Voyagers: The Aurora Frequency

Chapter 1: The life of Jeffrey Jones

October 8th 1987

Seventeen-year-old Jeffrey Jones gazed out the window with his binoculars in hand. Who would have thought that the Aurora Borealis would make an appearance in New York of all places? He was glad his aunt Tricia lived away from the City and further upstate in Saratoga. The bright lights of Manhattan might have definitely obscured this rare phenomenon. He made sure to note the date and time. He had all the lights turned off in the house to test its power and he saw his notepad clear as day. He heard the keys rattle in the door and his aunt rushed inside, struggling with three grocery bags.

“Hang on Trish, I’m coming!” He shouted from the living room.

“You better hurry, Jeff…I can’t hold them much longer!”

Jeffrey ran to her side and grabbed two of the bags before they had a mess of eggs on her peach carpet.

“Jeffrey, do you see it outside! It’s wild! And two of my favorite colors, pink and purple!” She giggled and headed to the kitchen. “Please tell me you pulled out the chicken to defrost, I can’t eat McDonald's again.”

Jeffrey proudly picked up the package of cutlets. “Here ya go, ready for that great recipe you make…this time, I even mixed the ingredients for you.”

He opened the fridge to show her the mixture and started setting up the pans and pot for the spaghetti. He put the water on boil.

“You didn't forget the Parmesan cheese, right? It’s mayo…”

“I know Trish, mayo, pepper, Parmesan, and a pinch of lemon juice for an added kick. I mixed it all up. These cutlets are gonna be awesome.”

Tricia De Lorenzo laughed as she hung up her suede coat by the front door. She tied her wavy, black hair into a ponytail. “Well, it seems like somebody’s hungry around here! Just pour the breadcrumbs in that bowl, will ya?”

“Yes, auntie!”

Tricia opened the windows to the living room to let in the cool, October breezes. The illumination from the Borealis forced her to shield her eyes.

“I feel like ET is gonna come down or something, or I’m gonna be lifted straight up into outer space and made captive on an alien ship.”

“Me too! The news said it could last a week or more!”

Tricia stuck her head back in and went to the kitchen and washed her hands. She resumed making their dinner. “I hope I can sleep with all this glowing, it’s directly over our house.”

Jeffrey stirred the spaghetti. “Don’t be such an old grouch, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity to witness the beauty of nature.”

“I know! I gotta remember to stop and smell the roses more often; I’m smelling flowers and oils all day though. You remember what it was like in the City, not a tree in sight unless you went to Central Park.”

“Yeah, I remember.” Jeffrey said, with a bit of sadness.

He thought of his father, Bill. He would have loved to see the Borealis and they probably would have been outside with the telescope and taking photos. Jeffrey couldn't remember where he put the camera last, and his aunt Melissa and her husband Todd kept the telescope. Jeffrey knew why Todd really wanted it; she lived precisely across that stupid penthouse and didn't believe in curtains or shades.

“Oh yeah, don’t call me old, Mister! I’m only eight years ahead of you! I’m not ready for the nursing home yet.” Tricia chided.

Jeffrey laughed deviously. “When you are, I get the house right?”

Tricia threw a cherry tomato at him and finished with the salad, moving on to the garlic bread. “By the time that happens, you’ll be too old to keep it up anyway.”

Jeffrey strained the spaghetti and turned the chicken in the oven. “Ten more minutes and I’m digging in!”

“Ha! Put the bread inside too, and give it five minutes exactly. Last time you completely burned it.”

“That’s because I fell asleep.”

“Yeah, and remember the pizza you left? I was scrubbing soot off the walls the next day. You nearly burned us out. You gotta be more careful, Jeff. Big rule of cooking, don’t leave it unless it’s stew or soup and can simmer for hours.”

“Alright, Julia Child.” Jeffrey groaned. He set up the table for two, and then halted.

“Umm, Tricia…Nicky’s not coming tonight, is he?” He asked this hopefully.

Tricia spooned the bubbling sauce into a serving bowl and brought it to the table with the salad and dressings. “No, he’s very busy tonight…he’s been busy a lot this week.” She said.

Jeffrey noted the relief in her expression and her voice. Tricia had been dating Nicky Rossini for one month, but he was definitely not the man for her. Jeffrey thought he was a nothing more than an elegant thug and he hated the way he was always snooping around their house and barn. Nicky was tall, dark and handsome, but he couldn't understand what else his aunt saw in him. Sometimes he wondered if she was more afraid than anything else.

“Good, because he annoys me. Always telling me to go to work for him and stuff.”

“Jeff, he’s not that bad. It would be good for the extra money in your wallet…it’s only a car dealership…what about Colleen? She’s been ogling you since freshman year.”

“Colleen McKay? You really think she likes me?” Jeffrey asked, suddenly shy.

“Likes you? That isn't the word! You’re her Jeffy! Why don’t you take her out to a movie or something? I think she’s a pretty girl and she’s funny. A sense of humor is very important in a relationship.”

“Jeesh, Trish, you act like I’m gonna marry her! Yeah, she is pretty, really nice blue eyes and long, blonde hair. Hey! I did go out with her a few times.”

Tricia walked over to her nephew’s chair and draped her arms around him.

“You’re right, but mostly with a group of friends. How are those mugs anyway, I haven’t seem them in a while?”

“Aww, they’re alright. You know something, I better hurry up and ask Colleen out, because Ricky had his eye on her for a while too.”

“Oh, you mean the one born with the silver spoon in his mouth?”

“Yeah, the fair haired one…” Jeffrey grumbled.

“Ha, I know Colleen prefers dark curly mop heads any day! Jeff, I don’t want to pressure you, I just want to help you out of your shell. You’re really doing great. Keep focused on what’s most important to you. I think it’s cool you’re going for history major.”

“Thanks Trish, I try. I’m not that shy!”

“True. The debate team won because of your speech last year.”

“That’s right! I stuck it to them, I was glad to be on the negative side with that topic, slavery is a heavy issue.”

Jeffrey watched her putter back and forth around the big kitchen, trying to get the rest of dinner prepared, until she finally sat across from him with a smile. Tricia was tan with large, black eyes and altogether very pretty. She was his mother’s baby sister. When his parents died she was still in college and couldn't take him in. Jeffrey’s grandmother died the following year and left Tricia the summerhouse that would have went to his parents. Tricia saw this as an opportunity to get away from the hustle and bustle and she selflessly took Jeffrey and his dog, Ralph, with her. Tricia worked at one of the upscale spas in Saratoga Springs. Jeffrey helped her with the bills by taking a part time job at the local supermarket; however, Tricia wanted him to focus on school. He was already preparing his college applications for next fall and many of the big ones expressed interest in him.

After eating the tasty dinner, and begging off the dishes, Jeffrey decided to stroll around the old barns behind their house while giving Ralph a walk. Tricia didn't have much use for them, but Jeffrey loved to go into the smaller one to read and just meditate on things. His dog was acting very strange and Jeffrey attributed it to the Borealis. He kept barking, growling and chasing his tail in circles. Ralph didn't calm down until Jeffrey brought him out of the light and set him up to get some rest.

-Oo-

Jeffrey made his way into the back of the barn and sat by the work desk. He had cleared it off and made it his own with a few books and a television set. He also set up a small cot. Jeffrey still had some more cleaning to do. He spent fifteen minutes sweeping out the cobwebs and dust and decided to refurbish the space. As he was moving a very heavy dresser, it kept scraping against a lump on the floor. He pushed it in the opposite direction until the space was cleared.

“Man, you need about three guys to push this thing!” He was still proud that he did it himself.

Looking down, he found a doorway to a passage that was camouflaged into the floorboards. A small hook that was used to open it had caused the scraping. He yanked the entry up and shone his flashlight. It was a whole other room.

Jeffrey climbed down the rickety ladder, being very careful not to put his foot on any weak spots. He didn't like the feeling that hit him; the air smelled musty, with a deep scent of decay. The room wasn't as big as he thought, about ten by ten feet, but a decent size for a cellar. The walls were lined with cement and kept dry. Stacks of crates were lined against them. Jeffrey started to rummage through them; He found nothing until he hit the bottom crate. Hidden within, was an old Ham radio, in near perfect condition. Jeffrey smiled and pulled it out gently; it was covered up with a small quilt. Jeffrey knew how to work these. His father used to have something like it and his grandfather had operated them when he worked for a radio station back in the forties and fifties. This model looked even older than that era. He was careful not to dismantle any of the parts or bounce it around. The copper coils and black and white dials were firmly in place on the wooden, breadboard. Upon digging further, he found a transmitter hook up and headphones.

“Wow! This is awesome!” He exclaimed. “It probably won’t get any frequency but it’s worth a shot.” Jeffrey carefully placed his find back into the crate, making sure the quilt cushioned it on the sides.

The wooden floor of the room was coated in dust, but he noticed a section that appeared to be re-boarded. When he moved the flashlight around, he caught sight of an odd swatch of cloth lying in the far left corner. He picked it up, it was frayed and red with multicolored threading, and it resembled a sort of sash. His foot kicked something firm and it clanged against the wall. He knelt down to grab it. It was a brass colored belt buckle and he examined the design; sculpted in the center was a spread-winged falcon. It must have belonged to his grandfather, but it seemed like his grandparents didn't even know this room existed; Jeffrey’s grandparents weren't the original owners of this house and had only vacationed twice before ill health struck them. The house lay pretty much empty until Tricia started to come during her time off and worked on cleaning it out.

His grandfather used to tell him that the house was a haven for gangsters. Aside from its Spas, Saratoga Springs was a hot-spot for illegal gambling and infamous for it’s racetrack. He often joked that Meyer Lansky and Lucky Luciano stashed all their illegal earnings within the property, but it was never recovered. On a whim, Jeffrey was tempted to check the floorboards of the hidden cellar, but he left it alone. If he found the money, he wouldn't be able to keep it. It would have to be returned to the City and he would at best get a measly reward. The wall where he found the sash and buckle was discolored at the bottom, as if someone had scrubbed it clean. He peered on the floor, trying to make out the small, dark splotches that were ingrained in the wood.

A queasy feeling struck him. If this house once belonged to gangsters, then what if they hid more than money? Jeffrey stood up quickly, wiping off his jeans and rushing back to the ladder. There was nothing to freak out over, but his gaze wandered back to the mismatched floorboards. What if…? He quickly picked up the crate and ascended the ladder, locking the cellar tight.

“No way! There are no bodies buried down here!” He said aloud.

He glanced at his clock with a groan. It was nearing midnight and he had school, but at least it was Friday. He put the crate upon his desk and left the barn, making sure to secure the outside locks.