Chapter Nine
Due to the darkness and the height of the buildings on both sides, Meridith couldn’t see much other than Drake’s outline as he walked further into the alley.
Her heart had been pounding ever since she’d seen Hugo break through the fence, but she couldn’t say it was only because of the elephant.
Sitting in front of Drake on the horse had made all sorts of things heat up and throb inside her, had made her thoughts go down a scandalous route they’d never taken before.
She had read about such things; she knew about procreation and what that entailed, but until tonight, she’d never felt such stirrings inside her.
She’d had to purposefully force herself to think about other things, and Hugo’s plight had been the easiest substitute, that and the boys who had caused it.
They deserved to be in trouble for putting the elephant and others in such danger.
Their actions had also been what caused the damage to the flower beds at the park, and they should be responsible for repairing them.
Allowing that anger to grow had combated some of the sensations overtaking her body, but nothing had made them completely disappear.
It was as if something was alive in her. Something wonderful, that tripled in size when he’d kissed her temple.
For a moment, when they’d been looking at each other, she’d thought he was going to kiss her again, on the lips, but the police officer had found them.
She was glad of that, glad they’d found Hugo, but her body was still tingling, especially her breasts, which Drake’s arm had been directly beneath, and her legs, where they’d continuously touched his thigh.
Not to mention the swirling heat in more private places that she’d never been more aware of.
‘It’s him.’ Drake’s voice came from the darkness.
The officers and other men around her began talking, and she quickly shushed them, with both a sound and by waving her hands at them.
‘Is he all right?’ she called back to Drake.
‘Yes!’ he replied. ‘He’s asleep. Leave the horse there.’
Handing the reins to a man, she said, ‘Tie him up for me, please.’ Without waiting for a response, she quickly began walking down the alleyway and was about halfway when a door opened, casting enough light into the darkness that she could see Drake, as well as Hugo lying on the ground.
There were sounds coming from the open doorway, voices and such, which made her assume that it was a public house.
‘You’re sure he’s sleeping?’ she asked Drake.
‘Either that or he’s passed out.’
‘Passed out from exhaustion?’
‘No.’
Arriving, she touched one of Hugo’s huge legs as he lay on his side, taking up the entire alleyway and breathing deeply. ‘From what then?’
Drake pointed to a wooden barrel. ‘From wine.’
A man in the doorway said, ‘That was my wine vat. He knocked the lid off and drank it empty.’
‘He’s drunk?’ she asked.
‘It appears so,’ Drake replied.
‘We’d heard a noise, and one of my customers opened the door, saw him drinking the wine,’ the owner said.
She’d never heard of such a thing, but then again, Hugo was the first elephant she personally knew. ‘Do elephants like wine?’
‘He must have smelled the fruit,’ Drake answered. ‘Fermenting or not, to him it was fruit, and he was both hungry and thirsty after his adventure.’
‘What are we going to do?’ she asked.
Drake grinned. ‘Get some water, wake him up, and get him home.’
Even though that sounded easier said than done, she had to smile in return. Drake knew what he was doing, and she knew the crowd that had gathered around them quickly would realise that, too.
There was grumbling and mumbling among the men Drake sent to get buckets of water.
They seemed to think it would be impossible to wake up the elephant.
Meanwhile, Hugo was snoring. The sounds were actually so low and malicious sounding that some members of the crowd sprang back, thinking the elephant was growling.
But even those crowd members couldn’t resist staying to watch, albeit looking poised to run at any moment, as Drake dumped a bucket of water on Hugo’s face.
The elephant snorted and moved his trunk about like an arm, using it to wipe his face.
It wasn’t until a second bucket was dumped on him that he opened his eyes.
‘Hey, old boy, how you feeling?’ Drake asked, kneeling next to Hugo’s big head and wiping away the water.
Hugo wrapped his trunk around Drake’s shoulders as he let out a low moan.
‘Not so good,’ Drake said kindly. ‘I can imagine that. You drank about twenty gallons of wine.’
‘Twenty-five,’ the publican corrected.
As if realising that was bad, Hugo dropped his trunk to the ground and moaned again, which sent a roar of laughter through the crowd.
Meridith laughed, too. While feeling a great sense of compassion for the animal, she also felt an intense amount of pride for Drake. He truly was the most wonderful man she’d ever met.
She also couldn’t stop wishing that he had kissed her.
‘I’m going to need several more buckets of water,’ Drake told the crowd. Men rushed to do his bidding as Drake tapped Hugo behind the front leg. ‘Time to get up, my friend. We’ll get some water in you and then get you back to the zoo.’
The crowd filled with low mumbles again, clearly certain that it would be impossible for a drunk elephant to stand up.
Fully believing in Drake, Meridith waved at the crowd. ‘Back up,’ she said. ‘Give him room.’
Hugo let out plenty of grunts and groans, and wrapped his trunk around Drake more than once, but finally he made it onto his rump. He sat there with his head wobbling slightly from side to side, scanning the crowd, as if he wasn’t sure what he was seeing, or why so many people were staring at him.
Because he looked so cute, Meridith couldn’t help but giggle. She patted Hugo’s trunk, which quickly curled around her.
Beside her, Drake lifted Hugo’s trunk off her and wrapped his other arm around her shoulders. ‘I know you like her,’ he told Hugo. ‘So do I, but she can’t help you stand. You have to do that on your own.’
Meridith’s heart thudded harder at hearing Drake say he liked her. It was a common enough statement, but it made her realise just how much she liked him. More than she’d ever liked someone. She felt as if sunshine was filling her.
When she looked up at him, Drake smiled and winked at her.
Thoughts of kissing him filled her head again, but were interrupted when Hugo groaned again and hiccuped hard enough that his entire body shook, which sent more laughter through the crowd.
He hiccuped several more times while his trunk stretched forward, trying to reach the water buckets sitting on the ground a short distance away.
Drake stepped away from her and pulled one bucket closer. ‘Here, you go. Drink up, then you have to stand up.’
Hugo stuck his snout in the bucket, sucked up water, sprayed it into his mouth, then returned his trunk to the bucket and snorted at finding it empty.
He tried reaching the other buckets, stretching out his trunk and leaning forward, but eventually he realised he wasn’t going to reach the water without standing.
He raised his trunk into the air and let out a trumpet that was little more than air.
It was so pitiful it made the crowd rumble with laughter once again.
Meridith shared a smile with Drake. Then Hugo began to move, and she clasped onto Drake’s hand, as if somehow their combined strength might help the elephant.
With more grunts, and groans, Hugo rose to all four feet and then took a wobbly step towards the water.
‘Oh, thank goodness,’ Meridith whispered.
‘Were you doubting his abilities?’ Drake asked with a teasing tone.
‘No,’ she replied, heart pounding at the profound connection between them. It felt fragile yet powerful. ‘I wasn’t doubting yours, either.’
He didn’t say anything, just stared at her with simmering eyes that made her feel as if she was in the middle of a dream. A wonderful dream.
‘I wouldn’t have believed it if I didn’t see it,’ someone said.
Meridith let out a sigh as Drake turned to watch Hugo empty the other buckets of water.
‘Me, neither,’ another replied. ‘Where’s a newspaperman when you need one?’
‘No one would believe it even if they wrote about it,’ yet another said.
No one would believe what Meridith was feeling, either. She didn’t even believe it herself and wondered what it meant.
Was she falling in love with a man who would never want to get married? What would that do to her? Where would that leave her? Living with Peter for the rest of her life?
‘We need get him to the zoo before he decides to lie back down,’ Drake said. ‘Can one of you men go and get my horse?’
‘Yes, sir!’ a man replied.
‘Will you be all right riding by yourself?’ Drake asked.
Meridith shook her head to clear her wayward thoughts, then nodded. ‘Yes, of course.’
‘It’s not a sidesaddle.’
‘That’s all right,’ she assured. ‘I’ve ridden in a regular saddle before. Where will you be?’
‘Right behind you.’ He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and gave her a quick squeeze. ‘I couldn’t have done this without you.’
She shook her head. ‘I don’t believe that.’
‘It’s true,’ he said, then lifted her onto the horse a man delivered beside them.
He held her steady until she wiggled into saddle, getting herself secure. She was confident in her ability to ride the horse, but wasn’t so confident in several other things.
‘All set?’ he asked.
‘Yes.’
He handed her the reins. ‘Stay ahead of us, but take it slow. Hugo’s first step will probably be wobbly.’
She nodded.
‘Everyone needs to clear out,’ Drake said. ‘Give him room.’
The crowd, which consisted of men, a few women, and a handful of bobbies, all complied, hurrying past her towards the end of the alley, while others entered the public house to watch from the doorway.
Once the space was cleared, Drake tapped the inside of Hugo’s front leg. ‘Time to go home, boy.’