by Robin Mahle
Katie waited for him to finish. “I’m almost up,” she whispered to Spencer, blotting the corners of her mouth.
“Thank you, Mr. Fields.” She took hold of the microphone. “Sam, we have known each other since the second grade and when you told me Jarrod asked you to marry him, I could not have been happier for both of you. I am so very grateful you found someone who makes you laugh and who holds you above all others. That’s truly all I’ve ever wanted for you. Jarrod, I know you’ll be good to her because if not, you’ll have to answer to me and no one wants that, just ask Spencer.” She paused for a moment to allow the pathetically few chuckles in the crowd to settle down. Tough room. “But in all seriousness, Sam, you’re like a sister to me and even though we don’t live on the same street anymore, you are always in my heart. I love you, and congratulations to Mr. and Mrs. Hansen. Cheers!” Katie dropped to her seat with a sigh of relief.
“Nice job, babe.” Spencer leaned in for a kiss.
She was just glad it was over.
The historic Tudor-style hotel sat perched along the banks of the river, adjacent to the Redwoods. Katie pulled back the curtains of their hotel room window to reveal the shadowy outline of the giant trees outside. Even in the darkness, she could see branches swaying in the breeze. Sam always told her she would get married here one day. Fortunately for her, she did. Sam’s family didn’t worry about money, which was a good thing because it took plenty of it to get married here.
“You ready for bed?” Spencer asked. “You must be exhausted after today.”
“I am.” She began a slow and seductive crawl onto the bed.
Spencer smiled at her approach and slid his hand around her long, delicate neck and guided her to meet his slightly parted lips.
The dried twigs on the ground cracked under the weight of her bare feet. Rocks jutted out from the cold and damp soil, sinking into her tender skin, making each step more painful than the last. Running as fast as her legs would carry her, the unexpected light blurred her vision as they struggled to adjust. She traversed through the trees and realized that something was tied around her neck; it was a blindfold. She recalled yanking it off her face at the time of her escape. Over her shoulder, the shadowy figure quickly approached and soon everything appeared out of proportion. The trees seemed to reach up to the clouds. The silhouette loomed closer and larger as the giant trudged after her. His faceless head was shrouded in darkness and he was gaining on her, but she could not run any faster. The pain from her bloodied feet slowed her pace. He was right behind her now as the earth trembled beneath each step. An extraordinarily long arm and grotesque hand reached to grip her tattered t-shirt. She lunged forward and pulled her shoulder away from the scrap of fabric he managed to grasp. The force of the lunge caused her to stumble to the ground. The sound of cracking ribs filled her ears as she landed on a jagged boulder and a chilling scream clawed its way out of her throat.
“Wake up. Katie, wake up!”
She bolted upright in bed and reached for her side. One look at her hand and she expected to see blood, but there was none.
“It’s okay, you’re safe. You’re okay.” Spencer reassured her as they embraced. “It was that dream again, wasn’t it?”
She peered at him with frantic eyes, still catching her breath. “Yes, it’s getting worse and it’s happening more often.”
The dream had gotten worse. When it started a few months back, it was never intense enough to wake her. It started out as just someone chasing her and then it would fade away. But a couple of weeks ago the dream came to her more frequently, each time becoming more real and more frightening.
“Maybe you should talk to someone about this. Maybe it’s just stress. You have been really busy helping Sam this past month or so. That seems to be when it got worse.”
Katie could see he was struggling for an answer. Stress, she thought, was entirely possible. Juggling her bridesmaid duties from a distance as well as working on the upcoming fundraiser for the foundation, yes, that must be the reason. She squeezed him hard as a way of thanking him for understanding. “Maybe you’re right. When we get home, I’ll call Dr. Reyes. She works with the foundation and counsels some of the families. I suppose I could talk to her.”
“I think that would be a good idea. Try to get back to sleep.” Spencer kissed her damp forehead and turned to sleep again.
It was a Sunday morning in Eureka and the airport was thinly populated. Nevertheless, Katie and Spencer calmly but quickly ran through to security after having overslept. A few very tired looking individuals stood ahead of them, but it wasn’t as busy as Katie had anticipated. Still, it would be a sprint to get to the gate in time.
The flight was already boarding and Katie handed the attendant her boarding pass with Spencer following closely behind.
“See, there was nothing to worry about. We made it in plenty of time.” His raspy voice couldn’t conceal the previous night’s celebration.
“Well if I hadn’t prodded you along, we’d have missed it for sure.” Katie shoved her carryon under the seat.
Almost as soon as they were airborne, she noticed Spencer was already asleep. Unbelievable. She reached for her tablet and turned it on when the announcement to use electronics was finished. The airline charged a steep fee for wi-fi access, but boredom quickly set in and with a few hours to kill, she opened up a search engine and typed “treatments for stress.”
Maybe this was all stress-related, but before she called Dr. Reyes, Katie would be armed with information. Several results were returned, including something called relaxation hypnotherapy. Sounds interesting. As her search deepened, other forms of hypnosis and treatments came up. But after reading more about the idea of the relaxation therapy, she was warming to it and would bring it up to Dr. Reyes. Of course, Katie was unsure if the doctor was willing or capable of performing such therapy, having only ever known of Dr. Reyes’ work with troubled families and victims of abuse. The Advocacy Group, her employer, was involved in everything from victim’s assistance programs to substance abuse clinics to community outreach. If Dr. Reyes couldn’t help her, she probably knew of someone who could.
There was no denying Katie had a knack for research and she was always looking for ways to solve problems, be it her own, or others’. Katie had a desire to learn everything she could on a subject in which she had interest. This was likely the reason her work at the foundation was so invaluable. Her caseload often involved detailed research.
An overhead announcement began. “Please turn off your electronic devices, place your seats in their upright positions, and stow your personal belongs. We will begin our descent into San Diego momentarily.”
“Spence.” She nudged him. “Spencer, we’re getting ready to land. Wake up.”
“Okay, I’m awake.”
“How are you feeling?”
“Better; not great, but better.”
The predictably comfortable weather signaled that they were home. The sky was still clouded, but by mid-afternoon, the sun would burn off the remaining haze that rolled in with the tide.
Their two bedroom apartment was teeming with the odor of pent up, damp sea air when Spencer opened the door. “I’d better open some windows.” He pulled back the curtains to bathe the living room in light and lifted the old single-pane windows to allow the fresh air inside.
Katie headed for the bedroom and dropped her small bag on the bed. Immediately, she tossed her clothes to the floor and hopped into the shower.
Just as she stepped out, Spencer appeared with a cold bottle of water in his hands. “Here you go. Thought you might be thirsty. Oh and Sam called your cell. Looks like she left you a message.”
“Okay, thanks.” She pulled on a tank top and shorts and wrapped her thick dark hair in a towel. The cell phone on her nightstand buzzed again, indicating a waiting message. Katie retrieved it and held the phone to her ear. “Hi, Katie, it’s me. I just want to thank you for everything you’ve done for me over the past several mont
hs. You made my wedding truly the best day of my life. I’ll tell you all about Fiji when we get back. Take care of yourself. Love you. Bye.”
Katie smiled and pressed the delete button. “Love you too, my friend.”
2
Their second-floor apartment was fairly close to Pacific Beach. The place was small, but suited the both of them for now. In fact, it was almost close enough to get a clear view of the ocean, if Katie turned her head just right while standing on the third step outside the front door, and peered through the alleyway of the condos across the street. Then, the view was perfect. The upside was that her commute to the office was brief, which was her destination now as she locked the door.
On arrival, Katie passed through the tall glass doors and into the lobby. The third floor was where she’d spent the past couple of years, in a cubicle with high walls that offered a veiled sense of privacy.
At her desk, she searched the company directory and found the contact information for Dr. Reyes. In a hushed conversation, she continued, “There’s one more thing, doctor, what are your thoughts on hypnotherapy?”
“I’ve used some forms of it for assistance in addiction treatments. Generally, stressors in a person’s life can cause a whole host of problems. I believe that’s what we may be dealing with here and hypnotherapy may be of some use. But first things first, we need to get you in here to talk about your situation in an objective manner. How about next Thursday at 4:30?”
Katie examined her calendar. “Yes, that would be fine. Thank you, Dr. Reyes, I’ll see you then.” Just as she hung up the phone, she noticed Jennifer approaching. Only a few years younger than Katie, Jennifer was a touch naïve, but kind and hardworking. Katie acted as her mentor on occasion and they often worked together on fundraising events when she was in between cases.
“You’re working with Dr. Reyes again? I didn’t know they assigned you another case.” Jennifer’s eager approach to the job would likely wane as she got on in years, but for now, she had a relentless enthusiasm.
“Oh, that. No, it’s not a case. I was just asking her about something I had researched online.”
“Oh, I thought you were meeting with her.”
Katie felt she had painted herself into a corner. She knew Jennifer wasn’t the gossiping type, but discussing this with her wasn’t an option. “I am next week. I thought that since we deal with so many cases of abuse, I wondered how certain therapy treatments were viewed, so I’m going to her office to discuss them.”
Her colleague’s expression suggested an acceptance of Katie’s account and she didn’t inquire further. “Great. You want to grab some lunch later? It’s a beautiful day.”
“Sure, how about 11:30?”
“Sounds good. See you later.”
The streets were full of tourists and workers jockeying for position. Employees who had neither the time nor patience to sit in overcrowded eateries during their too-short lunch breaks, instead opted for food trucks parked in and around Downtown. Meanwhile the visitors sat down in open-air cafes, sipping wine and enjoying the scenery in springtime San Diego.
“Isn’t Spencer supposed to get his results soon?” Jennifer asked as they headed out of the lobby and joined the masses.
“They’re due to be out next Monday. He’s been so busy working research for the firm, I think he has almost forgotten about it. It’s been months since he’s taken the exam.”
“I guess he’ll probably work long hours too, once he’s hired on as a practicing lawyer, right?”
“I suppose so, but I’m so proud of him. And besides, I knew what I was signing up for. He’s got a long road ahead of him. I’m just hoping that I can talk Richard into using his firm once in a while, once he’s offered a job, of course.”
“Is there any reason to think they wouldn’t present him with an offer? He’s been interning there for what, like two years?”
Katie pressed the crosswalk button. “Yep. I can’t see why they wouldn’t, especially if I can convince Richard that the firm might be willing to take on some pro-bono cases once in a while. It would certainly prove Spencer’s effectiveness if he could bring in new clients right away.”
“Do they usually do pro-bono?” Jennifer asked.
“If Spencer has anything to do with it, they will. He’ll want to do some good and help when he can, same as me.” Katie stopped in front of the Greek restaurant. “Feel like Greek today?”
Almost the entire week had passed without Kate suffering through another nightmare, but in the early hours of this morning, she awoke in a most violent manner. Spencer wasn’t lying next to her this time to offer comfort, so she decided to walk down the hall in search of him.
The glow from the television bounced off his face like a strobe light as he sat in a near catatonic state on the couch. Dawn had broken and a dull light filtered around the edge of the window curtains.
“How long have you been up?” She rubbed the sleep from her eyes.
“Since about three.” He shrugged his shoulders. “Couldn’t sleep.”
Katie sat down beside him. “You passed. Don’t worry, I know you did.” She wasn’t about to disclose her reason for being awake at this hour, not today.
“I wish I had the same confidence in me as you do.”
“I’ll go make some coffee.” She squeezed his thigh and walked into the kitchen. “You want some toast?”
“Yeah, that’d be great. Hey, by the way, how’d you sleep? You’re up awfully early.”
She shoved the spoon into the coffee can and took a deep breath. “I slept all right. I just noticed that you weren’t in the room and decided to come and check on you.” She hated lying to him, but there was no way she would worry him any more than he was already.
Katie used the little silver tray they’d received as a house warming gift to hold their coffees and toast as she brought them into the living room. “Here you are.”
“Thanks.” Spencer took a sip of his coffee. “So no bad dreams last night, then?”
“No. I tossed and turned little, but nothing that I can recall.”
“Honey, come on. It’s me. I know you’re still struggling. I haven’t said anything because I didn’t want to pressure you. But it’s clear you’re trying to deal with something like emotions or stress. Have you thought any more about talking with someone?”
“I didn’t want to burden you with more of this nonsense. You’ve been so anxious about your exam results and a few bad dreams seemed pretty insignificant.”
“But it’s not, is it? And it’s more than a few,” he said. “Your mind and your body are trying to tell you something. Whether it’s to relax or change something in your life, I don’t know. Have you been happy at work?”
“Of course; I love my job. It’s been a little quiet lately because I haven’t had an opportunity to work on any cases. Fundraising season, you know how that goes. If it makes you feel any better, I called Dr. Reyes. I told you about her at the hotel, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, I called her and I’ve got an appointment for Thursday. I was going to tell you, but not until you got your results. I didn’t want you to worry.”
“But I do worry about you. I know I’ve been swamped at work and admittedly stressed about the bar, but honey, please don’t keep things from me. I can handle more than you think.” The toast ripped away at his bite. “Well, I’m glad you made an appointment anyway. Whatever’s going on, we’ll get through it. I’ll just need a few more cups of coffee to help me get through today.”
Katie had wrapped up a meeting with a major contributor to the foundation when a call came in on her cell phone. “Excuse me, Mr. Wallace; I’ve got to take this. Jennifer will show you out. Thank you again for your generous contribution.” She shook his hand and walked into the corridor. “Hey, babe, tell me the good news.” There was a pause on the other end of the line and her heart jumped into her throat, fearing the worst.
“Yeah, well about that.” He paused again and
gave rise to impending bad news. “I passed!”
She was overcome with relief. “I swear, if you were here, I’d slap you for that.”
He laughed on the other end of the line, that wonderful contagious laugh she loved so much. She couldn’t help but start laughing herself.
“It’s one o’clock,” she said, glancing at her watch. “How about I give the guys a call and get everyone together tonight for a celebration?”
“I would love that.”
“So, what about your boss? Does he know yet? Do you think they’ll offer you a job?”
“Don’t know. I literally just got the news. I’m going to go tell him now. I doubt they’ll offer me a job on the spot, but we’ll see.”
“Well, they’d be fools if they didn’t hire the hottest lawyer in town. I’m so proud of you. Anyway, I’ll get everyone together. Why don’t we meet after work at Wayfarers?”
“Sounds great, honey. I’ll see you later. Love you.”
“I love you, bye.” Katie stood in the hall, struggling to conceal the grin plastered on her face.
“You look like the cat that ate the canary,” Richard said.
“Spencer passed the bar.” Katie could hardly contain herself, even in the presence of her manager.
“Congratulations! That’s wonderful news. Also, congratulations on getting a rather sizable donation from Mr. Wallace. That’s no easy task.” Richard patted her shoulder and continued on his way.
For the first time in months, Katie felt like a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Maybe Spencer was right, maybe I’ve just been too stressed.
Wayfarers was packed, as usual. Luckily, a few of the guys were able to get there early and get a table for everyone. Katie mingled amid their college friends and a few of the interns from Spencer’s firm. Finally, Spencer arrived, late, but today that was okay.
