A Season of Angels Page 0,105

the other side of the wall?

"I was young and stupid, so incredibly stupid," Jeff said, the regret weighing down his voice. "My German was passable, and all I intended to do was wander into a few shops and get a look around. I was heading back to the border when I stumbled upon two soldiers beating a teenager. They would have killed him. I couldn't stand by and do nothing and so I intervened. That proved to be a costly mistake."

Jody's anger dissipated. He'd paid a terrible price for his curiosity, and consequently so had she and Timmy.

"I was taken in for questioning and soon arrested," Jeff continued.

"Why didn't you contact the embassy?" Jody demanded. He could have saved them both this agony.

"I wasn't allowed. And when they discovered I was an American with a false passport my fate was sealed. I was a spy, and tried as one. I wasn't able to talk to an attorney, and the trial, such as it was, lasted all of two minutes. Before I fully understood what was happening to me, I was shipped off to a prison camp in Russia."

Jody covered her mouth with both hands.

"I've been held there ever since."

"But how did you escape?"

"I didn't," Jeff explained. "I was freed. They dropped me off on a German street as if nothing had happened. The last two weeks I've been hospitalized and debriefed. From what I've been able to grasp this all has something to do with the breakup of the Soviet Union. There was a British man with an experience similar to mine who was released about the same time."

"Why wasn't I contacted right away?" Jody demanded.

"In the beginning I was too ill. Apparently the authorities communicated with my mother first. I learned that you'd divorced me."

"I had to do that for financial reasons," Jody told him. "It wasn't what I wanted."

A weak smile lit up his face.

"If you were well enough to travel, surely you could have made a phone call?" Jody wasn't satisfied, not yet.

"All I knew was that the woman I'd loved had divorced me. I talked to my mother only once and she insisted I get home right away because you were about to marry another man."

"Not anymore," Timmy told him. "They're only friends."

Once again, Jeff looked greatly relieved. "The doctors wanted to keep me longer, but I couldn't wait another minute. I had to reach you and talk to you face to face before it was too late.

"If getting out of Russia was miraculous, then finding an empty seat on a transatlantic flight was an even greater phenomenon. I was flying standby when some lady came running off the plane, claiming she was hearing voices over the headset that told her she shouldn't be on this flight. The funny thing was, she insisted it was Jay Leno, speaking directly to her. Whatever her reason, I got her seat."

"But you were dead. My father took your dental records with him to Germany and your remains were positively identified. We buried you. This isn't possible, it just isn't possible."

"It wasn't me, Jody. I don't know why your father would do such a thing."

"Oh, Daddy," Jody whispered and briefly closed her eyes. "It was three years after you'd disappeared and I refused to give up hope. My life was in limbo. For financial reasons I'd had to divorce you. Your mother didn't understand and I felt so incredibly guilty. Dad must have assumed that if we buried a body, I'd be able to put the past behind me and get on with my life."

"Your father has a lot of explaining to do," Jeff said without rancor.

"He died a little more than a year ago. Unexpectedly. I'd like to believe that if he'd known he only had a short time to live, he'd have told me the truth."

"I believe he would."

Jeff was more generous than he need be.

"Your mother was telling me the truth," Jody whispered, remembering the calls she'd received from Gloria Potter.

"I don't blame you for not believing her. I was terribly ill and hadn't spoken to her myself. I want you to know that I love you, Jody. I've always loved you and Timmy. It was the memory of the two of you that got me through this hellish nightmare. I also realize a lot of things can change in eight years, and I won't stand in the way of your happiness. All I ask is that you allow me to have contact with my son."

"Oh, Jeff."

"Mom