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ASHFORD: It’s possible.
SARA: I see.
There’s a knock on the door. Abby opens it, nods, and lets Mel in.
SARA: You’re all here, then. But not Kyle.
ASHFORD: We weren’t able to bring Kyle in, due to his legal situation. We thought it better not to complicate that for him.
SARA: You mean you couldn’t get past his lawyer.
ASHFORD: That, too.
MEL: Sara. We’re all here to help you.
SARA: Because I’ve been acting crazy.
She draws a spiral on the tabletop with her fingertip.
ASHFORD: If Lucy—or Dahut—is using you, we don’t have much time. The better she establishes her hold, the less likely it will be that we can remove her. You’ll lose yourself, piece by piece, and she’ll be all that’s left. She’s using your guilt to hide, Sara. Using your friends’ deaths.
SARA: Using them.
ASHFORD: Your guilt. Your pain. She’s hiding herself behind the memories that you would be glad to be rid of. I don’t believe she’s controlling you, not directly.Influencing, maybe. But it is Sara Donoghue that we’ve been speaking to.
Sara laughs bitterly.
SARA: Oh, if you’re sure.
ASHFORD: We can help you, Sara. And it makes it much, much easier to root her out now that you’ve located the hidden memories yourself. It makes it harder for her to hide from us, and easier to remove her without ...
SARA: Without what?
ASHFORD: The process can be damaging. This will minimize it.
SARA: It’s dangerous?
ASHFORD: Yes. There are absolutely risks involved. I won’t lie to you about that. But it’s also our only option. Given the length of possession, it’s likely we don’t have long at all before she’s entrenched thoroughly enough that she can’t be removed.
SARA: I’ve felt like I was going crazy for weeks. I... This is why I attacked Becca?
ASHFORD: Becca was trying to get you help. The spirit would be strongly invested in stopping that.
BECCA: But I did get you help. Theyaregoing to help you, Sara. You’re going to be okay.
She squeezes Sara’s hand and gives her an encouraging smile. Mel hangs back, frowning, arms crossed. Abby arches a curious eyebrow in her direction. Mel leans in toward her and whispers something, and both young women slip outthe door. Ashford looks after them momentarily, a puzzled expression on his face, before turning back to Sara.
ASHFORD: This isn’t going to be easy, Sara, but your sister and Melanie are here to help ground you in your real memories. Your real self. With their help, I’m confident that we can remove the malign spirit.
SARA: And then my memory, everything—it’ll go back to normal?
ASHFORD: I can’t promise that. But you will be yourself. Able to move forward.
BECCA: You asked me to call them, Sara. You knew you needed help. Let them help you.
SARA: Then do it.
ASHFORD: I’m glad to hear you say that, Sara. This will be much easier with your cooperation. Now if you’ll excuse me, we have preparations to make. Becca?
