Page 41 of Emi's Hero

“Are there any designs on the risers or the steps themselves?” Sachie asked. “Can you feel your hand sliding along the rail?”

Emi nodded. “I can feel the rail. It’s chrome and shiny. I think about how often the deckhands have to polish the fingerprints off it.”

“Where did you go once you reached the top?”

“Through the main floor and up to the helm.” Emi tensed.

“Who is there?” Sachie asked quietly.

“Fallon and the captain.”

“I want you to look around the space and tell me what you see.”

“Fallon. I see him turn toward me and scowl.”

“Emi, you’re in a safe space. He can’t touch you here. Look past him as if he doesn’t exist. As if he isn’t there at all. What do you see?”

“Windows all around,” Emi said, “looking out at the ocean ahead and to each side.”

“Good,” Sachie soothed. “Now, focus on the surfaces—walls, counters, seats, floors. What do they look like?”

“White and chrome. The captain’s seat is leather. The steering wheel is chrome.”

“Is there any writing on the seat or the steering wheel?” Sachie asked.

Emi focused on the helm. She’d been on the yacht once before, in the room she was viewing. “There’s some kind of cursive writing.”

“How many letters?” Sachie asked.

“Four,” Emi said.

“I’m going to give you a pad and pencil,” Sachie said. “Don’t open your eyes. Keep focusing on the writing.”

Emi studied the letters and their shapes.

Sachie placed a pad and pencil in her hands. “Can you draw what you see?”

Emi placed the pencil lead on the paper and traced the letters the way she saw them in her memory. When she was done, Sachie took the pencil and pad from her hands and had her continue through the rest of the yacht, describing everything from the type of decking to the rails on the outside.

“Now, take me off the boat.”

Emi frowned. “You mean from when I was in the water?”

“Yes,” Sachie said. “Remember, you’re safe here at the ranch, lying comfortably on a couch. Hover above the water and describe what you see of the yacht.”

“When I finally make it to the surface, the yacht is speeding away.” Emi’s heart beat faster. “They didn’t slow down or come back for me.” She shivered. “The water is so cold.”

“You’re warm, Emi,” Sachie said in that beautifully calm tone. “You’re on a couch in a lovely ranch house. Your friends are nearby.”

George’s face found its way into Emi’s mind. She was lying in bed with him holding her close. His body warmed hers.

“Emi, take me back to what you saw of the boat as it drove away. Did you see any numbers or letters on the back?”

Emi pulled herself back into the cold water and stared at the back of the boat as it disappeared. Salt water splashed in her face, stinging her eyes. “I see nothing.”

“Breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth,” Sachie said in her soothing voice.

Emi breathed in and out until the terror of being left out in the middle of the ocean faded to the back of her mind.

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