Ghosts of Yorkshire

by Karen Perkins

  We hugged, then I stood back and saw a glance pass between Lara and Jayne.

  ‘What?’

  ‘It’s just good to see you,’ Lara said.

  ‘We haven’t heard much from you the past week,’ Jayne said with a sidelong glance at Lara. ‘We’ve been worried.’

  ‘Worried?’ I scoffed. ‘I’m fine, better than fine, I’m in love!’

  ‘Already?’ Jayne asked.

  I glared at her.

  ‘A week ago you were avoiding William,’ Lara pointed out. ‘Now he seems to have taken you over. We’re concerned, that’s all.’

  ‘Yes, you’ve been through a lot lately, we just want to be sure that life is being kind to you now – for as long as possible.’ Jayne smiled.

  I hesitated before answering, then relaxed. ‘It is, it is being kind. William is amazing. I’m so sorry I’ve been quiet all week, truly I am.’ I smiled and held my arms out to embrace my friends once more. The hug was slightly awkward, but none of us remarked on it.

  ‘It’s like we’ve been in our own fantasy land,’ I continued, leading the way upstairs.

  Lara and Jayne didn’t answer.

  ‘Our own little Gondal, that’s what we say.’ I giggled as I turned to them. ‘After the world Emily Brontë created with Anne.’

  Jayne gave a small smile, and I faced forwards again and began the climb up the next staircase in silence, wondering what they were both thinking. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d felt so awkward around my friends.

  I opened the door to my apartment and ushered them in, then stared at the empty staircase behind them. ‘Where’s Grasper?’

  Jayne’s jaw tightened and I was embarrassed that I had only just noticed his absence.

  ‘I left him at home with a neighbour. Didn’t want him distracting us tonight.’

  ‘And Hannah’s with her dad,’ Lara said, clearly hurt that I’d missed Jayne’s dog before her daughter. ‘After virtually ignoring her over Christmas and New Year, he thinks a weekend at Center Parcs will make up for it.’

  ‘Selfish bastard,’ I said. ‘Glass of wine, ladies?’

  I watched as Jayne and Lara shared another glance, then they acquiesced.

  ‘What the hell is that?’ Lara exclaimed, staring at the window.

  ‘Oh, CDs,’ I said. ‘William strung them up for me to scare away the birds until Vikram can put something more permanent in place. They’re actually not too bad now, can be a bit unnerving in the morning when they first catch the sun, though.’

  ‘What happened?’ Jayne asked, noticing the three small panes covered by cardboard and brown tape. ‘Why are so many windows breaking?’

  ‘It’s the birds, isn’t it?’ Lara said, her voice soft. ‘They’re attacking.’

  ‘They’re not attacking,’ I said. ‘They’re just ... congregating. And the lights are confusing them, that’s all.’

  ‘Is that what William says?’ Lara asked.

  I shot her a sharp look, hearing the scorn in her voice.

  ‘What does Vikram say?’ Jayne interceded, breaking the tension.

  ‘The same,’ I said. ‘Here.’ I passed glasses of wine round, then sipped my own, staring at my friends over the rim of my glass.

  ***

  Lara and Jayne

  ‘The bar’s still open,’ Jayne said as she and Lara entered the White Lion.

  ‘Thank God for that. You collect the keys, I’ll order us a bottle.’

  A couple of minutes later, Jayne joined Lara at the table in front of the fire, which was still blazing, and handed her the key to Room Seven.

  ‘I’d have thought you’d had enough of that room,’ Jayne said. ‘Isn’t that the haunted one?’

  ‘It’s not the ghosts in this place that worry me,’ Lara said as Tess deposited a bottle of Sauvignon blanc and two large glasses on the table. She looked up to thank the girl, and smiled. ‘Don’t worry, no strange happenings here.’

  ‘Yet,’ Tess said, turned and walked away.

  Lara looked stunned, then burst out laughing at Jayne’s equally shocked expression. She shrugged. ‘Must be a true Yorkshire lass – they’re not given to hysterics in these parts.’

  Jayne relaxed and joined in her laughter. ‘That’s probably just as well.’ She picked up the wine and poured two generous glasses.

  Lara said nothing, but took her first sip before Jayne had even replaced the bottle on the table.

  Jayne followed suit, the mood now sombre. She shivered despite the heat of the fire. ‘You noticed it too.’

  Lara nodded. ‘When did you last hear from her?’

  ‘I spoke to her yesterday, but only because I rang her – she didn’t even text back from my calls earlier in the week.’

  ‘Same here. It’s not like her.’

  ‘I thought meeting a man would be good for her,’ Jayne said, ‘but it’s like she’s forgotten us. She’s just not Verity anymore.’

  ‘I know. It’s natural to be wrapped up in each other in the beginning, but Verity ... Normally, the slightest thing happens and she’s straight on the phone to tell us about it.’

  ‘Every detail.’ Jayne smiled. ‘But this time, nothing. It’s almost like when Antony was at his most controlling, and she withdrew into herself, do you remember?’

  Lara nodded and took another sip of wine.

  ‘What do you think he’s doing to her?’ Jayne almost whispered the words.

  ‘I don’t know. Have you spoken to Vikram much?’

  Jayne coloured and glanced down at her hands. ‘Just a few texts.’

  ‘Has he said anything about William?’

  ‘We haven’t been texting about William.’ Her blush deepened.

  ‘I hear you.’ Lara smiled. ‘I’m glad it’s going well.’

  ‘Early days,’ Jayne said. ‘Hopefully I’ll see him tomorrow, but back to Verity. What do you think William’s doing?’

  Lara didn’t speak at first, but sipped her wine again. ‘I’m not sure it’s him.’

  ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘Whatever’s going on, I don’t think it’s a destructive relationship.’

  It was Jayne’s turn to silently sip her wine.

  ‘But whatever is happening, I think he’s as much a part of it as she is.’

  ‘What do you mean? I thought it was the building that’s haunted, not Verity.’

  ‘Oh it is – the Grey Lady is definitely connected to the building. But the other, whatever the other is, I think that has to do with Verity. And William.’

  ‘But how? I don’t understand.’

  ‘There’s the million-dollar question. I don’t know either, but whatever it is, I don’t like it.’

  ‘If we don’t know what the problem actually is, how do we solve it?’

  Lara smiled at the typical Jayne question.

  ‘Well, to quote someone I know,’ she smiled at her friend, ‘our first task is to quantify the problem.’

  Jayne grinned. ‘You’re never going to let me forget that, are you?’

  ‘Nope.’ Lara swigged her wine, her eyes dancing at the memory. Jayne had been on a problem-solving course at work the previous year and had taken it very much to heart.

  ‘So how do we quantify this?’

  ‘Well ... I do have an idea,’ Lara said.

  ‘Yes?’

  ‘You’re not going to like it.’

  19.

  ‘Blimey, I didn’t realise it was fancy dress,’ Vikram said when William and I opened the door of The Rookery.

  ‘It isn’t,’ William said.

  ‘Really? Never seen you in that getup before, mate,’ Vikram replied, unperturbed and indicating William’s black slacks, white shirt and embroidered waistcoat. ‘Apart from the Victorian dress-up days the village makes us do every year, that is,’ he added.

  ‘It’s a dinner party.’ William shrugged. ‘This is the smartest gear I have.’

  ‘Fair enough. Good to see you, mate.’

  Finally Vikram and Willia
m shook hands, and Vikram led the way into The Rookery.

  Glancing skyward and looking relieved to get under cover, Lara and Jayne followed.

  ‘You look nice, Verity,’ Jayne said with a glance at Lara.

  ‘Thought I’d get into the spirit of things.’ I’d also adopted the Victorian theme with a high-necked, lace-trimmed white blouse and long black skirt. ‘Come on through, it’s good to see you both.’

  I took my friends’ coats, draped them over a dustsheet-covered sawhorse and gestured them through to the first of the staircases and upward.

  ‘Wow,’ Lara said. ‘This looks great, Verity.’

  ‘Thanks, William and I have spent all day getting it ready.’

  Jayne and Lara shared another glance, and I remembered the way they’d looked at me when I’d told them to relax and go to the museum or something, and that I’d see them tonight.

  ‘Don’t forget my team,’ Vikram said, sounding wounded. ‘We’ve worked ruddy hard to get your new kitchen installed and ready for tonight.’

  ‘Aye, you have that, mate,’ William said. ‘It’s appreciated, and why you’ve been invited to the inaugural dinner party.’

  Vikram took the beer his childhood friend proffered, but didn’t say anything.

  Lara and Jayne exchanged yet another look, and I sighed inwardly. What’s their problem?

  I relieved them of the bottles of wine they’d brought, checked the labels and deposited them in the fridge, before removing one already chilled. I opened it and poured three glasses.

  William opened his can of bitter and raised it in a toast.

  ‘To Verity and The Rookery.’

  I smiled at William as the others repeated the toast and drank.

  ‘How’s that meat coming on, love?’

  ‘Oh.’ I’d forgotten about it. I set down my glass and rushed to my new oven – this was its first use and I really had no idea how efficient it was.

  I basted beef and turned potatoes and veg in the roasting pan, then replaced it in the oven, along with an empty Yorkshire pudding tin.

  Then back to the fridge and out with a plate of smoked salmon on Ritz crackers with lemon wedges.

  I realised the room was silent and caught yet another look between Jayne and Lara.

  ‘What?’

  ‘Nothing.’

  ‘There’s definitely something.’

  ‘Well, I was just reminded of when you were with Antony,’ Lara said. ‘You hated the focus on the food rather than the people in the room.’

  ‘And tonight you seem to be embracing it,’ Jayne added, with a glance at William, who was focused on me, helping me with the meal.

  Don’t they realise how much work we’ve put into this for them? I swallowed my ire, and said, ‘Sorry, the whole day’s been a mad panic.’

  ‘You’ve definitely been busy this week, Vikram,’ Jayne said, lightening the mood. ‘You’ve done a great job in here.’

  ‘Thanks,’ he said, visibly relaxing. ‘The guts of the job are mostly done, now it’s everything else.’ He laughed. ‘We’re going from the top down now, getting Verity’s accommodation sorted, then each guest room, then the ground floor. Should be a decent place when it’s all finished.’

  ‘Oh!’ Jayne exclaimed, spinning around on one foot as Lara grabbed her arm – to steady herself as well as her friend.

  ‘It’s the CDs we strung up to deter those damned birds,’ Vikram said, having rushed to the window to determine the source of the clatter that had startled everyone, then swiping at his face. ‘The string’s failed.’

  ‘Failed or pecked through?’ Lara whispered to Jayne.

  Vikram recoiled as a bird landed on the windowsill, opened its beak, and – it seemed – tried to bite the glass with a clack audible in the room.

  ‘Like that’s not going to get annoying,’ Jayne said as the feathered beast did it again, her nervous laugh betraying the confidence of her words.

  ‘The pigeon spikes are due Tuesday,’ Vikram said.

  ‘Will pigeon spikes be enough?’ Lara asked. ‘Those rooks are twice the size.’

  Vikram laughed. ‘Not quite that big, but the principle’s the same. They’ll stop roosting here once we’ve got them all in place.’

  He jumped as another beak clawed one of the nine small glass panes that made up each window. ‘Can’t come soon enough.’ His following laugh did nothing to ease the nerves of the others.

  ‘Maybe curtains should go to the top of your shopping list, Verity,’ Jayne suggested.

  I pouted. ‘We’re on the third floor, and uphill of the other houses on the other side of the street. I have no intention of blocking any of my view – not considering what I’ve gone through to get it.’

  Jayne’s mouth opened, then shut without making a sound.

  ‘These look lovely, Verity,’ Lara said to break the tension. She helped herself to one of the smoked-salmon canapés. ‘You’re really treating us.’

  ‘Then it’s sirloin of beef from the local butcher,’ William said with pride. ‘I could even tell you the colouring of the cow it came from.’

  Vikram grinned. ‘Old Ed Stockdale,’ he said, wiping his face. ‘He loves telling people that – picks his beasts out personally he does.’

  Lara and Jayne stayed silent, seeming almost grateful for the thump from the window from yet another bird. It meant they didn’t have to reply.

  ‘Time to get the Yorkshires in,’ I said. ‘William, would you help me?’

  Vikram squeezed on to the sofa next to Jayne, forcing her and Lara to shift up, then he rubbed his face again.

  ‘Why do you keep doing that?’ Lara asked.

  ‘What?’

  ‘Wiping your face. I’ve seen you do it a few times tonight, but can’t remember seeing you do it before when we’ve met.’

  ‘Oh.’ Vikram looked surprised, then regarded his hand before lifting it to his cheek once more. ‘It’s weird, I keep feeling like I’ve walked into a cobweb.’

  ‘Really?’ Lara glanced at Jayne, who looked confused.

  Another rook trying to bite its way through the glass distracted them and conversation stopped for a while.

  I gave Lara a quick smile as I caught her eye and poured batter into the piping hot Yorkshire pudding tin, whilst William basted the meat again, then glanced at Jayne who was smiling shyly at Vikram.

  Lara sighed, rose, walked to the fridge, extracted a bottle and took it back to the sofa.

  ‘Thanks, Lara,’ Jayne said as she topped up the glasses.

  Lara’s answering smile was small. She looked like she’d made her mind up about something. Something unpleasant.

  ‘I hope you’re all hungry,’ I said as William and I rejoined our friends in the lounge area. ‘Dinner will be ready in twenty minutes.’

  20.

  ‘That was absolutely delicious, Verity,’ Lara said, pushing her cleared cheesecake plate away. ‘You must have been flat out all day.’

  ‘Pretty much,’ I said, pleased that the atmosphere seemed to have lightened from earlier. I rested my hand on William’s arm, ‘But I had a lot of help and I really wanted to treat you after the way you’ve both helped and supported me through the move and everything.’

  ‘Any time, Verity,’ Jayne said.

  ‘We’re always here for you, you know that,’ Lara added.

  Vikram thrust his chair away from the table, startling the others, and swiped his hand over his face.

  ‘Seriously, mate, what’s wrong with you?’ William demanded.

  ‘It’s this place, Will. Something keeps touching my face. It’s freaking me out.’

  Jayne and Lara exchanged one of their silent glances that expressed so much.

  ‘You okay, Vikram?’ Jayne asked.

  ‘Yeah, yeah, it’s gone,’ he said and pulled his chair back to the table.

  ‘Has anything else been happening, Verity?’ Lara asked.

  I shrugged, but could not stay my glance towards the window and the bird that was stil
l snapping at the glass. I leaned into William as he grasped my hand. I didn’t need to say anything for my friends to understand.

  ‘We need to find out what’s going on here,’ Lara said.

  ‘You’ve been saying that since I moved in. So far, nothing’s worked.’

  ‘Cleansing and blessing the house hasn’t worked,’ Lara qualified. ‘I think it’s time we tried something else and found out exactly what or who we’re dealing with and what they want.’

  ‘And how do you propose to do that?’ Vikram asked, his scepticism clear in his voice, yet belied as he wiped at his face once again.

  ‘We ask them,’ Lara said. ‘We hold another séance. Properly this time, and we don’t stop until we get answers.’

  ‘What, table tipping and ectoplasm out of your nostrils, all that nonsense?’ William asked.

  Lara laughed. ‘Not quite, but whatever is here does seem to be trying to interact with us – or Verity at least.’

  ‘And William,’ I said. ‘He’s been dreaming too, like me.’

  ‘Of the same man?’

  ‘No, of a woman who looks like me.’

  ‘Okay.’ Lara drew the word out as she absorbed this. ‘So it does seem there are two of them and they’re trying to get through to the two of you.’

  ‘Let’s see if we can help them,’ Jayne said.

  ‘You’re on board with this?’ I asked her in surprise.

  ‘Yep. She’s quantified the problem and accepts this as the most effective solution,’ Lara answered for our friend.

  We laughed while both men scowled, not understanding the joke.

  ‘Let’s give it a go,’ William said, to Vikram’s obvious surprise. ‘What, mate? Something’s going on—’ He broke off at another interruption from the window and an opaque crack snaked across another small pane of glass.

  He looked back at his friend. ‘This ain’t normal, and I can’t think of anything else to do.’

  Vikram didn’t remove his stare from the destructive avian, which seemed to gaze back at him – the light from the streetlamps reflecting in its one visible eye. He nodded.

  Jayne and William helped me clear the table, and Lara flung her scarf over the standard lamp.