The Voyager's Aide: The Disappearance

Story II

Chapter 10: A kick in the head

New York City, 1983

By 6:00pm John Henry and Regina finished off a light dinner and then moved on to wait in the lobby. They busied themselves reading, but kept their eyes on Elizabeth. At 6:15pm Regina noticed a dark-haired man come into the hotel and greet her. Regina rolled her eyes as Elizabeth smacked his arm and chastised him in a whiny voice for being late.

"Boy, does she have him whipped or what? That man is henpecked for sure." John Henry said. He dropped the newspaper disgusted; every page was filled with crime and murder. "And history considers the Old West to be wild and untamed." He muttered. "Hypocrites."

"Aww, John, I told you reading that was going to depress you."

"I know, but its good to be on the up and up with the time zone you're in, right? Hey, lets get outta here now and wait outside."

The Voyagers strolled through the rotating glass doors, After getting caught in the rotation twice, John Henry finally stumbled out irritated while Regina laughed at him.

"Dang, why can't a door just be a door?"

They waited under a nearby Jewelry store awning. John Henry caught the glare of desire in Regina's eyes as she took note of the diamond rings and necklaces laid out on red and blue velvet. He held her elbow and led her underneath a Chinese take-out awning.

"John, what did you do that for? Lo Mein and Chop Suey does not compare to a Cartier. "

"I saw them diamonds sparkling in your baby blues, I couldn't risk it."

"Hey! I know, I know, but they were so beautiful. I was only looking…you know its coming up soon."

"Our anniversary? Darlin' we've only been married two months."

Regina crossed her arms with a smirk. "Hmmph, just keeping you on your toes. Hey, there they go! Oh man, I should have known they wouldn't be walking in this rain."

The Voyagers followed the young couple around the Avenue and halted when they saw them hop into the backseat of a taxi. John Henry raised his arm to flag down another one turning the corner, but Regina stopped him.

"Wait a minute, there's a great invention that I completely forgot we could use, the white pages, c'mon."

The two went back into The Muse and borrowed the front desk copy. Jeffrey's relatives were listed a few Covingtons down the page under 'T & E Covington.'

"We got them! 322 West 30th Street. That's not too far, babe."

"I say we hoof it, we just might make it there before they do, that traffic isn't going anywhere in this jam."

-O-

Jeremy Saunders and Jeffrey Jones were caught in snarled Mid-town traffic for the last ten minutes and there was no sign of it breaking. The rain continued to fall in sheets and Jeremy kept the windows locked tight and the wipers on high speed. He had to continually rub the fogged glass with his sleeve to see ahead of him. Most of the cars turned their headlights on as darkened outside.

"Aww jeez, I really hate driving in the City, you know? Your aunt is probably calling the cops by now."

"Or having a party." Jeffrey said. He was chilly and kept his arms folded to warm himself. Jeremy toyed with the heat until a steady stream of warm air blew on them.

"Sorry about that, this car is on its last legs. Jeffrey, how do you think your aunt really feels about you?"

"I don't know, Mr. Saunders, I'm just a big burden on everyone. A year after my parents died, I heard what she said to Tom. She wasn't happy being 'saddled' with an eleven-year-old kid. I guess I can understand, she never wanted kids in the first place and then she got me."

"That's no excuse for her not to love you. You're her family, her brother's son."

Jeffrey's eyes flashed. "Look, she doesn't love anyone but herself, okay? If my dreams were real I wouldn't even be here right now! I'd be helping history along with Bogg! He loves me!"

Jeremy fell silent. The sharpness in Jeffrey's tone advised him it was time to change the subject. Jeffrey played with his seat belt, his cheeks felt hot, and he glanced at his teacher.

"I'm sorry Mr. Saunders, I didn't mean to snap at you."

"Hey Jeff, I understand, we have other important matters to discuss."

Jeffrey came to full attention and sat up taller with a gleam in his eyes. "That's right! Voyagers!"

"Actually, I was referring to my essay assignment. Do you have a clue what you might want to write about?"

Jeffrey looked at him in disbelief. "What? The essay? What about everything we talked about? All the papers and sketches you showed me? The Guidebook, the omni, time travel!"

Jeremy's hands clenched the wheel and his eyes clouded over. He tried to keep his full attention on the road, noticing the traffic move forward. He knew the boy was right, however, he had put that part of his life away years ago. Reality had since smacked him hard in the face, especially with the death of Kirstie. He had shoved the dreams to a dark corner of his mind.

"Jeff, I know its crazy and weird…fantastic, but what of it? When you get to be my age you learn to stop chasing rainbows and start facing hard facts."

Jeffrey faced teacher. The man was avoiding the facts.

"Mr. Saunders…Jeremy! You can't just act like it's nothing. We know each other from our dreams; we have whole alternate lives, and the people in my dreams are the same people in yours! Its like…like…" Jeffrey bit the bullet and spilled all his feelings. "It's just like Kirstie said when she died, none of this was supposed to happen. Are you just gonna let that go, now that you know there's more to it? Now that we found each other and can actually start to make some sense of it all?"

"Jeffrey, dreams are dreams! They're not real."

"C'mon, explain to me about the book you found, the 'V' on the cover, all the future dates. Don't tell me you haven't followed along throughout the years watching everything in that book come true! You know as well as I do, it stands for something, 'Voyagers!' And that's what we're supposed to be. Not stuck here wasting our lives being upset and lonely. We have a mission, an assignment, but something went wrong somewhere…"

Jeremy looked at him teary-eyed. "You're absolutely right, Jeffrey, I just…somewhere along the way I stopped believing in many things and this was one of them."

Jeffrey rubbed his head as deep and profound thoughts struck him. The dreams he had earlier shook him up, but he kept it from Jeremy. He wasn't sure how far he could trust him with his secrets, but now he found he was able to confide in him.

"Mr. Saunders, something went terribly wrong in my dreams. When I woke up in your apartment, Bogg and I were on a beach somewhere in Quint…Quint…uhh, I think it was Mexico, there was a lot of Mayan Ruins."

"Ahh, Quintanna Roo! I've heard of the place…go on, Jeffrey; tell me what happened. I forgot to ask you about it. Tell me everything before you forget."

Jeremy reached into his glove compartment and pulled out a notepad and pen. "Here. Write it down."

"Okay…I think we were on vacation and Kayla was there." He scribbled.

Jeremy's expression darkened. "Jeffrey, there is something else I didn't mention yet and I brought something with me for you to see. I was going to just forget it, but I can't. It's about Kayla Sheppard…but tell me your dream first."

Jeffrey was getting very excited at the unexpected turn of discussion. Things were starting to fall into place now. It was like he and Mr. Saunders were putting together a big puzzle, and each of them had half the pieces.

"We were standing on the ruins and I remember wanting to explore them. Bogg was with Kayla looking at the seaside and when I came down to them, he was acting crazy, I mean, he was in pain! He could barely stand up and he kept calling out for his sister, her name was Joanna. He said things like, "I can't reach her…we're dying! It was so scary." Jeffrey shuddered.

The traffic cleared and Jeremy took a quick right down the side street. He had to get off the main Avenue. They were only a few blocks away from Jeffrey's apartment building. He found an available parking spot and grabbed it. He put on the car light and gave Jeffrey his full attention.

"Tell me more, Jeff, then what happened?"

"The last thing I remember was that Bogg disappeared! He faded away. And then Kayla was hugging me, telling me something about time fluxes and how Bogg didn't exist because he already died…oh man, Mr. Saunders, I should have told you this earlier, but I was shocked to see you and trying to figure out how I knew who you were."

Jeremy's face blanched. He understood what Kayla meant in the dreams. The time flux was what caused temporal disorientation and created alternating realities. A deep anticipation and dread built up in him.

"You did start crying a little in your sleep, Jeff. I thought you would wake up, but you didn't. I didn't want to rouse you out of it either. What is it, is there anything else?"

"She just kept saying to remember us, don't forget anything…"

The sickening knot that tied in Jeffrey's stomach tightened. His voice choked up and he held his teacher's arm.

"Something terrible happened to Bogg back there, Mr. Saunders. It was something that affected his life in his past! When he disappeared…we did!"

Jeremy sat back and held his mouth. Everything was falling into place now, the dreams, visions, and the Guidebook's existence. He reached behind him and grabbed his briefcase; he pulled out an old red book wrapped in plastic.

"After Kirstie died in 1970, I was a mess, I didn't know what to do with myself. Sometimes I just felt like I wanted to die too, but then I started to remember the dreams I had and all the notes I kept. I realized that if I was a Voyager Aide in New York, then so was Kayla Sheppard. I got this fancy notion that I could actually look her up and I started to investigate. It took a while, I came across a few dead ends and the wrong women, but I managed to connect the name to an orphanage on the Lower East side. When I went there, the place was being shut out of business."

I made some inquiries and they gave me an old brown knapsack. They didn't care who I was and why I wanted it. They told me that back in the early fifties Kayla's landlord came and dropped it off, because she was supposed to have moved into her apartment and never did. He said he found it strewn about on the living room floor, but he never heard from her again. They sealed the bag up and that was that. The orphanage just assumed she ran away or died, they never did check. I couldn't believe the find. There were some personal items inside, money and this red diary. I read it through once and it just…freaked me out."

Jeffrey wiped his eyes, trying to control his heart from racing. "What happened, what was in the book?"

"Open it Jeff, see for yourself. After that year, I wrapped the book up and put everything related to these dreams in that metal box and locked it away. I vowed never to look at it again and I didn't, until tonight."

Jeffrey unwrapped the plastic and opened the book with shaky hands. The pages were torn at the edges and yellowed with age. The spine cracked along the ridge and he had to keep his fingers on the corners to hold it in place. He started reading the scrawled, childlike handwriting. It was a little difficult because of the faded ink and misspellings, but he managed. Jeremy waited patiently until Jeffrey finished a few pages and then told him to look inside the back of the book. Jeffrey already trembled from the entries and he almost didn't want to.

"Go ahead, this is the key we've been wondering about, and it will help you make sense of a lot of your dreams."

Jeffrey opened the piece of drawing paper and gasped, it fell from his hand and Jeremy caught it. "That's us! That's Bogg and me! It's all true Mr. Saunders! It's all true and Kayla's diary proves it!"

The rain subsided and Jeffrey ran out of the car. He caught himself on a black wrought iron fence. He held his stomach and looked up at the sky.

"Bogg! Where are you? I need you!" He shouted into the air. "What happened to you! What!"

Jeremy ran up and kept him steady. Jeffrey was crying very hard. Jeffrey grasped him.

"I know what it is now! Something happened in Bogg's life that killed him and his sister, that caused some kind of…"

"Paradox!" Jeremy bellowed. He paced, rubbing his hand through his wavy hair, and throwing them up in the air. He spoke rapidly, trying to put everything together.

"It…it…it…caused a disturbance in the time zone, causing a new alternate universe to form, a universe where Bogg had never existed…and…and…this is that universe! Kirstie was right! She must have felt it too because she had a life with me in the other one. None of this was meant to be! Our dreams should be our realities!"

Jeffrey was still digesting everything he read in the diary, but what Jeremy told him made perfect sense. The teacher and student were excited about their discoveries; they walked fast to the apartment, discussing the new disclosures that came to them.

-O-

"I told you we don't know anything!" Elizabeth shouted as her attacker threw her against the wall. "Let us go!"

Billy and Dwight were lying in wait at the Covington apartment. As soon as Elizabeth and Tom came inside, they pounced on them. They were aggravated that Jeffrey Jones wasn't home. Dwight had Tom strip to his boxers and then tied him to the post of his king size bed to humiliate him. Billy grabbed Elizabeth's hair and brought her to the bedroom.

"Man! This one just doesn't shut up. What do you mean you don't know anything? Jones is your nephew!" He tossed her next to Tom and pulled out a thin garrote from his pocket. "I'm sick of these two, wherever that kid is, he's bound to be back."

Elizabeth curled up next to Tom, he couldn't speak because Dwight had shoved a black, dirty sock in his mouth. Billy moved in toward her, snapping his weapon. Elizabeth screamed and Tom joined her in muffled tones. Dwight yanked out his taser and shoved Billy aside.

"There is a much easier way to do this with less fuss! Billy, you are so old school!"

He turned the taser up to maximum power.

-O-

John Henry and Regina came to the entrance. The Covington's managed to beat them to the apartment by ten minutes. They hit the bell numerous times until they were buzzed inside and rode the elevator to the top floor of the building.

"Hon, what are we gonna tell them? She's going to recognize us from the hotel."

"Listen, we're not gonna say anything Reg, we're just gonna grab Jeff and bring him back to Headquarters, no questions asked. What are they gonna do about it? Once we leave, this alternate reality or whatever it is won't exist!"

"You always have to storm into everything don't you? He's gonna be frightened out of his wits."

"He lived through it the first time around when Bogg did it, it will be alright."

The elevator doors opened and they walked onto the plush red carpet. Each floor consisted of five large apartments, 2G was at the end of the hall and they stopped by the door. Just as Regina was about to knock, John Henry grabbed her hand and silenced her. He put his ear to the door, and his eyes widened.

"Hon, there's people in there, I hear yelling!"

Regina listened in. "You're right? What's going on in there?"

"What if it's them? Paradox! They're after Jeffrey too! Stand back!"

John Henry gave two swift kicks to the door jamb and cracked the locks. Regina grabbed her taser from her pocket and they ran inside. The bedroom door was ajar, and Tom and Elizabeth were unmoving on the bed, clouds of smoke rose from their bodies.

"Damn! Too late!" John Henry yelled.

Billy leaped from the closet and knocked him to the ground, they began a scuffle. Dwight grabbed for Regina, but she elbowed him and took his arm. She flipped him onto his back. The fight between Billy and John Henry spilled out of the room. Billy gave him a quick uppercut that sent him spinning onto the couch. He held his jaw and shook his head.

"That's it you mangy sunuva..!" He didn't finish his oaths and lunged for him.

-O-

Jeffrey let himself into the main door with a key. They rode up the elevator in silence, giving each other brief, nervous glances. Jeffrey finally spoke.

"Do you realize what this means, Mr. Saunders? If we can get things right again, we won't exist anymore. I won't be stuck here with my aunt and you and Kirstie will be married in the Brownstone…you won't be my…my teacher." The last thought hit Jeffrey almost as hard as the time flux discovery.

Jeremy knelt down to Jeffrey. He gazed at him. "I know that Jeff, I just thought of that now too. I really don't know how we're going to make things right again, but we have to try. For what its worth, you were my best student and a joy to have in class. I know if all this gets corrected, we'll be great friends either way. Besides, there's something good out of this…"

Jeffrey looked at him curious, his eyes brimmed over again with tears. "What's that…Jeremy?"

"No more homework and Saunder essays!"

Jeffrey's face crumpled in sadness. He grabbed Jeremy by his neck and sobbed in his suede jacket.

"I love your essays, Mr. Saunders! I'm…I'm scared! I don't want to disappear, I don't want to become nothing…"

The fear that gripped Jeffrey crept upon him too, but he didn't let it show. Jeremy held the boy tight.

"You'll never become 'nothing' Jeffrey. You'll always have a special purpose, no matter where you are! Hey, we're not even going to realize anything happened, we won't even remember these lives and I'm happy about that for my own sake too. We'll always be pals."

Jeffrey pulled away and squared his shoulders. He clung to his teacher's arm.

"Please don't leave me alone, Jeremy…I need you. I don't have anyone."

Jeremy grasped his hand as the elevator doors opened. "I'm with you Jeffrey, count on it."

-O-

John Henry rammed into Billy and knocked him through the glass coffee table in the living room. He wasn't shocked to see two of the worst slime from VHQ in the apartment, but he couldn't let them hurt Jeffrey Jones. Billy was stunned, but recovered quick and ran for the front door. John Henry wiped his bloody nose and hopped over the glass shards. He dove for him, grabbing the tail end of his trench coat.

"Get back here ya creep!"

Billy wound up half dragging John Henry out the doorway and then he tripped right in front of the open elevator. Jeremy looked down in shock and slammed the 'door close' button. When Billy saw Jeffrey he threw his body between the closing doors, and tried to pull at his legs. Jeremy pushed Jeffrey to the corner of the elevator and kicked at Billy's arms and hands.

John Henry ran forward and threw his large body on top of Billy, keeping him in a choke hold. He looked at Jeremy stunned.

"Saunders!"

"Sheppard?"

"Don't let that boy go anywhere, he has to come with us! We're Voyagers!"

"Yes…yes! You are!"

Regina screamed from inside. John Henry dropped his hold on Billy's head; he was almost losing consciousness. Jeffrey ran out from the elevator before Jeremy could stop him.

"I know you! I saw you in my dreams, you're John Henry Sheppard!"

John Henry smiled at him and stood up. "Hot damn! You do remember! Hey man, hold him down, don't let him go anywhere and don't let him touch that omni!" He ran back to the apartment.

Jeremy kept his knee in Billy's back and Jeffrey grabbed the omni off his belt loop. A few apartment doors opened.

"What's going on here? I called the Police!" An old woman with curlers in hair shouted.

Billy regained his senses and pushed Jeremy off him, he shot his taser right near her head, melting one of the rollers. She shrieked.

"Get back inside you old bag! All of you get back inside!"

He shot at the other doors and they all slammed shut. Jeremy dove for Jeffrey and held him down, covering his body as laser charges flew all around. Billy stepped up to them laughing.

-O-

Dwight wasn't a big man, but he was still able to get the better of Regina. He whacked her across the cheek and she landed on the bed in pain. She rolled over fast so she wouldn't touch the Covingtons. Their bodies were still charged with thousands of volts of electricity. She kicked Dwight in the chest and he sprawled backwards, landing in the closet. All the clothing and the shelving fell on top of him. John Henry ran to her side, breathless.

"Darlin', you all right?"

"Yeah I am, he almost got me though."

John Henry traced the red welt on her cheek. He went to the closet and picked Dwight up, shaking him.

"Who sent ya? Lorna? Answer me!"

"You got that right…pardner." Dwight wheezed. He was dizzy from the tumble.

John Henry tossed him back to floor. He approached the bed. "Babe, be careful! They're still charged."

He avoided contact with his skin, and tore the ropes off of Tom's arms. He tossed them to Regina. "Here! Shoot fire, I gotta get back to Jeff and Saunders! We gotta get them both back. Tie him up good!"

Regina grabbed Dwight's omni and tossed it across the room. She wrapped the rope around his arms in tight bonds.

-O-

"Well, well, well, what do you know? Two birds with one stone! Like the fella once said, ain't that a kick in the head?" He snarled in a singsong voice.

Billy moved his foot back, ready to kick Jeremy in the face, but Jeremy's hand shot out and grabbed his ankle.

"I don't think so RYAN! You're nothing but a stupid file hacker that couldn't even advance to level B." He rumbled with an onslaught of memories.

He used all his strength and yanked hard, Billy stumbled into the wall, and knocked his head. He shook off the blow and whipped his taser up. Jeremy staggered up, and kept Jeffrey shielded behind him.

"Look at you, you're nothing but a pathetic old school teacher, no life and no woman…man that Kirstie was a hot one. After I'm through with you, I think I'll go back in time a few years and give her a few rounds with a real man. Maybe I'll just tie you up so you can wa…"

Jeremy's eyes went wide in a rage. He ran at Billy and punched his face. "Shut up! Don't you ever talk about her like that!"

John Henry ran down the hall, he pulled out his taser. "Saunders! Look out!"

Jeffrey grabbed Jeremy's waist and pulled him back just as Billy pressed the button. Billy slid down the wall, unconscious from John Henry's taser. Jeremy felt the electricity enter his body and travel to his heart. He stiffened and forced himself out of Jeffrey's arms so he wouldn't jolt him. He collapsed on the ground in heaving gasps.

"NO! NO! Mr. Saunders!" Jeffrey knelt down and cried into his jacket. Jeremy's body twitched and he choked, his eyes fluttered open and shut.

"Jeffrey…Jeff…be strong! They need you. Everything will be alright…maybe it's…it's…better this way…I'll see you again."

Jeremy closed his eyes and Jeffrey screamed and shook him. John Henry reached over to feel his pulse. He was gone. He got up and punched the wall, causing a deep crack. Jeffrey grabbed John Henry's shirt. He beat on him in a rage.

"Do something! Don't let him die! I need him! I need him to help me! Save him! Save Bogg! We have to save Bogg and fix it!"

John Henry had to struggle with the hysterical boy so he wouldn't push in Billy's omni; he jerked it out of his hand.

"This is all an unreality kid! We are gonna make this right! I promise! I promise!"

Regina came over and covered her mouth; tears ran down her cheeks at seeing the older Jeremy Saunders on the floor. She sank down next to John Henry.

"What…what happened, John?"

John Henry shook his head, his heart pounded and his blue eyes reddened from tears. "I was too late Reg…too late again! I'm such a damn failure."

Jeffrey stood angry, he wrenched himself from John Henry. "Yes you are! You could have saved him! What about my aunt and uncle, did you let them die too?"

John Henry winced at the words; He heaved his big shoulders and wiped his nose again. He couldn't look the boy in the eye.

"They did die! What kind of Voyagers are you? Bogg would never have let any of this happen! You are the worst!"

Regina approached him gently. "Jeffrey…we must take you back to Voyager's Headquarters and make everything right. We need you to help us find Phineas Bogg and save his life in his past so none of this happens. You have to stay focused and tell us everything you know. The whole future of the Voyager race is at stake here. History is completely off kilter...Please help us…please."

She squeezed his shoulders and he looked up at her with wan eyes, all his fight gone.

"If stay here, I have nothing, no one. I'll help you. That's what Bogg would do."

John Henry patted Jeffrey's back. "I'm no Phineas Bogg, kid, but I try my best. I'm so sorry."

Jeffrey's anger faded, he remembered the man had helped and comforted him on the Brooklyn Bridge when he was tied up with the bombs. He even risked his life and tore him out of the restraints with his own teeth.

"Is there anything you need Jeff, before we go?

"Yeah, my notebooks, all of them. It's in my desk drawer, I'll go…"

John Henry stopped him. "No, don't go in there, I'll get them for ya."

When John Henry returned, Jeffrey was struggling to keep his composure and hugged Regina for support. Suddenly, a swarm of police officers burst through the stairwell and out of the elevator. They pointed at them with shotguns.

"Freeze! Nobody move! Hands in the air now!"

John Henry raised his arms with the omni in his palm, he nudged Regina with his knee and she slid her foot close and wrapped her leg around his, keeping one hand Jeffrey's shoulder.

Jeffrey clasped the journals and gazed determined at Jeremy Saunders. "I'm gonna save you. You, Bogg, Kayla and everyone else! I won't let you down."

"We said hands in the air!" They cocked their guns. "Good! Now that thing in your hand, lower it to the floor, slowly!"

Dwight wobbled out of the apartment with his taser up.

"Don't even think about leaving, Voyagers!"

"He's got a weapon!" The cops opened fire.

John Henry pushed the omni, leaving Billy to deal with the chaos as they raced through the cosmos.