Chapter 27 Chapter Twenty Seven

"Toni? Toni, can you hear me?" Dr. Keller watched Ashley's expression change. "I can hear you, doctor, be good." "Let's talk about Jean-Claude Parente." "I should have known he was too good to be true." "what do you mean?" "At first, he seemed like a real gentleman. He took me out every day and we really had a good time. I thought he was different, but he was like everyone else, all he thought about was sex." "I see." "He gave me a beautiful ring, and I guess, he thought he had me. I went with him to his house."

※※※ This is a beautiful two-story red brick building full of antiques. "It's so cute." "There's something special I want to show you in the bedroom upstairs." So he led her upstairs, and she was powerless to stop him.When they reached the bedroom, he held her in his arms and whispered, "Take off your clothes." "I do not want……" "No, you do. We both want it." He quickly undressed her, laid her down on the bed, and laid him on top of her.She was moaning, "No, please, father!" But he didn't care, he kept pushing into her until suddenly he said, "Ah!" and then stopped, "You're wonderful!" he said.

Then the diabolical thought broke out and shook her.She grabbed the sharp letter-opening blade from the table and plunged it into his chest, up and down, up and down. "You'll never do that to anyone again." She stabbed him in the groin. After that, she took a leisurely shower, got dressed, and went back to the hotel. ※※※ "Ashley..." Ashley's face began to change. "Now wake up." Ashley woke up slowly.She looked at Dr. Keller and said, "Toni again?" "Yes. She and Jean-Claude met on the Internet. Ashley, when you went to Quebec, were there any times when you seemed to lose the notion of time? An hour or a day later, and you don't know where you went?"

She nodded slowly. "Yes. It...it happens a lot." "That's when Toni takes over you." "So, those things happened when... when she took over me?" "yes." ※※※ The next few months were uneventful.Every afternoon, Dr. Keller often heard Toni playing the piano and singing, and he often watched Ai Lite painting in the garden.There was another murder to talk about, but he wanted Ashley to relax before he started talking about it. She has been in this hospital for five years.She's going to be well soon, Dr. Keller thought. He had Ashley brought in one Monday morning, and he watched her walk into the office.She was pale, as if she knew what she was about to face.

"Good morning, Ashley." "Good morning, Gilbert." "how do you feel?" "Nervous. This is the last one, isn't it?" "Yes. Let's talk about Adjutant Sam Black. What was he doing in your apartment?" "I asked him to come. Someone wrote 'you're going to die' on my bathroom mirror. I didn't know what to do. I felt like someone was trying to kill me. I called the police, so Adjutant Blake came. He was very Sympathize with me." "Did you ask him to stay with you?" "Yes. I was terrified of being alone. He said he would spend the night with me, and by the next morning he would arrange round-the-clock supervision for me. I offered to sleep on the couch and let him sleep in the bedroom, but He said he would like to sleep on the couch. I remember, he checked the windows to make sure they were locked, then he put two latches on the door. His gun was on the table next to the couch. I said goodnight , went into the bedroom and closed the door."

"What happened next?" "The next thing I... the next thing I remember is being woken up by someone screaming in the alley. Then the sheriff came in and told me that Lieutenant Black was found dead." She stopped, Her face was pale. "Okay. Now, I'm going to put you to sleep. Just relax. Close your eyes and relax..." It took ten minutes.Dr. Keller said, "Toni..." "Here I am. You want to know what the hell happened, don't you? What a fool Ashley invited Sam to stay in the flat. I could have told her what he'd do." ※※※ He heard a call from the bedroom, got up quickly from the couch, and grabbed his gun.He hurried to the door of the bedroom and listened for a while.There was silence.He thought it might be an illusion.As he started to turn away, he heard it again.He pushed open the door, gun in hand.Ashley was on the bed, naked and fast asleep.There was no one else in the room.She was moaning softly.He moved to her bedside.She lay there curled up in a fetal position, looking very beautiful.She moaned again, must have been trapped in some terrible dream.He took her in his arms and hugged her, originally just wanting to comfort her.Lying next to her, he gently pulled her towards him, feeling her warmth and becoming aroused.

She was woken by his voice: "It's all right now. You're safe." His lips were pressed against hers, and he spread her thighs apart and entered her. And she was screaming, "No, Father!" And the urgency to vent made him twitch faster and faster.Then, that brutal force of vengeance prevailed.She grabbed the knife from the dresser drawer by her bed and began hacking into him. ※※※ "What happened after you killed him?" "She wrapped his body in a sheet and dragged him towards the elevator, through the garage and into the back alley." ※※※ "...then," Dr. Keller told Ashley, "Toni wrapped his body in a sheet and dragged him into the elevator, through the garage, and into the alley beyond."

Ashley sat there, her face dead pale. "She's a monster...I'm a monster." Gilbert Keller said, "No. Ashley, you have to remember that Toni was born of your pain to protect you. And so is Elliott. It's time to end this situation. I want You'll meet them. That's the next step in your healing." Ashley's eyes were tightly shut. "Okay. When are we...doing this?" "tomorrow morning." ※※※ Ashley was in a deep hypnotized state.Dr. Keller started with Toni. "Toni, I want you and Alette to talk to Ashley." "What makes you think she can handle us?"

"I think she can." "Okay, doctor, be good. Listen to you." "Alette, are you ready for your meeting with Ashley?" "If Toni says it's okay." "Of course, Elliott. It's time." Dr. Keller took a deep breath and said, "Ashley, I want you to say 'hello' to Toni." There was a long silence.Then, a sheepish "Hello, Toni..." "Hello." "Ashley, say 'hello' to Elliott." "Hi, Elliott..." "Hi, Ashley..." Dr. Keller breathed a sigh of relief. "I want you to get to know each other. You have suffered from the same terrible traumas. They separated you from each other. But now there is no reason for separation. You will become a whole, healthy human being, It's been a long journey, but you've started it. I assure you, the hardest part is over."

※※※ Since that moment, Ashley's treatment has progressed rapidly.Ashley and her two other selves talk to each other every day. "Before, I had to protect you," Toni pleaded, "I think every time I killed one of those men, I was actually killing my father for what he did to you." "I tried to protect you too," Aliette said. "I... I appreciate it all. I'm grateful for both of you." Ashley turned to Dr. Keller and said mockingly, "It's all me, isn't it? I'm talking to myself." "You're talking to two other parts of yourself," he corrected her gently, "and it's time for you all to reunite and become one."

Ashley looked at him and smiled. "I'm ready." That afternoon, Dr. Keller went to see Otto Lewison. Dr. Lewison said, "I've heard good news, Gilbert." Dr. Keller nodded. "Ashley is making excellent progress. In a few months, I think, she will be discharged to continue her treatment as an outpatient." "That's excellent news. Congratulations." I'm going to miss her, Dr. Keller thought.I will miss her terribly. ※※※ "Line two is Dr. Salem calling you, Mr. Singer." "Okay." David reached for the phone, puzzled.Why did Dr. Salem call?The two haven't spoken to each other for several years. "Royce?" "Good morning, David. I have some interesting news for you. It's about Ashley Paterson." David felt a sudden panic. "how is she?" "Do you remember how hard we tried to pinpoint the trauma that caused her condition and we couldn't?" David remembered it clearly.It had been a major weakness in their defense. "yes." "Well, I just got the answer. My friend Dr. Lewison, the director of the Connecticut Psychiatric Hospital, just called. The missing piece of the puzzle is Dr. Steven Paterson. He's the one who molested Ashley when she was a child." David asked incredulously, "What?" "Dr. Lewison just found out about it." David sat and listened as Dr. Salem went on, but his mind was elsewhere.He was recalling Dr. Paterson's words. "You're the only one I trust, David. My daughter means everything in the world to me. You're going to save her life...I want you to defend Ashley, and I don't want anyone else people involved in this case..." David suddenly understood why Dr. Paterson had been so stubborn in insisting that he represent Ashley alone.The doctor was sure that if David found out what he was doing, he would protect him too.Dr. Paterson had to choose between his daughter and his reputation, and he chose his reputation.That son of a bitch! "Thanks, Lois." ※※※ As Ashley passed the rec room that afternoon, she saw a copy of the Westport News someone had left there.On the front page of the paper was a photo of her father with Victoria Aniston and Katrina.The news story began: "Dr. Steven Paterson will marry socialite Victoria Aniston. She has a three-year-old daughter from a previous marriage. Dr. Paterson will join St. John's Hospital in Manhattan , he and his fiancée have bought a house on Long Island..." Ashley stopped in her tracks, her face contorted into a scowl. "I'm going to kill that son of a bitch," Toni screamed, "I'm going to kill him!" She was completely out of control.They had to put her in a soft-walled cell where she was handcuffed and shackled so she couldn't hurt herself.When the guards came to feed Hao, she tried to grab them, so they had to keep their distance from her carefully.Toni has completely possessed Ashley. When she saw Dr. Keller, she screamed, "Get me out of here, you bastard. Get me out of here now!" "We are going to let you leave here," Dr. Keller comforted, "but first you have to calm down." "I'm calm," Toni yelled, "Let me go!" Dr. Keller sat on the floor beside her and said, "Toni, when you saw that picture of your father, you said you were going to hurt him, and..." "You're lying! I said I was going to kill him!" "There's been enough killing, you don't even think about stabbing anybody." "I'm not going to stab him. Have you ever heard of hydrochloric acid? It eats away at anything, including skin. Wait until I..." "I don't want you to think about things like that." "You're right, arson! Arson is better. He doesn't have to go to Hell to be burned. I can do it, and they'll never get me if—" "Toni, forget about this." "Okay. I can think of something better." He looked at her for a while, frustrated: "Why are you so angry?" "Don't you know? I thought you were supposed to be a great doctor. He's going to marry a woman with a three-year-old daughter. What's going to happen to that little girl, Mr. Famous Doctor? Let me tell you." Right. Same thing that happened to us. Well, I'm going to stop it!" "I had hoped that we would eliminate all that hatred." "Hate? Do you want to hear about hate?" ※※※ It was raining, and the downpour kept hitting the roof of the accelerating car.She watched her mother sit at the wheel, squinting at the road ahead, and she smiled, in a good mood, and began to sing: "Every corner of the mulberry bushes, Monkeys chasing..." Her mother turned to her and screamed, "Shut up. I told you I hated that song. You make me sick, you mean little…" Afterwards, everything seems to happen in slow motion.The curve ahead, the car sliding off the road, the tree.The impact threw her out of the car.She was concussed, but uninjured.She stood up.She could hear her mother screaming from inside the car: "Get me out of here. Help me! Help me!" And she stood and watched until the car finally exploded. ※※※ "Hate? Do you want to hear more?" ※※※ Walter Manning said: "This decision had to be made unanimously. My daughter is a professional painter, not a half-learned slob, and she made this painting an act of kindness. We couldn't say no to her... this piece Things have to be agreed upon. Either send my daughter a painting, or we'll send him nothing." She parked the car on the sidewalk with the motor running.She saw Walter Manning cross the street, heading for the parking lot where his car was parked.She put the car in gear and slammed her foot on the accelerator.At the last moment, he heard the sound of a car rushing toward him, and he turned his head.She saw the look on his face when the car hit him and then tossed his broken body aside.She didn't stop.Not a single witness.God is on her side. ※※※ "That's hatred, doctor! That's real hatred!" Gilbert Keller listened to her account in horror, shocked by her ruthless venom.He canceled other appointments for the day.He needs to be alone. ※※※ When Dr. Keller walked into the soft-wall room the next morning, Elliott had taken over. "Why are you doing this to me, Dr. Keller?" Aliette asked. "Get me out of here." "I will," Dr. Keller assured her. "Tell me about Toni. What did she tell you?" "She said we had to run from here and kill my father." Toni took over the past. "Good morning, doctor. We're all right now. Why don't you let us go?" Dr. Keller looked her in the eyes.There was a grim, murderous light there. ※※※ Dr. Otto Lewison sighed: "I am very sorry for what is going on, Gilbert. It all went so well." "Right now, I can't even get in touch with Ashley." "I think that means having to start the treatment from scratch." Dr. Keller seems to have a plan in mind. "Not really, Otto. We've reached the point where the three personalities know each other. That's a big breakthrough. The next step is to fuse them. I've got to find a way to do that." "Blame that damn article..." "Toni saw that article, lucky for us." Otto Luisen looked at him in surprise. "lucky?" "Yes. Because there's still that hate left on Toni. Now that we know it's there, we might be able to cure it. I want to do a trial. If it works, we'll be fine. If it doesn't, He paused, then added calmly, "Then I think Ashley might have to be imprisoned here for life." "what you up to?" "I think it's a bad idea to have Ashley's father come to see her now, but I'd like to hire a national clipping service and I want them to send me everything that's in the paper about Dr. Paterson. article." Otto Luisen blinked: "What intention?" "I'm going to show them all to Toni, and eventually, her hatred will have to run out. That way, I can monitor it and try to control it." "This may take a long time, Gilbert." "At least a year, possibly longer. But this is Ashley's only chance." ※※※ Five days later, Ashley took over herself. As Dr. Keller walked into the soft-walled room, Ashley said, "Good morning, Gilbert. I'm sorry this happened." "I'm glad it happened, Ashley. We're going to make all our emotions public." He nodded to the guard, motioning for him to remove the shackles and handcuffs. Ashley stood up and stroked her wrist. "It's not very comfortable," she said.They walked out of the room and into the corridor. "Toni was very angry." "Yes, but she's going to get over it. That's my plan.  …" ※※※ There are always three or four articles about Dr. Steven Paterson every month.One read: "Dr. Steven Paterson will marry Victoria Aniston in an elaborate ceremony on Long Island on Friday. Dr. Paterson's colleagues will be flying to..." When Dr. Keller showed her the news, Toni had a hysterical fit. "This marriage won't last." "Why do you say that, Toni?" "Because he's going to die!" ※※※ "Dr. Steven Paterson has resigned from St. John's Hospital to be Chief of Cardiology at the Methodist Hospital in Manhattan..." "That way he can rape all the little girls in there!" screamed Toni. ※※※ "Dr. Steven Paterson was honored with the Lasker Award for his contributions to medicine and was presented at the White House." "They should hang the bastard!" Toni yelled. ※※※ Gilbert Keller made sure Toni received all the articles about her father.And over time, Toni's resentment seemed to die with each new article.It seemed that her hatred had all but disappeared.She turns from hatred to anger and, ultimately, to a kind of resigned acceptance. ※※※ It was mentioned once in the real estate column. "Dr. Steven Paterson and his bride moved into their Manhattan home, however, they plan to purchase a second home in the Hamptons where they will spend the summer with their daughter Katrina .” Toni started to sob. "How could he do that to us?" "Do you feel that little girl has taken your place, Toni?" "I don't know. I'm so... I'm so confused." ※※※ Another year passed.Ashley has three treatment sessions per week.Alette draws almost every day, but Toni refuses to sing or play the piano. On Christmas Day, Dr. Keller showed Toni a new newspaper clipping.There's a photo of his dad with Victoria and Katrina.The accompanying text reads: The Patersons celebrate Christmas in the Hamptons. Toni said wistfully, "We used to spend Christmas together. He always gave me nice presents." She looked at Dr. Keller. "He's not all bad. Except that...you know...he's a good father. I think he really loves me." This is the first sign of a new breakthrough. ※※※ One day, as Dr. Keller passed the rec room, he heard Toni singing and playing the piano.Surprised, he went into the room to observe her.She is completely immersed in the music. The next day, Dr. Keller gave Toni a treatment. "Your father is getting older, Toni. How do you think you'll feel when he dies?" "I...I don't want him to die. I know I said a lot of stupid things, but I said them because I was angry with him at the time." "You're not angry now?" She thought about it. "I'm not angry, I'm hurt. I think you were right that time. I did feel that little girl was taking my place." She looked up at Dr. Keller and said, "I was so confused. However, my father has the right to move on with his life and Ashley has the right to move on with hers." Dr. Keller smiled.We're back on track. Now, the three of them talk to each other freely. Dr. Keller said, "Ashley, you needed Toni and Elliott because you couldn't take the pain. Now, what do you think of your father?" There was a brief silence.She said slowly, "I will never forget what he did to me, but I can forgive him. I want to put the past behind me and start my future." "In order to do that, we have to bring you back together as one. What do you think about that, Elliott?" Aliette said: "If I become Ashley, can I still paint?" "Of course you can." "Er, then, all right." "Tony?" "Can I still sing and play the piano?" "Yes," he said. "That's nothing..." "Ashley?" "I'm ready, let's all be one. I... I thank them for helping me when I needed them." "It's my pleasure, dear," said Toni. "It's my honor too," Alette said. It's time for the final step - fusion. "Okay. Now, I'm going to hypnotize you, Ashley. I want you to say goodbye to Toni and Elliott." Ashley took a deep breath. "Goodbye, Toni. Goodbye, Elliott." "Goodbye, Ashley." "Take care of yourself, Ashley." Ten minutes later, Ashley was in a deep hypnotized state. "Ashley, there is nothing to be afraid of anymore. All your problems have been left behind. You don't need anyone to protect you. You can handle your life without help and without avoiding anything bad Experience. No matter what happens, you can deal with it. Do you agree with me?" "Yes, I agree? I'm ready for the future." "Okay, Toni?" no answer. "Tony?" no answer. "Alette?" silence. "Alette?" silence. "They're gone, Ashley. Now, you're one, and you're healed." He saw Ashley's face light up. "I'll count to three and you'll wake up. One... two... three..." Ashley opened her eyes, and an angelic smile appeared on her face. "It happens, doesn't it?" He nodded. "yes." She was thrilled. "I'm free. Oh, thank you, Gilbert! I feel... I feel as though a dreadful black curtain has been lifted." Dr. Keller took her hand. "I can't describe how happy I am. Over the next few months we'll be doing some more trials. Well, if they turn out as I expected, well, we'll send you home. Whether you're in Wherever you are, I will arrange some outpatient treatment for you." Ashley nodded, too excited to speak.