Chapter 13
Noah returned from the barn to find a rather tense atmosphere in reception. Beth was standing to one side with Walter, opposite a man who he understood to be her ex-boyfriend.
Having already picked up on the fact that Beth was super intelligent, the fact that her choice of partner was a professor of physics shouldn’t have come as a surprise.
As the strained introductions were made, Noah shook his hand and immediately knew the type of man Jeremy was.
He had met a few like him before. Jeremy was the type of guy to size you up, as if instantly deciding whether you could be of use to him and his massive ego.
If you weren’t, then you merely received a smile that didn’t reach his eyes before he went on to see if he could use the next person instead.
Anyway, however awful the guy, it was none of his business. Although that didn’t stop him from flicking a glance at Beth to make sure she was all right. She gave him a slight nod as if to indicate that she could deal with her frightful ex.
Happy that he didn’t need to step in as her defence, Noah knew that it was time for him to leave. He went behind the reception desk to pick up his rucksack.
Walter’s eyes flickered down to the bag briefly before returning to his face.
‘You’re not going anywhere at the moment,’ said Walter, coming to stand in front of him. ‘Storm’s come in now.’
Noah knew that his uncle wanted him to stay on for a while longer. It was true that they had formed a tentative connection but he really did need to leave. Just like always. Before anyone had a chance to let him down again.
‘I’ll be fine,’ he replied, shrugging on his coat. ‘I can take care of myself out there.’
‘Of course you can, lad,’ Walter told him. ‘But the storm’s brought down a few of the older trees in the driveway so you can’t even get your car out at the moment. The last guests only just made it out in time.’
It had been the last thing that Noah had been expecting.
‘How are you with a chainsaw?’ asked Walter.
‘Better than most,’ Noah told him.
‘We’d best get to work then.’
With no offer forthcoming from Jeremy to give them a hand, Walter grabbed his own coat from behind the reception desk and they headed outside.
Immediately they were enveloped in strong gusts of wind that swept across the lake and through the trees, causing them to creak and sway.
As they began to walk across the car park, Ben hurried over to them.
‘Grandad, go back inside,’ he said. ‘Storm’s not over yet and it’s too dangerous.’
‘Stop fussing,’ snapped Walter. ‘I can help, can’t I?’
Ben pressed his lips together but obviously knew better than to push his grandfather any further so the three men walked together towards the woods.
Noah was surprised at the mess that they found. There were a number of trees down everywhere, strewn across both the driveway and around the forest. Thankfully any cars in the car park had been missed, as well as the hotel.
But the entrance to the hotel driveway was blocked with a number of trees and so the first job was to start to clear them.
Noah cut up one large trunk which lay across the track. He and Ben rolled the tree trunk away with the idea that they would deal with it later.
With only one chainsaw between them, Ben used an axe to chop off some of the smaller branches whilst Noah cut up the larger tree trunks.
After a short time, Noah shot a look at Walter who was standing nearby.
Ben had just taken the axe from him to chop up the larger pieces of timber.
Walter was frowning, looking as if he wanted the wrestle the axe back from his grandson.
Noah had to admire his spirit. Perhaps he would be the same at Walter’s age.
Always fighting. Never surrendering to any kind of weakness.
After all, that was how Noah had lived his life so far.
But as Noah picked up the chainsaw once more to start work on the next fallen tree, he heard Walter say, ‘I’ll take these to the log store.’
Walter leant down to pick up a number of smaller logs and began to walk away. But as he went, he didn’t spot a branch lying across the path and Noah watched in horror as Walter’s feet got tangled and he fell forward.
Noah dropped the chainsaw and rushed over to reach his uncle but he didn’t make it in time, aghast to see the pensioner fall onto the ground with a loud cry.
Ben also saw the accident and ran over.
‘Grandad!’ said Ben, crouching down and looking ashen. ‘Are you okay?’
‘Do I look okay?’ muttered Walter, lying face down on the ground.
But Noah could tell from the colour that had drained out of his face that something serious had happened.
‘Hip? Arm?’ he asked, getting to the crux of the matter.
‘Shoulder, I think,’ moaned Walter.
Ben and Noah exchanged a horrified look before they assessed the situation.
‘Let’s get you up gently,’ said Noah. ‘We’ll have to turn you first, all right?’
Ben nodded his agreement and they both reached down to gently turn Walter over. Now that they could see his face, it was obvious how much pain he was in.
‘Walter!’ said Dotty, who had been in their little cottage nearby and had rushed out, despite the storm billowing all around them. She bent down to look at her husband. ‘What have you done?’
‘Bust my shoulder up good, I reckon,’ muttered Walter.
‘What about the rest of you? Heart? Blood pressure?’ she asked.
‘I’m not planning on running a marathon this afternoon,’ said Walter.
Noah thought it was a good thing that he was able to joke, despite his grimaces of pain and pale face. But it was an important reminder that a simple fall could do worse damage than initially feared.
‘Are you up to moving off this cold ground?’ asked Ben.
Walter nodded. ‘Let’s do it,’ he said, clenching his teeth.
Ben and Noah reached forward to wrap their arms around Walter’s torso and on the count of three, gently raised him up to a standing position.
Walter’s cry as they moved him made Noah feel dreadful but Ben had been right to move him from the damp ground. Especially as the wind was still gusting all around them and it had begun to rain once more.
‘Can you walk?’ asked Ben.
‘Sure,’ said Walter.
But Ben and Noah continued to hold on to him all the way back to their cottage before he sank gratefully down on the armchair with a groan.
‘We’ve got to get you to hospital,’ said Ben, looking down at his grandad.
‘I agree,’ said Dotty, looking stressed. ‘But how? We can’t even get out down the driveway.’
‘I have an idea,’ said Ben.
He rang his friend, a local taxi driver called Del, who would meet them at the other end of the driveway and hopefully find a way through the local lanes to the nearby cottage hospital.
A short time later, a thin dark-haired man arrived at the front door to the cottage.
‘Mornin’, all,’ he said.
Before arriving, Noah had been told that Del was Frankie’s godson.
He had been the local coach driver until that business had begun to dry up and he had turned his hand to becoming a taxi driver instead.
Del was a nice guy, always trying to be helpful around the local villages and to his many friends.
‘How’s it going, Walter?’ he asked, with a concerned look.
‘Just perfect, Del, as you can see,’ muttered Walter.
‘Let’s get you to the hospital then,’ said Del, seemingly oblivious to the elderly man’s sarcasm. ‘The traffic’s a nightmare, from what I’ve heard on the radio.’
‘Then the sooner we get going the better,’ said Dotty. ‘I’m coming with you both.’
‘So am I,’ added Ben.
But Walter shook his head. ‘Your place is here,’ he told his grandson. ‘In charge.’
Ben looked upset but nodded. Noah wondered briefly how Ben felt about having the responsibility of both the family and hotel in his hands.
In a reverse of their earlier trip, Ben and Noah once more held Walter as they carefully and slowly walked him through the woods until finally they saw an electric car at the end of the driveway by the main gate.
‘I reckon the road is clear to the hospital,’ said Del, with a nod. ‘And they’ve got that new X-ray machine too. Fancy thing, I’ve heard.’
‘Excellent,’ said Walter. ‘I was thinking about a trip out today.’
He was being remarkably stoic but as Walter sat down with a groan in the passenger seat, he looked up at Noah.
‘You’ll be here when I get back?’ he said, reaching up to take Noah’s hand.
Noah hesitated before nodding. ‘Of course,’ he said.
For some reason he couldn’t bear to upset Walter. His plan all along had been to leave that morning but it seemed that he couldn’t leave Maple Tree Lodge yet.