Missing Years ( Part 11)

Spencer put down the phone from his mate at the running club. The news was what he expected. The New Balance running shoes were from the early eighties, as were the vest and shorts. He thought that would be the case but had to have everything just right for the Commander. The Dentist had compared both sets of x-rays and had confirmed that they were the same person, in fact according to him, the x-rays that he took and the ones that were given to him by Spencer were taken no more than 6 months apart!

It just didn’t make sense, anyway he looked at it, it made no sense whatsoever. How can someone disappear, come back nearly 25 years later and still be exactly the same as he was?

Spencer was due to meet the Commander in two hours to give his findings. Tom Lucas was going to be there as well, he wondered if Tom had found out anything from Ray, anything at all, something!

He had two hours to kill. He hadn’t eaten or slept for 24 hours, sod it, he walked out of the station and went into the Golden Lion pub across the street. Time for a pie and a pint!

Ray had been quiet since they got back to the travel lodge, Tom was worried about him.

“Tell you what Ray, let’s go next door for a beer, what do you think?

“Yeh, why not, good idea”

They went next door and walked into the Moby Dick pub.

Tom ordered 2 pints of Fosters. Ray was astonished that it cost over five pounds.

“Bloody hell Tom, five quid for two pints, unbelievable!”

“Tell me about it, things have gone up a lot since you’ve been on your travels”

The both laughed, Tom was glad to see Ray smile again.

“Look mate, sorry about what I said in the car, but it’s the truth, I know it’s hard to come to terms with but things have changed, they’re different now”

“I know Tom, but seeing the house just made me want to go and see it all again”

“Look, you’ve got to face facts, your wife is now 52, your daughter is now your age, imagine the shock to both of them, we’ve got to play this really carefully, you do understand?”

“I know, but it’s also a shock to me. I don’t know what’s going on; I don’t know where I’ve been!”

“Ok, let’s start at the beginning see if something comes back, you remember going running?”

Ray sat back in his chair and closed his eyes trying to recall events from his last day back in 1982.

“I remember kissing Laura, having a quick look in on Stacey who was fast asleep, then going down the stairs and into the front garden. I remember shutting the front door and then start running”

“Ok mate that’s good, what else?”

“I was running down my street and I remember it started to rain, I was going up to the road that meets the lanes and that’s all I remember until a man started to pick me up and take me to his car, that was your Doctor in Buxton”

“Let’s go back a bit, you said it started raining, what can you remember about the rain, was it heavy or light or a bit misty, was there anything about the rain you can remember?”

“Well it was a light rain, very fine, not the sort of rain that you get soaked in but just enough to refresh you as you’re running, there was a smell as well, yes, a smell, a stagnant smell”

“That’s good Ray, what was the smell can you remember, what did it remind you of, and what was it like?”

“It was damp, like when you walk into a room that’s got damp, does that make any sense?”

Tom laughed.

“Not really, not to me anyway, but it’s something Ray, it’s something!”

Tom went and got another two pints, he felt like he was getting somewhere, he wasn’t sure where exactly but somewhere. He sat back down again with the beers.

Ray looked anxious.

“There’s something else Tom, something I should tell you, it’s about the dreams”

“Ok Ray, tell me about the dreams”

“I seem to be sleeping a lot; don’t know why but every time I sit down for more than a few minutes I fall into a deep sleep. The dream is always the same, I am running and something is chasing me, I fall, then there is a shadow that appears over me and then the smell again and whatever it is has hot breath and darkness about it. Like a monster in some kind of horror movie.

Ray was visibly shaking.

“It’s ok mate, don’t worry, dreams can’t hurt you, it’s just a dream”

“But there something else Tom, I don’t know why but I think whatever it is wants to tell me something, I can feel it. But because I’m so shit scared of it I always wake up just as it is about to talk”

“Tell you what Ray, next time you have the dream try to control it, stay in the dream as long as you can, let whatever it is talk”

They continued chatting and then stood up to go back to their room.

Ray heard his name being called. He turned round and saw an old man at the bar.

“Dad, is that you, is that really you?”

Eddie Samuels looked at his son for the first time in almost 25 years; he was exactly the same as he remembered him. His eyes filled up.

“My boy Ray, my lovely boy Ray, he’s come back”

The two men walked towards each other and then embraced, both started to cry. They stayed like that for what seemed like an eternity.

Although it was a touching sight, Tom Lucas had other thing on his mind. Fuck, the commander will go ballistic.