Chapter 33
33
‘Shouldn’t there be a horsebox?’ Erin asked as the reindeer was led up a makeshift ramp and into a trailer that had been attached to the back of Jacques’s truck.
‘ Reindeer box,’ Tommy corrected.
‘Shut up, stupid,’ Erin snapped.
‘I agree it’s not ideal for the trip to your house,’ Orla commented to Jacques as she helped encourage the animal up the wooden boards and it seemed to dig its feet in.
‘We make do in Saint-Chambéry. That is how it works,’ he answered. He put a hand on the reindeer’s rear-end and gently suggested it comply.
‘I’m getting to realise that,’ Orla answered. ‘But it’s pregnant and it has possible foot rot. I don’t want it falling out of this contraption on the way and getting hurt.’
‘Well, what do you suggest we do?’ Jacques snapped. ‘Ride it back to my house?’
His tone was harsh and she was a little taken aback. She swallowed, not knowing how to respond. If she was honest his mood had been off since he had come back from talking to Delphine. When he’d returned he’d inspected the reindeer all over again and then gave them all an audible rundown of his findings. It is in good health, despite the potential foot rot . The pregnancy looks to be progressing OK . It is not lame. Orla hadn’t been sure why she needed to know the last one unless it was entered for the reindeer Grand National equivalent…
It was the reindeer making a noise that broke the awkward silence that had descended.
‘It doesn’t sound happy,’ Erin remarked.
‘It sounds like you when Burim doesn’t message for thirty seconds. Wait… twenty seconds… no, actually ten,’ Tommy said.
‘Just because you have no one in your DMs,’ Erin countered.
‘Ha! Yeah, whatever you think.’
‘Will you two shut up!’ Jacques roared, loud enough to cause an echo.
‘OK,’ Orla said calmly. ‘I think the reindeer is going to be significantly overstimulated if this carries on.’ She took a firmer grip on the halter. ‘You two get in the truck and play nice. Jacques and I will calmly , get the reindeer in the trailer and we will be on our way.’
She wasn’t going to beat around the bush. As soon as Erin and Tommy were out of earshot she was going to ask Jacques exactly what had changed his demeanour from happy-fish-catching-hero to this grizzly bear in front of her now.
She tugged a little on the halter. ‘Come on, beautiful one.’
‘It does not want to move,’ Jacques stated. ‘Complimenting its appearance isn’t going to change that.’
‘Well, do you have any better ideas?’
‘Yes! We make a bigger barbecue and grill it like the fish!’
Orla gasped. ‘You’re not serious! You can’t eat… a reindeer!’
‘Why not? Because Santa Claus will disapprove?’
‘People don’t eat reindeer!’
‘People will eat anything if they are hungry enough. You should know that. You have travelled.’
‘OK, that might be true but… this one is pregnant! No one eats a pregnant reindeer!’ Now was the time, before he came back with another ludicrous suggestion. ‘What happened when you spoke to Delphine?’
‘Nothing happened,’ Jacques answered. ‘I asked her about the foot rot and she told me she was too busy to talk to me. There were many people in her store going crazy for discounted cookies.’
He was talking quickly. He didn’t do that. It was one of the many things she had noticed about him. He took his time. He considered. He didn’t ramble or embellish for the sake of it.
‘Why are you lying to me?’
‘What?’
‘Something is going on with you. I can see it.’
She didn’t take her eyes from him, watched her words land and waited to see what they would do. But instead of doing what she had expected him to do – more small talk about Delphine’s shop, perhaps denial that he was being anything other than normal – he did neither of those things. He said nothing. Did nothing. There was a glazed expression on his face now, a blankness in his eyes. It was like he wasn’t even there any more. What did she do with that?
‘Jacques,’ she said tentatively.
No reply.
‘Jacques,’ she said, louder.
Then, he took a gasp of breath, almost like he’d been drowning. Colour was back in his face, eyes alert, but his hands were shaking. She didn’t know what to say but when he met her gaze, looking at her with a good deal of confusion, she knew she had to say something.
‘OK, we need to show this reindeer who’s boss. Let’s go. Come on.’
She leaned into the reindeer a little, a firm nudge with her body and a tug with the rope, trying to make out she was very much used to handling caribou on the regular. ‘Come on,’ she said again.
‘ Allez !’ Jacques added, pushing from the rear.
Surprisingly, the reindeer decided now might be the time to comply and it retracted its stubbornness, along with its hooves, and finally made its way into the trailer.
‘It won’t jump out, will it?’ Orla asked, as Jacques began tying the rope through the trailer and then to the back of his truck.
‘If it tries,’ he answered. ‘It will hurt itself.’
‘I know!’ Orla exclaimed. ‘That’s what I’m worried about.’
He did some kind of magic with knots and then looked at her. ‘You care about this animal already? Is it not just a story to you?’
She couldn’t tell whether he was really asking because he wanted to know her answer or whether he was suggesting she wrote without feeling. Well, she had told him this article was important for hits and website views.
‘I don’t write about anything I don’t care about,’ she stated firmly. ‘And you should know that… if you’ve read my article about Oymyakon.’
There. What was he going to say to that? Her words seemed to hang in the cold air between them, along with their visible breath.
‘We should take the reindeer home,’ Jacques said.
‘Agreed,’ Orla said.
‘Right.’
‘OK.’
She didn’t wait for him to offer another nothing response before she turned away from the trailer and headed for the door of the truck.