For a smile as wide as a country sunrise
Hi everyone and Happy Sunday! Here we are in November already and today it really doesn’t feel like November. It is a beautiful sunny day, though there is a very strong wind, and it is very warm for this time of year. The temperature right now is 48F (9C) and it’s only noon. Interestingly, yesterday it was snowing! Such a difference from one day to the next.
But a nice, sunny, mild day like this is a wonderful type of day to sit outside by the lake and just enjoy the quiet solitude of a late fall day. Listening to some blue jays calling in the distance and perhaps seeing one flying over the tops of the trees possibly heading to its favorite bird feeder hoping to find some peanuts or sunflower seeds.

Then listening to some black-capped chickadees in a spruce tree close by as they “talk” to each other with various little chirps and the odd time singing out its name. Soon you get a chance to see them as they hunt through the branches looking for some insects. They pick up a few among the spruce needles and find more behind the bark of the tree.

Some they will eat now and others they take and hide in special spots for their winter food supply. It is basically calm on the lake along the shore where we sit in this tiny memorial park. There is only one other person here on this day, also enjoying the quiet solitude this little park has to offer. Cattails grow in abundance along the shore and most have broken open revealing their fluffy seeds that the wind will blow around to other parts of the lake where some will take root and eventually another patch of cattails will be present.

Other plants and shrubs grow along the shore as well, including what looks like pincherry bushes. A small outcropping of granite rock shows up along the shore in one spot. There is a lot of granite in our area, basically, that is what we have in this area, granite, and lots of it.

There is not much soil in our area, except in certain small locations. I love all this granite, the different varieties and different colors that can be found. I love collecting rocks and minerals. Some people have a hard time telling the difference between the two. Rocks are made from minerals, but minerals are not rocks. Oh well.

Now we hear the “gronk” sound of a pair of ravens on the other side of the lake. It is a sort of odd sound they make. I do enjoy sitting beside a lake on a day like this. The quietness. The solitude. The beauty. There is nothing quite like it. Well, I hope you enjoyed our time by the lake today, and the photos. Have a great day and God bless!
Steve and Muffin. ©2025 Steve McLeod.
The first thing that the Black Wolves noticed at the back of the house were motorcycles, 12 of them to be precise. That would likely be too many for a normal family, and these were bigger motorcycles too, though not quite like the ones the Black Wolves use. It was getting quite late now, nearly midnight, but lights were on in the living room and kitchen. So, Carine and Kristina made themselves invisible and went up to the windows to see what was going on inside.
It was obvious this was a gang of some kind, and not likely a friendly one either. However, the girls could only see 12 men and 4 women, which fit the number of motorcycles at the back. They continued watching until one of the men took a picture off the wall revealing a safe. The man then opened the safe and took a small metal box out and placed it on a table in the middle of the room. Everyone seemed to be getting quite excited now. The man then dumped the contents of the metal box onto the table causing the other men to yell and cheer.
It was a nice pile of jewels! Quite likely the ones that had been hidden in this house 17 years ago and now found by this gang. Kristina went back to tell the guys what they had seen. The guys got into position, both front and back, then Carine went and knocked on the front door. A man looked out the window of the door and saw Carine. When the man saw how pretty she was, he quickly opened the door for her and invited her in. She thanked him and walked inside, but before the man had a chance to close the door, the Black Wolves pushed their way inside!
Then there was a small explosion which knocked the back door flying off its frame! More Black Wolves came running inside. It all happened so quickly that the gang was quickly overpowered and their guns and knives taken from them. Alfred looked at the jewels and confirmed it was the ones that had been stolen 17 years ago. The gang leader said they didn’t steal them, they found them hidden in a wall when they were renovating the place, which is likely true.
None of them were old enough to have taken part in that original theft 17 years ago, they would all have been children. Anyway, they picked up the jewels and put them back in that metal box, then Aari looked in the safe and found some interesting looking papers, so he took those along as well. As they were about to leave, one of the women went up to Aari and asked if they needed another woman in their gang. She spoke in perfect English too and she showed him the palm of her hand where she had written, “Please help me”.
Carine nodded yes to Aari so he said she could come along and he told Clarence to look after her. Then they quickly left like they had come and were soon riding down the highway to a nice, large hotel on the edge of Paris. Misty and her team were already booked in to that hotel and were waiting for them. They got together briefly and looked at the jewels. Alfred said there were some real beauties in this bunch, the owners will be very happy to get them returned finally.
The woman they had just rescued had been kidnapped by this gang while in Europe with her parents for a vacation. That was 6 months ago and she tried to escape once, but was caught and beaten. The leader of the gang had told her if she tried to escape again, they would kill her. She just wants to go home and be back with her parents again. Apparently they live in Halifax, a city in Nova Scotia, Canada. Aari told her they would bring her back to the chateau where we could contact the authorities and get her returned to her family.
She is just 19 years old, her name is Violet and she has been through a lot the past 6 months. Tonight she will stay in a room with Carine, Kristina and Misty. Meanwhile, back at the chateau. Sherry, Celestine and Cristy were still with me and Jennifer, hoping that I will wake up soon. The girls were desperately trying to stay awake, since Jennifer had told them they are not allowed to sleep as part of their punishment. “I could be sleeping peacefully right now,” said Cristy sighing, then yawning.
“No yawning allowed,” said Celestine, “that will just make us more tired.” “I just had to listen to you two and bring you sneaked snacks,” said Cristy again, “I can just feel my soft mattress and pillows, curled up under my warm comforter and dreaming.” “Stop that,” said Sherry, “or I will dump water on your head.” “Hey, wait a minute,” said Celestine, “Cristy hasn’t tried to kiss Steve yet.” “Hey, that’s right,” agreed Sherry, “come on Cristy, time for you to kiss Steve to wake him up.” “No, I can’t do that,” she said. “Why not, it might work,” said Sherry. “But I have never kissed Steve before,” she said.
“Good, now is your chance,” said Sherry. “But I have never kissed a guy before either,” said Cristy. “Good, now is your chance,” said Sherry again. “I don’t know how,” complained Cristy. “Just put your lips on Steve’s lips and kiss,” said Sherry, “it’s simple.” “But it takes a special kind of kiss,” said Cristy, “Misty told me so.” Then Sherry called Misty, waking her up. “I’m not on computer, go away,” said Misty, only half awake. “This is important Misty,” said Sherry. “Sigh, it always is,” said Misty, “but Misty is not here right now, she’s sleeping.”
Finally Misty was awake enough and told them how to do it. Cristy tried, nothing happened. Sherry tried, nothing happened. “Okay, your turn Celestine,” said Sherry. “But I have kissed him dozens of times already,” she said. “It was only 5 times,” said Sherry. “More like 11 times,” said Celestine, “I sneaked a few extra while you were in the bathroom.” “YES! Another sneaker!” exclaimed Cristy quite loudly. Now Jennifer was awake. “What did I tell you three about disturbing me?” she asked.
“Oops, sorry Jennifer,” said Cristy, “that was me.” “Naturally,” said Jennifer. “We’re waiting for Celestine to try the special wake up Steve kiss,” said Sherry. “I am not going to ask,” said Jennifer, “I simply refuse.” Then Dawn showed up and said she couldn’t sleep thinking about Steve. She was terribly worried. “Perfect timing,” said Sherry, “your turn to kiss Steve.” “Go ahead,” said Jennifer. So, she did, but nothing happened. Then she tried again, but differently this time. Still nothing.
All the girls sighed, then they sat down and began talking. “Since you’re all awake, could one of you get me some water, I’m thirsty,” I said. “YES!! It worked!!” the girls screamed at once. Well, it’s now two days later and I feel fine but Samantha wants me to stay in the clinic a little longer. Though she didn’t say what she meant by “a little longer.” The guys came home with those jewels and we contacted the police who picked them up and returned them to the owners.
However, the owners gave 12 of the jewels to us, plus a cash reward too. We paid for Violet’s way home after she stayed with us a few days. Well, this odd case is finally over and we are looking forward to some relaxing time for a while. What happened to me in that operation? It seems I might have to wait a bit to find out, oh well.
The End. A new case will begin soon. ©2025 Steve McLeod.