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“Why do you keep these blank postcards? Are they travel mementos?”
“They are, but not mine,” Miriam replies, sorting through paperwork she needs to take along when she goes into town. “The cards belonged to a lady who stayed with us until the end of the summer. She collected them with her husband who passed away.”
“Why didn’t she take them when she left?” I ask. Wouldn’t she want to hang on to her memories?
“She wanted to leave her past behind. She suggested we should use them to decorate the blank wall near the kitchen…. make a decoupage mosaic with places from all around the world. It will be one of our winter projects.”
“That sounds like fun. Do you mind if I look through the box?”
“Not at all. Take it to your cabin if you like. You could sort them into piles, pick your favorites to use for the wall.”
“I will,” I beam at her.
This was easier than I thought. Nobody will notice if I take a card. I will send it to Rhia’s grandmother and use the code names we made up when we were little. I doubt Tiero is monitoring Nana’s mail, but if he does, they shouldn’t find anything suspicious.
Of course I won’t tell Rhia where I am, just in case, but I want to put her mind at ease that I’m okay. She’ll also need a heads up not to expect any news from me until spring.
Argh!That will be so hard!
Decision made, I take the box and head to our cabin. I’m all alone for the first time in a while, and for a moment, I’m not sure what to do with myself.
This is ridiculous.
Aiden and Claudette are helping to prepare lunch and told me to rest for a bit. I’m a bit tired and wouldn’t mind a nap, but I can’t waste this precious opportunity.
So I sit down and get to work, sorting through the stack of postcards until I find one from Norway. My brief encounter with Eero in Scotland pops into my mind. He was Norwegian. I might as well use this one.
Tapping the pen against the table, I contemplate what to say to put Rhia’s mind at ease and still talk in code. She’s such a hothead, and when she’s worried, she can be unpredictable.
When I’m done, I read over the card one last time, happy with what I’ve come up with.
Now my next hurdle is to get it into the outgoing mail tray without being spotted. Miriam is going to take it into town later.
Aiden wouldn’t approve of me contacting Rhia—he must not find out about this. I’m certain I covered my tracks well enough not to create suspicion, and having done this feels right.
When it’s close to lunchtime, I put on my jacket and walk back to the back entrance of the main house. It leads directly to Miriam’s office. I peek through the window and find it empty.
This really is too easy. I slip inside and burrow the card in amongst the outgoing mail.
Leaving through the back entrance again, I tiptoe around to the front door, feeling like a super spy. I laugh to myself. Maybe I missed my calling.
Chapter Nineteen
Aiden
Afterlunch,wegodown the mountain with Miriam and part ways when we reach the bottom. She jumps into a car hidden in the vegetation and drives off to run her errands.
Ella, Claudette and I pack up the few belongings we have left in the RV to take back up the mountain. While I retrieve the cover for the motor home and drape it over the vehicle, the girls get busy tidying the inside.
The journey back to‘Mountain Breath’is as slow as the first time. Claudette is a little out of shape and needs to take a few breaks. Too bad we’ll be stranded on the mountain soon. If she did this every week, she’d be fit in no time.
To most this will sound crazy, but I’m looking forward to being snowed in.
Some might get antsy being confined to one place for months, but this reminds me of my time in India. We never got snowed in, but I didn’t leave the ashram for two years and didn’t miss a thing.
This time will be even better. Ella is there.
It’s the perfect opportunity to get close to her… the perfect opportunity for more to develop between us.
