Escape to the Country

by Sherlock, Alison

  She didn’t elaborate and he didn’t push. It wasn’t any of his business, but still, he was surprised she had briefly opened up to him.

  Going into the vet’s surgery, he braced himself for the inevitable response to his superstardom. But thankfully Ben the vet was in his late fifties and didn’t recognise Tom either.

  But he obviously knew Eleanor’s mother very well.

  ‘How’s her foot?’ asked Ben, checking the dog over.

  ‘The plaster’s driving her crazy,’ said Eleanor.

  Ben nodded. ‘I’ll take her to the pub on Sunday. That should cheer her up.’

  Eleanor smiled. ‘Thanks. She always enjoys going out with you.’

  There was an ease to their conversation which made Tom presume that Ben was an old friend of the family.

  Ben finished his check-up. ‘No microchip unfortunately,’ he confirmed. ‘But the dog appears healthy, although underweight. His fur’s severely matted as well. Do you think your mother’s up to giving him a bath?’

  ‘I can do it,’ said Eleanor, with a shrug of her shoulders. ‘We’ll just have to keep it with us until the owner comes along to claim him.’

  Ben smiled. ‘Of course. Where else would a stray animal go in Cranley?’

  Only Tom caught her soft sigh. So the animal thing was definitely a problem.

  Once they were back in the reception, Eleanor asked if Tom wouldn’t mind holding the dog. ‘I’d better pick him up a collar from the pet shop next door.’

  ‘You sound like you’ve done this before,’ said Tom.

  She smiled, but it was without humour. ‘Oh yes,’ she replied. ‘Just a few times.’

  Once the dog had been fitted with a brand new green collar, they headed back to her mum’s house. As Tom parked the car outside, Eleanor paused.

  ‘Look, I’m sorry about shouting at you last night,’ she said, scratching at her neck which he had noticed she did frequently. ‘I think I might have overreacted a bit.’

  He turned in his seat to look at her. ‘I really was intending to come along and honour my commitment to you,’ he said. ‘I’m not in the habit of breaking my promises. I went into the recording studio and drifted off to sleep. The painkillers are too heavy for me. I didn’t wake up until you came in. I should have set the alarm or something.’

  ‘Okay.’ She nodded before clearing her throat. ‘Look, I think I may have told you last night about losing my job at the magazine.’

  A blush was spreading across her creamy white cheeks.

  He nodded. ‘In between shouting at me, you mean.’

  ‘Yes. Well, quite.’ She shuffled in her seat, obviously uncomfortable. ‘Anyway, I’d be grateful if you didn’t mention anything about it to my mum. Or Annie. Or anyone else, come to think of it. I haven’t got round to telling anyone yet.’

  He was surprised that she would keep such a thing secret but merely replied, ‘No problem.’

  She seemed taken aback that he would be so amenable. But also grateful. ‘Thanks,’ she said, before getting out of the car.

  Back in the messy cottage, he expected to drop off the dog and leave them to it. But as soon as the stray setter walked into the kitchen, one of the cats began to hiss and take a swipe at it. In panic, the setter ran to hide behind Tom’s legs.

  ‘I’m not sure this is going to end well.’ said Eleanor’s mum, looking worriedly at the cat. ‘Trouble is, Samson’s owners aren’t due back from holiday for another week and he’s something of a terror.’

  When the cat went for the dog again and began to chase him around the kitchen table, they were all almost knocked off their feet in the mayhem.

  So Tom made his decision. ‘Look, you’re obviously not quite up to homing another stray at the minute,’ he said. ‘How about I keep the dog up at the house whilst we wait for someone to claim him.’

  Eleanor’s mum looked surprised but pleased. ‘How lovely of you to suggest that. Where are you staying?’

  ‘At Willow Tree Hall,’ Eleanor told her.

  Her mum looked surprised. ‘Oh. Are you a friend of Sam’s?’

  Tom nodded, still grateful for the anonymity. ‘Yes.’

  ‘Well, hopefully it’ll be all right with Arthur.’

  ‘I’ll text Annie and check with her,’ said Eleanor.

  Tom knelt down and stroked the dog’s head whilst Eleanor sent a text to Annie.

  ‘How about you come home with me, mate,’ said Tom, softly. ‘I know what it’s like to be unwanted.’

  He felt Eleanor glance back at him, but she didn’t say anything.

  He carried on stroking the soft fur, as the pair of big brown eyes stared up at him. The dog was obviously wondering whether he could trust yet another human or if he would be let down again. Tom suddenly felt a connection between them. Both unwanted strays, desperate to trust the next person they met but not believing anything too good to be true.

  Eleanor’s mum handed him a small bag of treats and some dog food. ‘That should keep you going for a couple of days. Just in case.’

  ‘Annie says it’s fine to bring the dog home,’ said Eleanor, looking up from her phone.

  ‘Wonderful,’ said her mum, smiling. ‘Now then, he’ll need a name in the meantime, of course.’

  ‘No, he doesn’t, Mum,’ said Eleanor, in an exasperated tone.

  ‘Nonsense.’ Eleanor’s mum turned to face Tom. ‘You found him, Tom. What do you think?’

  He glanced down into the dog’s big brown eyes. ‘I don’t know. I’ve never named a dog before.’

  ‘Well, there’s always Snoopy or Scooby Doo,’ said her mum.

  Tom grimaced. ‘I’m not sure about that.’

  He glanced over at Eleanor who was trying and failing to smother a smile. ‘How about your favourite singer?’ she prompted.

  She was obviously enjoying the fact that her mum didn’t have a clue who he was.

  ‘I’ve got so many,’ he told her. ‘I dunno. The Stones. Eminem. Bob Dylan…’

  ‘How about Dylan?’ said Eleanor, nodding her approval.

  Tom leant down to the dog again. ‘What do you think, boy? Do you like the name Dylan?’

  The dog wagged its tail.

  ‘Dylan it is then,’ he said, breaking into a grin.

  ‘Oh! You are a true doggy person!’ said her mum, smiling tearily at him. ‘That’s lovely. I’m sure he’ll be fine with you. Now, I’ve written down the food instructions. Just light meals to start off with until we know how he gets on. Who knows what he’s been living on. Plenty of accessible water. Let me know if you have any questions.’

  Eleanor helped carry all the extra doggy paraphernalia out to the car. ‘Will you be okay with him?’ she asked.

  Tom nodded. ‘It’ll be fine, I’m sure. How hard can it be, compared to, say, a donkey?’

  Her shoulders slumped. ‘Yeah. Well, it’s good of you to take care of the dog. As you can see, the Ark is pretty full at the minute.’

  She was shuffling awkwardly from foot to foot.

  ‘I think it’s great that your mum loves animals so much,’ he told her.

  She rolled her eyes. ‘It’s not so great if you have to take care of them every day.’

  He looked down at her. ‘Trust me, there’s not too many people that would make such an effort.’

  She glanced at the dog on the back seat. ‘Right back at you.’

  He smiled. ‘So, is this a temporary truce whilst we take care of Dylan?’

  ‘We?’ Her eyebrows shot up in surprise.

  ‘If you think I’m bathing him all by myself, you’ve got another thing coming,’ he told her, as he sat behind the wheel.

  Her laughter surprised them both and made her face seem far more alive and animated. ‘Okay,’ she said. ‘It’s a deal. I’ll see you in the morning up at the hall.’

  As he drove off, he glanced in his rear-view mirror and saw that Eleanor was still smiling as she turned away to head indoors.

  It was the first time he had seen her sm
ile properly and be natural, he realised. And he liked it.

  Chapter 17

  As Megan worked part-time cleaning at Willow Tree Hall on Monday and Friday, Eleanor was able to hitch a lift to the house with her the following morning.

  After her accident the previous day, the bicycle was now completely unusable, which she was secretly quite grateful for. However, she was still a bit battered and bruised from her pole vault over the handlebars.

  ‘I never heard from Annie yesterday,’ she told Megan as she got into the car. ‘What with stray dogs and mangled bicycles. Any idea how much the walk raised?’

  ‘No idea yet,’ said Megan. ‘It’s probably good that Tom took the dog off your hands anyway. Especially with Mrs Briggs nosing over the back fence.’

  Eleanor was confused. ‘What are you talking about?’

  ‘Didn’t your mum tell you?’ Megan sighed. ‘You know what old Mrs Briggs next door to The Forge is like. Such a nosy parker. Anyway, apparently she’s complained to Arthur about the number of animals your mum’s keeping these days.’

  Eleanor felt a flush of embarrassment. ‘Oh God. I’ll have to have a word with Mum. It’s getting out of hand. But you know how much she loves having them all.’

  ‘But it is a lot of work for her,’ said Megan. ‘Especially since she hurt her ankle.’

  ‘Well, I’ve been helping out for the past fortnight.’

  ‘Yes but you’ll be gone again soon and then she’ll be trying to deal with it on her own, as usual.’

  As usual. Eleanor tried but she couldn’t ignore those last two words, even though there had been no malice behind them. There was so much she had left behind trying to pursue her career. So much that her mum had had to carry for herself, she knew.

  They pulled up outside the house. Megan knocked on the huge red front door and then let herself in.

  ‘You have a key?’ asked Eleanor.

  ‘No, but it’s always open during the day,’ said Megan. ‘Everyone just lets themselves in. Anyway, this time next week it’ll be full of builders once again.’

  They went into the huge entrance hall and Megan hollered out a ‘hello!’. There came a replied shout from Annie that she was on the patio at the back of the house. They found her sitting at a dilapidated table and chairs, with a large pot of coffee and some cups.

  ‘Come and have some caffeine,’ said Annie, in between yawns and gesturing lazily for them to sit down.

  ‘I hope that’s Sam keeping you awake all night,’ said Megan, giving her a nudge.

  ‘Another male, unfortunately,’ said Annie, blushing. ‘Dylan howled for most of the night until Tom smuggled him up to his bedroom.’

  ‘Oh no, those lovely new carpets,’ said Megan, shaking her head. ‘Oh well. So where is this famous, filthy pooch?’

  ‘Yeah, where’s Dylan? And Tom?’ asked Eleanor, looking around.

  ‘Keen, aren’t you?’ said Megan.

  ‘To give a dog a bath? Not particularly,’ said Eleanor quickly. ‘I was just asking.’

  ‘Yeah, yeah.’

  Actually, she was a little disappointed that Tom wasn’t there, a thought which wasn’t making her feel any less awkward. Mainly because she suspected that her disappointment was nothing to do with the story she was supposed to be writing on him.

  ‘Sam’s taken Tom to his doctor’s appointment,’ said Annie. ‘Dylan went along for the ride as well. Not that anyone had much choice about that. I think he and Tom are going to be inseparable.’

  ‘You don’t mind him staying here until the owner comes forward?’ asked Eleanor. ‘Or rather if someone comes forward.’

  ‘No,’ said Annie, before taking a sip of coffee. ‘He’s such a cutie. He’s won us all over already, despite his desperate need for a bath. And at least it takes my mind off the walk.’

  Eleanor was confused. ‘I thought it was a huge success?’ she asked.

  Annie shrugged her shoulders. ‘No idea, unfortunately. But Mrs Havers, our old headmistress, is popping in to tell me the grand total later on.’ She gulped. ‘What if not much money has been raised?’

  ‘Have a biscuit,’ said Megan, pushing the plate towards her anxious looking friend.

  But thankfully there was no need for them to panic. The WI chairwoman and her committee were beaming from ear to ear when they arrived later that morning. The walk was declared to have raised the biggest total ever in their history of fundraising.

  ‘Well, I must confess that we were all a little nervous when we first heard about our future countess,’ Mrs Havers began, as they stood in the entrance hall. ‘Especially as more and more of the big houses in the area are being bought up by people who aren’t interested in the village at all. But I think we can all agree that our new WI members are a breath of fresh country air.’

  Eleanor glanced at Annie who was smiling, flattered by the praise. Even Megan was standing up a little bit straighter.

  ‘Perhaps we can even make the village Moonwalk an annual event?’ asked one lady.

  ‘Absolutely,’ said Annie loudly, giving Eleanor a small nudge with her elbow.

  Eleanor was just pleased that Annie was looking so relieved.

  Mrs. Havers smiled broadly. ‘And I, for one, can’t wait to see Annie’s ideas for the summer fete, which I’m guessing she can’t wait to resurrect. It’ll be quite a show in the hands of our capable future countess!’

  The excited babble of conversation carried on around them as Annie stared at her friends in horror. She managed to hide her shock though, merely continuing to carry her rictus smile until everyone else had left and it was just Rose and her friends standing in the entrance hall.

  ‘Darling, I’m so sorry,’ said Rose, looking aghast. ‘I completely forgot about the summer fete.’

  ‘It’s fine,’ said Annie, looking as if it really wasn’t. ‘So do Sam and I have to attend in our Lord and Lady mode?’

  Rose smiled gently. ‘Of course you do, sweetie. Especially as it’s held here.’

  Annie’s eyebrows shot up. ‘Here? Inside our home?’

  Rose shook her head. ‘No, in the front grounds. On August bank holiday weekend.’

  ‘I remember now!’ said Eleanor, having a flashback to her childhood of the summer fete. ‘It was huge!’

  ‘We haven’t had one for a good few years though,’ said Megan, frowning.

  ‘Oh my god,’ said Annie. ‘I remember too. How many people are we talking about?’

  Megan bit her lip as Rose answered, ‘Well, a lot of people come in from the other villages too so maybe two or three thousand.’

  Annie was shocked. ‘Three thousand people!’

  ‘I seem to remember there were a few stalls and things,’ said Megan, frowning in thought.

  ‘Of course, it hasn’t taken place since we lost dear Beatrice,’ Rose added. ‘She organised it all. Perhaps Arthur couldn’t face it. But I think the village would love to come out to our little home again and congregate for the afternoon.’

  Annie looked hopeful. ‘Maybe we can keep it small and simple?’

  Rose laughed. ‘Darling, they’ll expect a big show. So that’s what we’ll give them, naturally.’

  As she headed off upstairs, Annie sank down onto the bottom step. ‘Everyone’s going to expect the fete to be amazing,’ she whispered, clutching her head.

  ‘It’ll be fine,’ said Megan, rushing forward. ‘We’ll help you, won’t we?’

  ‘Of course,’ said Eleanor, trying to convince herself more than her friends. ‘You can do this. You really can, you know.’

  Annie shook her head. ‘I really can’t.’

  ‘I used to come here for the summer fetes,’ said Eleanor. ‘My dad used to play in the cricket match they held on the front lawn.’

  Megan raised her eyebrows. ‘That must have been a long time ago.’

  Eleanor blew out a sigh. ‘Yeah.’

  They’d been happy then. A little family unit. Idyllic summers. Laughter at Christmas. It all felt like ancie
nt history.

  ‘Anyway,’ she carried on, brushing the painful memories out of reach once more. ‘From what I remember, the fete was actually pretty small. A couple of cake stalls which, thanks to the Great British Bake Off, we’ll be able to fill. A few drinks. Some lame tombola. That’s it.’

  Annie shook her head. ‘I don’t want it to be lame!’ she wailed. ‘I want it to be the best one ever, because it’s our first one. I don’t want people thinking Sam and I can’t do this.’

  Megan exchanged frantic looks with Eleanor. ‘Okay, calm down,’ she said, putting her arm around Annie’s shoulder. ‘We’ll put some thought into it, okay?’

  ‘Not lame?’ asked Annie, sounding more hopeful.

  ‘Definitely the most un-lame fete ever to be held,’ said Eleanor. ‘We promise.’

  ‘I can’t do this on my own. There’s too much going on. The kitchen’s about to be done up. There’s so much to do for the wedding. And now I’ve got some fete to organise?’ She grabbed their hands. ‘We’ve got to stick together, okay? I jump, you jump, remember. You girls are my squad, okay?’

  ‘Yeah,’ said Megan. ‘Just like Taylor Swift’s but quite a bit shorter and maybe rounder too, in my case.’

  They all burst out laughing.

  ‘Well, that’s a welcome sound,’ said Arthur, stepping out of the west wing and heading across the entrance hall. ‘Good morning, ladies.’

  ‘Hello Arthur,’ said Megan, obviously used to conversing with an earl of the realm.

  Eleanor, surprisingly, felt a little more shy. After all, Arthur was her mother’s landlord. A lord. A real-life Earl of Cranley. He had always been a forbidding figure when she had been growing up. But on reflection, he had kind eyes and a gentle smile as he nodded his greeting at her. Of course, he was far more frail than he had been when she was growing up, but there was still that air of aristocracy about him. Albeit slightly shabby.

  ‘It’s Eleanor McCartney, isn’t it?’ asked Arthur, holding out a hand. ‘I don’t think I was able to introduce myself to you the other evening.’

  ‘Yes,’ she replied, briefly taking the hand gently in hers. ‘Hello.’

  ‘How is your mother’s foot? I hope she’s not in too much pain.’