Midori in the laundry room and together they carried baskets of fresh linens to the
vacated rooms. Claire intended to hire a housekeeper as soon as they regularly filled
enough rooms to justify the expense, but until then, she and Midori, and now Bonnie,
would clean everything themselves.
Each room boasted at least one beautiful Hawaiian quilt, each with evocative images
reflecting the islands’ natural beauties—Plumeria, Lehua, Ocean Palm—or Hawaiian history.
Within the grandest guest suite was a stunning quilt Midori called Crowns and Kahili,
impressive not only for its vivid color scheme, yellow appliqué on red, but also for
the bold power of its design. Radial symmetric, four leafy fanslay on the horizontal and vertical axes, while four tall, faceted crowns reached out
on the diagonals. “The crowns honor our Hawaiian kings and queens,” said Midori. “The
kahili
are feather standards displayed in throne rooms and carried in royal processions.”
There was a note of pride in her voice that Bonnie had not heard before, even when
Midori had spoken of other lovely quilts she had made. “This quilt is one of yours,
isn’t it?” she asked.
“I made the quilt,” Midori explained. “My nephew designed the pattern.”
Bonnie searched her memory. “The nephew who was in the service with Eric?”
“One and the same.”
Bonnie studied the quilt. “He’s quite an artist.”
“He is, and I’m excessively proud of him. He’s earned a reputation as one of Maui’s
leaders in preserving Hawaiian language, arts, and culture.” Midori turned a speculative
gaze upon Bonnie. “You know, I’m not sure what you had in mind for your evening programs.
Maybe you were thinking of strolls on the beach and mai tais, with a ten-minute hula
lesson thrown in to give things a Hawaiian gloss. If, on the other hand, you want
to give your quilt campers a true sense of the real Hawaii, you should speak with
my nephew. If you want your guests to take home more than a superficial understanding
of Hawaii, he could help you.”
“I’d always choose the real over the superficial,” said Bonnie.
“I’ll call him,” said Midori. “I’ll tell him to expect your visit.”
One o’clock found them with several rooms left to clean, but they decided to break
for lunch before finishing. Claire met them in the kitchen and announced that she
was taking them out, and afterward, she would show Bonnie around Lahaina.After a tasty lunch of Japanese noodles at a small shop on Laukini Street, Midori
begged off the tour and returned to the inn, leaving Claire and Bonnie on their own.
They passed a couple hours window-shopping and walking along the beach, reminiscing
about their college days and enjoying the beautiful sunshine and clear skies. But
it was impossible to think about the old times without wondering what Craig was up
to and what the detective might be observing at that very moment, so eventually Bonnie
reminded Claire that they too had business awaiting them back at the inn.
Later, Bonnie was on the lanai working on a job announcement that Claire intended
to post in her shop, run in the Maui Quilt Guild’s newsletter, and mail to a select
group of potential teachers throughout Hawaii when Midori approached. “Are you ready
for a break?” she inquired.
Bonnie set down her pen and pushed the papers away. “Not just ready. Grateful.” She
had been stuck on the same few sentences for twenty minutes, unable to describe Claire’s
unusual proposed schedule clearly and attractively. Although Elm Creek Quilts had
recently hired two new teachers, Sarah and Summer had written all of their ads and
Bonnie felt out of practice.
“I have a few minutes free and I thought you might like a lesson in pattern designing,”
said Midori.
“Absolutely,” said Bonnie, surprised. She had expected Midori to take longer to mull
over her suitability as a student. Either
vacated rooms. Claire intended to hire a housekeeper as soon as they regularly filled
enough rooms to justify the expense, but until then, she and Midori, and now Bonnie,
would clean everything themselves.
Each room boasted at least one beautiful Hawaiian quilt, each with evocative images
reflecting the islands’ natural beauties—Plumeria, Lehua, Ocean Palm—or Hawaiian history.
Within the grandest guest suite was a stunning quilt Midori called Crowns and Kahili,
impressive not only for its vivid color scheme, yellow appliqué on red, but also for
the bold power of its design. Radial symmetric, four leafy fanslay on the horizontal and vertical axes, while four tall, faceted crowns reached out
on the diagonals. “The crowns honor our Hawaiian kings and queens,” said Midori. “The
kahili
are feather standards displayed in throne rooms and carried in royal processions.”
There was a note of pride in her voice that Bonnie had not heard before, even when
Midori had spoken of other lovely quilts she had made. “This quilt is one of yours,
isn’t it?” she asked.
“I made the quilt,” Midori explained. “My nephew designed the pattern.”
Bonnie searched her memory. “The nephew who was in the service with Eric?”
“One and the same.”
Bonnie studied the quilt. “He’s quite an artist.”
“He is, and I’m excessively proud of him. He’s earned a reputation as one of Maui’s
leaders in preserving Hawaiian language, arts, and culture.” Midori turned a speculative
gaze upon Bonnie. “You know, I’m not sure what you had in mind for your evening programs.
Maybe you were thinking of strolls on the beach and mai tais, with a ten-minute hula
lesson thrown in to give things a Hawaiian gloss. If, on the other hand, you want
to give your quilt campers a true sense of the real Hawaii, you should speak with
my nephew. If you want your guests to take home more than a superficial understanding
of Hawaii, he could help you.”
“I’d always choose the real over the superficial,” said Bonnie.
“I’ll call him,” said Midori. “I’ll tell him to expect your visit.”
One o’clock found them with several rooms left to clean, but they decided to break
for lunch before finishing. Claire met them in the kitchen and announced that she
was taking them out, and afterward, she would show Bonnie around Lahaina.After a tasty lunch of Japanese noodles at a small shop on Laukini Street, Midori
begged off the tour and returned to the inn, leaving Claire and Bonnie on their own.
They passed a couple hours window-shopping and walking along the beach, reminiscing
about their college days and enjoying the beautiful sunshine and clear skies. But
it was impossible to think about the old times without wondering what Craig was up
to and what the detective might be observing at that very moment, so eventually Bonnie
reminded Claire that they too had business awaiting them back at the inn.
Later, Bonnie was on the lanai working on a job announcement that Claire intended
to post in her shop, run in the Maui Quilt Guild’s newsletter, and mail to a select
group of potential teachers throughout Hawaii when Midori approached. “Are you ready
for a break?” she inquired.
Bonnie set down her pen and pushed the papers away. “Not just ready. Grateful.” She
had been stuck on the same few sentences for twenty minutes, unable to describe Claire’s
unusual proposed schedule clearly and attractively. Although Elm Creek Quilts had
recently hired two new teachers, Sarah and Summer had written all of their ads and
Bonnie felt out of practice.
“I have a few minutes free and I thought you might like a lesson in pattern designing,”
said Midori.
“Absolutely,” said Bonnie, surprised. She had expected Midori to take longer to mull
over her suitability as a student. Either
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