AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The chickens were in the wire enclosure, pecking away at the ground, bobbing their heads in the funny way they always did. Clover lifted the catch on the gate, then propped it open with a brick she kept there for that purpose.
‘OK then,’ she said, ‘here we have Cordelia, Juliet, Hippolyta, Ophelia, Portia, Desdemona, Miranda, Regan, Goneril and Lady Macbeth.’
She watched as understanding dawned in Brooke’s eyes. ‘They’re all names from Shakespeare plays.’
‘That’s right.’ Clover nodded. ‘That handsome cockerel there is Russell Crow. My grandson, Nolan, named him.’
‘Russell Crow!’ Brooke laughed. ‘I get it!’
‘I have a few different breeds here too. There’s Dutch Bantam, Orpington, Cochin and Rhode Island Red.’
‘They’re lovely,’ Brooke replied, watching as the chickens followed one another from the enclosure and roamed the garden.
‘I’ll let them out for a bit so they can have a mooch around then put them back in later.’
‘How do you get them to go back in?’ Brooke asked.
‘They’re in a routine and know that they’ll be fed when they return in the evening. A few times, one or two of them have been a bit stubborn so I offer treats if they get like that.’
‘What treats do they like?’
‘Berries, mealworms, seeds, cottage cheese…’ Clover grinned.
‘Cottage cheese?’ Brooke’s eyebrows met above her nose.
‘Oh yes. They love it and the calcium is good for them. It’s particularly handy in the summer as a cooling treat straight from the tub.’
Brooke giggled. ‘That’s amazing. I can’t wait to tell Allegra.’
‘You should bring her to meet them. She can help me collect the eggs.’
‘She’d love that.’
They watched the chickens following one another around the garden while Russell Crow watched them carefully, then Brooke turned to Clover. ‘You have a lovely home and the garden is amazing.’
‘It’s even better in the summer when the flowers are in bloom and the trees have their leaves. ‘It's a green haven,’ Clover reminisced, recalling the summers and garden parties of her past. Of course, these days it was usually just Clover and sometimes Nolan, sometimes his parents as well, but back in the day, her parents had been enthusiastic entertainers.
‘How long have you lived here?’ Brooke tucked her hands into her pockets.
‘All my life.’
‘Really?’
Clover nodded. ‘I was born here and lived here after I got married too. It’s such a big property that it made sense, and my parents were happy to have Paul and me living here. Maybe we should have bought a house and had our own space, but it was different back then and my parents weren’t any trouble really so we stayed here.’
‘You never wanted to move? Even after they’d passed away?’
‘Nope. Never felt the urge.’
‘I’m not surprised,’ Brooke said softly, gazing at the house. ‘It’s beautiful.’
‘I’ve been happy here.’ Clover looked around at the garden, the trees, the slope of the land. It was all as familiar to her as the backs of her own hands. The thought of leaving it would fill her with a profound sense of loss and grief. It was part of her as she was a part of it. The house had been her constant when everything else around her had changed.
‘Shall I show you the rest of the gardens then we can go and have our lunch?’ Clover asked and Brooke nodded.
They sat at the large table in the warm kitchen an hour later, with the Aga and sunlight creating a cosy space.
‘It’s lovely in here,’ Brooke said. ‘Home goals.’
