Free Night Terrors by Helen Harper Page B

still believes it’s a hallucination.
    ‘It sounds awful,’ I say, meaning every single word. ‘I can’t begin to imagine what you’re going through. But I’m not sure how I can help.’
    There’s a sudden flare of anger. ‘Don’t you get it? I’m afraid of going to sleep!’ She throws her arms out at the other people waiting. ‘So are they! I’m not sure what I believe you’re capable of, Ms Lydon, but I know you’re capable of something. Help us.’
    I shake my head. ‘I don’t know how.’ Feeling like an absolute shit, I lick my lips. ‘Have you tried a few drops of lavender on your pillow? Herbal remedies can often be very useful.’
    The disappointment on her face strikes at my very core. Rawlins doesn’t believe I’m capable of visiting dreams but there’s a part of her that wants it to be true. I take her hand again sympathetically. I want to make absolutely sure I can apparate into her subconscious.
    ‘The best thing to do,’ I say, ‘is to go home and try to get some rest.’
    She is struggling not to snap at me that the last thing she wants to do is sleep. She pulls her hand away.
    A door to the surgery opens. A woman in a crumpled suit appears and clears her throat loudly. She’s holding a prescription pad.
    ‘Thank you for your patience, ladies and gentlemen. We are doing the best we can and will see anyone who needs a doctor if you’re willing to wait. For anyone who is here because of sleep-paralysis symptoms, we can write you a prescription for chlomirapine hydrochloride. We require full medical histories before we do this, however, and that will take time.’ There’s a sudden buzz in the room and several people sit up straighter. ‘Let me be clear that the prescription is for a very mild dosage. We recommend that anyone with medical problems does not resort to chemical sleep inducement. The best thing for this paralysis is to avoid stress.’
    Despite her warnings, people stampede towards her and clamour for help. The doctor is almost swallowed up in the crowd. Worry gnaws at me as I watch the patients. It must be unheard of for mass prescriptions to be handed out like this, regardless of how mild the dosage is. I know of chlomirapine from my agoraphobic days; it has a lot of side effects.
    The doctor yells at everyone to back off. By my side, Rawlins stiffens. Fortunately, the relief that there might be something that could help them makes the crowd relax and they give the doctor some space. She calls for calm and begins to list who cannot take the pills, from breastfeeding mothers to people with kidney problems; she tells them they will be turned away unless their symptoms require emergency treatment and recommends using herbal treatments instead. The atmosphere quietens. A number of people nod thoughtfully and get up to leave, no doubt preparing to hit the small pharmacy in town for the herbal stuff before everyone else. I heave a sigh of relief. Things could be worse.
    Abandoning Rawlins, I move to the door and stand next to it so that I can brush the skin of everyone who walks out. I get a few strange looks but this isn’t the time to be concerned. The more dreams I can visit where sleep paralysis is an issue, the more I’ll learn about it.
    The thought that this is happening all over the country is too terrifying to contemplate. I have to focus on the here and now or I’ll never get anywhere. I see the sergeant eyeing me curiously from the other side of the surgery. Her sharp eyes have noted what I’m doing. I give a nonchalant shrug as if to say I’m simply being polite by letting others leave before me.
    ‘You should go home,’ I mouth. Please. Go home and sleep so I can see inside your head, I pray silently.
    The corner of her mouth turns up in acknowledgment. As soon as I’ve touched as many of the sleep paralysis victims as I can, I give Rawlins a reassuring smile and slip out. I’m going to need some that damn herbal stuff too. It looks like I’m going to be