Prologue:
Tuesday 14 January 2014 9:25AM EST
I leaned back in my seat and stared at the one-story building with a frown on my face. The only reason why I was here was because I'd promised my aunt that I'd take these appointments more seriously... this time. In all honesty, I didn't need to be here. Nothing was wrong with me—not anymore, at least. With a heavy sigh, I turned the ignition off and pocketed my keys, grabbing my phone and shoving that into my other pocket before I got out of my car. I paused, sighed, and then slipped my sunglasses over my eyes and automatically pulled my hood over my face.
The frigid January air met me in full force, and I couldn't help but grumble at the chill. I hurried up the sidewalk, nearly falling on my ass from the nice layer of ice that coated the sidewalk, and into the building.
I entered the clinic and rubbed my hands vigorously together in an attempt to get warm. I glanced around the small lobby area to see that it was mostly empty (which was a relief to me). After standing in front of the glass doors for another minute, I brushed the dark purple hood from my head and let my dark brown hair breathe a bit. I left my shades on as I approached the front desk, where a woman with platinum-blonde hair was busy typing away at the computer in front of her. I waited for maybe half-a-minute before the receptionist glanced up at me, a smile on her face.
"Hello, miss," she greeted, her tone cheery. "What can I do for you?"
I leaned forward. "Emma Hale," I whispered. "I'm here to see Dr. Clark."
The receptionist nodded once, typing on the computer swiftly and sifting through endless files before she stared back at me, her smile still in place.
"All right, it looks like everything is set." She clicked on something. "You can go take in a seat in the waiting room." The receptionist gestured to the room to my immediate left. "Dr. Clark will be out in a little bit."
I looked back at the receptionist. "Thanks…" I spotted her nametag and frowned.
The receptionist went back to taking phone calls and sifting through the endless amount of appointments and files, so I headed towards the waiting room and took a seat near the aquarium that held various types of fish. Growing bored with watching fish swim aimlessly in a circle, I casually observed the waiting room and was surprised to see that it was slowly filling up with people. Fortunately, it wasn't anyone that I knew personally. The youngest here had to be at least fifteen, the oldest perhaps around fifty. With nothing better to do, I took my phone out and checked my messages. There were none.
Perfect, I thought bitterly. Just freaking perfect.
I rested my head against the beige-colored wall for a bit, staring up at the ceiling and counting the small black little dots and hoped that Dr. Clark would hurry up and call my name.
"Emma Hale?" a voice called.
I turned my head to see a man dressed in khaki dress pants, loafers, and a loose white dress shirt with a tie around his neck. He seemed completely unremarkable except for the subtle gold watch on his wrist.
"That's me," I muttered, getting to my feet and removing my shades in the same move. "You're Dr. Clark?"
The man nodded. "I am. A pleasure to meet you." He offered his hand.
"Same," I said, shaking his hand.
Dr. Clark grinned. "All right. If you'll follow me to my office, we can get to work."
I fell in step next to Dr. Clark as he led me down the hallway. I turned my head to face the receptionist, who was now giving me an approving smile. I crossed my arms, hoping to appear annoyed (which I was). After turning left down a hallway, Dr. Clark opened a door that had his name engraved on a brass plate and gestured for me to enter.
"I just have to get a few things sorted out with the receptionist. I'll be back, all right?" he asked.
I watched him. "Yeah. Just fine."
Dr. Clark nodded once before shutting the door. My eyes darted to the small crack between the door and the floor to see a shadow standing in front of the barrier just seconds after the door closed.
"Figures," I grumbled. "Not taking any chances this time…"
With nothing to do but wait for Dr. Clark to come back, I sat down in one of the chairs in the office. My eyes scanned the wall that was littered with diplomas and awards of recognition. I wasn't surprised that Dr. Clark was recognized so fervently, since he was the best at what he did (according to my aunt). I laid my head back, staring up at the ceiling again in an attempt to give my brain something to do.
I stared out the large three-panel window to see the sky a clear blue with the sun out. It looked like a nice day, but it was the coldest day of the year so far! A small part of me felt bad for the people that were walking to work or stuck on the side of the road.
I wasn't exactly sure how long it'd been since Dr. Clark left, but a while later, I heard the door opening. My eyes caught the slightest movement of a man in a dress coat, moving to the side to let Dr. Clark in. The man's eyes met mine. I hoped he could see the annoyance in them. The man only smirked in response.
"I'm back," Dr. Clark announced, entering his office with a file in a manila folder while the man that let him in shut the door.
I moved my eyes, meeting Dr. Clark's gaze. "It's not like I'm going anywhere any time soon," I remarked knowingly.
Dr. Clark nodded slowly. "Okay." He headed over to his office chair. "Just let me get this organized and we can begin."
I sat in the semi-comfortable chair, patiently waiting for Dr. Clark to get his stuff in order. Out of habit I turned my head to the chair next to me, half expecting someone to be sitting there... but it was empty.
"That seems to be about it," Dr. Clark said, setting the file down. "Where do you want to start?"
I gave the man an incredulous look. "You think I'm just gonna up and spill my life story to you?" I asked. "Fat chance."
Dr. Clark pursed his lips. "I was told you were going to be a difficult case."
I scoffed, "Oh, I'm a 'case' now? Did the hospital label me as a psych patient or something?" I grumbled.
Dr. Clark didn't say anything, but opted to write something down.
"Look," I finally said to break the silence, "you and I both know that this is a complete waste of time. I know what I did was wrong, stupid, irresponsible…" I listed off.
Dr. Clark eyed me closely, his blue eyes sharp. "If you knew what you did would be so irresponsible, why'd you do it?" he pressed. "Because you could?"
I broke my eyes away from Dr. Clark. "I needed a break. That's all."
Dr. Clark set his clipboard down. I tried to get a glimpse at what he was writing, but it was hidden beneath some papers.
"A break from what?" he pushed.
"Everything," I muttered.
"Everything is a pretty vague term," he taunted. "Do you regret what you did?"
"Not one bit," I said promptly, my eyes narrowed at the man.
Dr. Clark nodded, picking up his clipboard again and began scribbling something. After he finished writing, he flipped through the manila folder. "It says here that your previous doctor was—."
I rolled my eyes. "Are you here to ask me questions or talk about the doctors I've had before?"
Dr. Clark frowned at me. "I was also told by your aunt that you were missing for roughly half a year."
"Your point?" I retorted.
Dr. Clark leaned back in his chair. "I'm curious as to where you went. There's not a lot of information to go on." He flipped through the file. "And you don't seem like the type to just up and run away like you did."
I smirked. "That was the point. I was 'off the grid'." I chuckled. "I didn't want to be found. But I had every intention to come back."
"Emma," Dr. Clark said sternly. "I'm only here to help you and since you've obviously decided to be difficult, I'm not going to let you leave this office until you start telling me what's going on in that mind of yours."
I scowled. "Look, I'm fine. Just sign that paper that say's I'm sane and let's move on with our lives." I gestured to the clipboard.
Dr. Clark gave me a thin smile. "As tempting as that is Emma, I'm afraid I'm going to have to deny that request."
I frowned. "Whatever. I've taken down tougher people than you," I grumbled, leaning back in my chair and crossing my arms.
"Is that a threat?" Dr. Clark asked.
I saw the slightest movement on the outside of the windows and my phone suddenly beeped.
"Can you give me a minute?" I asked Dr. Clark.
Dr. Clark nodded. "Go ahead."
I checked my phone and I found that I had one new text message. It read:
Don't do anything stupid, Em.
I didn't reply to the message, shoving the phone unceremoniously back into my pocket. "'Course not. I was just stating the truth."
Dr. Clark nodded again. "My assistant will be coming in with some lunch in a couple of hours, so we have until then to get started."
So the man in the white coat is your "assistant"? Heh. Talk about a major demotion. I thought with an amused grin.
"Is something funny?" Dr. Clark pressed.
I shook my head. "Just thought of something funny, that's all." I sighed. "So, since I'm stuck here all day, what do we do about bathroom breaks?"
Dr. Clark raised an eyebrow. "Emma…" he warned.
I put my hands up in defeat. "All right, all right. You win, happy?" Dr. Clark nodded slowly. "I'll tell you the story of what brought me here—but there are some things that are gonna sound a bit far-fetched."
Dr. Clark smiled. "It'd help if you started from the beginning. I'll be sure to keep an open mind."
"Where else would I begin?" I mumbled. "Anyway, we have to go back about twelve years, when I was still just a kid..."
