‘No,’ said Adam. ‘We’re just having some food.’
‘Suggs is organizing it, Adam, didn’t he mention?’ Ron said firmly.
‘Yes, he did.’
‘You don’t agree with them building over the water meadows then, do you? Letting that Mortmain woman get away with it again, eh?’ Ron’s voice rose, his nose twitched, as he waggled a finger—benignly—at Adam.
‘You know me, I don’t like taking sides,’ Adam said easily.
He smiled at Ron, and just as Tess was looking at him curiously, Francesca said, in her charming way, ‘Ron—it’s Ron, isn’t it?’
‘Yep,’ said Ron, non-committally.
‘Sorry to be stupid, I should know this, but what exactly is going on with the water meadows? I only got here a few days ago.’
‘You haven’t heard about it?’ Ron said incredulously, as if the idea that this wasn’t front-page news across the country hadn’t occurred to him. ‘That’s strange. You know the Langford water meadows, right?’
‘I’m afraid not,’ Francesca said politely.
‘You never heard of them? That’s—’ Ron scratched his head, as if he could scarcely conceive of such a thing. ‘Only the most precious bit o’ land for about a hundred miles, that’s all. There’s more wildlife, more plants, more birds sighted only on the Langford water meadows than anywhere else in the country. And they want to fill it in, drain the land and sell it off so we can have a bloody shopping centre there!’ He was shouting again now, his burr more pronounced than ever. ‘That bloody Mortmain woman, she’s got it all stitched up! What’s she want the money for anyway? She ain’t got no one to leave it to. And she thinks she can can ride roughshod over us all. Again!’
He held a finger up to heaven and his eyes looked skywards; he reminded Tess of a Roman statue.
‘Wow,’ said Francesca. She turned to Adam. ‘Is that true?’ she asked.
Adam nodded slowly. ‘Yes,’ he said. There was unease in his voice and Tess remembered what it was that had been bothering her; the truth about Adam and the bursary, how Leonora Mortmain had always been so unpleasant to him in particular ever since. ‘Yes, I suppose it is true. But it’s done, isn’t it? The council’s given initial early approval—’
‘What does the council know?’ came another loud voice from behind them, and Adam stood up, laughing, his deep voice echoing around the pub. Beside them, Mick put down the tray of drinks and started laying out cutlery, as Adam hugged the bearded man next to Ron.
‘You bastard,’ he said fondly. ‘I didn’t know this was happening tonight.’
‘Tess!’ said the stranger. ‘I didn’t know you were going to be here.’
‘Suggs!’ Tess said turning round. She hugged Adam’s best friend, squeezing him tight.
‘Look at you, with two ladies, you smooth bastard,’ Suggs said, sitting down happily next to Francesca. ‘I’ll join you, shall I? Meeting doesn’t start for a few minutes.’
Ron was still hovering behind Tess and Adam. ‘We need you to sort out the leaflets,’ he said, tetchily.
‘Andrea’ll do that,’ Suggs said easily. ‘I haven’t seen Tess properly since she got back. Mick, do me a favour and bring me a pint of the good stuff, will you?’ Mick shook his head, smiling indulgently. ‘Thanks, mine host.’ Suggs leaned forward. ‘You lovely ladies signed the petition yet?’
‘No,’ said Francesca. ‘Just show us where, though. They can’t do that, can they?’
‘Looks like they are,’ said Suggs, and Ron nodded. ‘It’s a right fucker. You’d think they wouldn’t be allowed—the council wouldn’t let it happen.’
‘They have, though,’ said Adam evenly.
Suggs turned to him angrily. ‘I know you love them Mortmains, because that stupid cow paid for your education and you feel like you have to crawl to her, you little sucker.’
‘She paid for you to go to school?’ Francesca said, bewildered.
‘Shove off, Suggsy,’ said Adam, tugging his hair and looking uncomfortable, but Suggs ignored him.
‘Enough’s enough,’ Suggs went on. ‘There’s a lot of people in this town who think she’s gone too far this time.’ He paused for dramatic effect. ‘You know, the Mortmains have been shafting the good people of Langford for years and she’s no better. There was Ivo Mortmain, Victorian feller, he got a girl from the town pregnant and then killed her father when he came to complain. Shot him in the face! And old Mrs Mortmain’s father, he sold a whole bit of land by Thornham and they made it into horrible box houses, not fit for a pig to live in. That were fifty years ago! And she—she turfed out the old people in the alms houses by the church fifteen years ago, just because she wanted to sell them on.’ He gripped the back of Adam’s neck. ‘Remember how angry your ma was about it?’
Adam grimaced. ‘She went round to see her.’
‘She did?’ Tess said. Adam nodded.
‘Well, exactly,’ Suggs nodded meaningfully at him. ‘His mother in a bate—you wouldn’t want to see it.’ He smiled. ‘She stormed round there and tried to persuade her, but it didn’t have no effect. Why would it? And now this. Well, we won’t put up with it any more. It’s time it stopped.’
‘Hear, hear,’ said Ron.
‘Oh, right,’ said Francesca, but Tess was looking at Adam, whose expression was set. ‘What do you think, Adam?’ Francesca said innocently.
‘I’m not saying she’s a nice woman, but I don’t take sides,’ said Adam. ‘Sorry.’ Tess and Francesca stared at him in disappointment. ‘Excuse me a second,’ he said, and got up and left.
By the time he came back, the pub was full to bursting with locals, and the mood was jolly if increasingly rowdy. Placards were being passed around, chairs were scraping on the floor, and at the front a sharp-faced woman was filling out forms, waggling a pencil at someone. Adam sat down.
‘What was that about?’ Tess started to say, but Adam held up his hand.
‘Hey, sorry. Sorry, T.’ He turned to her, and there was a look of desperation, almost, in his eyes. ‘Please, let’s not go on about it. It’s just the hypocrisy of it, that’s all.’
‘What do you mean?’ Francesca cried. ‘How can it be a good thing?’
‘I’ve lived here my whole life,’ Adam said with a twisted smile. ‘I’m just saying sometimes there are ulterior motives to things. I’m not exempt, but it’s not as simple as it seems, is all I’m saying. That development would give people jobs, it’d increase tourism. It might not be such a terrible thing.’
‘But the water meadows,’ Tess said, a catch in her voice. ‘How can you say that?’
‘Yes, and do you really want more tourism?’ said Francesca, curiously. ‘Don’t you want to find other ways of sustaining the town?’
Tess loved her then, for not being a pushover. Adam looked at her, and nodded slowly. He scratched the back of his neck.
‘You’re right,’ he said. ‘Just—anyway.’ He cleared his throat. ‘T, how’s the hunt for a flatmate going?’
‘It’s not,’ said Tess. ‘I don’t know what I’m going to do.’
‘Where do you live?’ Francesca asked politely.
‘Just past the church, towards the old hall.’ Tess turned to her. ‘I’ve got to