Chapter 3:
A wet nose shoved into her hand, and Amanda blinked as a wet little tongue followed it. "Buster," she groaned, "come on, can't I sleep a little longer?" But the little dog was insistent, he had to go out, he had to go out now, and would she please hurry up…
She pulled on jeans and a T-shirt, and left her bedroom, following the little dog downstairs. She sat down at the kitchen table yawning, and looked up as her guest handed her a cup of coffee. "Let me just take Buster out," she said, but Julie shook her head.
"No, let me. It's really cold out this morning; I'm dressed right now, and you aren't." Indeed, she was already dressed. Amanda took a quick glance at the clock; nine-thirty in the morning. "What time did you get up?" she said.
Julie smiled. "Around seven. Listened to some more music, quietly, so I wouldn't wake you. Watched the news. Nothing came back, though; I was hoping that something would jog my memory." She set her coffee cup down. "The only thing I remembered is that I like my coffee with two sugars and a cream." She stood, putting on the coat and boots by the back door and clipped the leash onto the frantically dancing dog's collar. "I tried to take him out earlier so he wouldn't wake you, but he insisted on going to wake you up first."
Amanda grinned. "He doesn't usually go with strangers; I was surprised that he jumped up into your lap so quickly last night. He can't stand my fiance; Bruce doesn't seem to like him much. Well, for that matter, I don't really like him either sometimes." She sat in silence, sipping her coffee and flipping through one of her medical journals as she waited for Julie to bring Buster back in.
A ball of snow on four legs exploded in the back door and shook vigorously, spraying snow in all directions. Amanda screamed with laughter as Julie came in, shielding herself from the flying snow. She tossed the kitchen towel at the girl, who caught it deftly, and proceeded to rub the little dog's fur dry of snow as he wriggled in her arms.
When he was more or less dry Julie straightened up, hung the coat on the hook and took off the boots. She resumed her place at the kitchen table and said quietly, "Bruce?"
Amanda sighed. Well, they'd have to talk about him sooner or later. "Bruce is my fiance. He's been out of town the last four weeks attending a conference on atomic theory. He's due back sometime this week; and we're going to be going back up to Snow Valley to his labs there. This is just a vacation house for him; his parents own it. We were only supposed to be here for the holidays, but he had to leave unexpectedly, and my holiday got extended. I can't wait to get back to the labs and continue my work."
Julie tried to hide her concern, but Amanda could see her trepidation. "I'll talk to Bruce," she said quietly. "Maybe he'll let you stay here, or perhaps you can come with us to our house in Massachusetts. Either way, he's not going to just toss you out. Until you get your memory back, you can stay with us." She smiled kindly at the girl's apprehensive look. "Come on. Let me finish my coffee and then we can run out to the stores and find you something decent to wear. We should be able to get a few nice things for you."
Julie brightened up at that considerably. "Okay," she said.
* * *
Julie looked around. The store was fairly empty; probably due to the snow beginning to fall outside. Amanda walked over to a rack of jeans and picked up a pair of carpenter type jeans. "Do you like these?" she asked.
Julie looked at them in distaste. "I don't think I do," she said. Beside that rack was another one full of classic, regular jeans. She looked them over approvingly. "I think I'm a bit more conservative," she said finally, picking out one. She held it up to her critically. "I don't think I'm a size four."
Amanda smiled. "My jeans seem to fit you all right, they're just a little long. Why don't you try finding a pair in a size six short? You might have more luck that way."
In no time at all, Jubilee had two pairs of jeans in a size six, and several T-shirts and sweaters in a medium. Amanda had been about to suggest smalls, the same size she wore, but Julie had a bit more chest than she did. They were about to leave when she stopped outside a jewelry store, her eye caught by the gold and sapphire ring in the window.
Amanda admired it. "It's pretty," she said.
Julie nodded slowly. "I think I had one like it," she said slowly. "Not exactly like this one…" she closed her eyes. "An oval sapphire in the middle, and there were two teardrop-shaped sapphires on either side. And—I think—there were earrings to go with them."
"There were," Amanda said suddenly. "When I found you, you had a pair of sapphire drop earrings with diamonds on them! I took them off because they were muddy and I wanted to clean them. I completely forgot until now!" She bit her lip. "I didn't see a ring on your finger, though. But there's a place on your right hand where one used to be."
Julie looked down at her finger. Sure enough, there was a ring of paler skin against the slightly darker, more tanned skin of her right ring finger. He stared at it for a while, seeing in her mind's eye the same hand, with a sapphire ring around it. And another hand, rougher, bigger, more masculine, slipping the ring onto her finger. She couldn't see the face linked to that hand, but there were three peculiar bumps on the back of that hand. She'd recognize it if she ever saw it again.
Amanda watched her closely. "Do you remember anything?" she asked when the blank, abstracted look left Julie's eyes.
The girl shook her head, then hesitantly nodded. 'Sort of," she said. "For just a moment there I saw another hand putting a ring on my finger, but I can't see the person's face."
She was silent as she followed Amanda out to her car. "Don't worry," Amanda said kindly as they drove home. "It will all come back sooner or later, Julie."
She parked the car and helped Julie carry the bags into the house. As they went through the kitchen, she saw the light on her answering machine was blinking, and she hit the button. "Hey, Mandy," came Bruce's voice. "I'm coming in on the three o'clock flight from Athens. Come pick me up from the airport around five, will ya? Thanks babe." That was it. There was no 'I miss you' or 'I'm looking forward to seeing you.' Amanda bit her lip. He'd been away since just before Christmas; and he didn't miss her. Not for the first time, she wondered if he was seeing someone else, but she stubbornly pushed the thought aside.
"Look, Julie," she said, poking her head into the spare bedroom, "My fiance wants me to pick him up from the airport. Will you be okay here? I'm taking Buster back to my mother's, so you don't need to worry about him."
"Buster isn't yours?" Julie looked surprised.
Amanda sighed. "Bruce doesn't like animals," she said. "I tried once, and he just kicked Buster around. My mother offered to take him after that. Since then, I drop him off with her whenever Bruce comes to town."
Julie made a face, but didn't voice what she was thinking. "I'll be fine here," she said. "Go on. I want to try on some of the stuff I got. And if you think it will help, I could start dinner."
Amanda grinned. "Would you? That would be a huge relief. I'm not going to have time to cook."
"Sure," Julie smiled agreeably. "Did you have anything planned? Or should I improvise?"
"I was going to make spaghetti for us, but Bruce doesn't like spaghetti. Whatever you feel like making is okay."
Julie helped her carry the dog bed, food, dishes, and toys out to the car, wondering what sort of person this Bruce Garrett was, that he didn't like dogs, or even let his future wife keep one. Maybe he was allergic, she thought, but it was still not fair. Just as she'd felt it wasn't fair when she wasn't allowed to have one growing up.
That particular bit of memory that she'd remembered last night seemed to trigger another memory, and she returned to her room and opened the notebook her hostess had given her to keep track of her thoughts in. There was the image of a smiling, bald man, sitting in a…chair? wheelchair?…she wasn't sure, but he'd been sitting when he told her no, she couldn't have a pet. She got the impression she had been much younger, though. Julie sat for a long time on the bed with the tags on her new clothes scratching her neck as she thought. Finally, sighing, she set the notebook aside and went downstairs.
She examined the refrigerator critically, took out a package of chicken breasts. As she took it out of the fridge, her body seemed to take over, and she felt like she was watching herself as she took butter, milk, and other ingredients out of the fridge and freezer.
It was getting dark by the time she was done, and she looked with some bemusement at the table. "Well, at least I know I can cook," she said to herself, looking with a certain amount of pride at the grilled chicken stir-fry. There was also a side of pasta in a creamy white cheese sauce and steamed frozen green beans tossed in a creamy mushroom sauce. Humming to herself, she washed the pots and pans she had used, dried them, and then sat down to wait for Amanda to get home with Bruce Garrett.
* * *
Amanda listened to the flight announcements anxiously as they were read over the airport's PA system. With some trepidation she heard them say, "Flight 254 from Athens, now disembarking at Gate 2."
Shortly thereafter, she spotted Bruce coming out of the gate. She ran to him, threw her arms around him, and planted an enthusiastic kiss on his lips. "Bruce! Bruce, ooh, I'm so glad to see you! I missed you so much!"
He hugged her stiffly, awkwardly, and then patted her back and said, "Here's my baggage check. Think you can claim my baggage for me? I'm tired. I'm going to wait in the car." He headed off across the parking lot as she headed in to the baggage claim.
He had four bags, all heavy. A passing gentleman, walking by and seeing her struggle with the bags, said, "Can I help you, Ma'am?" She gratefully accepted his help, and he took two of the bags from her and carried them out to the car.
She realized it was a mistake when they came up on the car and she saw Bruce glowering out the window. He got out and hurried to the man, exclaiming, "Darling! You should have told me you needed help! Thank you, Mister," he oozed unctuously. "My fiancee is one of those stubborn, independent types, she hates to ask anyone, even me, for help. Thank you for helping her out," and he dropped the two bags into the trunk, took the two bags Amanda was carrying effortlessly and did the same to them, then he slammed the trunk lid and brushed past the man as if he wasn't even there. Amanda stopped. "Thank you so much," she said, blushing. "I guess I just don't know my own limits, sometimes--"
Bruce beeped the horn irritably. "Come on, Amanda," he said crossly. "I want to get home! I'm tired!" With a quick glance back at the man, Amanda got into the driver's side of the car and started the engine.
"What was that all about, huh?" Bruce said furiously. "You trying to make me look like an ass, huh? Did he ask if he could carry the bags, or did you ask him? I bet you did, huh?"
Amanda kept her eyes on the road, concentrating so she wouldn't start crying. He's probably just tired, she thought to herself as she turned out of the airport and onto the main road. Bruce finally fell silent, and she took a deep breath. "We have a guest at the house," she began.
Bruce turned to look at her. "We what?" And as she expected, he was off again, yelling at her now. "I come home from a long trip, expecting to come home and relax with my fiancee and enjoy the peace and quiet of my home, and now I find you've disrupted it with a guest? Who is it?"
Amanda said quietly, "I found her on Christmas Eve washed up on the boat landing. She was pretty badly hurt. By the cuts and bruises on her I thought she might be someone running from an abusive husband, so I took her in. I cared for her. She had a pretty bad gash on the back of her head, and when she finally woke up from her bout with pneumonia, we both discovered that the bump had erased her short-term memory. She can't remember who she is, or where she's from, or what happened to her, but she's started to remember bits and pieces of things. I was hoping maybe we could let her use the house until she regains her memory…or maybe we could take her to Snow Valley with us." She gripped the steering wheel hard in her hands and waited for the explosion.
Bruce exploded. "Amanda, are you crazy? You took in a complete stranger who can't even remember her own damn name? What were you thinking? What if she's a thief? She's probably faking amnesia to get on your soft side so she can rob the house blind at the first opportunity! She most certainly cannot stay! Out she goes as soon as I get home!"
Amanda subsided miserably in her seat. She should have known he would do that…she should have expected it. She had expected it…but it still came as a nasty surprise to her all the same.
She opened the trunk after she got out of the car and grabbed two of the suitcases. Bruce grabbed the other two, and marched into the house and up the stairs without a word. Amanda shook her head quickly as Julie came into the hallway, and the girl looked somewhat disappointed. She retreated back into the kitchen as Amanda took the two suitcases she carried up to Bruce's room and dropped them by the door.
Julie looked somewhat depressed as Amanda came in. "I'm sorry dear," Amanda said to her, biting her lip at the uncertain look in the girl's eyes. "I tried to talk to him, but he was completely against the idea. Maybe you could stay with my mother; she'd older, and she lives alone, and I'm sure she'd be glad of the company."
Julie nodded, still looking depressed.
* * *
Bruce took his time unpacking. He could smell the dinner downstairs; it smelled delicious. He could just imagine Amanda's guest down there, eating the food Amanda had prepared, and he ground his teeth. Out she was going as soon as he got downstairs!
He finished unpacking, finally, tossed his dirty clothes into the laundry hamper he had insisted Amanda put in his room, and headed down the stairs.
He walked into the kitchen, and stopped in the door. His mouth fell open. That voice was familiar, though he'd only heard it a handful of times. It couldn't be…it couldn't be…but the girl at the sink turned around, and he nearly jumped out of his skin. The voice belonged to the one person he envied the most in the world; Dr. Jubilation Lee. An ugly yellow-green bruise marred one cheek, but it was definitely her!
His mind raced. If what Amanda said was true, and she really didn't remember anything, then here was what he had been waiting for. He could get her to his labs in Snow Valley, take advantage of her powers, and get a few good papers out on her before she regained her memory! It was the opportunity he had wanted. He wanted her at his laboratory; this was perfect!
He sat down at the table, stared at the dishes the girl placed on the table. "Hi," she said shyly to him. "My name's Julie. Actually, I don't know if that's my name or not; but it sounded pretty close."
Bruce smiled widely. When he felt like it, he could be charming. "Well, Julie, Amanda and I are pleased to see you up and around. How are you feeling, my dear?"
Behind him, Amanda froze, her jaw dropping. Was this her Bruce, the one who had just vehemently said Julie couldn't stay? He didn't sound like the same guy!
Julie blinked. He had changed his mind, apparently. And he was handsome. For a moment, as he had come down the kitchen steps, she had thought she recognized him, but the thought had fled almost immediately. She watched anxiously as he took a bite of the chicken and pasta, and smiled as he said, "This is wonderful. You are a very good cook. Where did you learn to cook, dear?"
"I'm not sure," Dr. Lee…Julie, Bruce reminded himself…said. "I can't remember anything." Between bites, she told Bruce all about the last few days, including the little bit she had remembered, and the fact that Amanda thought she might be a mutant.
"Back up," Bruce said finally. "You think you might be a mutant? And you know Latin?" he pretended to think. "Where do you think you learned Latin? Think maybe you're a doctor of some sort?"
"I don't know, I might be," Julie said. She suddenly stiffened in her chair. In front of her eyes, an image appeared of little multi-colored sparks dancing on her palm. She stared at her hand, in disbelief, and willed it to happen. And then, just like she had seen, the tiny sparks began to make her hand glow.
"Wow!" she said, startled, and the sparks went paf! and disappeared. Bruce stared too, excitement rushing over him. He nearly missed her next words. "Did I just do that?"
"You did indeed," he said, sitting back. And if you can do that, then maybe you are a doctor of some sort. Why don't you come to Massachusetts with me? Look around my lab, see if anything jogs your memory. My lab's mostly set up for physicists, but maybe something will look familiar."
"Uh, wow, that's…really generous of you, Mr. Garrett," she said, blushing. "I don't have anywhere else to go, I can't remember if I know anyone else here, so if you really don't mind, I'd love to come with you."
"Oh, not a problem! Amanda and I would love to have you! Wouldn't we, Amanda?" he said to her, snapping her out of her astonished gape.
"Uh…oh…yes…" Amanda blinked as Bruce got up and put his plate in the sink.
"Now, dear," Bruce said as he took Julie's shoulders and steered her up the stairs, "Do you have a suitcase to pack your things in…you do have things, right? Well then…." And his voice faded off as he took Julie upstairs. Amanda was left staring at the leftovers of dinner with bemusement. She'd been so flustered by Bruce's complete one-eighty that she hadn't even tasted her dinner as she ate it.