“Sooo, tell me. Whad’ya think? Are you a dunk convert or what?”
“You were right, that was a way better way to eat it. How did you discover that?”
“Well, a lot of time drinking coffee and eating fig newtons, working at the front desk at a shipping company in my early twenties.”
As they sat there enjoying the figgy goodness, a huge gust of wind arrived and whacked the cabin from the north side, shaking the place. Then immediately after, the lights went out. Guy grabbed the flashlight he had stowed on the sofa beside him and turned it on. Okay, he thought, why isn’t the generator kicking in.
“I think I should go out and see why the generator didn’t kick in, heres a torch for you.”
“Do you think you should go out, the weather is just getting crazier out there!”
“Well, if we want to have any heat in the house we need the generator working. I don’t know what happened, the oil was all connected… I think. It’s been a while since I had to fiddle about with that old thing.”
“Look, we have the fire. As you said, the gas is connected to the stove, so we have that if we feel peckish during the night. I am fine sleeping here on the sofa and you on the chairs in front of the fire if it means you not going out into a huge storm.”
“Hmm, well when you put it like that,” he winked at her, although it was so dark, she probably didn’t notice.
“Okay, well if we are having a slumber party in the living room, lets go and gather our pillows and duvets. I’ll grab my stuff and you go grab what you need from the girls room.”
They each went their ways, treading carefully up the torch lit stairs. Guy changed into his nightclothes. Some old track pants a T-shirt and a huge sweatshirt with a hood. He grabbed his pillow and duvet and an old crocheted blanket that his grandma had made many, many years ago.
Darla took her bedclothes and also grabbed some kind of woollen blanket. They both emerged at the same time and walked even more carefully down the stairs laden down with their beds for the night.
“Okay, so you take the sofa and I’ll push the two arm chairs together closer to the fire. Hey, what about Pat? Do you think she needs any blankets?” Guy said.
“Nah, I think she’ll be fine. Seals have an amazing fur, she may even be too hot sitting right by the fire, which is why she probably moved away a little.”
“Okay my bed is made. Are we going to sleep now? I’m not tired after all that coffee. What time is it even?”
“It’s ten thirty. I’m not sleepy either. Maybe we could play a board game? Or try the radio?”
“Okay, lets try the radio first then a board game.”
They tried the radio, but all they got was static. Guy thought, wouldn’t it be a great idea if they made popcorn to have while they played their board game. He had a couple of those pop in the pan packs. Darla admitted it had been a very long time since she had made one of those and it had always reminded her of her cousins and staying over in their house. It was always their Saturday evening treat with a rented movie. Guy loved popcorn too. It was a tradition for board games in the cabin, usually their mother would make up two packs and they would munch away all evening, and as he said the games could go on for a while, sometimes even another game would be started after one team refused to believe they had lost, usually his father.
They took all the things off the coffee table and set up the game. They decided on a game of checkers, easy enough for a first night of gaming together. They both sat on the sofa, each under their own duvet with a bowl of popcorn and a whisky each. Darla had added some melted butter along with her salt on her popcorn and to her disgust, Guy had added some grated cheese.
“I still can’t believe you are eating cheese on your popcorn Guy.”
“Hey, this coming from the woman who dunks strange cookies in her coffee.”
“You liked that though. Cheese on popcorn is just gross and you know it.”
“It’s savoury just like butter. Go on try some, I swear you’ll like it,” he said waving the bowl in front of her.
“Ok, I suppose it’s only fair, but if I barf you have to clean it up,” she laughed.
She took a small handful and ate it with mock disgust on her face. Guy could see her face change from irritation to wonder to what looked almost like satisfaction.
“So, do they pass the test?”
“It was okay.”
“Admit it, you liked it!”
“Yeah, it was pretty good,” she laughed.
“Okay, well next batch you have to try all cheese then.”
They tossed for colours and Guy got black. While they were playing Darla noticed the seal was ever so slowly inching it’s way over to them.
“Guy”, she whispered.
“Yep”
“Look at Pat.”
Guy looked over to where Pat had been, but it wasn’t there.
“Where is it?”
“Pat is now at the foot of my part of the sofa. Do you think it’s getting lonely?”
He laughed and looked down. Sure enough the seal was at the foot of the sofa.
“Maybe its hungry, should I get more fish?”
“Yeah, thats probably a good idea.”
As soon as Guy stood up, the seal began to bark.
“I think we’re onto something.”
He grabbed the ice box and checked out the fish situation.
“Okay, so we are down to about eight fish. Hopefully the weather will clear up by tomorrow, so you can head back, or I can get some more fish.”
The night wore on and around midnight they both started getting tired. It was decided they would go to sleep and just wake up whenever in the morning. The wind was still pretty bad and the waves hadn’t subsided, but it hadn’t gotten any worse, they both just hoped they could get some sleep. Guy put the fireguard up and climbed into his armchair bed. Darla curled up on the sofa and Pat lay below her snoring away peacefully.
CHAPTER FIVE
They were woken abruptly by a crashing sound. Darla checked her watch, it was 2a.m..
“Did you hear that?” she asked Guy.
“I thought it was in my dream, was it a real noise?”
“It was a loud crashing sound, like wood though, not glass.”
“Aah, maybe the boats or the shed? That shed is pretty old.”
“Should we check? Maybe even just peek out the windows?”
“Sure go ahead,” he said.
Darla got up from the sofa and walked towards the window. She couldn’t see perfectly as the shutters were up, but if she squinted she could see a bit. The wind was blowing bits of branches and other detritus around the garden. The trees were waving wildly and she could see the boats bashing side by side off the dock.
“Where is the shed in the garden? I don’t remember and I’m not spotting it.”
“It’s off to the left when you look out the window, down before that huge tree.”
“I’m not seeing it.”
Guy got up and walked over. He cupped his hands around his eyes and looked towards where the shed was. But it wasn’t there.
“Damn it! The damn thing has blown away!”
“Oh no. What was in it?”
“All kinds of shed things, my fishing gear, oil for the boat, boat stuff, years of things that accumulate in a shed.”
“I’m sorry. Maybe we can hope that it just blew off intact and everything will be inside it?”
“We can hope all right.”
Guy was pretty bummed about the shed. There was a lot of his dads things in that shed that he’d thought to hang on to for his own possible kids, or his nieces and nephews. Not heirloom stuff, but it’s nice to have the items that were truly loved and used by a loved one. He mentally crossed his fingers that Darla was right and the shed had just rolled away intact and he would have nothing to worry about. Well, if only the shed got damaged he could count himself lucky he thought.
They sat back down in their beds. Both of them feeling desperately
tired, but too awake at that moment to sleep.
“Do you have any cocoa? I find it helps me get back to sleep.”
“Yep, in the pantry, that would be nice Darla.”
She set off and made the cocoa. It was something she always made for Adeen when she was cranky or Darla just felt like she needed something extra special. When she was at her sisters, of course she would have to make it for her nieces too, she would add a marshmallow and that thing would blow up and fill the whole mug, but the kids loved it. She really hoped everything was al lright back at the house. The storms full effects were not going to be near them, but they would get a little bad weather. Adeen would probably be cuddled in the bed with her auntie. Hopefully she would be back by late afternoon, or the evening at the latest.
“Here you go Sir, one giant mug of hot cocoa. No marshmallows I’m afraid.”
“Oh yeah, I forgot them, our mom would add them too. Can’t believe I forgot them. Man, I’m getting old.”
“Ah come on now, are you down in the dumps coz of the shed? I’m sure even if it’s a bit damaged we’ll find most of the things from it.”
“Yeah it’s the shed, but it’s also being here without my family. No offence, you are great surprise storm company, it’s just this is the first time I’ve been here when I know for sure my parents wont show up and it’s pretty damn sad.”
“Oh,” she said, placing her hand on his knee. “I never thought of it like that. It’s good you have your siblings though, at least there is a possibility they may show up”
“Yeah, I suppose.” He said.
The wind was still raging outside. They talked for another hour and then both started to get sleepy. The cocoa had done its job. As they lay sleeping, the wind howled around the cabin, whipping up dust and bits of broken tree limbs. Soon there was no more dust, as the waves were splashing far and wide, soaking everything around. One of the boats finally broke loose from it’s mooring, after a night of being torn about by the wind and sea. It was Guys boat, but Darla’s boat followed it off into the sea an hour later. They both washed up in pieces on nearby islands. The wind began to die down around five in the morning, but then the rain began. Around this time, a very tired visitor washed up on Guys island. The seal lay there in the dirt, exhausted from a night of trying to find shelter and searching for it’s lost pup. It slowly moved up the garden to where it could smell something familiar. Not its baby, but food.
CHAPTER SIX
The next morning, Darla woke up first. She was bursting to use the facilities. It was that late night cocoa she thought. She saw it was eight o’ clock, she felt wide awake though, she realised she had slept through the night.. She went about her business and when she came back to the living room she saw Guy was standing looking out the window.
“Good morning”, she said.
“Oh, jeez, you startled me. Good morning.”
Laughing, Darla said, “You not fully awake yet then?”
“Oh, just looking at something in the garden, not quite sure what it is. Storms died down by the way, it’s pouring rain though, as I’m sure you can tell.”
“Let me have a look.”
She peered outside and at the bottom of the steps was a large brownish grey mass of something.
“Maybe it’s a tree trunk, or a pile of seaweed? Wow, that is a lot of mess out there.”
“Yeah, and I just finished clearing up after winter!”
“That’s island life for you. You live in the open sea like this and thats what will happen.”
“True, I don’t remember a storm so early like this though.”
“Climate change, man”, she said matter of factly.
They both threw on clothes and grabbed some rubber boots from out in the back hall. Guy opened the front door and it opened so stiffly, liked they had been trapped in there for an eternity. They both approached the mass tentatively, trying to be quiet, but in the too large rubber boots, Darla especially was no ninja this time.
She mouthed to him, I’m sorry, as she squeaked to the edge of the top step.
“It’s another damned seal!” she exclaimed.
“Boy golly you’re right!”
She looked at him with her eyebrow raised. Looking the seal over, it looked like a fully grown female.
“Is it dead?”, Guy asked.
“No, I can hear some faint breathing. She must have washed up in the storm exhausted at some point. Grab a fish and we’ll see if she responds.”
Guy grabbed the ice box and first gave a fish to the wakening Pat. He walked down the steps and held the fish in his hand, waving it in front of the new seals head.
“Should I poke it? Just to get it to wake up?”
“No, it’s probably just truly exhausted if it was out in the storm.”
Guy lay the fish at the bottom step and looked about the island to see the damage. A lot of tree limbs scattered about, some probably not even from his island. Some of the roof tiles had come down and as he looked down to the shore, finally he noticed that the two boats were gone.
“Oh no! The boats are gone!” he exclaimed.
“What? Oh no. Both of them? That’s disheartening.”
They both walked down to the dock, which now was split in half, one half had sunk and the other was looking very frail. There was no sign of the boats. As he stood there wondering how much a new boat would cost, Darla tugged at his arm.
“What?”
“Look over there,” she pointed to the right of the cabin. Way in the back, there was a pile of something sticking up.
“THE SHED!”
Guy ran back there and looking around could make out that one side and the roof of the shed were lying on top of what looked like a lot of the things from inside it.
“Oh well this makes the loss of the boat a little easier to take. He ran inside grabbed gloves for them both and they threw the roof and side off. Underneath was all his fishing equipment, a lot of tools and the chainsaw. His father had burned his initials into everything, so if stuff did turn up on other islands, he could just put out a bulletin on the local islands website to notify people.
“Lets go back inside and see if the radios are working. We’re gonna need to call for help to get me back and to get you a new boat!” Darla said.
They turned on the radio and it was working, they left it on and waited for the news to come around while they made themselves some breakfast. While they sat on the porch finishing their meal and their coffees, Pat scooted out and lay at the top of the steps looking down at the female seal. He started to make a lot of noise and eventually the bigger seal began to move its body. It cocked its head up to where the sound was coming from and replied to Pat. The female seal seemed to fully wake up then and grabbed the fish in her mouth and ate it down. Darla grabbed another two fish and gave one each to the seals. Pat slid down the steps and tried to nuzzle up the female.
“She probably thinks it’s her mom”
“Would the female adopt her?”
“It does happen, more so in captivity than we’ve seen in the wild, but it could happen. If she did then at least our Pat wouldn’t have to come back with me to the rescue centre.”
10a.m. rolled around and the news came on. It informed them that the storm had really taken its toll on the smaller islands in the bay. A lot of damage on the islands farther out, which happened to be mostly the holiday home islands. Most of them were empty at the moment, so no lives lost, just a lot of damage, trees down, roofs blown off. In the harbour and along the coastline there was also extensive damage to boats, a lot of roads ripped up from the waves that came over the sea wall, some coastal homes were damaged too. Luckily along this part of the coast, it’s mostly rocky, so not many homes close to the shore. Power had been restored on the mainland by early morning, but would take longer to get back to the islands. The companies that owned the holiday homes were sending out clean up crews to assess the damage, saying they would inform early visitors to the islands about their bookings when
the damage was assessed.
The announcer also spoke directly to island residents to call the local coastguard by radio, just to let them know numbers of people on the islands and their conditions, if they needed any help.
“So, do you wanna call the number now? Get yourself back to the mainland?”
Darla thought for a moment. “Well, we should definitely call, to let them know we are here, but I think I’d like to stay a bit longer, just to see how it works out with Pat and the female seal, if she takes Pat under her wing, then I can leave feeling good about the situation. Plus I think you need a little help around here!”
“What about your daughter?”
“I can get the coast guard to call my sister and let her know we are okay, and then I will email as soon as the power comes back on.”
“Okay. I would of course appreciate your help, having only cleaned up the other day, I am not looking forward to doing it all on my own again.”
The call went well with the coastguard, they gave their details and that both their boats were gone, but that they were going to stay on the island to clear up and leave tomorrow. The coastguard responded that they would come by his island the next day in the morning sometime.To leave the radio on and be sure to listen for weather updates, as they were unsure that it wasn’t going to swing by again.
They threw on some overalls they found in the remains of the shed and got to work clearing up. There were parts of roofs not his, parts of boats not his or hers. Lots of branches and leaves and seaweed, dead fish, starfish, seashells. Everything from the sea went back in, all other organic material went in his compost bin. Everything else went in the wheelbarrow to be decided later.
They took a break for lunch, eating some spicy ramen and drinking a pot of coffee. They noticed that the two seals were now laying next to each other, eating the last of the fish. They were also making noises with each other, which Darla said was promising. It took them until six in the evening before the island was cleared of all non organic loose materials, they left some branches around that Guy said would be no problem to compost at a later date.
After dinner they turned on the radio, listening to the forecast and hearing there was no more strong winds due, they both heaved a sigh of relief. They sat out on the porch and watched as the two seals were making their way towards the shore.
Love Revealed: A BWWM Sweet Romance Novel Page 3