Lavender Hill Read online

  Sarah got up from the table and turned the television off. “Can we talk about something else, please.”

  They fell quiet again.

  As Jack ate his food, he noticed the wood of the dinner table and started to brush it with his fingers. His thoughts turned to the strange light from that morning, and he began to remember the unusual sensations that had filled his mind when the light passed through him.

  From nowhere, Jack felt an intense urge to move his arm, but where or for what purpose seemed just outside his awareness. He placed his hand on his lap and tried to focus on everyday thoughts. But again, an almost irresistible need to move his arm and hand overcame him. Jack put his spoon on the table and used his free hand to hold the other arm down by his lap. He started to feel a hot flush pass over him and beads of sweat formed on his forehead. Fleeting memories of a smell, taste and something visual passed through his mind and mixed confusingly with the things he could see, hear and smell in the dining room. Through his confusion and fear he could see Sarah staring at him, and tears had started to well in Ella’s eyes. Something forced him to look in the direction of the window where the light had passed through him, and the urge to move his arm became so strong that he stood up and rushed out of the room.

  *

  Jack stood over the sink in the bathroom and splashed water on his face. At first, he felt as if the strange need to move his arm was fading, but then his attention was again uncontrollably pulled towards the direction where the light had come from, and the urge to move his arm made him hold it tightly with his other hand.

  “Please, please, no... what’s happening?” Jack said to himself as he held his arm. But the urge to move it was too strong.

  Jack turned in the direction of the living room window. He held out his arm and pointed towards the source of the light.

  Relief passed over Jack, and a sense of hope and understanding filled him again as it had done that morning. But again, he felt as if someone was aware of him.

  *****

  DAY 2

  9:00am

  Jeremy sat at the news desk surrounded by four people, two on either side. Before speaking towards the camera, he smiled broadly.

  “Right, we’re now going to move onto a segment that will be a regular feature on 24/7 News while this strange event is occurring. With me today we have Cardinal Rumsey, the physicist Stefan Eagle, the neuroscientist Tim Lomo and the historian Rebecca Hartley.

  “Cardinal Rumsey, most of the reports so far have described people expressing their reaction to this event through their religious beliefs. In fact, people are already starting to call it the ‘Rapture’. Could you explain this term and your own interpretation of this event?”

  “Yes, well the term the Rapture is very specific in Christian theology and refers to a period during the return of Christ when people will be caught up in an ecstatic mood brought on by His return. I don’t believe this is anything to do with the return of Christ, for two reasons. This experience has been felt by people from many religions around the world, and, put simply, I didn’t feel anything and I am a devoted man of God. I would just also like to say—”

  “Hold on,” interrupted Ms Hartley. “Just because you didn’t feel anything, doesn’t mean it’s nothing to do with the Rapture. I did feel something yesterday morning, and I am a faithful Christian, so I completely disagree with you.”

  Cardinal Rumsey smiled politely. “Well, Ms Hartley, as a historian you should be well aware of the episodes of mass hysteria that have occurred previously. And anyway, I suspect our scientist friends here will probably have a more down to earth explanation for us.” The cardinal turned to Tim Lomo.

  “I didn’t feel anything,” began Dr Lomo. “However, it’s clear the millions of eye-witness reports coming from around the world suggest something did happen. In terms of specifics, there are reports in the scientific literature of people having similar experiences following electrical stimulation of the brain. But how this kind of activity could have been generated across the whole globe is a mystery to me.”

  Jeremy turned to Professor Eagle. “Maybe you could comment about this professor? I have read myself that the sun can project huge waves of electrically charged particles towards the earth.”

  “Yes, that’s true. However, after asking some colleagues prior to this discussion if anything was recorded yesterday, I was told that nothing was observed. Of course, that doesn’t mean nothing happened. We may have missed it, or it might be something outside our current ability to measure. However, as the cardinal says, it is obviously some kind of physical event on a grand scale.”

  “Can I interrupt this discussion,” said Rebecca Hartley angrily. “You can’t just dismiss the religious aspect to this event. Most of the reports are from areas of the world that have preserved some religious sentiment.”

  Jeremy laughed at Ms Hartley. “So you believe this Rapture is a sign from God, rather than an incident of mass hysteria?”

  Ms Hartley looked awkwardly at the other guests. “All the historical evidence of mass hysteria have documented very local events, nothing on this scale.”

  Jeremy waved a hand dismissively. “But, Ms Hartley, we now live in a global village, with social and traditional media breaking down international barriers to the communication of news.”

  “Surely that’s not relevant? Your news channel has suggested these gatherings have occurred in rural communities, rather than cities. And you wouldn’t expect rural communities in the developing world to be connected to the world’s media?”

  Jeremy looked flustered. “Yes, well this is an unconfirmed observation. This story is evolving very rapidly.” He turned to the camera. “OK, we’re going to have a quick break now. Don’t go away. We’ll be right back to continue this debate shortly.”

  Jeremy smiled at the camera for a few seconds before a technician indicated they were off air. He spoke into his microphone, “Sorry for going to break early. I’ll just deal with something.” He turned to Ms Hartley. “We asked you here today to give a historical and sociological perspective on this event, not force your religious beliefs on our viewers.”

  Ms Hartley looked in shock at Jeremy before pointing towards the cardinal.

  “Are you aware you’ve got a cardinal sitting next to you?”

  “Cardinal Rumsey is a regular guest on 24/7 News and has only ever given his opinion on religious matters. He hasn’t ever preached to our viewers.”

  “I wasn’t preaching. And there are some in the Christian community who believe he should be doing a bit more preaching, actually.”

  The cardinal looked indignant. “Ms Hartley, the Christian community needs sensible guidance, not fooled into thinking episodes of mass hysteria are the second coming of Christ.”

  Ms Hartley looked towards Jeremy. “Well, I’m not going to change my opinion or be told what I can or can’t say.”

  The technician indicated to Jeremy they had one minute left before going back on air.

  “Right, we’re going to explore the scientific interpretation of this event when we go back on air. Ms Hartley, unfortunately you’ve just been taken ill. You’ll find the exit in that direction.” Jeremy pointed away from the desk.

  Ms Hartley looked at Jeremy with an expression of shock and anger before storming away from the desk.

  The technician began to count down the time left before they were due back on air. “5, 4, 3...”

  “Welcome back to 24/7 News. Unfortunately, Rebecca Hartley had to leave early due to ill health. However, Cardinal Rumsey, Professor Eagle and Dr Lomo are still with us. So, gentleman, we were just discussing the scientific interpretation of this event people are calling the Rapture.”

  *****

  9:32am (UK); 7:32pm (Papua New Guinea)

  Katie looked out the window of the small plane and watched the endless miles of trees disappearing into the distance. She had been travelling all day and was tired, but also excited to be reaching her destination. Katie felt the pla
ne begin to lower its altitude ready for landing.

  Jacob Willis watched Katie’s plane land. He was dressed in khaki clothes, and his face, despite being young, looked rugged with its stubble and weathered skin. He looked every bit the part of an Indiana Jones adventurer, and he had a broad smile to match.

  As the plane slowed down and stopped, Jacob walked over to greet Katie as she disembarked. He took her hand as she stepped onto the ground and they hugged each other warmly.

  “It’s been too long, Katie,” said Jacob with an affectionate smile.

  The last time Katie had seen Jacob he was a fresh-faced graduate, and she was momentarily distracted by his rugged new appearance. She looked him up and down. “You’re looking like the proper adventurer.”

  Jacob laughed and then ushered Katie over to his Jeep while they made small talk.

  *

  In the Jeep, Jacob drove along dirt roads and over tree covered hills while telling Katie about the villagers he was studying.

  “I’ll drive straight to the village because they’ll perform their new ceremony soon.”

  “When did it start?”

  “Yesterday, the same as everywhere else, but the pace of change has been incredibly quick. And it’s all being driven by one villager.”

  “Who?”

  “Well, the strange thing is he was an outcast from the village. But because he was able to articulate their feelings so well, he’s now become their new leader.”

  “What’s he been telling them?”

  “He believes the trees have come alive via some spirit that’s coming from inside the earth.”

  “A spirit?”

  “Yes, he’s not great with specifics, actually,” said Jacob with a smile. “But I get the impression it’s something that’s intelligent. Something that’s good and not evil in any way.”

  “How do they worship this spirit?”

  Some buildings came into view.

  “We’re here, so you can see for yourself...”

  Jacob drove into the village and stopped next to a large, open hut that contained hammocks hanging from the roof. This main hut sat on one side of a large area cleared of trees and foliage, and scattered over the land were other smaller dwellings. The village was surrounded by deep forest and the villagers had gathered together, facing the wall of trees. They stood in a half-circle, wearing a mix of Western clothes – t-shirts, shorts, etc – and traditional body art. At the centre of the circle was an old man wearing a large headdress. He had his back to the villagers and was facing towards the forest with his arms raised.

  Jacob and Katie got out of the Jeep and stood watching the villagers. The man with the headdress began to chant.

  Jacob whispered to Katie, “He’s apologising to the trees, on behalf of the villagers, for cutting them down to make their houses and tools, etc.”

  The man eventually turned around and gestured to a villager to pass him a bird. Another villager then gave him a knife.

  “Is he going to sacrifice the bird?” whispered Katie.

  “Yes, but it’s not a simple sacrifice. Look at the knife. It’s been cleaned so that it’s shining brightly, which the villagers feel is important – shiny objects. And the bird is from the crow family, which are attracted to shiny objects. Apparently, this guy has decided they have to sacrifice the bird to appease the trees for using the wood as part of the knife. And then they’ll have permission to use the knife again.”

  The man cut the neck of the bird, turned around, and shouted something towards the forest while holding the bird with his arm raised.

  “This next bit is the most important to the villagers,” whispered Jacob.

  The man turned to the villagers again and gestured for them to gather around him. He turned back towards the forest and began to chant. The villagers also began to chant. And as their volume gradually increased, they raised their arms towards the sky. The man shouted something towards the ground, and in unison, the village people lowered their hands and pointed at the same position on the ground.

  Katie grabbed Jacob’s arm. “I’ve seen that before. Some of the people in Cambodia were gesturing like that.”

  The villagers chanted and danced some more until the ceremony appeared to finish. The leader of the village walked off and disappeared into a hut. As the villagers began to walk off to their own dwellings, some of the village children noticed Katie and ran over to investigate who she was. The children gathered around Katie, but as she held out her hands to touch them they became excited at something and called for their parents.

  The villagers walked towards Katie and listened to the children as they told them something about her. One of the men walked over to her and carefully lifted her hand to his nose to smell it. He immediately jumped back and spoke in shock and awe to the others. The villagers then gathered around Katie and began to smell her hands and uncovered arms. They became increasingly excited until the leader of the village left his hut and walked towards the group. The villagers spoke quickly to the leader and gestured at Katie’s hands. The leader immediately walked over to her and smelt them himself. He looked at Katie with intense shock and backed away from her. He then turned to the villagers, pointed towards the ground, and shouted something at them.

  The villagers immediately dropped to the ground in front of Katie and bowed. The leader then spoke solemnly towards her before also lowering himself to the ground.

  “What’s happening?” asked Katie anxiously.

  “They say you have the smell of the spirit that came from the ground. The leader says you’re a messenger from under the ground and they should ask your forgiveness for hurting the trees.”

  “What the hell am I meant to say?”

  “I would forgive them, if I was you.”

  “They’re forgiven, they’re forgiven – tell them.”

  Jacob spoke to the villagers in their language, and they began to stand up again. He then said something to the leader, who walked back to his hut.

  “Get your bag and let’s try and find out what just happened,” Jacob said.

  *

  Katie and Jacob sat opposite the village leader, who had a selection of the villagers sitting behind him.

  “What have you put on your hands today?” asked Jacob.

  “What about my perfume? I would’ve put some on my wrists.” Katie looked in her bag for the bottle of perfume. She took it out and went to spray it in the air, but Jacob quickly grabbed her hand.

  The villagers looked at them anxiously.

  “Spray it on something first. We don’t want them over reacting.” Jacob smiled reassuringly at the leader.

  Katie took a tissue from her bag and sprayed the perfume onto it. She passed it to the village leader, who cautiously held it to his nose. He then screwed up his face in disgust and passed it to the others, who reacted in the same way.

  “Well, it’s not the perfume… what else have you got?”

  Katie took some hand cream from her bag and spread a little onto another tissue before passing it to the leader. But again, he reacted with disgust.

  “Not the cream,” said Jacob.

  “Well, I don’t know what it can be then...” Katie thought for a bit. “Hold on, what about the hand-wipes I’ve got.”

  Katie took a packet of hand-wipes from her bag, pulled one from inside and passed it to the leader.

  The leader casually held it to his nose but then immediately recoiled in shock and began to talk loudly to the villagers. He passed it to the others, who became excited and began to chant.

  Jacob translated. “They say it’s the smell they experienced when the spirit came to them yesterday. What does it say on the packet?”

  “They’re just hand-wipes, and they are… scented with lavender.”

  *****

  12:02pm

  Sir Jeffrey Hampshire, the head of MI5, the British secret service, stood at the window of his office looking over the River Thames and London. He was tall and smartly dressed, with h
eavy eyelids and thin lips. Someone knocked on the door to his office. He turned around.

  “Yes, enter.”

  His secretary entered. “Everyone has arrived, Sir Jeffrey. The meeting is ready to begin.”

  Sir Jeffrey collected a portfolio from his desk and made his way to an elevator outside his office. He pressed a specially labelled button on the display in the elevator and waited as it progressed downwards. Eventually, the door opened and Sir Jeffrey strolled through a series of narrow corridors until he reached a meeting room, which he entered. Along one side of the meeting room was a window and beyond that could be seen a large control centre that had dozens of television screens on a wall. Desks faced the screens and people sat at them working industriously.

  In the middle of the room was a large table, and sat around the table were smartly dressed men and women. They looked professional and serious, and they waited patiently while Sir Jeffrey sat down, put his glasses on, and arranged some papers from his portfolio.

  Sir Jeffrey looked up. “Ladies, gentlemen, thank you for attending this rather hastily convened meeting. It would appear we have a situation developing. Can you inform everyone about the report you gave to me earlier, Andrew.”

  A man sitting next to Sir Jeffrey pushed a report into the middle of the table, and then addressed the group.

  “We’ve been monitoring social media and the internet, and it seems the level of activity related to this Rapture, as it’s being called, is much higher in Western countries than is being currently reported in the news. In particular, there is significant activity here in the UK.”

  “When you say activity, what do you mean exactly?” asked a stern looking woman sitting opposite him.

  “People saying they experienced this strange feeling, talking about unusual sensations, etc. Have you heard they think wooden objects are somehow important?”

  The woman attempted a smile. “Yes, but it seems ridiculous. How are we meant to interpret something like that?”

  “I don’t think we are,” replied Sir Jeffrey. “At this point, and the reason for this meeting, I think it is clear we should focus our efforts on gathering information. We have a significant percentage of the globe’s population behaving as if something important has just happened, so it’s sensible for us to defer to their judgement. Did anyone experience this strange feeling by the way?”