Tuesday's Tales ~ Free

Welcome to Tuesday's Tales

 

This week's prompt word is free, and so I have picked a new scene in my wip Born Again.

 

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It seemed to be a happy town. They had some kind of festivities going on in the park today that spilled over into the streets, with stalls, their gaily coloured awnings blowing in the breeze. Children ran up and down, carefree in the no-car zone street, which yesterday had been packed with vehicles. Adults strolled along some alone, others, couples holding hands. Behind the scenes Amanda assumed there’d be stress, but looking out of her bedroom window everything looked like one big celebration.

The weather, too, was offering support with the sun climbing in the sky, and pretty little white clouds floating past, some more speedily than others. Music, all jumbled up, blared from the fairground set up on the edge of the park, which was enjoying a busy trade. A group of three adults passed beneath her window and she watched them head for the park. Due to the number of friends who stopped their progress she didn’t think they’d make it anytime soon. It warmed her heart to see the man, taller than his grey-haired companions, sling a careless arm round the woman’s shoulders, while with the other, he cuffed the other man on the arm and they all laughed.

A pang of loss shot straight o her heart. This time last year she and her grandmother used to go everywhere together. Now she was on her own. The woman left a gaping hole in her heart and she still didn’t know what to do to fill it. She shrugged it away. No point feeling sorrow for herself on this gorgeous morning. Better, by far, to go out there and join the crowds.

It didn’t matter that she’d originally intended simply to stay the one night and move on, as she had since selling her grandmother’s house. Perhaps her friends were right and she’d made decisions to soon after the funeral, but Amanda needed to find herself. To discover her true self. So she’d cut ties with her past and been moving ever since.

 

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 Tuesday's Tales 

TT ~ Bells

Welcome to Tuesday's Tales   

Once again, many thanks to all those who drop by each week. I also appreciate, and often act upon comments and suggestions left.  Many thanks.

 

In this week's scene Amanda is spooked and gets herself lost.

“Come on lady,” the showman’s voice cut through her thoughts and she raised her second dart and threw. A cheer went up when it buried itself in the bulls-eye. “You’ve got yourself a great teddy bear. The showman reached up for it and grinned when he handed it to her. I thought you’d fallen into a day dream there, not that you were psyching yourself up for a winning throw.”

With a rueful grin Amanda found herself hugging the bear almost as psychedelic as the young mother’s papoose the day before. “Thanks,” she handed the third dart back to him. “One win is enough for me tonight. Thank you.”

“You look good together,” John-Henry laughed and handed three more darts to the man standing beside her. When she looked round the bear nearly slipped out of her arms.

Tall, dark and handsome stood so close she could smell the sharp tang of his cologne. As for the warmth from his body, how could he make her feel all hot and bothered, as her Gran would say. ‘Hot and bothered’ didn’t begin to describe the sensation. Prickly heat and that wretched tingling on the back of her neck. But why? The man never even glanced at her. And again, she asked herself, why would he? And why, she asked herself when she bumped into the other man, the one she’d watched approach the blond woman minutes before, were they both… What? So one of them stood to her right and the other to her left, but so what? Coincidence.

“Hey, John-Henry, you going to hold them there darts all night or are you going to pass ‘em over?”

She knew that voice. She’d heard it the night before, moaning about letting something go after so many years and then being shown up for his generosity. Since both men blocked her sideways movement Amanda stepped back, watched the two men close the gap between them, and exchange a swift glance before Tall dark and handsome also stepped back and bumped her arm hard enough for poor old teddy to go flying.

“I’m sorry.” He caught her arm as though to prevent her from falling and with his fingers still holding her still he reached down and picked up the purple bear.

“For your daughter?” His query should have been mundane so why did her natural instinct warn Amanda the question was deliberate?

“Thank you.” Once again she tucked the bear under her arm and stepped back.

“Let me buy you a drink” TD and H, as Amanda decided to tag the man, indicated the tea-tent. With a shake of her head she began walking away only to find the man at her side. The prickling sensation increased. Were these two men a threat to all blonds? Or just her? She stopped walking and sighed when her body fired up again when he bumped into her.

“Look, it was an accident. There’s no harm done, so please, leave me alone.” This time Amanda ditched her dignity and ran. And kept on running until the fair ground was far behind her and darkness surrounded her. She didn’t know where she was, or how to find her accommodation, but right now she didn’t care.

 

Somewhere in the distance, a church bell, no a church clock began to chime. In a big city the dark could be dangerous, but surely here in this small country village the darkness would be her friend. It was just a pity that she felt too rattled to enjoy it. Back home she often roamed the countryside in the evening. She enjoyed watching the sun give way to the moon and light to dark. Now the only way she’d find her way back to her bed and breakfast would be to return to the fairground. Well she wouldn’t do that until everything shut down for the night. Undoubtedly her hosts would be peeved when she turned up at some unearthly hour, but it couldn’t be helped.

Tuesday's Tales ~ Check/checked

Welcome to Tuesday's Tales  

 

Once again, many thanks to all those who drop by each week. I also appreciate, and often act upon comments and suggestions left.  Many thanks.

 

This week I am back with my current WIP. Amanda is at the same fairground as Josh and is still observing his actions when she thinks back 24 hours....

 

     Tamping down on her rising panic Amanda forced herself to turn her back on the mystery man and his interest in the other woman. After all why should it matter to her, she’d be here for a couple of days at the most, 24 hours if she decided to check out on sooner.

Something, she didn’t know what, had pulled her to the place. Well not exactly. She’d stopped to fill up her car with petrol and been fascinated enough to linger. Whether it had been the gold of the setting sun turning to fire and flaming the lacy silver clouds, or whether it has been the laughter drifting out from the open door of the café across the road. Perhaps it had been the sway of the trees turning almost black in the lengthening shadows. She didn’t know and at the time didn’t care.

The enchantment of the place had her parking near the café and walking in. People looked up, some nodded others redirected their attention to their companions while a couple watched her walk to the counter ordered a meal, and then followed her progress to an empty table near the window. Music, too loud to be described a ‘background’ forced the level of chatter up a decibel, and Amanda listened in to snippets of conversation around her.

“Time to let it rest.” Someone behind her had stated. The impatience in his voice was followed by a grunt while a woman chastised him for his intolerance.

“Don’t be daft woman; it’s time to let it be. They keep raking it up year after year…”

“If you’re so dead set against this fair, then why are you making such a large donation to the cause?”

A child at another nearby table set up a screech of discontent drowning out the man’s reply, and Amanda wished she could turn round and see the man whose generosity had been found out. But for what, she wondered, and sat back with a smile for the waitress who delivered her coffee and a piece of chocolate cake.

From her window seat she watched several diners leave and head for their cars. Couples, young and old, and a mother couple, the father carrying a child in his arms and the mother with a baby in one of those body-sling things that had become so popular. A fluorescent pink one, that almost glowed in the dusk. She smiled, and acknowledged the curl of envy that clutched at her belly. She’d always dreamed of having children. Lots of them. Four at least, perhaps more.

But time was a passing and the chances of her dreamed of family receded with each birthday. The buzz of her phone distracted her from the young family and she sighed when she identified the caller. Time seemed to be front and centre stage right now. Soon she would have to make arrangements for a temporary move to London while she worked on refining her film scores. Giving in to temptation she switched off her phone, smiled when the waitress stopped to ask if she wanted anything else. Another coffee seemed like a good idea, Amanda thought and stopped the woman long enough to ask for a recommendation on somewhere to stay overnight.

Thank you for reading this week's offering, 

there are lots more free reads at  

Tuesday's Tales  

Tuesday's Tales - Picture

Welcome to Tuesday's Tales  

 

Once again, many thanks to all those who drop by each week. I also appreciate, and often act upon comments and suggestions left.  Many thanks.

 

My story continues on from last week. Norma's name has been changed to Amanda, and in this clip she's struggling to come to terms with information that will change her life. . ~~I am also using NaNo to continue with this story. :-)

“Your grandfather is waiting for me,” her grandmother said again. “And I am ready to go home.”

Home? Did she no longer consider this house her home? Unfair, even unreasonable as it might be, the thought triggered a sliver of jealousy, abandonment, and yes, anger. Had all the love been false? Offered as a sense of duty? She almost wished she’d never left her bed this morning. Wished she could unheard what she’d learned this evening. Wished that the black thread of jealousy would fade away.

The question hovered in her head, growing, darkening, and sharpening. And in the end it refused to lie down.

“Did you ever love me, or was it just a token duty emotion?”

With surprising strength her grandmother leaned forward, caught Amanda is a strong, hard hug and crooned her denial. “Of course it wasn’t duty. Nor was it from guilt,” she added before Amanda could open her mouth.

“You were such a pretty baby we all fell in love with you the moment we saw you. That doesn’t mean we didn’t intend to find your rightful home. We did. All of us, except your mother, of course.”

The dilemma, Amanda thought, what a dilemma, saving her daughter-in-law’s sanity and possibly even her life, or doing the rightful thing and returning her, Amanda, back to her rightful parents. Perhaps she was callous, as perhaps she was unreasonable to judge when she’d never faced such a dilemma, but Amanda felt sure she would have returned the child and risked the consequences. As it was they, her non-family had made their choices and it looked as though she’d be faced with the consequences for the rest of her life.

A rock and a hard place didn’t even begin to cover the situation she found herself in.

“Go on,” Amanda encouraged when her grandmother stopped speaking. It was obvious to Amanda her grandmother was fading fast, and she was desperate to hear everything the older woman had to say before it was too late.

“The key,” her grandmother repeated. “Do not lose the key. There should be another matching box that shares the same key. Your grandfather had them built to share the same key.”

Another box? “Where? Where is this other box?”

Her grandmother slumped back against her pillows, her eyes shut, her breathing coming in shallow gasps.
She looked round the room and her gaze settled on the picture of the lilacs. For a moment she couldn’t turn away from it. When she looked round again her grandmother was staring at her.

 

Thank you for reading this week's offering, there are lots more free reads at  Tuesday's Tales