Lewis & Ondarko - Best Friends 03 - Now and Zen (22 page)

“‘Looks like you’ve been having a hard time,’ the woman said.

“I burst into tears. After I told her what had happened, she said an interesting thing. She said - and I’ll never forget it - you don’t have to give up something you love because you’re afraid. And I decided she was right. Then the woman got up and moved away.

“Oh, and here’s your mother’s tab. She said you were good for it.” As the waitress stood, her thoughts had already returned to the extra tips she had made during the retreat.

Can’t wait to get to Duluth for the Macy’s sale,
she thought.

Mothers,
Pat thought.

Noticing that Bev hadn’t come inside with the others, Pat walked up behind Bev on the street as she was packing up her Tarot paraphernalia.

“Need help?”

Bev hesitated only a moment.

“Yes, that would be great. Can you help me with this table?”

“Sure.” Pat started to collapse the card table. “I’ve been thinking about that reading you did for me the other day.”

Bev’s cheeks pinked.

“It was pretty terrible. Sorry. I’m really just learning, and sometimes I say stuff that makes me just want to poke out my third eye.”

Pat laughed.

“Funny! No, really, I think the cards were spot on. I was that silly Jester in the middle of things making a whirlwind with this retreat. Trouble is, the cards were true. We just weren’t interpreting them quite right.”

“Isn’t that the way it goes?” Bev pulled out a notebook from her pile of books. “Lets see, here it is. Five of Pentacles reversed could mean there will be strife, but it doesn’t have to have a bad outcome. So that would be the retreat, I guess. For this card, it’s all in the attitude. And you are the Jester,” she said, looking up and softening the words with a smile. “At least in this reading.”

“The Chariot card represents you at your worst, when you always feel you know best no matter what, or, at your best, you helping and making things better. Then there were the Tower and Swords cards. You could think of the missing woman being away in the tower, but that could mean either it’s because she was being held, as shown by the presence of the swords, or because of her choosing to take herself away. Maybe your theory of the woman being a spirit could fit for her.”

“The Devil card could be about a battle of light and dark at solstice, and evil appearing to get the upper hand,” Pat said.

“But in the end, the Death card could mean new beginnings, for you, or for the island, rather than the actual death of the woman.”

They looked at each other.

“So, do you want me to do another reading?” Bev asked, with a twinkle in her eye, “not the third one. I’ve got my cards right here,” she said, holding up her hand.

Pat hugged her.

“Actually, I would, but not now. In the end, I guess I know it’s always up to me what happens.”

“Spoken like a true Jester. Pat, there’s something else I want to tell you.”

“What?”

“I knew about Lotta, but I didn’t tell anyone.”

“Why not?”

“She’s my friend. And once you say something, there’s no taking it back. Maybe you should talk to her.”

Pat nodded.

They packed everything up and headed inside to meet their friends.

Deb sat out on the front steps of the cabin, enjoying the moment of waiting for the others to finish packing.

As she looked around, she noticed that the foliage on the trees seemed to be bursting with crisp greens. The grass was still kissed with dew. Lupine and trillium were in full bloom in the beds around the steps.

Deb inhaled, feeling gratitude and taking in a breath of fresh, crisp air. A line of women meandered happily past her, pulling suitcases behind them as they made their way to the ferry.

A young girl ran up to Deb, thrusting a small bouquet of Johnny jump-ups into her hands.

“Here,” she said with a shy smile. “Thanks for inviting us.” She turned and ran quickly to her place in line. Deb waved her hand at the mother who was patting the child on the back.

“Thanks,” the woman mouthed back.

Walking inside the cabin, Deb and Pat sat with their friends, enjoying one last chat before leaving. Their packed bags were piled next to the doorway.

“So you didn’t have to convince anyone about your weird theory? And that’s it?’

“Yup, I think so.” Pat leaned back on her chair legs just like she always told her son not to. She ran her fingers through bangs that flopped right back down on her forehead.

“Let’s see, Gary says…”

“Wait a sec,” Noreen interrupted. “The detective lets you call him Gary now?”

“Sure. At least when he’s not around to hear it,” Pat said a little sheepishly.

Everyone laughed.

“Anyway, do you want to know the scoop, or not?”

“Oh, oh, someone didn’t get her nap,” Julie teased.

Pat pretended to scowl.

“Come on, Pat, we’re dying to hear,” Bev said. “We’ve been so busy ‘retreating,’ by which I mean leading workshops, serving meals, and picking up garbage, that we haven’t had a lot of time to figure out the mystery.”

“Yeah, remind me to be gone when these two invite us again for a relaxing weekend retreat,” Carolyn agreed.

“Oh, come on, Carolyn. You know you had a great time.”

“I did,” she admitted. “But fill us in. What happened to our suspects, and was there really a woman?”

“Let’s see,” Pat said. “LeSeur found the woman that Deb heard about from the jealous wife. Remember the one who was cheating with her husband? My goodness, I almost pity that poor husband. I said I
almost
pity him,” she added, after noticing their surprised stares. “It turns out the woman went off to her mother’s home to reconsider her role of being the other woman. She decided she just wasn’t cut out for it.”

“Especially,” Pat said with a twinkle, “when she found out that her boyfriend’s wife was the one with all the money and not him.”

“I never thought that one was a real candidate, but what about my guy in the bathroom?” Carolyn asked eagerly. “Now, there’s a real suspect. He had motive and opportunity. And he was horrible. You didn’t hear him. I did.”

“I’m surprised you could hear him through the wall. What did you do, put your ear up against it?” Linda teased. “I’ll bet the F.B.I. would just love to sign you up for bathroom duty.”

“Well, you’re right,” Pat interrupted, “he did have opportunity, and he is certainly a bad character, but it turns out he was just showing off to his friend. I just talked to his girlfriend at the Beach Club, where she works as a waitress. He hit her once and she was gone. Unfortunately for him she has two big brothers. You won’t be listening to him through bathroom walls anytime soon.”

“So that leaves the creepy guy we met in the woods,” Deb said. “We think he was the land developer that we heard about from the bartender.” “You mean the land raper?” Julie asked.

“Whatever… his girlfriend… she did leave on that ferry, or one pretty close to it. But here’s the part that’s right out of a novel. She was headed for the B.I.A., the Bureau of Indian Affairs, in Ashland. While the local authorities were looking for her, she was meeting with federal agents.”

“It’s not illegal to buy land from Natives, is it?” Bev asked.

“No, it’s not,” Deb said. “But it is illegal to set up an elaborate scam, which he had done before in Arizona and Oklahoma. Naturally, they didn’t get him on that. Can you guess what they got him on?”

Everyone was silent, waiting for the answer.

“I know, I know,” Carolyn said. “Taxes. It’s the way they always get the mob guys.”

“And the prize goes to Carolyn,” Pat said. “That guy’s gonna get ten to twenty, since they have a great witness who is willing to testify.”

“Don’t forget Lotta,” Julie said.

“Lotta’s our friend. She’s done everything with us,” Noreen said. “We don’t even know why she was in prison.”

“I know,” Bev confessed. “It was self-defense. He was drunk and coming at her.”

“I’ve seen lots of cases like that,” Deb said. “A woman makes a split second decision that changes her whole life.”

“Enough with suspects. Did a body ever turn up?” Linda asked.

“Nope. The Coast Guard searched a long time. On the other hand, the water is cold and deep. But, I still say there never was a real woman at all,” Pat said stubbornly. “Maybe, she was something else.”

“Stop, Pat, with the woo-woo theories,” Julie admonished. “All I can say is, if you think so, then at least… Hell no, you’re not my guru, and since you’re not wearing your collar, I’m not required to believe you. But, let’s raise a glass to her, whoever she was, and to next year’s retreat as well.”

And glasses were raised by all.

“Before you leave,” Deb said, standing up and walking to the kitchen. “I have something for each of you.”

“What’s this?”

Returning to the room, she opened a shopping bag and pulled out a matching sweatshirt for each of them. Embroidered on the front were the words: “First Annual M.I. Solstice Retreat.”

“Just a little something from Pat and me to express our gratitude. Thanks for helping us. We couldn’t have done it without you.”

After the others had gone outside to load the cars, Deb sat pensively at the kitchen table, pen in hand, staring at the journal before her. She began to write.

After carefully placing the notebook on the counter, Deb looked around and turned off the lights, putting the key in the lock on the way out.

Standing on the ferry’s upper deck, Pat gazed toward the dock of La Pointe as it became smaller and smaller in her vision.

It looks like the scene from that play, Brigadoon,
she thought,
fading away into the fog.

“It looks like a fairy tale place, doesn’t it?” Deb put her arm around her friend, once again reading her mind. “And that woman… I really believe we met her coming off the ferry that first day; you know the one who helped me when my shoe was once again untied. She just touched me for a second, you know? But she was like Mother Earth and the Wizard of Oz all rolled into one. I guess even if I never find out who she was for sure, I’m glad she’s a part of the island. Can you believe it?”

That’s my trouble,
Pat thought,
believing.

Squinting, she could just make out a figure in a long flowing dress, standing on the edge of the dock, waving cheerily, as if right at her.

Is it the pastor?
she thought, waving back.
No, no. I know she’s back at the church. Could it possibly be her? After a whole weekend of trying to find her?
There waving on the dock? Pointing wordlessly, she directed Deb’s gaze to the shore.

“Oh, my gosh!” Deb smiled and clapped her hands joyfully. “It’s her! I know it is. She came to see us off.”

Pat was more skeptical, but then she took a deep breath. There are moments in life when one is called to leap. Church people might call it a leap of faith. Others might call it a leap into the unknown.

In the end,
Pat thought,
it’s choosing. It’s whistling in the dark; reaching out a hand when you don’t know it will be taken; or believing enough to act.

I’ve had trouble with leaping. That’s why I am so proud of my friends. I recognize courageous acts when I see them… Maybe that’s what a pastor is… a cheerleader urging others on from the sidelines, like Moses, never reaching the Promised Land myself. Heavens, I’ve been reading the Bible too long.

“I believe it’s her,” she said out loud, leaping, for once. “And that’s enough.” Feeling for one precious moment that everything was in balance and that somehow it was because of Mida, she watched, straining her eyes as the fog closed in and the image on the dock seemed to break apart into a million pieces of light.

Waving once more, she turned to Mike who had come out on the deck to stand by her. “Some weekend, huh?” he asked, rubbing his neck with his big hand.

Pat shook her head and drew in a breath of the cool clear air.

“You can say that again, big guy. You need me to rub that spot?” Reaching up, she skillfully pressed her fingers into the tender spots. “Wow, you are tight. You know you did the best anyone could, don’t you?”