Page 1 of Your Carriage Awaits in Crumbleton
CHAPTER 1
MICHELLE
The rain drummed relentlessly against Michelle Singer’s windscreen. Even with the wipers on triple speed, they were fighting a losing battle against the downpour that had been hammering Crumbleton and the surrounding marshes for a solid week.
‘I should have listened to Mum,’ Michelle muttered, leaning forward until her nose was practically touching the glass. It was getting harder and harder to see where she was going… which was a definite drawback, considering the epic puddles that were busy taking over the narrow road.
Her mother had begged her to postpone this final trip back to her ex’s place to pick up her last few boxes, but Michelle had insisted on going. The longer she left it, the more likely it was that Lawrence would dump her precious belongings into a wheelie bin.
‘Git!’ she sighed.
Still, at least he’d been out when she arrived at the house.His house.She couldn’t believe how tough it had been to walk back into the place she’d thought of as her “forever home” just a handful of weeks ago.
New carpets, beautiful bedding, stunning kitchen… and now they were all his!
Michelle shook her head and did her best to focus. She needed to keep her wits about her in this weather. The last thing she wanted to do was end up aquaplaning into a ditch! The marshes had a horrible habit of eating things when they were this waterlogged.
The thought sent a shudder through her, and she winced as she navigated yet another enormous puddle. Dirty water splashed up the sides of her ancient banger, and she gritted her teeth, praying the puddle didn’t get any deeper.
Unfortunately, it was a little bit too late to start double-guessing her earlier over-confidence…
You know all the back roads, Michelle.
You’ll be fine, Michelle.
‘You’re an idiot, Michelle!’ she muttered.
Why did she have to be so stubborn?!
Of course, the truth was that Michelledidknow all the roads around Crumbleton. She’d grown up watching her dad, Brian Singer—taxi driver extraordinaire—negotiating every shortcut, back route and scenic diversion the area had to offer. She’d absorbed his knowledge of the roads like a sponge, and she’d been using them herself since the day she passed her test.
But tonight was different.
Tonight, the familiar landscape had transformed into a treacherous, watery obstacle course, and Michelle was starting to think she’d made a terrible mistake.
It had been a long drive to Lawrence’s place, and the return journey had felt even longer. But she was nearly back in Crumbleton. Just a few more miles, and she would be… home?
No, that word no longer applied to her mum and dad’s little cottage at the foot of the hill. That said, she wasn’t sure it applied to anywhere anymore.
Michelle’s lip gave a pathetic little quiver, but she bit it hard and shook her head angrily. Nope, she wasn’t going to start moping again. She’d done more than enough of that recently.
Besides, she needed to focus on getting back to Crumbleton safely. There would be plenty of time to sit and ponder the exact moment her life had started to implode when she was warm and dry… preferably with a mug of something comforting in her hands!
‘Quit it!’ she grumbled, as the rain re-doubled its efforts.
Michelle was definitely starting to regret her chosen route. She’d taken the back road that wound its way past Crumbleton Clump because it usually stayed drier than the main road into town.
Usuallybeing the operative word.
‘Uh oh!’
Her headlights had just found another massive puddle ahead. This one looked different, though. Bigger. Deeper. More like a small lake than a puddle.
For a brief moment, she considered turning back. But the road was too narrow to make an easy turn, and the verges were sodden. She’d probably just get stuck. Besides, she’d already braved half a dozen decent-sized puddles without any problems. What was one more?
‘It probably looks worse than it is,’ she said, doing her best to convince herselfandthe car. ‘Just take it nice and slow, exactly like Dad taught you.’
Her father’s familiar voice echoed in her head.‘Steady does it, Shelly. No need to rush. The car knows what to do. You just need to guide it through.’
