Also, the houses to the left, which included their Bed & Breakfast, backed onto a hill while the back yards of those along the right were flat.
She turned right onto Fitzsimmons Road South and stopped to admire the yard of the second house on the right. It was full of colourful flowerbeds: along the sides of the lawn, in a circle in the centre of the driveway, in boxes hanging from the deck railing and the windowsills, and around the pond near the street. A man in his early sixties was in the flower bed closest to the street. He looked up and smiled at Sally.
"What a lovely yard," Sally said.
"Thank you." He bowed slightly, then grinned. "Although, there isn’t much to compare it to, is there?"
"No," Sally admitted. "Why is that?"
He shrugged. "I think because the people who own the houses can’t be bothered. It’s easier to pave than pull weeds. Plus, the season that’s important here is skiing and many people only use their homes in the winter. They have managers look after them in the summer."
Sally thought how different that was from Edmonton where the summer cabins were closed down in the winter.
"You are probably wondering why I have all these flowers when others don’t."
"You’re a mind reader."
"When I left my job my daughter decided that I needed something to occupy my spare time. So she began going to the greenhouse in Squamish and buying me the left over flowers and plants. She said I needed the challenge of trying to save the plants from dying. Soon our yard was full and I had to build the boxes for the windows and deck."
"You certainly have done an amazing job with leftovers."
"Are you going to that science fiction/ fantasy retreat?"
Sally nodded.
"Writing a book?"
"Working on a story but I’m not sure if it will ever become a book."
"I’ve been thinking of taking the course but I’ve heard mixed reviews from others attending it. What do you think of it so far?"
Sally wasn’t sure how to answer that. Did she give the opinion of an avid reader but rank amateur at the art of writing science fiction or did she tell him what other, more serious fans said.
"I’ve only been there one day so I really can’t give you an honest opinion yet."
"Did you understand much of what was said yesterday?"
What? Had he heard what she’d told Elizabeth? "Not really. But I’m new to this. Others think our instructor gave a great talk."
The man nodded. "Every year it’s the same. Some like it, some don’t. I guess I will have to enrol in order to find out who is right."
"Well, if you do, you sure won’t have to drive there," Sally grinned, looking at the car and the van parked in the driveway. "Nice meeting you," she said, and continued on her way.
When she reached Nancy Greene Way she turned left and quickly reached the driveway to the retreat. She was earlier today and many students were outside. Sally did a quick head count and then multiplied that with what she’d paid. Running a retreat could be quite lucrative.
She went up to where Kendra, Kirk, Lisa, and Bonnie were standing in a circle. Bonnie was telling them about her Angel Cards. "They have been warning me that something bad is going to happen here and that I should be careful," Bonnie was saying.
"I don’t know about those things," Kirk said. "It sounds like they are the same as getting your tea leaves or palms read."
"Oh, they are better than that. The Angels are looking over us and after us. We all have Angels even if we don’t know it. I’ve actually seen one of my Angels."
Sally looked around and saw Reggie Shaw leaning against the building watching them. Should she invite him to come over? Maybe she should go up to him and just ask him a question, get to know him. After all, she still thought he was cute. As if he understood her thoughts, Reggie turned and walked through the doors.
A trifle disappointed Sally again focused on the conversation. "I’ll show you how the cards work after lunch," Bonnie was saying. "I can give you each a short reading."
The smokers of the group butted out their cigarettes and began heading towards the doors. Soon the others were on their way to their classes also.
Sally slid into her seat and took out her notepad and pen. The room slowly filled and Kat Mac began her morning lecture.
"If you go on the Internet and bring up Wikipedia’s list of science fiction writers you will find hundreds of names. Today we will talk about some of the great men and women writers.”
Sally listened to Kat Mac as she droned on and on. She had thought that she’d come here and be given the outline on how to write a SF book much like she’d heard there was an outline for romances. By page such and such there had to be a kiss, by page such and such there had to be a disagreement.
She didn’t understand much of what Kat Mac was saying and she didn’t know many of the people she was mentioning. She did listen with interest, though, when Kat Mac told the class where the writers got their ideas and how each of them approached the task of taking those ideas and turning them into a story. Maybe she could try some of their methods.
At last Kat Mac called for a break. Everyone streamed out of the room, some to go outside for their smoke, some to go to the atrium for coffee.
"Tell us more about the Angel Cards," Lisa said, as a group gathered with their coffee cups.
Bonnie pulled a box with an Angel on the front out of her backpack. She opened it and removed a deck of thick cards and began to shuffle them. She stopped and turned the top one over. A group gathered around to listen.
"See this is Bridgette," Bonnie said. "Her first words are ‘Caution is warranted.’ She has been coming up every time I do this since I came to the retreat."
"What else does she say?" Sally asked.
"Look deeper into this situation before proceeding further," Bonnie read.
"That does sound ominous," Kendra said.
"Yeah, if you believed in those things," Daryl scoffed and walked away.
"I guess he doesn’t," Sally smiled, trying to lightened the mood. She wasn’t sure if she believed in the Angel cards but Bonnie sure did. And others seemed to be on the verge.
"Can you do a reading for me?" Kendra asked.
"After lunch," Bonnie promised.
* * *
Elizabeth tried to put the news she had received the night before from Beverly out of her head. She had to stick to her plan, had to get her research done so she wasn’t pressed to get the article written when she got home. Besides, she wasn’t here to solve anything. That was up to the police. She resolutely drove to Highway 99 and turned right. She started to record the kilometres from there but had to quickly turn onto Spruce Grove Way. She immediately turned onto Mons Road go to Scandinave Spa. When she reached the parking lot she got out and walked up the hill on a pea gravel trail through tall trees. At the end of the trail was a sign "Welcome to our Haven of Peace and Quiet."
She walked into the huge foyer and went to the desk. Once she explained what she was doing to the woman behind the counter, she was allowed to take pictures of the hot baths, the cold baths, and the grounds.
"We have many people come from town and from the nearby campground to spend the day at the spa," the woman said.
Elizabeth looked at the surrounding mountains and thought about how very relaxing the place was. Maybe she and Sally would have to come here for a treatment before they left. She went back to Spruce Grove Way turned left and then immediately went left again on Kirkpatrick Way. A short drive took her to the parking area for Spruce Grove Park. She put Chevy on a leash and they walked past the field house, then came upon a sign that gave advice as to what to do if you met a bear.
She recorded the information for her readers. "First stop and assess the situation. Remain calm. If the bear does not detect you quietly leave the area. If the bear does detect you, do not run. Back away slowly facing the bear. Talk in a soft voice so the bear can identify you as human. If the bear approaches you wave your arms and tal
k louder to assert your dominance. Continue to back away and leave the area."
She and Chevy walked between two of the three baseball diamonds to a centre area, then went left towards the hillside. There was a steep climb up to a hiking trail. A sign stated that this as a dog walking trail during the winter because of a conflict of dogs on the snowshoe and cross hiking trails.
She knew this was part of a vast web of trails that went from the Upper Village to Green Lake. When she’d looked on the map she’d laughed at the names of some of the paths: Donkey Puncher; Pinocchio’s Furniture; Gee I Like your Pants; and Johnny Can’t Read. The trails were marked and she had a map but she didn’t want to go too far the first time. It looked like it would be quite easy to get lost if you weren’t used to the region.
She reached the White Gold Traverse Trail which also ran behind the SnowBound Bed and Breakfast, followed it a ways so Chevy could have a walk, then returned to her vehicle.
Back on Highway 99 Elizabeth reached Nicklaus Road where she turned to go to the Nicklaus North Golf Course. She had researched that this 18 hole par 71 course was designed by Jack Nicklaus and opened in 1996. She stopped to take some pictures and then carried on. She wasn’t a golfer so she didn’t envision coming here with Sally.
On the highway again she crossed the Golden Dreams River and turned right onto Alpine Way and then right again to go to Edgewater Stables on Green Lake for horseback riding. She found some horses and a barn but no one was there. She continued to Eco Tours which offered canoeing or kayaking on the lake. In the log building she inquired about their rates. She wanted to spend some time enjoying the attractions here after finishing her research.
She learned that she could canoe on Green Lake for an hour or she could start at Alta Lake with a guide and canoe down the River of Dreams for three hours to Green Lake. Another adventure for her and Sally, she thought. Sally had already agreed to do the Peak 2 Peak Gondola with her so if this kept up Sally wasn’t going to have much time for her writing assignments.
Before Elizabeth left she asked about the Edgewater stables and was told that she could book a ride at the Outdoor Adventures in the Village.
She glanced at her watch. She’d gotten a later than usual start this morning and it was now past four o’clock. Because the area she was writing about was small, there wasn’t the need to work until dark like in other years. Sally was probably ready for a break in whatever she was working on for her course. Maybe she’d go discuss the adventures she had found for them to do and see if Sally thought she would have time for any of them. If not, then Elizabeth would have to do them herself.
On her drive back to the bed and breakfast she congratulated herself on not once thinking about the decomposed body.
Chapter 7
Just before the end of the class Kat Mac said. "Now, for your second assignment I want you decide if you think space aliens should be part of science fiction writing or fantasy writing. Tomorrow we will divide into two groups, those who pick fantasy and those who decide on science fiction, and we will have a panel discussion. You can bring whatever material you wish to back up your decision.”
"Oh, no," Sally groaned. Now what was she going to do?
She packed up her notes and headed to the lunch room with the rest of the class. Going to the buffet she picked an egg salad sandwich, a salad, and milk, and Jello for dessert. She sat at a table and was soon joined by Bonnie, Kendra, and Lisa.
After she ate, Bonnie pulled out her cards. "Who wants to be first?"
"Me," Kendra said, eagerly.
"First, I have to clear the cards," Bonnie said, taking a crystal out of her bag. She spread the cards out and rubbed each of them with it. Then she stacked them and placed the crystal on top. She closed her eyes for a few seconds, then opened them again.
"What did you just do?" Lisa asked.
"These are my cards and my energy is imprinted on them," Bonnie said. "In order for me to do a reading for someone else, I have to remove my energy from them. Now they are ready for Kendra to touch."
Kendra reached over and tentatively picked up the deck.
"Shuffle them and ask a question in your mind or state a concern you have about your life," Bonnie said. "When you feel you have done enough, stop and set them down."
Everyone waited until Kendra had shuffled and set them on the table. Sally noticed that Kirk West, Russ Peters, and Reggie Shaw from their class and a few from other classes had sauntered over to see what was happening. She was glad to see Reggie had joined the group. Maybe, she would get a chance to speak with him.
"Now, tell me what you thought about, just the general idea, like money or health or career," Bonnie said to Kendra.
"I want to know what my future holds," Kendra answered.
"Okay," Bonnie said. "You are looking ahead, so take the top three cards, or you can fan them out and take whichever three you want, and just lay them side by side face up."
While Kendra did that Bonnie picked up her guidebook and opened it to page sixteen. "The first card will represent the present." She looked at the card. "Merlina. She says that you do not have enough information right now to make an informed decision. Before you do anything you should do more research or ask an expert."
"Wow," Kendra said, looking around at the others. "That is so true."
"How?" asked Sally.
"I was actually thinking of dropping out of the retreat because I am very confused right now. None of it is making sense to me." She looked at Bonnie. "What does the next one mean?"
"The second one is for the immediate future and it is Daniel. He is the angel of marriage."
"Oh," Kendra gasped.
"What?" demanded Lisa.
"My boyfriend asked me to marry him before I came here. Part of the reason I was going to drop out was to go back and tell him no."
"No?" Kirk asked.
Kendra nodded her head. "We fight all the time. I’m not sure if I want to do that for the rest of my life. What is the third one?"
"The third one is for three months ahead." Bonnie said. "Opal looks after your children here on earth and in heaven if they die."
"My children?" Kendra exclaimed. "My children?"
"Yes," Bonnie nodded. "Do you have any?"
Tears formed in Kendra’s eyes. "Yes, I have two sons." Suddenly she stood up and hurried away.
No one spoke for a few moments. Was something happening with her sons, Sally wondered? Were they sick, dead? Sally watched Kendra leave the building.
"Who wants to be next?" Bonnie asked, clearing the cards with the crystal.
Reggie stepped forward and picked up the deck of cards. "I want to know if I will be rich."
"Okay," Bonnie said. "When you have finished shuffling lay seven cards out in the capital letter H. One, two and three down the left side, four five and six down the right and the seventh card in the centre."
Reggie did as he was told. "The first card will explain what you learned about money when you were a child." Bonnie opened the guidebook to the Angel and read the meaning.
Others wanted to have a reading. Bonnie cleared the cards before each one and delivered the message from the Angels in a composed, unemotional voice. Some joked about their outcome, while others seemed to take it seriously. Out of the corner of her eye Sally saw Daryl, accompanied by Henry Freisen and Luke Johnson, coming up to the group. Daryl looked angry.
"Why don’t you people spend your time working on your stories or assignments instead of listening to this crap," he demanded, waving his hand in Bonnie’s direction.
"Hey, lay off," Kirk said. "we’re just having some fun here."
"That’s the problem with you dabblers," Daryl seethed. "You don’t take this seriously. You’re only here to have fun, to have a holiday away from work and family. Not to write."
"We are all here for our own reasons," Sally said quietly. "If they don’t happen to meet your approval, then that’s your problem."
"No, it’s your problem," Daryl jabb
ed his finger at her. "There are lots of good writers out there who would love to come here but because you dabblers sent your money first, they have to wait."
"We have as much right as anyone," Russ Peters said.
Daryl shook his head. "You don’t get it, do you? It’s got nothing to do with who has the right and everything to do with who is going to do the actual writing. Dabblers all want to write a book but they don’t want to put in the time and energy it takes get the words on the pages."
"I think you should leave," Russ said.
"You are all wasting your time thinking you are going to write a book," Luke Johnson said. "You never will." The three men turned and stomped out of the building.
"What got into them?" Kirk asked.
"I don’t know," Russ Peters answered. "But Daryl is starting to sound like a fanatic."
"Yeah," Lisa agreed. "I hope he cools down soon. I don’t like the idea of taking the class with him anymore."
"And it looks like he has some followers," Kirk said.
There was an awkward few moments broken by Lisa asking. "Could you read my cards?"
Bonnie hesitated.
"Oh, go ahead," Sally said. "Don’t let Daryl or his buddies spoil our enjoyment."
"Okay," Bonnie said, handing the cleared cards to Lisa to shuffle. "What do you want to know?"
"I want know if my dream will come true."
Lisa laid out the cards and Bonnie began to interpret. "Azure says that what you wish for will occur in the near future. Archangel Gabrielle tells you that you will be involved in communication and the arts and to not let your insecurities stop you. Merlina cautions you to seek expert help and Patience says to enjoy being a student and learn as much as you can."
The Travelling Detective: Boxed Set Page 59