Shadows of the Past: A Supernatural Suspense Mystery (Shadow Slayers Stories Book 1) by Nellie Steele (read aloud .txt) 📗

out before the side effects of the nightmares and visions drove her insane. An idea formed, and she went with it. She texted back: Would your Dr. friend come to the house to hypnotize me?

It wasn’t long before she received a response: Yes, but do you consider that wise or have you told your roommates?

She texted back, explaining a piece of her plan: No I haven’t told them but I can say she’s a colleague of my doctor… that it’s some new home therapy method

Josie had decided perhaps it was best to use another doctor, one who understood that she was trying to unlock these “memories” that seemed to be bottled in her head. She was concerned, of course, about working with someone she’d never met but if she was here at home with others in the house, she figured it was safe.

Another text came through: When?

Josie considered it for a moment. If she was going to go through with this plan, perhaps it should be before her regular doctor’s appointment. That way she could decide on continuing with Dr. Reed or not based on the results of the new treatment. She texted back: Tonight? 5pm?

The response was almost immediate: We’ll be there

Josie texted back: No. Just the doctor, you can’t be here.

This time his response was delayed. Josie waited anxiously for the answer. The last thing she needed was Grayson showing up and casting suspicion on the entire set up. Finally the response came through: Ok… I understand… Amelia will be there at 5

Josie set her phone down. That was settled. Now all she had to do was carry off the lie to her friends, and she was free to explore this option to find out if it could help her. She finished the last few sips of her tea, now lukewarm, and headed up to her office after dropping her mug off in the kitchen.

Damien was already there, working away, headphones on, music blasting. She waved as she sat down across the room from him. With a game plan in place, she was capable of focusing on a little work. For the first time, she had a sense of hope that it could help her. She worked her morning away, making good progress on a few projects. After doing another email check and responding to a few, her stomach began to growl. It was almost 12:30 p.m., so she figured it was a great time to stop and make lunch. She pantomimed to Damien, asking if he wanted some lunch. He nodded, going back to working. He was like a dog with a bone when he got going on something so she left him to continue while she prepared some lunch.

Taking it back up to the office, she handed him the plate as he slid his headphones off. “Thanks,” he said, “sorry, I just wanted to finish something while my mind was on it.”

“No problem, did you get your bug fixed?”

“I did, then someone broke something else,” he lamented. “How’s your day going?”

“Good. I got something productive done!” she said.

“Awesome, good job you!”

“Oh, before I forget,” Josie said, taking a bite of her salad. “Dr. Reed’s office called to see how I was doing. He’s sending someone to the house tonight, some colleague. Said he wanted to try the hypnotherapy in a ‘safe space’ where I would be relaxed? I don’t know, anyway, she’s coming around five tonight.”

“Oh, really? Home therapy? That’s weird.”

“Yeah, well at least he’s doing something. I guess depending on how this goes tonight he’ll decide if I should come back to the office and see him or continue at home.”

“Here, there, both, whatever, I hope something helps you soon. You’ve got to be close to losing it entirely from the stress that you’re under from dealing with this let alone whatever stress is causing this to begin with.”

“Yeah, it’s getting super old, I can tell you that.” Josie changed the subject, chatting about work and the weather. She was plagued by guilt lying to Damien like this but she was at her wit’s end trying to cope with the situation. She also recognized that he wouldn’t approve had he known the origin of the new doctor. She wasn’t even sure she approved.

After lunch, Josie was almost glad to return to work to avoid any further mistruths being told during their conversation. She finished up around 4 p.m. and told Damien she was going to do some preparation for dinner before her appointment. Michael was coming through the door as she headed downstairs. She explained the situation with the new doctor to him, excusing herself from any further discussion by telling him she was headed in to prepare some things for dinner.

Josie’s mind lacked any focus for the hour that remained before her appointment. She fiddled in the kitchen, cutting vegetables for a pasta dish and setting out various materials for later. After about thirty minutes, she went to the living room to wait nervously. Both Damien and Michael joined her about fifteen minutes before the appointment to wait with her.

At about five to five, the doorbell rang. Josie leapt from the couch to answer it. With a shaky hand, she opened the door to find a woman, about her height, shaking her umbrella off outside. Her dark brown hair was pulled neatly into a bun at the nape of her neck. She looked at Josie with large brown eyes. “Josie Benson, I presume?”

“Yes, I’m Josie, come in.”

The woman walked through the door, leaving her umbrella on the porch. “I’m Dr. Amelia Gresham. Nice to meet you.” As she stepped in the room, she spotted two other people, which halted any further conversation.

“Hi,” Josie said, shaking her hand. “This is my cousin and roommate, Damien Sherwood, and this is a friend, Michael Carlyle.” Each of them shook Amelia’s hand, exchanging pleasantries.

“So, you’re from Dr. Reed’s office?” Michael asked.

“Yes,” the woman answered without skipping a beat. Grayson must have prepped her well. “Home therapy is a