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The Child - Seven journey. Off to the side ran a sparkling stream, where fisher- men cast their lines in mute concentration, and Ted watched them in stunned silence. The road curved around the base of the snowy mountains and then opened up into the beautiful bowl-shaped valley that Ted knew would be there. He was no longer apprehensive, but the amazement that gripped him was thrilling. Scattered throughout the valley were elegant buildings that might have been transported there from the Swiss Alps, and small lakes dotted the landscape, sending up glittering reflections of the mountains ringing the valley. The bus stopped in front of the largest building, a huge structure faced in rough redwood. When he stepped down from the bus, Ted was moving under some other volition than his own. His luggage forgot- ten, he walked directly to the nearest wall of the Lodge, reached out his hand, and scratched a fingernail against it. The redwood was an illusion, he discovered in surprise, chip- ping away the paint to reveal the cement reality beneath it. Very clearly, Ted should have learned that appearance was not always what it seemed, but he was too shocked to take note of the lesson. Playing out the well-rehearsed scenario, Ted was pro- pelled forward, to the personnel office, where the manager handed him a key to the employee dorm. The next stop was at the Lodge office to get his assignment as a busboy in the room-service division, and Ted stared at the uniform he was given, remembering how often he had seen it before. Whatever happened after that, his unpacking in the dorm room and falling asleep immediately upon hitting the bed, Ted could never remember clearly. But the next morning when he went to report for his first day on the job, he almost fell over in surprise as a middle-aged man greeted him and took him around to meet the other employees. There was the brunette waitress in her familiar Lodge uniform, there was the chubby, jovial cashier behind her well-known desk. He turned and looked into the great dining room where guests chatted, spotting the bandstand in the background. And then he was guided by Bert, his new boss, back into the work area, Masquerade of Angels 60 The Child - Seven filled with empty trays. A thought, so distant as to be almost imperceptible, whis- pered in his mind. See and believe. You are watched over. You are special. You are ours. It is we who have given this to you. We will give you more. He didn’t really know if he had heard these words or imagined them, but Ted did feel special. He wondered who had brought him all those dreams about this valley. Whom could he thank? No matter where he turned, Ted couldn’t escape from the dream that was unfolding, in every last detail, all around him. And he didn’t want to escape. His paradise valley was real, and Ted found himself welcomed into a literal heaven on earth at last. Masquerade of Angels 61