Page 63 of The English Professor

‘Aye, Aye, Captain Jack.’

I pull into a parking bay across the street from the restaurant and although I don’t actually expect to see anything, I still think it’s worth a shot. I’m lucky to get a parking space at all—nearly all the streets through the centre of the town are extremely narrow with very limited parking. It wasn’t exactly designed for this sort of amateur surveillance.

‘Did you know that Ambleside is from a Viking word,’ I say, trying to pass the time.

‘I did not know that, Professor.’

‘So they say...’

‘We really ought to have brought some snacks with us,’ Leyna groans, arms wrapped around her stomach. ‘Isn’t that what they do on the telly when they do these sorts of things?’

Leyna starts to get out of the car.

‘What about dinner?’ I shout after her.

‘I will still have room. No need to worry.’

I watch as she walks down the road and goes into a small Co-op food shop. Several minutes later, she emerges carrying a bag.

‘That took ages,’ I complain as she sits down in the passenger seat.

‘You won’t believe what I heard in there. I’m certain they were talking about your restaurant. Or, at least, someone else’s restaurant onlya few doors down...’

I stare at her dumbfounded. ‘Who istheyand what did they say?’

Leyna is already digging into the bag of food and tearing apart the wrapping on a sandwich. She offers me half. I shake my head no. ‘Well,’ she says in between mouthfuls. ‘Apparently, no one goes tothatrestaurant anymore. No one local, anyway.’

She takes another bite and it’s agony waiting for her to finish so I can hear the rest of the story.

‘Why does no one local go?’ I ask, completely perplexed. ‘Is the food bad? The service?’ I muse aloud.

Leyna shakes her head no. ‘I don’t think so. They never actually saidwhy, but—’

‘Wait. What did they actually say?’

‘Okay. Sorry. Hungry. Brain not working well,’ she flashes me a wobbly smile. ‘It was this old couple and another woman. And the woman was saying, “Oh, they’re back again at the restaurant” and the couple were shaking their heads, like they were... I don’t know...offended? Insulted?’ Leyna searches for the right word. ‘And then the old man says, “So long as that keeps up we won’t set foot in there again” and then the other woman nodded her head.’ Leyna takes another bite.

‘Oh my god...’ I’m shaking. I don’t know what to make of any of that. What did any of it mean? ‘This is even worse than I’d imagined.’ All I can think about is everything my stepdad had worked so hard to cultivate would get flushed down the pan now that I’d taken over and hadn’t properly taken care of it. My stomach lurches, like I’ve been punched in the gut.

‘What do you think we should do? Should we even eat there?’ Leyna asks.

I compose my thoughts. I have to think clearly. In truth, I have no idea where to begin, but I think that, for this moment in time, it is best to stick with my original plan. Finally, I say, ‘Yes. We’ll eat there. And we’ll watch everyone like hawks. And then I’ll give Kenny a call tonight. Hand me the other sandwich, would you?’

She hands me the other half of the cheese and onion sandwich. ‘I’m sorry about your restaurants, Jack.’

We finish our half-sandwiches and down it with some fizzy pop. I need the sugar rush after everything Leyna’s just said. I am dreading going in there but know it is something I have do. In fact, it’s something I should have done a long time ago.

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‘AT LEAST YOU KNOW IT’Snot the food,’ Leyna says, shoving another forkful into her mouth. ‘This is really delicious, Jack!’

Our half sandwich earlier hadn’t deterred us at all as we each try a starter, a main with a couple of side dishes, and dessert. Prawn cocktail for Leyna and a beautiful scotch egg for me. Then steaks with roasted vine tomatoes, chips, buttered greens, and for dessert, dark chocolate mousse with a Crème Chantilly and fresh raspberries.

The food is good. It’s not just good—it’s amazing. And the service is brilliant too. Nothing out of the ordinary. So, what had those people in the food shop been talking about? I couldn’t wrap my mind around any of it or make it make any sense as I taste the food, watch the servers, and constantly survey the restaurant.

It isn’t until partway through the meal when the chef spots me and comes over to ask if the meal was alright. I scrutinise every detail of face, his voice. Does he look alarmed? I wouldn’t say that. Maybe relieved. Or is it simply relieved to hear that I enjoyed the food?

After the meal, I leave Leyna for a few moments and go out back to thank the kitchen for the meal. It isn’t too busy, after all, there aren’t many dining this evening, but it is tidy and seems to be functioning like a normal restaurant kitchen. Nothing out of the ordinary here. There are a few raised eyebrows, however, as I hadn’t actually met any of the newer staff before. But on the whole, everything seemed perfectly... normal.

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