Chapter 15 #2
We lounged in hotel robes for the rest of the evening as Erin had sent our clothes to be laundered.
Room service arrived with the afternoon tea we had ordered, even though it was nine at night.
We were told we could have what we wanted and that was what we chose.
We spent a very happy hour stuffing our faces with exquisite cakes and dainty sandwiches while drinking gallons of tea.
We contemplated a glass of champagne each but decided against it as we were already very sleepy.
‘What a few days we’ve had,’ I said. ‘I can’t believe how much ground we’ve covered.’
Erin had crawled under her covers now and was curled up on her side with only her nose and eyes poking out from under the duvet. There was so much I wanted to say to her but I decided not to. Instead, I got under my own covers and the next thing I knew it was morning.
We had the whole day at the hotel and Erin invited Noah to use the table in our room for some speed puzzling practice as he didn’t have quite the same luxurious set-up as us.
Erin and I were supposed to be going out for a walk together but in the end I went alone, Erin happily sorting the edge pieces for Noah as I left.
I saw Harrison and Sam briefly in reception and overheard them telling Priya that they had got there in the middle of the night and that they were both exhausted.
Harrison looked harassed and he needed a shave.
I could only imagine how the last leg of his journey had been.
Gone was the smug, clean-cut figure of a few days ago.
Sam looked less ruffled but that was youth for you.
So, we would have a good time advantage over them, I thought as I wandered past.
And then I heard Priya say something odd.
‘I think that Martha is getting information from her producer. Do you think she might be cheating?’
‘What?’ Harrison said, a genuine note of surprise in his voice.
I was behind a group of guests who were milling around, waiting to check out, and I tucked myself further into their group and firmly out of sight. My woolly hat was pulled down fairly low and the collar of my coat was pulled up, so I didn’t think they’d notice me.
‘Well, she knew all about your taxi breaking down and was laughing about it on the coach. Off camera, of course.’
‘Really?’ Harrison said. ‘I suppose she’s not my number one fan after the first race, but… she was actually laughing?’
‘Gloating, I’d say, but maybe I misread the situation.’
I’m not really sure why I didn’t step out then and confront Priya but I hung back in the shadow of the group.
All I could think about was what Erin had said.
She didn’t like Priya. She got some sort of vibe from her.
I felt as if she was best watched from a distance.
Perhaps she was just being a bit of a bitch or maybe she had an agenda.
Whether that was just to make Harrison see me in a different light or whether it was directly race-related I couldn’t tell.
I made a decision to say nothing for now, not even to Erin as I slunk away from the group.
* * *
We had a fairly lazy day in the end. I didn’t walk far, my knee was protesting and despite several layers of plasters, the blister on my heel persisted to cause me pain.
I decided it would be better to rest. Noah and Erin were competing against each other when I returned to the room.
Noah clearly had the edge. I curled up on the sofa to watch them.
‘It’s so hard,’ Erin said. ‘We’ve been doing the same easy five-hundred-piece puzzle and my time is about two hours. Guess what time Noah has?’
‘I have no idea.’
‘Fifty-one minutes! I guess I won’t be going to the championships in Spain.’ She laughed. ‘I thought I was good at jigsaws.’
‘It’s not about being good, it’s about being fast and efficient. With a lot of practice, I’m sure you’d be great,’ Noah said.
‘No, it’s just not in me.’ Erin was defeated.
‘I need to go,’ Noah said. ‘Cally will be looking for me. Group dinner at five.’
We were down in the bar at four for pre-dinner drinks, although I decided to have a sparkling water.
After dinner, I knew Cally would want to do a piece-to-camera at some point.
If I didn’t have my wits about me I’d end up talking about Harrison or maybe Priya.
Nothing good could come from that. Well, nothing good from my point of view – I expected that Cally would be delighted.
I stood back and watched Priya for a short while.
She was talking to Liz and I tried to hear what they were saying to each other, but Erin was talking to Femi right next to me so I couldn’t make out any of their conversation.
I was feeling paranoid they were talking about me.
Liz looked over at me then, as if to confirm my fears. And then I laughed out loud.
Both Femi and Erin turned to me, surprised.
‘I’m not a teenager, am I?’ I asked.
‘Er, no,’ Erin said, bemused.
‘And we’re not in the playground?’
‘No offence, but we haven’t been there for decades,’ Femi said with a grin.
‘Exactly, we haven’t,’ I said and turned my back on Priya. I was way too old for playground games. And I wasn’t prepared to let her intimidate me. Whatever she was up to, I wanted no part of it.
At five fifteen we were all sitting down for dinner.
I took a closer look at Sam – the man who had tricked Erin.
He was undeniably attractive. I could see what Erin had been thinking when she met him.
He had an easy smile and when he began laughing at something Tara said to him, his blue eyes sparkled.
It was just such a shame that he had the morals of his great-uncle.
I chose monkfish and roasted vegetables for my main course after a starter of garlic prawns. I declined the wine that was offered to me and stuck with water. In truth, I wasn’t feeling wonderful. A mixture of tiredness and rich food after a poor diet for a couple of days, I guessed.
‘Where do you think we’ll be going next?’ Priya asked when coffee was served.
‘I’m thinking north,’ Femi said, ignoring his coffee for the large glass of red wine in front of him. ‘I’m sure they intend to get us much colder before we head further west.’
‘I tend to agree,’ Harrison said. ‘There’s a whole lot of nothing for us to get lost in.’
‘You manage that in a built-up area,’ I said with a sarcastic smile on my face.
At least I hoped I looked sarcastic. I didn’t want him to think I was actually smiling at him.
Maybe I had looked as if I’d been gloating on the bus.
That at least could be true. I wasn’t cheating though, and the very idea that I was getting information from Cally to aid me in this race was laughable.
Harrison stared at me across the table with his eyebrows raised and just for a split second, something connected us.
A charge of energy, a spark of that electricity that I remembered from all those years ago.
I think if I still had functioning ovaries they might have twitched.
Something deep in my belly did, though. He didn’t look away and neither did I, until Erin asked me to pass her the water jug and whatever had been between us was broken.
Piece-to-camera
Cally: Tell us a bit about your daughter.
Martha: Well, Clare was a beautiful person. She was enigmatic and adventurous, and was loved by all who knew her. Some people are just unforgettable and Clare was one of those. Sadly, she had an aggressive brain tumour and died a week before her forty-fourth birthday. We were all devastated.
Cally: So, would you say you are racing for her? Do you draw strength from her memory as you make your way across Canada?
Martha: Absolutely. I will be thinking of her on every leg of this journey.
Cally: What’s it like racing with your granddaughter?
Martha: Amazing. Erin is a brilliant teammate and we get on so well. She’s energetic, sparky, and not afraid of throwing herself into a situation.
Cally: Is that how you see yourself, Erin?
Erin: Er, well, I nearly wet myself getting on that rocking gondola, but I’ll take Nana’s, er, I mean Martha’s version of me any day.
‘Cut,’ Cally said getting up from her chair. ‘Thanks for talking about Clare. I am sure the viewers will be rooting for you.’
‘No problem,’ I said. ‘I know it’s important to get a personal angle but to be honest, I always want to talk about my daughter.’
Cally took my hand and clutched it for a moment, then she walked over to talk to Noah.
‘“I nearly wet myself getting on the gondola”? Really?’ I said to Erin once Noah and Cally had left the room.
‘I couldn’t think what else to say,’ Erin said. ‘She’ll probably cut it anyway.’
‘I’ll bet she doesn’t, and I can’t wait to see your face in a few months’ time when we’re watching it on the TV,’ I said.