Abbie's Gift (20 page)

Once back in the village she looked for a B&B sign but couldn’t see any, so she stopped at the shop to ask for directions.

As Abbie went in, she was greeted with a sense of old-world charm, and a fragrance she couldn’t quite make out.

An elderly man looked up from his newspaper as she entered.

“Good afternoon miss”’

“Hello, I was wondering if you can help me?”

“I’ll certainly try” was the reply.

“I’m looking for somewhere to stay for a few days, are there any guest houses in the village?”

“No” he said shaking his head, “I’m afraid not in this village, and the pub doesn’t do rooms either. There are some holiday lets in the village, but you’re out of season and I don’t know who the letting agents are. There is a guest house in the next village a few miles along the road, it the big white house on the entrance to the village on the right, called Sea View or something like that, how original” he laughed.

“That’s a pity” said Abbie, “it’s so nice here”.

At that moment a younger man came out from a back room and into the shop, and immediately caught Abbie’s eye and smiled,

“I overheard your conversation and I might be able to help” he said, “we have a caravan for let out in the back; we let it all summer, it’s been empty a few weeks now but it’s totally fine and wouldn’t take long to warm it up if you would like to see it?”

The older man smiled and shook his head, “sorry, I forgot about that with you saying you wanted a B&B. I didn’t think about the caravan”.

“Are you sure?” asked Abbie. “It sounds perfect for a few nights, can I see it?”

“Of course” said the younger man, “I’ll get the key”.

A few minutes later Abbie was following him down the side path of the shop and into a long garden at the rear.

“You’ll have to forgive my dad”, he said, “he’s getting very forgetful and sometimes can’t put 2 & 2 together, or if he does it comes out as 5 or 6!”

Abbie smiled

“It’s OK” she said, “he seems really nice”.

They walked through a narrow entrance between the shrubs and behind a thick screen of hedges; the path of grass inlaid with stones led the way to the secluded area where the caravan sat nestled among a vista of autumnal colours, a perfect refuge from the world in an area of hidden tranquillity.

“I’m Simon, by the way” he said handing Abbie the key.

“Hello Simon, I’m Abbie” she said, unlocking the door.

Although not new, the interior of the caravan didn’t seem old or worn, but rather snug and comfortably furnished: there was a small lounge area at one end, opposite a compact kitchen area with a bedroom and bathroom beyond. In an instant Simon had turned on the gas and lit the fire in the main seating area, it quickly came to life and warmth began penetrating the room.

“Perfect!” said Abbie “I’d love to stay for a few nights, probably two or three but I’m not exactly sure yet, how much is it?”

“I don’t know” he said, “what I mean is that it’s out of season and we don’t generally get to let it at this time of year.  How about £50 for either the two or three nights, it’s up to you?”

“Done” said Abbie offering her hand; Simon looked surprised then hesitantly took her hand gently and shook it. Abbie thought he didn’t seem overly confident around women but he had a definite sense of kindness about him.

“Nice to meet you” he said “You’re very welcome and I hope you enjoy your stay here. If you want anything just ask, the shop is open to 5.30pm. I’ll get you some fresh bedding, and there are electric heaters in the other rooms, and hot water on demand.”

“Great” she said, “thank you, I’ll get my things from the car”.

“OK, I’ll see you in a while with the bedding”.

As Simon left Abbie felt a pang of sadness for him; a decent soul living here in this remote location, running a small family business and looking after his dad.

The caravan was rapidly becoming warm and cosy, the thick bench seats so comfortable that Abbie decided she didn’t need to use the bedroom but could happily sleep here instead.

She went to the car to get her bag, and going back into the shop again for a few supplies, the old man seemed to have forgotten already that they’d met less than half an hour earlier. When Abbie explained that she was staying in the caravan, he told her to take whatever supplies she needed and pay at the end of her stay; as grateful as she was, she insisted on paying straight away.

When she reached the caravan with her luggage and shopping Simon was knocking on the door with bedding and a quilt, and he smiled shyly as though he shouldn’t have been outside this young woman’s door.

Once Simon had gone, Abbie sat and drank in the peace and tranquillity; she couldn’t believe her luck at finding this perfect place, peaceful and hidden away from public view; she could come and go as she pleased and all for fifty quid!

As the light began to fade and the temperature dropped, the sky took on a bright reddish glow.

A fine day for run in the morning she thought.

Abbie unpacked her things, and decided on a simple tea of soup and sandwiches for the second mealtime today; to her surprise she found that she was quite hungry and devoured the lot.

As she was clearing up her dishes Abbie heard a noise and some sort of commotion outside in the garden on the other side of the thick hedge, but couldn’t quite make out what it was.

It continued for some time so Abbie decided to investigate in the half light, and she found Simon playing roughly with an athletic-looking Jack Russell terrier, pulling and tugging with a rope. Abbie watched them for a few moments before Simon noticed her, and he stood up and waved to her, Abbie waving back.

She noticed again there was something about his face, his expression of kindness, coupled with an air of innocence and sincerity. She walked down the path towards him, and in an instant the dog was running in loops around her ankles; she bent down to stroke it, but it swerved away from her and disappeared into the undergrowth.

“Hi again” she said

“Hello Abbie, you settling in?”

“Yes it’s lovely, thank you for letting me stay.  Can I ask you something? Earlier I drove out of the village and saw the beach over the other side of the hill and the headland, how do I get there on foot?”

“Well then” began Simon, “there’s two ways: take the hill up the road and eventually you come to a small stony car park after about a mile and from there you can get to the beach, or if you go down the far side of the lifeboat station there’s a small path that will take you up over the hill; it’s more direct but steep on both sides, and that will drop you down on to this end of the beach, from here that way is no more than ten minutes’ walk. You are planning on walking then?”

“Running actually, I love it so want to get onto the beach”.

“It’s a long one that beach, about five miles end to end, some days due to the sea mist you can’t see the whole way from up top”.

“Really? That’s excellent, just what I want.”

“At low tide when the sea is out you can run on the hard stuff at the edge of the surf, otherwise it might be too soft.”

“That true, when is low tide then?”

Simon smiled, and looked a bit sheepish, “actually, to be honest I don’t have the foggiest! When the sea’s gone out and the sand’s damp!”

They both laughed, and Abbie shivered and wrapped her arms around herself as the air was getting cool. Simon advised, “you’d best get indoors, don’t get cold”.

“Come on Jess”, he shouted for the dog, which immediately appeared from the base of a nearby shrub.

Abbie nodded “Thanks and good night”.

“Good night Abbie” he replied.

As she turned and walked away down the path to the caravan, she thought she could feel his gaze on her back.

Darkness fell quickly; Abbie closed the curtains and locked the doors, feeling warm, safe and snug. She telephoned her mum and then Kate to tell of her adventures so far, just as a good daughter and friend should, she thought.

After showering and changing into her pyjamas, she got between the covers of her comfortable caravan bed and lay down. After a few minutes of concentrating her mind and focus on Peter and her desire to be with him, she was aware of her consciousness shifting fast, left then right, and in a moment she was with him again and enveloped in a sea of golden brightness.

The next morning was bright, the sky cloudless; the air was crisp, colder than at home she thought, but then home did feel a million miles away right now. Dressed in her running gear, Abbie remembered to take a water bottle with her as she was planning a long run.

Outside everything was silent apart from a few gulls screeching overhead. It was 8 am, and Abbie walked at a brisk pace through the village with her hat pulled down over her ears.

She felt the coolness of the sea air as she walked, taking in the unique vistas of the coloured cottages and painted fences. Everywhere was quiet and not a soul in sight, the village seemingly not yet awake to this new day. She walked past the pub and cafe, opposite the small harbour and found the path at the side of the lifeboat station.

The ground upwards over the hill was steep and rough underfoot but also hard which made it easier going. By the time she reached the top of the hill and emerged for the shrubs she felt warm and was already breathing quite hard.

At the top the ground levelled out, it was rocky and barren and as she crossed it she could hear the sound of the surf breaking on the beach long before she could see it.  Eventually the whole curving arch of the beach came into view and Abbie had to stop to take it all in and admire its beauty.

The thunder of the rolling surf filled her ears and she could almost taste the saltiness in the freshness of the air.

After a few minutes’ rest, Abbie set off down a path towards the beach that looked entirely deserted.  The wind wasn’t strong and as the surf ended on the shore line, a mist hung in the air as far as the horizon. She noticed a wide strip of firm wet sand just in front of where the surf broke; low tide, just as Simon had said, she thought.

As she continued down the steep path that led on to the sand, she noticed various paths going in different directions.

Coming towards the bottom of the path near the beach, Abbie thought she saw something flesh-coloured out of the corner of her eye, higher up the hill; she turned towards it and stopped to look.

To her surprise on the path above her Abbie could see the man in the light- coloured coat with the cane, who had waved to her on the road the day before. As she stopped she saw he was watching her and he raised his hand in a greeting, to which Abbie responded. She felt relieved that this sighting was a person, a human being and one who seemed friendly too.

The path down to the beach was loose underfoot requiring extra care, and with each step she seemed to sink deeper into the sand. At the bottom of the dune path Abbie paused to take in her surroundings; she was at the end of the beach, near the village which was the other side of the headland.

She walked a few metres to the rocks at the edge of the foot of the cliff, and the tide was steadily lapping at the base of the rocks in its rhythmical fashion; apart from the noise of the waves, all was generally silent and calm.

She looked back up the path from where she’d come, but the friendly stranger had gone, and she was now alone in this deserted place.

Abbie rested against one of the rocks for a few minutes, just enjoying the beauty and ruggedness of her surroundings; after all she thought, she had all the time that she wanted.

After a few moments she went down to the water’s edge, and when one of the waves approached, she bent down and put her fingers in the water testing the temperature. The sudden sharp coldness penetrated her skin to the bone, and she laughed at herself.  What had she expected - warmth in November in the north east UK?!

Somehow, surrounded by the natural beauty of her isolated haven, Abbie felt a kind of peacefulness that had evaded her for some time. She was amazed at the unique tranquillity of the place: the wide-open spaces, the seclusion, even the weather, it somehow seemed to penetrate deeply into her soul.

Abbie set off running again at a steady pace, the sand feeling firm underfoot as the waves receded for a time. She had to dodge a few rock formations and water-clogged pools as she ran, and the coolness of the breeze hit her as she emerged from the shelter of the nearby rock face of the cliff. The beach arched in a gentle curve away and into the distance.

Five miles, Simon had said. She knew this would be a long and steady run, no heroics, no going flat out; just to get there and back would be enough. Abbie decided she wanted time to herself and to be alone.  She thought of astral projection but decided not to, she needed to be more familiar with her surroundings and to be absolutely sure that she was safe here; she knew Peter wouldn’t mind this. After all, she had all the time she needed and could go to him any time she desired.