Secrets to a Happy Ending

Chapter 10

The saw mill was a huge building, set high above the Village of Happy Endings.Surrounded by woodland, the building was covered with scaffolding. Men had been applying new window panes to the many needed at the top of the building. It was old but structurally sound, and fortunately the machinery was still intact, although needing some tender loving care.

Ronnie Ogden, was busy working on the huge saw, testing it to make sure it was ready to go for the first wood orders the following week. The extension bell leading to the phone began to ring, causing Ronnie to jump at the unexpected sound.

"Damn thing." He said.

He walked over to the mezzanine floor where the office was and climbed the stairs, he sat at the desk and picked up the phone.

"Saw Mill, Ronnie here."

"It's Gladys Ronnie, I am just letting you know our visitor is coming to the mill, it seems she wants to add it to the writing, is that ok?"

"Sure, sure, that's no problem, send her over, I will be here. Just testing out the machinery, it's quiet anyway in the run up."

He ended the call and placed the receiver, and walked towards the door, when the phone rang again. He gave a sigh, believing it to be Gladys again and picked up the phone.

"Yes Gladys"

"Ronnie Ogden, this is not Gladys, I need you to listen to me very carefully."

Ronnie listened to the caller, his eyes widened as he listened in, he nodded in acknowledgment to what the caller was asking and with trembling hands replaced the phone. He took out a handkerchief from his back pocket and wiped his brow.

"Oh my good god, she must not know she mustn't"

(X)

Lydia got in the car and started the engine, the radio burst into life playing local Bulgarian folk music, she had forgotten that she had the music turned up whilst she was driving to the village, the sound of the music made her jump and she tried awkwardly to find the volume button to turn it down. Once she was able to turn the volume down she happened to look over at the house ahead of her, where she saw a woman who seemed to look familiar to her. The woman was very tall and slender with long radiant blonde hair; she wore a long flowing lilac dress and white sandals. She was perched over a flower bed on the path leading up to the door of her house.

"That can't be surely?" Lydia said aloud.

She hurriedly reached for her bag and pulled out her iPad and opened a search engine, she typed in a name and looked at the picture. She looked up again at the woman and then back at the Ipad.

"Really, I can't believe it!"

Quickly putting her Ipad back in her back she opened the door and got out of the car. She walked over quickly to where the woman was standing until she reached the small garden gate.

"Excuse me, but I have to ask, are you Chvonne Lumley?" Asked Lydia.

Chvonne Lumley was a famous supermodel who had gone missing three years previously, every single journalist covered the story. She was dating a man called Marcus Attlee, a young man in his 30's who was setting up a successful chain of bookstores and coffee shops. When one night Marcus was found murdered, and Chvonne went missing, many suspected it was her, but there was no direct evidence to connect her to the killing. However at the scene some blood was also found on a weapon believed to match to Chvonne after DNA sampling, many presumed her dead and the case that her body would never be found.

The woman stopped what she was doing and looked up at Lydia. She appeared confused at the question that was just put to her.

"No I am sorry, I think you might have the wrong person.

Lydia felt a wave of embarrassment flow over her.

"But I could have sworn, the resemblance is remarkable."

The woman smiled at Lydia and let out a small laugh.

"You are not the first person who has mistaken me for this person. My name is Claire Barlow, it's nice to meet you." She said,

Lydia, feeling slightly embarrassed, believing that the head of the sun might be going to her head, decided to stop before she dug a hole for herself and replied.

"I....I am so sorry about that, you must think I am some sort of crazy lady."

Claire smiled and cut a rose out of the bush and handed it to Lydia.

"It's absolutely fine, what brings you to Happy Endings?"

Lydia told the rose from Claire and smelled, the scent was strong and sweet, it made her smile.

"Wow, these are beautiful."

"You cannot compare the Bulgarian rose to any other, did you know that rose oil is produced here. Such a beautiful flower."

"My name is Lydia, I am a blogger. I'm writing an article about the village and I've been speaking with some of the locals here, and it would be really nice if I could get a few words from you for my blog perhaps?"

"It will have to be another day I am afraid, I have to go into Town to do some shopping."

Lydia tried to remain calm to get a definite meet up arranged. But she thought it best not to appear too eager. Whilst this woman claimed not to be Chvonne Lumley, Lydia did in fact have other ideas, and that she was still convinced it could be her.

"Oh well I will be in the village for some time yet I am sure that we will be able to catch up soon, maybe at the café over coffee?"

Claire reached down and cut off one of the roses from the bush and smiled.

"Yes I would like that very much, you're staying at the hotel?"

"Yes, right across the road there."

"I will leave a message for you when I have a less busy period."

They said their goodbyes and Lydia walked back over to the car, she climbed in and felt the overwhelming heat from the outside. She started the engine and turned on the air conditioning and checked her phone. There were no missed calls and no messages. She began to think of the conversation that she just had with Claire. She grabbed her notebook and pen, pulled the lid off with her teeth and with the top still in her mouth she wrote down a note about the resemblance Claire had to the famous supermodel. When suddenly there was a loud bang on the window. Lydia gasped at the shock of the noise and with the deep inhale the pen lid slipped down and it stuck in her throat. In a gasp of panic she began to cough but could not seem to free the top. She found herself starting to panic and around the sides of her vision began to become blurred, she thought she could hear the echo of a man's voice calling her name and then it went dark.