Lastly the ball is pitched to a tall guy wearing all black clothes and black eyeliner. He’s got a musician vibe about him. ‘My given name is Walter, but I prefer to be known as Anomaly. I’m in IT. I’m only here because my therapist thought it’d be good to open up to others. Apparently I spend too long online gaming and the like, as if that’s different to any Gen Z these days,’ he scoffs. ‘But her main concern is she thinks I have an unhealthy attachment to alcohol – you would too if you’d walked in my shoes. She thought the camp might be the perfect launch pad into a healthy new me. The only reason I’m here is because I really like my therapist. But if I can be excluded from everything, that will suit me best.’ He drops the ball to the grass.
Whoa. My brain goes into overdrive about just how I can get Anomaly to participate. By the looks of it, it’s not going to be easy. Even though he scowls at me as though I’m the reason for all his troubles, I smile. I’m sure we can get him to enjoy himself; it’ll just be a matter of peeling the layers back and finding out what makes Anomaly tick.
Already, I love the idea of these six wildly different individuals, and what they’ll bring to the group.
I pick up the ball. ‘I’m Orly, and this is our very first camp so I hope you’ll all get something great out of it, no matter what that means for you, whether it’s trying new things,’ I glance at Lulu, ‘or opting out.’ I give Anomaly a smile. ‘We simply want this to be an experience you’ll never forget. If we’re speaking about dreams, it was mine to do something that would help others, so I hope you find Honeysuckle Hall does just that for you.’ I toss the ball to Esterlita.
‘I’m the Firecracker AKA Esterlita. I lost the love of my life, my Edward, about three years ago. There wasn’t much sunshine after that, until Orly moved in. Now, I’ve got Project Orly, I feel like life is meaningful again. We have a long way to go. She needs a lot of help with fashion, décor, and cooking, but we’re getting there, slowly but surely. I don’t think she needs to bother with these camps, instead she should marry a rich man, but she’s proving very stubborn in that regard. I’ve decided to cook you a big Filipino feast as a welcome and so you don’t suffer any of Orly’s cooking.’
Project Orly. I smother a smile. She’s so damn cute sometimes. Even when she’s denigrating me. And never in a million years is she going to change my fashion sense, but it’s amusing that she thinks so.
I’m about to lead the campers inside when she pipes up again, ‘When I dream these days, it’s for friendship and I’ve found that here with Orly, even though she doesn’t listen or heed any advice. I hope I can find it with you too. And if you have any good-looking single friends, let me know. Orly needs to get back on the bike, if you know what I mean.’
And there she goes.
Noah quickly takes control. ‘Let’s head into the hall and show you your rooms so you can drop your bags off and freshen up …’
We give them time to settle in before Noah resumes his place and takes the campers away for another activity.
Esterlita starts on a nourishing dinner of pork adobo and pancit bihon for the campers, and I do my best to help. Naturally, she claims I’m a hindrance, and I probably am, as I worry about the first group of campers who are off out to do some archery. I pray no one comes back with an arrow through the head.
She gives me a pile of onions to chop. ‘Why do I always get onion duty?’ I’m sure she likes to watch me cry.
‘Because you need to get the unshed tears out. Else you’ll wind up bitter.’
‘What?’
She huffs as if I’m taking up precious time while she has to explain the obvious to me. ‘The unshed tears, Orly. The Harry tears. The end of your relationship tears. The cheating-no-good-lying-ex tears. The …’
‘OK, OK, I get it. Harry cheated. I remember.’
She holds her razor-sharp knife into the air. ‘Good. It’s good to remember every now and then and even better to get all the tears out of your body.’ She gesticulates with the knife, which slightly alarms me when it flashes before my very eyes, so close I can see my reflection in the silver of it. ‘So they don’t turn to vinegar, and make you bitter. You see?’
‘No not really.’
The knife comes closer. ‘When my Edward died, I cried every day for an entire year. I had to wait until there were no more tears. And that took a very long time because he was such a great man. If I didn’t get them all out, they would have started to pickle me from the inside out, do you see?’
I gulp. ‘I think so.’
‘You want to move on; I can see you’re trying, but you still have some things to work through and one of them is the unshed tears for what might have been. There’s no shame in that. Let them come so you don’t pickle in your own sadness.’
The thought is so wildly different that it makes sense. I’ve come to realise Esterlita’s way of doing things might be out of the norm but at the heart of everything she’s usually right. I haven’t grieved for Harry, for what I lost, because it hurt too much to dwell on it. Instead, I’ve buried those feelings and poured my heart and soul into this place, hoping to forget, to fool myself it doesn’t matter. But am I just turning my insides into something sour, like Esterlita says?
‘OK, pass me the onions.’
She does and I take a deep breath before chopping them up and letting the tears fall. As I cut the onions I think of all the dreams I had with Harry, and I say goodbye to them. Goodbye to the wedding and honeymoon, goodbye to the man who made me catch my breath when he walked into a room, goodbye to the memories, the great times we shared, and the not so good, too. My tears turn into more of a bawl, and I can’t wipe my face, so I continue unabashed. Goodbye, Harry. Thanks for showing me that settling for someone who isn’t right, is never the answer …
‘Keep going,’ Esterlita says and dabs at my face with a tissue. ‘Your tears will probably turn into rain, but they need to come out.’
Chapter 21
Day two of the camp arrives with a huge thunderstorm and sideways rain. Dammit! Esterlita predicted rain! Could my tears really have turned into this? Is rain actually the product of so many broken hearts? I add it to my ever-increasing ‘things to google’ list. But crying over the onions certainly has a therapeutic effect. I feel lighter somehow. Like I’ve left a bit of the heaviness of the past behind.
But with the sky awash with tears, I worry about my campers. Today Noah has gorge scrambling and orienteering scheduled. I peek outside again and see angry black clouds moving swiftly in our direction. Somehow I don’t think it’ll be safe for our campers to be scrambling over slippery gorges, no matter that Noah’s attitude to having fun is in rail, hail or shine.
Dressing quickly, I go outside to see who’s up and about already. It’s just past seven so maybe they’re still sleeping after a massive first day where Noah had them doing a high ropes course and archery, before settling down with games around the campfire.
I hurriedly pull my hoodie up as the rain feels like bullets against my face, before I make the dash over the grass into the hall. The wind slams the door behind me with a bang and I fear whoever isn’t awake will be now!
Most of the campers sit silently with folded arms, around the kitchen bench. Oh dear, where’s the camaraderie of yesterday gone? Their faces are long and drawn. Where’re my happy campers?
‘Good morning, all!’ I say brightly, as I scan each person to see who’s missing. Anomaly is absent. And Noah isn’t here yet. Although it’s still early and he had a long first day, so he’s probably rushing to make an alternative schedule. Of course, we should have factored the mother of all storms in bloody summer! ‘It’s chucking it down out there, so I’ll hazard a guess we won’t be following usual programming today.’
Silence. Eyes cast to the floor. What on earth?
I let out a nervous giggle. ‘Yeah, it’s a bit grey but I’m sure Noah has a Plan B so I don’t want you to worry. Can I help with the breakfast things? There’s some fresh eggs in the fridge from a little farm up the
road …’ I peter off, unsure of what to say or do.
Do I ask outright, or just try and shimmy them along and wait for things to become a little more jovial? I send Esterlita an ESP message to get her butt over here. The Firecracker would have them talking in an instant. Maybe I don’t have what it takes for this kind of thing? I’m used to throwing large stacks of cash at whatever problems I’d faced for Excès clients. Here I can’t do that.
‘Right, I can see you’re all a little subdued this morning. If it’s because of the horrid weather, don’t let that get you down. There’ll still be plenty on the cards today.’
Jock holds up a hand. ‘It’s not the weather.’ He glances at Lulu who gives him a slight nod as if to continue. ‘We had Walter, sorry, Anomaly, drunk and playing some kind of loud video game all night. It kept us up, and when we approached him about shutting it off he only got more belligerent. We did try to call your number, and Noah’s and there was no answer. At around 4 a.m. we took his game console away – had to use a bit of force, I’m sorry to say – and he was none too happy about it.’
By force. Yikes. How could I have missed that call? I’d been out like a light, but usually I always hear the phone. Always. ‘I’m so sorry I missed that call and that you guys had a bad night. Shall I go talk to Anomaly? Perhaps he can play his video games in the cottage in future?’
I didn’t think of altercations like this. I presumed, everyone being adults, this sort of thing wouldn’t happen. It’s like I can imagine my future: one-star reviews as far as the eye can see and a whole heap of unhappy campers.
‘You can do what you like,’ Jock says. ‘None of us have slept, except Anomaly, and a few of us were considering packing things in.’
This is a disaster! ‘No, please don’t. I’ll make it up to you, I swear. Anomaly can move into the guest room in the cottage.’ With some very strict rules in place! ‘And we’ll take today slow. Maybe we can factor in some downtime this afternoon? I’ll light the fire and everyone can relax and we’ll see what the weather is doing, yeah?’ I can’t hide the desperation in my voice, but I really need this first camp to be a success. I need their feedback and reviews to send to mailing lists and social media. But more importantly, I want them to have the time of their life! This is all crumbling right before my very eyes. What was Anomaly thinking!
Jock looks to the group and gives them some sort of signal with his raised brows. I knew he’d be the one to hold them together. I look away, feeling like I’m intruding while they do almost imperceptible one-shoulder shrugs.
‘OK,’ Jock says. ‘We’ll take it easy today and see if things improve. We know it’s not your fault, Orly, but answering the phone in the wee hours would have gone a long way to helping. What if it had been an emergency?’
I want to kick myself. ‘Trust me, I’ve noted that, Jock, everyone. And I totally agree. It’s not good enough, and as far as I’m concerned it was an emergency and I wasn’t here, which is unacceptable. However, this is the first camp and there’s bound to be teething problems, so I hope you’ll all forgive me? When I get a moment, I’m going to call my carpenter, Leo, and have him install a bell that will alert me in the cottage. I’ll also make some rules about noise and lights-out time in future.’
‘Well, I personally think that shows leadership, Orly, and I’m satisfied with that,’ Jock says. ‘I won’t speak for the rest of the group, but I’m happy to stay.’
There’re murmurs all around and all five sets of sleep-deprived eyes land on me. ‘I’m happy to stay too,’ Jo says. ‘I’ve come this far, and let’s be honest, it’s going to make one helluva story when we go home.’
The ice is once again broken and the group relax around the kitchen bench. ‘Did you say something about fresh eggs?’ Thomas says.
‘I did.’ I beam. ‘Fridge is full of them. There’s bacon, sausages, tomatoes, beans. And for the plant-based among us, there’s organic veggies, avocados. Sourdough’s in the bread bin. There’s a juicer somewhere …’
Esterlita struts in wearing some kind of shiny parachute suit, a throwback from the Eighties if ever I did see one. I’m so relieved to see her happy, smiley face my knees almost buckle. ‘Did I hear the word sausage?’ She waggles her eyebrows suggestively. ‘Love me a big, long—’
I hastily slap a hand over her mouth to stop any double entendres spilling out. Our fragile campers don’t need any more shocks today. ‘I did. Can you help the gang find everything, Es? We have oranges, apples – Es, can help you juice them?’
‘And here I thought I was just popping over to say hello,’ Esterlita says but catches my look and thankfully lets it go. ‘Allow me,’ she adds, rolling up her sleeves. ‘Jock, you can slice the bread; Thomas, you can work the juicer; and girls, you relax and let them serve you. Men should be the ones in the kitchen, serving their queens, am I right?’ I give her a half-smile, and go, worry sitting heavily in my belly.
I knock on Anomaly’s door and am greeted with a grunt. He acts more like a petulant teenager than someone who is twenty-three years old. ‘Can I come in?’
‘If you must.’
I sigh and enter the room that already has the distinct smell of musty socks. ‘Anomaly, I heard about last night. You kept everyone up.’
He’s a skinny mass under the blankets. ‘So …?’
‘Well, this is a retreat, a place to unwind and relax. I thought it would go without saying that getting drunk and playing video games until the sun comes up isn’t respectful to the others. You could have at least used headphones.’
‘Perhaps you need to write some explicit instructions, Orly. How was I supposed to know? I presumed since none of us have to work that this would be a place we could all unwind and for me that means sinking a few beers and playing games.’
‘OK, that makes sense. I hadn’t thought of it quite like that before.’ So maybe his idea of relaxation is more nocturnal; it doesn’t mean he shouldn’t be able to do it. But getting drunk and arguing with the others isn’t on. How to meet in the middle with him and the others?
‘And I paid just as much as the rest of them to be here.’
‘I understand,’ I say, used to talking with these kinds of people. ‘But do you understand that they all nearly packed it in, and left my very first camp. They didn’t come all this way to have this experience ruined. They’ve left jobs and businesses to come here. They’ve left their children. They’ve sacrificed to have some downtime that they rightly deserve.’
He doesn’t reply, just glowers at me as I turn to leave. I have a feeling Anomaly is hiding behind a façade. ‘Just think about it for me, OK? I want you all to leave here renewed. Refreshed, whatever that means for you. If you want to play games all night, then we need to figure out another solution.’ And I only hope that Anomaly will be better behaved after this talk and won’t actually need to move into my cottage. Making that suggestion earlier in haste seems like a potentially bad idea. There needs to be boundaries in place and I need to make sure I have my own cottage to escape to when I need a break.
Back to the group, I’m relieved to hear bacon sizzling and happier chatter punctuating the air. I go to the fire and get it started, hoping they can all have a nice day indoors, without boredom setting in. Just how can we entertain them all day? Chess, cards, cupcake making?
Anomaly lopes out and sits silently at the bench beside Jo, his hair a bird’s nest, his eyeliner smudged.
He rolls his eyes at the group and says, ‘Sorry,’ then under his breath: ‘that you’re all so boring.’
Esterlita cackles like a witch. ‘Bold move, young man, calling everyone boring. But can I give you some advice? I’m not called the Firecracker for nothing, you know. If you’re going to speak up, don’t whisper, don’t mumble, use your voice loud and proud. Yeah, sure, they might not like what they hear, but being sullen about it only makes you look weak. Let me show you …’
She sits next to him and acts as if she’s him. Her acting history is really coming in handy
and it’s all I can do to smother a laugh, not quite sure where’s she’s going with this. ‘SORRY!’ she booms, making us jump. ‘That you’re all so BORING!’ She exhales a pent-up breath and takes it in turn to glare at the group one by one before she relaxes into a smile. ‘See? It’s all about timing and voice projection.’
Anomaly’s eyes widen in surprise and the rest of the group wear startled expressions. With that, I make excuses to leave and tell the group I’ll be back after breakfast. Esterlita gives me a wink to let me know it’s all under control.
‘There’s a leak!’ Jo calls out as I reach the door. ‘I forgot to say, the window in my room is leaking and a fair bit of rain got in. I’ve got a bucket set up, but at the rate it’s filling, it’s not going to last if we go out.’
‘Leave it with me,’ I say smiling, when inside I feel like going back to bed and starting the day over.
Chapter 22
I dial Leo’s number and plonk on my bed, feeling the adrenaline of the morning’s dramas slowly leave my body.
‘Orly, how’s the first camp going?’
I groan in response.
‘That good?’
I laugh and fill him in on the morning’s events.
‘Sounds like you handled it well though. These kinds of things are bound to crop up from time to time when you’ve got so many different personalities in the mix.’
I can’t help feel a warmth spread over me just hearing his voice. ‘Right? I guess I thought as long as they were all entertained we’d have no problems, that being adults on their best behaviour, it’d all be sunshine and rainbows. A big wake-up call for me. And made worse by the fact I didn’t hear any commotion and didn’t hear the phone ring! Noah didn’t answer his phone either so I’m not sure what’s going on there.’
‘You’ve been working all hours into the lead-up, no wonder you didn’t hear. So how can I help? Do you need me to wrestle Anomaly off the property?’
‘What!’ I snicker. ‘No, I need you to install some kind of bell, so they can contact me if they need to. In case I can’t hear my phone, or I lose it or something.’
Escape to Honeysuckle Hall Page 21
