Page 34 of Old Girls Behaving Badly

The following morning, Dorothy woke early and lay in her bed thinking about what it was she was asking of Gina and now Juliet. A complete stranger and her own granddaughter. If Sophie and Luke found out before they found the painting then she was sure she was going to be in a lot of trouble.

She tried to put it to the back of her mind and concentrate on the day ahead first. She was going to be spending some time on the back of Gina’s quad bike, so it would really be a test of how much she trusted the woman and also whether she could even get on it in the first place.

They met outside the front of the house and Harry picked them all up in a minibus. Leonard had gone ahead on his motorbike, apparently with his dodgy knee padded and supported.

Dorothy made another comment about it feeling like they were on a school trip and got a bark of laughter and agreement from Juliet and Miles, but a stern look from Paul.

‘I have to say, I was expecting a little more from Leonard,’ she said unable to help herself.

‘What? More ice sculptures and less day out for the local scouting group you mean?’ Miles said.

‘I think that Len is putting on a wonderful week for us all,’ Paul said. ‘You could be a little more grateful. Who else would do what Len does?’

‘You’re absolutely right – no one else is capable of what Leonard does,’ Dorothy said pointedly.

Paul looked momentarily mollified until his brain caught up with Dorothy’s words and then he was left narrow-eyed and contemplative.

Gina turned in her seat and smiled at Dorothy over the headrest, but Dorothy noticed she was looking a little apprehensive. Juliet had her head in her phone and her earbuds in as usual, but she was smiling at something she was watching. Dorothy felt disconcerted about Juliet filming people and hoped it was a short-lived exercise in her boredom this week. Lavinia, Dorothy noticed, was looking apprehensively out of the window; Miles was reading the newspaper; Sophie seemed genuinely excited about the prospect of driving around the countryside on four bumpy wheels; and Luke had his arm draped across the headrest, almost around her shoulders, but not quite. Rufus looked thunderous. Sandra and Paul sat side by side, barely touching, and looked a thousand miles apart. In contrast, at the back with their limbs as entwined as was possible and acceptable were the happy couple, and Dorothy smiled warmly at them. No matter what else happened this week, missing painting or no missing painting, these two lovely people would be married.

The lane to the farm building where the quad bikes were was potholed and the last mile was incredibly disorientating.

‘I shall be glad to get out of this wretched contraption,’ Dorothy said.

‘Only to get onto another,’ Gina told her.

‘You will take it steady, won’t you? I am eighty-nine, you know.’

‘I’m seventy-one. I’ll be taking it very steady,’ Gina said. ‘Do we really need to do this? I’ve honestly never driven a quad bike before. I’m not even sure how.’ Gina had lowered her voice and her mouth was set in a grim, tight line.

‘Seventy-one – that’s no age at all,’ Dorothy said. ‘I’d certainly have been up for the challenge when I was that age, especially if I found myself suddenly single like yourself. The world is yours for the taking and you should take it, while you still can. Say yes to opportunities, say no to housework.’

‘You do housework do you, Mum?’ Sophie asked her with a grin.

‘I’ve been known to wield a duster, yes,’ Dorothy replied.

Her voice was animated, which in the confined space of the vehicle meant that everyone was suddenly privy to Gina’s change in circumstances. Dorothy gave Gina an apologetic smile and decided she’d keep her thoughts to herself from now on.

The rattling and bumping in the minibus suddenly came to a stop and Dorothy could see that they were at a large building with a corrugated roof and huge sliding doors. A great place to store a lot of stolen items, she thought, but actually the doors were open and she could see that what it mostly stored was farm machinery and gardening equipment.

Leonard was standing outside the front and having a conversation with a young man in jeans and a black leather jacket. The man was looking down at Leonard’s hand, which sat casually on his arm, and Dorothy didn’t have time to tell whether the gesture was welcome or not, because Leonard removed it as soon as the minibus appeared.

The ground at the front of the building was a quad bike car park and there was another man, lying on the ground, who was fiddling around with the underneath of one. Two vans with large trailers were parked up and Dorothy suddenly felt a frisson of excitement or possibly alarm; it was hard to distinguish between the two. The day was glorious and the thought of biking around the countryside was suddenly very appealing.

An hour of instruction and squabbling later and they were finally off. They all had bike-style helmets on and had had to prove competency by driving around the yard before the two men would allow them out – Dorothy had stood back and watched that fiasco, thoroughly entertained. Gina had been very hesitant and Dorothy heard her say more than once that she’d be just as happy not doing it, but she’d had nothing but encouragement from the rest of the group and now stood with her arms across her chest looking as if she’d rather be anywhere else than here. Leonard had assured the quad bike owners that he would be in charge and fully responsible for the welfare of the group, which made Dorothy raise her eyebrows so far they disappeared into her hairline.

Leonard gave up his own large bike to Gina and Dorothy, which Gina later said was very considerate, but Dorothy suggested it was an act of unparalleled violence, because it meant he’d obviously sabotaged it and they were both likely to die. Her thoughts, it seemed, could not be kept to herself after all. The others had squabbled over the remaining vehicles, which all looked pretty good, but still much deliberation was needed. Juliet wanted the one with handlebars that matched her top; Caroline and Toby wanted ones that matched each other; Lavinia and Miles argued over whether she was actually coming, because it really wasn’t her thing; both Sandra and Paul declared they were happy with anything before both rushing for the same bike; and Rufus sat down on the one nearest him, his face still looking like a gathering storm.

‘Perfect,’ Leonard said, and then went back into the shed for a shiny new one that elicited a groan from a few of the party. He started it up and then there were no words worth saying because they’d never have been heard anyway. Leonard manoeuvred out of the yard and, with a wave of his hand above his head, he encouraged them all to follow him.

Because Gina and Dorothy had been given the large bike it meant that Dorothy could sit comfortably behind Gina, although she had to be helped on to it by three people.

‘I’m sure this isn’t what a companion would usually be asked to do,’ Gina said as she started her engine.

‘Noted,’ Dorothy said simply, but in her mind she was already thinking about Gina’s fee for the week and how she’d definitely need to increase the figure. She was asking an awful lot of her.

When they set off, though, Gina proved a very competent driver and Dorothy settled into her seat and actually began to enjoy herself. Gina’s shoulders lowered a little as they went and she seemed to relax a bit too.

Leonard’s estate was huge: 3,000 acres in total, of parkland, woodland, lakes, farming fields and cottages, and he wanted them to see it all. He’d set them up with walkie-talkies so he could give them a running commentary about where they were and what they could see and, despite herself, Dorothy was enjoying every minute of it. Gina had the walkie-talkie attached to the handlebars of the quad and as Leonard didn’t require a response to his commentary they could listen without Gina having to touch it.