The Strawberry Field Girls by Karen Dickson

Author:Karen Dickson
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK
Published: 2022-11-24T00:00:00+00:00

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It was late afternoon by the time the storm abated. Mrs Gardener was snoring loudly, slumped on the sagging sofa, her mouth hanging open unattractively. Stephen was on his third sherry, or was it his fourth? Dora had lost count. His cheeks glowed from the effects of the alcohol and the warmth of the fire. She reached down and grabbed the handle of the shovel, lifting it from the coals, and slid the roasted chestnuts onto a plate, breathing in their smoky aroma.

‘I think I’ll put the kettle on and make a start on the supper,’ Hannah said, rousing herself from her post-dinner stupor and peering out of the window. By the thin light of the moon, she could see that the wind had blown the snow into deep drifts on either side of the lane, leaving the lane itself relatively clear. Unsurprisingly, there wasn’t a soul about. The moon was surrounded by a ghostly halo, a sure sign that more snow was on the way. She drew the curtains against the cold night, and hurried into the kitchen. Dora set the plate of chestnuts on the table and followed Hannah to the kitchen.

‘I suppose we’d better help,’ Daisy said, laying aside the copy of Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility she’d received for Christmas and getting up. ‘Come on, Leah,’ she said shooting her sister a look over her shoulder. ‘Don’t be lazy.’

Leah didn’t move. She knew she really should go and help, but she was so warm and comfortable on the sofa. A sort of lethargy had settled over her and she couldn’t muster the energy required to get up.

‘Do you fancy a game of Rummy, Mr Webb?’ said Nate, picking up the deck of cards and shuffling them with the expert hand of someone who played often.

‘Why not?’ Stephen grinned. ‘Pull up a chair, lad. Leah, will you play?’

Leah shook her head. She didn’t have the energy for cards, either. She didn’t know quite what ailed her. Her eyes felt hot, as if she were coming down with a fever, but she didn’t feel ill, apart from the strange queasiness in her stomach. Perhaps she’d eaten too much?

She closed her eyes, letting the various sounds wash over her, the clatter of crockery and cutlery in the kitchen, the rise and fall of Nate and Mr Webb’s voices, the splash of a glass being refilled, the hammering on the door…

Her eyes shot open. She looked at the door. Stephen and Nate both turned in surprise. The banging came again. Mrs Gardener woke with a snort.

‘What’s happening?’ she squeaked, squinting in the lamplight.

‘Who on earth…?’ Hannah exclaimed, appearing in the kitchen doorway, Dora and Daisy peering around her.

‘Don’t just sit there, Leah,’ she said in exasperation. ‘Open it.’

Stirred into action, Leah hurried to lift the latch. The door flew back, almost knocking her off her feet. For a moment she just stared at the shapeless lump weaving unsteadily on the doorstep. All she could see of the ice-encrusted figure was the eyes.

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