Paul Alan Fahey

Psychiatrist Haleigh Hugo thinks he’s found the perfect setting for his experimental treatment plan -- an isolated home in the middle of a small lake in the high Sierras. Dr. Hugo’s office mate and life partner, Guy Sanford, is unconvinced that the benefits of the treatment plan outweigh the risks, but soon gives in to the charm and boundless enthusiasm of his lover.<br><br>Dr. Hugo’s subjects are six female patients who have failed to make what he considers significant progress in one-to-one therapy. They all share something in common: grief over the loss of a loved one, a psychological barrier that prevents them from moving on. Hilary Colbert lost her life partner to a serious illness; Jennie Travers no longer trusts her unfaithful husband; Meeda O’Connell’s infant son died in his crib; Vera Field wakes from a coma to learn her father has committed a senseless crime: Sarah/April Preston no longer knows who she is and suffers from a loss of identity; and Emily West has psychic abilities yet longs for a normal human existence.<br><br>The six patients, overseen by Dr. Hugo and Dr. Sanford, descend on Devonshire, a simple mountain home on the lake for a weekend of intense therapy. Yet within the walls of the home lies a terrible and painful secret that haunts anyone who comes near.

Too Long Among the Dead

Reggie tugged on Bishop’s hand and pointed at Emily. Had he said something? She was too far to hear.


Emily stood and moved slowly crossing the room in small steps. How could I be in the least afraid, when every fiber of my being is telling me the opposite?


She gave Reggie what she hoped was a brimming smile, and then held out her arms in a welcoming gesture. She had almost covered the distance between them when their images began to fade. By the time she reached the doorway, they had vanished. 27: Something in Common


Katherine Lansing sat in a corner, legs crossed, balancing that ever ready steno pad in her lap. A wisp of hair hung down seductively over an eye, and she brushed it back.


Guy told Lansing they wouldn’t need a note taker. “Not today.” She raised an eyebrow and pursed her lips—an affronted expression if he’d ever seen one, and with Lansing he’d been on the receiving end of many such looks. She got up to leave.


Chapter 39