Lavender

Inside her house, Janet was about to get the bedding ready for the spare room. She stopped, and looked at me.

"Sod it!" She said suddenly. "Dorcas has had you. Now it's my turn. We don't need the spare room. I want you in my bed. Any objections, Ian?"

My kiss answered her.

Being in bed with Janet was eerily similar to my encounter with Dorcas. There were obvious differences. I was wearing protection which I hadn't needed nor expected to need with a ghost. Janet's perfume wasn't lavender and her hands were much smoother and gentler than Dorcas' work-coarsened ones.

But Janet's voice was familiar. She and Dorcas had the same gentle burr even when excited. Janet's body felt nearly the same except for the slightly pregnant bump that Dorcas had.

Janet was much more gentle. She was controlling, demanding, but compassionate. She took care to avoid strain on my leg. Although she rode me, she was slower and less violent. When we tired, she rested on me with her head on my shoulder, waiting until we were ready again.

Was it just that Janet is much older than Dorcas had been? Or was Janet prepared to make more allowances for me? I don't know. All I did know was that I knew I would survive a night with Janet, and be ready for many more such nights. With Dorcas? Even with her making allowances for my age, I'm not sure I could endure night after night of her.

The next morning I woke to an empty bed with a dent where Janet had been. I could hear her in the kitchen, presumably making breakfast. By the time I had shaved and showered, the smell of breakfast was making me feel hungry.

Janet insisted that I sat down at the kitchen table as she served. I surprised myself by the quantity I ate. Janet approved. I obviously liked her cooking.

After breakfast we took our coffee outside into the sunshine, slightly warmer than yesterday.

"Well, Ian? How do you feel this morning?" Janet asked suddenly.

"Happy." I replied. "Well rested, well fed and well..."

"Fucked?" She suggested.

"That too, thank you, Janet," I agreed. "I could take many more nights like last night, but not nights with Dorcas. One, possibly two, and I'd be shattered."

"What are we going to do about Dorcas, Ian?"

"What do you mean? What can we do?"

"She's unhappy. She ought to move on to wherever she should go."

"Probably, Janet. But how?"

"She spoke to you. She acknowledged you as someone who isn't Josh. That has never happened before. While you were sleeping in, I rang the local history expert. He confirmed that while Dorcas had sometimes been known to speak, she had never recognised that the man she was with wasn't Josh. Except you. That is a real change."

"Is it? Or is just that none one else has admitted that they spoke to Dorcas and she replied?"

"I don't think so. Dorcas rarely speaks at all."

"She spoke to me for some time."

"What did she say?"

As far as I could remember I repeated as much of my conversation with Dorcas word for word. Janet seemed stunned that we had talked so much.

"OK," Janet said. "I think we need to help Dorcas. She's changing and may be ready to leave. You know that your brother and his family are away over the Halloween weekend and a couple of days afterwards?"

"No. I knew they would be leaving me alone for a few days, but not exactly when."

"They'd asked me to look after you at that time. I think they thought you were more dependent than you are. Your leg is healing, isn't it?"

"Yes, Janet. Except for another encounter with Dorcas, or a long hike across Dartmoor, I could do most things. I'll always set off airport metal detectors but that's a small price to pay for a leg that will be fully functional."

For the rest of the day Janet became my tour guide for the South Hams. We visited places I remembered from years ago and I was pleased to see how little they had changed. Janet was a delightful guide, mixing details about local sights with anecdotes of local oral history and legends that hadn't made the guide books. Most of them were about young men and women getting it together out of sight of their parents.

In the evening she drove me back to my brother's house.

"Tell Alan and Angela about Dorcas. I'll collect you at ten o'clock, Ian," she said before leaning across for a long lingering kiss.

Angela met me in the hall.

"Alan will be back shortly," Angela said. "He's doing some shopping for tonight's meal."

As I limped into the living room, Angela looked at me quizzically.

"You look shattered, Ian. Been doing too much?"

"I met Dorcas..."

"But she didn't leave lipstick marks on you, did she?" Angela was teasing me.

I wiped my mouth with a handkerchief. There were slight red marks on it. Only another woman would have spotted the faint traces on me.

"No, that wasn't Dorcas."

"I know. That was Janet. I saw her dropping you off with a friendly kiss. Or was it just friendly?"

"If you saw us, you know it wasn't."

"But you're married, Ian. Is that fair to Janet?"

"I'm not married, Angela. Apparently I never was married."

I explained about the solicitor's letters. Angela brought coffee while I was getting them to show to her. She giggled loudly when she read the second page.

"OK, single brother-in-law, are your intentions honourable? Janet is our friend and she's been hurt."

"So have I, Angela. It is early days yet, but if she'll have me, my intentions are honourable, unlike Dorcas."

"You do look shagged out. Dorcas?"

"Yes. One night with her was too much."

"One night, Ian? But it's been two nights."

"Janet kidnapped me after seeing what Dorcas could do to me in just one night. She lent me her spare room last night, and she's picking me up later so that I can be Dorcas-free."

"I didn't really believe in Dorcas. Is she that demanding?"

"Do you want details? I'd be embarrassed."

"You shouldn't be. Dorcas is a local legend."

"And she is worse, or better, than the tales that are told of her. Janet is puzzled because Dorcas spoke to me at length, recognising that I wasn't her Josh. Janet thinks..."

"You love Janet." That was a statement from Angela, not a question.

"Yes."

"Then I wish you two well. She deserves better than that low-life former husband. You deserve better than Maria..."

"I don't know about Janet's former husband, but Maria was good for me until we grew apart. We're still friends and will stay friends, but we should never have 'married'. Now we know we didn't, we can still be the friends that we should have stayed, instead of the squabbling lovers we became."

"What DO you do for a living, Ian? Alan has been elusive about how you pay your way."

"What is this? Are you playing the role of a Victorian father for Janet? Wanting to know my prospects?"

Angela laughed nervously.

"Sorry Ian," she said, "but I have been Janet's friend for a long time. I've been supporting her through her divorce. It was vicious, unnecessarily expensive because both sets of lawyers were incompetent, and very painful for her. I want her to be happy."

"OK. It's no big secret, even if Maria sometimes described me as a carrion-seeking vulture. I'm a specialist in turning around failing enterprises. If a company is in real trouble, their bank might refer them to me. Usually I manage to get the company back on its feet, or at worst salve something for the owners and the bank from the wreckage. For the last couple of years I have been doing that in Africa. Maria now owns those assets. But I have several investments in the UK from years ago."

"Enough to support Janet, yourself, and a possible family?"

"Yes. Even if I stopped work today, I could do that for life."

"But you wouldn't retire, now, in your early forties?"

"No. I'd be bored stiff. If, and it is a large if, Janet would have me I'd move down here and concentrate on working in the South West. I might become a neighbour."

"House prices in the South Hams are expensive, Ian."

My turn to laugh.

"I could sell one or two of my London houses and buy almost anything I liked. Any country estates for sale, Angela?"

"One or two London houses! How many have you got?"

"Apart from the Chelsea one I was intending to live in, about fifteen that are rented out. I'm not sure of the exact number, today, because two are for sale and I have left bids to buy another three."

"So you're Alan's rich brother?"

"Depends on your definition of rich. I could walk into a car dealer and buy a Rolls-Royce or a Bentley outright, even a brand new one. But I wouldn't. I'd use the money to turn round a failing business. That would be a better investment than an expensive luxury."

"Does Janet know how much you are worth?"

"We haven't discussed it. We have talked more about Dorcas than any other subject. Janet rescued me from Dorcas, and as you asked her to, she is looking after me."

"Janet, and several of our local friends, are in financial trouble. They work, or rather worked, for an agricultural supply company. They've been laid off because the company's credit line has been stopped..."

"Sounds like a task for me in my professional capacity, Angela."

"It might be. Janet is struggling to pay the builders. She had a real job with the company and had stopped working for us as our daily help some time ago. She came back for a few hours at weekends to help pay for the house repairs. When she was laid off we increased her hours a week. The builders will have to stop work if she doesn't get back to her real job soon. If you could help?"

"I'll have to know a lot more but I'll have to tread warily. I don't want to put pressure on Janet nor appear to be buying her."

"Could you try?"

"Of course. How large is the company?"

"I don't know. Janet would. But they employed over a hundred people locally."

"Ouch! That is a steep challenge even for me. My usual comfort zone is small companies employing less than fifty. I'll dig out what information I can. I can't promise to do more than try. It depends on how bad their difficulties are."

"But if you could help, Janet would appreciate it, and so would many other local families. The whole community is hurting."

"I'll try. But I won't be able to if Dorcas kills me."

"You're serious, Ian, aren't you?"

"About Dorcas? Yes. I survived one night because Dorcas was merciful and made allowances for my advanced age. Another night, or two, and I might not live. Dorcas is a female predator who demands more and more sex."

"So you're going back to Janet's house tonight?"

"Yes, Angela. That is safer than staying in the Lavender room. I'd like to help Dorcas, to get her to accept that she's dead, but not by risking my life to do it."

"I'm sorry we can't put you in another room yet. The builders are working as fast as they can because we are one of their few clients that can pay their bills promptly. Our custom is keeping them solvent until the local company is back on its feet -- if it ever is."

"Any empty properties nearby that need renovation?"

Angela blinked. She didn't get the implication.

"Angela. If there are a couple of houses for sale, or that could be for sale, that need work to make habitable, I could buy them and employ the builders to do the renovation. If you and Ian use them, the builders must be competent. They are, aren't they?"

"Yes, Ian. We've used them for years. They understand the structure of the older local houses."

"Then I could make money. I could renovate properties and make them suitable for resale or rent. The builders would have work that could be paced according to their other customers' priorities, and I'd have local assets. But if I'm going to start buying property here I need somewhere to stay that isn't the Lavender room, nor Janet's spare bedroom. I'll also need a car to get around. Janet's LandRover is too bouncy for my leg."

"A car? We've only got one. Alan needs it every day."

"Angela! I can BUY a car, or two, or three..."

"I forgot. Alan and I are so used to watching our money..."

"But that's only because you have spent and are spending so much on this house. A few months after the work is finished and you too could buy a second car."

"I suppose we could. We have spent tens of thousands on the house this year."

"And that was from your income, not your capital."

"How do you know that?"

"Alan is my brother and he does talk to me, send me emails, ask for advice in my area of expertise..."

"I'm not yet used to the idea that anywhere in the world is in instant contact with anywhere else."

"Not anywhere, Angela. There are many parts of Africa where reliable internet access is rare or completely absent. Even here in the South Hams there are pockets with very slow connection speeds. Alan spent a substantial amount getting fast broadband to this house."

Alan arrived with the shopping. Angela went to the kitchen to refill our coffee and help Alan put away the shopping. As I stretched my leg out on a stool I heard Angela telling Alan about my newly single status, and I assume when she spoke very quietly, my relationship with Janet. When they came into the living room Alan asked to see my solicitor's letters. Like Angela, he found the second page hilarious.

"Well, bachelor brother, I understand you've met our household ghost Dorcas?"

"Yes, and she is very demanding. Has Angela told you I'm staying with Janet tonight?"

"Yes. I'm sorry we haven't got another room for you yet. But you are thinking of moving down here?"

"That depends, Alan. On what happens between Janet and me. But I might be here for some time if I can help with your local company that is in trouble."

"It's not just the company, Ian. So many of our neighbours work there, or rely on the custom from those who are employed there. Many, like Janet, are in deep financial shit. They're still 'employed' so can't claim unemployment, but aren't getting paid. If it goes on much longer, or the company folds completely, the impact would be disastrous locally."

"I've told Angela that I'll try. That's all I can do. The company might not want to talk to me. Do you know any of the directors or managers, Alan?"

"No. I don't. Janet does. She is, or rather was, a senior secretary to one of the managers."

"OK. I'll talk to her tonight while I'm avoiding Dorcas."

"Is she really that terrible? We just thought of her as a curiosity."

"She is more than that. She is dangerous. She has reacted to me very differently than all the previous recorded encounters. I'm worried about her and what she might do. So is Janet. I feel sorry for Dorcas but I'm not sure what I should or could do. If her character as a ghost is changing, who knows what might happen? I don't."

"Janet's coming to collect you later?"

"Yes."

"You might need to think about paying for her petrol, Ian. I know, but I shouldn't, that her account at the local filling station is in arrears. At least a quarter of their customers are the same. If they don't pay for their fuel soon, that station could close."

"Another local business that could use my help?"

Angela answered.

"Ian, it is only in trouble because of the Agricultural Suppliers. If you can sort them out, the filling station should survive. So should the shops, the pub, the local Post Office... They're all suffering."

"Noted. I'll talk to Janet. Whether she will accept money from me? What do you think?"

"She could find that difficult, Ian," Angela said. "You'll have to tread very carefully..."

We left the discussion at that and talked about other subjects for the rest of the evening and during the meal until Janet came to collect me.

As we drove away I glanced at the LandRover's fuel gauge. It read less than a quarter.

Inside her house we sat down in her living room. I couldn't think of an easy way to start the conversation so I jumped right in.

"Janet," I said, "Angela told me that the company you work for is in trouble. Is that true?"

She didn't need to answer. The expression on her face was enough.

"Do you know that I'm a professional saver of companies in trouble?"

"You are?" Janet didn't sound impressed.

"I am. That's how I make my living, getting companies out of a mess. I'm good at it."

"But you've been working in Africa, Ian. How relevant is that?"

"I worked in the UK as well. I sorted out three UK companies last year and two so far this year. I might be able to help."

Janet seemed more interested then.

"Do you know anyone at your company I could talk to?"

"Yes. But they can't afford anyone. They can't even pay me."

"I know. Most companies I work with couldn't pay me in advance. I am only paid if I succeed and when they can afford to. Sometimes that is years later. Other times I get paid by a bank to save something from the wreckage. But that is rare. I usually turn the company around enough to get them going again."

"What can you do? They can't pay their suppliers. They can't pay their staff."

"And that happened suddenly? Do you know why?"

"The bank called in their overdraft with seven days notice."

"And no one else would lend to them?"

Janet shook her head.

"That's a usual situation for me. My only worry is that they are larger than those I normally deal with. Could you arrange for me to meet someone, with no preconditions? I can't promise anything. Just meeting me commits them to nothing."

"I could ring someone tomorrow morning." Janet didn't sound convinced. Why should she? She knew nothing of my work.

"One other thing, please Janet. Have you got enough time to run me into Plymouth in the next couple of days? I need a car and as you know the bus service from here only runs on Market days. I'd pay your fuel..."

"I know I'm broke, Ian, but..."

"Alan told me more than he perhaps should have..."

"He shouldn't discuss my finances!" Janet shouted at me.

"Not even with his brother? Who is your friend?"

Janet started crying. I picked her up, trying to hide the pain from my leg, sat down with her on my lap and let her cry against my shoulder.

Eventually she dried her tears but stayed leaning against me.

"I don't know what I'm going to do. When I pay the builders on Saturday I won't have any money left in the bank. I owe for fuel..."

"I know. I can help..."

"I don't want money from you. That would be like selling myself as a prostitute!"

"Janet," I said, gently stroking her hair, "I have much more money than Alan and Angela."

"You do? But they are better off than most of the locals."

"Maybe they are. They can employ you. But until I left Africa I was employing thirty office staff. Now they are Maria's employees."

"Thirty?"

I nodded.

"They were helping me to turn companies around. They still will do that in Africa, but for Maria. I have to rebuild a team in the UK. All I have at the moment is a group of Estate Agents acting as my agents for property management in London. That's a thought. Perhaps I could employ you, here, while I build up business in Devon."

"Me? But I've got a job, Ian."

"A job that has laid you off, isn't paying you, and has left you deep in the mire."

"That's all true, but they were good to me."

"And perhaps they can be again. Maybe I'll ask to borrow you."

"Borrow me?"

"Yes, Janet. If I am going to try to sort them out, your knowledge of the company and their people could help me. If I arrange your secondment to me, I would pay you while they have laid you off. That will reduce their debts by a tiny amount."

"Being paid sounds good -- as long as I am being paid for secretarial work not encounters in bed."

We changed the subject. Both of us were disappointed with Alan and Angela's casual attitude to Dorcas' changes. We agreed that something needed to be done about Dorcas, but the more urgent problem was the failing company that employed so many local people.