The Knapthorne Conspiracy by Malcolm Ballard (best english novels for beginners txt) 📕

the grave in an unexpected gesture that, in its own way, was proving just as difficult to adjust to. The weekend was going to be an opportunity to familiarise herself with the cottage and see what work needed to be done to it, if any. Immediately she realised there was no garage and wondered why she hadn’t noticed that on her previous visit. Perhaps it had been a combination of her excitement and the fact that Ben was driving but she had never given it a thought.

“I wonder what else I’ll discover?” she murmured, pulling up as close to the front door as possible and switching the engine off. Rain was falling quite heavily now as she sorted through the keys to find the one for the front door before she got out the car. Beside her, on the passenger seat, Bella had placed a roomy tote bag. It contained essentials such as lunch, the necessary requisites for making tea or coffee and other items such as a small transistor radio, candles, matches, a torch and, most importantly, a corkscrew. Having located the key, she picked up the tote bag and secured it under her arm.

“Well, here goes nothing,” she told herself, opening the door and getting out. “Welcome to Willow Cottage!”

On the way down, Bella had suddenly remembered about the power, and cursed herself for not asking Ben about it when he had phoned. If she hadn’t have been in such a rush to get away, no doubt she would have thought to ask him. Once inside, the first thing she did was try one of the light switches in the lobby and, much to her relief, the outside light came on. There was a set of three switches adjacent to the single one for the exterior light and she switched them all on, illuminating the lounge and dining area. Last week, the power had not been connected and Ben had said that he would arrange for someone to look after it. Full marks to him, she noted, thinking that the man was showing some potential. It seemed eerie, at first, having the whole place to herself and she wandered from room to room, much as she had done on her first visit. Unlike before, when the day outside was warm and sunny, there was a chill in the atmosphere throughout the cottage and the musty smell much more obvious. Surfaces were covered in dust, mice had left their calling cards, windows would have to be cleaned and the whole place needed a good airing. Bella made a mental note to check out the heating too, something else she had overlooked previously. Once she had completed the tour, she returned to the lobby, where she had left her bag, having decided to have some lunch before doing anything else.

Particularly since she had started writing, and even more so as she grew older, Bella found that she enjoyed her own company. It wasn’t that she was becoming anti-social or reclusive in any way, far from it. Even she, who was so good with words, found it difficult to explain but it made the prospect of being at the cottage by herself seem like a gift from the gods and she was determined not to waste the opportunity. Outside, the wind gusted in the trees and the rain continued to fall but Bella was immune to the elements as she contemplated what to do next. Uppermost in her mind was the knowledge that she needed to create a proper working environment in the space on the top floor to enable her to start on the book as soon as possible.

She decided to go through each room very carefully, when she had finished her lunch, wanting to check every cupboard and shelf, each nook and cranny, to familiarise herself with the cottage completely. To her delight, one of the first discoveries she made was that the kitchen boasted both a dishwasher and a waste disposal unit, as well as the fridge freezer and microwave. It was simply too good to be true.

“Yes!” she cried, punching the air, in delight, with a closed fist. “The turnip folk strike back! This almost makes up for not having a garage.” She was like a child with a new toy and went gleefully into the laundry where she found, among other things, the switch for the hot water, and the airing cupboard complete with ironing board. Picking up a brochure lying on one of the empty shelves, she was delighted to find it was from the manufacturers of the central heating system.

“Hot water, light and an ironing board. What more could any woman want?” But there was more, for not only was there a washing machine but also a wall-mounted dryer. It seemed that the cottage was equipped with most modern appliances and Bella found herself seriously thinking about the possibility of living there permanently. It took her the best part of an hour to complete the full inspection and her biggest surprise was discovering that the bath had a spa feature built into it. After that, nothing would have surprised her but everything else was much as she had expected. The cottage was fully furnished and, according to Ben, had been used as a rented holiday home for some time but nobody had stayed there for  some months. Apparently, a woman from the village had acted as housekeeper and kept an eye on the cottage since it had become vacant and that was as much as Bella knew. Perhaps that was why  the kitchen, bathroom and toilet were relatively clean but Bella wouldn’t be satisfied until she had cleaned everywhere herself. She’d come prepared and realised that the sooner she got on with it the better, as it was now after 2pm already. If she could find out who this woman was who’d acted as housekeeper she might be able to offer her a job. It certainly wasn’t her intention to come