Part 5

'But Rachel this doesn't make sense,' Mike interposed.

'Sense?' Rachel asked, gesturing at Susan, 'You're asking for sense? Ross is in London, Susan's here. You explain it.' Mike shut up. They all looked at the rock for a moment as though it was about to explode.

'I'd better call Carol at the hotel and see if she's okay,' Susan said. 'She's going to have no idea what's going on if some strange man just turns up in her bedroom. Would you mind if I used your phone Phoebe?'

'She's not allowed to mind,' Rachel said snappily, thinking of Ross with Emily. Part of the reason they'd split up must have been because they hadn't dealt with their problems face to face and she did not like the fact that they now were face to face. Phoebe nodded at Susan who began to make a call to directory inquiries. 'The question is, how do we fix the problem?'

'Well they could all fly back to where they came from,' Mike said. Rachel narrowed her eyes.

'Ross has a presentation in eight hours. He has no passport, no money and almost no clothes on.' Damn! She wished she hadn't thought of that. 'I want something a lot quicker than a plane.'

'Why is this happening anyway,' Mike asked. 'Why are those three being switched around?'

'The common factor is Ross,' Phoebe said.

'What do you mean?' Rachel asked sharply.

'Well, in each of these three places is an ex wife of Ross.' He seems to have moved to Emily and her husband has shifted around somewhere and so has Susan.'

'And why has Ross gone to Emily and not Susan?' Rachel asked, annoyed.

'I don't know. Maybe… maybe it's the way I turned the rock. I moved it clockwise. Ross went clockwise, Susan went clockwise…' Rachel and Mike stared at the map.

'I see.' Then Susan came into the room.

'Someone did turn up in my place, an Englishman,' Susan said. 'Carol had him arrested. She's not sure she's going to be able to explain this to the police, now that they've got him.'

'Too incredible,' Mike said.

'Yeah,' Susan said. 'Also she doesn't speak Portuguese.'

'So you'll have to do something,' Rachel said to Phoebe, thinking they had wasted quite enough time.

'Okay,' Phoebe said, 'I know what to do. I'll just undo what I did and everyone will be back where they should be.'

'You're sure that'll work?' Susan asked.

'Either it will work, or nothing will happen. I don't know what we do if nothing happens but let's just try it.' Nobody could see the problem with that. 'So are you ready?' Phoebe asked.

'Ready as I'll ever be.' Susan turned to Rachel. 'Thanks for the loan of your clothes. I'll wash and iron them before I send them back to you.'

'Sure, any time.' Rachel said. She gave her a hug and then at a sound from Phoebe's room that could have been from Emma, went to investigate.

'OK,' here we go,' Phoebe said. She moved the rock.

Susan was still there.

'Oh, I guess it didn't work,' Phoebe said, despondently.

'Well of course it didn't,' Mike said, clearly thinking they were all mad.'

The door to Phoebe's room opened and closed and footsteps hurried out. They all turned to see Emily who was pale and shaking. She was staring at them. In a horrified whisper she asked,

'What the hell's going on?'