It’s well past lunchtime, but neither Tollie nor I have an appetite. It doesn’t help that visions of the turkey carve-up keep coming back to me. I check my phone yet again and just as I’m putting it down for what feels like the hundredth time, it kicks into life in my hands. I almost drop it with relief as I see it’s Gray.
‘Are you okay?’ I blurt out, desperate to know what’s happening. All I can see looking out now is an unbelievably thick wall of white bleakness.
‘There’s been a slight change of plan, but we’re fine. We’re going to have some extra company and I just wanted to alert you. I have to go. We’ll be there in about an hour… ish. See you soon.’
Click.
Tollie is watching me closely.
‘They’re on their way. But something’s wrong – I could tell by his voice and he cut me off quickly. He sounded like he was walking; he definitely wasn’t in the car, that’s for sure.’
We head over to the patio doors, peering out.
‘Is this what they call a white-out?’ I ask, thinking we don’t get snowstorms like this in the UK. Even the snow on the patio table is now at least eight inches deep. Fortunately, there’s no wind to whip it up into sculptured peaks, but everything is eerily quiet, wrapped in a thick white coat. It does look rather beautiful, but only if you aren’t out in it. That is, either driving, or on foot. Gray surely isn’t walking the last part with Rona – that would be sheer madness. Why did I think snow would make this Christmas more romantic? It’s just turning it into a total disaster. You can’t have a party without people. And if they can’t get here, I reflect miserably, there’ll be no Christmas dinner.
‘It’s unusual, but I’ve seen worse,’ Tollie replies. ‘You won’t remember the really bad years when you were small, and then living down south it’s generally milder towards the coastline. Gray wouldn’t have said they were okay if they aren’t, so there’s no point in second-guessin’ what’s going on. They’re going to be cold and hungry, no doubt, when they arrive – whoever Gray has managed to pick up along the way.’
‘Thank goodness that joint of pork is cooling. At least I can make up a batch of sandwiches. Tollie, can you do the honours and carve? I’d only hack it about. I’m not good with knives.’
He smiles at me, affectionately. ‘Leave it to me. I’ll carve the turkey for you tomorrow as well if you like.’
Even the mention of the turkey sends a little shudder through me. I’m too ashamed to tell him about my poor, dismembered bird, sitting in the fridge. Everyone is going to expect a fine specimen on a platter in the middle of the table, as they show in Christmas films. Our turkey is going to look as if it’s been run over by a lorry. Well, that’s assuming there’s anyone here to see it.
When the doorbell rings it takes me by surprise, as I can’t imagine why Gray hasn’t used his key. The moment I swing open the door I understand.
Four people are standing in a huddle, their faces obscured by hooded coats and scarves, as they dodge the now one-inch-sized snowflakes. The icy particles probably feel more like missiles than the soft, feathery little things we tend to imagine. Each of them is carrying a large plastic container, dusted with snow.
‘Come in, come in.’ I stand back, holding the door open wide as a shiver runs through me. Scrutinising the first person to step inside, I’m surprised to see it’s Valerie.
‘Hi, Immi. Sorry for the invasion, but there were no other options,’ she explains as she yanks her scarf away from her face. ‘We might not have been able to deliver these if we left it any longer. The walk is treacherous.’
She places a container on the stairs and sits down heavily as she begins to pull off her boots.
As I continue stepping backwards so everyone else can filter in, I’m almost through the doorway into the main room. The boxes are large and, together with four bodies, they fill the entire hallway.
‘Pop your coats on the hooks and I’ll take them into the utility room in a minute to hang them up to dry. I guessed it was bad, but… anyway, come on through.’
As they peel off their soggy outerwear, I let Tollie know we’re catering for two extra people.
Valerie and Gray are the first to appear behind me.
‘What a nightmare it is out there!’ Valerie exclaims.
Gray looks tired, but he’s making no attempt to take off his soggy padded jacket.
‘It wasn’t a good drive. Mum, come on through and stand by the radiator to warm up.’
Rona is standing in the doorway now partially obscuring my view of a young man I don’t recognise. She stops for a moment, looking up at the ceiling in awe.
‘Oh, how beautiful! And the tree – my goodness, this is a sight for the weary. I’m just relieved we made it in one piece, thanks to Gray’s skilful driving.’
When I glance at the young man, he tilts his head by way of introduction, and I give him a welcoming smile. Rona walks over to the radiator to warm her hands and I follow on behind her.
‘It’s not good out there, Immi, to say the least,’ Rona confirms, dancing her fingers against the heat. ‘The main roads aren’t too bad, but in a lot of places it’s down to a single track. Some have had it heavier even than here. Most of the side roads haven’t been touched and as for the lane, well, the snowploughs and gritters are struggling. It’ll be a while until they can even think of little communities like this one. There’s a milk tanker half in a ditch, the other half slewed across the lane, about a mile and a half down from the top road. We had to walk the rest of the way.’
Tollie and I are stunned. I can’t believe they’ve walked several miles in these conditions. Gray continues.
‘I’ll head back with Liam to collect the things we couldn’t carry on the first trip. We left Mum’s bags and a small pile of things at Valerie’s.’
Valerie casts me a nervous glance.
‘Sorry, I should have introduced you already. This is my son, Liam. Liam, this is Immi and her grandfather, Tollie,’ Valerie chimes in. ‘I knew you’d be wondering about the starters and I wanted to make sure we could get them here. I assumed, rather naively, that it would be easy enough to walk back, but it’s much worse out than I thought.’
Gray and Liam immediately turn to go and Tollie takes over, shepherding Valerie and Rona over to one of the sofas.
‘Here, ladies, make yourself comfortable. I have a pot of tea brewing and we’ll soon get you warmed up.’
They flop down, tired out and a little traumatised. It’s hard not to begin firing questions at them, but Tollie shoots me a warning glance. He nods, indicating that I should take a seat as he has everything in hand.
Valerie turns to face Rona and they exchange a look of total disbelief.
‘Have we been transported to Switzerland?’ Valerie asks as she peers across to take in the view beyond the patio. ‘I can’t remember the last time I saw this much snow. It’s caught everyone out, even the weather forecasters.’
‘The tea is ready, but I wonder if anyone is up for a glass of wine, too?’ Tollie enquires. Both Rona and Valerie raise their hands and I join them.
‘How bad is it out there? That must have been a nightmare of a walk. Was it deserted?’ I enquire gently.
Rona has virtually collapsed back into the cushions. ‘Yes, it was once we got past the tanker. It’s hard going walking even a short distance. Valerie could hardly believe her eyes when we knocked on her door, bedraggled and panting.’
Valerie takes over. ‘When Gray told me to pack up everything Liam and I needed, as there’s a chance we wouldn’t be able to venture out tomorrow, I thought he was joking at first. I mean, it’s what – two miles at most? It’s taken us an hour and…’ she glances at her wristwatch ‘… ten minutes to get here. I think Gray’s right. No one is going anywhere tomorrow if this continues.’
‘So, the lane is virtually impassable?’ I can hardly take this in. A snowfall like this can’t surely come as a total surprise to the people whose job it is to plan for emergencies when the weather turns bad. Don’t the county councils have hotlines to the Met Office?
‘At the moment it is. A Land Rover came up from Adler’s farm and hopefully made it back with the tanker driver, so he could warm up. He was in shock but had managed to contact a recovery firm – who probably won’t be able to get here, of course. Well, until they can plough the top part of the lane, that is, as it’s just too dangerous to try right now. Aysbury is snowed in and no one is going anywhere in a hurry.’
Both Tollie and I sit listening to the story, sorry to hear what they’d been through.
‘There’s no point in venturing back out there until the worst of it is over. At least people will have stocked up with essentials for the holidays, which is a comfort of sorts, I suppose. Unless they were dining out, that is.’ I’m thinking of our other guests.
Tollie deposits a loaded tray on the coffee table between the sofas and we all reach for the wine glasses first.
‘Merry Christmas, everyone. According to the latest weather news on my phone it’s now officially the second largest snowfall the Cotswolds have ever had on Christmas Eve,’ Valerie informs us.
We raise our alcohol-filled glasses to toast a rather sobering statistic, as it begins to sink in that this is going to be a very cosy Christmas together, indeed.
‘You did well today,’ I whisper to Gray as we snuggle into each other after what turns out to have been an extremely eventful day.
‘I didn’t want to worry you unduly, but when we were brought to an abrupt halt by that tanker, to be frank with you, I didn’t know if we’d make it back here. Even up to that point, I’d warned Mum to brace herself, as if I’d lost control and we’d slid, the road is so narrow the chances of not ending up in one of the ditches is slim to none. And they are dangerously deep in places.
‘The tanker was at such an angle that the driver wasn’t able to get himself out without help. I had real visions of losing control, but you get to a point where you are so committed there’s nowhere to go other than forward. It wasn’t much better once we began walking, as if either of us had fallen and broken a bone—’ He stops abruptly, and I think a shiver runs through both of us at the thought. ‘But we made it. So, luck was on our side.’
Winding my arms around his neck, I draw him even closer.
‘When they say, “expect the unexpected” I doubt either of us would have envisioned this, would we?’ I muse, attempting to lift our spirits.
Rona is settled into the very tired spare bedroom in Lock Keeper’s Cottage after all, despite our best-laid plans. I thank my lucky stars at least I had a new set of bedding to make it feel a little bit special for her. Valerie and Liam have the two spare bedrooms here, so it’s full houses all round.
‘Everyone has a comfortable bed and we have plenty of food. I wish we’d had time to pop up and check on Abe and Ethel. And I’m assuming Kurt, Sarah and the girls eventually got away. I’m sure Martin will text me at some point, as he’ll know I’ll be concerned. That just leaves Fisher, Bernie and Yvonne. Tollie hasn’t heard anything from either of the guys since this morning. What a mess this is all turning out to be.’
Gray chuckles softly and the bed starts to shake.
‘How can you laugh about this?’ I ask miserably. ‘I wanted everything to be perfect. But the only thing that is are the decorations. The turkey... well, I can only hope it looks better once it’s cooked and I don’t let down Valerie and Rona’s time slaving away in the kitchen. Those two were amazing today, taking over the rest of the food preparation while I sorted the sleeping arrangements.’
Even in the partial light from the unnaturally bright grey sky, I can see the fleeting smile pass over Gray’s face. ‘Be honest, you were relieved to hand it all over. It’s not a criticism, as I wouldn’t have had a clue about where to start, but a little experience goes a long way.’
Yes, and most people have a grandmother or a mother at their elbow for times like this. How I wish I’d taken more of an interest in what went on in the kitchen, rather than sitting back and just enjoying the results.
I give him a look of uncertainty, wondering what everyone will think when they see what I’ve done to the turkey. It’s supposed to arrive at the table full of a generous helping of stuffing and looking golden brown from having been lovingly basted – as Sarah’s bird did. Mine is going to look as if it’s been run over by a car and someone threw the pieces into an oven tray to save wasting it.
‘Well, maybe. But you have the most gorgeous New York baked cheesecake waiting for you in the fridge. I might not be a great cook, but that’s the one thing I could never mess up. Then again, I have made a few since we first met.’
‘You won’t hear me complaining.’
As I lean over Gray to plant a soft kiss on his cheek, it’s obvious sleep is beckoning him. He must be feeling exhausted from the stressful drive, let alone all that walking.
‘In a couple of days Mum and I will be in LA. I can’t even imagine that right now – it’s surreal. I can only hope that the snow will have cleared by then, or our trip will be postponed. Mum’s on edge and we need to get it over with.’
The lift in his voice at the end of his sentence tells me he’s not upset about it, but he’s anxious for her. Last night I was lying here stressing over a bad dream; tonight, I’m lying here too exhausted to even think about tomorrow. And then as I glance at the bedside clock, I realise it’s here already.
‘Sweet dreams, my lovely man, and happy Christmas. Thank you for being my rock. It was such fun, seeing everyone joining in and making do. And as for the karaoke session this evening… oh my, that was so funny! I swear I haven’t laughed as much since I was a six-year-old and the cat pooed in the middle of Grandma’s best rug.’
Whether Gray heard me, I don’t know, but I prop myself up on my elbow and watch him sleeping for a few minutes before I lie back down.
Gray never complains. And he always rises to a challenge. He has this knack of knowing exactly what to do to keep everyone’s spirits up, whenever the need arises. He is a natural entertainer because that’s the way his mind works. I asked him once what went on inside his head whenever he hummed away, and he said it was like living in a commercial. But each day it was a different one and, even though he tried his best to keep a record of every little tune, so much ended up being lost because some thoughts slip away as quickly as they come. That’s when I knew he was special and life with him would never be boring.
Softly, very softly, I find myself singing the words to ‘Silent Night’. Grandma always sang that to me at Christmas and hearing the words as they wrap around me makes me feel she’s close. I feel proud that I’ve chosen a man who is so caring and respectful of others. It isn’t just my vocal cords that are singing, but also my heart.
It’s early morning when I hear a noise downstairs. Rolling over onto my back, I hold my breath, waiting to see if I can hear it again. Gray is oblivious, snoring softly as I ease myself off the bed and grab my dressing gown. Descending the stairs, I hear the sound again, but this time it’s a little louder and even through the obscure glass in the front door I can see a dim shadow.
The next knock is more insistent and very gingerly I turn the handle to peer outside.
‘Immi, it’s me – Kurt.’ His voice is low.
I swing the door open wide and he steps inside. If it weren’t for the sound of his voice, it could be anyone, as all I can see are his eyes, staring at me from behind one of those ski-mask-type balaclavas.
‘Everyone is still asleep. I thought you left yesterday,’ I whisper as he follows me on through and I shut the internal door noiselessly behind us.
‘Jeez, it’s flipping freezing out there.’ Kurt’s nose, when he pulls his thick navy-blue mask up over his face, is glowing a ghastly shade of reddish pink. He slips off his boots and it seems to take an inordinate amount of time. He must be frozen to the core. ‘Oh, merry Christmas, Immi, although it doesn’t feel very merry right now. It’s lovely and warm in here, though.’
‘The heating kicked in about an hour ago. Slip off your coat and take a seat. I’m just shocked to see you’re still here.’
Glancing at the clock, I see it’s just after six a.m. so I know something is very wrong. Kurt looks totally wiped out and simply lowers his hands, letting his thick padded jacket fall to the floor before sinking down with a sigh onto the sofa.
‘Shortly before we were due to leave yesterday, we discovered one of the pipes on the ground floor had burst. It’s my fault. The outside tap for watering the plants surrounding the car park spurs off the downstairs disabled cloakroom. I usually cover it up with lagging for the winter, but I forgot.’
‘And it’s next to the kitchen. Oh, Kurt, how bad is it?’
‘Well, it didn’t breach the steps up into the dining room, so that’s something. The electrics shorted, but we can’t tell what damage there might be until everything is dried out. It’s unlikely we’ll be able to get an electrician in to check it out until the roads are clear. That’s assuming we’re even lucky enough to find someone working between Christmas and New Year. I linked up a small generator to pump out the water through the night, but, with no heat and waking up to a freeze this morning, it’s going to dry out very slowly indeed.’
He looks as gutted as he sounds.
‘How are Sarah and the girls managing? What can we do to help?’
Kurt runs his hands over his eyes, and I look away, giving him a moment to compose himself.
‘No one died and we have insurance. Sarah and the girls spent the night with Ethel on The Merry Robin. Abe gave me a hand, but I insisted he head back shortly after two this morning to get some sleep. I haven’t spoken to any of them yet. I hope they’re all asleep still, but space is tight onboard, and it probably meant sleeping bags on the floor. It would at least have been warm, and thank goodness for pot-bellied stoves, but it’s not fair on Abe and Ethel. It’s a four-berth, so trying to squeeze in six isn’t going to be easy.’
‘Well, you’ll all come here, of course you will! These two sofas make up into double beds and the fridge and freezer are jam-packed with food, so there’s plenty to go around. Put your feet up for a bit and I’ll make you a coffee.’
He’s so exhausted he can’t even answer, and I move around as quietly as I can, placing the mug next to him on a side table before creeping back upstairs. It won’t be long until his exhausted state drags him down into a deep sleep.
After closing the bedroom door quietly behind me, I tip-toe across the room.
‘Gray, are you awake?’ I know he isn’t, but we’re in need of an action plan.
‘Mmm… morning, Immi. You look lovely.’
He rolls over onto his back, stretching out his shoulders even though he’s still half asleep, and lets out a satisfied groan.
‘Kurt is downstairs on the sofa and I left him snoring away. Sarah and the girls spent the night on The Merry Robin.’
‘They what? Why are they still in Aysbury?’
‘A pipe burst at The Bullrush and when they went downstairs the kitchen and cloakrooms were flooded. Kurt worked all day yesterday and through the night. He hasn’t been to bed. Abe helped him until the early hours. As soon as Sarah and the girls are awake, we need to bring them here and get them settled. I’ll clear out the large cupboard in the utility for them to store some clothes and sort out some bedding for the sofa beds ready for tonight.’
Gray eases himself upright, a deep frown creasing his forehead as the information sinks in.
‘Okay. I’ll text Fisher. He was coming straight here about nine, but I’ll throw on some clothes as I bet Tollie is awake and the three of us can meet up at The Merry Robin.’
‘Should I wake Kurt? Unfortunately, I need to get the turkey in the oven and that’s going to involve making a bit of noise. I daren’t leave it until later in case anything goes wrong. I’m going to part-cook as much as I can in advance. The roast potatoes and the Yorkshire puddings alone will take up both shelves, so I figure I can reheat the rest in Tollie’s oven. This is so stressful – I just wish my first attempt at pulling this off didn’t put so many people’s Christmas dinner in jeopardy!’
Gray gives me a reassuring smile.
‘They’ll understand, Immi. If Kurt sleeps through you moving around then leave him be. Sarah will probably have a set of keys for The Bullrush and they can pack a few things to tide them over. Well, it looks like the temperature dropped overnight, which isn’t exactly going to help matters, but I really don’t like the look of that sky. We’ll know we’re in trouble if it starts to warm up a little, as that could mean even more snow. But first thing the snow on the ground is going to be solid underfoot and slippery, so if anyone goes outside tell them to be careful. Anyway, I’d best jump in the shower and then alert Tollie and Fisher. Good luck in the kitchen, my Christmas chef. Guess we won’t be doing presents until later.’
‘At this rate, much later.’