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I inhaled a sharp gust of cool ocean air. Although I was sure they weren’t part of a cult or my kind of upbringing, a chill shuddered through me. That’s how it had been when I was a child – everyone was family, and you were never allowed to leave. If you did, you were never allowed back in again. Frank and I found that out, as did Everest later. To this day, I still wasn’t sure how Juniper was allowed back.
It was fascinating to watch them all interact, toddlers and all, and it stirred a myriad swirl of emotions from sadness to joy, and everything in between.
“Grab a weiner and let’s eat. Nothing much beats a hot dog cooked over an open flame.”
I followed her lead and dressed up a bun, and with my stick and two beers, walked over to a couple of empty seats. In one cup holder, I set Landon’s beer and started toasting my hot dog over the open flames.
Iris pulled a chair beside mine, and I was glad for the familiar company. Of all the people here, I was closest in age to her, even if I was still the younger one, but she had an air to her of someone much older and wiser too.
All around the bonfire the people were mingling, laughing, and chasing after one, or two, maybe three young kids. In watching them all, I’d lost track of what I was doing.
“Hey, Jellybean, your wiener is looking a little dark.”
“Oh, shoot.” I’d been so wrapped up in watching Landon bounce Henry around, I hadn’t paid attention to my food. “Well, burnt is just another flavour.”
“Only to Holden.” She laughed and excused herself to go and fix her bun.
I pulled my hotdog off the stick with my dressed-up bun and held it in my hands.
Landon moved effortlessly through his friends, talking and interacting with every person. Occasionally, he’d glance in my direction as did the person he was chatting with. Long gone was the flirtatious man, and in its place was a softer, more gentlemanly side I hadn’t expected to see, but found myself rather enjoying.
My hot dog was nearly gone when he sauntered over.
“You’re quite the family guy.” I passed him the beer that had been sitting in his cup holder for some time.
He shrugged and grabbed my hot dog stick. “Glad to see you’ve eaten.”
“Iris talked me into it.”
“She’s great, isn’t she? Very open. Hides nothing.”
I’d known her for a little bit already, but I couldn’t disagree. She talked honestly about the attempted suicide scars striping her inner arms, and about how much better her life became when she’d moved to Cheshire Bay. She originally grew up in Toronto, on the streets. Of all the people I knew, or had talked with, Iris was probably the most fascinating person I knew; she’d survived much and grown into an amazing human being. In many ways, I envied her.
“She’s pretty cool. I like her a lot.”
“Have you met everybody yet?”
“No. I went to the back, saw Iris, and here I am. But I’ve been watching.” It was mesmerizing while I ate my charred supper. “I think I’ve figured out who everyone is though. Except her, the lady standing by herself, staring at the ocean.”
Landon scanned the area. “Ah, that’s Mona, Lily’s big sister, Jesse’s fiancée.”
“I figured but wasn’t too sure. She seems pretty quiet and is distancing herself a bit.”
“Probably because Jesse’s at the morgue.”
A bit of weiner lodged in the back of my throat, and I smacked my chest to clear it. “Oh-em-gee. He died?”
Landon leaned back as he laughed. “No, not at all. Didn’t you know? He’s the town mortician and got called to a job. Should be here in a bit.”
I released my breath. “Jesus, you could’ve opened with that.” I playfully nudged him. “Is Mona a bit of loner?”
“Not really. But sometimes she just needs to reset, as she calls it. Her mom died in that house.” He pointed to the B&B. “She’s getting better, but obviously, there are still some hard feelings about it. She now lives in that house, or that one. I think the third or fourth one down is Jesse’s.”
I understood the need to reset, and staring out to the rolling ocean was a great way to calm the insides.
“Everyone lives on this strip?” Wow, talk about super small-town living.
“Not everyone. Just Eric, Lily, Mona, and Jesse. The rest are scattered around the town.”
