Page 15 of A Not So Quiet Christmas
Chapter 11
Afull coal scuttle and pile of kindling at the ready, I knelt in front of the hearth ready to set the fire. Following the previous day’s mountainside calamity, I still felt cold. And, I had to admit, humiliated.
My phone bleeped and twisting round, I picked it up off the coffee table.
Just checking all’s well after yesterday. Here if you need me. Oliver x
I squirmed. If it was up to me, I’d never mention the episode ever again and as kind as his text was, I put my phone back down, deciding I’d respond later.
While it was an experience I wanted to forget, I doubted others thought the same and I sighed, recalling how Barrowboy had said people were already talking about me. Being a new face in the village, I’d expected some chatter. But thanks to Fotherghyll Fell, the locals really had something to get their teeth into. I could almost hear everyone laughing at my expense – the feckless city woman clinging on for dear life, until mountain rescue stepped into the breach. My stomach lurched. I was never showing my face in public again.
I consoled myself in the knowledge that, thanks to technology, I didn’t have to. Courtesy of the internet, in just one click I could get anything I wanted, delivered straight to the door, within twenty-four hours. In fact, what happened up that mountain was a godsend, I insisted. After all, it meant I could get on with organising my future as a roadside reclamation specialist, distraction free.
I reached for the box of firelighters but as I opened it, the whole of my upper torso crumpled. “Please, no,” I said. As I stared into the empty box, it seemed internet or not, my self-imposed incarceration had ended before it had begun. I turned to Frank. “You know what this means, don’t you?” I rose to my feet and headed out into the hall. “Come on, boy.” Putting my coat on, I picked up Frank’s lead, and as I led the dog outside, thanked goodness for everyone’s Christmas trees. Blocking their view of the street, it meant there was less chance of anyone seeing us.
I walked fast, refusing to let Frank stop and sniff as we went. It was bad enough having to leave the house before enjoying at least two cups of coffee, let alone when it involved sub-zero temperatures and potential ridicule. “Bugger,” I said, as I made my way along the icy path. Noticing a man lurking opposite the shop, it was clear the angels were working against me. I was about to be spotted.
I slowed in my step to observe him. A middle-aged chap, he wore jeans, a Barbour jacket, and a flat cap. He might have looked harmless, but the way he paced up and down was anything but. “What is he doing?” I asked, curious.
Scrutinising the man, I recognised him as the classic 1930s car owner from the other day. But gone was his jollity. He looked nervous and agitated, and with no one but the two of us in sight, was clearly talking to himself. I tightened Frank’s lead as the man put a foot in the road, but rather than cross, he seemed to change his mind again. My frown deepened.
I told myself to ignore him. Where I came from, engaging with strangers wasn’t the done thing. In a place like London, it didn’t always pay to get involved. Despite any good intentions, people got hurt.
But you’re not in London, a little voice said.
I reminded myself that less than twenty-four hours previous I’d been the one in need of assistance. And while my embarrassing experience on the rock face highlighted my stupidity amongst the locals, that didn’t mean I shouldn’t pay the help I’d been given forward. I sighed and telling myself I had no choice but to intervene, called out to him. “Is everything all right?”
My presence took Flat Cap Man by surprise. “Sorry?”
“Are you okay?”
“Yes. I’m fine. I was just…” As cheery as he sounded, his accompanying smile was less than convincing; his confidence forced. “I just wanted to…” He glanced over at the shop. “Anyway, must get on.”
Watching the man stride away, I had to wonder what I’d just witnessed. I took another deep breath, puffing out my cheeks as I exhaled. Recalling Ted Sharples from the pub, and his strange behaviour, I couldn’t help but wonder if Little Leatherington was home to any normal people.
Shaking my head, I put all thoughts of weird residents to one side and got back to the matter at hand. Scouring for somewhere to secure Frank’s lead, I spied a bench at the side of the shop and tied the dog to it. Frank had never been one to follow commands and I knew from experience that he’d be off into the distance as soon as my back was turned if I left him to his own devices. “Be good,” I said, heading inside for firelighters.
A woman, who I put in her forties, perched on a stool behind the counter. She had her head in a book so engrossing that she didn’t look up. Although that was nothing to what she wore. I sighed, disappointed at the sight – a pair of deely boppers. My eyes went from her glittery Alice band, home to two reindeer heads, each wobbling about on their own spring, to the rest of the shop, searching for any other signs of Christmas about the place. There weren’t any, just lines of tinned foods, a fridge for milk and dairy products, and a space for bread. Approaching the shelves, I looked back at the woman, confused, not knowing whether to admire her festive attempt, or question why she’d bothered.
After finding what I wanted, I headed back to the till. I waited for the shopkeeper to put down her book, but as I stood looking at her, she simply continued to read as if I wasn’t there. I coughed. However, that was to no avail and wondering which book could hold her attention like that I craned my neck trying to get a look at the cover. I couldn’t see the title, but from the image I glimpsed, it looked like a sweeping romance and knowing I couldn’t compete with that, I stuffed the firelighters into my rucksack, dug out my purse and cobbled together enough change to cover the cost. Placing it on the counter, it seemed that wasn’t enough to attract the woman’s attention either. So I had no choice but to leave her to her reading.
I scoffed as I stepped out in the open air. “If Flat Cap Man was working up the courage to rob that shop, Frank, he needn’t have worried.” I began untying the dog’s lead. “He could have emptied the whole place and the woman in there wouldn’t have noticed.”
A stick lay by Frank’s side and as we set off, he picked it up.
“Come on,” I said. “Let’s get back before we come across anyone else.”
“Settling in all right?” a male voice asked, just as Frank and I got to the door.
My heart sank and my shoulders dropped. Hiding myself away seemed to be proving impossible. As did getting on with work.
