The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (111) Mothgate

 

There were five siblings in the Baker household, and they live in St Pierre in a large Victorian house, with rooms over 4 floors since the substantial loft space had been converted into another bedroom, and there was also a cellar that was used as the movie/games room.

Their parents had retired to Spain and left the house to the five children equally, it was built by one of their ancestors, and was something of a monstrosity, but it was home.

One of the siblings was Morgan, who was a skinny freckly girl of about 5 ft. 2 inches tall and weighed in at about nine stone.

When she was working, she looked about three stone heavier in her police stab vest and utility belt.

But in civilian dress she had a lovely figure and wearing her chestnut-coloured hair down instead of tied in a bun, made her look very pretty, and that was how she was dressed when she returned to the Beaumont Manor.

Morgan and PC Kane Saunders had attended an incident at the hotel a week earlier in which a member of staff was brutally assaulted by her estranged husband.

In the aftermath she had met Tom Sword, the Pastry Chef at the hotel, and she was immediately attracted to the great bear of a man, and she figured it he crafted delicate deserts he must have a very light touch.

But she had been struggling with the moral dilemma on whether it was appropriate for her to “hit on” a man who was a witness to a serious assault.

“It’s no wonder you’re still single” her partner Kane Saunders said

“Just call him, before someone else does”

She agreed with him but lacked the confidence to do it.

 

She was back at the Hotel dressed in her girl clothes having dinner with some girlfriends and when she was leaving at the end of the evening, she saw the tall receptionist that intervened at the incident, so she said her goodbyes to her friends and went over to speak to her.

“Hello Julie” she said

“Er um… Hello” Julie responded

“Sorry” she said and pulled her hair tight behind her neck and added “Now picture me wearing a silly hat and a stab vest”

It took a minute but then realization spread across her face “PC Baker”

“Yes, but call me Morgan” she said “I just wanted to check in while I was here”

“Libby’s still in the hospital, but she’s on the mend” Julie replied

“That’s good news, but how about you?”

“Me? Oh I’m fine” she replied, and Morgan was about to press her further when her attention was drawn to the approach of a big man in kitchen whites.    

“Julie, Julie, there’s another one” he called then saw Morgan

“Oh, I am sorry to interrupt Miss, but its urgent”

“Removing a moth from the kitchen is not urgent Tom” Julie said

“A moth? So do you have mottephobia?” Morgan asked

“Does he have what?”

 “Mottephobia? it’s the irrational fear of moths, my Uncle has it” Morgan explained

“You see, she understands” Tom Sword said

“I’ve heard of it but I’m not sympathetic” Morgan said “Moths are so small, and you’re a giant”

“Yes, and look what happened to Goliath” he pointed out

“Yes, but David wasn’t a Moth” Morgan pointed out

“What about butterflies?” she asked

“They’re just arrogant Moths” Tom said, and Morgan smiled

“Well, I can’t leave the desk at the moment” Julie said

“But…” he began

“I’ll do it” Morgan said

“You will?” Tom asked

“Yes, but it’ll cost you dinner at the Gondolier” 

“Dinner?” he asked “What? you and me dinner?

“Yes, unless my diminutive stature scares you” Morgan said, and Tom laughed

“I’ll get over it” Tom said

“Good” Morgan said, “When is you next night day off?”

“Thursday”

“Thursday it is then” she said “Now let’s go get that nasty little moth”

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (110) Young Love

 

In the early hours of Monday the weather broke heralding a week of heavy rain and storms and that weather curtailed Molly and Danny’s alfresco working and Elisa and Henry’s early morning walks had to be shelved.

The storms also brought the work on the church and cottages to a halt and the opening of the footbridge was postponed for a week so as not to tempt fate, as the original bridge was struck by lightning which caused it to fall into the river.

 

Jade Bargeron was a Beaumont girl born and bred and her parents still lived in Spaniards Creek.

Jade was a popular girl, kind and thoughtful, who made friends easily and kept them through her gentle nature. 

 

Matt Deighton was two years older than Jade, but he was not from the island, he was born and raised in Sharpington.

He arrived at the beginning of May with Harry Archer in a Luton van loaded to the gunwales with equipment for the new premises of Archer Ornamental.

He joined Archer’s straight from school and all of the staff in Sharpington were canvassed to see if any of them wanted to transfer to the new building but only Matt was interested.

Which suited Harry because he liked Matt, and they worked well together.

 

The 10^th of July was Jade’s first day at the Galleon Coffee shop, and she was quite nervous, it wasn’t that she wanted to be a barista for the rest of her life, but she wanted to do it well.

The weather was foul, and the shop had been open for half an hour and not one customer had come in, which wasn’t helping her nerves at all.

So when the little bell above the shop door rang and a sad looking, sopping wet young man walked in, she sprang into action with great efficiency.

He sat down at the table by the window and pushed the hood of his raincoat off his head. 

Jade recognized him, though she didn’t know his name, she knew he lived in one of the renovated places by the river.

“Good morning” she said brightly and took out her little notebook and pencil

“Hey” he responded

“I only started today, you’re my first customer” she whispered

“So be gentle with me”

“Two Americano’s and a Capuchino” he said flatly

Jade nodded and turned to walk away,

“Please” he added which made her smile.

 

The foul weather continued right through until late into Saturday night, so it was a very productive weeks writing at Cliff Haven.

Elisa spent most afternoons at the vicarage with Henry teaching him to cook.

 

Doctors Cameron and Woodward were a little disgruntled because it was a rare Saturday when Deborah wasn’t working and the weather was just too wet, so they did the Stephenson’s grocery shop in the morning and spent the afternoon at her cottage listening to Puccini. 

Sunday was a much nicer day, but Dr Woodward was on duty, so Stuart continued working on the irregular shaped piece of Perspex they found on one of their walks.

 

On Monday the footbridge over the Spanish River was opened with a small crowd to witness the occasion including the parish council, Reverends Archer and Noble and Molly, and the ribbon was cut by local celebrity Danny Nightingale.

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (109) The Incident

 

Julie Willman was 28 years old and had been working in Abbottsford  at the Abbottsford Regents Hotel, and while she was there, she had been seeing a local Solicitor, Robert Brown.

But not for the first time in her life she realized it wasn’t working for her so after a couple of months, she ended it.

However when it ended Robert wouldn’t accept it and he wouldn’t stop pestering her.

So before it got too out of hand, the previous summer, she quit her job, left Abbottsford and after a few months found herself on the island applying for a job at the Beaumont Manor and six months later she was Deputy Manager.

 

Since she escaped her stalky ex Julie had sworn off relationships and just concentrated on work.

She liked the island, she had decent accommodation at the Hotel, and a small circle of friends and she was content with that.

 

On a sultry Saturday night she was working reception and was due to be relieved at 10 o’clock by Libby McIntosh but when it got to 10:15 she thought to herself

“Something’s wrong”

So she got one of the bar staff to man the reception while she hurried upstairs.

She reached their landing and could hear some commotion coming from Libby’s room, the door was open and as she looked inside, she saw a small stocky man pick Libby up and throw her across the room, she was a tiny woman and weighed little more than 7 stone and he was throwing her around like a rag doll.

Then as she lay on the floor, he kicked her in the ribcage.

Julie wasn’t alone by that point and said to the nearest onlooker

“Go and get help, and call the police”

Julie then took a breath and made her move pausing only to arm herself with the coffee tray off the sideboard.

As she entered the room the man was holding her by the hair with one hand and punching her with the other.

All the while shouting obscenities at her, but with his constant shouting and the sickening sound of his fist on her face he didn’t hear Julie enter the room.  

She stood behind him and with all her strength hit him hard on the back of the head with the tray sufficiently hard to draw blood.

It knocked him off balance and he fell to his knees, then he turned to look at his assailant and she swung the tray again hitting him square in the face and breaking his nose.

Then remembering all the blows she had been dealt by an abusive partner she gave him another whack on the head for good measure, then she turned her attention to Libby who was bloody and barely conscious.

From the doorway she heard someone say

“Oh my God, is she ok?”

“Not really” Julie said

Just then Pastry Chef Tom Sword arrived

“Is everything ok?”

“No, it’s not” Julie replied

“What’s happened?”

“She’s been beaten up” Julie said,

“Give her to me” Tom said, he was a great bear of a man, and he scooped her up as if she were a child.

He carried her out of the room and Julie followed him to the lift

“The police will be here in five minutes, so will the ambulance”

Someone said just as two more kitchen staff arrived

“There’s a man in the room, don’t let him leave before the police get here”

“No problem” one of them said

“You look after Libby”

 

When they got downstairs PC’s, Kane Saunders and Morgan Baker arrived along with Paramedics Lee Houseman, Frazer Richmond.

The PCs went straight upstairs while the paramedics took charge of Libby and Julie went with her in the ambulance.

 

When the Police got upstairs, they found two kitchen staff preventing the assailant from leaving the room.

“Thank god you’ve arrived” he shouted

“These men are holding me prisoner”

Morgan Baker addressed the melee directly while Kane Saunders took Tom Sword to one side and got the full story, he knew that he was a straight up and down character, and he knew his account of events could be relied upon.

 

“Thank you, Tom,” he said and signalled his colleague who then read the assailant his rights and put handcuffs on him.

“But I have been assaulted” he insisted “Look I’m bleeding”

“No sir you have been arrested” PC Baker said

 

Julie sat down in reception and waited while the Nurse Kevin Holland and Doctor Woodward looked after her.

After about half an hour the police arrived to take statements, it was the same two PC’s who she saw briefly at the Hotel.

 

PC Saunders took Julie to one side and Morgan Baker went and sat down next to Libby.

Morgan was a skinny freckly girl of about nine stone who looked about three stone heavier in her stab vest and utility belt, and her chestnut-coloured hair was tied in a bun.

“Did you know the man who attacked your friend?” Kane asked

“Have you got him?” Julie asked

“Yes, he’s in a cell” He replied

“Did you know him?”

“No I’ve never seen him before tonight”

“What about the name, Barry Gorman?”

“No” she said shaking her head

“Ok” Kane said and then took down her statement of the evening’s events and by the time they’d finished Morgan joined them.

“Am I in trouble?” Julie asked

“For what?” PC Baker asked

“I hit him” she stated “Three times”

Morgan leant in close and whispered

“Good! He deserved it”

And she squeezed Julie’s hand.

 

PC Kane Saunders was a tall man in his late twenties and also suffered with the unflattering uniform, and as if being six foot four inches tall didn’t make him stand out enough, nature had also endowed him with flame red hair.

Julie was tall herself, so it made a nice change to talk to a man who was taller than her and she had always had a weakness for red hair.

But she felt really guilty because she was flirting with him shamelessly and she couldn’t help herself.

She inclined her head to one side and played with her hair and behaved like she did when she was still at school, which was totally contrary to her swearing off men.

Just then Kevin Holland returned and signalled to Morgan that she could interview Libby now.

 

It didn’t take long to take Julie’s statement as she was very together and very precise.

Which was a blessing and a curse because he rather liked her and although the way she gave her statement made it easier for him to transcribe it meant the interview was over too quickly.

He thought it was a shame he was on duty as he would have asked her out under any other circumstances.

“Can I call you?” she blurted out “in case I think of anything else”

“Yes” he said “and perhaps I should have your number in case I have any more questions”

 

When the police had gone Kevin Holland called her in and Julie sat down heavily next to Libby’s bed

“I’m sorry” she said

“What for?”

“For flirting with the PC I don’t know what came over me” she said

“Well I hope you got his number” Libby said

“I did”

“Good” Libby said and held her hand

 

It was 3am when she got back to the hotel.

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (108) Elisa and Victoria

 

Harold had purchased, what he had reliably been informed was a particularly good Champagne, he was no judge himself he was more of a traditional ale kind of man.

But the Belgian Truffles however he could vouch for himself as they were one of his favourites and he bought them from Crazy Chocolatiers in Abbottsford.

So with Champagne and Truffles in hand he walked along the tow path and then he heard music drifting across the river, he knew it had to be from Victoria’s because no one else had moved in yet, and as he got closer, he saw that she had all the windows open, and the music was indeed coming from her cottage.

 

Victoria was sat in the armchair with her eyes closed and was letting the music wash over her when there was a knock at the door.

She got up and walked to the door and when she opened it Harold was standing there, Champagne in one hand and Chocolates in the other.

“I have housewarming gifts” he said

“Oh you really are a wonderful man” she said and added to herself

“And you’ll be staying for breakfast” 

 

Elisa had so enjoyed her long early morning walk with Henry that over the week following it, she made every conceivable effort to bump into him again.

 

Henry meanwhile following his recent epiphany and realization that he was in fact still alive had also enjoyed their chance meeting, her kindness and her gently laughter also looked forward to meeting her again.

The problem was that the two of them just hoping for another chance meeting inadvertently managed to avoid each other entirely.

When Henry was in the Village Elisa was up by the Radar Station Ruins, when he walked along the Riverbank, she was in the woods by the Armada Head.

 

In the end Elisa thought it best just to talk to him, where she knew he was definitely going to be, at St Clara’s on Sunday, and just arrange something.

He was doing his second and final Sunday service because Reverend Arielle Archer was due back from Honeymoon later that day, and it was unclear how much longer he would be in the village, and her future plans were still unclear.  

 

After the service the Vicar at the door saying goodbye to the congregants and when it was Elisa’s turn he said

“Hello, I didn’t know you were still here”

“Really?” she replied “Why?”

“Well I haven’t seen you out and about on my walks” he explained

“Well perhaps we should synchronise our diaries” she suggested

“Good idea, tomorrow morning, seven o’clock” the Vicar said

“Excellent, see you then”

 

It was even hotter on Sunday than it had been the day before so Stuart and Deborah decided not to walk and drove into St Pierre instead and had a long leisurely lunch and anyone looking on would have thought they were a couple.

Colleagues at the hospital had commented jokingly about a romance between them but she took it with a pinch of salt, after all there was a lot of romance going about, but Deborah and Stuart’s relationship was purely platonic, and she was happy with that, and she was certain that he was too.

 

On the first Monday in July, Elisa was up bright and early to meet Henry for their early morning walk, for what was to become a daily event.

Also work commenced on St Clara’s and the twelve Church Lane cottages and Victoria Pullen started work at Bellevue.

On the day she started, the first-person she met was Heather Edwards, a well-presented woman at the wrong end of her forties who had been a receptionist at the hospital for 25 years in all.

So Heather was best placed to show her the ropes and as she had also lived on the island all of her life, she was the font of all knowledge on all local matters as well.

Heather made Victoria feel immediately at home and with each successive member of staff she met she felt even more so.

 

Victoria’s official job title at Bellevue was Palliative Care Sister, but with some General Nursing duties and the home visit when necessary, so the following weekend she got herself a motorbike, not a big machine and nothing stylish she needed something that would cope with rough roads and farm tracks.

 

During the hot weather Molly and Danny were working under an awning on the patio which was working well for them although with Molly wearing skimpy shorts and a bra top, Danny did find he was somewhat distracted. 

 

The rest of the week went by in much the same vein, the hot oppressive weather, Elisa and the Reverend went on their long early morning walks, and Danny and Molly spent more alfresco workdays under the awning.

 

When Danny and Molly arrived downstairs on Saturday morning, they found Elisa in the kitchen making sandwiches.

“Morning Elisa” Molly said and kissed her cheek

“Morning Dear”

“Are you not walking this morning?” Molly asked

“No Henry and I are taking the boat to St Giles instead, that’s why I’m making a picnic” she explained “He stayed at the retreat there following his wife’s death”

“You’re spending a lot of time with the Reverend Noble” Molly said

“Yes, we get on very well” she replied

“I think that’s really nice” Danny said

“Yes, so do I” Elisa said “But…”

“But?” asked Molly

“Well he’s only here temporarily, and I need to get out of your hair soon” She said

“Nonsense, we said you could stay as long as you wanted” Molly said

“And we meant it” Danny added

“So enjoy your day out” Molly said and hugged her

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (107) The Doctor’s Day Out

 

July

Flaming June had given way to a humid and oppressive July and Stuart Cameron and Deborah Woodward finally had a weekend on which they could get out and walk together.

So on Saturday morning they were both up with the lark and set off to explore.

By making an early start they hoped to get some exploration in before the day became too oppressive, so they set off down an unfamiliar path and planned to explore anything that even vaguely resembled a trail.

 

Later that day, though not much later, Amelia Williamson met Victoria outside number 1 Stable Cottages and gave her the keys and after about ten minutes she left Victoria on her own enjoying her surroundings and then there was a knock on the door, and her bed had arrived.

Shortly after that Harold arrived with the van and they moved the rest of her furniture in, and when everything was in, he left her to settle in.  

And as she sat in her armchair drinking her coffee she felt at home, which made her smile because the cottage was the first place she really thought of as a home since she was a girl and living with her parents.

 

It wasn’t a long walk by their standards, and it wasn’t a particularly difficult one, but Deborah and Stuart were both sweating profusely by the time they reached Armada Head.

They’d chosen that particular walk as it was close enough to the cliffs to get whatever sea breeze might be on offer but there was also a lot of tree cover to offer them some shade.

They hadn’t been to that part of the island before and as they walked to the rocky outcrop and took in the vista it took away what little breath they had left.

She stopped on the crest to mop her brow and then she pinched the V-neck between her fingers and shook it violently causing the material to ripple and thus cause a draft up her shirt.

“Does that help?” he asked

“No not really” she replied, and they both laughed

Then they sat down on a slab of granite which bizarrely felt cool despite the heat of the sun and shared the bottle of water from Stuarts pack.

Stuart had taken to carrying a pair of binoculars on his solitary walks and they were still in his pack, so he took them out as well and they used them to look across the water to St Giles du Cabot.

When they had drunk their fill of the view they headed down towards the river where they found a shady spot to have their lunch.

They were both devotees of classical music and spent most of the time while they sat, talking about music, favourite composers, performers and individual pieces.

There was common ground on much but were diametrically opposed on others, for example he was a traditionalist whereas she was very definitely not and embraced the modern composers.

Their other favoured topics were literature as they were both veracious readers, contemporary and classics, or movies, and they both considered themselves to be classic film buffs.

 

When they had finished lunch and they emerged from the shade it had gotten unbearably hot, so they went into Spaniards Creek to Jardine’s General Store and restocked with bottled water for the walk home.

It was the first of several stops on the return walk, they took advantage to any and all shade as far as Norman Beach where they walked along the shore and cooled themselves before the most difficult part of the walk which covered a one mile stretch along the cliffs where there was no shade.

When they reached the next stand of trees, they instantly felt the coolness of the shade.

By the time they reached Manor Cliff Beach it was the hottest part of the day, so they removed their shoes and socks and paddled in the sea up to their knees and waded all the way until they climbed back up to Manor Cliff and the short walk home.

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (106) Furnishings

 

Victoria could have ordered the furniture she wanted in St Pierre without having to leave the island, but they quoted six weeks for delivery, apart from the bed which would be delivered on Saturday, which was why she and Harold were sailing to Pipershaven early on Wednesday morning.

 

She managed to get everything she went for, as well as a few things she hadn’t thought of.  

“Thank you, Harold,” she said as they stood by the rail looking across the bay to the islands.

“What for?” he asked

“Helping me” she said “I couldn’t have done this without you”

And then she kissed him, and it was the first meaningful kiss that had shared, a gentle yet significant kiss, not a passionate embrace, she was saving that for when she had moved into the cottage.

 

On Thursday she made a number of trips to the cottage with items from Harold’s storeroom at the shop, curtain tracks, towel rails, blinds, kitchen accessories, bathroom fitting and a bathroom cabinet, which Franci had kindly offered to fit for her, and a case of wine as a thank you.

 

Friday marked the end of June and the completion of the renovations of the properties on the west side of the river, but it was more significant than that for Amelia Williamson as Clive Crossfield was returning to the island, and she couldn’t wait to see him again.

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (105) Good Company

 

Elisa Ghelardoni had always been an early riser, so she showered and dressed and after a solitary coffee in the conservatory she set off for a walk down the hill to the river.

She liked the early morning walks, whatever the weather, but even more so on a bright morning while the rest of the world were still in their beds. 

Spaniards Creek was such an idyllic spot and starting out from Cliff Haven she was really spoilt for choice when it came to pleasant walks.

She strode purposefully down the hill her salt and pepper hair dancing about her Swan neck.

 

Once she was on the quayside, she watched the fishing boats heading out to sea and then strolled on towards the bridge from where she followed the riverbank, and continue beyond the village, and just as she left the village behind her, she saw Reverend Henry Noble standing by the bend in the river gazing out across the water.

“You’re up early Vicar” she called but got no response, so called louder

“Morning Vicar!”

But still got no response, so she tapped him on the shoulder

“Morning” she said again, and he jumped and went as white as a sheet.

“Good God” he exclaimed “I nearly had a heart attack”

And then he roared with laughter, a laugh which was so infectious Elisa was soon laughing along with him and their hearty laughter echoed across the water.

“I’m sorry” she said “But I did callout”

“Vaughan Williams” he retorted

“Excuse me?”

“The Lark Ascending” he explained and removed his ear pods

“Oh I see” she said, and they laughed again, then he said

“I’ve really missed this”

“I beg your pardon?” Elisa said

“I haven’t laughed like this since before ….” he began

“I understand” she said

 

They decided to continue their early morning walk together and they were an unlikely looking pair, Victoria possessed an inherent elegance about her, she may have been plain looking, and she spent little or no time on her appearance, she always looked more than presentable.

In stark contrast Henry Noble was a big man, well over six feet tall and built like a rugby player, and he looked as unlike a clergyman as it was possible to get, but he was very eloquent and in Elisa’s humble opinion he had a very cultured voice.

Which she heard a lot over the next half an hour as he spoke at length about his wife’s death and the emptiness he had felt.

“But today when I got up this morning, I felt alive, for the first time since Linda died, I actually felt alive” he said “And that’s why I’m out so early enjoying the beauty in the world, and here we are sharing this wonderful countryside together”

“Beautifully expressed” She remarked and took his arm.

 

When she finally got back to Cliff Haven the household had stirred.

Danny had already got the coffee on, and Molly was in the kitchen boiling eggs and making toast.

“Hi Elisa” she said brightly “Did you have a good walk?”

“Yes, I did”

“You’ve been a long time” Victoria said

“I know it was such a beautiful morning we got a bit carried away” Elisa replied

“We?” Molly asked

“Yes, I bumped into the Vicar” she said

“Really?” Molly said, “How much bumping was involved?”

“Don’t be dirty dear” Elisa said “He’s a man of the cloth”