Everything You Are(97)

“Phee said it might help you to remember,” Allie says, her bow arm slowing, then coming to rest.

“Phee has said a lot of things.” Braden takes one step forward. “There’s no magic key, little bird. But I’m so glad to hear you play.”

“I want you to remember.” Her voice breaks. “I don’t believe you killed him.”

“Suppose I remember and I did kill him?”

“Well, then we’d know. Please,” she says.

Braden shrugs, helplessly. “I can’t. Even here. Even with that music. There’s nothing beyond what I told you.”

“We could try hypnosis,” Phee says, lighting the fuse on the dynamite.

All eyes focus on her. Stunned silence.

“No,” Len says. “This whole harebrained scheme of yours is unethical. I don’t even have a license to practice anymore.”

“Well, then, you have no risk of losing it.”

“That may be the most outrageous thing to ever come out of your mouth. That’s saying something.”

“Would it help?” Braden interrupts. “Would that unlock my memory?”

“It can,” Len says reluctantly. “Hypnosis bypasses the logical mind and the defense mechanisms. But—”

“Can we do it here? Now?”

“Hypnosis is not an exact science. It’s helpful for many things, but memory recovery is controversial. It’s not like the movies.”

“But it might work.”

“What good will it do?”

“I’ll know,” Braden says. “If it works. On some level, I’ve always believed that I was responsible for Mitch’s death, but I still don’t know. Not for sure. You can’t face up to something you don’t know. It’s always lurking, always insinuating.”

“Look,” Len says, his voice falling into professional, soothing tones. “Why don’t I set you up with a psychologist I know when we get back? He’s also skilled with hypnotherapy and—”

“No. If anybody’s going to do this, it will be you.”

“Please,” Allie says.

“Come on, Len,” Phee says. “What are the risks?”

“The risk is that he remembers killing Mitch because he thinks that’s what he’s going to remember. Even if he didn’t.”

“In which case, we’re no worse off than we are already,” Braden says.

“Not like any of this is admissible in court,” Dennis adds. “There’s no evidence. A good lawyer could get him off easy. So it’s not like you’d be sending him to prison.”

Allie starts playing again, very softly, the music swirling around all of them, creating a mood of mystery and possibility.

“Let’s take a vote,” Phee says. “How many people are in favor of Len hypnotizing Braden?”

All hands go up except for Len’s.

Braden is pale, but his face is set in lines of determination. “What do I do? Lie down?”

“Oh hell,” Len says. “You’re going to pay big-time for this, Phee.”

“Don’t I know it,” she answers. She’s already paying, she’ll be paying for a lifetime. But it’s worth it, on the off chance that this will work.

“Maybe everybody should go do something else,” Len says. “Or we could go into one of the rooms.”

“Right here, with witnesses. That way, they can tell me later if you ask leading questions or implant suspicious hypnotic suggestions.” He flops down on the pullout and adjusts his pillow beneath his head. “This is convenient.”

“You don’t have to do this,” Jo says. “It doesn’t matter. What happened, happened.”

“So remembering it won’t change anything, to quote a very wise woman.” He nods at Jean, and she smiles at him gently.

“Do you need a pendulum or something?” Phee asks.

“Everything we need is in Braden’s head already.” Len pulls up a chair, calm and businesslike now that he’s made up his mind. “Keep playing, if you don’t mind, Allie. Music can be helpful. The rest of you, please be very quiet. Do not speak to him or engage with him. Understood?” He looks around the circle of faces, making eye contact with everybody, one at a time. “Phee, can you get control of that dog?”

“Celestine, come,” Phee commands, and he bounds over to lick her hands. “Lie down,” she says, and then sits on the floor beside him to keep him there.

Katie and Steph cram themselves into an armchair together. Jo perches on the other. Jean and Dennis take up positions standing on the far side of the bed. Allie and the cello sit roughly at the foot.

“A circle of Angels,” Braden says. “What could go wrong?”

The process of hypnosis isn’t mysterious or complicated at all. Len takes Braden through some breathing, counts him down ten levels of an imaginary staircase. He goes through several safety exercises, establishing a safe place where Braden can return at any time if his memories become too painful.

“Now,” Len says, “You are fully in a world of trance. Trust that your mind will take you where you need to go. Let it carry you back to a memory of this cabin, another night, when you played this music. Are you there?”