by Stan Mason
‘I’m not sure that I should,’ she laughed, refusing the tell him any more about her nightly ventures.
‘We’ve never met before in real life,’ he confided amiably, ‘and we shall probably never see each other again after today because you will return to wherever you came from shortly. So any secret of yours will go to the grave with me.’
She stared at him obliquely thinking what a wonderful person he seemed to be. ‘You must have lived in England to be able t speak the language so well.’
‘I went to Oxford University,’ he explained. ‘Maudlin College. I rowed on the river Isis. But that’s a long story.’
‘You intrigue me,’ she went on. ‘Oxford. Why did you return to Morocco?’
‘It was because of my family,’ he replied with an element of sadness showing in his eyes. ‘My father died and then my mother fell ill. I have two brothers and a sister all younger than myself. They had to be cared for.’ He paused as thought wiping away his past problems to concentrate on his newly-found friend. ‘Now come on,’ he continued firmly, ‘tell me all about your dream. I’m fascinated to hear it.’
Diana allowed the request to cross her mind for a moment trying to come to a decision. He was right. After the week was over, they would never meet again but then she held her ground. ‘No,’ ‘she told him with a twinkle in her eye. ‘I don’t think I will.’
‘Then I can only presume that your dream was exotic in which you and I made love to each other,’ he continued relentlessly.
Her face became slightly red as she blushed at his comment. She considered him to be quite pretentious and it was difficult to let the comment pass. ‘How could you possibly think that?’ she riposted, almost angry that he had identified her weakness.
‘Why else would you not wish to tell me,’ he responded casually. He took her hand and turned it so that the palm faced upwards. ‘Hm!’ he predicted brightly. ‘You are blessed with a long life line. Can you see it?’
She pulled her hand away although she didn’t really want to and stared into his face. They were in the open...in a public place .....she could not allow any indiscretion to take place. and, in an instant, her loyalty to her husband came to the fore.
‘I don’t want to get involved with you,’ she told him curtly, even though the will to resist began to fade a little. ‘I hope you realise that from the start.’
He seemed surprised at her reaction. ‘Of course not,’ he returned easily. ‘You’re a married lady on vacation. Why should you want to become sexually involved with someone you’ve only just met....someone you don’t know?’
She stiffened at the word ‘sexually’ and it seemed to drive a knife into her heart. ‘That’s right,’ she commented. ‘I don’t know you. I don’t know you at all!’ She paused and sat back on the bench seat as though intending to end the conversation. ‘Don’t you have work to do? I mean I presume you’re employed by someone.’
‘Of course,’ he told her. ‘I’m a lawyer but this is a festival day and the Courts are closed. I’ve given myself the day off.’
‘A lawyer,’ she repeated, staring at him in admiration. ‘How clever! I’m glad you made use of your days in Oxford.’
‘Look,’ he suggested, standing up in front of her. ‘You’ve probably never seen Agadir before. Let me show you around. We shall be in the open all the time so you have nothing to fear. And I’m very interested in your company. I’m not interested in money. I’m not going to rob you. Lawyers are quite well paid here.’
She found herself getting to her feet as though she was in a fantasy. ‘You’re so like the man in my dreams,’ she repeated with a smile lighting up her face. ‘It’s so uncanny.’
‘And what did this man do in your dreams?’ he asked hoping to obtain a reply.
‘Never you mind!’ she retorted bluntly, feeling quite indignant that he should challenge her on the subject. They walked out of the square and to her concern he began to lead her back to her hotel. ‘Where are we going?’ she demanded with a worried expression on her face.
He took her arm gently to move her on. ‘You’ve seen the sea before and over there is the dock area which is as dull as ditchwater. You’ll go to the casbah climbing the winding road that leads up to it during your holiday so there’s no point in taking you there. In any case, it will take too much time to do it. Where are you staying?’
‘At the Hotel Sahara.’
‘Fine! I shall take you to the woods at the back of the hotel. You’ll see some beautiful scenery and lots of trees. A lady of your standing clearly loves gardening and beauty.’
She glanced at him suspiciously wondering whether he had some secret agenda in mind. After all, she didn’t know him in the real world. He might be a rogue with ideas of doing something to her she would not wish to happen. The newspapers were full of such stories about tourists who were raped or murdered when travelling in foreign countries.
‘That’s where you’re wrong,’ she told him sharply coming to her senses. ‘I hate gardening. My husband and I have someone to do it for us.’
‘So there you have it,’ he rattled, stopping for a moment in his tracks to summarise her life. ‘I see. A lady on holiday with her husband who, after many years of marriage, cares little about her and tends to neglect her badly. Why else would you be alone in a place like this on your holiday. As a result, you take pleasure in dreams. You live in a large house with a big garden and you have a great deal of money. For that reason, you don’t need to work. You are in your prime of life...a very beautiful lady in face and body....and you don’t really know whether to commit yourself to a lover or not because of the sacred vows you took when you married. How am I doing?’
Diana pulled her arm away from him remaining silent, astonished that he could know so many things about her and her life. Was she really so transparent? She had told him nothing about herself. ‘You’re very presumptuous!’ she snapped angrily although she failed to understand where the anger was coming from.
‘But I am right, aren’t I?’
There was a long pause as they continued past the Hotel Sahara. By now, it was possible that Charles may have finished reading the newspaper and was standing on the balcony watching them. However she realised it was a faint hope. What could she say to him if he saw her with a strange young handsome Arab. Such a situation would never happen in her dreams because they were so perfect in safeguarding her despite any salacious activity in which she might become involved. It was a gift designed never to distress her. But now, reality had suddenly come to the fore to face her point-blank, and she wasn’t sure how best to deal with it.
Within a few moments they had passed the hotel and came to the dense forest.
‘What’s the name of this wood?’ she asked directly, feeling extremely unhappy at her present plight.
‘The forest of snakes,’ he replied flatly. ‘But I do not think you’ll find any snakes here.’
She shuddered as she recalled the image of the cobra swaying from side to side at the entrance to the main square and then she decided on no account would she enter the wood. They sat on a wooden seat nearby for quite some time discussing his life and hers. Then, he glanced at his wristwatch and to her dismay, he stood up taking her hand at length to kiss her fingers.
‘I’ve got to go,’ he said with sadness showing in his eyes. ‘I doubt whether we shall meet again and I wish you to have a good life. Try to find as much happiness in any way you can....whatever the sacrifice. Remember...you have only one life. Good bye, beautiful lady. Farewell!’
He took his leave looking back at her before he vanished into the distance. As she watched his departing figure she mused that she was back in dreamland enjoying his company at a different level. She continued to sit on the seat for a further five minutes musing about their meeting. How remarkable....to meet the man she saw in her dreams. She could hardly
believe the coincidence. He even thought in the same fashion although that’s where it ended. Eventually, she stood up and was about to return to the hotel when a man wearing a black balaclava emerged from the edge of the wood brandishing a revolver. He wielded it wildly and raced towards Diana pulling her round roughly to face his as he grasped her arm forcibly.
‘Gimme all your money and credit cards!’ he snarled angrily
in broken English, pushing her in the chest and threatening her with the revolver which he waved about ungainly in front of her face.
Her body became extremely intense at the onslaught as she managed to shake her head slowly. ‘I haven’t any money on me. My purse is in the hotel and I haven’t any pockets. I have no money!’
He paused for a moment to think. This was not the kind of response he expected form his victim and, in view of his determination to rob her, he refused to listen to reason.
‘I said gimme your money,’ he repeated savagely. ‘Hurry!’
‘I told you....I have no money,’ she persisted beginning to tremble at the notion that he might wound her with the gun or even kill her.
He placed the gun to the side of her head angrily and his finger trembled on the trigger at her refusal. Unwittingly, he pulled the trigger although he had no intention to do so. There was a loud gunshot and Diana fell to the ground with blood seeping out of the back of her head. The assailant stood in shock for a moment and then ran as hard as he could to flee the scene. At that precise moment, hearing the gunshot, Charles appeared on the balcony to look downwards. He saw his wife laying full-length on the ground and stared at her body in disbelief. Then, as the adrenalin surged through his body, he hurried out of the room to get to her, shouting to the female receptionist to call for an ambulance. When he got to his wife, he stood over her body and felt her wrist to determine a pulse. When this proved positive, he removed his jacket and placed it under her head.
‘Oh my God!’ he cried, shocked at the sight of his wife in such a desperate state. ‘This can’t be! It can’t be!’
Some passer’s by crowded around them, curious to know what had happened, but Charles ushered them away, shouting and ranting in a most unlike fashion for him. The ambulance arrived quite swiftly and Diana was transported to the local hospital where she lay unconscious in a coma for six days. When she opened her eyes, her life had changed completely.
‘Where am I?’ she asked wearily in a muffled tone, closing her eyes as the pain in her head intensified.
‘You’re in hospital,’ confided the nurse waving to a doctor to come and attend his patient.
The doctor moved beside her without delay, a slight smile
touching his lips. ‘Mrs. Templeton,’ he exclaimed brightly. ‘Glad you’re awake at last. Nice of you to come back.’
‘At last,’ she mumbled in the same muffled tone. ‘How long have I been here?’ She winced at the pain and her hand moved to her head to feel the bandages. ‘What’s going on?’
‘You’ve been asleep for six days,’ the doctor told her. ‘You were shot at the back of the head by someone who tried to rob you. Do you remember anything about it?’
Diana shook her head slowly wincing as the pain returned. ‘No....I don’t remember anything.’
The doctor nodded sagely. ‘You may not recall anything for a while.’
‘You called me Mrs. Templeton. Is that my name?’
‘Yes it is.’
‘Does that mean I’m married? I have a husband?’
‘He’s sitting in the Waiting Room ready to see you right now. He’ll be delighted that you’ve come out of the coma.’ I’ll go and fetch him.’ He turned and left the room to find Templeton who was sitting on a seat reading a newspaper. ‘I’d like to speak to you about your wife, sir,’ he began quietly. The Civil Servant looked up at him from behind the newspaper. ‘She is extremely fortunate. The bullet fired at her clipped the edge of her skull, fracturing the cranium. I do not think the bullet touched any part of her brain but a small part of it was exposed. At present, she cannot be moved. She is very confused and suffered a great deal of pain and shock. You can see her now, if you wish.’
Templeton folded the newspaper neatly before standing up and entering the room., He sat down on a chair beside the bed, leaned across, and took hold of her hand.
Diana stared at him blankly. . ‘Are you the specialist?’ she asked slowly.
He seemed very put out by her reaction. ‘I’m Charles....your husband!’
‘You’re my husband?’ she countered staring long and hard at him. Her face screwed up in distaste before she continued. ‘I don‘t know you. I‘ve never seen you before. I doubt that I would choose someone like you to be my husband.’
The doctor entered the room at that moment to clarify the situation for the Civil Servant. ‘Do not concern yourself, sir,’ he uttered. ‘It’s quite common for a patient coming out of a coma to be mentally confused. You’ll need to give her time to recover properly.’
‘What happened?’ asked Diana, staring bleakly at the doctor. ‘Why am I in hospital?’
‘I’ll handle this, doctor,’ declared Templeton solemnly. ‘I’m sure you have other patients to deal with.’
The physician looked at him obliquely, indicating for the nurse to follow him, and they left the room. Templeton gripped Diana’s hand more firmly which discomforted her in her present state and she withdrew it smartly. Her mind tried to think past the pain which raged through her head like a knife cutting through butter., What was going on? Why did she have bandages wrapped around her head? And why was she suffering so much pain?
‘Don’t concern yourself, my dear,’ began her husband in a tone that was quite dictatorial. ‘Everything will come back to you in time. It’s all a matter of time. However, I have a problem staying here with you. I’m desperately needed back at the office. I did say I could only afford to be away for one week on holiday and that’s up now. I have to get back to England as fast as possible.’
‘On holiday?’ she repeated still in a confused state. ‘Where am I?’
‘You’re in Agadir...in Morocco.’ he explained tiredly, dagging to get away. For him, this was all a waste of valuable time. ‘We came here on a week’s vacations.’
‘Morocco!’ Her mind was completely blank remembering absolutely nothing. She lay quite still in the bed staring at the ceiling as the pain increased in intensity in her head.
’I contacted the British Embassy,’ he went on disregarding his wife’s incapacity, ’because I shan’t be here and they recommended a lawyer who can visit your regularly and report to me how you’re getting on. He’ll keep in touch with me all the time.’
Diana’s eyes moved to the man sitting at the side of her bed. Who was he and what was he talking about She tried to clear her mind to recall her name but came face-to-face with a complete void.
’What’s my name ?’ she asked weakly as despair overcame her.
‘Diana,’ stated her husband briefly. ‘Diana Templeton.’
Her eyes became glazed at his reply as the name meant nothing to her. ‘Diana....huntress of the moon,’ she muttered.
‘Ah!’ exclaimed Templeton,’ your memory’s coming back. That’s good. Really good!’
She stared at him bleakly unable to recall any facts about
herself, he life, her husband or her whereabouts. It seemed as though she was peering through a mist...so remote...so distant. She groaned as the pain seared through her head again. ‘I need something to stop the pain!’ she cried out.
Templeton immediately left the room and returned with the nurse who administered a liquid does of medicine which returned the patient to an element of comfort.
‘I’m sorry I have to leave you,’ forwarded her husband sadly, ‘but my presence is needed in Britain. I have to get back.’ He stood up slowly. ‘But y
ou will be visited by a lawyer who’ll keep me fully informed of your progress.’
He might have not said anything to her as his words had no meaning for her whatsoever. What lawyer was he talking about? Why did he have to be informed of her progress? She didn’t even know the man! He was a total stranger to her. Templeton leaned across the bed and kissed her awkwardly on the cheek before leaving the room. As he did so, a man dressed in police uniform entered with the doctor.
‘This is the policeman who arrested your attacker,’ announced the physician. ‘He wants to ask you a few questions.’
‘We arrested the man who attacked you, Mrs. Templeton,’ began the policeman. ‘Do you remember what happened?’
Her head turned towards him as she eyed him up and down. ‘I can’t even remember my name,’ she bleated with tears running down her cheeks. ‘What attacker are you talking about?’
The doctor intervened quickly turning to the policeman. ‘She’s only just come out of a coma. You’ll have to come back tomorrow if you want answers to your questions.’
The policeman took a long hard look at Diana and then realised that any attempt to find out about the attack was futile. Ultimately, he nodded to the doctor and left the room.
Diana’s mind remained completely blank and she lay in this condition for two whole days. On the third day, the nurse appeared at the door.
‘You have a visitor,’ she announced, beckoning to someone waiting outside.
The man entered the room and Diana stared at his face. She failed to recognise him but it was Ahmed and he walked cautiously towards the bed. ‘Mrs. Templeton,’ he began warmly. ‘Destiny has it that we should meet again. I’m sorry that this awful thing happened to you.’
‘Meet again?’ She looked confused. ‘Do we know each other?’
‘We met in the public square,’ he went on. ‘I took you to the forest of snakes. Don’t you remember?’
She shook her head slowly. .’No I don’t. That’s the problem. Whatever happened has taken away my memory.’
