Once she’d made the list and the boys had gone over it with her, Simon looked up. “You seriously want us to infiltrate these people’s lives?”
“I wouldn’t call it that. Give me a break. Get to know them. That’s what you’re here for anyway, and then report back to me with anything you learn, like oddities, their idiosyncrasies, fears. Their lives, basically. If you fill me in, then I can analyze them and maybe come up with something.”
“This is bad karma, Snow White.”
“Karma shmarma. Face it, boys, I’m not the next Dalai Lama. Now, let’s get out here and get this hike going.”
Simon stood from the table. “I can’t believe you gave me Rose Pearlman to pally up to today. She’s so unpleasant.”
“That’s what you get for being nasty to me.” She gave a flippant toss of her dark hair.
“Wait. Remember that we do have a purpose here and that is to enlighten ourselves,” Marco said. “Have an open attitude toward Mrs. Pearlman, Simon.” He crossed his arms. His melodic voice and accent always sounded so sweet no matter what he said.
Nikki shook her head. “You two throw me off. What? Do you change identities when you sleep at night? You know one day, you’re the sage.” She pointed to Simon. “Then the next day it’s Marco’s turn.”
“We do balance each other out nicely.” Marco laid a hand on Simon’s shoulder.
“Yes, we do.”
The three of them headed up to the conference area, and before long, Nikki’s plan was rearranged because Alan Sansi had formed his own groups. She figured that the boys would know to roll with it and investigate whomever they were grouped with.
Alan came to her outside the bus that intended to take them to the park where they would begin their journey.
“With Iwao gone, I would like to have even numbers in the groups so everyone can participate fully in today’s event. Is it possible for you to be a team player today?”
“Well, I guess I can do that, but I thought you wanted me to lead the group on the hike and point out the various sites.”
He laid a hand on her shoulder. “There are no specific leaders. I’m not even a leader necessarily. We are all each other’s teachers.”
Nikki really didn’t want to hear any more of the “I teach you and you teach me” rhetoric. If there were no leaders in the world, it would be total anarchy. “Sure. I can do, be whatever you need.” Agreeing was far easier than trying to argue her point.
Before they began the first leg of the hike, Alan addressed everyone again. “Last night was difficult. Today is a new day, yet we don’t forget yesterday, but instead we move forward and breathe through our intentions today. You may dedicate this hike and what you learn today to Iwao and his life, or to yourself, or to someone else. Feel free to share, talk as you walk, or simply absorb the nature around you. Whatever you are guided to do is what you are supposed to do.”
Oh, brother. Was there no structure? No basis in reality here? It was like Gestalt therapy gone wild. Nikki liked Alan fine, and she knew this was what he believed in and preached. But come on, sometimes you had to do what needed to be done and not just go the way the wind blows.
They reached their destination and Nikki momentarily played head of the class by describing some of the native plants and possible wildlife they might come across. A glance at Alan told her to let everyone go off willy-nilly, except for the pairs he’d come up with. Nikki was paired with Ruben Pearlman, who did not come across as either a sociopath, psychopath, or really any type of killer. However, she reminded herself of something Aunt Cara would tell her, “Information can come from the most obscure places and people. And when it comes, you may not recognize the value in it until somewhere down the line.”
The hike through the park happened to be one of Nikki’s favorite pastimes. She wished she could’ve brought Ollie because he enjoyed it, too. The typically lazy dog would finally spring forth to life with all the scents surrounding the area. A lushness swept across the area and displayed itself in green, gold, and auburn foliage. The earthen scents that covered the park could be detected only in the wine country, reminding one of a simple, light, and fruity dessert. The redwoods gave off their own heady, earthy scent. Nikki couldn’t imagine ever leaving Napa Valley. This was her home now. She’d finally felt like she had roots after having none for so long. Aunt Cara had given her some stability in Los Angeles and she’d been the only parent Nikki remembered. She vaguely recalled her biological mother, who she knew was still alive in the hill country of Tennessee, but she shoved away any memories of that woman (and pretty much her entire family, sans her aunt) because they weren’t exactly people she wanted displayed in picture frames on her wall.
After about fifteen minutes of everyone doing as Alan suggested, which was taking in the beauty and meditating on it, silences broke with pairs of people as they began talking and asking each other questions. Nikki did find that fascinating about human nature-people were ever curious. She just happened to get a double dose of curiosity when she entered the world and had been that way since she could remember.
“Do you like living in New York?” Nikki asked.
Ruben Pearlman, whose breathing was somewhat labored, nodded. “Yes and no. I’ve lived there all of my life. I’m newly retired and would like to move somewhere less fast paced.”
“Like here?” Nikki asked.
“This would be wonderful, but probably as expensive as Manhattan or close, and Rose wouldn’t have it. I had to beg and plead with her to come on this trip with me. A tad too country for her. I’m sure she’s not exactly enjoying the hike, but it’s good for her, and I keep thinking that with time she’ll come to appreciate the lessons Alan teaches us.”
“Haven’t you been members for a while?”
“Yes, but Rose has only visited the places she’s really interested in, like Hawaii or Fiji. She likes the travel part of this deal, not necessarily the workshops. She wanted to go to Bali, where we were supposed to go on this event, but since they had to cancel the locale and have it here, she wanted to hang back home. I told her it would be wonderful and begged her to join me still. My wife doesn’t realize that we may not be able to travel as much as we used to, and we may have to move from Manhattan no matter what she wants. I hate to admit it, but I might also have to withdraw our membership in the group.” He looked down and kept walking.
“Do you mind if I ask you why?”
“Finances. Money is tight for us. I made a bad deal not that long ago that has hurt us, and our lifestyle will have to change.”
“I’m sorry about that.”
Ruben waved a hand. “It’s okay. It really is. If there is one thing that I have come to realize by being a part of this group, it is that it does not matter how many dollars are in your bank account, or if you have designer furniture or clothes, or drive a Mercedes, or whatever it is that you think floats your boat. None of it matters all that much if you’re not happy in here.” He pointed to his heart.
Nikki stopped for a moment and he halted along with her. “You get this, don’t you?” He did. Ruben Pearlman was for real, and for the first time since she’d heard all of Alan’s philosophies, she believed that Ruben Pearlman was enlightened.
“I hope I do. It took me a long time to understand that. My wife is still out there floating around in her Donna Karan outfits and spa treatments, none of which are wrong or bad, but they don’t make her happy. Nothing makes her happy. If she gained the happiness that I finally got, then all of the fringe would be icing on the cake.”