A Rough Kind of Magic

by Louise James

  “I would love to see it sometime. Look! Here is a book on Land rovers. Does it cover yours?”

  “Yes it does. Here’s a picture of it.”

  “Which one is yours, is it this or this?” She moved close holding the book for Greg to lean over her shoulder to see. The same perfume she had worn on the night of the dance wafted as she moved, woodsy and sensual. He felt the same jolt he had felt before.

  “Yes that’s it I’ll get this one and those other two. I had better stop or I shall be taking them all.” Moving reluctantly away from her he picked up the books going out to the front desk to pay.

  “Have you time for a coffee, Olwen?” He took pleasure in saying her name out loud at last. To his disappointment she shook her head.

  “It’s sorry I am but I don’t have the time now.” The inflection in her voice he still couldn’t place, the accent or the twist of some of her words.

  “But might I be coming to see your Land rover one day when I next come to Granny’s or perhaps you wish to be keeping it to yourself until it’s finished?”

  “Of course not, I mean yes. I would like to show it to you if you are really keen to see it. It’s in a bit of a mess at the moment–“Greg found himself stuttering and mentally cursed himself.

  “Right, I must be getting back to work tomorrow. I have had a few days off but I must get to it again but I will call next time I’m down.”

  “What do you do?” He was loath to let her go.

  “I teach Art and design at Worcester College. I have a flat there during term time but I like to come down to Granny’s in the holidays or as often as I can. My mother can’t make it often as she lives and works in London with a full social life. If I didn’t have to be working at all, I would stay with Granny. It’s wonderful there and I adore her.” Greg tried hard not to show amusement as he hadn’t found anything even remotely adorable about Bronwyn Rhys.

  “Anyway Greg I must go, nice to see you again. I will call one day. See you.”

  She swung off down the street with a long striding walk, not waiting for a reply. Greg felt as if the sun had gone in, yet he was exultant, he had met her again and she wanted to see him again. He was well pleased by his visit to Hay on Wye, collecting his purchases and fish and chips which he ate as he drove he took the road to home almost happy, passing the Witch’s cottage he grinned to himself ‘Adorable indeed.’ He couldn’t help wondering as he put his shopping away and made up the fire, remembering the conversation at The Copper Beech he wished that he had paid more attention to it. How had it gone? ‘surprised to see her at the dance hadn’t seen her much since the split up’ surely in heaven’s name she wasn’t married but then she was old enough to have been married and have a couple of kids as well. He was surprised to be dismayed at the thought. He mentally shook himself. What business of his was it anyway? He had only met her three times in all. She was just a very beautiful, unusual woman who intrigued him. What man wouldn’t be? That combination of red hair, grey eyes and soft lilting voice; she was dynamite and he was vulnerable and stupid, a cold voice spoke in his head. What have you to offer any girl let alone one as special as this one appeared to be? You have no money, no job, no life, you dare not get involved with anyone ever unless you get a transplant and quickly, you don’t even have time. Depression hit him with a force that he thought he’d conquered and he laid his head on his arms and wept with despair, self-pity and frustration. It was dark when he woke. He had managed with a terrible effort of will power to stop himself once more lashing out and had merely cried himself to sleep like a child once again longing for his mother- It had been a huge mistake to come here. He should pack up and go home. It had been great when Ray was here and he had been kept from thinking. He despised himself for not telling Ray the truth. He was weak minded, he should put the farm on the market and let his mother spoil him, he should spend his last months with his parents, God knows they would suffer enough when he went. The least he could do was to give them some time before it happened. He’d ring them first thing in the morning; at this point he must have fallen asleep, he wasn’t sure what woke him. He was cold and saw the fire had burnt almost away he knelt to make it up with more logs. He’d take his medication and go to bed, sort it all out in the morning. Pain gripped his back and chest and he cursed as he took his drugs.

  Suddenly he heard it again, the sound that had woken him, a whining noise and a faint scuffling, not rats surely as he and Ray had put down enough poison to kill an army and they hadn’t seen one since. There it was again, a whine that was coming from the backdoor of the house. This had been overgrown and impossible to open but thanks to Tod, it was now clear and opened easily. Greg picked up his keys and a torch flicking on the house lights as he went. Opening the door he shone the torch down the garden. The wind was rising and rain spotted his face as he peered out. He stepped outside, the weather was deteriorating and a storm brewing, setting the trees creaking in a rush of wind. He flashed the torch over the garden and on to his watch; it was turned midnight and he couldn’t see anything, it must have been the wind he decided turning back to the house. He heard a whine clearly this time nearer the door, flashing the torch he caught the gleam of animal eyes. He stepped forward warily as the animal whined again piteously, carefully Greg moved forward instinctively uttering soothing sounds, cursing when the wind caught the door slamming it shut. The animal never moved just gave another moan. Greg crouched down shining the torch on a black and brown head with a white blaze. “Hello boy who are you? Where are you hurt? Are you going to let me take a look?”

  He extended a hand gingerly towards the dog but it appeared too distressed to be aggressive. He touched the head slowly, talking while creeping his fingers around its ears; the light showing a sticky mass of blood and mud around the animal’s neck, gently he let his hand drop around–-‘God almighty! Who the hell has done this? I’ll kill them. It’s alright boy good dog. His creeping fingers had found a wire or string so deep around the animal’s throat it felt embedded in the flesh itself. The poor creature was very weak but had somehow crawled from somewhere to his door. Greg dashed back into the house and grabbing a rug off the settee wrapped the dog as gently as possible carrying it back into the kitchen. It was a terrible sight, he could see the wire now but it had cut too deep into the dog’s neck for him to remove it. He grabbed the phone book quickly finding the number for an emergency vet in Hay who arranged to meet him at the surgery in half an hour. He gave Greg directions, warning him not to give the dog food or water. Getting the dog into the pick-up was easy, although not small it was very light, probably half-starved thought Greg flying down the hill. The roads were empty and the vet waiting, after examining the animal he sedated him and started cutting away the fur showing clearly the wire which was as Greg feared embedded in the flesh. “Rabbit wire” muttered the vet as he removed it. An hour passed before the wound was cleansed, stitched and injections given.

  “There you are fella.’ The vet ripped off his gloves flinging them in the bin. “I think you will feel more comfortable tomorrow although I shall keep him tonight in case there is any trouble in the throat. I want to see him drink and eat some soft stuff before I let him go. He put his head in the wire intended for some poor fox or rabbit, dammed bloody practice, animal can’t get free and either gets it’s throat cut or suffocates. The amount of cats brought in is ridicules. This chap was lucky, he obviously was able to pull the stake out of the ground or break it at the spike. Whoever sets these things needs one around his balls in my opinion?”

  “I quite agree” said Greg. “I’ll take a look around tomorrow and see if I can find where he crawled from, might give us a clue if we know whose land it was on”

  “Give me a call in the morning.” Simon Hill placed the dog in a padded cage at the back of the surgery. “I’ll look in on him later I’m off duty at six so you might get my colleague Sam when you phone. As I said provided he can breathe properly, eat
and drink he can go. He’s starved and his coat is rough as if he has been outside for some time. Maybe he’s been abandoned. He’s too dirty to see what he really looks like but he is a collie and someone could have lost their working dog. He’s not very old either about two I would say there may be a reward out for him. Your locals may know, they usually know one others dogs. I’ll put the word out.’

  “I’ll make enquiries too. Greg replied taking care of the bill. Thanks for all you’ve done.’ The vet smiled and locked the door behind him.

  The next morning Greg tried to follow a line in the direction that the dog may have come. It was difficult as rain in the night had obliterated any blood or paw marks although he found a gap in the garden hedge where there were traces of fur. Greg had to assume that he had come through the orchard so he followed coming out on the hill where the fern being young and tender showed where the dog had rolled in his agony. Going very slowly because his breath was going and the familiar pain starting, he realised that he shouldn’t be doing this. He sat for a long while until he felt comfortable again. Continuing a while later he found himself in a short space of time under the great rock. Out of breath again he sat on a stone and looked at the great mass ahead of him. Here his grandfather had sheltered from storms and sent Rocky out across the hill to bring the sheep down for shearing or lambing. His granny had based all her stories on this place. Here his father had played as a child with neighbouring children having been warned to watch for adders, that deadly little snake that sunned itself on the rocks on hot days. Rocky had once been bitten on the face when he jumped on a rock where the snake was sleeping. Grandfather carried him over his shoulder to the farm and sent word to the local vet who travelled around on horseback. Rocky was given an antidote but had a swollen face for a couple of days, they thought they had lost Rocky then. Greg smiled to himself; it was here his father had brought his mother one summer day when they were courting and proposed on one knee in the fern; what was it the local lads called it when you went courting on the hill? Fern tickets that was it when you took a girl into the fern; bet father got a few. Greg grinned to himself. After a while he struggled to the foot of the rock itself it towered above him, how he would have loved to climb to the top. Grandad had told him that on a clear day you could see all the way to Hereford, Hay and beyond with the whole of the Golden Valley stretching out beneath you like a kingdom. What a sight it must have been when the valley was golden with corn and tiny cattle motionless like toys on a model farm. He sighed and looked about him at first he could only see broken fern but on moving around the base of the rock a little he found a cleft large enough to take a fox or a dog and his point was proved, something had been going in and out recently, hunting in wider circle he came to a space where something had threshed about violently bearing evidence of the agony the poor animal had suffered as it frantically tried to lose the noose about its throat. He noticed a stick lying in the fern picking it up he held the evidence; the pronged hook from the end of a rabbit wire snapped off at the base. ‘Why was he hiding up here anyway?’ There were no more answers here on the hill so Greg made his way very slowly down to phone the vet.

  “Yes you can pick him up, he’s on his feet. He’s had some soft food and a drink of milk and although it’s sore for him that will wear off in about a week. If you get any problems bring him back but he should be fine.” Greg told him what he had found. The vet thought that had been the cause. ‘He’s been living rough and got unlucky. See you in about an hour then If you want to take him otherwise I’ll ring the RSPCA’.

  “Thanks.” Greg replied. “I’ll ring the local police to see if anybody’s reported him missing and be with you as soon as I can.’

  Police Constable Jeff Arnott had lived in the village for ten years and knew everyone around. “I’ve had no reports of a dog missing.” He said when Greg rang him. “I’ll have good look at him when you bring him back and put it about. No one’s reported any sheep worrying either since last year but I would like to find the wire setter as well. Alright sir, let me know how the dog goes on and I will do my best to find his owner.”

  Greg collected the dog that afternoon. He was surprised to be greeted with a tail wag and allowed himself to be lifted into the truck.

  “You are friendly aren’t you for a wild dog? Let’s get you home and feed you up a bit. Phew! You stink a warm bath wouldn’t go amiss and probably a flea treatment too.” Stopping only to pick up a selection of dog food mostly tinned because of the soft content, a bottle of shampoo and various other powders. Greg took him home, after a good bath which he didn’t enjoy, Greg wrapped him in a big towel to dry him off, he emerged a very attractive black and white collie with a brown and white face and white socks.

  “I expect someone is looking for you but in the meantime I shall call you Rocky like Granddad’s dog. I would love to keep you but someone must already own you.” He took him down stairs where he made a good meal of soft meat and warm milk after which he curled up in the box that Greg found for him and went to sleep.

  Chapter 17

  Olwen drove back to Worcester with some trepidation. She was looking forward to going back to her classes but with a reluctance to face her flat. She still had a lurking fear that somehow Aiden would still be around. She knew she was being irrational as he had left for Ireland, the college had written to her and Alicia had phoned her, other friends had texted her but still the feeling persisted. She knew she would get over it in time but the first thing she had to do was change her accommodation; she was sure the college would find her somewhere else in the circumstances but even the thought of the next week in the flat and the packing everything up worried her. Bronwyn had told her not to be so silly and to believe what she was told otherwise she was going to remain paranoid about the whole thing. Driving into the car park she found herself looking around for Aiden’s car; telling herself not to be so stupid, she carried her packages to the front door hesitating before she put the key in the lock. The flat looked dusty but as she had left it except a red light was flashing on her answer machine. She felt sick dreading to pick it up. Determinedly she put the kettle on and made a cup of tea staring out of the window while she waited for it to boil only when she had drunk half of it did she gently press play. Her worst fears realised Aiden’s voice.

  “I’m glad it is you answering this. I hope you are pleased with yourself”- she backed away until she felt the table behind her; every instinct was telling her to turn it off and delete but she was frozen unable to move almost forced to listen.

  “You didn’t wait for me to apologise for startling you as I did but you above all people should have realised that I never meant to hurt you but you couldn’t wait could you? You went running to people who don’t have your best interests at heart. As a result you have lost everything we had together. You have cost me my job and my friends. I’m sorry but we can’t be together anymore. I can’t trust you not to shout every time we make love because that’s all it was silly girl. Anyway this is goodbye. I am going back to Ireland. I have a job at a university in Belfast. They aren’t so snobbish there. I did love you; knew that though didn’t you? Bye! Be happy if you can. You may have to change a little though.”

  She stood still a long time until the feeling came back to her legs and she was able to move. She managed to get to the machine delete the message and switching it off. She was shaking, wanted to tell someone but didn’t know who to call. She wasn’t going to worry Bronwyn and Alicia was away. She had other friends but didn’t think they would be very interested. Suddenly Greg Morgan came to mind, why she had no idea but she suddenly felt he would have understood. She gave herself a mental shake, she didn’t know the man, she must be going daft, better to get on, have something to eat and plan her next move. First see about getting another flat and another phone she wouldn’t put it past Aiden to try to reach her again when he felt like it.

  Uneasy as she was she finally fell asleep but her sleep was m
uddled and full of dreams none of which she could remember with clarity when she woke. She couldn’t wait for breakfast so keen she was to speak to the director and get back to her classes. It appeared that it might be several weeks until the college could accommodate her with housing as understanding as they were, her name was placed forward on the accommodation list but that was the best they could do. They advised her to try for an exchange among her friends and colleagues but after another restless night she made up her mind to rent privately in the town itself. After her classes she visited several estate agents coming away with a list of properties, she had no idea what time she would have to visit them all. Eight o’clock that evening after visiting several, she was tired out, hadn’t liked any of them and dreaded going to bed; the phone rang, with her heart in her mouth hoping it was Bronwyn she slowly picked up the receiver, to her surprise it was her mother Alwen ringing from France. She had heard from Bronwyn and was worried about her daughter. ‘First time for everything.’ thought Olwen ungraciously but really thrilled and relieved to hear from her. They had never been really close but maybe now would be a good time to talk. The conversation took some time as Olwen relived the events for her mother filling in the gaps she had been embarrassed to tell her grandmother. Alwen listened in silence but her only advice was exactly what Olwen had decided for herself. She was unable to come over at the moment to be with her daughter as she had as she said ‘commitments’ without explaining what they were. She would be over later in the summer and advised Olwen not to get involved with anyone else until she was certain they were as she put it ‘reliable’. After telling her to keep in touch and repeating how much she loved her and how shocked she had been to hear of Olwen’s problems and how worried and upset she had been. ‘I haven’t slept for nights Darling, please be careful and let me know where you are. Bye Sweetheart. Keep in touch, Bye”