Grumpy Old Wizards
By John O'Riley
2.5/5
()
About this ebook
In this family friendly contemporary fantasy, Josephine, a recently retired grandmother, lives in a modern society where magic is commonplace. Having lived and worked a full life, she spends her days like any other retirement community member with her two dear life long friends although there are a couple of glaring exceptions. She is a part-time consultant for the police because of her acute psychometry and she’s blessed with a youthful body due to slow aging.
Josephine’s quiet world is shattered when she is assigned a case where the crime scene is virtually unreadable to her. Normally, she can identify the perpetrator of a crime with a simple scan but this time, it’s a murder investigation and the criminal is a dark wizard who possesses advanced skills that rival her own and he’s on a quest for greater power. She has never been an investigator and must now rely on the police to come to a speedy resolution unless the dark wizard makes a mistake and leaves a crime scene that she can read.
When the case takes a personal turn and Josephine becomes a target for this dangerous wizard, she begins to wonder if she can survive this ordeal.
John O'Riley
John O'Riley has been writing as far back as he can remember. He is an award winning fiction writer and the author of the Grumpy Old Wizards series, The Winters Family Psi Chronicles series, and the Wizards of Seattle series. His movie feature screenplay, Cursed, is an Honorable Mention Winner for the 2012 Screenplay Festival. His most recent accomplishments include the screenplays New Earth, Pinky Swear, and Mutant Wizards in the 2014 Filmmakers International Screenplay Awards which made it to Quarter-Finalist status. He has a Bachelor’s degree in Spanish and French and worked in and managed a variety of bookstores including Borders. He currently resides in Washington state and has a parakeet companion named Amy who sings like a canary to help encourage and inspire him. He loves reading fantasy, science fiction, and humorous fiction. Some of his favorite authors include Kim Harrison, Jim Butcher, S.J. Viehl, Kat Richardson, J.K. Rowling, Angie Sage, Jayne Krentz, and Dima Zales.
Read more from John O'riley
Winters Family Psi Chronicles E-Catalyst Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related to Grumpy Old Wizards
Titles in the series (7)
Corruption Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Dark Energy Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Terramezic Energy Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Light Energy Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Grumpy Old Wizards Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Invasion Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Lost City of Sorianne Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related ebooks
Terramezic Energy Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Corruption Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Wooed by You: Tropical Heat Series, #1 Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Atlantis Allegiance: The Atlantis Saga, #2 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Ruthless Heart Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Silent Fury Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Light Energy Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5One Hand Killing: An Alex Sullivan Zen Mystery, #1 Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Dark Energy Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Den of Lions: A Nun With A Gun, #5 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsVampire Romance: Silver and Sleek: Secret Blood Gate World Series (Paranormal Vampire New Adult Contemporary Romance) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsOne Night With a Witch: Keepers of the Veil, #5 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Next Victim: Kali O'Brien legal suspense, #7 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsEven Crazier: Crazy Ella in Love, #2 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Siren: Genetically Altered Humans, #3 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFor The Sake Of Their Baby Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Necromancer's Betrayal (The Final Formula Series, Book 2.5) Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Dead Ringer Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Amortalis Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAllison's Alibi (A Novella): Romancing the Spirit Series, #8 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDeep Bounty Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsQueen of Lies: Supernaturals of Daizlei Academy, #3 Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Deadly Secrets The Shadow (Billionaire Shape-Shifter Romance Series Book 1): Deadly Secrets, #1 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Illicit Artifacts Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsNo More Tears Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Siberian Werewolf In Paris Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Seduced By The Darkling Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSkinwalker: Shadowborn Rebellion, #3 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSympathy for the Devil Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsUnexpected Father Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Fantasy For You
Fairy Tale Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Princess Bride: S. Morgenstern's Classic Tale of True Love and High Adventure Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Sarah J. Maas: Series Reading Order - with Summaries & Checklist Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Malice: Award-winning epic fantasy inspired by the Iron Age Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Babel: Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators' Revolution Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Warrior of the Light: A Manual Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Fellowship Of The Ring: Being the First Part of The Lord of the Rings Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Priory of the Orange Tree Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Assassin and the Desert: A Throne of Glass Novella Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Phantom Tollbooth Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Nettle & Bone Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Assassin and the Pirate Lord: A Throne of Glass Novella Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Neverwhere: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5This Is How You Lose the Time War Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Tress of the Emerald Sea: Secret Projects, #1 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Sabriel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The City of Dreaming Books Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Don Quixote: [Complete & Illustrated] Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Slewfoot: A Tale of Bewitchery Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Wizard's First Rule Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Lathe Of Heaven Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Galatea: A Short Story Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Silmarillion Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Golem and the Jinni: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Assassin and the Empire: A Throne of Glass Novella Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Strange Case of the Alchemist's Daughter Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Eyes of the Dragon Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Mistborn: Secret History Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Piranesi Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for Grumpy Old Wizards
31 ratings6 reviews
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5I was given this book complimentary from LibraryThing.com in e-book form. Everything stated in this review is of my own opinion and I was not compensated monetarily for providing this review. It this book was not part of a series I would have given a lower rating. As it is I get the feeling that this is a primer, introducing the characters and it will pick up as the series progresses. I was pleased there was no pathetic romance, if there was I would not read #2. My one complaint would be that you get no real feeling for the characters, hopefully this will be rectified as the series progresses.Will I carry on with the series - yes, I feel it will pick up in the next installment and the characters will become more 3 dimensional
- Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5I rarely write one star reviews, but I just had to let my thoughts and feeling out. The cover, book description and some of the reviews I read, led me to believe that this book was going to be right up my alley. It was not what I was led to believe it was going to be. Had I been told that this book was written by a junior high school child I would have stood up and cheered. But this was written by an adult; and to add insult to injury this adult has won awards. Most likely NOT on this book though.Choppy, repetitive writing.One dimensional characters.Childish characters.Stark, bland interactions between characters.Unemotional dialogue and characters.The glowing reviews dumbfound me, the negative votes on any critical reviews, no matter how blandly and nicely written is a crime and a mark against the ethics of the editor or the aut...well I'll just leave it there
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Great concept. Not so great delivery. Flat, wooden conversations by flat characters will kill even the cleverest idea. The writing had to be endured rather than enjoyed. I give it one and one half stars just for the concept and amazon blurb - and because I'm feeling generous today. Remember in high school when students were called upon to read their essays in class. And you had to sit through them all and just endure it. Well, not any more. Do yourself a favor. Skip this one. I'm deleting it from my kindle.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5First, I received this book for free from LibraryThing as a member giveaway in return for an honest review. I rather enjoyed this book. I usually read book with love stories or triangles and this book had neither, so that was a refreshing change of pace for me. I found parts of the story to be very funny and other parts to be sort of bland. I am looking forward to reading the next installment. I would recommend this to anyone who loves fantasy.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5This is a very unique and funny fantasy novel. I love detective novels but I've never read one with comedy and magic before! It made a very entertaining read. It has a quick paced story line, loveable, quirky characters and it is funny and engaging.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5This is really a 1 1/2 star story. I didn't exactly dislike it, but I didn't really like it either. I'm exasperated by and disappointed in it.
It has an really interesting basic premise and I was hoping to like it, because there are far too few urban fantasy books that feature older central characters. But unfortunately that alone cannot hold up a story.
The characters are one dimensional, terribly written and the writing, dialogue and plotting are flat and feel amateurish. It's as if the author has never met a person over the age of 30, but even his younger characters are unconvincing, flat and stilted. It's hard to explain, but it feels as if the writer needs to get out and read more. And watch a whole lot of Golden Girls episodes, sure they act immature and silly, but in the way that an older woman who doesn't give a damn what you think would do.
There are the germs of a good, perhaps great story there, possibly with a couple of rewrites and a strict editor this could have been just that, unfortunately it isn't.
Hopefully the author will gain the experience (and editor) to do his ideas justice.
ED added some more thoughts.
Book preview
Grumpy Old Wizards - John O'Riley
Grumpy Old Wizards
John O’Riley
Copyright 2013 by John O’Riley
No part of the book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Cover Artist / Stephanie Nelson.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
Grumpy Old Wizards
by John O’Riley
Chapter 1
Josephine hid the rush of anticipation with a practiced air of stoicism as she clutched her half-finished mug of coffee and watched her friend relinquish an ace of spades. Helen and Alice had already accumulated a higher score than her at this particular hand of rummy but she intended on somehow acquiring all four aces. She currently held two and one was now waiting for her in the discard pile. She took a sip of her coffee then carefully set it down on the dining room table. For now, she chose to ignore the ace, even though it drew her attention like a blazing beacon.
The three elderly women had been friends since childhood and had weathered many storms together. Ever since Helen and Alice had retired, the three women made a point of spending every morning playing rummy or Parcheesi. Josephine had waited until she had reached the big eighty before she had left the workforce. Their condominiums, located in a quiet retirement community, were on the same floor and they usually woke up at an ungodly hour like most wizards and humans their age.
This is the worst hand I’ve ever had in my life,
Josephine said.
Alice’s lips curved in a teasing grin. I seriously doubt that.
Unlike her two peers, Josephine had smooth, youthful skin and long black hair. Even though she was eighty-four, she could easily pass for a thirty-year-old thanks to the side effect of slow aging that all category six wizards possessed. Her two friends were merely category three with average abilities so they had aged normally. Being a category six came with many drawbacks such as the requirement for government consulting work. As soon as Josephine had turned eighteen, the police had started calling her in to help. Category six wizards could tune into subtle energies that other wizards couldn’t which made them valuable in a wide range of investigative specialties.
Josephine had worked with many detectives over the course of her life and closed countless cases. Over the years, it had grown tiring to come home after a ten-hour day from her full-time work only to be called into the police station, or even worse, to receive a summons after midnight when she was fast asleep only to start her normal job at eight in the morning. Another disadvantage for category six wizards was that they were so powerful the government regulated their magic and only allowed them to cast very low-key spells.
To ensure they complied with the law, they were required to wear an aequitas enchantment. Josephine currently wore a topaz ring containing an aequitas enchantment which turned green if she started to work with magic that the government deemed too potent. At that point, the ring gave her less than a moment to decrease her flow of energy before a knockout spell would activate. It made Josephine feel like she was wearing a shock collar. She had never had any serious problems controlling her magic and believed that the government’s mandate for category six wizards was complete and utter rubbish.
I need more coffee,
Alice announced.
I’ll have to make some more. I took the last of it earlier,
Josephine said.
She slapped down a card on the discard pile to complete her turn then went to the kitchen. She quickly poured the grounds then set the maker to brew before returning to the living room where her two friends were waiting for her.
Is it my turn?
she asked.
Yes,
Alice confirmed.
Josephine frowned at the discard pile and she could no longer help herself. Is someone hogging the aces or what?
Aha! You’ve got two of the aces!
Alice crowed. I knew it!
I do not!
Josephine said indignantly.
Then you won’t mind if I take the entire pile in my next turn,
Alice quipped.
Josephine regarded her coolly then decided she’d better not press her luck. She grabbed the discards so she could play the aces.
I rest my case.
Alice grinned with satisfaction.
Josephine played the three aces and tried to decide which card she should let go. The phone rang and she crossed the room to answer it.
I’ve got a serial killer on the loose,
Detective Alex Riley said in his typical brusque tone. He’s using magic to kill his victims and I need you to I.D. him.
Most wizards who committed crimes used an ignotus enchantment to eliminate virtually all traces of psychic energy at the crime scene which made psychometry impossible unless you were a category six wizard.
I’ll be there within the hour,
Josephine promised.
I need you here in fifteen minutes,
he said tersely. Are you ready for the address?
Just a second.
Josephine opened the desk drawer and pulled out a pen. There was already a notepad waiting for her on top of the desk. Okay. I’m ready.
She jotted down the address then promised to head over to the crime scene as soon as humanly possible.
Josephine let her two friends know about the murder case and they left the condo. She grabbed her purse and made her way to her silver sedan. One of the things she hated about her consulting work was that it usually took place late at night or early in the morning and she got lost easily in the dark. She glanced at her watch. It was only a few minutes after four in the morning. She hoped she could find this place. She ended up making several wrong turns but arrived at the crime scene in a relatively short period of time. There were two police cars parked in front of the blue house. The nearest street lamp was half a block away so the blue and crimson strobing lights offered the main source of illumination. The house had a small, overgrown and untended lawn and lacked a driveway. Josephine made her way over to the front door and a police officer escorted her inside.
Forensics was already gathering evidence and Josephine’s twenty-eight-year-old grandson, Jake, was speaking with his colleague, Alex Riley, at the far end of the living room. Alex was a heavyset man with brown hair, a mustache, and green eyes. He had dark circles under his eyes and hadn’t noticed her entrance. Jake was rapidly taking down notes as his colleague continued to discuss the case. He turned and smiled at his grandmother who waved back cheerfully.
Hi, Grandma,
he said.
Hi, sweetie.
She threw him a warm smile.
It’s about time you showed up,
Riley admonished her.
I came as quickly as I could.
Josephine narrowed her eyes at him with annoyance. Her gaze cut to the victim who was lying beside a coffee table face-down on the floor. She was a young woman with long, blond hair wearing a blue t-shirt and jeans. Josephine couldn’t see any marks on her so she wondered how she’d died.
Alex’s expression was dour. A surge of power was forced through her hand chakras. It may be some sort of enchantment but we can’t pick anything up with our scanners.
So the enchantment used to kill this poor woman was obliterated along with the rest of the psychometric energy in the room,
Josephine said.
The entire house is clean of trace energies,
Alex informed her.
I’m sure there’s something here I can read.
Josephine’s gaze swept over the room before she focused her attention back on Riley. She opened her senses to the energies surrounding her and was startled to find that the room was almost completely bereft of anything at all. The wizard who’d done this had employed an excellent ignotus enchantment which meant the individual was most likely a category four or five. This troubled Josephine just a bit because it was extremely rare for such powerful wizards to be serial killers. She noticed Alex shifting impatiently but he didn’t interrupt her work. Josephine traced the fragments of energy with her mind and reached out to one of them. Vague impressions wafted across the back of her mind but nothing substantial. She remained focused and after a moment, she saw the victim lying unconscious in her chair. Josephine saw the vision through the mind of the killer so she didn’t see any images of him or her.
She continued to work with the psychometric energy that was scattered throughout the room without much success which began to frustrate her. She was currently tapped into the victim who was chopping carrots in the kitchen. The vision only lasted a second and was replaced by vague and meaningless impressions. Josephine concentrated harder and saw the silhouette of a man approaching. The image abruptly vanished but she knew she’d caught a glimpse of the killer. She had to get that vision back. Her hands clenched into fists and power flowed through her. She tapped the energy tendril that contained the psychic impression she sought and heard her grandson gasp with alarm. A gust of hot air whipped into the room.
Grandma! Your ring!
Jake exclaimed.
She glanced down at her topaz ring and saw that it had turned green. Damn! She had to stop the flow of power she was currently channeling. Josephine relaxed and began blocking the magic that coursed through her. The hot wind abruptly died down and the ring turned blue. Alex stood stiff as a board and his green eyes widened with apprehension. The two forensics officers had also backed away from her so they now took up positions at the far side of the room. Josephine couldn’t blame them for their fear but the Disaster that had killed so many had happened almost fifty years ago. There were safeguards in place to prevent anything like that from occurring again. If Josephine had lost control for another couple of seconds, the aequitas enchantment in her ring would have knocked her out.
You can relax now, Riley,
Josephine said in a reassuring tone. You’re safe.
Alex’s tension eased visibly and his frown returned as his face flushed with embarrassment.
Were you able to come up with anything useful?
he asked.
No, but I’m not done yet,
she said.
Yes, you are.
I still need more time to tap the rest of the trace energies,
Josephine stated.
Are you sure you’re not going to blow anything up?
Alex fretted.
I’ll be fine.
Josephine leveled a confident and reassuring gaze at him.
She tapped the few energy fragments she hadn’t yet reached. More impressions danced across her mind but few substantial pieces of information were discovered. She sighed with disappointment.
The killer is a male. His mind feels very cold and calculating. He hungers for power and he’s very disciplined,
Josephine told them.
Alex and Jake scribbled down notes in their pads.
What else have you got?
Alex asked.
Nothing. That’s all I picked up,
Josephine said regretfully.
I don’t think you’re trying hard enough,
Alex stated in a brusque tone. There has to be something more you can tell us.
Josephine arched a bemused brow at him. I saw you accidentally dropping the sausages you made for breakfast on the kitchen floor but you were running late so you ate them anyway.
She’s lying. That never happened.
Alex’s face was flushed with embarrassment as he spoke to his colleague.
I believe you,
Jake said in a distracted tone as he jotted down what his grandmother had said.
What in the hell are you writing that down for?
Alex asked with exasperation.
Just in case it proves useful in the future.
Jake’s eyes gleamed with amusement.
Josephine threw Alex an inquisitive look. Is this the second or third victim of this particular serial killer?
The third.
Do you have any idea what kind of enchantment is used to kill the victims?
Josephine asked.
We don’t have any idea,
Jake replied. There was no physical damage to the bodies except for power surges in their minor and major chakras.
Josephine’s eyes widened with surprise. That’s exactly how everyone died in the Disaster.
We can’t jump to conclusions,
Jake said swiftly.
Josephine, I think you’ve done everything you can.
Alex shot her a moody scowl. We’ll let you know when you can be of further assistance.
Thank you, Detective,
she said.
She gave her grandson a brief hug goodbye and left the house.
Chapter 2
Josephine and Alice chatted amiably as they strolled through the aisles in the grocery store while Helen zipped along in a motorized shopping cart. Helen accidentally bumped into a display of cereal as she turned a corner. The boxes jiggled precariously but none of them fell over. A man in his early twenties dodged the electric shopping cart and barely missed being rammed as Helen whizzed past him.
Josephine stopped her cart a short distance from a couple of women who were blocking the half and half. Josephine held her hand out and two cartons of half and half slowly drifted out and dropped into her cart. As a category six wizard, she could use telekinesis without a premade enchantment. The two women completely ignored the floating cartons since virtually everyone was a wizard and this sort of thing happened all the time.
This is nice,
Josephine said.
What’s nice?
Alice asked.
That we’re still such close friends after all these years.
Josephine leveled a warm smile at both Alice and Helen. I’m so grateful that you’re both in my life.
You’re so sweet,
Helen said.
I feel the same way,
Alice added.
Alice turned her attention to the canned soup and picked out a couple cans of chicken noodle.
I think that’s everything, isn’t it?
Helen asked.
I believe so,
Josephine said slowly as she surveyed the items in her cart.
I need some more macaroni and cheese,
Alice announced.
Of course.
Josephine pushed off and led them to the appropriate aisle.
Alice grabbed about a dozen boxes and dropped them into her cart. Macaroni and cheese was one of her favorite meals.
Okay, I’m ready,
Alice said cheerfully.
Josephine, Helen, and Alice returned to their homes and Josephine unpacked her groceries. Her mind wandered as she thought about Jake and the case she had worked on that morning. She hadn’t spent much time with him lately. She decided she’d do something nice for him. She baked a death by chocolate cake which she brought over to his home. He had given her a key to his small, white house because she took care of his plants and kept an eye on things for him whenever he took a vacation or went on a weekend trip.
Jake loved palm trees so his front lawn had four of them and a yard service agency sent someone once a week so his lawn was always well-manicured. Josephine stepped inside his house and set the cake down in the kitchen. After that, she brewed some coffee and waited for him to arrive. Sometimes, he ran a bit late but never by too much. She inhaled the aroma of freshly brewed coffee as she turned on the television. She changed the channel to watch the news and lost track of time. When Josephine heard the key in the lock of the front door, she stood up to greet her grandson. Jake was only mildly surprised to see her because these visits weren’t uncommon and he enjoyed them.
So how’s my handsome young man doing?
Josephine strode over and gave him a warm hug.
Fine. How are you?
Jake grinned at her.
I’m old and tired,
Josephine said. Other than that, I’m great. I baked a death by chocolate cake for you.
Sounds wonderful,
Jake said appreciatively. I enjoyed your visit to the crime scene this morning. Did you do anything else interesting today?
Not really,
Josephine responded. It was a typical, quiet day.
It smells like fresh coffee,
Jake remarked.
They went to the kitchen and poured themselves mugs of coffee. Josephine added half and half and sugar to hers while her grandson drank his black. They took their drinks to the living room.
I need to make sure I remember to work out tomorrow. I skipped my routine because of that call from Detective Riley.
Why didn’t you go after you left the crime scene?
Jake leveled a curious gaze at her.
I’m a creature of habit now that I’m retired. If I get called into work, it throws my entire day off.
Josephine crossed her shapely legs and leaned back in the armchair as she took another sip of her coffee. She was wearing green cargo shorts and a tropical shirt that showed off her smooth, youthful skin and fine figure.
I can understand that,
Jake said. You don’t need to spend any time in the gym. You look great.
Thank you. You’re such a flatterer.
Josephine smiled warmly at him before taking another sip of her coffee. Her thoughts turned back to the serial killer. Did you have any luck with cracking the case from this morning?
The trail is cold,
Jake replied.
Oh, fudge!
Josephine exclaimed with such feeling that one would have thought she had just cursed like a sailor. I was afraid you’d say that.
You’re our best chance of finding this guy,
Jake informed her.
After enjoying some chocolate cake and playing darts with her grandson, Josephine returned to her condo to find a handwritten note taped to her door. The edges of her lips dipped in an irritated frown. Dale was the only person who left notes like this for her. He was a cantankerous seventy-nine-year-old who lived one floor above Josephine and strongly believed that she shouldn’t be allowed to live in the retirement complex. He sometimes left notes taped to her door. Dale’s insistence