August 11th

“Ma’am, you’re early. Again. The doctor isn’t here yet.” Hans was as imposing as ever as he blocked the entrance. Katie could see nothing of the hallway behind him. She had to crane her neck just to see his face.

“I know, but I haven’t seen my sister in over a week. I couldn’t wait any longer.” She batted her eyes and placed a hand on his forearm. “All I want is to spend some time with her.”

Hans pulled away from the touch, chastising her with a disapproving stare. He gave a glance down the hallway and then back to Katie. “Does the doctor know you’re here?”

Katie took a step back. “Come on, she’s my sister. You think I’m going to kidnap her or something? There are bars on the windows, not that I could lift her through one anyways. This is the only way in or out.”

Hans stood his ground, waiting for an answer.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t ask her permission. You know how busy she is. It’s just . . .” She let out a sigh. “It’s very important that I talk to Victoria right now, okay? I miss her. Wouldn’t you want the same if it was your family in there?”

When Hans still didn’t budge, Katie reached into her sack and pulled out a bag of pastries. “You can have some if you let me through?”

She held the bag up to him, and his eyes locked on them. But this time there was no hesitation as he turned her down once more with a simple “no,” his upheld hand as commanding as his voice.

Undeterred, Katie opened the bag and pulled one of the pastries out. “Tell you what, just try one. If you still say no after, I’ll leave. But if you say yes,” Katie shook the bag for emphasis, “you can have all of them. Promise.”

She waved the lone kolaczki under Hans’s nose. He grabbed her tiny wrist in his hand, ready to guide it away and be done with her, but the scent of the pastry was better than he expected. He leaned in for another whiff, surprised at how delicious they smelled. He cocked his eyebrow, glaring down at Katie with caution. “What’s in these?”

A smug grin formed on Katie’s face. “See? I told you they were good. I made them myself. It’s a secret recipe, but so much better than that store bought crap. Come on, just a bite.”

Hans continued to stare at the morsel in Katie’s delicate fingers. Every breath in would deliver another hit of their aroma. He couldn’t believe the fragrance, like something fresh out of the oven despite being in a bag for who knows how long. The heady fragrance danced in his mind. His mouth watered, threatening to drown him unless he let the pastry touch his tongue. He could still say no after a small taste, a single bite wouldn’t hurt.

One by one Katie grabbed the digits encircling her wrist, prying them away with gentle effort until her arm was free from Hans’s grip. She maneuvered his palm up so she could place the kolaczki upon it like food on a pedestal, a small pebble in comparison. All while Hans eyed it with curiosity and temptation, still deliberating over what he should do.

“That’s it,” Katie said as Hans lifted the pastry up and plopped the entire piece into his mouth. She giggled when she saw his eyes go wide in response. “Make sure to savor it, don’t swallow too fast now.”

“Oh my god, this is amazing!” Hans said through a stuffed mouth. He rolled the pastry around to let that wondrous filling coat every section of his tongue, the sweetness leaving a tingling sensation on his cheeks.

“I know, big guy. I love them too. I could eat them all day. With something as delicious as these, I like to close my eyes and focus on the taste. Really helps to enhance the experience.”

Hans tried it, and the intense flavor somehow managed to swell. “Mmm!” It was a shame the pastry was almost finished, despite his efforts to prolong the enjoyment. But then Katie tapped another against his mouth, leaving a dollop of the filling on his lips. Without opening his eyes, he let her slide another kolaczki in, and his head spun from the second explosion of flavor. He didn’t care that Katie had said only one earlier. If she was giving this stuff away for free, he would not say no.

Katie waltzed closer and placed an arm on his thick chest. She let it linger there as it rose and fell from his heavy breathing. “Focus on the taste, that’s all that matters right now. So delicious, it makes you feel so good.”

Hans groaned, and Katie began to slide her hand down, past his stomach, stopping as she cupped his manhood over his slacks. “Don’t worry about anything else, just focus on the pleasure you’re feeling. Let your arousal build as you keep chewing.”

Alarm bells rang out in his head. Katie shouldn’t be saying things like this, shouldn’t be touching him, not in that manner. He needed to remind her of boundaries, that until the doctor arrived, he was the one calling the shots, and her actions right now were inappropriate. He needed to assert himself and warn her that the good doctor would be hearing of this, and would deal with Katie’s forwardness in a manner she saw fit.

He thought of doing all these things, but he was already hard, an impressive bulge that strained against his pants. Katie began to rub it with the palm of her hand as she fed him yet another kolaczki, and any thoughts of stopping her were washed away in a purple tide.

Then they heard a soft voice in the distance. “Katie?”

Katie poked her head around Hans’s frame to find Victoria standing at the end of the hallway. Katie’s face lit up, and she waved to her sister with her free hand. “Hey, Tori!”

“You’re . . . you’re early. Is that okay?”

“I wanted to talk with you before your session today, can’t be anything wrong with that.” Katie wrapped her hand around the bulge and gave it a delicate pull to the side, guiding Hans to turn to his right. His foot shuffled to maintain his balance, all in favor of keeping her actions hidden.

With his back now fully towards Victoria, Katie was free to loosen the belt around his waist. She was careful with her movements, but wasted no time sliding her hand in to let her fingers snake around Hans’s hard cock. She gave it a squeeze as Hans continued to savor the pastry, his eyes shut tight.

“But . . . Dr. Navathe said you would only be here when she was.” She took a step forward.

“Dr. Navathe also said you should make your own choices as often as possible. Do you not want to talk with me right now?” Katie pouted, making sure Victoria could see the hurt in her eyes as she began to twist her hand around Hans’s member.

Of course Victoria wanted to see Katie. And she was right, the doctor did say that. And of all the choices she could make, this one seemed like an easy one. She nodded her head. “I would like to talk with you. If that’s okay?”

Katie flashed her a smile. “I’m sure it will be fine. I need to take care of some things with Hans here first. Can you wait in your room, and I’ll be there in a minute?”

“Okay!” Victoria said, her face full of exuberance as she skipped back around the corner and out of view.

Katie returned her attention to the docile bear in front of her as she reclaimed her hand, eliciting a groan from Hans. “Don’t worry big guy, I know a trick that can make you feel even better.” Katie pulled a thermos out and poured a small amount of a viscous, purple liquid onto her palm. She took extra care in making sure no sap spilled on the outside of his pants as she plunged her hand back down to wrap her slick fingers back around his erection.

Hans shuddered, unprepared for the warm, tingling sensation that enveloped his engorged member.

“Good boy,” Katie said. “Let me take care of you. I can tell that you’re so aroused right now, ready to explode, aren’t you? But don’t worry, I’ll let you cum. I just need you to do one small favor for me.”

Hans couldn’t think through the purple haze that filled his mind. Katie’s fingers danced and tugged on his cock. And right as he felt like he was about to release his load, she would slow down, keeping him on the brink. He needed to cum, but she would only allow it on her terms.

“You just have to let me through. It’s no big deal. I’m not going to do anything. Can you do that for me? Please, Hans. I just want to see my sister. It’s no big deal. And then you get to cum, simple as that.”

Hans couldn’t take it anymore. If he wanted to cum, all he had to do was what she said. He was at her mercy, after all. He could let her pass. It wasn’t a big deal. “Yes, of course. Anything.” He started to moan, but Katie reached up and placed a hand over his mouth.

“Shh. That’s my good boy. Just let me through. It’s no big deal.” She increased her pace, her hand pumping up and down on his cock from under his pants. “Cum for me, and let me through.”

Hans’s knees buckled and began to give out. His arm shot out to the wall to steady himself just in time as he grunted. His cock spasmed, shooting his load all over the inside of his pants, soaking through the material.

But Katie didn’t let up. She kept pumping, using the heel of her palm to grind against the head of his cock. Hans sank down onto the chair, his massive build somehow no longer having the strength to stay balanced. His shoulders slumped and his head thunked against the wall as his dick jerked one last time, completely spent.

Katie wrested her hand free. She held it up to her mouth and proceeded to lick the cum and sap mixture that coated it. She delighted in the taste, letting the jolts of pleasure race through her nerves.

With her hand clean, she leaned down to speak to Hans as he tried to catch his breath. “I bet that felt so wonderful, didn’t it, Hans? But don’t worry, you can feel like this again. I’ll let you have the rest of the kolaczkis. You’d do anything for them, wouldn’t you?”

With a sigh, Hans said, “Anything . . .”

“I know, big guy. So many kolaczkis left, but you have to clean up first, and then you have to forget what happened.” Katie uncurled Hans’s limp fingers and placed a clean rag in them. “Make sure to clean up so that no one suspects anything, and then forget it all. All you will remember is that you let me through, because it’s no big deal. Okay?”

“No big deal . . . Yes . . .” Hans began to shift in his seat. He stared down at the rag in his hand with bleary eyes as if unsure of how to go about his task.

“Good boy. Clean up, and forget. Once you’re done, you can have the rest of the kolaczkis. I’ll leave them right here on the counter.”

As Hans set to work, Katie walked down the hallway towards her waiting sister with a smile on her face and a song in her heart for a job well done. Her body thrilled in response to completing her first task for Nabi, but she wouldn’t let it distract her from her next goal.

She found her target in the bedroom, as requested, and gave Victoria a warm hug. “It’s so good to see you again.”

By now, Victoria had gained back most of the weight she lost since they first found her. Katie could feel it in the softness of her body. She understood why Victoria refused to eat back then. If someone tried to keep Katie from Nabi today, she would likely have done the same.

But that wasn’t the only change. Gone were the vitriolic glares that Victoria gave that had at one point stopped Katie in her tracks, and the venom that spewed from her mouth. They were replaced with a softness that rivaled her body, her eyes gleaming, her voice caring. “Dr. Navathe said you were taking some time off because you weren’t feeling well. Are you okay?”

Despite these changes, she was still not the Victoria Katie knew, nor the Victoria she should be. “Sorry about that. I didn’t want to leave you, I just needed some time to clear my mind,” she said, guiding them to the bed. “But don’t worry. I feel better than ever now.”

Victoria was happy to hear that. The past week had been a lonely one, though productive, as Dr. Navathe said of it. Only the thought that Katie was doing what was needed to take care of herself made the wait tolerable. And now that she was here, Victoria could show Katie how much she improved since they last saw each other. “Hey hey hey,” she said, tapping Katie on the shoulder. “Notice anything different about me?”

Katie leaned back and brought a hand up to her chin in mock contemplation. She looked Victoria up and down, only to say, “Nope. Look the same to me!”

Victoria made a show of fluffing her hair with both hands, letting it flow around her neck and down the front of her shoulders. “My hair, Katie! Do you see the difference?”

“You’ve always had hair, though, Victoria.” Before Victoria could get too flustered, Katie moved to calm her down. “I’m kidding, I’m kidding!” She regarded Victoria’s hair, her smile faltering for the briefest of moments, but not long enough for Victoria to notice. It should be tied back, at all times, and to see it otherwise was unsettling for Katie. Not that she could judge. She no longer had the length needed for a ponytail, thanks to her misguided act of rebellion from before. But Victoria had no such excuse. Katie would see that it was corrected, but that would be for later. “You finally let it down. I’m so proud of you.”

“I thought you would be. Dr. Navathe said we made so much progress lately, I can’t wait for you to see later today!”

The news tore at Katie, but she couldn’t let Victoria know that yet. Her poor sister had no idea what the doctor was doing to her, no more than the doctor herself. With any luck, the changes the doctor made hadn’t done any lasting harm, and Katie could still fix her. Not that she held any ill will towards the doctor, she just didn’t understand everything. “You’ll have plenty of time to show me when Dr. Navathe gets here, I’m sure. But this time here is for you and me only.” She placed her hand on Victoria’s knee and smiled. “Anything you want to do?”

It wasn’t a hard choice. Of all the things that happened during their sessions, there was one that stood out as Victoria’s favorite. “Can you tell me another story about us?”

“Sure,” Katie said. She crossed her legs on the bed, facing Victoria. “Let’s see . . . This was maybe five years ago, I think. Yeah, you were about to head off to college. I had gotten my driver’s license a couple weeks before. Dad was still working extra shifts at the time, just so he could buy me a car for my birthday when it came. I even had one picked out that I wanted. A ninety-something Pontiac Bonneville.” Katie scoffed. “That car was a piece of shit! Don’t think you ever saw it, though.

“Anyways, I was tired of being cooped up in that cramped house, though I imagine any kid with a new opportunity for freedom would want to get out as well. So I thought maybe I’d go shopping, get some new clothes, you know?

“Problem was, I already spent my allowance on a bunch of books the previous week. So I kinda . . . stole some money from dad. And . . . also borrowed his car. He was out with family, and you were doing whatever in your room, I didn’t care.”

Katie closed her eyes and angled her head towards the ceiling, the scene vivid in her mind. “It was so thrilling to be out on my own for once. Blaring music, letting the wind blow through my hair. It was like nothing could ever go wrong . . .” The smile left her face, and she bit her lip. “Until it did. Somehow jumped the curb, ploughed right through the fence of that farmhouse over on Orchard.”

Victoria gasped. “You should always pay attention when driving, and don’t go too fast.”

Katie let the nagging slide. “The car was still drivable, but oh God, I was a wreck. When I got home, I tried to hide the damage under a tarp. No idea how I thought that was going to help any. I locked myself in my room, crying until I couldn’t cry anymore. Then dad came home, and I cried some more.

“He was furious, of course. I could hear him shouting for you to come downstairs. I guess it never crossed his mind that it could have been me. So I lay there, too terrified to leave the bed, waiting for you to put the blame on me. Thinking my life was going to be over.

“But then you . . . You said you did it. You confessed to everything.” Katie searched Victoria’s face for something, wondering if she would get an answer to Victoria’s reasoning after so many years.

All she saw was a sister enraptured by a tale. “I never did ask why. Maybe you knew he was going to refuse to buy me that car. And since you were leaving soon, it’s not like he’d stop you from going to college. Whatever the case, you took the blame. Had to do all the chores in the house until you left.”

Victoria’s eyes lit up. “I . . . I think I remember that! You kept trying to help me, but I . . . I . . .”

Katie nodded. “The guilt ate at me for the next day or two until I had enough and tried to do my part, but you refused to let me. That’s always how you’d get back at me. You’d give me that look of disappointment that somehow felt worse than any punishment. It got to the point that I started helping out behind your back.

“I never said a word about it until a few years later. You were already missing for about a year, and dad and I were left to cope. So I . . . I . . .”

Try as she might, Katie couldn’t get the words out as she burst into an uncontrollable sob. “I’m so sorry, Victoria! I don’t want you to hate me, but . . .”

“It’s okay, Katie. I don’t hate you. What’s wrong?” Victoria tried to pull Katie in for a hug, but Katie pushed her away. “Katie?”

“I gave up, okay?! A year gone, and I gave up! I told myself you were never coming back. That you were . . . That you were probably dead! Moving on with my life as if nothing happened, all while you were . . .” Suffering? No, Victoria wasn’t suffering when she served Nabi. Katie knew that now. But that truth did nothing to quell the years of guilt from spilling forth.

“I’m not as strong as you, Victoria, and I’m so sorry!” Katie cried into her hands, and this time didn’t object when Victoria wrapped her arms around her.

Victoria rubbed Katie’s back as Katie sobbed into her shoulder. “I’m here now, Katie. That’s all that matters. I forgive you, okay? Everything is going to be fine, I promise. You’re stronger than you know. You have to believe me.”

Katie wanted to feel stronger for her sister. She had to be. Victoria was in trouble after all, and only Katie could save her. It was all up to her. “I told him about what you did for me. Told dad,” she said as she wiped her eyes dry and sniffled. “You know what he said? That jerk said he knew the whole time. Apparently I left my bag in the passenger seat, and he found it that next morning. Yet he still never let you off the hook.”

“Well, it’s never too late to make it up to me. My bathroom could use a good cleaning,” Victoria said.

Katie chuckled. “He did give me quite the lecture about responsibility, of course. But there’s one thing he said that stuck with me . . .” Katie trailed off, staring at the bed.

Victoria leaned in closer. “What did he say?”

Katie then looked Victoria straight in the eyes. “He said there’s purpose in obedience.”

The force of the trigger hit Victoria before the shock of hearing it uttered from Katie’s lips did. She wasn’t prepared to fight it off, and her thoughts had already begun to drain before she made an effort to try. “K-Katie? Why . . .”

Victoria tried to rally herself, using the tactics she had been taught to save herself from utter submission.

“Shh, don’t struggle, Victoria. It’s okay.” Katie reached over and stroked her sister’s hair. “You were always there to protect me. Now it’s my turn to protect you. Just let go, Victoria. I promise you’ll be better soon.”

Victoria slammed her eyes shut, refusing to believe it was Katie saying this to her. It had to be another nightmare. She had them occasionally, where she’d dream about still being a devoted member of the cult. But even her dreams didn’t feel this real. The pleasure was too much, her mind too jumbled, for it to be a dream.

“No . . . help me . . .” She tried to raise her voice. If she could catch the attention of the guard, he would come to investigate. Wouldn’t be hard for him to stop things then and there. But Victoria didn’t have the strength, her voice barely above a whisper. There was no chance of anyone hearing it behind the closed bedroom door, which only now did Victoria realize why Katie shut it.

“I am helping you, Victoria,” Katie said. Her sister would understand, once this was all over. They just had to get through this little unpleasant bump, and then they could be together again.

Victoria tensed her whole body, doing her best to ignore the pleasure that threatened to drag her down. She heard Dr. Navathe speaking to her, hours and hours of her guiding Victoria through this very experience. The guiding words were enough to allow her some measure of clarity.

She couldn’t believe they had gotten her sister, turned Katie against her. Hearing such poisonous words about giving in from the person she cared for the most made her want to do just that.

But no, she couldn’t. She refused to let Katie be dragged into this, to fight for her identity like Victoria had these past few months. To be a slave to someone, no will or mind of her own. Not Katie. Not her sister.

Not Katie.

Victoria’s body trembled as she pushed against the hurricane with all her might. She could feel herself fighting off the effects of the trigger, finally gaining ground against that which had overwhelmed her so many times. Perhaps Katie had been emboldened by this, as Victoria could tell she had stopped talking, stopped whispering cruel words of submission into her ear.

“Hel . . . Help . . .” Her voice was getting stronger, her mind clearing. She was winning, for the first time. Months of training finally paying off. She’d break free and make sure Katie would never experience what she had gone through.

Not. Katie.

And then Victoria’s eyes shot open as a finger pushed past her lips, the most delightful, fearful taste pressing against her tongue.

She saw Katie there, open thermos in one hand, the other drenched in purple and pushed against Victoria’s mouth.

The flavor was all too familiar to Victoria, and no less intoxicating than before. Without even realizing it, she began to suckle on the finger, desperate for more of the drug.

“Good girl, Victoria. No more fighting. There’s purpose in obedience.”

Victoria realized just how much she missed this feeling. Tears poured from her eyes, and she didn’t even know if it was because of Katie, or because she was finally getting to feel that encompassing intimacy once more. Any defenses she had crumbled under the weight of that pleasure.

Her vision grew blurry as her body began to feel like it was floating right off the bed. Then a light shined in front of her, but Victoria couldn’t even tell that it was coming from Katie’s phone. All she saw was that calming spiral. Her body slumped, all her thoughts being replaced by gooey sap. Her efforts to resist failed, and soon even that thought fled her mind.

“Obedience is my purpose.” And with that, Victoria was no more.

* * *

Hans almost jumped out of his chair when the door opened. The fantasies playing out in his head demanded his attention, he didn’t hear anyone approaching.

“Hans, I knocked three times. Why didn’t you answer the door?”

“I um . . .” When Dr. Navathe turned around to hang up her coat, Hans adjusted his pants to hide his erection. He looked down to check, only to see a light dusting of frosted sugar on his crotch. He managed to wipe it away in time. “Sorry.”

“It’s fine, just don’t let it happen again. You had me worried!”

“Yes, doctor. I understand.” Hans stood there, staring right through Dr. Navathe.

“Well?” Dr. Navathe said. “Are you going to do the inspection?”

Hans shook his head to clear the confusion. He felt like a child being chastised by his teacher. “Right, sorry,” he said as he set to work.

Dr. Navathe never felt comfortable being subjected to Hans’s probing hands, but it was one of the stipulations placed on her in order to keep Victoria in a calm setting like this house. A small price to pay for a potential faster recovery, much better than the sterile facility room they had her in at first. “Everything go okay?”

Hans grunted his response. His hands seemed to linger in places longer than usual, but Dr. Navathe tried to brush the thought aside. She turned around, and as she was about to ask him to hurry up, she noticed something by the door. “Who’s shoes are those?”

“The sister came by early today. Couple hours ago.”

“And you let her through?” Dr. Navathe turned to face him, but his gaze was focused elsewhere. The idea that he was inebriated had crossed her mind, but she dismissed it as ridiculous. It was out of character for Hans, but more importantly, she didn’t smell any alcohol.

“It’s not a big deal,” he said. “She’s not going to do anything.” With that, he seemed to realize Dr. Navathe was staring at him. “Should I have had her wait?”

“I’m sure it’s fine, I’m going to check on them.” Hans hadn’t quite finished his inspection, a fact that he seemed oblivious of, but Dr. Navathe couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong. Instead, she handed him her bag. “I’ll come back for this,” she said as she made her way down the hallway. “Next time have her wait.”

With the doctor out of sight, Hans adjusted his pants once again and began his inspection of her bag. He popped the last kolaczki into his mouth and licked his finger clean, thoughts of Katie running through his mind, only to be forgotten a moment later.

The living room was empty, much to Dr. Navathe’s dismay. When she saw that the door to the bedroom was closed, she made a beeline for it. As she approached, she heard laughter emanating from behind the door, giving her pause.

Her hand hovering over the doorknob, Dr. Navathe couldn’t help but chuckle as well. It dawned on her how dramatic she was being over a simple visit. Being so close to achieving her goal, a struggle months in the making, had her on edge, and she was jumping at any deviation from expectations.

Still, rules were rules, and Dr. Navathe was here to make sure they were followed, regardless of severity. So she put on her stern face and opened the door to find both Katie and Victoria sitting on the bed, their heads turning to her in response to the intrusion.

“Oh, hey, doc!” Katie said. “Is it time for the session already?”

Dr. Navathe frowned, folding her arms over her chest. “Katie, what are you doing here? You know you shouldn’t be here without me.”

“I know, but . . . After my time off, I really wanted to see Victoria. I promise I couldn’t wait another few hours!”

“I understand that, but what if she had an adverse reaction to something while I wasn’t here?” From her observation, Victoria seemed to be fine. And the progress they made lately left little for Dr. Navathe to worry about, despite the warning she gave.

Dr. Navathe sighed. “Next time wait for me, please. It’s not going to be much longer, and if things go well, you can see your sister any time you want.”

Katie nodded. “Sorry. I promise.”

“She always was the trouble maker,” Victoria said, giving Katie a playful shove on her shoulder and getting a rise out of Katie in response. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure she behaves.”

“Victoria, you . . .” Dr. Navathe wasn’t sure what to make of Victoria’s statement, and the implications it held.

“You want to tell her?” Katie asked Victoria.

“Tell me what?”

Before Dr. Navathe could react, Victoria had climbed off the mattress and wrapped her arms around her. Her grip was tight, squeezing Dr. Navathe with such force that she could barely move. Only when Victoria let go did Dr. Navathe have a chance to catch her breath. She smoothed out her coat, cleared her throat, and asked, “What is the meaning of this?”

“That was me thanking you for everything you’ve done for me.” She gestured towards Katie. “For us, really. Thank you.”

There was something different about Victoria. The way she spoke, the way she held herself. Gone was the timid, withdrawn girl from the other day. Victoria stood proud before her, looking at Dr. Navathe with confidence. “Victoria, are you trying to tell me . . .”

“I have my memories back,” Victoria said, confirming Dr. Navathe’s suspicions.

“Victoria, that’s . . . that’s fantastic!” Despite herself, Dr. Navathe moved in for another hug, one shared by both parties. Relief suffused her, and she allowed herself a single moment to let it chase away the stress of all her hard work.

But there was still more to be done. She pulled away to look into Victoria’s sparkling green eyes, now so deep and full of life, with a wealth of intelligence behind them. So many questions ran through her head, and she settled on the simplest one to start. “How?”

“It’s quite amazing, really. I asked Katie to tell me some stories of our time together. During one of them, things sort of . . . clicked. Whatever was holding my memories back fell apart. It was a bit disorientating at first, but now . . . I’m me again. For the first time in a long time.”

Dr. Navathe was speechless, but Katie broke the silence. “So does this mean I’m a better psychologist than you?”

“Katie, don’t be rude!” Victoria said, her voice scolding.

“It’s a joke!” Katie’s grin began to falter.

“An impolite one. Show some respect, especially after everything Dr. Navathe has done. You should apologize.”

Katie huffed and rolled her eyes. “Whatever. Sorry.”

“Apology accepted,” Dr. Navathe said, not wanting to ruin the moment. “Victoria, when you say you have your memories back, does that mean . . .?”

“Oh, right!” Victoria said, her eyes going wide with glee. “Yes, Dr. Navathe. I know who Nabi is.”