Page 23 of A Fresh Start on Crumcarey
‘Thank you,’ she said, giving him a tiny smile.
‘Well… now there are two of you to help me tidy up the field,’ said Mr Harris. ‘Drink that coffee up… we’ve got work to do.’
CHAPTER 12
LUKE
Luke trudged towards his uncle’s pickup and then held the door open for Maggie. He waited as she clambered up into the centre seat before making his way around to the driver’s side.
‘Who said you could drive?’ muttered Mr Harris.
‘I got here first!’ crowed Luke.
‘Not fair – my ankle’s always worse first thing in the morning,’ muttered Mr Harris, climbing up beside Maggie.
‘All the more reason for me to drive, then!’ said Luke with a placid smile as he started the engine.
It didn’t take long for the three of them to gather up the tarpaulins and rope from the top field. As soon as they were back in the truck, they made their way straight for Pear Tree Cottage.
Maggie’s smiling face had become more and more serious the closer they got, and by the time he pulled up in her gateway, he could swear she was on the brink of tears. He wasn’t surprised. He probably would be too if this was his home.
This really wasn’t good.
So much for all his “think positive” talk the night before. The storm had really done a number on the little place.
Stepping out of the truck, the three of them stood side-by-side-by-side, staring at the mess in front of them. Mr Harris had left McGregor in the truck for the time-being, just in case anything else fell from the roof while they were investigating the damage… not that there was much left to come down!
Only one of the several tarpaulins remained in place – dangling limply from one frayed bit of rope. The rest lay scattered around the garden and surrounding fields. Peering around, Luke spotted one flapping on a strand of barbed wire in the distance.
‘There’s one over there on top of the car too,’ said Maggie in a small voice.
Luke nodded. ‘Stay there a sec, you two.’
He didn’t like pulling rank, but there was no way he wanted either of them to be clonked on the head if there were any more loose slates waiting to fall. Grabbing a bit of wood that had been propping up one of the pieces of hardboard that was now lying prone in the tufty grass, he edged towards the front door. Standing as far back as he could get, he used it to prod the damaged roof – ready to leap out of the way if anything came slipping down.
Nothing shifted. It looked like the storm had finished the job.
He made his way over to Maggie’s car and peered at it before shifting a couple of the fallen stones so that he could move the tarp out of the way.
‘Good news,’ he said, turning to look at the other two, who hadn’t budged an inch.
‘Seriously?’ said Maggie. ‘Because now’s not the time for jokes.’
‘Seriously - I promise,’ Luke smiled. ‘None of the car windows have been broken. You’ll have a few extra dents – but other than cosmetic damage, I think it’ll be okay once we’ve shifted all the stone.’
‘Well… that’s definitely something!’ said Maggie. She smiled at him, but it was clearly costing her quite a bit of effort and it slipped right back of her face again the minute her eyes roamed back to the cottage.
‘Might take a while to get it out safely, though,’ said Mr Harris, still staring at the car.
Luke nodded, not taking his eyes off Maggie. She was staring as though mesmerised by the sight of the exposed roof beams. The entire place was still dripping with water, and Luke had a nasty feeling it’d be doing that inside, too.
‘Do you… do want to have a look inside?’ said Luke.
‘Do you think it’s safe?’ said Maggie.
‘No,’ said Luke sadly. ‘We’ll have to go careful… but it might be a good idea for you to see what you’re up against. I’m guessing you didn’t lock it?’
Maggie shook her head.
