Seven Days Away

by Ruth Hay

  Once they entered the apartment building, they could see the high standard of décor and cleanliness. It was obviously a 24hour operation. Every staff person they encountered was bright and welcoming despite the late hour.

  Marian met them at the apartment door. She had been alerted to their arrival by phone from the foyer where the trio were receiving their identity bands. She could see at once it had been a long day for the travellers so she showed them the suite on the right-hand side of the lounge and invited them to settle in without more delay. Devon quickly claimed the privacy of a padded chaise on the balcony and found spare blankets in a cupboard beside the television. He stood for a moment looking out into the darkness where clusters of lights outlined distant buildings and the faint sound of music drifted upward to him, promising delights to come. The silent-running electric carts that had brought them to their building could be seen wending their way through concealed paths. He deduced transport was available at all hours.

  Better and better.

  This week might not be a total loss after all.

  Chapter 8

  Day Two; Saturday.

  Terrence Beck awoke out of a bad dream. He had been adrift on a boat suffering sunburn and hunger.

  At first he had no idea where he was but when he sat up he saw his wife still sleeping beside him. That was unusual to start with. He stretched, yawned widely and suddenly remembered he had reached his Mexican destination in Nuevo Vallarta and fallen into bed without really looking around.

  His next thought was about food and drink, specifically coffee. He couldn’t remember when he had last eaten. The day of travel was a blur. There was definitely a scent of coffee in the air and if his refined sense of smell was anything to go by, that coffee was fresh and Arabica.

  He found a towelling robe on the end of the king-sized bed and threw it on then slipped out of the bedroom by the nearest door and found himself in the huge lounge. Padding across the marble floor he headed for the open patio door through which a gentle breeze was wafting the coffee smell.

  “Hello, dad! Didn’t expect to see you for hours yet. Want some coffee? There’s a cart down the hallway with hot tea and coffee and plenty of cups. It’s a serve-yourself operation but the coffee is really good.”

  “I’d appreciate that Devon. Thanks.”

  His son disappeared and Terry was left alone to admire his first real view of the resort. Judging from the rising sun to his right, it must be very early. As he watched, the light illuminated banks of greenery in the foreground. Birds rose into the air to greet the rays. The air was still cool from the night hours and a few clouds floated in the distance where the deep blue tones of the sea were unmistakable.

  He could trace a river flowing through the greenery, all the way to the sea and speculated about the possibility of a beach. Suddenly, this week in distant Mexico became much more than the means to an end he had been planning. This was a beautiful place. A sense of peace began to invade him. He breathed deeply and felt years of stress and struggle begin to melt away. A tiny bud of hope opened somewhere within his heart. His father had a great idea. This place was magic.

  When Devon returned, bearing large mugs of coffee, the two men sat down on the lounge chairs.

  Terry could not recall the last time he had shared a morning coffee with his son but now he listened while Devon reeled off all the features he had discovered about the resort.

  “…… a very cool gym with lemon water supplied. It’s in the ground floor level of a building near here so I set out to investigate if there are other neat things in the rest of the buildings. Some have special restaurants, like an early breakfast place or a late night Chinese or Mexican and others have little shops. I found a grand piano in one but the best part is that all these buildings are open so you can walk through. And dad, I haven’t seen a tenth of the place yet but you will be pleased to know all of them have the coffee carts on the room floors. I checked.”

  “At what unearthly hour did you get up, Dev?” It was highly unusual for his son to show his face before ten o’clock in the morning, if at all.

  “Very early, I suppose. It was still dark but I slept a lot out here last night and I felt like exploring. This silly bracelet thing makes it easy to come and go without the bother of keys or anything. I just touch it to our door and it opens without troubling anyone.”

  Terry was amazed to hear this much conversation from his laconic son. For the first time in far too long he began to wonder what kind of isolated life the young man had in the basement of his parents’ home.

  This holiday week might be bringing Devon out of his shell in more ways than one.

  “After all that activity, you must be starving, my boy. How about a fabulous breakfast cooked for you by a famous chef, eh?”

  Behind them a new voice interrupted before Devon could reply. “Just one problem, Terrence, we haven’t shopped for groceries yet. There’s nothing in the fridge.”

  Terry jumped up and hugged his mother. She was dressed for a summer day and as he embraced her he was struck by how tiny she was. She seemed to have shrunk since his last visit. He was suddenly acutely aware of her age and of how little time might be left for her. He shook his head. This vulnerability was not his normal mental state. This place was already breaking down barriers he had hardly been conscious of. What was going on?

  “How are you, mother? How’s dad? I haven’t seen him yet.”

  “He’s getting ready upstairs.” She looked up into his eyes with a smile, and summoned the energy of a former time when she was the undisputed family organizer.

  “Devon, get another cup of coffee for your mother. I’ll look in to see if she’s up yet. Terrence, get ready. There’s a huge shower through that door.

  I have found an excellent place for breakfast very close by. It’s a holiday and we are all going out for a meal to start us off right. Now, go!”

  * * *

  The pool restaurant was called, appropriately, Al Fresco. Terry was fascinated by the range of breakfast foods available at the buffet. He saw cheese and yogurt and cold meats and a variety of pickles and relishes. Clearly, they catered to guests from Europe as well as the North American continent. Servers buzzed around like bees, discreetly replacing fruits and cereals and cleaning up spills so that the counters were immaculate for each new guest. To the rear, chefs prepared hot dishes to order.

  There were no intrusive bells to signal orders ready, no annoying chatter in the kitchen, just gentle music in the background and drinks freshened before they could get half-way consumed. He thought he would need a large number of employees at his Toronto restaurant to provide this level of excellent service. He began to wonder how many Mexicans worked in this resort.

  Jillian was charmed by the poolside location and the sparkling water of the pool. Although there was no one swimming this early in the day, staff were moving quietly around the area, replacing cushions, setting out pyramids of towels and sweeping up any leaves that dared to fall from the plants and shrubs that ringed the entire location. She could hardly believe she had awakened to a kind of paradise that seemed like a dream come true. To be here instead of struggling through the weather to work in crowded, snowy Toronto was indeed dreamlike. If the delicious food in front of her was not enough of a reality check, Marian’s presence beside her was another. Without Megan to draw all her mother-in-law’s attention, Jillian found herself a topic of interest.

  “What have you done with your hair, my dear? This new style suits you very well. I know you have been working very hard lately, and yet you look quite rested already. Do you like the apartment?”

  “Honestly, Marian, I have never seen a hotel as special as the suite we are in. Everything you could need is there and it’s all so spacious and so neat and polished. The bathtub and the shower are huge and there are all kinds of products to try. I could have left most of my luggage at home, I think.”

  Jillian was deliberately not informing her mother-in-law that she had spent mo
ney on her hair and her face before setting off on this trip. She had even invested in a light spray-tanning session so as not to appear in her swimsuit like a pallid fish. In the new sleeveless dress she was wearing, she knew her tan made her look healthy and slimmer. She had seen Terry cast an admiring glance in her direction. She was not going to advertise how she had achieved the transformation. Let them all wonder why they had not noticed her before.

  “Before we all go off to our respective activities, I want to invite you to drink to the success of this week.”

  Aylward had ordered mimosas for everyone. A smiling server was placing the glasses in front of them. Champagne at this time of the day was unexpected, but a welcome treat that seemed appropriate in this lovely setting.

  Terry provided the toast, thanking his parents for bringing his family to this astonishing place. He offered to shop for groceries and cook supper whenever they wished. He had seen his father quietly sign a bill for the celebratory breakfast and he noted that food was to be paid for in addition to the living quarters and the travel arrangements his parents had already underwritten. If he was intending to ask his father for money, he had to show appreciation in some way and this way was his to demonstrate.

  “That would be most kind of you, son,” said Aylward. “I won’t need anything for the rest of the day after this feast but I am sure the others will happily accept your offer.”

  There were nods and smiles sent in Terry’s direction from around the table.

  Marian was thinking she had not eaten food cooked by her son in many years.

  Jillian was wondering where to buy supplies.

  Devon was anxious to leave the table and find out where the Wi-Fi facility was situated.

  Aylward was hoping his wife would allow him to reserve tee times early enough so he could use the rest of his leisurely days planning his campaign.

  * * *

  At various times throughout the morning, each of the Becks consulted with the concierge on their building’s floor.

  Marian discovered the nearest pick-up point for a ride in an open cart was at the other end of their building and carts arrived for all resort destinations every few minutes. A uniformed employee would be on duty there at all times advising and arranging transportation. She planned to tour the resort after a nap to recover from her substantial breakfast. She wanted to save her energy for the arrival of the remainder of her family sometime in the evening.

  Devon and his father obtained maps and decided to try to walk to the resort’s central commercial hub, called The Plaza, where they were informed they would find many resources including food and clothing shops, and several restaurants. This was also where the Wi-Fi connections were best.

  Jillian was happy to leave the men to their own devices and she wandered off to investigate a round building she could see from their balcony. She thought it might be something interesting and was pleased to hear it was a spa for residents of their building and the grandparents’ apartment came with two free sessions.

  Aylward contacted the concierge by room phone and discovered his rental permitted him to reserve two free golf rounds for himself and a guest. He was advised to book soon, so he reserved two early times on Sunday and Tuesday mornings. He would determine later, who of his family might be accompanying him.

  * * *

  With the help of signposts, Terry and Devon managed, eventually, to find the Plaza. Neither one was complaining at the time taken, as the sunshine stroll along wooden walkways was providing lovely vistas of banks of greenery, large areas of open water and even waterfalls. Beneath them from time to time they could see the roadways where the electric carts zoomed along with other residents.

  By descending a double flight of stairs bordered by spectacular flower displays, they entered The Plaza and found different shops on each of three levels. The top level held a bakery, a fruit market, a wine store and a fresh meat counter. Everything was chilled and the entire area air conditioned to keep all the foods at optimum freshness. Terry was impressed by the quality and the expert display techniques. Any question he asked was answered fully so he knew the servers were knowledgeable about their products. He had a good look around while his son sat in a quiet corner and consulted his iPhone. Devon wasted no time conveying details of his surroundings other than a photo or two from the nearest outdoor balcony just to whet appetites of those still in the frozen north. He was more interested in a delivery schedule he had set up and in the progress of several online sites in which he had considerable investment.

  When his father returned, he was not pleased at the prices asked for the excellent produce on display. Terry had a plan to take a cart ride to the entrance to the resort. He felt a local taxicab would provide an alternative shopping area; one where the Mexicans bought their supplies. Devon was needed to help with carrying and finding foods. They were shopping for ten.

  Devon recognized his father was in his element on this expedition. It was a new side of the man he rarely saw or talked to. His erratic hours in the restaurant, and his frequent exhaustion when he finally returned home, made any exchange of conversation impossible. Devon, as was his habit, preferred to stay away from all family interactions, particularly those signalling conflict, so it was with fresh eyes he watched his father plan a campaign to extract a variety of foods from the large Walmart store they were driven to, some few miles from the resort. Devon also watched with interest as his father negotiated a price for the cab ride.

  Devon was given a shopping cart and the task of finding baked goods. This was described as breads for toasting, crackers for snacking, pastries for desserts and possibly a pie. Then he was instructed to cruise the fruits and veg aisles in search of prime produce he might recognize, while his father tackled fish, meat and cooking supplies. Together they would buy cheeses, milk, soft drinks and wines.

  Devon had never in his life shopped with this kind of responsibility. His mother brought food home from her grocery store and his father ordered produce from Toronto markets where he shopped frequently for his restaurant. Only occasionally did left-over restaurant food make its way back to their suburban home. Devon was never involved in purchasing or preparing food. He ate whatever was put down in front of him. Shopping for food was a new experience for him and he did not want to appear incapable in his father’s eyes.

  The only way he could fathom how to accomplish his tasks was to watch carefully what other shoppers were doing. The majority of people in the store were Mexican women. He could not understand what they were saying to each other but he could observe what they were doing as they lifted produce, turned it over, sniffed, squeezed and chose or rejected it. He followed along behind a woman with two daughters and found himself bagging the same, selected, colourful items which he could not name, in hopes his father would inspect his choices and give final approval without asking too many questions.

  He felt more confident in the bakery goods’ section. He knew his mother preached about whole wheat products so he found some brown loaves and crusty buns on open shelves but when he looked for plastic bags to put them in, he was stuck. After a few moments of confusion, he spotted another customer walking about with a large, round tray onto which she was loading her choices. Where did the woman get her tray?

  He had walked past the counter on his way into the bakery section without noticing the server behind it who was handing out the trays and bagging the goods and adding price labels after the customers had finished. He returned there and was handed a tray by a woman wearing both a mouth mask and plastic gloves. He thought he would ask his father why this was required.

  Now he had several items in his cart, Devon felt more confident about making choices for himself. He strolled down an aisle of cooler cabinets and selected orange juice, apple juice and mango juice. He had already picked up a pineapple in the fruits section although he had no idea how to prepare it. When it came to milk, he passed by as the bottles and cartons looked different from any he had found before in his fridge at hom
e. It was time to track down his father.

  It was a large store and Devon passed through a number of sections before he found his father examining fish and shellfish at a side counter where the fish products were lying on open shelves. Another server wore the mask and gloves. His father nodded when he arrived and concentrated on his own purchases before turning to inspect Devon’s cart.

  “Not bad! Not bad at all! You did OK for a first try.”

  This was praise indeed, until Devon saw the piled-high cart his father was pushing. He consoled himself with the thought that his father was a professional at this kind of thing.

  They had an interesting time choosing Mexican beers and wines and a few cartons of pop. Devon thought some bottles of water might be useful and his father agreed.

  In the end they filled a third cart and Devon was beginning to wonder how it would all fit in a cab since most of the ones they had seen were of the mini variety.

  The first hurdle was money. Devon herded the carts while his father visited the money exchange and traded a fistful of dollars for pesos. He had calculated well. There was enough to pay for the groceries and some left over for a van to take the load back to the resort. Outside vehicles were not permitted inside the resort so they had to transfer their purchases to an approved cab just inside the gates. This took a while and by the time they arrived back at their building, loaded it all into an elevator, trekked it all along the hallway and unpacked the food and drink stowing it in cupboards and fridge, Devon was feeling faint from hunger.