Sally Greenland was a
sister on the pediatric ward at the Churchill hospital, she was five foot tall
and quite trim, but stood an inch or so taller in her stout shoes.
Her uniform fitted her
perfectly, tapered at the waist where the broad belt sat.
She was 45 years old
but looked older, her once black hair was now streaked with grey like Lily in
the Munster’s.
Sally was always
smiling, but the ageing in her face wasn’t due to laughter lines.
Life’s hardships and
experiences were etched into her face, each line and furrow a sad event or a
disappointment, her face was like her résumé.
Sister Greenland
always chatted cheerily and a smile was never far from her lips, but although
she was always smiling there was pain behind the eyes.
Sally was lonely and
she went home every night to an empty house, save for her cat.
No husband, boyfriend
or significant other and no living parents, siblings and no children.
She had friends of
course, many in fact, but you can’t live in the pockets of friends and living
your life vicariously was not the healthiest option in the long run.
But she wasn’t an
unhappy person, despite her loneliness, she was someone who made the most of
things even though she spent more time on her own than she deserved to.
She hadn’t always been
alone, she’d had a husband once, but he left her a week before her fortieth
birthday and she’d been alone ever since, and a little lonely but she would
never have admitted that.
Sally was devastated
at the time and it had left her unable to trust for the years following it, but
that mistrust merely isolated her from life, and she settled for evenings in
front of the TV with a glass of wine and a Rom Com, or a good book, and she
loved her garden.
Life for her would
probably have continued in much the same vein indefinitely had it not been for
a number of unrelated events, which taken on their own merits wouldn’t have had
the effect they did, but together and in short succession, they altered her
perspective fundamentally.
The first event was
the appointment of a new hospital management team, who like all new brooms
wanted to sweep clean, but they weren’t the first new brooms she’d had to deal
with and they certainly wouldn’t be the last.
The second one was
something that should really have been a happy event, her Senior Staff Nurse,
Jane Hall had got married and now had a readymade family.
Sally really liked
Jane and she was truly happy that she had found someone, but Jane’s obvious
happiness on the big day merely underlined her own acute loneliness.
The third event was
far more painful to bear, Yvonne Hughes died.
Yvonne was a frequent
visitor to the ward and a long-time sufferer from Leukemia.
The first time she was
admitted coincided to the day when Sally started on the ward.
They had built up a
great rapport over the years and for her to pass at the age of 16 hit everyone
who knew her very hard, and Sally even harder.
But that in itself did
not break her, death was as much a part of nursing as living was.
No, the straw that
broke the camel’s back, so to speak was the death of her cat.
It wasn’t really a
shock as Cleo was old, and nor was it a surprise, she had been ill for some
time, it was the timing, just before Christmas and coming on top of everything
else.
Ever since Sally had
separated from her husband, she had volunteered to work at Christmas, as she
lived alone and had no family she always worked extra shifts over the Christmas
period to cover for the staff who did have family to enjoy the festivities
with.
It was quiet on the
pediatric ward over the holiday as they always tried to discharge as many
children as possible but for those who couldn’t go home the hospital relaxed
the visiting hours so that families could share the day and this relaxation of
the rules gave her plenty of time to think about her life.
From the very first
moment Sally had taken the Sisters position on pediatrics she had felt
distanced from proper nursing.
She seemed to spend a
disproportionate amount of time in long winded and fruitless meetings and as a
result she always seemed to be working at arm’s length from the very people for
whom she had become a nurse to help in the first place.
So in light of the
recent events, which she reran through her head, she also recalled those
perfect happy days when she was a student nurse and life was full of fun and
the future was something to look forward to with a hopeful heart.
Sally had always loved
painting and when she was younger she would often go off to the country with
her watercolors and her easel and sit and paint for hours, but when she met her
husband who belittled her efforts and undermined her confidence and slowly over
the years he browbeat her until she put the paints away for good.
All of a sudden as she
sat at her desk reflecting on the past she began to feel very angry with herself
for letting him do that to her, but she quickly realized that as he was gone
now there was nothing stopping her from getting them out of the cupboard, she
could take it up again and revive her passion.
By the end of her
shift on Christmas Day Sally had decided that things needed to change, she
needed to change and her life needed to change.
So over the days
following her Christmas Day epiphany she tried to think of a way to achieve the
change that she sought and it was New Year’s Eve, another shift she always
volunteered for, when it all fell into place.
She opened up the
planner on her computer and she totted up all her lieu days and unclaimed
annual leave, and was surprised at just how much she had, in fact she was so
surprised she checked it again, twice.
So once she had
confirmed she had sufficient holiday allowance, she then decided on a plan, she
filled out her online leave form and booked off the whole month of June.
It would be perfect,
June was her favourite month and as the schools wouldn’t have broken up by that
time she would have the whole holiday at off peak rates.
“Perfect” she said.
When June came around
Sally loaded her luggage and her painting equipment into her little car,
returning briefly to lock the house, before getting into the car and setting
off right on time from her home in Abbeyvale, not that she was on the clock,
she had no particular place to get to and no set time to get there.
Sally was feeling very
excited as she set off on that Monday morning in June.
She didn’t want to
book her accommodation in advance as she didn’t want to be too tied to dates,
times and locations.
So she only had the
very loosest of itineraries, she had lots of places on her list of possible
bases and local attractions she might like to see.
Although in truth she
chose most of the places she wanted to see and then looked for places she might
stay in proximity to the place of interest, but she didn’t want to get too hung
up on where and when.
If she didn’t get to
see places this time around it didn’t really matter as this was not the last
holiday she was going to take.
Sally was determined
to avoid the motorways so didn’t use the Pepperstock Express Way opting instead to
drive through the Finchbottom Vale, so at
the end of the first day she hadn’t got as far as she thought she would and
hadn’t even got anywhere near even the most southerly place on her itinerary.
So she decided to stop
at the first place she liked the sound of, which is how she came to take the
road to the village of Sharping St Mary which was only a few miles from Purplemere.
As she drove through
the quaint village with its neat cottages Sally kept her eyes peeled for a
B&B and it wasn’t long before she spied the Coachman’s Arms Hotel.
“That will do nicely”
she said to herself
The next morning she
settled her bill at the Hotel, said goodbye and loaded her bag into the boot of
the car and set off on day two of her sojourn.
Sally liked Sharping
St Mary, it was quaint, she had toyed with the idea of staying on for a day or
two but in the end decided she would push on, but made a mental note to stop
there again, on the way back maybe.
When she left the
Hotel she didn’t drive out the way she had driven in the night before and
headed in the opposite direction, wondering where that might lead her.
She passed the General
Store and a small parade of shops, another Pub and a garage, then a row of
cottages and the Church before she crossed the stone bridge over the river and
out into the country.
It was pretty
countryside bathed in the June sunshine, but she only managed another mile or
so before her little car started making unfamiliar noises.
“That’s not good” she
said just before there was a loud clunk and she lost power, then the car slowed
down to a stop.
“That’s definitely not
good”
She tried to restart
the engine but to no avail.
“Now what?” she said
to herself
She didn’t have any
kind of breakdown cover, after all she never went anywhere.
It was, she had to
admit, an oversight on her part not to have joined the AA, Green Flag or RAC if
only in the short term as she was on a month long touring holiday.
“Well at least I’m not
far from civilization” she thought to herself.
Sally was just getting
out of the car to walk back to Sharping St Mary when another car came along
from the direction she was traveling in.
The car slowed down as
it approached her and a balding head appeared through the driver’s window.
“Do you need any
help?” the owner of the head asked
“Yes, I’ve broken down
I’m afraid” she replied
“Jimmy Maslen’s your
man” he said
“Is that you by any
chance?” Sally asked
“Good heavens no” he
replied and laughed jovially as he got out of the car.
“I’m Reverend Donald
Hart”
He was a tall gaunt
looking man who nonetheless wore a warm smile and had laughing eyes.
“Oh I’m sorry” she
said and shook the offered hand “Pleased to meet you Vicar, I’m Sally
Greenland”
“Well Sally I’ll drive
you back to the village if you like” the Vicar said
“I would be grateful”
she replied
She retrieved her bags
from her car and transferred them to the back of the Vicars.
As he drove away she
asked
“So who’s Jimmy
Maslen?”
“Oh yes Jimmy” he said
“he owns the garage in the village, and he’s a first class mechanic, so shall I
drop you there?”
“The Hotel first I
think” she replied “judging by the noises my car was making I won’t be going
anywhere today”
“Well there are plenty
of beauteous things to paint in and around Sharping St Mary” he said as he
pulled up in front of the Coachman’s
Sally looked at him
curiously and he answered her curiosity
“I noticed your easel”
“Oh I see” she said
“Then I’m sure I’ll have some time to put it to good use”
“I’m sure too” he said
as Sally opened the car door
“Well this should be
amusing” she said
“How so?” the Vicar
asked
“I only checked out
about half an hour ago, they’ll think I’m mad” she said
“I’m sure they won’t” he reassured her “I’ll
wait here while you check in and then I’ll run you up to Maslen’s”
“That’s very kind but
there’s no need” Sally said
“Nonsense” he replied
“you might need a translator”
Thankfully the
receptionist didn’t think she was mad at all when she checked back in and just
said
“That’s fate, that is”
Sally didn’t dwell on
the subject but was anxious not to keep the Vicar waiting.
She quickly went up to
the room and deposited her bags and then returned to the Vicar’s car.
Once she was in the
passenger seat he said
“What’s the verdict?”
“That’s fate, that is”
she replied mimicking the receptionist’s country accent.
The Vicar was still
chuckling as he pulled up outside the garage.
They both got out of
the car and a small rotund man approached them
“Morning Vicar” he
called “is the old girl playing up”
The Vicar turned to
Sally and whispered
“He’s referring to my
car”
As she looked at the
oil stained country bumpkin she understood why the Vicar was so amused that she
thought he was Jimmy.
She also understood
why he mentioned being her translator, Mr. Maslen had a very thick accent and
she only got one word in three.
Thankfully the Vicar
spoke and understood bumpkin and the upshot was that if she left her keys with
him, so they could recover her car and then they would take it from there.
Sally thanked the
Vicar for his assistance with Mr. Maslen
“I barely understood a
word of that” she confessed
“No need for thanks,
it was the least I could do for a fellow foreigner” he said
“A foreigner?” she
asked
“Someone not from the
village” he explained
“Are you not local
then?” she asked
“No I’ve only lived
here for ten years” the Vicar said
“And you’re still a
foreigner?” Sally said
“I’m afraid so”
When they got back to
the Coachman’s she offered to buy him a coffee as a thank you.
“Alas I have a Parish
Council Meeting this morning but come for tea at the Vicarage this afternoon”
“Are you sure?” Sally
asked “I’ve taken up so much of your time already”
“My wife Caroline
would never forgive me if I didn’t invite you”
Caroline Hart was
extremely welcoming and she reiterated that she would not have forgiven Donald
if he had let Sally leave the village without visiting the vicarage and Sally
found that she was every bit as friendly as her husband.
“I never like to miss
an opportunity to speak with fellow foreigners and get news from the outside
world” she said “Don’t get me wrong we love living here. It’s a beautiful
corner of the world and the people are lovely but it’s nice once in a while to
hear real news”
“You make it sound
like we’re in the colonies” Donald said and poured the tea.
“It feels like it at
times” Caroline said with a chuckle and then added.
“Donald tells me that
you paint”
“Yes” Sally replied
“But I’ve only recently come back to it”
“Oh?” she said
inquisitively
In response to
Caroline’s unasked question Sally went on to explain the circumstances of her
epiphany, the events that led up to it and the plans she had made after it and
how she ended up in Sharping St Mary.
“That’s fate, that is”
Sally remarked mimicking the Coachman’s receptionist’s country accent again.
“Well there are plenty
of picturesque scenes in Sharping St Mary” she said
“The Church is very
pretty” Sally said
“Yes it is” The Vicar
agreed
“It’s even better
viewed from the meadow across the river” Caroline added
“Perhaps I’ll paint it
from over there then” Sally suggested
“Unfortunately its
private property” Donald said
“And the owner Ben
Noble is a bit of an old curmudgeon”
“What a shame, do you
think it’s worth asking him for permission?” Sally asked “Appeal to his better
nature”
“I’m not sure he’s got
one” Caroline said then rebuked herself
“No that was
unchristian, he’s got one, he just keeps it well hidden”
“He’s not really a
people person” said the Vicar
“Though he wasn’t
always like that”
“It’s only since his
wife Mary died that he’s been so curmudgeonly” Caroline said
“How long?” Sally
asked
“Three years” she
replied
“She was the sun and
the moon in his sky” Caroline added
“So when her light was
extinguished his world went dark”
“Her light still
shines just not in this world” Sally said
“Quite so” agreed the
Vicar and paused for a moment
“His problem is that
he hasn’t forgiven the world for carrying on after her death” he said “or God
for taking her”
“Was he very different
before her death?” She asked
“Oh yes we were all
friends back then” Caroline replied
“We miss them”
“Them?” Sally asked
“I think the Ben we
knew died soon after Mary did” Donald said
“We haven’t quite
given up on him but we’re close. There is a limit to the number of olive
branches you can have thrown back in your face, even a Vicar can’t turn the
other cheek indefinitely”
“Well I think I’ll
give it a try anyway” Sally said
“He’ll treat you as a
hostile” He said
“Look Vicar I’m a
sister on a Children’s ward, which is often like bedlam so I think I can handle
one old curmudgeon”
The next day was
Wednesday so after breakfast Sally called in at Maslen’s garage to get an
update on her car.
She wasn’t able to
find an English to Bumpkin phrase book so she had to wing it.
When she left 10
minutes later she had a definitive date when it would be ready, “sometime
soon”.
Sally then continued
on slowly through the village heading for Ben Noble’s farmhouse.
When she was walking
down the leafy lane to Old Farm she could see the house and as she approached
she could hear muttering and cursing in the vicinity but wasn’t able to
pinpoint exactly where is was emanating from.
“Hello!” she called
“Mr. Noble!”
“Go away” a
curmudgeonly voice replied
“Could I speak to you
for a moment” she said
“I’m not buying
anything” he snapped
“Good, because I’m not
selling anything” she responded
“What do you want
then?” he barked and she was then able to hone in on his location.
“I refuse to talk to a
bush” she said curtly
There were more
rustlings and then he appeared and she was surprised to see that the old
curmudgeon was actually not that old, but he was certainly a curmudgeonly.
Sally assessed he was
probably not more than two or three years older than she was.
He was of average
height, lean but quite muscular, well kempt with greying hair and not
unpleasant to look at.
“What were you doing
in there anyway?” she asked
“I am trying to
reattach the honeysuckle to the trellis, not that it’s any of your business” he
replied shortly “now what do you want?”
“Well I’m staying in
the village for a few days” She began
“So?” he snapped
“And I was told that
you have a wonderful view of the Church from your meadow” she said
“Its private property”
he snapped again
“But it does have a
pleasant view of the church?” she asked
“Of course”
“Oh good, I just
wanted to spend an hour or two in the meadow painting” she said
“No” he instantly
replied and returned from whence he came and the rustling continued.
Sally was unhappy with
the exchange and was scolding herself for not being more forceful, the only way
to deal with a bully was to bully them back.
Sally was just about
to tackle him again.
“Oh bugger it” he
cursed
And the activity
ceased amongst the Honeysuckle and he reappeared with a blood stained hankie
wrapped around his hand.
“What’s the matter?”
she asked
“Are you still here?”
he asked
“What have you done?”
Sally inquired
“Nothing” he snapped
“That’s clearly not
true, let me look” she insisted
“I don’t need any
help” he barked
“Don’t be silly” she
scolded
“I’m a nurse, let me
see”
He removed the blood
stained hankie and she looked at the wound.
“It’s quite deep, but
it shouldn’t need stitching” she said “but it will need cleaning, I take it you
have a kitchen?”
“Yes of course I do”
he replied
“Then lead on McDuff”
she commanded
“Has anyone ever told
you you’re bossy?” he said crossly
“Oh yes many times”
she replied “has anyone ever told you you’re a curmudgeon”
“Only the Vicar” he
replied
Sally cleaned the
wound thoroughly, dried it well and applied the butterfly stitches from the
first aid kit in her bag.
“So the Vicars been
telling you my business has he?”
He snapped
“For reasons that are
beyond understanding there are people in this village who care about you” she
replied “If you ever stopped to think”
“I’m not used to being
spoken to like that” he said pompously
“More’s the pity” she
replied
There was silence
while she dressed his hand and when she’d finished she said
“Now you can’t use it
for at least a week or you’ll open it up again”
He held it up and
inspected it
“Not a bad job” he
said
“Oh high praise
indeed, so are you going to let me paint in your meadow?” she asked “Payment in
kind for services rendered”
“I wouldn’t have cut
my bloody hand in the first place if you had come snooping around” he replied
“Tosh” she responded
“you were lucky I was here”
“You are an
infuriating woman” Ben said
“Yes I know” she
replied “now are you going to show me the way?”
“Bossy mare” he said
As they began the walk
to the meadow there was initially an awkward silence so Sally told the story of
how she had broken down and the Vicar had come to her aid.
“He’s a good man” Ben
said “But don’t you tell him I said so”
“So it’s not him
you’re mad at, then?” She asked
“What do you mean?” he
asked but she didn’t answer as she was looking across the river at the
picturesque view of the church.
“Now that’s what I
wanted to see” she said
“It’s alright I
suppose” he said begrudgingly
Sally scanned along
the river bank until she spotted the vicarage garden and saw Caroline on the
patio waving at her.
“I’ll leave you to it”
he said sulkily
“Thank you Mr. Noble”
Sally said
“Ben” he mumbled
“I beg your pardon”
Sally asked
“Call me Ben” he said
and walked away briskly and Sally returned Caroline’s wave.
She spent a very
pleasant few hours painting in the meadow and when she was finished she walked
back up to the farmhouse but there was no sign of him in his garden so she put
a note through his door, thanking him for his permission and mentioning that
she hoped she could do the same the following day.
It was another fine
day on Thursday and Sally set off for the meadow straight after breakfast
again.
She called in at the
General Store and picked up some bottled water and a sandwich for her lunch,
she had forgotten to take anything with her the day before and greatly
regretted it.
But as she was leaving
the shop she met Caroline Hart, who was on her way in.
“Sally” she said
“Caroline, hi” She
replied
“So he let you then?”
Caroline asked “how on earth did you manage it”?
“Well at first I was
polite, but when that didn’t work I bullied him into submission” Sally replied
“Splendid, well done
you” she said and seeing Sally was carrying her painting gear, asked
“Are you going back
again?”
“Yes” Sally replied
“if I can get away with it”
“Well good luck”
Caroline said “come for dinner Friday night and tell us how you got on”
“Ok” Sally said “see
you later”
She continued on
through the village on the beautiful June morning until she reached Old Farm
and once again there was no sign of the old curmudgeon so she carried on down
the lane to the meadow.
Sally quickly set up
her easel and began painting and in what seemed like the blink of an eye the
morning was gone so she cleaned her brushes and stopped for lunch.
The afternoon sun was
very hot so she packed up around 2 o’clock and headed back up the lane.
She looked for Ben
Noble as she passed the house but there was no sign of him outside, she did
fancy she saw him at a downstairs window but she wasn’t really sure, but she
smiled and waved anyway.
On Friday morning she
repeated the pattern and set off from the Coachman’s Arms Hotel straight after
breakfast, stopping once again at the General Store where she bought her lunch
and was striding purposely on along the lane.
She passed the
Farmhouse and was set up in the meadow by 10 o’clock.
Sally was sure she
noticed a curtain twitch as she passed the house but if it was Ben Noble he
didn’t make himself known to her.
It was a little cooler
in the meadow that morning than it had been the previous two days with a
refreshing breeze blowing off the water.
As on her previous
visits the time passed very quickly and it was when she was cleaning her
brushes in preparation of stopping for her sandwich that she was disturbed by a
voice from behind her.
“Hello”
Sally turned around
sharply and saw Ben Noble standing a few yards away holding a picnic basket.
“Oh hello” she replied
“What have you got there?”
“Lunch” he replied and
sat down beside her and opened up the hamper.
Sally was quite
surprised to see him in the meadow in the first place but was even more
surprised to see him not behaving in a curmudgeonly manor and wearing a
pleasant expression as he served the lunch.
Afterwards with all
the food consumed and as they were on their last glass of wine Sally said
“Thank you so much Ben
that was a most pleasant lunch, and very pleasant company”
“You sound surprised”
he said sharply
“Well yes” she replied
“But pleasantly so”
Sally was a little
light headed as they walked back up the lane and when they got to the house she
said
“I’m having dinner at
the Vicarage tonight”
“Oh yes” he said
suspiciously
“I’d like you to join
me” Sally said
“Definitely not” he
snapped
“Its high time” she
said and he shook his head
“What do you think
Mary would say? If she could see you hiding yourself away, wallowing in
self-pity, being angry with the world and everyone in it”
“What do you know
about it” he said angrily “You didn’t even know her”
“Am I wrong then?”
Sally asked
“Why can’t you just
leave me alone to deal with it in my own way?” he shouted and rushed towards
the house
“Because your way is
rubbish” she shouted after him
After he went inside
and slammed the front door Sally was really angry with herself for being so
pushy, it was the wine she supposed.
On the way back to the
Hotel she mulled over their conversation and wondered if she couldn’t have
handled it differently.
When she reached the
Coachman’s she went up to her room and lay on the bed and thanks to the half
bottle of wine she drank promptly fell asleep and slept for the rest of the
afternoon.
When she awoke she ran
herself a bath and prepared for a long relaxing soak.
“What did it matter
anyway” she thought to herself as she lay immersed in the bubbly water “I’ll be
gone in a day or two and back on my sojourn”
But a few moments
later she said out loud
“Well it matters
because I like the miserable old git”
After her long
relaxing bath she felt suitably refreshed and was possessed of a new resolve.
Having dried her hair
and made herself up she put on the most presentable clothes she had packed and
stood in front of the mirror to check the damage.
“Well that will have
to do” Sally said to herself and then picked up her handbag and left the room.
Twenty minutes later
she was knocking on Ben Noble’s front door.
It was a few minutes
before it opened.
“Good evening Ben” she
said
“Hello” he mumbled
“Aren’t you going to
invite me in?” Sally asked
“I suppose so” he said
grumpily and stepped back to let her in.
“Thank you” she said
“You look very nice”
he said quietly
“Well thank you kind
sir” She said and gave a little curtsy then there were an awkward couple of
minutes when neither of them spoke so Sally looked at her watch and said
“Well we had better
make a move, the Harts are expecting us in 10 minutes”
“I’m not going” he
said
“Oh yes you are” she
said determinedly “Now get your coat”
“I’m not going out” he
said resolutely “I’ll get a takeaway and we can eat here”
“Oh I see, so I “look
very nice” but you don’t want to be seen with me in public” she said baiting
him
“That’s not what I
said, you’re putting words in my mouth” he responded
“The Vicarage then”
she said firmly “Get your coat”
“You really are bossy”
he said slipping his jacket on
“And you really are a
curmudgeon” Sally said
On the short walk to
the Vicarage the conversation between them was restricted to the weather and
the picturesqueness of the village.
When they reached the
Vicarage he faltered half way along the path so Sally slipped her arm through
his and guided him the rest of the way.
She rang the doorbell
and a few moments later Caroline answered the door.
“Sally how lovely to
see you” then she did a double take of her companion “And Ben, what a wonderful
surprise, come in, come in Donald will be thrilled”
“I thought you said
“WE” were expected” Ben whispered
“Oh did I?” Sally
asked innocently
Caroline and Donald
Hart were delighted to see their surprise guest and it took Caroline very
little effort to accommodate him at the dining table and the evening passed off
very congenially.
So much so that it was
very late when they left the Vicarage, in fact it was two hours into Saturday
by the time the heartfelt goodbyes had been said.
They were arm in arm
as Ben walked Sally back to the Hotel,
“I’ve had a lovely
time” Sally said outside the Coachman’s
“Me too” Ben said and
kissed her cheek before adding
“Goodnight Sally” And then
he was off down the road.
“Goodnight” she called
after him and then said quietly to herself
“That was a very
agreeable beginning”
On Saturday she slept
late, which was very unusual for her and she had awoken with a most
disagreeable headache.
She sat up and took a
couple of tablets and flicked on the kettle.
As she waited for it
to boil she looked at her phone and noticed there were three text messages all
from an unknown number.
The first, time
stamped at 2.45am, simply said “Thank you”
The second, timed at
7.45am, said “I had a great time last night”
And the third, two
hours later, said “I have packed a picnic, I will pick you up at noon, bring
your paints, there’s a castle”
Sally looked at her
watch 11.30
“Shit” she exclaimed
and leapt up and rushed into the bathroom and turned on the shower, when she
had a sudden thought.
She went back to the
bed and picked up her phone and replied to his last text.
“Ok, lovely, see
outside at 12”
Sally had been
standing outside the Hotel for about 30 seconds when a green Landrover
Discovery pulled up.
Ben got out and walked
around, he took Sally’s things and helped her into the passenger seat.
“Thank you” she said
as he settled her in
“All set?” Ben asked
when he was back behind the wheel.
“Yes” she said “Where
are we going, you mentioned a castle”
“Pepperstock” he
replied “but I may have oversold the Castle a bit”
“Oh?”
“Yes, it used to be a
Castle but its only ruins now” he said
“Even better” Sally
said amicably
Sally supposed that
Pepperstock Castle must have been an imposing sight up on its hill overlooking
the eastern end of the Vale.
Now it was just a
collection of ruins, which could still be clearly identified as having once
been a Castle.
It made for a very
interesting subject for a water colourist and Sally enjoyed it very much.
She also enjoyed Ben’s
amiable company and his picnic
“You put together a
very nice picnic Mr. Noble” she said
“Even without the
wine”
Ben had omitted to
include the wine and Sally had teased him about it.
As they were packing
up at the end of the day Sally said
“I’m going to Church
in the morning and I thought you might like to accompany me as I’m a stranger
in the parish”
“Oh I don’t think so”
he replied
“Well you didn’t think
you could go to the Vicarage but you did and furthermore you enjoyed every
minute”
“That was different”
he said stubbornly
“How so?” Sally asked
“Because I wasn’t
angry with Donald and Caroline” he replied “And I wanted to see them again, but
I had been pushing them away for so long that I didn’t know how to approach
them, But God is a different thing altogether and he and I are not on speaking
terms and with him I’m still very angry”
“I know your faith has
been tested” Sally said softly
“But don’t you think
my faith isn’t tested every time I see a young child taken before their time?
But that’s what life is all about, being tested”
Ben was silently
staring into space as Sally continued
“The people of the
parish didn’t take Mary away and they are the people who want to see you again,
go to Church to see them, show them they still have a friend”
“I don’t know” he said
“I’ll be there with
you” Sally assured him
“I’m not at all sure
about this” Ben said as they stood by the lych-gate outside St Mary’s on Sunday
morning
“Good to see you Ben”
a man said slapping him jovially on the back.
“You see they’re all
friends here” she said and she held his hand as they walked up the path and
into the church.
She gave his hand a
final squeeze and opened the door in to the church where he was greeted by a
group of friends eager to welcome him back.
The following day
Sally and Ben were in the village of Brocklington about six miles downstream of
the River Deighton and they were sat in a pub garden by the river eating
Whitebait in the sunshine.
“You’ve only been in
Sharping St Mary for one short week Sally Greenland” he said
“And you’ve turned my
world upside down”
“It needed shaking up
a bit” she said
“Well you did that
sure enough” Ben admitted
They had just finished
their deserts when her mobile phone rang.
“Hello!” she said
“Mr. Maslen?”
“Excellent news”
“Yes, I’ll pick it up
this afternoon”
“Thank you, goodbye”
she said and hung up.
“Well my car has been
repaired” she said putting her mobile back in her handbag
“I can get under way
just as soon as I want, the world is my oyster, well as long as it’s in this
country because I didn’t bring a passport”
When she finished
talking she looked at Ben who was just looking down at his feet.
“Where are you going?”
he asked
“I don’t know exactly”
she replied “but I’ve got 3 weeks to get there”
She took a sip of her
drink and suggested
“Why don’t you come
with me?”
“What just like that?”
he said
“Why not?” she asked
but he didn’t answer
He drove her back to
the village and dropped her outside Maslen’s garage.
“Come to mine tonight”
he said “we’ll have a takeaway”
“Ok” she said “but
think about what I said, it could be fun”
And then she leant
over and kissed him.
It started to rain as
she was getting ready so she decided to drive up to Bens.
There was not a repeat
of the late night of Friday they just ate their Chinese takeaway and watched a
movie and the conversation was sparse with both of them avoiding the elephant
in the room, but eventually just before she left Sally said
“I’m having coffee
with Donald and Caroline at the vicarage tomorrow morning, and I’ll be leaving
at eleven if you want to come with me you can meet me there”
Next morning Sally
checked out of the Coachman’s Arms for the second time and drove to the
Vicarage.
“I’ve had a wonderful
week here” Sally said “and I only planned to stay one night”
“I think it was divine
intervention” said the Vicar
“You might well be
right” she agreed “But enjoy it I certainly have, and I hope I’ve made lasting
friendships”
“I hope so too”
Caroline said
“And Ben?” Donald
asked
“Well I asked him to
go with me” she said
“And?” Caroline
enquired with amazement
“Well he’s not here so
I guess it’s a no” Sally replied
“Will you come back
and see us on the way home Sally?” She asked
“Yes I think so” Sally
replied and looked at her watch
“Well I had better get
on my way”
Sally had her back to
the outdoors as she said goodbye to the Harts when Donald said “It looks like
it’s a yes then”
“What?” Sally
exclaimed and Donald nodded beyond her, so she turned around and saw Ben
standing by the gate with a hold all in his hand.
