It took Francis a week to convince Camila to visit a psychiatrist.
The Latina still couldn't remember what had happened that night.
Sara had explained that in those cases it was normal, and that with help from a professional, Camila would get her memories of that night back.
Having said that, Sara made contact with a psychiatrist who had experience with helping patients cope with the trauma of witnessing a murder.
Francis was worried, but Sara told him that Dr Karen Fellers was no stranger to DreVille County.
She explained that Kai and Paul were Karen's patients after they witnessed the deaths of their parents.
Kai was in the backseat when both his parents got shot by the same criminal who orchestrated the murder of Paul's father.
The therapy sessions worked well for them and that was enough to make Francis give her the go-ahead.
Besides that, Giovani had been nagging him passionately about how important it was that Camila remembered the facts quickly the entire week.
Camila did not share the detective's enthusiasm.
"Dad, I don't need a damn session with a shrink."
She complained.
Kai came up behind them and hissed at Camila.
"Hey, don't talk about Dr Fellers like that."
"Yeah, and watch your language, young lady." warned Francis. "You need this. The sooner we start, the sooner you'll remember everything."
"But I don't want to remember." said Camila. "I witnessed a crime, dad. Murder! Why would I want to remember something so awful?"
Francis sighed.
"The police need your statement, Camila. For that, you need to remember what happened."
Camila looked down. She really did not want to remember.
"Hey. I know it's scary, but you need this. I'll be by your side, ok?"
Kai nodded.
"You've got nothing to worry about. Dr Fellers is amazing, you're gonna love her."
Camila sniffled and nodded as they reachedd Sara's office.
"Nervous?" asked Francis.
"You have no idea." She replied.
Francis squeezed his daughter's shoulder.
"It's going to be fine. She's just going to ask you some questions. She won't push or tell you to say or do something you don't want to."
"Have you met her?" asked Camila.
Francis shook his head.
"No. But I trust Sara's judgement. If she says she's good, then she's got to be damn good, right, Kai?"
"Yeah, you're gonna love her, Cami."
Francis knocked on the door.
"Come in!" they heard Sara say.
They did.
Sara greeted them and turned to Camila.
"Camila, this is Dr Karen Fellers. She's a psychiatrist and has agreed to help you with your problem."
Kai started to address the psychiatrist.
"Hi, Karen."
She smiled and walked up to him for a hug.
"Hey, handsome."
Kai beamed like a kid who just got hugged by his cute teacher.
Sara crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes at him.
"Young man, you're supposed to working in the ER."
"Yeah, I just wanted to say hi to-"
"This is the fourth time you're coming to say hi to Dr Fellers today."
Camila ignored them, staring at the brunette woman who watched Sara reprimand Kai with a warm smile.
First thing Camila noticed was how young and pretty she looked, her face was perfectly symmetrical and she had excellent bone structure.
She was really pretty.
Kai said Dr Fellers should be well past fifty but the woman in front of Camila didn't look any older than 30.
"How old are you?"
She blurted out.
Dr Fellers laughed, the sound made Camila's heart flutter.
"I'm 56, sweetheart. This,"
She gestured to her face and body.
"Is the end result of being obsessed with staying healthy from a very tender age. I can give you a few tips later."
She winked at Camila, who couldn't hide the smile on her face.
The way Dr Fellers looked at her gave Camila an inexplicable feeling of peace.
Kai smirked at Camila.
"Told you she was awesome."
Sara rolled her eyes.
"Kai?"
"Yes?"
"Get out."
Kai pouted and left the room grumbling.
She shook Francis' hand, then turned to Camila.
"Hello, Camila. It's a pleasure to meet you. Dr Sanchez told me you've been having some.....Memory issues, am I correct?"
She nodded.
"That's ok, it's completely normal, and I'm here to help you through it the best way I can. Are you ready?"
"Yes."
Karen turned to Francis and Sara.
"I think we're ready to start. Shall we?"
Sara nodded.
"Follow Dr Fellers. She'll take you to the office next door."
****************************
Dr Fellers entered the office, followed by Camila and Francis, who turned on the lights.
"Oh, please, don't." Dr Fellers said. "It won't be necessary."
"Are you sure?" he asked, as he turned them off again. "What are you planning to do?"
Karen sat in a chair and gestured for Camila to sit in the chair directly across from her.
"What Camila has isn't a common amnesia. It's not permanent either. The memory of what happened is still there, but it's been subconsciously repressed because of how traumatic the experience was."
"Repressed?"
"Yeah, in Camila's case, we should do tests and therapy to get that memory back. However, given the circumstances..."
she sat down.
"We'll have to work faster."
"And what does that mean?" asked Francis.
Karen looked at him, and then turned to Camila.
"Have you ever heard of hypnotherapy?"
"Yeah. Is that a real thing?"
Karen chuckled.
"Of course it is. And I promise, it's not going to hurt. I will lead you through it. All you have to do is focus, ok?"
She displayed her million watts smile.
Camila nodded, somehow Dr Fellers just knew how to put her at ease.
"Ok, I understand." She sat down.
Francis sat in a corner and watched quietly.
Karen nodded.
"Alright, let's begin."
"Close your eyes and just relax." said Karen.
Camila obeyed.
"I want you to focus your awareness on any tension stored in parts of the body, and release them sequentially.
Begin with your hands and arms, then move down to your back, shoulders and neck, then stomach and chest and legs and feet.
Visualise the tension dissolving or evaporating away, then slowly relax the muscles."
Camila obeyed and slowly felt herself falling into a deep sleep, but at the same time, it felt like she was awake.
Everything was white.
Karen waited for a few minutes until she was sure Camila was in an altered state of awareness before she continued.
"Let's go back... A week ago."
Camila started to fidget in her seat.
"Relax, don't think of anything yet. Erase all your thoughts, and concentrate on what I'm about to say."
She pulled out a report specifying the events leading up to the moment Camila reached the park.
"It's dark, and you're out in the street. You're going home after spending the day with your friends. Kai Titan just got out of the hospital that night, correct?"
"Yes."
"What are you doing?" she asked.
"I'm just walking home." Camila replied.
"I'm thinking about some tracker app Paul put in my phone."
"How do you feel about it?"
"I know it's for the greater good, but I still don't like the idea. Wait."
She frowned.
"Someone's calling me. it's Julian."
Dr Fellers nodded. Here we go.
"Ok, what's he saying?"
"He's trying to convince me that he's never killed anyone."
"Do you believe him?"
"He sounds scared. I think he's telling the truth. I told him that I believed him. Then I activated the tracker app and told him I was on my way to the park."
"You've activated the tracker and you're on your way to find him. Now what?"
"I'm kinda running, I wanna reach him before the police. I can see him waiting near the entrance of the park. I'm trying to wave but he can't see me......Oh my God."
"Camila, what is it?" Karen asked cautiously.
"It's him." She whispered, terrified. "Oh, God, It's the Slayer. He's coming up behind Julian, he's got a knife!"
She gripped the arms of the chair, her legs started shaking.
Francis started to get up, but Karen stopped him, raising her hand.
"Camila, stop." she said, her voice low but firm.
"We're in the hospital, you're safe. When I count to five, you'll wake up and be aware of your surroundings. One, two, three..."
Camila started to relax.
"..Four, five."
"Control your breathing. Open your eyes whenever you're ready."
Camila breathed in and out for a few seconds before she opened her eyes.
"What was that?" asked Francis
Camila looked at Karen, slightly frightened.
"Jesus Christ, it felt so real."
"The mind is a powerful place." said Karen. "This first session was to test your mental strength, and I must say, you did exceptionally well."
She beamed with pride.
"Thank you, doctor."
Francis smiled at the psychiatrist, impressed.
"That was pretty cool. Can I sign up for a session?"
Dr Fellers smiled back
"Your daughter gets my services for free. But you will have to pay 1500 dollars per session."
His smile evaporated.
"On second thought, hypnotherapy is overrated anyway."
Camila chortled.
"So, what now, Dr Fellers?"
She stood up.
"Please call me Karen, and what's next is you come back tommorow for the next session.
We made good progress today, with a few more sessions, you'll be able to tell the police everything you saw."