Page 46 of One More Christmas at the Castle
‘Yes, they’re great for all the big things – sheets, towels, tablecloths – but if you need anything else ironing, leave it on the second rail near the door.’
‘It’s all so well organized!’
‘Many hands make light work,’ she said. ‘Though it’s just me in here doing the laundry, because I enjoy it.’
I left her in the warm and slightly steamy room, and went back to the kitchen where, since the cleaners still seemed to bein the tower, I gave the fridge a good clean out, which I’d been dying to do.
But when the Magic Mops contingent showed signs of approaching the servants’ wing, I thought it was time to make myself scarce. I’d go for a walk, leaving Xan in charge.
I took a cup of coffee with me and found him sitting in the big office chair, looking rather despairingly at all the open cupboards, which seemed to be crammed with papers, journals and files.
‘How’s it going?’ I asked.
‘Slowly. The drawers in the filing cabinet are in order because Sabine used to keep that tidy, but the rest of it is just chaos. I could really do with something like a pasting table to lay things out on, but I don’t suppose there’s such a thing in the Castle.’
‘Probably not, but Henry’s in Hexham this morning, so I could text him and tell him to get one? They’re very cheap and they fold, so it won’t be any trouble.’
‘Please do that,’ he said, brightening. ‘It’ll really help.’
I told him I was going out for about an hour. ‘I wouldn’t like to simply leave the house with the cleaners in, somehow, but if you’re here I’m sure Mrs Powys won’t mind.’
He looked slightly alarmed. ‘I don’t know anything about the cleaning!’
‘You don’t need to. I doubt if they’ll want to ask you about anything; they just sort of piled in and got on with it.’
‘OK,’ he said. ‘Plum doesn’t seem to want to go out again for a walk, or I’d ask you to take him with you.’
Plum, in fact, was curled up on a small sofa and hadn’t even raised his head when I went in, though he’d thumped his tail a couple of times. Now he sighed and closed his eyes again.
‘The word “walk” usually has most dogs going berserk,’ I observed. ‘I’ll bring you some lunch when I get back.’
‘I’m perfectly capable of making myself a sandwich,’ he objected.
‘Don’t be daft – you doyourjob and I’ll domine.’
I saw him grinning as I closed the door.
It still looked bitterly cold out there and I changed into warm clothes and got kitted up in my padded anorak of many colours before setting off.
Frost still furred everything that the weak sun hadn’t yet touched. I crossed the stone slab bridge over the stream and cut through the herb garden to the path Maria had said led to the Roman fort.
It was quite a climb up through the trees and the path was crossed at one point by the track that circled the estate. I’d have liked Plum’s company this morning, but not if I had had to carry him most of the way …
I let myself through a wicket gate into a huge field and found it was distinctly parky up there on the open hillside. The site was large and I could see the hummocks and exposed stones where old buildings and walls must lie.
With an icy wind tugging at my hair, I walked over to the nearest information board, and looked down into a deep trench, lined and paved with worked stone. To my surprise, there was also the crouched figure of a man with his back to me, who seemed to be examining the wall of the trench.
I made a startled noise and he turned his head and looked up at me, seeming equally surprised to see me standing there.
He was perhaps in his thirties, but his face was etched with lines of old pain and scarred badly up one side, from jawline to cheekbone. It made his mouth twist a little when he smiled, as he did now, though it was still surprisingly sweet.
‘Hello! Where did you spring from?’ he asked.
13
A Little Grimm
He got to his feet slowly and moved in an ungainly way to where the wall of the trench was lower and he could step up on to the turf.
