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Back The Double Save as PDF
Chapters (63)
  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8
  9. 9
  10. 10
  11. 11
  12. 12
  13. 13
  14. 14
  15. 15
  16. 16
  17. 17
  18. 18
  19. 19
  20. 20
  21. 21
  22. 22
  23. 23
  24. 24
  25. 25
  26. 26
  27. 27
  28. 28
  29. 29
  30. 30
  31. 31
  32. 32
  33. 33
  34. 34
  35. 35
  36. 36
  37. 37
  38. 38
  39. 39
  40. 40
  41. 41
  42. 42
  43. 43
  44. 44
  45. 45
  46. 46
  47. 47
  48. 48
  49. 49
  50. 50
  51. 51
  52. 52
  53. 53
  54. 54
  55. 55
  56. 56
  57. 57
  58. 58
  59. 59
  60. 60
  61. 61
  62. 62
  63. Acknowledgements

‘Not well. He threatened to sue me for malpractice, furious I had denied him the chance to say goodbye or attend her funeral. But as his doctor, my loyalty was to my patient, not to a woman who was already dead.’

From the look on Libby’s face, it was clear she would have told the patient about his mother.

‘About three years later,’ Gessen said, ‘the man sent me a letter, thanking me for saving his life. He mentioned that every year on his mother’s birthday, he would visit her grave to apologise for not being with her at the end. But also to tell her that I had rescued him from the depths of hell. I keep his letter in a file with the others I’ve received from patients over the years. They help remind me that some decisions, however difficult, turn out all right in the end.’

She stood and gathered her things. ‘I should say goodbye to Dr Lindstrom. My train leaves at three.’

As he walked her to the door, he glanced at her profile, and was struck once again by the slight but distinct resemblance to Sophie. If they had married, as he’d wanted until fate intervened, they might have had a daughter like Libby. Fiercely intelligent, brimming with life. She sometimes appeared in his dreams, this fictional daughter, as a vibrant soul with a forgiving heart. Someone he would never meet.

‘Let me know how you get on,’ he said, walking her to the door. ‘I see wonderful things ahead for you.’

When she was gone, he murmured the words he’d planned to say at the end of their meeting. But had changed his mind, finding them too heavy for the occasion. Of the oblivion that awaits us all, be not afraid. Stride boldly into the future.

Choose life.

53

‘I would like to show you a video recording of one of our recent sessions,’ Gessen said, as soon as Vidor was seated. ‘It might come as a shock, but it will make it easier for your therapy to progress. Once you see for yourself that a second personality is residing in your psyche, your real treatment can begin.’

Begin? He thought they were finished. Vidor felt exposed, like a fox under a floodlight. What was on this video? Something embarrassing, no doubt. Footage that Gessen could use to humiliate him or as a form of blackmail. Knowing that a looming and ever-present threat hung over his head would ruin him.

‘We need only watch a few minutes.’ Gessen darkened the room and pressed a switch. A panel on the wall slid open to reveal a large screen. He clicked the remote control, while Vidor tensed in the chair.