"Whatever is the matter with you? You look terrible!"
'Thank you, Scott," John said as he sat down in one of the chairs on Thunderbird Three's flight deck and started to strap himself in. "I'm pleased to see you, too."
Scott gave his brother a hard stare as he began the undocking procedure from the space station. John was the slim one of the family anyway, but this time his clothes seemed to hang on him and the dark circles under his eyes told of some inner turmoil, as did the way he was clenching and unclenching his fingers.
"What have you been up to? Are you sick or something?" Scott shook his head. "I hope not, we're short-handed enough until Virgil gets back from Chicago at the end of the week."
"Oh, he's off again is he?" asked John. "He seems to be spending a lot of time there. Has he got a girlfriend over there?" Unlike the other brothers, who always seemed to come to John with their confidences, Virgil always shared his with Scott.
Scott's expression gave nothing away. "Whether he has or not, we are still going to need you if we get called out."
John gave a smile, which somehow did not seem to reach his eyes. "I'll be OK, Scott. It's just that I haven't been sleeping too well lately. A few good nights' sleep and I'll be fine." He seemed to make an effort to pull himself together. "So, apart from Virgil's love life, what else have I missed while I've been away?"
The following day, Grandma Tracy came bustling into the lounge. Scott and Gordon, who were sitting in a corner playing chess, exchanged glances. They knew that expression on their grandmother's face all too well, and it did not bode well for someone.
She went straight up to her son who was, as usual, seated at his desk. "Jeff, do you know where John is?"
Jeff shook his head. 'Sorry, Mother, I haven't seen him all morning." He pressed a button on his desk and one of the portraits on the other side of the room slid up to reveal a plan of the house, with various glowing dots. "According to this, his watch is showing that he's in his room."
Mrs Tracy shook his head. "His watch certainly is. I found it at the back of his sock drawer when I was putting his clean clothes away; but John isn't there, and what's more, half the stuff from his room is missing too!"
Jeff looked surprised. "What do you mean, Mother?"
She started to count items off on her fingers. "His music system has gone, so has his computer, the bedside clock, even the house intercom system has been removed!"
Gordon looked up from the chessboard. "They're all sitting in boxes in Alan's room. I saw them when I went to return a book that Alan had lent me. I wondered where they had come from."
Scott joined in. "I saw John this morning. He was just leaving the kitchen when I came in for breakfast. He said he was going for a walk on the cliffs."
Mrs Tracy shook her head. "Something's not right with that boy, Jeff. You only have to look at him to see how much weight he's lost. Perhaps you should have a talk with him."
"Give him a few days, Mother. You know it always takes him a couple of days to adjust to being around people again. I'm sure he'll be fine."
The object of their discussion was at that moment walking back towards the Tracy villa. Though he had been on tenterhooks for the last part of his shift, he had not heard from Ellie since their emotional exchange ten days ago. He did not expect her to call him now he was back on the island, but for his own peace of mind it was a relief to be away from any communications equipment. After a good night's sleep and a morning in the open air, he felt as if the looming black cloud in his mind was gradually starting to disperse.
Though the one his brothers tended to go to when they needed advice, John normally kept his own counsel. But on this occasion, he decided that he needed advice himself, and knew just the person to ask.
He found Kyrano, as he had hoped, on his own in the greenhouse.
"Hi there, Kyrano. Need a hand with anything?"
Kyrano turned and gave a small bow. "Thank you, Mr John, that would be most kind of you. I am at present tying up these young tomato plants. Perhaps you could cut me some lengths of twine – about four inches long."
They worked side by side in companionable silence. Kyrano had also noticed that the young man had seemed to be under some sort of strain since his return, but waited for him to speak when he was ready. It did no good to rush these things.
"Do you believe in ghosts, Kyrano?"
The older man continued to work, tying up the delicate shoots, as he considered the question. "As you know, Mr John, I come from a background that puts more credence in spiritual things than does your Western education. I believe there are many things that are not fully understood by the world of science, or cannot be measured by Mr Brains' instruments. Though I, personally, have never seen a ghost, there are some things that one takes on trust." He turned to John with a small smile. "I have never seen the far side of the moon either, unlike you and your father, but I take your word that it exists."
John pressed on. "So why do you think some people become ghosts?"
The older man paused to stroke the leaf of one of the plants before answering. "In some cases it may be that the soul in question has been held back by something, either something physical, or some unfinished business. Perhaps their death has not been discovered and acknowledged, perhaps they simply cannot accept the fact that they are no longer of this world, or have some task that they need to complete." He turned to look at his younger companion. "You seem to have some specific person in mind. If you think it would help to tell me, then please feel free to do so."
Slowly at first, then gaining confidence, John began to tell of his conversations with Ellie, his trip to Mull and the discovery of her death, finishing with their last angry exchange.
When John had finished, Kyrano sat in silence for a moment, then looked up at his associate. "So, the problem seems to be that you don't want to talk to this young lady any more because you know that she is no longer alive?"
"Well, yes," answered John. That seemed obvious.
Kyrano shook his head. "But she is no more dead now than she was before you went to Scotland. The problem is your knowledge of her state, not her condition. In other words, the problem is with you, not with her."
John gave him a blank stare. He hadn't thought of it in quite that way.
The older man continued. "Have you wondered why it was she came to you, out of all the people she could have contacted in the years since her death?"
John shook his head. "I just presumed that is was only the equipment on TB5 that was capable of receiving her signal."
Kyrano put a hand on the young man's shoulder. "If that was the case, she could have spoken to Mr Alan, or to any of your brothers who have manned the space station since it started operating, even to my Tin Tin when she has stayed up there. But she came to you. You have some skill that she needs. You young men all have your different talents - Mr Scott's is organisation and Mr Virgil's is his music. Your strength is listening. Perhaps this young woman just needs someone to listen. Maybe with a friend who understands what she has become, she will be able to let go of this life. Then she will be able to pass on. Possibly, as followers of the Buddhist faith believe, she will be given a new life here on Earth, either as a human being or some other creature, to finish what she could not do in this one."
"So you think I should carry on talking to her, until she can accept what has happened to her?"
Kyrano smiled. "If you like, you can think of it as your own personal rescue project."
John thanked the older man and left the greenhouse in a much more positive state of mind. Yes, he would talk to Ellie next time he was on the station. Maybe he would be able to 'rescue' her – it certainly extended his father's idea in a way he had never envisaged.