Derek Decker lay quietly in the welcome repose of his bedroom, a haven at the present moment.
Janus was downstairs, mercifully asleep on the couch. Derek knew that Janus had not wanted to go home that night, as his house had carried an unfathomable emptiness for him without the presence his father. He knew that there was really nothing that he could say to truly console his grieving friend, and that fact burned bitterly within him.
If there was one consummate truth about the physical world, it was that there was always more room for sorrows.
Even though Janus had been listless, as if he had been sapped of his very enthusiasm for life itself, Derek was resolved to keep Janus within some kind of sphere of activity. The abyss of grief, Derek felt, would only be magnified if Janus were left alone to the tortures of his traumatized mind and sorely wounded heart.
An idea had come to Derek’s mind earlier that day.
A mutual friend of Derek and Janus, named Kent McNeeley, had a father who owned a house by a lakeside. The elongated, winding lake, far from secluded, was the scene of many buoyant social gatherings throughout the spring, summer, and into early autumn. One who was disposed to the outdoors could always indulge in the leisure of boating, fishing, or taking hikes in the wooded areas throughout the region. For Janus, a visit to the lake would be a full change of environment, and it would offer a degree of activity that would promise to keep his mind slightly occupied.
After wracking his brain, it was the best solution that Derek could find at the moment to try to help Janus find a spark of life again.
Derek would also have some more help at the lake. Kent McNeeley was a good acquaintance of Janus’, and a very good friend of Derek’s.
He knew that Kent’s father lived in the city most of the year while running his real estate company. There was no doubt that it would take little convincing to get Kent to agree with Derek’s plan.
The decision made, Derek made a mental note to himself to call Kent in the early morning, even if he knew that Kent would not be entirely happy about an early phone call.
Satisfied at settling upon a course of action, Derek finally let his mind relax.
Shutting his eyelids, he rolled over in his bed and finally gave his own body permission to sleep.