The Heart of the Dales by Gervase Phinn Page B

Richard up, then we can eat,’ she said.
    When I came downstairs, having tucked the sleepy baby into his cot, supper was on the table.
    â€˜Harry Cotton’s been round today,’ Christine said, heaping beef stew onto my plate.
    â€˜So I hear. He told me he’d had a word with you.’
    â€˜Was that who I heard you talking to before you came in?’
    â€˜Yes, he was practically lying in wait for me outside,’ I told her. ‘I had to endure five minutes of his blather before I could get rid of him. Once he gets started there’s no stopping him, and he’s always got the weight of the world on his shoulders. The last thing I wanted tonight was a dose of Harry’s words of wisdom.’
    â€˜He’s not that bad,’ said Christine. ‘Harry’s quite endearing, really, and it’s good to have a neighbour who keeps an eye on things. He told me he’s a bit down in the dumps at the moment because of the new landlord at the pub. Apparently, the man’s causing a few waves, upsetting the regulars by changing things.’
    â€˜He told me,’ I said. ‘Harry doesn’t like change and that’s for sure. If it was up to him, we’d still live in the dark ages. He’s always harping on about the good old days when bobbies walked the beat, nobody dropped litter and children did as they were told.’
    â€˜Well, in my opinion, the Royal Oak wants changing,’ Christine said. ‘It’s a smelly, run-down place at the best of times. Only the old villagers go there.’
    â€˜It’s not that bad,’ I said. ‘It’s got character, although I must admit it could do with a lick of paint and some new furniture.’
    â€˜It’ll take more than a lick of paint and new furniture,’ she said. ‘It’s very old-fashioned. People nowadays want a more cheerful place in which to drink.’
    â€˜Harry also mentioned the garden,’ I said.
    â€˜Yes, he did to me as well,’ said Christine, ‘and he wondered if we might be interested in his – er, brother’s grandson, I think, tidying it up a bit. I’m too busy at the moment trying to get the spare bedroom sorted, and Richard takes so much of my time, and I know you’re not up to it.’
    â€˜It’s not that I’m not up to it,’ I replied, a little annoyed by the comment. ‘It’s just that I’m up to my eyes at work and have so much on my plate at the moment.’ I must have sounded like a petulant schoolboy.
    â€˜Don’t be so touchy,’ said Christine, stretching out her hand to mine. ‘What I meant was that you’re far too busy and that you haven’t the time. Anyway, Harry’s brother’s grandson,Andy, leaves school next summer and could do with some extra money. He’s working up at Ted Poskitt’s farm at the weekends but it’s not a regular job and he’s trying to save enough to put himself through Askham Bryan Agricultural College near York. From what Harry says, he seems a willing enough lad and would be a real help with the digging and weeding and doing a few repairs. What do you think?’
    â€˜So long as it doesn’t cost us too much,’ I said, ‘it sounds like a good idea.’
    â€˜I thought you’d say that,’ said Christine, ‘so I’ve asked Andy to come up and see you. Now, what about the washing up?’
    I just could not sleep that night. My thoughts kept returning again and again to the situation at Ugglemattersby Junior School and what I would say to Miss de la Mare when I faced her the next morning. In the bright light of day, problems always seem far less important than they do in the dead of night. When you’re in bed surrounded by the silence and the darkness with your mind going over things again and again, it is then you imagine the worst possible scenario.
    Finally I drifted off into a fretful sleep but was soon