A New World

“How many of your classmates are reading medical journals?” Brenda asked.

“Kim has helped you with your courses. She knows what you can do.” Mary Maclaren said.

“But she has had to help me.” Mary Steele found it hard to believe that they thought so well of her.

“I have worked with Uncle Jess and Alyca for the past three years. Even Alyca will ask Uncle Jess for help, and she has two PhDs. Getting help when you need it doesn’t mean you are dumb; it just means that you know when to ask for help. I suspect that you have asked for less help lately than you did at the beginning.” Mary Steele nodded her head. “Do you find that you and Kim are having long talks about topics that you have been studying?” Again, Mary Steele nodded her head. “Were you learning more in those talks than in your classes?”

Mary Steele realized what had been going on. “Kim has been teaching me.”

Mary shook her head, no. “Have you been doing extra research on the subjects that you were discussing? I bet that you read the paper by Aunt Marge because of something that the two of you talked about.”

“Yes.” Mary Steele said with a smile.

“It is how Mom and Dad taught us to learn. You come from an inner-city environment where most people don’t care about such things.” Brenda stated.

“Mom had to work two or three jobs. She got us to read books, and we were to educate ourselves. Mary and I would read and talk about what we had learned while we waited for Mom to come home.” Linda said. “Rob and Kim have done much the same thing with us. Is this how some families are able to do so well?”

“It helps. Being smart also helps. Like two young girls smart enough to sit and talk to each other about the things they read.” Mary Maclaren said. “When we got to Edinburgh, Aunt Alice, Uncle Jess, and Aunt Marge put us in a grad school-level home learning program. You cannot believe what it was like working with them. I wish that I had been able to start years earlier like Alyca did.”

“That’s one of the reasons that I think Aunt Alice wanted the whole family to live together. I think that Robert is a good example of what may happen when we do.” Brenda said with a smile towards where her brother sat on the opposite side of the table.

Linda looked over at Claire and Robert sitting over on the other side of the table. They are still holding hands and talking, but the look in their eyes was like what she has seen in the boys’ eyes quite a number of times when they were sitting quietly and talking. She had often thought that they were communicating with more than words. Now that she thought about it, she could almost tell that they were communicating. She looked at her sister. Yes, she could tell it with them also.

Brenda saw that Linda had realized that Robert and Claire were communicating mentally. “We will be able to teach you as soon as we learn from Robert.”

“Teach us.” Mary Steele asked.

“Don’t the two of you often know what the other is going to say or what they are feeling?” Mary Maclaren asked.

Both Steele girls said “Yes” at the same time. They looked at each other. They had known even before she said it that their sister was going to say yes.

“When you have a large family with the ability, you learn how to spot it. It’s just another reason why you are now a part of the family.” Brenda’s smile matched that of her sister.

Kim had heard what Mary and Brenda were discussing with the Steele girls. She was glad that they had found a way to let them know. She had wanted to discuss it with them for over a month. She had become almost sure that they had the ability to communicate nonverbally. They only unconsciously used it, but she had seen the ability grow in them as they spent more time with her family. It is a good example that close association can help to develop one’s ability. She could tell that it was developing between Robert and Claire. She remembers the year that they had spent in Texas when she was a teen. The ability to communicate with Rob had developed during that time. It had been a shock when she had had to go back to Scotland. They had written and talked on the phone daily, but it had not been the same as being together and communicating without words. There had been visits at the holidays. Mom and Beth were best friends, and Mom could tell what had happened. Then, just as she started her first year at university, they had started to be able to feel the other emotions even across the thousands of miles. She has a sudden thought. She looked at Alice. Did Mother arrange that so that they could learn to communicate over a long distance?

“Beth, whose idea was it for us to live near you while Mother taught at SMU?” Kim asked her mother-in-law.

Beth felt the intensity that was behind Kim’s asking of the question. She took a few seconds to consider her answer. “I believe your Mother first mentioned it right after you were born. She said that it would be good to have us really get to know each other once you were old enough.”

“Rob, I believe my Mother planned to have us fall in love and get married from the time I was born.” Kim said to her husband.

Rob looked down at his daughter who he was holding. “Thank you, Alice, for choosing me for Kim.” The baby started making happy noises. Did she understand, or is it just the tone and feelings from her father that had caused her to react?

“That sounds like Alice. She was always planning,” Tom said.

“What was the clue that led you to this?” Beth asked.

“I have noticed how the boys’ and Robert’s abilities have picked up since we have all been together. I think that the more of us with abilities that are together, the more our abilities develop, and we also can learn each other’s abilities. Robert can now sense people and objects just like the boys. In addition, Jason can now sense objects, and the twins can sense people. Have you noticed how Claire and Robert have been sitting looking at each other and talking?”

“Yes, they make a nice couple. They remind me of you and Rob or your mother and father,” Beth said.

“And they also look like the boys when they are sitting quietly together,” said Tom. He had spent much of his time during the past few days with his grandsons. He had noticed how they would sit quietly together but still be communicating. “Claire and Robert are communicating. Just like the boys.”

They all turned and looked at the young couple.

“Yes, but they seem much more intense than the boys,” Rob commented. “I had taken it as just the attraction between them.”

“Yes, that’s there, but there’s a whole lot more going on,” Kim called. “Robert! Would you and Claire come and talk with us?”

Robert and Claire turned to look at Kim. They both rose and came over to join the Reynolds.

“You forgot to visually communicate between yourself to agree to come over,” Kim said to Robert and Claire.

“Thanks, we have got a lot to learn,” Robert said.

“Was it that obvious?” asked Claire.

“I had just remarked that Robert’s and the boys’ abilities have improved in the last couple of days. When we looked over at the two of you, you looked just like the boys do when they sit quietly and communicate though you were talking. You have to remember to continue the verbal and physical communications; something that I’m not sure the boys can do at the same time,” Kim answered.

“They can, but they had never considered the need to hide what they are doing.” Robert said. “Take a look at them.”

They all looked at the table with Tommy and the three McLaren boys. The three boys turned as one and waved at their parents while they continued to talk with Tommy.

“They are teaching Tommy to communicate nonverbally.” Robert said. “They are eager to teach the four of you.”

“Beth and I cannot communicate like Kim and Rob.” Tom said.

“We aren’t so sure. They have enjoyed the time that you have spent with them helping them with their abilities. Now they want to return the favor.” Robert said.

“You are passing on what they are communicating.” Rob was startled by this.

“And what you are saying. I am putting their thoughts into words. There is much more that would take too long to put into words.” Robert confirmed.

“The bandwidth is wider than the spoken word.” Tom looked at his son. Rob nodded his head in agreement.

“Claire, what has Robert taught you?” Kim asked.

Claire was startled that Kim realized so much of what they were doing.

Kim laughed. “I am the mother of those three. I have spent the last few years learning to keep ahead of them. That means figuring things out on only a few clues.”

Claire understood what Kim meant. She thought about when she and Robert would have little ones to watch over. Robert’s positive reaction filled her with joy. “He’s teaching me to sense people and objects just as the boys did in helping with my rescue. We have also learned how to communicate.”

Kim looked at Robert. “All things you couldn’t do a few days ago.”

“Yes, it was just like with the windows and the other worlds.” Robert realized what he had said. Had his dad told them? He realized, as he looked at them, that his words weren’t a surprise. Then he realized who had been surprised.

“There’s still a lot that we need to tell each other.” Claire said. “We have only known each other less than a day.”

Robert and Claire were again looking into each other’s eyes.

“Thank you for answering my questions. It helps to understand some of the things Mother had done.” Kim said.

“What had Aunt Alice done?” Robert asked.

“She planned on this learning of abilities from at least when I was born and probably much longer. I need to think on this some more. When I have it all figured out, I will let you know?”

“On Monday, Marie said something similar about thinking about the windows.” Robert remarked.

Beth laughed. “That’s something they learned from their mother. You two can go back to what you were doing. We have a lot to discuss.”

Robert and Claire returned to their table.

Martha Steele was sitting with David, Kevin, and Nev. Though one might more correctly have said that Martha and David were sitting separate from Kevin and Nev. It looked like more than one romance was blooming. Kevin and Nev were discussing what they had learned about Secret Service training, which effectively left Martha and David alone.

“I find it hard to believe what they’re saying that the boys can do. My grandmother was said to talk to spirits and do voodoo, but I left all of that behind when I left New Orleans. Dave, what do you believe happened?” Martha asked.

“I believed that Claire was very lucky twice today, but from what we just overheard Robert and her say, I think it was the same piece of luck. Then again, I grew up in Thuringowa and I have known about the Macphaters all my life.” Dave looked over at Will who was talking with the President. “My father, his brothers, his sister, and my mother’s youngest brother, and many of my cousins work for them. The Macphaters and the military are the two best places to work in Townsville. Many people work for both since they’re in the reserve. The ASAS has always had a reputation of using more than the five senses and the Macphaters and the Maclarens are the ones that you hear the most about but it’s not restricted to them. The information that we made use of today couldn’t have come from any conventional source. I personally asked the boys questions. When Jason was asked how many men were in the house, he acted just as he would if we asked him how many people were in the room. Your daughters weren’t surprised at what the boys did other than it being more than what they were used to. You don’t believe your daughters?”

“I am concerned that the tuition on top of the salary, the chance to travel, and the excitement today may have led them to accept things too readily.”

“The Macphaters pay well and have excellent benefits. What your girls are getting is beyond most that I’ve heard of, but not unusual for someone they consider family. Take Kevin. He is a distant cousin. I went to school with his brother who is a nice guy but has no ambition. All he wanted was a job and a family. Kevin, on the other hand, wanted to be a pilot. He’s been fascinated by planes all his life. To be a pilot, you need a college degree, and no one in his immediate family had ever gone to college. The Macphaters heard about it and offered to pay his way through college. When he was close to finishing his mandatory active time in the military, he came to Ian Macphater, Leslie’s father, and told him he was ready to work for him as payback for his college. Ian said he would like Kevin to work for him, not so he could be paid back but because he heard that he was a good pilot as well as Kevin being family. The Macphaters hadn’t only paid his way through college but they had kept track of him in college and in the military. He was family, and they were watching out for him. Ian and his children run MME with the same care for their employees. I don’t know the how of what happened today, but I don’t think of voodoo and spirits when I think of the Macphaters.” Dave stated.

Martha is amazed at the feeling and loyalty that Dave had displayed in answering her question, but she was still nervous about her daughters. “But what about the Maclarens?” Martha asked. She realized she was sounding unreasonable, but it is her daughters.

“Martha, Leslie is taking control of the company, and that’s what her father and brothers want. What they’ve done well at, she and Will do better. From what I have seen of Will’s relatives, he isn’t an exception in that family.” Dave answered.

“Sorry to bother you with a mother’s concerns, but they are all I have.” Martha was near tears.

Dave reached over and comforted her. “I know how it’s to be an only parent. When May passed away and left me with three children to raise, I don’t know what I would’ve done without my family and the Maclarens.”

Martha looks up. “How did the Maclarens help you?”