\u201cThere\u2019s something odd going on with Julia and Umbry,\u201d Clay said. He had known for a while that he and Francesca would need to have this conversation, although he hadn\u2019t been quite sure what he would say. Now that the words were finally coming out, it was easier.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes, so I have noticed,\u201d she replied, and then paused to think, moving her chair back a bit and taking her eyes off the puzzle in front of her. \u201cThere is trauma there \u2014 or rather, there has been. Certain aspects of their situation have not added up in my mind to a consistent whole. I believe, Clayton, that there is evidence we may be dealing with matters of the unconscious mind.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clay nodded. \u201cGlad I\u2019m not the only one to notice it. I was starting to think it was me. I\u2019ve mostly been getting a general feeling, a sense of something lying just below the surface. It\u2019s been very hard to pin down, exactly. I suspect that they themselves may not even be aware of it. Francesca, have you spotted any specific anomaly, something we could work with to try to understand better what they are going through?\u201d<\/p>\n
Francesca nodded slowly, the logical part of her mind approaching this puzzle much as she would approach any other. \u201cYou mentioned Frederick to them during your very first encounter, is this not correct?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes,\u201d nodded Clay, \u201cto Julia.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd what was her response?\u201d<\/p>\n
Clay thought back. \u201cYes \u2026 right. I showed her some photos, and asked her whether Freddie looked familiar. I believe her exact response was \u2018He rings a bell, but I can\u2019t say.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou see, my dear Clayton,\u201d Francesca exclaimed, \u201cThere it is. Frederick spoke often of his two saviors, those intrepid young detectives. Against the views of entire legal establishment and received opinion of the constablry, they insisted that he was innocent of any crime. Correctly as it turned out. It was quite the impressive feat of sleuthing to achieve any age, and I believe they were still in their teenage years at the time.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo how is it possible,\u201d Clay mused aloud, \u201cthat Julia would have difficulty recognizing him?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cClearly it is not possible, my dear. Their paths would certainly have crossed on multiple occasions. That is why I suspect a repression of memory. There has clearly been some occurrence so overwhelming or abhorrent in its effect upon their psyches that the entire memory has simply been placed safely out of reach by the minds of these two young women.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clay nodded. \u201cI don\u2019t need convincing. The problem now is how to pull them out of it, to bring them back to their full abilities, before the enemy makes his move.\u201d<\/p>\n
Francesca smiled. \u201cWhy Clayton, you of all individuals should know something of the path one must walk in such situations. Take your own sad case as an example. I remember the first time, I believe it was in Cagne-sur-Mer, when you first introduced me to\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t need to speak of her,\u201d Clay cut her off, with a savage curtness that surprised even himself.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, my dear, we do not,\u201d Francesca replied gently. \u201cI am sorry if I have spoken out of turn. Besides, we have, as you would say, other fish to fly.\u201d<\/p>\n
There was a pause. \u201cFry,\u201d said Clay.<\/p>\n
\u201cFry?\u201d Francesca looked confused. \u201cFry what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOther fish to fry. That\u2019s how we say it. Although I like your version better.\u201d He smiled apologetically, and she returned his smile. They were still standing there, simply looking at one another, when Julia came in, her eyes bloodshot.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy dear,\u201d Francesca exclaimed, \u201cHave you been crying?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, don\u2019t be silly,\u201d Julia lied. \u201cEverything is fine.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI am so glad to hear it,\u201d Francesca said quickly. \u201cSilly me. Would you be a dear and prepare one of those delightful espressos for me?\u201d<\/p>\n
Julia beamed at her two friends, her usual sunny expression somewhat restored. \u201cYes, that’d be great. I might even make two.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cThere\u2019s something odd going on with Julia and Umbry,\u201d Clay said. He had known for a while that he and Francesca would need to have this conversation, although he hadn\u2019t been quite sure what he would say. Now that the words were finally coming out, it was easier. \u201cYes, so I have noticed,\u201d she replied, … Continue reading “Sun and Moon (part 10)”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.kenperlin.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2530"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.kenperlin.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.kenperlin.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.kenperlin.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.kenperlin.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2530"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"http:\/\/blog.kenperlin.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2530\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2536,"href":"http:\/\/blog.kenperlin.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2530\/revisions\/2536"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.kenperlin.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2530"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.kenperlin.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2530"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.kenperlin.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2530"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}