NEVER TOO LATE
I have always subscribed to the view that Oscar Blaketon needs a good woman to smooth off his rough edges. However scriptwriters don't give him much in the romance department so I decided to lend a helping hand
CHAPTER 1
It was a cold winter. Snow lay on the ground like a white blanket,seeming almost luminous under the gun-metal grey sky. Oscar Blaketon stood behind the bar of the Aidensfield Arms staring into space. It was a quiet day, the weather deterring all but the most determined drinkers from venturing out.
Natalie Fox cursed vehemently as she stamped her feet to keep out the cold. She got back into the car where at least there was a thermos of coffee to keep her warm. She had been unable to call for recovery services as the phone lines were down. She was starting to realise the serious fools errand on which she had embarked. Her wild hopes of a passing rescuer dwindled by the minute.
She pulled her coat closer around her shoulders. Her lean figure did little to keep the cold at bay. She slipped her hand into her pocket and drew out the creased picture from within. The photo was faded now and dog-eared. She had been carrying it around for ten long years but often it seemed even longer. It was a photo of herself sitting on a bench and behind her stood a man in police uniform, his hand resting on her shoulder. Although the picture was faded with age she could still make out his sharp features and the crisp Sergeants stripes on his extended arm. Another copper, a young Constable. PC Bellamy had taken the picture. It was back in the day when she had worked as a temporary typist and filing clerk at Ashfordly Police station The picture was the reason she had abruptly left the job and fled. She gazed at the picture, absent-mindedly caressing the man's face and wishing that the intensity of her gaze would cause him to materialise.
Oscar Blaketon was by no means a conventionally handsome man. Not the sort women would be falling over each other to get to at any rate. But Natalie had detected something beneath his gruff exterior and disciplined manner. He hadn't frightened her although she often joked with the other coppers that they were scared of him.
After being widowed at the tender age of twenty five, Natalie had sought to ease her way back into society. Her late husband, Jack, had been killed in a mining accident. As he lay dying in the pit he persuaded his best friend, Martin, to go to Natalie and tell her that he was sorry and that he loved her and didn't want her to spend her life alone. Natalie's first thought on hearing the news of Jack's death was how on earth she was going to manage without him and silently she thanked God that there had been no children.
A year after Jack's death, Natalie had been offered a two month trial period as a typist and clerk at Ashfordly police station which she took, purely as an exercise in rebuilding her self esteem and getting back on her feet. She was certainly not in the market for romance. She had enjoyed the banter with the officers in the station and the contact with the public but she had not reckoned on the station Sergeant. The first time she set eyes on Oscar Blaketon she felt something stir inside her but brushed it aside. It was over a year since she had been able to feel anything for anyone and she was certain she was not ready. Besides Blaketon was several years her senior and she did not consider having amorous feelings towards the boss professional. She dressed conservatively and kept her auburn hair neat and cropped. She tried to blend into the background and hope he did not notice how her hand shook whenever he asked her to do something or passed her a piece of paper to deal with.
She found her developing feelings for Blaketon almost impossible to deal with and so she left. She had had no idea that she had got under his skin too. She was forever haunted by what might have been had she had the courage and , as the years passed the door, she found him almost constantly on her mind and consequently the photo became increasingly worn and faded. A year ago a friend of hers had committed suicide. Jane was the only person she had ever spoken to about her feelings for Blaketon and when the local police came to inform Natalie of her friend's suicide they gave her a sealed envelope addressed in Jane's clear hand. On opening it Natalie found a single sheet of paper on which was written. "Don't waste your life like I have. Go & find Blaketon. Even if he doesn't remember you at least you will get closure, I am sorry for what I have done. Please forgive me! Jane"
Natalie had resolved to do just that and as a result here she was stranded in a snowdrift off the Ashfordly Road. She decided to set out and look for some form of shelter. Even if she died trying at least it was less defeatist than freezing to death in her car. It wasn't snowing at present but the wind was cold and the twilight made her feel disorientated.
Blaketon was thinking. Gina was behind the bar chatting with Bernie Scripps and David Stockwell. Ten years ago, almost to the day, he had walked into the police station and been surprised to find that their typist, Mrs Natalie Fox, had done a moonlight flit with no explanation . This had affected Blaketon more than he ever let on. He had come to like and trust the young woman and, if the truth be told, he had felt the stirring of protective feelings and a sense of romantic loss.
Constable Phil Bellamy was extremely excited about his new camera. He joked that he had bought it to get evidence of Alf Ventress smoking or sleeping on the job but Blaketon refused to let him take pictures inside the station . At length Bellamy had finally persuaded Blaketon and Natalie to pose for a test shot on the village green. She sat on a bench and Blaketon stood behind, his hand resting lightly on her shoulder. That touch sealed her fate. She felt like she had connected to the mains as a spark flew between them and he instantly withdrew his hand but not before Bellamy had twice captured the image on film. A couple of weeks later Bellamy brought in his first film of pictures and Natalie almost froze in horror at the look on her face as Blaketon's hand had touched her. That afternoon she finished work and left Ashfordly station by the next train to York where she had remained until now. Bellamy had been surprised by the fleeting look of affection that had passed across his Sergeant's face when he saw the photo. He had sounded choked as he ordered Bellamy & Rowan to go and talk to Lord Ashfordly about the latest poaching incident on his estate. Once the station was empty Blaketon sat down in his office and sighed.. He only wished he had spoken to her about that almost incidental contact, told her not to worry, that they were both adults. But she was gone and, more than she could ever know,, Blaketon understood what had frightened her because it had frightened him too.