Read Online Fear in the Cotswolds by Rebecca Tope - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Rebecca Tope
Ads: Link
no reply. How far is it?’
‘Over half a mile. If the snow’s as bad as you say, you’d better not. It’s quite a winding track, with a lot of stones and potholes. But you can see the house from the first bend – you could have a look to see if there’s smoke coming from the chimney, or any other sign of life. How’s Jimmy?’ The question burst out as if it couldn’t wait another second.
‘He’s absolutely fine. Hepzie has won him over and they’re good friends. He licks her.’
‘Mmm.’ Lucy did not sound enthusiastic about this news. ‘I hope he won’t miss her when she goes.’
‘I know – I wondered about that. But I couldn’t really stop them.’ She could, of course. She could keep her dog out of the conservatory fairly easily. The truth was she didn’t want to – it was sweet seeing them snuggled together.
‘I expect he’ll just forget her. I don’t think his memory works much any more.’
‘Probably,’ said Thea vaguely, wondering which piece of news she ought to disclose next. ‘So you’re having a good time, are you?’
‘Wonderful,’ breathed Lucy. ‘Total bliss. I’m sorry you’ve got the hassle of snow, but if I’m honest I have to say it convinces me I did the right thing. I could never see the attraction of snow, and you sound as if you rather enjoy it.’
Stifling the flash of resentment this caused, Thea merely laughed. ‘I expect the novelty will soon wear off,’ she said.
‘Oh, it’ll all be gone in a day or two. Like we said last week – snow never lasts for long in England.’
Stop tempting fate , Thea wanted to shout at her, but all she did was laugh again, before drawing breath to say, A man died and the rabbit had babies .
‘Oh, gosh, I’ll have to go,’ Lucy hissed suddenly. ‘There’s a man I’m trying to avoid, and he’s just come round the corner. Thanks a million, Thea. I’ll call again soon.’
All Thea could do was bid Lucy goodbye.
She did not really regret her failure to tell Lucy about the man in the snowy field. It was ingrained habit to shield her employers from bad or disturbing news, for as long as she could. Terrible things happened, sometimes even to the creatures left in her care, but she had come to the conclusion that bad news could generally wait, and it was kinder to leave it until the people came back, and had to take up the reins again. Ithad not been her fault that Lucy rang off before there was a chance to get everything said.
But she did feel a mild sorrow at the missed opportunity to share the experience of the baby rabbits. That was the sort of news liable to bring amusement and pleasure, surely. So much more difficult to talk about death, with the response entirely unpredictable. What if Lucy had said, ‘Oh yes, that must have been Kevin. He’s always doing that – drinking himself into a stupor, so everybody thinks he’s dead. Why…there was even a woman a year or two ago who called 999, thinking she’d found a body.’ How reassuring that would have been – and how unlikely!
Outside again, muffled in hat, scarf, gloves and one of Lucy’s thick coats, she was aware of a dilemma as to which direction to take. To the left was Old Kate’s farm, where all was still and silent, as far as Thea could tell. To the right was the road, and people, and the prospect of rescue from the growing feeling of being trapped.
There was no real contest. With impeccable logic, she persuaded herself that even if Old Kate was in difficulties, there would need to be a way forged out to the road, and Thea needed to work out for herself what was feasible. She followed the trail made by the four men the day before, noting with amusement a place where they hadobviously followed each other onto the side of the track, where a low stone wall was completely covered with snow, to the point of invisibility. Somebody had apparently fallen over it, sweeping the snow away and exposing some of the mossy stones. Footprints mingled
‘Over half a mile. If the snow’s as bad as you say, you’d better not. It’s quite a winding track, with a lot of stones and potholes. But you can see the house from the first bend – you could have a look to see if there’s smoke coming from the chimney, or any other sign of life. How’s Jimmy?’ The question burst out as if it couldn’t wait another second.
‘He’s absolutely fine. Hepzie has won him over and they’re good friends. He licks her.’
‘Mmm.’ Lucy did not sound enthusiastic about this news. ‘I hope he won’t miss her when she goes.’
‘I know – I wondered about that. But I couldn’t really stop them.’ She could, of course. She could keep her dog out of the conservatory fairly easily. The truth was she didn’t want to – it was sweet seeing them snuggled together.
‘I expect he’ll just forget her. I don’t think his memory works much any more.’
‘Probably,’ said Thea vaguely, wondering which piece of news she ought to disclose next. ‘So you’re having a good time, are you?’
‘Wonderful,’ breathed Lucy. ‘Total bliss. I’m sorry you’ve got the hassle of snow, but if I’m honest I have to say it convinces me I did the right thing. I could never see the attraction of snow, and you sound as if you rather enjoy it.’
Stifling the flash of resentment this caused, Thea merely laughed. ‘I expect the novelty will soon wear off,’ she said.
‘Oh, it’ll all be gone in a day or two. Like we said last week – snow never lasts for long in England.’
Stop tempting fate , Thea wanted to shout at her, but all she did was laugh again, before drawing breath to say, A man died and the rabbit had babies .
‘Oh, gosh, I’ll have to go,’ Lucy hissed suddenly. ‘There’s a man I’m trying to avoid, and he’s just come round the corner. Thanks a million, Thea. I’ll call again soon.’
All Thea could do was bid Lucy goodbye.
She did not really regret her failure to tell Lucy about the man in the snowy field. It was ingrained habit to shield her employers from bad or disturbing news, for as long as she could. Terrible things happened, sometimes even to the creatures left in her care, but she had come to the conclusion that bad news could generally wait, and it was kinder to leave it until the people came back, and had to take up the reins again. Ithad not been her fault that Lucy rang off before there was a chance to get everything said.
But she did feel a mild sorrow at the missed opportunity to share the experience of the baby rabbits. That was the sort of news liable to bring amusement and pleasure, surely. So much more difficult to talk about death, with the response entirely unpredictable. What if Lucy had said, ‘Oh yes, that must have been Kevin. He’s always doing that – drinking himself into a stupor, so everybody thinks he’s dead. Why…there was even a woman a year or two ago who called 999, thinking she’d found a body.’ How reassuring that would have been – and how unlikely!
Outside again, muffled in hat, scarf, gloves and one of Lucy’s thick coats, she was aware of a dilemma as to which direction to take. To the left was Old Kate’s farm, where all was still and silent, as far as Thea could tell. To the right was the road, and people, and the prospect of rescue from the growing feeling of being trapped.
There was no real contest. With impeccable logic, she persuaded herself that even if Old Kate was in difficulties, there would need to be a way forged out to the road, and Thea needed to work out for herself what was feasible. She followed the trail made by the four men the day before, noting with amusement a place where they hadobviously followed each other onto the side of the track, where a low stone wall was completely covered with snow, to the point of invisibility. Somebody had apparently fallen over it, sweeping the snow away and exposing some of the mossy stones. Footprints mingled
Similar Books
