Dagger Magic

Yet the very existence of Claire's unformed psychic talent, coupled with Adam's brush with the persona of Annet Maxwell - probable evidence of at least one previous incarnation - suggested that Claire possessed greater potentials. But Annet Maxwell had achieved a serenity not yet granted Claire Crawford, also bereft by the loss of husband and children. If Claire was to progress as a soul and achieve the potentials being presented in this life, eventually she, too, must find a healthier way to come to terms with her losses. Meanwhile, finding John Crawford's killer was, indeed, one of their priorities - if only to remove the impetus thai kept triggering Claire's unschooled psychic powers. And to do that, an artist's sketch might well provide conventional law enforcement authorities with just the tool they needed to succeed. Alec Peterson was waiting with pencil and sketch pad poised - and for this, at least, the procedure was fairly straightforward, even if the more complex resolution of Claire's anger might have to wait.

"Having established the ground rules, then," Adam went on, "let's begin with a variation on the same procedure we used yesterday. Claire, you remember what it felt like yesterday, relaxing and settling into trance. You'll find it much easier this time. I'd like you to close your eyes, if you would, and let yourself begin returning to that comfortable, relaxed state of mind. You'll recall that we did some breathing exercises to begin, so I'd like to take you through them again, as you breathe in for a count of five… hold for a count of five… and exhale for five…. In for five…"

A hush settled in the room as he soothed his patient into a state of receptive calm. Though aware that he must exercise some caution in what he said, because of Peterson's presence, he felt confident that the younger man probably would overlook any but the most blatant deviation from "normal" procedure, through not knowing what "normal" was. It was also quite possible that Peterson himself might slip into trance - which would only make matters easier when they finished and it was time to tidy up all the loose ends.

The artist became an anonymous blur as Adam, too, settled into a light trance, as was his usual wont when working with a patient in this manner. He was peripherally aware of McLeod's supportive presence next to Peterson, towering and strong, but everything besides Claire was fast receding into temporary obscurity. At first, Claire's eyes showed an occasional, fugitive glint of blue through her lowered lashes, but gradually the lines of tension ironed out of her face and she relaxed. Her breathing slowed to a whisper, her hands motionless in her lap.

After taking her through several short exercises to deepen her trance, Adam decided it was time to progress to the next stage. A glance at Peterson suggested that the artist was, indeed, coming along inadvertently for the ride - eyes slightly unfocused, pencil poised only loosely over the sketch pad on his knees.

"You're doing very well, Claire," Adam murmured, returning his attention to his patient. "In a moment now, I'm going to ask you to return to the night of your accident. Before that, if you will, I'd like you to imagine that you have before you a very special video machine, with the control beneath your hand. This video machine makes a perfect, three-dimensional recording of everything that happens to you - and it recorded what happened that night of your accident.

"Now, you said that you and your husband had been to a pub earlier in the evening, so in a moment I'm going to ask you to press the Rewind button, to go back to that time, as you're leaving the pub. The very special thing about this video machine is that once you return to that scene and then press the Play button, you will actually be in the recording, reliving that experience. In all respects, you will be back walking along that stretch of road with John, reliving all the sights and sounds and smells - every detail of that night, just as it was when you actually experienced it. It will be exactly the same, in every detail but one. Shall I tell you what that difference is?"

She nodded slowly, passion stirring behind the closed eyelids.

"The difference is that a small part of you is going to remain aloof, as if it's sitting back and watching the tape," Adam went on. ' This detached part of you has its finger on the Pause button - which means that as you relive that night, and this detached part of you watches the tape, you have the ability to stop the action, to freeze-frame, just before the moment of impact, and take a good, long look at the man behind the wheel of the car that struck you. And from that look, you'll be able to describe him to me. If you're willing to do this, please nod your head."

Slowly her head nodded, her right hand shifting position in her lap, as if poised over unseen control buttons.