Free Home Sweet Home by Adrian Sturgess Page A

and the
required en-suite bathroom.
    Finally the
family stepped out into the sunshine to join the owners, who then
took them on a tour of the grounds. Mrs Smith stopped by the high
timber fence at the far end of the garden and explained that the
lower road out of the village passed to the rear of the property
but that very few cars used it and consequently it was no
nuisance.
    Meanwhile,
Jackie and Ben had gravitated toward a large apple tree in the
corner of the garden and looked up longingly at the massive gnarled
branches, whilst day dreaming of climbing and of tree houses and
apple pie and custard.
“It’s a lovely tree isn’t it.” Mrs Smith called over to them. “We
get beautiful apples in the autumn, like nothing you’ve tasted in
the supermarkets and I’m sure, if you asked him nicely your dad
would hang you a swing off that low branch.”
“Oh daddy would you?” They both called excitedly and then Ben, on a
bit of an opportunistic roll continued “And daddy, would you build
us a tree house too?”
    Mr Marigold
smiled politely and muttered a few non-committal words, whilst
inwardly he was quite annoyed with Mrs Smith. She really had
overstepped the mark in making such rash comments, because he knew
from deep experience that once children got an idea fixed in their
heads, they’d work on you remorselessly until you either went mad
or gave in.
    Mrs Smith
showed no sign that she had noticed Mr Marigold’s irritation
however and said “Yes, we’ll miss the apples when we’re gone from
here” and then she gave a sigh which for the briefest of moments
hinted at a valley of sadness that she normally kept hidden away
behind her cheerful facade of bonhomie.
    Finally they
said their goodbyes and the family made their way back down the
front path whilst the Smiths’ stood beaming and waving and looking
for all the world like doting Grandparents.
    On the way
back, the children skipped and jostled together excitedly whilst
their parents walked along more serenely, holding hands and
discussing what they had just seen. They walked in almost complete
silence, their senses totally engaged in soaking up the
picture-postcard qualities of the Village, which seemed so
radiantly joyful in the bright spring sunshine.
    As they
approached their rented house Mrs Marigold broke the enchanted
silence that had hung over them both for the previous few
minutes.
“Oh darling don’t you just feel that it’s the perfect house in the
perfect village? It’s just made for us.” Her
husband looked over at her with a grin that made him look ten years
younger and said “Yes, it is perfect, we mustn’t lose that
house.”
    Later that
afternoon after brief negotiations through the Estate Agent, a sale
was agreed. They had finally bought their dream house and to mark
the occasion, they celebrated with Champagne and the entire family
toasted their future and their luck in finding such a wonderful
home.
     
    *****
     
    Several weeks
later Jackie and Ben were coming back from the playing fields a
mile or so outside the village. They were kicking a ball along as
they went, when Ben kicked the ball too high and it sailed straight
over a fence at the side of the road. “That was stupid.” said
Jackie “How are we going to get it back?” Meanwhile Ben had been
searching for a gap in the fence when he suddenly made a
connection. “Wow, Jackie, this is the house we are buying, I’m sure
it must be. I’ve never thought of it before but this is the lower
road out of the village and the garden backed onto it and I
definitely recognise that huge apple tree that we saw in the
garden”
    Jackie thought for a moment and then said “Well I
suppose we can go round tomorrow and ask for our ball back.” But
Ben wasn’t really listening. “Hey Jackie, these two panels are
loose, I’m going to try and squeeze through and get the ball, I’m
sure they wouldn’t mind anyway, even if they see me and I doubt if
they will ‘cos it’s nearly