“Nice try, Ben. I think she knows both of us well enough to know that you have enough quirks of your own. You don’t need to borrow any from me.”
“Still, I hope I can get her to come out here sometime and meet Daniel. She likes interesting characters, and Daniel is nothing if not interesting.”
“Maybe if her husband’s life wasn’t in his hands she’d find him more interesting. Right now, she probably sees him as more of a threat.”
“That’s a good point, Max. You do have good ideas every now and then, don’t you?”
Max smiled, then pulled an apple from his jacket pocket. He bit into it and settled back in his seat to enjoy the scenery as they left the city and headed north up the Gatineau River valley.
“Max, what are you doing carrying a piece of fresh fruit with you? Trying to impress the vice-principal?”
“No. There were no more Twinkies left in the cupboard. This was all I could find for a snack.”
Ben wasn’t buying that. He couldn’t remember ever seeing Max eat fruit, except for strawberry shortcake with enough whipped cream to hide the taste of the fresh fruit beneath.
“Sure, Max. I hope it isn’t too much of a shock to your system.”
*****
As Ben turned the Toyota onto Phoenix St. it let out a shotgun blast.
“I hope there aren’t any gun control fanatics living on this street, Ben,” said Max.
“It’s OK,” replied Ben. “I’ve got a license for this gun.”
When they arrived at the Webster home, Daniel was standing on the front lawn, under a majestic white pine, talking to a woman dressed in a flowered sari wrap. Her thick hair was pulled back in a bun, accentuating her high cheekbones and almond-shaped face. Her eyes sparkled as she listened intently to Daniel. Her gaze shifted as Ben and Max got out of the car. Smiling, she gestured to the guests and placed her hand gently on Daniel’s arm. She spoke softly, lowered her arm, and watched as Daniel turned around to greet the new arrivals.
“Good morning, gentlemen. I’d like you to meet my wife, Elizabeth. Honey, this is Ben Dayton and Max Farley.”
“Very nice to meet you, ma’am,” said Ben, extending his hand.
“Pleasure to meet you,” said Max, raising his hand in a gesture resembling something between a wave and a salute.
“Welcome to our house,” said Elizabeth. “I’m glad you could make it. Daniel has been telling me about your visit last weekend.”
“Your husband is a genius, Mrs. Webster. He predicted that my timing belt would need replacing and sure enough, it does. I guess you heard us coming up the street.”
“We did, indeed. And please call me Elizabeth. Can I get you something to drink? Water or herbal tea?” she offered.
“Water would be fine, thank you,” answered Ben.
“Same here,” said Max. “Thanks.”
Elizabeth turned and walked up the path to the house. Ben noticed that her stride was so smooth that she appeared to be gliding. If Daniel looked young for his age, this woman looked even more remarkably preserved. He was assuming that she was close to Daniel’s age, but he couldn’t be sure. She didn’t look older than 60. He wasn’t about to inquire about her age, however. That was something he stopped doing years ago. It was too risky.
“Nice call on the timing belt, Daniel,” said Ben.
“That’s just experience, Ben. You see things enough times and you start to recognize the warning signs. Have you spoken to your wife about your visit here last week?”
Ben was surprised at the question. Max was the only person who knew about their discussion, and he was sure that it was kept confidential.
“Yes, as a matter of fact. We did discuss it.”
“I see. I hope that she’ll be able to join in one of our sessions sometime.”
“I hope so, too. Should I bring the car in now?” asked Ben, changing the subject.
“Sure. Right hand side, same as before.”
When Ben turned the ignition on, the Toyota backfired again, let out a cloud of dark smoke, then began to idle roughly. He drove into the garage, got out, and attached the exhaust ventilation hose. When he stood up, Daniel handed him a large pinecone. Ben realized that it was from the largest of the white pines on the Webster property. It was the largest one he had ever seen.
“Thanks,” said Ben, hesitating as he accepted the proffered ‘gift’.
As he opened the hood on Ben’s car, Daniel watched Ben examining the pinecone.
“Do you realize how much knowledge and potential energy you are holding in your hands, Ben?”
“Knowledge and energy?” asked Ben.
He looked at Max, who smirked and rolled his eyes toward the ceiling. As he did so, he noticed a bamboo flute hanging on the wall above the door. He hadn’t noticed this on their first visit, nor the beaded curtains in front of the window on the far wall. Max wondered if these people were leftover hippies.
“Do you know what a pinecone is, Ben?” asked Daniel.
“A pinecone? Of course. It’s like a seed. It’s how the tree reproduces.”
“Yes, that’s almost correct. It is actually many seeds. Each blade of the pinecone is a single seed and each cone has the potential energy to create about 30 white pine trees as big as the one in my front yard. I find that pretty amazing, Ben.”
“Does this have anything to do with Ben’s timing belt, Daniel?” asked Max.
“You haven’t started without me, have you, boys?” said Vic, interrupting the conversation as he entered the garage. “Sorry I’m late.”
“You’ll have to stay after class, Vic,” said Max.
“I’ll bet you’ve always wanted to say that to your teacher, haven’t you?” asked Vic.
“Well, it hasn’t been a major preoccupation, Vic, but I have to admit, it did feel good.”
“Learning about seeds and the energy they possess, I see,” said Vic, gesturing to the pinecone.
“I was just telling Ben that he holds in his hand enough potential board feet of lumber to build several houses,” explained Daniel.
“But only if allowed to flourish without interference, right?” asked Vic.
“You’re a good student, Vic,” replied Daniel.
Ben placed the pinecone on the workbench. He noticed how tidy was Daniel’s workspace. In fact, the entire garage was uncluttered and efficiently organized. Most other garages to which he had taken his car had the characteristic oil and gas odours, stains on the floor, and a disorganized array of tools scattered about. Ben wondered how Daniel kept the floor so clean—there wasn’t an oil stain in sight. A shaft of sunlight filtering through the prism caught his eye. He felt good. For a moment, everything seemed perfect.
“I hope Ben doesn’t think that he’s about to get a lesson on the birds and the bees,” joked Vic.
“He learned that a long time ago, Vic,” said Max.
Daniel picked up the pinecone and turned to Ben. “Don’t