Read Online To The Grave by Steve Robinson - Free Book Online Page B

time and had no recollection of how she’d arrived there since leaving her bicycle behind.  She stood at the roadside opposite and stared past the high wall and the headstones, past the neatly trimmed evergreens and the trees beyond, towards the imposing body of the church then up and along the length of its spire.  The tring of a bell forced her eyes away and she saw two GIs wobble down the street on a single bicycle that looked ready to collapse beneath them.  Turning back to the church she began to wonder if Danny had been delayed.  Or worse still, whether he was coming at all.
    She crossed the road, sure that she had not arrived early.  If anything she thought herself a few minutes late.  When she reached the steps that led up to the church path, she looked back.  The streets were quieter now that night had all but fallen on Oadby.  The gas lamps would soon be lit, she thought, although since their windows had been painted blue, their effectiveness was limited.  She ran up the steps to get a better look, but of the few people she could see, no one seemed to be heading for the church.
    Disappointment began to smother her.  She drew a slow breath and started walking aimlessly back down the steps, thinking she could wait a while, but knowing in her heart that Danny was not coming.  In the stillness that accompanied the night she began to hear other people enjoying their lives: their distant laughter and the plink of a merry piano.  Then she heard something else that caused her to spin around.
    “Hello,” she called.
    Her heart began to race.  She stared through the half-light towards the church and saw a faint red glow, hovering in the shadow of the church doorway.  A moment later she saw a puff of white smoke rise out of the arch and dissipate on the breeze.  She supposed the sound she’d heard was the snap of a cigarette lighter as it closed.
    “Danny?” she called, smiling again.  “Is that you?”  She returned to the top of the steps and heard him call her name.  She was beginning to like that American accent.  “I thought you weren’t coming,” she said.  She took a few quick steps along the path towards him.  “But I’m glad you did,” she added as the glowing tip of his cigarette came out from the doorway to meet her.  She could just about make out his uniform now in the low light.  She thought she caught the hint of a smile from that perfect mouth.
    “We can go out this way,” he said, taking the path that led around the side of the church.
    Mena lost him then to the deeper shadows that were cast across the churchyard by the trees.  She saw another puff of smoke and followed it, curious at his behaviour, concluding that he must be every bit as shy as she thought.
    “We can go into Wigston if you like,” she said.  “I don’t know if you’ve been there yet but -”
    She paused, aware that she was probably being too forward.  She’d asked him out after all.  That was forward enough.  Perhaps she should leave the details to him.  She caught up and she could discern the outline of his broad back now.  His pace slowed, inviting her alongside.  She wanted to hold his hand as they walked but there was plenty of time for that.
    “I really don’t mind where we go,” she said, laughing nervously.  She thought she heard Danny laugh with her then and as she looked up to catch his eyes he stopped.  His hands were suddenly on her shoulders, pulling her towards him.
    “Surprise!”
    The outburst startled Mena.  She instinctively tried to pull away, catching only the flash of his impossibly white teeth.  She began to struggle.
    “Hold on there, beautiful!”
    Mena’s eyes were slowly adjusting to the darkness and although they sounded alike to her, she could see now that this was not Danny - not her Blondie.  There was no bright fringe around the edge of this man’s cap.  His hair was black as the night.
    “It’s me!” the man said.  “It’s your old pal, Vic