Double or Nothing

by Wells, Donald

  Special Agent Morgan plops into a chair and appears none too happy to see them.

  “I thought it was a joke when they told me I was being transferred down here. What do you guys do all day, chase fifteen-year-old hackers?”

  Jack sighs. “I won’t lie to you Morgan, a fair percentage of hackers are teenagers, but their age makes them no less dangerous.”

  Kelly hands Morgan an unscripted picture of David. “Right now we’re looking into a hacker named Mr. Smith, we think he may be this man.”

  “This is David Manning.” Morgan says. Jack and Kelly look at each other in shock.

  “How do you know that?” Jack asks.

  “He’s the best friend of one Albertino Salvatori. Albertino, Al, is the biggest money launderer on the East Coast and a fourth generation goomba.” Morgan says.

  “Are you telling us that David Manning is connected?” Kelly asks.

  “No, not at all, they met in college and have been best buds ever since, they meet at least a couple of times a month for meals, sometimes they take in a game. You know, we recently got new surveillance shots of them together, they were with two women.”

  Jack gets up from the desk and heads toward the door. “I’m going to go get a copy of those surveillance photos from O.C., I’ll be right back.”

  After Jack leaves, Morgan slides his chair around to Kelly’s side of the desk. “Agent Carlton you are one good looking woman.”

  “Thank you Morgan.”

  “Why don’t the two of us go out to dinner tonight and get to know each other?”

  “I’m sorry I can’t, I’m seeing someone.”

  “Don’t tell me that you and the old guy are hooked-up. What is he, like forty?”

  “Jack’s forty-one, and just because there’s a little snow on the roof doesn’t mean there isn’t a fire down below.”

  Morgan grins. “You’re right, but snow on the roof does mean it’s winter.”

  “Then let’s just say I’m a woman who likes winter sports, OK?”

  “OK, I get the message, but if you ever change your mind I’ll be right here.”

  “Oh goody,” Kelly says.

  Jack soon returns from the Organized Crime Unit with the surveillance photos that were taken at the restaurant, he hands a set of duplicates to Kelly.

  “That’s Manning all right.” She says. “And according to this report the older woman is his sister Carol. The younger woman has been identified to be either an April or May Davenport, daughter of billionaire Blake Davenport. What the hell does that mean, April or May?”

  Jack nods. “I asked the same thing, apparently their identical twins, there’s no way to tell who’s who, even our best facial recognition software couldn’t distinguish one from the other.”

  Morgan furrows his brow. “A mobster, a world class computer hacker and the daughter of one of the richest men in the state, what does that add up to?”

  Kelly shrugs. “Maybe nothing, Manning and Salvatori are friends. Actually, judging by the way the two of them are looking at each other in these photos I’d say that Salvatori and Manning’s sister are pretty friendly also.”

  “Manning seems very friendly with April/May there too. There’s not one photo where they’re not touching each other somehow. Not that I blame him, she’s a hottie.” Morgan says.

  “So maybe all we’ve got here are two couples out to dinner?”

  “Maybe Kelly,” Jack says. “But I think we should keep a close eye on David Manning, this connection with Salvatori has made me even more interested in him.”

  Morgan suddenly rises from his seat.

  “I’ll tell my old partners to increase the frequency of the surveillance photos they take of Salvatori, it can’t hurt in any case. Listen, you guys don’t need me down here, so I’m gonna spend the day in O.C. looking through past surveillance photos of Salvatori. See you later, and happy hunting with those teenagers huh.” Morgan leaves in a rush.

  “Someone like Manning having mob connections could be a dangerous thing Kelly.”

  “I know. It’s really knocked me for a loop, still, maybe they are just friends.”

  “The Davenport girl was a surprise also. I thought our reports said he had a serious thing going with that actress, Alison James.” Jack says.

  “I guess that’s over, or Manning’s a player, although I didn’t get that vibe from him when we talked.”

  “So Kelly, what do you think of our new partner?”

  “He’s a jerk!”

  Jack grins. “Ah, so it isn’t just me.” And the two of them laugh.

  10

  Three months later, Monday May 12th,

  David and June are in Dr. Meyer’s office along with the doctor.

  June lies on the doctor’s green leather sofa looking relaxed. David is seated in an armchair facing the sofa, appearing nervous. Dr. Meyer looks like what she always looks like, a professional.

  The drapes are drawn and the only illumination in the room comes from the recessed lamps in the ceiling that are turned down to their dimmest setting. Dr. Meyer holds a pendulum in front of June’s face. The silver bar swings back and forth, back and forth, and soon June is in a hypnotic trance. Near the sofa on a tripod is a video camera, it is on and it is running.

  Dr. Meyer sets the pendulum down on a side table and begins June’s regression.

  “This is an attempt to hypnotically regress patient file # 0915, patient’s name: June Manning. I am Dr. Edith Meyer and also present is Mr. David Manning. Mr. Manning is present at his and June’s strong insistence, with a promise to remain quiet throughout the session. The patient suffers from traumatic memory loss attributed to severe emotional distress. It is believed that the trauma began in the ninth year of life and was ongoing. The patient’s earliest detailed memories go only as far back as last September. At that time she was found to be in a sort of dissociated state. The patient suffered from elective muteness and exhibited a child-like demeanor. She was rescued from the streets and cared for by Mr. Manning and demonstrated a remarkable ability to recover from her trauma.

  “The patient began talking in five months and has progressed notably ever since. After only a few months of tutoring, this formerly illiterate woman is now reading at a first year college level. Despite her progress, the patient is frustrated by her inability to recall any of her earlier life and so has agreed to regressive hypnosis. I will now attempt to regress the patient to the day of her ninth birthday.”

  “June if you can hear me, answer yes.”

  “Yes.”

  “Very good, now June I want you to relax completely, let every muscle in your body release any and all tension until you are completely at ease. On the count of three you will be totally relaxed, 1, 2, 3, and you are relaxed. Now, I would like you to go back to an earlier time. It is your ninth birthday and it is noon. When you are there you will say,

  I am there.”

  “I am there.”

  “Very good June, now I want you to describe what you are seeing.”

  “I see nothing. It’s dark.”

  “Are you afraid?”

  “No, I’m laughing.”

  “Why are you laughing?”

  “April, May and I are playing hide and go seek, May and I are hiding from April in the big closet in the foyer and it’s fun, uh oh,”

  “What is it June?”

  “We were giggling so loud that April found us, she snuck up on us from the living room side of the closet, she always wins, she’s very smart.”

  “All right June, you’re doing very well. Now I want you to move ahead further into that year. Stop when you get to any event of importance. When you arrive there I want you to remember that you are only an observer and that nothing you see happening can harm you now. When you are there, say I am there.”

  “I am there.”

  “Where is there and what is happening?”

  “It is ten months later and I am in our bedroom, father is having an argument with a woman,
the woman looks like me, looks like us, and she is wearing a red hat with a black dress.”

  “Can you hear what they’re saying?”

  “They are arguing over us, the woman tells father that we are just as much hers as we are his. Now the woman grabs May. Father takes May away from her and pushes the woman. He pushed her very hard and the woman fell backward and hit her head against a fixture on the wall. Now she’s sliding to the floor. She’s bleeding, there’s so much blood…oh God the blood!” As she utters these last words, June’s face forms into a horrified visage.

  David nearly jumps out of his seat, but stays put. This is something June has to face.

  “Calm down June. Remember that you are only watching these events like a movie and that they cannot harm you. I want you to describe them as if you were watching a movie. Are you calm June?”

  June’s face smoothes into a blank countenance as she answers. “I am calm.”

  “Now, what happened next?”

  “The three little girls are crying. It is very odd crying, they breathe in at the exact same moment and release their howls in unison. The man is calling for someone named Simon to come and help him, but no one comes. The man then leaves the room and goes for help. Now the woman on the floor rises and stumbles toward the door. She then turns and goes over to the three little girls crying in their bed. The children look horrified by the blood running down her face.

  “The woman picks up the child on the right and leaves the room. The child’s cries are smothered by the woman’s hand as she is carried outside to a waiting car. Another woman is driving the car, she does not speak English. The woman that took the child speaks to her in the other woman’s language. The child now lies on the car seat completely still and not crying, she is not making a sound at all now.”

  “June I want you to tell us the next time that the child is aware of her surroundings, what day is it?”

  “It is a Saturday.”

  “What is the child doing?”

  “She is just looking around at the room.”

  “Describe the room to me.”

  “The room has two glass-block windows, set high up in opposite walls, also there is a light hanging from the ceiling and a TV set is playing.”

  “How many days has it been since the woman took the little girl.”

  “Eight hundred and thirty two.”

  For the first time since the regression started Dr. Meyer turns and looks at David, an expression of bewilderment marks her face. She then turns back to June.

  “You’re saying the little girl had no awareness for eight hundred and thirty two days?”

  “Yes.”

  “Was the little girl in a comatose state?”

  “No, more like sleep walking, if prodded she would move and eat and urinate, otherwise she was like a stone.”

  “What happened to the woman who took the little girl?”

  “She went away the same week the little girl was taken and never came back.”

  “Who is taking care of the girl?”

  “The woman who doesn’t speak English has been feeding and bathing the little girl. She would dress her in a hood and take her for a walk early in the morning, but then the girl is placed back into the basement room. The room has a toilet, a sink, and a bed.”

  “When the girl becomes aware and moves around, what does she do?”

  “She mostly watches TV. When the sun filters in through the glass-block windows she sits before them, basking in the glow of natural light. She cannot talk and doesn’t understand the woman’s language at all.”

  “Do they still go for their walks?”

  “No, when the girl came out of her dream-like state the woman left her alone. The girl is still strange though, it is as if she’s only partly there.”

  “Does the girl ever see anyone else?”

  “She hears voices talking in a foreign language at times, but she only sees the woman.”

  “What is the woman’s name and is the woman kind to the little girl?”

  “The woman is simply the woman and she is neither kind or unkind, it is as if the little girl is merely a responsibility and nothing more. She feeds her and gives her second-hand clothes. On four occasions when the little girl was sick, the woman nursed her back to health. At the onset of puberty the woman showed the girl how to keep sanitary, but the woman never touches the girl unless it is necessary. Other than the TV, the girl has no contact with the outside world. The woman can control the power from upstairs, at night it is very dark and the girl becomes afraid. On several occasions the girl tried to get out, but the woman won’t let her go.”

  “How long does this go on and what changes it?”

  “The little girl is with the woman for twelve years. On the last day she simply opened the basement door and let the girl out. From time to time the woman would show the girl a cash box with money in it. Each time she showed it to the girl there appeared to be less money inside. This time she showed the girl the empty cash box and led her to the front door of the shop. When the girl didn’t move, she shoved her out.”

  “What was outside the shop?”

  “People, so many people, like the pictures on TV but so much bigger and vibrant. The girl is terrified…I’m…I’m so scared…what do I do? Oh God what do I do?”

  “June listen to me. I want you to remember that you are only seeing what is happening, it is not happening to you. You must calm down, you are calm and you are safe.”

  June relaxes back against the sofa. “I am calm and I am safe.”

  “What does the girl do after leaving the shop?”

  “She scurries into an alley and hides, she stays there all night, too afraid to even fall asleep.”

  “Did she try going back to the shop?”

  “No, when she ran she became lost, also the feeling is sending her east.”

  “What is ‘the feeling?”

  “It is what protects her, what guides her, it is what loves her.”

  A look of perplexity clouds the doctor’s face again. “Where is it guiding her to?”

  “To New York City,”

  “She was not in New York City when she was in the shop?”

  “No.”

  “Where was she?”

  “In San Francisco,”

  “…Why is she going to New York?”

  “He is there.”

  “Who is he?”

  “Her other half,”

  “Are you saying she went to New York to reunite…with her sisters?”

  “No, not the sisters, deeper and older than the sisters, her other half.”

  “The other half of what June?”

  “The other half of the soul, her mate.”

  Dr. Meyer pauses from her questioning and taps her pencil against her note pad. “Are you saying that she was being guided from within to find her soul mate?”

  “Yes.”

  “How could this girl possibly find her way to New York City from San Francisco?”

  “The feeling guided her. It tells her what to do and when to do it. It loves her.”

  Dr. Meyer shakes her head in irritation. “June you’re not making any sense. I want you to stop viewing things as if you were watching them and tell me exactly what you felt as you entered New York City, begin now and tell me what day it is.”

  “It’s the fifteenth of September, the morning I found David.”

  “Found him? How could you be looking for him if you didn’t know him yet?”

  “I have always known him. He is the other.”

  “The other what June? Again, you’re not making sense. Never mind, take me to when you first see David and tell me what you feel.”

  “Completeness.”

  “You feel completeness?”

  “Yes.”

  “Why June?”

  “We are reunited, the time has come.”

  “Where are you and what are you doing?”

  “I’m across the street from the restaurant. I’m look
ing at David, he doesn’t see me yet.”

  “What attracts you to him?”

  In her trance, June shrugs. “He is he.”

  “I want you to be very specific here. Why did you follow David and not someone else?”

  “Because of the feeling, the feeling guided me then, it was all I had. Without my sisters I was lost.”

  “Then why didn’t the feeling guide you to your sisters?”

  “They were changed when the link was broken, they became two instead of three.”

  “And David is your, ‘soul mate?”

  “Yes.”

  “We seem to be going in circles. Tell me, is this feeling still communicating to you?”

  “Yes, but I am less able to hear it now.”

  “Why is that?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Is this feeling what warns you of danger at times, such as with the falling planter?”

  “No, that is different.”

  “What was it like when you were mute? What were you thinking?”

  “It was like being asleep and knowing it, but being unable to wake. The longer I was with David the more I awakened.”

  “What caused this ‘sleep’ state?”

  “Being separated from my sisters.”

  “But your sisters are fine. Why did it take you so long to recover?”

  “They had each other, I had no one and was kept alone.”

  “Do you have any idea where your mother is?”

  “No.”

  “All right, I am going to count down from ten, when I get to one you will awaken and feel refreshed. You will also remember everything that you saw and felt. 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, and you’re coming out of the trance, 4, 3, 2, and you will awake calm and refreshed, 1.”

  June awakens and looks about the room. When she sees David she rises off the sofa and falls into his arms. “Oh David it was so horrible, my life has been so horrible. I remember it all now. I was like the…walking dead for years. I think my mother must have left money with that woman and when she didn’t return the woman used it to take care of me. If the money hadn’t run out I think I would still be there. I didn’t do anything but wander around that basement and sit in front of a TV all day. The woman was so cold. I was a thing to her. Oh God it’s like a nightmare. Oh David thank God I found you. Thank God for that feeling.”