SUNDAY

Sally awoke and, picking up her keys, a towel, her soap, and her clothes for the day, headed over to the carriage house for her shower. Since it was well past time for Carolyn to have headed off for work, she expected the door to be locked, but the knob turned easily under her hand.

"Hi!" Carolyn called as she came over to hug Sally.

Sally was a little bewildered by this sudden display of affection, but her confusion was cleared up when Carolyn said, "Jeb told me that you helped him pay for last night's dinner. Thank you!"

Carolyn crossed to the kitchen table. "I have some cinnamon rolls in the oven. Would you like some?"

"Sure."

Carolyn indicated that Sally should sit down at the table, where she had spread out a large number of old color Polaroid photos.

"I'm organizing old family pictures. Go ahead and look at them."

Sally sifted through the pictures, until one of a preteen boy with sandy brown hair caught her attention. "He looks familiar."

"He should," Carolyn replied, sipping her coffee, "that's David."

"Really?" As Sally looked closer, she could see signs of the man that David would become in the picture of the boy in front of her. "Oh! I see it now! He sure was a cute little boy!"

"What do you think about him as a man?" Carolyn asked in a playful tone.

"I think he's a very good-looking man. However, he's also a married man . . ."

"Separated," Carolyn corrected.

"And he has shown no interest in me whatsoever."

"Well, if you want me to, I can arrange for the two of you to, sort of, run into each other occasionally."

"I don't think so, Carolyn. Anyway, he's coming over to visit Collinwood today, anyhow."

"Oh, he is, is he? And you say he's not interested in you."

"He isn't. He wants to bring his kids by to see what I've done with the place."
Carolyn didn't seem convinced by Sally's protestations. "He's interested."

* * * * *

Devin awoke in his mother's family plot in the local cemetery. He found that he'd spent the night leaning up against the cenotaph they'd erected in memory of his mother's favorite uncle, who had died 30 years earlier. {Burke Devlin,} the monument read, {born 1931, died 1968}.

In a way, he'd been named after Uncle Burke. Willie had known Burke, but there had been no love lost between them, so he refused to have a son named Burke Loomis. When Gina suggested her own maiden name of Devlin, they'd compromised on dropping the {l}, so that rather than Devlin Loomis, his name became Devin Loomis.

Devin thought back over the events of the previous night, but he was unable to remember anything that happened after he had bolted after his confrontation with his father. He sat up, and braced his arms against the ground to lever himself into a standing position.

His right arm buckled under him, "Ow!" he cried out as he hit the ground. He looked at his arm, where a bandage was wrapped around his wrist. He released the tape holding the bandage shut and carefully unwrapped his wrist. There, centered on his wrist, were two neat puncture marks.

* * * * *

David knocked on the front door of Collinwood. It felt odd to be knocking on the front door of what, until he moved out with Hallie in 1985, had been his home, but now it was Sally's home, and he respected that.

A few seconds after he knocked, Sally opened the door, wearing sweatpants and an oversized red tee-shirt, her brown hair pulled back in an elastic band. "Hi! Come on in!"

She backed up a few paces and David stepped into the house, followed closely by his three children. "This is Roger," he said indicating the elder boy, "and Laura," he indicated the girl, "and that over there," he gestured towards the direction his younger son had wandered off into, "is Burke."

His footsteps echoed on the parquet flooring as David stepped into the drawing room, "you're living in here?"

"I work down in Collinsport during the day, so I only have evenings and weekends to work on the house. Since I haven't had much time, I haven't been able to fix up any of the bedrooms upstairs. So, here I am."

She noticed that Roger was leafing through her CD collection, and Laura was looking at the paperback book that she had been reading. She couldn't locate Burke, however.

David guessed what Sally was thinking, "Don't worry about Burke. He'll be fine. He's probably off exploring somewhere, like I did when I was a kid."

"Would you like to see what I've done so far?"

"Sure."

Sally walked over and picked up the book that she got from Barnabas. "Barnabas loaned this book to me yesterday. It has some beautiful drawings of Collinwood in it."

David goggled at her. "Barnabas loaned that to you?"

"Why are you acting so surprised?"

"He never lets that book out of his sight, that's why."

"Well, I guess that's why he's holding Gordon hostage." Sally smirked a little at her private joke.

"Gordon? Who's Gordon?"

Sally smiled at David. "He borrowed one of my Sting CD's when we met. He told me that I won't get it back until I returned this book." When David didn't respond, she said, "Gordon Sumner? Sting's real name?"

"Ah!" he said, "I didn't know that."

Sally showed David the renovations she had made to the downstairs bathroom. "I, personally, can't wait until I finish installing the shower in here, so I can stop having to borrow Carolyn and Beth's shower every morning."

"I can see where that would be a benefit. Frankly, I can't imagine how we got along without showers all those years. Baths are nice, but not nearly as convenient as showers."

Sally and David stepped back into the foyer, and across into the dining room. "After I finish the bathroom, I'm thinking about seeing what's behind this paneling," Sally explained, "from what I can tell, this room originally had plaster walls with a French wallpaper on them, and I'd like to see what of that I can salvage."

"I'm very impressed. You've been here, how long?"

"One week today."

"And you've already gotten this far. Well, we'll get out of your way, and let you finish the shower, so that you don't have to go over to Carolyn's again tomorrow morning." David smiled at her. "Roger! Laura!" he yelled, and then, louder, "Burke!!"
His three children skidded to a halt in the foyer moments later. "What do you say we take a walk around the grounds so that Sally can have some time to work on the house?" With that, the four of them walked through the winter garden and out the back door.

* * * * *

"Liv!" Carolyn called to her assistant.

Liv emerged from the back room. "Yes?"

"Can you handle things here for the rest of the day?"

"Sure."

"Great! I think I'm going to go and help Sally. She's really been working hard on the house, and she could probably use an extra pair of hands." Carolyn picked up her purse. "Oh! And if anyone comes in to ask about the sign I placed in the window, could you give them Lana Thorne's phone number? I wrote it on a slip of paper under the $20 bills in the cash register."

"Sure," Liv said, clearly dubious whether she would need the phone number. "Have a nice renovation!"

"Bye!" Carolyn called as she took her car keys out of her purse and stepped out the door of the shop.

* * * * *

Sally went back to work on the shower and she quickly lost track of the time until she heard a knock at the door. She scratched absently at her nose as she walked to the door, leaving a large black streak down her face.

She opened the door and found Adam Von Stein standing on her doorstep.

"Mr. Von Stein!" she exclaimed. "I completely forgot that you were coming by!"

"Is this a bad time? I can come back later, if you'd like."

"Of course this isn't a bad time. It's completely my fault that I lost track of time." She stepped back to admit her visitor. "Won't you come in?"

* * * * *

Azura Von Stein parked her car in the lot in back of the Collinsport Inn, and then walked around to the front of the building and up to the front desk.

"May I help you?" the clerk asked.
"Yes. Could you please call up to Adam Von Stein's room for me, please? Tell him that Azura's here to see him."

The clerk picked up the phone and dialed. After a minute, he hung up. "I'm afraid that Mr. Von Stein isn't in his room at the moment. Would you like me to give him a message when he returns?"

"Yes," she began, then changed her response to, "No. Umm, I think I'll take a room, too."

"Very well, miss. If you could fill out this card." He handed her a card with blanks for her name, home address, and information on her car on it.

{What should I put for my home address? I guess I'll just put Mom's address.} She filled out the card as the clerk handed her the room key. "Thanks."

"Would you like our bellhop to take your suitcases up to your room?"

"Umm, no thanks. I can handle it." {I wonder,} she mused, {should I tell him that I don't have any suitcases with me?}

She decided that the clerk didn't need to know the circumstances around her trip to Collinsport.

"Enjoy your stay," the clerk said as she walked away from the desk.

"Thanks!" she responded. {Now, if I know Dad, he's probably at work or something, so I can probably explore the town until dark.}

* * * * *

Sally had found a couple of chairs and they were sitting in the drawing room. Sally was showing Von Stein the book she had borrowed from Barnabas. "See? This is the drawing room in 1810. I was thinking about using this as my inspiration for the room once I get it done. You know, get drapes that look like this and refinish the paneling so that it's more that pecan color you see in this drawing. I'd get more comfortable furniture, of course, probably in the same color scheme, though."

The door opened, and a female voice said, "Hello? Sally?"

"We're in here, Carolyn!"

"{We're} in here? Oh! You must mean . . ." Carolyn's voice faded out as she turned the corner into the drawing room and saw the pair of them leaning over the book.

"We're looking at the book that Barnabas loaned me. You can join us if you want. There were a few more chairs in that room down the hall. . . ." Sally's voice trailed off as she realized that Carolyn was staring at Von Stein.

After a long silence, he stood up and said, "Hello, Carolyn."

Carolyn stammered, "Adam? How. . . I mean . . . It's been . . . "

Adam remained silent, simply looking at her, his eyes sad and gentle.

She walked to him and as she traced the place where the scar used to run across the bridge of his nose, she said, wonder in her voice, "It's been 30 years."

As swiftly as thought, Adam swept Carolyn up into an embrace and said, tears in his deep voice, "Carolyn. I've missed you so much."

Sally quietly tiptoed past the pair and out of the drawing room.

* * * * *

Azura stepped out into the daylight. {I suppose I should probably find a clothes store, or at least a K-Mart, so that I have something to sleep in tonight and a change of clothes for tomorrow.}

She looked up and down Main Street, wondering which direction to go. Finally, she decided that there was more activity eastward on Main Street than there was westward, so she headed off in that direction.

She passed a butcher's shop, and then a tailor's shop. She was about to dismiss the antique shop as easily as she had dismissed the previous shops, but then a sign in the window caught her eye, {Governess Needed -- Inquire Within,} she thought, {well, I'm going to need a job. It's worth a try.}

* * * * *

Adam and Carolyn were sitting down in the chairs that he and Sally had brought down the hall, totally absorbed in their conversation.

"Where have you been for the last 30 years?" Carolyn asked.

"Oh. Here and there. The Pacific Northwest, mostly."

"The Pacific Northwest? What were you doing there?"

"Well, Eliot Stokes helped me get into college, majoring in business. Then when the computer revolution came, I took enough classes in that to start my software business. And then, when I got my divorce . . ."

"Divorce?!? When did you get married?"

"1972. Our daughter is 24 now. Would you like to see a picture of her?"

"You have a daughter? I'd love to see a picture!"
Adam reached into his back pocket and pulled out his wallet. He opened it, and pulled out a picture of a beautiful brunette. "She looks just like you!" Carolyn smiled. "What's her name?"

"Azura."

* * * * *

The bell jingled as Azura opened the door to the shop. The air inside was cool, and smelled vaguely of age, but more prominently of furniture polish.

"May I help you?" the young woman behind the counter asked.

"Umm. . . Yes. I wanted to ask about the governess position that you're advertising."

"Governess position? Oh! You mean the sign in the window." The woman opened the drawer of the cash register and took out a slip of paper. "Call this phone number and ask for Lana. Not that there's anyone else up there to answer the phone, of course."

Azura took the slip of paper and began to write down the phone number.

"You new in town?" the young woman asked.

"I might just be visiting."

"You {might} be visiting?"

"Well, I guess it depends on whether I get this job, doesn't it?" Azura handed the slip of paper. "Thanks."

"Good luck!" the young woman called, and with another jingle of the bell, Azura was gone.

* * * * *

When David and the children came back into the house, they found Sally sitting on the stairs outside the drawing room.

"What's up?" he asked, "why are you out here?"

Sally indicated with a jerk of her head for David to look into the drawing room, where he saw Adam and Carolyn sitting side by side, their heads close together in conversation. "Who's he?"

"I thought he was just my boss, but apparently, he and Carolyn are old friends."

David looked at Adam long and hard. "You know, he looks really familiar. He's probably an old boyfriend or something. Carolyn has a *lot* of old boyfriends."
He turned to Sally, "Well, since you don't seem to be getting too much work done, you want to go out with us and grab some lunch?"

Sally smiled. "Sure. Sounds great."

* * * * *

"And then Roger said. . . ."

"Dad!" David's eldest son interrupted.

"What?" he turned toward Roger, "that's really a funny story."

"Maybe for you it is, Dad."

Just then a young blonde woman stopped by the table. "Dr. Collins!"

David stood and took the woman's hand in his. "Tanya! You're looking well!"

"Thanks to you, Dr. Collins!" She looked around the table. "These must be your children, and you must be Mrs. Collins?"

"Ummm. No. Sally Bradford," Sally stood up and the two women shook hands. "I'm renting Dr. Collins's house from him."

"Oh! Well, if you're ever looking for a psychiatrist, I highly recommend Dr. Collins! My relationship with him has done wonders for me!"

Just then, a male voice called across the restaurant, "Tanya!"

"Oh! That's Brent! I've gotta run! See you around!"

Sally watched the enthusiastic young woman walk away with a stunned expression. She sat back down, followed immediately by David.

She gave David a sly grin, "Her {relationship} with you?"

"{Working} relationship. She's a former patient."

An uncomfortable silence enveloped the table as the two adults stared at each other.

"Dad! Burke's eating my french fries!"

"Burke, keep your hands away from your sister's plate, please," their father admonished his youngest child. And with that, the silence ended.
* * * * *

In a serviceable navy blue dress she'd just purchased in town, Azura rang the doorbell of the houseat the base of the lighthouse.

A few seconds later, a jovial-looking young woman of about her own age opened the door. "Azura? Hi! I'm Lana. Won't you come in?"

As Azura stepped into the dimly-lit house, she noticed that there were mirrors everywhere. Nearly every wall had at least one mirror on it, and one wall of the living room was one giant mirror. {Wow, Colin Chance must be some kind of narcissist or something, to have all of these mirrors here.}

"Would you like something to drink?"

"No, thank you."

"Well, then, we'll get right to the interview, shall we?"

"Sure."

Lana directed Azura into the living room, and then she suggested that they sit in chairs which, oddly enough to Azura's way of thinking, faced toward the mirrored wall. She looked at her reflection critically. {I could have found a dress that's a better color for me than this, but at least the skirt's longer than knee-length. If the skirt were much shorter, you could see right up it when I'm sitting like this.}

"If I may, I'll tell you something about the position, to see if you're interested," Lana said.

When Azura nodded, Lana continued, "the position is one of governess to an eight year-old girl named Zoe. Her father, Colin, is a single parent, and he's a novelist, so he keeps what you might think are odd hours. In fact, you'll probably never see him. Rest assured, though, that he will be here in the house."

She leaned closer to Azura and whispered, "He never leaves the house, at least he hasn't for as long as I've been here."

Straightening up and speaking aloud again, Lana continued, "since Mr. Chance is a single parent and keeps such unusual hours, the governess' job is more than just teaching academic subjects. It also entails the duties that a parent usually fulfills, such as making sure that Zoe gets her meals on time. It is a nearly 24 hour a day, 7 day a week job."

"That being said, I need to ask my first question. Are you really interested in this position?"