“Why are you looking for her?”
“She might know something about a case I’m working on.”
“What case?”
Annie felt like saying she couldn’t divulge that information, but that would be playing the same silly game. Give a little, maybe get a little in return. “A woman has been killed in the same location Kirsten used to visit,” she said. “We were thinking—”
“Oh my God!” said Dr. Henderson. “You think he’s back, don’t you? The killer.”
It wasn’t what Annie was about to say at all, but she recognized a good opening when she heard one. “It’s a possibility,” she said. “They never did catch him.”
“But I still don’t see how I can help you.”
“Why did Kirsten stop seeing you?”
There was another pause, and Annie could almost hear the argument raging in Dr. Henderson’s mind. Finally, the pros seemed to win out over the cons. “The reason she gave me was that our sessions were becoming too painful for her,” she said.
“In what way?”
3 4 6
P E T E R R O B I N S O N
“You have to realize that Kirsten had blocked out what happened to her on the night she was attacked, and that was causing her all kinds of problems: depression, nightmares, anxiety attacks. Along with her other problems—”
“The inability to have sex or children?”
“You know about that?” Dr. Henderson sounded surprised.
“I know a little,” Annie said.
“Well, yes . . . along with all those other problems, she was in . . .
well, you probably also know, then, that she did attempt suicide. I’m sure it’s in the police files.”
“Yes,” Annie lied. No point in letting Dr. Henderson think she’d given too much away. She would only clam up.
“I suggested a course of hypnotherapy, and Kirsten agreed.”
“The aim of which was?”
“Healing, of course. Sometimes you have to confront your demons to vanquish them, and you can’t do that if your memory is blocking them out.”
Annie felt she knew a thing or two about that. “And did she?”
“No. As I said, I think it was becoming too painful for her. She was getting too close. At first, progress was very slow, then she started remembering too much too fast. I think she felt she was losing control, and she started to panic.”
“What about confronting the demons?”
“It takes time,” said Dr. Henderson. “Sometimes you need a lot of preparation. You need to be ready. I don’t think Kirsten was. It would have felt like driving down a busy motorway before she’d learned to drive.”
“How far did she get?” Annie asked. “Did she remember anything significant about her attacker?”
“That wasn’t the point of the treatment.”
“I realize that, Doctor, but perhaps as a by- product?”
“I’m not sure,” Dr. Henderson said.
“What do you mean, you’re not sure?”
“That last session, Kirsten’s voice was difficult to hear, her words hard to catch. Afterward, when she came out of it, she seemed shocked, stunned at what she remembered. Even more so than usual.”
F R I E N D O F T H E D E V I L
3 4 7
“But what was it?”
“I don’t know. Don’t you understand what I’m telling you? I don’t know. She left in a hurry, and she didn’t come back, except to let my secretary know that she wouldn’t be coming anymore.”
“But what do
Dr. Henderson paused again, then Annie heard her say in a voice barely above a whisper, “I think she remembered what he looked like.”
“ W H E R E ’ V E YO U been?” said Murdoch. “I’m getting fed up of this.
I want to go home.”
“Not just yet, Jamie,” said Banks. “A few more questions first. Let’s start at the top. Maybe we can keep this short. Did you rape and kill Hayley Daniels?”
“No! How could I? You’d have seen me. There’s no way out of the pub without being on CCTV.”
Banks glanced over at Ms. Melchior, who appeared uncomfortable.
