OVER THE RIDGE

Bar Harbor sat on the edge of his bed thinking. Well, trying to think. He seemed to have big gaps in his memory. He knew he'd been sleeping a lot of late, a whole lot, and wondered if that had anything to do with his automobile accident. Not even remembering why he'd gone out in his rental car, not remembering at all that he'd even GONE out in it, much less the accident itself, really bothered him. What was happening to him?  His head felt generally...odd, and often he found he had the urge to shake it as though to jiggle loose something in there that had gotten stuck, or clogged, or...whatever.

In the last week or two there were only a few hours here and there that were clear to him.  He was beginning to feel he should talk with Sid about this. Perhaps his brother might have some insight into what was wrong. He'd wake up, find himself in bed with no memory of how he'd gotten there.  Or he'd be in his room and know he was walking toward the door and then suddenly...nothing...and there he'd be in bed again.  Something must be seriously wrong with him and thoughts of brain tumors began to haunt him. 

Despite that, he was a generally good-natured man and he found the area in and around the Glen delightful. He knew he'd wanted to see more of it, meet its inhabitants, but whatever was going on with him seemed to keep him confined to his bed more often than not. He got up off his bed and began to cross the guest room, concentrating hard, determined not to black out.  This time he made it all the way to the door and smiled when his hand turned the knob and it opened.

"Sid?" he called, walking out into the living area. No one was there. He went to the bottom of the amazing blue steps and tried again, but again there was no answer.  "I guess he and Katherine have gone out," he said to himself.  Turning, he walked to the front window wall, looking out at the green lawn, at the line of trees and low hills beyond.  He would go out himself, he decided.  Just walk around a bit. He was a little afraid of driving right now, thinking he might well have another accident in his current condition, whatever that was.

Outside, he inhaled a deep breath of fresh air, which made him feel considerable better, his mind a lot clearer.  He curved around to the far side of the dome-like house, heading for the low hills, thinking that from up there he could get a better idea of the lay of the area.  Hiking had been one of his frequent and favorite things to do back in Maine and he was still in good condition from all the exercise he'd gotten at home.  He gained the top of the highest hill with little effort, found a clearing near a large tree, and sat down, leaning his back against it, indulging his eyes in the panoramic view.  Down to his left sat Sid's house, oddly alone in the midst of its flat, grassy field with no gardens, walks, or any of the usual things one found in most yards. To his right, over several low, rolling hills, lay a much different place, a rust-colored brick house in what he decided was an English style and literally almost buried up to its hips in flowers.  He liked that, got up, and began strolling in that direction.  The sun was on his face and he smiled up at the few billowing white clouds in the vast blue sky, feeling happy just to be out and about.

It took him a while to get close to the house and when he did, he saw a blonde-haired woman busily working in those gardens he'd noted. "Good afternoon," he said, leaning on the surrounding picket fence.  "Your gardens are really lovely.  I saw them from the hill back there."  He turned enough to point to where he'd been.

"Well, hello there," Joimus replied, standing up and brushing off the knees of her slacks. "Are you new to the Glen?"

"Fairly new, yes. I've been staying at my brother's house beyond the hills there. Haven't been feeling too well, I'm afraid, so I've not been out and about very much."

"Brother? Your brother lives in the Glen?"  She was wondering who he could possibly mean.  The only house in the direction he'd pointed was.... "Um, do you mean Sid, by any chance?"

"Why, yes. Do you know him?"

"I, um, yes, um, yes, I do know him."  She'd heard, in fact, he had someone staying with him. Alistair had mentioned it to her.  "You were in a car accident?"

"Oh, you know about that? Yes, I seem to have overturned my car. I don't even remember it."

Joimus looked him up and down. He resembled Sid quite strikingly, yet there were differences, especially in his hair, which tended to hang more over his forehead, and in his expression, which seemed open and friendly. Still, if he were Sid's brother, one couldn't be too watchful. "You, you're staying for a while then?"

"I'm not sure how long. I never really knew my brother, only saw him once in passing in Maine. This is my first chance to get to visit with him."

"And how's that going for you?"

"Fine...I think. As I said, I've been rather, um, ill."

"I'm sorry. I didn't introduce myself. I'm Joimus Meridius and you would be...?"

"Bar, Bar Harbor," he smiled.

"Um, like the town in Maine?"

Bar laughed. "I always get that reaction! Yes, like the town. It's where I'm from, in fact. I was born there and have always lived there."

"You were...born...there?"  She cocked an eyebrow.

"Why, yes. Is that odd somehow?"

It was, indeed, odd if he were Sid's brother. She knew way too much about Sid. "Your, um, parents, did they live there as well?"

"Yes, both of them were born there, too. Our family's lived there for generations."

"Generations?"  This was most...curious.

Bar's hands went to his, his fingers quickly exploring. "Is...is something wrong with my face? You keep looking at me as though...."

"Oh, I'm sorry! No, nothing's at all wrong with your face. Um, would you like to come in and have a look around the gardens?"

"Very much! I have a big garden myself back in Maine, lots of delphiniums. Ah, I see you have them, too. I didn't think they'd grow in this climate."

"The Glen's special. Just about anything you like grows here."  She shrugged, adding, "With a little hard work and loving care, that is."

"It looks like an English cottage garden," he commented.

"That's the general idea," she smiled, liking the man despite his relations.

For some while she toured him around the gardens and then took him on to The Greenery.  "If you should decide to stay in the Glen, I'd be glad to help you choose plants," she offered.

"You don't run this all by yourself, do you?"

"Oh, no, I've got a couple of women who help me and then there's Cort, who does a lot of the heavier work for me. I hope you'll come back when you have more time. For anyone who loves plants, it's a great place to spend a whole afternoon."

"I'd like that."  He really would.  "I'd best be heading back now. I've been gone for some while and Sid's sure to start worrying about me."

"Sid, um, yes. We wouldn't want him to worry, now would we?" 

"It would be lovely if you'd come over to his house some time. Maybe you could even talk him into thinking about putting in some gardens. It's quite bare there."

"Bare, yes, it is. Very, very bare." 

"Thank you for letting me see your gardens. I really appreciate the kindness you've shown me, Mrs. Meridius."

"Joimus," she smiled.

"I hope to see you soon," he waved, walking briskly back toward the hills.

Joimus watched him go.  This evening she'd have to run all this past her husband.