Chapter 21
Zoe was surprised to see Victor in the shop when she walked in to pick up some biscuits on her way home from work the following Monday.
He and Corrine didn’t often come down to the village – though they were friendly with everyone when they did – and it was even rarer he had the need to buy from the shop.
That being said, it didn’t seem as if he was buying anything now, as he was having an animated conversation with Magnus and Geoff.
At the sound of the door opening, all three turned to Zoe.
Victor’s face lit up. ‘You’ll never guess what we found!’
‘You and Alex?’ Zoe asked, the only people she could think of who’d been actively searching for something.
‘Jet beads! What do you think of that? It’s a crying shame we didn’t find them on the day you were with us, but still.
Didn’t even show on the metal detector, of course, but the man Alex has been talking to is excited now all right.
He says it’s a safe bet there’ll be more jewellery.
He’s wondering if we might uncover some stones. ’
‘Stones?’
‘Like up at Cockpit.’
Zoe was still confused.
‘A stone circle,’ Geoff clarified. ‘Like Stonehenge, except obviously not Stonehenge because if they were that big, I’m fairly sure we would have noticed them by now.’
‘Wouldn’t we have noticed a stone circle anyway?’ Zoe asked.
‘Not if most of it had been taken away to build and what’s left fell down and got buried,’ Victor said.
Zoe thought that sounded quite a stretch, but she didn’t want to dampen Victor’s enthusiasm so kept quiet.
‘Of course,’ he continued, ‘you’d have thought when Ann and Jim were farming up there they’d have noticed something.’
‘Perhaps they did and didn’t realise what it was,’ she offered.
‘I expect that’s it,’ Victor agreed. ‘Would you like to see the beads?’
‘Have you got a photo of them?’
‘Not with me. No phone. But if you call up at the house later, I’ve got them. I found them, see, so Alex said for me to keep them until his man decides what he wants to do.’
‘Do you think they’ll send people up to excavate?’ Geoff asked.
‘They might,’ Victor said thoughtfully.
‘Oh.’ Magnus grinned. ‘That will put the cat with the pigeons.’
‘ Among the pigeons,’ Geoff corrected him playfully. ‘And you’re right. Some round here love a good moan – they’ll have something to say about teams of archaeologists driving up and down.’
‘Will it affect Alex’s plans?’ Zoe asked, and when she saw the looks on both Geoff’s and Magnus’s faces realised immediately that she shouldn’t have done.
‘What plans are those?’ Geoff asked with an air of disinterest that couldn’t have done a worse job of masking his obvious curiosity. ‘Is he building something up at Hilltop? Is that what the digging is about? We had thought…’
‘No point in beating about the bush now,’ Victor said in a practical tone. ‘Folks will find out soon enough. He’s putting camping pods up there. Going to open them in the spring if he can get done in time, though he might be delayed in light of current events.’
‘ A lot of camping pods?’ Geoff asked.
‘I should have thought so. The man’s got to make a living. No point in messing around with one, is there?’
‘I don’t think people will like that,’ Magnus said doubtfully. ‘Not me, of course,’ he added quickly. ‘I wouldn’t stand in the way, but some won’t like it.’
‘Some don’t like anything,’ Victor said. ‘My memory’s long enough to recall the fuss they made about my treks when I first started them, and they hardly bother the village at all.’
‘It wasn’t that bad,’ Geoff began, but the look on Victor’s face instantly reduced him to a sheepish grin.
‘It’s lucky I don’t hold grudges,’ Victor said cheerily, which made Zoe think that Geoff, or Magnus, or both of them had been at least a little opposed to Victor’s plans in the beginning.
‘I suppose the camping pods would be good for us,’ Magnus said. ‘They would bring business to the shop.’
‘I dare say.’ Victor took off his cap and scratched his head. ‘Well, I’d better be off…’
As Victor bid them one last good day and headed for the door, Flo was coming from the other direction, and the two almost collided. ‘Sorry about that, Flo,’ he said with a smile. ‘Nearly had you.’
‘You did!’ Flo snapped. ‘You don’t change, charging about the place.’
‘Well, you don’t like change,’ Victor said, ‘so I do it for you. Cheerio!’
Zoe glanced to see Magnus and Geoff both trying not to laugh at the altercation. Flo stomped in and slammed her basket down.
‘Someone got out of bed on the wrong side today,’ Geoff said. ‘What’s the matter, Flo? Lost a fiver and found fifty pence?’
‘Nothing’s the matter.’
‘Are you sure about that?’
‘Oh, it’s that Prue Barrett!’ she huffed.
‘Who?’
‘The organiser of this blasted celebration! Asks for suggestions and when I give them doesn’t want to know! Four times I’ve phoned that office and she won’t talk to me!’
‘Has she spoken to you at all?’ Geoff asked.
‘Once, last week.’
‘That’ll be why,’ Geoff said to Magnus in a low voice, and Flo’s head snapped up.
‘What was that?’
‘I was only saying what a shame it is. I mean, because you’ve lived in Thimblebury so long and have so much local knowledge, it seems a waste not to take advantage of your offer.’
As Geoff did his best to soothe Flo, Magnus shot a conspiratorial grin at Zoe.
‘I’ve got some good ideas,’ Flo continued. ‘Better than some of the rubbish they’re putting on.’
‘Oh, I don’t know,’ Magnus said. ‘I think some of it’s very good.’
‘You would,’ Flo huffed. ‘Because they’re showing that film of yours.’
‘Prue was very interested in that, actually,’ he replied with obvious pride. ‘She said it was a lovely document of what it was to come to Thimblebury as a foreigner and how the village welcomed me in.’
Flo sniffed loudly. ‘You’re not the only outsider, but nobody else is making a fuss about it.’
‘I don’t think I’d know where to start if I wanted to make a film,’ Zoe said. ‘And I’m sure Ottilie hasn’t got time.’
‘Nobody asked my Heath,’ Flo said.
‘He’s not exactly an outsider, is he?’ Geoff said.
‘He moved here from Manchester only this year!’
‘But he came back from Manchester. Technically this was home for him already.’
‘Ooh, you’ve always got an answer for everything, haven’t you, Geoff?’ Flo replied, tottering over to the fridges. ‘I ought to take my business elsewhere.’
‘Good luck with that,’ Geoff said mildly. ‘As we’re the only grocer’s in the village.’
‘Look…’ Magnus tutted and pointed to the counter. ‘Victor forgot his magazine in all the excitement.’
‘What excitement?’ Flo asked, to be ignored by everyone.
‘So he did,’ Geoff said. He looked up at Zoe. ‘You said you’d be going up there to look at his beads. Would you mind taking it with you?’
‘Beads?’ Flo came back to the counter empty-handed, clearly having decided that what was going on there was more important than whatever she’d gone to the fridge for. ‘What beads are these?’
‘Never you mind,’ Geoff said.
‘What’s the big secret?’ Flo demanded.
‘It’s not that big a deal,’ Zoe said. ‘Victor and Alex found them while they were searching for more Bronze Age stuff on Hilltop Farm.’
‘What Bronze Age stuff?’
Magnus looked at Geoff. ‘She’ll find out eventually.’ And then he turned to Flo. ‘They found some arrowheads and other bits up there, and they think there might have been a Bronze Age settlement. It would make sense, wouldn’t it? There are others dotted around the lakes.’
‘And the beads might be jet,’ Zoe said. ‘But they’re going to have them checked by an expert. But if they are, I think that might be a big deal.’
‘Oh,’ Flo said. ‘Is that all?’
‘Don’t you think it’s exciting?’ Magnus asked.
‘Not especially. If they’d found a big pile of gold, I’d be interested. Some beads…pah! Who cares about some old beads?’
‘Plenty of archaeologists would.’ Zoe reached for the magazine, and Magnus nodded at her. ‘Thank you for doing that.’
‘Not a problem. Like you said, I was going up to see them anyway, and it’s not like it’s a million miles out of my way, even if I wasn’t. I’m only a field away.’
Half an hour later, Zoe knocked at the door of Daffodil farmhouse.
She could hear laughter coming from within, and when Corrine opened up, she saw Alex was sitting at the table with Victor.
The smile he greeted her with was easier than last time they’d bumped into one another.
Perhaps the excitement of their recent find had wiped the memory of her rudeness from his mind.
‘Hello, flower!’ Victor said. ‘Come to see our treasure?’
‘And also to give you this.’ Zoe took the magazine from her bag and handed it to him.
‘Ah yes, I phoned the shop and Magnus said you had it. Thank you!’
Corrine looked over his shoulder and rolled her eyes. ‘Like you need any more magazines about tractors! You’ll never buy any of them, so I don’t know why you sit drooling over them for hours on end.’
‘They’re not just about tractors,’ Victor said with a note of offence in his voice. ‘There’s all sorts of farm machinery in here. I have to keep up.’
‘Keep up with what? You certainly don’t need a combine harvester, and I doubt you need anything else in there.’ She turned to Zoe with a smile. ‘Now then, what can I get you? Tea? A slice of Bakewell tart? Or I think I have some flapjacks left from the other day…’
‘Bakewell tart sounds lovely.’ Zoe took a seat and was suddenly aware of Alex’s eyes on her.
As soon as she met his gaze, he tore his away and to something black on the table.
Taking a closer look, Zoe let out an exclamation of surprise.
She hadn’t expected them to be in quite such good condition.
‘Are these the beads? Wow! They’re lovely! How are they even still in one piece?’
‘They’re beautiful, aren’t they?’ Victor beamed. ‘Like they were made yesterday.’
‘Probably were,’ Corrine called in a dry tone from the kettle.
‘They’re definitely old,’ Alex said. ‘We don’t know how old until we get them examined properly.’