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Chapter 16
Abigail and Gerald had just removed the tarpaulin when they heard shouting from the lighthouse. Neither of them bothered to step out of the shed and find out what was going on. They imagined Joss was getting a piece of his uncle’s mind.
Joss appeared a moment later. ‘Well, that went well. He’s in even more of a foul mood than usual.’
Gerald and Abigail exchanged a glance, deciding not to mention to Joss his uncle’s rudeness over the shed.
‘He didn’t throw the shopping at me on the way out of the door, so at least that was something. I bought some basics like tea, coffee, milk, and some ready meals for the week ahead.’
If it had been anybody else, Abigail would have told Joss that his uncle could call on her any time if he needed anything. She kept her mouth shut.
‘Hey what’s going on?’ Joss noticed the tarpaulin on the floor. He spotted the car. ‘I had no idea this was a garage.’
‘Neither had I,’ said Abigail. It wasn’t the usual brick construction under a pantile roof.
He looked at the car. ‘What is that?’
Gerald ran a hand along the smooth orange paintwork. He looked at Joss. ‘Don’t tell me you’ve never seen a Volkswagen Beetle before.’
‘Oh, is that what it is.’ He stepped forward. ‘Couldn’t quite make it out from the back.’
Abigail looked at the little car that had been driven into the makeshift garage. Its front bumper almost touched the wooden panelling at the back of the garage. ‘It looks old.’
Gerald grinned. ‘That it is. You guys might have watched the old Herbie films when you were younger, but this one predates that. See here, the little lights on the back, that’s what gives it away. The next model, before they brought the car into the modern age, had much larger lights and a slightly different, rounder shape. I have to say you rarely see one of this age out on the road nowadays.’
Abigail wasn’t surprised.
‘Does it work?’ Joss asked eagerly.
Abigail tried one of the silver door handles, but it was locked. She shook her head. ‘No way of knowing.’
Gerald was still admiring the paintwork. He knelt down to take a closer look under the chassis. ‘Definitely in good nick, hardly any rust.’
‘Well, that’s good to know,’ commented Abigail, failing to hide her lack of interest. She wasn’t into cars, and certainly not old cars that might cost of a lot of money to get repaired. Who would drive around in a rusty car, anyway?
‘You know, if this works, it would make a nice little run-around,’ remarked Joss.
‘Or a rather nice little earner.’ Abigail replied. ‘Is the government still doing that scrappage scheme? Was it a couple of grand, or has it gone up to three?’ She looked from Gerald to Joss and back again. They were both staring at her, wide-eyed. ‘What?’
Gerald placed a protective hand on the bonnet. ‘It’s a Beetle, Abigail.’
‘Yes, I know that. But it probably doesn’t work.’
Joss stepped in. ‘I might be able to get it working.’ He joined Gerald at the back of the garage. ‘Why don’t we open the bonnet and take a look at what she’s got?’
Abigail rolled her eyes. They were calling the car a she.Typical men. That handy scrappage scheme might have been a deposit on a new car, but she got the feeling she’d be out-voted on this one.
Gerald grinned. ‘Ah, you won’t find the engine in there.’
Joss had just opened the bonnet to find an empty space.
‘That’s the boot.’
‘Oh, yes, right. I forgot.’
Gerald and Joss joined Abigail by the door. They each attempted to open the engine compartment at the back, twisting the chrome handle in turn. ‘It’s locked,’ Abigail pointed out, noticing there was a lock and space for a key in the handle.
Her companions looked disappointed. She had an idea. ‘You know what?’ she said to them both, ‘If you love it so much, why don’t you buy it?’
