Beneath the Moon and the Stars (7 page)

For the last few minutes he had watched Joy load up the back of her car with boxes and bags. She was dressed entirely in black.

But the weirdest thing was what she was doing now, obscuring her number plates with a purpose made black cover. He wasn’t an expert on the law, but he was pretty sure that was illegal.

She hopped in the car and to his great surprise, she tied a black bandana round her head, like a pirate. With a great wheel spin, she disappeared up the road.

One thing was for sure, she was up to no good.

*

Joy stood in the darkened trees, gently touching what she had achieved. It was beautiful. The dragon almost glinted in the moonlight. A huge sense of pride filled her and she wanted to stand and stare at it all night. But now she needed to be gone before anyone discovered her.

She quickly loaded her gear into the back of the Range Rover and manoeuvred out through the trees with the skill of someone with years of experience in off-roading at night. It wasn’t long before she hit the road, and minutes later she arrived back at her house.

This was the first job she had done so close to home. She had always worked far away in case she got caught, but this particular job was going to pay very well.

She moved silently into her garden, diligently unloading all her gear into the shed. Her tools would need cleaning the next day, so she quickly disassembled them ready to be cleaned and left their parts spread out on the work bench.

She moved out into the garden, stretching her arms above her head as she looked up at the stars that glittered like diamonds above her. Thousands of them peppered the inky blue sky, some were in great white clusters but others were separate, proudly standing alone. Without the lights of the city here, the night sky seemed endless above her. She lay down on the chair swing to look at them properly. She and her mum used to lie and look at the stars sometimes. She tried to remember some of the constellations that her mum had pointed out to her all those years before. Orion was easy, as was The Plough and Cassiopeia. And there was Draco – the dragon constellation. Joy smiled fondly as she remembered what she had achieved that night. The Seven Sisters was harder, the constellation you could only really see when you didn’t look directly at it.

She smiled as she put her hands behind her head. She would just stay there a while longer and find a few more.

*

Finn stood annoyed at the window. For someone who never got involved, he was doing a pretty poor job of it.

He had watched Joy take all her boxes back to the shed and then lay down on the chair swing and she hadn’t moved since. That had been over an hour before. She had evidently fallen asleep on the chair and all Finn could think about was how cold she would be.

He was determined not to care so he’d forced himself to go back to bed. Sleep evaded him and periodically he kept sitting up to look out the window to see if she was still there.

Knowing he wouldn’t be able to sleep until he resolved this, he grabbed a thick blanket off his bed and stormed down the stairs. It was like having a child next door. She was old enough to look after herself, she certainly shouldn’t be falling asleep outside.

He opened the connecting gate and walked straight over to her. One arm was behind her head, her eyes were closed, casting shadows over her pale cheeks with her long dark lashes. Her red hair, glinting in the moonlight, looked like curls of fire as it hung over her shoulders.

Cursing himself, he placed the blanket gently over her, and tucked it in around the edges. She stirred slightly and he prayed she wouldn’t wake up and see him.

‘Dad?’ she mumbled.

God, his heart ached for her. He had to physically stop himself from carrying her into the house and putting her to bed.

He went back to his own house, happy that she was now at least warm, though it was still several hours before he actually fell asleep.

*

Joy woke the next morning and smiled when she realised she had spent the night outside. Her grin broadened even more when she realised she was tucked warmly underneath a blanket.

It had to be Zach. He really was lovely. It was such a shame that he had this reputation. She would be silly if she thought she could be the person to change him.

She stood up, wrapping the blanket tightly round herself to protect her against the cool chill of the morning.

The man himself was standing in his garden, smoking a cigarette. Startled to see her there, he quickly stamped it out, grinning at her sheepishly.

‘Morning.’ Zach stepped closer to the fence. He smelt of smoke, and though it was not a particularly attractive habit, the smell of it always reminded her of her dad. He leaned across the fence to touch her face and to her horror he gently pulled a snail from her forehead. She blushed as he placed the snail on the fence between them.

‘I erm… fell asleep on the chair,’ she explained lamely.

‘So I see.’

His eyes were so gentle, filled with amusement.

She gestured to the blanket. ‘Thanks for this, that’s very sweet.’

He paused for a moment then smiled. ‘You’re very welcome. I didn’t want you to get cold.’

She buried her face in it, relishing the earthy smell.

‘Joy, would you like to go out for a drink with me, maybe a meal somewhere? Somewhere that’s not The Pride obviously.’

She wanted to, of course she did. But unless she entered into it knowing it would only ever be a one night stand, she would be very disappointed. And she had never been the type for casual flings. She was an old romantic at heart and ultimately was looking for The One. Her mum and dad had been together for years, and every memory she had of them together was of them giggling, kissing and holding hands, just like they were in the first throes of love. They would sit under the old oak tree in the garden and kiss and cuddle every night. She wanted that, to grow old and grey with the man she loved. And although she had dated a few men over the years, never really knowing whether they were going to be The One until she had been with them for a few weeks or months, it was quite clear that with Zach, it was only going to last a few days.

Zach smiled at the length of time it was taking her to answer. ‘Well at least it wasn’t a straight out no.’

‘It’s still a no I’m afraid. I like you Zach, I really do, but I’m not the sort that has one night stands.’

‘Neither am I.’

She arched an eyebrow at him.

‘I know my track record isn’t great, but I genuinely am looking for love. So many times I think I’ve found it and so many times I’ve been disappointed.’ He took her hand, stroking his thumb over the back of it. ‘But this time I really do think I may have found the one I’m looking for.’

She smiled but shook her head. ‘And how many women have you said that to?’

‘You’re the first, I swear. Look what can I do to prove to you that you’re the only one for me?’

‘No sex for a month.’ She didn’t know where she plucked that one from but it seemed to put him off her all of a sudden. He dropped her hand like he had been burnt, his face fell and she almost thought he might start to cry.

‘A month?!’

‘If I’m the only one for you, then you should have no need to pursue other women.’

He clearly toyed with the idea for a moment. ‘Ok, no other women for a month, I promise, and then will you sleep with me?’

‘I’ll go out with you.’

He scowled slightly, but then nodded. ‘Ok, you have a deal. I will prove to you that you are the only woman for me, that we can be happy together. Look I have to go, I’ll see you later.’ He sent her one last dark appreciative look before he went back into the house.

She watched him go with a smile.

‘He’ll break your heart,’ came Finn’s voice behind her.

She turned and quickly looked away when she realised he was standing in the garden with no top on.

‘He won’t because I’m not going to give it to him. You know him better than I do, but I’m pretty sure he won’t make the month.’

‘He’s a determined sort. When he wants something he’ll keep going after it until he gets it.’

‘You make that sound like a bad thing.’

‘It is if it belongs to someone else.’

‘Well he isn’t going to get me.’

He looked at her with disbelief and she rolled her eyes as she moved back towards the house.

*

Finn watched her go back in and went back into his own house. He had two gardens to sort out today, one on the far side of Bramble Hill and one in the nearby village of Strawberry Green. He was good at gardening and he loved the satisfaction it gave him of seeing plants grow and flourish under his care.

He had started off doing odd gardening jobs at the weekends when he was fourteen, helping his dad. It was when he was working in one of the large houses on the outskirts of Ashton Woods where he grew up, that he was spotted by a casting director for The Darkness Trilogy. He was freakishly tall even back then and was apparently perfect for the role of the dark and brooding Seth. After the films were finished and Finn wanted to retire from movies, he thought perhaps he would start his own landscaping and gardening business. He didn’t need the money, The Darkness had set him up for the rest of his life, but he certainly wanted something to keep him occupied.

When he had posted leaflets through the doors of the surrounding villages, hoping to get a few jobs, he had been inundated with responses. It seemed having your garden tended to by a world famous movie star was very popular indeed. He had been kept busy for over three years, doing a different house every day. He loved it, working outdoors and with his hands. As his popularity slowly faded so did the demand, but he still had a large handful of clients who he saw on a regular basis. That was enough for him, just as long as he wasn’t stuck in the house every day. Well Billy made sure he went out at least once a day for long walks over the hills; the gardening gave him something to do when he got back. Too much time doing nothing allowed too much time for thinking and brooding. Since Pippa had left eighteen months before, he had brooded far too much.

He grabbed a bottle of water, shoved his baseball cap on his head and was just about to turn the radio off and head out when he heard the words ‘The Dark Shadow’ on a news bulletin. He had followed the career of The Dark Shadow avidly since he first appeared on the scene two years before. This man was clever, very clever. He didn’t seem to do it for the money but for the adulation and reputation he gained. Finn had to admire him for it – for his obvious skill but also for the continued secrecy, for never getting caught. He smiled as he listened to the story, but his smile quickly fell off as the newscaster continued. Menton Hall, in the next village of Chalk Rise, had been robbed. Diamonds had been taken from a safe and from a jewellery box, most notably a diamond necklace shaped like a dragon. It seemed the thief had entered through the loft window of all places, as all other doors and windows were alarmed. No one had seen him come and go and there was no other evidence at all, other than the loft door being left open. There was no damage and nothing else had been taken. Police were appealing to anyone who might have seen anything suspicious in the immediate area.

Finn stroked Billy absently. His neighbour dressed in black, wearing a scarf round her head and covering her number plates was very suspicious indeed. Was Joy the diamond thief?

He had strict rules about not getting involved in people’s affairs, and phoning the police to turn in his neighbour was definitely getting involved. Maybe her going out dressed in black was merely a coincidence. Maybe he should talk to her to see what she knew. Maybe he should keep his head down and get on with his gardening.

He grabbed his keys and headed out.

*

Casey was listening to the news as well as he drove round to Bramble Hill. The Dark Shadow appearing in Chalk Rise, now that was very interesting. He had been down to Menton Hall that morning as soon as he’d heard. The grounds were filled with local and national journalists, much to the annoyance of the police. It was merely a coincidence, he thought with a smile, that Joy and that chainsaw had moved into the neighbouring village just a few days before. And, by her own admission, she worked at night and she was repeatedly vague about what she did. He smiled; he was damned sure he was going to find out just how much of a coincidence it was. Though if he was right, it did seem that Bramble Hill had another celebrity in its midst – a celebrity who was just as reluctant as Finn was to bask in the limelight.

*

After putting fresh food down for Darcy and making a fuss of her, Joy stepped out into the hall meaning to have a shower and tackle some of the unpacking she had been putting off.

Sitting on her door mat was another pile of dog poo, but she’d had the foresight to put newspaper down the night before just in case of another attack. She scooped the newspaper up around the poo and opened the front door to throw it in the bin outside. She wasn’t looking where she was going and as she stepped outside she toppled straight over something large on her doorstep. With a shriek she landed headfirst in the nearest bush, the parcel of poo flying out of her hands.

She wiggled around trying to gain enough leverage with her hands to right herself, but the branches were in the way and there was too much of her in the bush to flip herself up.

Suddenly strong hands were around her calves, and with the ease of great strength she was pulled free of the bush and righted back on her feet. She pushed her hair out of her eyes and came face to face with Finn again. Well sort of face to face since he was almost two foot taller than she was. He seemed determined to always be present in her most ungraceful moments.

‘Thanks.’ She was annoyed that she had to thank him.

‘You should look where you’re going.’

She looked back to the doorstep to see what had tripped her up – there was a bucket of soapy water but that hadn’t been it, it had been something much bigger than that. She glanced back at Finn, who had a scrubbing brush tucked into his pocket and was covered in soapy water.