Two of a Mind

by S M Stuart

  “I’ll list them out separately for now. Maybe something’ll come to mind later.”

  As I scrolled through the calendar to find the first marker, the cursor changed to a skull icon as it reached that date: 18th January 2105. I tapped on the date to enter the page and the news report of the girl in the woods came on screen. I shuddered as I remembered the telepathic experience of freezing to death.

  “Got it!” Seth’s sudden loud outburst made me jerk back to reality.

  “W-what?”

  “That notation thing – DOM. Date of … M … You know, like DOB is date of birth. But what does the M stand for?”

  “Murder,” I whispered. “Look, the quotation says it all: ‘… He just had the power to kill her that’s all:…’ And I was there, remember? The bastard murdered her and got away with it.”

  “So, if that’s what DOM means, do all the reports tally with the dates highlighted blue in the calendar?”

  We spent the next hour matching the marked dates to the news reports that had corresponding DOM notations and pop-up quotations. The result was a depressing list of apparently unrelated incidents and accidents. Deaths of various individuals, a group of hikers, even a busload of school kids, and the only connection was that Elizabeth had highlighted them.

  “Now what?” Seth’s frustration was obvious as he ran his hands through his hair and blew out his cheeks in a long sigh.

  “I think we’re coming at it from the wrong angle,” I said. “We’re looking for the common thread in the way these people died, but there isn’t one. The deaths were all different. If they were murders committed by the same killer, he kept changing the way he did it – switching his M.O. so they wouldn’t be recognised as a series.”

  “You sound like a classic re-run of ‘CSI-2015’.”

  “Oh, ha, ha. No, listen. What’s the only link to these events?”

  “I give in.”

  “Seth! You’re not even trying. It’s your mum.”

  “Yeah, I know. They’re in my mum’s diary. So what’s the connection?”

  “You still don’t get it – that is the connection – they’re in your mum’s diary. She linked the news reports to the dates marked in blue – with a skull-shaped icon, for goodness’ sake!”

  “O-kay.” Seth drew out his reply as though he was trying to think it through as he spoke. “You’re saying that because Mum linked them, there has to be a connection. So what is it and why didn’t she just go to the police?”

  “Not sure.” I switched on the hard-copier and transmitted a command from the Handi to get a printout of Elizabeth’s letter. “Look. She says the answers are here if we can find them. She’s telling us that the message has to be hidden – she has to be vague and she’s struggling against barriers that nobody understands. Why? What or rather who could prevent her from telling us outright?”

  Seth’s expression showed his dawning realisation. “Her PT! That’s it. She never once mentioned her PT. Remember, we sometimes talked about Nina? Dad’s Russian doll, Mum called her. But we never heard anything about Mum’s twin. Jeez, if you’re saying he’s the murderer, no wonder she broke down. Knowing who was doing this and not being able to tell anyone. Omigod, Dez. I used to get so annoyed when she was being moody.” His excitement at finding the link was replaced with the guilt of misunderstanding his mother’s behaviour. He sat with his elbows on the table and dropped his head into his hands. His shoulders shook as he tried to contain his sobs.

  “Don’t worry, Seth. She would’ve known you couldn’t understand.” I moved to sit beside him and tried to hold him. Being as clumsy as I am, I managed to stick my elbow onto the edge of a plate and it flipped up covering us both with left-over ciabatta pizza. It wasn’t really that funny but we spent the next few minutes trying to control our hysterical laughing.

  “You two look like you’ve been having a food fight.”

  Samuel’s voice had us scrabbling to close down the Holo-Comms before he caught sight of the notes we’d made. I quickly slipped Elizabeth’s Handi into my jeans pocket but wasn’t fast enough to move the printed letter.

  “What’s this?” Recognising his wife’s hand-writing, he reached for the page.

  I looked at Seth as I tried to get there first but he shook his head and I held back. We stood silently watching Samuel read the long-lost letter. His reaction so similar to his son’s earlier in the day that it felt like déjà vu. I looked at Seth again and gestured for him to pull out a chair for Samuel then I went in search of the brandy. When I’d poured a good measure and brought it to the table Seth had managed to persuade his father to sit down.

  “I should go.” I could hardly speak for the lump in my throat.

  “No.” Samuel’s voice was surprisingly strong. “No, love, there’s no need for you to go. Just give me a minute. Thanks for the snifter.”

  I couldn’t believe how he was holding himself together so well. He’d looked ready to keel over and now he seemed in complete control.

  “Really, Mr Wallis,” I said, forgetting our first name agreement. “You and Seth have things to talk about. I should leave you in peace.”

  “Peace? You think there’s been much of that about since Elizabeth took herself off?”

  “Dad!” Seth looked at his dad in horror. Samuel was always such a quiet man – he’d rarely raised his voice even when we’d been naughty children. Yet now he’d snapped at me with such venom in his tone, it was unnerving. Although I tried to keep my mind occupied with the physical events, I heard Nina, Samuel’s PT, asking what was wrong then scolding him for getting so unusually angry. I understood the conversation even though she was communicating in Russian and I recalled the time I’d heard Rosa. Ms Thorogood’s explanation about the automatic translation came back to me and I realised that, of course, I couldn’t speak Spanish or Russian – I understood Rosa and Nina because I heard them through their PT connection.

  “Oh, love, I’m sorry. I don’t know what came over me. I suppose it’s all these years of not really knowing what happened and now this.” He held up the letter as though he wished he could throw it away but was unable to let go of the last connection to his beloved wife. “I’ve been waiting for something like this to turn up. Thought it would make it easier. But it doesn’t. It’s like losing her all over again. Only this time I know for sure that she didn’t intend to come home.”

  “No, Mr … Samuel! No apology necessary.” I went to him and hugged him, breathing in the mechanical smell of nano-grease from his overalls. It brought back the memory of another Saturday afternoon – during the summer before Elizabeth died – Samuel came in from his workshop and she’d complained about his grimy clothes. He’d deliberately smudged the end of her nose with his grubby finger and she chased him out of the kitchen, shaking a wet cloth at him. Of course Seth had been hugely embarrassed by his ’rents’ antics, but I’d thought it was so lovely that they still had so much romance in their lives.

  Will Seth and I be as happy when we’ve sorted all this out?

  CHAPTER 27

  LONDON: May 2103

  “Thank you, ladies and gentlemen.” Dale Johnson raised his hand to stop the applause. When everyone had settled down he continued, “I can’t thank you all enough for the wonderful support you have given to this project. Without your backing, both financial – still time to donate by the way –,” A wave of laughter flowed around the room, “and hands on,” A group of gap-year students cheered, “the Kalamoombi Community Hub would not exist. I hope this evening has shown you how important these facilities are to the region. In theory, the massive reduction in the world’s population last century should have created a more equitable distribution of resources. In reality, the issues affecting the developing countries were simply compounded by the stalling of technological developments worldwide. The wealthier countries looked after their own problems and the poorer regions slipped further behind.

  This evening I am pleased to announce that the recent G20 Summit confir
med its support of a new initiative, using our own model as the benchmark, and encouraging successful organisations to forge partnerships with those struggling across the globe. Exciting times lie ahead and we are looking forward to helping even more communities like Kalamoombi.” He raised his glass. “To the future. To a truly ‘Global Village’.”

  Images of the hub’s construction were projected around the room, accompanied by wild cheers from the students whenever one of their friends was pictured.

  “Hey, Beth, there’s the one of you chasing off that meerkat.”

  “He kept pinching my lunch,” Beth responded, sitting upright and imitating the staccato movements of the cheeky little creature. Just as she popped a spicy snack into her mouth a hand clasped her shoulder, surprising her. Her colleagues squealed with laughter as the hand that had caused her choking fit then slapped her on the back to ease her uncontrollable coughing.

  “Sorry, Bethany. I didn’t mean to startle you.”

  “That’s okay, Mr Johnson,” she croaked. She struggled to contain her coughing but the effort caused tears to stream down her cheeks. Could it be any more embarrassing?

  “No, it’s entirely my fault,” he insisted, handing her a clean handkerchief to wipe her face and pouring a fresh glass of water.

  Beth gratefully sipped at the cool drink and her spasms finally subsided.

  “I’m fine thank you,” she said, in a raspy tone.

  “Hm, I’ll keep you company for a moment just to be on the safe side.” The others had wandered away from the table so Dale sat beside her. “I came over to offer my congratulations on your placement at Lloyd and Durleigh. How’s it going?”

  “You heard?” Beth was surprised that the man she respected almost as much as she did her grandfather would be following her progress.

  “Yes. They asked me for a reference.”

  Beth felt her cheeks burn with embarrassment again. Of course – she’d put the details of her gap-year work on her application to the Sandridge Magna solicitors’ firm. It wasn’t anything to do with Dale Johnson taking a personal interest, although for him to have written the reference himself was a nice touch.

  “Do you have a specific area of the law you want to pursue?”

  So he was interested after all!

  “I’ve only just qualified so I have to take what’s handed my way,” she replied.

  “Qualified a year early and with honours, if I’m not mistaken. I’m sure you’ll soon find your feet, Beth.”

  “Gramps has been bragging again hasn’t he?” She glared towards the table where Lord Simpson was in conversation with one of the younger royals.

  Dale smiled at her discomfort. “And why shouldn’t he? If my girls grow up to be as talented, committed and beautiful as you, I’m sure I’ll be well ahead of him in the bragging stakes.”

  “Are you flirting again, dear?” A tall, elegant and utterly stunning woman laid a perfectly manicured hand on Dale’s shoulder.

  “But of course, Geraldine, my love,” he said, kissing her slender fingers, “I have to hone my skills so that I can keep up with you. I saw you giving Herr Nussbaum palpitations when you were chatting with him during dessert.”

  Geraldine Johnson gave her husband a playful slap on his arm and turned to Beth.

  “I’m sorry to interrupt, Bethany, dear, but Dale needs to do the rounds. We have to sign up as many of these multi-nationals as we can.”

  “No, please. Don’t mind me,” Beth gestured towards her grandfather, “I need to catch up with Gramps, anyway.”

  As the Johnsons walked away from her table Beth heard them discussing a potential joint venture with a multi-national pharmaceutical corporation. Her interest piqued when she recognised the company name; Trevalyn. One of these days she really must dig out Great-Granny Julia’s old notes. Several years too late for the deal to see ‘Thorny Lyrics’ but she had promised to help Gramps with the mystery of Julia’s obsession. Although where she was going to find time amongst the heavy workload and extra studies was anyone’s guess.

  CHAPTER 28

  Ellingham: 3 August 2110

  Is there anything more cringe-worthy than the ’rents exchanging baby stories?

  Mum, Dad and Samuel were laughing at another anecdote about Seth and me from when we were just kids and, whilst it was a relief to see them getting on so well after the initial awkwardness, it was becoming embarrassing to be the subject of their conversation. I looked at Seth and his pained expression showed he was feeling the same way.

  “We’ll clear the table,” I volunteered.

  “Thanks for a lovely meal, Mrs Hanson,” added Seth, as he collected the plates.

  “You’re welcome, Seth,” said Mum, smiling at the compliment.

  It seemed odd to have such normality after our discoveries earlier in the day. Samuel’s brief outburst was quickly forgotten and he, Seth and I had sat around the kitchen table trying to decipher Elizabeth’s Handi entries. It wasn’t an easy task. Often we’d break off when the reminder of their loss became too much for Samuel and Seth. Elizabeth could only make vague references to the killer and her device to guide us was to use literary quotes – some easier to understand than others. Through it all, I sensed Nina’s presence sustaining Samuel as the revelations kept coming. For nearly four years he’d believed his wife had simply found life too depressing to carry on. He’d felt the guilt of not being able to make her happy, the anger that his love wasn’t enough for her and the pain of never coming to terms with the loss of his soul-mate. Now he learned something of the truth. Elizabeth had loved him unconditionally and was devastated that she could no longer be with him. She’d struggled with a dark and awful secret that was impossible to share, even with him. Finally, she’d felt strong enough to take this horror away from her family, knowing that they wouldn’t understand her actions. Knowing that she was going to break their hearts.

  We were no closer to the identity of Elizabeth’s murderous PT although we were convinced that all the entries in her Handi were significant and needed further consideration. I tried to focus my memory to see if I could connect to any more of the victims but merely sensed confusing, disjointed images and the voices became intrusive as I lowered my mental barriers. Seth noticed my grimace at the renewed noise and reached for my hand. He shook his head, silently telling me not to risk losing my control over the connections. I reluctantly ‘closed the door’ and the voices became quieter again. We hadn’t told Samuel about my vivid recollections of two of the murders. We didn’t think he’d want us to pursue things if he thought I was at any risk of following Elizabeth’s path. There were still some of our own secrets that we weren’t ready to share yet.

  Unexpectedly, Mum had provided a welcome distraction by calling to insist that we all went back to mine for a ‘proper Sunday roast’. Our light brunch and even the emotions of the day hadn’t completely dampened our teenage appetites. Samuel was practical enough to want something to eat as he’d skipped breakfast due to the early call-out. So here we were, stuffed with roast beef, Yorkshire puddings and all the trimmings.

  “I’m so glad you and Seth could come over this afternoon,” Mum was saying to Samuel. “It’s nice to cook a full family meal once in a while. Desirée’s out most of the time these days.”

  My teeth clenched at her use of my full name. Thought she’d got over that!

  “It was good of you to invite us, Celeste. Not often we get such splendid home-cooking, is it lad?”

  “No, Dad,” Seth replied dutifully, but I saw his eyes roll upwards. Despite the chirpy conversation and mutual appreciation going on, we could feel the underlying tension. There was an uneasiness between the adults – they were being too polite to put into words what they really wanted to say. I decided to push the bull into the china shop!

  “Mum’s really sorry that she didn’t tell you about seeing Elizabeth that evening, aren’t you, Mum?”

  Her eyes opened wide in shock and her face paled. She swallowed the sip of wine
that she’d just taken and licked her lips nervously. The look she gave me suggested I’d pay for that comment later.

  “Y…yes. Of course I am, Samuel. I should’ve come straight to you when we found out she was missing. I’ll never forgive myself.” Tears were staining her face and I felt ashamed of myself for putting her in this situation.

  “Don’t worry Celeste,” said Samuel. “We all feel we should’ve done things differently. We’re only just finding out what happened and it doesn’t look like any of us could’ve changed the outcome.” He leaned across the table to pat Mum’s hand. “Now we have to follow her advice and remember who she really was. She wouldn’t want us to be beating ourselves up.”

  “No. She just wants us to nail the bastard who did this to her!” Seth’s voice had an edge to it that worried me. It was one thing to work out the clues but, as Dad had suggested, it was another thing entirely to go after the killer ourselves. Seth’s bad language went unchallenged as everyone seemed to be caught up in their own thoughts and I was trying hard not to hear them.

  ***

  The ’rents had gone for a stroll to walk off their indulgent meal and make room for the cake Mum had promised us. Seth and I took a picnic blanket out to the garden and laid side-by-side staring up at the clear blue sky. Bees busily gathered pollen and we could hear a neighbour’s children squealing with delight as they splashed about in their paddling pool.

  I squeezed Seth’s hand.

  “Got an idea,” I said.

  “Oh-oh. That sounds ominous.”

  I squeezed his hand harder until he surrendered.

  “Okay, okay. I’m sorry. What’s your idea?” he said, rubbing his tortured fingers.

  “I was thinking – if I remembered those murders as though I was the victim, maybe I can recall what happened to the others.”

  “We still don’t know how you’re getting these memories. Or whether they’re accurate.” Seth sat up and looked down at me, concern obvious in his eyes.