CHAPTER 181: Goode's Luck

 

"So much to do today, Neil.  Do you think I should pop next door to speak to Eliza now?"

"Suzy, it's 7:30am.  She might still be in bed...especially if the baby's been keeping her up at night.  Relax, darling, just give it until around 9am and then go and see her."

"But I'm too excited, I'm buzzing...so many questions about this Advik Archaya to put to her!"

"And that can wait another 90 minutes or so...I tell you what; why don't you write down on a piece of paper all the questions you want to ask her; gather your thoughts properly.  It'll help you pass the time instead of wearing a hole in your shoes pacing up and down".  

Suzy stopped talking, and pacing around the room, smiled sheepishly at Neil and nodded.  He was correct and so she walked over to the kitchen counter, picked up a pad of paper and a pen and started to jot down some ideas and questions she would put to Eliza and Bob about Mr Archaya.  It was a strange congruence of circumstances that fired her imagination:  That they would buy a house where the previous owner had discovered the mysterious hidden glade in Foundry Cove, that the man had known the mysterious assassin, Leanne McGregor, and that his disappearance was probably due to her.

And this saga she had found herself on all began with the discovery of a missing page from a book...

On the stroke of 9am, Suzy gathered up her questions and ideas and headed straight round to the Pancakes residence.  She rang the doorbell and it was Bob who answered it.

"Oh, hello Suzy. What is it?" he asked in his usual, slightly bored sounding voice.

"I'd like to talk with you and Eliza about the neighbourhood...we're still getting the hang of things around here.  And I've been learning a bit about our new house:  Can I ask you guys some questions?"

"Erm, yeah, sure...come on in" replied Bob, looking slightly confused by Suzy's request to answer questions.

He led her to the lounge and he sat down to watch some TV:  The news was on and it was about the airline worker's strike.

"I hope you guys weren't planning a big vacation anytime soon.  Looks like the whole system's grounded." said Bob, nodding at the footage of striking airline workers.

"No...well, not until around August; we're still settling in." replied Suzy.

"Well..." said Bob with a sigh.  "...we weren't going to go on vacation anyway:  The baby's nixed that idea.  Anyway, what did you want to know about the neighbourhood?"

"Your old neighbour, Advik...he mysteriously disappeared, didn't he?" Suzy phrased her question as gently as she could in order not to spook out Bob with everything she knew about the case.  Bob sighed again and drew in a deep breath before responding.

"Yeah, poor guy." was the eventual reply.

"Did you know him well?" she asked, pushing a bit more.

"Yeah, pretty well.  We'd go fishing and hunting a few times.  Decent guy but I didn't hang out with him much as work and...stuff with Eliza..." he said, with a faint grimace on his lips "...got in the way.  Then I really lost contact with him after he went a bit crazy."

"He went crazy?" Suzy pressed again even though she could tell Bob wasn't comfortable with talking about such things.

"Yeah...really far out, you know?" said Bob, shifting uncomfortably on the couch.

"How so?"

"Jeez, where to begin?  You know he was a regular guy and all that but he met this girl...wait a moment, no, she came along later...That's it, he claimed he'd stumbled on some kind of terrible secret and it really freaked him out.  He was never the same guy after that; became a recluse."

"Did he say where he found this secret?" asked Suzy, her eyes bright with excitement as further revelations in this story.

"Yeah, in some book." Bob replied.

"Do you know which book?" asked Suzy without hesitation.

"Jeez, I know you're a reporter and all that but this is kind of intense!" said Bob, defensively.

"Sorry, Bob, that's my training taking over.  I'm just interested in strange stories, that's all.  This sounds fascinating."

"Well, it was weird to witness, I can tell you.  I don't know the name of the book but he showed it to me one time.  I didn't understand it; it seemed gibberish to me about pocket worlds, triangles of power and conspiracies."

Suzy's heart skipped a beat...this book, could it be the one she had one torn page from?  Could this be the book that explained everything mysterious about Sim City?

"And it was after reading the book his behaviour changed?" asked Suzy, restraining herself.

"Big time.  He became paranoid, then he got into that whole painting gig, quit his job and I only saw him a few times after that."

"You mentioned a girl he was seeing, what do you know about her?"

"Not much.  Saw her a few times when she came over to visit him but I never spoke with her.  She was a classy chick; long black hair, dark eyes, kinda sultry looking.  Oh yeah, Advik told me her name was Leanne.  Anyway they were an item for about six weeks and then...BAM...he disappeared.  Only found his shoes.  The official report said he probably fell off a cliff and into a fast moving river...body's probably washed out to sea."

Suzy sat back in her seat and took a deep breath.  Everything fitted here; the book, the obsessive painting and Leanne McGregor, angel of death.  She probably pushed poor Advik off the cliff.  

Upstairs the baby started crying and it could be heard in the lounge.  It was loud enough to interrupt their conversation and after a few seconds Suzy could hear a door open upstairs and Eliza's voice boomed out downstairs.

"Bobby...can you feed Armand?  I'm in the bathroom right now...there's a bottle of milk by the crib." she said.

Bob got up and sighed with exhaustion again as he trudged up the stairs to feed the little one.  He was resigned to the fact that he wasn't going to get his old life back now, that he will never be able to watch a TV show all the way through and that sleep would be intermittent but he figured what else was there to do to resit it?  Kid's gotta be fed, he figured.  Besides, Armand was his son and give it a few years and they'll be throwing a football around in the back yard.

"Suzy, is that you?" called out Eliza.  "Come on upstairs, I'm busy cleaning the bathroom but I'd love a chat"

Suzy walked upstairs where she could hear Bob cooing to the baby in one room and Eliza's footsteps in a room opposite.  Eliza greeted her neighbour with a hug and a big smile.

"Did I hear right that you're interested in hearing about our old neighbour, Advik?" she said.

"Yes, sounds like an interesting, if tragic story" replied Suzy.

"Oh it was so sad when we heard the news of his disappearance." said Eliza.  "But he did give us one of his paintings, for free, before he left on that last, fateful trip.  Would you like to see it?"

"I'd like that" replied Suzy, again excited that she was learning more and more about this story.

Eliza led Suzy to one of the bedrooms and there, above a mantlepiece, was a landscape painting of a mountain range...in the same particular pink shade as the painting she and Neil had seen at the art gallery.

"Did he tell you what inspired this painting?" asked Suzy.

"Not really...he said it was called '6am Sunrise' and asked if we would take very good care of it...and we've done so.  It's hung there ever since we got it."

"He was quite talented" said Suzy, scrutinising the painting for any clues.  Nothing obvious struck her though.

Her studiousness was interrupted by the sound of the baby gurgling "ah-goo" and she turned to look at him lying there, his feet gently kicking in the air and one hand at his mouth.  She started making goo-goo noises back at him.

"Any plans to start a family with Neil?" asked Eliza and Bob.

"What?  NO!  Well, not now...but...I'm tempted!" Suzy replied.  The power of a cute baby had struck her.  "Anyway, it smells like he needs a change of diaper so I'll leave you to it.  Thanks for that very interesting information."  And with that, she headed home.

She found Neil reading a book about French 19th century painters.  He looked up at her and asked how the talk with Eliza and Bob went.

"Good, very interesting in fact" she replied.  "So this Advik Archaya got hold of some mysterious book that told of all the conspiracies in Sim City...I think it's the same book the missing page I have in my possession is from.  Anyway, Bob and Eliza think it drove him mad and he became paranoid and obsessive.  And they said he was dating Leanne McGregor!  It all fits!"

"If only we can find that book..." mused Neil.

"The more progress we make, the more we discover that we need to find out more" she sighed.

Neil stood up and put the book back on the shelf.  "I have to go out for a bit" he said.  "I'm meeting Andre in town".  Andre Good was Neil's best friend and was best man at his wedding.

"Aww, that's nice.  Do give him my love" said Suzy.  "Is he seeing anyone, do you know?"

"I don't think so, I'll soon find out when I catch up with him" replied Neil, grabbing his wallet and set of car keys.

"I hope he is...he's too down on himself when it comes to dating.  There's plenty of nice women out there!"  said Suzy.

"Now don't do yourself down, Andre...there are plenty of nice women out there" said Neil, trying to encourage his friend.

"I hope so...it hasn't worked out so far." Andre replied.  "But you'll be my wingman, right?  Encourage and big me up to the ladies?"

"Of course.  You're officially a friend to the married man.  Well, let's get a beer and catch up...I haven't seen much of you since we moved house" said Neil, jerking his head towards the Waterside Warble bar.

The two went inside and found there weren't many people there.  It must be a slow afternoon, Neil thought.  They took their places at the bar and ordered two beers.

"How's it going, Andre?" asked Neil.

"Job's much the same, I'm still at the same place and doing the same things." said Andre with a shrug.

"Dare I ask how the love life is?" 

"Deader than pleats and men's hats" replied Andre, taking a big swig of his beer.

"Did you follow things up with Tiffany?"

"We had one date, but it's clear she and I are two very different people to make anything work.  I suspect she still holds a candle for some other guy.  Kept dropping the name 'Alan' into the conversation.  At one point she accidentally called me by that name.  Shame, as she was extremely HOT!"

"Yeah, you know she's a Lothario Kitten?" said Neil.

"You told me that...I can well believe it.  Shame it never went any further; I'd have liked to see her in her kitten outfit." said Andre, managing a wry smile.

A beautiful and svelte looking young woman wearing the latest fashions walked past them both and glanced in their direction momentarily.

"Speaking of kittens...there goes another one!" said Andre, excitedly.  "And she's my favourite!  Miss Ginger!"

"Why don't you say hello to her?" asked Neil.

"You know I think I will!" said an eager Andre, ready to leap off his bar stool but as soon as he was poised Miss Ginger, Tasha Michel, walked over to a tall, slim and very handsome man and gave him a kiss on the cheek.  They sat down together on one of the bar sofas and snuggled up to one another.

"...or maybe not.  Some guys have all the luck" said a deflated Andre.

"Well, there's..." began Neil.

"DON'T SAY IT!" replied Andre, interrupting and pointing an accusatory finger at Neil.

"...plenty of fish in the sea?" continued Neil, looking admonished.

"Well while you think up your next homily I'm going to the bathroom." said Andre, getting up and walking to the bathroom...taking a moment to look once again at Miss Ginger in all her beauty as he walked past.

Meanwhile Neil smiled and took another sip of his drink.  Andre was frustrated by his lack of success with women but he didn't seem despondent.  Where there's hope, there's love; Neil thought.

"Fancy seeing you here!" came a familiar voice sitting next to him.  Neil turned and saw his neighbour, Barbara Dubois, sitting at the end of the bar.

"You too.  Where's Jeremy?" said Neil.

"He's meeting me here; we're going to go out to dinner tonight at a Chinese restaurant we both like.  Where's Suzy?"

"Right about now she's still over at the Hey, Wow! offices.  I'm here with my friend, Andre.  Do you remember him?"

"Oh yes, from the wedding.  Nice guy.  Is he still seeing Tiffany?"

Neil shook his head.  "Didn't work out; I'm helping him look for a bit of romance down here.  He's not having much luck, I'm afraid."

"Too bad.  I hope his luck improves tonight!" said Barbara.

Andre returned from the bathroom and the three of them had a friendly discussion until Jeremy showed up and whisked Barbara away for their dinner date.  Andre watched them leave and said "now that's the kind of girl I'm looking for.  How did you and Jeremy end up with absolute angels like Barbara and Suzy?"

"In my case, she worked on me until I cracked.  I'm glad she did.  Anyway, the right girl is out there for you, Andre.  You've just got to be patient.  Let's get another round in." said Neil, catching the barmaid's attention.

They had a second round, then a third but tonight wasn't the night where nice, attractive single ladies came to the Waterside Warble.  Perhaps the one night in its entire history where this had not happened.  Andre grew despondent and left to go home.  The scene was dead, the vibe had gone and so had Andre's quest for this evening.  Neil finished his last drink and headed home as well but he paused to watch and listen to a busker in Spice Quarter Square.  Andre's words before he left buzzed around Neil's head as he watched the busker.

"There's no attractive single women around!"

Neil looked around the square and saw a young, attractive woman eating a bowl of Ramen.

...and another...

...and another although, Neil thought, she looks a little spaced out...

...and another.  Wait, isn't she that singer from TV?  If only Neil had hung on just 10 minutes more...10 MINUTES!  Andre just has no luck...

CHAPTER 170: Moving Out

 

"Well, we're almost packed up...let's get the last few boxes into the truck and then we'll head off to our new home!" said Neil, with a trace of excitement in his voice.

Suzy looked around the nearly empty house she'd been living in these last six months and sighed. "Yeah, goodbye old house.  Goodbye groovy wallpaper, goodbye kitchen...oh, Neil, we forgot to pack up the coffee machine!"

"Relax, honey, I'll put it in a box and put it in the truck." he said, reassuringly.  "Are you very anxious about our house move?"

"A bit...it's funny:  I'm supposed to be this up to the minute, it-girl who's into the latest things and yet I feel nostalgic for this old place.  This is my first home as an independent woman, away from Mom and Dad and I grew fond of here."

Neil held her in his arms and looked into her bright blue eyes.  "I know.  I went from the family home to art school to a bunch of short term and cheap garrets until I met you.  This place has fond memories for me as well but we're going to make a whole bunch of new ones...together...in our new house." and with that he gave her a reassuring kiss on the cheek.

The last things were packed up and whatever they didn't want to take with them got left behind.  As they left the house and stood on the porch, Suzy turned around to look into the house one last time.  Closing the door was an act of finality:  Onwards to the new.

It was a short drive to their new home and they arrived there early enough to help the removal guys unpack the truck and unpack all the furniture to put it into place.  The previous week Suzy and Neil had hired painters and decorators to paint and carpet the place.  Now they were ready to begin the next chapter of their lives.

"It looks great!" said Suzy, looking around the house.

"Well, it was bound to with an artist and a fashion expert in charge" replied Neil, with a smile.

"Let's relax in our new home!" she added.

The living room was designed to Suzy's tastes:  Mod style with white walls and furnishings and black highlights.  Neil joked that she could camouflage herself whenever she wore her favourite black and white outfit.  Meanwhile he was pleased at how his sketches for the new place had been implemented by the decorators.

"How about we admire our new abode over a cup of Joe?" he asked.

"Sounds good to me" replied Suzy.

As they sat on their brand-new couch sipping some freshly ground coffee Suzy stretched out her legs and took in the surroundings.

"Do you know I think this is the kind of place suitable for my current status with work" she said.  "I can see myself entertaining the editor, interviewing celebrity guests, that kind of thing." 

"I can just see you swapping jokes with Twiggy in this room" joked Neil.  "I wonder what I'll be doing now...working in a shop isn't cutting it anymore."

"You got promoted not long ago to assistant manager" said Suzy.

"Yeah, but I want to develop my painting more.  I've sold 3 more of my works in the last month...I now earn just as much money from painting than I do at the shop.  Plus, two split shifts keeps us apart too much...I want more time with you, darling.  How many chances to we get to go out on a date these days when I have to work an early morning plus an early evening shift?"

"I would love to spend more time with you...and, hey, I'm a follow your dream kind of girl."

"You certainly are!  Anyway, I'm still rostered on for today and I'll have to get ready for my first shift so I'll give it some thought.  Before I go, I want to christen our new sink!"

"Are you going to be this reverential with all our appliances?"

"Behold!  Hot water on demand!" 

"Oh my hero!" Suzy exclaimed sarcastically.  "The wonders of plumbing!  What next?  Ode To The Floor?"

"You might jest..." said Neil, wagging his finger playfully at her.

"Thanks, I will" she replied.

"I'm going to get changed now" said Neil, changing the subject.  "What are you up to today?"

"I'm going to finish off an article and then do some sketches for the fall fashion issue of "Hey, Wow!" Suzy replied.

"Well, all the best with that"

"I tell you what, Neil, this street is a lot quieter than our old one.  I can't hear any passers-by out there"

"Then have a productive, and quiet, day...I'll see you later" he said, getting up and kissing her cheek.

Suzy then settled down in their new study...finally, she lived in a house that had a study...and began typing up her next article.

If anything, the current trends are only going to become more accepted in the mainstream and that American designers can compete with European ones...

Her writing was interrupted by the sound of the new doorbell ringing and the muffled sound of a woman's voice shouting "Coo-eeee!"

"So much for a peaceful neighbourhood..." muttered Suzy to herself.  She stopped typing, stood up and went to see who it was at the door.

"Hello neighbour!" said a very exuberant Eliza Pancakes on the front porch.  Right behind her was the slient figure of her husband, Bob.

"Hello, this is a nice surprise" replied Suzy.  "Come on in, I'll show you what we've done to the place."

"Oh I can't wait to see!" exclaimed Eliza.  Bob seemed more circumspect, so Suzy had to do a bit more coaxing to get him to step inside.

 "I am loving it already!" said Eliza, clapping her hands.  "This is so you...the black and white, the sleekness of it all.  It's all so mod!"

"That was the intention" replied Suzy.

Bob was looking around as well but less at the decor and more at the large stereo system they had.

"Hey, this is a good model...do you mind if I switch it on to check the sound?" he asked.

"Sure" said Suzy "I'm not sure how it switches on yet"

"I got it; used one of these babies before" said Bob.

"YEAH!  TOTAL SOUND!" Bob said, excitedly.

"Bobby...would you turn that down a little?  Suzy and I can't hear each other speak!" said Eliza.

Bob muttered something and turned the volume down.

"Oh this place is just divine!  I want to be nosey and look all around!" said Eliza, jumping to her feet and scuttling off down the hall.  That left Suzy with Bob and she tried to engage him in some light conversation.

"So........how's the baby?  His name is Armand, isn't it?" said Suzy; her opening line.

"Sure is...he's OK." said Bob, nodding.

"And where is he today?"

"At home...with a babysitter.  Say, I'm a bit hungry.  Do you have anything to eat?  Just a little snack will do?"

"Erm yeah, some little bits...we haven't gone shopping yet but I think there's a slice or two of cake in the fridge" said Suzy.  Bob didn't seem like a man of many words but the paunch of his stomach told her he was a man of much eating.

SLAM! Went the fridge door as Bob slammed it a little too hard.  Eliza came striding into the living room to see what the cause of the noise was.

"Bobby Pancakes!  Treat our neighbours' house with a little more respect!" she said, scolding her husband.

"Dang it, woman!  This is a solid and well-built appliance!  I know what I'm doing." he gave a surly reply.

"I doubt that...and you've still got the stereo on way too loud!"

"Quit nagging me, Liza!  I'm warning you!"

"Oh you're warning me, are you?  Ooh, I'm scared" she said, sarcastically.

The tension in the room suddenly ramped up and Suzy felt anxious sitting between the feuding Pancakes.  

"How about I make us all a coffee?" she asked, both as a way of trying to calm things down but also to give her an excuse to get out of being in between them.

"Got any more cake?" asked Bob.

"I'll see...Eliza, coffee...or...cake?" asked Suzy, nervously.

Eliza shrugged her shoulders but said nothing.  Suzy took her chance and scampered off to the kitchen whilst Eliza sat down in a chair that was opposite the couch.  Bob looked at his wife and saw she was upset...he didn't know what to do so he made an awkward attempt at flirting to try and make amends.

Eliza just gave an indignant huff and turned her head away.

Suzy returned a few minutes later with coffee and more cake.  "Eliza, wouldn't you be more comfortable on the sofa?" she said, not wanting to be in the middle of those two.  Eliza got up and sat down next to Bob whilst Suzy sat in the single chair opposite them.  Bob didn't seem happy about the seating change.

"So...Bob was telling me a little about Armand?  How is parenthood, Eliza?" asked Suzy.

"Busy, busy, busy!" Eliza replied.  "Has Bobby told you about our babysitter?  Oh she's wonderful!  She makes little Armand giggle; it's so cute...you must come and see him again, I think he likes you." replied Eliza.

"He likes anyone who gives him milk" said Bob.

There was a bit more chat about things that wouldn't set the Pancakes off and then Neil returned home.

"Oh, hi Eliza and Bob...how's it going?  What do you think of our new home?" he asked the guests.

"We love it!" said Eliza.

"It's pretty neat" said Bob.

"You've got a nice place" remarked Neil.  "So...what else is new with you guys?" he added.

"Oh this and that..." replied Eliza.  "...mainly the baby though"

"Always the baby!" added Bob.

"I can imagine" said Neil.

"No you can't...unless you've experienced it, you can't imagine..." replied Bob as though he was reliving some traumatic memory.

"But he keeps us on the go and, yes, it can be a lot of fun, can't it, Bobby....I said, CAN'T IT, BOBBY?" said Eliza.

"Oh yes...say, Neil, I dig your stereo system" said Bob, desperately trying to change the conversation to something guy related.

"Thanks, man" replied Neil.  "Go ahead, find something cool to play"

Bob scuttled off to have a bop whilst Eliza sat next to Neil.  "Do you know I don't think we've really gotten to know each other...I didn't actually meet you until the wedding.  I hope we can spend more time getting to know each other..." she said.

"Yeah, OK then." said Neil, innocently.  Suzy was out of earshot, however...

Neil made an excuse to clean up the plates and cake crumbs whilst Suzy re-entered the room and sat next to Eliza.

"It's certainly nice to move to a new neighbourhood and have people you already know there" said Suzy.

"Oh we're going to be in and out of each other's houses, I'm sure!" Eliza replied.

"Yes..." said Suzy, a slight hesitation to her voice.

Bob walked over to them and looked at his watch.  "We'd better be getting back, we're paying the babysitter by the hour" he said.

"Alright, Bobby, don't fret...anyway Suz, let's meet for coffee sometime soon" said Eliza.

"Sure thing" said Suzy.

"I'll just head back now and pay the sitter...you join me when you can pry yourself away.  Thanks for the cake, guys" said Bob.

After the Pancakes had left Neil and Suzy could, at last, get a bit of peace and quiet.

"They're quite full on, aren't they?" said Neil as he checked out a work in progress that was on the easel. 

"Eliza's got a heart of gold but she does come across as brash...Bob, I don't know so well but he seems like he carries the burdens of the world on his shoulders." replied Suzy.  "But they're our neighbours now..."

"I'll never complain about Action and Julia ever again" said Neil.  "How do you like this drawing?  It's just charcoal on canvass at the moment but I want to move from just doing landscapes to doing portraits"

"I love it!  And we get to work together in this room as well!  Me on my typewriter and you at your canvas"

"I'll work on this later...Right, I'm just going to get a bite to eat...that is, if Bob hasn't eaten us out of house and home.  Then I have to briefly pop into the shop to hand in my notice and work out my remaining time there." said Neil.

"You're serious, you're going to quit your shop job and turn full time artist?"

"Yep, made up my mind and I want to do this.  Are you OK with that?"

"I think that's wonderful news...your talent shouldn't go to waste." said Suzy, kissing him on the cheek.

That made Neil's day.

Once again Suzy found herself alone but only briefly...there was another knock on the door.  "Who is it this time?" she sighed.

It was a woman; an auburn haired, tall and slim woman in her late 20s who had an air of refinement about her.

"Hello, there" she said.  Her accent was English and sounded very upper crust, almost aristocratic.  "My name's Emma and I live just across the river there.  I see you've just moved in and I wanted to say hello."

"That's kind...you're English, aren't you?" asked Suzy.

"Correct.  I've only just moved to Sim City with my...erm...associate; Steed."

"Steed?  The name rings a bell...wait, I met a man named John Steed at the Humour and Hijinks Festival recently.  Dapper chap, wears sharp suits and a bowler hat?"

"That's the fellow.  So you've met Steed, eh?  Interesting..." said Emma with a wry smile.

"Well do come in...I still have some fresh coffee in the pot" said Suzy.

"I do say I like the decor here...did you choose all the furnishings?" said Emma, looking and sounding impressed at the surroundings.

"I did...I work in fashion and my husband is an artist so we chose all the decor and furniture with an eye for a total look." replied Suzy.

"I can tell you work in fashion; you're up to the minute in style." Emma said, looking Suzy up and down.  "That dress:  Cardin?  Quant?"

"J.C. Penney, I'm afraid.  I can't quite stretch to getting an original Quant." replied Suzy, sheepishly.

"But I love your boots!  I have the same pair...they have to be originals!"  Said Emma, showing off her white go-go boots which she wore with beige and tan pants.

"Yes, these I did get from a boot makers in Chelsea...but I had to mail order them though.  Did you get yours there?"

"In Chelsea, yes, it must have been the same boot maker.  So you're interested in Carnaby Street fashions, are you?"

"Oh yes!  I'd love to go there one day"

"It's worth it.  I used to go there every weekend before our work, that is, Steed and myself's work, took us to America."

"What line of work are you in, if you don't mind me asking, Emma?"

"Oh we're troubleshooters you might say.  We go wherever we're needed." was Emma's nonchalant and uninformative answer.

"And what about yourself, Suzy, what do you do in fashion?"

"I'm a fashion reporter for a magazine but I sometimes dabble in other kinds of journalism...you know, investigative."

"Wait, are you Suzy Kent?  I read your article about Malcolm Landgraab!  I found it very informative."

"Yes I am and thank you"

"You should do more investigative pieces...I'm sure there's a lot in Sim City that could do with an expose."

"Oh there is...I'm working on something right now but I need to get my facts straight with it because some of it sounds fantastical on the surface."

"Now that does sound interesting!" said Emma.

When Neil came home from his second shift he found Suzy with some strange Englishwoman sitting, laughing and conversing in their new study.

"Hello, Suzy, another visitor?" he said.

"Oh yes, this is Emma from across the river...she came to say hello.  Emma, this is Neil, my husband."

"Pleased to meet you: Suzy's had a lot of nice things to say about you." said Emma, with an effortless grace and charm that was accentuated by her accent.

"Well, I must be heading off now...no doubt Steed's got some problem that needs dealing with urgently and I must help him.  Goodbye, Suzy and Neil.  Lovely to meet you." she said, getting up to leave.

Once she had gone home Neil looked at Suzy and said "It's like a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company has graced our home."

"Now, now, she's lovely and such an interesting person...she's actually married to a test pilot but he went missing two years ago and no trace of him has ever been found!"

"This sounds like the basis for your next article..." he said, drolly.  

"Now let's lock the door, pretend like we're not in so no more people will disturb us, and let's snuggle down to some nice dinner and a cosy night in." she replied.

"I like the sound of that" said Neil.

"I'll just go and freshen up" she said, leaving the study and going to the bedroom.  There, she checked herself up and down in their new, large wall mirror.  She felt great and excited by their house move and after all the chaos of having visitors she had only one thing on her mind...Neil.

By way of coincidence, Neil had only one thing on his mind and it wasn't dinner... When Suzy sauntered back into the study he grabbed her by the waist and drew her close to him.

"Neil!  This is most unlike you!" she said.  "But I like it"

"Only you can get me all hot and not bothered at all" he replied.  "Let's skip dinner..."

CHAPTER 163: House Hunting

 

"To finish my set I'd like to perform a song by a favourite band of mine...Jefferson Airplane.  This one's called 'High Flying Bird'...thank you" and with that the singer started to strum and sing the song.  Neil and Suzy looked on, impressed with this young woman's musical ability.

"She's very good...but we need to go, we've got a lot to do today" said Neil.

"Oh a few minutes more watching her won't dent our schedule.  I want to stay until the end of the song" replied Suzy.

Neil said nothing and continued to watch the young lady perform the song...although he did check his wristwatch a few times during the remainder of the performance.

Eventually, the woman finished.  "Thank you, my name's Lisa Richardson and I'll see you cats real soon." and with that she bowed and then went to put her guitar back in its case.

"Now we really should get going" said Neil.  "We've got to get all the way back to Willow Creek"

"I know, darling, but we don't have to see the first place until 10 and it's only 9:15 now...Willow Creek isn't that far away..." she pleaded.

"I'm worried about finding a suitable parking spot when we're there...I don't know that part of town" he replied.

"Oh there's plenty of parking!  If it's where you say it is you have lots of quiet, residential roads with parking lots and lots of side streets.  It's such a beautiful morning in San Myshuno, let's just take a wander for a bit...please?" 

She fixed Neil with her bright blue eyes...he couldn't resist that wide eyed, keen and eager look of hers.  Suzy really was the most beautiful woman he had ever met and she was now his wife!  She was even wearing his favourite outfit on her...a vision in purple, right down to her eye make up.  He couldn't say no to her.

"OK...five more minutes then" he said.

"The flowers are in full bloom I see..." said Suzy, noticing the elaborate planters in the square.

"Maybe we'll find a place with a garden to grow some of our own?" mused Neil.

"Hey, is that Suzy Kent...I mean, Suzy Humphries?" came a voice from across the square.  Both Neil and Suzy looked in the direction it had come from and saw a familiar figure walking towards them.  It was Burr DeBenning; crazy name, crazy guy.  He was an old friend of Suzy's...someone who had been of great help to her when she was investigating the suspicious activities of the Landgraabs.  But since she'd been with Neil, she'd seen less of him.

Neil stiffened at the sight of Burr.  He thought the guy was pleasant and decent enough, but he had a feeling in the pit of his stomach that Burr fancied Suzy and that didn't sit well with him.

Burr's heart skipped a beat when he saw her.  He still rued the missed opportunity of getting together with her.  Neil was a decent guy...that was the problem; he couldn't hate the man who stole the woman he longed for.

"Wow, I haven't seen you since the wedding!" exclaimed an excited Burr.  How's married life treating you, Suz...oh, and Neil?"

"It's wonderful" replied Suzy.  "And how are you doing, Burr?  Still working at the council?  Still keeping an eye on Geoffrey and Nancy?"

"Yes to both.  Man, you look so vibrant, Suz.  Are you still pursuing the mysteries of Sim City?" asked Burr.

"I am...research is coming along slowly, I'm afraid but today I'm taking a day off" she said.

"We're going house hunting, Burr" Neil interjected.

"Oh, moving up in the world?" asked Burr.

"Something like that...but as my husband..." she said, emphasising the word "keeps saying to me we have to get to see our first place very soon.  We must catch up soon properly..."

"All of us" interjected Neil, again.

"Yes, all of us...lovely to see you again, Burr!" said Suzy, all bouncy and positive.

As Suzy and Neil headed to the parking lot to pick up their Volvo sports car, she commented "How lovely to see Burr again, I hope he's doing well"

"Yes" said a less convinced Neil.

COURTYARD LANE, WILLOW CREEK, 11:30am

"Well, that last place was very nice..." said Suzy, diplomatically...she hated it.

"Well out of our price range and I don't think we need 4 bedrooms either" said Neil.  "You liked it?  I thought it was too run down."

"I hope the other houses in this area are nice...I've heard a lot of good things about this neighbourhood but so far the houses haven't matched up"

 

"OK..." Neil continued.  "Last place on our list...Rindle Rose.  A 2 bedroom, single storey house which is about 1/3 larger than our current home"

"Hmmm, I like it from the outside...very sweet.  I like the porch and the garden is very pretty.  Let's look around" Suzy replied.

Suzy's impression of the house grew after they'd looked around inside.  Neil was warming to it as well.

"OK, the place is a bit messy, a lot of the furniture is very old fashioned and not with it" said Suzy.

"From what I understand the current owner is clearing out the inside and furniture so we'd be furnishing virtually from scratch" replied Neil.

"The outdoors I wouldn't want to touch" Suzy continued.

"Well, I was thinking I could put my easel up there, overlooking the river" said Neil.

"I think that would be acceptable.  Oh Neil, I really like this place:  It's a bit like our existing house but that much bigger and we don't get views of that horrible industrial cargo warehouse either....and I'm not taking my life into my hands every time I cross that busy road at the end of our street if we lived here."

"I'll confess...when I was looking at properties this came out as my favourite.  OK, if you like this and you can see us living here then I'll get the paperwork going" said Neil, happy that Suzy liked Rindle Rose as well.

"One thing though; I'm going to miss living next to the gang and seeing them everyday..." said Suzy "I wonder what our neighbours would be like here?"

"Coo-eeee!  Suzy and Neil!  Over here!"

The Humphries both looked over to the house next to them, where the voice was coming from.  It was none other than Eliza Pancakes; a friend of theirs who'd they'd known for some time and invited to the wedding but they'd never been to her house before.

"Hello Eliza, keeping well?" asked Suzy

"Well, as well as I can be...so rushed off my feet these days with the baby" replied Eliza.  "Oh you must come and see the little one!  Have you time?"

Suzy looked to Neil, who nodded and they accepted Eliza's invitation.

"I must say your house looks lovely, Eliza" said Neil.

"Is Bob around?" asked Suzy.

"Thank you, Neil, well we try to make it lovely but it's a bit of a handful right now...Bob's around here somewhere; I sent him to check on the baby."

"Oh yes, congratulations again...is it a boy or a girl?" asked Suzy.

"It's a boy...his name is Armand and, well, yes, he's a typical baby you know!  Needs feeding, cries a lot, and a lot and...a...lot..." replied Eliza, her voice trailing off.

"Are you two thinking of starting a family yet?" continued Eliza/

"NO!" exclaimed Suzy.

"Well, it's too early for that..." added Neil.  "I mean, we'd have to move to a bigger place if we did...I mean, we have to move to a bigger place anyway what with my work and Suzy's."

"We're in no rush to start a family.  Get married life sorted first" said Suzy.

"Well, good luck with that!  I don't think any of us married types ever get it sorted" said Eliza, looking crestfallen at the ceiling.

Suzy and Neil gave a polite, but nervous laugh.

Just then they heard heavy footsteps coming down the stairs.  A heavyset black man with a tight afro and a bored expression on his face entered the room.  Although Suzy and Neil had never met him in person, they knew that was the often absent husband, Bob Pancakes.  He barely acknowledged the presence of visitors as he walked in.

"Look who's come to visit us, Bobby?" said Eliza.  "You've heard of my friends Neil and Suzy, haven't you?"

"Erm...I think so.  Don't they live with a Chinese girl who's a rocket scientist?" said Bob.

"No!  That's Travis and Summer.  This is Suzy and Neil...I was at their wedding last month...you couldn't come due to that stomach bug you caught the morning of it."

"Ooooohhhhh yes.  Stomach bug.  Erm, yeah, that was it." said Bob, defensively.  "It's stuffy in here, let me open a window." he said, turning to one of them.  "By the way, we're out of fresh coffee, this is the last cup" he said, gesturing to the mug he was holding.  The atmosphere was pretty tense right now and Eliza was quietly seething as Bob still hadn't said hello to their visitors.

Neil tried to break the ice a little.  "I was saying to Eliza that you've got a nice place here, Bob.  Did you do much of the decor yourselves?"

Bob lightened up a little at this question.  "Oh yeah, sure.  You know I did the floors, the walls, knocked a doorway through there so these rooms could interconnect, expanded upstairs and added a room, a second bathroom, changed the electrical wiring and all that.  Are you a home improvement kind of guy, Nigel?"

"Neil.  Well...erm..." he said, trying to recall his one moment of handyman success.  "I replaced the toilet in our current home.  The whole home improvement thing is something I'm looking into if we buy the place next door."

"Yeah, next door man.  That place could do with a new owner now that Advik has been declared legally dead." said Bob with a rueful shake of his head.

"Advik?" asked Suzy, apprehensively.

"Oh my gosh, when did you hear about that?" exclaimed Eliza.  "I thought they were still looking for him."

"Not any more they're not." said Bob, sitting down and taking another sip of coffee.  "They found his shoes at the top of Granite Falls...and nothing else" he said, mysteriously.  "No trace of him has been found...tracks leading up to the falls, then nothing coming back."

"That sure sounds like a mystery" said Suzy with a tinge of keen interest in her voice.  Neil immediately picked up on that and knew his wife's mind would be occupied at the thought of investigating it.

"This Advik had no family then?" asked Neil.

"No.  So the land agents want a quick sell and are prepared to drop the price" said Bob.  "Mind you, the guy was a bit of a slob...looks good outside but it's a mess inside."

"Wow, this looks like our luck's in with this one, Eliza!  We should put an offer in!" said an enthusiastic Suzy.

Their conversation was then interrupted by cries from upstairs.

"Oh it's Armand, again.  Didn't you feed him when you went upstairs?" asked Eliza, with frustration in her voice.

"You said to go check on him...you never said anything about feeding the little guy" replied Bob, defensively.

"Tsch, I'll have to do it...Suzy, would you like to meet Armand...leave the menfolk to talk about smashing walls and varnishing floors." said Eliza.

"That would be lovely...give you and Bob a chance to get to know each other" said Suzy to Neil.  The women left the room and Neil and Bob were left alone in the living room.  Bob took one last swig of his coffee.

"Shame that was the last of that.  Damn fine coffee" he said, matter of factly.

Meanwhile the girls headed upstairs in the direction of the crying.  In one daintily decorated bedroom there was a traditional basinet all in white and in the middle was a squirming, writing and crying baby.

"Awww, did naughty daddy forget to feed you?" said Eliza, picking up Armand.  She carried him over to a side table where there was a bottle of baby formula waiting.  She picked it up, put the teat in his mouth and started to feed him as she cradled him in her arms.  The crying stopped, to be replaced by a succession of "a-goo...a-goo...a-goo" noises.

"Aww, that's such a cute sound, and what a lovely little boy you have there" said Suzy, smiling at the little infant.

"He is when he's feeding and he does love a feed!" replied Eliza.  "He's also sweet when he's sleeping.  Takes after his father that way."

Armand came off the bottle and let out a tiny burp.  Then Eliza put the formula back on the table and cradled him some more.  "I'm hoping having a baby will bring some joy into our home...I mean, some extra joy..." she said.  "Say, do you want to hold him?  Get some good practice in for the future?" she continued with a wink.

"Oh...well...I've never had much experience with babies.  I wouldn't want to drop him or anything...OK, here goes....my, he's quite light.  Awwww, I think he smiled at me!" said Suzy, holding him gently.

After a few minutes Eliza took Armand back into her arms and snuggled him.  He was quite content so she put him back in the basinet.  They decided to leave him and go back downstairs but Suzy could see a mixture of exhaustion and frustration on her friend's face.

"It must take a lot out of you, having a baby to look after" said Suzy.

"Oh Suz...it's draining!  It doesn't help that my husband is a lazy son-of-a-bitch at times!  I sometimes think he doesn't care at all about us!" she said, desperately trying to keep her voice down.

"I'm so sorry to hear that, Eliza.  I'm only a newlywed and I haven't had a serious fight with Neil since our wedding day so I can't offer much in the way of help" 

"Oh you're so blessed, Suzy, and don't take Neil for granted!  I think I married too soon, too much on the rebound...and Bobby...well, he was always there, you know?  Other guys came and went and, gosh, my own family background isn't much to write about...I was a bit of a wild child back in the day!  I'm a lousy wife and I'm worried I'm going to be a lousy mom!"

Suzy reached out and gently touched Eliza on both arms in comfort.  "I think there's hope, Eliza, when you said 'Bobby is always there'.  I don't know him much at all, but he's here, he hasn't left you or Armand.  Maybe he needs a bit of coaxing out of his shell?  I'm sure you know what makes him tick."

"Yeah, hopefully a bomb!" Eliza said, with a chuckle.  "I know, cruel joke but thanks for your friendship, Suz.  Hey, it'll be great being neighbours, won't it?"

Back at Foundry Cove Neil and Suzy had time to ponder their house hunting experience.

"I really like the house, really like it.  I'm already thinking about interior design" said Suzy.

"I like it too" said Neil.  "How do you feel about our prospective neighbours?" he asked.

"Eliza?  I've known her for ages!  And that little baby is so sweet..." 

"Careful now..."

"Bob...I know what you mean; we might have to get used to hearing a lot of rows from next door" mused Suzy.  "Mind you, the noise Action puts out at all hours on his stereo isn't much better"

"They're a bit of a handful, the Pancakes.  I think I can handle both of them at the same time in small doses" said Neil.  "But you're right about the house; we should put in an offer.  I'll make the call to the agents."

Whilst Neil was making the phone calls Suzy took a walk around the Cove, her home for so long she could only just remember the day she moved in.  Meeting Travis, Summer and Liberty...then Jeremy.  This was before Julia and Action had arrived, heck it was before Julia's house had finished being built!  Rubber Soul by The Beatles had only just been released...ahhh, the memories.

Suzy walked down to the river, past Jeremy and Barbara's house and down to the little fishing spot there.  In all the time she'd lived in Foundry Cove, she never tried fishing there.  She'd also not noticed the little crystalline rocks that lay around the area either, nor the old moss covered logs where tiny frogs would hop in and out of.  Just when you thought you knew your own hometown, something comes along to surprise you, she thought.

She also looked across the river and saw the ugly old container facility...she wouldn't miss seeing it when they moved but it was also part of the mystery of the Cove...if the glade wasn't somewhere within that facility, then where could it be from here?

Her thoughts were interrupted by the voice of Barbara, who had come along to see her.  "Suzy, gathering inspiration down by the river?" she asked.

"Oh Barbara, ha, not at all...I'm just enjoying the sights of our little neighbourhood in this lovely evening.  Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to block your way..." said Suzy to a passing teenage girl.  The girl, an elegant blonde with a haughty manner about her said nothing as she walked past Suzy and Barbara.  Barbara couldn't quite place it, but that girl seemed familiar...perhaps she had been a customer at the shop?

"There's something on your mind, I can tell" said Barbara.  "Is married life still treating you well?"

"Oh yes...in fact, Neil and I have made an important decision about what we should do next..." said Suzy.

"Oh, Suz...you're not!" exclaimed Barbara.

"No!  We're not going to have children...yet.  We're going to move house.  Not far, though.  We've found a place over at Courtyard Lane we really like.  That's only just up the river there."

"Oh Suz...that's great!  But bad!  But bad in a great way!  Sure...I get you need a bigger place but it'll be sad that we can't keep popping in and out of each other's places for impromptu chats and drinks." 

"I know...but just walk along that path behind me and in 20 minutes you'll find us." said Suz, apologetically.  "I'll still be around here quite a bit though" she said, looking at the mysterious tree.  "I don't want to miss my friends."

Barbara nodded and gave Suzy a big hug and wished her luck before heading back to her own home.  Yes, the tree, Suzy thought.  I'm not done with you yet!

As she sauntered back home, taking in the sights and musing about how this news would impact on her friends, she saw Summer approaching the house.  Yes, Summer, her best friend.  What adventures they had had together.  Trying to track down Malcolm Landgraab, setting up stake outs, those quests to find boyfriends when, in Summer's case, he was living under the same roof as her all along.  All those girly chats, the giggles, the bottles of wine consumed along the way...

"So I just bumped into Barbara" said Summer as Suzy approached the house.  "You're not!"

"We are, we're moving house.  Not for a while I mean our offer's got to be accepted and then we have to sell this place and plan a moving out date....but don't worry, we're only moving to the next neighbourhood along."

"Oh Suzy...I don't know what to say!  Of course, you must have a house moving party and then a house warming one after that!  Don't worry, I'll organise it!"

"Of course you will, Summer!  I have learned never to get in the way of Summer Holiday planning a party!  We'd love it."