Besides the two of them the room is empty, heās well aware of that, he hasnāt lost his grip on reality so completely; and yet, and yet, he somehow, with some sense clearer than sight, sees himself walking across the floor, so vividly it must be happening ā and then Albert comes back up to him, blocking the view, kneels at his side and lifts a hand to Philās forehead, like he was checking if heās running a fever: oh, wouldnāt that be a nice, safe explanation? Would become an anecdote, something to laugh off in a day or two. If only. He grabs Albert by the elbow and holds on tight, until heās assured without a doubt that heās in his body, and itās here, and itās real, though it feels like it got all scrambled up inside. He coughs again; his throat is dry and thereās a metallic taste in his mouth.
āGet me a glass of water, will ya?ā He releases his grip on Albertās arm, only to, on second thought, grasp at it again.
āHey, Albert⦠donāt mention any of this to Gordon, okay?ā
Albert rolls his eyes.Ā āSure, dad, I wonāt tell mom, but only if you make a damn good case for convincing me that this really is nothing, and believe me, from where youāre standing now itās one hell of an uphill battle.ā
He pats Philās knuckles. Whateverās going on, they can sort it out. When Cooper had moments like this and no-one else was around, he usually asked Albert not to leave the room, so heās not too sure how to wish a glass of water out of thin air, but theyāll get there one step at a time. And if handling Cooper is like herding cats, Jeffries is uncharted territory, a fascinating mystery, but this is just a slip, Albert tells himself. Nothing they cannot handle. He may be a little spooked out by the situation, but his confidence is genuine.