Chapter Thirty-Nine

Chapter Thirty-nine

“There was no need to put her into a nightmare,” Amelia said, scrambling out of bed.

Gideon did not take his attention off the unconscious woman. “I’ve been trying to tell you, that’s pretty much my job description.”

“No, it’s not,” she snapped, irritated by both his attitude and her nightgown, which had become tangled around her legs. She paused to straighten out the garment and then hurried, barefoot, toward the connecting door. “The thing is, I’m pretty sure she was already in one.”

Halfway to her destination she paused and turned to look at the three crystals on the nightstand. They glinted in the shadows. She had set them out, as usual, before going to sleep next to Gideon.

On impulse she went to the nightstand and grabbed one of the stones. She continued on to the doorway and watched Gideon lean down to pick up the knife. He took a moment to check Katy’s pulse.

“She’s okay, isn’t she?” Amelia asked. “Her aura looks fairly normal except for one band of currents.”

“Pulse is a little shaky but as far as I can tell she just fainted,” he said, straightening. “I tried to go easy this time. Not sure it worked.”

“Excellent! I didn’t think you had hit her with the full force of your talent.”

“Let’s postpone this discussion. In case you hadn’t noticed, I am standing here in my underwear and there’s an unconscious woman on the floor.”

Amelia pulled herself together. “Right. Priorities. You should put on your pants.”

“I’ll do that.”

He stalked past her into the other room and scooped up his trousers.

She studied Katy. “I’m pretty sure I can wake her up, but I think you’re the one who can neutralize the trance.”

“You think I hypnotized her?” he asked, surprised.

“Maybe. In a way. But I’m almost positive that someone else put her into a deeper trance before you came along.”

“You’re sure that whatever it is you’re seeing isn’t my doing?”

“I can view the effects of your talent, too,” she said. “But it’s more like an REM sleep state. The damage I’m talking about is different. It will be a long time before it wears off, if ever.”

Gideon sat down on the edge of the rumpled bed and pulled on his trousers. “Are you saying she is under the influence of a posthypnotic suggestion?”

“Yes. You’re the one who told me Merlin was a psychic-grade hypnotist and that he was delusional. Why wouldn’t he try to use his bride as a weapon of vengeance?”

“Merlin is dead, Amelia.”

“That doesn’t mean he didn’t implant a hypnotic command before he died. If I’m right, Katy is the innocent victim of a psychic madman. I think you can help her.”

“I wouldn’t put money on the ‘innocent’ part.” Gideon stood and fastened his trousers, wincing in the process. His hand went briefly to his ribs. “How, exactly, do you suggest I go about undoing a hypnotic suggestion, assuming there is one?”

“One theory of hypnotic trances is that they are a version of the dreamstate. Like sleepwalking. You’re the expert on dreams.”

“Nightmares,” he corrected grimly. “And I’m not an expert. I can trigger them, that’s all.”

“How did you recover my memories tonight?”

“As far as I can tell, you did that on your own.”

“If I could have unlocked my memories on my own, I would have done so months ago. But tonight I was able to see them in the shadows when I sensed your energy field trying to manipulate mine.” She opened her hand and looked at the crystal. “I think I somehow steered the currents of your talent in the direction I wanted them to go.”

“You channeled my energy?” he asked in disbelief.

“Just certain currents. With the help of the crystal.”

“How the hell—?”

“We’re wasting time,” she said. “I’ve got an idea. Give me your hand. I think physical contact will help me do this more efficiently.”

“What, exactly, do you want me to do?”

“Go into your psychic senses, but target me, not Katy. Gently. I’m going to see if I can guide your energy to the frozen section of her aura.”

“Why?”

“I might be able to use your talent like a psychic defibrillator and jolt the frozen currents back into a normal, stable rhythm.”

“Have you ever done anything like that before?”

“No,” she admitted.

“Do you realize how off-the-walls your plan sounds?”

“What have we got to lose? If we don’t do anything, she’ll probably wake up, but the hypnotic suggestion will still be in place. She’ll keep trying to kill you.”

“Not,” Gideon said evenly, “if I make sure the nightmares are very, very bad the next time around.”

“Oh, come on, you know you don’t want to drive her mad or put her into a permanent coma.”

“What makes you so sure of that?”

“You’re one of the good guys. Think of Katy as another client.”

“A nonpaying client? I’ve got enough of those.”

“I believe ‘pro bono’ is the correct term. Hurry. We need to do this before the sun comes up.” She paused a beat, struck by a thought. “I sound like some kind of vampire, don’t I?”

“I wasn’t going to say anything.”

She ignored him, knelt beside Katy, and reached up for Gideon’s hand. He sat down on the edge of the bed and wrapped his fingers around hers. She rested the hand holding the crystal against Katy’s forehead.

“Now what?” Gideon said.

“Give me a minute to figure this out.” She opened her other vision to full strength. “All right, do what you did earlier tonight when you released my memories.”

“I still think this is a bad idea,” Gideon said.

“Do it.”

“Here goes.”

She felt the first brush of his energy field. Fragments of her nightmares stirred, threatening to spill out of the shadows. She suppressed them and concentrated on Katy’s aura, searching for the currents that were locked. Focusing.

Relying on her intuition, she fought to channel Gideon’s powerful energy, manipulating the currents with her own talent and the aid of the crystal.

She knew the precise instant when the frozen currents snapped out of stasis and began to oscillate in a normal pattern—mostly because the blowback struck her senses like an exploding storm.

The jagged shards of nightmares, old and new, roared out of the darkness, sweeping her into a whirlpool of hallucinations. Frantically, she tried to suppress the violent images the way she had earlier. But this time they refused to slink back into the shadows. Gideon’s talent threatened to overwhelm her.

“Amelia.”

Gideon’s voice, cold and clear, acted like a beacon in the churning fog of dreams. She focused on it and the manacle-like grip he had on her hand. The combination guided her back to the surface.

When the room settled around her again she took a few deep breaths and willed her pulse to return to normal.

“Shit, I told you this was a bad idea,” Gideon said.

When she opened her eyes she found him watching her with a mix of dread and guilt.

“I’m okay,” she said quickly. “I just need a moment.”

Relief flashed in his eyes. It was quickly followed by outrage.

“Damn it, Amelia.”

“Please,” she said, tugging her hand free. “Save the lecture for later.” She looked at the woman on the floor. “Katy, wake up.”

Katy’s eyes fluttered. She opened them and looked at Amelia.

“What…what are you doing here?” Then she saw Gideon sitting on the bed. Comprehension infused with panic twisted her face. She sat up. “Oh, shit. I came here to kill you.”

Amelia got to her feet. “I’ve got an idea. Why don’t I make coffee for everyone? But first, let’s move into the other room. I really don’t like this one.”