The Little One

Chapter Two

Alan came home a little later with a Chinese takeaway for both of them. He laid out all the different cartons in the kitchen: crispy duck and pancakes, sweet and sour pork, chicken with noodles. As he was taking plates from the dresser, Barbara smiled and then clapped her hands.

‘Of course, Alan! I recognize you now. It’s been bugging me since I got here.’

Alan said nothing. Instead he opened a bottle of wine and handed Barbara a glass.

‘Weren’t you the butler in that series... Now, what was it called? It was brilliant.’

‘You mean Harwood House?’

‘Yes! You were a butler and that amazing actress, what was her name... was it Margaret something?’

‘Yes, Margaret Reynolds. But that was over five years ago.’

‘No! Surely not five years?’

Alan offered her chopsticks so she could help herself to the food.

‘Yes. And it’s funny you should mention that show and Margaret now. A few of the cast are arranging a surprise party for her.’

‘Oh, how extraordinary. I was such a fan and you were so good.’

Barbara ate hungrily as Alan described how the show had ended and what had happened to Margaret. No sooner than she had dealt with the loss of her gorgeous husband her sister died in a car crash.

Barbara made all the right noises. The more she heard, the better it sounded for her article.

Alan was flattered by all the attention. After dinner he showed Barbara a scrapbook of photographs and reviews of him in many different roles. In fact, it was all rather boring for Barbara. She had to be very careful not to put too much emphasis on Harwood House and Margaret Reynolds.

Luckily, Alan made things easy for her. He picked up the letter that Barbara had already read.

‘I got this last week. It’s from Felicity Wright, who was an actress in the show. Just imagine, Felicity and her husband bought an old cottage in Kent and now she’s seen Margaret in the village.’

‘Good heavens,’ Barbara exclaimed. ‘What a coincidence.’

Alan nodded.

‘She keeps a very low profile. Felicity doesn’t think anyone in the village even knows who Margaret is. She took over some huge manor house that belonged to her sister. She’s a recluse and lives on her own. Actually, Felicity has asked everyone to this surprise party she’s arranging in the country. Margaret will be there. There’s a plan to maybe revive the show.’

By now they’d finished the bottle of wine between them and Alan was starting to yawn. Barbara was desperate to keep him talking, so she asked if he’d like a cup of coffee.

She hoped that Alan would continue, but instead he sighed and said, ‘Well, I need to get to my bed. Just help yourself to coffee or anything you want.’

Barbara was woken by Alan tapping on her bedroom door.

‘I’ve got an early start today. I’ll be home this afternoon. You’ll probably be out flat-hunting, I imagine.’

Barbara hoped he wasn’t having second thoughts about her staying. She smiled sweetly and said, ‘Oh yes. I’ve got a few flats to see today.’

‘Good luck, then. There’s coffee already made.’

She waited to hear the front door close before she went down to the kitchen. As she was helping herself to coffee, the phone rang and the answer machine clicked on.

‘Hi, Alan. It’s me, Felicity. I’m at the cottage. Guess what? Last night I saw Margaret at the local petrol station. I’m afraid I let the cat out of the bag.’

Barbara snatched up the phone.

‘Hello. Alan will be out all day. Is it something important?’

‘Er, not really. I’ll call his mobile.’

‘He won’t have it turned on. He’s recording. I’m Barbara, a close friend. Is this about Margaret Reynolds? I know he’s looking forward to seeing her again.’

‘Oh, we all are.’ Felicity sounded hesitant, but then continued, ‘Will you tell him that we are going to meet for a drink first at the Hare and Hounds at about seven? The numbers have grown and it’s not that much of a surprise. Margaret suggested we have the get-together at her house.’

‘I’ll tell him.’

Felicity hung up and Barbara deleted the message.

Barbara spent the day doing more research on Margaret Reynolds. She had just closed her laptop when Alan drew up in his car.

‘Hi. Any luck?’ he asked as he came into the kitchen.

For a minute Barbara thought he was referring to Margaret Reynolds and she nodded. Then she realized that he was talking about a new place for her to live. Thinking quickly, she pretended to be quite keen on a flat share and said she hoped to meet the owner next week.

‘So you’ll be here for the weekend?’

Round-eyed, Barbara put her hand to her mouth like a child and said, ‘Oh, is that all right?’

‘Well...’ Alan paused, as if unsure how to answer. Finally, he said, ‘Yes, of course. No problem.’

As Alan hung up his coat, Barbara said, ‘By the way, there was a call for you. I answered because I thought it might be my editor. It was Felicity.’

Barbara gave him the message and then added, ‘I hope you don’t mind. She sounded so sweet. When I said I was such a fan of the show, she suggested that maybe I’d like to go with you.’

‘What, to Kent?’

‘Yes. I was so thrilled.’

‘Did she leave a number?’

‘No. She said she was at her cottage.’

Alan shrugged.

‘Well, if she said it’s OK.’

Barbara threw her arms around him.

‘Oh, thank you, Alan.’