Blue Skies Over Wildflower Lock (The Wildflower Lock)

Chapter 65

Daisy was back in her element. Or at least in her comfort zone. The massive locks were behind them, and though they had tackled a couple which were far larger than Wildflower Lock, there were so many people to help, it was almost like an event. Sometimes even, Daisy and Yvonne could both stay aboard the September Rose. Children, enjoying the dry now that the rain had stopped, were there at almost every lock, helping to push them open when the water had filled, while parents took charge of the ropes.

Mid-afternoon, they had to change canal systems. That was where Daisy finally felt like she was home. They were still in the city and the sounds of cars and vehicles were far louder than she had ever encountered at Wildflower Lock, but there were hints of the countryside too, sneaking in on the towpath hedges with birds that flitted between the rushes and songs that drifted into the skies.

The three of them had got into a rhythm that involved Johnny jumping off the boat every time Daisy did. Sometimes, he stood with her while she was turning the windlass and opening up the lock, but other times, he did his business then sat by it, so Daisy knew exactly where she had to clean up when she was done. It was a strange relationship and the more time she spent with Johnny, the more Daisy believed he had been on a boat at some point. Doing trips like this before. But no owner had come forward, which meant she definitely had to put him up on an adoption site. But it didn’t feel like something she could do until she was in a fixed location, which wouldn’t happen for at least another week. Besides, another week with him wouldn’t be that arduous and she could tell the new owners far more about him this way too, like his favourite foods and what he was like with other dogs.

To make up for the rain, they had been travelling non-stop. It had been nearly nine hours when Yvonne and Daisy finally decided it was time to call it a day. There was still a couple of hours of sunlight remaining, but the place they were in looked popular with locals and visitors alike. While Daisy didn’t have it in her to open the coffee shop – and doubted many people would want a caffeine hit at 7p.m. – she wanted to get some baking done. That way – weather provided – she could wake up early and do a couple of hours of trading before they carried on the journey. That was the plan, at least. Only twenty minutes after the mooring, when Daisy was busy weighing out ingredients, there was a knock on the cabin door.

‘This place is okay for guest moorings, isn’t it?’ Daisy said to Yvonne, assuming that it was someone local.

Yvonne was sitting on the sofa reading. It had been a very up-and-down day, and Daisy knew Yvonne had struggled with it. Thankfully, she’d got a few hours of napping in between later locks, but Daisy suspected she would have liked more. Was the tiredness from the nightmares? Daisy wanted to ask. She’d heard Yvonne having the same one several times during her naps, but given that Daisy had been managing the boat and in charge of the tiller, with no one else to help her, she couldn’t go in and wake Yvonne up. Instead, she’d just had to leave her. There was one time, though, when Yvonne had been crying out so loudly as she dozed that Daisy let out a short sharp blast on the horn. It definitely wasn’t one of the authorised reasons to use the boat horn, but Daisy had known it would wake Yvonne up and she hadn’t wanted her to suffer in her dreams any longer.

But now, they were both awake, looking at the door with confusion.

‘I’m sure it is all right for us to moor here,’ Yvonne said. ‘There was a sign. Remember, it said it was free? At least, that’s what I thought it said.’

Daisy twisted her head to the door before reaching over to the table and grabbing her wallet. Hopefully, they just had to pay a couple of quid. It would certainly be better than having to cast off and find another place to stay.

Practising her apology line in her head, Daisy opened the door.

‘Hi, I’m—’ She stopped short, tipping her head to the side in confusion as she looked at the person in front of her. It wasn’t someone expecting payment for the mooring at all. Instead, it was a familiar face. Relatively familiar, at least.

‘Surprise!’ Shaun said.