Chapter 18

Bern, August, Tuesday—Present Time

I was glad David insisted on a taxi, as my legs kept buckling despite my best efforts to pull myself together. The ride was quick, but I soon wished it was longer. As the car bounced on the cobblestone streets, David wrapped his arm around me, stroking my shoulder with his fingertips. I could’ve used a few more minutes of this prior to having a serious discussion or, as I worried, having another round of questions regarding my sanity.

As he helped me out of the taxi, I gasped at the sight of the six-story neoclassical building rising in front of me.

“This is Bellevue Palace,” David said, noticing my look.

“Wait, why are we here? I was hoping we’d go to a small place—somewhere quiet. This looks like a fancy hotel.”

“They have a very quiet bar. They serve politicians, so they understand how to keep secrets. I thought this place would be good. Trust me, you’ll approve of it.”

“But I’m not dressed for a hotel like this,” I protested, pointing at my casual summer dress. “This isn’t cocktail attire.”

“You’re fine. It’s lunch hour, not cocktails. And you look beautiful.” He grabbed me firmly by my elbow and led me to the massive doors. “People who stay here don’t dress in fancy gowns. I’m telling you, it’s all politicians and people who do business with the government. Let’s go have that drink.”

I pulled my elbow back. “I’ll have a drink with you, but… Listen, I… This is really awkward. Remember how we were on the train together? I fell asleep when I was sitting in my seat. When I got off the train, my wallet was missing.”

“What? Someone stole your wallet?” He stepped back, shaking his head.

“I know, I know. I was really stupid to fall asleep. I’ve ordered replacement cards. But I don’t have any cash right now. So do you mind paying for my drink?”

David’s mouth hung open for a second. Then he spoke, much louder than before. “You’ve been hanging out with me this whole time, and you’ve been in Bern for two days, and you didn’t say anything to me?” He ran a hand through his hair. “What the hell, Maya? Why wouldn’t you say something? I gave you my cell!”

“Look, I’ve been taking care of myself since before I ever met you.”

“But what have you been doing to get by? Where are you even staying?” He began to pace on the steps.

“I called Pauline. My friend in Paris, remember? And she paid for my hotel and food. She actually made me move to a hotel where they had better food.” I sighed. “So I guess I haven’t been taking care of myself. Pauline has.”

“Well, I’m glad you’ve had someone helping you out. It’s okay to ask for help, you know, when your wallet gets stolen. It can happen to anyone—it’s nothing to feel embarrassed about.” He stopped pacing and touched my shoulder.

“I’m not embarrassed. Are you going to buy me that drink now?” I was anxious to finally get off the front steps of the hotel.

David shook his head again. “Sure, let’s go in.”

We walked into a lobby with marble floors reflecting the light of a crystal chandelier hanging from the stained-glass ceiling. Perhaps David was right and this was a good, quiet place to talk. There were several people in the lobby, but you could hardly see them or hear their voices, let alone know their conversations.

“Follow me. The bar is through this door,” David said.

I wanted to follow him, but my feet refused, suddenly glued to the floor in front of the large open doors to an empty ballroom. But it wasn’t empty in my mind.

“Does it make you feel like dancing?” David’s voice said quietly in my left ear. “They used to have many balls in this room. Now mainly just large meetings. Not much society in Switzerland, so hotel ballrooms don’t get used for weddings as they do in New York.”

I turned away, trying to break the spell. I didn’t wish to appear as if I had lost my mind again. At least not until I explained to him what had been happening. But the face of a man I’d danced with in this ballroom was very clear to me. Was this Mark?

“They have really good champagne and gin. What do you like to drink?” David asked, pointing to the bottles as we walked into the small, dark bar.

“Whisky.” I looked around for a seat.

“Come over here. This table is the best.”

“This is perfect. You were right,” I said to him, slipping into a seat by the wall and stretching my legs comfortably.

Our table was in a dark corner, away from the window. The bar held only a few round tables, surrounded by upholstered chairs. There were tall leather bar stools and mirrored walls with small windows, candles, and what appeared to be an excellent collection of Scotch, gin, and other spirits. A large golden sculpture of some winged angel-like creature stood on the side of the bar. David was right; the space was quiet, with only two casually dressed men at the bar, whispering. Our drinks arrived quickly, and I took a larger-than-necessary gulp of my whisky.

“Why are you even here with me, David?” I started, attempting to postpone the conversation about the ring. “Aren’t you supposed to be with your family for all your ‘family reunion activities,’ whatever they are?”

“The reunion is not until this weekend, and it’s not here in town. It’s at a lake nearby, at my uncle’s lake house. We’re going Friday.”

“What are you gonna do until Friday?” I was relieved he said he had to leave Friday. It would make it easier for me to return to Paris.

“Walk around, sit in coffee shops, drink wine, and rescue you from trouble, pickpockets, and visions, apparently.”

“I hope you have better things to do.”

“Not really.” He leaned closer.

“I really do appreciate you showing me around and putting up with my strange story.”

“I like spending time with you. It’s not a chore.” He looked straight at me, reading my response, and for a moment I struggled to breathe.

I tried to control my face, but it wasn’t possible. I liked him, and I probably radiated my thoughts.

“How many times has this happened to you? With this ring?” he asked.

“Only a few.” I hesitated. “It’s gotten worse since I came to Bern.”

“All right.” He tapped his fingers on the table. “So it started happening when you found this ring, you said? In Edinburgh?”

I told him the whole story then. He kept a blank but serious expression on his face. I was sure that as a lawyer he was used to hearing all kinds of stories. “So what did the woman say when you—I guess—saw her in the garden today?”

“She didn’t say anything. I felt as if I was her. I just knew I felt sad, and also that I was in love. As her I was in love, not me.” I felt the redness spreading through my cheeks. “Why is this happening to me?” I shook my head. “Why am I the one having these experiences? I’m a scientist, for God’s sake. I don’t believe in this magical nonsense!”

“Are you sure you don’t believe in this? Because I’m having trouble pretending I didn’t see you, earlier.” He seemed to half-smile with his eyes. “What a strange experience that must be. Do you know who she is in love with?”

“Yes. She is in love with a man whose name is Mark. He gave her this ring and wrote the inscription. I saw his face this morning. It was sort of fuzzy—just a round face with glasses.”

“All right, let me think it through. I need to be logical about this. So you have a ring that belonged to a woman, and it has an inscription on it. And you have a medical textbook from 1907 that possibly belonged to this man, Mark, who possibly lived here in Bern. And the book and the ring both have the same words in them. Right?”

“Right. And Mark was in love with this woman. He must’ve been the one who gave her the ring.”

“As an engagement ring?”

“Very likely.”

“Incredible. Really,” David said quietly. “Did you look into the possibility he was a medical student at the university here?”

“Yes, I went to the University of Bern’s archives yesterday, and got the names of all the ‘Marks’ who attended during the right years. There are eleven. I did a search for Marks who were students of Kocher, because that’s who wrote the textbook, but I found nothing.”

“So here’s a question. Why do you want to look into this? Do you want to keep seeing these dreams and memories?”

“I feel like there is a reason I needed to buy this ring. And there’s a reason these memories are coming to me. This ring was at that shop for many years and no one bought it. What if it waited for me, and it’s showing things to me? If I stop paying attention, what if some important story doesn’t get told?”

“What if you learn that something terrible happened to these people?” David leaned closer and whispered, “What if Mark murders her in that garden? What are you going to do with that information? You don’t even know who she is.”

“Well, that’s why I came here, right? I followed the clues the ring gave me, and then I found the book in Paris, and now I’m here.”

“But you have no money, no clear plan, and little to go on but these experiences. I just don’t get it.” He sighed.

“I don’t expect anyone would,” I said.

“I’m sorry, but you have to be a little practical, at least. How long will you spend here? Don’t you have to get back to your residency?”

“I do,” I said. “I’m leaving tomorrow.” I thought for a moment. Why was I leaving tomorrow? If my cards arrived today or tomorrow, there was no reason I had to leave so soon. And now I wasn’t alone. “Or maybe the day after.”

“All right, so you only have two days? You do realize that’s a ridiculously short amount of time to find any evidence?”

“Spoken like a true lawyer.” I dismissed him with a wave of my hand.

“Spoken like a practical person, which you should be more of—as a scientist. Fine. Will you take off the ring after?” he asked.

“Probably. Depends on what I find out,” I said, my chin raised in defiance.

“Look,” he began, “don’t think that I don’t believe you. I just don’t meet many people who’d hang around an old town, hoping to trace a hundred-year-old story based on an antique ring and an inscription in a book. But maybe you’re right and there’s a reason why this happened to you.”

“Well, thank you for giving me the benefit of the doubt.” I looked at him carefully to check whether he really believed me or was just trying to make sure I didn’t get angry and cause a scene.

He leaned back in his chair, forehead wrinkled in thought. I had a sudden deep desire to sit next to him and rub his forehead until it relaxed. The desire was so strong, I had to hold onto my chair. The truth was, I suddenly felt that I had done this same motion many times before, with David, and that he loved it. I excused myself to the restroom, and he pointed the way, with a gesture that also felt so familiar that I nearly stumbled trying to get out of the chair in a hurry. It took me a few minutes to regain my composure in the bathroom.

When I was on my way back, I stood, stunned, at the entrance to the bar. My seat was occupied by a tall, gorgeous redhead in a suit and heels, sharing a drink with David and bending her head very close to his, whispering. A girlfriend—a voice whispered in my ear. Worry traveled to my stomach, twisting into painful coils. I wasn’t sure whether to run or march in there indignantly and sit next to them, demanding my rightful place in the conversation. Finally, I marched to the table, dragged a chair from the next table over, and sat between them.

David put a hand gently on my shoulder. “Maya, this is Emelie, my cousin. She works as a manager here at the hotel. I wanted you two to meet.”

“Your cousin?” I mumbled, feeling foolish. The coils within my stomach slowly unwound, but my pulse still raced. “Why do you want me to meet your cousin?”

“She’s lived here all her life and may be helpful to you in some way. Like, in finding out more about your Mark.” He winked at me.

“Oh.” I felt my face getting warm, and I looked down, hoping neither of them would notice me blushing. “Okay, thanks. It’s a real pleasure to meet you, Emelie.”

She looked at me with a kind smile, clearly reading my thoughts. “Don’t feel bad. David loves to surprise people, and not always in a nice way. But we love him.”

“It might take me some time to get used to him,” I said.

“So David tells me you’re trying to find a couple here, from a long time ago. They were in love, is that right?”

“Yes, but all I have is a ring that belonged to the woman. And her initials, ‘C.T.’ And I have the man’s name, Mark, and some possible surnames and towns of origin from the registrations at the University of Bern.”

“I have access to some databases on my computer. Can Maya maybe come for dinner tonight, David, and then we can all look?”

“Oh, I couldn’t impose like that! You have a family gathering. Maybe at your office?”

“Not at all. You’re not imposing.” David dismissed me with a wave. “Emelie and Ruth, her mother, cook entirely too much for dinner anyway. They’d love to have a guest. You can entertain them with your lost ring and love story.”

“Well, that’s settled then. I apologize, but I have a meeting to get to.” Emelie walked to the bar and returned quickly, handing me a folded piece of paper. “This is our address. Just give it to the taxi driver. Wait, I have another thought. If your woman was a medical student, you should stop by the Inselspital; that’s the hospital connected with the University of Bern. It’s been in the same location since the 1800s. I think they destroyed most of the original buildings to make it modern, but maybe there are still some historic aspects left.”

“Thank you.” I tucked the address into my pocket. “Really, thank you both so much. I feel terrible for imposing, but I’m so grateful for your help.” I stood up. “I’d better go and see if my credit cards have arrived. They were stolen a few days ago,” I explained to Emelie.

“Wait!” David got up. “I need to get you a taxi. You don’t have any money, do you?”

“Oh, no, you don’t need to. It’s a really beautiful day, and I’d love to walk.”

He bent his head low, whispering. “I’m worried you may still be a bit unsteady. I’d like to go with you, to make sure you get to your hotel okay.”

I did want him to walk with me, his hand holding mine again, that electrical feeling traveling up my arm one more time. But I needed some time to myself, to think about what had happened, and to calm down. With significant mental effort, I refused him.

“I’m fine. I’ll see you later at dinner.”

“Which hotel are you staying at? In case you don’t show up.”

“I’ll show up. I need your cousin’s help, remember?”

Overbearing ass, I muttered to myself as I started to walk to my hotel. I needed time to chastise myself for feeling jealous earlier. What rights did I have to David? There was absolutely no relationship between us. He was helping me out because he was clearly bored in this small old town, waiting for all his relatives to gather. One New Yorker helping another. Why did I even assume she was his girlfriend? Then I stopped still because I realized I’d never asked if he actually had a girlfriend.