Chapter 10

Next morning, shaken wide awake by the shrill phone call, I dashed down to the hall to answer it.

“Hi, its Mick, I’m phoning from France” started off the voice anxiously.

“It’s Sunday Mick,” I interjected, “It’s a bit fucking early, what’s up, did the Ferry sink or something?”

“Oh sorry,” he apologised, “I keep forgetting about that hour in front.” No all is great here, double great in fact. I think we are finally back together. Annette wants us to make another last go of it.”

“That’s good new Mick” I said, “Especially for you and the kids. When are they coming back over?”

“She Isn’t.” replied Mick. “That’s the bad news. It’s why I’m phoning to tell you. Hopefully I’ll soon be coming over here to live with them in France, I’ll know much more after tomorrow if I do get the job. One of Annette’s cousins has more or less guaranteed me a decent job with him if I can just attend an interview at his firm in Caen on Monday morning. If I can practice and get my phone French back up to scratch with Annette tonight I have a bloody good chance of getting it because they badly need someone to handle export orders in good English as well as French. The bad news is that if I stay over here for the interview I can’t get back over to pick Zak up tonight, nor will I be at the house in the morning for you to drop him off there.”

“Don’t worry about that,” I assured him, “We’ll sort Zak out, don’t worry about it. You just stay over there for your interview, and good luck with the job mate. Its got to be far better working over there In Caen than in our office, just sitting around waiting for someone to retire or die.”

Mick agreed, sounding grateful I wasn’t put out by him staying an extra day. “It is, if my shit French will pass muster then I’ve more or less got it, its better money than at our place too. I already rang old Crab face yesterday and told him I can’t get in until Tuesday due to a family over crisis here. For God’s sake don’t tell him I’m going for a job interview in case I don’t get it. I’ve already gambled by telling him I know you will be happy to cover my phone clients for me if they ring up for any advice.”

“Ahh, that’s my chance of a day off to look after Zak then,” I laughed. “Don’t worry Mate, I will,” I added when he panicked, “Jill has her School headmaster eating out of her hand. I’m sure she can manage to pull a ‘Sick’ day by phone and stay home with Zak tomorrow if I go in. I hope I’m in the office to see Crabshaw’s face when you tell him to shove his job, that’s worth any favour.”

“Great,” said Mick. “I hope to Christ I don’t let the kids down by blowing this interview. I think they are more excited about getting our Zak back to live over in France with them than they are me.”

“You will be taking Zak with you then?” I ventured, sounding out what was going to happen next.

“Oh, definitely, it was only the English quarantine rules that stopped Annette taking him, in case the kids didn’t settle and they had to come back. Zak would have had to go in Kennels for six months. He was always Annette’s dog really, not mine. She adores him. I still have to say ‘Assis’ for sit and ‘Au pied’ for heel, she only ever trained him in French.”

‘I bet she did,’ I thought as a happy Mick rang off, ‘I wonder what the French is for Lick it?’ The only good news was that his prospective job was in a wine producers export sales office. Mick had ended with a promise of some decent wine coming our way if he was successful in getting his Caen job.

“What was all that about? Jill asked inquisitively as I came back up and into the bedroom.

“Well good news and bad news,” I said, knowing not to be too flippant and that I would have to tell her this might be Zak’s last visit to us. I knew full well just how upset she might be over that.

“Mick’s got back with Annette,” I started off, “He’s got a job interview in France in the morning, if he gets it he’ll probably be moving over there as soon as he can.”

“What about Zak?” Jill asked, puzzled.

“That’s the bad news, he will be going with him,” I started to say but Jill interrupted me.

“Obviously,” Jill said irritably, “I knew that Numpty, I meant tomorrow. What the hell will we do with Zak in the morning if Mick is still over in France?

“Ahh,” I went on, “That’s could be more bad news I’m afraid, or perhaps good news whichever way you look at it. I will be struggling to get a day off as Mick has more or less said I’ve offered to cover for him at the office tomorrow. I told him you could probably be able to pull a Sick day at your school with a bit of luck and look after him. Mick will be back over here in the late afternoon he said.”

“So how is me having to lie to the Head to get a day off good news?” Jill answered in exasperation.

“It means you will have time to say goodbye properly,” I smiled. “And I’m not kidding or being kinky. However you spend your day with him tomorrow I honestly do realise how fond you are of him now, if you only spend it taking a long walk to the pub I’m still sure you will be glad you took the day off.”

“That’s true,” Jill sighed sadly. “Ok, I’ll fix it up with school. Oh shit, I’ll miss having Zak over. Yes, and quite separate from all those kinky reasons too. I did also loved his doggy company, walking him over those moors down to the pub on weekends, he was like a big daft banshee chasing after the rabbits, its so funny watching him racing about trying to get down their burrows after them. I bet he’ll miss them even more than he’ll miss this one,” she said sadly, patting her groin with an attempt at a joke and a smile as she walked through to the bathroom. Jill was quite clearly upset at Mick’s news that Zak would be going to live over in Normandy soon.

We got up and then, after a nice Sunday breakfast we decided to have a long walk across the moors, with Zak, to end up down at the Swan pub in the late afternoon.

We did, we went miles, both enjoying our full afternoon walk immensely, as did Zak. He bounded about like a young puppy chasing after everything that moved, Squirrels, Rabbits, ground birds and even the odd sheep until he was pulled back by a command. Zak was an unbelievably obedient dog if you raised your tone and he knew you meant it, he didn’t hesitate to come back to heel if you shouted ‘Au Pied’ sternly enough in French.

We had a fantastic days country walk, ending up at the Black Swan as usual at about five o-clock.

The Landlord, Tom, immediately went to a drawer and handed me a wallet from it. Amazingly it was mine, but I hadn’t missed it until only a few seconds before as I’d just reached for it in my coat to buy our drinks and found it missing.

“Did I leave it in here last night?” I asked Tom, confused now.

“Not at all,” he laughed. “Your mate Andy brought it in, twice in fact. The first time I told him you had only just left and he chased off after you with it, but then came back in again about half an hour later leaving it, saying he couldn’t remember whereabouts you lived up there.”

“That’s odd,” Jill whispered as Tom went to pull my beer at the pump, “Andy knows full well where we live. He’s been up there lots of times.” I whispered that I knew that too, as puzzled as Jill was.

“Did he say how he had got hold of my wallet last night?” I ventured to Tom as he gave me my pint.