Page 17 of Mrs. Endicott's Splendid Adventure
“I suppose so.” Miss Smith-Humphries hesitated. “It’s Theodora.”
Mavis gave an unvoluntary splutter of amusement.
“I agree, Mavis, it is cumbersome,” she said, “but in my youth it was shortened to Dora, and I like that much better.”
“Dora,” Ellie said. “I like that, too.”
They came to the suburbs of the city, and ahead of them was the Rhône River, glinting in evening sunlight as it flowed south.
Luckily the main road south hugged the western bank and did not cross the river until well south of the city centre.
“It seems we have bypassed Lyon without meaning to,” Ellie said. “I must say I’m grateful. I was rather dreading it. But it also means we’ve passed any hotels. Do you mind if we press on? It’s still quite light.”
“Whatever you think is best,” Dora said. “I’m looking at the map, and I don’t see any big towns before Valence. But maybe there will be a small hotel, or we can even get as far as Avignon for the night.”
“Avignon!” Ellie let out a little sigh. Even the name sounded romantic. She started to hum “Sur le Pont d’Avignon.” Dora joined her, and they began to sing it out loud.
Feeling cheerful now, they drove south with the river flowing beside them. Barges came down with the current, and steep hills rose on either side. The light began to fade.
“We really should keep our eyes open for a hotel now,” Dora said. “I don’t like the idea of negotiating this road in the dark.”
Ellie looked at the dials in front of her. “Oh no. I’m afraid we should have filled up with petrol in Lyon,” she said. “We haven’t passed a garage for ages now.”
“I hope you don’t intend us to push,” Dora said. “Oh well, we’ve got Mavis to do it for us.”
“Here, just because ...” Mavis sat up, leaning forward.
“Just a joke, Mavis. Meant to lighten the mood.” Dora looked back at her and patted her hand.
“Oh, all right. Bob’s your uncle.” Mavis sank back into her seat.
Darkness fell. Headlights of occasional passing cars flashed in their faces and were gone. Their own headlights lit up the churning waters of the river, flowing beside them, as the road wound along the bank. It was flowing awfully fast. Ellie felt a knot in her stomach. Then they came around another bend and saw lights ahead.
“Thank God,” Ellie said.
They drove into a small settlement. There were houses with lighted windows, a bakery, now closed, a bar with several men sitting outsideand then a garage with two petrol pumps. Ellie came to a halt at one of them as an attendant came running out and started unscrewing the cap. “You wish it filled, madame?” he asked.
Ellie nodded. “Please.”
“I think we should all use the facilities if they have them,” Ellie said. “Why don’t you go while I stay with the motor?”
She wound down the window and sat in the darkness, smelling the watery smell of the river mixed with the odours of petrol and the herby scent of French cigarettes. From one of the houses, a radio was blaring out a woman singing in a nasal voice. There was also the scent of frying onions, reminding Ellie that they hadn’t eaten for some time. But there didn’t seem to be a café in the village, just the bar, which didn’t look too welcoming.
The attendant finished pumping. She handed him money, and he shuffled off towards the building at the back to deposit it. As Ellie looked around, her gaze moved to the lorry that had pulled up at the pump beside her. A man got out and headed off into the darkness, presumably obeying the call of nature. Ellie noticed a movement in the cab window and looked up. A young girl’s face stared back at her—a face white with terror—and the girl mouthed something.
Without hesitating, Ellie got out and went over to the lorry. She opened the door.
“Are you all right?”
“Aidez-moi. Help me,” the girl said in French. “He will be back soon.”
“You don’t wish to travel with him?” Ellie asked. “He is not your father?”
“No,” the girl said. “I accepted a lift from him. But then he started saying what we would do when we find a hotel for the night. Awful things. And I couldn’t run away because I have nowhere to run.”
“Then come with us,” Ellie said. “We’ll take you safely where you need to go.”
“Really? Oh, God bless you, madame.” She was already beginning to climb down.
