"Yeah, okay," I replied. "I guess you'd better let her know I'm here then."

"If you'd like to take a seat," she offered with a somewhat forced smile, pointing to the side of the lobby.

I nodded and trudged over to the waiting area, but I didn't sit. My initial reaction had been that something was wrong with Felicity, but I started trying to discount that because if it were true I would certainly have received a call. I quickly managed to talk myself into believing that rationalization then the next thing reached out and slapped me on the back of the head. It was entirely possible that Helen was going to try to convince me to lessen the frequency of my visits. She had grudgingly given in to the twice per day schedule as it was.

If that ended up being the case, I immediately decided that she was going to need an overabundance of evidence that could prove to me why I should listen. Of course, this entire line of thought easily replaced any lingering sense of trepidation with annoyance, not that trading one anxious emotion for another was any better. However, it didn't get a chance to grow much beyond that, as I only had to pace for a few moments before a ruffled looking Helen Storm rounded the corner, already shrugging into her coat.

"Let's talk outside if you don't mind, Rowan," she said, not even bothering to slow down as she strode past.

The first thing that struck me wasn't what she said, but how she said it. While her tone didn't seem completely off-key, it was harried. However, even more glaring was her choice of words. Helen was very exacting and deliberate in her speech. I had never known her to use two contractions in the same sentence if she could help it, so I instantly knew something had her rattled. Of course, that realization only served to shift me back to my original fear.

I hurried to follow, lagging several steps behind as she bolted out the automatic sliding doors and made a quick right onto the sidewalk. I didn't manage to catch up to her until she finally came to a halt beneath the tinted Plexiglas smokers' canopy forty or so yards from the entrance.

"Okay, so what's wrong?" I asked as I came beneath the overhang with her. "What happened? Is Felicity okay?"

"For the moment," she replied cryptically.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

She didn't answer me but instead set about lighting a cigarette before giving me a quick glance. After taking a healthy drag, she said, "Are you still smoking, Rowan?"

"Do I need to be?"

"Here," she replied, offering me her cigarette case and lighter.

I had actually been staying away from them since running out the day Felicity checked into this place. However, given Helen's apparent level of agitation, I took one and lit it then handed the case and lighter back to her.

"Now," I said. "I don't want to sound like an a.s.s, but I asked you a question. Would you like to explain what you mean by 'for the moment'? Is Felicity okay?"

"I'm sorry, Rowan," she replied. "That was unprofessional of me, and I shouldn't have said it that way. Felicity is fine. She's resting right now."

"Okay, there you go again."

"There I go again what?"

"You just used three contractions, Helen," I pointed out. "For anyone else, no big deal. When you do it, it sets off bells and buzzers all over the place."

"I never noticed."

"You wouldn't."

"I apologize."

"Don't apologize, just tell me what's going on. You're not acting like yourself, and on top of that you're telling me Felicity is resting, and it's after eleven in the morning. What the h.e.l.l happened?"

She regarded me quietly for a moment before replying. "Felicity experienced an episode with the spirit this morning."

"What?!" I yelped. "Why the h.e.l.l didn't you call me?"

"We did, but all we got was your voice mail."

"Voice mail? But that's..." I pulled my cell phone from my pocket and immediately saw that it was switched off. Even so, I stabbed at the b.u.t.tons with my thumb as if I could somehow change the fact that I had never turned it on this morning. Finally I muttered, "Dammit!"

"We tried both your lines at home as well, but there was no answer," she offered.

"Yeah, I had a breakfast meeting with a client, so I left early," I replied, waving my hand to dismiss the turn of the conversation. "But that's not important. What happened? Please tell me no one got hurt."

"No one got hurt, fortunately," she replied with a shake of her head. "We cannot be sure exactly when the episode started, however it could not have been too long before she was found. I was first alerted to it when the floor nurse went to check in on her and another patient because they had not come out for breakfast. She paged me as soon as she realized Felicity was not in her room."

"What do you mean she wasn't in her room?" I knew my voice held more than just a hint of agitation, but I couldn't help it.

"She was not considered psychotic or a threat to anyone, Rowan, therefore she was not housed in a locked ward."

"You said 'was'. I take it that has changed?"

"Yes, I am afraid so."

"Yeah, okay, but obviously you found her. Right?"

"Yes, we did, and fairly quickly. She was located down the hall in the other patient's room. She had somehow managed to get her hands on a set of restraints and was strapping him to the bed with them. Rather gleefully I might add."

"G.o.ds," I mumbled, rubbing my forehead, and then I asked, "You mean he didn't try to get away from her?"

"No, he actually seemed to be enjoying it almost as much as she."

"I can guarantee you he wouldn't have if it had gone much further."

"Yes, I know."

"So then what happened?"

"We removed her from the situation, and she was brought to my office."

"There's more to it than that, Helen," I pressed. "You're too rattled, and that's just not you. What else happened?"

She finished her cigarette then immediately lit a fresh one from the pack. She offered me another, but I hadn't sucked down the first one as fast as she, so I declined.

"I think you are aware that excessive and unnecessary gore bothers me, yes?" she finally asked. "The truth is it makes me violently ill."

"I remember you mentioned that recently," I said, giving her a nod. "As a matter of fact I recall being a bit surprised by that, what with you having the MD as well."

"Yes, well, you do not see me working in an emergency room, now do you?"

"No, I don't. So tell me, what happened? You said no one was hurt."

"No one was. However, Miranda and I had a long talk."

"So, the Lwa didn't exit when you stopped her from tying up the other patient?"

"No, not at all," Helen replied, shaking her head emphatically. "Miranda stayed around for quite awhile."

"She didn't get violent?"

"No. In fact, her comment to me was something on the order of, 'I was wondering when you would show up'."

"As if she knew who you were?" I half asked, half stated.

"Yes."

"The Lwa has access to Felicity's memories, so in a way it makes sense. She knew where she was, and she knew someone would stop her."

"I think you are correct. She seemed far more interested in talking than anything else."

"So exactly what did you talk about?"

"Whatever she wanted, unfortunately."

"What do you mean?"

"As you may guess, her favorite topic is torture, Rowan."

"Yeah, again I'm not surprised."

"Oh, I think perhaps you would be."

"That bad?" I asked. "I mean I know what she did to Wentworth and Hobbes and that was...well, she..."

"Yes, that bad," she replied, saving me from my attempt to relay the harshness without actually giving her a description. "Miranda spent the better part of two hours regaling me with extremely graphic details about what she had done to several of her victims. Details that, I dare say, would turn the stomach of a horror movie fanatic."

"Okay, so that's what has you so nonplussed."

"Yes, she is actually a very eloquent speaker with an excellent command of the language. She paints intricate pictures with words, Rowan. They just are not very pretty to the rest of us."

"I can imagine."

"I doubt it," she huffed as she visibly shuddered. She was obviously still dealing with the imagery in her own head. "Of course, it did not help that the more violent or cruel the story she was telling, the more her eyes would light up. She was literally becoming aroused by reliving the horrors she had exacted upon those men. And, to make matters worse, she found my level of disgust amusing."

"Yeah, again I'm not surprised." I gave her a quick nod. "She really got to you, didn't she?"

"Yes. I hate to admit it, but yes. She did."

"That's not an easy task."

"I used to think so, but now I am not so sure."

"Well, remember Helen, you weren't just dealing with a disturbed individual. You were dealing with an incorporeal ent.i.ty. They don't necessarily respond to the type of finesse you shrinks use."

"Perhaps you are correct, however, I would almost suspect that she has a background in psychology herself. She was quite adept at that 'finesse we shrinks use'. Unfortunately, it does not make this any less embarra.s.sing for me."

"Anyone else know how you were affected?"

"No, not that I am aware."

"Then it stays between us. The whole patient-doctor confidentiality thing."

"I would say thank you if I did not suspect you were making a joke."

"Maybe just a little one," I replied. "So, anyway, do you believe me about the Lwa now?"

"I have never doubted you on that point, Rowan." She shook her head to punctuate the statement. "Another doctor, however, would most likely diagnose Felicity with an unidentified psychosis and more than likely, Disa.s.sociative Ident.i.ty Disorder. To be truthful, if I did not know the things that I do, I would be inclined to agree with such an a.s.sessment."

"Then it's a good thing you're her doctor."

"That statement is more accurate than you know, Rowan. If the latent details she was giving me were accurate, what I listened to would easily qualify as a confession to several premeditated murders. It is a very good thing she did not do this while in police custody."

"Yeah," I mumbled, thinking exactly the same thing. "Okay, so then what? If she's resting now then Miranda must be gone."

"Yes, she is. She simply stopped speaking mid-sentence and a moment later Felicity was in her place. As soon as she realized what had happened, she began to cry hysterically and beg for you. I was left with no choice but to sedate her."

"But, she's okay?"

"Physically, she is fine. Emotionally, however, any progress we have made in the past few days is a complete wash."

I remained quiet, considering what she had just said.

Before I could form any sort of comment, she suddenly offered up a new subject. "I have not spoken to Benjamin lately. Do you know if they have had any luck locating the half-sister?"

I shook my head. "Not yet. Last I heard they were still sifting through the paperwork Maggie handed over, looking for leads."

"Well, they need to find her very soon. The last two episodes have taken a severe toll on Felicity. She is very strong willed, but she is beginning to break down."

"I agree that they need to find her, Helen," I replied. "But my worry is that even if they do, this isn't going to stop. The Lwa has obviously formed a bond with Felicity as well as Miranda, or whatever her name really is."

"How do you propose to address that?"

"Figure out who the Lwa is, and go at it from an ethereal angle."

"How will you find her?"

"I've been working on it with an expert on Voodoo. She's a college professor out of Baton Rouge who's written some fairly definitive books on the subject. She has some ideas."

"Anything promising?"

"Some, but nothing solid just yet. She's been running down some leads for me. In fact, I'm expecting a call from her today. The big problem is we're chasing after someone who's already dead. Sounds like it shouldn't be a big deal, but when you don't know who the dead person is, or even when they died, it gets a little tricky."

Helen lit her third fresh cigarette and again offered me another. This time I took it. Once she had taken a long drag and slowly exhaled the smoke, she turned her face to me. Her expression was hard and serious, which made the next words to come from her mouth even more of a contrast against her normally proper exterior.

"I would suggest that you chase faster, Rowan. This Miranda is a sick f.u.c.king b.i.t.c.h, and I do not like her."