Page 15 of The Village of Lost and Found

‘I’m sure this will all be a bit of a change from London,’ he told her, standing up. ‘Hopefully the paparazzi will leave you alone down here.’

Lucy gulped. ‘I hope so too,’ she said, embarrassed once more that her love affair had become so public.

‘Well, you’ve seen the state of the place out there,’ said Tom. ‘Unfortunately, we downsized when we came here from the original offices in Aldwych and everything out of the archive storeroom came with us as well. It’s all a bit of a mess, to be honest. Just pick a pile and start sorting. Perhaps start with putting it in some kind of date order, regarding the old copies of the newspapers. Come to me with any queries before you throw anything out though. It might be important.’

So he didn’t even trust her to do the simple job of tidying up the office, thought Lucy. She really had reached rock bottom.

Somewhat in a daze, Lucy headed out of his office and stared at the mess. She was just working out where to start when her stomach rumbled. She decided that whatever kind of organising and sorting lay ahead, it could only be improved by a large coffee and something to eat.

8

‘Good morning,’ said a familiar voice as Lucy reached the veranda of The Cranbridge Stores. ‘This is a nice surprise.’

Sitting on one of the long benches that had been placed on the veranda and holding a takeout coffee cup was Uncle Frank alongside another, older gentleman.

‘Good morning,’ said Lucy, reaching down to give his bristly cheek a kiss. ‘And it’s not really a surprise, seeing as I live here at the moment. How did you get here? I told you last night that I was going to check up on you at lunchtime.’

‘I’ve been catching up on what I’ve been missing,’ said Frank. ‘And my dear friend and next-door neighbour, Stanley, gave me a lift, all one hundred yards of it. Stanley, this is my niece, Lucy.’

‘Lovely to meet you at last, my dear,’ said Stanley, with a soft smile. He was a similar age to Uncle Frank and had a gentle way of speaking.

‘You too.’ Lucy remembered the name as her uncle had often talked about his friend.

‘I’ve heard all about you, of course,’ carried on Stanley.

Lucy’s smile went a bit rigid. It appeared that she was the talk of the entire village.

‘Your uncle talks about you all the time,’ said Stanley.

Lucy relaxed somewhat. Of course, it was unlikely that someone like Stanley would read the tabloid newspapers. ‘And how are you?’ she asked.

‘All the better for having my coffee-drinking buddy back in the village,’ Stanley replied, looking across at his friend.

‘Did you get a good night’s sleep?’ asked Lucy, looking at her uncle. ‘And have you taken those pills that they gave you?’

‘Yes, Nurse Conway,’ said Uncle Frank, waving away her concerns with his hand. ‘So stop your nagging. I’ve managed this long by myself.’

Lucy looked up at the large bay window underneath which they were sitting. It was beautifully decorated with colourful flowers, freshly laid eggs and gardening equipment. It looked both stylish and fresh, perfect for a countryside village.

‘So have you run away from your first day on the job already?’ asked Frank, smiling.

Lucy shook her head. ‘No. Just in desperate need of a coffee and something to eat. Can I get you both something whilst I’m in there?’

They both declined her offer, so she pushed the door open, hearing a bell ring as she went inside.

The interior which she remembered being dark and cluttered now looked completely different. The space was the same as the newspaper office next door but was vastly improved. Along each wall were tall oak bookcases, filled with all manner of produce. There was the odd recognisable brand of food, but the rest all appeared to be more locally sourced.

‘Hello again!’ said a cheery voice.

Lucy looked across the room to where the same blonde woman she had seen earlier was just climbing down a stepladder.

‘Good morning,’ said Lucy, her eyes dropping to the large red tractor which stood between them. ‘Wow!’

‘Yes, I know,’ said the woman, laughing as she came to stand on the other side. ‘Not everyone is lucky enough to have a tractor in their shop!’

‘It’s certainly unique,’ said Lucy, with a smile.

But she couldn’t deny that it too was prettily decorated. All around the shiny red tractor were wooden crates, some decorated with red and white gingham cloth. In each of the crates there were loose fruit and vegetables, artfully arranged with a small blackboard next to each one showing the price. The final touch was some fairy lights, as well as huge buckets of fake sunflowers which filled the inside of the tractor’s driving seat.