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

“Sorry, I forgot about that,” she said. “I’ll have to mind my thoughts.”


“Please don’t as I’m about to act on one of your earlier ones.” He walked over and touched her cheek. His skin was as soft as it looked, and she wondered how someone who used his hands daily, chopping wood, cleaning floors, washing windows, could have such a light touch. Maybe it’s something one acquires when…


Emily stopped thinking and began to react to his touch. Her cheeks weren’t the only things turning red. She felt a current of heat, a sudden fever, run along her body. Maybe this is what menopause feels like. Livie told her about the symptoms she experienced: a rush of heat, then a blast of cold.


“It isn’t that.” He bent down and took her face in his hands and kissed her. Gently, sweetly, his lips brushed against hers.


Chapter 47