Maddie smiled at the woman serving and then back at Charlotte.
‘It’s fine. It’s not as if any of us is vegetarian. You wanted the real thing. It doesn’t get much more real than this.’
They watched the person beside them in the queue, who was handed a disposable plate with a hefty portion of everything on it, except the meat. Then the man proceeded to point at aparticular piece of goat’s meat, which was weighed on a scale, wrapped in a piece of greaseproof paper with an amount in euros written on it, and passed along.
After picking out their meat, tiny amounts for Sofia and Charlotte, and a nice big chunk on the bone for Maddie, they moved along to the drinks station, which was manned solely by men, who’d been completely absent from the food stations. Whichever way you looked at it, and particularly for their age group, Greece was still a patriarchal society, but they weren’t here for a political debate.
‘Krasí, býra í neró?’
They’d all learnt the basics for wine, beer and water by now, and opted for white wine and water, which was handed over in big plastic bottles.
‘Surely we won’t drink all this ourselves?’ Charlotte gripped her bottle of wine like it was a dangerous weapon.
Maddie smiled at her friend.
‘Never say never.’
They’d reached the end of the line where two men stood with a tin full of cash. The total was nothing compared to a meal in a restaurant.
‘The villagers provide all the food and drink themselves, donating their own animals and salad ingredients, so that every penny goes to the community,’ Charlotte piped up as Sofia handed over the joint money.
Maddie clamped the bottle of water under her arm as both hands were full.
‘Yes, you’ve told us that already.’
‘So sorry if I’m overloading you with information.’
Maddie bumped shoulders with her friend.
‘Don’t get on your high horse. We love your facts. Now, where shall we sit?’
Sofia had already made straight for a table that consisted mainly of men under the age of forty. One of them immediately budged up to make room for her, and Maddie and Charlotte slotted in on the other side.
The serious business of eating and drinking stopped any conversation for a while and Maddie noted that even Charlotte had finished every bit of her tasty goat.
Gentle music floated through the night air as the plates were cleared from the tables by the aproned women, and people showed their appreciation for the food by clapping and cheering.
The three of them hollered along with the rest.
Sofia nodded at the bottles on the table.
‘Pour the wine, Char. We’ve still got two bottles to get through.’
Charlotte filled up two paper cups with wine but only put water in her own cup. She didn’t want a repeat of Sickgate in Thea’s lovely hotel. Drinking so much that night had taken her somewhere she wasn’t quite ready to go. The time for action was getting closer, and the need to make decisions was hurtling towards her like an oncoming storm. Telling her friends exactly what was wrong wasn’t an option until she allowed herself to fully examine how she felt. She either needed to make friends with the gremlin sitting on her shoulder or push it off. The thought of Doug as a gremlin made her smile for a moment.
‘Char, watch out! It’s going all over the table.’
Sofia’s voice pulled her back to the present. Her friend grabbed the first cup of wine and swigged it down, demanding an instant refill seconds later, which went the same way.
‘Wouldn’t it be easier to drink it straight from the bottle?’
Sofia stuck out her tongue.
‘You’re not on the wine express yourself then?’
She’d asked for that. Charlotte stuck out her own tongue.
‘No, I’m not planning on decorating my hotel room with a goat special tonight.’
