Читать книгу The Forgotten Cottage - Helen Phifer - Страница 12

Chapter Three

Annie was glad to finish work; she’d been stuck all afternoon directing traffic in the glaring sun for the Windermere air show. It had gone fast but it was too hot to work, especially in the direct sun with frustrated motorists driving at you from every direction and not one of them understanding what a stop sign meant. A woman with a car full of grey-haired friends had almost taken her out and she had to stop herself from calling her a ‘fucking idiot’. This would not have gone down very well with the public and probably would have resulted in a complaint to her sergeant, even though it was deserved.

The small station was empty when she got back; everyone was out enjoying the show, even Inspector Cathy Hayes, who always managed to worm her way out of as many public gatherings as she could. Annie was relieved because it meant she had time for a quick shower and could get changed in peace then drive to the car ferry to meet Will on the opposite side of Lake Windermere at the Queen’s Head in Hawkshead village. He had promised to buy her tea and a cold glass of wine and the thought of it had kept her going all afternoon.

She dried herself and got dressed in a pair of grey linen trousers, which were much cooler than her thick black combat pants, and a pale green blouse. She clipped her hair up and did a five-minute make-up job. Her nose was sunburnt so she covered it as best she could and left the station.

A door banged along the corridor. Annie paused; she knew the station was empty – it must be the resident ghost. She smiled to herself; although she hadn’t seen this one because it was very shy and kept itself to itself, it did like to bang doors and let her know it was around. She wasn’t threatened by it or afraid because she knew it meant no harm; it was just going about its daily business and wasn’t interested in her. Sometimes it was like that; not all ghosts were hanging around because they were stuck in this life or didn’t know how to move on. Some stayed because they wanted to.

She knew all of this because after sustaining a serious head injury two years ago that had been given to her by her now dead husband, she had started to see ghosts. Which had totally freaked her out at first but after a while she had come to realise that it was a special gift and one which had helped her to overcome a serial killer by helping a lovely ghost called Alice. She thought about poor little nine-year-old Sophie, who had desperately needed Annie’s help to be set free from the Shadow Man who had taken her away from her family and kept her in the shadows for twenty years. She had come to Annie for help and fighting the Shadow Man had been the scariest thing Annie had done up to now. Her friend Father John had tried to send him back to hell but had almost failed and it had been Annie who had stood her ground in sending him back, setting Sophie free in the process and reuniting her with her dead mum. Annie was lucky she wasn’t plagued by dead people all the time but if they needed her help they would come to her. Will had been scared by it at first but he and Jake, her best friend, had come to accept that Annie was now psychic and not mentally unstable and it was just a part of her life.

She walked to the door and shouted down the corridor, ‘Bye, you’re on your own now but someone will be in later and I’ll be back tomorrow afternoon.’ Another door banged in answer and Annie smiled to herself. She would like to actually meet whoever it was when they plucked up the courage to show themselves.

She got into her convertible red Mini and put the roof down. It was stuffy inside and she wanted to freshen up and besides she only got to do this about six times a year with all the rain there usually was. The roads were still busy and it took her much longer to get to the car ferry than normal. There was a queue but she managed to squeeze into the last spot on the boat which had just loaded. She paid her £4.50 and looked out across the water at the view. It was beautiful; there were lots of boats out sailing on the calm blue lake. The trees, houses and hills which surrounded the lake blended in seamlessly. The ferry was full of families and the sound of laughter as excited children were led from their cars by parents to take in the views.

Annie closed her eyes. She didn’t think there was anything nicer than the sound of children’s laughter and wondered to herself if she and Will would ever have any kids. Will was forty-five so he wasn’t too old to be a dad and she was only thirty-four but it wasn’t something they’d ever discussed. She had always thought she didn’t want kids, especially with Mike. It wouldn’t have been fair to subject them to his violent outbursts. It was a relief that she had managed to escape from him when she had. Lately, every time she saw a woman pushing a pram or a man carrying a toddler through the busy streets of Bowness she would picture Will with a cute kid in his arms and her heart would ache just a tiny bit. Maybe once they were married and settled down she would broach the subject with him and see how he felt. Of course if he didn’t want kids that was fine as well but she thought that he would make such an amazing dad it would be a shame not to give him the opportunity.

The ferry docked on the opposite side of the lake with a loud groan and a squeal of metal against stone and then it stopped suddenly. The barriers lifted and she turned the Mini’s engine back on—last on, last off. There was a long line of cars waiting to board the ferry and go back to the other side. She drove off and waved at the ticket collector. Then she drove the short distance towards Hawkshead and the man of her dreams, who had texted her to say he was waiting for her at the pub and had managed to get a table out the front. She parked in the car park, emptying her purse of ten pence pieces, feeding them into the machine. She got a ticket and then hurried to go and meet Will.

The early evening sun was still warm and the village was full of people wandering around. Annie walked towards the pub and felt her heart fill with joy at the sight of Will and the ice-cold glass of wine on the table in front of him. He looked up from the menu and grinned at her, his blue eyes crinkled full of mischief. He looked so like his dad. Annie squeezed past a loud American couple who were blocking the way and bent down to kiss him on the cheek. He turned and kissed her on the lips and it was her turn to grin.

‘Phew, am I glad to see you—what a day.’

She sat on the wooden bench next to him and picked up the glass, taking a large gulp. ‘It’s amazing.’

‘What is—me or the wine?’

‘You, of course, and the wine.’

He nudged her softly in the side. ‘You liar—you meant the wine. I don’t know about you but I’m starving and I’m having the biggest steak and chips they can drag out of the fridge.’

Annie looked at the menu and nodded in agreement. ‘I’ll have steak and a jacket potato, please.’

Will stood up and made his way to the bar to order. Annie sipped her wine as she people-watched. She could spend all evening people-watching. The American couple sat next to an older couple on the bench opposite and had struck up a conversation about how beautiful the village was and Annie agreed with them, it truly was. She could see the church, which was on a steep hill above the village square and she thought about Father John. She hadn’t seen him for a while; she should really go and pay him a visit. Now that he’d taken over the church in Bowness permanently she wanted to ask him about the wedding. When she’d saved his life last year he’d told her he owed her one and would marry her and Will on the house. She wasn’t after a cheap wedding but she would very much like him to marry them both.

Will reappeared and sat back down. ‘I’ve got a surprise to show you after, but it will have to wait until we’ve finished eating.’

‘You know I don’t like surprises—can’t you just tell me what it is now?’

‘No, sorry, I can’t. For once you will have to be patient and anyway I will have to take you to it.’

Annie scrunched up her face. No idea what he was talking about but she didn’t care; she could manage to wait an hour. They talked about Tom, Lily, the wedding, anything and everything, until the food arrived and Annie’s stomach let out a groan at the size of the plate. Then they ate in complete silence, until the American woman leant over and asked her what she was eating because it looked divine. When they were both finished they left the pub and walked hand in hand back towards the car park.

‘What do you want to do—follow me or leave your car here and I’ll bring you up to get it tomorrow?’

‘I’ll come with you and you don’t need to bring me back up. Cathy is working in Barrow until dinner time; I’ll ask her to pick me up on her way back up to Windermere and she can drop me off here.’

‘Sounds like a plan. Come on, you’re going to love this – I hope.’

They climbed into his car and he drove the opposite way that they would normally come down the small road which led through the village until they passed a big farmhouse and lots of barns. He carried on driving for a couple of minutes and then turned off at an old broken gate onto an overgrown gravel drive. It was bumpy and the hedges were so overgrown it was impossible to see where they were going. Will drove slowly until the drive opened onto a large house which was unloved and in desperate need of repair, but it was love at first sight for Annie.

‘Oh, my, what an amazing house. Whose is it?’

Will stopped the car under a huge drooping lilac tree and picked up her hand. ‘Well, that depends on how much you like it because if you do like it then we could.’

She looked at him. ‘How?’

‘Well, you said you’d like to live in this area and it belongs to my dad’s friend who owns the farm we passed. He wants to sell it and was going to put it up for auction but he said if we like it then we can have first refusal; it will save him the hassle of trying to sell it.’

Tears glistened in her eyes and for the first time in months she felt speechless. ‘But how could we afford it?’

Will began to laugh. ‘This is cheeky, I know, but your house sale should complete soon, so that would be almost enough to pay for it. We can sell mine and then use that money to renovate it. But, to be truthful, you really don’t need to worry if we can afford it; all I care about is if you love it enough to want to spend the time renovating it and then living in it. The rest will work itself out.’

Will didn’t want to sound pretentious but he could more than afford it without using Annie’s money but she would want to contribute and he didn’t want to take her independence away from her.

‘Will, I love it. Have you been inside? How bad is it?’

‘I had a look around before I went to the pub and, believe it or not, considering it’s been empty for over twenty years it’s not in too bad a shape. The roof is sound and the structure; it needs new windows and doors, damp-proofing, and there are a lot of small rooms downstairs that could be knocked through to make it more open-plan and spacious, but see what you think.’

They got out of the car and Annie squealed. The garden was overgrown but amongst the weeds and brambles were cornflowers, lavender, roses and wild foxgloves. Will took hold of her hand and led her towards the front door, which had its own porch built around it. The trellis on either side was rotten and the creamy white rambling rose that covered it was holding it all together but it could all be replaced.

As she followed Will under the porch she shivered and the hairs on the back of her neck prickled; her inbuilt supernatural radar was telling her it was already inhabited by someone that Will would never see but there was no way she would let it stop her because she knew that she wanted to love this house from the inside as much as she loved the outside. As Will pushed the wooden door open, she looked at the faded wooden sign above it – Apple Tree Cottage – and sighed. The house was empty for now and Will led her by the hand from room to room. It was a good job neither of them were tall, as the ceilings were low. Each one had exposed wooden beams. Jake would struggle because he was very tall, but after hitting his head a few times he would remember about them. The kitchen was the only room that still had most of its cupboards and a huge old-fashioned range cooker. It wasn’t very big and Will read her mind. ‘If we knocked through this and the other two rooms we could have a really big kitchen-diner where you could practise your cooking skills.’

He winked at her and she laughed.

‘Cheeky—it’s a good job you can cook or we’d starve. Will, I love it. I can see a huge pine table and chairs and a sofa and a bookcase in the corner.’

She could also see children running and playing but she didn’t say this because she didn’t want to him to get scared before they’d even finished looking.

‘It’s everything I’ve ever dreamt about, but what about you? Your house is equally as gorgeous, just a lot smaller.’

‘I love it around here, Annie, and I would very much like to live here, in this house. I think it has so much potential and it will make an amazing family home. Of course, it will also be a major pain in the arse with the planning and builders and mess, but if you can put up with it then so can I.’

Annie held her breath. He’d said ‘family home’ and she wondered if perhaps he’d been thinking the same as she had but been too afraid to say anything. She threw her arms around his neck and kissed his lips hard, then just as quickly she pulled away, taking his hand and dragging him to the rickety, steep staircase. They climbed up the stairs and Annie was surprised at how large the landing was; there was enough room by the small window which looked out over the fields and woods at the back of the house to put a desk and chair. They went in each room. There were five bedrooms in all and a bathroom. These rooms were much larger than the ones downstairs and the master bedroom was bigger than the one they had now. Annie paused in there to look at a painting on the wall; it was of the house when it was lived in. The exterior walls were white and the window frames painted pale green and Annie knew then that this was how she wanted it to look, exactly the same. There were wisps of smoke coming from the chimney and in the garden under a tree in the corner she could just make out the figure of a woman who was wearing a long white dress and had long straight dark hair. She had a basket on her arm but she was only visible to the naked eye if you squinted. Annie wondered if this part of the painting had been damaged somehow because the rest was in good condition.

She heard a scratching sound and whirled around. It sounded like fingernails being scraped across a blackboard. She shuddered but it stopped as suddenly as it had started. Will, who had wandered into the next bedroom, called her to come and have a look at the view. She pushed the noise to the back of her mind. The house had been empty so long it was bound to have mice, birds and God knows whatever else living inside. A voice whispered, And ghosts. She followed Will’s voice to the room, which looked onto the front garden from the large window. As she crossed the creaking floor to look out of it she was hit by a sense of àdéjà vu so strong that it made her knees tremble. She had looked out of this window before—the last two nights in a row in her nightmare. Will looked at her, taking hold of her hand.

‘What’s wrong Annie—is everything okay?’

She smiled at him, afraid to tell him anything when she didn’t understand it herself.

‘Wow, it’s truly beautiful, Will. I can’t believe it’s just been left to go to ruin for so long. I wonder why the owners moved out?’

‘I do know, but I don’t want to put you off.’

‘Oh, God, please don’t tell me someone was murdered in here.’

Will laughed. ‘You’re funny, Annie, and you have the nerve to call Jake a drama queen. No, nothing as horrible as that. The couple that lived here were called Bill and Margaret and they left because Bill became quite poorly, mentally. He had to be put into a mental hospital and back then it wasn’t as easy to get out as it is now. His wife was elderly and she moved into a flat to be near her husband, but his health deteriorated and he died. Margaret was devastated and didn’t want to live here on her own so she never came back.’

‘Aw that’s so sad, but kind of romantic too. And now we might be able to live here and bring it back to life.’

‘Yes, say the word, Miss Graham, and it can be ours. I’ll call and see the owner on the way back.’

Annie chewed her lip and looked around. She loved it and it would make the most amazing house once the wildlife and the ghost had been cleared out. The house was begging to be renovated.

‘Yes, please. I would so much love to live here with you for the rest of our lives.’

This time it was Will’s turn to kiss her and as he pulled her close she thought she heard that high-pitched scratching again but she blocked it out. Sending a message to whomever it was that she would deal with them when the time was right and she was ready, she leant forward, kissing Will back.

‘Eek, I’m so excited to live here I’d live in a caravan in the grounds until it’s ready if we have to.’

Will laughed. ‘If we have to, we can stay with my dad and Lily. I’m not too keen on caravans. Wait until you see the back garden; there’s an orchard full of fruit trees and over an acre of pasture land, so if you ever fancied owning a horse, now’s your chance.’

‘I’ve never really been the horsey type but I might agree to some chickens and a potbellied pig.’

They went out and as Will locked the front door Annie saw a shadow pass over the bedroom window they had just been looking out of. She looked up and strained her eyes but there was no one there, or so she hoped because she didn’t want to have her chance of a happy ever after spoiled by some restless spirit.