Chapter Thirty
The church looked like something out of a Christmas card, Mandy thought as she walked through the ancient oak doors. There were garlands of holly and ivy and thick candles on the window ledges. To the side of the altar, a towering fir tree had been decorated with paper hearts and stars which were gently shedding glitter onto the flagstones. The children from the nursery school were already massing in the vestry when Mandy arrived. When Jimmy had left her at the rescue centre earlier, he’d asked her to meet him at a quarter past six for the seven o’clock performance. Mandy wasn’t sure why, but she had come early as requested.
The nursery nativity, with its mince-pie supper, had become a staple Welford event, but this was the first time it had been held in the church. Soon half the village would arrive to watch their children and grandchildren, nieces, nephews and friends. But for now, all the chatter was emanating from the room at the back of the church.
Walking down the side-aisle, Mandy squinted past the small group of parents outside the vestry door to the tumble of tea towel headdresses and tinsel crowns beyond. Susan Collins, her smart trouser suit offset by a sparkling bow on her head, was marshalling the children into some kind of order, though to Mandy’s inexperienced eye it seemed chaos was not far from the surface.
A small girl, dressed in what looked like a blue nightie, was having a white scarf draped around her head. ‘I think that’s you almost ready, Angela.’ Taking a step back, Susan surveyed the effect. ‘Do you know where baby Jesus is?’ The little girl nodded. Turning, she pointed to the doll that was lying on the table in the corner.
‘And now you, Gavin.’ Susan moved on to the young boy in a brown dressing gown who was presumably playing Joseph.
‘Please, Miss Susan, I need the toilet!’
Mandy wanted to laugh. At least he had piped up before the performance. She wasn’t sure if the stable in Bethlehem offered bathroom facilities.
‘I’ll take him.’ One of the smartly-dressed mothers from outside the door stepped into the room and held out her hand. ‘Come on, Gavin.’
‘Thanks.’ Susan threw the woman a grateful glance. She looked surprisingly calm, Mandy thought. In the same situation, she would be tearing her hair out. For a millisecond, she considered going in and offering to help. Then one of the children, dressed as a lamb and bleating loudly, bounded past her, followed closely by a cow wielding a pair of long plastic horns. It was tough enough wrangling real animals, Mandy thought. Better leave these critters to people who knew what they were doing.
Despite insisting that she arrive early, there was no sign of Jimmy. Turning her back on the young cast, Mandy made her way back out to the churchyard. She dug her hands in her pockets against the biting cold and walked across the well-gritted path. The graveyard looked tranquil under its blanket of snow. There was still a covering on the village green as well, though children had been playing there with sledges, leaving dark green scores in the pristine white. When Mandy stopped and looked up, the sky above was filled with stars.
From a long way off, she heard the roar of a vehicle. A few moments later, a pair of round headlights appeared. It was a Land Rover towing a livestock trailer. To Mandy’s surprise, it came to a halt in front of the church gates.
The door on the far side of the vehicle opened and closed. Booted footsteps rang on the road, walking round to the back. A tall figure in a green jacket with a jaunty red hat appeared under the yellow streetlamp. It was Jimmy. He grinned when he saw the look on Mandy’s face. ‘Hello,’ he said.
Mandy looked from his amused face to the trailer and back again. There was a scuffling noise from inside, followed by an odd grunting sound. Mandy stared. ‘What on earth have you got there?’
If anything, the grin on Jimmy’s face widened. ‘Just you wait and see,’ he said.
He slipped off the catches at the back of the trailer. As he lowered the ramp, Mandy peered past him. In the darkness, she could make out two short white tails above two pairs of slim hind legs. When one of the creatures turned its head to peer at them, revealing velvety brown antlers, she gasped. ‘Reindeer?’ She looked at Jimmy in amazement.
‘I’ve borrowed them,’ Jimmy announced, ‘from Father Christmas. Aren’t they fabulous? Mandy Hope, meet Dancer,’ he gestured towards the smaller of the pair, ‘and Blitzen.’
Mandy looked back at the beautiful animals. ‘What exactly are you planning to do with them?’
Jimmy stepped up onto the ramp. ‘They’re going to be in the nativity,’ he said. ‘I did discuss it with Susan,’ he added. ‘I know it’s not completely traditional.’ His voice was tight with suppressed laughter.
Following Jimmy, Mandy climbed into the trailer for a closer look. How sweet they were, with their shaggy grey bodies and fuzzy antlers. Both were wearing red-trimmed velvet halters. She wanted so badly to touch them.
‘Where are they really from?’ she asked. Unable to resist, she ran a hand down Dancer’s shoulder. Her fur was thick and soft, reminding Mandy more of the baby donkeys than any native species of deer.
‘They belong to some friends of mine who moved to a place near Walton a couple of weeks ago,’ Jimmy said. ‘They own a small herd. They’ve had to pop into Harper’s, but they’ll be here soon.’ He too seemed unable to stop himself stroking them. ‘So what do you think?’ Jimmy prompted. He had his head on one side, looking for her approval.
‘Quite mad …’ Mandy replied, watching as his grin faltered, ‘… and yet absolutely brilliant,’ she added, raising her eyebrows at him as he growled and shook his head at her.
For a moment, she thought he was going to lean over the back of Dancer and kiss her, but the headlights of another car drew up behind the trailer, illuminating them. Mandy blinked in the bright lights, then a moment later, they went out. The doors on either side of the car opened. A woman climbed out of the driver’s seat and walked towards them. Her long blonde hair was tied on top of her head and she was wearing a Scandinavian-style sweater. A man in a matching jumper approached from the other side of the car.
Jimmy ushered Mandy out of the trailer towards them, nodding a welcome. ‘Mandy Hope, meet Ed and Ania Legg,’ he said. ‘Proud owners of the Rydal Reindeers.’
Ania held out her hand. ‘Good to meet you,’ she said.
‘Absolutely. We’ve heard all about you.’ Ed shook hands with Mandy and slapped Jimmy on the shoulder.
‘We should get the reindeer inside,’ Jimmy said, ‘get them settled before everyone starts to arrive.’
Ed and Ania clipped ropes onto the velvet halters and led each reindeer neatly down the ramp. They walked calmly beside their handlers, their huge limpid eyes looking curiously at the snowy graveyard and the spark-ling church.
Mandy tried to imagine getting Robin and Holly up the steps of the church and in through the porch. It would cause a battle royale with her baby donkeys. But Dancer and Blitzen seemed to take everything in their stride, even as a host of miniature angels descended upon them, coming to a wide-eyed halt in a circle around the two animals. Susan Collins was obviously waiting for them. She walked down the side-aisle with a smile on her face, leading Jack by the hand and followed by sundry kings and shepherds, now fully costumed and ready to go.
‘How wonderful,’ she said. ‘Thank you, Jimmy. And thanks to you.’ She nodded at the Leggs with a friendly look. ‘You must be Ed and Ania.’
Ania smiled at the children. ‘This is Dancer,’ she put her hand on the distinctive withers of the smaller reindeer, ‘and this is Blitzen.’
The look of wonder on the children’s faces brought an unexpected lump to Mandy’s throat. And how wonderful for Jack, she thought. Finally getting to see his reindeer. Jimmy too was watching the small boy.
‘Where did they come from?’ Jack’s voice was barely more than a whisper. He was staring as if he could hardly believe his eyes. Mandy was thrilled to look at his pink cheeks and bright eyes. He clearly hadn’t suffered any lasting effects from his fall down the mineshaft. She suspected Susan knew how lucky he had been.
‘I’ve borrowed them from Father Christmas,’ Jimmy announced in a serious voice. ‘Tomorrow night, they’ll be very busy indeed, so we’ll have to look after them, won’t we?’ There were wide eyes and nods all round.
Ania Legg pulled something out of her pocket. Bending down, she beckoned Jack over. ‘Would you like to give Dancer a piece of carrot?’
Jack seemed almost unable to breathe. ‘Yes please.’ It was little more than a sigh. Mandy wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry. She put a hand over her mouth as the small boy, his dark eyes huge in the dim light, approached the two reindeer. With reverence, he held out his hand, the piece of carrot flat on his open palm as Mandy had shown him with the donkeys. When Blitzen put down his head and snaffled up the morsel, Mandy found herself smiling. Jack’s face blazed with delight. His dream had come true. He had met some of Father Christmas’s reindeer.
Jimmy winked at Mandy. She guessed he felt pretty much like Father Christmas right now. The children had begun to whisper amongst themselves and jostle to get nearer the reindeer, but before they grew too restless, Jimmy crouched down and held up his hands. ‘You’ll have more time to speak to them afterwards,’ he said, ‘but right now, they have to go into their pen. Otherwise they won’t be ready when all your mums and dads get here.’
‘Back into the vestry,’ Susan urged them. With several longing backward glances, the children shuffled away.
To the right of the altar, a small area had been set aside. In addition to props indicating an ‘inn’ and a manger in the middle of the chancel, temporary wooden fencing had been put up and straw had been spread on the floor. The two reindeer looked so sweet, standing with their heads facing the pews. At Jimmy’s suggestion, Mandy sat close to the animals at the front of the church, though she made sure she was sitting near the aisle. The clinic had been quiet today, but emergencies could come in at all hours. She switched her phone to vibrate.
The audience began to arrive, a trickle of people at first, rising to a flood of near-Biblical proportions. Mandy saw many, many faces that she knew. Reverend Hadcroft was there in his dog collar. Mrs Ponsonby had arrived in a smart blue coat and her best church hat. For once she didn’t have her Pekinese with her, to Mandy’s relief.
Despite the influx of friends and acquaintances, all wanting to say hello and wish her season’s greetings, Mandy found it hard to take her eyes off the reindeer. Blitzen didn’t seem to be bothered by the noise and movement at all, but Dancer was restive. Stretching out her neck, she gave the strange croaking, grunting noise that Mandy had heard coming from the trailer outside. Her liquid eyes seemed wary, and she didn’t seem able to stand still, pawing with her front legs at the straw, shifting from foot to foot. It wasn’t surprising, Mandy thought. The chatter of excited voices and clatter of footsteps was loud enough to upset any animal.
She glanced at her watch. Seven o’clock. Silence fell over the audience as, in the background, someone switched on a recording of Little Donkey. From the back of the church, the lights began to go out until only the altar was brightly lit. The two children dressed as oxen walked out with the noisy lamb Mandy had seen earlier. One of the oxen, a boy with huge blue eyes and strawberry blond hair, seemed transfixed by Dancer and Blitzen in their pen. The other ox had to nudge him in the ribs to steer him into position.
Jack trotted onto the stage dressed as the innkeeper in a scarlet shirt and black leggings covered by an apron that was slightly too long. He was also finding it difficult to stop staring at the pen. Mandy followed his gaze. Dancer still seemed uneasy. Lifting a hind leg, she kicked at her belly and again stretched out her head to make the odd lowing sound.
On the far side of the tableau, there came the rattle of hooves. Mandy looked over to see one of the nursery teachers standing in the doorway of the vestry, banging two coconut shells together. Mandy was enchanted when Angela, in full Mary garb, cantered onto the scene, riding a hobby horse. Looking over her shoulder as she galloped towards the inn, she called out, ‘Hurry up, Joseph!’ There were titters of laughter all around the church.
Mandy was just wondering how many times Mary would circle the altar before the hapless Joseph caught her up, when she noticed that Dancer, who had been scraping and scuffling more than ever, was making moves to lie down. Mary had finally come to a stop in front of the inn, but Joseph, whose attention should have been on his pregnant wife, was staring with wide eyes at Dancer in her pen. Raising his hand, he pointed to her back end.
‘She’s doing a wee!’
The girl playing Mary, whom Mandy recognised as the daughter of one of her farm clients, let go of her hobby horse with one hand and swung round to look. Having inspected the situation, she stuck out her chin and turned to Joseph. ‘No, she’s not,’ she said in a voice that brooked no questions. ‘She’s having a baby!’
The audience let out a collective gasp and several small heads appeared at the vestry door, trying to look. Reverend Hadcroft stood up from the other end of Mandy’s pew and faced the audience. Holding his hands up, he said loudly, ‘Is there a vet in the house?’ and with a slightly nervous air, he turned to look at Mandy. ‘Would you mind stepping in, please, Mandy?’
Standing up, Mandy felt very self-conscious under the spotlights. This was the first time she had ever examined a reindeer. And almost all of Welford was there to watch.
Mary had been right, she realised a moment later. There was a tiny hoof protruding from under the doe’s shaggy tail. As Mandy watched, the animal lay down on the straw with a grunt. Her flank bulged as she began to strain. But although the little foot poked out each time the doe heaved, whenever the contraction ended, it was sucked back in. Despite her efforts, the doe was making no progress.
Several children had crowded round the pen, but Jimmy moved them back. ‘We have to give Mandy and Dancer some space,’ he told them. Then he asked Mandy, ‘What do you need?’
‘My lubricant and some ropes,’ she replied. ‘I’ve got them in the car.’ She let herself out of the pen. It was just as well she was on call and had the car with her, she thought. Hurrying outside, she opened the boot of the Toyota and took out the sterilised ropes that she usually used for calving cows. There was an almost full bottle of lube. Finally, she pulled on some arm-length gloves, slammed the boot shut and made her way back into the church.
The children were a little further back from the pen, herded competently by Susan and her staff but the adult audience were all on their feet as they watched Dancer straining and straining. There was still only one foot visible. There should have been another by now, and ideally a tiny nose as well. Climbing into the pen, Mandy dropped to her knees.
When Mandy inserted her hand, she could feel the warmth of the doe’s body. There was very little space in the birth canal, hardly more than a large sheep. As she had suspected, as she moved her hand further inside, she could feel only that single limb. The shoulder was pressing against the bony ring of Dancer’s pelvis. The head and the second leg were twisted back inside the uterus. There was no way the little creature could be born while it remained in that position.
Withdrawing her hand, Mandy lubricated it again and set to work. She had to push back the calf’s shoulder to allow her to guide the second leg and then the head into place. To get into the correct position, she lay down on the floor. She waited as the doe strained again, then as the contraction ended, she pushed the bony shoulder back, reaching her hand in through the pelvic opening. The movement triggered another tightening of the uterus and for a long moment, Mandy felt a bruising pressure on her wrist as she prevented the calf from moving forwards. In the brief pause that followed, she reached in almost to her shoulder and found the second cloven hoof. Gripping it, she drew it forwards, just as the next contraction began.
There were now two feet in the passage. Mandy could feel herself beginning to sweat. Her head was almost touching the reindeer’s tail as she waited, panting, for the contraction to stop.
It was time to bring the head round. Extending her arm once more, she wriggled her fingers past the legs, feeling down the side of the calf’s body. From the angle of the neck, she could tell that it was twisted to the left. As she moved her hand, past the ear, past the eye, right along to the slim muzzle, the straining began again. Gritting her teeth, Mandy waited until the agonising pressure diminished, then in a smooth movement she gripped the tiny nose and drew it towards her. As the next contraction began, the little head swung round into place. This time, as Dancer strained, two small cloven hooves appeared beneath a miniature nose.
There were one or two gasps from the audience as the head began to emerge. Mandy had no need of the ropes. As Dancer groaned and pushed again, and Mandy assisted, the calf surged forwards, nostrils, eyes, ears, shoulders. And then with a final heave, the hips were through the birth canal and the newborn calf was lying on the straw, still half encased in the birth sac.
It wasn’t breathing. Mandy cleared the membrane from the nose. The small body lay still. Looking up, Mandy saw Jimmy standing close beside her. ‘Help me,’ she said. Together they lifted the little creature up by its hind legs. With Mandy’s guidance, they swung the calf gently from side to side and to Mandy’s relief, the fluid that had been filling its airways flooded out. Laying the animal back down on the straw, she cleared its nose again. The little chest jerked and the calf took its first gasping breath.
‘Attagirl,’ Jimmy whispered, and Mandy wondered if he was talking to her or the calf.
It took only a moment for Dancer to scramble to her feet. Turning, she sniffed at the calf and began to lick. Tiny grunts of contentment came from her throat as the calf lifted its head, instinctively reaching for its mother. Mandy heard a collective sigh from the audience, as if they were watching a particularly satisfying firework.
Even the children watched in enthralled silence as the reindeer mother encouraged the little calf to stand for the first time. It tucked its tiny soft hooves underneath it, then in stages, the hind end rose. Mandy watched the weight of the little body swing forwards onto the front knees. The calf tried to extend one of its front feet, but fell back twice. Then, with a swift motion, first one front leg then the other straightened, and the calf was wobbling on all fours, as Dancer continued the sweet grumbling noise that seemed to indicate her delight.
The crowd stayed quiet. Mandy was aware of Reverend Hadcroft beaming over the heads of the children, and of Jack’s face reduced to two huge eyes and a mouth like an O. Dancer seemed oblivious to the fact that she was the centre of so much attention.
The boy playing Joseph raised his hand. ‘Can we call the calf Jesus? Please?’
Mrs Ponsonby, who had been behind Jimmy in the pew next to Mandy, seemed to swell into sight like a balloon. ‘You cannot possibly call a baby reindeer Jesus,’ she insisted in a loud stage whisper. ‘It’s not right.’
Mandy tried not to laugh. She thought Jesus would be a fabulous name for a reindeer. But she took pity on Mrs Ponsonby, who had her heart in the right place.
‘Don’t worry, Mrs Ponsonby,’ she said, then turned to the children. ‘Lovely as the name Jesus is,’ she told them, ‘I’m afraid I don’t think it would suit this new baby.’ She tried to hide her grin as there came a chorus of ‘Why not?’ and ‘Awww, Miss.’ Holding a finger to her lips, she hushed them. ‘It wouldn’t suit this new baby,’ she said, ‘because Jesus is a boy’s name. And this little calf is actually a girl.’
A murmur of laughter ran through the audience. Jimmy’s face was split in two by his broad grin. ‘Why don’t we call her Mary?’ he suggested. There was a chorus of assent from the children.
‘What a lovely name.’ Ania Legg smiled at Jimmy. ‘What do you think, Ed?’ She turned to her husband.
‘I think it’s perfect,’ he said. ‘And that we were very lucky that Mandy was in the audience to help out.’ He smiled his thanks. ‘But I also think we should get Dancer and Mary home, so they can get to know one another in peace.’ Mandy looked at Dancer, who was starting to look distracted by the rows of faces watching. Mary the calf needed to start feeding, but Dancer’s milk would only come down if she was relaxed.
Ed was frowning. ‘I think we’re going to have to make two journeys,’ he said. ‘We can’t take all three of them in the trailer.’
Mandy stepped forward. ‘If it would help,’ she said, ‘I could take Blitzen back to Hope Meadows for the night. He’d have to share the paddock and field shelter with some donkeys, but I’m guessing he wouldn’t mind.’
Ania smiled at Mandy. ‘That would be great,’ she said. ‘If you’re sure. We can collect him any time it’s suitable.’
Reverend Hadcroft ushered the children aside as Ania and Ed guided Dancer and Mary back up the aisle. Mandy, Jimmy and Blitzen followed. Behind them, the crowd closed in like the Red Sea, following them all the way to the door and into the snowy churchyard.
‘Merry Christmas, everybody!’ Ed and Ania turned and waved once doe and calf were safely loaded. There was a chorus of greetings in return, then the crowd of nativity goers turned to filter back into the church. There was still the rest of the performance to see, minus the reindeer guests.
‘I guess we’re going to miss the mince pies this year,’ Jimmy said, his words making puffy cloud breaths in the clear night air. Beside him, Blitzen seemed perfectly calm as they made their way up the lane.
‘Actually, Gran brought me some round yesterday,’ Mandy said. ‘We can take them back to yours, if you like.’
The Milky Way glittered overhead as the two of them released Blitzen into the paddock. Holly and Robin trotted over to greet the newcomer, fascinated by this new creature with his fur-covered nose and velvet antlers.
Jimmy filled the rack in the field shelter with hay. ‘I hope Santa doesn’t mind missing a couple of his reindeer,’ he joked.
‘Maybe next year Holly could be in the nativity,’ Mandy suggested as she watched the three animals start pulling at strands of hay. ‘She’d be better behaved than the hobby horse Mary was riding.’
Jimmy grinned. ‘Shall we head off?’ he suggested.
Mandy took a last glance around the field shelter. The ground was strewn with clean straw. The two donkeys and one reindeer looked very comfortable as they ate side by side, a row of fluffy grey-brown backs, two pairs of tall ears matched by a spectacular set of antlers.
Without Adam and Emily at home, the cottage seemed very quiet and Mandy was glad she wasn’t going to spend the night there. Jimmy clutched Gran’s tin of mince pies on his knee as Mandy drove up the lane. It felt right to be heading back to Mistletoe Cottage. Tomorrow would be Christmas Eve. Jimmy was seeing Abi and Max. Not wanting to get in the way, Mandy had arranged to spend the evening with James, who was popping in on his way to stay with Paul’s parents. Mum and Dad had arrived safely in Scotland and Stuart Mortimore was behind bars. For the first time in weeks, Mandy could properly relax.