Read Online The Harder They Fall by Debbie McGowan - Free Book Online Page B

and in working order, before a final night at the hotel and then the flight back to Turkey. Whether Bhagwan would be up to driving a further six hours (at the very least) before tomorrow, was yet to be seen, but a glance at his companion gave him some indication. He was squinting through the mud-smeared windscreen and stifled his yawn when he realised he was being watched.
    “Not far now,” he smiled.
    “Dan’s sick,” Andy told him. “He’s got a fever.”
    “Not far now,” Bhagwan repeated, nodding towards the road in front of them. Andy joined him in squinting and saw that the village was just up ahead. It disappeared from view as they rounded a bend, then reappeared again, the vibrantly painted houses standing out against the misty black of the mountains. Andy gently righted his brother, an action that awoke and startled him. He stretched and groaned and Andy pointed to the village.
    “Thank God for that,” he mumbled.
    “Why didn’t you say you were so sick?”
    “I’m fine!”
    “No. You’re not bloody well fine at all. You’ve got a raging temperature and you’re clearly in pain. Do you realise how dangerous it is for you to be in the mountains in your state?”
    “Yes, Andy, I do. Or it would be if I was as sick as you think I am, which I’m not. I’ve got a touch of food poisoning or something, but apart from that I feel OK, so stop going on, will you?”
    Andy could feel his temper rising and was trying to keep it contained, as they were now slowing down outside a little stone building with disproportionately large blue gates.
    “Welcome to Syabru Bensi,” a voice called from the other side of the gates, as a young, dark-haired woman came into view. Her face broke into a broad smile when she saw the oven on the back of the truck. “This is fantastic!” she said, and called back inside the building to her partner, who emerged a moment later to greet them.
    “Hello, hello,” he called cheerily, as Dan climbed out of the cab. “I am Michal and this is Zuza,” he introduced in perfect English. “You are Andy and Dan, yes?”
    “I’m Dan,” Dan replied, shaking Michal’s hand.
    “And I’m Andy.” He closed the door and walked round to greet the two people who had set up the bakery project. “It’s great to meet you after all this time,” he said, shaking first Zuza’s, then Michal’s hand. They had been communicating via email for many months now, so it was a bit strange to be meeting for the first time, when he felt like he already knew them.
    “And also to meet you,” Zuza smiled, wandering around the back of the pickup and inspecting the packing material, all of it impressively still intact. “The people here are so excited about this, but you must be tired and hungry. We should go inside.” She said this, although it was apparent that all she wanted right at that moment was to tear off the plastic and cardboard and get at the oven. However, it was going to take several people to lift it from the back of the truck and take it to the building that was to be the bakery, producing the sort of bread and cakes that western tourists craved, hence destined to provide a significant income to this small, poor community. The Jeffries brothers didn’t know much more than this about the project, other than that they’d had some problems transporting the equipment from overseas and up into the mountains. Andy had offered to take on the authorities, and with a few strings tugged in the right places, weeks of coordinating transport, three days of travelling through thunderstorms and monsoon rain, here they were. He was overwhelmed: such an incredible sense of achievement, and yet he knew it was nothing compared to how the young Polish couple who made all of this possible were feeling.
    They followed Zuza and Michal inside the small guesthouse, with Bhagwan heading off across the village to pay a brief visit to another ‘cousin’. Dan was glad to be inside of something that wasn’t