Geraldine smiled.
“Yes, of course. That man has a lot to answer for. Come, I will see if we can open up the one in the kitchen quickly. Patrick won’t mind if you sit in there for a few minutes, he’ll only be looking up recipes on the internet anyway.”
Lucy followed Geraldine out of the dining room, through one of the passages into the scullery and then on into the kitchen where they had all eaten on the first night.
Patrick was up to his elbows in flour and Ellen sat in a chair at the end of the table alternating wafting herself with a fan and chopping up carrots. She smiled up at Lucy as she walked in.
“My husband is a slave driver.” She waved the small knife in front of the carrots. “I was in the middle of all that office work and he drags me away in here. Says that working my brain is too stressful at the moment.”
Patrick gave a laugh.
“Oh yes! It has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that you hate the office work and I am just saving myself from you being miserable later…What can we do for you Lucy?”
Lucy moved around the table.
“Geraldine said I might be able to use the computer in here. David wore me out earlier and I couldn’t be bothered to walk back up the stairs to use my own. I need to check something on my bank account. I will get charged if I haven’t transferred the money and what with coming over in such a rush, I can’t remember if I have done it.”
Patrick nodded towards a computer sitting on the huge dresser that ran the length of the wall.
“You’ll have to forgive me. I was looking up some new recipes. If you can just save that website into my favourites then go ahead.”
Lucy touched a few of the buttons and then took a quick glance over her shoulder to see that the others were not looking.
She quickly logged into her bank account and then onto her pay slip pages. Everything was in order. Her current account held a little more than she needed as she wasn’t spending any personal money this week, so she quickly transferred the extra to ensure that the mortgage and debts were covered for another month and then she opened up the pages containing the details of her outstanding loan agreement.
The terms and conditions were pages long and she was never going to have time to go through it all now, but one or two things leapt out her immediately.
She was over a barrel with the timings of the payments. There was no get out early clause and no transfer deal available. She sighed deeply and wondered if she knew anyone who would be able to understand these things at a glance. She had read the documentation when she had agreed the loan but she hadn’t had any other options than to agree. There was no other company that would accept her amount of unsecured debt.
She sighed and closed the pages again. At least she had given herself some breathing space. Another month of mortgage and loan payments covered meant that she had a little time to gather her resources before she was either forced to give in to Carter Freeman’s odious demands or find herself another job.
She flicked the screen back to Patrick’s recipes.
“Thanks. Just as well I thought of it. I would have been in trouble otherwise.”
Ellen put down the knife and looked up at Lucy. Patrick had disappeared into the scullery and the door had closed to behind him.
“Are you okay Lucy? Do you need any help?” Ellen’s tone was sincere.
Lucy shook her head, not trusting her voice for a moment. She swallowed before she spoke, hoping she would sound somewhere near normal.
“No, no, everything is fine. I just hate paying bank charges if I don’t have to. Right, well I had better get back to the others. I wouldn’t want this afternoon’s activities beginning without me. I might miss getting unbelievably hot and sweaty again!”
She rolled her eyes and Ellen laughed loudly, holding her swollen belly as it rose and fell with her chuckles. She winced slightly and stopped laughing as the baby gave her a jab with an elbow or a foot.
“Do I tell Joe how keen you are when I see him later?” She grinned as she rubbed a hand over her stomach.
Lucy smiled down at her and shook her head quickly.
“Perhaps we had best keep it between ourselves for the moment. I’ll break it to him at a later date.” She gave Ellen a quick wave and returned to the hall where the last of her work colleagues were just beginning to file outside.
She tagged onto the end of the group not really thinking of what they would be doing next but going over every option in her head to get out of the trap that Carter Freeman had laid for her.
Chapter Nine
“So, have any of you used this kind of equipment before?” David’s eyes cast around the group. Two people put up their hands a little nervously and David brought them to the front of the group.
Joe took them to the side and began asking them some quiet questions.
David carried on explaining to the remaining group as he showed them the harness and equipment.
“We will be taking turns on the zip wire. There is a safety harness and Joe will be at the bottom to attempt to catch you. I say attempt because it’s down to you to slow yourself down with this brake. There is also an auto brake that slows you down as you get near the bottom of the run but this is the thing that actually stops you.” He demonstrated using the red lever just above the handles. “It’s not a problem if you don’t use it, you just get wet but as Mr. Freeman will assert, the river water is pretty chilly, so let’s avoid it if we can.” There was a general slightly nervous chuckle around the group and Freeman turned a deep shade of purple.
Everyone gathered round listening quietly as David showed them all how the equipment worked and then Joe selected one of the more nervous women to double up on the zip wire with him. It took a moment to harness them both in and then they were off, the woman screaming all the way as they plunged down into the ravine.
David laughed a few moments later as he looked over the ravine edge to see Joe standing on the bank of the river with his finger stuck in his ear waggling it to and fro, obviously trying to get the hearing back in it. The woman was laughing and flapping her hands, clearly trying to apologize to him.
David turned to the group again as the harness and pulleys suddenly reappeared at the top of the wire.
“So who’s next?” There was much cajoling and banter from the group as another hapless victim was shoved forwards. David was pleased to see how the group was opening up to one another. He could see the difference in their attitude already and hoped that their peacock of a boss could see it too.
He worked through the rest of the group. Some of them hit the water at the bottom but none looked as though they were worried about it. Freeman waited until he was last and then took hold of the bars and jumped off the edge seemingly without a care in the world. David noticed that he stopped himself a few feet from the water’s edge.
Two hours and several descents later even the most nervous person in the group was happy and confident enough to leap over the edge of the ravine without a care in the world. The ensemble came whizzing back up to the top for a last time and unable to resist having a go, David worked on the wire tension for a few moments. He disabled the auto brake and stood at the edge of the ravine. He noticed that Joe was shaking his head as he pulled a few of the people back from the cable run in, then he waved his hand in the air as a signal that it was safe for David to go.
David leapt into the air and the zip wire screamed as he came down faster than anyone would have believed possible. Joe stepped back out of his way and watched as David hit the water with an almighty splash. There was a sudden odd cracking sound. David sank under the water and then came up spluttering.
“Shit! I broke my leg!” He groaned as the water dripped from his face. He hopped up and one or two of the guests gasped in shock as he made his way lopsidedly to the bank. “Bugger, ‘scuse me ladies, but I haven’t broken it for a while and it’s a flipping nuisance.” He dragged himself up the bank and sat on the edge as several of the group came forw
ards to help him. He waved them away as one woman shouted for someone to call an ambulance at the sight of his twisted limb. Then David stuck his hand inside the waistband of his trousers and fiddled with something at his thigh before he leaned forwards and pulled at his boot.
His leg came out of the bottom of his trousers and the whole thing flopped backwards at the knee joint.
The man nearest David immediately slumped towards the ground in a faint and was caught just before he hit the floor by the man behind him.
Freeman came forwards and stood with his hands on his hips.
“Oh bloody funny! You nearly scared us half to death with that trick.”
David frowned up at him.
“What trick? It’s no laughing matter. Joe has only just got round to fixing my other set.”
Freeman suddenly reached forwards and dragged David up by his shoulder. David was immediately off balance and nearly toppled to the ground again, but Joe came and steadied him.
David’s trouser leg wafted limply beneath his thigh and there was a collective gasp from the group.
“You really do have a false leg?” Freeman stepped back and immediately cursed. “Shit! I can’t believe I am being shown this stuff by a bunch of flipping cripples. How in God’s name do you even think you are qualified to run this course?”
David had regained his balance but he still leaned on Joe for support.
“Of course I am bloody qualified. I spent nearly ten years getting qualified. Having false legs doesn’t mean that I’m suddenly not able to do my job. You didn’t even notice until I bust the damn thing.” He defended himself angrily.
Jessica came up to David and before David could protest, suddenly reached down and pulled up his other trouser leg. She let out a gasp as she saw the metal ensemble inside his trouser leg.
“You have two false legs!” She accused and began to shake her head. She turned to Freeman. “This is ridiculous Carter. These men can’t do this job in their state. I think we should leave.”
But one of the other men in the team suddenly spoke up.
“Well I for one think it’s perfectly clear that they do their job wonderfully. And actually if you think about it, it’s probably just as well he does have false legs or one of them really may have been broken.”
The man who had almost passed out, though still pale, was now standing again.
He took a deep breath and moved to the front of the shocked crowd.
“Yeah! I agree with Frank. Not sure what came over me. It was the knee thing I think. Looked awful from where I was standing. Freaked me out for a moment.”
David gave a quick laugh.
“Yeah, sorry about that. I forgot that it looks pretty grim. Freaks me out too if you really want to know.” He turned to Joe. “Would you mind nipping to your cabin to get my spare one? And please get the right leg. I don’t want to look a complete idiot trying to walk around with two left feet.”
Joe barked out a laugh and lowered a still dripping David to the ground again. He disappeared into the forest and came back ten minutes later with another leg in his hand. David took a few seconds to reattach the new one and then stood up, about to carry on with the afternoon session. He looked at his watch. They just had time to do some bridge building before they would need to start the long walk back to the chateau.
He was about to begin with a talk on the concept when Joe help up his hand. He looked along the track and a few seconds later the Land Rover appeared and a frantic Geraldine screeched to a stop beside the group.
She leaned out to the window and spoke to David rapidly. David paled for a moment and then turned to the group.
“I’m really sorry but we will have to cut the session short. My sister has gone into early labour and I’m afraid that I will be needed up at the chateau. You are most welcome to come back to the chateau now and use the leisure facilities for the rest of the afternoon. I’ll leave you with Joe to accompany . Freeman, can I rely on you to bring up the rear and make sure everyone gets back to the chateau please?”
Carter Freeman actually looked pleased at being given some responsibility at last, and nodded his head.
“If you speak to your sister or brother in law please give them out best wishes.” He sounded almost genuine and David nodded in return as he climbed into the car and set off back to the chateau with Geraldine.
Joe looked at a loss for a few seconds and then rallied the group. They set off at a smart pace for the chateau, stopping every few minutes for him to make sure the group was keeping pace.
Everyone immediately set off to use the hotel facilities when they arrived back. Some of the women booked themselves into the treatment rooms for massages or beauty regimes, while the men enjoyed the squash courts and the swimming pool.
Joe went straight into the kitchen to see if he could glean anymore information from David about Ellen’s condition. He walked in to utter chaos.
Geraldine was struggling as she attempted to haul a huge pig onto the spit roast while their over-burdened helper Vanessa held the prong at the other end as gamely as she could. Robbie was jumping up and down on a chair and singing ‘Frere Jacque’ at the top of his quavering voice while David flapped around, his clothes still dripping river water with the telephone stuck to his ear, being completely unhelpful.
Joe quickly washed his hands at the sink and grabbed then the pig from Geraldine. He lay it on the table and took the lethal looking prong from Vanessa who looked relieved until Robbie picked it up again and looked as though he was about to stab his father with it. Joe rolled his eyes and shook his head at the boy who dropped the prong quickly and sat down on the chair.
Joe pushed Geraldine into another chair and took the phone out of David’s hand. He waited until there was relative calm before he spoke.
“We don’t have to do the hog roast tonight. It’s far too late and far too complicated to get it going and I wouldn’t even like to guess what Patrick puts in the marinade. There’s loads of stuff here that would make dinner easier. I don’t think anyone will complain about the change in plans given the circumstances. There’s that huge pie Patrick made yesterday that we only need to heat and we can take something from the freezer. There’s always loads of prepared stuff in there. I’m sure there he made a massive lasagna just last week. The veg is already prepared and only needs a light steaming. We can serve fruit and cheese for desert.”
Geraldine slumped into a chair obviously glad to have someone take over.
“I am sorry Joe. We just panicked. I think this pregnancy ‘as made my brain stop working. Yes, of course you are right. David is ‘opeless as he is so worried and he can’t get through to Patrick to find out what is ‘appening to Ellen.”
Joe put a comforting hand on her shoulder before he turned to his friend and spoke in a gentle but commanding tone.
“Dave, we need cups of tea and Robbie needs some milk and a biscuit. It’s useless trying to contact Patrick right now. His phone will be turned off if he’s in the hospital. He will let us have any news as soon as he can. Now you make the tea while I find that lasagna.”
He grabbed up the pig, slung it over his shoulder and marched through to the huge larder. By the time he came back with a massive dish of lasagna, calm once again reigned in the kitchen.
Vanessa was tipping mixed veg into a steamer and Geraldine was moving a vast saucepan of new potatoes onto the huge stove. She spoke over her shoulder.
“I’ll do a load of garlic bread and a tomato and fresh ‘erb salad as well. I think that will suit everyone.”
They all took a moment to drink their tea and Geraldine made up some sandwiches for Robbie.
David looked pale but he was holding himself together and he looked over at Joe gratefully.
“Sorry about that. My mind went into overdrive. I’m just so worried about her. They have waited so long for this baby.”
Geraldine sat by her husband and put a hand on his arm.
“I am sure she and the baby are goin
g to be fine. It’s just a little early, that’s all. Babies come at their own pace not at anyone else’s schedule.”
David nodded and calmed visibly.
“Yes, of course. I know you’re right.” He looked around the kitchen and checked that everything appeared to be underway before going across to the computer to see if Patrick had anything special planned for that evening that they needed to use up.
He opened the open pages on the tabs and was a little surprised to see a set of wage slips appear before his eyes. He turned to Geraldine.
“Was Lucy using this today? She’s left herself logged on. If you think she’s finished I’ll shut it down for her.”
Geraldine came up behind him and peered over his shoulder curiously.
“She finished hours ago, but you would know that. She left here just after lunch to join you lot at the ravine. She only came down here to check something on her bank account.”
David frowned at Joe. Something felt wrong.
“Did you see her up at the zip wire?”
Joe was already shaking his head.
“She wasn’t there at all. I knew she didn’t like the sound of it so I wasn’t surprised when she didn’t show up. Someone said she was using the computer and I just assumed that idiot Freeman had given her some work that stopped her from coming with us. I haven’t seen her since she left the bedroom and I escorted to lunch this afternoon. Geraldine had asked me to go up there because she wasn’t happy about something Freeman had said.”
Geraldine broke in.
“That vile man just wants to get into ‘er underwear. He is disgusting and she detests him, I know it. I sent Joe up because I thought he was going to cause a problem. He ‘as already asked me to move his bags into her rooms. I refused yesterday, but this afternoon he was going on about ‘aving her send some emails. I do not trust that man and that’s why I asked you to go and look for her. She said she was too tired to walk back up to her room so I showed her down ‘ere after lunch to check some personal banking things and then she left to go with you.”
Forever Scarred (Scarred Series Book 3) Page 10
