Doreen didn’t know she’d been followed onto the patio until she heard a soft voice behind her.

“Excuse me… ” said the voice, causing Doreen to turn from her quiet contemplation of the waves below to regard the middle-aged woman who was its source. “I don’t know if you remember me… we met at The Sargasso, about a year ago?”

Doreen favoured the woman with her best friendly-stranger smile while she rifled through her memories. She had an atrocious memory for faces and considered it a personal failing. Finally the penny dropped. “Ah, Mrs. Edmonson, correct? Tom’s mother? ”

The other woman flushed prettily and smiled. “Oh good, you do remember! Yes, Tom’s mother. You took care of Tommy for a while during the retreat. I’m so glad you remember. ”

“Of course I remember. I never forget any of the children I care for. ” She wasn’t lying, either. Adults, she forgot, but the children she cared for as a governess, even for just an afternoon as it was at the Sargasso, all stood out quite clearly in her mind. She had some idea what might be troubling Mrs. Edmonson too, now.

“Good, good. You see, I’ve been hoping to bump into you at another of these Top Traveler events, because… you see, Tommy’s been having some troubles since the retreat, and I thought you might provide some sort of clue as to why. ”

“Well, I only looked after him for a single afternoon, Mrs. Edmonson, but if you think I can help, of course I will. ” She took a long and contemplative sip from her cocktail. She wasn’t sure what kind. Something heavy on the pineapple, which pleased her. “What kind of trouble has Tommy been having?”

Mrs. Edmonson sat on the surprisingly sturdy lawn chair next to Doreen’s. “Well… it seems silly, but it all seems to have started with a story you told him. Something about a creature called… a PoyoMan? ”

“The Poyo Man, yes. It’s a story I learned in my youth in Scotland. I told it to all the children that day, along with a few others. Did your son not enjoy the story?”

Mrs. Edmonson shook her head. “No, I suppose in the long run, he did not. After I picked him up, it was all he could talk about. He must have re-told the story to me about a dozen times that night. He thought that the Poyo Man was the greatest thing ever… at least, he did then. ”

Doreen smiled. “I’m pleased. It often makes a big impression on children, because it appeals to their natural sense of justice to have a sort of beneficial boogeyman with a grey floppy face and a great big sack on the end of a stick hunting around for mean little boys and girls. ”

Mrs. Edmonson nodded. “And then taking them off to a dark cold cave to work for him forever… oh, I remember the story. The problem is, Miss… Elgin, was it? ”

Doreen smiled crookedly. “It’s Mrs. Elgin, actually. ” Why did everyone assume that because she was a governess, she must be a spinster? Too much Jayne Eyre, she suspected.

“Ah, yes. Mrs. Elgin. My apologies. ” She paused to take a drink from her own mysterious cocktail, something pale pink with cherries impaled on little plastic swords. “The problem is that Tommy seems to have become convinced that the Poyo Man is coming after him. ”

Doreen blinked. “He is? I mean, he has? How unfortunate. ”

Mrs. Edmonson cleared her throat. “Unfortunate indeed, Mrs. Elgin. It started a few weeks after the retreat. He hadn’t even mentioned this Poyo creature since that night, but one day I found him in his bedroom, duct-taping over his window. He said it was the only way to keep the Poyo Man out. Can you imagine? Sealing off the only window in your room, in late August, to keep out some mythical monster? ”

Doreen shook her head, as though she, too, could not believe it. “The Poyo Man can turn into a cold mist. That must be where he got the idea. ”

“Is that it? I could never get him to tell me. Well anyhow, that was just the beginning. Since then, I’ve found him covering the heat vent into his room, refusing to go out at night if it’s clear, and even trying to make some sort of mask to protect himself out of old fabric scraps. And when there’s fog…. well, you can imagine how he reacted. I’m at my wit’s end dealing with it, Mrs. Elgin. ”

“You poor woman!” sympathized Doreen. “This must have been terrible for you. ”

“Oh it has, it has. ” said Mrs. Edmonson. “so I was hoping that you could tell me something that might help. Is there something I could tell him you told me… some way of keeping the Poyo Man away with a charm or a trick or something? It would mean the world to me. ”

Doreen regarded Mrs. Edmonson carefully. “There’s nothing in the original story to suggest that the Poyo Man can be kept away. What fun would there be in that? Then the mean boys and girls could get away with it just by using the charm! What I don’t understand, Mrs. Edmonson, is how on Earth young Tommy got the idea that the Poyo Man was coming after him? I made it quite clear to the children that the Poyo Man only comes after very mean children who pick on other children for fun. ”

Mrs. Edmonson flushed again, not as prettily, and said “Well, there have been certain instances at his school… nothing serious of course, but there have been a few….misunderstandings with some of his playmates at school, that could be construed as…. well, anyhow, the point is, for whatever reason, he’s managed to convince himself that the Poyo Man is coming for him, and it’s become a real problem. He’s even got some of the other children at his school believing in this Poyo Man too, and I just don’t know what to do. I was really hoping you could help. ”

“I wish I could help, Mrs. Edmonson, but as far as I can recall, there’s no way to ward off the Poyo Man, apart from the obvious, of course. ”

“The obvious?” she replied. “What’s that?”

“Well, stop being mean, of course. The Poyo Man only goes after mean little boys and girls. Stop being mean, and he loses interest. He’s not going to follow a child for their whole life because of a single… ” she smiled that crooked smile once again, “… misunderstanding?”

“Do you really think that would work? I mean…. not that Tommy…. I’m sure he isn’t one of those… those children the Poyo thing goes after, but… ah… still… ”

Doreen looked at Mrs. Edmonson with narrowed eyes and made a calculation. She’d felt this moment coming ever since Tommy’s name had come up and now she had to decide. Top Travelers were a delightful employer, paying very well and leaving her, for the most part, to look after the children as she saw fit. She’d hate to have a problem with them because of a complaint. But they were not the only game in town for someone with her training and experience, and there was such a thing as professionalism. The best interest of the child must always come first. She took a deep breath and adopted her best professional tone.

“Mrs. Edmonson, your son is a bully. I knew it the moment I first laid eyes on him, and saw the smug way he looked at the other children and the fearful way they looked at him. He’s the entire reason I told that story to the group that day. I thought the other children could benefit from it, and if you are willing to face facts and do what’s right for your boy, Tommy might benefit from it too. ”

“But but… surely, my sweet Tommy can’t really be a… well, one of those children… ”

“Trust me, Madam, he is. I’ve been a governess for over twenty years and I’ve seen a lot of children like Tommy. They’re often quite adept at seeming like golden perfection around adults, but the minute they are alone with the other children, it’s another story entirely. He’s learned that he can torment the other children for his pleasure and get away with it as long as he plays the angel with the grownups and can intimidate the children into silence with threats of violence. I’ve seen it many times, Mrs. Edmonson, and someone like the Poyo Man is the only one who can help break the pattern before it becomes a lifelong habit. ”

“But… but surely the Poyo Man isn’t REAL!” protested Mrs. Edmonson.

“Isn’t he? He’s as real as the Toothy Fairy, and she prompts millions of children worldwide to put their lost teeth under their pillows and try to sleep. He’s as real as Santa Claus, and hundreds of millions of children listen for reindeer on the roof each December 24. And more to the point, he’s real enough to torment your Tommy just as Tommy torments the other children. That’s the whole reason we’re having this conversation. I’d say that makes him quite real, wouldn’t you? ”

“I suppose so. ” replied Mrs. Edmonson.

“The only way to save Tommy is for you to sit him down and tell him that you know he’s been bullying the other children and that you want him to stop. He’s deny it, or try to explain it away or excuse it, so you’ll have to be very firm. You know he’s been doing it, and you want him to stop right away, both because you do not approve of it at all, and because it’s the only way to keep the Poyo Man away. Those two forces together might just be enough to break Tommy of this terrible habit and put him on the proper path. ”

“But… I’m sorry, I just can’t believe that my sweet Tommy could… ”

“Believe what you like, Mrs. Edmonson. I’ve given you my advice, both as a highly experience governess and as a mother of three energetic children. ” That got her attention, thought Doreen. Still not a spinster, remember? “You can do what you like with my advice. Ignore it, use it, my job is done either way. Now if you don’t mind, they’re probably missing you at the party and I think I’d prefer to be alone right now. ”

“Oh, of course. ” said Mrs. Edmonson, getting up from her seat awkwardly. “It’s been nice talking with you, Mrs. Elgin, and thank you for your…. um…. advice. ” And with that, she fled back into the warmth and noise of the party.

Doreen returned to her contemplation of the waves below the covered patio, and caught herself wondering if Mrs. Edmonson would follow her advice or not. Depends on how thick the walls of denial had become, she supposed, and whether Mrs. Edmonson had the courage to push through them in order to save her precious sweet Tommy from himself.

She shook her head to clear her thoughts. Either way, she’d done her duty as she saw fit. It was out of her hands now. No matter what happened, she’d likely never see that woman again. Tommy would either get the help he needed and become a better person, or face the life of a bully, always trying to get away with it and always getting caught sooner or later. And likely as not, ending up in prison because of it.

Doreen sighed and forced it from her mind. No longer her problem. She needed to stop worrying over other people’s problems and get back to her own life. In a few minutes, she would have to go back in to the party and smooth over any potential difficulties with her generous employer.

But she had noted, with some satisfaction, that just before returning to the party. Mrs. Edmonson had looked out over the water at the morning mists just beginning to collect, and shivered.