Dark Memories Submerged by I. T. Lucas
Geraldine
By the time Geraldine returned to the living room, coffee and tea were served, and her six lunch companions were seated around the dining table and looking at her with somber expressions on their faces.
Cassandra included.
Her daughter had been tense since the day before, and it seemed that it was contagious because the others had caught it.
Geraldine didn’t know what to make of it. Cassandra’s tension might be related to work or to Martha, and Onegus might be anxious about his girlfriend and mother getting along.
But what about Roni and Sylvia? Why were they even there? No one had explained why they were invited. Was one of them Onegus’s cousin?
Connor was the only one who didn’t look stressed or anxious, but even he seemed to be expecting something.
Why the somber expressions?
She’d deliberately stayed away from recounting any of the memories that she wasn’t sure were real, so it wasn’t about her questionable sanity either.
Stifling a sigh, Geraldine sat down and reached for her teacup. So far, it had been an enjoyable gathering, and she’d felt comfortable with the three new acquaintances she’d made, as well as with Onegus and Martha.
Holding his coffee cup, Onegus leaned back and leveled his intense eyes at her. “Raising a child alone is difficult. What did you do when you got sick?”
“I don’t get sick often.” She touched the side of her head where the phantom of her old injury sometimes still throbbed. “Other than the amnesia that is. Unfortunately, I’ve never fully recovered from that, and I still experience gaps in memory from time to time.”
“Did it happen when Cassandra was a baby?” Martha asked.
“Luckily, it did not.” Geraldine rubbed her temple. “Motherly instincts must have overridden my memory issues.”
“What about other injuries?” Roni asked. “Did you ever cut yourself while working on your quilts, or stab a finger with a needle?”
That was an odd thing to ask. “I don’t remember that ever happening, but I might have forgotten. What does that have to do with raising a baby, though?”
“Not much,” Martha said. “What about your recovery after giving birth to Cassandra? It must have been difficult to take care of her without help.”
“Not at all.” Geraldine smiled at her daughter. “Cassy’s birth was easy. Even the midwife I hired said so, and I was almost as good as new the next day.”
For some reason, her lunch companions, including Cassandra, looked exasperated. Had they expected different answers?
She turned to Martha. “Was it different for you? You were alone as well.”
“I wasn’t alone. I had my mother and my aunts and cousins with me.”
This time Geraldine could no longer hold her tongue. “Your family seems to be devoid of fathers. What happened to them? Does it have anything to do with those enemies you are so afraid of?”
It would be so incredibly tragic if they had all perished in wars with those enemies.
Letting out a breath, Onegus put his coffee cup on the table and leaned toward her. “Before I answer that, I have a few questions that might seem a little odd, but I would appreciate it if you answered them.”
“Okay…”
The entire conversation was strange, and Geraldine felt that she was being interrogated. Was Onegus an undercover Internal Revenue agent?
Geraldine shook her head. That was an absurd thought even for her.
“Is your hearing better than that of other people?”
She frowned. “I don’t know how to answer that. I’ve never had my hearing checked.”
“How about your eyesight?”
“It’s very good.”
“Better than most people’s?”
“I don’t know about most people, but my friends have commented on it on several occasions. I can read the small print on prescription medications that they cannot.”
“What about your sense of smell? Can you smell people’s emotions?”
“Is that even possible?”
Onegus sighed. “Then I assume it’s a no.”
“Why are you asking me these questions?”
Cassandra took her hand and clasped it between hers. “Because we believe that you are immortal, and immortals have superior senses.”
Her heart racing, Geraldine yanked her hand out of Cassandra’s grasp. “What kind of nonsense is that?”
“Did you look in the mirror lately? You look younger than me.”
As panic seized her, Geraldine’s throat constricted. It was one thing for Cassandra to question her ageless appearance, but it was another thing to do it in front of other people.
She forced a chuckle. “Martha also looks younger than Onegus. Does that make her immortal?”
“It does,” Martha said. “Except for Cassandra, we are all immortal. Welcome home, Geraldine. You have found your people.” She smiled. “Technically, we found you, but the result is the same. You’re among friends, and you no longer need to run and hide.”