Finding Griselda

A Storm and a Half

On other visits to Mystikal Scents Guy watched his girlfriend quietly. He saw how the stones and crystals she bought were no longer appreciated by her for their energies. She would talk about them in the store like they were so precious. He knew that for all her words that the crystals stayed in her walk-in closet, often in the same packaging, never to see the light of day again. He considered whether Jade had merely wanted to be seen to buy them, to take ownership of them... to possess them...and really, was it just stones that she was doing this with?

As Jade slept on that flight back to Florida, her handsome partner mulled over more recent events too. Stone Henge. It had been on his top ten list of favorite places since he was seven years old. Just days ago, he had stood in awe of the five-thousand-year-old pendulous rocks, amid tremors of excitement the hair on the back of his neck stood up. Jade? Her overt display of boredom combined with incessant mobile phone usage was virtually intolerable. His heart sank when he conceded to leave much earlier than he had hoped. He never spoke on the way back to the hire car, or on the drive back to the hotel in Avebury. Instead he stewed on one point of fact. Merely 20 minutes in the vicinity of the stones after a four-hour drive. Years of planning. Hours of travelling. 20 minutes. Guy repeated it like a mantra in his mind...Years, working to afford it, 4-hour drive, 20 minutes.... Years, working to afford it, wanting to be there, 4-hour drive, 20 minutes. The Jade he had known before would have been enthusing with him, but not for her interest alone, for his. That good heart would have bid her hold his hand, understand what he felt and be happy for him. But it was not so. He had berated himself that night for the anger he felt. Next morning, he apologized to Jade for being "an ass." She looked through him and jerked her chin with purposeful authority.

After all his deliberations, Guy knew that his relationship hung by a thread. In all it just boiled down to two questions. How was he to pursue his love of history and archeology with such a woman by his side? And would his ultimate prize of the "dream dig" in England need to be suspended for the sake of her whims like shopping in Kings Road, Chelsea? Just being in England had given him a taste of things to come. He was intentionally using the time on the flight back to the US to contemplate his future, one that did not include Jade. This decision was crushing him, but so too was the stifling thing that their relationship had become. He was determined to save himself from the continual bar hopping, drunken tears and a demanding brat who was apparently now selfish to the core. He had decided. It was not what he wanted. She was not what he wanted- not anymore. He knew he had to find the words to tell her and to be prepared for the fall out after he dropped that bomb.

He glanced at Jade to his left, occupying the middle seat. Her navy-blue eye mask was pushed up on one side and her mouth agape as she breathed heavily from the back of her throat. A crystalline lining in her nostrils were reminiscent of citrine stalactites. He began looking around the cabin. Now he pondered whether it was merely coincidence that his gaze fell on the EXIT sign? He knew the universe had a way of putting messages in plain sight. He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.

A flight attendant came by with a small tray of water filled cups. Guy smiled. His parched throat had suggested the timing was excellent. He elbowed Jade before reaching for two servings and asking his server, "How long before landing?" The attendant tucked in his tie as he spoke softly with a distinct British accent. "About three hours to go now sir."

Guy downed the icy cold-water in one cup as Jade shot forward and adjusted her eye mask. "You've got to be freaking kidding me!" she hissed. She grimaced, lay back and let out a huff. Guy had looked up to note the smirk on the freshly stubbled cabin crew members face. Guy feigned amusement. "Classic Jade moment I'm afraid." He drank the second cup of water before handing over the empties, but without making further eye contact. Later Guy would be thankful for this moment when flight crew members and other passengers who were held for questioning had confirmed that he appeared to have no prior knowledge of the incident that erupted.