I sent her out into the world, expecting to hear from her soon. Despite that, there& d been no reason to keep her in treatment against her will. Because the family structure that had nurtured her problems had never been altered. She left therapy a changed little girl I allowed myself a bit of self-congratulation but knew better than to wallow in it. Finally, a month shy of two years, termination. After eight months we tapered to twice at year& s anniversary, were down to one. Even at the height of my practice it was rare to schedule a patient for more than one session a week. Children tend to get better relatively quickly and to need less treatment than adults. Child psychology& s an ideal job for those who like to feel heroic.
That alone would have made her stand out in my memory, but there had been so much more.&. & what? It had to be nearly a decade since she& d stopped coming to the office I once maintained in a cold-blooded high-rise on the east end of Beverly Hills. So I really wasn& t surprised when I came home after a July night-run and learned that Melissa Dickinson had left a message with my service. After a few years in practice I stopped trying. Predicting who& ll fall into which group is an iffy business, no more rational than Vegas or the stock market. A good many occupy an ambiguous space in the middle-throwing out occasional tendrils of reattachment during periods of pride or sorrow. But the bond forged during locked-door three-quarter hours-the relationship that develops when private eyes peek into private lives-can achieve a certain immortality. Which isn& t to say that patients don& t get better. and murder.ĬHAPTER 1 A therapist& s work is never over. And now, unless Delaware turns crack detective to uncover the truth, Gina Dickinson will be just one more victim of a cold fury that has already spawned madness. But before Alex Delaware can even begin to soothe his former patient's fears, Gina, a recluse for twenty years, disappears. Now her acid-wielding assailant is out of prison and back in L.A.-and Melissa is terrified that the monster has returned to hurt Gina again. Twenty years ago, Gina Dickinson, Melissa's mother, suffered a grisly assault that left the budding actress irreparably scarred and emotionally crippled. "A page-turner from beginning to end."- Los Angeles Times Only this time it looks like Melissa's deepest childhood nightmare is really coming true. Now the lovely young heiress is desperately calling for the psychologist's help once more. It is eleven years since seven-year-old Melissa Dickinson dialed the hospital help line for comfort-and found it in therapy with Alex Delaware. NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER The voice belongs to a woman, but Dr.
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