The first of the Autumn Gales was making its way up the St George’s Channel and into the Irish Sea. The late afternoon sky was darkening and the one ship that I could see from my window looked like it was in for a rough night.

I was in the process of pulling the curtains and shutting out the storm when I saw a brief light coming from the half ruin of a barn that marked the edge of my property. At first I thought that it was a reflection from the last of the sun but it appeared again. By now, the sun was totally covered by the approaching storm clouds.

I pulled the curtains shut and tried to put the possibility that someone was out there to the back of my mind.

I went downstairs and proceeded to prepare my evening meal. I was making a lamb casserole. The lamb came from my next-door neighbour and the veggies were from my own garden.  Thankfully that garden was protected by a decent wall so the winds shouldn’t wreak too much damage.

The next time I thought about the winds was more than an hour later.  I’d just put the heavy cast iron casserole dish back into the oven after checking the state of the cooking. I estimated that it would be ready in just under an hour.

The sound of a squall hitting the house made me think of the ruins. I thought to myself, ‘what if there was someone there I?’  Unable to get it out of my mind, I went upstairs and peaked through the curtains of my bedroom window hoping to see the light again. By now, the rain was striking the window almost horizontally so the chances of seeing someone the other side of a five acre field was next to zero.

Back in the warmth of the kitchen, I poured a glass of home-brewed bitter. I put it to my lips and was about to take a drink when curiosity got the better of me. If there was someone out there the way the weather was coming, they’d get scant shelter in that wreck of a building. It was a wreck because a storm some thirty years before had not only blown the roof off but took most of the sea facing wall with it. The barn had been built to provide shelter in the event of a storm but now it was a wreck.

I took another look outside only to be greeted by more rain lashing onto the window. That made my mind up for me. I’d have to go and see for myself.

I changed into something more suitable for the weather conditions and after putting on my ‘wellies’, I went out of my house via the back door picking up a heavy-duty torch on the way. The rear of my home was somewhat sheltered from the wind but even so the force of the wind surprised me.

I buttoned up my long-waxed cotton coat right up to the top, pulled on a ‘bobble hat’ and started to walk around the side of the house. After a few steps, I got used to the wind and headed out across the field towards the ruined barn.

As I approached the barn, I switched on my flashlight. The beam didn’t penetrate very far through the rain. At least there
was enough light for me to see where I was treading. The blocks of stone from the damaged walls were easy to trip over.

Eventually, I got around to the far side of the building and walked in through what was once a doorway.
I shone the torch around looking for anything that shouldn’t be there. It didn’t take long for me to spot something on the floor. It looked like a sheet of black plastic.  I gently walked over to it and tugged at it.

A dirty hand appeared and pulled it back into place. A voice shouted over the wind,

“Fuck off. This is my bivvy. Go find somewhere else.”

I shouted back.

“You can’t stay here. You will catch your death. Come into my house and get dry.”

The plastic sheet was pulled down by that same dirty hand. I could see a female face underneath.

“Come on, you must be wet through. At least it will be warm in my house and I expect you could do with something to eat?”

The face looked at me for a second.

“Are you for real?”

“Yes, I am real but I won’t be if you don’t get a move on. I’m getting cold and wet myself. Besides, I have a nice lamb casserole that won’t keep forever…”

I took a step backwards and was about to turn and leave the prone woman to her fate when she said,

“Wait. Don’t go. I’m coming.”

I afforded a small smile as another squall blew in off the sea.

She picked up her meagre belongings and walked towards me.

“Let’s go. You can see the lights from my house on the other side of the field.”

A few minutes later we got to the back door. I switched on the lights in what I called my ‘boot room’.

“There is a shower in there,” I said pointing at a door to our right. Let me have your clothes and I’ll put them in the washer.”

“What will I wear?”

“Don’t worry about that. By the time you get yourself clean and warm I’ll have something for you to wear. It is nice and warm in my kitchen but go and get warm under the shower. There is plenty of hot water so take your time.”

She looked at me suspiciously.

“Why are you doing this?”

“How about my good deed for the day besides, you couldn’t stay the night out there and it is nice and warm in here.”

“You don’t know anything about me?”

“There will be time for all that. First you get clean and warm. Then we eat. Then we can talk. Ok?”

She gave a slight nod of her head.

“Ok. There’s the door. There is shampoo and everything plus some towels in there already.”

Reluctantly, she went into the shower and closed the door. I heard her poking around at a few things. Then to my relief, the shower came on.

“Can I have your clothes?” I said loudly.

The door opened and a dirty arm appeared and tossed me some very wet and very grubby clothes.

I loaded them into the washer and set it going before going into the kitchen and laying the table for two. As I set the second place, I stopped. This was something I’d only done a few times since I moved in more than two years before.  I hadn’t realised how long it had been. I sighed to myself as I thought back to how I’d set out of the path that had taken me to this place. It all began with good intentions and went downhill from there for quite a while.

I shivered as I remembered those dark days.

I pushed those memories to the back of my mind and concentrated on the more pressing things at hand. Firstly, I needed to find something for my guest to wear. Then we could sit down to eat.

I found some clothes and put them outside the door to the shower.

“There are some dry clothes just outside the shower room door,” I said loudly.

She obviously didn’t hear me as there was no reply. I didn’t worry too much as I could tell that she was enjoying the warm water by the singing that was emanating from the shower room.

I returned to the kitchen and finished setting the table. I hesitated when I came to the bottle of beer that I’d opened earlier.  I knew that a lot of people on the road had problems with drink. I decided to put it away for the time being.

I heard the shower stop. I afforded myself a little smile. She would be nice and clean by now.

A few minutes later she appeared at the kitchen door

“Come on in. We don’t stand on ceremony here.”

“Thank you,” she replied hesitantly.

Now that I had a good look at her, I could see that she was young, very young indeed.

“I’m Monica by the way. Welcome to my home. Please sit down and I’ll dish up some food.”

Her eyes followed me to the stove. That made me wonder how long it had been since she’d had a decent meal. Come to think of it, I wondered how she came to be in this neck of the woods.

I carried the cast iron pot that contained the meal to the table and removed the lid. A nice herby smell filled the kitchen.

Her eyes never left the food for an instant.

I filled a bowl with three ladles of casserole and slid it over to her. I tore off a large chunk of bread from the loaf I’d made earlier in the day and put it on the plain wood table next to the bowl.

I filled a bowl for myself and after tearing a chunk of bread for myself, I sat down.

“You don’t need to wait for me. Please tuck in.”

Forty minutes and three bowls of casserole later, she’d finally finished eating. She wiped the bowl clean with the last of the bread and let out a small belch.

“Sorry about that. That was really good, thank you. Thank you very much for the food. The shower was wonderful. I hope I didn’t use all your hot water.”

“No. There is more than enough to go around.”

“What do I call you?”

A look of surprise came over her face.

“Oh sorry. I was so hungry I clean forgot to tell you. I’m Kylie, Kylie Lane.”

I felt relieved.

“How old are you?”

“Hey! That’s my business.”

“I’m just a bit worried. You seem awfully young to be homeless and walking the roads.”
Kylie didn’t react to start with. I kept looking at her.

In the end, she answered.

“Ok. I’m Eighteen. I was thrown out of my parents home when I flunked my ‘A’ levels because I didn’t want to go up to Oxford to become a shitty lawyer like my father or to Cambridge and train to be a Doctor like my stuckup bitch of a mother.”

I could tell that she was still angry with about a log of things.

“What did you do then?”

“I stayed with a few friends until I was politely asked to move on when the rumours about my so called drug use started going around. I’ve never used any drugs apart from the odd drink or two. I found out that the rumours were started by my dear parents. They thought that by making life hard for me, that I’d come running home to them. I didn’t and in the end, I ran out of places to go so… I left and have been travelling ever since.”

“You poor girl.

“Whatever.”

“What do you want to do with your life?”

She glared back at me.

“Are you trying to organise me?” she said angrily.

I let out a small chuckle.

“No. I’m the last person who would try to organise anyone. I was homeless through no fault of my own for a short period and without the help of a very understanding and kind person, I probably wouldn’t be here today. Let me rephrase what I said a bit."
"You are welcome to stay here for a bit and if there is anything I can do to help you then you only have to ask. Does that sound a bit better?”

I hoped so. All the onus was now on her.

“What do you want me to do?”

“Do?”

“To earn my keep and such.”

I smiled.

“Let’s talk about that in the morning. Let me show you to your room.”

“Can I clear this lot away?” she asked.

I shook my head.

“I’ll do that later. Let’s get you settled. I expect that you could do with a good sleep in a clean bed.”
Kylie didn’t answer but I could tell by her body language that she didn’t want to argue so I led her upstairs and into the spare room.

“There is a toilet and shower through there,” I said pointing at a door. There is a spare blanket in the cupboard if you get cold. Other than that, it is all yours.”

She looked around with huge eyes.

“Thank you,” she replied in almost a whisper.

“Take your time in the morning and don’t feel that you have to get up at any time. I’ll be around the house if you need me.”

“Thank you Monica. Goodnight.”

“Goodnight, sleep well.”

I backed out of the room, closed the door behind me and went downstairs.

I pulled out a bottle of my home-brew that I was originally going to have with my meal and poured myself a very large glass. It had been quite an evening.
[To be continued in Part 2]

By the time I woke up, the storm of the previous evening had blown away and the morning was bright and clear. I pulled back the curtains in my Bedroom and looked out to sea. A few ships were visible well out at sea. Two fishing boats were about a mile or so off shore. It looked like a perfect morning.

After a quick shower, I dressed as I normally did on a Friday. That is, I got dressed up. This is the antithesis of ‘Dress Down Friday’. Friday was the day of the Farmers Market in Lampeter. I normally went into the town and did my weekly shopping, had a nice lunch and generally made a day of it. Going there today was probably not going to happen but I saw no reason not to try to keep the rest of things as normal as possible.

I went into my wardrobe and selected something nice to wear. A lime green full skirt and a double petticoat to give it some volume. A white blouse and a pair of nearly nude tights. Finally, a pair of black patent shoes with a 3in heel and a lilac cardigan. I knew that it was a very retro look but I felt good wearing it and as far as I’m concerned, that’s what really matters.

I got dressed and once again as usual for a Friday, I put on some makeup. Not a lot but enough to make a difference.

After my usual breakfast of a poached egg on toast followed by some tea, I cleared away all the time listening out for any sounds from upstairs. Nary a sound was heard but I didn’t worry.

I went out and let the hens out of their coop. They were pleased to see me because I carried their food in a big yellow bucket. In return, they gave me eight lovely fresh eggs. Not bad for the ten hens that I’d bought for the price of two pints of beer.

Back in the kitchen, I started making a cake using four of those newly laid eggs. It the Birthday of my nearest neighbour, Emlyn Williams and I’d promised him that I’d bake him a cake.

As I mixed the ingredients, I let myself smile. If anyone from my past could see me now, they’d fall about laughing themselves to death. I had more out of necessity than anything acquired a number of new skills in the time I’d been living here. The ironic this was that I actually enjoyed cooking whereas before… I could make a great bacon and egg butty and that was about it.

I’d just put the cake into the oven to bake when I heard the sounds of some movement from upstairs. I put the kettle on to boil. If my guest was anything like me, she’d want a cuppa before she got going for the day.

The kettle just had time for it to boil and for me to fill the teapot after warming it naturally, before she came downstairs.

“Good morning Kylie, did you sleep well?”

“Yes,” she replied trying to stifle a yawn.

“Is that some tea?”

“Yes. I put it on when I heard you up and about.”

“Thanks,” she replied as she sat down.

“Do you want anything to eat?”

She thought for a few seconds.

“Not really. I think I ate far too much last night.”

I gave a little chuckle.

“You were hungry that’s all.”

She shook her head.

“I think I ate almost the whole of that lovely casserole. I’m sorry.”

“Kylie, can we get something straight right from the outset. You don’t have to apologize for anything. You have had a hard time. You were in need of some good luck. If I can be the one to help you turn your life around then it will be my pleasure.
So, no more saying sorry ok?”

“So… ok. Thanks.”

I poured both the tea into two mugs. As I did so, the timer rang indicating that the cake was ready to come out of the oven.

“Excuse me. I have a cake that needs to come out of the oven.”

I got the cake out of the oven and put it on a wire tray. I could sense that Kylie was watching every move I made.

“That smells wonderful,” she remarked.

“I hope it will look good as well when I’m done with it. It is a birthday cake for my neighbour. It is his birthday tomorrow.”

“What have you left to do?”

“Oh, make the filling and do the icing but that can wait for later when it is cool.”

When we’d finished the tea, I asked,

“I normally go into Lampeter on Fridays. There is a decent market and I get most of shopping there for the week ahead.
Do you want to come with me?”

Kylie didn’t answer. I could see that she was reluctant.

I smiled and said,

“If you don’t, there’s a chicken coop that needs cleaning out.”

Her face dropped like a stone.

I laughed.

“Don’t worry. I was joking.”

“I don’t have any money.”

“That’s not a problem. Besides, you need a few clothes of your own. Those you were wearing last night are well past it.”

“Are they dry yet?”

“Yes. They are hanging up in the Laundry. I’ll iron them as best I can later if that’s all right with you?”

She nodded.

“Why are you helping me like this? I know that last night you said that you’d been homeless like me but you don’t know me from Adam.”

“That may well be true. You were in need of help last night and I was in a position to give it. You can stay here until… well until you get fed up with me or you want to move on. I’m trying to give you a place where you can sort yourself out if you want to that is?”

She looked me right in the eye. Her brilliant blue eyes were glistening. Last night they had been dull and lifeless. I took that as an improvement.

“Can I come with you when you go out?”

That was an abrupt change of subject. I wondered if there were some demons lurking inside her that were clearly a ‘no-go’ area.

“Yes, but you will need some shoes. Your boots are still wet and clearly well past their use by date. There is often a stall in the market that sells sturdy shoes.”

“I… I don’t mean to ask but do you have some money that I can use? I spent my last on a mug of Tea in … what’s it called… Aber something yesterday.”

“Aberwystyth? Up the coast?”

“Yeah that’s the place. I hitched a lift in Barmouth and got dropped off there.”

That meant that she was coming from the north. At least she hadn’t been living locally.

“That’s not a problem. I need to go to the cash machine anyway. I’ll draw a bit more than usual and give you some.”

Just under an hour later we were in Lampeter. The market was in full swing. At first, Kylie was reluctant to mingle but after a few minutes she relaxed and from what I could see, she was starting to enjoy the experience. She purchased a sturdy pair of boots; a pair of knock off Levi’s plus a couple of tops. When we’d finished with the market we headed for the Organic Supermarket.

Kylie’s first reaction was ‘how can you willingly pay these prices?’

I smiled and said,
“Much of this comes from small producers. Many of them are located within 50 miles of here. Much better for the environment and I happen to think it tastes better.”

She didn’t answer but willingly pushed my trolley around as I tried to shop for two people rather than one.

When we’d loaded everything into the car, I said,

“Fancy a late lunch?”

“Where?”

“At a Pub on the way back?”

She thought for a few seconds before replying,

“Can we skip that? A cheese sarni with some of that Local Cheese you bought and your own bread would do nicely.”

“Good idea besides, I have a cake to ice.”

~o~O~o~
Kylie settled into the routine of the house very well but… I could hear her cry herself to sleep most nights. There was something really troubling her something, that she point-blank refused to discuss with me. I thought that in time she might get around that block and let me in but the walls around her real self were pretty high and very, very thick.

She’d been with me for almost three weeks when…

I’d got up as normal just before 07:00 and after showering, I went downstairs and fixed myself some breakfast. Most days, the smell of fresh coffee brewing would be enough to get Kylie out of bed but today all was quiet.

A little after 08:00, I ventured upstairs and gently knocked on the door to her room. There was no answer so I knocked harder. Once again there was no answer so I opened the door and to my astonishment the room was empty. Her bed obviously hadn’t been slept in and all the clothes she’d bought while she’d been staying with me were neatly folded and carefully placed in the middle of the bed. Then I noticed a sheet of paper.

Reading it was difficult.

“Dearest Monica,
I have to leave now otherwise I’d never go and I need to find myself. I can’t do that here. I’m sorry. I know that you are the most wonderful friend a person can have. There are some demons I need to kill before I can move on with my life. You have shown me a way forward but I have to try to take the next steps myself.  I hope you don’t mind I borrowed some money from your purse.
Thank you for everything
K“

I read the note several times as I fought to keep the tears at bay. In the end, things got the better of me and I collapsed on the bed in tears.

The next two days were terrible. There is no other word to describe how much I missed her. She’d come into my life and to my eternal shame, somehow, I had assumed she’d be around for a lot longer or at least let me know that she was leaving. I’d gotten used to her being part of my life and now she wasn’t and that hurt.

One the third day, I sort of came to terms with being alone again. I had to get out of the house so I went for a long run.

The weather was foul but I didn’t care. I needed to get out and do something where I had to concentrate and just keeping upright was a problem in places.

I’d taken up running not long after I’d moved here. Being close to the sea was the perfect opportunity besides my new found love of cooking was beginning to have an effect on my waistline so a good run two or three times a week was perfect. My normal run was about 5 miles but today, I needed something a whole lot harder so I did the extra long course.
This was almost twelve miles of coast and hills with a number of steep climbs and descents through the Afon Dryw valley.

When I got back some two hours later, I was tired, hungry and thirsty but I felt a whole lot better mentally.

~o~O~o~

I gradually got back into my routine and with Christmas fast approaching the sudden disappearance of Kylie from my life got pushed to the back of my mind.

When I'd moved to this part of Wales, many of the locals thought that I was just another second home owner and they’d only see me for a few weeks a year. When it became obvious that I wasn’t going to fly away with the onset of autumn and winter they started to accept me even though my inability to speak Welsh was the source of some amusement. Once I’d started to pick up a few words I was accepted into the community as much as an incomer would ever be especially as I’d made a point of using local builders and craftsmen to do a good deal of the repairs and alterations to my home. It was remarked more than once that another ‘Incomer’ had bought their own trades people from Cardiff, which didn’t go down very well. I chalked that us a plus point for me.

---

The local village Women’s Institute held a Christmas Fayre every year. I’d joined it more out of curiosity than anything but soon found that I really enjoyed the weekly meetings. The competition was in reality a very serious event for the various bakers that were dotted around the village and surrounding hamlets. My first attempt was to be honest, pathetic but at least I’d tried. That alone gained me a lot of kudos. However, one baker said in a snooty voice, ‘you should learn the basics before you consider trying again’. I took the hint and took a few courses in cookery and in particular baking. To my delight, I found that I enjoyed it. That woman’s face was put well and truly out of joint the following year when my entry easily beat hers. Now it was time to get started on my entry for this year.

I’d just put my cake into bake a few days later when I heard the sound of the Postman delivering the mail. My post-box was up the drive about 400 yards away so he would toot his horn when there was a delivery for me. After checking that that all was well with the Oven, I put went to collect the mail.

There was just one item. It felt like a Christmas card but I couldn’t recognize the handwriting. As it had just come onto rain, I stuffed it into my pocket and headed for my nice warm kitchen as there was a stiff breeze coming in off the sea. I think the work to describe it would be ‘bracing’.

Once in my warm and cosy kitchen, I opened the card and read it.

“Dear Monica, I’m fine and well. Yes, I’m still on the road but thanks to you I’m in a better place now and I’m trying to deal with my past once and for all. Here’s the money I took from your purse when I left. Sorry for that.
Happy Christmas.
Kylie“

There was a postal order for £20.00. All the memories of her time with me came flooding back and as much as I tried, I couldn’t hold back the tears and I burst out crying.

I was still feeling pretty sorry for myself when the oven timer started bleeping. I just couldn’t be bothered to get up and remove the cake from the oven. Finally, it was the smell of burning that made me do something. The cake was ruined.

All my hard work in the weeks since she’d left had gone in a flash. I was to put it bluntly in a mess. There was nothing more for it I had to speak to my therapist.

“Well Monica,” said my therapist when I’d explained my situation.
“You are more than likely lonely. You need some companionship.”

That was the response I’d been dreading.

“But who in their right mind would want to have a relationship with someone like me?”

“I wasn’t talking about a relationship. Didn’t you say that when Kylie was with you, you didn’t have any sexual desires towards her? I was thinking of someone who could be your friend and whom you can share things with.”

“And if they discover that I am not what I seem?”

“Therein lies your greatest problem. We discussed this at length before you embarked on your change and that there will come a time when you will have to tell people that you care about.”

“Yes. I know that.”

“Go and find someone who can be your friend. You may be surprised at how many people don’t mind what sex you are or aren’t if you are a good person at heart and I know very well that you are just that. If I didn’t I wouldn’t have agreed to you doing what you did to yourself.”

“Thanks doc.”

“Don’t leave it so long before you call again you hear?”

“I know Roberta, I know.”

“Ha-ha that’s better. I’d better go now, I have someone a lot like you coming for their first little chat.”

---

Finding a companion was harder than I thought but my little talk with the doc persuaded me to have another go at making the cake for the ‘Fayre’. This time it didn’t get burnt and if truth were told, it seemed better than the first attempt which made pleased me no end.

A few days later I delivered my second cake to the Village Hall. Preparations for the Fayre were already well underway.

My entry was placed on the table along with more than a dozen others. It was given a label with the number ’15’. This was to prevent the judges from knowing which baker had baked which cake. The two independent judges came from the Cardigan and Aberystwyth Women’s Institutes and trying to influence them was very much frowned upon.

The Fayre opened at 2pm and was in full swing when I returned to see the worst. At least I couldn’t beat the last place I’d achieved on my first attempt. Last year, I’d managed 6th place. That had made me very proud indeed so I was very interested in how I would get on this year.

The revealing of the results was due to take place at 3pm. As the time drew near, all the regular suspects (aka the bakers) gathered around the table containing the entries. Polite small talk was being exchanged between the entrants. I stood back and observed the events from afar. I was still an outside to many of them because I hadn’t grown up with them or my parents hadn’t gone to school with their parents. Coming from a relatively small pit village I knew how these things worked.

“In third place is… Dorothy”, said the W.I Chairwoman as she went through the results. There were five prizes this year and so far, my name hadn’t been called out. I looked at the two favourites, Bronwyn Davies and her sister Angharad Williams and they both had a confident air about them.

“In second place is… Angharad.”

A small round or applause broke out. Despite being second, Angharad gave her sister the evil eye. She’d won for the last five years and the general opinion was that she was starting to assume that the prize was hers by right.

“Now, and in first place is…. Monica.”

More than a few people gave a sharp intake of breath. Bronwyn and Angharad looked at me with daggers for eyes.
I just stood there rooted to the spot. Even in my wildest dreams, I could not have seen myself winning a prize for my baking. I knew that I was a rank amateur when compared to the two sisters. I had to force myself to walk up and collect my prize, a crystal bowl. It would later have my name engraved on it for posterity. That I’m sure would set a lot more tongues wagging in the village.

“Thank you madam chairperson. This is a most unexpected surprise.”

“Monica, the judges did have one question that you may choose not to answer if you don’t want to.”

I looked puzzled.

“The judges wanted to know what sweetener you used in your cake? They didn’t think it was Sugar.”

I breathed a sigh of relief.

“I don’t mind answering at all. I used a South American herb called Stevia. It is twenty times sweeter than sugar therefore you don’t need to use a lot of it.”

“Madam Chairwoman,” said Angharad in an angry voice.

Everyone turned to look at her.

“As you know, Madam Chairwoman, the rules of the competition clearly state that all the ingredients for the entries must be obtained from within thirty miles of the village. I am sure my sister will back me up when I say that I know of no shop this side of Swansea that would stock such an item. Therefore, I must ask for the winner to be disqualified and my entry rightly pronounced the winner of the competition.”

Everyone looked at the Chairwoman, Ceri Davies for an answer. I took my opportunity to explain.

“If I might be allowed to explain, I can clear things up and avoid further embarrassment all round.”

No one objected.

“As I said, Stevia is a herb that originates in South America. However, the Stevia that I used in my cake was grown in my greenhouse. I would be more than happy to welcome a visit from the Committee so that they can verify my claims.”
There was a stunned silence from the people.

Ceri broke the silence.

“Thank you very much for your explanation Monica. I would be more than happy to verify what you say. Until then the result stands.”

“But… Madam Chairwoman, this is not right. I deserve to be announced the winner.”

“Angharad,” said the Chairwoman in a stern voice.
“My decision is final. Besides, we still have a justice system that in the main believes in ‘Innocence until proven guilty’ and as long as I’m chairwoman that will remain the case.”

That clearly was the last word on the subject. The two sisters stormed off and I was suddenly being asked about my baking secrets. As if I had any compared to the women in the village who’d been baking since they were girls.

I left the Fayre feeling a lot better with myself. I had made a lot of new friends amongst the women and even a few were actively looking a boyfriend for me. That fact alone, made me very happy as on the surface, I’d been accepted just that little bit more into the community.

[To be continued]

[Authors Note]
There may be some historical bits in this section that some readers may take issue with. No insults were or are intended. I was only trying to illustrate that some people have very long memories and do not forgive the actions of others easily much like the feud between the Hatfield’s and the McCoy’s.

~o~O~o~
The episode of the Christmas Cake had sent Angharad and her sister off in a huff. Since the W.I. committee had visited my greenhouse for themselves and I demonstrated how to make sugar crystals from the ‘Stevia’ herb, their severely bent out of shape noses hadn’t been seen since at any of the W.I. meetings since the competition.

I’d been invited to spend Christmas day with several of the members due to my new found but probably temporary ‘local hero’ status. In the end, I chose to spend it with Ruby who, out of all of them was nearest my age. I accepted her invitation only if I was allowed to contribute towards the cost. Ruby was a single mother who had a 3 year old son, and lived on the earnings from her job in the local sub Post Office.

Over a delightful Christmas Lunch and probably after one glass of my homebrew too many, Ruby let slip that they would probably be made homeless in the not too distant future. She revealed that they were renting their home and their landlord had told them a week earlier that he was selling the house and they may well have to move or more than likely find considerably more in rent each month.

It was clear that Ruby couldn’t afford much of an increase at all and with her son Owen growing up fast their finances were obviously somewhat stretched. The warm welcome they gave me reminded me of the Christmases we used to have when my parents were alive.

When I returned home later that evening, I started thinking how I might be able to help Ruby and others like her in the Village and surrounding hamlets. There was a lot of resentment about ‘incomers’ buying properties as second homes despite the difficulties in getting mortgages due to the problems with the banks. Once a property was bought for a second home, it was then lost to the local community for a very long time.

I knew this only too well because my purchase was viewed with more than a degree of suspicion until I let it be known that I was going to be living here all year round then I was made much more welcome. Well, welcome as much as anyone who was not born in the village or even this part of the principality could be. Over time and especially with the events of the Christmas cake competition and my pathetic attempts at learning a few phrases in Welsh had made me feel a lot more welcomed by almost everyone in the village.

When the Christmas and New Year holidays were over, I composed a long email to my lawyer, Charlie in London outlining a possible solution and a use for some of the money that is sitting in a bank earning a derisory level of interest.

With that done, I turned my attention to planning what I was going to grow in my Greenhouse and garden in the coming year.
Before I knew it, it was late February, the nights were becoming noticeably shorter and even a few birds were starting to gather materials for their nests.  Charlie had emailed me with an update on my business proposal. His email contained the news I was waiting for. My new company, Pithead Investment and Property Services or PITS for short was up and running. It was just as well because a ‘For Sale’ board had gone up outside Ruby’s home. The property was going to be sold by at auction in just over a week’s time.

In the end, the auction was almost a non-event. Only two parties apart from myself were bidding. The first of those dropped out at £100,000. I’d entered a limit of £225,000 with the Auctioneer a few days before the event. If the bidding went to that I was standing by on my laptop to take over the bidding. I needn’t have worried as the other bidder dropped out at £215,000. The place was worth a lot more than that so I guessed they wanted to buy it cheap, then spend a little money doing it up and reselling it again at a not so small profit. Something that is called ‘Flipping’ in the trade. Well, that was not going to happen to this property.

Once the auction was over, I switched off my laptop feeling satisfied with the whole thing. Then, I phoned the firm of Solicitors in Swansea that I’d engaged to handle my property dealings and gave them the good news. When the call was finished, I transferred the purchase price into their client account. Then I sat back and wondered what to do next.

Over a mug if tea, I cautioned myself to keep my spending in check. Then I burst out laughing. I had enough money in my portfolio that I could easily buy the whole village. I did realise that I had to be careful otherwise my desire give a helping hand to people who deserved it would become public knowledge. However, having all this money was nice but somehow the thrill of buying something that I’d had when I bought my first car was missing. I guessed that it was the risk factor. I couldn’t really afford the car but I bought it anyway. Now and with my somewhat dramatic change in circumstances, paying more than two hundred grand for a property was well, a ‘meh’ moment. Rather sad really but a sign of times that I’d have to accept.

When I’d finished the tea, I phoned the property management company I’d hired to manage the property. Finding an ethical company who would follow my requirements hadn’t been easy. Thankfully Charlie had some contacts in the business and after a bit of work, we’d found a company in Bangor. The next month or so was going to be interesting for Ruby. She was in for a wonderful surprise.

But as they say, the best laid plans and all that…

---

One morning I was working in one of the two converted Lambing Sheds early in March. I was changing the oil in one of the vintage motorcycles I owned when I sensed that someone was watching me. I turned around and looked towards the entrance to the shed.

I gasped when I recognized the person standing there. It was Kylie.

“Hello Kylie. It is very nice to see you again.”

I walked over towards her wiping my hands on a fairly clean rag.

“Nice to see you too Monica. I said that I’d come back. Well, here I am.”

“I can see that. It would have nice to have had some notice you know.”

“Well, I said that I’d be back when I got myself sorted out and here I am.”

I stood in front of her. Then I hugged her tight. She responded with gusto.

“I’m glad you came back. It is really nice to see you. You are looking good.”

“Thanks Monica.”

I let her go to arms length and looked at her.

“From the looks of you, you still have some way to go but you are looking a lot better than when we first met.”

“Aren’t you pleased to see me? If you aren’t then I’ll go.”

I looked at her and I could see that she was genuine.

“Yes I am pleased to see you but next time you decide to leave please let me know. There you were, here one moment and the next… you were gone.”

“I know and I’m sorry for that. I felt I had to go. I was starting to become comfortable here and I had to try one last time to get rid of the devils that were stopping me from getting on with my life. I promise that I won’t leave like that again.”

I grinned.

“Apology accepted. Now go and put the kettle on while I finish this little job.”

With a little smile, she left me alone. I needed a few minutes to think. Her return could be as upsetting as her departure was and that was the last thing I wanted to happen.

I finished the oil change and cleared away before making my way into the kitchen. Kylie was just pouring the tea into some clean mugs.

“Thanks,” she said as she sat down.

“For what?”

“For not giving me an earful. I deserve it.”

At that moment, I forgave her.

“That’s all in the past. Let’s enjoy the tea and you can tell me what you have been doing.”

Kylie smiled

“Only if you tell me how you came by this glass bowl? I see your name engraved on it.”

I was sure that I went very red in the face.

“It is a long story.”

“Well, I see some cake that is obviously ready to be eaten and we have the rest of the day don’t we?”

That was putting me in my place all right.

Sleep was rather hard to come by that night. Kylie had told me that despite her best efforts her father was unwilling to let her decide how she should live her life.

After travelling around a bit, she’d started a job in Swindon in the run up to Christmas but a week later he turned up demanding that she go home with him that instant. It was only the intervention of a security guard that has stopped him from dragging her away that instant.

She’d lost her job the next day due to being accused of taking drugs on the premises. The same thing had happened to her last week when she’d had a temporary job on a farm near Cirencester. She’d been in the middle of morning milking when her father appeared on the scene. The farmer had intervened and the father had gone. A week later the farmer received a surprise audit from the Tax people. It magically disappeared when Kylie left her job.

It seemed that I was a sucker for lost causes just like the plight of Ruby and her daughter. This time I was determined to help Kylie be able to live her life as she wanted to and not as her parents dictated.

Over breakfast the following morning, I said to Kylie,

“I was thinking about your story last night and it is pretty obvious that somehow your Father gets information on where you are working as soon as you try to go legit. You can either spend the rest of your life working off the books or we can try to resolve it once and for all. For that we are going to have to use the services of my Solicitor in London.”

Her face brightened up and almost straight away a sad expression replaced it.

“I can’t pay.”

I smiled.

“Have I said anything about payment? It will be my pleasure to pay for it besides I know exactly what is involved. I too had to take steps to disconnect myself from my past.”

She looked worried.

“It is nothing bad I can assure you but like you some other people wanted to stop me living my life as I wanted and on my terms.”
“But what would it mean to me?” she asked.

I grinned and said,

“You have two options. First, get a legal restraining order against your parents so that stop interfering in your life. Or, go the whole hog and get a new identity.”

“Are both options possible?”

I grinned.

“The first is easy. You just fill out a form and the legal people will do the rest. The second can be done in such a way as to be very difficult if not impossible for anyone to trace the new you back to the old you.”

“Isn’t that illegal?”

“Well… is it and it isn’t. But, if the new you is honest and you pay your taxes then after a period of time it really isn’t in the public interest to take you to court especially if you have a good reason for doing it in the first place. The problem is that as far as I know, the National Insurance system won’t give you another N.I. Number. That makes you traceable by anyone with access to the systems. From what I’ve been told, the new identity process bends the system a bit.”
She looked at me for a long second.

“From what you have said, you’ve done this new identity thing yourself haven’t you? That means that Monica isn’t your real name?”

“Monica is my real as in legal name but it isn’t my birth name so yes, I have done it myself.”

“Why? Why did you change it?”

This was the bit that I’d prepared for a very long time.

“I had my reasons. Suffice to say, like you I couldn’t live my life as I wanted to. People I’d known all my life turned against me because of things that had happened when I was a very young child. The result was that I ended up homeless but you already know that. After a lot of water under a good many bridges, I bought this place and… well you know the rest.”

Once again, I got ‘the look’.

“Was it all over money?”

Somewhat reluctantly, I replied.

“Yes. Yes, it was all over money”.

I chuckled.

“The saying that ‘Money is the root of all evil’ does have a bit of truth in it.”

Kylie looked sad.

“It figures, so was mine.”

“How come?”

“My grandmother left me a load of money but my father, her son, my Father wants it for himself. It is in trust until I’m 21. My father lost a huge amount of money when the housing market crashed so he thinks that my inheritance should be his to keep up his lifestyle and appearances.”

At last she has let it out.

“It makes perfect sense that you want to keep it out of his hands? I’ll call my Lawyer in London and see what he says on the matter.”

Kylie looked a bit worried at what I’d said.

“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure that Charlie will take you on as a client and then everything will be confidential between the two of you.”

“You call your lawyer by his first name?”

I grinned.

“You really don’t want to know what I call his brother.”

Charlie as I predicted, rolled over like a good doggie when I described Kylie’s plight especially when I told him to take a very large retainer from my client account on her behalf. Charlie had two weaknesses in life. The first was money. As long as you waved a big enough wad of cash in front of him he’d take you on as a client. Most of his clients were celebrities but he would often go the extra mile for a more ordinary person especially if that person was a good-looking woman without pretentious and Kylie would fit that bill with a little bit of attention.

After a decent lunch, I showed Kylie her room.

“You haven’t changed anything!” she remarked when she saw the pile of clothes neatly filed on the bed just as she’d left them.

“I didn’t feel happy moving them. I always felt that you would come back.”

Well, it was a blatant lie because I’d picked them up several times in a fit of rage but once I had them in my hands I calmed down and put them back. In the end, I persuaded myself that by leaving them there, she’d be sure to return. Something about burring bridges. Gloria would have more than a few words to say on the issue but that was for another day.

Despite Kylie’s promise not to leave without telling me, every morning, I was worried about her presence until she appeared in the kitchen for breakfast.  While she was here, I put her to work in my garden. She didn’t object at all. She said that it was good therapy for her. In return for her efforts, she got some money in return. This would allow her to buy her own things when we went shopping. After a week or so, she relaxed and started to enjoy being somewhere safe.

---

Kylie had been back with me for almost three weeks when over dinner she said,

“I’ve decided that I need to go and confront my father one last time.”

“What about the court order or changing your name?”

She shook her head.

“I’ve had time to think thanks to you. I need to try to get him to stop one more time. Do you think that Charlie would go with me?”
I chuckled.

“Charlie likes his office comforts and hates going outside of London. In fact, I seem to remember that he only leaves the city for Royal Ascot. That said, I’m sure he could arrange for one of his associates would go with you. Why don’t you give him a call?”

“I’ll do just that in the morning.”

She saw that I was looking a bit sad.

“I couldn’t have made this decision without you being here. You do know that, don’t you?”

“Thanks. But…”

“I know, you just get used to me and whoosh I’m gone again?”

I nodded.

“Yes.”

She grinned.

“I’m like a bad penny that keeps on returning.”
We both laughed.

---

Charlie called about 10 days later with an update.

“Hold on Charlie, let me put you on speaker,”

I pressed the button on the phone.

“Ok, go ahead.”

“Hello Kylie, can you hear me ok?”

“Yes, we can Charlie,” said Kylie.

“As instructed, I investigated the terms of the will. Once probate is granted, wills become a matter of public record. Anyway, what Kylie is saying is correct. She has a considerable sum of money in trust until she is either married or reaches the age of 21. Kylie, your father is to put it bluntly flat broke. Only your mother’s income is keeping them afloat. He was in well over his head when in 2008/2009 the property market crashed. He managed to stave off his creditors for the past six years through various bits of sleight of hand but has since resorted to selling everything he owns often at a huge loss but he is still in hock to the tune of two million.”
Kylie sucked in a deep breath.

“That much?”

“Yes, that much. He has also spent a not inconsiderable sum on private eyes in his quest to find you. To be honest Kylie, going on the road was about the best thing you could have done in the circumstances. The latest report from his P.I. on you concludes,
‘Kylie is very adept at just vanishing. She obviously has help but so far we have been unable to find her but indications are that she may be in North West Wales.”

“He’s onto us then?”

“That may be the case. I have no idea how much bluster this is in order to keep the money coming in. This is not unheard of but I think that all precautions should be made in the event of a P.I coming snooping around.”

“What should we do?”

“At the moment, Kylie, you should stay put. The fewer people who know where you are the better but you need to think about how you might shall we say, leave in a hurry if you need it. At this end, I am applying for a restraining order under Section 5 of the 1997, Protection from Harassment Act and Section 12 of the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act 2004. We have a court date of next Tuesday at the High Court in London. I’d like the both of you there if possible?”

I looked at Kylie. She nodded her head.

“We’ll be there. Text me the details.”

“How will you travel?”

“I think that is best left to us to work out don’t you Charlie?”

“Perfect Monica. I knew that you would as the Americans say, ‘step up to the plate’. You are a very adaptable and resourceful woman.”

I laughed.

“Now Charlie, behave or I’ll have Gloria come and beat you up.”

Charlie burst out laughing.

“See you Tuesday.”

“What was that all about?” asked Kylie.

“Charlie is on the case. He’s in his element when he’s got something to get his teeth into. With you, he has.”

“Who’s this Gloria?”

“That I’ll leave for another time and place. Now we have to get you kitted up for going to London.”

“What do you mean ‘kitted up?”

I grinned.

“Ever been on the back of a Bike?”

Suddenly she cottoned on.

“We can travel easier if we do it by Bike. Tinted Visors will make our faces just about invisible.”

“Are you sure?”

“Well, as much as I can be.”

“What needs to be done then?”

“For starters, why don’t we go into my workshop and see what I’ve got that will fit you.”

A few minutes later Kylie was trying on an old pair of my Leathers. It was clear that her legs were much longer than mine and to be honest, she looked silly in them. Her torso was also shorter than mine so wearing my leathers was totally out of the question.

Next, we tried my old waterproof suit. This is more forgiving in that it is meant to be practical not fashionable. This was a lot better.

“Here try this on,” I said handing her my spare crash helmet.

It was obvious from the word go that my head is bigger than hers.

We both giggled.

“Hold on, I have an idea.”

With that, I ran back into the house, took the stairs two at a time and went into my bedroom. I rummaged in a couple of drawers before finding what I was looking for. Then I ran back to the workshop holding it in my hand still wrapped in a plastic bag.

“Ok, try this on,” I said once I’d removed the helmet.

“What is it?”

“A blonde wig,” I proudly pronounced as I removed it from the bag.

“I’m not sure,” said Kylie hesitantly.

I smiled.

“Actually, the more I think about it, the more I like it. No one looking for you would expect long blonde hair. I expect that Investigator knows that you have fairly short brown hair. If you have the ends showing out the bottom of the helmet, no one seeing us would give us a second look. You can’t ride one of these can you?”

Kylie shook her head.

“Ok. I’ll try it,” she said reluctantly.

A few minutes later it was brushed out and on her head.

“How does that feel?”

“Different but I expect I’ll have to get used to it won’t I?”

“That’s more like it,” I said offering up the helmet.

This time it fitted a lot better.

“That looks good. Now if you flip down the visor and no one would recognise you.”

She flipped it down and her lovely face disappeared from view.

An hour later, Kylie climbed onto the back of my Triumph Trophy and we set off for a ride. At first, I took it really steady. Well, you have to in the part of the country where I lived. I headed south towards Carmarthen and the ‘A48’ main road. She wrapped her arms tightly around my waist as I opened the throttle and accelerated until I was going at the local speed limit. Kylie was a great passenger and I could tell that she was enjoying herself.

When we got home, I undid her helmet and she took it off along with the wig.

We both laughed at the sight of the hair hanging from the helmet.

“You are a great passenger you know.”

“Thanks. I enjoyed that.”

I extracted the wig from the helmet.

“A few hair grips will ensure that this stays in place.”
She nodded.

“Ok, so we got to London on this thing. What then?”

“Why don’t we go and get cleaned up then we can talk over dinner.”

“Good idea,” said Kylie as she took off at a run.
“Bags the shower first,” she said over her shoulder as she disappeared into the house.

---

Half an hour later, I’d just finished in the shower and was starting to get dressed when the door to my room opened and Kylie walked in. She stopped and then let out an almighty screech.

“You’re a fucking man!”

Before I could react, she fled the room leaving me standing there wearing only a bra.

With a heavy heart, I got dressed and went downstairs fully expecting to find Kylie long gone. To my eternal surprise, she was sitting in the Kitchen, arms folded and with a look that could kill at 500yds on her face.

I sat down opposite her and started to speak. Before I did, she put up her hand to stop me.

“It all makes sense now. I never dreamed that you were a fella but now it makes perfect sense. The bikes, the workshop and all that garden stuff. I’ve never met a woman who would know one end of a … well you know what I mean.  Far too practical for any woman I ever met.”

For some reason, I thought to myself, ‘there speaks an old head on young shoulders’.

“W… why haven’t you legged it like last time?”

“I was on my way out of the door then I remembered that had I made a promise not to and you have done so much to help me without question. I figured that I should at least stay and try to understand why you’d want to become a woman.”

I didn’t know what to say. All the emotion of her going and coming back and now this was just too much for me and I burst out crying.

Kylie to her immense credit let me cry out. When I’d recovered, she made some us some tea. As I drank the warm sweet liquid, I began to feel better. After the second cup, I began to tell her my story.

~o~O~o~
[Some 5 years previous to the events depicted in the story so far]
“Good Morning Kuli,” I said as I walked into the corner Shop at the end of the street of terraced houses where I lived.

“Good morning Danny. You are later than normal? Got the day off?”

“Something like that Kuli. I’m going down to London.”

“A special occasion?”

“It might be but I really don’t know. There is a chance of something special happening but I really don’t know.”

“Who is she Dan?”

“It’s not like that Kuli. I wish it was.”

Kuli handed over my usual copy of ‘The Independent’. I was the only one of Kuli’s customers who read the paper. Most of the other customers of Kuli’s shop read the ‘Daily Mirror’ or ‘Socialist Worker’. I liked Kuli. He was a lapsed Sikh but had been born in Leeds and could hold more than a few beers on a Friday Night out.

“Thanks Kuli. See you Monday.”

I walked back along the street of terraced houses to my house, but I didn’t go inside. Instead I unlocked my well used but reliable 8yr old Ford Focus and drove away from home. I’d already put a small suitcase containing my only decent jacket and trousers into the boot so I was all set.  I drove out of town past the remains of the once thriving coal mine and headed as usual towards the town of Doncaster.

I normally did this journey on my way to work but today I was going to take the train from Doncaster station and head south to London.  That evening I was due to be one of the possible contestants in ‘Who wants to be a Millionaire’.

I’d applied to be on the show as a bit of a joke with a few of the guys at work. That was months earlier and had totally forgotten about it until a week before I’d received a letter inviting me to go on the show. The guys at work refused to believe me until I showed them the letter and ‘press-ganged’ two of them into being my ‘Phone a Friend, friends’.

There was soon a book going amongst my work colleagues betting that I’d chicken out if I got selected. That was the faith they had in me, zilch but it brightened the day in the Garage.

The London train was late and bursting at the seams with passengers because the previous service had been cancelled.

Thankfully I had booked a seat ahead of time so after I’d turfed a squatter out of my seat I was able to sit down and try to gather my thoughts. There was always a chance that I would not be selected to be in the ‘Hot Seat’ but I had to be clear in my own mind what I wanted out of the evening.

~o~O~o~
“Good Evening,” said the host of the show Chris Tarrant as he started the show.

“At the end of the last show, Geraldine Goodman went home with a hundred and twenty-five thousand pounds so we are looking for a new contestant.”

At that moment, the studio lights dimmed and the spotlight went of over the heads of each of us for a moment in turn. Twice it went on over my head and went out. Each time I almost had a heart attack as it went on only for my heart to start again when it went off.

The third time it went on, and didn’t go off. It was me! I’d been selected. I froze solid for a second before the beaming smile of the host penetrated my stupor and …. I was on TV. There was no backing out now…

[35 minutes later]

“Danny, is that your final answer? You still have ‘phone a friend’ to use you know?”

“Yes, Chris it is. None of my friends would know their Norse Mythology from the runners at Doncaster on a wet Friday afternoon.

I’m sure final answer, I’ll take the money.”

“Danny Ackroyd, you are going home to Yorkshire with a cheque for two hundred and fifty thousand pounds.”

The audience prompters did their work and applause broke out and that was it. My 15, no make that, my 30 of minutes of fame was over. I knew right then that my life would change but I had no idea at that time how much it would change.

The show had been recorded on a Friday evening and wasn’t broadcast until the following day. To my shame, I couldn’t watch it simply because I didn’t own a TV. My parents had one but a year after mum died, it went on the blink so I got rid of it and never replaced it. I spent Saturday night at home with a few cans of beer trying to decide what I would do with that money. The cheque was still in the inside pocket of my jacket. I’d looked at it many times since Chris had stuffed it into my hands on the show. I couldn’t quite believe that I would be putting that amount of money into the bank on Monday morning.

Things started to go downhill on Sunday. Several neighbours knocked at my front door and blatantly asked me for money. Some said that they’d loaned my mother a tenner in 1984 and they thought that I should pay them back with interest right now. Others were a bit more direct and just came out and asked me for a hundred and even in one case to buy them a new car. So much for community spirit?

I’d said on the show that I intended to donate a sum of money to the local Miners Welfare. This was because of the help that they’d given my family when my father was dying from ‘miners lung’. I had every intention of doing just that once the money was paid into the bank and available for use. By lunchtime on Sunday I’d had three of the committee knocking at my door asking for the money. It was as if I was going to back out on my promise. I even showed them the cheque and explained that I had to pay it into the bank before I could pay them. Not all of them believed me. I couldn’t understand why all the urgency to get their hands on the money.

I remained in the dark until a good friend said,

“It is because your father was a SCAB.”

I asked what he meant.

“Your da left the NUM and joined the UDM. He was the first in the pit to do so. It was understandable because your mother had just given birth to you and your family needed the money. He was the first one to cross the picket line. He was and still is regarded as a SCAB in the village even though everyone went back to work eventually."

As I thought back, it all stated to make sense. All the whispering when I took my mother shopping and the people who crossed over to the other side of the street just to avoid us when I was a child.

What I couldn’t understand was that I’d been a NUM member when I was an apprentice mechanic at the pit in the next village. I’d paid my dues and left the Union amicably when that pit closed for good a few years earlier. There had never been any question about which Union I should join so I joined the NUM instead of the UDM.

~o~O~o~
I went to work on Monday and got a lot of applause from my colleagues. I said that I’d stand everyone a drink on the following Friday. That went down very well even if one of my friends boasted that he would have been able to answer the question about Odin correctly. That was until he was challenged and failed miserably to give the correct answer. Mind you, none of the questioners had a clue either so it made for a lot of good-hearted banter.

At lunchtime, I headed to the bank and deposited the cheque. I was something of a local celebrity in Doncaster even though I really didn’t want to be one. Still the good day hardly prepared me for what I found when I got home.
My home had been ransacked and the word SCAB painted in red on every wall and ceiling in the house. All the neighbours said that they’d heard or seen nothing which given the nature of the street was impossible but they weren’t saying.

Being more than a bit angry, I went down to the Welfare and demanded to see the committee. I was told that none of them were there despite their cars being in the car park. Then I phoned the local paper and they duly dispatched a reporter to my house. I gave them what I thought was a clear explanation but this was not what appeared in the following days edition. I was quoted as saying that I’d decided not to give the donation to the welfare and was going to keep all the money myself. Being naive and all that

I demanded an apology from the editor. I didn’t get it. Well, it might have been delivered but I didn’t get it because my car had its wheels stolen all its windows broken as it was parked outside my house. A fire had been started which was really bad news because I’d only filled it up with petrol on the way home. The Fire Brigade evacuated the whole street as a precaution. We didn’t get the all clear to go home until well after Midnight. This didn’t go down well with my neighbours. Things were clearly going from bad to worse. A lot of bad memories had been brought to the surface once again.

In the end, the local Police Inspector suggested that I should basically ‘get out of town’ for my own safety before I provoked more reaction from my former friends and neighbours. As far as I was concerned, I’d done nothing wrong but in the end, I packed a suitcase and took the offer of a lift over to Doncaster in a police car. That bloody money was causing me nothing but trouble.

I thought that things couldn’t get any worst but the following day I was called into the office at the Bus Garage where I worked and told that my Union membership had been rescinded and that I should look for another job. The manager muttered something about falsifying my qualifications on my job application. I knew that this was untrue and certainly illegal and was therefore a clear case of unfair dismissal. I protested my innocence once again. I knew that I’d done nothing wrong but it clearly didn’t matter. I was now not only homeless but jobless and penniless as well. I couldn’t draw any money from my winnings because the cheque hadn’t cleared. All I had with me was one suitcase of clothes and that was it.  Sure, I could sue them for unfair dismissal but in my heart, I knew that it was just not worth the bother.

I took a train to York and booked into a fairly cheap hotel using my only credit card. I hoped to lie low for a few days in the hope that the anger against me back home would die down. Boy, was I mistaken. I went home to try to retrieve a few more things and while I was inside the ruin that was my home, the hire car that I’d used was stolen. It was found on the site of the old Pit totally burned out. A good few people seems to be blaming me for all the ills that had befallen on the Village since the Miners Strike a quarter of a century before.

Now I had nothing but the clothes I was wearing. Once again, I took the offer of a lift from the Police to ‘get out of town’. This time I went to Sheffield Railway Station where I used a good proportion of my remaining cash and bought a ticket to Blackpool. We’d been there many times while I was a child for the day and for holidays. I knew that there were a lot of cheap places to stay also, I hoped that it was far enough from home that I’d be able to get myself sorted out in peace.

My problems didn’t end when I got to Blackpool. The first three places I tried, I was shone the door not because I was a ‘SCAB’ but because the landlady recognized me from the TV show and they all thought that I should be staying at a five star hotel. However, my luck changed at the fourth establishment.

“I don’t care as long as you pay your bill,” came the reply from the landlady.

By the looks of her she’d come after me with all her might if I tried to leave her without paying.

“I won’t be able to pay until a cheque clears.”

“Pull the other one darling. I’ve heard that more times than you have had hot dinners.”

“I won a quarter of a million on Millionaire at the weekend. When the cheque clears, I can pay you in full.”

She looked at me over the top of her ‘pince-nez’ glasses.

“I thought you looked familiar. What the hell are you doing in a dump like this?”

“People wanted my money and… well it is a long story. Until that money clears I am effectively homeless and penniless until the bank releases the money.”

“Won’t the bank advance you some money?”

“It is a Yorkshire Bank. What do you think?”

“Aye, thems a load of tightwads all right.”

She looked at me again.

“Don’t you have any luggage?”

I shook my head. They set my car alight. It all goes back to the 1980’s.”

She looked at me again.

“Miners strike?”

I nodded my head.

“Bloody Scargill. The man was a fool to call a strike like that. President for life as well. Bleeding little dictator if you ask me. Come on in and I’ll show you to your room.”

I breathed a sigh of relief at least someone had taken pity on me at last. Her comments about the strike rang all too true. It had divided the nation. You either loved or hated Scargill with no middle ground.

She led me upstairs and to the back of the house. My room was tiny. Well that was to be expected. I was also sharing a toilet and bathroom but it was only fifty quid a night including breakfast. Well, it was the height of the Illuminations after all. At least the place seemed reasonably clean and … well I didn’t have much choice. It appeared that it was this or a night under the pier with the other homeless people. I had money but I couldn’t touch it. That was the frustrating bit about all this.

Before I turned in, I washed my socks as best I could in the small hand-basin and hoped that they would be dry by the morning.

Everything else would have to do. I thought I’d go shopping the following day and max out my credit card and get some new clothes. Those were my last thoughts before I dropped off to sleep.

Breakfast the following morning turned out to be something unexpected. I knew that I had to be sitting down at 08:00 sharp or I wouldn’t get served but I wasn’t expecting the person I’d be sharing a table with.

I was already seated when ‘she’ came waltzing into the Dining room. She saw me and smiled back at me.

“Well hello sweetie, I’m Gloria. You must be the new arrival,” she announced in a deep voice.

Gloria was one of those extrovert Drag Queens.

“Yes Sweetie, I’m a Drag Queen. I come here every year for the Illuminations. The rest of the time I’m just a normal guy but for these few weeks, I can be myself and no one gives a toss.”

This made me feel a bit uncomfortable. I felt as it my innermost secret was about to be exposed to the world. In my current state this was not something I wanted to happen.

Gloria saw my embarrassment

“Don’t worry sweetie, you aren’t my type,” she said laughing as she sat down opposite me.

I managed to get through breakfast with our putting my foot in it too much. Then I escaped the boarding house as soon as possible and headed down to the prom. In the daylight of a September morning and with a few discarded chip wrappers blowing about there was district lack of glitz to the place.

I found an ATM and checked the balance. My winnings hadn’t been credited to my account. I had a little over eighty pounds in my account so I decided to withdraw it. I was shocked to find that my account had been blocked. The saying, ‘if it can go wrong, it will’ came to mind. My appearance of that goddam TV show was close to ruining my life totally and utterly and it appeared that there was not a lot I could do about it.

Feeling even more down in the dumps, I wandered around the town in vain trying to buy some clothes. I did manage to buy some toiletries but there was very little of anything that took my fancy. This all added to my air of depression.

---

I was just walking past a Cafe when a banging on the window caught my attention. I looked at it and groaned to myself because the person knocking on the window was none other than Gloria. She was frantically waving at me and waving a coffee cup.  I dithered for a moment trying to decide if I should go in. A sudden gust of cold wind made my mind up for me.

“Hello Gloria,” I said trying to be cheery.

“Do you want another drink?” I offered.

“No thanks,” came her reply.

I went up to the counter and after checking how much money I had, I ordered a mug of tea. No cups here. This was definitely a ‘mug’ sort of place.

I took my drink over to her table and sat down. Gloria waited patiently for me to take a sip of the hot drink.

“Now, why is someone who won a heap of money at the weekend in this neck of the woods and being very careful with their money to boot?”

My heart sank.

“You know?”

“I saw the show before I went to the Tower Ballroom on Saturday. I didn’t recognize you at first but that thing where you rub the back of your right wrist gave you away.

I was doing that very thing as she said it. I stopped out of embarrassment.

“It is a long story and one that you really don’t want to hear, I am sure.”

“Why ever not? What makes you think that Gloria, the tarty drag queen would not be interested?”

I couldn’t answer that. No, actually, I was scared.

Gloria smiled back at me. Then she rummaged in her copious handbag and produced a wallet. She extracted a business card and gave it to me.

Charles Hemmings,
Palmer, Quayle and Hemmings Partnership
Solicitors and Commissioners of Oaths
Confidentiality Guaranteed
An address in Chelsea was printed below.

“Well?”

I read the card again and then looked back at the person sitting opposite me.

“If you don’t mind me saying so, what the fuck are you doing here if that is really who you are? How do I know that this is you? You could have gotten this anywhere? Why should a hotshot lawyer dress as, in your own words, a tarty tranny be here and what’s more, interested in me? Just answer me that?”

Gloria smiled back at me.

“That’s more like it. Show some fight. Don’t let the buggers win. You are right. I’m not the man on the card. That is my older and decidedly more brilliant brother. Whatever and whoever is stopping you from getting hold of that money can be fixed. Let me call my brother and see if he can sort it out?”

I shook my head.

“I can’t afford your brothers rates. I’m homeless and penniless, well until I get my hands on my winnings.”
Gloria grinned back at me.

“Don’t worry. My devious brother owes me more than a few favours. Let’s go somewhere a bit more private and I’ll call him. Then you can give him your details and he can make a few phone calls.”

I didn’t say anything.

“Is that a problem?” asked Gloria.

“Well, it could be. How do I know that the pair of you won’t run off with my money?”
Gloria laughed.

“You have been through the wringer haven’t you? I’m sure he can work something out.”

We left the Cafe and headed for the beach. In a sheltered spot near the pier Gloria made a phone call. She put the phone on speaker so that I could hear everything that was said.

“Hello brother dear.”
“Yes, this is Gloria in all her glory.”

“What do I want? Well,” replied her brother slightly impatiently.

Gloria smiled at me.

“I have someone in need of your assistance.”

“And before you ask, yes it will be ‘pro-bono’. You owe me more than a few favours don’t you.”?

“Ok. I’ll put him on and he can explain.”

Gloria handed me the phone.

I swallowed hard and took it from her.

“Hello Mr Hemmings. My name is Daniel Ackroyd, Danny for short. I won quite a bit of money on Millionaire last Saturday and I can’t get at it. My bank is blocking it on suspicions of money laundering. Can you help me get at it?”

“Yes I need it. I am currently homeless and just about out of money. Gloria can vouch for that I’m sure.”

“Yes. It is the Leeds Bank. Do you want the account number?”

“Ok, I’ll text them to you.”

---

Half an hour later we were on a bus to Preston. Gloria knew of an out of town centre that was on the bus route where I could get a change of clothes. Despite the obvious stares the Gloria received, I was glad of her company. When I mentioned that I was just about broke, she laughed.

“Forget it love. Gloria will sub you. I don’t do Blackpool for the money but for fun. Helping someone out is a lot better than sitting in a Café all day.”

I stopped in mid stride. Gloria wasn’t a she, it was clearly male but for some reason I was accepting that Gloria was female despite being clearly a man in drag.  Well, who wouldn’t think of a man, well over 6ft tall wearing an outrageous blonde wig, a shiny lurex mini skirt and shoes with a 4in platform and heels that were at least twice that, and a full beard, nothing more than a man in drag.

At that moment, I said to myself, ‘what the hell. Go with the flow’.

Armed with a change of clothes, we returned to Blackpool. We hadn’t heard anything from Charlie and it was getting late. Then Gloria dropped a bombshell.

“Well Sweetie, I’ll have to say Ta-ta until tomorrow.”

“Why? Where are you going?”

She giggled.

“I have a minor part in the Show on the pier. I need to go and get ready along with my fellow Queens.”

I was dumbstruck. Gloria clearly saw that.

“It is a review. There are 10 other girls like me. All I have to do is wave a fan in time with the music and swan about a bit. It is fun and certainly beats my day job.”

~o~O~o~
Gloria was her usual effervescent self the following morning. As was my style, I put a dampener on it.

“Any news from Charlie?”

She looked at me sternly.

“Can’t a girl have her first cup of tea before getting the ‘Spanish Inquisition’?”

I hadn’t a clue what she meant. Gloria saw it. She smiled and sat down.

“No I haven’t heard a thing. I’ll call him later. Now can I get some breakfast?”

That shut me up for the time being.

My hopes for relief were dashed when I tried to withdraw some money from an ATM when it swallowed my credit card. What more could go wrong with my life? Who said that ‘Money is the root of all evil’? Well Money was certainly at the root of all my problems.

That afternoon, I was walking along the promenade wondering how I'd get to my Bank in Doncaster to try to sort out my money when I heard someone shouting ‘Sweetie’. I groaned as I saw Gloria waving at me from the top of an open top Tram. Thankfully, she was soon out of sight as the tram headed towards Fleetwood.

My respite didn’t last long because less than twenty minutes later, Gloria had returned and found me again.

“Sweetie! Just the person I’m looking for.”

My spirits just dropped another few notches.

“What do you want Gloria?” I replied with a slightly irritable tone.

“Do you want to earn some money? Cash in hand?”

“What do I have to do? Run naked after a Tram?

She giggled.

“No. Nothing like that.”

Then she got a serious look.

“One of the girls has sprained her ankle and we need a replacement. I thought of you.”

“But…”

“Did I say, Cash in hand?”

“But…”

“Come on, take a risk. What have you got to lose?”

I couldn’t argue with that.

“Ok. I’ll do it,” I said reluctantly.

“That’s the spirit. Come on, we have a fitting to go to.”

---

Gloria literally dragged me into the Pier Theatre. Once we were in the dressing room she introduced me to the cast. To my surprise, they all made me very welcome.

My good vibe didn’t last very long. Gloria showed me the costume I’d be wearing.

“But… I don’t have any boobs and where am I going to put… you know what?”

To say that the costume was revealing would be an understatement. It was little more than a women’s one-piece swimsuit covered in glitter. Not much was left to the imagination.

“You have a couple of fans to wave as well….” Pleaded Gloria.

That didn’t give me a lot of confidence. However, all the other cast members pitched in and by the time of curtain up, I was dressed, made-up and … well petrified of having what is called, a ‘wardrobe malfunction’ in mid performance.
In the end, I needn’t have worried. Things went perfectly. Well, as perfectly as could be with a bumbling idiot in the midst of their ranks, no one complained when we returned to the dressing room, everyone thanked me for my performance.

To be honest, I was taken aback with all the praise.

“We can’t call you Danny. What is your female name?” asked one of the performers?

“Eh? I don’t have one?”

“What do you mean, you don’t have one? You are a natural,” said another.

“A natural clod hopper,” I replied.

“No. You are a natural woman. Look at you now,” said a third.

“W… What do you mean?”

"Sweetie, you are standing there in front of us just like a real woman would do. From where I stand, there is hardly a trace of a man in you at all. Are you sure that you have never done this before?”

I shook my head.

‘No never.”

Gloria took my hand.

“Sweetie, you need some professional help. Come on let’s get changed and get out of here.

I just nodded my head and let her take charge. I really had no idea what had just happened but this seemed to be the norm for me at the moment.

Half an hour later, we went into a pub just off the seafront. We had thirty minutes before closing time. Gloria sat me down and went to the bar to get us both a drink.

When she returned with our drinks she sat down beside me.

“Now Sweetie, you are giving me a problem.”

“Wh.. What do you mean?”

“Didn’t the comments from the cast mean anything to you?”

“What about being a natural woman?”

She nodded her head.

“Once you put that outfit on, you moved like a woman. You stood naturally with your legs in the right position. No one had to teach you. It all came so naturally.”

She sighed.

“That presents me with a problem.”

“A problem? What do you mean?”

“Well, answer me one question truthfully. “

“Have you ever worn women’s clothes before?”

I racked my brains for a few seconds before answering.

“Once. When I was five or six. Why does it matter? It was in the school Nativity Play. The girl playing Mary got stage fright at the last moment. Does that count?”

She shook her head. Her smile vanished as she rummaged in her handbag.

She produced a business card and handed it to me.

“What’s this? Another Brother?” I asked remembering how she introduced Charlie.

Gloria shook her head.

“No, that’s really me.”

I looked at it again.

“You are a psychologist and a psychiatrist?”

“Yes. That is my day job. I come here to let my hair down once a year. For the rest of the year I’m a shrink in Manchester.”

“So, what has that to do with me?”

“I think you need some proper counselling.”

“Why? I just need access to my money and I can get on with my life.”

Once again, she shook her head.

“I saw a totally different side to you tonight. You were a natural woman. After that first number, something clicked in you and you were no longer a man in drag but a woman. Believe me, we all noticed, even the real women in the cast.”

“Are you saying that I should be a tranny?”

“Let’s not try crossing that bridge before we come to it eh? But from what us T-Girls saw tonight is that you are more female than some of the real women in the cast.”

I was stunned by what I’d just heard.

“So… what do you propose?”

“Firstly, we have to see out the week in the review. Then I propose that you become a patient of a colleague and… well see how things go from there.”

“You think I’m crazy?”

“No Danny. Far from it but it is clear to me that you need someone to help you work out what you want to do in your life. Everything you were comfortable with in your life has gone up in smoke. I saw things in you tonight that may be a way for you to go in the future.”

“Why can’t you help me?”

She shook her head.

“I’m too close to you. Whoever helps you needs to be objective. Look at me? I can’t very well be objective now that you know about my other side, now can I?”

I couldn’t argue with that point of view.

In the end, I didn’t get access to my winnings until the following Monday. I was then able to settle up with the Landlady and pay back Gloria for the money she’d loaned me.  I travelled to Manchester with Gloria and met with my ‘shrink’, a man named Robert Paris. He was Gloria’s partner and would be my shrink/therapist for the immediate future.

We had a two-hour session right there and then. I wasn’t prepared for it but Robert wanted to get to know me without any pre-conceived ideas or thoughts getting in the way. At the end of it he said,

“Danny, I have a number of other transsexuals on my books as well as you. From what I’ve seen, you have a definite feminine side. No, it is far more than that. Just looking at how you are sitting is a clear give away especially the way you fold your legs up. Most men could not get even close to how you have folded them.”

He paused probably for effect.

“What I’d like to do is give you a chance to see what life would be like if you crossed over and lived life as a woman full time. How does that sound?”

“Doc, I’ve never thought of myself as a transsexual. I fancy women not men.”

Robert laughed.

“Danny, who you fancy is in my opinion totally unrelated to what sex you were born as. I see you as someone who has lost their way in life. How many real male friends did you have before this all blew up? Then compare that to how many real female friends you had? What does that tell you?”

I thought for a few seconds.

“That I’m more comfortable when in female company but not in a ‘I want to get you into bed’ sort of way?”

Robert chuckled.

“Yes. Rather crudely put but close to the mark. Try to imagine what would change if you were dressed like those women?”

“Not a lot really but I guess that is the point of trying it out. I don’t have anything to lose really now do I?”

“That’s the spirit. I’ll need a day or so to get things setup so we’ll book you into a quiet B&B well away from the city for a few days. How does Chester sound?”

“Chester? Never been there.”

Robert smiled.

“Well now’s your chance.”

Chester was a nice place. Mrs Jones’s B&B was also nice if you like wall to wall Chintz that it. Still, she meant well and made me very welcome.

I used the time in the city to do some shopping. At first wandering around the women’s clothing section of the stores was difficult. I thought that people would be saying, ‘he’s buying that for himself’. But they didn’t, at least, I couldn’t hear them and besides after a few hours, I didn’t care anymore.

After a couple of days, Robert came and picked me up and took me to the smallish town of Bridgnorth where he introduced me to Jemma, a tall thin lithe woman in her fifties.

“Jemma will spend the next few weeks teaching you some of the basics of to become a woman. Movement, posture, hair, makeup and all that.”

That worried me.

“Robert, can I speak to you outside for a moment?”

Once outside, I asked him,

“How much will this cost me? You know for Jemma’s time and effort?”

Robert smiled.

“Good point Danny… You should ask Jemma directly. She does not bite you know.”

Reluctantly, I replied.

“Ok. I will.”

Back inside, Robert came to my rescue.

“Danny here is a bit embarrassed about asking you about the costs and all that?”

Gemma laughed.

“How much were you paying at the last place you stayed?”

“Forty five pounds a night, why?”

“Let’s call it fifty and it’s a deal. Ok?”

“Ok,” I replied very relieved.

It didn’t take long for me to find out that Gemma’s husband had been transgendered and had lived with her as a woman for close to twenty years. He’d died a couple of years before from cancer. I could tell right away that she was going to enjoy the company I’d give her in return for me letting her teach me all sorts of things about being a woman.

~o~O~o~
When I left Gemma’s almost two months later almost all trace of Danny had been eradicated. Even my wimpy beard had been removed. My hair was growing and was now coloured Auburn rather than the limp dull brown it was before. I'd even decided on a new name for myself, Monica.

I felt happier in myself than I’d been for years. The one thing that I’d realized was that for once I had a goal in my life. I’d been going through the motions for and awful long time. I was also under no illusion that the road ahead was going to be easy. It wasn’t and a of few ‘encounters’ that I’d had already made that very clear to me.

I spent a lot of time thinking about me and things in general. Could I go back to live as the old me, Daniel and the associated baggage that went with him or a new start totally. The strange thing was that the more time I spent living as a woman, the more comfortable I was. It just seemed natural, as if I should have been born a woman in the first place. That got me thinking about growing up. All my friends had lots of girlfriends but they really sucked when it came to actually treating them properly. That just wasn't me so as a result I only had one real girlfriend. She left me for someone 'more exciting' and two months later she was up the 'duff'.  In the end, my decision was easy. Let my life as a woman continue. I was not going to go back to my old life no matter what.

Now I had a project. That was the new me. Sure, I had some money but that wouldn’t last forever. I needed to find something I could do to earn a crust. I had no idea what that was but I knew that I was going to have fun finding out.

Before I left, I had a long session with Robert. By long, I mean a whole day. He came down from Manchester and we went out for the day together.

He asked me all sorts of probing questions. A good few of them had been asked before. This time I was far more confident in answering honestly and truthfully.

Robert agreed with my thoughts and arranged for me to have a temporary job, one where I could put my new found ‘female’ skills to work in a relatively safe environment.

That job was working for a woman named Julie Summers. Julie ran mobile hairdressers in rural Devon. I became her assistant as we toured the villages around Dartmoor giving OAP’s their fortnightly cut and perm. Julie was a lot of fun especially when it came to any of her friend’s birthdays. It was nice to be doing something productive again even if some of our clients were a tad crotchety at times.

What pleased me the most was that I was treated as just another woman. Sure, a good few of the clients were half blind but no one screamed out ‘you’re a man’!

Julie played a really big part in that. She taught me how to do my hair, the finer points of makeup and a lot about clothes. On our day off, we had great fun going shopping together. Things just sort of fell into place. I felt really at home for the first time in a very long time.

After two months with Julie, I went up to Manchester for another face-to-face session with Robert. I travelled up by train on my own. It was my first long trip as my new self. At first I was slightly nervous about being on my own but when a couple of Exeter City football fans tried to chat me up I relaxed and started to enjoy the trip.

As soon as I walked into his consulting room, Robert’s face lit up.

“Well Monica, you have made a lot of progress, haven’t you?”

Needless to say, ‘Gloria’ was equally happy with my progress.

---

I’d been with Julie for almost four months when six of her friends got together with the two of us for a girl’s night out to celebrate one of their birthdays. To my eternal relief, none of them were into clubbing or binge drinking which suited me fine. We were going to a Karaoke night at a pub that was going to be followed by a meal at an Indian Restaurant. On the way to the pub we stopped at a Newsagents shop, where we all bought £20 worth of Euro Millions lottery tickets. We each gave half of them to the Birthday Girl in addition to the raft of presents we’d bought her.

The evening was a hoot. Thankfully, no one remarked at my lower than normal voice when I got up to sing ‘My Way’ badly. It was well past midnight by the time Julie and I returned to her home. We both judged the evening a great success. Little did I know how successful it was going to be?

Saturday morning came far too soon for my liking. I had a bit of hangover but we had customers that needed their hair doing. Julie was even slower off the mark than I was so I made us some strong coffee to take with us on the road.

We were nearly finished for the day when one of our regular cut/perm customers Mrs Clarke, said as she sat under the dryer,

“Did you hear the news about the Lottery?”

I was sweeping up some hair at the time so only half-heartedly took interest in what she was saying.

“Someone from Devon has won close to a Hundred and Fifty Million.”

I asked, “How many people are there in Devon then Mrs Clarke?”

“Approximately 1,076,600 at the last Census Monica,” she replied without hesitation.

“So, you have a one in a million chance of winning then Mrs Clarke?”

“I don’t hold with them lottery things or any form of Gambling young lady!”

That put me in my place until a little later Julia told me that she was a regular at the weekly ‘Bingo’ session at the village hall.

We were driving back towards Oakhampton when the local radio news came on. Once the reports of accidents on the A30 and results of the Crediton Show had been announced, the newsreader said,

“And finally, there is still no indication that the lucky winner of last nights Lotto has come forward to claim their winnings. Come on Devonians check those tickets and if you are the lucky winner give us a call! We'd love to tell the world that one of our listeners is the winner.”

“Well Nicole, have you checked your numbers yet?” asked Julia.

I laughed.

“Have you checked yours yet?”

“No.”

“Well shut up and concentrate on your driving before you have us in the ditch.”

She just glared at me.

Later that evening I came into the sitting room after doing the washing up I found Julia checking her numbers on her phone.

“Are you that mysterious winner? Are you planning going to live in the Bahamas then?” I joked.

“Nope. It ain’t me,” she replied sadly.

Then she threw her phone at me.

“Your turn.”

Reluctantly, I fished my ticket out of my purse and scanned the numbers on the phone.

My heart stopped as I read them for the second time.

“Not again, please!”

“What’s wrong? You’ve gone as white as a sheet!”

“It’s me! I won!”

She leapt out of her chair and peered over my shoulder and spoke each number out in turn.
“Nine, Three, Twenty-Seven, Thirty-Three and Forty-Two. Star balls, three and five! Fuck me Monica, you won!”

By now, I was crying.

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s happened again!”

“What do you mean? Have you won the Lottery before?”

I shook my head.

“I won a lot on Millionaire.”

“What on earth are you doing with me in a dump like this?”

“Julia, this is not a dump. It is your home. Yes, I won some money and it ruined my life.  I was… well made homeless by people who had long memories about something that was nothing to do with me.”

She looked confused.

“It is a long story and one you really don’t want to know.”

She took the hint and went and poured us both a drink.

“I have to call someone,” I said reaching for my phone.

“The lottery people?”

I shook my head.

“No, my lawyer,” I replied sadly as I called up his number.

“Charlie, its Monica. I need your help.”

“No Charlie. It is not someone from my past but something from my past.”

I swallowed.

“I think I have won an awful lot of money, again.”

“Yes, there is something wrong with that when it is close to a Hundred and Fifty million.”

There was silence at the other end of the phone.

"Charlie? Are you still there?"

"Yes. Last night's Euro Millions."

“Yes. I’m still in Devon.”

“Yes. I’ll see you in the morning.”

“Oh and Charlie, sorry to ruin your weekend.”

I hung up the phone and turned to Julia,

“Fancy a little trip to London?”

---

Charlie was not best pleased when I told him that Daniel would be making a return just so that I could pick up the winners cheque. Thankfully, Robert Paris supported me in my desire to keep the new me as far away from publicity as possible. Gloria spoke to her brother and persuaded him to go along with it. The problem was that I had no male clothes and my eyebrows were hardly shaped for a man.

Julia was a real star and worked her magic on me. She paid special attention to my eyebrows so that when we joined Charlie for the trip to the Lottery Company, even he was impressed with her skills.  She couldn’t stay for the ceremony because of her customers.

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” I said as she gathered up her things.

She gave me a look that said ‘really?”

“I will be back, I promise. You know how you hate doing Mrs Edwards fuzz and she’s due on Thursday.”

She laughed,

“And just who did it before you came along?”

“Err…. You. But I said that I’d be there for her appointment ok?

The award ceremony was ok. To be honest, I couldn’t wait to get away. Charlie was an absolute star. He made sure that the money was deposited in my private account and that all offers of financial advice were politely but firmly rejected. This caused a bit of consternation with the Lottery people but Charlie persuaded them by saying that this was not the first ‘windfall’ that I’d received and that he and his team were perfectly capable of looking after my interests and me.

Once we were back at Charlie’s offices, all traces of Danny were quickly removed. I was happy to see Monica appear once more. It is funny how things can change in such a short time. Once back to normal, I went to see Charlie.

“Charlie thanks for today. You were brilliant.”

“That’s what you pay me for,” was his reply.

“About that….” He added.

“What about it?”

“This amount of money is well beyond our capabilities to manage. I’d like to get you signed up with a proper Wealth Management Company. They’ll manage the money for you.”

I shook my head.

“And charge a small fortune for their trouble eh?”

He nodded.

“And the value of my investments can go down as well as up?”

Charlie held his hand up in defeat.

“I should have expected that. You are from Yorkshire aren’t you…?
What are you going to do with the money?”

“Let me think things over for a week or so. Can you put the money into an account that pays interest? Even 1% after tax would be good.”

“I’ll try to get something sorted. How much do you want for your immediate needs?”

I thought for a moment before answering.

“Let me think on that and I’ll let you know before the end of the week.”

Then I smiled at him.

“Then we can talk about making Monica Shaw all nice and legal like. Then there is the little matter of your retainer. I think you and I need to review our relationship don’t you?”

“I’ve done whatever you’ve asked haven’t I?”

“Yes. I was thinking about an increase in your retainer but I need to be clearer in my own mind what I want to do with the money first before we can talk.”

He sat back grinning like a Cheshire cat.

“You are an amazing person Monica. You were in a bit of a state when my dear brother twisted my arm to help you but you have really developed as a person. Compared to some of the prima-donnas I have to deal with, you are a delight.”

---

I travelled back to Devon by train that evening. Julia was waiting for me at Exeter St David’s station.

“You came then?”

“I said I would. Besides, I need time to think a few things over and what better place to do it eh? The backdrop of Dartmoor and the National Park is an ideal place to do that don’t you think?”

She didn’t argue but just shook her head in disbelief.

The next few days were hectic. We managed to fit in all the clients that had to be put off for the trip to London but by the Saturday evening, we were both knackered. We treated ourselves to dinner at the ‘Duke of York’ pub that was in the next village.

When we’d finished eating, I said to Julia,

“I want to say how much I’ve loved being here with you and for all your help.”

“Oh dear. That sounds like you are leaving then?”

“Not yet I’m not. But I want to do something for you as thanks for everything.”

“I’m not a charity case you know!”

“I’m not saying you are. But I’d like to help you out. You have a successful business here but I know that you want more out of life. That’s where I’d like to help and on a proper business footing.”

“What are you suggesting then?”

“You know how you go on about that shop in Crediton, and how it would make a perfect Salon?”

“Yes. What of it?”

“I saw a ‘For Sale’ notice on the wall last week. How about I buy the property and you lease it from me? That’s not charity is it?

Then there is the Van. A newer model would be good wouldn’t it?”

“No… Yes…  But…”

“Look Julia, you took me in when you didn’t know me from Adam or should that be Eve? Anyway, you have given me time to think and now this money has given me an idea about how I can help people like you.”

“People like me? What do you mean?”

“People who are willing to help themselves and could so with a little helping hand. I think it is called Philanthropy.”

She sat there motionless for almost a minute. Then a tear formed in the corner of her eye.

“Thank you. No one has ever helped me like this. How can I ever repay you?”

“By being happy, growing your business and … just being you.”

I remained in Devon for the next nine months. With Roberts’s agreement, I started the next stage of my transition. I had several bits of plastic surgery done to my face to soften the features. By the time I left, Julia had moved into her new shop and business was thriving. A number of her customers were sorry to see me go but it was time for me to move on.

I didn’t go far at first. I checked into a private clinic in South London where I had my breasts done plus some work on my Adams Apple and voice. The whole thing took nearly a month many due to almost having to learn to speak again.

When I left the clinic, I bought myself a motorcycle and set out on a tour of the country. The Hebridean Islands of Scotland were stunningly beautiful in June. The tour had two objectives, the first was to see the country. I’d seen most of Yorkshire but much of the rest of the country was a total mystery to me. The second objective of my tour was to be on the lookout for a place to live.

Anywhere within 50 miles of my old home was immediately off the list but I did ride through the Village on my way to York. To be honest, I couldn’t wait to leave. Both it and the people hadn’t changed for the good. Even the one small supermarket had closed down. The words ‘Scab’ were still visible on the front of my old home.

When I’d finished my travelling, I rented a small house near Dorchester in Dorset. The ‘Yorkshire’ in me still made me careful with money even though I had enough in earned interest alone to have bought the place outright.
Dorset was one of a few locations that had taken my fancy on the tour.

After more than three months I still hadn’t found anywhere that said ‘Yes Buy Me!’ so I moved on to Northumbria where I nearly bought a house near Alnwick but I didn’t put my offer in in time. That left me with West Wales, specifically near the coast between Cardigan and Aberystwyth. Here I struck gold and bought my present home.

Once I’d moved in, I spent another nine months getting it done up to my requirements. I converted one of the former Lambing Sheds into my Workshop. The other one was partially converted into a really big greenhouse.  That was a little over a year before you first came to visit.

So here I am and that is how I got here. Well, that’s the short version but I hope there is enough there for you to understand me and how I got here.

~o~O~o~
Then I laughed.

“What’s so funny?” asked Kylie.

“I just remembered what happened when I first wore those shoes over there,” I said pointing at a pair of black court shoes with 4in heels.

“What happened? Did you fall off them?”

“No, I got terrible cramp. Gloria almost fell off her heels with laughter when I told her.”

We both laughed.

[To be continued]

NUM - National Union of Mineworkers

UDM - Union of Democratic Miners, often called the ’Scab Union’ by the left wing press.

Arthur Scargill – Former president of the NUM. He was leader of the Union during the Miners strike in the 1980’s.
[Authors note]
I do hope that I have not offended anyone with this chapter. It is not my intention and never was to do so.

[Back to the present day and carrying on with the story]

Kylie was the first person I’d ever been told all the gory details. I wasn’t including Gloria, Robert, Julia or Charlie in that because they are all part of the story. It felt rather strange to have spent a good 2 hours reciting the events, the highs and lows of how I came to be here.

“So that’s who Gloria is! I would never have guessed.”

“They are quite a person all right.”

“I hope you don’t mind me asking but do you fancy men?”

I laughed.

“God no. I would hate to kiss someone with stubble. I would like to find a good woman but so far… no luck.”

Then she looked me right in the eye before asking the killer question.

After a pause, she came out with it.

“Don’t you fancy me?”

“That’s a silly question.”

“Why is it silly?”

“Because you are far too young for me and you were in need of help when you and I first met. Now you are a friend, a real and proper friend and not the romantic sort.”

Kylie came and gave me a big hug.

“What was that for?” I asked when she’d let me go.

“For being honest with me and being the one thing I need in the world and that is a true friend.”

“Are you going to be alright with me? Now that you know who and what I really am and how I came to be here?”

She laughed and showed maturity well beyond her young age.

“At least you won’t be after me for my money, well if I had access to it that is?”

Then she added,

“How did you choose the name Monica? I don’t think I’ve ever met another person with that name.”

I gave a little chuckle.

“Friends,” I said simple.

“Eh?”

“The TV series. Monica was one of the three women. I always liked her as a character. That good enough?”

“It rather has to be doesn’t it? It is your name now.”

“What are you going to call yourself?” I asked trying to change the subject.

“Holly. I had a close friend at school named Holly. She was rather a tormented girl. She was gay but couldn’t tell her parents. In the end, it killed her. I always liked her name so I think I’ll call myself Holly.”

Then she asked,

“You really like helping people don’t you?”

I laughed.

“Yes, not the typical tyke eh?”

“Tyke?”

“What you call someone from Gods own County, Yorkshire. But yes, I do like to help people. I don’t like to just splash the cash even though I could do that. I like to get people to help themselves. If I learned one thing from my problems was that the saying that my parents used to drum into me is very true.”

“What was that?”

“Oh, it is so simple. ‘Those who ask don’t get’. I used to get a thick ear if I asked for something I didn’t deserve. If I can give a leg up to someone so that they can make it on their own, then I’ll do that. I really prefer to remain in the background for fairly obvious reasons.”

“I think I am starting to understand you now. You know before, when I left, I felt that you were trying to take over my life. Now I realise that it is you being you.”

“Thanks. Please do me one thing?”

“Anything. What is it?”

“Please don’t tell anyone about what I told you about… well everything. I really only want my really, really close friends to know the truth about me.”

After a short pause I added,

“Am I being silly in not telling anyone?”

Kylie just sat there looking at me with doleful eyes. Then she stood up and gave me a big hug.

“No, you aren’t being silly and yes, I’ll keep your secret. It is the least you deserve for all you have done for me. Now how did you get your name changed?”

“It’s a long story,” I replied.

Kylie groaned.

“I’ll put the kettle on then…”

---

The following day, I took her to Carmarthen so that she could get the train east.

“I really have to give it one last chance,” she said with watery eyes.

“I know you do. Family and all that. Now just be careful and get rid of any evidence that you have been in this neck of the woods before you get to London.”

She grinned.
“That’s why I’m staying in Portsmouth tonight. The hotel is close to the docks as we agreed.”

Then it was time for her to get on the train.

“There is always a home here if you want it.”

Then she hugged me.

“I know and thank you for everything but as Arnie said so well, ‘I’ll be back’”

As the train disappeared I started to wonder if she would keep her promise or not.

~o~O~o~

Kylie returned a week later. Her tail was very much between her legs.

After some grovelling on the phone to Charlie, the court case was rescheduled for a week the following Tuesday. This allowed us to take a trip to Cardiff to get her kitted out with a properly fitting crash helmet and some boots.

On the appointed day, we left home for London in the very early hours of Tuesday morning. The court case was not due to be held until that afternoon. The traffic was light and the weather fine so we made good time. We stopped for a couple of comfort breaks and to give Kylie a chance to stretch her limbs. She wasn’t used to riding pillion for hours at a stretch. Even so, we arrived at out hotel a little before 08:00 in the morning. I’d chosen a hotel had a basement garage and was not too far from the Court.

We checked into the suite I’d reserved despite the receptionist having some doubts about two women wearing Motorcycle gear arriving so early. The production of my Black Amex card soon persuaded him that we were good upstanding citizens and able to pay the bill even if we did a runner.

After breakfast and a shower, we went shopping. We needed some decent/respectable clothes for the court. The thing about the City of London is that quite a few of the more pre-eminent Savile Row Tailors have branches in the Square Mile so it didn’t take long for us to get a pair of Business suits. In case you are wondering, yes, they do cater for women… A few shoe shops later and we were done and headed back to the Hotel.

A little after midday, Charlie arrived at the Hotel to escort us to the Court where we met and had a brief discussion with the Barrister, Claire Sampson that Charlie had engaged on our behalf. There was something that Charlie wasn’t telling us but I guessed that it was not bad news so I didn’t press things.

~o~O~o~

We were called into court only a few minutes late. When the case began, Claire outlined the reasons behind the request for a restraining order. Then she went on to add a formal request for Charlie to act as Kylie’s legal guardian until she reached the age of twenty-one.

The other side outlined their arguments opposing the orders before Kylie was called to give evidence.

“Why do you want to estrange yourself from your Family?” asked the Judge.

“I want to live my own life not as decided by my father. This is not the Victorian era when a young woman did what their father required. This included marrying the person selected by your family and not by you. My father wants to control me and get his hands on my trust fund because this is probably the only way he can remain out of Bankruptcy himself. To be honest, I’d rather give the whole of my inheritance to charity than let him get his hands on it.”

“What would you do for money?”

“I would get a job and earn my own way in the world if I was left alone.”

“Apparently you deliberately flunked your ‘A’ levels. Why was this?”

“It was because I didn’t want to go up to Oxbridge with the aim of meeting some chinless wonder with heaps of money and get married to him.”

“Where would you live if the order was granted?”

Kylie looked at us for guidance. We couldn’t offer any.

“I’d rather not say because if my father knew where I was, I’m sure he’d come and interfere in my life again. If you would like, I can write it down for you.”

The Judge smiled.

“That won’t be needed. Thank you Ms Lane. You may step down.”

“Mr Lane, are the accusations made by your daughter correct? I have statements from several people who employed your daughter only to have you or your agents make false accusations against her for sexual impropriety or drug use resulting in her losing her job. What have you to say for that?”

“I just want what is best for my daughter. I would ask however how she is paying for all this legal representation. As far as I know, she has no money at all.”

“I am not here to look at that. Someone may be paying for her representation or it might be a ‘Pro-Bono’ case. That is not for me to judge.”

Mr Lane went very red in the face.

Things went on for a further 40 minutes before the Judge called a halt.

“I will retire to make my decision. I am minded however to grant the requests but my decision will be heard in due course.”

Then he addressed Kylie’s father.

“Mr Lane. In the interim, you are not to contact your daughter my any means. If you want to send her a message I am sure her legal representatives will pass it on but it is up to her if she responds.”

The Judge then stood up signifying that it was all over.

Charlie made sure that we were whisked away from the court before her parents could intercept her. We all met up in our room at the hotel.
“Well ladies, how do you think that went?” asked Charlie.

I looked at Kylie who looked at me. Then I said,

“The… the summing up. Does that mean we are likely to succeed?”

Charlie looked at the Barrister. She smiled.

“I think the result is more likely to go in our favour than not.”

Then she added.

“You’d all disappeared by the time I came out of the court room. There was a bit of a fuss going on in the hallway. A number of process servers were serving your father. It looks like he is in deep do-do in a financial sort of way.”

Charlie added,

“I think his creditors have run out of patience and he is out of money.”

Kylie looked sad.

“What’s up?”

“Despite everything he is my father. It shouldn’t have come to this.”

There was general agreement amongst all those present.

When Claire and Charlie had gone, we found ourselves at a bit of a loose end.

“What do you want to do now?”

Kylie thought for a few seconds.

“Could we go home? I know you are probably tired but I really would like to get out of the city.”

“Yeah, I know what you mean. It smells something rotten.”

We both laughed.

“Ok, but the first hour or so is going to be slow going but I don’t want to be away any longer either.”

---

As I’d feared, we caught the full force of the evening rush hour getting out of London. The traffic was starting to thin out when we turned off the M4 at Reading Services for a comfort break.

I was getting us a coffee when someone came up to Kylie and said,

“Kylie? Is that you?”

She turned around with a surprised look on her face.

“William? What are you doing here?”

“Do you know this man?” I asked coming over all protective for a moment.

“Yes, yes I do. William, meet Monica. Monica, meet William. I’m staying with Monica at the moment. I worked for William in the run up to Christmas. That bastard PI came and ruined everything.”

“Is this true?”

He nodded his head.

“That man turned up with her father and made all sorts of trouble for me. The Tax people started an audit which suddenly stopped when she left.”

“I don’t know about you two, but I’m parched. How about we continue this conversation over a coffee?” I suggested.

There were no objections so we headed for the Coffee shop in the service area. I sent the others off to grab a table while I got the order in.

As I sat down with the drinks, I noticed that William was obviously attracted to Kylie. He appeared to be in his Mid-Twenties and was well dressed. He was however, wearing we very well worn Waxed Cotton Jacket over the top of what looked like a very well cut suit.

Kylie and I were sitting opposite him. His eyes were going all misty. There was no doubt in my mind that he really fancied her. There was no chance that he was going to go all ‘gooey’ over me, well, at least I hoped that this was the case.

“So, William, what are you doing in this neck of the woods?” I asked.

He sighed.

“I’ve been standing in for my Father’s head groom at the races in Folkestone. The groom took ill last night so he calls me. He knows I don’t really get on with horses and… well he’s going to be livid when I get home. Our one runner, ‘Lofty Girl’ fell in the race and broke her leg in two places. The vets had no choice but to put her down. Plus, to make matters worse, Johnny Waite, the Jockey broke his collarbone and is still in Hospital. I’m taking the horse box home to face the music.”

Then he looked at Kylie again.

“Seeing you here has made a truly awful day suddenly a lot better. Why are you here?”

I looked at Kylie who couldn’t take her eyes off him. ‘Young Love’ that’s for sure.

“We have been to London and stopped here for a comfort break on our way home?”

“Home?” asked William with a puzzled look on his face.

“A little place in West Wales.”

“So, you have a long way to go then?”

“Yes, and we need to get moving otherwise it will be really late when we get home and we have both had a long day.”

“Why don’t you come home with me? It is a lot nearer than yours.” asked William.

I looked at Kylie. She shook her head.
“No, Monica is right. We have had enough excitement for one day.”

William looked very disappointed.

“Besides, you have some explaining to do when you get home, don’t you?” said Kylie.

“I suppose so. But don’t forget where I am. There is a job for you anytime you want one.”

Kylie laughed.

“Thanks Willy. I won’t forget where you live not for the job offer. I have a few things that still need sorting out but when they are done, we’ll come over for a visit won’t we Monica?”

I didn’t see that one coming.

“Yes. We’ll come for a visit,” I managed to say between giggles.

Fifteen minutes later we were on the road again. We soon passed the Horsebox being driven by William. Kylie gave it a wave. William ‘tooted’ his horn back at us. It was times like this that I’d wished I’d fitted an intercom to the bike but I hadn’t so my grilling of Kylie would have to wait.

[to be continued]

The remainder journey home seemed to take forever. I could tell that Kylie was tired because on several corners she either didn’t lean with me or leaned the other way.

When we finally arrived home, neither of us was in the mood for anything other than going straight to bed. It had been a very long day.

I crawled out of bed knowing that it was late but not sure how late it was. My first thought was to hit the shower and use that to wake me up.

Almost half an hour later I staggered downstairs. Riding close to five hundred miles with a pillion in a day is not my idea of fun still we’d done it safely and without incident.

Kylie was sitting in the kitchen reading the local newspaper.

“Morning sleepyhead,” she said grinning.

“Any Coffee on?”

“Coffee? Why not your usual tea?”

“Because I’m still half asleep.”

“Fair enough, I’ll make some.”

“Great. Have you fed the hens yet?”

She grinned.

“All done. Eggs collected and washed.”

“Then there is nothing for me to do then is there?”

“You must be knackered after yesterday. Sorry for making you bring me back last night. It was a long slog especially the bit after we turned off in Carmarthen.“

“There I was thinking that you were sleeping?” I said with a grin on my face.

“My eyes were only closed honest,” she replied innocently.

Over my third cup of coffee I asked,

“Ok, give me the lowdown on William and have you two got something going on?”

Kylie went red in the face.

“No we haven’t but…”

“I could see that last night. I thought for a moment that you were going to leave me and go off with him.”

“Was it that obvious?”

“Yes.”

“So, what’s the history between you two? How did you get to meet him?”

Kylie sighed and smiled back at me as she remembered back to when they first met.

“As you know, I was sleeping rough and for a couple of days, the weather was really horrid. Horrid like cold, wet and with a strong wind from the North East. Uck!. Anyway, I was wet and fed up when I saw this old railway bridge near the road and decided to shelter there. When I got to it I saw a load of straw bales piled up acting as a barrier. I made a bit of a windbreak out of a couple of them and settled down for the night. In the morning, I went to the other side of the bales and found myself on William’s farm in the middle of a flock of sheep. He was feeding them. I smiled and he smiled back.”

“Really?”

“Yes. When he finished, he came over to me and said, ‘did you spend the night under the bridge?’ I said that I had and that I was sorry for any damage to the bales. So, to cut a long story short, he said that it was ok for me to stay there but if I wanted to help out on the farm I could and he’d pay me in cash for what I did.”

“Pull the other one!”

“No really. It turned out fine. A week later he moved an old caravan into the bridge. He said that it was to deter rustlers but I didn’t really believe him. Anyway, not long after that I was joined by another ‘Lady of the Road’ named Diana. She was on the run from her abusive ex-husband. We stayed there for a month helping with the lambing and stuff. I even learned to milk goats and sheep.”

“What happened then?”

“I got itchy feet so went walkabout again. Six months later I ended up here. The rest you know.”

“Really?”

“What else is there?”

“William. When did you get the hots for him? Isn’t he married?”

“He isn’t married and I didn’t realise that I fancied him until I went back the second time. This time he made me stay in the house with him. I had a small room at the back. It was an awful lot better than even the caravan. After a week or so, he offered me a proper job on the books and everything. I said yes on the spot. Then events conspired to nip anything we might have had then in the bud. A month or so later, my Father appeared. You know the rest.”

I smiled. A lot of the missing pieces to the jigsaw of her life had just been found.

“But running into him again had rekindled those feelings then?”

“Is that so wrong?  Rekindled isn’t really the right word for it. He treated me just like you, as part of the family and everything. I
realised that he was genuinely a nice man. Oh, I don’t know. Am I being totally stupid again?”

I thought for a second or so before answering,”

“I don’t know. Only you can answer that and not here. May I humbly suggest that you go to visit him and see what transpires. Remember that you always have a bed here if things go pear shaped. You know that, don’t you? If you come back yet again with your tail between your legs, I might give you a bit of a hard time for a bit but I’m your family remember that.”

I’d hardly spoken the last words before I was being hugged.

“I wish my old family was as nice as my new one.”

“Can you let me go, I do need to breathe from time to time you know?”

She let me go and both of us started to laugh.

Kylie called William that evening and arranged to travel over to his place once she’d had her new identity sorted out. I could tell that she was getting a bit impatient so I tried to reassure her that it would happen.

“These things take time if they are to be done properly. Mine took almost three months. Charlie is a perfectionist in these matters and that is as it should be.”

“I know but…”

“Well then we should go and burn off some of that frustration. What do you say?”

“Oh, you mean go out for a run on one of your pocket rockets?”

“A run yes but on two feet, not two wheels.”

She groaned.

“Ok. But…”

“Yes, I know, the short route.”

Half an hour later we started out on our run. The earlier drizzle had left off and the sun was breaking through the clouds.

The last part of the route took us along the beach. The tide was out so we made short time across the sands. As we neared the shore I noticed a familiar figure walking along the sea wall in the direction of my home.

“It’s Ruby. Let’s stop and see what she wants.”

“D… don’t forget to introduce me as Holly.”

“Yes Kylie,” I replied grinning broadly.

We came to a stop near where the path along the wall turns away to lead towards my home.

As we caught our breath, Ruby came towards us with a smile on her face.

“Hello Ruby,” I said.

“Bore da Monica, mae'n ddiwrnod braf i redeg,” she replied.

“Yn sicr mae,” I replied.

She laughed.

“You accent doesn’t get any better does it?”

“I’m trying but it isn’t easy.”

I let out a little laugh.

“Ruby, this is Holly. She’s staying with me for a bit.”

“Pleased to meet you Holly. How are you liking this part of the world?”

“It has its moments. When it is wet, it is wet. Today? It is beautiful.”

“It is a nice day but by the looks of things it is not going to last?” she said pointing at a big black cloud that was heading in our direction.

“I think we should head home,” I said.

“Do you want to come too?” I added to Ruby.

“Have you any Cake?”

I laughed,

“What do you think?”

“Then it is a deal besides I have a favour to ask from you.”

“In that case, I’d better go on ahead and put the kettle on,” volunteered Holly.

“Don’t forget to get the cake out!” I replied.

Holly trotted off with a smile on her face off while I walked with Ruby.

“What is this favour that you were going to ask of me?”

“I have a big Wedding coming up. The problem is that my oven isn’t big enough to bake the bottom tier of a four-tier cake.”

“And you’d like some help with the baking?”

“If that’s not too much trouble?”

“You know is isn’t. When do you want the oven?”

She looked a bit coy.

“Would tomorrow be too soon?”

I sighed.

“Ok, as long as we can help with the mixing?”

When we reached my front door, it opened and a grinning Holly stood there holding two mugs of tea.

“Well? Deal struck? What do you want me to do?”

I knew that I was going to really miss her when she left. At that moment, I felt as if I’d just pranged my car and it was all my own silly fault.

I put my disappointment behind me as we went inside and tucked into the fruitcake I’d made a few days earlier.

The following day Ruby turned up bright and early. She’d dropped her son off at his ‘Pre-School’. That meant we had four hours to get the cake mixed and baked. Holly was still in bed so the two of us buckled down and got going.

True to form, we’d just put the bottom tier into bake when a sleepy Holly poked her head around the kitchen door.

“Can I do anything?”

I looked at Ruby who just smiled.

“What do you think?”

“I guess not?”

“Wrong answer. There is a pile of washing up to be done.”

Holly groaned but she rolled up her sleeves and started the washing up without complaining.

Three and a half hours after we’d started to bake, the last tier was removed from the oven and left to cool.

“They look pretty good,” said Holly.

“That’s only the start,” said Ruby, “I have about twenty hours of decorating to do yet.”

“When’s the Wedding? Will you have enough time to get it done?”

“It is next weekend, and yes I will if I can persuade my mother to look after Owen then I will,” replied Ruby perfectly calmly.

“Why not bring him here? I’m sure that we can keep him entertained?” I suggested.

I looked at Holly who gave me a dirty look.

“I can get him to help me wash one of my bikes in return for a little ride up the drive. How about it?”

Ruby grinned back at me. I knew that there were times when her son got her really down. It was good that a little help from time to time would really be appreciated.

Two days of hard work by Ruby and ably supported by myself and Holly and the four-tier cake was done. Ruby did all the hard stuff. Holly mixed the icing, did the washing up and made the lunches. I entertained her son which was no hardship at all.

The cake looked wonderful. We all hoped that the bride would appreciate it and all the work that had gone into it.

“You should do this full time. You are very good at this,” said Holly as she admired the finished item.

“I’d love to but there are the small matter of premises and money. I can’t keep on ‘borrowing’ friend’s ovens. If I do it full time instead of ad-hoc then I really need my own oven and a place to work. Even though your kitchen table is big, it is yours.”

Then she stopped before saying.

“Sorry. I was rabbiting on about my problems. The two of you have helped me more than enough as it is.

“Who’s the lucky bride?” I asked trying to change the subject.

Ruby smiled back.

“Guess.”

Then I knew who it was for.
“You must mean Angharad’s daughter Gwen? She hasn’t stopped telling the world about how wonderful it was going to be and how much it is going to cost.”

“Yes. You got it in one.”

“But she’s marrying someone from Cardiff, in Cardiff.”

“She is but their original cake maker decided that Angharad was being too demanding so she told her and her snooty daughter to get stuffed.”

“But? You don’t like Angharad either.”

“That’s true but when she waves a thick wad of twenties in front of me and agrees that I can design the decoration myself as long as it looks something like a picture that she gave me then I could get on with it, it was hard to say no. So, I took the money and … well here we are.”

“Who’s this Angharad?” asked Holly.

Ruby and myself burst out laughing.

“Angharad thinks her family own the village. She and her sister won the W.I. Christmas Cake competition every year until Monica here had the temerity to win it a couple of years back.”

“I know, I saw the trophy,” replied Holly.

“But I haven’t won anything since so it was a bit of a flash in the pan.”

“Monica, stop spouting rubbish. You make great cakes so and don’t let anyone say otherwise,” said a slightly angry Ruby.

“Thanks for the support but I’m really an amateur when compared to some others in the Village. So, stop talking rubbish and you know it,” I replied.

“Ladies, ladies! Can we just agree to disagree?” interrupted Holly.

I looked at Ruby who smiled and then both burst out laughing.

“Good. Now don’t you have a cake to deliver?”

“Yes. Thanks for reminding me,” agreed Ruby.

When she’d gone, Holly and I sat down in the kitchen.
After a period of quiet, Holly said,

“You could help her you know?”

I grinned back at her.

“Already under consideration my dear. Part one was done a while back and part two is a work in progress.”

“Oh! You!”

Then she hugged me.

Charlie came up trumps with her name change so a few weeks later. This meant that Holly was officially ‘Holly’. It was also time to for her to go to William’s. I took her to Swansea so that she could get the London Train. William was going to meet her at Bristol Parkway Station.

Our goodbyes were rather tearful and it was only the blowing of the whistles that announced the departure of the train that forced her to get on board. Even so, I stood there for a good five minutes after the had train disappeared. Then I remembered that this was the second time in a few short weeks that I’d done this.  This had to stop before my heart gave out.

Once home I called Robert to talk things over with him. When he called me back he just laughed.

“That’s why Gloria said that you were a natural. We both know that you have all the instincts of a Foster Mother. Holly is your little baby. You rescued her and now she’s fleeing the nest. All perfectly normal.”

Despite his kind words, not having Holly around hit me hard. In order to get over her I went running. Ten miles every day for a week seemed to get her departure out of my system for the time being at least.

~o~O~o~

Gradually life steeled down once more to something approaching normality. I say approaching normality because I was off on one of my ‘let me help you’ trips.

Ruby’s comment about wanting move from a part time business to something closer to a full-time career had kick-started my philanthropic juices going. It didn’t take long for me to realise that there was nowhere really suitable for her to work in the Village apart from the kitchen at the Village Hall or the local Primary School. Both of those were naturally out of the question so I had to start casting my net a bit wider.

The next Friday I went into Lampeter for my weekly shop as usual when I saw what might have been the solution to Ruby’s problem.  There was a ‘For Sale’ board outside the old Bakery shop. My heart leapt when as I peered through a grimy window and saw all the ovens still there. I could see both bread ovens and a large more conventional range cooker with a double oven. I moved on a side alley and peered in through another even grimier window. This time I saw some stainless steel benches and a large walk in Fridge. At that moment, I felt that my prayers had been answered.

Once I was back in the main street, I took a quick picture of the ‘For Sale’ board before carrying on with my shopping with a definite skip in my step.

As soon as I returned home, I called the developer who I used for maintaining my properties and engaged them to contact the agents handling the sale of the bakery and gain entry and have a full structural survey of the property done as soon as possible.

With that done, I went into the kitchen where I started to make some Rye and Spelt bread.

As I kneaded the dough, I felt that all was well with the world.

~o~O~o~
Armed with a still warm loaf of bread, I walked down to the Village in search of Ruby. It was just about time that her son would be leaving his ‘Pre-School’.

On the way, I tried to work out what I’d say to her about the property and my offer of a partnership in the Bakery.

I’d just about worked it all out when I arrived outside the school and saw Ruby waiting patiently with the other mothers for their offspring to be let out for the day. She saw me as I walked through the group of Mums.

“Hi Monica. What brings you here at this time of day? Have you suddenly produced an offspring that none of us knew about?”

I laughed. She seemed in a good mood today.

“No such luck besides, I’m not really the mothering sort.”

“Really? You seem really at home looking after Owen?”

“That might be true but it is the baby bit that turns me off besides I have my own babies to look after.”

“Eh?”

“My hens.”

This caused Ruby to laugh. She knew how I loved them and their eggs even more.

Just then her son Owen came running out of the school. He grasped his Mothers hand and said,

“Mummy, we did painting today. I got a gold star!”

“Well done. Now say hello to Monica.”

“Hello Monica. Look, I painted your Hens.”

Both of us laughed when we saw his masterpiece.

As the three of us walked towards her home, I started my story.

“I was thinking about what you were saying about your cake making.”

“Forget it Monica. I was just rambling.”

“Really? You sounded as if it was something you wanted to do if you had the chance?”

“That’s it. The chance. Who’s going to give an unmarried mother with no assets the chance?”

“How about me? I need something to do with my time and I think we work well together. Fifty, Fifty.”

Ruby stopped dead in her tracks.
“Are you kidding me?”

“No I’m not. What’s more, I may have found some premises in Lampeter that might be suitable for the business.”

“What am I going to do for Money? All this costs money. Money that you know I don’t have.”

“But I do.”

“What? Did you win the lottery or something?”

“Yes.”

Right away, I knew that I shouldn’t have said that but now it was too late.

Ruby just stood there looking at me.

“You wouldn’t be telling me porkies now would you?”

“No. I won a decent amount on the lottery a few years back. That’s how I got out of a Yorkshire pit village. After a couple of years of looking for the ideal place to live, I ended up here. You know the rest.”

“If I accept what you say as the truth, I want to know why are you doing this?”

“Doing what?”

“Helping me. That’s what.”

“Why not. Why shouldn’t I help someone who wants to make something of her life?”

This caused her to think a bit.

“I don’t know. I need to think about this for a bit.”

“That’s exactly what I’d hoped you’d say. I’ve arranged for the place to be surveyed. That will take at least a week. Take your time and we can talk about things a bit more in a week once I get the results of the survey. How does that sound?”

“I don’t know. I have the little one to think about. This is a big step to take.”

“It is and I know that you have to put your child’s security first.”

Then I added, “Here, I baked this for you,” I said handing over the loaf.

“Trying to bribe me into accepting your offer?” she said smiling.

“Nothing of the sort. I know you like a Rye and Spelt Loaf. So, as I was making some for myself I made enough dough for two.”

“Very well, I’ll accept it but don’t think that this is going to make me say yes!” she replied smiling.

“I won’t,” said grinning from ear to ear.

~o~O~o~

About a week after I’d put the business proposition to Ruby, she came to see me. I was up a ladder cleaning some rubbish from a gutter when I saw her coming up the drive.

“Hello Ruby,” I said.

“Hi Monica, I’d like to talk over a few things with you if that’s all right?”

“Yes. No problem. Let me finish this last bit and I’ll be with you. Why don’t you go into the kitchen and put the kettle on? I’ll be down in a minute or two. I want to get this done before the next shower hits us.”

Ruby looked out to sea. There was a band of rain heading this way.

“Ok. Is there any cake?”

I chuckled.

“Anyone would thing you came to visit me just for my Cake?”

She laughed and went inside my home.

When I’d finished clearing the rubbish from the gutter and after putting the ladder away, I went into the kitchen.

Ruby was sitting at the table stone-faced.

“What’s up?” I asked.

“This!” she replied picking up a sheet of paper.

Instantly I knew what the problem was.

“Ah, that.”

“Yes this. What do you have to do with this company?”

Just then, the kettle coming to a boil saved the day.

“Let me make the tea and I’ll explain,” I said hoping to buy a minute or so to think things through.

Ruby just sat there stony faced. I knew that I’d have to come clean.

I made the tea and set the pot down on the table. Ruby had already put two cups and the milk jug on the table so there was nothing left for me to do but start my explanation.

“The simple answer to your question is that I own the company. Yes, I’m your landlord and have been since the property was auctioned.”

“When were you going to tell me?”

“That’s where it gets hard. I never meant for you to find out this was. I wanted to remain in the background and not draw attention to myself until the time was right to tell you everything.”

“So, when were you going to throw us out and get someone else in at double the rent?”

“I’m not and never have been. It is your home for as long as you want it.”

“So, what’s this bit about a change in the tenancy mean?”

“That’s part of the hard and complicated answer.”

“I’m waiting…”

I poured us a cup of tea and then began to tell her about my aims and ambitions.

“The change in the tenancy was something that I was working on with the managing agents in the event that you accepted my offer to become my partner. The change was to be in the amount of rent you would pay for the next two years. In effect, you were going to live there rent free while you did all the hard work in getting the business off the ground.”

She sat silently for a few seconds before answering.

“I’m not a charity case you know.”

“I never said you were. Isn’t is a bit silly for you to be my partner and then for you to pay me rent out of the earnings from the business when that money may well be better spent investing back in the business or paying off my initial capital injection into the business.”

“That was something that I wanted to talk to you about. You will be expecting interest on that investment. What rate do you expect me to pay?”

“Zero.”

“Oh come on Monica, pull the other one. No one in their right minds would do that.”

“Well perhaps I am not quite right in the head? I don’t know but you have someone with the same name as you to blame.”

“What do you mean the same name?”

“The first part of your name anyway. There is a very rich Malaysian socialite called Ruby Khong[1]. She decided to give up attending charity balls and the like and work directly with the homeless in Kuala Lumpur. She’s worth millions yet spends all her time working with the homeless to help themselves. She’s what’s called a Philanthropist. I read about her in the Malaysian edition of Vanity Fair that I picked up somewhere in my travels. What she was saying about her life and how she helps people really struck a chord with me. That’s when I decided to do the same with my life but in a different way. I’d use my money to help people get on in life but only if they were willing to help themselves.”

“But why aren’t you living in some tropical tax-haven and enjoying all that money then?”

“Maybe it’s because I don’t want to? I’ve never been much of one for the beach and all that. I prefer the quiet life.”

“What if I don’t make a go of it?”

“Then I lose some money. Until you try, you won’t know now will you?”

“What about repaying you?”

“You won’t have to. That’s why I proposed an equal partnership. If the business fails, we both just walk away a little bit wiser and either do something else or start again.”

“It’s alright for you to say that you don’t have any money worries. I just have my son.”

“Which is more than I’ll ever have. Some things money can’t buy you know. I was once in a position where people I’d known for all my life suddenly turned against me just because I’d come into some money. They drove me away from my home. Some people helped me get my life back together again and in payment for that help I helped them. They have not asked for a penny in repayment for that help. That's’ because they wanted to help themselves just like you.”
I swallowed some tea.

“If I can help you make life for you and your son better then that’s what I’d like to do. Am I so wrong in that?”

She shook her head.

“But I’ve done nothing to deserve this?”

“Yes, Ruby you have. You didn’t judge me like some others we can both name when I came here. When we made that wedding cake, both Holly and I could see that you had talent and I wanted to help you exploit that. If you don’t want to do it then nothing will happen. It is all up to you.”

She sat silently for a while.

“Are you for real?” she asked eventually.

I laughed.

“Well, I’m skin and bone like you. I suppose that makes me real.”

Then I added,

“If you want, I can put you in touch with someone else who helped me out and who I’ve helped to grow their business. I’m sure that if you visited her she will give you a new hairdo at the same time.”

I added the last bit because Ruby was always complaining about never being able to find the right Hairdresser who didn’t charge an arm and a leg.

“I spent almost a year as her assistant a few years ago. She helped me sort myself out when I suddenly came into all this money. She kept my head screwed on when some other people may have gone out and gone on a spending spree.”

Ruby finished her tea and sat back looking at me.

“I guess you are my fairy godmother after all,” she exclaimed.

“Hey, who are you calling a Fairy?”

We both laughed.

[To be continued]

[1] Ruby Khong is a real person. Here are two links to articles about her
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-29939573
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-29986205

Progress was painfully slow with my development plans. I knew what sort of thing I wanted but getting past that was proving difficult. It was Ruby who provided the solution to my blockage.

I had just finished cleaning out the Hens when she came walking up the drive carrying a large shopping bag.

“Hello Monica, do you have a minute? I need a favour from you.”

“Hi Ruby. Sure. Just let me put this lot of hen droppings into the compost heap and I’ll be with you. Why don’t you go into the kitchen and put the kettle on? I’ll only be a minute or two.”

“Thanks. I’ll do that.”

Five minutes later I entered the kitchen. Rudy was getting things organised so I washed my hands wondering what she wanted.

Over a cup of tea, she told me.

“It is my son’s birthday in a week. The problem is that I have his birthday present. Last year he found his present buried in my wardrobe the day after I’d bought it. I sort of wondered if you’d look after it until his birthday.”

“Sure. It will be my pleasure to do that for you.”

She visibly looked pleased.

“What about your mother? Is the little devil just as inquisitive there as well?”

“Yes, even more so I’m afraid,” she replied with sadness to her voice.

“What did you get him?”

“Some Lego, although I will probably regret it. My brothers had lots and it seemed to get everywhere. I seemed to tread on it almost every day.”

“Boys will be boys eh?” I said remembering my boyhood exploits with the multi-coloured bricks.

“I do love him but there are times when oooohhhhhh!”

I laughed.

“I know exactly what you mean.”

“Did you have brothers?”

Opps!

I had to think fast.

“No but I was a bit of a tomboy. I was the first women mechanic apprentice at the Pit Garage. A lot of miners were really against it. A woman’s place is in the home and all that. But the law is clear, women can’t be employed underground so I looked after things on the surface. Not that I’d want to work down there. I saw my Da die of ‘Miners Lung’. But the pit has closed now so it does not really matter.”

“Ah, that explains a lot,” she replied.

Ruby went away happy that she had a ‘safe’ place to store the presents. I did feel a tinge of regret that I’d never be in her position but I had a pretty good life now despite the problems in my past.

That evening I went online and purchased a load of Lego. Thanks to Ruby I could work on my plans for the future.

My ‘Lego’ started arriving a few days later and I began to start constructing the building of my dreams. It didn’t take long before the memories of my childhood exploits with the devilish toy started to return. I’d even
won a prize at school for making a Lego model of a Pit Winding House.

My construction efforts were rudely interrupted by a text arriving. Feeling a bit peeved, I looked at it. My anger come frustration disappeared in a flash. The text was from Holly.

“Monica, William asked me to marry him. I said yes. We are off out to celebrate. I’ll call you tomorrow. H.”

I read it several times. A tear formed in my eye. I was happy yet sad. Happy that she’d found happiness but sad that my foster child wasn’t going to come home.

---

True to her promise, she called me the next evening.

“Hi Holly, how’s life as a Fiancée?”

“They are? That’s a bummer. What do you want to do then?”

“Really? That soon? But will that get them off your back?”

“Let’s hope that they do get the message.”

“Yes. What can I do to help? Well I am sort of the Mother of the Bride aren’t I?”

I giggled at that thought. If only those I once knew could see me now, they’d have a fit before they died laughing.

“I’m sure she’d love to make the cake and no, I’m no further on with my grand plan.”

“Email me the sort of thing you want and I’ll put it to her. What date have you set?”

“That soon? Ok. I’ll get onto it as soon as I get your email.”

Then I took a deep breath.

“As the erstwhile Mother of the Bride don’t forget that I’m paying for it all and I won’t take no for an answer.

Perhaps that will keep William’s Mother from meddling too much.”

“Yes, I am sure. I want it to go off well. Spend whatever you want. I’ll pick up the tab.”

“Yes. I will most certainly not be wearing a hat even if it is for you!”

We both laughed at the thought of me at a wedding in a ‘hat’. Not a pretty sight.

“Ok. Bye for now.”

I hung up the phone with a smile on my face.

William’s Mother and Sisters had been interfering and trying to get the engagement stopped. They considered Holly as not being good enough for their brother. To them she was a money grabbing tramp.

Little did they know eh!

---

I looked at my pile of Lego on the table and sighed. The design of my grand plan would have to wait for a while longer.

A couple of hours later I received an email from Holly detailing what she’d like for her Wedding Cake.

I read the email with a smile. The requirements were right up Ruby’s street. All I could hope for was that she was available to do the work.

I called Ruby to ask about her availability.

“Hi Ruby, it’s Monica.”

“Yes I’m fine.”

“I was wondering if you are available to make a wedding cake?”

“A couple of weeks. The wedding is in Gloucester. It is for Holly, she’s getting married.”

“Yes, I do approve.”

“Well, are you up for it?”

“Good. I have the design. Can I bring it round?”

“Sure. About an hour. See you soon.”

“Here’s what she sent me,” I said to Ruby as I showed her the email.

“Hmmm.”
“That seems doable. “

“Good. How much is it going to cost me?”

She smiled and said,
“If I were to say nothing you’d say don’t be silly. So how about Fifty Pounds?”

I smiled.
“Let’s call it an even Two Hundred and we have a deal as long as I can be your assistant.”

Ruby shook her head.
“Why do you do this for me?”

“Why shouldn’t I?”

She shook her head.

“I should know by now that I can’t win an argument with you.”

“Argument? I thought we were having discussing the terms of a business deal?”

“Why can’t all my customers be like you?”

I laughed.
“Now that would be a boring place to live and work.”

Ruby shook her head.

“Ok. Deal. Can I come around the day after tomorrow to do the bake?”

I grinned.

“That will be great. That will give me a chance to go and try to find something to wear for the wedding.”

“Where are you going to go?”

“I think I’ll go over to Cardiff. There is not as much choice in Swansea. Why do you ask?”

“Can you get me some colouring for the icing. I’m nearly out of a couple of colours. I can give you a list and the address of my supplier in the City.”

“That will be my pleasure. I’ll probably be leaving early though.”

“Ok. I’ll look through my bits and give you a call later.”

The next morning, I left home bright and early. I wanted to get to Carmarthen so that I could get the train to Cardiff that left just after 08:00. This would get me into Cardiff around 09:30. I could have chosen to drive but the two lanes of the M4 east of Swansea is no fun in the morning rush hour even if I was on two wheels.

I really had no idea what sort of outfit would take my fancy. This was only the second wedding I’d been too since I’d become Monica.  The previous one was in Devon and the couple there were well into retirement. This time I had to dress to impress at least a bit in the role of erstwhile ‘Mother of the Bride’.

I spent a good hour just wandering around looking at what sort of things ‘tickled my fancy’. At one point, I held a dress in front of me and looked at myself in the mirror. I couldn’t help smiling. It was times like these that made me realise that I had done the right thing in putting Daniel behind me. Not having to bother about the price of just about anything was starting to become almost second nature. That was a long, long way from my upbringing where every penny counted and often was but I still baulked at paying several hundred pounds for a dress that I’d probably only wear the once.

After what seemed a fruitless search I retired to a Coffee shop and considered my options. Some of the clothes were far too old for me and made me look decidedly frumpy. Others would look good on a twenty-year old but not me. There seemed to be a definite gap in the market for almost ‘thirty-something’ women.

After I’d finished my coffee I started my wandering again. Almost immediately, I had some success. I walked into a small shop that reeked of ‘joss’ sticks. There hanging up in front of me was a beautiful skirt. I knew in an instant, that it was the one for me.

“I’d like to look at that skirt please?” I said to the shop assistant.

She looked me up and down as if to say, ‘this isn’t for you’.

“Are you sure?” she replied.

“Yes I’m sure.”

With a sigh, she came out from behind the counter, took down the skirt and handed it to me.

When I say that it was multi-coloured and floor length you might get the idea. It was almost gypsy in style because of the beading around the hem.

I held it in front of me and could see that it was right for me.

“I’ll take it,” I said confidently.

“Are you sure? Don’t you want to try it on?”

“No, this is exactly what I’m looking for.”

“What is that?”

“Oh, to go to a wedding in. I really don’t like what most of the chains are selling.”

That bought a little smile to her face.

“You need a plain blouse and probably a coloured shawl or wrap for some upper colour.”

I thought for a second and then spied what she was hinting at.

“Like that one up there?” I said pointing at it.

“Yes,” came her reply.

“Then I’ll take the two. I saw some nice frilly white blouses in one of the department stores up the street.”

Back out in the street and carrying my purchases, there was a definite spring in my step. As I headed to the shop where I saw the blouses I wondered about what shoes I’d wear. This was a far cry from my first foray into the world of women’s clothes in Chester.

It was then I regretted not trying the skirt on in the shop. At least then I’d have a proper idea about its length with it on me and also if I’d have to wear heels or flats. Never mind I thought to myself. I have at least one pair of each at home and because of the length of the skirt most people wouldn’t notice what I was wearing one my feet.

I found a suitable blouse in one of the stores I’d visited earlier. This time, I tried it on and decided that I needed a size bigger.

Armed with my purchases, I made my way to the Station only to realise that I hadn’t bought the bits for Ruby. I backtracked to the shop where she said that I could buy the bits and finally headed to the Station in search of a train home.

When I arrived back at the Station I found to my chagrin, I found that I’d just missed a train, which meant that I had half an hour to wait so I went for another drink. This time, I had some tea and a sandwich. The sandwich was ok in that it filled a hole but the tea was quite refreshing.

I was sitting looking at nothing in particular when something caught my eye. It wasn’t something but someone. Someone I knew from Yorkshire. It was my old boss at the pit, George Mason. I froze for a second or so but then relaxed. He wouldn’t be on the lookout for me here let alone as how I looked now.

I sat back and relaxed as he looked around for somewhere to sit. Thankfully, my train west was pulling in so I got up and let him take my place. As I passed him, I gave him a little smile. He looked shocked but said nothing.

When I boarded the train, I relaxed. Overall, I felt quite pleased with myself. Not only had I achieved what I’d set out too for the day but I’d not been recognised by someone I’d worked closely with for the whole of my apprenticeship.

---

Ruby came over the next day and we got busy preparing to bake the cake.

With the cake in the oven, we had a chance to sit and relax for a while.

“I managed to get my outfit for the wedding yesterday,” I said as I poured us both a cup of tea.

“Oh. What’s it like?”

“Very Hippy. A long multi-coloured skirt with a matching wrap.”

Ruby laughed.
“That’s very you if you don’t mind me saying so.”

“No I don’t mind but why do you say that?”

“You are a very unconventional woman. Very independent and forthright.”

“Us Yorkshire folk are a bit like that.”

She grinned.

“Yes but how many women ride Motorbikes?”

“That’s true but as you say, I’m a little bit different. Now if I were to wear one a pink dress, then that would be a bit odd don’t you think?”

Ruby almost fell on the floor laughing.

When she’d recovered she asked,

“Why is there no man in your life?”

This was a bit of a bolt out of the blue.

“I’ve had more than enough of men to last me a lifetime than you very much.”

After a moment hesitation she asked,

“Are you a Lesbian then?”

I laughed.

“To be honest, I’m not sure. Let me put it this way, no one male or female has rattled my cage since I came to live here. I guess that the jury is out on that one then?”

Ruby breathed a sigh of relief.

“Ruby, you are a friend. A really good friend. I’m sure that there is a decent man out there who would jump at the chance to be a father to Owen.”

“Show me one please?” she said smiling.

“It will happen I’m sure of it.”

“And pigs might fly….” was her downbeat response.

Over the next two days we baked, iced and decorated the cake for Holly’s wedding. When it was finished, I took a picture of it and sent it to Holly and William.

Ruby instructed me on how to put it all together at the Reception. There was a definite knack to it but I seemed to manage sufficiently well in the multiple practice runs that Ruby insisted that I carry out before she was satisfied that I wouldn’t mess up her work of art.

The day before the wedding, I loaded everything into a rental car and set off for Gloucestershire. I was driving a rental because I didn’t want to turn up at the wedding in a decidedly well used Land Rover that smelt of chicken shit.

It didn’t take long for me to find the Hotel where the reception was being held and offload the cake boxes into the capable hands of the Head Chef. He was most impressed by the quality of the decoration. I called Ruby to let her know that a ‘Michelin Starred’ Chef was impressed by her work. The yelp for joy that I heard down the phone made it all worthwhile.

With that done, I headed back to the Motorway and headed for Devon. I had a date in the pub that evening with my former mentor, Julia. She was also going to do my hair and makeup the following morning. I really wanted to look my best as the ‘pseudo’ mother of the bride at the ceremony and reception the next day.

---

When I arrived in Crediton, Julia was just finishing up with one of her regulars.

As I entered the Salon I spotted them both.

“Hi Julia. Hello Mrs Cartwright. Still having your bi-weekly perm then?”

Mrs Cartwright turned her head as much as she could do because she was under the dryer.
When she saw me, she smiled.

“Hello Monica. Coming back to work again? We all miss you down here.”

“Really? I would have thought that you would have been pleased to see the back of me after some of the mistakes I made during my time here?”

“You were learning my dear. We all make mistakes when we are learning. Besides we all miss your jokes about life in Yorkshire.”

We all laughed.

“Welcome back love,” said Julia. Do you want to go up and put the kettle on? I’ll be done down here in about ten minutes.”

“I’ll do that. I bought some cake for tea. I made it yesterday.”

Julia smiled.

“Spicy Ginger I hope?”

“Yes. Why would I bake anything else for you eh?”

Mrs Cartwright looked expectantly.

“I think there might be enough for your last customer of the day,” I said teasing her.

“I’m not a charity case young lady.”

“I know that but I love teasing you.”

“Pah!”

“And from memory, I seem to recall that you rather liked my cake.”

Mrs Cartwright didn’t answer but from the look on her face, she was looking forward to a slice of my cake.

---

Bright and early the following morning, Julia started on my hair.

“When did you last have your roots done?” she asked as she looked at my mop of hair.

“Two weeks ago.”

“They didn’t do a very good job.”

“I went to the local college and let one of the students do it.”

Julia smiled.
“Ok, you are forgiven then. I’m going to do them again. But darling, I hate to say it, you are going a bit grey.”

If anyone other than her had said that then I’d probably have socked them one right there and then.
“I know. Comes to all of us eventually.”

“Speak for yourself. My mother hasn’t got even a strand of grey and she’s in her 60’s.”

“Ok but there isn’t much I can do about it is there? Or do you have some magical potion that cures baldness, grey hair and promotes world peace?”

‘World Peace’ was a standing joke between us. It was a line trotted out by Beauty Queens. As if a mostly dumb blonde would be able to solve the world’s problems.

“No I don’t but some of these new colours are a lot better at hiding it especially if you comb it right. But saying that is a waste of time isn’t it?”

“I know. I know. I should style my hair properly but wearing crash helmets is not the way to keep a style pretty for very long.”

Julia just glared at me as if to say, why do I bother eh?

“There, I’m done,” she announced almost two hours later.

I stood up and walked over to the full-length mirror and did a twirl.

“God, I look almost passable.”

Julia laughed.

“No darling, you look divine. I’ll wager that you have a queue of men wanting to dance with you.”

“Really?” I replied grinning.

“I was sort of hoping for a few women.”

“No change then?”

I shook my head.

“I’m certain now that I’m really not interested in men. Besides as soon as they find out how much money I have they forget about me and only want one thing.”

“On the subject of money. I’ve been meaning to have a row with you about that letter I got from the bank last week.”

“Oh, you mean the telling you that you don’t owe me any money?”

“Yes, that one!”

I got serious for a minute.

“Julia, I know that you would like to expand. Well now you can. You have a great business and now you don’t owe anyone any money. I think you have earned it. Just remember where you were when I turned up on your doorstep and look at you now? I see a very successful businesswoman. Anyway, think of that as payment in advance for what you have done today.”

She folder her arms and looked at me with a stern expression on her face.

“Sometimes I want to kill you; you know. I know I’ve said it before but thank you for everything you have done for me.”

“Julia, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, without you, I would not be the person I am today which is priceless so shut the hell up and accept that I will never stop wanting to help you out in any way I can. Ok?”

“Yes Boss,” she replied reluctantly and gave me a hug. I had to fight a tear from running down my cheek. I owed her so much that writing off her debt was the least I could do for her.

---

I arrived at the Registry Office some twenty minutes before the ceremony was due to begin. William was already there with his ‘Best Man’.

“I’m glad you are here. My Mother has been absolute hell since the crack of dawn,” he said.

“That’s what Mothers are for isn’t it?”

“I wish mine was more like you.”

I decided to change the subject.

“Who is this hunk of a Best Man?”

William laughed.

“Monica, meet James Alderton. James was my Captain from my Army days.”

“Pleased to meet you James.”

“Me too. I’ve heard so much about you. I hear that you ride Bikes?”

“Yes but I’m on four wheels today. I don't think I would be let within a mile of this place if I turned up in Leathers...”

“Same here. I have an old BMW R65 that I ride when the wife lets me.”

“Nice wheels in a classic flat twin sort of way,”

He smiled.

“So?”

“So what?”

“What do you ride?”

“Oh, whatever I fancy,”

“Woman! Get to the point!”

I grinned. I was beginning to like him. The thought, ‘if he wasn’t married….’ Was quickly dismissed from my mind.

“Ok, I have a Triumph Trophy, a Manx Norton 500, a Rocket Gold Star, a Triumph X-75 and a Benelli Sei. I have a Norton Commando on the bench at the moment.”

“You have an X-75?”

“Yeah. I bought it at an auction last year.”

“Was it the one that was sold at the Goodwood Festival of Speed?”

I nodded my head.

He turned to William and said,

“This girl is cool. Seriously cool and she has money. Serious Money.”

“I take it that you are impressed?”

“Yeah,”

Then he turned to me.

“Tell William here how much you paid for the X-75.”

I grinned.

“I got into a bit of a bidding war with a fat American. He chickened out at Twenty Five.”

“Twenty Five Thousand? For a bike? That’s a lot of money,” exclaimed William.

“Yeah, but it is a really cool bike. Built in 1975 for the American Market with unique styling. Even today, it is a seriously cool bike,” said James.

Our little discussion was interrupted by what had to be William’s Mother. We'd never met but had spoken a few times on the phone. At the end of almost every call, I felt like getting on my bike, going to Lambourn and killing her on the spot.

“Ah there you are. She’s on her way. Are you sure you want to go through with this? Jocasta Hart-Baker has always had a soft spot for you. I’m sure she’d jump at the chance of getting married to you.”

“Mother, for the last time, Jocasta is a fat idle bitch who wouldn’t know one end of a sheep from the other.
She’s never had a job and in case you hadn’t noticed I run a farm where everyone is expected to pitch in.”

“You know there always a job with us. I’m sure that Jocasta’s father could get you a nice job at his firm in the City?”

“Mother, shut the hell up. I’m getting married to Holly and that’s all there is to it.”

A couple of minutes later a white Rolls Royce drew up outside the Registry Office. The driver got out and opened the door at the rear of the car.

Holly stepped out. She looked stunning.

Her white full-length silk dress seemed to shine in the sunlight. A client of Charlie's had made it for her.

Sometimes it is good to have a few contacts amongst the rich and famous. Even William's Mother could not complain when she was told who was making the dress. Her only comment was,

"I hope you aren't paying for it William!"

That one statement said everything you needed to know about her.

---

A grinning William stepped forward and took Holly’s arm in his. Together they walked into the building to get married.

The wedding was glorious and I even had to dab my eyes when the happy couple kissed at the end of the formalities.

The Reception was another thing entirely. I’d only been there half an hour when I began to feel the odd one out. I really didn’t know anyone apart from the Bride and Groom and I didn’t have a partner for the day.

William’s mother didn’t help by making sure that I was assigned a seat about as far away from the happy couple as I could be and still in the same room. This rather piqued me because I was paying for the whole thing.

I bit my lip and tried to make small talk with the people on my table. Thankfully, one of them was William’s Godmother. She turned out to be a rather feisty lady who like me, really despised William’s mother. We bonded together as ‘Exiles’ from the top table.

She made the meal rather enjoyable with some of her stories of then men in her life. She was a definite suck them in, use them and move onto the next one type of lady. She was in her early 60’s yet looked to be in her mid 40’s.

Once the meal was over and done with, it was time for the cake to be cut.

I was lurking at the back of the crowd when the ceremony began.

William and Holly stepped forward and stood by the cake. To my surprise Holly called out,

“Monica, can you come up here please?”

I felt a thousand eyes grilling me as I made my way through the throng of people.

“Ladies and Gentlemen,” said William.

“Holly’s good friend Monica had a big part in making the cake which we see before us. I would like for everyone to put their hands together and show your appreciation to her. Getting a cake as beautiful as this made in just a few weeks is nothing short of marvellous. Thank you from the both of us.”

Then Holly added with a huge smile on her face,

“And if I know Monica she had more than a bit part in making the cake.”

There was a polite round of applause. I felt myself go red in the face. I felt a lot better when I saw the look of hatred from William’s mother. I knew that she’d wanted to have the cake made by a fashionable ‘cake maker’ and she was only stopped when her so called ‘cake designer’ told her what she could so with herself and her constant changes and criticism of his work.

Quite a few people came up to me and complimented me on the cake and how good it tasted.  This attention only delayed my exit and my journey home. I was just happy that everything had gone off so well.

[To be continued]

If I was expecting a bit of peace and quiet after the wedding, then I was sorely mistaken.

Two days later I was in the middle of collecting eggs from the hens when I heard a car coming up the drive.
I stopped dead in my tracks when I saw the car and its occupants.

“What on earth are you two doing here?” I said as Holly and William got out of his Land Rover.

“Shouldn’t you be on some tropical island in the sun by now?”

Holly looked lovingly at her new husband.

“We are on our Honeymoon. We are renting a cottage on the coast near Haverfordwest. It has some lovely views over to Skomer Island.”

“That’s not what I was talking about.”

“We both wanted to say thank you for the cake and well… everything you did with the wedding. You sort of disappeared after the cutting of the cake and before we could find you.”

“Well, I was a bit of a sore thumb really and besides I’m not at my best on the dance floor especially when I didn’t have anyone to dance with.”

“Well, here we are now,” said Holly.

“Well, lets’ go inside, I was just about done here. I’ll put the kettle on.”

As we went inside my home, William said,

“I want to apologise for my Mother. She had no right changing your seat at the reception.”

“Did she? I didn’t know?” I said feigning ignorance.

“Don’t give me that rubbish, I know when you are lying,” said Holly.

“Yes, she wanted one of her cronies on our table. By the time we got there it was too late. That’s why we came up with the plan to announce you as the co-maker of the cake.”

“Thanks for that but you really shouldn’t. I’m just happy that the both of you are happy.”

Holly looked lovingly at William.

“We are but there is something else that you need to know.”

“You aren’t pregnant already are you?”

“No and we aren’t trying at the moment,” said Holly.

Then it was William who spoke.

“You saw what my Mother thinks of Holly outside the Registry Office. It is clear to both of us that she and my Sisters are not going to leave us alone. We simply live too close to them for that to happen. So…”

He looked at his new wife.

“So, we are going to look for a new farm. That’s why we are going to look for properties in Pembrokeshire. That should be far enough away from them for them to not keep on ‘dropping in’ on us almost every other day.”

I smiled.

“We hope you don’t mind?” asked Holly.

“Mind? Why should I mind?”

“We thought…”

“Nonsense. I’d love to have the two of you living just down the road. I am concerned a bit about what your family will say and do when they find out? A ‘For Sale’ sign is a pretty good indicator that something is happening, isn’t it?”

Holly smiled.

“See! I told you that Monica would have some good ideas.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence. However, it will all be a bit moot if you can’t find a place. Why don’t you two lovebirds go and enjoy your honeymoon and let Auntie Monica will think about things while you are gallivanting around the place looking at properties?”

They both laughed and left in a more jovial mood than in which they’d arrived.

My pleasant mood was short-lived by the arrival of the Postman. He brought the bill for the reception. It included a £500 surcharge for damage caused by some drunken fools. I could guess who they were. Some of William’s
Sisters so called friends were already half-cut before the wedding had even started.

I shrugged my shoulders and after a sigh, I wrote a cheque for the full amount less the surcharge plus a covering letter explaining who to send the bill for the damages to and put the letter in my Handbag for posting the next time I went out. I had agreed to pay for the reception but I wasn’t prepared for the surcharge. I told the hotel who was responsible and that because I wasn’t there when the so-called damage took place, the I could not be held responsible. I’d told them to send the bill to William’s Mother.

What money she’d saved on not having to pay for the cake would be more than taken up with that little present from me. The thought of her going apoplectic when she received the Hotel bill made me happy. One up for me.
Then I stopped dead in my tracks. Was I in danger of becoming a bitter ‘Mother in Law’. I thought for all of a nanosecond before laughing. With her, I’ll be the Mother in Law from hell if needed. That would make a change from my normal ‘Miss goody two shoes’ persona. That thought set me up nicely for the day.

I tried to return to normality but I wasn’t prepared for the feelings of loss that I was experiencing. Sure, Holly wasn’t really my daughter but somehow, I was feeling that I’d lost her now that she was married. That made me both happy and sad.

I was happy because she was starting life with a really nice man but sad because she was not my pseudo daughter any longer. I did afford myself a bit of a smile because they might well have been the thoughts and feelings a real mother would go through in situations like this. Those were feelings that I’d never expected to have.

The chorus of an old Pop song kept repeating itself in my mind.

“Life is a roller coaster that we all ride”

It got so bad that I had to find out what song it was. It turned out that it was called ‘Iceberg’ by 10cc. I smiled as I remembered that it was always played towards the end of the Disco’s that were regularly held at the Miners Social Club when I was a child.

Holly and William dropped by on their slightly out of the way journey home at the end of their honeymoon. Both of them looked extremely happy. I could tell that married life would suit Holly perfectly. The only downside was that they’d not had much luck finding a suitable farm but they weren’t going to give up just yet.

---

Life returned to pretty much normal apart from a little episode where a Fox tried to raid my Hen House one night. I chased the little beast off with a few well-aimed shots from my Catapult. Sadly, the poor birds were so scared after the event that they didn’t lay any eggs for several days. I gave them a bit extra feed to ‘egg’ them along a bit.

Thankfully they started laying again before the weekend and Bi-Monthly W.I. Produce Sale.  I couldn’t sell my eggs because I don’t have the equipment to check for Salmonella or label each egg in the manner demanded by Trading Standards and the Government. I covered my costs by ‘donating’ my eggs and customers would put their put donations in a tin in return for taking a box of eggs.

It didn’t take long for my slightly reduced stock of eggs to be snapped up by the villagers. Well at 75p for half a dozen they were far cheaper than any shop bought ones. That allowed me to browse the other stalls. I was pleased that Ruby was doing brisk business with her buns and cup cakes.  I got there just in time to buy the last two of her Double Chocolate buns. These were a particular favourite of mine.

The weather plays a big part in my life. When it is bad, it can be bad for a long time. The Scots have a good word for wet, grey days. They call it Dreech! That is to my mind the most perfect description for such weather.

I’d taken the advantage of a bright sunny August morning to go for a ride on my 1961 Manx Norton. I’d gone down the coast to Fishguard where I had a nice breakfast before taking a pretty route home via some small country roads. I’d only been held up once by a flock of sheep being moved from one field to another. This was just one of the benefits of living in this delightful part of the world.

Before arriving home, I stopped at the nearest Bakery and bought a small cake. It was my birthday the following day. Thirty Five! I was getting old. I would have liked to share the day with someone but that wasn’t to be. I wasn’t in the right mind to bake myself a cake and ice it and everything so a shop bought one would have to do for now.

I’d probably head down to the ‘Raglan Arms’ for a beer or two later. That would allow me to practice my Welsh on the locals. After a few ales, they were a forgiving lot especially if I stumped up for a round or two.

Once home I got out of my one-piece leather suit and took a shower, got dressed and prepared some lunch from a few vegetables I’d grown myself together with some fresh laid eggs and my own bread.

With my plate in my hand, I went outside to the front of the house and sat down in the sun to enjoy the food.

The warmth of the sun combined with the food; made me a tad drowsy and I did nod off for a while. The ringing of my phone woke me from my slumbers.

I debated letting it ring. It was really nice out there in the sun. There was just an occasional bit of wind otherwise it was a perfect day. Those are really rare in this part of the world where it is not uncommon to see all four seasons in the space of half an hour.

The phone didn’t stop. Whoever was trying to get hold of me weren’t giving up. With a sigh, I got up from my chair and ambled into the house half hoping that the caller would give up. They didn’t so in the end, I picked up the handset.

“Hello?”

“Oh, hello Holly. I was out the front of the house doing some weeding,” I said lying through my back teeth.

“What can I do for you on this lovely day?”

As I listened to Holly’s explanation, the smile dropped from my face. No wonder she didn’t hang up.

“Hold on there. Are you saying that your friend from the road hasn’t arrived at your place as she said she would?”

“You know from your time on the road, that days just go by and you lose track of time.”

“She was? Well that puts a different light on things. From Birmingham you say? That should only take a few hours at the most. Have you called the Police? Don’t answer that. I know what they’d say. What do you want to do?”

I listened again as Holly talked over the options. As she did so, I looked up at the clock on the wall.
When Holly had finished outlining her plan, I replied.

“If I leave here by half past two, I can probably be with you around six thirty at the latest. You know my decidedly ancient Land Rover is not exactly the most rapid vehicle on the road.”

“Sooner? The only way to get there sooner will be to come by bike.”

“Yes. I do have one that works! I was out on one of them earlier today,” I replied slightly angrily.

“I’ll see you as soon as I can but have the kettle on for when I get there.”

I put the phone down and thought for a minute. What was I getting into? Then panic took over and I dashed around the house packing a holdall with enough ‘stuff’ for 3-4 days. I’d wear my leathers for the ride but I’d need a complete change for whatever we were going to do when I got to Holly’s home in Gloucestershire.

---

Despite all my haste nearly 40 minutes had elapsed by the time I wheeled my Triumph Trophy SE out of my garage and fired it up. The 1215cc Triple burst into life. This was a beautiful machine to ride especially for long distances. As it warmed up, I loaded the panniers with two bags and strapped the holdall and my waterproofs onto the pillion seat.

I straddled the bike and zipped up my leathers. I’d had them especially made out of blue and silver leathers. The Bike was in a colour called ‘Pacific Blue’ so things matched. After donning my matching coloured helmet and gloves, I flipped down the visor and eased the big machine out of the yard and down my drive.

I’d gotten to the end of the drive when I remembered the Chickens. I quickly headed for Ruby’s home.

Thankfully, she was in and after explaining that Holly needed me urgently, she agreed to feed the hens in return for all the eggs they laid while I was away. I left her thinking that ‘barter’ is a wonderful thing.

I soon reached Carmarthen and picked up the dual carriageway and after filling up with Petrol, I headed east and opened up the throttle. Any decision about using the M4 or the ‘Heads of the Valleys’ road was made for me as I passed the turning for Swansea, a large sign said, ‘M4 Closed at Cardiff West’. I swung north and pushed the bike as fast as I legally go could given the amount of traffic, the speed limits, seemingly endless road-works and the inevitable speed cameras.

Despite the cameras and everything, I managed to make good time and topped off the tank at Ross-on-Wye. It was just before 4:45pm. I crossed over into England and headed along the M50 and then the M5 only to run into heavy traffic north of Gloucester. Thankfully the bike allowed me to filter through the sometimes almost stationary traffic and past the accident that was causing at least a 5-mile queue of almost stationary traffic. A lot of the drivers would be late home for tea that was for sure.

Luck was with me from then on and I arrived at Holly and Williams Farm at exactly 6pm.

Holly appeared at the doorway as soon as I pulled up and ran down the steps to greet me. Before I knew it, she’d wrapped her arms around me and was giving me a huge hug.

“Hey, let me get my helmet off first,” I gasped.

With a smile, she let me go.

“I’m glad you came.”

“You knew that I would come if you asked.”

A small tear formed in her eyes as she nodded her head.

“I need a wee so…”

Holly laughed.

“Trust you to ruin the moment,” she said laughing.

She led me inside her home. William was just pouring a very welcome cup of tea.

Once I’d used the facilities and freshened up, I joined them in the kitchen. William passed me a mug of tea and some fresh baked scones. There was homemade jam on the table. As I reached for the Raspberry Jam, I thought to myself that Holly had really matured in the past six months. She was a very different person from the one that I’d found cold and wet that stormy night all those months ago. That was a small pleasure given the problem at hand.

“These are very good,” I said through a mouthful of my second scone.

Holly smiled back at me. She’d really matured since she came to live with William.

When I’d finished the scone, and was on my second mug of tea, I sat back and asked,

“Now that I’m fed and watered, I’d appreciate being filled in on the problem.”

Holly looked at William before starting to speak.

“When I was on the road, I got to know a few others like me. One of them was an older woman named Diana. I think I mentioned her to you once. Anyway, like me she’d had to leave home only with the clothes on her back. Her husband was violent and abusive. Even when she’d divorced him, he’d force himself on her shouting ‘You are my property and will be forever’. In the end, she just left home and moved to Cambridge. A few months later she came home from work to find him her flat wrecking the place. She fought him and managed to escape.”

Holly swallowed hard.

“Diana soon realised that wherever she went, he’d find her, he was that crazy. So, she just walked away from her old life and went on the road. We met on a cold day under a railway bridge near Hereford. We spent most of the winter together. Some of that time was actually spent here. As a result of us living and travelling together I got to know her very well.”

Then Holly looked down at the table.

“When I left you the first time, I was missing her. Diana the first person who I could talk to even though she was a fair bit older than me. Then I met you and I got confused.”

I reached over the table and gently gripped her hand.

“What happened this time?”

“Diana called me a four days ago and said that she’d had enough of being on the road and wanted my help. She said that she was in Stafford. Foolishly, I said that I’d send her some money for a train ticket by Western Union. The next thing I heard was that she was waiting for a train at Birmingham New St. After that nothing. I tried to call her on the mobile I’d given her the last time I saw her. It was answered by a man who basically told me to never call that number again and that she was back where she belonged.”

“Why didn’t you call the Police?”

Holly looked at William again.

This time William answered.

“The problem is that her former husband is a Sergeant in the Transport Police and based in Coventry.”

With those few words, my heart and hopes sunk to uncharted depths.

We all sat silently for several minutes.

In the end, I asked,

“Where do you think she is?”

“Probably at their former home in Coventry. Apparently, her husband had held her there before she left him and got a divorce. No one believed her when she said that she’d been held against her will due to her former husbands job.”

“So…? how do we rescue her? And then what do we do?”

They looked at each other again before William spoke,

“We were wondering if she could come and stay with you? Holly never stops talking about how you helped her so much… and…”

“I get it. You know that I’ll help in any way I can besides, I could do with someone around,” I said trying to put a brave face on it.

William stood up.

“Let’s make a move. Are you ok on the Bike? We’ll take my old 4WD. It will draw far less attention than a new Discovery.”

“What’s the plan?”

“Recce the area first to get the lie of the land and stuff and then plan where we go from there.”

I held up my hand to say ‘Ok’.

Then I looked at my watch.

“It’s going to be just about dark when I get to Coventry. Can you book us a couple of rooms somewhere? Close but not too close? I’ll ride past the house a couple of times and then meet up with you”

“We’ll do that on the way north,” said William.

William handed me the address and GPS location of Diana’s former home.

“Great. Text me where we’ll meet up.”

Before leaving I transferred my luggage to their car and left them to get ready and follow me. Despite some traffic, I made pretty good time and reached Coventry just before it got truly dark.  I rode slowly down the road scanning the houses until I saw my target, a detached house that seemed to be around 10 years old but the garden such as it was at the front needed a good deal of attention. It stood out because of that. The other houses looked far neater and well cared for.

As I scanned the property, I could see that the house was in darkness but I could see the shadow of someone in a room downstairs outlined against the last of the daylight. As I was moving, it was just a fleeting glance but it told me enough. The driveway at the front was empty. I had to conclude that the shadow was of Diana as there was no car parked outside or any other evidence of her husband being at home, or at least that was what I hoped.

I found a large Tesco’s near the Ricoh Stadium and filled the Bike’s tank for the third time. Once I’d paid for the Petrol, I checked my phone. There were two texts waiting for me. They were both from Holly.

“Rooms 12 and 14 Warwick Arms Hotel Warwick”.
The second one contained the postcode. I sensed that William was behind the second text.

---

Twenty-five minutes later I pulled into the car park alongside Williams car. I shut off the engine and sat on the bike for a few seconds. I’d been riding for most of the last six hours and to be honest, I was knackered. A beer, a steak, a shower and then bed was all I wanted at that moment. My moments contemplation was shattered as Holly came bounding out of the Hotel.

Somewhat wearily, I kicked down the prop-stand and got off the bike. The expectant taste of a pint was starting to disappear down a drain when I saw the expression on Holly’s face.

“What’s wrong?”

“Well? Did you see anything?”

“Holly, I need a beer, something to eat and some sleep. Let me get out of these leathers and I’ll join you in the bar or do you plan on a rescue mission tonight?”

She looked disappointed but eventually agreed to my requests. This was Holly all over. Everything must happen now even if it didn’t matter if it happened now or later.

Half an hour later and somewhat feeling refreshed, I walked into the Hotel Bar. I’d showered, put a little makeup on and changed into a pair of leggings and a tunic top. My long hair fell well below my shoulders. Every day as I brushed it out, I said a word of thanks to whoever it was that blessed me with a full and not a receding head of hair like so many men these days.

I ordered a pint of beer and some food then I went and sat down with my companions. Holly started to speak but William put a hand on her arm to stop her.

“Let the poor woman at least wet her whistle first.”
She smiled back.

Once my drink had been delivered and I’d taken a hefty swig from the glass, put the glass down and wiped the foam from my top lip, I said,

“I needed that.”

They both smiled.

“Right, down to business.”

“Well, what did you find?” asked a very impatient Holly.

“As I rode past the house very slowly I think I saw the shadow of someone moving. There wasn’t a car or any other vehicle in the driveway so there is someone in the house. At this point in time, we have no idea who it is. It might be Diana but there again, it might not, we simply don’t know.”

We spent the next half hour quietly discussing our plans and options for the following day over some food and another round of drinks.

With three empty glasses sitting on the table in front of us, we decided to turn in for the night.

---

We all had a good breakfast and left the hotel before 9:30am and headed towards Coventry. I headed for the Supermarket where I’d filled up the evening before while William and Holly took a drive past the house where we think Diana was staying.

I eagerly waited for their report. They had good news for me when they joined me in the car park.

“We parked up the street and watched. We were in luck because a few minutes later we saw a man in what we assume was Police Officers uniform leaving the house about half an hour ago,” reported William.

“He drove away in a Police Car with ‘British Transport Police’ on the side. That must be Henry going off to work.”

I smiled and opened the newspaper that I’d bought for something to read while I was waiting for them. I pointed at the list of football fixtures. It was the first weekend of the new season.

“He’ll be away for the rest of the day. Chelsea are playing Villa[1] at 1:30 and Man City are also in town. They’re playing West Brom at 5:30pm. What do we do now?”

William looked at his watch.

“We get another coffee and wait. Someone else will be joining us shortly.”

“Who’s that?” I asked urgently.

“Someone from my old Army days. He’ll get us into the house,” replied William touching the side of his nose.

I was beginning to get a bit anxious when a small wiry man slid into the chair next to me.

“Morning Sir, Ma’am, Ma’am” said the man.

“Holly, Monica, meet Guy,” said a smiling William.

“Hello Guy,” I said.

“Well sir what’s the job?”

“We need to get into a house. We think that a friend of Holly’s in inside. Naturally, we’ll try knocking on the door first but… well, you know the score.”

“Ok, so what do we do until its Dark?”

“No, we are doing it this lunchtime.”

Guy thought for what seemed an eternity.

“Ok, I open the door and I’m out of there. Ok?”

“That’s fine by us isn’t it team?” asked William.

We didn’t offer any objections.

We soon made our way out of the Cafe and to our vehicles. I took the opportunity to ask William about Guy.

“He’s very cool. He won’t betray me. I saved his neck in Kandahar so he owes me his life.”

“But you were an Officer?”

“Yes, and he was one of my men. I couldn’t let the bad guys get one of my men.”

“When did you call him?”

“Late last night. He lives over in Derby, so not that far away really. Guy is the sort of person you want on your side if you get my meaning,” said William.

I went on ahead of the others and rode past the house once more. No signs of movement inside. I pulled into the entrance to a Cul-de-sac about 50yds further along the road from the house and waited.

William’s Car pulled up into the driveway. He and Guy got out and knocked on the front door. They waited but there was no answer. At this point I got my phone out of the pocket in my Leathers and pretended to make a call. If I saw a Police Car, I’d call Holly with a warning.

Holly got out of the car and went up to the front door. She bent down and pushed open the letterbox flap. I guessed that she called out but she was too far away for me to hear. She obviously heard something because Guy ‘leapt’ into action and within a second or so, he had the door open and they were inside. The door closed behind them and I breathed a sigh of relief.

I pretended to fiddle with something on my phone while keeping half an eye open for unexpected visitors.

I almost jumped out of my skin when the phone rang. It was Holly.

“Hello?”

“Yes. No sign of anyone.”

“She is? That's good isn't it?”

“She’s what?”

“Yes, I can get some. I’ll be back as soon as possible. Bye”

I put the phone away but quickly pulled it out again and after going online, I searched for a local DIY Store. They should have what I wanted. I soon found one a few miles away. I got myself ready and then started the bike and set off to the shop. As quickly as I could, I found the item I needed before heading to the tills. There was a queue of people ahead of me taking what seemed an age to pay for their goods. Well, it was the weekend after all.

Once I’d paid for my shopping, I headed back to my bike. Thankfully, I had a couple of bungee straps on the bike so I was able to secure my shopping to the back seat after wrapping it in my waterproof over-trousers. I didn’t want to advertise what I was carrying. That done, I set off back to the house.

When I arrived back, I pulled up in front of the house and went inside the house with the package.

“Did you get them?” asked William.

“Yes, here they are,” I replied as I pulled a pair of brand new bolt cutters out from one leg of my over-trousers.

“Will these do?” William asked Guy

“Perfect Guv,” he replied as he took them from me.

He disappeared into another downstairs room. I heard voices and then a crack.

A few seconds later, the door opened and Guy, Holly and another woman emerged. She looked like she’d been dragged through a hedge backwards, side-wards and backwards again. She was a mess. Her clothes such as they were, were torn and dishevelled.
“We’ll go upstairs and get Diana decent. We won’t be long.”

Guy said,
“Sir, I’d like to get out of here if you don’t mind. Can you take me to the station?”
William thought for a moment and called upstairs.

“I’m taking Guy to the station. Call me when you are ready and I’ll come back and pick you two up. Ok?”
Holly called back,

“Well, get on with then…”

I followed William and Guy out of the house. When we were outside, I said,
“Shall I hang around?”

He thought for a few moments.

“No, you head off home. The less attention we draw to ourselves the better ok?”

“Ok. Give me a call when you get home?”

“We will.”

I followed William away from the house and into the middle of Coventry. Guy leapt out of William’s car and disappeared. I pulled up alongside him where I retrieved my ‘stuff’ from his car.

After a quick goodbye, I got on my bike and headed home glad that I’d played my part in whatever was going to happen, but I was sure things weren’t over yet, not by a long chalk.

[To be continued]

[1] This was originally written when Aston Villa were in the Premiership.

When I arrived home, I saw that there were two messages on my answer-phone. Both were from Holly saying that they were at their place and that Diana was safe. That made me feel happy but the long day had been very tiring.

I rose early on the Sunday morning and went for a long run. I needed to get the stiffness from a lot of time in the saddle out of my limbs. By the time I returned home I was feeling a lot better and ready for a nice large breakfast. I opted for what I called a ‘Full Welsh’. This was grilled bacon with Poached Eggs on Toast with a side order of Cockles. It wasn’t to everyone’s taste due to the cockles but as the Eggs were from my hens, the Bacon from Pembrokeshire and the Cockles from near Llanelli, you could hardly be more Welsh than that.

The rest of the day was quiet which was perfect for me.

On Tuesday morning, I’d just done the washing up when the phone rang.
“Hello?”

“Oh, hi Holly. How’s Diana?”

“She did? That’s good then.”

“Oh, I see. Yes, that won’t be a problem, I’ll be ready. I’ll see you when… well when you get here. I’ll get the place ready for her.”

I put the phone down and sat there thinking what to do next.

In the end, I went shopping. I needed a few supplies and something suitable for lunch for four people. Then I went around the house clearing things away and getting a room ready for Diana. The call had been to let me know that apparently, the Police were treating Diana’s disappearance as a case of kidnapping and that Diana had told them that her ex, knew about Holly and William. That was why they wanted to bring here to me sooner rather than later. I knew that Holly had been taking copious pictures of Diana and how she’d been kept. She’d even captured the bolt cutters that were used to cut the chain that had been used to keep her prisoner in her old home.

---

My visitors arrived in time for a late lunch. D>ana didn’t say much until the very end of the meal.

“Why are you doing all this for me?”

I looked at her. She had moist eyes. I sensed that it wouldn’t take much for her to start crying.

I smiled at her.

“Holly asked and I said yes. She’s family. You needed help and we were all there to give it.”

Then Holly added her bit.

“I told you about Monica and how she helped me and didn’t ask for anything in return.”
She reached over and took hold of Diana’s hand.

“She’s one of the good people. Why don’t you let her mother you for a bit until you get over what has happened to you?”

She nodded her head. She was still very disturbed by the whole thing with her ‘ex’.

---

Diana took several days to fully appreciate that she was in a safe place. It seemed that I was getting used to rescuing people after Holly and now Diana.

I’d put in a call to Charlie about getting what protection the law could give Diana from her former husband.

I’d also asked him prepare to get Diana a new identity. I wanted Diana to have a fresh but legal start with getting on with the rest of her life. I also knew that it wasn’t going to be cheap either but what the heck, I had more money than I could ever spend in this life.

I also sent Charlies’ team copies of the pictures that Holly had taken of Diana’s old home. Charlie knew people who could pull strings that I never knew existed. Less than 24 hours later, her former husband had been arrested and charged with kidnapping and false imprisonment.
  
A few days later, I was out in the greenhouse getting some fresh salad leaves when I heard the door open behind me. I looked up and it was Diana. For the first time since she’d been with me, I saw a small smile on her face. I very nice smile indeed.

“Are those for Lunch?” she asked.

“Yes. I made a quiche earlier. I’ve already picked some tomatoes, radishes and onions plus there is still some of the beetroot I cooked the other day.”

Diana stood there laughing.

“What’s so funny?”

“You. Here you are so domestic. Making your own bread, growing all this food and then you put your leathers on and go off and ride like the wind on one of those pocket rockets you keep next door. It is such a strange mixture.
Total opposites.”

I looked at her in surprise.

“Holly told me about your bikes when we were travelling together.”

I smiled back.

“It is nice that you are taking an interest in things again.”

“Yes. Sorry about that. I think I am starting to get over feeling sorry for myself.”

“There is no reason to be sorry. You went through a terrible ordeal and one not of your making.”

~o~O~o~
[The following day before Breakfast]

“Good Morning,” I said as Diana entered the kitchen.

“Hello. Breakfast not ready then?”

I chuckled.

“Breakfast will be served later. After our morning run.”

“Run? You have to be kidding.”

“Not in the slightest. I’ve not been out for a few days and if you are going to stay here, I think that it is only fair that you join me for a little run in the mornings. Besides, I find it makes me appreciate breakfast a whole lot better.”

“I don’t run. I haven’t run anywhere or for anything since I was at school.”

“Well, isn’t starting a new life worth starting with a clean slate?”

“Hummmppphhh. I don’t have anything to wear or put on my feet.”

“Everything you need is in there,” I replied pointing at carrier bag that was sitting on the floor near the door.

“You had all this planned didn’t you?”
I grinned.

“How do I look?” asked Diana when she appeared after getting changed.

“Pretty good,” I said grinning.

Actually, she looked very good.

“Ready?”

“I suppose so. How far are we going?”

“Don’t worry, I’ll be kind to you. Build up in easy steps.”

“Build up to what if you don’t mind me asking?”

“A five mile circuit. Or maybe ten if you are good at it.”

Diana just shook her head and glared.

“Let’s go then,” she said reluctantly.

To my surprise, Diana managed a mile in a few run/walk stages before she raised the white flag metaphorically speaking. We walked back home and the both of us tucked into a hearty breakfast.

~o~O~o~

Over the following weeks, we went out most mornings and gradually, she edged closer towards the target I’d set for her. It was all part of my grand plan of rehab for her.

Some two months after we’d started running together, she completed the five-mile circuit without stopping was a remarkable day.

“Come on. Only a hundred metres to go,” I said as we neared the house.

“You…. You have ….. Been saying that for miles,” gasped Diana in between deep breaths.

The new rounded the last corner in the road and my home was right there in front of us.
We crossed the ‘invisible’ finishing line together and stood there panting. We are only a foot or so apart. Then to my surprise, Diana put her hands on my shoulder and panted.

“Ok. Tomorrow is a lie in. No running ok?”

I laughed.

“Yes but just tomorrow.”

Then she kissed me. I was so taken aback by her sudden move that I responded automatically. Then a few seconds later my brain kicked in and I broke off the kiss.

“Didn’t you like it?” asked Diana.

“It is not that. You are my guest. I don’t want it to seem that I’m leading you on… or something like that,” I replied as I desperately tried to get my thoughts together.

“Don’t you like me?”

“It is not that Diana.”

“Well what is it then?”

“You know nothing about me. I could be … well something bad for all you know.”

“I know enough to make me fancy you something rotten.”

I shook my head.

“Why not?” asked Diana.

“Because…” I wanted to answer but I couldn’t. I realised that I really liked her. I’d tried not to show it before because of the vulnerable state she was in. Even now it seemed just wrong.

“I can’t. It’s not fair on you.”

“Fair?” replied Diana who was starting to well up.

“I’m sorry Diana. If we had met under different circumstances then something might have been possible.”

A determined look appeared in her eyes.

“Sod it Monica. Holly told me all about you a long time ago. A bottle of cheap cider is great for loosening the tongue.“

“She told you diddly squat. Only the tip of the iceberg of how I came to be this monstrosity.”

“Monstrosity? You are far from that. You have more sense than just about any woman I know or have ever known.”

“That’s just it. I’m not a woman and can never be one. I look like this because I ran from my old life. I ran because I could not handle what I’d become.”

Diana shook her head.

“You are wrong. Holly told me that you had said that you left because of the narrow-mindedness of others.

Others who couldn’t see past the end of their nose.”

“And those same people followed me to where I moved to and… well I had to move again. I’m sure in my own mind that they would have found me again even in this remote neck of the woods. I became this monstrosity in the hope that I could be happy. I thought I was until at first Holly came into my life. Then you. You reminded me of what I can never be. Don’t you understand that the most we can ever be is just friends. I can’t give you more than that.”

“Yes you can. You gave me life. Now it is my turn to give you yours.”

I shook my head before fleeing into the house and shutting myself away in my bedroom where I proceeded to cry my eyes out. I’d never really that had many serious relationships before my life changed. I just got on with life sort of hoping that someone would eventually come along. Then I got lots of money and I could have probably had almost any woman in the country if I’d put my mind to it. But I didn’t and therein lies the problem. I was a yellow-bellied coward at heart.

~o~O~o~

The house was in darkness when I ventured downstairs. I’d cried myself to sleep and was woken by my phone signalling the arrival of a text message. I read the message but didn’t move from my bed. I listened for any noise but it was very quiet. The only sounds were the distant ‘baaing’ of the sheep and the occasional seagull flying by. The quietness made me wonder if Diana had left my home after my earlier outburst. In the end, I got fed up listening to the silence so I got out of bed and after checking my hair I went downstairs.

I found Diana sitting quietly in a kitchen that was only illuminated by the moonlight that was streaming through the one window.

“Hello Diana. I’m so sorry for that outburst earlier.”

“Monica, I’m sorry for being so… forthright. I shouldn’t have kissed you like that.”

I tried to respond with a smile.

“It doesn’t matter. Both of us have been through a lot in the past and I guess things sort of caught up with us.”

Diana nodded.

I took a deep breath before saying,

“Do you fancy a trip to London?”

“London? Why?”

“To sort out your new identity. I got a text from my lawyer a little while ago.”

Diana remained fairly expressionless.

“Don’t you want to go?”

She remained silent for several seconds before answering.

“I hadn’t thought about it happening so soon.”

“I know. Leaving the all of your past behind is a big step. I thought long and hard about it myself when the time came.”

“Yet you went through with it didn’t you?”

“Not right away. I sat on my hands for more than a week before taking the plunge.”

“Do you regret it?”

“Sometimes I do, like earlier but most of the time I wouldn’t dream of going back. There is nothing for anymore me where I came from. Besides this place is far better than a terraced two up, two down in a former pit village.
What I have here is something that I don’t want to give up in a hurry.”

“But you had that prize money from the TV behind you.”

For an instant, I almost told her about the other win that I’d had. Then I decided that now was not the time nor place for that.

“Yes, I did and it helped but I still had to make a go of it pretty well on my own. Both Holly and I will be here for you. That should make getting used to the new you a lot easier.

Diana nodded but I still felt the reluctance in her to accept that a really big change was about to happen.

“If it is ok with you, I think we’ll take the train from Carmarthen and stay overnight in London?”

Diana looked troubled.

“What’s wrong?”

She hesitated before answering.

“It’s the train. You know…”

Then I remembered the last time she’d been on a train.

“Ok. I don’t want to take my Land Rover all the way to London. The tyres are a bit close to the minimum tread depth for such a long trip. I’ll make arrangements to rent a car for the trip.”

Stood up and went to get my phone. I was about to switch the light on when Diana said,

“Can we take the Bike?”

I stopped mid dial. Diana had not shown any interest in riding a bike let alone taking such a long trip.

I shook my head saying,

“I’d like to take the bike but there are two problems. Firstly, I don’t have a helmet that you can use. Your head is a lot smaller than mine. Then I only have one set of waterproofs and the forecast for tomorrow in not brilliant. I did have some but our good friend Holly still has hers.”

She looked disappointed so I tried to make amends.

“I’ll tell you what. If we go by car, we can get you some gear when we are in London. I know of just the place to go.”

Diana gave me a brief smile in return. I wondered if her sudden keenness for riding with me was real of just another attempt to kindle favour with me. I put that issue to one side for the time being.

“Shall I email my lawyers and say we’ll see them on the day after tomorrow?”

I got a nod of affirmation in return.

I went into the sitting room and switched on the light. I opened up my laptop and composed an email to Charlie.

With that done, I went back into the kitchen. Diana had cleaned up the mess from lunch and was preparing us something to eat. That was one part of sharing with Diana that I liked. She was very different from Holly who didn’t know much more than how to make Coffee and burn the toast when it came to culinary skills.

While I was waiting for the food to be dished up, I made the arrangements to rent a car for the following day plus two nights at a hotel in London that had on-site parking.

~o~O~o~
Two days later, we presented ourselves at the offices of my legal representatives, Palmer, Quayle and Hemmings in South Kensington.

“Mr Hemmings please,” I said to the receptionist. I let myself have a mental sigh. Every time I came to visit Charlie, there was someone new manning his reception. A second sigh was because they were always young and blonde.

“Do you have an appointment? Mr Hemmings is a very busy man you know.”

“Yes I do. My name is Monica Roberts. I am expected.”

“Oh yes Ms Roberts. Please go through. He is expecting you. His office is the second on the right.

I knocked on the door and went in. Charlie was sitting behind his desk writing. He put down his pen and stood up smiling.

He came around the desk and wrapped his arms around me.

“Darling. How nice to see you! It’s been ages.”

Two ‘faux’ kisses on my cheeks and he turned his attention to Diana.

“Now who have we here?”

Nervously, Diana said,

“I’m Diana.”

“Come here my Darling let me hug you. I know that you have really been through the mixer. It is so nice to see your smiling face at last.”

After two more faux kisses on the cheek, he led her to one of the three chairs that were placed around a circular table.

“Please take a seat my darling.”

Diana sat down with a bit of a bewildered look on her face.

“Don’t worry Di, Charlie here chats up all his female clients despite him being the gayest man I’ve ever met.”

She visibly relaxed as Charlie and I sat down around the table.

“Maria will be in shortly with some Coffee. Did you guys have breakfast?”

“We looked at what was on offer at the Hotel and decided not to pay more than twenty quid for a bit of toast and a pot of tea.”

Charlie laughed. For a lawyer, he had a good sense of humour.

Just then the receptionist Maria came into the room with a large Cafetiere on a tray.

“Marvellous”, exclaimed Charlie. “Maria, be a darling and pop down to Oscar’s for a round of Cream Cheese Bagels, there’s a darling?”

As he said that, he took his wallet from his jacket pocket and fished out a £20 note and handed it to her.
With a wry smile on her face she took the money and left the office.

“Shall I be ‘Mother’?” asked Charlie.

I tried not to snigger but Diana gave me a swift kick under the table. She was relaxing which was the plan.
With cups of Coffee in front of us, Charlie pulled a think buff folder broom his desk and put it on the table.

“Now down to business, he said calmly.

With a smile, he opened the folder.

“Now Diana, this is your new identity. It is completely legal and above-board. I had to call in a few favours to get all this done so quickly. Normally something like this takes at least three months but with your ex-husband up on some very serious charges, the people who mattered saw that it was all in a good cause.”

He passed a sheet of paper over to Diana. It was a birth Certificate.

She took it with slightly trembling hands.

“Helen Lydia Carson, born…”

She smiled.

“Born a week before I was in the same hospital.”

“Helen is a real person who now lives in Australia.”

“I never thought of myself as a Helen,” remarked Diana.

“That won’t be your final name.”

Diana looked at Charlie with a distinctly puzzled look on her face.

Charlie grinned as he took another sheet from the folder.

“This is a deed poll that we use to change your name to… Cheryl Dawson.”

For the next hour that was only punctuated by the arrival of the Bagels and some fresh coffee, we went through all the bits of information that goes to make up an identity. These included National Insurance numbers, Bank Accounts and importantly, a driving License and Passport.

“But I can’t drive.”

“That is good. If someone comes looking for you, they won’t be looking for someone who drives a car and has three points on their license from two years ago in Inverness.”

I knew that Charlie had pulled more than a few strings. That good an identity is just not available unless the Home Office is involved. I could only guess that the threats towards her that her former husband had made at his initial court appearance despite his intention to plead guilty when he came up before the judge next month for a pre-trial hearing.

At the end of the exercise, Charlie sat back with a satisfied grin on his face.

“Ok, Charlie, how much is this going to cost me?”

“Seventy Five if that is ok with you?”

Diana now Cheryl looked at me angrily.

“Is that Seventy Five Thousand Pounds?”

Charlie nodded.

“I can’t accept this!” she said while glaring at me.

“Calm down Cheryl. I have the money, more than enough. It costs a lot of money to give you a new life. Consider it my birthday present.”

“I can’t accept this,” she replied pushing the folder away.

“This is your chance at a new life and not be looking over your shoulder every hour of every day,” said Charlie quietly but firmly.

Cheryl took hold of the passport and opened it at the page that contained her photo. I’d taken it the day after we’d rescued her.

“Is this real and not a forgery?”

“Yes dear, it is 100% real.”

Then she took it and held it to her chest. As she did so, she looked at me and said sternly.

“We will talk about the money when we get home!”

I laughed trying to diffuse her obvious annoyance.

“We will at that.”

Despite my best efforts, Diana would not give up on the money thing when we returned home.

“Are you sure you weren’t born in Yorkshire?”

“Why are you evading me?”

“Look Cheryl, I have sufficient funds to do what I want with my life. Paying that money to get you a new life was money well spent in my opinion.”

“It was far too much. I need to repay you.”

“I won’t accept one penny from you for this. It is my gift to you and that’s the end of it.”

Her glare told me that I’d have to tell her eventually.

---

The following weeks and then months saw a big change come over Cheryl. She still got a kick out of me calling her by her new name.

One day, she said to me, “I think that I should get a job. I can’t sit here all day doing nothing.”

I laughed.

“You really don’t have to? Besides you aren’t exactly doing nothing now are you?”

“I know that I’m doing things around here. But I can’t keep sponging off of you.”

“Why not?”

“Because I just can’t.”

I guessed the real reason. She never wanted to be beholden to anyone ever again.

“What are you going to do?”

“I don’t know.”

I smiled.

“Well I have a few irons in the fire locally. Perhaps you can help out. Didn’t you say that you worked in the Planning Department of your local Council?”

“Yes why?”

“I happen to own a few properties in the village and surrounding area. I have a little project in my mind that is larger than anything I’ve ever done before.”

“Sounds good. What do I need to do?”

“There is a bit of a problem.”

She gave me the ‘Oh yeah!’ look.

“I have a sort of a partner in the venture.”

“So?”

“Firstly, she only knows that I’m a bit if an eccentric woman who dabbles in property. She really knows nothing about you.”

Cheryl nodded.

“I think I get it.”

I shook my head.

“No. It is more complicated than that.”

I went on to explain.

“As soon as we appear together in the Village, the gossip drums will start beating loudly. Sure, some of them have seen us out for our runs or in Lampeter doing the shopping. But it getting obvious that you are not just visiting.”

“Ah, the lesbian’s are taking over?”

“Yes, something very much like that.”

Cheryl thought hard for a few seconds.

“Why don’t we give them something to talk about rather than pure rumour and conjecture?”

“I…”

She put up her hand.

“I know you have reservations about us but for the sake of appearances isn’t it a good idea? I was thinking about identical engagement rings.”

I knew that she was right. I didn’t like it but it was about the only solution I could think of.

“Well, we’d better go and do some shopping hadn’t we?”

---

The following day, we set off on my Triumph Trophy on our shopping trip. Cheryl had the opportunity to try out her new one-piece leather suit. We’d bought it on our trip to London where she’d acquired her new identity. Since then other things had gotten in the way of us going out on the bike. Our shopping trip presented an ideal opportunity.

Cheryl was just like Holly in that she was a very good passenger. She quickly learned to lean into the corners by just the right amount. This made the ride from my point of view very enjoyable.

We headed for Cardiff with hopes of successful purchasing two rings.

After visiting five shops and finding nothing that was either suitable or an item where they had two in stock in sizes that would fit both of us we were in a bit of a quandary. Therein lay the problem with my logic in coming as far as we had. Neither of us really wanted to come all the way back to get rings that had been altered.

We were sitting in a Café on St Mary’s St having some lunch when Cheryl suggested,

“Why don’t we try the Pawn shops?”

I just grinned back at her. It was so obvious and I kicked myself for not thinking about them sooner.

An hour later we had what we wanted. Two almost identical rings that would fit both of us had been purchased from a Pawn shop. The sad bit was that I couldn’t fit my Motorcycle gloves on with the ring on my finger.

“That will never do!” exclaimed Cheryl when she saw me taking the ring off.

“Tough. Do you want to take control?”

“Me? No chance.”

“I guess I could put the ring on a chain when I’m on the bike?”

I got a swift peck on the cheek for that.

When we were back home I looked at my Calendar.

“There is a W.I. Meeting in a few days. Are you ready to be introduced to the women of the Village?”

“I’ve never been to a W.I. meeting.”

“I think that a certain couple will be the centre of whispers. It is a shame really, we have someone up from Tenby coming to talk about the Wildlife of Madagascar.”

We had some lunch and then went down to the Village.
  
Ruby was busy in the Post Office so we waited until she’d dealt with all the customers.

“Ruby, have you got a moment, we need to talk?”

“Sure. I’m due a break anyway. Let me get the boss to take over for a while.”

We waited outside for her to appear.

“What’s all this about?” she asked.

“Ruby, I’d like to introduce you to Cheryl.”

“Please to meet you Cheryl,” she said smiling. Her gaze went downwards to our hands that were clasped together.

“I take it that you two are an item then?”

“Yes but…”

“I know, mums the word.”

She giggled for a few seconds.

“I wanted to ask you something.”

“Fire away.”

“Do you know who owns the property over the road?”

Just over the road was the old Garage/Filling station. It had closed a few years ago because it couldn’t compete with the Supermarket prices.

“Angharad’s husband owns it,” said Ruby in a matter of fact way.

My heart sank. Cheryl saw that.

“What’s wrong?”

“Let’s say that Angharad and I are not the best of friends. I beat her and her sister in the Christmas Cake
competition a few of years ago.”

“Angharad is a stuck up bitch. The whole Village knows it and you did everyone a favour when you won,” added Ruby with a huge smile on her face.

“So?” said Cheryl.

“So what?” I asked.

“Put up enough money and I’m sure that they’ll sell.”

“But that place is far too big for what we were planning,” said Ruby.

“Think big, not small,” said Cheryl.

“What do you mean?”

“I’m an outsider here but I can see that for one, this place is too small,” she said pointing at the Post Office.

“Move the Post Office over the road. It seems that lots of people already park there when using the Post Office. Then why not open a small Coffee Shop/tea room. Then the gossips won’t have to stand out in all weathers to spread their rumours. I’m sure there is probably room for some sort of store that sold local produce. Monica’s eggs for example.”

“I can’t sell them. I can give them away. To sell them, I need my hens checked for… things like Streptococcus, Septicaemia and Staphylococcus,” I argued remembering the information I’d been given when I bought them.

“So?” said Cheryl again.

“I have to get back to work,” said Ruby coming to my rescue.

“Ok,” I said trying to be non-committal.

“Bye for now Ruby but please keep what I just said to yourself for the time being but if it comes to fruition, there will be a place for your cake shop and bakery. I feel I owe it to you after the last thing fell through at the last minute.”

“Don’t worry Monica, I like you and I don’t gossip unlike a lot of people in this village.”

Then Cheryl added,

“Ruby, it has been nice to meet you. I’m sure that we can sort something out soon,” said Cheryl as Ruby turned to make her way back to work.
  
I was doing the washing up that evening when Cheryl came into the kitchen to lend a hand.

As she was drying the last of the plates, she said,

“You know what your problem is, you are scared of commitment.”

I just stopped what I was doing and stared out of the window.  The Sun was just dropping below the horizon. The ruined barn was silhouetted against the orange sky.

I couldn’t move.

Cheryl put down the plate and the tea towel on the drainer. Then she took hold of me and turned me towards her.

With a smile on her face, she kissed me long and hard. I tried to resist but couldn’t. In the end, I responded to her kisses.

When we came up for air, she said.

“There. Isn’t that better?”

“Yes. I was nice.”

“You should do the same to the Village.”

“I can’t kiss them all?”

She laughed.

“It may come to that but instead of keeping in the shadows, come out into the open and put your money where your mouth is and invest in the shop come café come whatever.”

She was right and I knew it. I’d really been hiding for far too long.
  
My resolve was put to the test the very next day at the W.I. meeting. A few people said, ‘about time too’, some gave us a little smile but as predicted, Angharad was a bitch. She even went as far as to demand that we were thrown out.

The branch chairwoman stated calmly that the rules of the W.I. were such that it is open to all women. Only men are not allowed to become members but they can attend many meetings and social functions. The thought ‘If they only knew…’ crossed my mind several times during that debate.

Angharad stormed off swearing to get us barred.

As a result, the meeting was a great success and Cheryl and I received a lot of congratulations even from some of the older members.

~o~O~o~
Once we’d come out in the open about our relationship Cheryl and I really let the barriers down and I fell in love with her. At first, I didn’t think that she was in love with me but as we worked together on the project, it became clear to me that she was here for the long game and that made me very happy.

The only time that Cheryl got angry with me was when I’d received the estimates from our architect for the costs of our project.

“This is going to cost a heck of a lot more than I’d expected”, said Cheryl when we’d returned from Cardiff with the plans.

Before I could say anything, she added,

“Don’t say ‘I can afford it’. Isn’t it time for you to come clean. Just how much did you win on the lottery?”

I knew that eventually I’d have to tell her.

“Let’s go inside and I’ll tell you over some tea and cake.”

Cheryl let out a loud sigh.

“Everything around her seems to get decided over tea and cake.”

“Well, what’s so wrong with that. Our morning runs keep us pretty fit.”

“You are really a one off aren’t you.”

“Hmmpphh”, I replied as I filled the kettle.

With a cup of tea and some ginger cake in front of us, I started to tell her my story.

“When I was learning to be the new me, as you know I worked with a hairdresser in Devon. Anyway, one Friday a group of us went out for a girls night out to celebrate one of their birthdays. We bought a load of Euro-Millions lottery tickets and gave half of them to the birthday girl. Well, to cut a long story short, I won the whole shooting match.”

“Well?”

“Around a hundred and fifty.”

“A hundred and fifty what? Pounds.”

“No, a Hundred and Fifty Million.”

Cheryl looked at me aghast.

“You are kidding me.”

“No. You should know me well enough to know that I don’t joke about money.”

“But…”

“That is just between us. I really don’t want more people than is absolutely necessary to know. Holly, Charlie, my shrink and my friend Devon and now you are the only people who know. I’d really prefer to keep it that way.”
Cheryl reached over and took my hand.

“Darling, you are so modest and that’s why I love you. You haven’t let that money go to your head and that is wonderful.”

“So? You aren’t after me for my money then?”

Cheryl laughed.

“Not yet but I’d like to get married at some point.”

“Not had enough of being married then? Didn’t the last one put you off for ever?”

“It did until… well I fell in love with you. You are so kind and unassuming. I love that in a woman.”

She laughed for a few seconds. Then she squeezed my hand.

“Darling, I won’t tell anyone about the money. I’ve seen how money can destroy people. I don’t want that to happen to us.”

I leaned over and kissed her.

~o~O~o~
[Three Months Later]
“Are you ready?” asked Cheryl.

“As ready as I’ll ever be.”

“Shall I open the doors?”

“Yes. Go on and let the hordes in.”

Cheryl let out a small laugh as she opened the doors to the Village Hall.

Twenty minutes later, everyone who was coming was seated and looking at the stage expectantly.
I looked at Cheryl who gave me a small nod. Then I stood up and climbed up onto the stage. There were a few murmurs from the audience.

“Good evening ladies and gentlemen. Thank you all for coming out tonight. For those who don’t know me, I’m Monica.”

I took a deep breath.

“As the notices said, this meeting is to discuss the possible re-development of the old garage site that is just across the road from here.”

“As all of you know the Garage closed almost a decade ago and since then the site has remained empty and unused. Ever since I moved to the village I wondered if another use could be found for the site. It was obvious that the owners had no idea what could be done with the site. I am pleased to say that last week, I completed the purchase of the whole site and the whole of the field that separates the Garage Site from the Doctors Surgery. I am now in a position to reveal my plans for the site.”

“Lights please.”

Cheryl dimmed the light as I switched on the projector.

“Many of you love to spend time chatting in and around the Post Office.

The first image was of a group of people standing outside the Post Office as an HGV thundered by a few feet away.

“I am sure that you will all agree that this is not the ideal place to have conversations.”

I carried on for another ten minutes outlining the issues as I saw them.

“Those are some of the problems that I’ve noticed. Now for my proposal. What I am about to show you are my ideas for solving some of the problems I have just outlined.”
“Please try to think of the possible and not the problems for a moment.
“What if we had a new Post Office.”
“What if we had a bigger Doctors Surgery so that we could have some treatments such as physiotherapy here rather than going into town?”
“What if we had a purpose built nursery school with an outside play area.”
“What if we had somewhere where local small businesses could setup shop? Then we the residents would have to make less journeys to the Tesco megastore in Aber.”
“What if we had a place where local producers could sell their wares in one place?”
“What if we had a Library?”
“What if we had a small tea-room come coffee shop?”
“What if we had the main road diverted so that the road outside wasn’t such a death trap?”

Then I showed the next slide. This was an architects illustration of the building that we’d designed.”

“What if we had something like this?”

I showed a picture of the Architects design.

Then I got an interruption.

“But who’s going to pay for it then?”

“Good question. Can I have the lights on please.”

Cheryl brought up the lights.

“There is a cost involved. A project like this if done properly does not come cheap as I’m sure that you will agree.”

I took another deep breath.

“Here’s the deal.”

“I thought there’d be a catch,” shouted the same voice as before.

“The deal is that I will pay for the construction of the whole thing. No catch, no caveats. Then when all construction is finished I’ll transfer the ownership into a trust. Then it will be over to you, the people of the village and the people who take the units to manage. I’d hope that the profits would be ploughed back into the business.”

“Aye but can thee afford it?”

I smiled.

“There is one person in the room that does know the answer to that question besides myself. Ruby? Would you care to comment?”

Ruby’s face went a bright shade of red. Slowly, she stood up.

“I know that Monica has a good deal of money. That is obvious from what she spent doing up her home and now buying the land. I also know that it is in her nature to help those who want to help themselves. That is called being a Philanthropist. She had tried to help me find somewhere so that I can start a business making cakes. Her solution to my problem might well be this project. I can see that by thinking big rather than small we could end up with a fantastic asset to the Village.”

“What a load of rubbish!” came a voice from the back of the Hall.

Everyone turned to see who’d called out.

It was Angharad.

“Angharad. Welcome to the meeting. Aren’t you and your husband due to leave for pastures new very soon?”
That stopped her for about a second.

“Yes. We sold the land to a company that Monica apparently owns. If we had known, it was her then I’d have made sure that she would not have bought it.”

“Angharad? What is your beef with me? At least I am trying to something for the Village. How long was the land lying derelict?”

“All that stuff about giving the development to the Village is a load of baloney. No one in their right mind spends close on a Million pounds on some land and god knows how much on putting up a building only to give it away. Believe me, it will never happen. No one is that foolish.”

Everyone turned back to look at me.

“Thank you Angharad for your view on the world. My view of the world is a little different from yours. Ok, I’m foolish. There I’ve said it. I’d really like to do something for the Village. I’m a stranger here. I’m an incomer but most of you have made me very welcome in the relatively short time I’ve lived here. As regards giving the building away after spending a load of money on it. Well, I can afford it. So why shouldn’t a foolish person such as myself waste their money on what they like? Only I don’t really think I’m going to waste my money. If I can help create something that the village will be proud of then I’ll be happy.”

“If the land is so important to you, why didn’t you or your family redevelop the site? I can tell you why. The garage was operated by your family from 1932 until 2003. The site is contaminated and before it can be used for anything else it needs to be cleaned up. The estimate for that work is at least a quarter of a million pounds. It is only natural that you didn’t want to spend that amount of money with no guaranteed return on any subsequent investment. I don’t have those limitations.”

Then I added,

“I want to do this for the village. If the people decide that they don’t want it then fair enough. I’ll clean up the garage site and turn the field into a park for everyone to use. Then I’ll call it a day. It is all up to you, the people who will be affected by this proposal.”

After a second or two of silence a few people started to clap.

When that had died down the doctor, Victor Churchill stood up to speak.

“When Monica came to me and outlined what she was thinking of my first thoughts that she was totally mad. After her third or fourth visit, I began to warm to the whole concept. There are so many things that I could do with extra space and facilities. I’d probably be able to attract more patients and staff. All of this would improve the healthcare that I can offer to everyone here. Monica has included most of my ideas into the design we see here tonight.”

Then he turned to Angharad.

“Angharad, your family had a golden opportunity to do something like this. You already owned the land but you didn’t. You did nothing. It is no wonder that you don’t like the idea. I expect that you feel a bit cheated. Please accept that there are a good few of us there tonight who have been involved with Monica and her ideas. This plan is not just her ideas. She came and talked to a lot of people to get their thoughts and ideas. I am totally behind this.”

Then Ifor Williams who runs the Post Office stood up.

“More and more of you are shopping online. That means more parcels needing to be delivered. There will be space for them to be kept until you come home from work. Who amongst you really enjoys trekking to god knows where to collect your parcels just because you weren’t at home when the driver arrived? With the new office and the associated space, I can provide a both a drop off and collection point for all the delivery companies.”

Then it was Ruby’s turn.

“I feel at least partially to blame for this. Many of you have helped me out by letting me use your kitchens to bake my cakes. Monica has gone a big step further in helping me become virtually a full-time cake maker. In my wildest dreams I never thought that she’d come up with something as totally radical as this. All I can say is ‘Bring it On’.”

This time there was a lot of applause.

I looked towards the rear of the hall. Angharad had slipped out but her sister, Cerys was still there smiling. She saw my gaze and nodded back at me. I knew then that we’d won.

---

Now that we had the general support of the Village, the hard work could start. Getting planning permission was going to be fun but at least Cheryl could really help here but as they say, ‘the best laid plans etc’.
It didn’t take long for placards and posters to start appearing all over the village saying in big red text, ‘The Village is NOT for Sale. Stop the Garage Development’.
 
A couple of days after the posters started to appear, I was having my morning cuppa when Mike Edwards, the Village Postman knocked on my back door. I felt that this was a bit strange because he normally left my mail in the box near the road.

“Hello Monica. I’ve been seeing lots of these all over the Village. All the people who spoke at the meeting the other night have had them plastered all over their cars. The Doctor is not amused. He was called out to Emily Griffiths in the middle of the night. She’s a week overdue. He couldn’t drive his car so he called the Police. Whoever did this is in for it big time.”

“Oh?”

I was stunned.

“How is Emily?”
“She’s fine. She and her son are in Bronglais and doing fine by all accounts.”

I smiled back. Mike knew just about everything about everyone in the Village.
“Who do you think did this?”

Mike smiled back at me.

“Guess?”

“Angharad? Surely, she wouldn’t stoop to plastering over the Doc’s car, would she?”

Mike shook his head.

“She would not be so stupid as to do it herself after her so public objections at the meeting. My guess is that she probably paid a few youngsters to do it and they got a bit excited.”

I couldn’t argue with that.

“I’d expect a visit from the Constabulary in the not too distant future though.”

Mike’s brother was a Sergeant in the Aberystwyth Police.

“Thanks for the heads up Mike. It is much appreciated.”

“No Monica. It is my pleasure. I think what you want to do is just what the village needs.”

“Thanks for the support Mike.”

I sat in the kitchen trying to understand what was going on when Cheryl came down still trying to get the sleep out of her eyes.
 
“Was that the postman?”

“Yes, it was Mike. He had something to show me.”

I showed her the poster that Mike had left me.

“These have been plastered all over the Village including all over the Doctor’s Car.”

“Shit!”

“Yes. My thoughts exactly.”

“Who? Who would do this?”

“Angharad. Who else. You saw her at the meeting. She hasn’t liked me ever since I beat her in the Christmas Cake competition a few years ago.”

“All over a cake?”

“Yes. Well that and the special sweetener I use. The one that I grow in the greenhouse.”

“Oh yes. I know now.”

“What happens next?”

“Apparently, I’m going to get a visit from the Police. Apart from that we carry on as planned.”

“So, I’m to meet the Architect and do stuff?”

“Yes. He’s just about ready to submit the application for outline planning permission.

---

Two Officers from the CID turned up late that afternoon. I was unable to help them apart from giving them a bit of background to the project. The two officers were not very clued up. One even asked me if I’d had the posters made and that it was all my own work. I almost swore at them and from then on, I became very defensive. At the end, I said the words, ‘If you need to speak to me again then please do so through my lawyer.’ My smartass idea backfired because that made them even more suspicious of me.

My parting words to them were,

“I’m the victim here so why don’t you try to find out where those placards were printed? I’m sure that won’t be too hard. It might even help you find out who is responsible?”

Neither of them answered me. That told me that they thought that it was all my doing.

---

With them gone, I sat down and tried to stop shaking. After a while, I called Charlie and brought him up to speed.

“Don’t worry my darling. I’ll call the Inspector and make sure that they direct all questions to me.”

“Thanks Charlie, you are a brick.”

“Darling, that’s what you pay me for. Now tell me all about this Angharad woman. If you want, I’ll try to dig up some dirt on her. You never know when it may come in useful?”

I thought for a few seconds.

“Charlie, please. That would be perfect. Thanks.”

 

I tried to do some housework but my mind was not on it so I sat down and started thumbing through the channels on the TV.

My bad day was just about complete when I saw my old self on TV.  The Bravo Channel was showing an episode of ‘Classic Who Wants to be a Millionaire’.

I just fell apart and cried when I saw my former self. To be reminded of my former self was just about the last thing I needed given my current mental state,

[To be continued]

I was still in a fragile state when Cheryl returned from Aberystwyth.

“What’s wrong?”

I pointed at the TV. Another episode of that dammed TV show was just coming to an end.

“Oh. I see. It must be hard to see your old self, isn’t it?”

I just nodded and wiped a tear away from my cheek.

Cheryl came and wrapped her arms around me.

“There, there. It will be all right.”

I just stared into space wishing I was not here.

After a while, I’d recovered enough to tell her how small I’d felt with the two Policemen almost accusing me of printing and distributing the posters myself.

“I guess that some of them get a kick out of showing victims that they are in charge. That’s wrong. What did Charlie say?”

“He’d make sure that they don’t bother us again.”

“Well, that’s what you pay him for isn’t it?”

“I suppose so.”

Cheryl let out a big sigh.

“If I knew how to drive or ride your bikes, I’d suggest that we go out for a run to clear our heads. It is going to be a lovely evening.”

I held her tight.

“I’ll be fine. Seeing my old self on TV was a bit of a shock that’s all.”

“I’ll bet. Let’s hope that no one who knows you saw it as well.”

“Do you think someone did?”

“It is Daytime TV and not everyone has the ability to receive that channel. If they do and happen to watch the programme, they’ll see someone called Daniel. That person looks very different from the Monica that we know and love.”

I kissed her as my way of saying thanks for being there for me.

It wasn’t until much later that I’d recovered enough to ask her about the meeting with the Architect and the Council Planners.

“It went as well as it could have done. It looks like they will insist that we de-contaminate the whole site first.

We expected that anyway.”

“If that is all they have to say against the plan then we are home and dry.”

Cheryl shook her head.

“We shouldn’t count our Chickens too soon. This campaign to stop the project will probably mean that the full council will have to debate the issue. If it is as we suspect, Angharad who is behind the posters then her family are well known and have a lot of respect in the area.”

“Did you get all that from today?”

She grinned.

“Ruby gave me a lift back from town. She’s a really great source of information. Between her and the Postman we should be able to keep tabs on everything.”

“What does she think that Angharad will do next?”

“She already knows. Angharad is knocking on doors getting people to sign a petition. Mike has been spreading the word about the Doctor’s car. That might deter a few waivers from signing it. He took pictures of it with the posters plastered all over it. That evidence should deter any ditherers.”

“There’s not a lot we can do at this stage is there. When will the outline permission be debated?”

“The clerk said that it would be put on the agenda for next meeting of the Planning Sub-committee. That is scheduled for the twenty sixth of the month.”

“Will that be time enough to the architect to draw up the submission plans?”

“What do you think?” she replied smiling.

---

For nearly a week and almost as fast as people tore down the posters more were put up. That was until a few of the locals from the pub decided that they’ lay in wait for the vandals and nab them red handed.

Unfortunately, they’d all had a few too many pints that evening and they all fell asleep before they could confront those responsible for the posters.

Still, they meant well and it was more than it seemed that the Police were doing.

The next day, and as if to make amends for the night before, the men went around the village and removed every poster and placard they could lay their hands on. Then they took them to the old garage site and with a reporter from the local paper present, they burnt the lot.

For the next few days, the village was protest free. Then another wave of posting started and this time the target was the team of men who’d removed the last lot.

The police received more than thirty complaints and with threats to involve the local MP and the TV the police were forced into action.

Just before dawn the next morning, they arrested the culprits. They were a group of Students from the University. Amongst them was Angharad’s son Evan. It looked like it was game over at last.

With no more posters appearing life in the village settled down again. The only ripple of excitement was the arrival of the architect and a team of surveyors. They spent a whole day surveying the site and taking samples from the old petrol and diesel tanks that served the garage pumps. They also took samples of soil.

All of them were to be sent off to a lab for analysis.

For the first time in a while, we had nothing to do. That would not last for long so I began to think that a short break would be just perfect.

The perfect destination for the short break came to me during my morning run. Cheryl had cried off because I was going for the 10-mile circuit. She could manage the 5-mile one but the extra hills on the longer route killed her. The last couple of miles were hard for me but the prospect of a nice relaxing bath spurred me on to the finish.

---

When I’d finished my soak in the bath and was dressed, I wandered downstairs in search of Cheryl.

She was being very domestic and doing the ironing. I smiled and said,

“That’s very domestic of you?”

“It was this or clean the Hens out. I guess that the hens are all yours then?”

I laughed.

“Later.”

“Oh dear. I smell a scheme about to be released.”

“Well, sort of. Fancy a little trip to Devon?”

“Oh, to see your friend Julia?”

“Yes.”

Cheryl thought for a moment and then said,

“As we have a bit of free time, I wonder if we could… could talk about us, here and that sort of thing?”

I smiled.

“Are you ready? Ready to talk about the future?”

“I think so.”

“Then why don’t we just do that. Why don’t we take a picnic and go to New Quay?”

“Why don’t we just stay here?”

“Fair enough. Why don’t I go and clean out the hens then we can talk? If I don’t do it now, it won’t get done today.”

“Great. I’ll make us some lunch while you are doing the hens. Salad Nicoise ok with you?”

“As long as mine has the anchovies!” I joked as I headed for the door.

Cheryl turned her nose up but smiled back at me.

---

An hour or so later we sat down to eat and more importantly talk and things.

There was a slightly strained silence between us as we ate the salad. Eventually, Cheryl started us off.

“You know that when I came here, I didn’t know what to expect. I was in a real mess than that’s no mistake. I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for everything you have done and your patience with me these past months. I know that it could not have been easy for you. But one phone call from Holly and you came to help. No if’s, but’s or maybe’s. That’s just who you are.”

Her words filled me with dread.

“Does this mean that you want to leave? It certainly sounds like it?”

Cheryl laughed.

“Me leave? Why should I? I like it here. Besides… don’t we make a good team?”

I smiled back.

“We do but the important thing is what you want to do with your life and future.”

“What I want is to stay here. Stay here with you.”

“Do you really mean that?”

“Yes. I’ve never been so sure about just about anything in my life.”

As she said that, she reached over and took hold of my hand and gently squeezed it.

“You are kind and gentle. Patient as well. You have to be to put up with me at times when … well, you know I get a bit crotchety at times.”

I smiled back at her.

“But what do you want to do?”

She reacted angrily.

“There you go again! What do you want? Why don’t you tell me what you want rather than always doing what other people want?”

Her reaction surprised me. To be honest, I was a bit stunned.

“Me? That’s not important.”

“Not Important! It is very important to me. How do you feel about me? Do the rings that we bought for show actually mean anything?”

I was totally gobsmacked. I’d never expected her to be so assertive.

I sat there for god knows how long before I answered quietly.

“I love you. I have been in love with you for weeks… no months.”

“There, that wasn’t so hard was it?”

I didn’t reply.

“But you didn’t want to take advantage of me in my rather vulnerable state?”

I didn’t react.

“What would you say if I told you that I felt the same way about you and that I wanted to… be your wife.”

My eyes started welling up. All my hopes had come true but I couldn’t show it without crying. She’d demolished my seemingly impenetrable shell with just a few words.

---

A few hours later, I woke from a deep sleep to find that I was in bed and the afternoon sun was streaming through the open window. What I didn’t expect for find was that a naked Cheryl was lying next to me with her hand gently massaging my right nipple.

“Welcome to the land of the living,” she whispered in my ear.

For a second, I went quite rigid with fear. Then I relaxed and said,

“Now long was I out?”

“Who cares? I don’t. It is not as if we have somewhere to go now is it?”

As if we were on the set of a Hollywood film, at that very moment, I heard a diesel engine coming up the drive.

“We may not have anywhere to go but someone is coming to us.”

“Ignore them. We aren’t expecting anyone are we?”

“No. But…”

She squeezed my nipple quite hard.

We lay there for another minute as the vehicle came to a halt and the occupants got out. I heard two doors close.

We heard one of them say,

“It is awfully quiet. Do you think they are out?”

This time I did go rigid and for more than a second.

“The windows are open. Monica never goes out and leaves them open,” said the second voice. That voice belonged to Holly.

“It’s William and Holly!” exclaimed Cheryl as she came to the same conclusion as I had.

I leapt out of bed and quickly pulled on a sweatshirt.

Then I leaned out of the window to greet our visitors.

“Hello you two. This is an unexpected but nice pleasure. We’ll be down in a couple of minutes. The kitchen door is open. Please go on in and put the kettle on.”

Holly looked up and saw my dishevelled hair and started to laugh. William just looked at his wife with a blank stare.

It took us closer to five minutes than two before we clambered downstairs to find them just about to pour the tea.

“I found some cake and cut it if that’s alright?” asked Holly.

“That’s fine,” I replied as we sat at the table with our guests.

“I hope we didn’t disturb anything?” asked Holly with a cheeky grin on her face.

“Nothing important,” said Cheryl.

I looked at her in amazement. She gave me a small but visible wink in return.

“That’s good. We were in the area so we felt that we couldn’t come all this way and not call in on you two,” said William.

Before I could answer, Holly added,

“We have some news that couldn’t wait.”

I grinned.

“You are not…?”

“Pregnant? No. We aren’t even trying to start a family until we can move away from them.”

“By them, my darling Holly means, my Mother and Sisters,” added William.

I handed out the small plates and loaded them with generous slices of the Cherry Cake I’d made the day before.

“So, what is so important that couldn’t wait for a phone call?”

William looked at Holly and smiled. He gripped her hand.

“We’ve bought a new farm. Holly found it on the Internet. It is not far from Pembroke. We went there today, saw it and had our offer accepted.”

“What sort of place is it?” asked Cheryl.

“Mixed. Early Potatoes and rare breed pigs with a few goats and sheep. The main income is from the potatoes.

They are all harvested by early June.”

I knew about the farms down the coast that grew them.

“Have you sold your old place yet?” I asked.

“No. That is the problem. Still now we can put every effort into selling it sooner rather than later. The problem will be keeping the news of any sale away from my Mother. She won’t be happy and may even try to put a few spanners in the works so to speak.”

“That’s why I thought of you,” said Holly.

Inwardly, I groaned.

“So how much is this going to cost me then?”

Everyone around the table laughed.

“Holly came up with this scheme. It is all hers ok?” said William disowning what was about to be said.

I looked at Holly and waited.

“If you could buy our old place then we could just leave. After a few months, I think we could sell it without interference and pay you back?”

“What about your workers? Your manager Jimmy, has been there as long as you have had the place,” remarked Cheryl.

“He knows we are looking for somewhere else and that hope to sell the farm as a going concern,” said William. Then he added,

“He’s a local lad so I don’t want to bring him and his family with us even though there is a very nice Cottage for them on the farm.”

All this time, I’d been thinking of a solution. As I reached for another slice of cake, it came to me.

“Let me buy your new farm. Then you can be my tenant and Jimmy can be yours. Then you don’t have to sell anything. Then you won’t be telling any lies to your family.”

“But….” said Holly.

William just grinned and gripped his wife’s hand.

“You would do this for us? Our new place is not exactly cheap.”

“Exactly how much is not cheap?”

“One point nine,” replied William quietly.

I laughed.

“What’s so funny?” asked William.

I looked around the table and saw three people wanting an answer.

“Let me be honest with you. One point nine million is about one year of interest on my money.”

There was a stunned silence. I could see Holly and Cheryl trying not to laugh.

“But…” uttered William.

“Holly can tell you all about how I came into a frankly insane amount of money on your way home. All I ask is that you don’t tell a living soul.”

Then I looked at the others.

“I might be from Yorkshire and naturally very tight with my money. However, I will help my family wherever and whenever I can. If that means doing a bit of sleight of hand to get one over on your Mother, William then I’ll do it. I certainly owe her one for moving me to the back of beyond at your wedding. She seemed to conveniently forget who was paying for the whole shebang.”

There was silence in the room.

“Can someone please say something?” I asked.

It was Holly who broke the silence.

“But you complain about the price of almost everything?”

I laughed and said,

“My father used to say, ‘Look after the pennies and the pounds will look after themselves’. I guess I am no different. Look, no one from Yorkshire likes to throw away money. I’m no different but as I said, you are my family so if you want my help you only have to ask. If anyone but you asked me for more than the price of a pint then the answer is no. It is different for family.”

There was still silence.

“And that is all I’m ever going to say on the subject. If you don’t mind, I feel like a walk along the sea wall.”

[to be continued in 10th and final part]

I knew that my bravado over the farm had not fooled Cheryl for one second but I needed some time to think.
That bloody TV show! If it hadn’t been for that I’d still be in Yorkshire in a dead-end job fixing bloody busses and not having to fight my emotions like I was right now.

Then I looked around me. At the sea. At the sky. At the village behind me. This was a far cry from a former pit village in South Yorkshire and a job fixing busses, it wasn’t all bad.
However, I just wanted to curl up and die each time I remembered that TV show.

I had barely gone half a mile when I sensed that I was not alone. I turned around and found both Holly and Cheryl just a few yards away.

I glared at them but it made no difference.

“The last thing you need at the moment is to be alone,” said Holly.

“What you need is your family around you,” said Cheryl.

“So here we are. Helping you out just like you have helped us and everyone else you have touched since you found your true vocation,” added Holly.

I knew when I was beaten. As a double act, they were pretty formidable.

The three of us hugged each other for several minutes.

When we broke apart, Holly said,

“William is going home if we aren’t back in an hour. He has a farm to run after all. If that is the case then I’d like to stay for a few days if that is alright?”

“You know it is.”

“Good. Then we can plan doing some girly things for just the three of us. How about a Spa day?” suggested Cheryl.

I smiled back at them.

“Nice idea girls, but have you forgotten that I have a little thing between my legs that makes going for a massage and a sauna a tad embarrassing, don’t you think?”

They both giggled.

“I’m sure Charlie knows someone who knows … well you get the idea,” suggested Holly.

“Sorry girls. I’m not really the spa sort. But I’m sure a bit of retail therapy in London or Bristol would do just as well.”

Then I added,
“But at the moment, I’d rather be here with you two.”

Then we wrapped our arms around each other.

“Thanks girls.”

“We were worried about you,” remarked Cheryl.

“As we said, you give so much but get nothing in return. What could we do to change that?” added Holly.

“I don’t know. I have you lot as my family. I want to help this community. I…”

“Stop right there,” said Holly almost shouting.

“Eh?”

“There you go again, wanting to help others. What can we do for you? Not help others but you?”

“What I really, really want can never happen so let’s not talk about it again.”

Holly laughed.

“I know what it is,” said Holly smiling.

We both looked at her.

“Come on Mum admit it, you want to be a mother. I’ve seen the way you look at Ruby’s son Owen. You spoil him as if he was your own son.”

It was as if someone had driven a stake through my heart. Then it sunk in, she’d called me ‘Mum’.

“What’s with the ‘Mum’ thing?”

Holy grinned.

“Because you have been more of a mother to me than that apology of one that gave birth to me. As far as
I’m concerned, you are my Mum and always will be so no arguments. Got it?”

My silence gave the game away.

Cheryl took my hand and led me away from Holly.

“Why the hell didn’t you say something? I’ve been wanting to be a mother with you for months now.”

“You mean?”

“Yes, you stupid cow, come back to the house and fuck the daylights out of me until I get pregnant, and again and again until you decide we have enough brats then you can properly join the female race.”

We kissed for a long time. It may have been the first really passionate kiss I’d ever had. When we broke free, Holly had left us alone and returned to the cottage.

“As we are alone, why don’t we just enjoy the moment?” said Cheryl.

I didn’t argue. I was too emotionally drained to even begin but she was right.

It was dark before we got back to the cottage. Holly and William were long gone. We just headed for the bedroom and a long might of passion.

~o~O~o~
As luck would have it, the day that Cheryl gave birth to our firstborn, we got planning permission for just about everything we wanted to do for the village. Anyway, back to more important matters, the 7ib 12oz baby was beautiful a girl we named Julie Gloria after the two women who had helped me on this path right at the beginning.

At the Christening, Julie and Gloria in all her Blackpool glitter became God parents. When we explained to the Vicar how important Gloria had been in my life he agreed to let her become joint ‘godmother’. Later the Vicar admitted to having seen the show that I was part of all those years ago. Neither Gloria nor I let on that I was in it. Just seeing Gloria in all her finery is enough to indelibly mark most people’s memory for life.

Everyone was there including Charlie who’d even brought his passport with him because we were so far from London he thought he might need it. He got teased about that but took it in good faith.

Ruby had baked the Christening Cake which even Charlie liked. He was caught trying to leave with the whole second tier. After a good laugh, Ruby promised to bake him one and send it to him.

At the end of the day Cheryl and I went for a walk along the sea wall.

“There, that isn’t so bad, now is it?” said Cheryl.

“No, it’s not.” I replied hugging her just tight enough not to crush the baby.

“Good job too. I’m up the duff again. I tested myself this morning.”

I kissed her for what seemed an eternity. She and Holly were right, letting people do things for me because they want to is not all that bad after all.

As the Beatles song goes,
Help! I need somebody
Help! Not just anybody
Help! You know I need someone
Help me if you can, I'm feeling down
And I do appreciate you being 'round
Help me get my feet back on the ground
Won't you please, please help me

For the first time in my life, I had people who’d give me the help that I needed without asking why. Despite all my hang ups and phobias, I felt settled for the first time in my life. Having one child and with another on the way certainly helped.

As we returned from the walk, Cheryl said to me,

“I think we need a new car for our expanding family?”

I stopped and looked into her eyes with a smile on my face and said,

“I was just thinking the same thing.”

I hugged her tightly.

“You can choose it.”

“Why?”

“With a little help from my friends and the one that I love, I have all the help that I need. All I needed to do was learn to accept it.”

We kissed long and hard right there. We’d both crossed a threshold in our lives and were now really ready to go forward with the next phase whatever that might be.

[The end]