by D. J. Holmes
* * *
The sun was setting over the ocean as Julia walked down the stairs to the outside deck of the Beach House. As usual, Daniel had made a fire, in the fire pit on the back deck. Julia sat in a lounge chair by the fire and watched the waves, as they hit the shore.
She sat quietly, remembering the story that she had just read, with tears streaming down her face, thinking of the love that Jon and Katherine had for each other. What did that story have to do with Jon that was Evan’s friend? Julia remembered that Evan had told her that the story was about Jon and about his memories. But, how could it have been a life story, when the story was about something that had happened in the 1500’s?
Jon had called her Katherine at the crime scene. Julia now knew who Katherine was. But she wondered what that had to do with her? “I’m living in the 21st Century, and Katherine lived in the 16th Century. Why would he call me Katherine?” There were so many questions coming to Julia’s head.
Daniel broke her concentration. “Are you all right Julia?” he asked.
“Yes, I’m fine. I’m just trying to get some things straight in my head.”
“What do you think of the ocean?”
“It’s beautiful. I love the sound of the waves as they come in, and then roll back out.”
“Have you heard anything from Evan?”
“No. I haven’t heard from him, and I’m starting to get worried.”
“Julia, I don’t want you to worry. If he isn’t here in a few days, I’ll send out some of my staff to look for him.”
“Thank you, Daniel.” Julia thought staff? I didn’t know there were other people who were here? “Daniel, do you mind if I sit out here for a while.”
“Julia, you can sit here for as long as you would like to sit. It’s perfectly safe here.”
“Thank you. I feel safe when I’m around you. Thank you once again for letting me stay here.”
“You’re more than welcome, my dear,” Daniel answers with a smile. “You can stay here for as long as you would like. I’m going in I have a lot to do. See you in the morning.”
The soft sound of the waves on the beach became a lullaby and soon Julia fell asleep on the lounge chair.
The warmth of the sun rising in the east, and the sound of the morning waves crashing into the shore, woke her up. Looking down the shore line Julia notices a group of people standing in the sand facing the rising sun. In silence, their heads were lowered with their hands, palms together in the middle of their chest in front of them, praying to the sun.
When they finished, the group began to walk toward the beach house while Julia slumped down in her lounge chair, hoping that they wouldn’t see her. When they entered the downstairs floor of the Beach House, Julia quickly jumps up and runs to her bedroom.
Relaxing in the warmth of the shower, Julia begins to think of the scene she’d just witnessed on the beach. “I wonder what that was all about. I’ve never seen anything like that.” She changes into her clothes and heads downstairs for breakfast.
“Daniel, I saw some people on the beach earlier this morning, do you know who they are?” Julia asks as she walks into the kitchen.
“They are my staff.”
“Were you with them?”
“Yes, I’m in charge of them and the Beach House.”
“What is the Beach House?”
“The Beach House is something like a Medical Clinic; a place where people come to recuperate from their life experiences.”
“Where do these people come from?”
“They come from all over. Everyone is welcome here.”
“How many do you have on your staff Daniel?”
“We have as many as we need, depending on the number of people that are here.”
“Are there other people here now?”
“Yes, there are several people here.”
“Why haven’t I seen any of them?”
“They are in their own individual rooms downstairs.”
“Are they sick?”
“No, they are just recuperating from the things that they have experienced in their life. After they rest for awhile, they’ll be ok.”
“Is there anything that I can do to help you while I am here?”
“If I need your help, Julia, I’ll let you know, alright?”
A bell rings Daniel excuses himself and walks downstairs. After a few minutes, Julia can’t stand her curiosity and decides to follow Daniel.
She walks to the stairs and descends down to the bottom landing. There is a lot of action, as different people are walking back and forth between the rooms. It reminds her of what busy hospitals look like. Everyone sees her, but they don’t tell her to leave.
She decides to ask someone. “Where’s Daniel?”
“The bell rang, so he went to the Hall of Corridors.”
“Where is that hall?”
“Follow the yellow line on the floor. It will lead you there.”
“Thank you. Is it ok if I go down there?”
“Yes. You will be stopped if you can’t go in for any reason."
Walking down the yellow striped hallway, she sees Daniel walking toward her, wheeling a gurney with a rounded white dome covering the patient they had just received.
“Daniel, I hope you don’t mind that I have come downstairs.”
“No, Julia, you are welcome anywhere. Walk with me while I wheel our newest patient to his room.”
Reaching the assigned room Daniel asks Julia, “Would you please wait out here for awhile? You can either sit over there, or you can watch us through this window, if you would like.”
“Thank you Daniel, I’ll wait here for you.”
Julia watches as Daniel and his staff works feverishly to help their new arrival.
Finally, Daniel walks out of the room and over to her. “As you can see, the patient can be watched by the staff through this window when they aren’t in the room with him. We’ve been running some tests on him.” From the corner of his eye, he can see one of his staff looking his way. “Just a minute, they’re letting me know that the results are in. Would you stay here while I get them? It might take awhile. You’re welcome to wait here or go upstairs and I’ll talk to you later.”
“I’ll just stay here and watch if that would be alright?”
“That would be fine. I’ll catch up with you later.”
Daniel goes into his patient’s room. Julia stands at the window watching the treatment that is being administered to their newest patient.
Looking through the window, Julia sees something that she has never seen before. “What is that clear ball they are holding? Every time they hold it over a different part of his body, it turns a different color.”
Several hours go by as Julia continues to watch Daniel and his staff tirelessly care for their patient.
Finally, alternating carnation red and sapphire blue lights begin to light the patient’s room. Coming out Daniel says, “He’s going to be ok. We’ll let him rest over night, and see how he is doing in the morning. Would you like some dinner?” He asks, Julia.
“Yes, Daniel. Thank you,” she says smiling.
After dinner, Julia asks him, “Daniel, do you ever feel that you need to lock your doors and windows?”
Daniel responds, “We don’t worry about locking our doors.” He quickly changes the subject. “Did you see the pod that was covering our newest patient, when we were rolling him down the hall earlier today?”
“Yes. I didn’t know what it was, but I saw it.”
“The pod has oxygen flowing to his face, along with non-invasive electrodes that shock certain nerves in the body, to regenerate what the patient may have lost.”
“What do you mean by, what they may have lost?”
“If a patient has lost a leg, or an arm, we can create growth with electrodes in that particular area, to grow a new leg, or a new arm. This goes for anything that they might need. We have all of the equipment, and knowledge that we need to renew anything that t
he body requires.”
“So you’re telling me, that if I had lost an arm, you could cause my body to grow a new one?”
“That’s exactly what I’m saying.”
“Wow! Not only does your food taste better than any place I have ever eaten, but you also have the knowledge and skills to help me grow a new arm if I need it.”
“I’d be glad to help you, if you ever needed help, Julia,”
“Did Evan tell you that someone is trying to kill me?”
“Yes. He told me, when he called to ask if both of you could stay here.”
“Don’t you think that under the circumstances, it would be a wise choice to lock the doors, while I’m here?”
“We won’t need to lock anything, Julia, because there is a force field that surrounds this house, and the adjoining land.”
“What are you talking about? First you tell me that you can grow new body parts. Now there is a force field that surrounds this house and the surrounding area?” she says astonished.
“That’s exactly what I am telling you. We have a white light that surrounds a very wide perimeter. The white light is a cleansing energy. Along with that we have a gold light which is the strongest protective energy. It won’t let anyone with an evil intent enter our protected area,” Daniel explains in a matter of fact way.
“Colors play a great deal in our protection, and in our ability to heal others. For instance, our new patient has alternating carnation red and sapphire blue lights in his room right now. The carnation red light clears the organs of toxins in his body along with toxins in his blood stream. The sapphire blue light will help heal the organs of his body.”
“Tomorrow morning he will be taken out to the edge of the beach and held by my staff, as his body is allowed to float on the waves. This will help him to reconnect with the water. Water, and the energy in it, is the beginning of all life. This helps many of our patients to recapture the ability to walk again. Once that happens he will be brought back into his room and put under a dark emerald green light. This will bring balance and harmony back to his body, and complete his healing.”
Daniel continues, “All of these lights are from out of this world, pure and imbued with Universal essence. That’s why no one can enter our premises if they have evil in their mind and heart.”
“Everything that you are telling me is really hard to understand, Daniel.”
“Don’t be afraid, Julia. We have nothing to hide. You can watch everything tomorrow, if you would like.”
“I would really like to, Daniel. Thank you, very much. Right now, I think that I will go to bed.”
As Julia lies in her bed, the sound of the waves, and the quietness that surrounds the Beach House, brings her thoughts back to Evan. Why hadn’t she heard from him? Where is he? There was no way to get a hold of him. She had to wait until he had the opportunity to call her.
With morning, the sounds of voices outside on the beach can be heard. Julia jumps out of bed. “I’ve got to get dressed so I can see this.”
Running downstairs from her bedroom, she opens the sliding glass doors, goes out on the back deck, and down the stairs to the beach.
Watching the staff hold their patient while his body is lying flat on top of the waves, bobbing up and down in the surf, is very interesting to Julia.
“Daniel, why is his head and face covered?”
“He was riding his horse out in the sun and weather for a long time, and his skin is recovering.”
“How long do you think that will take?” Julia asks inquisitively.
“We never know how long things will take. Each individual is unique. There is never a cookie cutter treatment here. As you can see, our patient is responding to the movement of the waves. He is beginning to stand on his own.”
Daniel turns to his staff. “Bring him in. See if he can stand and walk on his own.” His staff does as Daniel has directed them to do. The patient is very weak, but manages to stand on his own and take a few steps.
“Good work, Jon. You’re coming along magnificently.”
Julia is shocked by Daniel calling his new patient Jon. But then she realizes that there is more than one person by the name of Jon in this world.
“Take him into his room and start the emerald green lights. Give him some juice, let him rest. In a little while, we will get him some breakfast.”
“Julia, would you like to help me make some breakfast for him?”
“I’d love to. Just tell me what you would like me to do.” Just as Julia and Daniel walk up the stairs to the kitchen, the phone rings.
“Hello?”
“Daniel, this is Evan. Is Julia there?”
“Yes, she is. Julia, the phone is for you.”
“Hello?”
“Julia, it’s me, Evan.”
“Where have you been, Evan? You were supposed to be here shortly after I arrived,” she states, concerned.
“That was our plan to begin with. Then I realized that I was being followed. I can’t talk for very long or tell you where I am on the phone. Just ask Daniel to pick me up in the same place he did before.”
“Ok, Evan.”
“I just wanted to check in. See you soon.”
“I can’t wait to see you. I’ll tell Daniel.”
Walking over to Daniel, Julia relays the message and then asks, “Where did you pick him up before?”
“We picked him up on a Mesa in Goblin Valley.”
“What is Goblin Valley?”
“It’s a 3,014 acre State Park in central Utah. The park is situated between Green River and Hanksville along Highway 24. It’s called Goblin Valley because it is full of chocolate-colored rocks, spires and pedestals that have been carved by wind and water to look like mushrooms and goblins.”
“Wow that sounds very interesting and a little scary also.”
“Evan use to play there with his friend jumping from Hoo-Doo to Hoo-Doo, listening to the sound of the wind as it made strange eerie sounds.”
“What is a Hoo-Doo?”
“It’s a pedestal rock that looks like a mushroom.”
“So, you’re familiar with that area then?”
“Yes. I know what he is talking about. My staff and I will find him and bring him back here.”
“Thank you, Daniel, for all that you are doing for both of us.”
“Julia, that’s my job. One day you’ll understand. For now, let’s make breakfast for our patient, ok?”
“Daniel, what would you like me to make?”
“His favorite food is custard pie. The eggs in the custard will be good protein for him. He also likes apples, so we could make some applesauce. Both the fresh custard and applesauce will be easy for him to digest while he is getting use to eating food once again. Along with that, we could make some toast and he could have some warm herbal tea to drink. That sounds like a pretty good first meal for him, don’t you think? Later we can give him heavier foods.”
“Julia, would you mind feeding him? He can’t see yet and probably won’t talk much. Give him time and he will talk as much as he always has.”
“I’m at your service, Daniel.”
Julia goes to Jon’s room. “Hello, Jon. My name is, Julia.
I have some breakfast for you. I’ve got some fresh custard and applesauce for you to start out with. Would you mind if I fixed your bed so that you could sit up to eat? That way it will be easier for you to swallow.”
“That would be fine, my Lady.”
Moving slowly and precisely, Jon adjusts himself as Julia raises the bed to a sitting position. Still very weak, he eats everything that is given to him. “Thank you, my Lady,” he slowly articulates.
“Are you tired, Jon?”
“I am, my Lady.”
Julia lays the bed back down. Jon falls asleep as the dark emerald green lights continue their work.
Leaving Jon’s room, Julia finds Daniel upstairs. “My goodness Daniel, you’ve got a patient with manners down there.”
“Yes
, he’s a very polite and respectful man, Julia. Tomorrow he’ll be able to have the bandages taken off of his face. But his eyes will have to be covered for a few more days.”
As Julia continues to care for the new patient, she wonders, “Why is it that whenever I am in his room or standing by Jon, my heart hurts? It’s like I can feel what he is experiencing.”
Later the next day, as they are sitting on lounge chairs on the back deck, Julia is shocked when Jon begins to talk.
“Where am I?” he asks. “You’re at the Beach House.”
“What is a Beach House?”
“It’s a house near the ocean,” Julia explains.
“Why am I still alive?”
“Didn’t you want to live?”
“I really don’t care if I live or not. My true love is dead and there is no reason for me to live.”
“Daniel called you, Jon, the other day. Is that your name?”
“Yes, that’s my name. Your name is, Julia, is that right?”
“Yes, you’re correct.”
“How long have you been here, Julia?”
“I was here about a day before you came. I watched them bring you into your room.”
“I wish that they would have left me where they found me.”
“Why would you say that, Jon?”
“I have nothing to live for. I looked for my true love for several years. When I finally found her, I couldn’t protect her and she died.”
“Jon, we all have to die,” she said softly, trying to comfort him.
“I’m really tired. Will you take me back to my bedroom?” He asked.
“Sure. Just hold my arm, and we will walk slowly to your room.”
Julia didn’t sleep very well after listening to Jon. “What can I do to help him? He doesn’t want to live. I wonder what really happened to him to make him feel this way. I am happy though that, Evan called, and that I have an idea of where he is. I think that I’ll stay here at the Beach House, and help Daniel, with, Jon. At least until, Evan arrives.”
CHAPTER 7