Page 17 of The Village Midwife
Lavender shrugged. ‘They can sit inside, and there’s blankets and hot chocolate and that sort of thing. I imagine it’s nice enough.’
‘I bet it’s a great job,’ Zoe said.
‘He’s done it for years and he complains, but I don’t think he’d do anything else. His boat is lovely. It’s about a hundred years old – maybe more. They’re very particular about the upkeep too. You know, if you wanted to take a trip, I’d take you over there – just say the word. I’m sure I could get us a couple of tickets…he owes me enough favours from over the years.’
‘Really?’ Zoe sipped from a glass of water. ‘That would be nice.’
‘Forecast is good for this weekend,’ Lavender said carelessly. ‘If you’re not busy, it might be a good time to go. I can phone him to expect us if you like.’
‘Oh, I’d love that!’ Zoe beamed. ‘Are you sure it’s no bother?’
‘It’d give me an excuse for a couple of hours out of the house, and I haven’t been to Ullswater for ages, so I’ll sort it. Sunday good for you?’
‘Yes, please!’
‘Right – it’s a date!’
Lavender picked Zoe up from outside the shop. She’d arrived early to get some flowers as a thank you, then indulged in a lazy chat about the Indian summer they appeared to be enjoying. Finally, she had stepped outside as the sun rose above the rooftops to warm her face, watching as a bee bumbled in and out of a hole in a nearby tree. All around was birdsong, and a gentlebreeze rustled the trees. On a day like today, it was easy to see why Ottilie had fallen so deeply in love with this village.
‘You didn’t need to do that!’ Lavender said as Zoe offered the flowers.
‘I just wanted you to know I appreciate the effort you’ve made for me today.’
‘It’s hardly an effort to have a nice day out on a lake. Besides, it’s good for us to get to know one another, isn’t it? We barely have time to exchange two words at work, and there’s usually someone else around when we do.’
‘Agreed,’ Zoe said. ‘I’m looking forward to hearing all about…well, everything, really. And I’m looking forward to the trip. You weren’t wrong about the weather – it’s glorious.’
They called at Lavender’s house so she could pop the flowers in some water, and while Zoe waited in the car, Lavender’s husband came out to introduce himself and warn her that his brother was prone to terrible dad jokes, and then Lavender was back in the driver’s seat and ready to set off.
They wound their way through scenery that Zoe was getting used to now, but no less breathtaking for all that. Along twisting, steep-sided roads, speckled with leaves that were just beginning to turn into their autumn colours. The place seemed deserted apart from the odd rogue sheep clinging to a heathered hillside, unbothered by a rushing torrent of water pulsing from gaps in the rock, or the occasional red kite or falcon riding the air currents high above as it searched for prey.
Lavender switched the radio on, and while Zoe found it pleasant enough, the soapy pop music seemed lacking in the right kind of drama as she gazed out of the windows at the passing landscape, a landscape that had been millennia in the making, as eternal and old as the earth itself. Whenever they emerged from the shelter of the hills and out onto open road,there were yet more peaks, rising up in the distance, and the odd glint of water from rivers and lakes.
After finding a parking space, Lavender locked the car and led Zoe to the pier where the boat sailed from. By now, the town and nearby lakeside were getting busy, full of people making the most of the last days of warm weather with picnics and ice creams on benches. Every so often, there would be a shriek and someone would be running from a persistent wasp.
Lavender shook her head as a group of teenage girls squealed and ran around in circles, trying to evade a trio of stripey pests. ‘All people have to do is stay still and the wasps bugger off eventually.’
‘Easy for you to say,’ Zoe replied. ‘I’m with them – terrible around bees and wasps. I’ve never been stung, and I don’t want to be, so if there’s one trying to get into my cheese butty, I’m running.’
‘I can’t see Pat,’ Lavender added as they approached the pier. ‘He said he’d meet us, but we’re a bit early.’
‘I don’t mind buying a ticket,’ Zoe said. ‘I feel as if I ought to, really. It can’t be very good business for them to give tickets away.’
Lavender waved an airy hand. ‘Ah, they can afford two freebies for family.’
She turned and headed for the ticket office and went to the assistant at the sales window. ‘Is Patrick around?’
‘Oh, you’re Lavender?’ the girl asked.
‘Yes.’
‘He said you’d probably come and ask for him. He’s gone to pick up some supplies for the boat. I’ll sort your tickets out while you wait for him – he won’t be long.’
The girl printed two complimentary tickets and handed them to Lavender, who then took a seat on a bench close to the pier, beckoning Zoe to join her.
They chatted as they looked over the glittering lake, where many other boats were already out – smaller ones with engines zipping up and down, more sedate rowboats going around in small circles closer to the shore, and modern pleasure cruisers.
Zoe thought thatThe Lady Susannah, the steamer they were due to travel on, was far more beautiful than anything else on the water that day, with a glossy walnut hull and sleek red chimney stack, and brass railings on the deck. It was like something from a glamorous old movie.
