Framed in Cornwall

Dorothy Pengelly sniffed the top of the carton of milk and shrugged. The expiry date had elapsed but it smelled all right and the cats wouldn’t notice. One of her uncles used to drink a pint of sour milk every day of his adult life and he had lived to be over ninety. Dorothy did not use milk in her tea or put butter on her bread, she could not abide dairy products.

She had three cats and two dogs, one of them a retired racing greyhound an old friend up Exeter way had given her, the other a snarling Jack Russell.

Her granite-built house was none too clean but only because she refused to admit that her eyesight was not as good as it once was so she was unable to spot the cobwebs or the spills on the flagstone floor. The place was too large for her but she would never move. It had been her home all her married life and she intended dying in it. Besides, she knew the number of years left to her were limited and she could not bear the idea of upheaval.

She filled the three saucers which were lined up in front of the metal legs of the ancient cooker. They had concentric circles of cream in them ending in yellow crusts. Peter; she smiled wryly. Her son couldn’t wait for her to die. He and Gwen would sell their house in Hayle and move into something far too grand for them. Her son had married unwisely. Gwen was a schemer and tended to forget that Peter had a brother. Martin might not be as bright as Peter but he was her flesh and blood and she loved him dearly. Oh, well, she thought, they would all find out in time.

Her will, made on a visit to Truro with Martin, would give several people a shock. Her assets were worth a lot more than many imagined and Rose Trevelyan had put her wise as to the value of her paintings.

The house was situated on sloping ground between outcrops of boulders. The grass between them was tough, seasoned by the blistering sun and the harsh winter storms which swept mercilessly
over the terrain. One or two stunted trees, bent to the angle of the winds, barely survived but the low gorse thrived and flowered twice a year when its almond scent filled her nostrils and made her nostalgic for her youth. In the distance was the glimmer of the sea although, on dull days, it merged greyly with the sky on the horizon.

There were two outhouses, one of which was almost in ruins. The other was only suitable for storing junk as the corrugated iron roof leaked. At one time the dogs had slept there until Dorothy had finally relented and allowed them into the house. The cats were never to be seen at night.

Once a week she got a lift into Camborne or Penzance with Jobber Hicks, a neighbouring farmer she had known since childhood, and whom she had once seriously considered marrying. Apart from those shopping expeditions she rarely went out. Fred Meecham used to share a pot of tea with her when he dropped off her groceries, but not so frequently now that Marigold was so ill. In fact, although he had called in two days ago she hardly saw him at all and she had an uncomfortable feeling she knew the reason why. But there was a lot for Fred to come to terms with, she did not know how he would cope when Marigold finally went. Rose’s visits were awaited with pleasure. If the weather was fine, they would take a stroll or go out in the car and have tea in a café. Dorothy decided to give Rose a ring and ask if she would mind bringing over a couple of pints of milk when she came tomorrow.

Rose stood in her lounge window in the manner of someone waiting for a guest. In her hand was a mug of coffee. She stared across the wide expanse of Mount’s Bay trying to make up her mind what the weather was going to do.

The view was spectacular and ever-changing. On clear days she could see the white sands of the beaches of Marazion and the whole of St Michael’s Mount rising majestically, almost menacingly, out of the sea. To her left was Newlyn harbour where beam trawlers and netters came and went without pattern. On some days a jumble of masts could be seen, on others there
were few. It was landing day. The tuna season was over but she had returned from the fish market with two large monk tails which had cost her next to nothing because she knew most of the fishermen.

In the kitchen she rinsed out her mug and inverted it on the draining-board. Through the window which looked out over the sloping garden she could see more and more patches of blue appearing between the clouds but, knowing the inconsistencies of the weather in West Cornwall, she decided to take a waterproof jacket anyway.

Leaving the house by the side entrance which led directly into the kitchen, Rose got into her Mini which was parked on the steep narrow drive beside the house. It started first time because it had recently been serviced. Trevor, the husband of her best friend, Laura, fished out of Newlyn. He had his engineer’s ticket and could make sense of any machinery. Rose’s car was child’s play to him. As he refused payment Rose had bought him a bottle of Jack Daniel’s and a packet of his favourite tobacco. Despite the service Rose knew it was time for the Mini to go. For a painter a vehicle was not indispensable, but in her other role as a photographer it was essential. Her equipment with its heavy lenses was impossible to lug around on foot or by public transport.

She backed down the precarious drive with the ease of years of practice, negotiated the bend at the bottom and waited for the Mousehole bus, along with a stream of cars held up behind it, to pass. When it was safe to do so she pulled out and drove down into Newlyn village and turned left for Lamorna Cove.

She was fully aware of her hesitation in changing the car. David had bought it for her. But David was dead and although he had died five years ago it would seem like a betrayal of sorts. He would have wanted you to be practical not sentimental, she told herself, recalling how very different they had been – yet the marriage had worked, had been happier than most.

Rose planned to make some sketches of the cove. She had been commissioned to do a series of watercolours of some of the small Cornish bays. Once complete they would be reproduced on the front of notelets which would be packaged along with
envelopes, ten to a box. She had decided to depict each from a high vantage point so that she could include the granite cottages which sloped down to the bays. It did not matter at this stage if it rained for Rose would only be concentrating on the outline and scale.

The car-park on the quay was busy. Lamorna, with its one hotel and its one pub, the Lamorna Wink, was always popular with holiday-makers and walkers. There were still plenty of people around although the children had gone back to school. In the gently moving water protected by the harbour wall were several divers. Sitting on the wall, legs swinging into the void, were others, their wetsuits gleaming.

Rose turned and began walking. In the distance three people could be seen making their way up the steep cliff path which led back to Newlyn. Glancing at her watch she saw that she had two hours before she was due in Penzance. She slung her canvas bag over one shoulder and began the ascent which would make her calves ache but would lead her to a sheltered vantage point. Her hair, the lighter strands mingling with the auburn, was tied back against the breeze which became stronger the higher she climbed. Twice she stopped to allow walkers to pass in single file.

Between two boulders covered with rough green and yellow lichen, Rose laid down a waterproof sheet and removed an A5 sketchpad and pencils from her bag. She wriggled into a comfortable position, resting her back against a smooth patch of the cliff. The drawings would be smaller than the paper size so she made the necessary allowance. Dressed in old jeans which were faded and threadbare at the knees and a thick checked shirt which had been David’s, she was warm enough in the lee of the rocks towering above her.

The patches of blue had all but disappeared and within half an hour the sky was a uniform grey but the rain held off. Herring-gulls glided overhead and occasionally swooped, squawking noisily when they spotted people in the car-park who were foolish enough to produce food. The birds had become a nuisance in recent years and signs had been put up in many resorts entreating visitors not to feed them, but Rose liked their
arrogance and aggression although she was doubtful if they knew any longer what a herring was. Their staple diet consisted of chips, pasties and burgers. She would include their graceful flight in the sketch; two of them, she decided, their lateral feathers spread as they soared effortlessly.

An hour and a quarter later her back ached. Getting to her feet she stretched then picked up the sketchpad to study it. Satisfied with what she had produced she packed up. In no particular hurry she stayed for a while, relaxing under the changing sky. Lying on the waterproof she linked her hands behind her head and gazed into nothingness, emptying her mind. It was something she rarely had a chance to do. By the time she left the sea had changed from grey to green with a silken sheen where a ray of sunlight was reflected off the surface. A warm stillness had settled over the cove.

She knew she had been in danger of falling asleep. Many of her nights were restless since she no longer had the security of David’s body beside her. It was not fear of living alone as much as simply knowing he wasn’t there. They had not had any children but to Rose it was no longer a matter for regret. They had had each other.

Before she reached the car she went over the things she had planned for the next couple of days. This afternoon she had arranged to see Barry Rowe and later she was to photograph a Mrs Morgan’s daughter whose eighteenth birthday it was. Informal shots would no doubt be taken at whichever night club the girl ended up in but her mother wanted one which she could frame. Tomorrow was Friday and she would be seeing Dorothy Pengelly. Rose smiled. What a character that lady is, she thought. And tonight, Jack Pearce. The smile faded. She had been seeing him on and off for more than a year. The relationship had not followed the usual form of progression and Rose was not sure of her feelings, only that they were ambiguous. They met when it was mutually convenient and enjoyed each other’s company when they did so. But Jack, she knew, wanted more from her than she was able to give. Alone for so long, Rose had grown used to her independence and, in a way, so had Jack, whose hours were erratic, but she suspected he was one of
those men who would prefer to live with a woman than without one.

Heading back along the country roads she was glad of the easy familiarity she felt with Barry Rowe. He was an old friend and the only person she allowed to call her Rosie, because he had given her her first break when she came to Cornwall all those years ago and because he had always been in love with her. What she had offered was friendship, no more than that, but she was vain enough to be flattered by his attentions.

Detective Inspector Jack Pearce had had a busy summer. From the moment the season proper had started crime had escalated. Not that he kidded himself that this branch of the Devon and Cornwall police had quite as much to contend with as the city boys who were stationed in Plymouth or Exeter. And he should know. He had spent several years in the force in Leeds. Of course the warm weather brought an influx of visitors and more people meant more crime. It also brought a lot of drop-outs to the area. This was not to say that the locals could not make just as much of a nuisance of themselves but the police generally knew where to find them. Recently he had been involved in one of the biggest drug hauls in the West Country.

Tapping a pen against his teeth he wondered what Rose was doing at that moment and if she was thinking of him. He smiled his wolfish smile. That was extremely doubtful. She had probably taken herself to some isolated spot and was immersed in the scenery. Even on a day like today she could find beauty in something. Was she viewing it with her artist’s eye or through the lens of a camera? Jack found it hard to believe she was only two years his junior, she was so petite and youthful. He towered over her by eight inches. He was solidly built with the typical dark Cornish colouring. Although his accent had been diluted by the years he had spent away from the area it was still strong enough to identify his origins.

Petty crime annoyed him. The perpetrators were rarely caught and the victims suffered out of all proportion to what the criminals gained. He sighed. He couldn’t wait to see Rose that
evening and wished he could see her more often. But at least he knew where he stood with her. Rose had made it quite clear that she would not give up her friends to spend more time with him. He accepted there was no choice but to make the best of what little he had. It was, he realised, little enough.

It had finally happened, the dreaded time when Marigold needed to be hospitalised. For months Fred had coped, running the shop but relying more and more on his staff, keeping the flat clean and seeing to Marigold’s needs. As she weakened he had received outside help. Cheerful nurses were in and out of the upstairs flat several times a day.

Tears ran down his face as he thought of Marigold in that high bed, intravenous fluids running into her wasted arm. It had been so hard to leave her there. Barely able to speak she had managed a few whispered words. ‘No one could’ve done so much for me. I love you, Fred.’ It was the first time she had said it and he would remember it for ever. All he had done had been worth it in the end. Yes, he decided, even … but he would not allow himself to complete the thought.

He stared at his surroundings. The flat was cold and empty without Marigold. Kneeling, he tried to pray but no words came. Not since his boyhood had he missed church on Sunday but he thought he would stop going now. Sometimes he found it hard to believe he worshipped the same God as the rest of the congregation. The one he knew was a personal friend with whom he held conversations. How could He have time for all those others, for the women, some of whom still wore hats and who gossiped outside after the service? His parents had been strict Methodists, bringing him up to fear shame and dishonesty, to act in a way which could not offend or cause gossip. He had not caused gossip, he had been very careful on that score.