by Nicola May
‘Yes, yes, of course. They said six weeks for this thing to come off, but if I keep doing the exercises, I reckon it won’t be any longer than four.’
‘So, when do you want me to start?’
‘Tomorrow would be amazing if you could manage it. I can sit at the bar and show you the ropes.’
‘OK, that’s a date.’
‘You are a dear, Rosa, that’s such a help to us.’
‘Can Hot come too?’
Jacob was petting him under the table. ‘Of course he can. We’ve got two boys ourselves, Ugly and Pongo, the most beautiful pugs in the world. Young Hot here can look on it as a play-date.’
‘Aw. Thanks so much, Jacob, and I can’t wait to meet those fur babies of yours.’
‘Ugly, Hot and Pongo - sounds like a boy band.’ Jacob reached for one of his crutches and began pretending to sing into it. ‘Thanks for helping with the pansies too.’ He couldn’t help sucking in his cheeks at the words ‘pansies’. ‘It’s mucho appreciated.’
He really was a scream. Rosa walked back down to the Co-op with a slight spring in her step. The extra cash would definitely come in handy, and she had already decided that Ugly and Pongo would be the first on her Open Day guest-list.
Mary was at the counter. She broke into a smile when she saw Rosa.
‘Happy New Year, my dear.’
‘Same to you, Mary, and I haven’t forgotten I still have your plate. The food was delicious, by the way. A real treat. Sorry, my friend Josh has been staying, so I didn’t get a chance to pop it back, then I thought I might see you in the pub on New Year’s Eve to thank you, before now.’
‘Oh, I don’t drink, Rosa. In fact, I don’t go out that much at all. How about you pop round later? I know my gran would love to meet you.’
‘Um.’ Rosa had had visions of just chilling on the sofa, surfing for stock, but Mary wasn’t going to take no for an answer.
‘You don’t have to stay long, just have a cuppa with us.’
‘OK, then.’
‘I finish my Co-op shift at five, so how about five-thirty?’
‘Perfect. I will see you then.’
CHAPTER 20
When Rosa tentatively knocked at the Cockleberry Coven’s door, she was half-excited, half-terrified to see what was behind it. She had never really been into anything supernatural and thought that fortune-telling was just an easy licence to get money out of innocent, troubled souls.
She noticed that the blue-and-white Seaspray Cottage sign had a little seahorse emblem on it too. The crystals had also changed, she thought, since she last walked past.
But she wasn’t here for fortune-telling, she was here for a cup of tea, to give back the ladies’ plate and to meet old Queenie Cobb, although goodness knows why Mary seemed so insistent she meet her. Maybe it was just to while away some of her own lonely hours. If she didn’t drink, what did they do for light relief? Rosa wondered.
She could hear Mary coughing as she walked towards the door. She opened it and said, ‘Hello, Rosa,’ then looked down. ‘No Hot Dog?’
‘He’s at home. I wasn’t sure how Merlin was with dogs, because Hot’s not the best with cats, to be honest. Here’s your plate before I forget to give it to you.’
‘Thank you. Now come in, come in.’
Rosa likened Mary’s walk to that of a penguin, shifting the weight of her large frame from left to right.
The front door led straight from the pavement into a cluttered lounge. There was a small TV in the corner and a comfortable-looking green two-seater sofa; a sun-and-moon-patterned black throw adorned the armchair in the corner, which had a threadbare footstool in front of it. The shelf above the fireplace was glowing with the light of around twenty candles. Every wall seemed to hold shelves which overflowed with an assortment of ornaments and lines of old, leather-bound books. Above the old-fashioned lace curtain hung a pretty feathered dream-catcher.
Rosa followed Mary into a larger kitchen, the centrepiece of which was a table, covered with a black tablecloth and with a chair on either side. Despite being very old, with its Formica units and original slate flagstones, the kitchen was immaculately clean.
‘The original two-up two-down, this was. They made do with a tin bath and an outside toilet when Gran moved in. When my mum came along, Ned - you know, Ned who had your shop - he fitted a bathroom. So, it’s now a two-up, three-down.’
‘Does your mum still live around here?’ Rosa asked. She was fascinated by the stories.
‘She died, Rosa.’
‘Oh Mary, I’m so sorry. You must have been so young.’
‘I never met her. She died whilst she was having me.’ Mary tipped back her head to stop the coming tears. In a faint voice, she said, ‘I miss her every day, even though I never met her, if that makes sense.’
‘Total sense. And your grandad?’
Mary cleared her throat and said, ‘I never met him. Gran brought me up. That’s why I’m here now. I thought at ninety-three she might be slowing down a bit and would need me, but . . . well, you’ll see for yourself.’ Her chuckle turned into a lengthy cough.
Rosa didn’t dare ask any more questions. She couldn’t deal with emotions at the best of times and at least she would never have to experience the grief of losing her own mother - in the traditional sense, anyway.
She was saved by the toilet flush, for Queenie Cobb appeared from the bathroom that led straight off the kitchen. She was wearing dark glasses.
‘Enough of that maudlin talk now, Mary. Rosa doesn’t need to hear this.’
If words could kill, Rosa thought somewhat nervously, Queenie’s granddaughter would be fighting for her last breath.
The old lady’s face was etched with deep lines, her skin very brown. Her lips were cracked, and her long grey hair was tied back into a bun. Rosa wondered why she was wearing dark glasses in the house.
‘Hello. So, it was you I need to thank for letting me into the Corner Shop the other night,’ Rosa said.
The old woman shook her head. ‘You must be mistaken, dear. The only way I will be leaving this house now is feet first.’
Mary quickly chipped in with, ‘Gran’s sight is terrible now, she’s near-on blind. Tea, Rosa?’
‘I can read your leaves, if you like?’ The old lady eased herself onto one of the chairs at the kitchen table, letting out a little fart under her layered skirt as she did so.
‘Oh no, it’s fine,’ Rosa said hastily. ‘I’m not really into that sort of thing.’
‘You don’t have to be frightened.’ Queenie grabbed hold of Rosa’s hand. ‘There is nothing to be frightened of but fear itself, you know that.’
Rosa sensed that the old lady wasn’t going to take no for an answer. Queenie pointed to the chair opposite her.
‘Come on, sit yourself down, lovey.’
Huffing and puffing, Mary put a pot of tea on the table. She pulled a stool out from under it and plonked herself down, her large buttocks spilling out over each side as she did so.
‘Let me sit there,’ Rosa insisted.
‘No, no. You’re our guest and I wouldn’t dream of it.’
There were no handles on the cups and Queenie guided hers shakily to her mouth with both hands, saying, ‘It’s refreshing to have a new face down here. The youngsters usually run when they get to a certain age. Find it all a bit boring. But you’ve got a focus. You can stay.’
‘Oh.’ This wasn’t exactly making Rosa feel uplifted, but she didn’t have to stay in Cockleberry Bay for ever, just make the shop into a going concern, get a bit of money out of it, then hand it over to someone who deserved it.
‘Dotty was a friend of mine, you know. Well, for a while anyway. Until . . . ‘ The old lady looked up to the ceiling.
‘Dotty?’ echoed Rosa.
‘Dorothea, from the Corner Shop,’ Mary chipped in.
‘Ah, right.’
‘Ned’s wife.’ Queenie added.
; ‘Gran, come on, let’s talk about something else. Rosa doesn’t need to hear about all this.’
It was Mary’s turn to try to change the subject. Rosa couldn’t understand Mary’s agitation. She seemed so nervous. Of course her gran was going to be upset about losing a friend. Rosa was intrigued to be learning more about her predecessor and his life, and she was surprised that nobody had mentioned a Dorothea before.
‘Such a lovely woman. Such a shame . . .’
‘Gran!’ Mary snapped.
‘So, what did they used to sell, Dotty and Ned?’ Rosa tried to lift the mood.
‘Anything and everything really. It was like a magical shop. If you needed cotton for your sewing machine or a heel for your boot, even a pint of milk at the last minute, Dotty seemed to have it. When she . . .’ Queenie took a deep breath. ‘When she died, he kept it going as she would have wished.’
‘That’s nice.’
Queenie carried on. ‘Before that blasted Co-op came along, we had two butchers, a fishmonger and a florist. No doubt you’ve seen we have just the one butcher now, Alfie Davies. He took over from his old dad Bill - not quite as good in my opinion but we still get our pork chops from there, don’t we, Mary?’
Mary nodded.
‘I didn’t really want her to work in that blessed supermarket, but needs must around here, hey, Rosa? And I mean, who wants to be cooped up with an old woman like me twenty-four seven.’ Queenie reached over and put her bony fingers to Rosa’s face. Feeling around it, she then touched on her scar. ‘I see now,’ she murmured to herself, then more loudly, ‘You are very beautiful, aren’t you?’
‘Oh Gran, really.’ Mary seemed beside herself with embarrassment. Rosa, not sure of how to react, carried on picking loose tea leaves out of her teeth. Queenie pounced at her empty cup as soon as she had finished.
‘Let me have a look for you,’ she said. Rosa didn’t dare ask how she could do that if she couldn’t see properly. Without removing her dark glasses, and as if reading her mind, Queenie snarled, ‘I can make out the outlines and feel.’
At that moment, Rosa was completely startled by the cat flap flying open and the appearance of the biggest black cat she had ever seen. He went straight to his bowl of crunchies on the floor, stuffed a few in and then without warning jumped up on her lap, causing her knees to buckle and fur to fly into her mouth.
‘Merlin, get down.’ Mary tried to shoo him off a slightly agitated Rosa, who was now pulling bits of cat hair as well as tea leaves from her lips.
‘He likes you.’ Queenie smiled. ‘And animals are very good judges of character, you know.’
Merlin made a funny sort of growling sound, then took himself off to his basket in the corner of the kitchen and began to noisily clean himself.
The old lady had started to move her hands over Rosa’s cup in a circling motion when, without warning, she emitted a cross between a hiss and a groan, which caused Merlin to emit a deafening meow and Rosa to nearly jump out of her skin.
‘It’s OK, Rosa,’ Mary whispered. ‘They both do that every time.’
Realising it would probably be easier to escape from Colditz than here, Rosa sat tight and waited to hear what was said.
Queenie looked down into Rosa’s cup. Then reaching across the table, she took hold of Rosa’s hand.
‘I see paper, a bundle of paper.’ Queenie hesitated for a second
as if waiting for Rosa to say something. ‘Remember always, that love was at fault. The mermaids know that.’
Queenie let go of her hand and started again. ‘Dark-haired and
smooth; a crooked life. But he isn’t to blame this time . . .’ She began to swirl her hands over the top of the cup again. ‘‘I see lots of animals.’
Rosa was now already beginning to switch off. Mary had
obviously been told about Luke and it was obvious she liked animals, as everyone could see what Hot meant to her.
‘Don’t be fooled by the tall one . . .’ the old lady then warned her.
If that was Josh, Rosa thought, then she knew this really was rubbish. Josh would never lie to her. Mind you, he hadn’t mentioned that he’d seen Luke the other day and she had forgotten to ask him why. The old lady continued at great speed.
‘Be free with your energy, Rosa, and your angels will guide you. Believe in yourself, and happiness you will find. Eat well, but drink less. A lot less.’
Mary was now sat as still as a stone; even Merlin had settled down to a one-eye-open nap. But old Mrs Cobb hadn’t finished yet, and on hearing Rosa move restlessly in her seat, she shouted, ‘WAIT!’ Even Mary jumped this time. ‘Don’t jump to conclusions.’
She suddenly opened her eyes and stared straight at Rosa. Her voice was now soft again.
‘You have a good future ahead of you, my dear. Don’t waste it.’
‘If I keep away from all these men, obviously,’ Rosa said lamely.
‘Did I mention any men, Rosa?’
Although not sure if it was the right thing to do, Rosa thanked Queenie and tentatively asked if she owed her anything.
‘Rosa, please, of course not. I invited you to do this. But when you’re ready, Merlin could do with a new lead.’
‘I er . . . a lead?’
‘Yes, our Mary takes him for a walk sometimes. He loves it, he does.’
Mary nodded furiously.
‘Well then, Merlin shall have the finest cat lead on the market. How did you know I was thinking of selling pet products?’
‘Did I say that? I don’t think I did. No more questions now, my dear girl. Please, just tell me you’re leaving soon, as I really could do with a sleep.’
‘Gran!’
‘Oh, ssh now, Mary. You know how tired this makes me feel.’
Rosa stood up. ‘It’s fine, honestly. I need to get back to Hot anyway.’
Queenie Cobb slowly got out of her chair. Resting both hands in front of her on the table to steady herself, she said quietly, ‘If you find it, don’t sell the necklace, Rosa.’
Rosa was now open-mouthed. ‘But . . . How . . .’
The old lady shook her finger at her. ‘Keep it in a very safe place and tell no one about it. No one.’
Relieved to be back in the peace of the Corner Shop upstairs flat, Rosa quickly cooked herself a cheese omelette, put on her pyjamas and snuggled up on the sofa with Hot and her laptop.
She thought back to the tea-leaves incident and had to admit that her disbelief in fortune-telling had been slightly blown out of the water. How on earth could Queenie Cobb have known about the necklace - and why couldn’t she sell it, or the shop for that matter?
Tired from thinking too much, she typed the words ‘cat’ and ‘leads’ into Google and gaped in disbelief at the sheer number of options that came up. She wouldn’t think any more about what old Queenie Cobb had said, she decided. She, little Rosa Larkin, was quite capable of creating her own destiny and that was that.
CHAPTER 21
There was not one person drinking in the pub when Rosa got there for her first shift. Raffaele came out to greet her. If he hadn’t been gay Rosa would definitely have been hot on his very expensive-looking Gucci heels. He was dark-haired and about the same height as Luke, with the sort of face that was so cute you just wanted to squeeze it.
When he spoke, Rosa noticed that he had a slight Italian accent. It then all came flooding back from the New Year’s Eve drunken afternoon at the bar. Jacob told her that he had interviewed Raffaele for a chef’s position and had asked if he wanted to live in. Raffaele had said yes, not realising he was moving straight into Jacob’s flat. Luckily Jacob’s ruse worked. They had hit it off and had been together five years, married for one.
‘Ciao, Rosa. How are you?’
‘Good, thanks, Raffaele.’
‘Jacob will be down in a minute - and don’t worry, it won’t be quiet like this all night. We’ve got a table of four and a table of two in for dinner later. Wh
y don’t you familiarise yourself behind the bar, and do help yourself to a drink.’
‘Great, thanks, I’ll do that.’
When Raffaele had made his way back to the kitchen, Rosa looked around her. It really was a lovely space, with stained-glass windows at the front and a smart wooden bar stocked with every drink you could imagine lined up along it, cleverly lit to create a relaxing ambience.
‘Hiya, kidder, you all right?’ Jacob hobbled towards her.
‘Yes, good, thanks. I left Hot at home tonight, by the way. Thought I’d better concentrate without having to worry about him.’
‘Oh, the boys will be disappointed. I’d already told them there’s a new sausage in town.’
Rosa laughed out loud as Jacob limped towards her.
‘How’s the foot?’ she asked.
‘Bloody painful, but hey, I’ve got another one.’
‘So, I’m slightly confused, do you live above here then?’
‘Yes and no. Like I told you, we have a beach house in the next town, but we also have a room here, for when we have late nights, et cetera. My sister and her boyfriend live above fulltime. The dogs always come with us, wherever we go. We get to our other house as much as we can, which is quite a lot since Alyson and Brad are more than capable of running the joint. I like to keep a hand in though.’
‘What a nice position to be in.’
‘Yes. I’m very lucky. Now, to business. So, you’ve had a look at the beers on pump. Here are the menus for drinks and food. White wines are in the bucket.’ He pointed to a shelf to the side of the bar. ‘Reds under there. If you can be waitress too tonight, that would be great. Any cash tips you get, you can keep them all.’
‘OK, great.’
‘Let me just show you the till.’
Rosa watched carefully as Jacob showed her all the buttons.
‘It’s a bit more modern than mine in the Corner Shop,’ she said, ‘but I’m tempted to keep that one anyway, as it’s so old-school.’
‘I don’t want to sound like an old dog teaching you new tricks, Rosa, but watch the pennies and the pounds will take care of themselves. It’s handy having a till that does all the sums for you. Helps with your accounts. Have you run any sort of business before?’
