Trouble in the Village (Tales from Turnham Malpas) (17 page)

Evie was unlocking their front door while Tom was lifting a heavy box from the back of his car.

‘Tom! Evie! Welcome home!’

Evie gave a little shriek and dropped the door key. Tom put the box down again and turned to speak, his face alight with appreciation. ‘Why, Willie! Thank you! We’ve come late because we wanted to get settled in, in peace, kind of.’

‘Well, I for one am damn’ glad to see you back. This verger business is for a much younger man than me and I’ll be glad for you to take the reins over again.’

Tom shook his head. ‘I don’t know about that, Willie. We’re back but I’m not sure I shall have my job back.’

‘Why ever not?’

Evie said softly, ‘I can’t find the key in the dark.’

Willie pulled his torch out of his pocket. ‘Here, let me look. I always carry a torch when I’m locking up, just in case.’

He bent down to shine the torch around Evie’s feet. To his surprise she was wearing calf-high fur-lined boots, which seemed a little excessive at the height of an Indian summer, but he made no comment. ‘Here it is! Look!’ He picked it up out of the honeysuckle, dusted it off and presented it to her with a bow and a grin. Evie gave him a shy smile, thanked him, slotted the key in the lock, turned it and went in.

‘Thanks, I will.’

Leaving Evie to wander about the cottage and acclimatise herself, Tom dug in the Sainsbury’s carrier-bags and brought out a four-pack of Guinness.

‘You couldn’t put a good word in for me, could you, Willie?’

‘I could always try but it’s not up to me.’

‘They can’t stop me living in my own house.’

Willie nodded in agreement. ‘They can’t, but they can turn very funny in this village. They take umbrage and nothing stops ’em … Well, the Rector can but he’s about the only one. He’s stepped in more than once when things have got nasty.’

‘Nasty? I can’t believe it. You all seem so kind.’

‘Oh, we are, but just now and again … Like when they made an effigy of Mr Fitch, and when the Baxter sisters got their house stoned for kidnapping Flick Charter-Plackett, and Dicky and Bel got attacked because –’

‘Good heavens. For Evie’s sake I don’t want … Oh, there you are, love. All right?’

Evie stood in the sitting-room doorway, her face alight with joy. ‘Oh, Tom! Willie! It’s lovely to be back home!’

Tom, so full of delight at her pleasure, agreed with her, his voice breaking as he answered, ‘You’re right, it is. Lovely!’

At that moment Willie made up his mind that, for the sake of gentle Evie and her very obvious joy at being back where she felt secure, he would do all he could to make certain they stayed and Tom was verger again.

Willie nodded. ‘It wouldn’t take long to organise – it’s not like a village show or something, is it? I’ll get the diary out tomorrow and check the first free Saturday.’

Stirring her Horlicks to rid it of the last bits which hadn’t quite mixed in Sylvia said, ‘But we shall only succeed if we do a lot of quiet propaganda – you know, when we meet people and that. A word here and a word there.’ A thought struck her. ‘What does the Rector think?’

‘He had a word with me yesterday, saying he hoped when they got back there wouldn’t be any trouble. I just hope he gives Tom his job back, I can’t keep up with it all any more.’

Sylvia patted his hand where it lay on the blanket. Putting her empty beaker on her bedside table she snuggled down saying, ‘If there’s one thing I’ve learned in life it’s to live every minute to the full. We’re neither of us getting any younger, you know. We never know when we might get called to higher service, do we?’

‘I wasn’t meaning it like that, I meant we should do all the things we want to do and see all the things we want to see before it’s all too late. Dying with regret must be –’

‘Just shut up, Sylvia, I don’t like talk like that.’ Willie slapped his beaker down and looked into those grey eyes he so loved. ‘Sorry for that, but you mustn’t. We’ve years yet together enjoying ourselves and you’ve not to think we haven’t. You know, I saw tonight how much Tom loves Evie and seeing her pleasure at being as she called it “back home” I thought, they’re just like my Sylvia and me, in love with each other, and it made me decide to do my best for ’em. And I do love you, and every minute is precious and perfect and …’

‘Willie, you’re sounding quite poetic.’

‘That’s how it gets yer.’ Willie settled down in bed and took Sylvia’s hand in his. ‘She’s a strange woman is Evie, but you can’t ’elp but like her. There’s an innocence about ’er that’s rare nowadays. Childlike, almost, and yet all that talent. She had her fur boots on. In this weather her feet must have been near casseroled!’

‘Never mind her boots, did you get a chance to see her embroidery?’

‘I carried a box of sewing stuff into her workroom for her. Stunning it is. Stunning. Wait till they all see it. Just wait.’

Despite their opposition to Tom and Evie returning, curiosity finally drove them to visit the exhibition, their excuse being that after all it was in a good cause: all them refugees, and the money given to someone who was going out there with medical supplies for the poor beggars, that made the difference; you weren’t just handing out money to some vast faceless organisation, this way the person concerned was accountable.

The exhibition opened at ten. Sitting at the entrance taking the money was Sheila Bissett, a broad smile on her face.

‘Thank you, that’ll be four pounds, please, for the two of you.’

‘
Two pounds
! For a few pictures on a wall.’

‘It’s in a good cause. You’ll be amazed, it’s worth every penny.’

‘I should hope so.’

‘Oh, yes. It was me discovered her talent. We’ve got plans for classes. Sign up when you come out, I’ve got the list here.’

‘They’re intending to stay then?’

‘Of course.’

‘I’m surprised you’re so keen after what happened to you and Ron.’

Sheila stifled a shudder. ‘They’ll all be behind bars for years to come, and I for one am not going to let what happened affect me.’

Sheila nodded. She wasn’t feeling nearly so brave as she made out, because this was the first time she’d taken part in village life since … well, anyway she was here but it had been a real effort to come out and sit taking the money. But, as Ron said, you couldn’t spend the rest of your life frightened of your own shadow, and he for one, now he was feeling so much better, was going to put it all behind him. So Sheila agreed with him for once, not because she was brave but because she couldn’t bear the thought of allowing herself to be stuck in the house too nervous to go out.

Sylvia was wielding the coffee-pots and Willie was fidgeting about in the exhibition room, nervous that his lighting arrangements might not be showing Evie’s work off to its best advantage. My, but they were splendid were these pictures: they lit the heart up with their beauty. Willie couldn’t imagine how one small quiet person could have such skill, such an eye for colour, such splendour in their very soul. He listened to the exclamations of delight from the villagers and convinced himself that Tom and Evie would be here to stay and he wouldn’t have to be verger any more. Relief covered him like a rash and he realised he was grinning like a Cheshire cat.

‘She most certainly is. Not a word for the cat, yet all that going on inside her head. So beautiful!’

‘Such an asset to the village, aren’t they, the pair of them?’

‘Oh, yes! Such an asset.’

Sylvia winked at Caroline and they both smothered their laughter. To have such a success on their hands was more than they could ever have hoped for. The door opened and Peter came in, his eyes searching for Caroline immediately. Having found her he smiled and her heart went instantly into overdrive; for one blinding moment she couldn’t see a thing except his eyes and the whole of his face glowing with love for her. He raised a hand in greeting and she almost choked with love for him. I’d forgotten how handsome he is! And he’s mine! All mine! All that love is mine!

‘Dr Harris! A slice of the chocolate for Willie, please. Dr Harris?’

All mine! I’d forgotten how much I love him. And there he is. All splendid and wonderful. She smiled back, but he’d turned to answer Sheila and the chance to show that her feelings for him had sprung back to life was lost.

‘I’ll cut it, shall I?’

Caroline was trembling with shock, her beloved Peter was there, still loving her, still supporting her after all he’d been through. Well, this was the end of making him jump through hoops, because …

Sylvia said, ‘Shall I serve Willie?’

Caroline looked down at the cake slice in her hand. ‘Oh, right, which would you like, Willie? The chocolate’s very popular.’

‘Mummy! Alex is wanting another piece of cake. I’ve told him he can’t. He’ll be sick.’

Caroline dried her hands, took her bag out of the cupboard where she’d put it for safe-keeping and handed a pound coin to Alex, who straight away rushed off, and offered another to Beth.

Beth patted her stomach. ‘I don’t think I can, Mummy, thank you. He will, you know, he’ll be sick, he’s so greedy. Sylvie’s wanting you, she’s says she’s rushed off her feet.’

‘I’ll be there in a minute tell her.’

‘Your voice is funny, are you all right?’

Caroline bent down and kissed her cheek. ‘Oh! I’m absolutely fine. Daddy’s here somewhere.’

‘Is he? I’ll go find him.’

Caroline wished
she
could go find him and take shelter within his love as she had no doubt Beth would do, but for now she had to take time to realign herself. The relief of finding her life had value again was overwhelming her and –

‘Muriel! Couldn’t be better! Just needed to wash my hands, they were sticky, you know.’ She fled back into the hall to help Sylvia reduce the length of the queue. Muriel stared after her, still puzzled by Caroline’s expression, but then Muriel didn’t know that Caroline, not five minutes ago, had fallen in love.

Sheila had ten names on her embroidery class list, added her own and felt she’d had a very worthwhile morning. ‘Evie! Evie! Come here! Look! Eleven names! Isn’t that wonderful?’

Evie came across to her, a glass of water in her hand. Without speaking she picked up the list and studied it.

‘Isn’t it encouraging? I’m so excited. I have a little place in my hall where a picture would just fit, I was going to ask you to do one for me, but if I come to your class I could do it myself, couldn’t I?’ Sheila looked up at her, eagerly awaiting her reply. But she saw a tear begin to roll down Evie’s cheek.

‘Now, Evie, come along, we’ve had a lovely morning, everyone full of admiration. There’s nothing to cry about.’ She fished in her bag and brought out a clean tissue. ‘Here, use this.’

At a loss to know how to tackle the situation Sheila looked around for help, and to her relief Tom came. He put an arm around Evie’s shoulders and hugged her. ‘Now, come on. It’s all been great, hasn’t it? You said so yourself.’