Tales of the Black Dog by unknow

Author:unknow
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Corrugated Sky Publishing LLC
Published: 2016-10-30T04:00:00+00:00

Inn of the Black Dog

Karen Garvin They had been driving for the last hour through constant rain. Meghan was growing restless in the passenger seat and Raymond felt his legs starting to cramp in the rental car’s tiny space. He shifted awkwardly, trying to ease the growing pain in his calves without taking his foot off the accelerator. His movements pulled Meghan’s attention away from the window.

“How much farther is it?” she asked, stifling a yawn. “Not much.” Raymond hoped that his voice sounded confident, but he wasn’t too sure of the distance because the satnav had stopped working half an hour ago and there was no map in the car. Surely by now they would have reached the inn. The afternoon was waning and what little daylight was left seeped into the black-barked trees that lined the roadway until Raymond could not tell the difference between asphalt and timber. He gave an involuntary shudder and switched on the car’s headlamps.

After another two miles of blurred scenery, they rounded a sharp curve to the left. Ahead on the right, a stocky white building stood just off the road, flanked by a modest parking area. They were nearly on top of the inn before Raymond could make out the name on the sign hanging above its door.

“Here we are! The Inn of the Black Dog,” announced Raymond triumphantly as he swung the Ford into the car park and aimed it at an empty spot.

“You make it sound as though you’ve discovered a new continent,” groused Meghan. She fumbled for the release on the seat belt and fished around on the back seat for her umbrella.

“That’s not going to do a lot of good in this weather.” Raymond flashed his wife a lopsided smile.

“It’s better than nothing. And I don’t want my hair to get soaking wet.”

“Right! Well, here goes.” Raymond slipped out of the car and darted to the inn’s front door. He stood holding it open as Meghan walked deliberately across the gravel, fighting to keep the umbrella steady as gusts of wind tried to blow it inside out.

The interior of the inn was like something out of a history book. Dark paneled walls were decorated with prints of race horses and fox hunts in cheap gold-colored frames. Horse brasses were nailed up on the columns to either side of the check-in counter, which was barely visible beneath the terraced racks of travel brochures that cluttered its surface.

Raymond strode up to the counter, water dripping off his coat. “Hello!”

The innkeeper appeared from a back room and introduced himself as Mr. Connor. He tapped the computer’s keyboard to bring up the reservation software.

“You’ll be staying with us for five days?”

“Yes, that’s right,” said Raymond, leaning his elbows on the counter and tilting his head to catch sight of the computer screen. Connor stared at him until Raymond and straightened up.

“There’s a discount if you stay the weekend, too.” The innkeeper’s voice was oily, and he hesitated, as though he wasn’t sure whether to offer the bargain or not.

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