The Milieu Principle

by Malcolm Franks

Matt was lost for words. He wasn’t quite sure how to feel about Rosa’s sudden and totally unexpected arrival on the island. He wondered how he could explain away his presence here in Victoria, working on a floatplane jetty. Or his sudden departure from Toronto, when he’d panicked and ran away from her.

  Unsure how to react, he slowly rose to his feet and looked at her impossibly beautiful face. With his mind galloping in confusion he did at least realise he had to say something. Of all the welcomes he could have offered, such was his state of flux, he could muster only one thing.

  “Hello Rosa, this is a long way to come for a weekend shopping spree.”

  She gave a hearty, throaty, laugh.

  “Anytime, anyplace, anywhere,” she replied. “Wherever the mood and my Dad’s money allows, remember?”

  Her face beamed and she seemed genuinely happy to see him. A deafening silence ensued. The atmosphere prickled with an air of both tension and expectation as he struggled to take in this new, and unwanted, complication to his life.

  “There you go, Miss,” said Jack, suddenly appearing to their side as he placed a small suitcase next to the feet of the blonde woman.

  “Why thank you, Mr Carter,” she said.

  Her eyes darted towards Jack and then back to Matt, armed with an expression of shock, that rabbit in the headlights look.

  “No hugs for an old friend?” asked Rosa.

  “Oh, I’m sorry,” said Matt, trying to be calm. “You took me by surprise.”

  Jack’s grey eyes widened as the two young people stepped towards each other and affectionately hugged.

  “Yur two know each other!” he said.

  With her arms around Matt’s neck Rosa raised her body up and pecked at Matt’s cheek before snuggling closer into his body. She breathed in deeply and raised her lips to whisper into his ear.

  “We need to talk,” she said, and held him tightly.

  Still trying to come to terms with this new situation, Matt remained silent.

  ‘Talk, about what?’ he wondered, as she released him.

  Jack stood, mouth agape, his eyes now almost fit to burst out of their sockets.

  “Yur really are a dark horse, lad,” he muttered.

  “Fancy a drink Matt?” she asked, stepping away. “That’s if you’re finished here for the night, of course,” she continued.

  Her eyes glanced back towards the gruff man standing beside them. “I’m absolutely starving as well!” she added.

  “Yur in luck girl,” chirped in Jack. “The lad works at The Keg pub restaurant at nights, just up the path to the right there.”

  “Fantastic!” she remarked to the older man. Her cheery disposition and broad smile completely charmed and disarmed Matt’s friend.

  “I’m done for the night anyway,” advised Jack, “got a meeting now. I’ll lock up and head off. Matt will look after yur,” he said to Rosa.

  Leaning over to his young friend’s ear, Rosa heard him tell Matt she was a real knockout, making her beam. Matt despaired at his friend’s attempts to leave them alone. Then again, he didn’t know about Grace.

  “Don’t forget your suitcase now, Miss,” said Jack pointing to the luggage at Rosa’s feet as he hurried to lock everything down. Matt, open eyed, had never seen his friend in such a rush.

  “Well?” said Rosa, smiling.

  He picked up her suitcase and they linked arms to stroll up the ramp incline towards The Keg, leaving Jack to continue securing the jetty area. They walked in silence. Rosa, keeping a firm grip on Matt’s arm, looked around the inner harbour area to digest the surroundings as the conversation refused to flow. Both knew the evening in Toronto was in the past. Instead, their relationship had become infected by wariness and caution.

  “Is your middle name Samson?” she suddenly asked.

  “Samson?”

  “You seem to have lost the strength to talk since you had your hair cut short,” she giggled.

  Her humour brought a smile to Matt’s face. They walked some more before stopping at the top of the bank, when she looked around again. He assumed she was taking in the views of the harbour, and the Parliament Building dominating the horizon over the other side of the bay.

  “This is a beautiful spot, Matt. I can see the attraction for you here.”

  “It’s one of them,” he said.

  Rosa linked her arm back into his and they continued to stroll, quietly.

  “She smells nice,” said Rosa, referring to Grace’s scent on his clothes. “Is she local?”

  “Local ...ish,” was his reply. He paused for a moment then continued. “Yes, she is nice.”

  Still feeling hesitant, he eventually decided to take the plunge and ask her directly.

  “What are you doing here, Rosa?”

  “It’s okay,” she replied, shaking his arm. “I’m not here to shatter your idyllic life.”

  “Not so idyllic,” he sighed, “I leave tomorrow.”

  The news brought Rosa to another halt and she turned and looked to Matt, the surprise evident on her face.

  “My, you don’t stay in one place for too long do you,” she countered. “Will you be saying goodbye to this one?”

  He winced at the sharp barb. It felt like a boxer’s punch to the solar plexus, leaving him winded and struggling to breathe. He squirmed inside with embarrassment. Taking a long, deep breath he decided to ignore Rosa’s remark.

  “Where are you staying, the Empress?”

  Rosa nodded towards the wooden bench fixed to the floor of the harbour walkway below them.

  “Over there,” she said, “unless some gallant knight can offer me sanctuary for the evening.”

  “You haven’t booked?” he said, aghast.

  She shrugged her shoulders.

  “I’m a creature of impulse, as you know,” she responded laughingly.

  “Rosa, that’s reckless!”

  “Yes, Dad,” she said impishly, tugging at his arm.

  Matt looked to the skies for some divine intervention. He could have decided not to help her. He wasn’t like that.

  “Come on then,” he said.

  As she squeezed his arm gently, the memories of Toronto come flooding back into his mind. He remembered how much he had enjoyed her company. Matt dearly wanted to believe in extraordinary coincidences, but this was one hell of a mighty coincidence.

  Pushing the door to The Keg open Matt ushered Rosa inside and immediately looked for Grace. She was nowhere in sight. He caught Tim’s eye and went over to talk to him.

  “Where’s Grace?”

  “Had to go out,” Tim replied. “She expects to be back around nine. Hope she’s not your sister,” he said, nodding towards the stunning blonde standing at the door.

  “As far as you’re concerned she is.”

  Without Grace to consult, Matt made the decision himself. Rosa could have his room for the night. He wandered back to where she was standing.

  “I’ve got a bed for you, for tonight. If you want to eat first I can take the suitcase up for you. Tim will take your order,” he suggested, pointing to the other side of the room. “It’ll only take me a couple of minutes to park your case.”

  “I’d rather shower first, if it’s okay with you.”

  “Yes, of course,” he said. “That was thoughtless of me. Let me take the case and show you the way.”

  Rosa followed him through the maze of tables towards the stairs. Passing the bar area, she peered at the photograph resting on the shelf of wine and beer glasses and asked Matt whose picture it was.

  “That’s Grace, the owner,” he said. “She’s out at the minute. I’ll introduce you when she gets back.”

  Matt was surprised at Grace’s absence. It was probably as well she wasn‘t there. At least this way he could get Rosa settled for the night, and give him time to think of how to explain her unexpected arrival to Grace. He wondered what Grace would make of it all, how she would react to the sudden arrival of a beautiful blonde from Matt’s past turning up on her
doorstep. He considered how easily he might accept such a surprise if it were the other way round.

  With great difficulty, he thought.

  The night got progressively quieter with only a few customers remaining at their tables, finishing their drinks. Despite this, Matt had been kept reasonably busy, too busy to spend any time with Rosa who had eaten in her room. Tim provided what amounted to a personal service.

  With Rosa, men were like moths to a light bulb Matt had concluded.

  All the while he had kept his eye on the clock, watching and waiting for Grace to make her return. Every time the door opened he expected it to be her. There was still no sign, and it was now ten o’clock. He made the decision to go up and speak to Rosa when Grace appeared through the front door, carrying a hard paper shopping bag from ‘La Senza’ in one hand and a plain white plastic bag in the other.

  “Hi Grace,” he called and headed for the bar where she’d stopped.

  Bending slightly to kiss her lips, he noticed a cardboard box inside the white bag. Like a child whose mother had returned from a weekly shop, he couldn’t resist peering inside the plain carrier to see if there was anything in it for him.

  “Hey nosey,” she cried, drawing the bag away. “There’s nothing in there for you.”

  His disappointed expression brought a smile to her face, amused by his boyish behaviour.

  “There,” she said. “This is for you,” and handed Matt a long thin envelope carrying a vaguely familiar motif.

  Matt recognised the name but couldn’t remember where he’d seen it, until he opened the letter. He gasped in surprise. A seven day cruise through the Inside Passage, up the coast of Alaska. Now he remembered the name, they were cruise specialists.

  Leaving Canada Place in Vancouver, at five the following afternoon, the itinerary would take them up the Alaskan coast to Juneau, Skagway and Ketchikan then return to Vancouver. Instantly, he knew he couldn’t go. There would be customs, border control and US territory to navigate.

  Grace flung herself excitedly at Matt.

  “Please say you’ll go, please,” she begged, holding him tight. “Tim’s agreed to look after The Keg and we’ll have a whole week together. I’ve always wanted to go on a cruise!”

  Her eyes were bright, insistent and her face radiant with happiness.

  “Grace ...” he began slowly,

  “Surely you can grant me a single week, at least one week, before you go,” she interrupted, pleading with her soft brown eyes.

  His thought processes degenerated into a whirlpool of wild, conflicting emotions. To agree would be a reckless decision on his part, given the circumstances. Yet his heart wanted to spend this time with Grace.

  “Sounds absolutely fantastic,” he heard himself say.

  Grace flung her arms around Matt’s neck and kissed him madly about the face and lips with happiness, her joy there for all to see.

  Somehow during this one night, his logic now told him, he was going to have to disappoint her. But not now, not right at this point in time. He simply didn’t have the will to refuse her so publicly. His heart wouldn’t let him say no.

  “Shall I give you a hand with those bags?” he asked, once she’d calmed.

  “No. Certainly not, you only want to peek.” she replied, easing them away from his reach.

  Then he remembered, Rosa.

  “I need to tell you something,” he said quickly, touching the skinny forearm to attract her attention and prevent her from disappearing upstairs. He told her about Rosa. She was an old friend needing a place for tonight only, he explained to Grace. He apologised for not consulting her first.

  “That’s fine,” she said, adding mischievously, “Where will you sleep tonight?”

  “Bathtub, it seems.”

  She grinned and reached up and kissed him again.

  “Thanks, Grace,” he smiled back.

  She headed up the stairs. Passing the door to Matt’s room, Grace noticed it was slightly ajar and peered through the open space. She thought about introducing herself to their guest when she caught sight of the woman, standing at the window.

  The long blonde hair flowed down her back, covering most of the blue snugly fit t-shirt she was wearing. The light blue jeans clung tightly to her body, revealing an exquisite shape and figure. Matt’s guest moved her head to look out of the window to see what was below, her features reflecting through the glass window lit up by the street lights outside. Grace could make out the profile of the woman’s pretty face and decided against an introduction. She continued on to her own room.

  The time was approaching eleven thirty as Matt and Grace worked rapidly to clear up the remaining glasses. They had said little to each other while they hurried to complete their chores, desperate to retire for the night. Rosa had remained upstairs.

  “I’ll finish up here,” said Grace smiling, a yellow duster in her hand. “You go and attend to your friend. I won’t be long.”

  “Are you sure?” he queried, and she nodded.

  “Just don’t be too long,” she grinned.

  Matt wondered at her easy acceptance of Rosa’s arrival, her complete confidence in him, although it was so typical of her good nature. Taking the glasses from her hands and placing them on the table, he wrapped his arms around the doll like figure. They stood in silence, breathing in each other’s scent.

  “Don’t you be long,” he whispered softly in her ear.

  “I won’t,” she said, “but you have to let go of me first.”

  They laughed, the way young lovers do at the start of any intoxicating relationship. They kissed wantonly. On any other night they would not have stopped except Rosa was upstairs, waiting for Matt. He relaxed his grip from Grace’s delicate frame and made for the stairs.

  “You wanted to talk?” Matt asked Rosa, after gently knocking and entering the room.

  She closed the lid of the laptop and pushed it to one side.

  “Hi Matt,” she replied, as he went to sit on the bed.

  He looked into her beautifully formed features. She draped an arm over the back of the wicker chair and turned to face him. Rosa was different now, from Toronto. Her eyes sparkled and her smile remained warm and friendly, though he felt he could detect a degree of detachment.

  Matt wondered if he had made a fool of himself by the lakeside. It was beginning to feel like it. Not that it mattered now. He took the plunge.

  “Rosa, about Toronto ...”

  “I didn’t come here to talk about Toronto, Matt,” she said smilingly. “Or should I say Michael, Michael Daniels?” she suddenly quizzed and an earnest, steely look took control of Rosa’s steady smile.

  Her words were like an arrow to his heart. Their eyes met. Neither blinked, nor dared to blink, both watchful for any movement in the other’s expression. Matt knew pretence was futile now.

  “How did you find me?”

  “Do you always use the same password, car registration?”

  He raised his eyes to the sky and inwardly cursed at his carelessness.

  “That’s not enough to pinpoint my exact location.”

  “No, house to house did the rest. You were lucky it was me who interviewed Jenna,” she said coolly, making his eyes widen in obvious concern.

  “Don’t worry, I didn’t hurt her,” Rosa added, to his immediate relief.

  Their gazes fixed again. Deep down he’d known all along, about Rosa, there were too many coincidences. He just didn’t want to believe she was one of them. Rosa had never once given Matt the impression she had any desire or intention to harm him, at least, not until now.

  His eyes darted to each side of the bed, looking for something he could use to defend himself with. It was going to be tough as she will have been highly trained. Rosa’s eyes followed his furtive, desperate glances. She knew what was running through his mind, what he was thinking and for what he was searching for; a makeshift weapon.

  The continued silence between them was eerie. She lifted the index finger of her r
ight hand and moved it slowly from side to side to try and dissuade him from any rash action on his part. Her confident expression told him Rosa believed she was firmly in control.

  Finally, he spoke.

  “Michael Daniels is dead, killed in a shoot-out with police. My name is Matt Durham.”

  “Well Matt Durham will be dead soon too, unless you …”

  Matt didn’t give her the opportunity to finish. He grabbed the pillow behind him and leapt forward to try and pin her to the ground and smother her sweet, pretty face.

  She was ready for the attempt. In the blink of an eye Rosa threw away the wicker chair, twisted her body to place the weight on her left leg and snapped out her right. The foot caught Matt neatly under his ribs, into the pit of his stomach, throwing him back onto the bed with unbelievable force. He fell heavily, loudly.

  Gasping for breath, Matt recognised he was incapable of another rapid assault. Instead he sucked in deeply, trying to fill his lungs, trying to recover some energy and prepare. Her kick had been expertly placed, fully immobilising his body. It was not quite enough to damage him, other than his ego.

  Rosa relaxed her stance full in the knowledge Matt was temporarily helpless. He realised he was at his assailant’s complete mercy. She stepped across the floor towards the bed and stood in front of her hapless victim. Rosa coolly watched as he struggled to regain some strength. She could tell what was on his mind, build up some energy and prepare for another lunge.

  “Don’t try it Matt. I’m too good for you. Listen ...”

  Matt saw the wicker chair rise above her head and then swing down. A thud followed as the chair crashed across her shoulders sending her petite frame collapsing onto the bed beside him, shattering the wooden object in the process. Now, it was Rosa who was immobile.

  He looked up and there stood Grace, a dark look in her eyes, the darkest expression he had ever seen on her face. She bent down and picked up a broken leg from the shattered chair, at one end a sharp point from where it had broken away. Moving towards Rosa’s prostrate body, she raised the weapon above her head and readied to plunge it into the blonde girl’s motionless body.

  “No, Grace! No!” he shouted.

  Summoning energy from somewhere, he leapt across the bed and grabbed Grace’s raised arm, poised to strike, forcing her away from Rosa. They struggled. She surprised him with her physical strength, moving wildly to try and free herself from his hold on her upper limbs.

  Gradually he managed to pin her body against the wall with his hip and push her arms above her head, pressing her tight against the wall to assert some measure of control.

  “The bitch was going to kill you!” Grace screamed. “Don’t let her get up Matt, don’t let her hurt you again. Finish her!”

  Matt was startled by the venom spewing from her mouth, the sheer viciousness of her urgings.

  “Grace! Grace! Stop it!” he yelled back.

  Matt could feel her attempts to struggle free were beginning to weaken. He kept a tight grip on her wrists until she released the improvised weapon. Finally, she was still.

  “I’m not going to kill Rosa,” he said gently. “I won’t kill anyone.”

  “Oh Matt,” she said looking up with trembling, tearful eyes. “How much trouble are you really in?”

  “It’s all okay, it’s okay,” he soothed.

  Matt shifted his weight to allow Grace to move away from the wall. Instinctively, she flung her arms around him, as if in search for forgiveness.

  “I was so scared for you,” she cried, “I didn’t know what to do, didn’t know what I was doing,” she sobbed in explanation.

  He held her close, tight, while his confused mind struggled to rationalise the situation and search for an effective course of action. Grace clung desperately to her lover, too scared to let go and be released into uncertainty. He eased her away and asked her to stay still while he went to check out Rosa’s condition. As the blonde woman silently lay there he felt the beat of her pulse on her neck. She was breathing, probably concussed, he concluded. Grace looked on as Matt pulled out the mobile phone from his jeans pocket.

  “Are you ringing the police?” she asked.

  He shook his head.

  “Jack,” he replied.

  A woman answered the phone and it took a few seconds for the voice to register in Matt’s mind. Now he understood Jack’s earlier rush to leave the jetty.

  “Holly, is Jack there?”

  “Huh!” was her first response. “Don’t you two see enough of each other during the day,” she complained. “Matt!” was the only clue she offered.

  “Bad timing, lad,” said Jack, answering the phone in what sounded like a state of delirium.

  “Emergency Jack, need you at The Keg, now!”

  Matt paused, considering whether there was any point explaining the situation. He pressed the ‘end call’ button instead.

  Jack took less than ten minutes to arrive, cursing Matt all the way there and when he was let in through the door. Matt led him upstairs to where Rosa lay motionless on the bed.

  “Jesus!” exclaimed Jack “what happened, is she dead?”

  Matt shook his head.

  “I said she was a total knockout, not that you had to knock her out, lad,” Jack added.

  “She needs the hospital,” said Matt.

  “Where‘s Grace?”

  “She’s okay. Here, give me a hand.”

  Between them, they managed to gently roll Rosa over and Matt picked her up in his arms.

  “What did you bring, car or pick up?” he asked Jack. Old faithful was the response, meaning the latter. “Get the case and the computer,” instructed the younger man.

  Swiftly, they moved down the stairs and outside to the waiting vehicle. Jack got into the passenger side and Matt lifted Rosa into his arms.

  “Is she one of them?” asked Jack as they sped off.

  “Yes … no ... maybe,” replied Matt, undecidedly.

  “Jesus,” said Jack, rolling his eyes. “If it’s no I can understand the rush to hospital. If it’s yes then stop and I’ll chuck her in the harbour. Jesus knows what I‘m supposed to do if it’s a maybe!”

  “I’ll explain on the way,” Matt said to his friend, as he pressed the accelerator to the floor.

  The hospital was minutes away, giving Matt enough time to bring Jack up to speed. Yes, Matt did believe she had been sent to find him by his enemies. He didn’t know whether she had called it in. In fact, Matt thought Rosa was trying to help him until Grace misread the situation. Only two things were important now.

  First, he had to get Grace away from The Keg. Despite his better judgement, Matt had decided to go with her on the cruise. The gauntlet of US border controls was an unfortunate risk Matt was going to have to take.

  Second, someone would have to watch over Rosa until she recovered. Use Holly if you have to, Matt told Jack. Once she was out of hospital Matt would contact her. He would buy another pre-pay mobile and give his friend the number.

  “Use text, don’t ring,” Matt insisted.

  “I thought I was the captain of this ship!”

  “Finally…” said Matt,

  “Finally,” Jack said, “yur said there were two things!”

  “Finally,” Matt repeated, “Grace and I will need a lift to Vancouver, as close to departure time as possible.”

  He looked at Jack as the pick-up pulled alongside the hospital entrance and grinned.

  “I’ll get the door for you,” he offered.

  The watch read three in the morning by the time Matt had returned. He hurried up the stairs. Grace was on her bed, still dressed in her black T-shirt and white, knee length billowy skirt. Her knuckles were white with anxiety.

  “How is she?” she asked jumping up to greet him, almost afraid to let the question fall from her lips.

  “Looks like she’ll be okay,” said Matt.”

  Grace burst into tears. He moved to comfort her.

  “I don’t know what happened,
” she cried, “I can’t explain, I thought she was going to hurt you.”

  “It’s alright,” he soothed. “Jack and Holly are going to take care of everything.”

  Matt kicked off his shoes and led her to the bed where they lay down. She snuggled into him and they cuddled silently. It didn’t take long for Grace to start asking questions.

  “Hush now,” he said, gently kissing her forehead. “It’s been a long day of surprises and we both need to rest. We’ve got the whole of next week to sort a few things out.”

  His reassuring words and the gentle stroking of her hair seemed to do the trick. Within a few minutes he could hear her breathing softly, rhythmically, as she slept.

  The ordeal of getting through US Border controls started to occupy his mind. He could easily end up being arrested, forced to the ground and then handcuffed before being lead away into captivity right in front of Grace. He wondered if Rosa had come to the island alone, or whether she had accomplices in place. She said they needed to talk, suggesting she hadn’t come to kill him, at least not yet.

  Then the worrying images of Grace’s attempt on Rosa’s life, and their subsequent tussle, entered his mind. The fierceness in her eyes, the almost insane desire to harm another person, had shaken Matt to the core. Yes, she was trying to defend and protect him. Nevertheless, the surreal moment presented an unseen side of her personality. He began to wonder how well he knew Grace.

  Matt wanted to stay awake, to worry some more. His body insisted it was time to rest. A large spider appeared on the ceiling and made its way across the painted surface. Tillman had sent his brother to watch over Matt.

  Gradually his eyelids, getting heavier by the second, forced themselves shut and he entered a light restless sleep.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Vancouver Dash