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And it won’t be long – just the couple of months before the friend who owns the hotel is back and I take a long-awaited work trip to Morocco, followed by another to Turkey. Seeking out early spring sun, well-being and yoga retreats, I’m planning to write pieces based on my belief that it’s easier to live more healthily where the sun shines, where food is fresher and the air cleaner; about the restorative effects on the mind of getting away from it all, of dipping into a simpler way of life, if just for a week or two.
Then after, I hope to find a little base in Spain, somewhere in the mountains with far-reaching views; with clear air that resounds with peacefulness… It’s been my dream for a while – to settle somewhere that’s my own little piece of paradise.
I’m a firm believer in chasing your dreams, in making them happen. I mean, it’s what life’s about, going after what makes your heart sing. But this time around… When I try to imagine leaving here, I draw a blank. Perhaps it’s because there’s so much uncertainty in my life, but when I think of where I am, I have a sense I can’t explain that for some reason, I’m meant to be here.
3
FORREST
As he strides up the High Street towards the hotel, Forrest pulls up the collar of his jacket against the wind. He glances at his watch, his eyes lingering on it as he admires it briefly. It had been bloody expensive, but as one of his colleagues always says: ‘You can tell a lot about someone from their wristwatch.’
And this one is no exception. Obviously flashy, it reeks of wealth, confidence, individuality, success… Smiling to himself, he checks the time. He’s here on behalf of a client who’s having a clandestine affair, and he doesn’t expect this to take long. A quiet word with the manager and he’ll be away in plenty of time to meet his colleague and best friend, Joe.
He and Joe are planning a boozy celebration for this evening. After all, on top of just having just won their latest court case, a day later Forrest had been offered a promotion and the increase in salary that went with that. It’s set to be a great night, until at the last minute, Joe had reminded him about his father’s birthday party.
If it had been up to Forrest, he would happily miss it, he pondered. For too many years, his father had been absent from his life, waltzing back in when it suited him, dangling a careerin his law firm like a juicy fat carrot – if Forrest was prepared to put the hours in. It hadn’t been the career as much as his father’s love he’d craved. It hasn’t been forthcoming. But people like his father never change. However unappealing the party is, it’s impossible to let it get to him. He’s had the best start to the year. One that’s only going to get more lucrative. From now on, he’ll cherry pick his clients, definitely delegating cases like this one – small town hotels are hardly big business. But then the client happens to be Athena, a friend of a work colleague – and she’d implored him.
As he carries on walking, the first flakes of snow falling irritate him. Not because he doesn’t like snow – he does, but on the slopes of Val d’Isere or Courcheval, not in Arundel.
Reaching the hotel, he pauses outside before pushing the door open. As it closes behind him, he glances around at the empty tables and chairs, then up at the ridiculously ornate Byzantine ceiling that would look more at home in a Turkish mosque than a small hotel.
‘Can I help you?’
The voice from behind the bar reminds him why he’s come here. As he looks up, his eyes meet the dark brown ones of the girl behind the bar. Blinking slightly, Forrest pulls himself up. ‘Hi. Yes. I’d like a word with the manager.’
‘That’s me.’ The girl frowns at him. ‘How can I help?’
There’s something about her that unnerves him slightly, as though he knows her from somewhere. Maybe their paths have crossed in some legal case – it never ceases to amaze him what a small world it is. ‘It’s about this.’ Opening the folder he’s carrying, he takes out a copy of a letter and passes it to her.
Her eyes briefly scan it. ‘What about it, exactly?’
‘My client feels it’s a little extreme.’ The client had twisted Forrest’s arm, metaphorically speaking, her belief in his ability appealing to his ego. Athena had asked him to get the bill downby fifty per cent, a figure she could pay without her husband noticing. Anyway, a bill for ten grand for allegedly trashing a small hotel room seemed steep for such a tiny place. And, as Forrest knows, there was always a deal to be done.
The girl looks unimpressed. ‘The level of damage was extreme.’
Forrest doesn’t miss a beat. ‘Look, I’ve checked out your tariffs – and the rooms. Ten thousand is completely out of the question for a place like this.’
The girl’s eyes narrow. ‘I’ll show you if you like.’
Forrest’s aware of his heart sinking. Two weeks on from when the damage allegedly happened, he’d imagined repairs would have taken place. He hadn’t expected to be faced with evidence.
Without waiting for a reply, the girl turns and starts walking. ‘It’s this way.’
Taking in her slim legs skimmed by black trousers, he follows her up the spiralling staircase – no lifts, Forrest notes. Clearly not a proprietor who has cash to splash. It only strengthens his case that this is obviously a cheap attempt to make money out of one of their more affluent guests.
On the second floor, she unlocks a door and stands back to let him in.
Going inside, Forrest hides his surprise that actually, it isn’t a bad room. Quite spacious, especially for a small hotel. His eyes scan the walls, reluctantly settling on a dark red stain on the wallpaper, before moving to another much larger one on the cream carpet.
‘She got through five bottles in all – at least, judging from the broken glass we picked up after she’d gone.’ The girl is watching him. ‘For your information, that’s just the start of it. She ripped the curtains and poured another bottle of wine onto the bed,before starting on the bathroom. The mirror in there is broken. Basically, she utterly trashed it.’
Going to another door, she pushes it open and switches the light on.
Glancing inside the bathroom, he’s slightly taken aback. It’s a lot worse than Athena’s led him to believe. But given she’d obviously been off her head on something, it wasn’t surprising she hadn’t remembered. Forrest tries to play it down. ‘The damage you’ve shown me is purely superficial. Anyone can see that. OK, so a new mirror and a lick of paint, but surely you have insurance to cover misunderstandings like these?’
The girl bristles visibly. ‘This “misunderstanding”, as you put it, not only left us with a room out of action, it triggered a string of complaints from our other guests about the music and shouting, most of which was swearing. They all asked for their money back. Added to that, we’ve lost repeat business. Yourclienthas a lot to answer for.’
‘Look, my client is a respectable professional. It was just a row that got a little out of hand,’ Forrest says, bluffing.
