CHAPTER 75: Burning The Candle At Both Ends

 

John Action staggered out of the Discotheque Pan Europa at 5am in the morning, putting on his shades to lessen the burn on the early morning sun on his eyes.  He'd completely lost track of time and it wasn't until the staff asked him to physically leave the premises that he realised he'd been there all night; dancing, drinking and flirting with the groovy chicks.  He went there...alone...without Katherine.  He was in two minds about her:  She'd teased him recently and that had got his back up.  She just didn't seem to take his experiences seriously and could display a coolness and haughtiness that comes from someone born with a silver spoon in their mouth.  That wasn't Action; a man hewn from the roughness of the ghetto and the jungles of South East Asia.

Action headed over to a nearby café that he knew.  They served breakfast and, more importantly, a decent cup of coffee.  This was going to be his fuel for the morning:  He had a full shift at the Precinct today and was existing on caffeine, sugar and adrenaline to compensate for the lack of sleep.

 

About halfway through his breakfast Danish and espresso, he was joined by a familiar face at his table.

"Hey, Action, this is a bit early for you" said the newcomer, a dapperly dressed man in his late 30s who was sporting the fashionable mod-Indian look enjoyed by men at least a decade younger than himself.

"Deano" said Action, smiling.  He'd known Dean Lunn for nearly a year now, since he joined the Sim City PD.  He kept his nose clean...for the most part...but was a good source for information and the low down.  "I might say the same thing about you"

"Got to get to the farmers' markets early, before the good stock gets sold out" replied Dean.

"Keeping your nose clean, Deano?"

Dean looked shocked and offended. "You know me, Action, I run with no gang and run a clean ship."

"It's too early for business anyway" said Action, pouring another cup of espresso into his and Dean's cups.

"I can sure smell the bacon at this table" came a harsh voice from behind the two men.  It was a woman's voice and she was not happy to see Action sitting there.

"Hey, Ashley, stay cool baby...Action's one of the good guys!" said Dean.

"There ain't no good guys on the Force" she said, practically spitting the words out.

"Who's your friend, Deano?" asked Action, trying to maintain his cool.

"Ashley's my particular friend, if you get my drift" said Dean.  "How about we all act civil?"

"My brother was busted by you guys on a trumped up charge!" said Ashley.  "They planted drugs on him...everyone knew it was a fix but you pigs know all the crooked judges and so they sent him down.  He's on appeal but no thanks to you lot!"

Action took a deep breath, trying to keep his cool.  "Hows about you give me some names of those cops you think are crooked?"

"So you can warn them?  No thanks!  Dean...I should be more careful about the company you keep!" she said, standing up and storming off.  Dean went to make an apology but Action held up his hand.

"No need, bro" he said.

OASIS SPRINGS, 11:46am

Action was on patrol in the smart end of Oasis Springs...the pleasant valley, charcoal burning everywhere.  There were some reports of fights breaking out, which was unlike that part of town, and Action was dispatched to check things out.  For a weekday in a residential area, the place looked busy with people hanging around on every corner.  Nothing illegal was obviously happening...according to Action's trained eye...but he noticed there was a strange vibe about the place.

"Hey, you! You're a cop, aren't you?" said an angry looking young man.

"What's it to you?" replied Action, cooly.

"I recognise you...you investigated that break in at my friend's house: The one where you noticed the chess pieces were in the wrong places"

"Oh yes, I remember you now...you're a friend of Travis Scott"

"Yeah, look man....see that lady over there?" the young man was pointing to an attractive, raven haired woman in mod gear.

"I sure do" said Action, with some approval.

"She's weird, man, like in up to no good.  She tried to hypnotise me!" said the man.

"How do you know that?"

"She was looking into my eyes really intensely.  She kept repeating the same things over and over like 'you're in my power' and then I felt a slap on my face but she didn't move her hands, man!  It's like I was slapped by a ghost!"

"Look, buddy, if you're high and tripping out don't waste my time" said Action, rolling his eyes in disbelief.

"I don't do drugs, Officer...she's weird, like crazy weird....look, those guys over there witnessed her doing it!" the man was pointing at a couple of other guys dressed as hippies who were standing nearby.

Action walked over to the two hippies and asked them what was going on.

"I ain't seen nothing, that guy's making it all up!" said the white hippy.  

"I saw her talking to this guy...but I didn't see any hypnotism or slapping or anything like that" said the black hippy who was wearing a far out Victorian military jacket.

"They're lying!" said the angry man.

"Hey! We were just chatting and didn't have anything to do with you or her!" said the white hippy, getting angry himself.  "Officer, get this crazy cat out of here!"

"I'm going to have to caution you for disturbing the peace" said Action to the angry young man.  "Now there's one person I haven't spoken to yet....YOU stay here!" he said to the man.

Action walked over to the young woman who seemed to be at the centre of this disturbance.  "Excuse me Miss?"

"McGregor.  No problem, officer" said the young woman.  She had an easy going charm about her, a delicate, lilting voice and she locked eyes on Action.  

"Do you know that man over there?" said Action, pointing to the complainant.  "He claims you were trying to hypnotise him"

"I have no idea who he is, I just asked him for the time and he freaked out" she said, calmly but with her eyes never breaking contact with Action's.

He asked her a few more questions, about who she was, what she was doing here and her alleged connection to the angry man but although she calmly answered them, Action thought the intensity of her gaze was off kilter...he couldn't put a finger on it, but something wasn't normal about it.  In the end he concluded that her intense stare was probably interpreted as being hypnosis by this uptight young man who, despite his protestations, had probably taken some uppers and as a consequence was hypertense.

Action thanked her for her time and told the angry man that he couldn't charge her with any offence as it was just her words against his with no witnesses.  The man skulked off but the woman was nowhere to be seen.

Action finished his patrol and headed back to the precinct house.  He went upstairs to the recreation room for his scheduled break, poured himself a coffee and sat down to think about a few issues on his mind.  That last patrol was crazy...he never felt in any danger but he got a glimpse of the kind of crazies he had to deal with:  Drugs, cults, weird new-age beliefs...it was all there.  He'd seen plenty of madness growing up and in the Marines but here it was, in quiet suburban Sim City as well.  He wanted a rock, something he could be sure of to anchor himself and then he thought about Katherine.  He'd been avoiding her recently; wondering if there was more to life than just hooking up with one woman who he shared little in common in terms of background.

"Hey, Action...ain't you got a home to go to?" said the Duty Sergeant.

"What?  My shift over already?" he said, checking his watch.  He went to the station pay phone to make a call; his hand hovering over the receiver for a few seconds as he thought about whether he should make that call or not.  Then he picked it up, put in the coins and dialled the number.

"Hi Katherine, it's Action.  Yes I know I haven't called in days....No, I haven't forgotten you.  Hey, are you free tonight?  Yeah, I know it's a bit much expecting you to be free on such short notice but, hey, you know I'm spontaneous....but you are free?  Great, see you at 8...my place"

Action put the phone back on the hook and smiled.  He was actually looking forward to seeing her.

...and there she was, already waiting for him...a vision in red and white.

"I must be a fool to be here" she said.

"I'm a bigger fool for not appreciating you more" he replied, happy to see her.

"You've got that right" she said, smiling.

They went inside his house where Action couldn't contain the urge to embrace her.  "Sometimes I don't know if I'm more messed up than the crazies I deal with on the streets"

"You're too harsh on yourself" she replied, stroking his face.  "I know you deal with things I can't imagine"

The two of them settled in for an intimate evening together; Action glad for the peace Katherine brought.  However, outside there was a lurker spying on his house:  Leann McGregor.  She made a mental note of where Detective John Action lived, how big was his house, what time he got home from work and what company he kept.  She also wondered how much of what he was told by that young idiot did he believe? 

Leann had much to consider:  How much did Detective Action put in his police report about that incident?  How many of his colleagues did he speak to about it afterwards and has he told his female visitor anything of it?  Perhaps that idiot, Yamaguchi, will have to be dealt with....many things to consider....

CHAPTER 74: To The Next Level

 

The house was a complete mess.  Suzy had let things slide too much of late and the result was a filthy sink, filthy shower and even filthier kitchen.  Well, her morning was settled:  A thorough clean of the place.

"Phew!  But spick and span now" she said to herself. "That's nearly 2 hours out of my day and there's so much to do....so much"

Suzy went to her room and looked out the window across to the strange, large tree that was just on the other side of the road.  She knew there was something inside of it, some kind of tunnel, but where did it lead?  Last time she checked the place out with her friends: Neil, Summer and Jeremy but now she decided to go it alone on her second expedition.

Approaching the tree she located the concealed entrance in its trunk, pulled aside the ivy and other creeper plants and stepped inside, into the darkness.

This time around she knew not to follow the small dot of light in the distance, for that just took her back to the start, but instead follow the sound of a stream.  Taking careful steps she inched her way further and further into the tunnel until her right foot stepped into a shallow stream of running water.  She wondered if this was part of the canal that ran alongside the back her house or, worse, was it a sewerage channel.  She withdrew her soggy foot and looked for a dry place to cross the stream.  In the end she leapt over it to the other side where the tunnel continued.

Soon a light, silvery mist filled the tunnel and Suzy found it difficult to navigate...but she could hear the sound of a breeze and birds tweeting in the distance so she pushed on until the mist started to lift and a light could be seen ahead.  She had found the other end of the tunnel and stepping out, she expected to be somewhere on the other side of the container park that was across the way from the canal in Willow Creek.  

She didn't expect to see what greeted her on the other side.  She had emerged from a tree that was very similar to the one in her road and all around her was this beautiful, tranquil wooded glade.  She looked around, not recognising where she was...by her calculations of how far she had travelled in the tunnel, she should be on the other side of the container park and that should have been visible from where she was standing, but it was nowhere to be seen.

Some things here did seem strange and out of place:  Everywhere was tinged with a pink glow...from flowers, shrubs, even the rocks.  Looking up she noticed the sky was pinkish-orange in colour.  It was only late morning and yet this place seemed to be in a twilight glow.  Just how far had she travelled and for how long?  It didn't seem like much of either to her and yet this place seemed far removed from where she expected to be.

There were some signs of human habitation though:  There was a fishing sign near a pond and another down by the edge of a river so she couldn't have been the first person to visit here but other than that there were no signs of any human presence.

"I wish I'd bought my camera!" said Suzy, thinking what a missed opportunity this was to get some evidence that she'd been here.  The whole glade had a mysterious, dream like quality to it and she was only half sure that this place was real....just where was it in relation to Foundry Cove?

She spent about half an hour at the glade before deciding to head for home.  Walking back to the identical, large tree she found an entrance way and trudged back through the mist and the shallow creek to home.  She wanted to tell someone, anyone, what she'd just seen but the street was deserted.  Suzy jogged home and wanted to phone Summer, Jeremy, Burr or Neil but looking at the clock she realised she didn't have much time to get ready for a date she had planned with Neil.

Her dress had some dirt on it from trudging through the tree and tunnel and her shoes and nylons were wet from wading through the stream so she completely changed her outfit to look smart for her date at Chez Llama.

Neil arrived at her place in a taxi and she was impressed at how good he looked in his white tuxedo.  Ever the gentleman, he escorted her to the taxi and they were whisked off to the most exclusive restaurant in Sim City.  

"You look fabulous" said Neil.

"So do you...you could be James Bond in that suit!" she replied.

"Maybe I'll have a dry martini, shaken not stirred when we get to Chez Llama" 

When they entered the restaurant, the two of them went to the bar whilst their table was being readied.

"Go on then, do it" said Suzy to Neil.

"Do what?"  replied Neil.

"Ask for a dry Martini, shaken not stirred...I dare you"

"OK....erm....barkeep!  May I have a dry vodka Martini, shaken not stirred?"

"You're about the 5th guy to ask for one of those today" said the Barkeep.

Suzy and Neil laughed and drank their fancy cocktails when they were led to their table.  Suzy couldn't keep her news from Neil any longer.

"I went back to that tree near my house this morning" she said.  "And you'll never guess what I found!"

"Did you go into that tunnel again?" said Neil.

"Yes...and it actually leads somewhere!" she said, excitedly.

"Where?" said Neil, his interest piqued.

"I'm not sure...it's not anywhere that's visible from Foundry Cove and yet I didn't walk that far down the tunnel.  It's this woodland glade, very beautiful with trees and flowers I didn't recognise and a crystal clear river that isn't part of the local canal....It must be a little area tucked away in Willow Creek."

"Can you walk or drive to it?"

"Not that I could tell...I came and went via that tunnel which emerges from an identical tree to the one in my street.  It's really odd."

"I've got a map of the local area at home" said Neil.  "We could look at that to try and see where this place is."

"Good idea" said Suzy.  "And next time you can come with me to check that place out"

A waiter appeared to take their order.  Neil said "shall I order for both of us?"

Suzy nodded.  Neil looked at the menu and confidently ordered two of the chef's specials.

"Certainly sir and madam" said the waiter.  Once he had taken their menus from them and walked off to the kitchen, Neil leaned in towards Suzy.

"You know, when you're all excited and fired up you are so beautiful" he said.  "I can see what drives you, that energy you have...I find it intoxicating.  You are my muse!"

Suzy liked hearing that and she became coy, batting her eyelashes flirtatiously at him.  Neil normally didn't enjoy public displays of affection but the mood, the drink and the presence of Suzy was all working on him, getting him to drop his guard.

The meal and the conversation were delightful and the two were entranced by one another.  After he paid the bill,he stood up and held his hand out to Suzy, gently pulling her towards him...and to her pleasant surprised, he kissed her full on the lips.

"Hmmm, that was good" she said when their lips parted.  "So....what now?" she said, coyly.

"The night is young" replied Neil.  "Fancy a dance?"

There was THE place to go....The Orange Peel!

The place was starting to buzz as more people arrived but in between songs a man approached Suzy and Neil.

"Hello...Is it Miss Suzy Kent, the writer over at 'Hey, Wow'?  Permit me to introduce myself, I'm Alan Cuffe from Lothario magazine and The Kitten Club"

Suzy stopped dancing.  "You're THE Alan Cuffe?"

"The same.  May I take a moment of your time, Miss Kent?  Excuse me sir" he said, acknowledging Neil.  "May I borrow your delightful date for a chat?  I assure you, my intentions are honourable"

Suzy nodded to Neil and he graciously agreed.  Cuffe took Suzy to one side of the dance floor and began to speak.

"Miss Kent, I've read some of your articles in recent months and I must say I'm impressed by your writing.  You not only explain things eloquently but you also have a finger on the pulse of what is in and what isn't.  These are qualities I want for Lothario magazine" said Cuffe.

Suzy was lost for words for a few seconds, but responded "Mr Cuffe, I'm flattered.  Do you wish to poach me for Lothario?"

Cuffe shook his head.  "Nothing so simple or obvious.  Are you happy at Hey, Wow?"

"I am.  It's pitched to an audience I relate to and it's opened a lot of doors for me"

"But it recently rejected your expose piece, am I right?"

"How...how did you know about that?" said Suzy, shocked that Cuffe had heard about her Landgraab expose story being quashed by her editor.

"I know a lot of things that go on in our industry, Miss Kent....may I call you Suzy?  Now the thing is Lothario magazine is often misrepresented in the popular press.  Yes, I publish a magazine promoting the free love, promiscuous and libertine lifestyle but it's not all about the centrefolds and the celebration of the female form.  I want the best writers producing intelligent, thoughtful articles as well.  I see talent in you, Suzy, talent I want at Lothario.  What I'm proposing is that you write freelance for me, ad hoc, on any topic you like.  You don't have to leave Hey, Wow...you just go on my list of contributors, that's all.  What do you say?"

"Any topic I like? asked Suzy?

"Any topic...including the one your editor didn't approve of.  I'd like to read it"

"It's not very flattering about the Landgraabs, just to warn you." she said, wondering why Cuffe would take such an interest in her recent work.

"I'm not beholden to the Landgraabs, Suzy." said Cuffe, nonchalantly.

"OK...shall I send it to your office, Mr Cuffe?"

"As soon as possible and call me Alan" he said, offering his hand and smiling warmly.  Suzy shook his hand and they made a verbal agreement there and then.

Returning to Neil, she said "wow, that was Alan Cuffe! And he wants me to write an article for him!"

"Phew!  For a moment I thought he might ask you to join his Kitten Club!"

"You were worried he was going to whisk me away to his den, did you?" said Suzy, teasing Neil.

"Well...yes...I mean the man has a reputation with the ladies." said a sheepish Neil.  "I might have had to fight a duel with him!" he said in mock seriousness.

"I'm flattered you would do that for me...to save me from being one of Alan Cuffe's Kittens.  Don't you think I'd look good in the bodysuit and kitten ears?"

"I think you'd easily make Kitten of the Year" said Neil, looking into Suzy's eyes.

She put her arms around him and drew herself close to him "I'm not interested in being Alan Cuffe's kitten....when I could be yours"

Neil raised an eyebrow and smiled.  "So...shall we move on to the next part of the evening?  Your place or mine?" he said.

"I make a good breakfast" said Suzy.  "Mine"

Back at Foundry Cove, Neil and Suzy were so excited to spend their first night together.  They both knew that this was a big step...the next level of their relationship.  They couldn't wait to get inside and straight to the bedroom to cap off a wonderful evening.  

"I'm sorry but I don't have a Kitten Club outfit to change in to" said Suzy, taking off her hat and slipping off her shoes.

"Never mind" he said.  Suzy turned her back to him and he unzipped her dress "it wouldn't be on you for long"

The dress slid to the floor and, stepping out of it, she turned around and undid his bow tie.  "Neil...I never knew you could be so dirty minded" she said, kissing him.

CHAPTER 73: Hanging With Action

 

Barbara Dubois had good reasons to be happy today: She received a promotion at work...instead of working at the tills at Hamburgerman, she was now to undergo training to be a cook there and with that promotion came a boost in wages plus a bonus.  She knew that for some time she'd be in line for a promotion, having studied and shown interest into moving into the kitchens at Hamburgerman and that extra work and diligence now paid off.  So she decided to splash out a little and treat herself.

On her way home she stopped off at one of her favourite boutiques and spent some time trying on different outfits, dresses, skirts and pants.  There were so many good things that whetted her appetite but in the end she decided she wanted to be more daring in her fashion choices.  Recently she'd had some good times hanging out with Suzy Kent, a genuine fashion reporter whose tastes were right up to the minute.  Her advice was that bold dress patterns were in, so that's what Barbara went for...a little black dress with a white collar, puffed sleeves and turquoise patterns that surrounded small yellow flowers to create a geometric pattern.  Barbara loved it, and went further in buying new shoes, tights and also stopping off at nearby beauty parlour to have a makeover which included long, false eyelashes (which were the height of fashion) and heavy black eyeliner and mascara.  She looked every inch the modern Dolly Bird.

She was so impressed with her outfit that she went home from the shops in it, putting her Hamburgerman uniform in a bag.  She felt, confident, happy and with-it now...and she was walking down the street, singing, snapping her fingers and shuffling her feet.  She looked good, she looked fine.

Her happy mood was noticed by two old ladies having a discussion near Barbara's home.  "Well, isn't it so nice to see a young woman looking and sounding so positive" said one of the women; an old black lady who was wearing a wide brimmed sun hat.

"It makes a change, I suppose" said her friend, a lady with very pale skin and sad looking eyes.  "Everywhere it seems that young people just want to get into trouble, start fights with the police and act in a wild, uncontrolled way"

"Well I'm sure this young lady doesn't get up to anything like that" said her more positive friend.  "Excuse me for stopping you from going on your way but may I just say you look lovely and your singing has cheered me up no end."

"Well, thank you" said Barbara, taken aback by such a compliment.

"I hope it has an effect on my friend here, who needs cheering up" 

"Hmmm" said the paler woman.

"Well...erm..." said Barbara, trying to think of something positive and cheery to say to this woman. "Did you see the rocket launch yesterday?  That was very exciting"

"Going into space when there's war, chaos and starvation all over the world" said the pessimistic lady.

Barbara didn't know what to respond with but the jolly lady placed a reassuring hand on her arm.  "Well I think you're a very nice person and I hope you have a nice boy in your life"

"I do, thank you...he's lovely" said Barbara, smiling.  She said her goodbyes and headed off home.  There she took one good look at herself in the mirror, hoping that Jeremy would like this new dress of hers.

At that moment, the phone rang.  Barbara went to answer it, hoping it would be a friend, but instead it was her manager at Hamburgerman.

"Barbara...Andre's come down with a temperature and can't do his shift this evening....we need you down there tonight"

"But..." she wanted to say she'd made plans, but that would be a lie.  She was hoping to surprise Jeremy this evening when he came home from work.  "...Fine, I'll be there." She put the phone down, forlornly, and went back to the bedroom where she took off her brand new shoes, unzipped and slid out of her new dress and put them away in the closet.  Then she put on her boring uniform shirt and pants and the Hamburgerman hat.  Trudging out of the house, she missed Jeremy by minutes.

When he got home he could smell perfume....Barbara trying a new scent? He thought.  He found a note on the kitchen table that said "GOT CALLED UP FOR WORK AT LAST MINUTE.  SORRY TO NOT BE THERE TONIGHT....LOVE YOU....B"

Jeremy sighed and had a quick dinner.  He felt lonely in the house, all the more so because he really wanted to spend the evening with his beautiful girlfriend.  He changed out of his business suit and, on the side dresser, he noticed a receipt for a purchase of clothes from some place he'd not heard of.  The receipt was dated for today...Barbara had been shopping but what had she bought?

He smiled, thinking she might have bought something really nice...or maybe just a pair of jeans...but thinking about her made him pine all the more.  He needed distracting and so he decided to pay John Action a visit.

"Hey, Action"

"Hey Jez....come on in." said Action, looking bored and if something was weighing on his shoulders.  He was watching the news on his TV; it was a report on the situation in Vietnam.  Jeremy sat next to Action but felt awkward about saying something about what was going on over there because he knew the guy had actually been there.

"Sorry, man" said Action, switching the TV off "It doesn't seem like a year since I was over there"

Jeremy nodded.  "Do you still have friends out there?" he said.

"A few.  A lot from my unit rotated back to Stateside at the end of their tours but some others stayed on.  I don't keep in touch often enough.  But enough about that, how's it going man?"

"Not bad...I was hoping to treat Barbara to dinner tonight but she had to go into work at the last minute.  I think she's been buying new outfits"

"Women will do that...so are things still good with you guys?"

"Never better.  And you?"

Action took a deep breath.  "I don't know, man.  Katherine's a classy lady but me?  I don't know if I'm the right guy for her.  She sees things differently:  She's cool, real cool and I get a little hot under the collar"

"Really?" said a taken aback Jeremy.  "I had you down as THE cool cat"

"It's a bit of an act" said Action.  "I try to stay cool because I've seen things that would make you mad or make you bad...better maintain an even strain..." he said, holding his hand flat out in front of him, perfectly still.  "Anyway, I hate talking about this stuff...let me get you a beer"

They drank beer and contrasted how their work and love lives differed.  Jeremy was an office worker, a real white collar guy but he had this cool love life with a sweet, beautiful girl.  Action walked the line with his work dealing with criminals, getting in fights and risking his neck but he wasn't sure where he was with his girlfriend, Katherine, right now.

After a couple more beers Jeremy, feeling tipsy, shared one more insight with Action.  "Listen...man..." he said, picking up the hip lingo now "You've got to ask yourself....all other things put to one side....is Katherine the kind of woman you can see yourself with not today, but tomorrow and tomorrow and the day after that ad infinitum"

"I have no idea what that means, Jez" said Action.  "But if you mean for ever and death do us part then I catch your drift.  I will certainly think about it, my friend."

"Am I your friend now?" said Jeremy, giggling.

"Sure, man, you are one of the good guys"

"I need to get home...I want to be there for Barbara when she finishes work" said Jeremy, staggering to his feet.

"You've got a good one there" said Action, helping him to the door.  

They said goodbye and Jeremy shuffled home but when he got there, he collapsed into bed and fell fast asleep.

When Barbara did arrive home, she hoped Jeremy was still awake so she could share her news and perhaps show off her new outfit but he was there, asleep in bed.  She smiled at his peaceful looking face.

I can't make a career in fast food...I need to find something more worthwhile and at the same time be able to spend more time with Jeremy.  I have an idea of what I really want to do...........

CHAPTER 72: Go For Launch

 "Good morning, you big lug!" said Summer Holiday as she gave Travis Scott a big hug.  

"Good...morning, Summer.  This sure is a friendly greeting.  I'm not complaining though" replied Travis.

"I'm in a very friendly mood today...the boss says I'm going to get a promotion and I just want to spread the joy!" she said.

"Congratulations!" said Travis.  "Have you told Liberty yet?"

Summer nodded in the direction of their housemate, Liberty Lee, and said "I did but I'm not sure she heard me.  She's had her head in that book all morning"

"I did hear you, and congratulations...again...but I'm very, very busy with going over this flight plan one more time before work" said Liberty, not taking her eyes off the book for a second.

"Oh, that's right...today's the day of the launch!  We'll be here, watching it on TV" said Travis.

"Well I have to be at the space centre to do last minute checks on the capsule.  So much to look out for!" said Liberty.

"You'll be great...you're Space Y and NASA's brightest spark!" said a very cheerful Summer.

Summer and Travis had to head off to work and Liberty's nerves started to jitter.  This was her first mission launch and she had done her best to conceal her trepidation, her fear that she might not measure up to the other brilliant minds in the space programme...that she might fail.  She headed off to her bedroom to try and calm herself down before heading off to work.  Looking into the mirror, which had become a psychological aid for her of late, she gave herself a pep talk.

I am but one small part of this enterprise... she told herself... I can't let everyone down, I can't let the team down and, more importantly, I can't let those two astronauts down.  I will be calm, I will do my job and I will do my best to make this mission succeed. 

After a final deep breath she was ready to head off to the Space Centre.

The hours ticked by and in the middle of the afternoon Summer and then Travis arrived home.  Summer, feeling beat but not wanting to miss the TV coverage of the launch, took a brief nap in her room.  Travis busied himself with his electronics hobby.  Half an hour before launch, Travis burst into Summer's room and shook her awake.

"Come on! You'll miss the action!" said Travis, loudly, to wake her up.

"Hmmmm, Travis...you're here!" said a dreamy Summer.  "Oh...you're here!  In my room!" she said, suddenly waking up.  

"Yes! The launch! You don't want to miss it!" he said "I've made us dinner, come on!"

The two picked up a plate of food each and headed off to the lounge to watch the launch of Gemini 8 on their TV.

"The Agena target vehicle blasted off into orbit approximately 10 minutes ago." said the TV presenter. "Armstrong and Scott in Gemini 8 will launch in 15 minutes with the goal of first rendezvousing, then docking with the Agena.  Never before in manned spaceflight has such a manoeuvre been attempted but, if successful, it will be yet another step in man's journey to the Moon and beyond"

"Did you understand any of that?" asked Summer.

"About half of it" replied Travis.

Most of the TV coverage was showing the Titan rocket with the Gemini 8 capsule on the top with a countdown timer in the bottom left hand corner and the TV presenter, plus expert commentators, talking about the mission, the astronauts and filling in some details to anyone interested at home.  But on screen there was just the rocket on the launch pad with the monotone voice of the presenter.

"The Mark III radio command guidance system has fed the final flight parameters into the launch vehicle..." he said at the T minus 3 mark.

"Why is it called 'T minus 3'?" asked Summer.

"Shh!" said Travis.  At that moment there was a knock at the door.  "Oh what now?" he said in frustration.

"Oh hello...it's me from across the way" said a voice.  Travis and Summer looked at the door and saw through the window one of their neighbours...not someone they knew that well other than to say hello to but she was at the door now.  Travis got up and opened it for her.

"Hello?" he said.

"Oh hello...are you watching the launch?  Oh you are, great!  Can I ask a favour?  A fuse has blown in my house and the TV went on the blink and I haven't got time to fix it before the launch happens....may I watch it with you?"

Travis looked at Summer for some reassurance and Summer nodded.  "Don't keep her out on the doorstep, Travis, invite her in!" she said.

The woman said thank you and they all settled down again to watch the launch.

The countdown continued "T minus 10...9...8...7...6...5...4...3...2...1...we have ignition and lift off"

"Oh my gosh, this is exciting!" said Summer, biting her knuckles.

"Come on baby, higher...higher!" said Travis, his fist clenched in excitement.

"Yes....YES!" said the neighbour.

"I don't want it to fail!  Oh I hope it makes it!" said Summer.  Travis and the neighbour looked on with awe at this rocket speeding away into the cosmos carrying two men on board.  

Then, in five minutes, the spacecraft was no longer to be seen by the cameras on the ground.  It had made it into orbit.  The TV newsmen had said that the astronauts reported that everything was nominal and working A-OK.  The three watchers breathed a sigh of relief that the launch had been a success.

"So when's the docking going to happen?" asked Summer. 

"In about six hours time" said their visitor.  

"Would you stay for a drink?" said Summer.  Their guest said yes and the three of them chatted and Travis talked about their housemate who worked at the space centre and was a small part of the mission.

After a couple of hours, the neighbour went home and both Travis and Summer were feeling sleepy.  They were happy that the launch was successful but now, after there'd been more than 20 manned missions into space by the two superpowers, they were sure everything else would go OK.

But they were wrong.  For Liberty, her work shift was going to get manic.  Seven hours into the mission there was a problem with the manoeuvring thrusters on the Gemini capsule which caused it to tumble end over end, one revolution per second, and threatening to cause both astronauts to black out.  Liberty and the back room team frantically tried to find a solution to the problem but in the end there wasn't enough time and it fell to the mission commander, Neil Armstrong, to solve it...use the re-entry thrusters to stabilise the craft.  It was the correct thing to do, but it left them with little fuel left to do all the planned procedures of the mission so they had to return to Earth.  Summer and Travis awoke the next morning to see that Gemini 8 had splashed down in the sea.  It was soon after that Liberty came trudging home.

"Wow, did you only just get back?" said Summer, who was putting some dishes away in the cupboards.

"Yes...there was a problem in the mission and I had to pull a double shift" said a weary Liberty.

"Are the astronauts OK?" said a worried Summer.

"Yes, they're absolutely fine...they did an excellent job" 

"YES!" said Summer, punching the air in triumph.

 Liberty smiled.  "You are the most cheerful and positive person I've ever met...and with that, I will see you in a few hours" she said, walking to her bedroom.

CHAPTER 71: Why Are You Here?

 

At the hospital, senior nurse Francesca Griffiths approached Dr Julia Epstein about a delicate matter.

"Dr Epstein...my little Stefanie is not well, I think it's a stomach bug...would you examine her? She's very scared of hospitals but seeing as she knows you I thought a friendly face might put her mind at ease"

"Certainly" said Julia, looking at Stefanie. "Come on, follow me...I know the most comfortable bed in this hospital is available and if we're quick we can get it before anyone else!" Turning to Francesca she said "Don't worry, I've got it from here"

Julia led Stefanie to the room where the little girl changed into her pyjamas. Julia began her examination.

"So where's it hurting you?" she asked. Stefanie pointed to her stomach. "I see, let's just feel around the area and tell me if you feel any soreness when I press down"

The girl winced when Julia pressed around the centre of the stomach. Satisfied by that test, Julia then got out a swab to take a sample but she dropped the first one on the floor. "Oops, butterfingers!" she said. Stefanie chuckled at nice Dr Julia's clumsiness. "Let's try that again....and swab...and....oops!"

Julia felt very embarrassed at this rookie mistake. This little girl, and her mother, had put their trust in her to help Stefanie and here she was dropping swabs and samples all over the place. "Listen, Stefanie" she said. "Do you trust me...even though I'm being such a klutz today?"

"Yes Dr Julia" the little girl replied.

"I'm going to send for the best doctor in this hospital. The top person, I think she can help you and she won't drop everything on the floor. Is that OK?"

The girl nodded and Julia went to find Dr Murakami, her superior. "Dr Murakami" she said. "I have a little girl in room 2; she's Nurse Griffith's daughter and...well...I think her case is a little out of my league"

"Really, Dr Epstein? I thought you relished a challenge"

"Well...on this occasion....I think it's because I'm a friend of the family I'm too close to things. Maybe a more detached view is needed here?"

"Very well, Dr Epstein...I'll trade you cases: You take my ruptured disc case and I'll look in on young Miss Griffith"

Julia read the case notes for her new patient: Mrs Edna Sneedley, age 41, suspected ruptured back disc. Julia went to the waiting room and called out for Mrs Sneedley. A stern looking, smartly dressed woman struggled to stand up and hobbled over to Julia. "I'm Edna Sneedley"

"Let me help you or get a wheelchair for you..." Julia began

"Certainly not! I'm quite alright...just a joint out of place I assure you!" said the woman, harshly. "I need to get out of here as soon as possible"

"Well, let's determine what's wrong first...this way Mrs Sneedley."

Julia examined Mrs Sneedley and her tentative diagnosis so far was that there was swelling around her lower spine area. "So when did you notice the pain and swelling?" she asked.

"During the protest" replied Mrs Sneedley. "I'd been standing there, leading it for some hours and all of a sudden I felt this pain in my back."

"If you don't mind me saying, you don't look like the protesting type. What was the cause?"

"The shameful degradation and moral corruption of our society, Dr Epstein!" said an indignant Mrs Sneedley. "We were demonstrating outside of the Lothario Club"

"Isn't that the one owned by Alan Cuffe?" replied Julia.

"Yes....vile man! He was our next door neighbour for a while. Fortunately he moved out last week but the wild and debauched parties he threw in his previous house! Ugh! I hope you're not a fan of his"

"Certainly not! I have had the unpleasant experience of meeting him...twice now. He tried to recruit me into his Kitten Club: I turned him down flat" said Julia, grimacing.

"Oh those shameless women parading about in next to nothing!" said Edna. "Well I'm glad to hear you are not a fan. Do you not agree that morals are declining in this day and age?"

"I certainly do Mrs Sneedley. Everywhere you look it's sex, sex, sex. And then there's the drugs, the rule breaking, men with long hair....I prefer a bit of order and common sense"

"You sound like the kind of young person we need in the League of Decency" said Edna.

"The League of Decency? Is that your organisation?" asked Julia.

"Yes...would you be interested in attending one of our meetings?"

"I think I would like to, Mrs Sneedley. Now I'm going to send you for an x-ray. Don't worry, I'll get a hospital attendant to take you there."

The League of Decency, thought Julia. Maybe it was time to get involved in a cause?

At the end of her shift, Julia headed home with Mrs Sneedley's business card with the contact phone number and address for the League of Decency in her handbag. When she arrived home she found that her aunt Elle was in the house.

"Hi Auntie Elle" said Julia, surprised to see her in her house. "I gave you a copy of my house key in case of emergencies"

"This is an emergency!" barked her Aunt. "My landlord wants to kill me!"

Julia sighed. This seemed to be another of her Aunt's paranoid outbursts. "For the last time, Aunt Elle, your landlord is your brother...he's not out to get you"

"He's been out to get me since I was six!"

"I'll call dad and sort this out" said Julia but before she could get to the phone there was a knock at the door. "Who is it?" said a startled Aunt Elle. Julia went to investigate and it turned out to be her next door neighbour, Suzy Kent.

"Hi Suzy...nice to see you. I must warn you, my aunt has dropped around and she's, well, a bit of a handful" said Julia.

"Do you need any help?" asked Suzy.

"Actually, if you don't mind, maybe having a chat will calm her down a bit."

Suzy agreed and went inside to greet Aunt Elle. "Hello, I'm Suzy...I live next door. I think I recognise you; don't you sometimes sing at the Solar Flare Club?"

"Yes....who told you to say that? Julia, why is this person here?" said Elle.

"She's my neighbour, Aunt"

"I enjoyed your singing...I was there with my boyfriend and we both liked the show" said Suzy, trying to be friendly.

"Harumph" said Elle.

"Suzy here works for 'Hey, Wow' magazine." said Julia, trying to lighten the mood. "She knows all the best places in town as well"

Elle said nothing but instead scowled at Suzy. Her monopoly over Julia in her home had been broken and she did not like it at all.

As Suzy and Julia tried making small talk with Elle, the woman stood up and went outside without saying a word. There, just at the side of the house, she kicked the trash can over in anger and frustration.

"I'm so sorry you have to experience this" said Julia to Suzy after Elle had stepped outside. "You see, my aunt has psychological problems and sometimes she can control her behaviour and sometimes she can't"

"It's family though...you have to stick by them" said Suzy. At that moment there was another knock at the door.

"I think Elle might have locked herself out" said Julia, getting up to answer it. But it wasn't Elle, instead it was Francesca.

"Hi Julia...sorry for dropping by unannounced" she said.

"Don't worry...it's been an evening of unannounced guests. Come in" said Julia. "This is my neighbour, Suzy....Suzy this is my work colleague and friend, Francesca"

The two women greeted each other in a friendly manner. At that moment Aunt Elle returned. "What's this? More people!" she said.

"Francesca's a colleague of mine" said Julia.

"I just wanted to say a big thank you for putting Stefanie's fears at ease today" said Francesca.

"I don't know if I did that...I made a hash of things really" said an embarrassed Julia.

"That's what made her feel at ease...she thought you were funny for such a clever person"

"People! People just showing up and talking...never stopping talking!" muttered Elle.

"Aunt Elle...these are my friends. They're not a threat to you or to anyone" said an increasingly exasperated Julia.

"So why did they just drop by, unannounced?" said Elle.

"Why did you?" said Julia.

"I told you! My landlord is out to kill me!"

"He is not! He's my uncle, your brother! Now Auntie Elle....please show some kindness and manners towards my friends!"

"Hurumph! Well I won't stay around here being insulted. Goodbye, Julia....maybe when they find my body you'll think twice!" and with that, Aunt Elle stormed off.

Julia sighed and turned to her friends. "I'm so sorry about that. She'll be alright come tomorrow morning" but deep down she was worried that her Aunt's condition was getting worse and she was now shunning proper medical treatment and instead just randomly showing up at her place as a form of refuge. What to do, she thought, what to do?