[Spookhouse]

He slides this cannula in through the vaginal lips, down the vaginal hall, into the cervix and finally he breaches the uterus and rests it there for just a moment. Pepper's eyes follow the end of the cannula as it transforms into a long rubber tube connecting to an object that resembles a thermos. Dr. Richards makes a small movement revealing himself from behind her hospital gown, and towards the thermos-like object. Pepper diverts her eyes upward to the ceiling, Richards flips a switch and a small humming noise starts. Quiet at first but gets only a bit louder, then the doctor disappears again behind her gown.

The room is silent except for the hum of the thermos. Peppers eyes scan the ceiling as images of dead children flash through her mind. Infants with blue skin from suffocation where a parent rolled over on them in the middle of the night. Or a toddler bloated, with pale skin and purple lips from drowning in a bath tub, the water running. The forgetful parents down stairs watching television. And still the humming continues as Doctor Richards moves the long rod back and forth slowly in and out sucking up sticky membrane, baby tissue, and bloody clots of fetal matter.

Silence cakes the room as Pepper thinks of sudden infant death and Dr. Richards vacuums up the decidua, which is the the uterine lining and form maternal part of the placenta. And still Pepper's mind flashes with image of babies cold with broken necks and scrambled brains from shaken baby syndrome. The cannula pulls in the amniotic fluid and amniotic membrane as the doctor continues to slide the rod slowly.

Soon the humming stops and Pepper is pulled out of her trance. The Doctor removes the long plastic tube and sets it on the metal tray. He looks over from around Peppers knees and smiles through his mask. She catches his eyes but doesn't smile back. "I just need to examine your uterus and we'll be done here." he says. He again disappears behind her gown and tinkers around for a few more minutes. Checking to make sure the entire embryo had been cleared out. He then removes the dilators and sets them on the tray next to the cannula and syringe.

Doctor Richards stands up, his white gloves still completely clean, and walks towards the thermos containing the contents of Peppers used to be baby. He unhooks the rubber hose from and bottom of the cylinder and tucks it under his arm. Turning around he pulls his mask down from his face and looks to Pepper. Smiling he says, "Thank you for your contribution. The nurse will be with you in just a moment." He then opens the door and retreats closing it behind him.

She stands up wobbly but with enough balance to get dressed. And within minutes the fat lady is at the door knocking. "You okay honey?" her pudgy mouth spits through the other side of the door.

"Yes, I'm fine." Pepper calls as she slides her shirt over her head. "Can you call me a cab please?"

"Already done honey. They're outside as we speak." the flabby mouth says from outside in the hallway. "We're all waiting on you doll."

Great, Pepper thinks to herself and rolls her eyes. She steps to the door and opens it. There in the hallway is the beef pear-shaped bovine of a woman with her dumpy jowls, smiling and wheel chair parked in front of her. Pepper takes a seat in the chair and the heft woman begins to wheel her down the long hall way.

"The doctor will need to see you in two days and then again in another two weeks." she says above and behind Pepper's head. Pepper only continues to look forward down the long corridor. The wheels turn over and over till they are at the exit of the hallway and the entrance into the waiting room. As the over-weight woman opens the door she continues to explain to Pepper how she must keep clean and douche at least every other day until her last appointment with the doctor.

The fat woman continues to explain all of this as her and Pepper reach the entrance of the building. The exit back into the world. Her cab just outside, Pepper stands to her feet and begins to exit out the door. She walks to the cab, opens the door, and enters shutting the door behind her. The bulky lady from the front desk watches from the entrance door and waits till the yellow cab pulls away.

From the corner of her eyes the woman catches a young girl with brown hair walking up to the clinic doors. This girl is no more then 17 years old and as she steps to the fat lady she says, "Hi, I'm here for a four o'clock appointment."

"Your name?" asks the bulky woman.

"Ashley." states the young girl and she smiles nervously.

"Right this way and have a seat. I'll let the doctor know your here." replies rotund woman who turns and waddles back behind her desk with Ashley following behind and taking a seat. "Your 4 o'clock is here Doctor.", the lady behind the desk says into the speaker with her finger on a button.

Back behind the door to the long corridor, and down that long corridor behind a certain wooden door is Doctor Richards. Chewing and slurping, his mouth smeared in dark purple and chunky membranes, the silver thermos-like object atop his desk open. His one hand holds chunks to face feeding his hungry mouth while the other hand reaches into the cylinder pulling out more slop to cram into his mouth. blood and embryo embedded around his nails and stained down his fingers.

Your 4 o'clock is here Doctor, announces the speaker phone on his desk. Doctor Richards quickly sucks off the tissue and membrane from his one finger and pushing down on a button he replies, "I'll be right out Sheila."