She sat turned in the front seat facing the passenger window with

Transcription

1 A.G. Dumas Fox, Come Hther She sat turned n the front seat facng the passenger wndow wth tears n her eyes. By md-afternoon they reached Leeds, the departure pont from the hghway for travelers venturng to Yorkshre. When columns of lght started to break through what had been an endless gray sky, he rolled down hs wndow to take n the emergence of a glorous sprng day. The sun actually does come out n merry old England! he bellowed, breakng a long slence. Gettng no reacton, he sad nothng more. The towns became smaller and farther apart as they drove farther north. Soon, there were only tny hamlets. In tme, even they dsappeared. Then there were only solated stone farm houses and mles of stone walls. The walls rose nto the dstant hllsdes and served to demarcate the lush green dales from the barren hghlands, brown from years of strp mnng. He rounded a blnd corner and slammed the brakes. She put her hands up to keep from httng the dashboard. The lonely, empty road suddenly had become clogged wth sheep. Hundreds of black muzzles floatng on a sea of whte fleece. They were beng herded from an open feld to a large, fenced area across the road. One of the shepherds, who was holdng a large staff n hs hand, walked over to the car. You ll be here a good tharty mnutes, he sad to Robert n hs broad accent. He touched the brm of hs cap as hs eyes shfted to Galen. That long, huh? Robert sad. Aye, the shepherd repled. Have to brng em n every so often. To protect the weak and young. Foxes, you know. Chrst! Robert huffed. He reached n the backseat for the camera and got out of the car. Well, let s make the best of t! he sad to her through the drver s wndow. Why don t you get out and look around. Just don t st there feelng sorry for yourself. Galen began to sob. He turned and walked away. The trp had started ncely enough. The flght from New York on Frday was pleasant and relaxng. They had a good dnner on the plane wth lots of wne and talked untl they fell asleep. When they were awakened at dawn by the plot s announcement that they were over the Irsh coast, they became excted. Ther exctement grew when the plane passed over Brstol and made ts approach to Gatwck. When t was dscovered that one of ther sutcases had been lost, Robert Harvey reverted to old form. Galen had become used to t. Durng ther 12-year marrage, he had become an mpatent bastard. She had remaned the sweet, good-hearted person she had always been. He had grown tred of her youthful effuson and naveté, whch had endeared her

2 to hm back n college. Hs abuse and suspected nfdelty had helped snk her nto a depresson. The bag had been lost, he reasoned, because she had packed too much. She always packed too much. The addtonal bag had been unnecessary. Hs msogync logc evolved nto a weekend of snpng n London: The hgh tea at Fortnum s that she had to go to was overprced; she charged too much at Harrods; they wasted too much tme sghtseeng at the Tower because she took too many pctures. It went on lke that. After batng her nto an argument Sunday evenng after she spent an hour on the phone wth the kds and her parents, he walked out. When he came back several hours later, she refused to get out of bed and let hm n. He had to get a new key card from the desk. That mornng, before the drve north to Yorkshre, Robert had acted even more mserably durng breakfast n the hotel restaurant. Do you want to leave rght after breakfast, or should we wat untl after lunch? Galen asked, tryng to be pleasant and make conversaton. Her husband s head stayed bured n the newspaper. Don t treat me lke somebody off the street! she fnally yelled, swattng the paper. Embarrassed, Robert put the paper down and stared at her wth hs cold, green eyes. Go fuck yourself! he sad wth an angry hss. He got up n a huff, knockng the char over. After rghtng the char, he walked out. She looked straght ahead, mortfed. It had all been so short-lved, she thought. Her recovery, hs promse to be better, ther decson to take a second honeymoon, the exctement and restoraton of hope that you get when you travel and then the stupd lost bag. It ddn t seem far. Galen suddenly felt her breakfast ascendng. She closed her eyes and nhaled deeply through her nose. She focused her thoughts on calmng down and makng a graceful ext. When she began feelng better, she spped some coffee and sgned the check. The watress promptly returned. Indgnantly, she announced the account had been closed. Galen fumbled for cash, but not bengvery comfortable wth the currency, handed the woman a credt card. When she fnally left the restaurant and the tral of stares behnd, she began to quckly walk through the hotel s lobby. She asked several people f they had seen a tall man wth blond har. Fnally, the concerge told her that Robert asked to have hs car pulled around and loaded. Frantcally, she ran out the front entrance nto the drzzle and nearly slpped on the sdewalk. He was sttng n the car, wth the engne runnng and the wpers gong, at the curb. The mserable London experence seemed lke a bad dream as Galen sat n the car, whch was now engulfed by sheep. Robert was standng on top of a stone wall alongsde the road takng photos. The sun was rapdly burnng through the clouds. A brsk wnd had pcked up and was pushng the dreary weather out. When the sheep were 2

3 fnally gone, they contnued on ther way n slence. Robert pulled nto the frst fllng staton they came to. Fll t wth two-star, he told the attendant. He leaned down on hs arms and spoke through the open drver s wndow to Galen. Let s leave the weekend behnd, he sad. The sutcase got me started and then the hassle wth the arlne. Let s make the best of the rest of our tme here, okay? Galen ddn t answer. He contnued, Ths s really god s country up here. It s where we ve wanted to go for so long. I wsh now that we d drven up here drectly from the arport. I don t want to run t any longer. I m sorry. She looked up and smled. I can t beleve we re fnally here ether, she sad, breakng her slence. You ve got to learn to lve and let lve. Yes, he sad, lookng away. They ll fnd the sutcase, she assured. I know. Promse me you ll forget about t and become the new Robert ths week? I promse. Promse we won t fght ths week? Promse. At sunset, they were stll drvng. They decded to stop at the next bed-and-breakfast that looked nvtng. Several farms they had passed had sgns solctng boarders, but the Harvey s decded that t would be better to fnd a place n a town, nearer restaurants and pubs. At dusk, they drove nto a town named Ashburn. They rode past a townhouse wth whte clapboard sdng and a promnent Vacancy sgns n the front wndow. A nce-lookng place, Robert noted, thumbng over hs shoulder. Houses and shops, a few wth wooden exterors but mostly wth mortar and stone facades, lned Ashburn s man drag. Further down was a town square, nlad wth cobblestones, where cars and trucks were parked. Robert turned n and parked. It s seven, she sad nervously, lookng at her watch. We should fnd a place now for the nght. Relax, he sad. I m gong to walk back to that place wth the sgn and see what they have. All rght. But don t be too long. It s gettng dark. The small nn was called Campbell House. The landlady was pleasant enough, but spoke to Robert through a chaned outer door. It ddn t take long before she decded she lked hs manner and chseled looks, and became rather excted at the prospect of boardng an Amercan couple from 3

4 New York. She unlatched the door and let Robert nto the foyer. She was n her late 50s and qute tny, wth ruddy cheeks and a promnent Englsh nose. She was bundled n a sweater jacket and wearng slppers. You caught me nappng by fre! she sad n her llt. She closed the nner door behnd her to keep a yappng corg from nosng through. I m Mrs. Campbell, she sad, extendng her hand. Robert took t frmly and ntroduced hmself. In ths busness, you must be careful who you open doors to at nght, especally when husband s out, she explaned. He smled at the hghlands pronuncaton of hoos-bend, and the non-use of unnecessary words lke my. I understand completely, ma am, Robert repled, poltely. Rent, ncludng mornng meal, s ffty pounds per couple. If you stay three nghts or longer, t goes to forty. There s a common bath, but t s large enough for two and t s spotless and brght and up to standards at home, I m sure. As I sad, there s only one other couple boardng ths week, so you needn t be watng long n the mornng. Please brng mssus n and I ll show you both the room. Mrs. Campbell greeted Galen lke a long, lost cousn from the colones. She hugged her and held her by the arm as they clmbed the starway to the second floor. I thnk you ll lke the room, deare, she sad to Galen. It s the ncest we have. The room was ndeed warm and homey: A thck, hand-kntted Afghan lay stretched across the queen-szed bed. The walls were pearly whte and spotless, and the lace curtans that framed the large wndow at the foot of the bed were crsp and clean as f they had just been washed and roned. An old-fashoned wash basn stood n the corner for decoraton. Above t, an antque mrror wth smoked glass hung. Mrs. Campbell opened the large wndow and beckoned the Harvey s to take a look. They saw Wensleydale, a large farmng valley to the south of town. It was gettng dark, and the farmhouse lghts flckered n the dstance. It was pcture book. Galen was beamng from ear to ear. It s so lovely! she sad. I stll can t beleve we re here. That means we ll take t, Robert sad, smlng. He held out a 50-pound note, but Mrs. Campbell refused t. Stay the nght and see how you lke t, she sad. Ashburn s as nce a spot as you ll fnd n Yorkshre, or England for that matter. After you rse tomorrow and have a proper breakfast, you go out and sghtsee and decde f you want to stay or move on. I m sure you ll be back, and I ll bll you when you decde to leave. She gave them a key to the front entrance. Mster and I are n bed by eleven, so you ll have to let yourselves n. Breakfast s at eght. She suggested they walk to the center of town to a pub called The Black Stallon for supper. It s the best of the lot, she sad. The other cou- 4

5 ple that s boardng here has gone there three nghts runnng. You mght catch up wth them. Alan and Charlotte Burns. A nce couple. The Black Stallon was a smple, two-room establshment, wth a small bar wth a half-dozen stools and a few tables n one and a modest dnng area n the other. The Burses weren t hard to fnd as they were the only couple seated n the dnng room. They had fnshed eatng and were havng after-dnner drnks. They were a bt younger than the Harveys. Alan Burns was n hs early thrtes, average-lookng and sknny, wth baldng, sandy har, a long neck and a promnent Adam s apple. He had a cheery, run-at-the-mouth manner. Charlotte was about thrty and was rather stunnng, wth long brown har and percng blue eyes. She had hgh cheekbones and looked as though she could have been a model. Her appearance was made more ntrgung by her quetness. Robert felt as f she were lookng straght through hm as they all became acquanted at the table. You damn Yanks are truly amazng! Alan sad after they became comfortable. You seem to know more about our bloody country than we do! Robert returned the complment. I suppose t s because so many of us can trace our roots here, but even f we can t, we re stll enamored wth you. It must be the accent. Or perhaps were just eternally grateful for the Rollng Stones. They all laughed. Robert had a smoothness and charm he could turn on f the company suted hm a practce learned over 15 years as a successful publc relatons executve. What do you do, Galen? Alan asked. Oh, I m not workng now, Galen sad, a bt sheepshly. Just beng a mother. I guess that s rare these days, but I ve decded t s best for the boys. They re 9 and 6 and keep me gong all the tme. That s wonderful! Alan exclamed. We don t have any lttle ones yet, but we keep tryng, don t we, Char? Charlotte forced a smle. The Burnses lved n a flat outsde London. He was an archtect and she was an executve secretary. They were on ther way to Scotland to spend the upcomng Easter weekend wth famly. Alan dd most of the talkng, whle Charlotte smled and nodded. Robert, what do Amercan men thnk of women n the U.K? Charlotte asked, fnally speakng up. I magne that wth all the glamorous European women, we re sort of consdered Plan Janes by comparson. Am I rght? Her large, full lps were polshed wth red rouge, and her words flowed through them elegantly. Oh, don t sell yourself short, poor grl! Alan nterrupted. Robert wondered how she ended up wth such a gangly fool. Alan, I d lke to hear Robert s opnon, she sad, rather abruptly. 5

6 Robert pcked up on t quckly. Alan s absolutely rght, dear grl, he sad. By all means, Englshwomen shouldn t sell themselves short at all. Well, I m glad to hear that, Charlotte sad, wth a smle. She eased back from the conversaton. Her eyes met Robert s as Alan and Galen gabbed. They stll sought hs opnon, but of a partcular Englshwoman. May I? he asked, touchng her pack of cgarettes on the table. Oh, of course. I left mne out n the car, he joked. It s the great Amercan excuse. He went outsde for a cgarette and she joned hm. They cht-chatted as he held out hs lghter for her. She took hs wrst and guded the lghter toward her cgarette. Once back nsde, they ordered another round of ales and the Harveys ordered some fsh and chps. When Robert and Galen were fnshed, Alan suggested that they all go up the street to ther favorte pub n town. We only been n town for three nghts, but we re already regulars there, he sad. I d venture that I m already n the bar keep s wll. It s a helluva fun place where all the local pps gather. Sounds wonderful, Galen chrped. I ll settle up here and meet you all over there, Robert suggested.alan pulled some money from hs pocket and held t out to Robert. Please take ths, old man! Alan sad. Nonsense, Robert sad, pushng Alan s hand away. Are you sure? Absolutely. My pleasure. Well, thanks very much. It s very good of you. There ll be a pnt watng for you. Charlotte was watng for Robert outsde. The sprng moon was full and the ar was cool and dry. There was a strong aroma of burnng coal. She was wearng a long, dark topcoat wth the collar turned up, and smokng. She mmedately took hs arm and cuddled up to hm n a playful manner. I sad, `Poor Robert doesn t really know where he s gong, so I told them to go on ahead and I d wat for you, she sad. I m glad you dd, he repled. Really? Yes. I m very glad you dd. As they walked up the street arm n arm, Charlotte touched her head to hs shoulder. She stopped them n front of a church. 6

7 The pub s the next block over, she sad. We can cut through the church yard f you d lke, although t s rather dark. Let s, he agreed. She pressed aganst hm more urgently as they walked. She stopped them n the shadow of the church. She turned and faced hm. I m chlly, Robert, she sad, nervously. He took the upturned collar of her coat and pulled her face close to hs. He lghtly kssed her lps, tastng her rouge, and when she parted her lps, he pushed hs tongue deeply nto her mouth. He wet the fngers on hs rght hand and he felt hs way under her skrt and pantes. They stood n the shadows for several mnutes. He rubbed her methodcally untl she groaned and shuddered wth pleasure. Don t say anythng now, she sad, breathng heavly, when they stopped. We re beng mssed and must be on our way. He nodded. She took hold of hm by both shoulders and looked closely at hm n the dm lght. She lcked hm wth her warm tongue and he began kssng her agan. Darlng, we must stop for now, she sad, puttng her hand up. She wped her long, elegant fngers across hs wetted lps and chn to remove smudged lpstck. She then took hs wet fngers gently n her hand and sucked on them whle lookng deeply n hs eyes. Wpe them clean and dry, darlng. You mustn t have me all over you, she cautoned. It was turnng nto the knd of trp Robert had dreamed of many tmes. 7