The Secret Island
CHAPTER 25: The Therapist II

Martin had always been happy with his planned and organized life. He had good grades. He was a class valedictorian. He went to one of the leading universities. And he worked for a top company that offered extremely high pay. He could never imagine, in his wildest dream, getting that much in a month. He achieved everything he set to do from a young age. It was beyond his wildest dream and more.

But all of that, in the end, can't save him from the harsh realities of the business world. A sky-high profit that caused innocent people to die... in front of him.

The Second Therapy Appointment

"Sit as you feel comfortable. Take it easy. Think about the events of that day again, Martin. I know that all this is difficult. But in the healing process and for you to heal, you have to understand the past and accept it as it was." The therapist told her, and her voice calmed him down. He took a deep breath and exhaled. He was sitting on the upholstered chair; the whole room was dimly lit, and the soothing atmosphere of the room relaxed him a great deal.

He decided to trust Gisele, his therapist. She insisted he called her by her first name. Since she called him Martin anyway, he thought it was only fair he reciprocated. He felt that she was more like his friend. He felt a strange connection. He believed it was called trust. Maybe she had a talent for making people trust her.

Martin found that talking to a therapist today was nothing more than a conversation about the events of that day. It was the same explanation he had already told the police and the FBI. Recounting the facts was painful, but it was the pain he got used to.

"He was one of the company's founders. Suddenly he wanted to sell all his shared and left. The partners suspected he wanted to form his own company. And with him, half of the investors would be gone. Just like that, he was one of the most

charming men I have ever met after all. So, Joe and I were sent to see him several times to negotiate. But in the end, we failed." Martin tried to explain the beginning of everything.

He was working for an investment firm on Wall Street. The job was like having a Midas touch. His expertise was turning dirt into gold. And investors the company had were key to huge profits.

He had one duty, add more value to the company's existing assets: trading stocks, gold, bonds, lands, and buildings. He could even work on deals for a company takeover. He did everything for profit. There shouldn't be anything wrong with it if the company didn't ask him to throw his ethics out of the window. He didn't care about the impacts of his team's actions. He didn't care who got hurt; as long as he continued to work towards accomplishing his goal, he got rewarded anyway. The company had teams of lawyers. He was told that he could get away from everything with the legal loopholes, and that was always the case. He saw some charges pressed against people at the company, but everyone got away with it. Everyone.

"That day, after I walked out of his house, I called my boss." Martin tried to recall that moment again, and even now, he tried to find the reason behind it all.

We thrived by profiting from investors' money. We successfully added value to their investments. If without them, our little kingdom will undoubtedly collapse. And the partner did not allow that.

"It was weird to me, the experiences. When it all happened, I couldn't remember much. But I remember the sound of gunfire, and once I knew it, there was blood everywhere. Some splashes even got to me. And his lifeless brown eyes were staring at me." Martin stopped abruptly; trying to think about the events of that day made him dizzy.

"Excuse me...oops...." He sensed what was about to happen, and he picked up the closest trash can to throw up in.

"Martin!"

The therapist rushed to help him. She got him some paper towels and walked him to the restroom.

He felt nauseated, but Martin went back to his chair and attempted to finish his story. He wanted to tell her what happened as if this was a confession to a priest. She might be able to absolve him of all his sins.

"...A police said someone hired a gunman to shoot the man. The shot was fired when he walked out in front of his house to send Joe and me off. The gunshot went past near my head, just too close...." He recalled the missing piece of memory he was told after some police investigation.

"One of the reasons you couldn't remember was because of repression, a defense mechanism. Your mind simply wants to block unwanted and hurtful memories. It's only natural that you forget some parts of the incident. But those painful memories might reappear in your dreams at times. Your brain remembers, but you simply can't recall it." Gisele explained. Her brunette hair looked perfect. She was calm and collected as always. He could imagine her being an old roman white sculpture that came to life.

"Understood." Once she mentioned dreams, Martin contemplated his sins.

"Martin, do you have anything more you want to share?"

He was hesitating to tell her more. Although the confession might be useful, he changed his mind about telling her everything. He trusted her. But a complete trust should take time.

There was more to his dreams, and there were more dreams. He had sold his soul to the devil, and he needed time to repent for his sins. Karma would eventually get to him, but not today, not yet.

"I need more time to reflect on other matters. I hope that's alright. I don't want to think about it too much." Martin forced a smile at her. He couldn't spill more tea. Otherwise, soon he might end up like that man.