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him now and tell him everything's all right'

'Obviously something happened to me between Monday evening and Tuesday morning.'

You ought to see a doctor, get yourself checked out.'

'I feel fine. But there's a lot I want to know. Do we have children?'

'No.'

Luke felt a sadness that seemed familiar, like the dull ache of an old injury.

Elspeth went on: 'We've been trying for a baby ever since we got married, which was four years ago, but we haven't succeeded.'

'Are my parents alive?'

Tour Mom is. She lives in New York. Your Pa died five years ago.'

Luke felt a sudden wave of grief that seemed to come from nowhere. He had lost his memories of his father, and would never see him again. It seemed unbearably sad.

Elspeth went on: "You have two brothers and a sister, all younger. Your baby sister Emily is your favourite, she's ten years younger than you, she lives in Baltimore.'

'Do you have phone numbers for them?'

'Of course. Hold on while I look them up.'

I'd like to talk to them, I don't know why.' He heard a muffled sob at the other end of the line. 'Are you crying?'

Elspeth sniffed. 'I'm okay.' He imagined her taking a handkerchief out of her handbag. 'Suddenly I felt so sorry for you,' she said tearfully. 'It must have been awful.'

'There were some bad moments.'

'Let me give you those numbers.' She read them out.

'Are we rich?' he said when he had written down the phone numbers.

"Your father was a very successful banker. He left you a lot of money. Why?'

'Bill Hide told me I'm staying in my "usual suite" at the Carlton.'

'Before the war, your Pa was an adviser to the Roosevelt' administration, and he liked to take his family with him when he went to Washington. You always had a corner suite at the Carlton. I guess you're keeping up the tradition.'

'So you and I don't live on what the army pays me.'

'No, though in Huntsville we try not to live very much better than your colleagues.'

'I could go on asking you questions all day. But what I really want is to find out how this happened to me. Would you fly up here tonight?'

There was a moment of silence. 'My God, why?'

'To figure out this mystery with me. I could use some help - and companionship.'

"You should forget about it and come down here.'

That was unthinkable. 'I can't forget about this. I have to know what it's all about It's too strange to ignore.'

'Luke, I can't leave Cape Canaveral now. We're about to launch the first American satellite, for heaven's sake! I can't let the team down at a moment like this.'

'I guess not.' He understood, but all the same he was hurt by her refusal. 'Who's Bern Rothsten?'

'He was at Harvard with you and Anthony Carroll. He's a writer now.'

'Apparently he's been trying to reach me. Maybe he knows what this is all about.'

'Call me later, won't you? I'll be at the Starlite Motel tonight.'

'Okay.'

'Take care of yourself, Luke, please,' she said earnestly.

'I will, I promise.' He hung up.

He sat in silence for a moment He felt emotionally drained. Part of him wanted to go to his hotel and lie down. But he was too curious. He picked up the phone again and called the number Bern Rothsten had left. 'This is Luke Lucas,' he said when the phone was answered.

Bern had a gravelly voice and the trace of a New York accent 'Luke, thank God! What the hell happened I'd you?'

'Everybody says that The answer is that I don't really know anything except that I've lost my memory.'

You lost your memory?'

'Right.'

'Oh, shit Do you know how this happened to you?'

'No. I was hoping you might have a clue.'

'I might'

'Why have you been trying to reach me?'

'I was worried. You called me on Monday. You said you were on your way here, you wanted to see me, and you would call me from the Carlton. But you never did.'

'Something happened to me on Monday night'

Yeah. Listen, there's someone you have to call. Dr Billie Josephson is a world expert on memory.'

The name rang a bell. 'I think I came across her book in the library.'

'She's also my ex-wife, and an old friend of yours.' Bern gave Luke the number.

'I'm going to call her right away. Bern ...'

Yeah.'

'I lose my memory, and it turns out that an old friend of mine is a world expert on memory. Isn't that a hell of a coincidence?'

'Ain't it just,' said Bern.

4.45 P.M.

The final