October 20th, 1971

    Mark had gone back to his apartment in Burnaby on Saturday evening, and would only return the next weekend. The last few days had been spent in a general mode of relaxation, and I was glad that Roy had agreed to stay in our company; he had a fast wit I admired and was very easy to get along with.
    I was standing on the porch, leaning against the railing and listening to the sounds of the forest, when Cameron came to join me.
    “Roy’s agreed to drive me into town, if you’d like to come along?” Cameron was good at masking his real thoughts, but I could hear the hopeful leaning of his tone.
    “Why not? I’ve never seen Chilliwack, and I’m already this close to it.” I turned to look at him and he surprised me by kissing my forehead. “What’s bringing you into town?”
    “I’ve written a letter for Joan.”
    “So that’s what you were doing this morning,” I noted. When I had woken up, Cameron wasn’t in the room with me and I eventually found him in the kitchen, coffee already brewed and poured.
    “It’s been a few weeks since I’ve written to her,” he explained. “I’ll phone her when we get to Montreal but I figured she’d appreciate an update.”
    I put my arms around his waist and smiled at him. “You’re a good son.”
    “She’s been a good mother to me,” was Cameron’s simple reply.
    I saw the fleeting look of sadness in his eyes as he spoke. His mother had been dead for more of his life than she’d been there for, and though he adored his aunt, Cameron was never without that longing for more time with his mother.
    I was glad to see that ache leave his face when Dale and Roy came out onto the porch.
    “Is everyone ready?” Roy asked.
    I nodded, but asked Dale if he was joining us.
    “Certainly. I won’t trust Cameron to buy the liquor every time,” he jeered.


    Dale not only wanted to buy alcohol, it seemed, when he decided that the woman he’d just bumped into would come back to the cabin with us. He’d nearly crashed into her, in fact, when he exited the liquor store with a box of bottles in his arms. I knew exactly where this was headed as soon as a jumbled apology spilled from his mouth and the woman smiled sweetly at him.
    I turned to Cameron and rolled my eyes, nodding my head in the direction of the post office.
    “We’re going to have company tonight,” I announced with a laugh.
    “Who?” Cameron asked, still clueless. “Her?”
    I nodded. “Oh, yeah. She’s lucky she’s still got her pants on,” I added with a glance over my shoulder. Cameron huffed, and I could almost hear him fighting his amusement and simultaneous desire to drag Dale into the woods and leave him there.
    He fought off both, staying silent as we walked into the post office and deposited the letter. The clerk informed us that the letter should be delivered within three weeks; we thanked him and went back out onto the street.
    I shook my head in disbelief when we caught sight of Dale. Roy had joined him at this point, and another woman stood beside them.
    Cameron chuckled quietly. “Unbelievable,” he muttered.
    I couldn’t help my own subdued laughter when we got close enough to the quartet to hear Dale’s words.
    “I’m sure you’ll love him,” he was saying enthusiastically to the second woman. “He’s great with his hands, you know, being a guitar player,” he winked.
    The woman blushed and tucked her blonde hair behind her ear. Her friend, who Dale had bumped into, seemed very interested in discovering whatever talents Dale was hiding, whether related to his hands or not.


    It was incredibly obvious that Judy was pining for Willie; throughout dinner she would prod him to join the conversation and bat her eyes at him. Not that I blamed her, either; I knew from the past year of touring that women never failed to notice him, and even I had to admit Willie had attractive features.
    Willie seemed oblivious of her flirtation, or he was outright ignoring her, and promptly went outside to smoke a cigarette once he'd finished eating. I saw Judy's face fall, and told myself to chat with her later.
    Dale was still talking, recounting an adventure from the Osmosis tour two years ago. "We were feeling alright, finished a good show," he exclaimed.
    "Blistering show," Lee interjected happily.
    Dale nodded in agreement. "We all went out to a pub for some drinks, maybe some entertainment as well," he continued, winking at Pam, "but it's only when we'd all had a few pints that this fucking asshole walks in— this retelling may be biased, you can come to your own conclusions—"
    He had to pause for a minute, as everyone laughed. Even Judy, who seemed to be eyeing Lee with interest, was enjoying herself.
    Dale pressed on with his story, though it was one I'd heard before: the headlining band for that night hadn't appreciated being upstaged by a newer group and decided to make their feelings known with a brawl. It ended with a near-arrest and a strict order to never return to that pub again.
    I excused myself from the table, taking Willie’s empty plate with mine to the kitchen. Roy offered to help but I insisted he stay at the table, and though I had planned on washing the plates to get a headstart on the post-meal cleaning, I ended up leaving them in the sink and joining Willie outside.
    I didn’t say anything as I stepped outside. Willie turned towards the sound of the door clicking shut, he acknowledged me with a slight nod of his head but didn’t speak either. I sat down in one of the lawn chairs on the porch and sighed quietly, content to be in the woods and in my country again—even if it was four thousand kilometers from home.
    Nothing was said between us, and nothing needed to be. I had often felt at odds with Willie, but I knew how soothing silence could be, especially the silence that comes from the forest.


    Dale had long since retired to his room with Pam and a bottle of rum, though no glasses. Roy had been called into Langley to deal with a break-in at a property he managed and would only return tomorrow, something I was thankful for as I realized something: the three men left standing would be no match for Judy’s flirty determination.
    Three quickly turned to two when Willie dashed Judy’s hopes of spending the night with him. He had just returned from outside, where Cameron and Colin were having a cigarette.
    She had leaned across the table to fix his shirt collar, not that it was out of place, but within a fraction of a second Willie had realized her intent and abruptly stood.
    “I think I’ve left a cigarette lit out on the porch,” he muttered. His hands fumbled with the neck of his shirt as he left the room at a brisk pace, leaving Judy surprised at the rejection.
    “He’s a bit moody,” I offered as consolation. “He was bitten by a blonde once.”
    My remark made her and Lee burst into laughter, though I had a feeling that he’d based his reaction off of more than simple moodiness. Regardless of my suspicion, I watched in delight as Judy turned her attention to Lee.
    “And what about you?” she inquired, nodding her head at him. “Have you ever been bitten by a blonde?”
    Somehow, Lee hadn’t anticipated this turn of events and just stared blankly for a moment. “Uh, well, I…”
    “Well, which is it?” Judy pressed on with a wink.
    “I’m actually, well… besotted,” he blubbered.
    “Besotted?” I repeated mockingly. “I didn’t realize Lord Byron was coming over. I would have taken out the silk doilies.”
    Lee shot me a look of annoyance, but I knew he was being sincere. After all, he'd already begun blabbering to me in private about seeing Liliane again.
    Judy however, did not seem so amused by her second rejection in nearly as many minutes. "Is everyone here a prude?" she huffed in aggravation.
    Lee met my eyes for a moment and I raised an eyebrow. "I think you'd be pleasantly surprised if you were to linger in the last room in the upstairs hall," he offered.
    "Oh?"
    "He can certainly bang a drum," Lee continued slowly.
    I fought to keep the smile off of my face as I added my opinion to the matter in a nonchalant tone. “I think he would get the hang of another kind of skin quite easily.”
    A devilish smile spread across her features and she stood from the table. “Thanks,” she told us happily, and walked off with a wave. She sauntered towards the staircase and headed upstairs, no doubt to Colin’s room, as I heard her sing in a quiet voice. “Little drummer boy…”
    Lee was clearly trying to hold back laughter, so I stood and put my hand on his shoulder briefly. “You’ll either get thanked or punched for this.”
    I headed towards the front door without a glance back at Lee, knowing if I didn't leave I’d be laughing along with him. The innocent victim in question was chatting with Willie and Cameron on the porch, all three men illuminated by the light above the door.
    “Colin,” I began, “did you have anything in your room that could have fallen? I heard a noise like something did.”
    He must have actually had something perched precariously, because he put out his cigarette in the ashtray and headed inside. “Thanks, Emily,” he muttered as he walked past me.
    The door closed behind him and I was met with a confused look from Cameron and a question from Willie. “What’s the ruse for?”
    “It’s not entirely a ruse,” I answered defensively. “Judy fell into his room, that must count too.”
    Willie chuckled at the thought of Colin up against Judy, and shook his head in disbelief.
    Cameron guffawed. “Cunning girl,” he complimented, and pulled me close for a moment before excusing himself to head inside and survey the damage.
    I joined Willie, he was leaning against the railing with his back to the forest, and commandeered his glass. I sipped from it and smiled, it was whiskey.
    “Poor kid,” I said quietly. “I think she’ll break him in two.”
    Willie chuckled again, though this time in relief. “Let him enjoy it,” he replied earnestly. “I’m just glad to be rid of her.”
    I knew he’d only said it offhandedly, but I couldn’t stop myself from asking. “Why?”
    “Does it matter?”
    “Maybe,” I answered, sitting down on a chair and taking another sip of his drink. “Does it make a difference, whether or not it matters?”
    Willie met my gaze with an expression I couldn’t quite decipher, though I saw annoyance in it. “You’re a pain in the arse,” he taunted.
    “So are you.” I smiled innocently as I spoke. Willie kept silent, but I could see he was thinking so I pressed on. “Are you otherwise… applied?” I hadn’t wanted to use a stronger word, but when he answered, I knew I’d gotten my point across.
    “You enjoy this, don’t you?”
    “Enjoy what?”
    “Making people talk,” he explained curtly.
    I looked straight at him and replied firmly. “I enjoy people being honest with themselves.”
    Willie avoided my gaze and grumbled unintelligibly. “I wouldn’t have enjoyed it much, and that’s the point, isn’t it?” he said slowly. “I’ve never been much of one for words.”
    “You miss her,” I noted.
    “Who?”
    I tilted my head and looked at him incredulously.
    “Ah,” he mumbled. “Well, yes.”
    “See?” I told him cheerfully. “That is what I enjoy. Honesty.”


    I was once again overcome with gratitude that Roy had been called into the city for the night; at least he wouldn’t be completely convinced we were a bunch of savages. I’d only heard the briefest of scuffles coming from Colin’s room, but when Cameron and I settled into our bedroom for the night I was grateful for the thick walls.
    “Do you want some gossip?” I asked Cameron as I joined him on the bed.
    He raised an eyebrow, but nodded.
    “Willie’s pining.” My comment was simple, but proved effective.
    “Is he?” Cameron pulled me into his embrace and held me close to him. “You smell good,” he noted.
    “I did shower today,” I informed him with a chuckle. “And yes, he is. He won’t outright say it, though, so I wouldn’t try to press it.”
    “I suppose we’ll see for ourselves next time we see Autumn. Though I’m not quite sure when that would be,” he added with a mumble.
    I rested my head against Cameron’s chest and closed my eyes. “She’s going back to Liverpool after Christmas,” I informed him. “She was only spending the year with her aunt and uncle.”
    I felt Cameron nod. “We’ll see her after the tour of Europe, then. Autumn in the spring,” he added with a laugh.
    I laughed too, but the shrill sound of enjoyment pierced the air and my eyes snapped open. “Is this really happening?”
    Cameron hadn’t stopped laughing, and my indignation only spurred him on. “Something’s happening, that’s for sure!”
    I fought to keep my laughter at bay; it was hard to resist Cameron’s own laugh. I pulled away from him and stalked my way out of the room and into the hallway. It didn’t seem that the noise would stop, it was even building in pitch, and I could easily tell it was coming from Dale’s room.
    I banged my fist against the door, but the noise didn’t falter. “Hey, Dale! The quadraphonic stereo is extremely unnecessary!”
    No reply came from Dale’s room, though I heard Lee’s cackle from across the hall. I walked over to his door and knocked once. “Keep your fucking opinions to yourself!” I shouted, though it was clear I was only joking. Lee replied with a guffaw and I shook my head.
    ‘What a bunch of animals,’ I scoffed internally.
    I went back to my room and closed the door behind me before I looked at Cameron. When I did, I stared in disbelief.
    Cameron winked playfully at me. “We could make our own noise,” he offered with a smile.
    “Put your pants back on,” I demanded, though I was thoroughly amused by this point and trying not to smile back. “You fucking animal.”