Page 47 of Autumn at the Oak Leaf Café
Madeline felt her cheeks beginning to warm. Her brow felt damp, her heart thumping in her mouth.
‘And … if you found yourself with nothing much to do, one afternoon, I’d really like it if you could stop by the café. I … have a few pie recipes I’ve been trying out, and I’d like a, um, a guinea pig to test them on. Plus, we’re not so busy at this time of year, so a little company would be kind of nice.’
Darren looked down. When he looked up, he gave her a smile that cut through all her nerves, wrapping itself like a blanket around her heart.
‘You know,’ he said, ‘it’s getting a little colder, and I was thinking I ought to put on a little weight to keep myself warm. I think that would be a very good idea indeed. What time do you shut tonight?’
Madeline’s mouth felt dry. ‘Ah … sometime after you arrive?’
‘Perfect. I’ll see you then.’
22
A Change in the Weather
She fretted all afternoon,struggling to concentrate. The rain held off but clouds rolled in to blanket the sky, so the park and the café were quieter than usual. With no customers after four o’clock, Madeline grabbed a rake and a broom and went out to clear leaves off the path, piling them up beneath the trees, while Hazel made a nuisance of herself, dancing among the fluttering leaves, trying to bat them out of existence.
Tom, the burly caretaker who Pete had told her also acted in some of the theatre’s productions, wandered over to let her know that he had spoken to Regina Clover at the council about the car park, and that her response had been a firm “maybe”, but that she would certainly “take any petition into account”.
Half an hour later, after she had raked the fallen leaves into two impressive piles and was resisting the urge to jump in them, Dan appeared with Milady for a cup of coffee and a chat before he started his shift. The evenings were starting to draw in, and the wind, when it came now, was a little chilly, but Milady liked to chase Hazel around on the grass, so they sat outside, drinking hot coffee as the wind wrapped around their legs.
‘I’ve seen your petition up all over the place,’ Dan told her. ‘Great job, there. Me and the dog both signed up. Let’s hope it puts an end to this madness.’
‘I think it’s only a start,’ Madeline said. ‘I don’t know how far it’ll go, but I kind of feel like I have to do something.’
Shortly after, Dan called Milady and they headed off across the park. Madeline glanced at her watch, disappointed to see it was nearly half past five and Darren hadn’t yet shown up. A dark thought entered her mind that he was trying to give her a little of her own medicine, but she shrugged it off. He wasn’t like that, surely?
They hadn’t got far enough to exchange numbers, as though the process would somehow bind them into a fledgling relationship. Now Madeline regretted it, as she went back into the café and began to tidy up, wiping off tables and stacking chairs. Hazel, following her inside, weaved around her legs for a while before getting bored and retreating to her tower basket to watch as Madeline, humming forlornly to herself, cleaned and tidied the café ready for the morning.
She checked Hazel’s food and water, then cleaned out her litter tray. Then, as she locked up and went out, she couldn’t help feeling a wave of disappointment. Did it count as being stood up? They hadn’t made a firm arrangement after all. Perhaps he had just got busy.
Be proactive. Go and see him.
So she did, walking up through town towards Darren’s veterinary clinic, but when she arrived she found it closed, the car park empty.
Worried that she’d somehow missed him, she hurried back to the park, but there was no one waiting outside. She went inside for a bit and sat with a delighted Hazel, drinking coffee in the easy chair with the lights on, but by seven-thirty no one had shown up, so she finally called it a night and headed for home.
‘Not been on the sauce again?’ Jonas asked her over breakfast, a wry smile on his face. ‘You look darker than those clouds outside.’
Madeline shrugged. ‘I’m fine.’
‘It’s not this car park business, is it? I saw your petition yesterday when I took the car in for an oil change. The car shop had photocopied it from the pharmacy next door. It looks like it’s going paper viral, if that’s even a thing.’
Madeline forced a smile. ‘That’s great.’
‘It really is. Hopefully the council will take note and put paid to this paid car park nonsense.’
She headed to work under the same thundercloud, but at least felt a little better than before. She barely muttered hello to Pete as he set up his burger van, and Dan as he made one last patrol of the park.
When she got to the café, however, she found a plastic bag hooked up the door handle.
It felt heavy, full of some kind of linen. She weighed it up in one hand while she opened the door and let Hazel out with the other, the cat doing a quick circuit of her legs before racing off across the grass in the pursuit of a falling leaf.
Unable to resist the mystery, she put down a couple of the chairs on the outdoor tables and sat down, opening the bag. Inside was a little unmarked box and a bag of white clothing, marked with the brand of a sports manufacturer. At the bottom of the bag was a card, the envelope unsealed.
Madeline pulled out the card and turned it over.
A simple design of a cartoon animal walking on crutches told her immediately who it was from.
