Over The Crescent Moon

by Karen Badger

  Dr. Wetmore spared a nervous glance at Chief Kanhanamoku. “Maybe that memory will help to trigger more...after you heal, that is.”

  “How the hell will the memory of a tattoo help?” Spencer asked impatiently. “I don’t even know my own name.”

  “I’ll make a deal with you. Give it a week of rest, good food and following my advice, and then I will personally help you.”

  Spencer looked sideways at Dr. Wetmore. “You would do that for me?”

  “Absolutely.”

  Spencer smiled. “Okay then, it’s a deal.”

  Dr. Wetmore stood and faced Spencer. “Great! Now, back into bed with you.”

  Chapter 6

  “Chief Kanhanamoku. Please, come in.” Dr. Wetmore rose from her chair behind her desk and met the chief in the center of her office. “To what do I owe this pleasure?”

  “May I?” The chief nodded in the direction of the couch on the opposite side of the room.

  “Of course. Where are my manners? Please, have a seat.”

  The chief sat on the couch, while Dr. Wetmore sat facing him in a nearby chair. “What can I do for you, Chief?”

  The chief shifted in his chair. “I came to discuss Red. I am concerned about her mental state.”

  “Her mental state? She’s been through some sort of catastrophic accident. It is understandable that she is somewhat confused.”

  “Dr. Wetmore, she seems to believe that Hawai’i’ is a member of the union. In fact, she claims it was given statehood sixty years ago.”

  Dr. Wetmore frowned. “Sixty years ago? Did she actually say that?”

  “She did. She insisted on it. In fact, she said something about researching it before she came here. I have no idea what she meant by that.”

  “I’ll speak with her about it, if you’d like,” the doctor offered.

  “That might be wise. She seems to be healing quite well and may be ready to move on in the next day or two.”

  “But she still has no memory of who she is or how she came to be here.”

  “True, but she seems determined to find out—with your help of course.”

  “I did promise I would help. I guess I need to start with another examination.”

  “What do you think about her memory recall?”

  “Do you mean the tattoo?”

  “Yes. I remember being suspicious from the day she was found on the beach that the bearer of that tattoo may have something to do with this young woman’s injuries.”

  “I don’t want to jump to conclusions, Chief, but I have to admit I was a bit startled when she mentioned the crescent moon,” Dr. Wetmore said. “I don’t want to trigger any immediate traumatic memories by asking her about it directly; those are better off coming out gradually, but I will feel the waters so to speak, and with any luck, we can confirm your suspicions. It might be a good jumping off point toward total memory recall for her.”

  “The question is—what can we do about it? I supposed I should give that some thought. I will discuss it with the council at our next meeting,” the chief said.

  “Until then, we need to do what we can to get Red back onto her feet. Thank you for coming in to voice your concerns, Chief.”

  The chief stood, but paused before leaving. “Part of me will be sorry to see her go. She has grown on me during the past week.”

  Dr. Wetmore smiled broadly. “I know what you mean. I feel a closeness to her that I generally do not allow with patients.”

  Chief Kanhanamoku put his hand on Dr. Wetmore’s shoulder. “Could it be that she is a makemake i nā wāhine? I mean…the shaved hair, and the fact that she insists on wearing trousers.”

  Dr. Wetmore blushed. “My intuition tells me that she may be a ʻo nā wāhine. That would certainly explain the kinship I feel with her, but I hesitate to speak to her about it.”

  “Could I ask why?”

  Dr. Wetmore rose from her chair and walked toward her desk. She picked up a black and white picture of herself and an attractive native woman in a loving embrace. A feeling of happiness passed through her chest. “She has no memory of who she is. I hesitate to plant suggestions like that into her brain, when it may turn out not to be true.”

  “I can certainly understand that. Nevertheless, her health has improved, and it is near time that she takes the next step—whatever that may be. Good day, Dr. Wetmore.”

  “Good day to you, Chief Kanhanamoku.”

  Dr. Wetmore placed the picture back on her desk and sat in her chair. She spent the next several moments with her eyes closed as she thought about the chief’s red-headed visitor.

  ***

  “How am I doing, Doc?”

  Dr. Wetmore put her examination tools back into her bag. “I’d say you are one-hundred percent, although I am still concerned about your lack of memory.” Dr. Wetmore sat on the edge of the bed. “Tell me again, Red—what do you remember before and after waking up in the chief’s home.”

  Spencer sighed. “We’ve been through this several times already. I don’t remember anything, other than the crescent moon tattoo. The next thing I knew, I woke up on the beach surrounded by two young boys, who ran away. My next memory was waking up in this bed. I don’t know what else you want me to say.”

  Dr. Wetmore put her hand on Spencer’s arm. “Please don’t be angry. I know we’ve been through this before, but I hope that by repeated discussions, some memory may be triggered. Look, Red, Chief Kanhanamoku said something about your insistence that Hawai’i’ is part of the United States.”

  “That’s because it is,” Spencer insisted.

  “And when exactly did that happen?”

  “Nineteen fifty-nine…nearly sixty years ago. You’re an educated woman, Doc. You should know that.”

  “That’s impossible,” Dr. Wetmore said.

  “Impossible? Why is that impossible?” Spencer demanded.

  “Because this is the year of our Lord, eighteen eighty-four.”

  Spencer jumped out of bed. “No fucking way! No fucking way is this eighteen eighty-four. You’re out of your fucking mind. Is this some kind of head game you’re playing, Doc?”

  “Calm down, Red. This is no game…and there is no need to curse. The year is eighteen eighty-four. What reason would I have to lie to you about that?”

  Spencer ran her hand through her hair. “Do you have a computer I can use?”

  “Computer?”

  “Yes, a computer. You know…a laptop. Or a cell phone?”

  The crease lines on Dr. Wetmore’s forehead deepened. “Lap top? I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  Spencer became highly agitated. “I’m talking about a fucking laptop computer. Jesus! Do you all live in the stone-age around here?”

  Dr. Wetmore crossed her arms. “No—not the stone age. We live in eighteen eighty-four.”

  Spencer turned sharply to face the doctor. “Stop saying that!”

  “Okay, let’s say that is it not eighteen eighty-four. What year is it then?” Dr. Wetmore challenged.

  Spencer put her hands on her hips and cocked one eyebrow. “Two thousand nineteen.”

  “You think its two thousand nineteen?” Dr. Wetmore said incredulously.

  “No…I know it’s two thousand nineteen,” Spencer insisted.

  “Prove it.”

  Spencer marched to the door and flung it wide open. She stepped outside and stopped dead in her tracks. There in the harbor in the distance, were tall ships. On the street just a few feet in front of her were horse-drawn carriages. From one such carriage, a man wearing a linen suit, as well as a native woman wearing a colorful holoku dress, emerged from it. The road in front of the chief’s home was packed dirt.

  Spencer looked around at her wildly unfamiliar surroundings. “What the hell is going on?” she said out loud.

  “Red. Come back inside.”

  Spencer turned around sharply to see Dr. Wetmore in the doorway. “I…I don’t know what has happened to me,” she said to the doctor.
>
  Dr. Wetmore approached Spencer and took her hand. “Come. I promised to help you, and I will keep that promise, but first, we need to get your feet solidly on the ground. Maybe it’s time you moved in with me.”

  ***

  Dr. Wetmore pushed the door to her cottage open and motioned to Spencer to go in before her. “Go on in. Make yourself at home.”

  Spencer walked timidly through the door and into the compact, but tidy kitchen. On one wall, there was a black gas stove with an oven, and on another, a sink with a manual water pump mounted beside it. A large window above the sink provided adequate lighting, and the deep sill provided a perch where a variety of herbs thrived in clay pots. A small kitchen table with four chairs was positioned in the center of the room. Above the stove and countertops, were open shelves on which stacks of dishes as well as non-perishable food supplies were stored. In a far corner, Spencer noted an icebox, where she assumed perishable foods were kept.

  Dr. Wetmore noticed her looking at the icebox. “Nice, huh? It’s state of the art. Oh, and right there, behind that wall, is the privy and bathing room. When I first bought this house, it had a backyard hale li’ili’i and no running water. Coming from the mainland, I was used to indoor plumbing, so I invested the time and money into updating this house. In our minds, it was worth every penny.”

  Spencer tilted her head in interest. “Our minds?”

  “Huh?”

  “You said ‘our minds’…as in more than one.”

  Dr. Wetmore’s eyes flew open. “Oh! Yes. I guess since you’ll be living here for the time being, you should know that there is one other person who lives here with me—my partner Leilani. She’s out of town on island business right now.”

  Spencer stared at Dr. Wetmore for several long moments. Finally, she spoke. “Partner? As in business partner…or as in girlfriend, wife, better-half, bed-buddy, pillow-pal, card-carrying lesbian?”

  “The latter…definitely the latter.”

  Spencer ran her hands through her hair. “Holy shit! I didn’t see that coming!”

  Dr. Wetmore’s brow knit together. “Is that a problem?”

  Spencer raised her arms out to the sides. “I…I honestly don’t know! I have no idea how the real me feels about that. For now, I have no opinion.”

  “Hmm. Maybe I was wrong about you.”

  “Wrong about me, in what way? Oh, wait! Did you think I was a lesbian?”

  “To be honest, I was leaning in that direction, but not sure. Are you?”

  “Beats the shit out of me!”

  Dr. Wetmore picked Spencer’s bag up from the floor. “This is going to be interesting for sure. Come on, I’ll show you to your room.”

  “Right behind you, Doc.”

  “Frankie. My name is Frankie.”

  Chapter 7

  Frankie stood by the kitchen window and sipped a cup of coffee as she watched her guest do strange stretching exercises in the yard. She couldn’t help but notice Spencer’s taut midsection as she held one pose for several long moments. Frankie jumped when she felt a hand on her hip and then relaxed immediately when she felt a soft kiss on her cheek. She felt a warm body wrap itself around her from behind.

  “Good morning, my love,” Leilani whispered. She wrapped her arms around Frankie’s middle and followed Frankie’s gaze outside the window. “So this is Red, huh?”

  “That’s what I’ve been calling her. I have no idea what her real name is,” Frankie replied.

  “She has an interesting look about her. Do you think she is ohaha?”

  “Do I think she’s one of us? I’m pretty sure she is, but since she has no memory of who she is, I don’t want to plant that idea in her head. She’ll remember soon enough when her memories return.”

  “I’m sorry I wasn’t here when you brought her home. The boat from O’ahu didn’t dock until late. I’m afraid our guest was sleeping when I got home. In fact, you both were.”

  Leilani released Frankie and poured coffee from the metal filter pot.

  Frankie turned and leaned her backside against the sink cabinet and allowed a warm feeling to invade her being as she looked at her partner. Leilani was slim, and taller than a typical native Hawai’ian. Her short cropped hair and androgynous style of dress did little to hide the fact that she preferred the fairer sex. Yet she held an important position on the Kauai Island Council, and it was in that capacity that she was sent to O’ahu earlier in the week. “I felt you slip into bed behind me when you came home last night. It felt good to have you home.”

  Leilani crossed the room again and placed a gentle kiss on Frankie’s lips. “It is indeed good to be home. I missed you. By the way, thank you for sending word that Red was here. I might have worried that she was an intruder if I had come home and found her here not being aware of her presence.”

  “I’m glad the messenger found you before you left O’ahu. So did the Council of Island Kingdoms come to any decision about Makenna?”

  “Unfortunately, no. They are hoping we won’t need to use force to deal with her.”

  Frankie placed her palm on the side of Leilani’s face. “Please don’t tell me you volunteered for the job.”

  Leilani grinned and then ran a hand through her short hair. “No…not me. I was tempted, mind you, but she is too skilled for me. Confronting her will put me in an awkward situation. No—we need to find someone else to confront her. I don’t think we’ll get any more than one chance. The problem is that she hasn’t done anything illegal…at least not yet.”

  “I find it incredible that there are still people like her in this day and age. Wasn’t that all finished with about a hundred years ago?” Frankie asked.

  “More like two hundred years ago. I think that’s why she is so successful. No one knows how to deal with the likes of her anymore. She’s been hovering on and off around the coast of O’ahu for about a week now. She comes and goes every few days…and she’s making the chief of O’ahu nervous.”

  Frankie turned around and looked again at Spencer through the window. “I’m afraid our guest may have had an encounter with her.”

  Leilani frowned. “What do you mean?”

  “Oh, it looks like she’s finished with her exercise. She’s on her way in.”

  Spencer stopped short when she entered the small kitchen. Frankie immediately approached her and inspected the bandage on Spencer’s head.

  “Come, sit.” Frankie led her to the table and directed her into a chair. “How was the stretching?”

  Spencer kept her gaze trained on Leilani through the entire exchange.

  Frankie realized she had not introduced Spencer to her partner. “Oh, I’m sorry. Red, this is my partner, Leilani. Lei, this is Red.” Frankie made the introduction as she attempted to remove Spencer’s bandage.

  Leilani crossed the room and accepted Spencer’s firm handshake. How do you take your coffee?”

  “Ow! Damn, Doc…that hurts!”

  “Sorry, the scab is stuck to the gauze. I’ll need to dampen it to get it off.”

  “Can’t you just leave it on there?” Spencer asked.

  “Nope. It needs to be changed. I’ll be right back.”

  Spencer grinned at Leilani. “Is she always that stubborn?”

  “You don’t know the half of it!” Leilani replied. “Coffee?”

  “Oh—yes. Black, please. Thanks.”

  Frankie returned with her medical bag. “Okay. Let’s take another look at that wound.”

  Spencer sipped her coffee while Frankie worked to loosen her bandage. “This is good coffee, Leilani. Thank you.”

  “Thank Frankie. She made it while I was still in bed this morning. I’m afraid I got in pretty late. I apologize for not being here to meet you.”

  “No apology necessary. I am eternally in your and Doc’s debt for allowing me to stay here. I’ll be on my way as soon as Doc says it’s okay.”

  “You’re not going anywhere until your memory at least partially returns,” Frankie said. “It’
s no problem for you to stay here.”

  “I second that, Red,” Leilani said.

  “Yow!” Spencer yelled.

  “Finally!” Frankie held the detached bandage in her hand. “That was difficult to get off. Now sit still and let me clean the wound and put a new bandage on it.”

  “So, Red, how did you come to be on Kauai?” Leilani asked.

  “I have no idea. I woke up on the beach with no memory of who I am or how I got there. I vaguely remember doing research about the island, but I don’t know why.”

  “Research?” Leilani asked.

  “Yeah. You know…I Googled the island…all of the islands in fact. Apparently, I am here as part of a planned visit of some sort.”

  Leilani raised her eyebrows. “Googoo? What is googoo?”

  “Not googoo…Google. It’s an internet search engine.” Spencer looked back and forth between Leilani and Frankie and noted the looks of confusion on their faces. “Oh…right. I forgot. It’s eighteen eighty-four.” Frankie rolled her eyes sarcastically.

  “Red thinks it’s the year two thousand nineteen,” Frankie said.

  ***

  Spencer scooped a large forkful of scrambled eggs into her mouth. “This is good,” she said.

  “Thank you,” Frankie replied.

  “So, Red, what makes you think it’s two thousand nineteen?” Leilani asked.

  “Before the accident, it was two thousand nineteen. Don’t ask me how I know that…I just do. I remember doing research about the islands before coming here, you know, to learn a little history so I wouldn’t look like a total dorky tourist when I was here.”

  “So you are here intentionally,” Leilani stated.

  “Yes. I assume so. Anyway, Doc here told me it was eighteen eighty-four. I didn’t believe her. To be honest, I still don’t believe it. Part of me feels like I’m on a period movie set and any moment, the director will call a wrap and send us all home to our modern apartments and computers.”