Chapter 95

Dana satin her leather armchair in her home office, double checking the camera aimed at Claire was recording. She gave the hypnotherapist a nod, and they got started.

Claire lay stretched out on Dana's worn leather sofa, her socked feet crossed at the ankles. She looked impossibly small laying there, eyes closed, hands folded over her stomach, clutching her eyeglasses. It always struck Dana how young the twenty-five-year-old looked when she wasn't hiding behind her signature cat eye frames. And now, laying still and alone on the couch made her look as fragile as a child.

"Let's begin," the therapist said, instructing Claire to follow her deep breathing technique, before slowly counting her into a hypnotic state.

"10."

"9."

"8."

"7."

"6."

"5."

"4."

"3."

"2."

"1."

"Claire, are you still with me?"

"Yes," she replied, her voice relaxed and dreamlike.

"Good. We're going to take a journey together. You won't be alone, and no one can hurt you. Okay?"

"Okay."

"I want you to imagine a long white hallway lined with doors. Can you picture it?"

"Yes."

"Behind each door is a memory. We're going to open the doors I ask you about together. Will you do that with me?"

"Yes."

"Good. I want you to go to the first door and think back to the first time Meredith Kincaid came to visit you at Passages. Can you picture it?"

"Yes," she said again.

"Good, let's enter that room together. Tell me when you're inside."

"I'm there."

"Good, Claire. Tell me, who else is in the room with you and Meredith?"

"Dr. Dvita."

"Anyone else?"

"No."

"What are you discussing?"

"My progress at Passages."

"What about your progress?"

"Dr. Dvita says I've come far. He's proud of my progress. Says I'm ready for more."

"More? Can you elaborate?"

"More responsibility. Like Meredith."

"What kind of responsibility does Meredith have?"

Claire's eyes dart back and forth beneath her closed eyelids like the question makes her uncomfortable. Finally, she answers. "Meredith is an instrument. But she doesn't want to be."

Claire's fingers begin to twitch, her fingers balling into fists around her glasses.

"What's happening now, Claire?" the therapist asked.

"Meredith is leaving. Dr. Dvita is mad. He ends our session."

"Okay. Good work, Claire. Let's move on. Take me back to the hall. Are you there?"

"Yes."

"Good. Now, open the next door. Inside is your second meeting with Meredith. Tell me who's there."

"Me, Meredith, and Dr. Dvita."

"Anyone else?"

"No."

"What do you discuss?"

"The same thing. This time Meredith agrees with Dr. Dvita."

"Agrees with him about what?"

"That I'm ready."

"Ready for what?"

Claire twitched violently, her hands losing their grip on her glasses. As they fell to the floor, another voice spoke. It came from Claire, but it wasn't her. It was dark and sinister, just like the smirk on her face. It was the same voice Dana heard when Dvita put Claire under.

"I can't tell you that," the voice warned.

"Why not?"

"That's not part of the game."

"I wasn't aware we were playing a game. What are the rules?"

"Ask her," the voice said.

"Who?"

"Claire."

Dana shivered at hearing her friend's name spoken by the other worldly voice.

"We're not here to talk about Claire. We're talking about Meredith."

The voice tsked with disapproval. "Meredith wouldn't play this game."

"Why not?"

"She's afraid."

"Afraid of what?"

"Her destiny."

"What's her destiny?"

Claire twitched again, her head thrashing back and forth warring with whatever was possessing her, because Dana was more convinced than ever that she was under the spell of some sort of poltergeist.

"Stay with me, Claire," the therapist instructed. "You're safe. Breathe."

But Claire was panting, gasping for air.

"We need to stop," Dana demanded. "Bring her out of it."

The therapist held her hand up to silence Dana.

"Claire, you're safe. Go back into the hallway and count with me. When you get to one, you're going to wake up. But I want you to keep your eyes closed and tell me the last thing you see."

"Five."

Inhale

"Four."

Exhale

"Three."

Inhale

"Two."

Exhale

"One."

Claire stilled, her entire body slack for a moment. Then, she spoke; in her voice this time. "Seven must sleep for all to rise."

Dana stifled her gasp. She moved to Claire's side, picking up her glasses and placing them back in her pale hands. She squeezed Claire's arm, wanting her to know she was safe, but the touch jarred her awake. Eyes wild, she sat up, looking around the room in terror. "What happened?"

"You were under hypnosis," Dana said. "Do you remember?"

She pulled her knees to her chest and slowly nodded. "Did I help?"

The therapist asked, "What's the last thing you saw in the hallway, Claire?"

For a moment she frowned, then said, "I saw my face staring back at me."

Dana squeezed her hand. "You showed us another piece of the puzzle."

The hypnosis may not have explained Meredith's involvement, but it validated her fears about Claire. This was more than depression or PTSD. This was something sinister, and she'd bet money Dr. Dvita was behind it. She just had to prove it.

Her phone buzzed in her pocket. Jake. "Did you find Max?" she asked.

"No."

Her eyes met Claire's for a moment before she walked out of the room. "Jake, I think you need to come home."