The Eyre Affair_ A Novel - Jasper Fforde [411]
“Thursday!” said Randolph, offering me a chair. “Are you okay?”
“Groggy,” I replied as Lola placed a steaming mug of coffee in front of me that I inhaled gratefully. “Groggy but happy—I got Landen back. Thanks for helping me out last night—and I’m sorry if I made a complete idiot of myself. Arnie must think I’m the worst tease in the Well.”
“No, that’s me,” said Lola innocently. “Your Gran explained to us all about Aornis and Landen. We had no idea what was going on. Arnie understood and he said he’d drop around later and see how you were.”
I looked at Lola’s suitcase and then at the two of them, who were studiously ignoring each other.
“What’s going on?”
“I’m leaving to start work on Girls Make All the Moves.”
“That’s excellent news, Lola,” I said, genuinely impressed. “Randolph?”
“Yes, very good. All the clothes and boyfriends she wants.”
“You’re sour because you didn’t get that male-mentor part you wanted,” retorted Lola.
“Not at all,” replied Randolph, resentment bubbling under the surface. “I’ve been offered a small part in an upcoming Amis—a proper novel. A literary one.”
“Well, good luck to you,” replied Lola. “Send me a postcard if you can be troubled to talk to anyone in chicklit.”
“Guys,” I said, “don’t part like this!”
Lola looked at Randolph, who turned away. She sighed, stared at me for a moment and then got up.
“Well,” she said, picking up her case, “I’ve got to go. Fittings all morning, then rehearsals until six. Busy busy busy. I’ll keep in touch, don’t worry.”
I got up, held my head for a moment as it thumped badly, then hugged Lola, who hugged me back happily.
“Thanks for all the help, Thursday,” she said, tears in her eyes. “I wouldn’t have made it up to B-3 without you.”
She went to the door and stopped for a moment, looked across at Randolph, who was staring resolutely out the window at nothing in particular.
“Good-bye, Randolph.”
“Good-bye,” he said without looking up.
Lola looked at me, bit her lip and went across to him and kissed him on the back of the head. She returned to the door, said good-bye to me again and went out.
I sat down next to him. A large tear had rolled down his nose and dropped onto the table. I laid a hand on his.
“Randolph—!”
“I’m fine!” he growled. “I’ve just got a bit of grit in my eye!”
“Did you tell her how you felt?”
“No, I didn’t!” he snapped. “And what’s more, I don’t want you dictating to me what I should and shouldn’t do!”
He got up and stormed off to his bedroom, the door slamming shut behind him.
“Hellooo!” said a Granny Next sort of voice. “Are you well enough to come upstairs?”
“Yes.”
“Then you can come and help me down.”
I assisted her down the stairs and sat her at the table, fetching a cushion or two from the living room.
“Thanks for your help, Gran. I made a complete fool of myself last night.”
“What’s life for? Don’t mention it. And by the way, it was Lola and me who undressed you, not the boys.”
“I think I was past caring.”
“All the same. Aornis will have a lot more trouble getting at you in the Outland, my dear—my experience of mnemonomorphs tends to be that once you dispose of a mindworm, the rest is easy. You won’t forget her in a hurry, I assure you.”
We chatted for an hour, Gran and I, about Miss Havisham, Landen, babies, Anton and all other things besides. She told me about her own husband’s eradication and his eventual return. I knew he had returned because without him there would be no me, but it was interesting to talk to her nonetheless. I felt well enough to go into Caversham Heights at midday to see how Jack was getting on.
“Ah!” said Jack as I arrived. “Just in time. I’ve been thinking about a full Caversham Heights makeover—do you want to have a look?”
“Go on, then.”
“Is anything the matter? You look a bit unwell.”
“I got myself pickled to the gills last night. I’ll be fine. What have you in mind?”
“Get in. I want you to meet someone.”
I climbed into the Allegro and he handed me a coffee. We were parked opposite a large redbrick semi in the north of the town. In the book we stake