Black Mountain

TEN

Kathleen Hunter stared into the fire, the flickering orange tongues reflecting in her eyes. The flames were warm and comforting, and as she watched they opened familiar windows into her past, into her memories. Beside her on the rug lay Jess, fully stretched out like an enormous bear-skin rug — one hundred pounds of German shepherd and her last living family member. Settling further into the old chair, Kathleen let her eyes wander over the angled line of photographs in their wood, silver or plastic frames on the mantelpiece. The first was of Jim Hunter, her husband, in his youth, all whipcord muscle. Beside him, looking even younger, was his best friend Jack Hammerson — soldiers both of them. The next frame held another young man, the face eerily similar to Jim’s but the photo was sharper and more modern. It was her son, Alex Hunter. An older version of Jack Hammerson was standing beside him, a hand on his shoulder. Another soldier sent out to serve and defend the nation. Another soldier who never came home, she thought morosely. Except for you, Jack, you could survive anything.

She looked down at the dog. ‘Never love a soldier, Jess — they break your heart even if they don’t mean to.’

The dog huffed in her sleep, her feet slowly circling as she chased something in a doggy dream. Kathleen wiped her eyes, cursing softly at the way the pictures could raise her with feelings of love and pride, then cast her down into melancholy and even a little anger.

She sighed and lifted the newspaper resting on her lap to fan her face. ‘Phew, someone needs a bath.’ She sniffed again. Odd smell. ‘Did you roll in something?’ she asked Jess.

The dog came awake and rolled over to a sphinx-like crouch, eyes round and alert, ears up and pointed towards the window. Kathleen tucked her feet under the dog’s large, warm body and looked at the photograph on the front page. A little girl with a gap-toothed smile beamed back at her. Kathleen recognised the face before she read the name, Emma Wilson. She was missing, and the police were offering a reward.

‘Poor little angel. That’s not far from here, Jess. We can help look for her tomorrow.’

Jess hadn’t moved, remaining fixated on something outside that only she could sense. The fire popped then settled, making the dog jump. Kathleen looked at the woodpile — it was getting low; there wouldn’t be enough to keep the fire burning through the night. Though the big dog was warming her feet now, she knew that by morning the house would be colder than grandpa’s crypt. She sighed. She knew she wouldn’t feel like going outside to get more wood just after dawn — her old bones complained the most from the cold in the mornings.

She set the newspaper down and pulled her feet from under Jess. ‘Should have done it before, old girl.’

As she got to her feet there came the almost imperceptible sound of branches snapping in the trees near the house. The noise carried easily to the dog’s ears on the still, cold air and Jess was immediately on her feet, hackles up from her neck to her tail, making her seem twice as large as her usual huge self. Her bark was deep and booming in the small room, and her lips had pulled back to show all her teeth.

Kathleen put her hand on the dog’s head, then ran it down over one ear and along her back. ‘Stop that, you silly thing. You’re scaring me.’ She felt the huge chest working like a set of bellows, the muscles bunched and tight.

Jess hadn’t taken her eyes off the front of the house, and skittered on the rug now as she rushed to the front door. Kathleen went to the window and looked out into the clear, moonlit yard. The front of the house was clear, and there was nothing visible amongst the large fir and birch trees she had allowed to grow to within fifty feet of the house. Weird old dog, she thought, as she looked over to where the firewood had been stacked neatly by that nice Jim Miller boy, who had cut it for her.

Kathleen pulled on her cardigan, picked up the firewood bucket and headed for the front door. On her way, she stepped out of her slippers and into a pair of rubber half-boots. As she approached the door, Jess moved to stand sideways across the frame. The dog looked up at her briefly, before swinging her head back to stare at the door as though seeing straight through the wood and out into the dark night.

‘You’re not going out if you’re going to carry on like that,’ Kathleen said. ‘I’m not planning on chasing you up the side of the mountain. So move, please.’

Jess took no notice.

Kathleen scowled at the dog, then pointed down beside herself. ‘Heel, Jess.’

The dog reluctantly came and sat beside her. She tried to lick Kathleen’s hand, whining and obviously highly agitated.

‘Stay.’ Kathleen walked to the door and looked back. The dog was licking her lips nervously and started to get to her feet. ‘Stay!’ Jess sat down again, but Kathleen could tell she was struggling to obey the command. She frowned again and shook her head; Jess had never disobeyed her before… ever.

‘I’ll just be a couple of minutes.’

Jess got to her feet again, but Kathleen opened the door and went out before the dog could try to stop her.

Alex and Adira allowed their horses to amble along the Ashkelon shoreline. Both in T-shirts, jeans and bare feet, they were enjoying the late afternoon sunshine on the coast of the ancient city. Alex inhaled deeply, taking in the smell of salt, warm sand and drying seaweed. He felt Adira watching him and turned to smile at her.

‘It’s magnificent here — thank you. Smelling the sea, hearing the sound of the waves… I find it peaceful.’ He looked out at the ocean and breathed in deeply again. ‘It’s strange, I know how to ride a horse, but don’t remember ever actually riding.’

‘We’ve been here before; it’s one of our favourite spots. Don’t worry, it’ll come back soon,’ Adira said smiling and pointed to a small horseshoe-shaped cove, where the sand was flat and golden. ‘Let’s give the horses a rest,’ she said.

She slid from her horse and Alex followed suit. This far south the beaches were unoccupied — too close to the Gaza Strip to be considered safe, but perfect if you wanted solitude. A few trees stood at the edge of the dunes, and tough grass dared to creep down towards the water. Alex tied his horse up in the shade and walked a few paces to lie down on the sand. He closed his eyes. The gentle sound of the small waves breaking just a few feet away should have made him relax completely. But there was a nagging prickle behind his eyes — as if there was something he needed to do, or remember, and his overactive brain wouldn’t let go until he did.

He opened his eyes and lifted one of his arms, examining the skin on both sides. The fresh scars that had been visible a few days ago were gone — not just healed, but vanished entirely. There was something else too: he’d started to sense things… things beyond sight, smell and hearing. Adira had told him his name was Horowitz, and that he was a soldier in the Israeli army. He’d been injured in battle, concussed, and he’d lost his memory. It sounded right, but didn’t feel right.

Even as they got closer, he couldn’t tell whether she wanted to be his bodyguard, or his keeper… or something more. Back in Israel, he’d seen her talking daily to the man she called his doctor, but he’d known she was lying. She was good at it, but he could tell. He mentally shrugged. Did it really matter? Alex didn’t feel in any hurry to remember whatever it was that the doctors, or Adira’s superiors, desperately wanted him to remember. After all, he had everything he needed here — as Adira kept telling him.

She sat down beside him, and Alex opened one eye and watched her for a minute. She never relaxed, never once closed her eyes and surrendered to the warm sunshine. She was always on guard, on duty; her eyes never stopped moving, from the line of dunes, to the crystal-clear water, to the small stand of trees…

He tapped her leg to get her attention. ‘Do you miss them?’

She looked at him quizzically. ‘Miss who?’

‘Whoever it is you keep looking for.’ He grinned at her, still keeping one eye shut against the glare of the sun.

She laughed and lay down, propping herself on one elbow. ‘I just keep a lookout for you.’

‘I’m right here,’ he said, brushing some sand from her jeans and letting his hand remain on her thigh. ‘It’s hot. Bring a swimsuit?’

‘Very, and no.’ She leaned forward, her dark eyes containing amusement and desire.

Alex recognised the gaze, but in a flash Adira’s face had morphed into that of another woman, with finer features and soft blue eyes. He tried to put a name to the face, but the prickling he’d felt behind his eyes turned to white-hot pain. He winced and sat up. Something was happening, or about to — he could sense it, he knew it.

Adira pulled back from him and stood quickly. ‘Come on, let’s get out of the sun. You need to rest.’ She sounded disappointed.

Adira woke to the sound of crashing and Alex yelling. She switched on the hall light and stood in his doorway, just able to make out his shape sitting on the bed holding his head. The migraines again, she thought. He seemed to suffer them most when he tried to reach back into his memory and recover who he was. His past was still locked away from him — behind a red-hot door of pain.

‘Are you okay, Alex?’

She waited a few seconds for him to respond. When he didn’t, she walked into the room and sat on the bed beside him. She poured him a small cup of water and lifted it towards his lips. ‘Here.’

He held her hand and the cup, draining it.

‘I see faces in my dreams.’ His voice was slow, as though he wasn’t fully awake. ‘I see a soldier, grey-haired and mean-looking. And an old woman on a porch… there’s a mountain in the background. I know her… I know her.’

Alex looked at Adira, but she wasn’t sure he actually saw her or whether his mind was still somewhere else. It was hot in the room, hotter than usual, and his body was an unnatural temperature. She had been told to expect it as his metabolism worked well above the normal average range. She used the cuff of her long-sleeved T-shirt to wipe his brow.

‘There are other things.’ His tone was becoming insistent. ‘Things that hide in the dark, or crawl on insect legs — monsters, maybe, from my imagination… but they seem so real.’

Adira had seen one of those monsters on a mission with Alex in the Iranian desert. They’d been attacked by something that should never have existed outside of a nightmare — and it wasn’t only his sleep it haunted.

He grabbed her wrist. ‘Something’s reaching out to me, calling me — it won’t stop.’ He pulled her closer and stared into her face.

She brushed the damp hair from his forehead. ‘Shhh, you’re safe here, Alex.’

‘You’re all I’ve got left.’ He drew her even closer and she let him. ‘You don’t know how much I…’ He found her mouth, and the kiss that started softly became hungrier and more urgent.

She clung to him, feeling a warm bloom spread in her belly. Deep down, she knew this was what she had wanted almost since she’d first met him. ‘Alex, Alex…’ She kissed him again and again, on the mouth and neck, tasting the salt of his perspiration. It excited her even more.

She wasn’t supposed to let anything complicate her mission objectives. She never had before, and it had been easy: she was always a soldier of Israel first. She was her duty.

His mouth found hers again.

This is different, she thought. This is something I want… something that’s just mine.

She lifted her T-shirt up over her head, and he pulled her down on top of him. The warmth in her belly spread lower.

The night was at its darkest; it would be morning soon. Sleep was impossible. She lay on top of the sheets, feeling the perspiration trickle from her temples into her hair. There was a fluttering sensation in her stomach that made her feel euphoric and apprehensive at the same time. The values she held dear and the things she’d thought she wanted suddenly seemed far less important compared to the selfish desires she now harboured. Throughout the night, silly half-dreams of going away together, somewhere far from either of their countries, somewhere no one would find them, had played over in her mind.

Adira could hear Alex’s soft breathing beside her, rhythmic like a machine. The feelings of apprehension rose again. She couldn’t count on his memory never returning. What would he think when he found out that he was someone completely different from the person she’d told him he was? He’d hate her — she’d lose him.

Her objective was to get Alex Hunter to reveal the elusive element that made the Arcadian treatment work. Science alone was unable to deliver it. Her success would give Israel access to a source of security for the future. Her country was a mere eight million souls surrounded by an Arab world numbering nearly three hundred million, most of whom wanted Israel erased from the map. But once that door in Alex’s mind was opened, other corridors back to his past would be available to him.

She groaned and rolled towards him, but couldn’t make out his profile in the blackness of the room. When she was a little girl, her uncle, now the general, had told her of a famous Israeli saying: Alone we are weak, but together we are iron. She would not abandon Israel, but how could she do that and not lose Alex?

She reached out and touched his shoulder, feeling the heat. She had been faithful to Israel her entire life. Didn’t that count for something?

This will not end well, she thought, and closed her eyes.