The Ring

Part 13

The story of Frederick was over, but Dominique could almost feel his presence and that of his lover, here on this lonely little beach. It was as if they were dancing around her, whispering in her ears and caressing her cheeks. They had control of the natural elements and drove them in harmony to relax and seduce and to bring peace. So Dominique was not afraid, this precious little beach had been given to her and had become her place of solitude and peace. Feeling the gentle embrace of the soft breeze and the soft sand as it moulded to her feet, Dominique looked out to the horizon, where the sea met the sky and she shed a single tear in acknowledgement of the gift that they had given her.

When Dominique returned to her mother's cottage, she was in very good spirits. The time on the beach had rejuvenated her and she now walked as a person who carries within them self a secret that no one else could share. The last thing she had seen was Frederick hiding his diaries in the cottage before he left for the beach. Dominique's heart beat a little quicker. She wondered if the diaries were still in the cottage? She recognized the section of wall next to the fireplace and started to test them for a loose panel, which she thought that she had found. She was very excited at the prospect of finding the diaries and started to pry at the panels in order to loosen them, but they seemed quite well fixed to the wall. This was not how she remembered it to be in the dream. The panel should have been loose and easy to access. So it was not to be. Maybe the diaries didn't exist or they were lost many years ago. It was foolish to think that they would still be there, even if they did once exist.

After the disappointment at not finding the diaries, Dominique did find waiting for her yet another letter from the hospital requesting that she make urgent contact. She called the hospital and asked what the letter was about, but the person would not give an answer, but simply suggested that she make an immediate appointment to see her doctor.

When Dominique arrived at the hospital, she was treated as any other patient and asked to wait. During this time in the waiting room, Dominique repeatedly twisted the ring on her finger and just emptied her mind and cast her thoughts to the little beach and the feeling of serenity that she has there. She thought of just sitting on the edge of the sea as the water washed over her and how it would draw away the sand from around her until it had sculpted a chair, perfectly formed for her to sit in. Her reverie was interrupted when the doctor finally poked his head around the door and asked her to come in.

The doctor looked at Dominique and simply told her that it was all gone. These words didn't really mean anything to Dominique, so her expression remained unmoved. So the doctor elaborated: The latest blood test had found no sign of the cancer in her blood and there were no other markers or anything at all to indicate that she had cancer. Her report was totally normal. The doctor was cautions and suggested follow up tests, just to make sure that there was no error. However, after conducting a physical examination he remarked that the bruises were all fading and there were no new ones. He looked astonished, but once more cautiously warned Dominique that there would need to be more tests and that she would be monitored even if the follow up tests returned a negative result. He said that it looked as if she was in remission, but stopped short of saying that she was cured. Dominique just smiled and thanked him.

As she drove back to her mother's cottage, Dominique could only think of Frederick's promise as he cast the ring into the sea and that somehow Frederick had kept his promise. Nevertheless, the world seemed different now, and it left Dominique thinking about questions that really had no answer, questions of how and why.

Dominique returned to find a rather expensive car in front of her mother's cottage. She was curious, as Gwendolyn usually didn't receive many visitors and this car certainly was not from the local area. On entering the cottage, Dominique could hear her mother's voice proclaiming that she had discovered truffles in the area and would soon be starting a lucrative business. She was clearly speaking to someone, as she asked the stranger if they were aware of how expensive truffles were. A man answered that he did, and just as Gwendolyn started to exclaim her delight, Dominique announced her entrance. Gwendolyn stopped speaking immediately and appeared in the kitchen doorway, and invited Dominique to come and meet her father, Earnest.