F Paul Wilson - Novel 05 (34 page)

 
          
As
you leave it behind you see that a few of its lines and bars have been
realigned. The overall shape makes no more sense to you than before, and yet...

 
          
I've
learned something, you think.

 
          
But
what? And what does it have to do with Sam?

 
          
You
can't exit the program soon enough.

 
          
When
people question the malleability of memory, I
tell
them about the
"bam" experiment. Volunteers were shown a film of a car accident
where one car putted out of an intersection and was hit by another. A week
later, they were asked how fast they thought Car B was going when it passed the
bam. 17% remembered the bam, and could give details about its shape and color.

 
          
There
was no bam anywhere on the film.

—
Random
notes: Julia Gordon

1

 
          
Julie
left the headset on and sat with her eyes closed. She could hear Eathan saying
something, but it was muffled through the headphones. She wished she were
alone. She didn’t want to face Eathan and Alma in this emotional state. She
felt as if she were unraveling before their eyes.

 
          
A
few deep breaths, a couple of rubs of her moist palms against her jeans, and
she pulled herself free.

 
          
"
—
no question about it!" Eathan was saying.

           
Julie looked up at him as he paced
back and forth in the tiny bit of open space remaining in Sam's room.

 
          
"Pardon?"

 
          
"O'Donnell!
He did it! No question about it! Samantha connected him with the fire
—
she could place him in the city, on the scene. He had to
silence her."

 
          
"The
bank?" Julie said. "The one in the 'scape?"

 
          
"Yes.
The Branham Bank's Knightsbridge branch was fire-bombed last month. Something
to do with its dealings with
Ulster
, I think
—
I don't keep up on all these political squabbles. But I
remember some radical group taking credit for it."

 
          
A
wave of nausea hit her. She didn't want to believe that
—
after all, she'd hidden in Eathan's wall cabinet with the
man
—
but she'd seen Liam and the
fire with her own eyes... or rather, with Sam's.

 
          
"Was
anybody hurt?"

 
          
Eathan
shook his head. "I don't think so. The explosion was after hours."

 
          
Julie
glanced over at Alma, who still sat white-faced before the monitor. "What
do you think?"

 
          
"I
don't know," she said softly. "I want to watch the tape a couple of
times. I think it's clear this Liam O'Donnell is responsible for the Branham
fire
—
or at least Sam believes so
—
but that's not the interesting part of this session."
She shook her head sadly. "That poor girl. So many conflicts. I realize
now that even with all my sessions with her, I barely scratched the
surface."

 
          
"I
just realized something myself," Eathan said. "That bank explosion
—
it occurred a week before Sam was found unconscious.
One
week!"

 
          
"Perhaps
we should show this tape to Scotland Yard,"
Alma
said.

 
          
"No,"
Julie said. "This is not evidence against anyone.
And
I don't want
this process made public. At least not yet, and
not
in such a
sensational way."

 
          
"But
if he's a terrorist
—
"

 
          
"No.
I can't allow it."

 
          
Alma
shrugged. "As you wish.
The tape is yours. But I do wish to study it."

           
"Please ... study it all you
want. But don't let it leave the house."

2

 
          
After
dinner, Eathan stood in the second-floor hallway outside Julie's bedroom.

 
          
"Sure
you don't want a cordial? It might relax you."

 
          
"The
last thing I need is a drink. I'm pooped."

 
          
"Stress
will do that to you. Your mind is calling for a timeout, a respite from the
strain you've put yourself under. And the best respite is sleep."

 
          
They
hadn't spoken about the rest of her experiences in the memoryscape today, what
happened and what she saw.

 
          
She
needed to mention it.

 
          
"I
never knew they had a problem. My mother
—
"

 
          
"You
don't know what you saw, Julia. It was memory, filtered through a very young
girl. Who knows what layers of meaning Sam put on it through the years."

 
          
"And
what about all those other doors?"

 
          
Eathan
shook his head. "I'm sure they're burned down, consumed in the fire. You
know
—
" He stood up.
"Samantha never got over the fire ... not like you."

 
          
I
don't know that I'm over it, Julie thought.

 
          
"I
think I'm going to call it a day," she said. "But tomorrow I want to
go back in ... see if any of those other doors remain."

 
          
Eathan
walked in a small circle, staring at the hall rug.

 
          
Something's
wrong, Julie thought.

 
          
"Julia,
do you remember that time you went skating on the pond__ "

 
          
"We
went skating a lot."

 
          
Yes,
but this time you fell. Sammi came running up to the door, screaming about all
the blood."

 
          
Julia
laughed. "Yes, 1 think Sammi enjoyed that."

 
          
Eathan
didn't laugh. "You were crying, though. It was a nasty gash. I ran down to
the ice, picked you up, and carried you here ... close to the fire."

           
"I remember the cocoa."

           
"I bandaged your leg. You didn't
need stitches___ You remember that, eh?"

 
          
"How
could I forget."

 
          
"When
you were little, I never wanted you or Sammi to be hurt. And it's no different
now, Julia..." Eathan came close to her. "I said ... I said I'd call
a halt if I thought anything would happen to you."

 
          
"Nothing
happened to me."

 
          
Eathan
studied her. "You mean to tell me that you weren't frightened when that
fire came for you ... that
—
that you didn't think you'd
get hurt?" He took a breath. "I'm sure your Dr. Siegal is
concerned."

 
          
And
how, she thought. She'd already had an argument with him this evening. The only
reason he agreed to let her keep going was he didn't suspect she had sensory
participation in Sam's 'scape. If he knew that, if either of them even guessed
...

 
          
She'd
been expecting a similar argument with Eathan, but she didn't want to engage
him now. Better to wait till tomorrow. Right now she was wiped, completely
drained.

 
          
"Eathan,
I was never in danger. And even if I were, safety is always just a 'click'
away. But can we discuss this tomorrow?"

 
          
"Of
course. But I don't see why you have to go back in again. I mean, isn't it
clear that O'Donnell is the one?"

 
          
Nothing's
clear, she wanted to say. The more I see, the less I know.

 
          
"But
how do you imagine he did this to Sam?"

 
          
"Maybe
drugs, maybe something psychological. I don't know precisely. But I do know he
was there."

 
          
"What
does
Alma
think?" she said.

 
          
"Oh,
she's still poking through the entrails of that tape."

 
          
"I
wish she'd come up with something."

 
          
"If
anyone can, she will. But you... you need rest."

 
          
"Right."
She pushed off the railing and headed for her room. "Good night, Uncle
Eathan."

 
          
I'm
just like a little girl again, she thought.

 
          
"Good
night, Julia. Oh, by the way. I'll be heading for
Edinburgh
at first light. I have to
clear more time with my department head and take care of some paperwork. See
you for dinner."

 
          
3

 
          
Julie
took a shower and ran into
Alma
on the way back to her room.

 
          
"Have
you found anything?"

 
          
"Hard
to say,"
Alma
said. "I'm getting bits and pieces. But I've been
reviewing all the tapes, especially the last one. And, well, I think I'm onto
something."

 
          
For
an instant, Julie's fatigue slipped away.

 
          
"What
is it? What did you find?"

 
          
"Well
—
"
Alma
seemed wound to the breaking point. "There are so
many pieces, the fire, your sister's troubles, her relationship with Eathan,
and now
—
well, your father and mother
obviously had a problem."

 
          
Julie
had a feeling she was holding something back.

 
          
"Is
it Liam? Is he behind Sam's coma?"

 
          
"He's
no doubt a big part of this. As I said, I don't have the whole picture yet, but
the pieces are fitting together. I mean, I've seen things that neither Samantha
nor Eathan would ever tell me."

 
          
Alma
folded her arms across her
chest. She rubbed her upper arms. How could she be chilled? It was warm in
here.

 
          
"I'm
sure we're only beginning. But you get your rest." She raised a finger to
Julie. "And we're going to help your sister, you and I."

 
          
Julie
smiled. "Good. I'm glad you're here."

 
          
She
stepped into her room and shut the heavy door behind her. Then she fell into
bed, completely exhausted.