The Angel Of The Abbey

Chapter 04: Winter 1912/1913 - A Typewriter & A Turkish Delight

"Pull harder!" Anna yelled.

"I can't pull any harder than I already am!" Fiona yelled.

I groaned. "Just leave it be, girls. It doesn't belong to us anyway."

Fiona glanced behind her to look at me. "There could be an explosive device in there."

"And quite a heavy one at that." Anna said.

Anna found a big case above the wardrobe in the room she's sharing with Gwen and needed to make some space, but it's in the way. She grabbed Fiona and I and dragged us to their room and asked if either of us knew what it was. We knew nothing about it, so Fiona suggested to take it down and investigate it. I opted not to touch it. It might be something that belongs to Gwen that she put up there for a reason.

Gwen opened the door wide, making Fiona and Anna gasp and stop. "What are you doing?"

Anna put her arms down by her side. "If you must know, I'm trying to find space on top of the cupboard to make life easier, and Fiona is helping me."

"That, and we needed to be sure there's nothing illegal in there that might pose a threat." Fiona said casually. "Not that we do not trust you, of course."

I raised my hands up in defence when Gwen closed the door shut. "I'm having no part in this. I tried to tell them to leave it alone."

"So, what's in it then?" Anna got straight to the point.

"What?" Gwen asked, looking a little nervous.

Anna gestured to the case. "The bleeding great packing case that weighs a ton, that's what."

Gwen started getting annoyed. "Can't you just leave it?"

Anna shook her head. "No, we can't."

"And you'll tell us right now." Fiona sort of demanded, but not in a harsh tone.

I gave Gwen a small smile. "Please just put them out of their misery, Gwen."

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The four of us stood round the small table after Gwen took the case down with Fiona and Anna's help and opened it on the table for us to see. I raised a brow at it in interest. "A typewriter? Those things cost a fortune."

"Anything costs a fortune to us lot down here." Fiona said.

"How much did it cost?" Anna asked.

"Every penny I'd saved." Gwen confessed. "Almost."

"And is this the mystery lover?" Fiona asked, trying not to laugh.

Gwen turned to face us. "I've been taking a correspondence course in typing and shorthand. That's what was in the envelopes."

"Are you any good?" Anna asked.

I chuckled. "Bit of a weird question to ask."

It doesn't seem to faze Gwen though. "Yes. I am, actually."

"Wish I could take a course, but I won't have the time because of work, and I doubt I'd be accepted regardless." I told them. "I never went to school. My parents had me home tutored for awhile. When I turned 14, I applied for a job here, so I don't have the qualifications to do anything really, as much as I would want to."