Read Online Flashback by Simon Rose - Free Book Online Page B

was different.”
    Max swallowed hard as he struggled to continue.
    “Go on,” urged Deanna.
    “It was as if he was fading in and out,” Max continued. “It’s hard to describe. He was kind of shimmering. One second he was there and then the next he wasn’t. And he was trying to speak to me, which he’d never done before, although I don’t remember any words clearly. But I do remember that he reached out and touched me. I’ll never forget that icy cold feeling on my hand. I screamed and my dad came to see what was going on, but my imaginary friend had vanished. I never saw him again.”
    “Until now,” added Deanna.
    Max nodded.
    “I realize now that my imaginary friend was David Dexter, trying to contact me,” he confessed. “I’ve never told anyone about that incident before. It’s something I’ve been desperate to forget ever since it happened. It’s always been too painful to remember.”
    “And that’s when your nightmares started?” said Deanna.
    “Yes,” Max confirmed, “but I never knew the cause. My dad was concerned, so I saw doctors for years and finally ended up at a specialist, but he wasn’t really much help. The nightmares started to go away after my seventh birthday. Not long after that, my dad decided I didn’t have to see Dr. Hammond anymore.”
    “But you’re always worried he might suggest it again, aren’t you,” said Deanna.
    “I guess so,” Max conceded. “That’s one of the reasons I’d never tell him about all this. He really would think I’d gone crazy.”
    “Do you think you’re crazy, Max?” Deanna asked him.
    “No,” said Max emphatically, “I honestly don’t. I know I saw David and spoke to him.”
    “These visions definitely aren’t from your life, are they?” Deanna asked.
    “No,” said Max. “After all that’s happened, I’m convinced that they’re part of David’s experiences.”
    “But they don’t last long enough for you to make any sense of them, do they? Maybe it’s time to dig a little deeper?” Deanna suggested.
    “How?” said Max, shaking his head.
    “Through something called post-hypnotic regression,” Deanna continued. “I can put you under hypnosis and allow you to access memories from another life.”
    “Is it safe?” said Max, nervously.
    “Don’t worry,” Deanna assured him. “I’ve done this lots of times. Occasionally there can be something specific that causes distress, but I simply wake the person right away.”
    “Well, if you’re sure,” said Max, still feeling a little uneasy.
    “Come to the couch,” said Deanna, standing up, “and make yourself comfortable.”
    Max walked over to the couch and lay down.
    “Now what?” he said.
    “Just relax,” Deanna instructed softly. “Now close your eyes and breathe deeply.”
    Max did as she asked.
    “Okay,” Deanna went on, “now keep breathing deeply. I’m going to take you
    back. Just relax, deep breaths.”
    Max felt as if he were steadily drifting away from the sound of Deanna’s voice, which grew increasingly faint, until it was completely gone.
     
    “Are the restraints tight enough?”
    “Yes, of course they are. I told you, I know what I’m doing.”
    “Now keep still, David, this won’t hurt a bit.”
    Max struggled in vain against the sturdy bonds that secured him to the table. Aleksander Kovac’s hand moved steadily closer. The hypodermic needle was now only inches from Max’s eye. Kane grinned in cruel satisfaction as Max screamed when the point of the needle made contact with his eyeball.
     
    “Max! Max! Are you okay?”
    Max was back on the couch.
    “Are you okay?” Deanna repeated, looking extremely concerned. “I had to bring you out of it, you were having convulsions. What the hell was going on?”
    “I was in David’s memories again,” gasped Max, sitting up. “Right when he was killed.”
    “It was a traumatic memory, that’s all,” Deanna assured him. “Don’t worry, it’s quite normal.”
    “But it was so