The Peacock 1258

 "Anyway, she should be arriving here with two others from the community here today sometime."

"What is she like?  As a person."

"Besides being a complete and total glutton and I have never seen someone put away food the way she can, I would call her very witty, prickly, tender hearted, judgmental, open-hearted, and very very real."

"Did you hear her play?"

"Several times.  I also heard her at the Royal Albert in London back in 2010. She is well worth getting to know,  She has quite a story."

"As I should imagine.  Is she going to stay with you?"

"She will likely be going home, but let's see if I can have you both over this evening..."

The Peacock 1257

 "So, how did you come to know Carol Barlow-Mead.  I mean, she is one of the greats, she is a goddess in the music pantheon."

"I'm not sure if I would go that far, she is really pretty ordinary, and appears to like food an awful lot."

"But, where did you meet her."

"At the mansion in the mountains.  She was also on retreat there."

"Retreat?  Is she religious?"

"An observant Anglo-Catholic, if ever I have known any."

"She lives here?"

"Yes.  She moved out here a few years ago to look after her aged mother, who died recently.  And it appears we're also becoming pretty good friends."

"What a small place this world is..."

The Peacock 1256

 She doesn't answer, just staring at me shocked and stupefied.

"I imagine you have heard of her.  She is quite famous."

"You do not know what you have just done for me, Christopher", her voice an urgent whisper.

"I don't imagine I do."

"It was Carol Barlow-Meade who was all set to mentor me when I was fourteen. Then life happened." She takes a long draught of her coffee, lets the mug slam itself down on the table.  "Please tell me you are not lying.  Please, you 're not having me on."

"I would love to hear you play sometime."

"That, I'm afraid, is going to have to wait.  I'm still very rusty and need to practice a lot more.  But there are only so many hours in the day, and one does have to work for a living, dammit..."

The Peacock 1255

 "Do you still play?"

"Funny you should ask. I hadn't touched a keyboard that wasn't part of a computer or smartphone until just three months ago when I began getting this house ready for sale.  I wasn't yet aware that in her will it had been specifically offered by inheritance to my mother, or, should she not be able or inclined, to me.  Well, there happens to be a piano in this house.  A stand up Steinway.  Not in the best tune but still serviceable.  At first I was too terrified to go anywhere near it.  Then, just last week, I began to play.  It has been difficult and awkward of course, but it all seems to be coming back. Anyway, Dorothy has offered to help me with the property taxes if she can move in with me, and strangely, you know, we have become very fond of each other."

"There will be a concert pianist visiting this afternoon, and likely staying for dinner.  Would you like to meet her."

"What time?"

"Six thirty, or seven?"

"Yes, that should work.  Who is she?  Is she quite well known?"

"Her name is Carol Barlow-Mead."

"Oh my God!"

The Peacock 1254

 "Yes.  I had lessons all the way up till grade ten.  I was considered a prodigy.  When I was fourteen, my father showcased me to a concert pianist who was going to take me under her wing.  Mentor me you know.  That didn't happen."

"What happened."  There is a robin perched on the tree branch just outside the kitchen window.  Something has scared him and off he flies.

"Well, you know, my dad was a member of the House of Lords, and this gave him automatic privilege and connections, of course, so he was able to get a rather famous concert pianist interested in hearing me play.  But then total shit hit the fan.  Mom was all set to divorce his ass, plus Dorothy was already in the picture.  It appears the infidelity was not simply one-sided, or one could say, it wasn't just my father who was philandering with other women...

The Peacock 1253

 "Are we still on for tomorrow night."

"Tomorrow night?"

"For your hair appointment at your place."

"Oh yes, that's right.  As far as I know, we are."

"Could I invite her?"

"Dorothy?  Sure.  I don't see why not."

"You see, she doesn't really have any friends outside of me, and really I'm family.  Plus, she does enjoy the company  of younger people."

"Yes, do invite her along."  I still cannot stop looking at her hands, and yes, I am going to ask her.  Right now.  "Chelsea, tell me something please.  Have you ever played piano.

The Peacock 1252

 "How is she?"

"Dorothy?  She's doing okay.  She's already thinking about retirement.  Getting sick of being a shopkeeper, she says, though the tourists are plentiful and generous when it comes to anything on Granville Island."

"I have often wondered about the appeal of that place."

"As have I.  But that place has kept me housed, fed and decently clothed for years so I am not about to bite the hand that has fed me."

"Do you have  a lot of contact?"

"We phone or text each other almost every day.  Mom's passing has really brought us closer.  We are even talking, both of us, about sharing this house, since Grandma did write something about this in her will."

"Have you decided yet."

"Almost.  Just about..."  

The Peacock 1251

 "It's beautiful."

"Yes, it is.  Why would a teenage boy approach a complete stranger like that and give them a flower?"

"Why indeed?"

"I've never seen him in the neighbourhood before.  Have you?  Would you happen to know his parents."

"We can only guess, Chelsea."  She gets up to pour the coffee.

"Do you take sugar and cream?"

"Black is good.  unsweetened."

"Just like my mother's partner.  I can't abide coffee in its natural state.  For me it always needs cream and sugar", she says, stirring her cup.

The Peacock 1250

 "Describe him, please?"

"I would say, maybe fifteen years old.  No more than sixteen.  Very pretty young boy.  Dressed in a white shirt, I think, but very bright face  anyway, he saw me standing at the open door, so he approached me.  For some reason I felt I was expecting him.  He gave me a rose."

"He gave you a rose?"

"Yes. There it is", and her blue taloned right hand gestures to the counter, to a flaming red and yellow rose in a glass of water.

"Did he say anything?"

"Just this.  He said, please take good care of my friends, and then he was gone.  I thought I was hallucinating, but then, how else can I explain this rose on the counter..."

The Peacock 1249

"I slept through it all."

"What do you mean you slept through it all."  She is carefully measuring and pouring water into the coffee maker. 

"I was lights out on the sofa till two am.  The others saw and heard it."

"What did they see and here?"

"There was a man trying to get into our house and police had arrived just in time to detain him and take him into custody."

"Well, that was certainly the luck of good timing", she says, sitting down across from me.  "Do you have any idea who it might have been?"

"Not someone we know.  What exactly did you see?"

"More or less what you have told me." Her nails appear to have been just done.  Ten sapphire blue talons adorning her long and boney fingers.  I wonder if she plays piano.  She is likely to meet Carol pretty soon.  "Then something else rather strange occurred."

"What happened?"

"This kid just appeared on my front lawn, as if out of the thin blue air..."

The Peacock 1248

 The interior of this house is immaculate, and appears rather like a museum of the seventies.  An avocado green shag carpet covers the living room floor and the bronze and copper upholstered furniture appears to have never been sat in.  The one concession to the millenium is the giant plasma TV screen covering the far wall. I follow her into a bright sunny kitchen, all shades of muted yellow and cream and without waiting to be invited automatically seat myself at the wooden kitchen table on a wooden matching chair.  While Chelsea is measuring coffee into the filtre cone she asks, "I was wondering if you would like to tell me something about the disturbance last night outside your house and the police and everything."

The Peacock 1247

 I have just circled the block.  I might go back out after Jesús' arrival and wander in the forest on my own again.  Or I might even just drive my car out to who knows where and stay away till sundown.  It is very difficult to plan my days now with so many other lives hanging around my own and my life hinging around others.  the neighbourhood has changed and not for the better.  I have counted three new tacky mcmansions standing where there used to be some very beautiful heritage homes.  I don't like this.  And this is another good reason for not selling my father's house.  It is going to go on standing and being lived in for as long as i can help it.

"Good morning Christopher", intones a familiar feminine British voice.  It is Chelsea who is seated on her doorstep, or her grandmother's doorstep, cup of coffee in one hand, phone in the other and Sheeba cat sprawled in the sun at her feet.

"Hi."

"I was just about to put on a fresh pot of coffee.  Come on in and help me drink it" And without questioning, accepting this as the next few steps in the dance, my feet are already wandering on the walkway towards her front door...

The Peacock 1246

 While others, on their own insistence, take care of the cleanup, it is nice to step outside, if even for a couple of minutes.  The sun is shining, finally, and the fragrant air is full of birdsong.    Funny how I seldom seemed to notice while I was a kid growing up in this house just how beautiful this neighbourhood is.  And how privileged to be located so close to nature.  Dad does feel very close to me since coming here Sunday, and it would seem that he is walking right now beside me, his pacing slow, deliberate and almost methodical, his head bowed as though in deep contemplation, only from time to time to draw my attention to a particular bird or flower, or detail of cloud in the sky...

The Peacock 1245

 "Or not to tell.  He can be even more taciturn than me."

"Two hermetically sealed imagos", muses Jeffery.

"Which means" says Carl.

"two fully formed adult insects but still trapped in their chrysalis."

"In our case butterflies", say I.

"As you wish", says George.

"Which is also to say", says Carl, "You're young only once, but you can be immature for ever."

"Speak for yourself", say I, chewing on my second piece of toast.  I have slathered it with peanut butter and honey and it is most delicious.

"So, what's the plan for today", says Francois.

"I am going to wait here for Jesús, and I think it would be fitting if we were all here to receive him and Carol both, since she is also coming, though in her own car.

"After which", says Carl, "I will be going to Richmond to see my mom."

"What did your Swedish friend say about the Colombian drug lord", says George..

"That we shall learn tonight, after we have chatted a bit more..."

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.