Resurrection

Patricia Grant, known mostly as Trish to her friends and colleagues spotted her reflection in the glass. All things considered, at thirty-five she looked good in her short skirt business suit with just enough heel to add some alure to her long and slender legs. Her position of Senior Brand Manager at Boston Scientific meant that she parachuted safely out of the BioVest Marketing department and into a Cardiac Specialist company with a long and successful track record in ICD's.

She allowed herself a small satisfied smile at her fortuitous escape from that debacle but now it was time to find if BioVest and all that bad baggage was in her rear-view mirror or if there was still an anchor to her previous life. She walked into Gaslight Coffee Shop on Milwaukee Ave. and spotted Micheal immediately. Surprisingly, her heart skipped several beats.

He was thinner than before and the intervening time had added grey to his hair giving him a thick, attractive head of salt and pepper hair. She noticed an actual dent on the side of his forehead from the bullet that had almost killed him. The same bullet that had definitely killed their relationship... Or was it an affair? But that word had so many negative connotations.

"Hello Michael" She stood in front of him and he glanced up startled.

"You, you're Trish!" He exclaimed standing up to greet her. It almost brought tears to her eyes as she realised that he hardly recognised her.

To Michael, she seemed vaguely familiar. He dimly remembered meeting her at some time but little else. "Please, sit." He gestured her to a seat opposite him.

They examined each other silently for a while. She ordered coffee and then ordered her thoughts into coherence. This was not going the way she had expected, or was she simply fooling herself and it wasn't going the way she had hoped.

"I came to visit you, you know." She held his eyes. "When no-one else was around." An unexpected tear ran down her face. "You don't remember me do you?"

"I'm sorry." He mumbled. I've lost so much." And now you've lost me she thought and withered slightly inside. Seeing Michael in the flesh, up and about, reminded her of all he had meant to her and made mockery of the short lived relationships she'd indulged in over the past two years.

They drank coffee and slowly, hesitantly, spoke more and more of their relationship.

It started when they had been thrust together at a company promotional function in New York. They were together again in Orlando a couple of months later. She had just divorced her husband and was feeling fragile. He was surprised that a younger woman was interested in him.

They sealed the deal on a management trip to HO in Switzerland and went at it hot and heavy thereafter.

He couldn't believe how unbridled she was in bed. She in turn revelled at his single minded focus on giving her pleasure, and taking her from orgasm to orgasm. They hadn't discussed her previous relationship or his marriage much, other than in passing. But they had learned enough.

Her husband was far too much of a man's, man. Spending more time with his friends, hunting, fishing canoeing and playing sport until they were strangers only occasionally inhabiting the same house.

Michael said that work schedules in his marriage, had left him and Mandy passing each other like ships in the night. But moreover, he was bored even when 'they' were together, made worse now his son was out the house. He had also admitted that Mandy was too conservative in her approach to life in general but especially in the bedroom where missionary was the flavor of the day.

They spoke for a while longer but it was one sided with Trish trying to find any left-over connection to Michael while he searched his brain for any memory of their time together. They both came up with nothing.

"There's nothing left for us, is there?" Asked Trish, sometime into their second cup of coffee.

"No. I'm sorry." He frowned feeling guilty yet relieved. "I just don't remember any of it. It feels like it all happened to someone else."

'Well, that's it', she admitted to herself. The end of an affair. And it had been a glorious affair, full of excitement and promise. Now all she had left was a heart full of ash from a fire that was long dead, but at least it was a closure of sorts.

They hugged awkwardly, she left and he finally felt his unknown past had been put to rest.

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Chapter VII: Second Life (Part 2)

Michael was coming! - Mandy did a dance!

She considered making a quick call to Karina, whom she and Michael by now considered a personal friend to re-confirm the strategy they had developed, but the call was probably redundant. The strategy was in play and all that was really left was to work the execution.

She had already been in the Bahamas for nine days by the time Michael flew in to Grand Bahamas and then took a second flight to George Town. Mandy had booked him in at Hideaways in Palm Bay. But she was unavailable. A message informed him that she was out with Vera on a marine expedition and wasn't sure when she'd be back but they might be out overnight or possibly a little longer.

Her text said she was leaving him to his own devices for a while but had recommended restaurants and some drinking holes for him to try. When he tried calling to clarify, all he got was: The subscriber you have dialled is not available at present... Nor were his messages going through.

The chalet was five star luxury but he was surprised to see no sign of Mandy inside the suite. He asked at reception but it was booked in his name only. Strange he thought but then again she may have been living with Vera. He had arrived with a tiny carry-on bag consisting of almost nothing, so that first day he went shopping and returned with Khakis, Clam Digger shorts, bathing trunks, shirts, t-shirts, canvas sneakers, leather loafers, underclothes and everything else he could think of as well as an expensive pair of retro, Ray-Bans.

That first night he started at the Flagler Room for some early cocktails then meandered to the Exuma Yacht Club for an excellent meal of battered fried fish and chips. He stayed at the bar till about ten but his condition forced him home soon after.

The next day there was still no sign of Mandy. He spent the morning on the beach going in and out of the water as often as the fancy took him. He met a number of fellow tourists at the resort. Most were family groups but there was also some honeymooners and even a few older singles. Younger tourists were rare as they clearly preferred or could only afford different or less expensive accommodation.

That night started with sundowners and pre-dinner drinks at Doc's Outdoor Bar. He recognised a number of fellow tourists that he had met earlier and he was invited over to join a small group that soon bourgeoned into a big group. They all ended up at Eddies Edgewater Restaurant. He made friends had fun and left with the early crowd.

Third day on the island he managed to catch Jason between flights who confirmed that 'Mom' was on the ocean with Vera and they'd be back when they got back. So he spent another day with 'new friends' and had another night of light hearted fun.

Day four found him spending the day and early evening with his new crowd. Then they were back at Doc's Outdoor Bar.

He had been recognised by one of the gang who proved to be a doctor. "You're the Michael Bates who blew the whistle on BioVest?" Michael sheepishly agreed. As he was clapped on the back. "Well done man, well done!"

Suddenly there was someone behind him. He turned around and took her in. She was wearing a short sundress and sandals. Her skin was sun-kissed. Her hair was cut in a new short style and highlighted leaving her looking young and alive.

Before he could say anything she put out her hand and he stupidly shook it. "Hi I'm Manda!" She looked at him intently. He stared into her eyes and he recognised a hidden message.

"I'm Michael." He held onto her hand for another few seconds. "My friends call me Mike."

"Will you buy me a drink Mike?"

They sipped on Rum cocktails while he searched his head to understand what she was up to. He couldn't figure it out, but every time he started a conversation about 'them' she cut it off and asked innocuous and mundane questions like how long he had been on the island, how had he spent his time, Restaurants, meals, drinks etc.

She told him of her adventure on the water chasing down juvenile Manta Rays to get a population count. Their drinks finished, she looked at the time and apologised that she had another engagement and disappeared.

He went back to his chalet with a small take-away supper. He called her but once again there was no connection. He went to sleep somewhat shaken.

The next day was spent in a fruitless search to find her. Neither Jason nor she were answering phones. He slept in the afternoon then went out in the early evening. He hit Doc's but she didn't make an appearance. He wondered about the well known spots - nada. Eventually he had a burger and a beer and headed back.

He was walking past The Flagler Room when she stepped out.

"Mike!" She called out.

"Mandy" he responded.

"It's Manda!" She corrected him. "Come join me and some friends for a drink." He spotted her group made up of about eight people both men and women. Some locals, some imports. For a moment he was somewhat resentful and was about to decline but decided to join them to try understand what game she was playing.

The conversation was centred on local events until it turned to him. "What you doing in the Bahamas Mike?"

He thought furiously for a moment wondering if it was some kind of trap but all he saw was open faces all around. "I've been in a difficult place for some time." He shrugged at how much he was a passenger of events around him. "Then a friend suggested a trip to the Bahamas to help decompress so here I am."

They nodded their understanding smiling and offering suggestions on activities and trips he might be interested in. Before long he started feeling the first tendrils of his mental shut-down so he bade them all goodnight and beat a hasty retreat back to his accommodation.

The next day he considered what Mandy, no, Manda was up to over breakfast. Clearly she was trying to recreate herself but she was treating him like a near stranger and it looked like she wanted him to treat her the same way. He wondered how or even if he fit into her new life. But then why had she invited him over. Unless she had changed her mind between her arrival and his arrival?

Rather than agonising over it, he decided to go book himself into a PADI scuba course offered at the resort. He'd always wanted to try it but had never found the time.

"PADI, stands for: Put another dollar in" laughed their young instructor as he handed out indemnity forms. "It's not as bad as the opposition, NAUI, he laughed again. That stands for: Not another underwater idiot." Then he introduced them to the equipment: flippers were called fins. The air tank was called the dive cylinder, The part in your mouth that delivered air was the demand valve. The inflatable jacket over the wetsuit was the BCD or buoyancy control device and so on.

A little later they had to learn their dive tables and were offered their first bit of advice. You will be buddied up -- which means you stay with your buddy at all times. Secondly we will plan the dive and dive the plan. No exceptions. The last activity for the day was ten minutes of treading water in the deep end of the resort pool. Then they were sent off with the training manual and promised a test the next day, followed by the first underwater exercise.

He was walking towards the bar for a cold beer when he saw Manda sipping on what looked like a Mimosa with some of the women from the resort. He smiled and waved at the ladies and went up to the counter to order a Kalik beer, then joined the women who waved him over.

"What you been up to Mike?" Asked the tall, top-heavy blond. She was generally the speaker of the group. He was wearing his Ray-Bans and was sure his eyes were hidden as he gave Manda an appraising look. She had a neutral pose that gave nothing away.

"Scuba diving lessons." He smiled and noticed a small twitch of interest. "Should keep me nice and busy for the next week or so." Two can play this game he thought. There was some general talk around the subject and then he turned to Sandy who was pushing counters around a backgammon board on the bar counter.

"Hey Sandy, I see the backgammon board Do you play?"

"Yes, I do Mister and if you're thinking of challenging me, best you bring your A-game because I've been known to kick butt. And take names" She looked around for support from the sisterhood.

"Let's play for money then." He laughed. "Dollar a point?" For those watching, Dollar a point didn't sound like much but losing the game without getting a single piece off the board on a game that had been raised to the limit the loss would equate to two thousand, eight hundred and eighty dollars. It was unlikely but that would be the worst losing margin possible -- so not necessarily small change.

They sat down to play. Most of the women including Manda stayed to watch. They chose counters. He got white she got red and won the roll. She led off with a six -- four and made a point. She didn't dilly-dally but slapped the counters around with the air of an expert. His first roll was a double four and he was off and running for home. They rolled dice and moved counters hard and fast making loud clacking sounds on the wooden board making the onlookers dizzy trying to keep up with the moves. In a short while they were both in their home quarter and emptying the board. She beat him by a narrow margin, winning two Dollars and suggested best out of three.

In the second game he doubled the game before they even started and then she doubled immediately back so they were already on four dollars a point. His dice throws were low and bad so he found his two furthest pieces stuck against her exit but he slowly closed his home board with points and waited for her to leave a counter exposed which she eventually had to after a roll of six -- one.

"Sixes!" He called his dice and rolled a double six hitting the straggler. He doubled the game again and she irrationally accepted. Sandy went from winning to being stuck and unable to play until such time as he opened a point for her to try get back on board. He proceeded to thrash her clearing his board without her getting a single piece out. it worked out at fifteen dollars times three, times eight equalling three hundred and sixty dollars.

The third and last game was a quick win for him once again adding another forty eight dollars to the total. They shook hands and he held on for a moment. "Instead of the cash you owe me, I'd consider us square if you can convince Manda to go on a date with me tonight!" He gave her a grin.

Sandy spun around. "What say you girl? You prepared to throw yourself on the grenade to save me from this ringer?"

"I'll do it." Manda gave the crowd her selfless, Sister Theresa look. "I'll save you from this shark!"

The sisterhood smiled their approval while Michael and Manda agreed to meet at Vibe, Exuma at seven that evening.

"Thank you for coming." He escorted her to their table. They ordered a crisp chilled Chardonay in anticipation of a seafood dinner.

"So, what shall we talk about?" she smiled across the table.

He thought for a moment while they settled in. "Well... We're on an island, sooo, let's see... Ok, I have it: If you were stuck on a dessert Island, what three things would you want with you?"

She waited for the wine to be poured and took a large sip. "I see you're putting me on the spot immediately." She laughed. Then tilted her head to the left. "Hmm. Let me think." Her eyes sparkled with mischief. "First thing I'd want would be a man."

"I think you're cheating already!" he laughed.

"Secondly." She went on without a care for his characterisation. "Would be a solar radio so we could listen to music and dance together." He raised his eyebrows.

"Last would be a container of French Champagne lying in fifteen feet of water so we could dive down and fetch a bottle every day."

"Very romantic." He conceded. "And food?"

"Well, that would be the man's job!" She laughed. "As well as other things."

They toasted each other and drank more wine. "Ok, my turn." She sized him up. "Seeing as we are on an island... If you wrote a message and put it in a bottle to throw out to sea. What would it say?"

"Hmm, other than the obvious: HELP ME...?" He grinned.

"Yes, obviously." She gave him no quarter.

"Funny or serious?"

"You decide."

"Well if it was serious I'd write: It doesn't matter who you are, it doesn't matter what you do. The only thing that matters is finding someone to love."

"That... That was unexpected." Her eyes misted but she held his gaze. Then their waiter arrived and they placed their orders.

The rest of the evening went swimmingly and it was almost ten before they even knew it. He paid and they headed out. She gave him a kiss on the cheek before she jumped into a taxi and he walked home.

The next day he spent on the scuba course. The first dive was scheduled for the late afternoon. The five trainee's and their dive master went off the side of a rubber duck and went down forty five feet together equalising their buoyancy by pumping air into their BCD jacket as they'd been taught until they were floating weightlessly six foot above the coral reef. Tropical fish swam past them and a big Potato Grouper swam up to them curious and clearly used to getting fed by other divers.

When it was time, they came up as a group, stopping for ten minutes at fifteen feet feet for their safety decompression stop. Then they were in the boat, drinking bottled water to counter their dehydration. He felt tired and lethargic and after stowing away all the equipment and getting out of the wetsuit he had a cold shower and passed out on his bed.

The next morning they had an early dive at six and a second at midday and they all went back to the resort tired. He woke up to his phone ringing. It was Manda.

"Evening Mike. You feel like joining me for supper? My treat."

"I'd love to but I might be poor company tonight. I had two dives and they've wiped me out."

She hesitated for a minute, then considering that she had noticed the single vultures at the resort starting to circle Michael decided not to take chances. "Let's have an early supper and I'll get you to bed early."

"So Manda, what's this promise to get me to bed early?" He smirked at her while she twirled the stem of her Bahama Mama. "Or was it just a slip of the tongue?"

"Now who's teasing who?" She retorted

He looked at her and noticed how her skin glowed from her after sun lotion. Her short hair bounced with volume and her eyes were wide and clear. She wore minimal make-up except some mascara and a soft copper eye-shadow giving her eyes some added mystery and a touch of colour on her lips. The sun, sea and air had added life and she was animated in discussing the range of new experiences that lent her an air of excitement and interest. The latest project she had become involved in was a late hatching of Green Turtles on Little Abaco. She told him of the excitement of the hatching and the volunteers making sure the little baby turtles made it to the water.

He in turn told her about the variety of reef fish he had seen on his three dives including Butterfly, Trumpet, Trunk, Angels and the scary looking but docile porcupine fish.

She showed him pictures and video she shot from her phone. He showed her videos from his underwater go-pro downloaded to his phone.