Read Online Rachel's Coming Home by Gillian Villiers - Free Book Online

down. He didn’t seem mollified by their offer or apology and Anthony could feel himself losing his temper.
    â€˜Look here …’
    â€˜What’s all this about?’ said a new voice.
    Anthony had thought his spirits couldn’t plummet any lower, but he was wrong.
    Gemma’s father had appeared out of nowhere. Now he was towering over all of them, looking very angry indeed.
    â€˜Hi Dad,’ said Gemma, putting a hand quickly on his arm. ‘It’s nothing. We were just …’ She faltered, which wasn’t surprising under the glare her father was giving her.
    â€˜Are you in trouble with the police?’ he demanded. ‘And who is this young man?’ He turned his fierce dark stare to Anthony. ‘Perhaps you can enlighten me?’ he ended, turning to the police officer.
    â€˜Certainly,’ said the police officer, his tone noticeably more pleasant. ‘I was just having a chat with these young people, pointing out they shouldn’t be putting up any posters in public places.’ Now he made it sound as though it was a very minor misdemeanour.
    â€˜So we’re stopping right now,’ said Gemma quickly, trying to pass the rest of the posters to Anthony. ‘Did you come to give me a lift home? That was really kind but I could have got the bus.’
    â€˜I had to come in to town to see the seed merchant. Thought I’d keep an eye out for you. I didn’t expect to see you with a young man and certainly not being accosted by a police officer .’
    â€˜We were just having a wee chat,’ said Sergeant MacFarlane and Anthony shot him a grateful smile. Maybe the police weren’t so bad after all.
    â€˜Shall we go?’ said Gemma to her father.
    Anthony felt he should do something to help her, but he wasn’t sure what. She seemed desperate to leave.
    â€˜Not until you’ve introduced me to your friend.’
    â€˜Oh, this is Anthony. I know him from school.’
    â€˜Anthony?’ The man frowned. On Gemma the dark eyes were lovely, but on her father they were definitely scary. ‘That wouldn’t be Anthony Collington, would it? From the kennels? I thought I recognised you. I should have known. You’re nothing but trouble, your family. Just keep away from me and my daughter, do you hear me? Just keep away.’
    He took the remaining papers from his daughter’s arms and thrust them at Anthony so suddenly that more than half of them spilt across the pavement. Anthony gathered them as best he could, helped by the sergeant who was now making sympathetic noises. By the time they rose to their feet again Gemma and her father had gone.
    Rachel and her parents were at the kitchen table going through future bookings when Anthony appeared. He had been very pleased with himself when he went out that morning, but now he looked thunderous.
    â€˜Hello, dear, how are you?’ said her mother.
    â€˜What’s happened?’ demanded Rachel, and then wished she hadn’t. Her parents didn’t seem to have noticed anything was wrong. She should have let Anthony slide off to his room and gone looking for him later.
    â€˜Is something wrong?’ asked their father, turning slowly to examine his son. ‘What is it, my boy?’
    â€˜Nothing,’ said Anthony, looking desperately from one to the other of them. For all his height and deep voice he looked like nothing so much as a young boy in trouble.
    â€˜Do you want a cup of tea?’ said Rachel brightly.
    â€˜Come and sit down and tell us about it,’ said her father.
    Anthony hesitated and then slumped down onto one of the chairs. He slapped down a pile of papers that he had been holding under his arm. ‘It’s these.’
    Rachel and her parents leant forward to look more closely. They were posters advertising Collington Kennels, bright and quirky and just the sort of thing they needed.
    â€˜But they’re brilliant!’ she said,