“It varies. It can take several weeks or months. Our film will probably be shorter though.”
“Surely the actors don’t have to remain on the set for a several months.”
“No. There’s a schedule.”
“And are you booked for future films?”
“I’m getting pickier so I’m not contracted yet. But I’m considering signing a deal with Paramount.”
“Then you have a say in how you spend your time.”
“I can’t take seven months off without losing my career, Finn.”
“Well, honey, like you said, filming can work around a pregnancy.”
She laid her head back against the cushion. Closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “Maybe. I’m so tired.”
“Then you’ll rest.”
He helped her stretch out and she was asleep in seconds.
* * *
Scarlet swerved into the collective at six p.m. in her snazzy new Tesla. She was stopped by the security guard, who looked at the label in the corner of her windshield and said, “I’m Cary Jacobs, Ms. Smith. I’ll be the nighttime guard this week.”
“Nice to meet you.”
“Go ahead and park. I’ll watch you get inside.”
Now that spooked her. It was still hard to believe members of this collective were in danger by simply showing up at work, but Finn was proof that they were. “I’m expecting a client in about a half hour.”
“I’ll keep an eye out for him.”
Scarlet walked in through the door to her practice. She opened her studio, which consisted of her office, her therapy room and another room for meeting with groups.
She set her coffee down on her desk, settled in and called up the new patient’s application on her tablet. She only asked for basics on the forms because she preferred to hear from the individuals themselves what their issues were and why they chose hypnotherapy. Today, she’d booked a man in his thirties, single, and vice president of ComputerTech, a local company.
Soon, the outer door opened. Scarlet got up and went to the reception area. “Mr. Perkins?”
The man nodded. He was tall and skinny with dark wavy hair and a scar on his cheek. No mention of that in the file. He was dressed in pressed jeans and a collared shirt.
“Come into my office so we can talk.”
He didn’t move. “Won’t I get a treatment today? I want a treatment.”
“That’s exactly what we’re going to discuss.”
Her office was efficient and cozy at the same time. A practitioner needed to be approachable and her own space was an example of that. Scarlet had chosen taupe and peach colors with pretty Impressionist prints.
They sat across from each other. She looked at the file. “I’m afraid you left a lot off of your application. Is there a reason for that?”
“I was in a hurry.”
“Then let’s fill in the blanks.”
“Nah. I don’t want to. Put me under and cure me.”
“Hypnotherapists don’t cure people, Mr. Perkins. We help them to understand themselves better through metaphor, indirect suggestion and storytelling. Clients can isolate their issues and find ways to deal with them while they’re under hypnosis.”
