Blood Games

    They watched Vivian struggle to yank a suitcase off a carousel in the baggage claim area at Kennedy. Then she and Finley were apparently in the back seat of a taxi. There were views of the driver’s head, and some scenery along the way to Manhattan. They’d been the last of the group to arrive. Finley was ready with her camera when Cora opened the door to their room at the Hilton.

    ‘We oughta fast-forward through this,’ Cora said. ‘Hell, it was only last year.’

    ‘And it’s getting late,’ Vivian said.

    ‘Don’t be party-poopers. There isn’t all that much.’

    ‘Have you got my wedding on here?’ Cora asked.

    ‘But of course.’

    ‘Let’s just move on to that.’

    ‘Fine with me,’ Helen said. ‘This New York stuff’ll just remind me of what you people did to Wayne.’

    ‘We didn’t do anything to him,’ Cora said.

    ‘He’s not on the tape, anyway,’ Finley explained.

    ‘Even so, it’s making me think about him.’

    ‘Okay, okay.’ Finley went to the TV and pushed the fast-forward button on her camcorder. Scenes of their days in New York City flashed by.

    ‘It would’ve been stupid to let him into the room,’ Cora said.

    ‘He was a nice guy.’

    ‘Maybe he was and maybe he wasn’t. We were just playing it safe.’

    ‘Maybe we misjudged him,’ Abilene said. ‘But who knows what he might’ve done if we’d let him into our rooms?’

    ‘He could’ve been a rapist,’ Vivian explained.

    ‘Helen had her hopes pinned on it,’ Finley said. ‘But I would’ve called firsties.’

    ‘That’s not funny,’ Helen muttered.

    Finley, shaking her head at the television’s speeding images, said, ‘It was almost a waste of tape. Nothing happened. It’s like looking at a travelogue.’

    ‘Maybe my choice of activities will turn out to be more interesting,’ Cora said.

    ‘I sure hope so.’

    ‘He was a nice guy,’ Helen muttered.

    ‘Let’s have some quiet,’ Cora announced as the scenes of her wedding began.

    The next morning, they rented a Pathfinder recreational vehicle, loaded their sleeping bags, luggage and supplies, and headed north across the Golden Gate.

    Following Abilene’s directions, they took the tum-off to Mill Valley. She pointed out some of her favorite places as they drove through the town. Her parents had moved to Flagstaff three years ago, but she wanted to see the old house. Unfortunately, the final stretch of hillside road was too narrow for the RV. ‘No big deal,’ she said.

    ‘Looks like Wolfe was right,’ Vivian said.

    She laughed. ‘Can’t go home again… not without a tiny car, anyway.’

    They retreated to wider roads. ‘Anybody want to visit Muir Woods or the top of Mount Tam?’ she asked. ‘They’re on the way.’

    ‘Have you got your heart set on it?’ Cora asked.

    ‘I’m gonna bring Harris over here on our honeymoon. Give

    him a guided tour of where I spent my callow youth. Unless you guys are interested, we can skip ’em.’

    ‘I guess I’d rather get on over to the coast,’ Cora said. Abilene navigating, they made their way along twisty roads and down the side of Mount Tamalpias to the town of Stinson Beach. In a shop there, Cora selected a wetsuit and a surfboard. ‘I’m the only one gonna surf?’ she asked.

    ‘You can count me out,’ Finley said. ‘I’ll record your wipeouts for posterity.’

    ‘I’ll borrow yours if I get the urge,’ Abilene said. ‘Which I doubt.’

    ‘I’m not going in the ocean,’ Helen said. ‘There’s sharks out there.’

    ‘This’ll do it for me,’ Vivian said, holding up a string bikini.

    ‘You’re planning to wear that in public?’ Abilene asked.

    ‘If Cora’s right, there won’t be any public. Right?’

    ‘That’s the idea,’ Cora agreed. ‘That’s why I decided we should go north. Miles and miles of deserted coastline. If we stop in the right places, we’ll have the water to ourselves.’

    ‘Because it’s too cold for sensible people,’ Abilene pointed out.

    ‘That shouldn’t bother any of you pansies,’ Cora said. ‘Sounds like I’ll be the only one going out in it.’

    She purchased her surfboard and wetsuit. Vivian purchased her bikini. Then they returned to the RV and headed north on Pacific Coast Highway.

***

    They stopped for lunch in Bodega Bay. Helen was thrilled. This was where Hitchcock’s The Birds had taken place. Their table at the restaurant overlooked the very same stretch of water that Tippi Hedren had been crossing in a motorboat when a bird had swooped down and pecked her head. ‘I can’t believe I’m actually here,’ she said, and took an eager gulp of her Bloody Mary.

    Abilene laughed. ‘Last year, Grandpa Munster’s. This year, Bodega Bay. You’ve really been lucking out.’

    ‘Yeah,’ Finley said. ‘Even if the rest of the trip turns out to be a total bust, you…’

    ‘It won’t,’ Cora interrupted. ‘We’ll have a great time.’

    ‘Watching you ride a surfboard?’

    ‘It’s great so far,’ Helen said. ‘And next year’s my turn. We’ll go some place really cool.’

    ‘Lining up a haunted house for us?’ Abilene asked.

    ‘I’m still working on it. But you can bet I’ll find some place just dripping with spookiness.’

    After lunch, they went to a market and stocked up on supplies: groceries, soft drinks, booze, ice, sun block, and fresh batteries for their flashlights.