Leon was always happy to drive for him, and to act as bodyguard. In fact, Leon’s progress was a source of great satisfaction to Red Bear. Bring a little magic into someone’s life, improve his sex life, and the results were fairly predictable. At this point Red Bear was confident that Leon would do anything he asked. But today Red Bear drove himself along Highway 11 to Shanley, a suburb of Algonquin Bay, if a place the size of Algonquin Bay may be said to have suburbs. Shanley is a picturesque little town, hardly more than a crossroads, really. But there’s a lookout halfway up Shanley Hill, and it is not unusual for cars to stop there for a long time as the occupants gaze out over the blue expanse of Lake Nipissing. This particular day, it was a grey expanse. A herd of clouds had gathered over the water and over the hills that morning, and by late afternoon still showed no inclination to move. Whitecaps ruffled the surface of the lake, and even up on the lookout Red Bear could hear the slap of waves hitting the shore.
