Wake to Dream(25)

After placing the vegetables in a pot to steam and arranging the steaks on the grill top of the stove, he turned to study her. The sound of sizzling meat filled the space between them, the smell causing Alice's traitorous stomach to churn with rancid hunger.

She wasn't sure when she'd eaten last.

Watching Alice's every expression, mentally tracking each movement and behavior, Max stood silent, his large body propped against the counter at his back.

"I knew a person like you once. He had the same mannerisms, the same characteristics that marked him as something other."

Her attention drawn to his mouth, she studied the way his lips moved when he spoke, the way he kept his head slightly bowed so that he was watching her from beneath thick, inky lashes. His hair was so dark, it manipulated the shadows around him, blending him seamlessly into his environment.

Silence allowed his words to sink into her thoughts, to collide against the nagging whispers that she should be doing something besides listening to his cryptic statements. But just as the first sparks of rage ignited inside her, she forced her eyes from his face, diverting her gaze to the television screen.

"Other? Are you trying to claim we're not human?" It would explain how any man could so easily torture another human being. He had to view that person as an object or an animal.

His eyes followed hers to the television screen, an expression of pity softening his features. She thought he would speak again, but instead he turned to flip the steaks. Black smoke rose up in a thick cloud to mingle with the steam that had accumulated above the boiling pot.

"There is no we, Alice. There is only you."

Her eyes locked to his as he slowly spun back to face her. His head angled in the direction of the screen. "She is not other. Only you."

Confusion saddled her. She'd grown tired of the meaningless statements and words. His explanations revealed nothing. "What do you mean by other?"

"You've seen darkness, experienced Hell...you've battled nightmares all your life. It's shaped you, molded you and set you apart from the majority. You are human, obviously, but your mind is not the same as the worthless sheep who fill our society. You don't care about the inane, you don't waste idle time discussing bullshit. You, of all people, understand what it is to be haunted by evil."

Her brows furrowed, her eyes narrowing on him in disbelief. "There's no way you can know that about me. I've told you nothing."

He grinned. "You didn't need to tell me. I already knew."

Dismissing her as she sat in shocked silence, he returned his attention to the food, pulling the meat from the grill to place it on a plate on the counter. Alice watched the meat bleed onto the plate, crimson red dripping down into rivulets that ran the white porcelain.

"We should eat," he said, busying himself with the steamed vegetables.

"I'm not hungry."

"You will be," he responded. Casting her a taunting glance, he nodded towards a doorway behind her. "The dining room is through there. I expect to find you seated at the table. I’ll unlock your cuffs if you promise to behave."

She didn't move. It wasn't in her to obey, to easily submit to a man she didn't know. "And if I don’t?"

Without speaking he turned to look at her, a single amused brow lifted in question. After they held each other's stare for several seconds, his gaze slowly traveled to the television screen.

It was all the answer Alice needed.





12:30 p.m.



Gray walls.

Black table.

Plastic, fake red roses.

Everything in place.

"Alice? ... Ms. Beaumont? ... Alice Beaumont..."

"Yes, Doctor."

Five steps across the room, three steps over the soft, patterned carpet. Four cushions. A white throw draped loosely over the armrest.

Alice lowered herself to sit on the couch, clutched a pillow to her chest, and raised her eyes to look at the doctor.

He stared at her, his posture rigid on the chair, his notepad left sitting on the table to his side.

"How are you today?"

She didn't like that he hadn't assumed his typical, relaxed position. Where was his pen? Why did the environment feel different?

"Better?" she guessed, uncomfortable in the doctor's presence. "I think."

Had she given him the answer he sought?

Her pulse ticked in time with the clock, her eyes scanning the room in search for anything that would explain the doctor's strange demeanor.

Nothing was out of place, even the dripping faucet still beat down upon the sink with the same rhythm as usual. But beyond those hallmarks of passing time, the silence between them was deafening.

"How has your daily life been, Alice? Have you been active in any hobbies recently? Have you been exercising or reading, by chance?"

She blinked. It was the only outward symptom of the surprise she felt at his questions. "No. At least, I don't think I have. Why?"

His unwavering attention made her nervous. More seconds ticked by, more rapid heartbeats pounding beneath her ribs. Having come to some unspoken conclusion, the doctor nodded once before sitting back in his chair to grab his notepad and pull it into his lap.

She released the breath from her lungs. The tension dissipated.

"You appear stronger today. I thought, perhaps, you'd become involved in a therapeutic activity. I assume from your answer that I was wrong to think that."