The Zul Enigma

by J M Leitch

‘Thank goodness. For one terrible moment I thought perhaps she planned to pass Drew off as the father.’

  ‘No. She wouldn’t have done that, because she never planned to stay with Drew. She’d’ve gone straight to her parents. And Carlos would’ve come chasing after her and she would’ve used the baby to persuade him to quit his job at OOSA and move back to the States. She’d’ve ended up getting exactly what she wanted. I guarantee it.’

  ‘You seem to have known her very well.’

  ‘I know people. Drew blamed Carlos at first. For her death. But later he blamed himself. If she hadn’t wanted to go to him she’d still be alive today.’

  ‘But something good came out of it for Carlos,’ Rebecca said, always looking for the positive in every situation. ‘It made him question his values. He’s realised what he was like back then and he wants to change. He is changing. He’s trying really hard.’

  Erika filled their glasses and ordered another bottle.

  ‘What about you and Carlos?’

  ‘Well… we’re just friends.’

  ‘Is that it? I saw the way he looks at you… and the way you look at him!’

  ‘Don’t say anything, please, but I’m really falling for him.’

  ‘That’s what I thought.’

  Rebecca smiled. ‘He’s so passionate about his beliefs… so passionate in his mission to bring meditation to the world, but at the same time he’s questioning what kind of man he is. He totally sees his flaws and is trying to work on them. I love that in him.’

  ‘He’s passionate about Zul too, so Drew says. What do you make of that?’

  Rebecca nodded. ‘I… well… I support him whole-heartedly on the meditation initiative. I’ve followed a meditation practice myself for a couple of years now – I know how powerful it is. But I can’t say I believe in the evolution bit. It’s a wonderful spiritual concept – and that’s why it’s been received so positively all over the world. People want to know there’s a deeper meaning to their lives. But… I just find it hard to embrace unconditionally like Carlos does.’

  ‘I don’t know what to think. I’ll probably end up believing by default. Drew was anti at first too. But like everyone says, if it’s not true then who would go to all that trouble making it up? I mean – what’s the point?’

  ‘Look up there. Isn’t it beautiful?’ It was nearly half past eight in the evening and another blazing sunset was painting the sky. ‘Hard to believe we might not see anything like this again after the 21st December,’ Rebecca sighed.

  ‘Hey you! Come on back down to Earth. Now listen… obviously Carlos likes you… and you’re falling for him, so… what are you going to do about it?’

  Rebecca threaded her fingers through her hair and pushed it off her face. ‘I don’t know. Wait for him to make the first move, I suppose.’

  ‘Why wait?’

  ‘He’s so busy right now. He doesn’t have time to get involved.’

  ‘That’s a load of bull Rebecca. Everyone has time to get involved. You know you’re such a sweet person, you’re bound to end up evolving to fourth density spirituality in December,’ Rebecca laughed. ‘I’m not joking – so my advice to you is to make the first move and get a romance started while you still have the chance.’

  CHAPTER 14

  ‘Buonasera signore, signorina.’ Luigi bowed low as Carlos and Rebecca walked through the archway into the restaurant.

  Familiar with the ritual, he already had a bottle of Chianti standing by, which he opened with his customary flourish. ‘I will come back to pour after she is breathing.’

  ‘You look happy,’ Rebecca said taking the last mouthful of dessert – her favourite at La Lucciola – tiramisu.

  ‘A perfect meal… fantastic company… what more can a man ask for?’

  She smiled, and good God, how he was growing to love that smile.

  ‘Do you mind we always eat here?’ Carlos asked. ‘I got stuck in the habit.’

  ‘No… not at all! The food’s amazing and I love Luigi.’

  ‘I never did this with Elena. We always had to try a new place. She was a debutante. Rich family… old money… you know? It was all “who knows who” and “who goes where”,’ he shrugged. ‘It was how she grew up.’

  ‘Did you enjoy it?’

  ‘Sí. I guess I did then.’

  ‘Erika talked about Elena the other night. She said she turned men’s heads.’

  Carlos smiled. ‘She was very beautiful. She had long wavy chestnut hair,’ he spiralled his hands either side of his head, ‘and a special kind of presence. It was electric. You always knew when Elena was around.’

  ‘What was she like as a person?’

  Carlos took a moment to reply. He’d been so caught up in rolling out the Global Consciousness initiative, he hadn’t thought much about Elena for months. ‘She loved to have fun,’ he said, ‘but we fought like you wouldn’t believe.’ He shook his head. ‘We spent so much time shouting and screaming at each other. Is that love? You know she used to say I loved her the wrong way – that I loved her in a selfish way. But now I think back, I don’t know if she loved me any differently.’

  ‘You don’t mind me asking about her, do you? It’s the journalist in me.’

  ‘I couldn’t talk about her before but somehow now, with you, it’s okay.’

  ‘You said she didn’t want to come to Vienna. Why was that? Her job?’

  ‘No. Her job didn’t mean that much to her. It was because she didn’t think OOSA was right for me. She said I’d get bored.’

  ‘Did you ever wonder if there was another reason? Whether she was scared moving to another country, to live so far away from home? After all, she was only twenty-nine.’

  ‘You mean your age.’

  ‘You got me there. But still…’

  ‘I don’t know. She always acted so tough, but take away the security of her family and friends? Maybe she was scared.’

  ‘So that night she left you – back in the States – why do you think she went to Drew?’

  ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘Well… most women would run to their family, or to a girlfriend. Did you ever wonder why Elena ran straight to your best friend?’

  Carlos shook his head. ‘I never thought about it.’

  ‘Could she subconsciously have wanted to create a situation that would stop her leaving DC?’

  ‘You saying she seduced him?’ Carlos snorted. ‘Knowing his record with the ladies, I always saw it the other way round.’ He called the waiter over and ordered liqueur coffees.

  Rebecca leaned forward. ‘No – I’m not saying she did it deliberately, Carlos. But perhaps she was desperate. You said for weeks she’d been trying to persuade you not to take the job. Perhaps on an unconscious level she was trying to find a way out of going.’

  ‘If it did happen that way, he should have said “no”.’

  ‘I know I only met Drew that one time in DC. But he seems the kind of man who likes to help people. Think of the way he helped Erika when she had trouble with her ex-boyfriend? And she told me how he helped her out when her husband walked out on her leaving her with a toddler and a newborn baby. Drew didn’t do those things to get something for himself. He did them because that’s the way he is… he’s a kind man.’

  Carlos thought back to his first week at USC. ‘That’s how I met him. He talked to me because I was overseas alone.’

  ‘I’m sure he only wanted to comfort her that night… but…’

  They were still sitting in silence when the Irish coffees arrived.

  ‘Did you ever wonder how she felt when she found out she was pregnant? Perhaps she was petrified to go through it all so far away from home. Especially with the amount of travelling you did.’

  ‘She never mentioned it. None of it.’ Carlos screwed up his napkin and slammed it on the table.

  ‘Do you think,’ Rebecca said in a soft voice, ‘perhaps, subconsciously she wanted to goad you into having a row that night. Perhaps she was lo
oking for an excuse to run back to the States.’

  ‘But to go to Drew… again?’

  ‘Yes,’ she nodded, ‘to go to Drew… again! The man she could rely on to listen to her, to help her. And…’ Rebecca’s eyes were intense, ‘… after speaking to Erika, I don’t believe Elena ever intended moving in with Drew. Imagine what a mess it would have been for all three of you – four including the baby? What she wanted was to get your attention. Make you realise how important it was to her to live in the States near her friends and family where she had all the support and reassurance she needed to bring up your baby. She wanted to move back there, with you. I truly believe she loved you, Carlos.’

  ‘That’s what I want to believe too.’

  ***

  Faith opened the door to the suite of offices on the fourteenth floor at UNO and showed Carlos in.

  ‘Two weeks into the initiative,’ Greg said, ‘and it’s all going well.’

  ‘It’s fantastic. I’m very happy. People all over the world are taking up the meditation call and physicists all over the planet are investigating Zul. Our website’s getting millions of hits. Every day the number of people participating is increasing exponentially. And they’re from all different backgrounds.’

  ‘And you’ve added a business section.’

  Carlos nodded. ‘More and more businesses, big and small, are holding meditation sessions at work. And the Europeans and the Russians are pressuring their governments to resolve the conflict.’

  ‘The power of the people,’ Greg smiled. ‘My dream come true. And how do you feel about the press rechristening your initiative?’

  Carlos laughed. ‘Calling it the “Evolution Revolution” and “E-Day Drive”? It’s all good.’

  ‘There’s more good news, too. Philanthropists and corporations around the planet have pulled out all the stops. We’ve collected enough money to roll out the swine flu immunisation programme to all the impoverished and low-income families in the world.’

  ‘Fantastic! And how’s the Clean Up Plan coming on?’

  ‘It’ll be finalised in a couple of months.’

  ‘And I hear you’re setting up Virtual Archives on the Internet.’

  Greg nodded. ‘We need one specific location where the corporate world and the general public can lodge critical data. I’m also pushing captains of industry to develop master handbooks detailing how their businesses work. I’m calling it the Industry Operations Package. It will make it easier for skeleton teams to keep core businesses running, in case we do lose large numbers of personnel.’

  Greg shook his head. ‘I can hardly believe I’m buying into all this. But as you both said that day at lunch, it would be irresponsible not to and the more I think about it the more I’m starting to accept it.

  ‘You know, Carlos, the vast majority of our members are embracing Zul with open arms and I think you’re right… it’s because he’s revealed a higher purpose to our lives… given us the key to unlock the mystery of our existence. He’s given us hope.’

  ‘Hey, I nearly forgot. There’s something I want to ask.’

  ‘Of course, son. Fire away.’

  ‘Did you see the feature about OOSA and the Space Elevator in last month’s National Geographic?’

  ‘Yes. It was very well written.’

  ‘The author, Rebecca Marshall, she’s a friend and she wants to meet you.’

  ‘Why?’

  ‘She’s spent hours asking me about Zul, the videos and the holograms. She wants to interview everyone involved and write a book about it.’

  ‘I’m back off to New York in a couple of days, but I can meet her next time I’m here. Tell her to call Faith and fix something up.’

  ***

  It was another cloudless day and people in bright clothes were scattered like confetti throughout the parks, making the best of the evening summer sunshine. Drew, suit jacket slung over one shoulder, tie loosened and shirt sleeves folded back, strolled up to the table where Carlos was sitting in front of City Hall.

  ‘Hey,’ Carlos said, without getting up.

  ‘Need a drink?’ Drew asked hanging his jacket over the back of a chair.

  ‘Sure. Another one of these,’ Carlos said tipping his head towards the nearly empty glass of Austria’s famous Zwickl Rot beer in front of him.

  Drew came back and put the drinks on the table. ‘Cheers,’ he said and took a series of gulps. ‘So… you want to talk?’

  Carlos, who had also shed his suit jacket, nodded without looking up. He ran a hand through his dark curls, exposing a damp crescent shadow under the sleeve of his shirt. ‘It’s difficult. I don’t know how to start.’

  ‘Well, don’t take all bleeding night. I’m meeting Erika for dinner in an hour.’

  Carlos sighed. ‘It still hurts. When I think about her with you. Even though you thought we broke up… you shouldn’t have done it.’ Drew looked away. ‘But I… well… I’ve been thinking… and… thing is… I believe what you said.’ Carlos took a mouthful of beer. ‘For Christ’s sake, I know what she was like. But it wasn’t over,’ and he shook his head, ‘although she hated living here – it wasn’t over.’

  Drew leaned forward. ‘Listen mate…’ he started.

  ‘No, you listen. I was so busy, so sucked in by my super-special job, Jesus Christ,’ Carlos dropped his head in his hands. ‘I didn’t get how bad it was for her. I just didn’t get it.’

  ‘Are we okay then?’ Drew asked.

  Carlos looked up. ‘We can try.’

  ***

  ‘So that’s why he wanted to talk to you,’ Erika said.

  The boys had showered and were in bed and she and Drew were sharing a bottle of wine curled up on the couch together.

  Drew pushed a lock of shaggy white blonde hair off her forehead. ‘You could have knocked me down with a feather,’ he said. ‘Carlos takes umbrage easily and gets over it just as quick, but I never expected him to forgive me for what I did,’ he wriggled himself up to rest on one elbow and leaned over Erika. ‘It reeks of female intervention. So my question is… did you and Rebecca have anything to do with it?’

  ‘I like Rebecca,’ Erika said. ‘She’s a very sweet gal.’

  ‘And so are you. But that doesn’t answer my question.’

  ‘You know she really likes Carlos. I mean she really likes him.’

  ‘Don’t try and change the subject, woman. Did you girls have something to do with this?’

  Erika pulled a face. ‘Joseph suggested I talk to Rebecca and the more I thought about it, the more I thought it was a good idea. So when she asked me what Elena was like, I told her. Everything. I wanted her to know it wasn’t you who initiated it. I wanted her to know how that woman used you.’

  ‘I don’t know if she did…’

  Erika lifted her hand to stroke the side of Drew’s face and her eyes softened. ‘Oh honey, you have no idea what a manipulating bitch Elena could be.’

  He sighed. ‘She was spoiled all right. She liked to get her own way. But I loved her back then.’

  ‘I know you did. You cried on my shoulder, remember?’

  Drew smiled. ‘Well, it doesn’t matter any more. It was a long time ago and I’m over it.’ He leaned down and kissed her on the nose.

  ‘I hoped Rebecca would pass some of what I said back to Carlos.’

  ‘And it looks like she did.’

  ‘You know what else might have helped?’

  ‘What?’

  ‘The meditation. It mellows people out. I think it’s changed Carlos. And the fact you and I are together now – he knows you’re not hung up on Elena any more. And something else – it looks like he’s ready to move on too.'

  ‘About time! You know he told me he really likes Rebecca. Problem is he’s worried she’s too young. And he’s not sure she fancies him.’

  ‘Oh ho!’ Erika laughed. ‘Is that what he said? Well she finds him attractive all right. And I told her if he doesn’t make a move soon, she should.’

&nbs
p; ‘Carlos,’ Drew said, shaking his head, ‘he can be such a bloody idiot at times.’

  Erika smiled.

  ‘Anyhow, all I can say is thank you for getting my best mate back, because that old bugger would never have made peace if you girls hadn’t got involved.’

  CHAPTER 15

  Having set up her laptop on the dining table, Rebecca was trying to work on her book but she kept getting side-tracked thinking about Carlos.

  In spite of what Erika said just over a week ago, she’d been too wary to push her relationship with him any further. She didn’t want to put him on the spot. She had, however, continued to stay at his place and he made her very welcome and seemed to enjoy her company. On her side it was perfect using his penthouse as her writing base. It was convenient having Carlos close by in case she needed to check any details about Zul’s story. The only problem was, she didn’t know how much longer she’d be able to hide her feelings for him.

  A couple of hours earlier Carlos had called to check if she’d be around at lunch time and when he burst through the front door singing “I Can’t Get No Satisfaction” and walked straight to where she was sitting in the dining room with a mischievous look on his face, she wondered what he was up to.

  ‘You look very pleased with yourself,’ she said.

  He laughed. ‘Perhaps I am.’

  ‘Why’s that?’

  He grabbed two pieces of paper sticking out of his jacket pocket and unfolded one in front of her.

  ‘An e-ticket?’

  ‘Yes,’ he replied, ‘look.’

  ‘Oh! You’re going to Bali?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘It’s supposed to be one of the most romantic places in the world. Not the kind of place you go alone,’ she said dropping her eyes. ‘Who’s the lucky lady?’

  He spread the second piece of paper in front of her.

  ‘Me?’ she gasped.

  ‘Sí, sweet Beccy, you. Do you want to come?’

  She laughed. ‘Of course I do! When do we leave?’

  ‘Look,’ he said, jabbing at the date on the ticket with his finger.