My Name Is Lydia (Jack Nightingale short story) Read Online Free PDF Page B

Warren,” said Barbara. “And Jenny, light those candles.”
    Jenny borrowed
Nightingale’s lighter and lit three vanilla-scented white candles on
Christine’s dressing table.
    Barbara sat on the
edge of Christine’s bed and talked to her softly, explaining what was going to
happen. Nightingale was sitting on an armchair on the other side of the bed.
Jenny finished lighting the candles, gave the lighter back to Nightingale and
sat on a wooden chair by the dressing table.
    Barbara lowered her
head so that she was whispering into Christine’s ear. The girl seemed totally
relaxed, her eyes were closed and her golden hair had spread like a halo across
the pillow. Nightingale couldn’t make out Barbara’s words, but the tone was
soothing and he had to keep shaking his head to stop himself falling asleep.
    Eventually Barbara
looked across at him and nodded. “She’s under.”
    Nightingale stood up
and walked over to the bed. “Can you ask her to talk to me, and to do what I
tell her?” he whispered.
    “Yes, so long as it’s
not something that sets up a resistance in her.” She turned back to Christine
and whispered in her ear. “Christine, Jack’s going to talk to you now, and I
want you to do what he asks. Is that alright?”
    The girl said nothing,
but gave an angelic smile and nodded. Barbara got up and went to stand next to
Mrs Warren.
    “Christine,” said
Jack, sitting down on the bed. “Can you hear me?”
    “Of course,” she said
quietly.
    “I want you to move
aside, Christine, I want to talk to Lydia. Can you do that?”
    “I don’t know anyone
called Lydia.”
    “Okay, just relax. Let
Lydia talk to me.”
    “Who is Lydia?”
    Nightingale said
nothing for several seconds. “Lydia?” he said.
    There was no reply.
    “Come on Lydia, talk
to me. There’s no need to hide. I know you’re there.” He put his mouth close to
her ear. “I’m a friend of Proserpine’s.”
    Christine opened her
eyes. “What the fuck do you want, fool?”
    “I just want to talk
to you.”
    “About what?” Her
voice was a harsh rasp, almost metallic.
    “About what you’re
doing. The way you’re hurting Christine.”
    “Don’t worry, the
bitch will be gone soon,” said Lydia.
    Mrs Warren gasped but
Nightingale flashed her a warning look and pressed his finger to his lips.
    The girl tried to sit
up but Nightingale pushed her back. “Stay lying down, Lydia. And listen to
Barbara. She has something to tell you.”
    He waved Barbara over.
“You need to put her under,” he whispered.
    “I already did.”
    “No, you put Christine
under. This is Lydia. Now you need to hypnotise Lydia.”
    He moved out of the
way and Barbara sat down on the bed again. She began to talk to the girl in a
soft, low voice. At first the girl seemed to fight it, moving her head from
side to side and gritting her teeth, but gradually she relaxed. It took much
longer to hypnotise her this time, and it was half an hour before Barbara
looked over at Nightingale. “She’s under,” she whispered.
    “Tell her to talk to
me,” said Nightingale.
    Barbara nodded, and
put her face next to the girl’s ear. “Lydia, Jack’s going to talk to you now,
and I want you to do what he asks. Is that alright?”
    “Yes.” The voice was
still lower, but had lost its aggression.
    Nightingale and Barbra
switched places. “Lydia, listen to me. You’re going to go to sleep, and you
won’t wake until I tell you to. Do you understand?”
    “I understand.”
    “You’re to go to sleep
and stay asleep. You’re not to bother Christine again ever. You just sleep
until I tell you to wake up.”
    And that’s never going
to happen, he thought.
    “Do you understand?”
    “Yes.”
    “Then sleep now. And
stay asleep.”
    A shudder ran through
the girl’s body. Nightingale spoke again. “Christine?”
    “Yes?”
    “Are you okay?”
    “Yes.”
    “Is Lydia there?”
    “Who?’
    “Let me talk to
Lydia.”
    “Lydia isn’t here.”
    Nightingale stood