Page 16 of Mrs. Endicott's Splendid Adventure
“I’m sure it’s quite all right, Mavis. Go ahead. Enjoy yourself.” Ellie helped herself to a piece of bread and handed over the basket. She took a sip of the rich red wine, feeling its warmth instantly flowingthrough her. She sat as if in a trance, taking in the scene around her: the twinkling lights, the unfamiliar smells of grilling meats, onions and garlic, the sounds of music, the shouts of children, the laughter. And she felt a bubble of happiness rising within her, as if years of frost and loneliness were already starting to melt.
Everyone at the table wanted to know all about them—where they had come from, where their husbands were, how many children they had, where they were going. Ellie’s head was spinning as she tried to answer them in her rusty French, but the villagers listened patiently and nodded as she spoke.
“You have our language. That is good,” an old lady said, patting Ellie’s hand.
They all expressed dismay that two of the women had no children and that none of them had a husband. “Madame Girard here, she is also a widow,” the woman opposite Ellie said. The woman gave a sympathetic nod.They think we’re widows, which is good,Ellie thought.
A band assembled in the square—a fiddle, an accordion and motley instruments. Music started playing, echoing out through the evening air. People got up to dance, holding hands in a circle, moving faster and faster until they broke apart laughing.
More wine and food were pressed upon them. They were told that the harvest had been a good one this year. God had been good to them.
The church clock was striking ten as they walked back to their inn, leaving the celebration still in full swing. Ellie was feeling the effects of the wine as well as the constant conversation in a foreign tongue, but she was also feeling a deep contentment that the decision she had made had been the right one. The risk had already paid off.
“Those people know how to have a good blowout, don’t they, missus?” Mavis said. “You don’t see them having a good time like that in England.”
“No, Mavis, you don’t. And I’m sure English people would not take strangers to their hearts the way these people did.”
“I was quite touched,” Miss Smith-Humphries said. “They treated us like long-lost kin. If the place we eventually stay is like this, it will be most interesting.”
“If a little exhausting,” Ellie added.
Miss Smith-Humphries smiled. “That is true, of course. One would not like this type of thing to happen every night, but I’m glad we experienced it as our introduction to France. It reminds us why we have such fond memories from our youth.”
Up in their room Ellie listened to the distant sounds of laughter and singing.So far from home,she thought. Lionel would have found her note by now. Would he be fuming about the car, or would he actually be missing her?He’s no longer my husband,she thought.It doesn’t matter what he feels or thinks.
Chapter 7
The next morning they were greeted with a breakfast of fresh baguette and apricot jam as well as milky coffee. Simple but satisfying.
“I remember how good the bread tastes here,” Miss Smith-Humphries said. “So how far do you think we will get today?”
“Let’s look at the map when we get back to the motor car,” Ellie said. “Not all the way to the coast, I’m pretty sure, but I hope we can stop beyond Lyon.”
They loaded up the car again, finding it untouched as the men had promised, and the two women in the front seat studied the map.
“I suppose it depends how fast we can go,” Ellie said. “If we have to go through many villages with narrow streets like this one, we will probably have to spend the night in Lyon.”
“One forgets that France is a big country, doesn’t one?” Miss Smith-Humphries said. “There are not many places in Britain that could not be reached in two days. The north of Scotland, maybe.”
Ellie turned back to Mavis. “You’re awfully quiet, Mavis. Are you not feeling well?”
“I’m all right, missus,” Mavis said. “I’m just not used to drinking wine, and I think it’s sinking in that I’m a long way from my home.”
“That’s true,” Miss Smith-Humphries said, “but would you rather be there or here?”
Mavis looked out of the window. It was another glorious autumn day. “Well, if you put it that way—I never thought I’d get to see a bitof the world before I died, and now I am. So I’d ruddy well better make the most of it, hadn’t I?”
“That’s the ticket,” Miss Smith-Humphries said. “Ready for adventure. And so am I.”
They set off, driving due south now, through the towns of Châlons and Dijon. Ellie was coming to terms with driving on the right-hand side but drove extra carefully through busy streets. Once in the countryside again, they rolled down their windows and enjoyed the warm air in their faces. They approached the city of Lyon around four o’clock.
“I suppose we should find a hotel in the city,” Miss Smith-Humphries said. “I doubt there will be any proper establishments on the other side of it until we get to Avignon. Last night’s inn was clean enough, but that bed—the springs creaked loudly every time I turned over, and the facilities were sadly lacking.”
“I agree, but I’m anxious to reach the coast tomorrow if we can,” Ellie said. “Should we not take our chances again? No harm came to us from last night, and it was so cheap that it was almost embarrassing.”
“We are in your hands, Mrs Endicott,” Miss Smith-Humphries said, her voice cold enough to let Ellie know that she didn’t approve. Ellie noted the frigidity now in the car.
“That’s another thing,” Ellie replied. “Since we’ve now embarked on this adventure together, I think we should start to be less formal with each other. Mavis’s name we know. I am Eleanor but have always gone by Ellie. And your surname is a real mouthful, Miss Smith-Humphries. May we know your Christian name?” She turned to the older woman.
