Visions of Blue: Book I in the Visions Trilogy

by Inia Jardine

  ‘Lilia, I am sorry for the behaviour of my sister's son Carl. My friend George Edmunds informed me of what happened. I do not know what caused the scene, but I have given Carl a sermon on behaviour as his uncle, and a serious warning as an employer. If he misbehaves like this again he is out of the Castle forever. And out of his inheritance.’

  ‘Thank you for caring but it is under control Sir James, I think he understands that Jonah means business. It is not your fault at all. They say you can choose your friends, but not your family.’

  ‘True, true. Lilia, I have some bad news.’ I notice for the first time that he is looking run down. I have been so busy with the work and preoccupied with Jonah that I have barely given attention to anybody since I walked in this morning.

  ‘What is it Sir James’ I put my hand on his arm. This lovely old gentleman is one of my favourite people. He reminds me a bit of my dad.

  ‘I was unfortunately diagnosed with cancer and I am forced to retire from the Castle Chairmanship with immediate effect. They have kept me on thus far as I am the owner but I am eighty this year. My body is looking for some tranquility and Sybil and I decided to go and retire in the South of France as soon as possible. Our kids & grand kids can run the Castle now. We have put the biggest part of the family land adjacent to the Castle on the market although it breaks my heart.’

  'Sir James, I am so sorry to hear that. You are a wonderful resilient person and if anyone can beat this disease, you can. Just take loads of rest, eat fresh healthy vegetarian foods and the relaxation in a warmer climate will do wonders for you. I think I may just be able to help you with the other issue. My lovely holiday man would like to invest in this town and he would love it out there in the forest. We have not found anything else on the market to our liking yet.’

  I am getting very excited by the prospect as the land adjoining the Castle is huge, secluded and beautifully placed next to the Arumvale River. We had a staff outing there once and it was so magical & mystical.

  ‘Let me make a quick phone call. What is the price you would like for the land and what is the size?’ I will talk to Jonah as soon as possible.

  Sir James holds up five of his fingers. ‘It is approximately five thousand hectares. Mostly woodland. So it goes for a bargain. It is valued at five million or so as it is undeveloped land.'

  ‘Five million pounds? It really is a lot of money but I will speak to Jonah.’

  'Just remember, you can't do much with it as it is protected woodlands & forests but it is lovely and private. There is also unfortunately a clause in the title deed which prohibits any large residential, business or resort development.'

  When Jonah answers the phone I jump right in. ‘Jonah honey, have you heard from the Estate Agents yet? I think I have found what we are looking for. A place in a forest. Amazingly it is for almost exactly the amount that Gorgoleta Estate sold for.'

  ‘All systems go Lilia, when can we have a look? It would be a perfect trade, Gorgoleta Estate for that rich foreigner and a forest hideaway for us.’

  ‘I want you to come and have look at the place after work, it is huge and lovely and peaceful. I can come and pick you up around four is that OK?’

  ‘Cool Lilia see you then.’ Jonah sounds pleased. ‘My new bike is coming tomorrow so we don’t have to share your Range Rover any more. It is a shiny new Ducati 1000! I can’t wait.’

  I turn to Sir James, smile and show him a thumbs up sign.

  ‘So you are serious about this young man then Lilia if you want to buy a home together? Is it going to be a permanent thing?’ Sir James gives me a very naughty and inquisitive glance.

  ‘He is only the most gorgeous man in the entire world’ I sigh. ‘I have brought the best of Jamaica home with me. You will love him Sir James, I wish you had time to get to know him better. He is such a clever and amusing man. You would have lots to talk about as he is a Professor of Geology’.

  ‘He should apply at the University then Lilia, if he wants a job again. Let him speak to Human Resources and give them all his info. I will give him a good character reference.’

  'Thanks Sir James, much appreciated. I will let you know what Jonah says as soon as we have visited your land after work today.'

  Jonah loves the land on sight and after a short but intense meeting with the snooty local Estate Agent, Sir James moves the transaction over to Samir Properties where Bella is our representative. News must travel fast because within minutes Sir James gets a higher offer on the table.

  As we walk into the office I can see that Bella is upset.

  “Jonah, Lilia, I am not trying to make trouble, you know you are my friends. Herr Leibenstein who is here at the moment heard about the sale via the Castle grapevine where he most probably has his spies, and made the counter offer. He has been interested in this land for a long time but Sir James had no intentions of selling to him. Apparently his words were 'over my dead body' when Herr Leibenstein approached him before. But money talks so you should not be surprised if he accepts the higher offer this time. It is almost a million pounds more than the asking price.'

  'Well Bella, Jonah already signed the documents and so did Sir James. What can be overturned now?'

  'If the money from the transaction for Gorgoleta Estate is not cleared within 24 hours Herr Leibenstein is willing to put the total amount in cash into the Castle account. I know that they can do with such a cash injection. A castle is very expensive to run.'

  Jonah storms out of the office in a rage and I follow him home where he is on the phone to his bank manager in Jamaica within seconds. The thunder clouds in his face turn to fair weather as he is informed that the purchaser agreed to deposit the full amount into Jonah's bank account. The bank will give him a guarantee for the full purchase price of Sir James' property.

  'That guy Leibenstein has just made an enemy of me today Lilia, I do not like to be cheated out of something that is mine. Even if he failed. Lucky for us Sir James is not the money hungry person Leibenstein thought him to be. He told me in confidence that he is afraid of what Leibenstein will do with the land, and he does not want to sell it to him at all. He made me promise not to sell to him either. I have no problem with that.'

  I wonder who the person is who tipped Leibenstein off about the sale. I trust Bella completely, so it has to be Carl.

  I will not rest until we have that Title Deed in our hands. I just know this place is meant for us, when something is right, it is right. You just know it.

  Sir and Lady James relocate out of the Castle grounds to France within the month and Jonah and I start building our new home on the forest land.

  We are taking it slow, just building a tiny replica of what has always been my dream, a walled Xanadu for just us. It is a lovely patch of land in the Arumvale river valley with quite a large portion of the river flowing through it. Water we will always have enough of and I can plant whatever I want.

  We were so lucky to get it.

  We assured Sir James again that this land will never be developed, mined or otherwise spoilt. It is home to many magnificent forest creatures and the river teems with mullet. It is our idea of a very real and beautiful sanctuary away from the realities of the world. We have dreamed about doing this since we met.

  Without disturbing any of the natural beauty, we slowly build our little haven almost smack dab in the middle of the land. Far away from everyone. Complete with small courtyard & pool as at Gorgoleta Estate. It was me who insisted on that because of Jonah’s heritage.

  My hobby, gardening, is being put to good use and I am busy cultivating lots of exotic shrubs from Jonah’s homeland to plant in the protected courtyard and stronger varieties all around the house. We are keeping most of the land in its natural state though.

  I have set up my own small greenhouse and a proper conservatory is being built adjoining the house. The only very British touch is rambling roses all over our porches. These, in contrast to normal houses, don't wrap around the outside of the house, but borders
the 4 inside walls of the house. They create a snug, enclosed, safe private space. We have colourful hibiscuses, magnolias, frangipani & bougainvillea to remind us of ‘home’, Jamaica. We also have the beginnings of a huge organic vegetable garden out back. A lush and dense forest takes up the rest of the five thousand acres’ piece of land. It is as big as a small country! Among many unexplored acres there is also a small rocky hillside surrounding lower lying land.

  Jonah and I are so in love, madly, and have been as close as two people can be without living in each other’s pockets. I have never known that soulmates like these can exist. Since I have completed my work at the Castle I have concentrated my energies on our new home and our relationship. I am not letting him go again. I have almost all I ever wanted, a gorgeous wonderful man, a safe home between the hills and the forest, the only thing lacking is the ocean. We should go on vacation to the ocean then, soon. It makes me think of Italiano for the first time in ages, I wonder how he is. I wonder if he still plays Myst. I have not been online in ages.

  ‘Lilia! Come see what I just found!’ Jonah calls to me one morning. He has done some scouting on his new Ducati on the passable portions of land as we have not yet seen the further reaching areas ourselves, except on aerial photographs. Sir James promised a few good surprises if we explored the further reaches of the land and this promise has definitely not disappointed so far.

  We travel through the forest to reach a rocky ridge. As we get to the top my jaw drops.

  ‘My word, it looks like a meteor crater!’ I exclaim. I did not see this on the photos! It must be too overgrown. This is more than I would ever have imagined. It is weird and alien but beautiful in its own way. ‘I would love to know how Sir James kept it a secret for so long!’

  Jonah smiles. ‘How magnificent! The best kept secret of Arumvale! And it’s ours...I love Sir and Lady James! Maybe they did not even know about it themselves. The land is huge and not negotiable by car.'

  We walk and clamber through the crater hand in hand. ‘Why do birds suddenly appear, every time, you are near...’ Jonah sings, he sure does not sound like Ms Karen Carpenter but he is so romantic (and cheesy).

  He envelops me in his big arms and kisses me deeply. As we sink down onto the rough crater surface he rolls me over on top of him.

  'Let's christen our crater.'

  'Ouch.'

  ‘I am still a gentleman and I will take the punch on the hard ground.’

  ‘...and my knees will be bloody for a week...’ I laughingly add before he knocks the breath right out of me. With one movement he has wrangled us so that I feel his first thrust without even taking any clothes off.

  ‘Why is it so easy for you to slip into me no matter what I am wearing. It is not like I wear short skirts with no panties all day long...? You rogue, if I didn’t know better I would have thought that you did this professionally!’ I quip before it becomes too distracting to speak. Jonah and I make love for a few minutes before our sore bodies scream for help.

  ‘No, this is way too uncomfortable. Let’s leave the rest till later. I just had to christen this place. From now on it will be called 'Lush Lilia's Love Lair.'

  As we try to get up from the ground we both admit defeat. 'This place is not conducive to the frolicking of older persons Jonah!'

  ‘Agreed, oh ouch I don’t think I will be able to walk back to the bike, you torturer!’ Jonah sighs as I help him up.

  ‘You don’t know how happy you make me even though you torture me. I have another surprise for you on the way and another at home’ he says. ‘Wait till you see this...’

  As we cross over the ridge the micro climate changes immediately into a dense moist forest.

  ‘The Arumvale river must pass by very close to here’.

  ‘Not only that my Lilia but you will soon take your clothes off, again, but with considerably less pain involved!’

  ‘You are assuming a lot, have a heart.’

  The hidden waterfall is one out of a Swan Lake fairy story. It is enchanted, I am sure. It is surrounded by vegetation I have never come across outside of books before. We take our clothes off and wade into the pool underneath the falls to wash off the grime and grit from our recent unsuccessful attempt at coupling on the hard rocky ground of the crater. It is cold but bearable.

  ‘If I was not so knackered I would have wanted to ravish you again my princess but just kiss me. I want this magic to enter our souls.’

  Jonah can be so romantic at times. He has the ability to make my knees go weak and he is strong enough to carry me when they do! What a combination.

  'I think that I will christen this place ‘Jonah's Joasis of Joy’. We can come back and consummate another time.'

  'I agree.'

  After a refreshing skinny dip, we lazily get dressed and get on the bike again. As we arrive home he drives straight to the back of the house where the workshop area is. ‘I will see if I can hang this tomorrow but right now my back is out of action’ he moans as he shows me a brand new sign.

  Xanadu it says in purple, my favourite colour. With a picture of two little chameleons.

  ‘I had this made for you, it is the name of our new home.’

  ‘A place, where nobody dared to go, ... called it Xanadu...

  ...open your eyes and see, ... we are in Xanadu’ he sings.

  ‘Oh Jonah, you make me the happiest woman alive’ I grab him and give him a big hug and kiss. ‘Are they chameleons or anoles?’

  ‘Whoa, you better throw in an aromatherapy massage my darling, I am so sore! They can be whatever you want. Maybe one a South African chameleon and one a Jamaican anole.’

  ‘Any time old man’ I say lovingly, ‘if you promise to put plasters on my knees and kiss them better.'

  Jonah or ‘Big J’ as I affectionately call him spends every moment he has free with me. Since just last month he has taken a part time position at the University lecturing Geology. His students love him.

  I miss not having him around all the time though. Jonah has such a wonderful booming laugh that can make all your troubles melt away and whenever I feel down I just have to hear him and I am OK.

  Even though we have never really fitted in here socially, we have made a good life for ourselves and only socialise with Bella. Up to now, Jonah and I have enjoyed this smallish town. It has been a bit more than eight months since he moved here to be with me, and we have moved into the completed part of our new home a while ago. What a wonderful man, I am so lucky to have him. His days are now very busy. Students, policy and new courses take up most of his time during the week, but on weekends he is mine, all mine. We made that commitment to each other on his acceptance of this demanding position.

  Bella is my only friend. The three of us do many things together and recently one of Jonah’s acquaintances, local book store owner Howie Davis, has gone along on a few of our picnics at the waterfall. Although Howie is quite a bit older than Bella and somewhat of a nerdy guy, he is obviously smitten with Bella. Something might be brewing between them...how wonderful would that be if our friends would fall in love!

  Between these two clever people they sure have more than enough knowledge to keep intelligent conversation going for years if there is not enough of an amorous spark.

  My cats get on extremely well with Bella's two lovely blue eyed Seal Point Siamese cats, Skye and Crystal. It has never been a problem leaving them behind with her if we have to go away for short periods of time. We do the same for her occasionally when she goes to Germany to see the stockholders of the company she runs.

  Bella has recently accepted a contract position at Vatjer, Leibenstein & Forsten, the recently established local development company who bought out and took over her company, Samir Estate Agency.

  One of the owners is that Leibenstein man who wanted Sir James's land. They are not very nice people but in a small town you have to take the paying work you can get. We do not ask her about her work and she, in turn, does not volunteer any information.

 
; The cold and wet weather which we have, lots of it, suits me but Jonah took some time to get used to it. Now he loves it too. Our home has really grown and shaped around us and the cats so much, that I rarely feel the need to go anywhere. This is now my haven from the world where I feel safe at last, with my Jonah to protect me.

  One afternoon as I put down the phone, I sink onto the settee in the lounge feeling deflated. Minutes later Jonah comes home to find me there crying my heart out.