False Memory: Chapters 5 and 7, pp. 29-47 (with intervals)

Chapter 5 widens the scope of the story as we discover what Martie's obligation on Tuesdays and Thursdays is, and learn of another major source of stress in her life.
Martie's best friend, Susan Jagger suffers from agoraphobia (fear of open places).  Before the onset about 16 months ago, Susan worked as a realtor and lived in a three-story house with her husband Eric, an investment advisor.  (No children or animals).  The agoraphobia has ruined all of these.  Her fear of open spaces made it impossible for her to do the driving necessary for a real estate agent.  After four months, her husband moved out, unable to deal with her disorder.  (That turns out to be a clue, too).  So, with her earning capacity gone and her husband leaving her, Susan has rented out the bottom two stories of the house and lives on the third floor, conveniently equipped with a kitchen, living room, bedroom and bath, and accessible by an outdoor flight of stairs.  Eric also sends her a monthly check.  At first, Susan could handle leaving the house so long as she stayed in enclosed spaces.  Now anywhere but her  house and her psychiatrist's office feels unsafe.  Four months ago, she could look longingly out the window.  Now just the view alarms her and she has to keep the windows covered.
Every Tuesday and Thursday, Martie drives her to her psychiatrist for therapy.  She has a key so Susan does not have to go to the door and confront the great outside (also significant, it turns out).  Invariably, Susan is overcome with anxiety about leaving the house, and Martie has to exhaust her store of coaxing, cajoling, jollying, bullying, threatening, taunts, insults and sarcasm to get her going.  Today is much like any other such occasion, except that Martie is suffering from anxiety as well.  In fact, it crosses her mind that dealing with Susan is another major source of stress in her life and may be responsible for her anxiety attacks.  The mirrors in the house make her uneasy, but do not trigger all-out panic.
Then, on the way out, Martie sees Susan's mezzaluna and has a sense of alarm.

mezzaluna

Here I will have to admit that I did not know what a mezzaluna was, but apparently a Mezzaluna is a two-handles knife in the shape of a half moon (mezzaluna means half moon in Italian) that is good for dicing by rocking back and forth. 

Martie asks about the knife and Susan cheerfully says it can dice an onion in a flash.  I like this sequence.  It is well done for two reasons.  First, it is the beginning of a marked progression in Martie's phobia.  Expect to see a lot of similar reactions, ever escalating.  Second, it very nicely makes the point that phobia is not indivisible.  Susan is terrified of going out.  It takes every ounce of persuasion Martie has to overcome Susan's fear and get her to leave the house.  And even as they are in the middle of the "extraction," Martie is overcome with a phobic reaction to something that has no effect on Susan at all.

Outside, Martie's anxiety grows, even as she is coaxing and bullying Susan along.  The storm outside seems wild and menacing and to waken something frightening in Martie.  When she gets out her car keys, she notices for the first time how sharp and jagged they are, and the harm they could inflict.  She wonders if this is a reaction to the grapefruit juice she drank that morning.  And you know what I think about that grapefruit juice.

Neither the car, nor the corridor, nor the elevators at the psychiatrist's office are enclosed enough to reassure Susan.  The only place besides her home where she feels safe is in his office.  Not even the waiting room is private enough.  The closer they get to the office, the less Susan holds back and the more she wants to hurry up and get there, muttering, "Almost safe, almost safe."  Martie feels strangely uneasy.  The mirrors in the elevator make her uncomfortable for some reason she cannot quite name.  She is overcome by a strange feeling that they are walking into great danger, and that she should grab Susan and run.

Just in case it is not clear by this point, Susan's psychiatrist turns out to be the villain.  I suppose that shouldn't be too surprising.  If the characters are victims of brainwashing and mind control, the psychiatrist is, after all, the most plausible suspect.  Who else could do it?  I think this part as they approach his office fairly broadly hints as much.  Susan's feeling safe in his office seems just a little disturbing.  Why is everywhere else outside her house so frightening except this one place?  And her craving for the his office makes one uncomfortable.  She is behaving like a moth, flying into a flame.  Or, perhaps, she craves her psychiatrist's office the way Skeet craves his drugs.  It has the feeling of being just as much an addiction, and no healthier.  In short, I think Koontz is dropping unmistakable clues here that all is not well with Susan and her psychiatrist.  Unlike many of his other clues, these ones turn out to be quite true.