Page 21 of Black
“Follow me.” Bruce led the way into the main house and walked us through a large common area with a cozy fireplace and toys, books, and board games laid out. “Come in to my office,” he said.
Once we were seated around a table in his office Bruce started talking to Black.
“As I told you on the phone, we follow a program that has proven successful. Our methods are somewhat unorthodox but our results speak for themselves and that’s why people come here.”
“Okay,” Black said with mild interest.
“We’ve already determined what you want to achieve from your stay. You said money, but we boiled it down to your need for a place to stay and money for food. Which really translates into your understandable need for safety and certainty.”
She nodded.
“In a minute my colleague Therese will come and take you to our neutralizing zone, while I will go over the payment and the sleeping arrangements with your uncle.”
“What’s a neutralizing zone?” I asked, a bit worried.
“It’s just a room where Black will change her clothes and get rid of her jewelry and things. Regression, as the word implies, means going back in time to a younger version of oneself, and obviously Black didn’t have nose piercings or colored hair when she was a small child.”
Her hand flew up to a piercing. “I’m not taking out my piercings or changing my hair.”
The expression on Bruce’s face was stern. “Yes, you will. When you leave in two weeks you can dress in black as much as you want to, but while you’re here there will be no façade of make-up or black clothes to hide behind; we want to see the real you – which reminds me, what is your real name?”
Black crossed her arms and pouted, so I answered for her. “Darcia Emma Nilsson.”
“And do you prefer Darcia or Emma?”
“Neither,” she said.
“Well, pick one,” Bruce told her, unimpressed with her attitude.
“I told you I don’t li–” she started but I interrupted her and said, “How about Cia?”
She closed her mouth and after a few seconds she gave a slight nod.
“Cia it is,” Bruce said.
She was still pouting when Therese came in to escort her out of the room.
Therese, in contrast, was a happy kitten in her mid-twenties with long auburn-colored hair to her waist. She had cute dimples and when she shook my hand she placed her other hand on top and gave me a warm smile.
Maybe these two weeks wouldn’t be so bad after all… Nature, hiking, and some fun with Therese might turn out to be a good kind of vacation.
When we were alone in the room, Bruce took my credit card information and gave me more instructions.
“It’s important that you understand what is expected of you. Cia doesn’t really want to be here and most likely doesn’t think she needs our help. Our methods can seem strange at first, especially since it’s a combination of traditional therapy sessions and practical assignments.”
“Okay.”
“We use role-play to re-enact childhood situations – the purpose of course is to repair some of the emotional damage that is currently causing problems. Once we start taking Cia back to her childhood I must prepare you to expect strong reactions from her. There will most likely be triggers, so if you know of anything in her childhood we should be aware of, then I would like to know about it.”
I squirmed a bit in my seat. “I’ve only know Black – ehh, I mean Cia – since yesterday, so I can’t really tell you much about her childhood except for what she told me.”
He held his pen over his paper and looked at me expectantly.
“Go ahead.”
“All right, ehhm…” I held up my hand and counted on my fingers. “Her mother was an alcoholic. She ran away when she was fourteen; her father Brent, who is my stepbrother, rejected her and basically told her he wished she hadn’t been born.”
Bruce didn’t flinch or show any sign of emotion, but just took notes.
