frozen within time

chapter fourteen

At Blackwood house, Jesse was in transports of delight to see them back. She'd drunk most of her water, gnawed through reitzys other leg and made thorough use of the newspaper they'd laid down for her.

'Ohh, Jesse, what a frightful pong!' Karl held his nose and looked disgusted as Jesse leaped up at him and licked his knees.

'Come on,' said Alex. 'Let's get this cleaned up before uncle j sees it. He'll have a fit!' .

'What jj? No! He's a darling!' Said holly and Kristen and Alex nearly went into a "goshing" session themselves. They'd never heard uncle John called that before.

As it happened uncle John wasn't around to complain. He'd left then a note to say he'd gone up to London to sort a few things out. 'I've left some money in the breadbin in case I don't get back for a day or two,' Alex read, from the note on the kitchen table. 'Spend it on school clothes for Karl and holly, and do be sure to brief them as thoroughly as you can about what they should expect. I've already delivered a letter to your head teacher, to expect them next week. I used your hippy commune cover story, so you'd all better work in that too. I've called them Robertson, not Wilkinson----just in case there's anyone old enough on the school staff to remember. Hopefully I shall have some convincing papers and documents with me when I come back, so there won't be any questions asked. tell them not to worry----I won't be giving anything away to anyone----but I might be able to sniff out a bit more detail about professor Wilkinson. Will try out the thirty year rule. Thought I might try to look up Karl and hollys "uncle dick" charictor too.  See you soon,   uncle John.  (Jj)

Karl read the note and nodded. 'I just hope he's careful,' he muttered.

'But, karl, whoever came from the government and "cleaned up"----if what old Frank says is true----well, they're probably long gone by now, aren't they?' Said Alex. 'Nobody's going to be remembering you and holly and your father now. it's long, long ago. I mean, even me and Kristen had half forgotten it----and we've lived in your old house for five years!'

Kristen was putting her bike back into the shed when Karl came out to put his in too. She didn't know what to say to him. She was desperately worried about she'd seen in the park. Karl glanced over at her as he wheeled his old black machine up against Alex's. Then he looked again, harder. 'What's up Kristen?'

She gulped and smiled and said, 'Nothing.' Buy as she went to walk away he stood in front of her, folded his arms, and put his head to one side regarding her with his dark blue eyes narrowed.

'What is it? I'm not an idiot, you know. I've seen you staring at me since we left the park.'

She fumbled with her bike lock, feeling her face get hot. She didn't want to say what she'd seen. She didn't have to.

'You saw the blood, didn't you?'

She looked up, startled. 'Yes. Yes, I did.'

'Game of you not to say anything.'

'Game? What's that supposed to mean? I am going to say something! You could be----you could be . . . .'

'Dying. Yes I know. but you're not going to say anything.' His eyes were steely now and he was pressing his lips together.

'But----but what if it is . . . . You know, like the rats and things?'

'Look----I'm fine. a little nosebleed after fifty three years in suspension, well, its not a bit suprising really, is it? You'd have to expect a few Que----peculiar----things to happen! I'm not going to spend days on end in some sanatorium, having tests done. I'm not, I tell you. If you're my friend, you won't tell anyone!'

'But what If it gets worse?'

He looked down at his hands and then back up at her. 'If it gets worse . . . . Well, then everyone will know about it anyway, won't they? But holly hasn't noticed yet----and I don't want her getting scared. Nor has Alex. Will you keep this secret? Will you?'

Kristen sighed. She did not like this at all. 'All right,' She muttered.

'Swear!'

'I swear!'

'Hands where I can see them----and swear again!'

That afternoon Alex and Kristen began to teach holly and karl about 2009. They laid out newspapers and magazines They'd bought earlier in town and put the radio on again. It was fascinating and exhausting----there was so much ti get through and karl and holly were excited and amazed one minute, shocked and appalled the next.

As they flipped over the pages of the Dailey mail and now and top gear magazines (publications they would never have dreamed of bringing home before) Kristen covertly watched Karl and Jesse for any more signs of bleeding. There were no signs.

'So----an I-pod . . . . What's that?' Alex was testing them now.

'A robot?' Said holly (she was clearly a bit fixated on robots, thought Kristen).

'Noooo----it's the little box that holds recordings of tunes. really small. about the size of a matchbox sometimes,' said Alex. He smiled patiently. 'It's like a tiny, Tiny jukebox!'

'How many tunes can you fit in it?' Asked holly.

'Oh, I dunno----hundred----thousands sometimes.'

'In one little box? That's ridiculous!'

'But true.'

'But I thought you said all music was on discs now?' Said karl.

'Well----yes----CDs too. But you can download tunes, too, from the internet.'

'Right-oh!' Said karl, his eyes beginning to glaze over.

Kristen sighed. 'Look, I think we should work on their cover story. If we make that really good then everyone will understand why they don't know anything.'

'Yes, good idea,' said Alex. 'The hippy commune . . . .'

'What is a hippy?' Asked holly and Alex and Kristen both groaned. of course, nobody was called a hippy until the 1960s.

'Oh, this is going to take for ever!' Wailed Kristen.
'Cant we just make them both mutes or something? Then they wouldn't have to talk to anyone about anything.'

'Well, thanks a lot! I'd like to see how you'd like it, being shoved into another century,' huffed Karl.

'Lets have a break now,' said Alex. 'I'm done in. Can we get some pot noodle on or something Kristen? Oh, I wish the telly wasn't broken . . . .'

They are pot noodle, listened to radio 2 again. Holly and karl seemed at first disgusted with the food and then madly into it. Kristen felt guilty all over again. First burger king, now pot noodle. it really didn't say much for 2009 cuisine. She got apples from the fridge for afters, hoping to make up for it a bit.

'Um . . . .' She began, unsure how to say it in front of Alex, 'if you like, we can order in some ingredients and stuff and . . . . Um . . . . Maybe . . . . You can teach me how to make a crock pot?'

'Hot pot,' Laughed holly. 'Yes----I'd 've happy to.'

'But you'd have to teach Alex too.'

'Would I? Really?'

'Yessss, hissed Kristen, glaring at Alex who was shaking his head wildly. 'If I'm going to learn to cook I should jolly well think you can too. Oh, what? Listen to me! I sound just like holly! Help!'

'Get over it,' said holly and they all exploded I to laughter, spraying pot noodle across the table.