Michael Wood - The Hangman’s Hold

Brian had spent an hour with a pad and pen drafting the perfect opening message to send to her. He’d wanted to make sure his spelling and punctuation were correct and tried to be funny without seeming desperate. He mentioned his recent trip to the Crucible (though he didn’t say it was only to watch the snooker) and how one of his favourite films was Rebecca starring Laurence Olivier, even though it was really Die Hard . He sent the email and waited impatiently for a reply.

His wait was a long one. It was five days before it arrived with an apology for her tardiness but she had been busy with work. She thanked Brian for his lovely message, said she had seen Rebecca , but it was years ago, and promised to look it up online next time she had a free evening. She also complimented him on his photograph and hoped she would hear from him soon. It was a good sign Adele hadn’t recognized who he was from his photograph. He had changed over the years, but he was worried he was still identifiable.

She heard from him very soon. Within thirty minutes of her reply landing in his inbox he was hitting the send button on his second message, the content of which seemed to come easier this time.

For a week, messages went back and forth – Brian was itching to suggest a meet but didn’t want to scare her off. On the Wednesday, Adele took the first step and offered her telephone number. His heart almost skipped a beat when he read that one.

Brian liked her accent – a mixture of Sheffield and Manchester. She was surprised she couldn’t hear any American in his since he’d told her he spent eight years teaching English in the States. He’d forgotten about the accent issue when he came up with that lie. He’d never even been to America. The conversation ran on without any awkwardness or silence and by the end of the chat they had arranged to meet for drinks the following evening outside the City Hall.

So, which was it to be, the pale grey tie or the sky-blue one? Or maybe no tie at all.

‘Damn it, Brian!’

Typically, it was raining. Typically, Brian was caught in traffic. Typically, Brian was five minutes late arriving at the City Hall.

He expected to get there and find the steps completely deserted. But was pleasantly surprised when he spotted her standing under the shelter of a large umbrella looking stunning and elegant in a long black coat.

He called out to her and she turned to him and smiled. She was so attractive, with a wonderful smile. She was perfect – exactly what he had been looking for.

‘Brian Appleby?’ she asked.

‘I am so sorry for being late. What is it with traffic when it rains? I was over twenty minutes on Chesterfield Road. I couldn’t believe it,’ he mumbled.

‘You don’t need to apologize it’s fine, honestly. I was a minute or two late myself.’

He smiled. ‘Shall we go into Lloyd’s for a drink?’

‘I’d like that,’ she replied.

The short walk to the pub was made in silence, but it wasn’t awkward. Out of the corner of his eye, Brian stole glances at the woman beside him. The slight breeze carried a hint of her scent – a subtle sweet perfume mixed with her natural aroma. He wanted to touch her, to feel her smooth skin on his fingers. No. Not yet.

‘What will you have?’

‘Gin and tonic, please.’

‘OK. Do you want to try and find a table while I get the drinks?’

For early Thursday evening, the pub was busy. Sheffield, undergoing a seemingly never-ending period of regeneration, was trying to get people to stay in the city centre after work rather than head straight home. A council campaign had been launched and a new cinema and several bars had opened. So far it seemed to be working.

Adele found a spot by the window and waited for Brian to return from the bar.

‘Don’t you drink?’ she asked, looking at the orange juice he’d brought for himself.

‘I’m driving.’

‘Oh.’

‘So, you’re a pathologist, you were saying on the phone last night? That must be interesting.’

‘It is,’ Adele beamed. ‘It’s a great job. Very time-consuming, but I do enjoy it.’

‘And you have a grown-up son?’

‘Chris. Yes, he’s twenty-one. He’s not long since left university and started his first job this week.’

‘What’s he doing?’

‘Same line you were in: teacher. It’s only temporary, to cover maternity leave, but who knows? It’s good experience too.’

‘Definitely. How’s the training going? I noticed you were limping slightly,’ Brian said.

‘Oh, that’s nothing, it’s these shoes,’ she smiled. ‘A friend of mine and I are training for a half-marathon. We’re raising money for a brain tumour charity. I lost someone close to me a couple of years ago. His wife and I are doing the race to raise money in his memory.’

There was a brief pause in the conversation as the topic slowly died and neither knew where to go next. They both took lingering sips of their drinks.

‘Do you run?’ Adele asked.

‘No. Dodgy knee. I walk a lot though. I like to get out into the country when I can.’

‘Oh yes, I remember you saying that’s why you chose to move to Sheffield.’

‘Yes, a large city but right on the doorstep of the countryside. It’s ideal.’

‘So why did you decide to return to England after eight years in the States?’

‘Well I was made redundant and rather than try to find work I thought I’d come home. I never intended to stay out there as long as I did.’

‘Why did you go in the first place?’ Adele asked, leaning forward. She seemed genuinely interested.

‘Well,’ he said, blowing out his cheeks. ‘I’d just split from the wife and wanted a clean break of things. I thought an ocean between us might help the healing process.’

‘Did it?’

‘Yes,’ he smiled. ‘It did.’

‘I can still detect a London accent.’

‘Oh I’ll never lose that,’ he grinned. ‘Would you like another drink or shall we go for something to eat?’

Adele looked at her watch. It wasn’t even eight o’clock yet. There was plenty of time for a meal. They decided on another drink. Adele told him more about her work and her friends. Brian mentioned about his ex-wife and how he found her in bed with another woman. In the toilets he refused to look at his reflection; he genuinely liked this woman; how could he tell her so many lies?

***

By nine o’clock they were sitting at a table by the window in a restaurant in Leopold Square waiting for their starters.

Adele had been in here many times with Matilda and felt relaxed.

Brian looked around him like an excited child on his first trip to a theme park. The delight in his eyes soon disappeared when he noticed a woman staring at him. Her lingering glances were unsettling. Had she recognized him? If he’d taken Adele’s seat, his back would have been to the restaurant and he could have concentrated on his date. Shit.

‘Go on,’ Adele prompted.

‘Sorry?’

‘You were saying about your surprise visitor.’

‘What? Oh … yes.’ He tried to ignore the woman across the room, but it wasn’t easy. Why did she keep looking at him? ‘We were told there was going to be someone important visiting the school. We all thought it would probably be some reality TV so-called celebrity the kids would go crazy over but none of the teachers would recognize. I was halfway through my lesson when there was a knock on the door and in walked Michelle Obama.’

‘You’re joking!’ Adele gasped.

‘No word of a lie. It was incredible. She had all these security people with her with their dark glasses.’

‘Did you actually talk to her?’

‘I did. She sat in on the lesson for a while and watched the kids read then she came over and spoke to me. She asked where I was from and joked about my accent.’