Page 87 of Heartless Legacy

“But now I am.” She walks closer, smiling at me. “You must be Thea.”

“I am.”

“It’s a pleasure to finally meet you. I’m Sondra, and I am already envisioning so much we can do with your hair.” She waves at me with the scissors she’s holding. “Come on back. Do you like layers? And I see you’re into color. Wanna reboot that, or get rid of it all together?”

My hand goes to the inside of my jacket. LJ steps forward, placing her hand on my arm. “You don’t need your knife, Thea.” She whispers.

“She’s holding a weapon and trying to get me alone.”

“She’s holding styling scissors.”

Sondra glances over at me and smiles. She moves the scissors to her other hand and flashes a familiar sign. I release the hold on my knife and walk towards her, more at ease. “I wanna reboot, but I’m not sure of the color.”

“I’ve got plenty of pictures we can go through. Trust me, Thea. I’m gonna take real good care of you.”

Chapter 53

Thea

I’ve had a good day couple of days. Yesterday I got my hair done. Today I had brunch at the diner and a few hours of sitting with my toes in the water on the beach, I felt…almost normal. So normal that I allowed my mind to wander, which prompted me to get into my car and drive to the beach on the other side of town, to see Wolfe.

Dr. Sagebrook says therapy is more effective when I’m an active participant in my healing, and that it’s important to replace negative thoughts and feelings with positive ones. So shouldn’t I embrace sex to help me through this block?

Now that I’m at Wolfe’s front door, I’m shaking like a leaf. I wasn’t nervous when I lost my virginity, but the idea of having sex tonight has my hands clammy and my stomach twisting in funny little knots. I’ve had sex with him before. I know what to expect. I shouldn’t be freaking out, but I am, and I know it’s the effects of Dr. Psycho’s sessions invading my thoughts and reigniting my terrors of being attacked. That was the reason I asked about reprogramming. I don’t want to be paralyzed by my fear anymore. I desperately want to move past it.

I knock, digging my toes into my sneakers, waiting for him to answer. I could let myself in, like last time, but what if he’snot alone? What if he’s found someone who can give him what I can’t? That thought snuffs out the fear, replacing it with anger. The door finally opens -and there he is- staring down at me. No shirt, sweatpants, and a grumpy expression on his face. I lick my lips, taking in his bare torso and tousled hair.

“Thea? What are you doing here?”

Is that guilt on his face? He’d better fucking be alone. I lean to the side, trying to see around him. He steps aside, asking his next question and inviting me into the house. Okay,inviteis a stretch. I duck under the arm that’s holding the door open and do a casual check of the living room.

“Looking for something?” He asks, as I check out the kitchen and sniff the air, trying to catch a hint of perfume.

I’m looking for my common sense, because what the fuckamI doing? Asking myself that question doesn’t stop me from marching into the powder room or heading to his bedroom, where I fling the closet door open. I even look under the bed.

From where I’m standing, I can see the master bath is empty. If there was anyone in here, she would’ve had to jump out the window. Not my problem. I strain my ears to see if I can catch any whimpers or cries.

Heading back downstairs, I ask, “Were you alone?”

Coming to stand in front of me, he asks, “What’s wrong? Has something happened?”

“I asked you a question.”

“I’m alone and the house is secure, so if you need to say something-” I squirm under the weight of his stare. “Wait, are you asking because you think I had someone here? You think I had a woman here?”

I narrow my eyes at him. He’s making fun of me, and not even trying to hide it. That annoys me.

“Thea, what the hell are you doing?”

“I haven’t seen you for a few days.”

“You saw me in class yesterday.”

I counter with, “You didn’t come check up on me after your last class.”

“I walked through campus and you seemed in good hands outside the dining hall.”

The flimsy grip I had on my emotions slips. “Oh, is that what you assumed? Just like everyone else assumed I wanted to be locked in a flaming coffin, or lied to my whole life? You gonna start making decisions for me, too?”

---