Wicked Forest (DeBeers 2)

destroy those pictures." -"Sure- he said. "I don't need them anymore. "You don't invade someone's privacy without

his or her permission. Linden. Art isn't a good enough

excuse."

"You will do it when you practice

psychotherapy. won't you? You'll justify it by

claiming it's part of what you need to know to do your

job properly."

"That's different."

"No, it's not. We're all artists of one kind or

another. That's what they call it the art of practicing

medicine

." he said, smiling.

I stared at him and then I stood up.

"I'm not happy about it. Linden. I'm

disappointed in you."

"You won't be when you see the portrait," he

insisted, refusing to see or admit to my points. "You'll

forgive me," he added confidently.

"There are things that, no matter how beautiful

they may be, are not worth the price. Linden," I

warned him.

"Including love and marriage?" he shot back,

his eyes so full of fury I couldn't help trembling. "Including everything," I said as firmly as I

could. I stood up and returned the chair to the desk.

"Drink your tea." I advised, and left him, wondering if

the cure I hoped to see occur in him wasn't worse than

the illness after all.

.

My confrontation with Linden set off all sorts

of alarm bells, but the impending arrival of Amou, my