Fantasy House

by Ruth Hay

  “Honor, dear, that’s a great plan but I believe this occasion should be a private one. We will share the cake that night, but you and Faith should be together and establishing important new traditions.”

  “A good thought, Mavis. It’s a Saturday, Honor, so you will have scope for anything you decide to do with Faith. Think all of this over, ladies. Let me know your ideas….. and thank you! You are all wonderful women and I feel privileged to be among you.”

  It was an unusually emotional tribute from Hilary. Mavis knew her best and even she was surprised at the depth of feeling with which she had imbued those words. Her interpretation was that Hilary had been rather concerned about those two topics and now she was relieved at the good reception from their housemates.

  She thought, once again, how some people might have declared it impossible for six different women to function so well at such close quarters. Mavis Montgomery believed it was due in part to the liberal dimensions of Harmony House itself, and partly the sheer goodwill of its inhabitants.

  She often mused about the name. A fortuitous choice. It seemed the present state of house harmony must be influenced by the name. There had to be a reason. It was almost miraculous how well the project of co-housing was developing.

  She crossed her fingers. Early days yet. At least the last month of the year was going to be filled with happy events. The new year would be a whole new beginning and impossible to imagine at this stage.

  * * *

  Vilma made a quick call to the catering company she dealt with during her marriage to Nolan. They knew her well and valued her custom and her generous tips. They said they could cater a meal for seven on Christmas day and would deliver the food earlier while a serving crew would do the final preparations later in the day and clear up before they left.

  This brief discussion brought to Vilma’s mind a matter that had been worrying her since her first visit to Andy’s farmhouse.

  What kind of Christmas would he have out there in the wild all by himself?

  She wished she had never gone there to see his circumstances. Without the actual evidence she would be free to imagine him with friends or family on the day. But now, the stark facts were obvious, and she did not know what, if anything, she could do about it.

  She tried, several times, to remind herself to keep her nose out of his business. He would not welcome her interference. She had even dismissed the idea of giving him a gift; perhaps a warm throw or pillow with a dog picture on it? Something, anything to add a spot of colour to that dim interior. But whenever she pictured the act of giving this to him, she recoiled from the inevitable reaction. He would be furious at her implied criticism of his lifestyle and it would be the end of the dog training that was giving such pleasure to Astrid and Oscar.

  Each time she brought the dogs to what she secretly called the ‘Desolation’ she was confronted with the same issues. She tried to focus on the external beauty of the site but as the weather deteriorated and the willow leaves scattered leaving bare branches, the contrast was more extreme. The geese had departed for sunny climes and there was a thin layer of ice on the slower-moving sections of the stream.

  Nature was closing down for the winter months.

  Andy usually invited her for tea after the session with the dogs. She could hardly refuse, but she dreaded the dull interior of the kitchen and was glad she never saw any more of the house. She promised herself that as soon as it was too cold to leave the dogs in the fenced area, she would beg off the tea and head home. In the meantime, she brought a packet of biscuits as an offering each time and in her head she planned to give him a gift basket with Christmas goodies which she would leave in the barn so she would not need to see his face and hear his comments.

  It was not much. Not nearly enough, but all she could think of. She knew a lot about male pride and Andy Patterson was rife with it. One wrong step or an ill-advised word and he would be gone from her life, and that of her dogs, forever.

  Sometimes she wished for it. He made her feel more powerless than any man had before. She did not like the feeling. And yet, his presence began to occupy her thoughts on the days when she was safe and comfortable at home in Harmony House. She knew he waited anxiously for a good snowfall to begin his driveway clearing business. What was he doing the rest of the time? She tried to imagine him in town shopping for groceries or having a coffee but she could not believe in the mental picture. He just did not belong in a convivial setting.

  What kind of life was he leading and why? Why? He was a handsome man in his way. He was not old. He was strong and intelligent. What on earth had driven him to this existence?

  Early each morning he looked out of the bedroom window and studied the clouds looking for snow.

  The temperature was dropping and frost was apparent on the fields and coating the roof of the house and barn, but no snow. He had done all the repairs he could think of, oiled every moving part of his equipment, set out new challenges for the dogs and still there were hours of inactivity he needed to fill.

  The one bright spark in his week was the arrival of Vilma and the dogs.

  He paid each time for the joy of the contact with Astrid and Oscar with troubled nights and restless feelings. It was too close to what he had known with King. Not that anything would ever compare to that relationship. It had consumed his every waking moment until it was ripped from him in the worst way possible.

  He was not afraid of much any more, but sinking down into the thoughts of that day was the one thing he dreaded above all others. He was able to keep it at bay most of the time by sheer willpower. On bad days or nights, he would allow a tiny bit of comfort to seep through; just enough of the good memories to soothe his soul for a short period. Just the early days when they were a new couple; dog and handler trying out their compatibility. King was the best, the most beautiful, the brightest , the finest companion a man could ever have by his side in any situation.

  He had an immediate connection with the dog. It was something beyond the bright eyes and the thick German Shepherd coat that sparked with life in every hair. It was an indefinable bond. His superiors saw it right away and encouraged him to take the dog home and work with him everywhere he went. Tracy resented King when she saw the amount of energy the dog demanded. She never understood it was an exchange of energy. She never understood much in the end.

  He knew it was the training of Vilma’s dogs that brought it all back.

  He knew the risk he was taking, and yet, he had to consider that it must be a step forward. Contact with any animal was anathema to him in the dark days after the accident. They sent him home to recuperate from his injuries but the damage was not only to his body. It was much, much deeper than that and his time alone drove the pain into the furthest reaches of his mind.

  He knew he was not sane for a long time. Doctors could do nothing for him and he refused the mind-dulling medications they offered. There were long periods when he barely functioned and could not remember where he had gone or what he had done. Couch surfing lasted only so long and the streets were an ugly place to be.

  The last five bucks cash in his pocket that took him to the café and the ad for the gardening business was the first turning point. Now, working with Vilma’s dogs must be the second. It was progress of a kind. Surely, at last, it had to be progress.

  Sergeant Andrew T. Patterson of the London Police Canine Unit was long gone, never to return, but this other revised version was, hopefully, incredibly, possibly, finally, beginning to move forward.

  Chapter 22

  Faith had laid her plans well. She said nothing to anyone about her birthday and hugged the secret to her chest. A day on her own; time to celebrate without any interference from any adult.

  What she did not know about, was a parallel set of plans deriving from her Aunt Honor who thought the birthday tea should be a surprise for Faith. She wanted the day to go smoothly and late afternoon to be the party time, including the few teens Hilary confirmed as the friends Fait
h had spoken about most. This part was difficult to arrange.

  In the end Hilary requested the cooperation of Faith’s home room teacher. She spoke to him on the phone and filled in some of Faith’s background without betraying too much. Ralph Bonders broke his own rules to pass letters on to the named students on Hilary’s behalf. The letters asked for complete secrecy until November 30. Hilary would collect the students at, or near, the school, in the late afternoon and take them to Harmony House for the tea party. The letters included Hilary’s phone number, former occupation, and assured parents she was acting legally. The students would return in two hours.

  * * *

  Faith’s arrangements were equally complex. She informed Honor that she had a babysitting job for the morning and early afternoon of Saturday. Honor was relieved, as this would keep Faith safely out of the way while preparations were made. Faith dressed in casual clothes, her boots and her thick overcoat. After she put her wallet in a small purse she headed off for the neighbour’s house.

  As soon as she was out of sight of Harmony House, she diverted away from the crescent to the main country road and began to walk toward town along the grass verges. She knew it was a considerable distance to the nearest bus stop but she thought of this as part of the celebration. She doubted Hilary would approve of such dangerous acts but this was a day to be herself for once. Her old self. The one who did far more dangerous things than Hilary or Honor would ever guess.

  The bus took her to the Byron area and she hopped on another bus to downtown after taking a look around to see what might be of interest for future escapades. She saw restaurants, a big plaza with stores around it, lots of traffic, a public library branch and both a Tim Horton’s and a Starbucks with seating outside for better weather. Nothing too outrageous. She hoped downtown London would have more to offer.

  As the second city bus approached the centre of town she was not too impressed. In her travels with her mother she had seen Halifax, Kingston and Toronto. So far, London was not showing her anything she had not seen before. In fact Dundas Street where she disembarked, looked sort of grungy with some closed stores and a weird kind of huge construction on one side. But there were lots of people moving around on the one-way street and they were people of all ages and stages, not the more sedate residents she saw in Westmount. This was more promising.

  She wandered up Richmond Street and soon saw boutique stores and restaurants. There was a huge church occupying space on the other side of the street and music seemed to be coming from there. It was not church music.

  The explanation presented itself a few yards further along when a park emerged from behind the church’s block. There was a stage amid the trees and lawns and several passersby were seated or standing, listening to the impromptu country rock performance.

  Faith moved around the edges of the crowd until she could see the stage. This was more like it! A free performance in the daytime, downtown, and she had the time to stop and enjoy it. Groups of young kids were rocking along to the guitars played by a female group dressed in jeans, muscle shirts and padded jackets with logos on the back. One even had tattoos running up her hands and the others had a variety of hair styles and colours.

  My kind of people at last!. Happy Birthday Faith! Mom would have loved this.

  * * *

  Honor decided to have an informal patio party for Faith. She cleared away her desk and computers to open up the lower level in case the kids wanted to dance indoors. She warned the housemates to keep the garden area clear and stored all the food in containers in her bedroom until later. The birthday cake was in the shape of a one and a five, set on a firm sponge base. The candles would ring the base and the whole was wrapped in a beautiful rainbow-coloured ribbon imprinted with Faith’s name.

  The weather was holding nicely. A clear blue sky beamed down on Honor’s preparations. It was cold but not breezy. She bought one of the new gas fire pits from a hardware store and had it installed on the patio where the builder had conveniently placed a connection.

  Mavis liked this idea and wondered if a patio heater and a barbeque could be added to make more use of the patio in the colder weather. As her contribution to the celebration, she made a kind of bower from the bench near the woods, thinking Faith might want a spot for photos to remind her of a special occasion. Cushions covered the bench and pots of evergreens were arranged to the side.

  Mavis always found the view of the house from this point to be the best possible. She hoped the students would be impressed with Faith’s home.

  * * *

  Hilary had received phone calls from parents of a Jolene, a Jessica and a Jarvis. She noticed the recurrence of the letter J in their names but was not concerned since Ryan and Sol had also accepted.

  One of the parents insisted on driving two of the girls, which was helpful since Hilary did not have enough space in her car for all of them and would have had to make the drive twice. She suspected the parent might be keen to see Harmony House as it was in a select crescent out of town.

  Hilary was glad to finally make contact with some of Faith’s classmates and their families. Because Faith did not live near the school she had few opportunities to do the more social things teens do. This birthday party could be the start of a better future school/social mix for Faith.

  Hilary had to admit she was responsible for holding the girl’s nose to the grindstone for the first term. The results were good so far and Faith deserved to let her hair down for one day.

  Just as long as things do not get out of hand, of course.

  She was leaving the party arrangements to Honor, as requested. It was many years since Hilary Dempster had hosted a children’s party and she had little idea of what appealed to today’s youth. Hopefully Honor would do a good job and the parent who was arriving later to collect the two girls would have nothing but praise for the joint efforts at Harmony House.

  * * *

  At four o’clock Hilary set out to collect the students and Honor checked everything including the Bluetooth player for the music. She had consulted Google for popular music for early teens and downloaded a selection. If no one wanted to dance, the music would be playing in the background for atmosphere. She scrounged several lamps from the interior of the house and turned them on to add to the party scene. She decided not to do streamers or balloons but left a card for Faith with a note inside to say she could choose her own laptop as her birthday gift. On Vilma’s suggestion, the other women banded together to provide a store certificate so Faith could buy clothes from a downtown store with a good reputation for pleasing young people. The cake and gifts were set out on a small table to one side. Soft drinks of various kinds were standing in ice in a bucket and Eve made tasty tacos which were ready on a heated tray covered over with a domed plastic top.

  Honor closed the door to her bedroom but left the washroom door ajar so no one needed to ask where the facilities were. The gas fire pit was burning merrily on the stone patio.

  She stood back and felt satisfied with her preparations. Hilary should return soon and the party could begin.

  She decided to call the neighbour’s house where Faith was babysitting. Usually her hours with the older of the boys were evening or daytime on the weekends. Since Faith had been away since the morning she was due to return any minute. Honor wanted her to have time to change her clothes for the party before the guests arrived.

  “Oh, hello! I’m sorry, Miss Pace, but Faith isn’t here today. She’s not scheduled until next week, I believe. It’s a complicated schedule so it’s easy to get a day wrong. Is everything all right?”

  Honor was stunned. She managed to make some excuse and put down the phone but her mind refused to comply with any more rational thought. Panic was rushing through her.

  Where was Faith? Where has she been all day? Her friends will arrive soon. Everything is prepared and the main person is not here. Faith, what have you done now?

  All the wild stories Faith had told her about her early years with
Felicity deluged her brain. She could be in terrible trouble; an accident or a kidnapping or more likely a brush with the police.

  Should I call the police? I am just not prepared for this kind of thing. Why did I ever agree to take on a teenager when I know nothing about them. What have I done?

  She looked around the lower level room now set up for a party and imagined the disaster to follow when Faith did not appear for her own party.

  The panic was about to take over again until Honor squashed it down.

  Think! Think! I can’t let this happen.

  She cast around for help. Who is in the house? Mavis. Eve. Vilma. She raced to the elevator and sent it to the bedroom level praying all the while that Vilma was in her room and ready to help. She, at least, had some experience of teenagers, even if it was mostly negative.

  Vilma answered Honor’s knock on the door but it took three minutes before she could make any sense of Honor’s story. As soon as she grasped the outline, she acted.

  “Right! First thing is to call Faith’s phone.”

  “I should have thought of that. My phone is downstairs.”

  They used the elevator again and Honor picked up her phone from her bedside table and dialled Faith’s smartphone praying it was on.

  Several painful moments passed as Vilma and Honor waited for a response. Honor bit her lip and closed her eyes. Please be there! Please answer!

  Vilma was running through various scenarios including some really bad ones she would not mention to Honor.

  “Oh, thank God! Faith, where are you?”

  There was a cacophony of noise in the background and Honor could scarcely hear her niece’s voice.

  Her hand was shaking so much she was in danger of dropping the phone.

  Vilma grabbed the phone and spoke loudly.

  “Faith, this is Vilma. There’s an emergency here and you need to come home at once. Tell me exactly where you are and I will come for you.”