Tethered

Chapter Fourteen

1

"How are you feeling?" Dr. Karen Scott asked, smiling as usual. She was in a black skirt, and white shirt this time. Her blonde hair was in a tight ponytail, and her lips were painted a pink color.

"I'm feeling okay", Sarah said, then looked at Cynthia, who sat at the edge of the couch, watching. The sadness behind those large eyes hurt Sarah. The sadness was profound, as if, nothing could ever change it.

"Great", Karen said, then wrote something in her notebook. "And how was your night?"

Sarah looked at Cynthia and Cynthia looked back at her. Sarah swallowed uneasily before saying: "Not good."

"Great", Karen Scott smiled. "If we're going to do this, we'll have to start from the beginning. So, when did the nightmares starts?"

Sarah took in a shaky breath. She was growing terribly nervous. She wanted to run and get away as far as she could. Talking about herself made her feel so insecure and more vulnerable.

"I don't know", she said. "I mean, I can't remember."

"Are the nightmares associated with something that you know happened, for example, the night your...?"

"I don't know", Sarah interrupted quickly. She didn't want to hear the rest of the question. She knew what the doctor would say and she didn't want to hear it. "The nightmares are...are...are...." She glared at Cynthia and Cynthia nodded softly.

"...are horrible, and very different."

"Different as in what?"

"I don't know", Sarah said.

"Okay", Karen said. "Tell me about the nightmares."

Sarah's eyes widened. She thought she had already explained. Wasn't horrible and different enough explanation? She clasped her hands together tightly, trying to shove away the uneasiness.

She cleared her throat. "I see people with blurry faces", she said. "And...and they're always trying to kill me. In my nightmares, I hear this voice...and...and..." Sarah stopped. She thought about telling Dr. Karen about the young man—Philip, and about her dual self, but decided against it—for now.

I look stupid, she thought. I can't tell her about Philip or the other me. How could that look?

"What voice?" Karen Scott asked, eyes gleaming with curiosity.

"It's a small voice", she said. "It talks to me."

"What does it tell you?"

"I don't remember", she lied.

Dr. Karen sighed, and leaned back in the chair. "That's good. I love it that you're talking to me. Do your nightmares follow a certain pattern?"

Sarah shook her head. "They're complex." But every time, my other self would want to kill me, and each time, so far, I've survived. She thought but she didn't say it out loud.

"How do they make you feel?"

"Miserable", she answered flatly and watched Dr. Karen Scott note a few things in her notebook.

2

"Do you have nightmares every time you go to sleep or does it happen occasionally?"

"Every time", Sarah answered, and started to wonder why the doctor was so interested in her dreams.

"Okay", she said. "Do you want to talk about what happened. What happened last month?"