Chapter Two: Something To Think About
It couldn't be her. It wasn't possible. Jeff overcame his shock by forcing his legs to shift and he started to move towards the woman who appeared to be his dead wife.
"Lucy!" he called. She did not turn around again, but instead moved across the crossing with the rest of the crowd. Jeff followed, but the surrounding throng of people seemed to close ranks around him. He found himself pushing past people, trying to get a glimpse of her again. He managed to get into a clearer space, and saw her walking ahead of him.
"Lucy!" he yelled again. Still she did not acknowledge him. Jeff, in desperation, tried to run after her, but he found his way blocked again by other people. By the time he managed to get round the slow moving couple laden with shopping, he had lost sight of her. He went further down the street, but could not see her again. Perplexed, Jeff stood in the middle of the pavement, trying to make sense of what he had just seen. He wondered if he had been wrong, that all this thinking about the past had made him see something that wasn't there. Perhaps the woman had just been someone who happened to have borne a resemblance to Lucy and he had seen what he had wanted to see. He dismissed the idea. He knew that he hadn't been seeing things. He could never mistake Lucy for someone else, even after so many years. That still didn't explain why she had apparently come back from the grave and was walking through Manhattan. Or why she didn't respond to him, which was probably the one thing that stung the most. Well, she'd vanished now, whoever she was. Jeff was tempted to stay in New York and investigate further, but he knew he couldn't. He had International Rescue to run, and besides, what sort of explanation would it be to the boys?
"I'm staying on in New York because I think I saw your mother walking down the street." It sounded ridiculous, not to mention upsetting. Letting out a breath, Jeff realised that he was frowning deeply, as he did when he was troubled. With a final look around him, he continued on his way to the hotel.
From a sanctuary not too far away, a russet-haired woman watched Jeff leave the scene. She drew in a deep breath. It was definitely him. He was older, but it was him.
Jeff had arrived back at Tracy Island the next day, having stopped off in San Diego overnight. He was tired, as was to be expected from such a long trip home, and three days of being in and out of meetings. However, usually he was fairly buoyant from items that he had achieved during these conferences he attended from time to time and this tended to counteract any effects that tiredness had. This time should have been no different, but that sighting of Lucy – there was nothing else to call her – had settled on the forefront of his mind, and had become a distraction, something truly puzzling for him to brood over. He greeted his sons and his mother and the rest of the household politely enough, and after freshening up, he sat down to the meal that his mother had prepared for him. Scott and Virgil joined him. Jeff didn't have to ask after any rescues since he had phoned each night he was away to keep up with how things were going. Scott started the conversation off.
"So, Dad, how'd the conference go?" he asked.
"Bill Fischer hopes you're all keeping well," Jeff replied, a twinkle in his eye. "Yasmin has just finished her post-grad course at Berkeley, and is looking for something exciting to do."
"Something or someone?" Scott asked, knowing exactly what Bill Fischer was like. Freya, the elder daughter, had been forced into his company a few years back. She was a nice enough girl, but trying to chat him up when he was with his then girlfriend didn't result in a pleasant evening. Jeff chuckled.
"Well, probably a bit of both," he said.
"She won't find it with us," Virgil said, innocently. Scott got the subject back on track.
"Do you think that there will be any changes?" he asked his father.
"We won't get everything we wanted, but I think that there are some things that will come into fruitation."
"That's good," Scott said. "It'd be a shame if you went all that way for nothing."
"Yes," Jeff said. "I would feel as if I had lost my touch if I didn't get anything out of an international conference."
"I can't see that ever happening," Scott said.
"Anything else to tell us that's interesting?" Virgil asked. Jeff looked over at his second eldest son, the one who looked so much like his mother. His mind again went back to New York.
"No," Jeff replied, shortly. The boys looked slightly surprised at his abruptness. Their father usually had some interesting news of some description, whether it be gossip or technological developments. Virgil and Scott glanced at each other out of the corner of their eyes.
"Oh. Okay then," Virgil said. Jeff finished his meal.
"Well, if you'll excuse me boys, I have things to get on with," he said, rising with the dirty plate and cutlery in his hands. When he had gone, Scott turned to Virgil.
"Got the feeling that Dad's hiding something?" he asked.
"Yeah. Well, I guess it can't be anything much. It's most likely to be something he'll tell us about later," Virgil replied.
"You're probably right, Virg," Scott said, looking in the direction that their father had gone in.
Meanwhile, Jeff had taken his plate into the kitchen, where his mother was busy fussing around with clearing out cupboards.
"That was a lovely meal, Mother," he said, putting the plate and cutlery in the dishwasher.
"Thank you," she replied. He turned to go. "Is everything okay, Jeff?" she asked.
"Yes, of course it is. Why wouldn't it be?" Jeff replied.
"You just seem to be rather quiet, that's all."
"I've had a long journey, mother. You know how it is," Jeff answered.
"Of course. It's just that you're not usually like this when you come back from somewhere." Josie paused in her cleaning and looked up at her son. "Oh, dear, I do hope that you're not coming down with something."
"I feel fine," Jeff protested.
"You work far too hard," Josie scolded. "That's probably what it is."
"No, it's not," Jeff replied. Josie gave him a look.
"There's no need to take that tone of voice with me, Jeffrey," she said, reproachfully.
"Sorry, Mother," Jeff said. He was silent for a moment. "Something happened in New York that I don't know how to explain."
"I'm listening, Jeff. You can try explaining," Josie said, patiently. Jeff dithered over whether to tell her or not. Damn it. He needed to tell someone.
"I saw Lucy," he told his mother, frankly.
"You saw who?" Josie replied, in disbelief.
"I know it shouldn't be possible, but I saw Lucy walking down the street, just ahead of me," Jeff said.
"Are you sure that you weren't mistaken?" Josie eventually managed to ask.
"No. There's no way it was someone else," Jeff said.
"Jeff…how can that be possible? For Lucy to be alive?"
"I don't know," Jeff said. His dark blue eyes took on a familiar steely look. "But I intend to find out, somehow."
"Do the boys know?"
"No, of course not. I can't tell them something like that."
"If you're going to go off in search of this woman…Lucy…don't you think you should?"
"I can't leave the island, Mother. I've already been away for three days."
"So how are you going to get to the bottom of this?"
"I have other means," Jeff said.
"Your agents?" Josie asked.
"If need be. No, Mother. This is something I want to try and investigate myself, first," Jeff said. He glanced at the kitchen clock on the wall. "I'd best get on with things."
"Okay, dear. I'll make sure you're not disturbed. I believe that I'll need some help with these top cupboards," Josie said. Jeff smiled at her, then left the kitchen. When he was gone, Josie shook her head. Jeff had obviously been putting himself under more pressure lately than any of them had realised. He was cracking up in a serious way, if he truly believed that he was seeing dead people walking down the street. Worried for Jeff's sanity, Josie decided that the only course of action would be to take the matter up with Scott.