CHAPTER 2
Rosa felt butterflies in her stomach as the train pulled into Cockleberry Bay station. Hot had slept nearly the whole way but was now agitated and whining.
She climbed down from the train as quickly as she could with a heavy suitcase and black bin bag in tow and almost felt the relief herself as the dachshund immediately cocked his tiny leg on the edge of a coffee-seller’s stall.
‘Oi.’ The ginger-bearded bloke manning it was not happy. Looking at him, Rosa likened him to a skinny Viking.
‘Oh my God, I’m so sorry,’ she said immediately. ‘I should have got out at Exeter but wasn’t sure if we’d have time to get back on again. Let me buy a bottle of water and I’ll wash it down.’
The man took in the dishevelled stranger in front of him. Brown curls stuck out from beneath her bright blue bobble hat, neatly framing her small round face. Well-fitted dark jeans met black Nike trainers which had seen better days. She had a tiny scar on her left cheek which resembled a miniature bolt of lightning. And despite not wearing a scrap of make-up, she was naturally very pretty, he decided.
He smiled. ‘Travelled far, then?’
‘Yes, from London.’
‘Visiting family for Christmas, that it?’
Blimey, Rosa thought. She’d rather hoped she could enjoy the anonymity that a new town might offer.
‘Yes – that’s right. Now I really must be going. Where is the taxi rank, please?’
The bearded man laughed, revealing a missing tooth. ‘Taxi rank? I can give you a number for Ralph Weeks. He lives in the Bay and does the driving around here. But I’m not sure how free he will be, as Wednesday is his busy day - on account of there’s no bus running to Ulchester. I’m Seb, by the way.’ He held out a gloved hand.
‘I’m Rosa, and this is Hot.’
Seb properly belly-laughed. ‘Hot . . . Hot Dog? That is the funniest name for a dog I think I have ever heard.’
‘Well, he is a sausage and I did steal him, so he’s hot.’
‘That makes it even funnier. Here, let me ring Ralph for you, he’s already in my phone. You say you stole Hot?’
‘Long story, but don’t you be phoning the police on me. Or are there none of those in the Bay either?’
‘You’re learning fast, Rosa.’ He held the phone to his ear. ‘No answer. Look, I’m freezing and was about to finish up anyway. Maybe I can give you a lift?’
It was already four o’ clock and dark, and feeling cold and tired herself, she agreed, saying, ‘If you can just drop us at the Ship Inn, that would be lovely.’
With passengers and luggage safely on board, Seb shouted over the obviously blown exhaust of his old white van: ‘Not a limo, I’m afraid, but it gets me from A to B.’
With Rosa supporting his little body, Hot craned out into the dark to see what was going on.
‘An absence of streetlights here too then?’
Seb laughed. ‘Yep, a torch is definitely your friend down here. I know every broken paving slab and bump in the road now. Although the council do make the effort with a few Christmas lights, which we’ll get to in a minute.’
Rosa tried to locate the Corner Shop as they made their way down a narrow street, but the address was in her bag and she didn’t want to make it obvious to Seb that she was looking out for anything. It was her business and she wanted to keep it that way - for the time being anyway.
Turning into another narrow street, she perked up as she saw quirky gift shops, a bakery and a butcher’s shop, all decorated beautifully for the festive period. As all she had ever known was the hustle and bustle of city life, it was almost like going back in time to her. She noticed a couple swinging their child by his arms and then bundling into one of the cafes displaying an impressive array of cakes in the half-steamed-up window.
She had never really known normal family life as such. Her birth mum had been an
alcoholic and there wasn’t a father named on Rosa’s birth certificate. The story was that at six months, despite every effort her mum had made to look after her, social services had still taken her away.
And then there were Maureen and Len who, after having no luck bearing children themselves, had fostered her with a view to adoption. Tragically, Maureen was diagnosed with terminal cancer when Rosa was just six years old and Len was unable to cope with a young child and a dying wife. Then began an unstable journey of children’s homes and foster carers. There were a couple of ‘almost’ adoptions along the way, but with Rosa being such a troubled child, nobody had been willing to take her on permanently.
Rosa sighed and nursed Hot into her lap. Being honest, her dysfunctional, blow job (only when drunk) relationship with Josh had been the nearest feeling to happiness that she had ever felt - and now she had given that up too.
But giving up was a common occurrence for Rosa. She didn’t tolerate fools.
Seb looked over to her. ‘That was a big sigh. We are nearly there - just around this corner and the Ship will be in front of us.’ He slowed down and changed gear, waiting for a motorbike to roar past.
It was then Rosa noticed it. The shop. Lit by the van’s headlights, she saw that it had an interesting curved frontage. Turquoise paint was peeling from the front door, where a battered-looking CLOSED sign still hung. In faded letters, above the beautiful curved windows, were the words The Corner Shop. There seemed to be a vacant flat above the shop. Seeing this, Rosa felt a surge of excitement. If accommodation was part of the package, then suddenly the whole thing didn’t seem such a bad idea.
‘What a shame,’ she said softly to herself.
‘The Corner Shop, you mean?’ Seb asked.
‘Yes.’
‘It’s been shut for about five years now. Used to be a little goldmine.’
‘What did it sell?’
‘Everything and anything. It was a real favourite with locals and tourists alike. Bit of a mystery actually, as old Mr Myers who ran it literally worked until he couldn’t manage the steep steps up to the flat any more.’
‘Aw, bless him, but why a mystery?’
‘Oh, just that none of us can understand why it hasn’t gone up for sale.’
‘Did he not have family?’
‘Not that he ever mentioned. He died at the age of ninety-eight, in the nursing home up the hill, surrounded by the many friends he had made here.’
‘Ah, right.’
‘Here we are then. The Ship Inn, me lady.’
‘Thanks so much, Seb. Can I give you some money for petrol?’ Rosa was suddenly conscious of the wads of cash in her bag and remembered sensible Josh saying she should open a new bank account with it as soon as she could.
‘Nah, don’t be silly. Buy me a drink in here one night.’ He smiled. ‘Now you and Hot Dog get settled - and if I don’t see you, although I’m sure I will down here, have a lovely break and Happy Christmas to the both of you.’ He tickled the tiny dachshund behind his ears then got out to help Rosa down from the passenger seat before lifting her luggage from the rear.