The Last Train Home

Chapter Twenty-Four

"Done!" I exclaimed, dropping the paintbrush onto the worktop and backing away with my hands up.

"Finally. That was a little too much of a close call for me." Alec laughed.

"Hey, I still have a few hours to spare!"

"It's Christmas Eve, Syb. You're lucky you were even allowed to come here this morning."

"It took a lot of begging. And I mean, a lot."

Alec laughed and shook his head, pushing himself off the door frame to get a look at the now completed sign. He had done nothing but stand in the corner and watch me panic since I arrived at the workshop two hours before, although I would have refused his help. I watched him stare down at the sign and chew on the inside of his cheek, something he always did when thinking. He nodded his head and smiled, a clear sign that he approved of my work.

I didn't think I would be able to get the thing done in time since I still had some staining to do and the day before Alex had been pretty adamant that Barbara wouldn't let me go down to the Thompson farm. She had been forced to relent after I got on my hands and knees, literally, and begged her with a promise that I would be back in a few hours. Jonathan also joined in and eventually she had given me three hours to complete the sign before I had to be back. Two hours later, and it was ready to go.

I knew I had Alec to thank for the sign being completed in time. If he hadn't finished chiselling the letters for me, it never would have been finished and I'd be handing over an unfinished Christmas present which didn't feel fair. Neither of us had mentioned what he had done and I didn't want to mention it unless he did, but Alec appeared to be rather humble about the whole thing. I wanted to ask him why he did it, but maybe it really was as simple as him wanting to help.

Eva's comment made it impossible for me to believe that Alec's motives were purely about our friendship.

"Are you just about done in here?" Mr Thompson asked, appearing at the doorway of the workshop.

"Yes, officially finished," I said.

"It looks good." Mr Thompson smiled. "Come on, I'll give you a ride back. Alec, are you coming?"

"Yes! You can use the dust sheet to cover the sign if you don't want Mr Goodwin to see it."

"Probably for the best." I laughed. "Jonathan had been trying to guess what it is for two weeks; he has yet to be successful."

"He's always been impatient. When we were growing up, he used to find his Christmas presents and shake them to try and figure out what they were. Once, he broke something."

"Do you have any other stories about Jonathan when he was younger?"

Mr Thompson nodded. "I have plenty."

With a laugh, I grabbed the dust sheet Alec and pointed to and draped it over the sign but I had to be extra careful with the work I had done that morning so I didn't end up ruining the whole thing. Once it had been covered, I followed Alec and Mr Thompson to the tractor outside which had a wicker basket sitting in the wagon. I'm sure I saw the basket move, but I didn't say anything as I slid the sign into the back and then scrambled onto it with Alec following me.

We settled into the wagon and soon we were trundling off down the path. Like most days over the past few weeks, dark clouds lingered in the sky and a biting wind that darted around us and caused goosebumps to form up under my coat. There had been no sign of snow, but an awful lot of rain that made it almost impossible to walk anywhere without getting covered in mud. I would go off to complete my morning chores and end up with mud splattered up my slacks. Barbara had accepted that I would be spending the next few months covered in mud.