The Peacock 1244

 "Okay, Chris", says Francois, "Spit it out."

"Spit what out?"

"Whatever's been weighing on your mind since we started breakfast."

"You mean, besides not having a clue what I am going to do with the rest of my life."

"Besides that."

"Well, I was on Skype, then on the phone with Erik early this morning and he dropped a lovely little bomb on me."

"Not nuclear, I hope", says Carl.

"He spent the last five years caring for an elderly Colombian gentleman in Sweden."

"Sugar daddy?", wonders Jeffrey.

"No.  Retired Colombian drug lord."

"Oh my God", says George.  And you say he's coming here after his quarantine.,  Well, better brace ourselves because he is going to have quite a bit more to tell..."

The Peacock 1243

 "So you guys are going to be working in street ministry", Says George.  "It's quite a mess down there.  Are you sure you can handle it?"

"I suppose there is only one way to find out", says Francois.  We all seem to be studiously avoiding having to talk about the incident last night with Lindstrom and the police.  It is just as well.  I welcome right now anything that is banal and normal, any semblance to dull white bread reality.

"It's really gotten out of control", says Jeffrey, "With increased homelessness and addictions and deaths from overdoses."

"This lovely pandemic has also added spice to the mix", says George ruefully.  "What exactly does this guy Chuck want you to do with him.  And how do you know him?"

"We go back a long time.  And it turns out that Sarah, our Sarah, knows him.  They were friends when she was in Melbourne."

"It's a small world after all", sings George wistfully, "It's a small, small world..."

The Peacock 1242

 "Wait a minute", say I. "I just remembered that Jesús is driving my car here today, and I really feel I should be here to receive him."

"Receive Jesús or your car" says Carl.

"Jesús.  It's only a car, after all."

"And you are just dying to get your independence back."

"That too, my friend.  That too."  I am hearing the message tone and reach for my phone.  It is a text from Chuck.  "Here's a text from Chuck, you guys.  he says, Christopher, I am sorry for such short notice but I am going to be in meetings from start to finish today.  Please come down tomorrow morning, as you are able.  Just phone me and tell me when you are coming and I will be waiting for you at the church....".

The Peacock 1241

 I cannot believe they have all agreed to indulge me like this.   George and Jeffrey now share the couch with me.  I thought that since I was not about to get up that the least I could do was shift my carcass around and make room for them.  Carl is in the recliner chair and Francois in the arm chair and we are all eating greedily from our plates the delicious breakfast thatt George and Jeffrey have just prepared.  as well as the eggs and toast, on the table there are dishes of prepared fruit, rolls, cheeses and jams.  If they were doing this in order to buy their way into my good graces they have done wonderfully and astutely well.

"What time does Chuck want to see us today?" Francois asks me.

"What time is it right now."

"Just eight thirty."

"Well, we didn't agree on a time, so he'd might as well expect us for ten.  What do you think."

"So you guys are going to be working for him", says Carl, evidently a little bit peeved about it.

"Why don't you come with us", sys François.  I'm sure he wouldn't mind."

"Is he paying you guys"

"As far as we know and he did say something about it", say I.

"I can tag along as a volunteer, if that's okay..."

The Peacock 1240

 I am woken by the smell of eggs frying.  There is a murmur of muted conversation coming from the dining room. Francois and Carl, I believe.  I really have no desire nor intention of moving from this sofa unless I absolutely have to.  Or maybe if the house catches suddenly on fire, or if Lindstrom pays a sudden visit.  Or if  I have to get up to pee, and my bladder is feeling slightly restless, but still no emergency.  not about to wet myself or the couch.

"How many eggs would you like", says George, towering over me from behind the couch.

"Oh, good morning", say I.  "Are you cooking us breakfast?"

"Good morning."  He is smiling, and I am suddenly aware of how absolutely safe I am feeling, just now, in his presence.  "Jeffery and I both are making breakfast.  Hope you don't mind."

"As long as I don't have to get up and go to the table to eat it."

"What, you expect to be served here on the couch?"

"I'm sure worse things have happened to me", and I can feel myself smiling like an indulged little boy...

The Peacock 1239

 "How did he get from Colombia to Europe?"

"By airplane."

"Very funny."

"There's a lot I can't tell you.  Sensitive information.  But there is also a lot more that he didn't tell me.  Only in his last two years did he begin to open up to me, but by then it was too late.  He was already sliding into dementia."

"And he left you quite a wealthy man by the sounds of things."

"I have enough for tuition, plus to survive decently on for quite a few years, I would say."

"But the kid has given you your orders."

"That he has."

"Why does your sister feel entitled to the money?"

"They want to purchase an island in the Baltic Sea and build a centre for research in the occult sciences there, but it could be something even more nefarious."

"But how could they get the money from you if you are unwilling."

"Lindstrom has a lot of power.  He isn't human.  He's a monster.  And from what he's already tried to do to me I have good reason to fear him."

"Say no more.   We can Skype this evening if you want.

"Yes, please."

I love you, Christopher."

This I am not expecting.  and I am trying to erase the expression of shock that must now have taken control of my face.  "Thank you.  I love you too, Erik."

"You are my brother."

Yes...we are brothers."

1237 The Peacock

 "Did the kid happen to say that he also lives by himself in a sprawling mansion on a small island?"

"Christopher, I am not making any of this up."

"Neither am I."

"You know this person?"

"I know of him.  Tell me how he was dressed.  Was he wearing a simple white shirt and blue jeans?"

"Yes, that's all he seemed to wear."

"What did he tell you about me."

"He just said that you are one of his friends.  He described you in such a way that it could only be you. 

"when was that?"

 about five months ago.  That was the last time I saw him, except in a dream last week, the day before I contacted you  He told me to go see you immediately. Simply said I should get in contact with you, then come out to see you."

The Peacock 1238

I am not going to tell him the dream,not yet anyway.  "I didn't know you had a sugar daddy.  I never would have guessed."

"He wasn´t gay", says Erik, defensively.  "I was his paid companion."

"So, you just took care of him?"

"That's correct.  he was already set to spend his final years in Stockholm.

The Peacock 1237

 "Did the kid happen to say that he also lives by himself in a sprawling mansion on a small island?"

"Christopher, I am not making any of this up."

"Neither am I."

"You know this person?"

"I know of him.  Tell me how he was dressed.  Was he wearing a simple white shirt and blue jeans?"

"Yes, that's all he seemed to wear."

"What did he tell you about me."

"He just said that you are one of his friends.  He described you in such a way that it could only be you. 

"when was that?"

 about five months ago.  That was the last time I saw him, except in a dream last week, the day before I contacted you  He told me to go see you immediately. Simply said I should get in contact with you, then come out to see you."

"

The Peacock 1236

 Just as I am settling on top of my father's bed for my third sleep of the night I hear the characteristic boop boopity boop of my phone for a new message.  It is from Erik.  "Phone me right now, please.  I have more to tell you."

"Hi."

"Long time no see", he says.

"Okay.  You do most of the talking because my guests are still asleep in the next room."  not entirely true since there is a bathroom in between us.

"I spent the last five years taking care of Enrique.  I was vacationing in La Costa Del Sol, where we met on the beach.  He was already pretty old.  The juicy details can wait till we see each other, but he basically adopted me, and I was to take care of him as he slid into dementia. He did leave me a tidy sum of money which my sister and Lindstrom have been trying to get their hands on.  Then several times since after Enrique died, I was being visited by this boy who knew way too much to be just someone ordinary.  He told me all about you, and that I should get in contact with you and that the money I got from Enrique could be used to help you and your friends...

The Peacock1235

 "It's taken you long enough."

"Yeah, better late than never."

"What happened?"

"That is a very long story."

"Continue."

"It's pretty complicated.  Can it wait till we can talk in person?"

"Give me a thumbnail sketch."

He is pausing, hesitating and nervous.

"what is his first name?"

"Enrique."

"Spanish?"

"Colombian.  We met in Spain."

"Wealthy?"

"Stinking.  he was a coke baron in Medellín."

"Older?"

"He passed away last year.  Age eighty-four."  We are waiting, both silent.  I don't know whether I should dare formulaste another question.  And Erik may not be willing to budge.

"That all sounds very interesting.  We can let the rest wait till later if you want."

"Call me tonight.  I'll tell you then."

"What time?"

"Seven?"

"See you then..."

The Peacock 1234

 I'll take the Victorian mansion", he says, laughing.  "You are joking, yes?"

"No, I am not joking."

"So, where did it come from?"

"The magic wand of my rich friend, Carl."

"You have a sugar daddy."

"He's younger than me.  And we don't sleep together."

"I am glad to hear that."

"He just bought it yesterday, and there are plans that our community is going to move there from the place in the mountains."

"How about your family home."

"I don't plan on letting it go.  Not yet, anyway."

"Well, listen Christopher, I could stay there with you when they let me out of this fucking hotel room, and then decide.  Besides, I have been searching for online courses and I think UBC would be great for finishing my masters in sociology..."

The Peacock 1233

 That is interesting."

"Yes".

I want to say more, but the words seem stuck in my throat.  And there is this emotion, sadness and panic rising in me.  "Where is this island?"

"Near Vancouver."

"And lindstrom was there.  Any word about what happened to him."

"It is really hard to remember. But I think I just couldn't comprehend.  Except that my sister was getting really angry and really emotional, which never happens to her."

"Typical Swede.  She was never ever emotional in the eighteen months of our marriage."

"Hey, I'm a Swede and I'm emotional."

"That you are, my dear friend.  That you are."

"So, what's the plan, when I'm out of here, I mean."

"You will have three possible homes to choose from.  Here, the condo downtown, and a Victorian mansion in New West."

"Where are you going to be ?"

"With you."  And yes, whether Carl likes it or not...

The Peacock 1232

 "How well do you know him?"

"Not very.  Even though I was living with both of them for a while.  He was usually absent, especially at night.  Really, I think that Greta was always sleeping by herself."

"It is probably not a romantic relationship."

They have known each other a very long time."

"Yes, I know.  Since she was one of his students at the university."

"You know about all this?"

"It 's all in Kenny's journal.  Erik, you mentioned you have eavesdropped on some of their conversations."

"They were often going on about this island that Lindstrom had visited."

"Go on."

"I remember once my sister severely scolding him that he should never have gone near the place, that that is what has really ruined his powers..."

The Peacock 1231

 "Kenny lived with us in the nineties for five years.  I was twenty when he died.  He did leave his journal which I only discovered just weeks ago.  There he has documented all his encounters with Lindstrom, who was stalking him."

"That is so ugly", says Erik, his face twisting in genuine disgust.  "And so typical.  Anything supernatural or paranormal?"

"Apparently, yes."

"Christopher.   Be careful."

"yeah."

"I'm not being dramatic.  Lindstrom is extremely dangerous."

"I know.  He is implicated in Kenny's purported suicide.

"He will come after you again.  please.  Be very careful...

The Peacock 1230

 We are on Skype now, Erik and I. At first I didn't want to, but he was insisting. Truth is, it isn't just because I don't want to wake anyone in the house, but really, I don't know what to say to him.  I am feeling burdened with him, as well as with all my sudden houseguests, and frightened and resentful.  He wants me to explain to him what I know about Lindstrom and how.  I am waiting for him to put on his headphones, and I have just found and adjusted mine, because I really want this call to be as quiet as possible.

"How did you first hear about him?" asks Erik.

"From Kenny's diary."

"Kenny?"

"He was my best friend and lived here with my dad and I for five years."

"You never told me about him."

"No?"

"No.  never."  This of course does not surprise me. I have never been in the habit of disclosing information that didn't seem absolutely essential.  Dad used to tell me I was secretive.  But he should talk.  It took years before I could pry even basic information from him about my mother, especially about her death. And of course, my wife and brother in law were also your classic monosyllabic Swedes...

The Peacock 1229

 To my surprise I am feeling tired.  And cold.  And a little bit hungry.  Perhaps a bit of toast with peanut butter, then a snooze on the couch.  I really don't want to go back to bed, and  besides, I am not really that tired.  But I do want to doze anyway.  Two slices should do it, and my phone is sounding again.  A notification from Erik.

Hope it isn't too early, though I imagine you re still sleeping.  had nightmares last night.  Lindstrom was trying to hunt me down and now I'm afraid to go back to sleep.  This confinement is really getting to me.  I'm awake right now if you are.

"Hello?" says Erik.

"How are you."

"Oh, Christopher, how good to hear from you.  So you re awake?"

"I had quite a good sleep, but I'm soon going down for a nap.  Listen, Lindstrom is here and he tried to force his way into the house, looking for you.  Fortunately police trailed him from the airport and have him in custody.  He is likely to be sent back to Sweden on the next flight, so I think we're safe for now, anyway."

"This is like being in a really badly done science fiction thriller."

"Movie or book."

"Take your pick.  "By the way, your sister tried to connect with me on Facebook then sent me a very rude email."

"Block her."

"I will."

"Right now."

"I promise..."

The Peacock 1228

It is chilly for May.  Sheebah cat precedes me through the door.  I suppose I could check my Facebook status.  I haven't even thought of social media in months.  A notification.  From Greta.  She wants to connect with me.  I am going to decline.  I suppose she wants to nag me about her dear little brother.  And an email from my ex.

"I just got a text from Sven who is now in police custody.  You are going to have to answer for this, you know."

My response:

Please do not bore me with idle threats, Greta.   I happened to be asleep on the couch at the time, and so neither I nor anyone else that I happen to know has had anything to do with your blonde Nordic studly landing in the slammer here.  I imagine he should be already on his way back to Sweden where he is going to face the music.  Do not contact me again

Send.

And this, you know, happens to be the first time I have ever openly stood up to my terrifying ex wife.  It feels rather good.