Escape to Bramble Patch Craft Shop

by Sarah Hope

  ‘I’m sure you’ll soon pick it up. When are you due?’ Molly tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

  ‘Not for another couple of months yet, so I’ve plenty of time to learn!’

  ‘I’m Pat, myself and my husband, Bill, here, retired a few months ago and so we’re looking for new hobbies to fill our time.’

  ‘That’s right. My mum always knitted and Pat here was interested in learning so I thought I’d come along too.’ Crossing his legs, Bill grinned.

  ‘Great. Well, I’ve got to be honest and say I’m overwhelmed by how many people have come along today so thank you, everyone, for coming along.’ Looking around, Molly smiled. It really was great that so many people had turned up, even if it was nerve-wracking. ‘Eva, Pat and Bill would you like to choose a ball of wool while I make the teas and coffees and then I’ll come and help you choose the knitting needles?’

  PATTING A SMALL NOTEPAD with the list of people’s choices of tea and coffee, Molly stood in the doorway to the small back kitchen and smiled. Eva, Pat and Bill were sorting through the small basket of balls of wool Molly had placed on a coffee table she’d found at the car boot. Gladys and Susan had pulled their knitting from bags by their feet and were now chatting and cooing over baby Frankie.

  Turning away, Molly went and switched the kettle on. She could do this. She could make friends and make this village their home. Plus, if this small group was anything to go by and the people around here were nice, their children must be as well. Lauren and Ellis would be fine, they’d settle into school. They’d enjoy it here. They just needed time to get used to everything.

  Pouring the water into the mugs, Molly smiled. She knew it was all a big move, a huge deal, for the children especially, but they could do this. They could put roots down here. Eva and Lucy might have older children. Maybe they could set up a play date for Ellis or organise a meet-up at the local coffee shop for Lauren. If the kids joined school even knowing one person, they’d find it easier, less daunting.

  Placing the mugs on the tray, Molly put the plate of cupcakes on too and carried it through to the shop floor.

  ‘Ooh cupcakes, lovely. There goes my diet this week!’ Gladys chuckled before reaching out and grabbing one. ‘Thank you, love.’

  ‘You’re welcome.’

  Making her way around the group. Molly placed mugs in front of everybody before positioning herself between Eva, Pat and Bill.

  ‘CAN I GET ANYONE ANOTHER tea or coffee?’ Standing up, Molly patted Eva on the arm. ‘That’s it, you’ve got it. Another six rows and I’ll come back and show you what to do next.’

  ‘Thanks.’

  ‘I’ll have another coffee, please?’ Lowering his knitting needles, Bill raised his mug.

  ‘Certainly.’ Making her way through to the back kitchen, Molly lowered the tray full of empty mugs onto the work surface. Things were going well. Checking the time on the wall clock, Molly grinned. They’d been here for just over an hour already and she’d only expected people to hang around for an hour at the most. She must be doing something right. They must feel welcome at least.

  Filling the mugs with boiling water, Molly stirred in the sugar before checking her phone. No messages or missed calls. She’d half expected Lauren or Ellis to have messaged to wish her luck. Well, Lauren anyway. Molly shook her head. Since splitting with Trevor, she’d always worked on the assumption that if she didn’t hear anything from them, then she knew they were okay and happy. They never really called or messaged when they were at their dad’s. Lauren had once confided that she found it more upsetting when Molly texted her, she’d said it reminded her of how much she was missing her, so since then Molly had told them she didn’t mind if they didn’t contact her as long as they knew they could, day or night, whatever the time. As long as they knew she was always there for them, they didn’t have to make contact and Molly tried not to message them. However unnatural it felt, she needed to do what was best for Lauren and Ellis and for whatever reason they felt uncomfortable with it so she had to respect their wishes.

  Grabbing the dishcloth, Molly wiped up a splash of tea from the work surface. Friday seemed so far away.

  Shaking her head, she tried to put the fact that she was missing out on them being here for the opening week out of her mind. Lauren and Ellis would be having a far better time staying at Jessica’s parents’ house with the hot tub, large garden and theme park on the doorstep. However much Molly had wanted them here to open up their little family business, she knew they’d be enjoying themselves probably far more than if they were here, cooped up in the shop.

  Molly picked up the tray, careful to keep it balanced as she made her way back through to the shop floor.

  ‘... AND THEN HE TOOK ONE look at my bump and said he’d let me off this time. I was so relieved. You can just imagine me having to explain to the midwife that I was late for the appointment because I’d been caught speeding. Thank you.’ Eva took her coffee from Molly and turned back to Lucy.

  ‘Aw, he’s so lovely. I think we’re really lucky here to have a police officer like him. You hear horror stories from other places where they’ve got officers who are just on an ego trip. You know the ones I mean? Who give out parking tickets just for fun?’

  ‘I know the ones you mean, I got caught speeding yesterday just coming along the country road from the town and I must have literally only been doing a couple of miles over the limit, if I was doing that!’ Placing Lucy’s coffee on the coffee table in front of her, Molly grimaced at Eva. ‘I wish it’d been the officer that pulled you over.’

  ‘Yes, Officer Duffey is lovely.’ Eva sipped her drink.

  ‘Not to mention absolutely gorgeous!’

  ‘Lucy!’ Spluttering into her mug, Eva placed it on the table and took up her knitting again.

  ‘Officer Duffey?’ Frowning, Molly looked from Eva to Lucy. He was the officer they were speaking so highly of? How?

  ‘Yes, he’s always been very good. When the farm up the road was broken into last spring and half their farming equipment was stolen, he went above and beyond to get their stuff back.’ Lucy patted baby Frankie on the back.

  ‘I often think how difficult it must be for him to see this place every time he visits his mother. You can’t imagine it, can you?’ Eva wrapped her wool around her needle.

  ‘Molly, love, could you just help me with this bit? I think I’ve gone wrong somewhere, this stitch looks really loose, doesn’t it?’ Pat held up her knitting.

  Glancing back at Eva and Lucy who were again in deep conversation, Molly made her way towards Pat. What had they meant when they’d said he must find it difficult seeing this place? What did Bramble Patch have to do with him? Molly shook her head, it didn’t matter anyway. It was none of her business.

  LOCKING THE DOOR, MOLLY twisted the sign around to ‘closed’ and pulled the blind down to cover the glass panes in the door. Going back to the counter, she opened the till. The takings weren’t too bad, not for a first day, anyway. Yes, she’d have to make more each day to keep afloat, but for a first day, she was happy.

  Closing the till again, Molly ran her fingers through her hair and yawned. A nice warm bath and a good old cuppa were calling her. She just needed to switch off for a bit. Maybe after a bit of downtime, she’d find the energy to unpack some boxes upstairs.

  Closing the door to the shop, she made her way up the narrow staircase towards the flat and reached into her back pocket as her mobile pinged. It was Lauren.

  Lauren – Hey, Mum. How did the opening go?

  Sinking down onto the top stair, Molly replied.

  Molly – It was good thanks. Had quite a few people to the Knit and Natter and had a few customers xxx

  Lauren – That’s good then x

  Molly – Yes. How’s your day been? Xxx

  Lauren – OK I guess. Ellis is annoying me x

  Molly – Oh no, how come? Xxx

  Lauren – Just being him. He’s OK really. Miss you x

  Pinch
ing the bridge of her nose, Molly blinked back the tears stinging her eyes.

  Molly – Miss you too. You’ll be home soon though xxx

  Lauren – Dad’s on about us staying til Saturday now x

  What? He’d said Thursday or Friday. Why did he have to keep changing the goalposts? He was quick to pick them up late and drop them off early when they were just going to their house, but when something like taking them to Jessica’s parents’ or something came up, he wanted to have them for longer. Taking a deep breath, Molly reminded herself that as long as he was seeing the kids and spending time with them, it didn’t matter what the motivation behind it was. It didn’t matter if he only wanted them when it was convenient for him. As long as Lauren and Ellis felt wanted and as long as they didn’t realise what game he was playing, it didn’t really matter.

  Molly – How come? Xxx

  Lauren – Jessica’s brother is coming with his kids and Dad’s said we can all go to the park Friday if we stay x

  Molly swallowed.

  Molly – I thought they were going the same time as you? xxx

  Lauren - No that’s Freya and Max’s parents, this is another brother. Max and Freya are here already.

  Molly - That’ll be good then xxx

  Lauren – I guess so x

  Molly – Can I ring you? xxx

  Shifting on the step, Molly crossed her legs and leant her back against the wall.

  Lauren – Can we just text? I’m in the living room and everyone is here x

  Molly – OK that’s fine. We can text xxx

  Lauren – Actually I need to go. I’ll message later x

  Molly – OK. I love you and can you tell Ellis I love him too, please? xxx

  Clasping her mobile in her hand, Molly wiped her eyes. He’d done it again. He’d asked the kids if they wanted to stay before asking her if it was okay. For all he knew, she could have had something planned for Saturday. But, hey. It was all about him, wasn’t it? She didn’t matter. She never had.

  Reaching behind her, she rubbed her neck. She certainly didn’t matter now, but the kids did and she didn’t want them being used as trophies he could flaunt when he wanted to and then not bother with until the next time something came up.

  She wasn’t going to message back, was she? It was probably dinnertime or something. Standing up, Molly picked her way through the towers of boxes to the bathroom.

  Chapter Six

  Turning her music up to full volume, Molly switched her headlights to full beam. She could get used to this. Being the only person for miles around. Beyond the hedgerows lining the road, fields stretched for miles into the distance, their crops standing tall and proud against the moonlit backdrop of the evening.

  Molly smiled, she’d treated herself to a bottle of wine and a frozen pizza from the supermarket which she was looking forward to opening. A nice TV night was calling for her today. Yes, she should probably spend the evening unpacking but, thanks to Trevor, she now had all week to do that and after moving things around to make room for another delivery, she needed a soak in the bath and then an evening binge-watching her favourite series. And she deserved it.

  A loud ‘pop’ vibrated through the car and she gripped the steering wheel, trying to pull the car back towards the left as it shuddered and veered across the lines in the middle of the road.

  Damn, what had happened? Slowing down, Molly could feel something was wrong. What was it? Had her tyre blown? Bringing the car to a stop at the side of the road, Molly was careful not to pull over too far onto the grass verge, she was sure a ditch ran the entire length of the road next to the hedgerow. The last thing she needed was to have to call someone to pull her out. Flicking her full-beam off, she clicked on her hazard warning lights and slipped out of the car.

  Using the torch on her phone, she walked around the outside of the car, shining it on the tyres. The front ones were fine. Maybe she’d been imagining things.

  Nope, the back right tyre had blown. A gasping gash seared its way through to the metal of the wheel. How had that happened? She’d only recently had the MOT done before they’d moved. Wasn’t the garage supposed to check the tyres?

  Shaking her head, she took a deep breath. Who was she kidding? She had no idea what was involved in a MOT apart from that it was supposed to give the car the all clear of being roadworthy and safe. Maybe they didn’t check the tyres, or maybe it couldn’t be predicted if a tyre was going to blow or not.

  Turning around, she glanced up and down the road. There was no one to be seen, no car headlights in the distance and she was too far out for anyone but the most serious dog walkers, and it was too dark and late for them. Nope, she was definitely on her own.

  Okay, she could do this. Well, no, she couldn’t change a tyre, she never had. She’d never tried. She’d never needed to. The only time she’d got a flat tyre had been shortly after she’d passed her test and she’d driven one of her old friends to the City to go shopping. They’d noticed they had a flat and had rung her breakdown cover. She could remember as clear as if it was yesterday, that the mechanic who had come out had told her she wouldn’t have been able to have changed it on her own anyway because she wouldn’t have been strong enough. She remembered she’d felt more than ever so slightly miffed at that remark.

  Well, she’d put on enough weight since then to have the power behind her to undo the wheel nuts now. She was sure of that. She just wished she’d learnt how to do it.

  Shrugging her shoulders, she sighed. She paid enough money for breakdown cover, she might as well use it. Turning her phone over in her hand, the torch pointing downwards and illuminating the tarmac; she scrolled through her contacts. What would she have saved the number under? Something generic like ‘Breakdown’ or under the name of the company she was with?

  Here, pressing the green button, Molly held the phone to her ear and listened to the rings.

  What? The mobile went silent, the ringing stopped and the torch went out, the darkness suddenly engulfing her, only the hazard warning lights flickering on and off punctured the night. The pale shimmer from the moon up above barely illuminated the trees and hedges enveloping her.

  Holding her phone in front of her, Molly stared at it, rapidly pressing the power button. Damn, the battery had run out.

  Looking around her, the dark shadows of branches danced on the road in the glow of orange from the intermittent hazard warning lights. Rubbing her temples, she reminded herself that was all they were. They were just trees; it was just nature. There was nothing to worry about. She’d just charge her phone and ring them again. It wouldn’t take long to get a bit of power.

  Slipping back behind the steering wheel, Molly switched the little light on above the rearview mirror and rummaged through the empty mint wrappers and old receipts in the small space beside the gear stick. She’d brought a new in-car phone charger only the other week after her old one had stopped working, which had probably been something to do with the fact that Lauren had yanked it out of the cigarette lighter in a panic to answer her phone to one of her friends.

  Umm, that was strange. It wasn’t there. Replacing the wrappers, she reached down into the side pocket on her door before leaning across the passenger seat and checking the one on the passenger’s door.

  Nope, it wasn’t there either. Where on earth was it? She knew she’d definitely had the new one in here, she’d used it on the way when they’d moved. Leaning back against her chair, she closed her eyes. Lauren had taken it. She remembered now. She’d said something about Trevor not having the same phone as hers and needing to take it with her to charge her phone on the way to Jessica’s parents’ house.

  Damn. Opening her eyes, she hit the palm of her hands against the steering wheel. What now? She was stuck in the middle of nowhere. Okay, not the middle of nowhere. She was probably only a few miles from home, but without a torch, Bramble Patch may as well have been twenty miles away.

  Taking a deep breath, she breathed out slowly through her nostrils. S
he was being daft. All she needed to do was change the tyre and then she could get back. It couldn’t be too hard, could it? And she basically knew how to do it, she’d just never tried to before.

  Yes, she could do it. She vaguely remembered that cars normally had a jack hidden somewhere in the boot. And she knew that she’d have to be careful where she placed the jack. In a certain position, it would go through the bottom of the car. She was sure of that. It couldn’t be too hard to work out, could it?

  Slipping back out, she made her way to the back of the car and opened the boot. With the orange light from the hazards, she felt with her fingertips around the inside of the boot, and carefully pulled back the carpet covering the bottom. There it was, the little compartment. She’d known they’d be one. Putting her hand in, she felt around until she felt the cold of metal under her fingers. Pulling out the contraption, she slipped back into her seat to have a proper look at it in the light.

  Okay, it looked as though it would be easy enough to work out. If she twisted this bit, that bit extended. She could do this. She’d get the jack in place and raise the car and then get the spare tyre out. Switching her headlights back on, she stood up and closed the driver’s door.

  Back around the back next to the blown tyre, Molly knelt down. Even with the glow from the headlights, it was still difficult to see. Resting back on her ankles, she ducked her head under, trying to see where to place the jack. Feeling along the underside of the car, she found a place which felt as though it might be a bit stronger than the rest.

  Positioning the jack in place, she began twisting the small handle.

  She felt the slow rumble of tyres on the tarmac before she saw the headlights swinging around the corner. Jumping up, Molly breathed a sigh of relief. Maybe they could help her. Or if they couldn’t, they were bound to have a mobile she could borrow. Standing behind her car, out of the way of the oncoming vehicle, Molly waved her arms in the air.