Raising Arcadia by Simon Chesterman

Author:Simon Chesterman
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9789814751797
Publisher: Marshall Cavendish International

“Good afternoon, Mrs. Pike. How are you today?” She offers her most winning smile when their elderly neighbour answers her knock.

“Oh, can’t complain, young Arcadia,” Mrs. Pike replies, opening the door for her. “Would you like to come in?” An asthmatic bulldog bounds towards the door from the hallway inside, but she blocks its path with her foot. It breathes heavily, tongue dangling from one side of its mouth.

“That’s very kind of you, but I’ve got to get back to school. The police told us what a courageous thing you did. I just wanted to say thank you.”

Through the layers of makeup she cannot be sure, but the older woman appears to blush. “No bother, no bother. Have they caught the rapscallion?”

“Alas no,” she sighs. “Your description was very helpful, however. They said it had given them a good shot at catching the, uh, rapscallion.”

“Good, good,” she nods.

“If you aren’t too exhausted by the episode, would you be able to tell me what happened? It’s ever so exciting.” She blinks her eyes enthusiastically, trying not to overdo it.

It has the desired effect. “To be honest,” Mrs. Pike begins, “I didn’t get much of a look at him when he was loitering around your front door. Then he went and climbed over your gate. At first I thought he was you! Forgive me dear — you can’t tell boys from girls with these baggy clothes that children wear these days. Winston and I were on our walk to the park — you know my Winston” she scratches behind the ear of the bulldog wheezing at her feet — “he loves his walks does Winston. But then I said to Winston, ‘Young Arcadia is at school!’ I said. ‘And why would she be hanging about outside her own front door and jumping over fences?’ So, on our way back I popped over for a closer look. The lights were out and he was skulking about inside. This was passing strange, so Winston and I crept over to see what kind of funny business he was up to. My guess is that he knew your pa was a doctor and he was after some of those drugs. That’s what I said to the boys in blue. Anyway I couldn’t see too well inside on account of the lights being off and it was a sunny day outside but it was clear he was not on the side of the angels. That’s when Winston and I knew we had to call the police. Didn’t we, boy?”

The bulldog’s panting is taken as an affirmation. “So I took out my phone and was calling the police when I think he must have seen me. There was this terrible crash of glass and then I heard your back door open and slam. I thought he might come after us so Winston and I hurried back to our home and bolted the door. I kept an eye out on the street after that, but we saw neither hide nor hair of him.

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