

Do you know any good stories?

- The Little Prince.

- Blah, blah, blah. Too babyish.

I've read this book too many times.

Okay. Once upon a time.

Bats. I want something with bats.

Yes.

Once upon a time...

there were three bats...

one male and two female.

One of the female bats

was always laughing,

and the other female bat

was always crying.

And the male bat

had to choose between them.

- To mate with?

- Yes!

Yes.

You see...

he was in love with the laughing bat.

But he felt sorry for the crying bat.

She seemed to need him more.

He thought if he loved her enough,

he could stop her from crying.

Why was she crying?

Because it made people

feel sorry... for her.

And she liked that feeling

more than she liked jokes or love.

What happened to you?

I was happy

because I had a baby bat.

And that bat was the most amazing bat

in the entire world.

And I... loved him more

than the whole house.

More than the whole street?

More than all the fish in the sea.

But the baby bat had problems

and made everyone sad.

No!

No!

He was perfect and smart...

and strange...

and brilliant...

and kind...

and so loved.

And I was proud of of him

every single day.

I don't want you to die, Dad.

I know... darling boy.

I know.

The body is badly decomposed and bloated.

The coroner has given us a dental ID.

It seems he fell

from the cliff into the ravine

and was swept into the cave.

He suffered several breakages

and fractures.

There were large quantities of sea matter

clogged in the intestine,

which indicates he survived the fall.

He didn't die on impact?

Most likely pneumonia.

You have a ballpark idea how long

he was in the cave before he died?

One week. Maybe two.

It's Navarra.

Peter Drax did not write the letters.

No sh*t.

W... what time is it, Macy?

You scared me.

You were sleeping so deeply.

Um, it's, uh... 6:00.

I'm sorry, I should've woken you earlier.

But I didn't dare.

Was I snoring?

- No, you were sleepwalking.

- What?

You were sitting next to Louis,

and then you got up and came over here.

And you just sat here for a while,

and then you took out

your prescription pad

and wrote out a prescription,

and then you crumpled it up

and threw it in the trash.

Then you got up...

And you walked back to your chair

and went back to sleep.

I'm sorry if I scared you.

I'm sorry I didn't wake you.

- That prescription, can I see it?

- Sure.

I had a peek. I hope you don't mind.

You're going to laugh

when you see this, Dr. Pascal.

You wrote total nonsense.

Wait, wait, can you rewind?

Sure. Say when.

Okay, stop, stop.

You see? I'm holding

the pen in my left hand.

So what?

I'm right-handed.

May I see what you wrote?

Yeah, they match.

Okay, let's say for a second

that what you're suggesting is true.

Louis is controlling

your body from a comatose state,

an idea I'm sure you'll agree

is as far-fetched as they come.

How would a nine-year-old boy

know what poison to prescribe

and not only that, the exact right dosage?

That seems like knowledge

belonging to a pharmacist.

- Or a doctor.

- But by all accounts,

the boy is incredibly

bright and well-read.

This is not a sophisticated prescription.

Insulin, chloroform?

And this is not the work

of a medical professional.

Maybe he's trying to tell us something.

That he wants his mother dead?

Do you want his mother dead, Dr. Pascal?

Of course not!

You have a history of sleepwalking, Doc.

This behavior, while bizarre,

is explainable, and frankly,

it doesn't matter

why you wrote the letters.

You didn't know Peter and Louis Drax

before the incident.

You are not a suspect. You are...

eccentric, perhaps, but not a suspect.

Then why does this feel

like an interrogation?

Peter Drax's body was found in a cave

500 yards from where Louis was rescued.

So?

That doesn't seem

like a coincidence to you?

That the two bodies

were found in the same place?

Did Louis ever express

any anger toward Natalie?

Did you never suspect that she might

be involved in the accident?

What are you getting at?

Don't you think it's strange that Louis

would have me write that prescription?

Strange?

To who? What part? How strange?

Doctor, those letters

are coming out of your head

through your frustrations, fears,

repressed thoughts, feelings...

desires.

I'm sure you're right.

No, Louis probably

has nothing to do with this.

But what if you're wrong.

What if Louis is reaching out?

As his doctor,

it's my responsibility to help him.

If you're up for it, I'd like to...

I'd like to try something.

But I need you to be careful

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