Blackstone

The Summerland

I slipped quietly inside the foyer of the snug single-family home that my Uncle and I lived in and took off my muddy shoes. I crept up the stairs to my room. Reaching the second floor, I saw that my Uncle's light was on in his room. I tiptoed past, hoping not to disturb him.

"Eliza?" his gruff voice caught me as I put my hand on my bedroom doorknob. I sighed. My uncle's hearing was excellent and I had never once been able to sneak in late past curfew.

I turned around and there he was standing in his bedroom doorway. My Uncle is an imposing figure, tall with broad shoulders and a deep booming voice that rang out when he laughed which wasn't so often these days. Long lines of worry etched his face. His broad shoulders slumped forward when he walked, and his once jet black hair was now almost completely streaked with gray. He walked forward and put his hands on my shoulders.

"What did I tell you about curfew?" he asked with a stern look on his face.

"I know, Uncle Paul," I said. "Joey and I stopped by the Burger King after the movie and time just got away from us. I'm sorry. It won't happen again." That part, about Joey, was at least true.

My Uncle stepped back and appraised me, turning this story over in his mind, looking for any holes in the logic. He pointed at my sneakers. "Very muddy at the movies tonight, huh?"

I looked down at my shoes and shrugged nonchalantly, "There was this big puddle in the parking lot outside Burger King and like a total clutz, I stepped in it. Don't worry, I didn't track any mud inside the house."

My uncle cocked his head and shot me a skeptical look, "That must have been a very big puddle."

I stretched my arms out wide, "Oh it was huge. You wouldn't believe the size of it. I went in almost to my waist. I'm really lucky to be alive."

He smiled and gave me a big hug. "All right. I believe you."

He stepped back and got in what I liked to call his lecture pose, "It's just that the world is such a dangerous place now and I worry about you. Promise me, you'll be in early next time."

"I will, Uncle Paul. I promise it won't happen again."

"All right, sunflower. Now get to bed. I want lights out in ten minutes," he said with a serious look on his face.

I snapped him a crisp salute, "Aye, aye, General."

He smiled, "Aye, aye, Sir. Generals aren't in the Navy." He turned, went back into his bedroom and closed the door.

I slipped inside my modest little room. Other than a small single bed and a desk, there wasn't much to my room. I kept it that way on purpose. Ostentation and Vanity were frowned upon in The Order. Mary always told me that a Keeper needed only their imagination and spirit. Inside oneself, there were limitless worlds to be explored and the silly material trappings of the Middle World served only as a prison.

Of course, it helped that Uncle Paul moved constantly for his work. We were rarely in the same place for more than a year. He promised with this current assignment in New York City that I would be able to graduate from the same high school I started at. So far, so good. I had been at Benjamin Harrison High for the last three years.

I eased down onto my bed and buried my face in my pillow, not even bothering to take off my clothes. Sleep came almost immediately. I swirled down into darkness, leaving this world and my troubles behind for another night.

***

The two person canoe sliced through the calm waters of the lake. I shifted my wooden oar to my left hand and steered the canoe towards a small island in the middle of the lake. Standing on the end of a dock, waiting for me with a scowl on her face, was my teacher, Mary Ravenwing. She gave an impatient gesture with one hand, beckoning me to hurry up.