As she searched the docks, Kim heard the harmonica before she saw Steve. She rounded the corner and spotted him leaning against the side of a building where he was playing.

"There you are," she said. "I've been looking all over for you."

Steve lowered the harmonica. "Guess you found me."

"We were supposed to have a session today," Kim said. She made no effort to hide her annoyance. "I was waiting for you at the hospital."

Steve shrugged and started walking in the other direction. "Guess I wasn't feeling it."

Kim ran after him, and grabbed his arm. "Steven, you can't avoid these sessions." She lowered her voice so nobody could overhear her. "I know you feel better coming home and seeing friends and family, but PTSD just doesn't go away so easily. You need to go over what happened while you were gone."

"Look, Kim. . . ." Steve pulled away from her and then glanced around, most likely to make sure they were not being watched. "I know what you're saying, but I'm not going to come to the hospital to talk about my feelings. It's different here."

Kim tried not to smile. Steve really was just like all the Brady men - and Shane. None of them were willing to let anyone think they were weak. Steve probably figured if people saw him going to see her, they would assume the worst. "Fine," she said. "We won't meet at the hospital. You can come to the house."

Steve shook his head. "No . . . I couldn't do that."

"Okay, then we'll talk here. It should be warm enough for the next few weeks. And when it gets cold, we can go somewhere else." She gave him a reassuring smile. "Anyone who sees us will just think we're just walking along the pier."

Steve seemed to hesitate. "You're sure you're okay with that?"

"It's not very different from talking by the pond at Donovan Manor," Kim replied. "Let's try, Steve." For a moment, Kim debated telling him about the possible consequences of not working with her - that the ISA might take him into custody - but she thought Steve would only react to that as if he were being threatened. He needed to feel safe with her. "I'm willing if you're willing."

Steve looked out over the water for awhile, before he finally nodded. "Okay." He shoved his hands into the pocket of his jacket. "So what do you want to know?"

They began walking slowly along the dock, as Kim thought through what Steve had told her before. Mainly, all he had told her so far was that he had been at several different places during the nine months when he was gone and had been the subject of experiments. He had avoided specifics so far.

"Why don't you tell me the first thing you remember after leaving the party at Wings?" Kim suggested.

Steve stopped for a moment and appeared to be concentrating. "It was a plane," he said. "I was on a plane and I woke up. . . . There were some people there and they told me to stay still, that it was for my own good."

"Did you obey them?" Kim asked.

"Yeah . . . but I laughed. They had me strapped to a gurney, so I couldn't have moved if I tried." Steve thought some more. "When we landed, it was really hot. Not like the desert, a wet hot."

"So it was humid?"

Steve nodded. "Yeah. . . . I think it was a jungle or something like that. I remember a lot of trees when they took me in. And they took me into a building, kind of like a hospital. At least, it seemed like that with a doctor and some nurses." Steve started walking again. "Not sure how long I was there." He paused again. "Maybe a few weeks, I guess."

"And then what?"

"They took me somewhere else." Steve paused. "Not the desert. Somewhere else, but I never went outside. They flew me there, and kept a hood over my head. Sorry."

"That's okay," Kim said. "Don't push yourself. Just tell me what you remember."

Steve took a few steps toward the water, and Kim thought she saw his shoulders shake. His hands clenched into fists. "No . . ." His head jerked from side to side. "No, I won't. Don't. . . ."

He's having a flashback. Kim rushed toward him. "Steve! Calm down. . . ." She lowered her voice as he spun around and faced her. "Please, Steve, just calm down. You're not there. You're in Salem, and you're safe." She could see the confused, anxious look on his face and he was perspiring.

"Don't," he said again. His eye narrowed and he flexed his hands again, like he was trying to free his arms from something. "Let me go."

"Steve, it's Kim." She was starting to get fearful that he might do something to hurt himself. In an office, she could control the environment, but out here on the pier, she had no way of stopping him from acting on the flashback. She took a deep breath. "Look at me, Steve," she said sharply. "Look at me. It's Kim. I'm not one of those people."

"Kim?"

"That's right," she said. "Look at me, Steve." His eye focused on her and she saw some of the confusion leave his face. "Take some deep breaths," she urged.

For a few minutes, that's all he did. Steve breathed in and out, until he finally nodded. "I'm okay," he said. "Did I do something crazy?"

"Just a small flashback," Kim said. "Don't worry. You didn't do anything."

Steve looked down at the ground. "But I don't even remember it. What if I do something like that around Kayla or Stephanie."

Kim touched his arm, being careful to avoid touching his hands or wrists. From the way Steve had clenched his fists and jerked around, she suspected something he remembered had involved his hands. "Look at me, Steven," she said. "You love Kayla and would never do anything to hurt her."

"Not intentionally-"

"Not ever," Kim said. "That's why we're working on this here. We'll work through this and you won't have to worry about hurting anyone."

"Except Alamain," Steve muttered.

Kim shook her head. "Stay away from Lawrence, Steve. He's dangerous. Just let Shane and the ISA deal with him."

"Like they did before?" Steve glared at her. "A couple of months for raping Jennifer. That's hardly dealing with him." His expression softened. "Look, Kim, I understand that you don't think I should go looking for trouble, but Lawrence is out there and he's a danger to Kayla and Stephanie. I need to know what I'm dealing with and I can't do that running away from him. And, I'm sorry, but I don't trust Shane and the ISA."

You should trust Shane, even if you probably shouldn't trust the ISA, Kim thought, as she remembered what Shane told her about the rescue mission. But now was not the time to defend Shane to Steve. And Kim knew she was not going to dissuade Steve from confronting Lawrence; if she tried, she might lose his trust.

She took Steve's arm and pulled him around, so they were facing the direction of the Fish Market. "I think that's enough for today. Why don't we go get you a bowl of chowder? Get some meat on those bones."

She smiled as they walked. All in all, the session had gone pretty well. A little unusual, but Steve had given her more information about the missing nine months. And next time, he would tell her more. Sooner or later, the truth would come out.