SHIPS CompanionSHIP, FriendSHIP, RelationSHIP

by K'Anne Meinel

  Grace waited a moment and followed after her. She could tell by the hurt look on Joan’s face that she had indeed been telling the truth. They walked from the beach up the stairs four feet to the lawns of the villa.

  Joan was so angry. She wished she had an exercise room like in Wausau so she could beat the shit out of something. She stalked into the villa and headed for her laptop in the office. Turning it on she checked her emails. She looked up when she heard Grace come in the room. Angrily she looked back down as the computer booted up and signed on to the internet. Most of her emails she always composed off line and sent later. Something though was missing and the nagging thought finally pulled itself together. She was getting booted off the internet. She started a virus scan as Grace watched. Leaving the computer on she stalked past Grace to the master bedroom.

  Grace had seen over Joan’s shoulder as she had trouble going on line. She saw her start the virus scan and followed as she went to the bedroom. She tried to apologize and explain. Joan listened coldly, nodding in acknowledgment of what Grace was saying. She changed into another sarong and a matching blouse that tied at the side. Throwing her other clothes in the hamper she left the room barefoot and went into the kitchen. Grace followed again. Mrs. Sanchez, knowing her employers habits had a fruit spread for them. Sandwich meat and bread were available too. Joan fixed herself a plate and poured some juice for herself. She took that outside to a patio table and sat to eat. Grace joined her a few minutes later with her own meal. Grace chatted a little but Joan’s one word responses got on her nerves and she eventually let the quiet envelop them both. It wasn’t totally quiet though, the birds in the trees were twittering nervously as the storm approached. When they went totally quiet it was unnerving. Joan finished her meal and looked up to see the storm clouds approaching from the gulf. Mr. Sanchez was hurrying about the property putting away chairs into the storage sheds and making sure nothing could fly around the property in the storm.

  Joan returned her plate and glass to the kitchen and returned to the office. The virus scan which she hadn’t run in months had detected a virus and fixed it. Grace came in as Joan was reading the results. Indicating the virus she mentioned that may be the problem. Clearing the screen she turned the computer off and then on again and then she attempted to sign on again. This time, no problem. Her mail waiting to be sent folder popped up and she clicked send all. Over 100 plus emails went out quickly. She sat there stunned. She had assumed over the last few weeks that everything she had sent had GONE out. Once the mail was sent she could see she had mail waiting as well. Clicking on that she could see hundreds of emails waiting to be read. Probably three fourths of it was spam and she spent time deleting all that. There was still a lot of emails left from family members. Mrs. Sanchez came in then with a lit candelabra and set it on the coffee table. Grace was looking over Joan’s shoulder watching her work the computer as the lights flickered. The back up on the computer kept it going long enough for Joan to sign off and turn off the computer. She didn’t get to read ANY of her emails.

  Turning to Grace she took a deep breath. Apparently the virus had held up the last few weeks of emails. She hadn’t seen any that she received either. Everyone had been out of communication because of a damn virus. The lights went out then and didn’t flicker back on as the storm struck the villa. Grace grabbed the candelabra and they went into the living room where Mr. Sanchez had thoughtfully started a small fire in the fireplace. Sitting there they caught up on what the other had been doing for the past four weeks and more. Their mutual anger dissipated as they had realized the computer snafu.

  Joan explained about her hair. Grace caressed it, amazed how different it made Joan look. The color was exactly what she remembered Joan looking like years ago but without the length it gave Joan a softer, younger look. It reminded her of Bo Derek in the movie 10. When she told Joan this, Joan rolled her eyes in mock horror.

  Grace couldn’t get enough of caressing Joan’s shorter hair. It was still fairly long but she just couldn’t believe the difference. Wow, 28” had been cut off in braids. She wondered how long that would actually be when the braids would be unraveled. Joan explained how the spa had donated the hair to the hospital. They’d cut to this length which was approximately where the gray started. She’d figured, what the heck, get rid of the gray. It looked so natural. So beautiful. Grace continued to stroke it as they talked. The lights didn’t come back on and the terrific force of the storm was something to behold. They finally got up to watch together. Grace held Joan in her arms as they stood by the patio’s double thick glass and watched the rain come down in sheets, sideways. Finally, they decided to go to bed.

  Using the candelabra which had burned fairly low they found their way to the bedroom. Putting the candelabra on the dresser they both stripped and got into bed. There was no point in dressing for bed. Each had the same idea and they quickly forgot their anger of earlier in their attempts to please each other. It had been too many weeks since they had been together. Something can be said for familiarity. They had played this dance for 15 years and knew very well how to pleasure each other. Neither saw the sagging bodies, the wrinkles. Instead they saw someone they loved immensely, and proved it so. Grace though it unfair that Joan’s body still was fairly firm but Joan proved over and over again how much Graces body excited her. Fortunately, the candle gave off enough light that they found the toys in Graces suitcase before the night was over. Thank goodness most either had batteries or didn’t require any, plug in’s would have been useless. Some had been replaced with others they had wanted to try over the years. Many times they didn’t even need them. Their passion for each other stimulated things to a point that outside influences weren’t needed. Othertimes it just added to the excitement. The first night of the storm passed very pleasantly for both of them. Exhaustion finally overtaking them both they slept until noon. The storm continued on for three days.

  Joan found out from Grace that she had taken a temporary leave of absence from the hospital. She hadn’t known if she would find Joan here down on the island. Joan felt very bad, knowing that everyone was worried about her. She of course couldn’t be blamed for the virus but Grace pointed out the phone was a modern invention. Joan explained with the time differences she hadn’t called and then when she tried hadn’t been able to get through.

  Grace was using this time together to really think about the hospital. In all the years of being a psychiatrist a week hadn’t gone by where she wasn’t bit, spit, or yelled at in some form. Becoming chief had alleviated a lot of that but she still saw patients and it hadn’t improved that aspect of things. She still loved helping people but she was getting tired. Joan’s continued traveling and tempting offers to join her had been on her mind. She was seriously thinking of early retirement now. She knew Jason could fill her shoes at any moment. He was in fact covering for her now.

  The third day of the storm Joan got one of her blinding headaches. She was wretching in the toilet from it when Grace found her. Grace of course knew about these occasional headaches over the years but she didn’t realize how frequently Joan had them. Joan wasn’t about to worry her about it either. Joan spent the rest of the day in bed. She’d taken the maximum amount of asprin allowed and slept on and off all day as Grace came in and out of the room to check on her. At dusk the storm went away. The plants and trees all sprung back as though nothing had happened. Soon birds were twittering again. Where they went in the storm, no one knew. Joan awoke and found her headache had abated to a controllable level. She got up, she felt weak but no longer nauseous. Making her way to the kitchen she ate lightly.

  Grace and Joan played cards for a few hours and then the power came back on. Joan made her way to the office with Grace and they powered up the computer. Hopping on line Joan began to weed through the emails with Grace. It did indeed prove to be a task. More emails had come in during the three days of the storm. Many in response to her mail sent. Fortunately it listed it all by date and she started at th
e earliest and continued on until she had read it all. She sent everyone an email explaining what had happened with the computer, apologizing for the worry, and letting them know about the storm. She told them she was fine and would see them soon. Some of the emails caused her concern of course as time had gone on and they had become more anxious. Some of the ones from Grace were pretty angry. Grace felt uncomfortable reading them again with Joan and knowing what she now knew. Joan understood though and they discussed them as things came up. It took hours to clear it all away and they even received one more from Craig while she was still on expressing his relief that she was okay and that Grace was with her.

  They spent the rest of the week on the beach together. Sunbathing nude, making love in the evenings. No one was around and they loved being together again. It seemed that clearing the air had been what they both needed. They went back to Wausau together. Bryan met their airplane and gave them a ride back to the chalet. Kim’s due date was soon and everyone was excited. Joan promised to stay home long enough to see their newest grandchild be born.

  Grace went back to work. It wasn’t the same though. She too had caught Joan’s restlessness and didn’t want to be here any longer. She discussed it with Joan. Joan didn’t try to convince Grace one way or the other but she was thrilled when Grace decided to take early retirement. The hospital threw her a huge party. Joanne, Tina, Addie, and Tracey and their respective partners all made the trip. The party was immense. Grace had been a doctor for nearly 40 years and made friends from all over. Joan was so proud of how many people came to wish her well in her retirement. Family, friends, colleagues all admired this wonderful woman. Near the end of the party though, Joan, Grace, and the boys had to leave unexpectedly. Kim, near to bursting, had broke her water and gone into labor.

  They all sat in their finery in the waiting room. Kim took forever to deliver their daughter. They had wanted to name her Joan but Grandma had vetoed that idea. Instead they chose another first name, Emily and used Joan as the middle name. Years later they would have another daughter they would name Elizabeth Grace to honor the baby’s other Grandma.

  ~ CHAPTER 45 ~

  Joan managed to convince Grace to close up the chalet and travel with her. They booked a world tour on a boat. It was just so incredible. They had the money, the time, and the desire to see whatever they wanted. The boat was so huge that they just barely squeezed through the Panama Canal. It was so exciting the different cities. The incredible experiences. They were gone for months and loved every bit of it. When they got to Hawaii they switched to another ship in order that they could stay there for two weeks in that house. It was like a constant honeymoon. Occasionally they felt sea sick or the usual aches and pains of getting older, Joan had her ‘mild’ headaches, never letting on that they were hellish, she hid them from Grace whenever possible. Downing incredible amounts of aspirin, ibuprofen, and Tylenol. She couldn’t hide them all though and Grace would worry. Being together all the time had it’s drawbacks but they would go their separate ways for a few hours even a few days, the boats were big enough to keep each amused and then they would come together to share their experiences again.

  When the months had passed and they finished the cruise Joan made reservations for them all over Europe. They stayed in beautiful real chalets. They stayed in five star hotels. They stayed in some very memorable pigsties. They had a blast. They made sure that they made it back to Barbados for Easter with the kids and Wausau at Christmas. After three years of traveling though they both had enough. They decided to stay in Barbados, occasionally going back to Wausau. The kids came to them on their vacations.

  Joan celebrated her 59th birthday in Wausau with the family. Craig brought his crew. Aaron and Jennifer came home from college for it. Amelia came. Adam and Gwen brought their two sons, Donny and Abel, both grown to fine young men. Bryan and Kim brought Emily and Elizabeth. Kim was pregnant again. Determined NEVER to have another child at her age! Grace and Joan had a wonderful evening at the chalet with their family. While in Wausau they both took the time to update their wills, including the investments over the years that they had made. Joan made updated videos, including the older ones with the newer ones. For her birthday, she had kept her hair colored since it was cut and this time she undid all the braids. For once in years her hair was combed out and smooth. Everyone exclaimed over it. Craig had hired a photographer to capture the moments of the birthday. Soon after Joan and Grace headed back to Barbados. They had made a life down there on the island after all these years there. They had many friends at the yacht club. It felt like home as well as Wausau.

  Joan threw Grace a huge party for her 65th birthday the next year. She paid for tickets for Joanne, Tina, Addie, and Tracey to come to Barbados. They had never been before and were amazed at the easy lifestyle. The party itself seemed to go on for over a week with all their guests. The guys and their kids all made the effort to get down for Grandma Graces birthday. Kim brought the twins that they hadn’t even seen in all the months since Joan’s birthday bash. Kevin and Jeffery were identical and already crawling into mischief. Kim was always at a run after these two. Aaron and Jennifer both brought friends from college. The house was overflowing and everyone had a good time.

  Joan heard from Allan again after all these years. The galleries were run fully by the foundation now. She got progress reports and made suggestions but let them handle it all. She occasionally painted but overall had fully retired. The prints still sold of the pictures that she allowed runs to be made of. Most of her work she had limited the number of prints over the years to create a higher value for them. Allan wanted her to speak at another convention. He wanted to present her with a lifetime achievement award. He too had slowed down over the years but had met some incredible people over those years. Joan though, had been his crowning achievement and he had never forgotten her. Her work had made him very comfortable, financially.

  Joan discussed it with Grace and they made their way up to New York for the show. Joan was still always amazed that anyone knew her. Allan was surprised to see the differences in her. Her hair alone without the braids changed her. It was still beautiful. Her body was still incredible despite her age. All the years of working out had paid off. Grace at least looked as a grandmother should but she too was beautiful, elegant, and sophisticated. She was so proud as Joan took the stage. She got a standing ovation that lasted a full five minutes. Her speech was powerful, belying her age. Grace heard murmurs around her complimenting Joan and her work. She was thrilled for Joan. After her speech she stood there for a full hour answering questions before she took herself off stage.

  The party afterwards was reminiscent of old. Joan and Grace stood in a circle of admirers and Allan proudly showed her off. People discussed various works with Joan as well as Grace. Grace was famous by association she felt. She knew Joan’s work thoroughly and it showed. It was amazing how much she had accomplished over the years. Some of her oldest work was still being discussed all these years later.

  Funny how the adrenaline can keep you going. They were both exhausted the next day as they took a plane to Chicago. They were heading back to the chalet for a long week in Wausau. The foundation kept the place in good shape whether they were there or not. The boys and their families still used it as a weekend getaway. Boats, wave runners, canoes, and other water items were kept up for summer sports for the families. It worked out well as the place was situated on prime land. No one had built in the area over the years. It was like a magic island among the city. One side was the state forest. Joan owned the land on the peninsula all the way over on the other side. She had had some terrific offers over the years but had never even thought to allow anything built on their private retreat. Nothing tempted her there. Grace agreed wholeheartedly. They had some pretty terrific memories in this place and weren’t about to share them outside the family.

  Their week turned into weeks and then months and they stayed on the summer at the chalet. They enjoyed the guys, the wives, th
e grandchildren and their friends. There was always someone visiting it seemed. They celebrated Joan’s 60th birthday with a quiet family dinner. With all the commotion over the summer she just wanted a quiet dinner with everyone. The boys teased her about getting old. Grace showed her that night that she wasn’t. They made love so intensely it brought tears to both of their eyes. If the boys could see me now she thought. Joan lay there for about an hour after Grace had fallen asleep watching her and remembering, a very nostalgic moment.

  Joan awoke with an intense headache. It was beyond her usual migraines. Grace awoke to hearing Joan wretch into the toilet. Rising quickly she held Joan’s head as she threw up until she had the dry heaves. Putting a cold compress to her forehead Grace managed to get her back to bed. Joan absentmindedly rubbed her scarred forehead, a familiar gesture over the years. She was convinced it had never healed inside and told anyone who’d listen that it itched from inside. Over the course of the day Grace kept the room in total darkness. Joan’s headache didn’t improve and Grace was getting alarmed. When the next day came she was surprised that Joan agreed to go to the hospital. She complained that the pain was so intense. She wouldn’t let Grace call an ambulance though. She sobbed in pain the entire trip there in the Jaguar.

  At the hospital they started an IV drip, giving her more intense drugs to stop the pain. They kept her in a quiet room where Grace sat watching Joan drift in and out of sleep. A Dr. Morris came by to talk to Grace. Grace and he went outside the room so that Joan wouldn’t be disturbed. He had a fairly thick folder in his hand labeled Joan Woods. He explained that he had been seeing Joan on and off for her headaches for years and that Joan had seen other doctors as well. What Grace hadn’t realized is that these headaches had been going on for over 10 years. He assumed she had known that they were caused by the tremendous blow to her head after she had been attacked. Joan had known all along. She had sought treatment around the world and many doctors had told her the same thing. They couldn’t operate without scrambling her brain. She had a blood clot in her brain that could kill her at anytime. The headaches were just a symptom of that inoperable clot.