By the time Robbie made his way to the wild cook-out, the storm and the deluge of rain had passed. After leaving Laura in the summerhouse he had returned to his hotel room where he had brooded for a long while about the exchange between the two of them.
I shouldn't have left like that he thought bitterly to himself. He'd felt the little jewellery box in his suit jacket when he'd taken it off to change for the evening and he'd not had the heart to even look at the locket again, so wretched he felt with himself about how he'd gone about things.
He was still thinking about it all as he headed to the evening's event. The cook-out was being held in a field on the Stone Edge Estate; situated at the crown of a hill. Robbie, dressed casually in jeans and a shirt, left through the hotel's terrace doors and followed the wooden signs that pointed the way to the BBQ. The route led him through some of the lawns once more and then through the vegetable gardens of the house before taking him onto a path that forged a way through a woodland of beech trees. The early evening sun was strong and warm and the puddles in the paths of the garden were drying up and in the beechwood it was almost as if it hadn't rained. Last year's beech masts were on the woodland floor and they crunched dryly underfoot as Robbie trudged up the path that would eventually take him to the field at the top of the hill and the cook-out.
It was a lovely evening. The air was fragrant and the sky was blue and fresh, washed by the afternoon storm. Swallows and martins raced through the sky and the sound of a woodpecker echoed through the top of the beechwood. Grey squirrels leapt from tree to tree and in the high branches of the tallest beech a buzzard landed, in almost silence, amongst the silver-grey branches. The sun caught on the lime green leaves of the beech trees and lit them up like fairy lights and a soft mild breeze softly moved them to and fro like the patterns of a kaleidoscope.
Robbie failed to take in the beauty of the woodland. He was still angry with himself. As he followed the path up through the trees, however, the anger eventually subsided; instead, a sadness and regret took over. He thought of the Blue John locket Laura had given him.
Bloody idiot he thought again. After she gave you such a lovely gift, a gift not even for you but for your daughter for god's sake and look how you repaid her. Of all the bloody times to choose to tell her about Iain, someone she thought she trusted, and she probably trusted you too, you idiot. How bloody callous can you get?
As he continued walking, hands plunged into his jeans pockets, the woodland cleared as it met the upper fields. Robbie could see he had reached the cook-out venue. There was a plume of smoke coming from a fire and he could see chefs preparing food and cooking over a smoking grill, the aromas of which were drifting towards him on the warm breeze. The field had been mown to accommodate a medium sized canvas marquee and a small canvas awning that housed a bar. Wooden benches and tree stumps were dotted around the tents and Robbie could see that had the afternoon storm not passed the "wild-cook-out" was perfectly geared for all weathers. Clearly the whole event was an elaborate affair that surpassed any ideas that Robbie had formed about the event just being a run of the mill BBQ.
The path that led to the marquee and grill was garlanded with fairy lights; they twinkled softly in the dimming light. The evening sun had now dipped below the hills and twilight wasn't far off. The sky was clear and as the light from the sun faded, a deep blue seeped into the heavens from above. Silver points of stars started to appear as if scattered randomly, one by one, as darkness took hold. As he followed the path Robbie could see most of the team were already there. Thompson was at the bar and Robbie could see Hathaway chatting to Sam and the other potholing guides that had clearly been invited along to the event.
As he got closer still, Robbie saw Laura. She was with Iain and Jean Innocent. Robbie felt his heart lurch as he saw her. He wondered what, if anything, the revelation in the summerhouse might have instigated between herself and McLeod. He could see the three of them were chatting and Robbie's heart sank. He had hoped to maybe speak to Laura and apologise, not so much for his words, but for the inelegance of his timing. He certainly couldn't do this while McLeod was about. With a sigh he reached the mown section of the meadow as the path stopped and he headed across the cut grass towards Hathaway who was now at the bar. One thing was for certain, Robbie was in need of a pint and the reassuring lack of discussion about anything to do with what was on his mind that he knew he could find from Hathaway's company.
The aromas coming from the grill were delicious, Robbie could see there were beef steaks, lamb chops, pork sausages and venison steaks on offer, along with fresh bread, chunky chips, baked potatoes and salads. After joining Hathaway at the bar for a pint the scent of the BBQ proved too much and they both went to join the queue for the food. As they waited in line for the BBQ Robbie poked his head into the larger marquee. The large canvas structure housed benches and tables and some of the team were already drinking and eating around a large oak table. Robbie noticed Thompson obviously trying to impress if not woo one of the female attendees from Manchester. The inside of the tent was dressed with decor made from carved wood and tree branches and there was a definite rustic charm to the place. There were musical instruments hanging up on the canvas walls and as Robbie went to get his steaks from the grill he saw Thompson take a guitar from the selection and sit back down with it, clearly with some sort of intention of impressing the WPC from Manchester.
The food was good and it cheered Robbie up for a while but the events of the afternoon continued to weigh on him. He saw Laura again, still with McLeod and Jean Innocent, all three now eating at one of the outdoor benches. Laura looked less exuberant with McLeod than she had been. Robbie hoped she was ok. If he could get to see her, on her own, just for a brief moment he could tell her how sorry he was for leaving her like he did. He noticed that she seemed to refrain from looking over in his direction. Hathaway noticed that his boss seemed a little miserable and noted that it was odd that Hobson hadn't been over to chat to them and comically berate them over something trivial, a favourite pastime of the Dr's.
The evening air, although pleasant after the rain, began to cool as it got darker. One of the hotel staff lit a fire pit in the field. Surrounded in a circle by benches and large logs to sit on, the flames cast a warm fiery glow on everything and as the evening progressed everyone seemed to gravitate to the warmth and atmosphere that the open campfire provided. It wasn't long before the whole of the team building crowd were relaxing and drinking around the fire.
Sparks of orange danced up into a sky that was clear and softly lit by starshine. The soft almost imperceptible smudge of light from the milky way spread across the sky and the firelight and alcohol seemed to loosen the whole team. A soft chatter could be heard above the crackle of the fire and there was a general feel of relaxation. An owl hooted in the beech wood and somewhere in the beech wood a fox barked. One of the team members from Leeds jumped a little at the sound and talk went to countryside noises and how nature could be scary in the dark, almost rivalling the sounds of the city at night. Chat then meandered into stories of people's experiences of feeling spooked by noises and then of urban myths and ghost stories. Anecdotes were exchanged and Jean Innocent told a compelling tale about ghostly goings on in her halls of residence when she had been a student.
"What about you, Robbie, do you know any ghost stories worth telling?" Jean asked after her story had come to an end.
"Eh? Me? No." Robbie replied "I've seen enough ghoulish things in real life to beat any ghost story thank you very much Ma'am"
There was a ripple of laughter from the team. They were all aware of Robbie's long and varied career, along with some of the difficult cases he'd worked on over the years.
Robbie smiled bashfully at the response from the team and then found himself glancing over to Laura. She was sitting opposite him, the fire between them. As the firelight flickered gold and red over her face he saw she very briefly looked back at him, her eyes seemed bright and, through the crimson and orange glow of the flames, he thought he saw a cautious, almost regretful smile returned back at him, for the briefest of moments.
"Yes, well Robbie is one of our most seasoned team" Jean said above the laughter members "But Dr. Hobson, I expect, has more of a reason to tell a good ghost story. Laura? Any spooky tales from the lab you'd like to share?"
"Sorry, no." Laura said with an uncharacteristically low-key tone in her voice. "I stopped believing in all that stuff a long time ago when my brothers used to try and scare me with bed sheets"
"I knew Laura in College; believe me, nothing scares her" Iain said, directing the statement to everyone around the fire before giving Laura a lingering look that didn't go unnoticed by some of the other more astute members of the team, Hathaway included, which gave him a clue to the reason behind his boss' subdued mood. Laura didn't respond, her lips were tight and she seemed a little uncomfortable at the comment from McLeod
"As a scientist, I suspect you don't hold much cop with the supernatural do you, Doctor?" Hathaway inquired, always interested to discuss and debate matters. He had noticed the discomfort on Laura's face and, feeling benevolent, he knew that his question was partly a life raft for her out of the awkwardness he sensed she was feeling.
"Well, I have to admit, the ghost stories that my aunt used to tell us, when I and my brothers were younger, were rather terrifying. There's an old lead mine shaft on the land behind my aunt's house and we were scared witless by her stories about a ghostly lead miner. It's an ancient legend around here, but I suspect it was to keep us away from the rake"
"The rake?" Said Innocent. She had not heard of a rake before, at least not in the context of a house, and her curiosity was also shared by others listening to the chat.
"Yes, the mine shaft descends to a section of mine called a rake" Laura explained. "Above ground, where the shaft entrance is located is immediately surrounded by a wall and planted with trees to keep people out. You'll see them all over on the hilltops around here."
Robbie saw the firelight flicker on Laura's face as she talked. She looked beautiful and he felt his heart sink as he watched her from the other side of the fire, knowing how upset he'd made her, even though he knew it was something he had to do. He also felt his regret in not seeing, in the past, her gentle advances towards him. It's too late now he thought. I've lost any chance of anything with her. Even their friendship seemed to hang by a thread. He listened as Laura told the story of the ghostly lead miners that haunted the local mines and tales of strange noises and knocking sounds that were reported by sometimes terrified lead miners throughout history. Sam the caving guide backed up the stories as local legend and that there was one part of the caving system that he hated to be in alone and that it ran close to Laura's aunt's house.
"It must be a bit spooky to think of all these stories Doctor, while you're at the house" Hathaway said
"Not really, although staying in the house on my own, after all these years did bring to mind all the old stories. It does get rather bleak up there too, even in the summer months the wind can chill you to the bone and give you the collywobbles if you're not careful"
"Scared of a visit from a ghostly miner Doctor?" Thompson asked with a cocky tone. He was still at odds with Laura from her comments at the seminar, despite firing at her point blank during the paintball battle.
"Not at all" Laura retorted as Thompson got up from his seat. "Although I did hear some odd noises from one of the back rooms, but I think it was a rat and what I thought looked like wet footprints turned out to be spilt washing powder and soda crystals."
There was a soft response of laughter around the campfire followed by chatter as everyone, relaxed with food and alcohol continued to enjoy the comfort of the campfire along with fresh air and starlight. Thompson, who had disappeared for a few moments, returned with a guitar from the marquee and sat back down by the fire. He started to strum a few chords before breaking into a very poor rendition of Bob Marley's No Woman No Cry.
"Bloody hell" Said Robbie under his breath to Hathaway who was seated next to him "You couldn't have made it up"
Although it was a cliched performance, the rich tones of the guitar filled the night air with a certain atmosphere. As such, Thompson was treated to a round of applause after his performance. Despite the accolades, when Thompson looked like he was about to play another song, Jean Innocent abrubtly halted Thompson's ego trip.
"James you play, don't you? Why not give us a song?" She said to a shocked Hathaway
"Go on" Robbie said quietly to his sergeant "Show Thompson how it's done"
Hathaway set his jaw and looked absently into the fire and for a moment Robbie wasn't sure what his reaction was going to be. But seconds later Hathaway got up from the bench and went to get the guitar from Thompson and took a seat next to him.
Hathaway rested the guitar over his knee and started to strum and pick at the strings, randomly at first as if teasing everyone into thinking that perhaps he was a little nervous. But then the notes came stronger, blending into harmonies and then the strong bold confidence of chords, expertly played, took over. Robbie knew straight away what Hathaway was playing. The soft long chords with their yearning and potent melody was unmistakable. It was Joan Armatrading's song Love And Affection.
Robbie smiled a little to himself. Whenever he and Hathaway ever needed to thrash out the finer details of a case and wanted a break from the office and somewhere out of the earshot of the general public they would often retreat to Robbie's flat. Often, on such an occasion Hathaway would select some music to play while they worked, throwing in the odd searing comment about Robbie's tastes. Clearly, and despite Hathaway's often mocking remarks about Robbie's music collection, however, some of it had made an impression on him.
Robbie watched and listened, along with the small gathering around the campfire, as Hathaway performed a spellbinding rendition of the song. Everyone was entranced by the performance and listened intently as Hathaway's voice expressed the lyrics of the song with perfect timing and feeling. Even Thompson looked impressed, the wind taken a little out of his sails as Hathaway's voice and competent playing rose above the gentle crackle of the fire. As the words to the song drifted out and up into the night Robbie glanced up and saw Laura looking back at him. She too had been listening to the music, captivated by the compelling flow of the melody and emotion of the song's lyrics along with the feeling of intimacy with the small audience that seemed to come effortlessly from Hathaway's performance. Over the glow of the fire Robbie held her gaze, desperate to convey some sort of apology to her. He smiled at her, cautiously and felt a twist of regretful pain in his heart. He desperately wanted to show her he understood her anger and that he had messed up with his timing. He didn't feel bad at telling her the truth about Iain but he could tell her he was sorry for the timing.
Laura looked back at him and as Hathaway brough the song to a richly chorded peak she returned to Robbie the smallest glimmer of a guarded smile and he saw that her eyes no longer had the glaring fury of before. Maybe it wasn't quite a smile but there was something there that made him feel that all was not lost.
The evening drew to an end, Hathaway played a few more songs and as the last embers of the campfire melted from orange into grey everyone started to make their way back to the hotel. The pathway through the woods had been illuminated with flambeau and the straggle of team members, mostly in an exuberant mood, were soon back at Stone Edge House Hotel. Some went to their rooms while others went to the bar to continue drinking. Robbie noticed that Hathaway had garnered the attention of some of the female team members from Manchester and Leeds who seemed to be impressed with his impromptu performance. Robbie tutted to himself. No doubt the lad would put on his usual cool granite exterior and they would lose interest although Robbie saw that instead of going up to his room, Hathaway stayed chatting for a while with the women, even smiling at one point.
Robbie, however, had had enough of the day. The noisy bar and more drinks were the last thing he wanted. He still felt drained and dejected from his exchange with Laura. As he turned to go up the stairway to his room, he saw her, near the main entrance of the hotel. She was with Iain. Iain had his hand on her arm, they were talking, McLeod's head was close to Laura's. Robbie couldn't quite hear what McLeod was saying, but he did hear what Laura's reply was.
"Yes, Iain. I think that would be a good idea"
And Robbie saw her nod. There was a strong, intense look in her eyes that he couldn't quite decipher. But then he didn't have to know or guess anymore about the exchange. He saw Iain take his car keys from his pocket and, with a guiding hand on Laura's lower back, the pair of them left the hotel.
Moments later, through the open doors of the hotel, Robbie saw McLeod's car pull away from the hotel and make its way down the hotel drive. It was patently clear what was going on and with a feeling of wretchedness that Robbie hadn't felt for years, he took himself up to his room and went to bed.
Hello folks, I hope you are all well. I really would have liked to have been a bit quicker with this chapter but I have been so busy it's not been possible to write much these past few weeks. I also would have really liked to have written another little xmas story but alas time hasn't been on my side. Maybe next year! Anyway, I hope to write a bit more now and fingers crossed I can post some more chapters soon and I promise, it's really going to kick off *big time* very soon. . .
PS I reference Joan Armatrading's amazing song Love And Affection in this chapter. It's a wonderful song and I feel it has lots of meanings and connotations and is multi-faceted and therefore fits the scene in this chapter very well. I had other songs in mind for Hathaway to play but this one just kept coming back. You can find it online to listen to and I hope that you will do that and perhaps have it in mind if you read this chapter again. There is a Joan Armatrading track used in Lewis – on the original broadcast of Lions Of Nemea, Robbie is playing Down To Zero on the record player at the end – but if you are not in the UK then it may have got swapped out for something else due to rights etc. I once read that KW busked in London to get himself though college and that he often played Joan Armatrading's songs so this is a little nod to that. Anyway, although the lyrics don't particularly pertain to what's going on in the story they can be applied to lots of instances for all the characters, indeed anyone at any one point and that, I think is the sign of a well written song. Plus it just has the best melody. I can also imagine Hathaway rendering the sax solo beautifully with his guitar. I haven't quoted any of the lyrics as apparently it's not a great thing to do with regards to copyright and more out of respect for Joan Armatrading's work I haven't done it here, and let me also reiterate that this story and all my stories are written for fun and that only. Ok, well enough now; until next time, take care all. . .