Meet Me at Wisteria Cottage

by Teresa F. Morgan

‘Okay,’ Harry replied, frowning. Did he tell Collins what he’d seen? Would it get Maddy into trouble?

  ‘Did you see anything suspicious?’ Collins asked, as if reading Harry’s mind.

  ‘How do you mean?’ See what Collins had to say first.

  ‘I’m not supposed to say anything,’ Collins lowered his voice, ‘but it looks like it could have been arson. We could smell the mild scent of an accelerant. Do you think she …?’

  Harry shook his head. ‘No, no, she didn’t do this. She’s stressed about her paintings and her cat and all sorts. You saw how hysterical she was. Did you manage to contain the fire?’

  ‘Yes, most of the damage is in the kitchen. Good job we got the call as early as we did,’ Collins said. ‘Otherwise it might have been a different story.’

  ‘I made the call. I saw the smoke coming out of the gap in her kitchen window. In fact, I smelled it first.’ As quick as a Beagle could pick up a scent, Harry would always smell smoke at the slightest whiff. ‘Unfortunately I couldn’t get in, otherwise I’d have tried to stop it from spreading.’

  Collins nodded. ‘You did good calling when you did. Please don’t enter the house until the fire investigation officer has been. I suspect the police will leave someone outside all night to guard it as CSI won’t come till the morning now.’ Harry nodded back; he knew the procedure. ‘We’ll secure the back door for now the best we can, and tomorrow we’ll get it boarded up, so the house is secure. Has she got somewhere to stay the night?’

  ‘Yeah, I’ve offered to let her stay at mine.’

  ‘Always the hero.’ Collins slapped Harry on the back.

  Harry gave a fake laugh. What had he got himself into? ‘By the way, you haven’t seen a cat have you – dead or alive?’

  Collins chuckled. ‘A black one?’

  ‘Well it will look black if it’s burnt to death.’

  ‘Oh, it’s not dead.’ Collins pointed to a tree in Maddy’s neighbouring garden to the right. A small tree, but big enough to provide refuge for a cat. Sookie’s eyes reflected the light from the fire engines, making it easier for her to be spotted in the dimming light.

  ‘Ah, yes, thanks.’ Harry shook hands with Collins then walked over to the tree. Tiptoeing, Harry reached up and grabbed the cat out of the tree while it hissed at him.

  ‘Hey, I’m not happy about this either, girl.’ She stank of smoke, reminding him of the smell of soot. ‘Sweep would be a good name for you right now … or as you’re a girl, maybe Sue.’ She hissed and struggled, and when Harry held her more firmly, dug her claws into his arm. Resisting the urge to release the cat – or drop her – he rushed back to his house, one-handedly unlocking his front door, and as soon as he closed it, released the cat as she gave another hiss. Frowning, he rubbed the scratches along his forearms.

  ‘Sookie!’ Maddy picked up the cat, stroking her between the ears. The cat purred and rubbed its head against Maddy, its mood changing immediately. ‘Where have you been, young lady? You smell like an old pub ashtray.’

  Harry noticed Maddy brighten too, stroking her cat, so it purred and meowed more. He’d rescued many animals in his time, handing them over to relieved owners. Even the times when needing rescuing had been the stupid animal’s fault, to see the happiness and relief of pet and owner being reunited always softened Harry’s heart – he just never let his colleagues know it. Setting aside his dislike for cats as a landscape gardener, the cat being alive was a positive thing for Maddy. ‘I’ll get her some food.’

  Back in his kitchen, he searched his cupboards. What did he have that a cat would eat? He found a can of tuna and opened it, draining the brine down the sink. He forked out a little on a saucer and placed it on the kitchen floor. In another saucer, he placed water. He put the rest of the can in the fridge. It could be the cat’s breakfast.

  The cat ate hungrily, purring loudly.

  ‘I’ve got some sand in the garage. I’ll sort out a litter tray for tonight as she can’t go back outside until it’s safe.’

  ‘Thank you,’ Maddy said, smiling at Harry for the first time. Her eyes were still red and puffy where she’d been crying, and sadness shadowed them, but she certainly appeared calmer now he’d found her cat alive and well.

  ‘Hey, this is what neighbours are for, right?’

  Harry found a seed tray, lined it with a carrier bag, and filled it with some sand. He placed this too in the kitchen. He really was doing his good deeds for the day, allowing a feline pest into his house. It had better not scratch his furniture.

  Karin had liked cats. Maybe that was another reason why he hated them.

  Don’t think about Karin.

  He rubbed the back of his neck, taking in a deep breath, then breathed out slowly.

  ‘Right, time for a top up on your drink,’ he said, reaching for the two spirit bottles and grabbing the orange juice out of the fridge. He gestured for Maddy to sit in the lounge. She held out her glass while he poured her another large measure of vodka, then poured himself another Jack Daniels. Harry needed to think of a way to break it to Maddy about her house, so she was prepared for tomorrow.

  Maddy sat rigidly on the edge of the sofa, obviously in a stranger’s house and unable to relax. Harry found himself doing the same in the opposite armchair.

  ‘You can relax, Maddy. I don’t bite, you know,’ Harry said, sitting back in the seat. ‘And I don’t mind you staying the night – unless you have somewhere else you’d prefer to go?’

  She shook her head. ‘No, I haven’t. While you were fetching Sookie, I phoned my friend Valerie, and there was no answer. I didn’t want to leave her a distressed message either. Also, I think I’ve had too much vodka to drive myself anywhere even if I did.’

  He would have offered to drive her, however, he was likely over the limit as well now. ‘It’s probably easier if you stay here. You can’t go back in the house until the fire brigade have finished assessing the damage.’ A fire investigation usually meant there could be something suspicious, and Collins had pretty much confirmed it, too – but maybe Harry shouldn’t worry Maddy with that detail yet? She was going to find it hard to sleep as it was. ‘But at least you’re on site so you can talk to them tomorrow.’

  ‘I hope I don’t get burgled now. That would be just my luck.’

  ‘There’s a police car parked outside. They’ll watch the house all night.’ Did he confess to her tonight that they were treating it like a crime scene?

  ‘Really, they do that?’

  ‘Yeah, sometimes.’ Harry’s guilt increased. But Maddy would need to try and sleep. She’d been through enough this evening.

  Maddy took another gulp of her drink. ‘Thank you, you’ve been really kind. I’m sorry I was such a mess earlier. I’m not usually violent.’

  ‘I might have a few bruises to show for my heroic actions.’

  ‘I am so sorry.’ Maddy wouldn’t meet his eye, and silence fell between them. As if on cue, Sookie emerged from the kitchen licking her lips. Tail raised, she trotted over to Maddy, who timidly smiled and stroked the top of her head.

  ‘Do you feel better now, girl?’ Maddy cooed. The cat jumped into her lap, and whilst purring, licked her paws and then set about routinely cleaning herself. Maddy sat back a little deeper into Harry’s sofa and looked almost comfortable.

  ‘Well, at least you know your cat is safe,’ Harry said, finding it hard to know what to say. The woman’s house had been set on fire – possibly deliberately. He started thinking about how much damage smoke could do. He wouldn’t worry Maddy unnecessarily. No point until they knew what they were facing. No one had died, so that was always a positive in his line of work — when it had been his line of work, that is. Now he only had to worry about plants dying. But lifting Maddy into that carry had given him a buzz. Seeing the action unfold as the fire engines had arrived, sirens blaring, blue lights flashing; a part of him missed his firefighting days, missed the adrenalin rush. However, he knew he was no good to his colleagues in the field. One b
ad day, and he’d freeze, flashbacks would paralyse him, and he’d be no good to anyone. In fact, he’d be a danger to himself and others.

  Karin’s death would always haunt him.

  Chapter 3

  Maddy glanced at her watch. It was nearly eleven. The night’s events were closing in on her, fogging her brain and making her eyes heavy. She yawned, and sipped her third large vodka. The heat from the spirit sent warmth from the back of her throat down to her stomach. Harry had insisted on another drink.

  ‘It’ll help you sleep,’ he’d said as he’d poured it out for her.

  It probably would, that’s why she was feeling tired, because she felt drunk. Not hammered and out of control drunk but the giggly, light boned-feeling drunk – if only she felt giggly. Far from it. In fact, if she weren’t careful she would burst into tears. She wouldn’t stop worrying until she knew the extent of the damage to her house, and to her paintings. The house could be redecorated – although the thought of the task plagued her with worry – but the paintings were her income. It was a large commission and she didn’t want to screw it up by delivering it late. She wouldn’t have time to repaint the two pieces she was supplying – they’d taken a month to complete. They were ready and framed, due to be delivered this weekend, in time for the opening of a new restaurant in Padstow. The owner had asked for a couple of pieces and was happy to pay generously. She hadn’t refused. If they were damaged, there would be no way she’d have them ready by the weekend.

  ‘I’m sorry, Harry, my head is a mess.’

  ‘Hey, it’s totally understandable. Only this morning you were cursing me, so it probably feels a bit strange to be sitting in my house right now.’

  ‘Well, you still have a monstrous truck.’ Maddy looked at him, smiling to show she was teasing and he gave a hearty chuckle. Then Maddy yawned again, just about getting her hand to her mouth remembering her manners. Not attractive.

  ‘I think it’s time we went to bed,’ Harry said, standing up.

  Maddy’s heart raced. Did he think she was going to sleep with him? He must have caught her worried expression because he took her empty glass out of her hand and laughed. ‘Don’t panic, you can have my bed, and I’ll kip on the sofa tonight.’

  ‘You don’t have a spare room?’

  ‘No, not yet.’

  ‘Oh, I thought when you said I could stay I assumed you had a spare bedroom.’ He did have a three-bedroom house exactly like hers.

  ‘One’s a gym and the other is the dumping ground for all my crap. I’ll eventually get around to clearing it out. You know what it’s like when you move house, takes a while to empty all the boxes.’

  Maddy smiled wanly at him. ‘Yes, I remember. I still have boxes in my garage I haven’t opened yet,’ she said, her voice still hoarse from her hysterics earlier. ‘I’ve been in my house barely over a year.’ She started to cry, silent tears.

  ‘Don’t cry,’ Harry approached Maddy, ‘it’ll be all right, you’ll see. I think most of the damage was in the kitchen.’ His strong hand squeezed her shoulder, sending an unexpected ripple of delight through her body. She felt safe. She caught his scent; a mixture of a day’s work and a spicy Lynx deodorant. It wasn’t unpleasant. ‘Maybe we should hit the sack. It’s been a long day.’

  Maddy nodded at him.

  ‘Come upstairs, and I’ll show you where everything is.’

  Exhausted emotionally and physically, Maddy was relieved to follow Harry up the stairs. Whether she would sleep would be another thing, but she knew she needed to lie down. He gestured towards the bathroom which was the first door on the right, at the top of the stairs. Of course she knew this, it was her house, only decorated differently.

  ‘I haven’t had a chance to decorate yet,’ Harry said, as if reading her mind. The bathroom was very pink and floral, reminding her of the old couple who had lived in the house previously.

  Maybe the tiredness made her smirk. ‘At least the suite is white, so it’s a case of just a lick of paint.’

  ‘And changing those hideous tiles,’ Harry said, shuddering.

  Maddy giggled briefly. ‘Oh, I thought the flowers were so you.’

  ‘What with being a landscape gardener?’

  ‘Absolutely.’

  Harry gave her a speculative look, as if appreciating her teasing, and opened the bathroom cabinet above the sink. ‘I think I have a new toothbrush in here. Hope you can cope with it being blue.’

  ‘Blue’s fine. Might have been a different story if I was eight.’ Maddy’s eyes widened as she stared inside the cabinet. ‘Wow. There’s enough drugs in there to open a pharmacy.’ Too late – she’d opened her mouth and said the first thing that had entered her head.

  Harry slammed the door shut. ‘Here you go.’ He handed Maddy the new toothbrush still in its packaging.

  She gulped and started fiddling with the toothbrush packaging. It was none of her business why he had so many tablets hoarded away, although if he was a complete psychopath, and she was staying under his roof for one night, maybe she needed to know. Was she safe? Now you are being overdramatic. He probably has a very good reason for the tablets. Maddy struggled with the packaging trying to take out the toothbrush, which was an impossible task even when sober. The perforated card would never tear.

  Ignoring Maddy’s comment about the prescribed drugs in his cabinet, Harry took the toothbrush and ripped it out from the plastic wrapper with ease.

  ‘Sorry, I’ve had too much vodka.’ She hoped this sounded like a good excuse for her blurting out rubbish, and the fact she couldn’t open toothbrush packaging without scissors.

  ‘Do you want to shower?’

  Maddy shook her head. She’d have one in the morning. Now she needed sleep.

  ‘Clean towels are in the airing cupboard, help yourself.’

  ‘Okay.’

  Harry led her to the master bedroom. A king-size metal framed bed took centre stage, with navy blue bed linen clashing with the pastel green chintzy wallpaper. ‘Like I said, I haven’t decorated yet. Wanted to move in and get settled first.’

  ‘Of course.’ Maddy became tongue-tied, the meds in the cabinet eating at her curiosity.

  ‘I need to pinch a couple of pillows, if that’s okay, and I’ll be downstairs. I’ll let you use the bathroom first.’

  ‘Oh, Harry, could I borrow a T-shirt or something, please … to sleep in?’ She didn’t fancy sleeping naked. But she’d been wearing these clothes all day, and probably would need to wear them all day again tomorrow if she wasn’t going to be allowed back in her house.

  ‘Yes, of course, sorry.’ He rummaged in a chest of drawers opposite the bed and pulled out a white pinstriped shirt. ‘This is too small for me now. Use this.’

  ‘Thank you,’ she said, taking the shirt. ‘And thank you, Harry, for everything. You didn’t need to take me in.’

  ‘What are neighbours for?’

  Sookie padded into the room, and jumped onto Harry’s bed, and immediately started washing and purring, as if Maddy and Harry didn’t exist.

  ‘Do you mind if she sleeps in here?’

  ‘No, it’s fine,’ Harry replied, but his expression didn’t match the words he spoke. ‘Right, I’ll let you sleep.’ Harry gave a gentle wave, and as he walked downstairs, Maddy entered the bathroom and locked the door.

  She cleaned her teeth, and assessed the dark circles under her eyes, hoping some sleep would reduce their dullness tomorrow. Splashing her face with cold water helped remove some of the puffiness. She stared at her reflection in the mirrors of the bathroom cabinet. Behind those mirrors contained Harry’s drugs. She thought of taking a better look, but resisted, fearing he would hear the clicking of the magnets on the cabinet as she opened and shut the doors. And anyway it wasn’t any of her business.

  Her mother had brought her up properly not to be a snoop. Or was it Dad?

  ‘I’m finished in the bathroom,’ Maddy called down the stairs, then closed the bedroom door behind her.

&nb
sp; Under the watchful eye of Sookie curled up on the bed, Maddy stripped off her clothes, neatly piling them up and buttoned up the shirt Harry had given her. It may have been too small for Harry, but luckily on Maddy’s petite form, although long in the arms, it covered her bottom nicely making a good night shirt. If caught out in the middle of the night using the bathroom, at least she’d still keep some of her dignity.

  She slid underneath the duvet, and once comfortable turned off the lamp by the bed. She was in darkness until her eyes adjusted to the street lighting that bled between the curtains.

  She closed her eyes and listened, hearing Harry leave the bathroom, pulling the cord to turn the light off, and the sound of the toilet cistern refilling. All normal sounds, and not dissimilar to her own home’s, yet she tensed, feeling alien and uncomfortable. She was sleeping in a stranger’s bed. A man she’d hated this morning. Sookie didn’t seem bothered, so maybe Maddy needed to take a leaf out of her cat’s book and try to sleep. Things would look better in the morning, wouldn’t they?

  ***

  With the taste of the pills he’d just swallowed still on his tongue, Harry closed the bathroom door as quietly as he could. He winced, pulling a face. Would he ever get used to those things? Usually he swallowed them, then cleaned his teeth to disguise their chalky, rancid taste. But with everything running around his brain, aware he had a house guest and wondering whether she was comfortable and settled, he’d forgotten to take his medication until he was about to leave the bathroom.

  Harry found the spare duvet in the junk room of bedroom three. It really was the ‘box room’, the amount of boxes he still had stacked up. Too small for a bedroom, one day it would be his study. One day. He needed to find the strength to sort through the boxes. He knew there would be some memorabilia, photos that would remind him of Karin. He wasn’t ready for to face them yet.

  Having grabbed some bed linen from the airing cupboard, he made up his bed on the larger of his sofas. In the past, he’d slept well on this sofa, as a fireman and working shifts and not wanting to wake Karin. Only in a different house … their house … Nowadays, his medication made him drowsy, so he’d sleep better than Maddy’s cat on this sofa tonight.