The clinic felt quieter than before. Not empty but controlled. Like every sound knew where it belonged. Noah and Evan stepped inside together. Evan's shoulders were slightly tense, his movements slower than usual. The weight of everything; the case, the time, the fear sat visibly on him now.
Dr. Graham greeted them with the same warm smile. "Good to see you both again." He gestured toward the chairs. "Evan… how are you feeling today?"
Evan sat down, his hands loosely clasped together. For a moment, he didn't answer. Then quietly, "I'm scared." The word lingered in the room. Evan looked down. "We don't have much time… and we don't even know what we're looking for." His voice tightened. "We need to find something… but I don't know what." Silence followed.
Dr. Graham stepped closer and placed a gentle hand on Evan's shoulder. "We'll figure it out," he said calmly. "I'll do everything I can to help you." Noah stood beside them, watching.
The session began again. But this time, something was different. Dr. Graham didn't rush into memory. Didn't push Evan back into trauma. Instead, his tone stayed steady. Guiding...Controlled... "Relax," he said softly as Evan lay back. "Just breathe."
Evan's eyes slowly closed. His breathing evened out. The hypnosis took hold.
"Tell me about your visions," Graham said.
Evan's voice came slowly. "I… don't know why they happen... Or why they stopped...Or why they were there in the first place…"
Graham noted everything. Carefully. Then he shifted. "Tell me about your days. The days you had those visions."
Evan paused. Thinking. "…nothing special...Just… normal...Same routine. Wake up… coffee… go out… sit somewhere… work a little… come back…" His voice remained calm. Almost distant. Graham wrote quickly.
"Anything unusual?"
"No."
"Anyone suspicious?"
"No."
Graham's pen paused for a second. Then he asked, "Why are all those days so similar?"
A small silence. Evan answered slowly,
"I like routine. It's… comfortable. It makes things predictable."
Graham nodded to himself and kept writing. After a few more questions, he leaned forward slightly.
"Evan… open your eyes."
Evan blinked. Slowly coming back. The session ended. Noah watched carefully.
"What did you find?"
Graham exhaled. Then sat down across from them.
"What I'm about to say," he began, "is not a conclusion."
"It's a possibility."
Evan straightened slightly.
Graham continued,
"You are very predictable, Evan."
Evan frowned. "What?"
"Your routine," Graham said. "It doesn't change... Same places. Same timings. Same patterns."
He looked at Noah.
"Anyone observing him could easily track him."
Noah's expression darkened slightly.
Graham leaned back.
"And that makes you vulnerable." A pause. Then, "There was a case." His voice lowered slightly. "In India." Evan and Noah both looked at him. "It was never officially published. Restricted." Graham's eyes moved between them. "The culprit used a substance. 'A drug.' One that induced controlled hallucinations."
Evan's breath caught.
"What…?"
"The victim believed they were seeing the future."
The room went still. Noah's jaw tightened.
Graham continued carefully,
"The hallucinations were planted. They were Guided and manipulated."
Evan shook his head slightly.
"That's… impossible…"
Graham nodded.
"Exactly! It should be." He leaned forward. "That case was shut down completely. No one knows what the drug was. No records remain accessible." He paused. "This is only a theory. Not proof." But the damage was already done.
Because now, it made sense. Too much sense.
Something shifted in Noah's eyes. A thought. A sharp sudden. But he said nothing.
Outside the clinic, Evan looked drained. Exhausted in a way that went beyond physical. Noah walked beside him.
"You should go home," Noah said gently.
"Rest." Evan looked at him. "And you?"
"I need to check something."
Evan hesitated but nodded. "Okay…"
Noah didn't waste a second. He drove straight to the station. Rhea's laptop was still there. Waiting. He opened it quickly. His fingers moved fast. Scrolling...Searching...Then...He stopped. The search history...His breath slowed. There it was. Exactly what he had feared. The same case. The same one Graham had mentioned. Rhea had already found it. "No way…" he whispered.
He grabbed his phone immediately and called Graham. The call connected.
"Doctor… you were right." A pause. "I found it. Rhea was looking into the same case."
Graham's voice sharpened. "Are you sure?"
"Yes." Silence.
Then Graham spoke, "Give me some time. I'll dig deeper. This changes everything."
The call ended. Noah didn't hesitate. He dialed another number. Kolon. The call connected quickly.
"Yes?"
Noah's voice was firm now.
"Evan is not the culprit."
A pause.
Kolon's tone hardened slightly.
"Do you have proof?"
"No. Not yet."
"Then don't say things you can't support."
"I will," Noah said. "But right now… I need you to trust me."
Silence. Then, "Come with me somewhere."
Kolon didn't respond immediately. But he didn't disconnect either. Because deep down— He could feel it too. Something in this case was wrong.
Very wrong.