‘Working late. Stacey was waiting to meet someone about childminding. They were running late, so she was just having a swift drink before they got there. And then he turned up. She says as soon as her couple came, he realised he wasn’t going to get what he wanted and went to sit somewhere else. She left pretty quickly once her folks had gone but not before she saw him cosying up to the barmaid.’
‘Poor girl,’ Zoe said with an involuntary shudder. ‘And no wonder Stacey was weird with me this morning in the shop.’
‘She doesn’t blame you,’ Ottilie said.
‘But I suppose I’m involved by association. I mean, he’s almost family– much as I hate the idea. Has she told Simon what happened?’
‘No, and I haven’t told Heath. I know Simon isn’t the type to confront him about it, but Heath would. And Stacey knows if she tells Simon, he’s bound to say something to Heath. So we agreed it was better to keep schtum. The last thing we want is one of them in the hospital – and Chantal’s brother looks as if he could do a decent job of that.’
‘We had a run-in with him on the hills walking Grizzle,’ Zoe said. ‘And Alex didn’t take to him – I had the same thought, trust me. So, what do you think I should do?’
‘I don’t know. I wasn’t going to tell you.’
‘I’m glad you did, but I think you’re right – we need to keep the men out of it. Well, our men. I might have to speak to my dad.’
‘Could you talk to Chantal?’
Zoe shook her head. ‘I don’t think so. I mean, it’s her brother, isn’t it? I know how I’d react if someone came to me with that sort of accusation about my brother – it would be hard to believe. Though I don’t know what I’ll say, even if I do see my dad. I mean, OK, Lennon came on a bit heavy, and he can’t control what’s in his pants – or his dog. It’s not like that’s breaking news – there are plenty out there like that, and he hasn’t actually committed a crime.’
‘If you’d seen how shaken Stacey was, you might think differently.’
‘Yes, but it’s still her word against his, and that’s hard to do anything with.’ Zoe sat up. ‘I suppose I could speak to Lennon.’
Ottilie stared at her. ‘And say what?’
‘Just tell him how small Thimblebury is, how bad behaviour is soon found out and that he needs to cool it. I also need to find out just how long he’s intending to stay. Nobody’s told me.’ Zoe paused, thoughtful. ‘You know, at the wedding my brother said something that stuck with me. He said he felt as if Chantal’s family had some kind of weird hold over my dad, and I’m beginning to think it might be true. Because my dad would never have had someone like Lennon around, not the dad I know anyway. There’s a reason he’s being so tolerant.’
‘HeisChantal’s brother,’ Ottilie said. ‘Maybe that’s all it is.’
‘I suppose it could be, but it doesn’t seem that way. God knows what the truth is. I can’t even say I’ll get to the bottom of it if I go and see them, but I might be able to work out some of what’s going on. And in fairness, it’s about time I went over – I’ve just been too busy to visit since they moved in, and I ought to take a housewarming gift. It’s a perfect excuse.’
‘What about Alex? He’ll expect to go with you, won’t he? So if you don’t want him to know about any of this, how are you going to pull off a solo visit?’
Zoe shrugged. ‘I’ll think of something. I’m going to have to.’
Ottilie looked sceptical, and Zoe tried not to think that she might be right to.
As Zoe drove back up to Hilltop, she grinned at the sight of Victor’s Land Rover behind her, pulling a livestock trailer. It had to be the new rescue alpaca, the pregnant one he’d told them he was going to pick up. The stresses of the past week or so were instantly forgotten, replaced by a childish excitement. She peeped her horn and waved, and the rear-view mirror showed him waving back, his bushy hair and bushier beard almost obscuring his face, a big smile only peeking out amongst it.
When their paths eventually diverged so that he could go to Daffodil Farm and her to Hilltop, she decided to turn the car around and follow him. He pulled up a couple of minutes later in the yard, and Zoe did the same.
‘Ah!’ he greeted as she got out of the car. ‘You’ve missed me so much you just had to come and say hello, is that it?’
‘I didn’t even know you’d gone,’ Zoe said with a light laugh. ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about.’
‘Oh, so if it’s not me, then you must be desperate to see someone else…’
He went round to the back of the trailer and leaned into the opening, murmuring soothing words to the animal inside. Zoe walked over and stood on tiptoes, trying to see in.
‘Give her a minute,’ Victor said. ‘Let her get used to having stopped. When she’s calm, she can come out and say hello.’
Zoe could only make out the fuzz of a black head. ‘Oh she’s black! Is she black all over, or black and white? Or something different?’
‘She’s got a couple of white patches, but mostly black. Right pretty, she is.’
Just then, Corrine came out of the house to greet them. She offered Victor a brief kiss and then turned to Zoe. ‘How are you, my love? How’s Billie and Louisa?’
‘They’re fine,’ Zoe said. ‘Louisa is putting on weight nicely. Billie’s tired a lot, but she’s coping.’
