A Time of Changes

————Prologue————

The first flight had taken her from Kennedy airport in New York to Port of Spain in Trinidad and she stayed for two days at a hotel there on the island, isolating herself as she waited for the next leg of her journey. She sat on the chaise in her suite's solarium and looked out at the filthy city and the polluted gulf of Paria and felt disgusted with humanity in general. She remembered seeing this place on her honeymoon and with a sharp pang of pain, she tapped a button and the blinds closed, plunging her into darkness. She sipped idly at the wine she had ordered and savoured the sharp, dry taste of the alcohol as she stared off at nothing. The last few weeks had been hard, harder than anything she had ever experienced before. And she was finding that the old adage 'You can't buy happiness' was very true. She had managed well when it came to finances in the divorce, but despite that she was still miserable and felt like she had been thrown away by someone who she had been sure would love her forever.

She was cold and bitter as she waited out the two days in the same suite where she had consummated her marriage some eight years before. She didn't sleep in the bed, didn't use any of the many amenities that the hotel had to offer. She barely budged from the chair, and when the staff came to inform her that her next flight was ready, she hadn't even moved her bags away from the door. She felt dirty in her travelling clothes, and exhausted from barely sleeping between leaving her Long Island condo and arriving in Trinidad. She had barely slept at all in a week and she had eaten nothing since leaving New York but she went without a word down to the waiting limousine and rode to the little airport outside of the city.

It was as much a marina as it was an airport and she could smell the stink of the fisheries nearby, the salt of the gulf and the stink of pollution, all things she had missed on her last visit, all things that repulsed her now. She hated this city, more for the memories that it brought back than for the unpleasant sensations that went with her trip. The car parked and the driver came to open the door. She eschewed his proffered hand and stood smoothly, sunglasses in place over her puffy, gritty eyes as she looked to the small plane that was docked nearby. It was a seaplane, and it looked like it had been built just that morning. Fresh paint gleamed in the sun and it was designed for the comfort of its passengers. Like the car, the plane bore the Osiris Seaview Resort logo on the side. The pilot was dressed casually in loose pants and a short sleeved shirt, aviator sunglasses on his face and his dark hair cropped short against the tropical heat and humidity.

Candice was sweating the second she set foot outside of the car and the driver hurried to escort her down to the aircraft while two attendants fetched her luggage along. There was no one else there and as she approached the plane the pilot nodded his head at her.

"Miss Markham, I'm Pen Nielson and I'll be your pilot for the trip out to Calabri. Let's get you inside where its air conditioned and any questions you have I will happily answer along the way." He said with a smile.

Candice simply nodded and mounted the plank that led out to the little plane. Inside it was spacious and luxurious, with leather seats and first class accommodations and Candice took a seat under the wing, looking out at the dock without really seeing anything. She had the aircraft to herself and it wasn't long before the staff had loaded her luggage and Pen came inside to close up the doors and see to her personal needs. He got her a cold drink and when it was clear she needed nothing else, he retreated to the cockpit. A moment later she heard the engines humming to life and Pen appeared on a screen before her.

"If you need anything at all, Miss Markham, please let me know. We'll be taking off in about twenty minutes and the flight out to Calabri is about two hours long. We typically fly at about six thousand feet, but if you'd like a better view of the ocean I am authorized to fly as low as five hundred feet." He said.

"Thank you, Mr. Nielson, that won't be necessary. I think I may nap on the way out, the heat has taken its toll on me." She said and he nodded.

"Then I'll spare you the history lesson for the area and leave you to your rest, Miss. If you need anything I'm just a button push away." He said and then the screen flickered off.

Candice could feel the vibration of the two powerful aircraft engines and yet the inside of the cabin was nearly silent. She looked out the window and relaxed as the plane taxied out onto the water and then turned, heading for the clear stretch of water designated for seaplane takeoff. It wasn't long until she could feel the slight acceleration as the plane raced across the water and a momentary feeling of vertigo as the blind natural law of gravity gave way to the irresistible science of lift and they were airborne. She gasped a little at the feeling, glad that no one was there to see her distress at the takeoff. She had never liked flying, the moment of weightlessness frightened and disturbed her and she always felt ashamed when anyone witnessed it. But it was past now and she turned away from the window and reclined her chair, closing her eyes and not expecting to sleep.

She was unconscious moments later.

————1————

For Pen, the flight was a standard one. Every few days he would visit Port of Spain, and he had stops at three other ports each week in Barbados and Antigua and St. Lucia. Other trips to further destinations were booked well in advance, and only when absolutely necessary. The Osiris resort was very exclusive and the plane was at the disposal of the visitors most days. It was a good job and he enjoyed it, it allowed him to see more of the Caribbean and South America than he thought he ever would, and it paid very well. The fact that he was flying a brand new, state of the art seaplane was just another perk for the former navy pilot. He glanced at the monitor at his elbow and saw that his only passenger was sleeping soundly in the cabin and with a touch to the screen he lowered the blinds and dimmed the lights. If she stirred, motion detectors would raise the lights gently so she could see, but the plane was so new and so well designed that she was practically rocked to sleep by the gentle motions of the aircraft. He smiled a bit and turned back to his job. There wasn't really much to do, the automation of the plane took care of most things, but he was trained to be thorough and he kept his mind on the task at hand.

The two hour flight was uneventful, as usual, and soon he was spiralling down to the sea port of Calabri. Once a pirate haven, the remote little island was just an up-jut of rock in the sea. A kilometer long and barely half that wide, there was little native vegetation and no native wildlife when the island had been bought ten years before. Now, with the exclusive resort at the center of the island, the remainder had been carefully terraced into lush green gardens that were resplendent with local flora and teeming with colourful fauna. Nothing was harmful to the guests, but it was all carefully designed to be self-sustaining and not have any serious impact on the surrounding sea. Pen could see the little fleet of fishing boats that brought in a carefully measured catch of fresh seafood each day, as well as the larger vessel that brought the weekly supplies from the mainland as he turned and came around to the approach. He keyed the microphone and spoke in flawless French to the tower below as he prepared to land. The island was so small that there wasn't enough land for an airstrip, hence the necessity for the seaplane. There were two more, smaller models that were more utility aircraft than anything else, but this one, the Maria, was more like an air limousine than a plane and it had every comfort the owner could think of.

He vectored in and touched down flawlessly, barely a bump as he took a long run to avoid waking his passenger. He taxied in close to the dock and then drifted in so the dock hands could secure the aircraft. He let his passenger sleep as her bags were unloaded and moved to her private bungalow and when he couldn't put it off any longer he raised the lights a little and walked back to where she was sleeping.

There was something about her, some private hurt on her sleeping face. She looked vulnerable as he approached and he felt a pang of recognition. There was something in her that called out to him and he wasn't sure if the liked the idea of that or not. But he looked at her face for a long moment and tried to piece together exactly what it was. She was lovely, with soft, flawless skin and raven-black hair. He saw the glittering of a wedding set on her left hand and sighed as he noted it. She was clearly off limits and he wasn't going to even think about her anymore. But she was beautiful, and she had come here by herself. Many married women who vacationed by themselves sought companionship of one sort or another. Perhaps she... after a minute he dismissed the thought and bent down and gently shook her shoulder.

"Miss Markham, we've arrived ma'am." He said and she woke slowly. He could tell she was disoriented.

"Gavin?" She said in a soft voice as she looked around, then her eyes settled on him and he could see the instant that she remembered where she was. The vulnerability in her face vanished and a cold mask of stony silence settled over her.

"Thank you, Mr. Nielson. A commendable flight, I didn't even realize we had landed." She sat up and unbuckled her seatbelt as he moved away and the lights brightened a bit more as the blinds began to slide up. She winced a bit as the light returned, but it was mercifully better than merely waking to the glaring Caribbean sun and she had time to adjust to it and pull her sunglasses back on.

She exited the plane and one of the island staff was waiting to escort her to her bungalow. Pen watched her go, curious about her but professional enough to keep his mouth shut. She was a beautiful woman and most likely wealthy, while he was just a pilot who had once been a different man. He shook his head and turned back to the plane, he had to close it off and get it ready for the night ahead. Tomorrow he had to fly into Caracas to pick up a client for the owner and fly them all the way to Miami where he would wait overnight before flying them back to Caracas and then returning here. He had an early start and so he wanted to get to bed sooner rather than later.

————2————

Candice went to her little bungalow and saw that her bags had already been moved in for her. She dismissed the staff and closed the doors before moving to look around the little place. It was comfortable if not very large, and it was designed with an open, bi-level concept. She was on the lower tier, which held a sitting room and a small dining area, the doors to a large patio that was more spacious than the bungalow itself, and a little shower stall used when coming in off of the beach. She threw some of the patio doors open and before her was a slight drop to a manicured white-sand beach and then just the endless blue-green of the Atlantic. It seemed to go on forever, the sea and the sky melding to become one at some point and try as she might she couldn't find where that was. There was no horizon and not a single cloud marred the beauty of the sky. She felt a tear escape her as she looked out over it all. It was beautiful, and she could understand why it was such an exclusive place.

She went back inside and climbed the spiral stairs to the upper level. Here there was a large bed in the center of the room, hung all around with diaphanous curtains and piled with silk bedding and pillows. It looked inviting and comfortable, but she wasn't ready for sleep just yet. She found a small door that led to a private bathroom complete with every amenity that she could imagine and a few that she had never even considered. It was comfortable looking and she slowly stripped out of her clothing as she moved toward the shower. She stepped inside and ten jets of water blasted her from all sides and she felt clean again as she took some of the soap that had been laid out and cleansed her body for the first time in days. She hadn't realized just how filthy she was, how badly the sweat had made her stink, and the shower felt almost like a ritual to her, as if she were cleansing away the past.

That thought made the last weeks come rushing back and she slipped down to her knees and wept under the ceaseless water. She sobbed for a long time before she got herself under control and stood up. She was back in the cold, stony place that had gotten her through the abandonment and being cast off like the detritus of the past and she washed herself again, wanting to feel clean. She sat down on the bench at one side of the shower and shaved her legs and under her arms, then as an act of defiance, she spread her legs and quickly removed every vestige of pubic hair as well, stroking the skin with her fingers to be sure it was complete. Gavin had wanted her to do this for eight years, and she did it now as a way of striking out at him, even though he would never know or care that she had done it. She set the razor aside and washed a third time, cleansing her hair and for the hundredth time she tried to wash part of it that wasn't there anymore. It had come down to her waist just a few months before, and it was a point of pride for her.

But she had angrily taken shears to it the day that Gavin had... had hurt her so badly, and she had left the remains of it scattered in what had been their bed. She felt a hurt at the memory, and pushed it aside as she shut off the water and stepped out, reaching for a big soft towel. She dried her skin and went to where her luggage was stacked. She unpacked and found a pair of black bikini bottoms and pulled them on. The resort was very clothing optional and she could have walked around in her skin without drawing so much as a glance, but she was still self-conscious enough that she didn't want to show everything, so she wore the little black bottoms. She put everything else away where it would remain for most of her trip and then went back down the stairs to the patio and looked out across the ocean. The sun was warm and the sea air felt good as it caressed her so she left her bungalow and moved down the little stone path and onto the flawless beach.

The sand was warm and the cliffs to either side sheltered the beach from the worst of the wind. She strode down the sand until she got to the water and she felt it lapping over her toes. She strode out into the surf and with a smooth motion, she leapt and knifed into the waves. The sea closed around her like a lover, embracing her and sending a warm thrill through her entire body as she dived deep and felt the tug and drift of the surf wane. The west side of Calabri was the westernmost point of the Caribbean islands and the water here was deep, swinging down to oceanic depths and the bottom was lost in perpetual twilight to her. She could see coral laid out like a varicoloured blanket across the near ocean bottom and beyond was the shelf that dropped off into the abyssal depths of the Atlantic. She stayed down until she felt the first burn of her lungs begging for air and then she knifed toward the surface and breached like a dolphin. She treaded water and gasped for breath as she shifted to float on her back, letting the surf carry her for a while. The water was just the perfect temperature and soon she felt the rub of sand on her shoulders and a final surge of the water pushed her up onto the beach. She shifted only slightly, her eyes closed and the warmth of the sun soaking into her. With a smile she opened her eyes as she sat up and for a long while she sat there on the beach, which she had to herself, and stared out at the water.

The sun was still high in the sky as she lost herself in reminiscence, remembering happier days and feeling each wash of the sea across her feet carry another worry, another care out into the ocean to drown where she would never see it again. They weren't forgotten, but it was like a baptism for her, a cleansing that soothed her aching heart and calmed her restless soul. And she sat there most of the day, uncaring of the sun and unheeding of the wind as the day waned.

————3————

Pen finished with the plane and he was walking back to his rooms on the south side of the island, where the staff apartments were. It wasn't a large place, but he shared it with no one and it was comfortable enough, more room than he had had on the carrier when he was still a navy flier. He walked along one of the pathways the horticulturists used to maintain the terrace farms and he glanced down at the beach to see his passenger sitting in the sand with her arms around her knees and without any protection from the sun. With a sigh he shook his head and turned his path toward the cabana that serviced the beach. He got one of the free-standing beach umbrellas and a can of spray-on sunscreen and walked out toward her. If she saw or heard him coming, she made no indication of it and when he stopped just behind her she smoothly turned to look at him, an arm crossing her bare breasts as she looked at him with narrowed eyes.

"Can I help you?" She asked frostily and he shrugged.

"This sun can be pretty unforgiving at this time of day; I just thought I would extend the offer of an umbrella and some sunscreen." He said. She glanced at what he was holding and he could see that she was a bit puzzled. "With your fair skin, you would be as red as a lobster in a half hour in this sun, Miss Markham."

"The pilot." She said softly as she remembered him and he smiled and nodded.

"That's me."

"Yes, please and thank you for your consideration." She was about to rise and realized that she was topless in front of him and blushed deeply.

"No need to worry, in the last three years I have seen more than a few beautiful, mostly naked women here, I'll set the umbrella up back here and keep my back to you if that would make you feel better." He said as he set the sunscreen down beside her and turned to afford her some privacy.

"No..." She said firmly before he got too far. "I want to get used to it, I'm going to be here for the winter, I think, and it will do me no good if I shy away every time someone might see me."

She stood and took up the sunscreen as he set up the umbrella and sprayed down her arms and legs and chest, the mist settling on her skin and making it shine for a moment before it dried. She was lovely to look at and he caught himself staring. When she saw it she smiled a bit and held out the container. He took it and she turned away.

"Would you be so good as to spray down my back?" She asked and he obliged, getting her neck as she lifted her short hair up and then down her back to her smooth, strong bottom and down her legs. When he was done he set the spray in a small cup holder on the umbrella. He had noticed the slight shaking of her hand as she held the can out to him and the way she still blushed, not yet really comfortable in her skin.

"Is there anything else I can get you, Miss Markham?" He asked and she shook her head as she looked him over as blatantly as he had looked at her. "The cabana staff is just over there if you do need anything. Enjoy your stay." He said as he turned away.

"It's Candice." She said as he was walking off and he turned back to her. "Just Candice, not Miss Markham."

He nodded and she settled back down under the umbrella, her knees to her chest and her dark eyes looking out to the sea. It was the last day of October and the sun was slowly sliding toward the horizon. Samhain, her Irish grandmother would have called it, the time of changes and the start of the dark half of the year. She had never much cared for Halloween and the isolation suited her perfectly fine. She ignored her hunger and her fatigue as the day waned and the sun set behind her, casting her into shadows as it fell behind the island. And yet she didn't move. She knew that the tide would start to come in soon, though it wouldn't get much more than halfway up the beach. She wanted to be here when it was fully dark, so she sat and waited as the sky turned from blue to indigo and then began to thread with purple. The first stars came out and she stood smoothly and walked down to the edge of the water. The surf rushed up and wet her to the knees and she just stood there as the last of the light fled the sky.