Guilt in the Cotswolds Read Online Free Page A

when you’re here to help.’
    ‘But all the most interesting stuff is likely to be up there.’
    ‘I know. But there are spiders in the attic as well. I thought if I made a commotion downstairs, and Hepzie rampaged a bit, they might all decide to move out, before I have to face them.’
    ‘I see. We should probably have thought of that sooner. A spider phobia rather disqualifies you for the job in hand, don’t you think?’
    ‘Certainly not. I’ll just go carefully, and shake everything before I start. I can cope as long as they’re not on me. It’ll be fun, I’m sure, once I get started. I never dreamt of turning it down just for that. I need the money.’
    ‘Yeah.’ He sighed. ‘We’ll have to talk about money at the weekend, if we get the chance.’
    ‘So you can come?’
    ‘As far as I know, yes. Pandora’s a treasure, you know. She even offered to come here and look after the kids all weekend, so I can come to you.’
    Thea’s heart jumped. ‘Wow! And what did you say?’
    ‘I was so surprised, I didn’t say anything definite. In a way, it would be sensible. There’s a lot of overdue paperwork in the office that she could get on with at the same time. And if there’s a removal, she could easily get Den to help with that. She can call Harriet to babysit.’
    ‘Harriet’s the girl down the lane, right?’
    ‘Right. But the trouble is, I’d have to pay Pandora properly for such a commitment. And Den’s not keen on doing removals at the moment, with the baby so new. We’re on a tightrope, in more ways than one.’
    ‘When were you not? It’s been the same since I’ve known you.’
    ‘I know. But I really think I ought to bring the kids with me and keep Pandora on standby. I don’t have to pay her at all then, unless she gets called out.’
    They chatted for a few more minutes, until Drew instructed her to have an early night and face her fears with fortitude the next morning. Before obeying, she did a circuit of the house – all but the attic – trying to formulate a plan of operation. There were three bedrooms on the first floor, as well as a bathroom and a small area that might once have been called a ‘dressing room’. It was piled high with cardboard boxes. When she peeped inside one, it seemed to be full of clothes.
    Downstairs there was a large front living room, and two more rooms at the back. The kitchen ran along one side of the house, light and spacious, with a high ceiling and numerous built-in cupboards of a style long ago past. A back door led out to the garden, through a sort of porch. Another door led into an outside lavatory, which showed little sign of having been updated since the 1940s.
    Involuntarily, she was acquiring a picture of the old lady who had spent such a large portion of her life in thishouse. The picture was coloured by personal experience, namely that her own widowed mother, in her seventies, was still occupying the family home. There had been six of them in it for a long time, but it was smaller than this handsome Cotswold property. The Wilshires had apparently only managed a single child, and he had duly grown up and left at a respectable age – probably not much later than twenty or thereabouts. There had been no reference to a Mr Wilshire Senior, and scarcely any evidence of him discovered so far. All of which led to a conclusion that the woman had remained here on her own as a widow for a considerable time, free to add clutter, pursue hobbies, with never any need to throw things away. It was in no way unusual. The land was full of similar scenarios. This was not the first instance that Thea had encountered, albeit with variations on the same theme.
    This woman had a variety of interests, which were already apparent from the stacks of old magazines that toppled precariously in all the downstairs rooms. Historic houses and country living were not especially surprising. But pottery and medieval French history were more unexpected. There was also a