Chapter Twelve
For a second Nick did nothing but look at the package in astonishment and then slowly she stood up and very gently unwrapped the ribbon and lifted back the flaps. As she let in the light, a small bundle of fur sprang up against the side of the box and Nick stepped back in sudden surprise.
She stepped forward again and looked into the box at a small dog staring back at her. Picking her up Nick was surprised by how small she was, she seemed little bigger than a cat. Her coat was black and brown, and her long flappy ears were feathery brown. Her long tan face end in a cute black button nose. The two of them looked at each other, then Nick let out a sigh of exasperation. What the hell was Daisy thinking?
Stroking the little dog on the head she was surprised when it licked her hand and wagged its tail. Its nose felt a little dry and she wondered if it was thirsty. Walking through to the kitchen she filled a bowl of water and put both down on the floor and returned to the box to see if there were any clues. Beside the box was a plastic bag with some food and paperwork and a card from Daisy saying the dog was a present. According to the paperwork, she was a pedigree miniature dachshund, and her kennel name was Brightwater Miss Gableforth, which made Nick roll her eyes, what sort of name was that to give a dog. Reading on, she discovered that Miss Gableforth was a year old, fully vaccinated and microchipped .
She returned to the kitchen where the little dog had finished drinking and was now wandering around the floor seeing what else there was to explore.
‘Well, I can’t keep you,’ she said to the inquisitive little dog, ‘so let’s stick with Miss Gableforth, shall we? I hope for your sake that your new owners call you something better.’
Nick rang Daisy but again her phone went straight to voicemail. Leaving a quick message asking her to call her she watched the dog play with a balled-up piece of paper that must have got stuck behind the bin.
Her phone buzzed – was it Daisy? No, just the alarm reminding her that she needed to leave the office to prepare for her flight.
Nick swore. She rang Daisy again but there was still no reply. What the hell was she supposed to do? It was a lovely gift but also possibly the most stupid thing she had ever been given. She had never had a pet in her life, nor had she felt the lack of one. How was she supposed to get on a flight to Ireland with a dog?
She looked at her phone and dialled again. ‘I have another problem.’
She pictured Ari sitting at her big, lovely leather-topped desk in her study, rolling her eyes to heaven, but Ari had dogs, she might know what to do. Nick outlined the problem.
‘But that’s insane? Who the hell gives an animal as a pet? What the hell was Daisy thinking ?’
‘I agree but now she isn’t answering her bloody phone and I have this little dog charging around the office when I’m supposed to be getting on a plane. ’
‘All right, tell you what. Come up here and leave her with me.’
Nick thought about it. That seemed like a good idea – the dog was currently trying to get behind a bookcase and Nick jumped up and ran over to pick her up. She instantly wagged her tail and bumped her little face against Nick’s. Her coat was incredibly silky; Nick sat down and tickled her tummy as she rolled around on her lap.
‘If I have to drive to yours, I’ll need to hire a car and I’ll miss the flight.’
‘I could drive down and meet you at the airport, but I’ll need to rearrange a few things first,’ said Ari.
Nick placed Miss Gableforth on the floor where she ran over to a notepad that someone had dropped under their desk and started to play with it.
‘No, don’t worry. Maybe I can keep her with me until I can figure out what to do?’
‘You mean, cancel the trip to Ireland?’
Nick paused. She hadn’t meant that, although now she thought about it how the hell could she take a dog with her to Ireland?
‘I suppose she can’t go on the plane, can she?’
‘No!’ said Ari in alarm. ‘Honestly, let me take care of her for you.’
Nick was now sitting on the floor playing a gentle game of tug of war with the dog and the notepad. Nick hoped there was nothing important written on it because the pad was beginning to look like confetti. She stood up and walked towards the now-empty water bowl. With each step the little dog jumped and pounced on her feet as Nick stepped carefully, laughing as she did so trying not to squish her.
‘What’s the dog doing?’ asked Ari as she listened to her sister laugh.
‘Attacking my feet!’
‘Wait until she discovers laces, Dragon loved to play with them,’ grinned Ari.
‘How about a ferry?’ said Nick suddenly. ‘I can hire a car and take her on a ferry, can’t I?’
‘You can, but are you sure?’ said Ari doubtfully. ‘Honestly, this is why you shouldn’t give animals as presents to people that don’t know what to do with them.’
‘You’re not wrong,’ said Nick in exasperation. ‘But the fact is I have her now and need to sort things out.’
‘Very well,’ said Ari, ‘but don’t forget to call ahead to the hotel and see if she will be a problem. And if you find a dog too much to cope with, I’ll have her.’
Nick hung up and after a few minutes research on the internet and a call to the hotel, she changed her bookings. The little dog wriggled on her lap and tried to explore her sleeve. Gently she re-arranged the animal, absently scratching her head and continued searching. Minutes later she was looking at ferry timetables and car hire and before she realised what she was doing, she had somehow decided to take the dog with her to Ireland.
She rang Daisy again, but this time was surprised with the relief she felt when her assistant once again failed to answer.
‘Okay, little one. Back in your bed. ’
As she picked up the dog she noticed that her feathery ears were mostly brown but were tipped black on both sides. Her tail, which hadn’t stopped wagging yet, also ended in a black patch.
Popping her back in the wicker box, she tucked the blanket around the dog, she placed the box on the kitchen floor and added a small bowl of the dog food that Daisy had provided.
‘Now, I won’t be long. I’m just going to find something to carry you in.’ She wasn’t sure why she was talking to the dog; it was not like she understood her but it felt rude otherwise. She also needed to think of a name beyond Miss Gableforth, but it felt presumptuous to give the small animal a name. She wasn’t even keeping her. For now though she was her responsibility.
Nick hurried down to the central plaza that served as a shopping mall for the various office blocks in Canary Wharf. She had seen plenty of women carrying dogs about in handbags so that was what she was going to do. It seemed daft, but it presented a temporary solution for now. As she rode down on the lift, she booked the night-ferry crossing from Pembroke in Wales over to Rosslare and arranged car hire on either side. It would take her five hours to drive from here to Pembroke, so she had plenty of time. The ferry crossing was only four hours, but she booked a cabin so that the dog had space to run around. It would then be a three-hour drive to the hotel, and she should arrive just in time for breakfast.
As she stepped out onto the concourse, she had her first pangs of doubt. Just because she could do this, did that mean that she should? She was the least impulsive person she knew but suddenly she wanted very much to keep the dog with her. After a long, shitty week it was the best thing that had happened to her. Ever since she had discussed it with Ari, she had felt re-energised. Researching the family tree and now looking after her new charge, were going to get her through this. But she was still feeling anxious and that knot in her stomach was tightening.
She tried to think what was wrong with her plan and wondered if it wasn’t simply that she had left a dog alone in a box in the kitchen. Picking up her pace, she headed towards a leather goods shop. They always had a sumptuous display of handbags and suitcases in their window. Before now, Nick hadn’t paid them much attention, but they would probably have something perfect. She headed into the shop trying not to think of the dog all alone. What if she got out of the box? The kitchen door was open, she might escape into the office. What if she chewed on the electric cables?
Nick quickly glanced around the showroom, there was a shiny display of bright pink and yellow handbags. Some looked like they might be big enough, but she wasn’t sure she could bring herself to be seen in public with an orange handbag with a gold chain handle.
‘Can I help you with anything?’
An assistant had peeled away from behind the counter and had come over to assist Nick. The way she was looking at her suggested she was ready to assist her out of the shop. All Nick had to do was casually display her gold credit card or mention her title or the fact that Holly McDonald was her twin and this assistant would be her new best friend. Instead, she smiled politely saying, ‘No thanks’ and continued to glance around the room.
She was still worried about Miss Gableforth. What if someone came in and she escaped out the door? But no one else was due in the office today. Nick relaxed for half a second and suddenly wondered if the cleaners would come in early if they knew the tenants were moving out. Would they see the box and throw it out? Would they squash it?
Nick yelped and the assistant returned.
‘Maybe you’re looking for a present? The giftshop across the way do a nice range?’
The assistant clearly wanted rid of this strange, inexpensively dressed woman who made noises to herself. Nick turned to her and this time decided to speed up the process. She had to get back to the office before something dreadful happened.
‘I need a handbag. A large one, it needs a solid wide base.’
‘Do you have a budget in mind?’
‘No, but this is rather urgent so just point out what you have. Please.’
The assistant steered Nick to a range of large tote bags.
‘No, it can’t be open at the top like that, and I need it to be wider at the bottom.’ If the dog was going to travel in the bag she needed space to move around.
The assistant pulled down a large overnight travel bag that Nick instantly assessed as suitable.
‘Of course, this is the larger version of this design. We do have a smaller—’ she paused ‘—more reasonably priced version if you would prefer to look at that? ’
Nick scowled at her. ‘This is the bag that I want.’ Pulling her wallet out of her pocket she handed her card to the woman and was unsurprised to see an instantaneous change in attitude as she read Lady N. de Foix on the Coutts Silk charge card.
Was there anything else madam was interested in today? A new line in gloves, a matching wallet, an espresso whilst she browsed?
Nick dismissed all suggestions as thoughts of the dog’s impending doom filled her head.
‘No, as I said I am in a hurry. Please just charge the card.’
Nick followed the assistant to the till where another assistant was now praising Nick on her excellent taste. She just wanted to get out of here and back to Miss Gableforth. All this flattery was annoying her, she had a dog to rescue from one of the many ways she had now envisaged her dying.
‘That will be ￡1,250.’
For a second Nick wondered if there was another customer in the shop.
‘How much?’
‘It’s ￡1,250.’ The shop assistant smiled nervously. She was so close to making her target for the week.
‘I’m only buying the one overnight bag,’ said Nick incredulously.
‘Maybe you’d like to see the smaller version?’ Even that would get her into the week’s sales targets.
Nick shook her head in disbelief – she knew designer bags were expensive, but this was beyond the pale. If it hadn’t been so urgent she’d have walked out the shop bagless and laughing. As it was, she tapped her pin into the machine .
‘What are you doing now?’ asked Nick as the assistant whipped the bag away.
‘This is the display model. Jody is just getting your own bag which we will gift-wrap and bag up for you.’
‘Oh for God’s sake, you’re going to put my bag in a bag?’ said Nick at the end of her tether. ‘That’s ridiculous. I just need it now. No gift-wrap, no bag, no flourishes and no membership treats. Please. I am in a hurry.’
Nick was all but snapping now. As the first assistant began to explain her ninety-day warranty and aftercare regime, the second assistant handed her the bag. Grabbing it Nick ran for the door. She could hear the assistant imploring her to store it in its cloth pouch when not in use. Why store it in a cloth pouch? Just how precious were these people about a sodding handbag – although at over a grand Nick thought they probably weren’t precious enough. Nick wondered if the world had gone mad.
Tapping the button for the lift, she hopped about as she willed the lift to move quicker. Eventually, she gave up and ran up the ten flights to her floor. Puffing, she dashed back to her office and turned the key in the lock, relieved to see the room wasn’t full of removal men throwing stuff whilst stomping on boxes. She dumped the bag on the table and ran into the kitchen. The box was where she had left it. It had not somehow caught fire nor had it become wet and soggy from the water thereby leaving the little animal cold and shivering.
Nick bobbed down and gently opened the flaps and watched as the dog’s little chest rose and fell as she dreamt of chasing notebooks or rabbits .
Gingerly, she lifted her out and sat down on the kitchen floor recovering her breath. As the dog woke up, she opened her eyes and looked at Nick. Her whole body began to wag her tail and Nick was suddenly aware of a sense of warmth in her chest. A second later she realised the dog had peed on her.
‘Well, that’s a first,’ she muttered to herself as she put her on the floor and nipped back to her office, where she always kept a change of clothes for any eventuality. Admittedly she hadn’t foreseen being weed on as a possibility but at least she was prepared. Heading back into the kitchen a distinctly unpleasant aroma indicated that all of the dog’s body systems were functioning properly. Screwing up her nose, Nick cleaned the mess and then sprayed the area with disinfectant. As she did so she started laughing. Miss Gableforth had just perfectly summed up what Nick felt about her landlords. Clever dog.
Grinning, she gathered her few possessions into her backpack, then took a towel from the bathroom, lined the bottom of her new bag and settled the dog into it. Taking one last look around the office she was satisfied that she was happy to leave the place for good. She and her new friend headed back to her apartment, ready for their adventures together to begin.