Nick's life is perfect. A wife he loves. A daughter he adores. A fulfilling job as a psychologist. And then his daughter is kidnapped. Elena ultimately is rescued, but strange things start to happen at Nick's practice. The client of a co-therapist is murdered. One of Nick's clients is found dead of an apparent suicide. A warning is left at Nick's house letting him know Elena still is in danger.
Nick holds client confidentiality sacrosanct. Without trust, there is no client-therapist relationship. With no relationship, there is no healing. Nick fumed when a small-town sheriff asked for his client list after Elena's kidnapping. He did not want to undercut the trust he had built with clients over the years and, besides, he didn't think his clients were capable of kidnapping.
But now? After one murder, one apparent suicide and one threat, Nick decides to help the sheriff by using his sessions to dig for information. He could jeopardize his career. He also could find Elena's kidnapper.
Nick's life is perfect. A wife he loves. A daughter he adores. A fulfilling job as a psychologist. And then his daughter is kidnapped. Elena ultimately is rescued, but strange things start to happen at Nick's practice. The client of a co-therapist is murdered. One of Nick's clients is found dead of an apparent suicide. A warning is left at Nick's house letting him know Elena still is in danger.
Nick holds client confidentiality sacrosanct. Without trust, there is no client-therapist relationship. With no relationship, there is no healing. Nick fumed when a small-town sheriff asked for his client list after Elena's kidnapping. He did not want to undercut the trust he had built with clients over the years and, besides, he didn't think his clients were capable of kidnapping.
But now? After one murder, one apparent suicide and one threat, Nick decides to help the sheriff by using his sessions to dig for information. He could jeopardize his career. He also could find Elena's kidnapper.
PROLOGUEÂ
Colleen and I used to visit this new-Agey place in Philly, Awakened, where Colleen would spend hours perusing zen books, fondling crystals and buying anything written by various yogis.Â
Me? I'd walk to the back, ring the chimes, duck into one of the unoccupied aisles and watch as Colleen and the rest of the yogi-worshipers turned and scowled at the noise that disturbed their ethereal quietude.Â
One of us became a criminal defense lawyer. That would be Colleen.Â
One of us became a therapist. That would be me.Â
I used to think Colleen, who spends her workdays defending alleged rapists and murderers, had the dangerous job.Â
Now, after what happened in Maine, I'm not so sure.Â
CHAPTER ONEÂ
âWho am I talking to today?âÂ
If one of my co-therapists walked in to hear my opening line with my first client at Mind Works today, they would think Iâm callous...or crazy...or both. I mean, there are only two people sitting in my office, and my break-the-ice opener isnât what they taught me at Immaculata or, I suspect, what they teach at any reputable counseling psych program around the country.Â
But most clients arenât like Michael. And most therapists arenât like me.Â
âQueen Elizabeth,â Michael responds.Â
âWhereâs your crown?âÂ
Michael and I have been polishing our schtick for about a year since, as I explained to Michael the first time I saw him, he drew the short straw and got me as his therapist at one of the largest counseling centers in Delaware. Turned out that I was the first therapist he had ever seen.Â
Michael was raped repeatedly by his father between the ages of five and seven. He told his mother, but she didn't believe him. He told his school counselor, but the counselor decided that Michael merely was lashing out because his parents paid more attention to his sister.Â
I wish that counselor was still around. I'd lash out at him with a baseball bat. Hey, they say the best way to deal with anger is to own it. I own plenty of anger when it comes to the way Michael was abused first by his father, then by a mother who didn't buy his story and then by a counselor who should have been an auto mechanic.Â
âCan we just shoot the shit today, Nick?â Michael asks. âI donât know if I have any tears left.âÂ
There were plenty of tears during our last session and Michael, a big, burly former linebacker at Penn State isnât given to much emotion. Itâs a problem that afflicts most of the men I see. They want to be strong, so they donât show their emotions. Problem is, not showing feelings leads to a buildup of emotions inside, kind of like a balloon getting filled. Keep blowing air into a balloon and itâs going to pop. Keep hoarding emotions and youâre going to pop, which is why Mind Works does so well and why so many of the clients are men. When it comes to mental health, men could learn a lot from women. Women discuss feelings. Men discuss sports.Â
Michael and I didnât discuss sports the last time we met. We talked about the molestation, which led to tears, which would have led to an anxiety attack if Michael didnât employ the breathing techniques we had practiced over and over again in our sessions.Â
âShoot the shit about what, Mike? The Phillies? Theyâre not worth talking about. Wake me up when they get a bullpen. The Eagles? They havenât been worth a damn since they won the Super Bowl. The Sixers? I should be Ben Simmonsâ counselor. The man has a three-point-shooting phobia.âÂ
Silence. I rushed to fill the silence void in my early counseling days. Now, I let it be. Either the client starts talking or the clock runs out 45 minutes later.Â
The client usually breaks the silence. Iâd like to think itâs because I am employing tried-and-true therapeutic techniques. But itâs probably because the client wants to get something for his money.Â
âAfter the last time, we canât shoot the shit about the depressing Philly sports scene,â Michael finally says. âNice sports buzz-kill, counselor. And youâre the only person who can keep up with me talking sports, you being a former sportswriter and all. Whyâd you change gigs, anyway?âÂ
âWhat youâre doing, Mike, itâs called avoidance. Weâve talked about this.âÂ
âYou didnât feel fulfilled talking to those millionaire athletes? Was that it?âÂ
âRepression, Michael. We talked about that, too.âÂ
âYou get paid extra for psycho-babble, counselor?âÂ
âWith a little displacement thrown in.âÂ
âDamn, youâre making big-time money today.âÂ
More silence. Iâm thinking the clock will run out before we get to the actual therapy.Â
âOkay, letâs do it.âÂ
Which is Michaelâs way of telling me that heâll confront the molestation. Itâs difficult but Michael wants to deal with his problems and knows discussing his father, not the Sixers, will lead him closer to his destination.Â
So, we start into âexposure therapy,â which includes Michael going into detail about the abuse, me calming him down when he gets tense, and Michael going into more detail until the session ends. Exposure therapy allows a person to express his feelings in a safe, controlled environment. It also lets me normalize their experiences.Â
Michael calms himself by taking deep breaths. His eyes are trained on me, but he isnât looking at me anymore. Heâs looking at an event that happened when he was five years old.Â
âUnderdog,â Michael smiles. âI love this show. I really love Sweet Polly Purebred.âÂ
Is he playing with me?Â
Michael loses the smile.Â
âDoorâs locked!â Michael yells. âYou canât come in! What are you doing, Dad? I was just watching TV. What are you doing? No. Stop it. Stop it!âÂ
âBreathe, Michael....âÂ
âIâm telling Mom. No! That hurts. No! Iâm telling. I donât want to. I donât...âÂ
âBreathe Michael....âÂ
âIâm telling,â Michael is crying. I start to well up, just as I always do every time Michael speaks about this. âPlease donât. Donât!âÂ
âLetâs stop Michael.âÂ
More crying. And then silence.Â
âMichael?âÂ
No response.Â
âMichael?âÂ
But Michael isnât here anymore. Charles, the Protector, has taken over. Michael has dissociative identity disorder and has developed at least seven personalities that come out when it isnât safe for Michael to be himself.Â
âTry that one more time, counselor, and Iâll hurt you,â Charles glares at me. âAnd Iâll hurt your family, too.âÂ
Nick is a psychologist and the book describes his sessions and relationships with his clients. It was clear that the author had much experience in the field. This was especially evident in his work with the character, Michael. We are given an insight into terms like avoidance, repression and deflect. So there is almost an element of non-fiction as we witness a therapist at work. It's interesting that Michael is painted as a victim, having suffered childhood trauma, yet when events begin to unfold, the reader automatically selects him as the villain.
Nick loves his wife, Ashley and his daughter, Elena. Small details, like how they enjoyed playing the 'moo-moo' game together, brought the story to life. When Elena is kidnapped, the obvious suspects are Nick's clients. When she is found safely, she refers to the kidnapper as 'Uncle Donald.' Nick and the sheriff exchange information to get to the bottom of the case, but Nick is concerned about breaking client confidentiality. Having built up a relationship with his clients, he is reticent to believe they would do something to hurt him. A murder, a suicide and a warning that Elena could still be at risk all add to the drama.
When Ashley's business has difficulties it puts a strain on their relationship. I was willing Nick to be faithful to Ashley and not follow the cliche of becoming involved with his colleague, Kristen. It was clear that she was interested in him. Inevitably, someone spots him leaving the 'Blue Moon' with Kristen and Ashley naturally fears the worst.
The author cleverly drip-feeds information which influences the reader's hypothesis, then adds a surprise twist. The climactic scene at the end was very well written and felt intense. The writing was engaging and I felt invested in the characters.
I would recommend this read and wish the author every success with publication.