chapter 4

I drove to 'The Wagon'. It was a separate building opposite several streets that ran perpendicular to it. It had it's own car park that, by lunchtime would be full. I parked the car and got out. Behind the pub was a disused railway line, now common with dog walkers, cyclists and horse riders. It was probably where it got it's name from. The main part of the building was stone built and Victorian, but it had been extended several times since then. The newest addition had been a large conservatory added by Beverley. The footprint of the building was at least four times that of the nearby houses. It had three stories, the third of which was built into the roof space, which had several gables in a higgledy-piggledy fashion. There was a yard at the back surrounded by a wooden fence. It looked like part of the building had been pulled down at some stage here because there was an upstairs door that led nowhere. I'd have to remember that... it was an accident waiting to happen!
At the front of the building, which led directly off the street, there were wooden doors in the path that led directly to the cellar. It was easy access for unloading the barrels of beer when they were delivered. Some old wooden barrels had been cut in half and made into charming flower containers. At the other side of the porched door, the building was recessed from the street. There was another, now disused entrance there. The area had been the original car park, but was now much too small for it's needs and had been filled with picnic tables for the smokers and more flower barrels.
I took the keys and opened the front door of the gabled porch entrance into the public bar, much of which still had it's original features. The floor was a heavy duty grey slate. No attempt had been made to cover it up with fancy rugs. It was what it was... easy to clean. The room was small for a bar, very intimate and cosy. The wooden bar looked original, with it's brass fittings and matching barstools, it looked well used. There was wooden panelling around the walls to dado height. Above that was exposed stonework. There were wooden benches built into the panelling, small round tables and small stools. Opposite the entrance was another original feature that looked like it got a lot of use - a large open fireplace. Oh how welcoming it would look in midwinter with a blazing fire in the grate!
Leading off the bar area, there was a half glazed door with etched glass that probably led to the old lounge. Other doors led to the kitchen and the toilets. Opposite the bar, a large portion of the wall had been taken down. There was a step up into the dining area. The original outer stone wall had been retained as a feature. The rest of the area was carpeted and decorated with a dark flowery wallpaper and framed pictures. The windows were large with thick heavy duty curtains to match the dark red carpet. The colours sounded dull, but the ceiling height and the size of the room meant that it could take the dark colours and it gave a more intimate, cosy feel to the place. Around the outside of the restaurant were upholstered bench style seats similar to those in the bar. The dark wooden tables were placed around the edge of the room, next to the benches. Each table would sit four adults comfortably, those who did not sit in the benches got to sit on wooden dining chairs with tied on cushions for comfort. Beyond this area was Beverley's conservatory. It was a continuation of the restaurant really with more informal chairs and tables, lots of house plants and a glass roof.
The kitchen was a typical commercial kitchen with lots of stainless steel, but it looked small to cater for the number of customers they had.
Next, I ventured into the lounge area. This part of the building was clearly nothing more than a storeroom now. There was another bar here in a room twice the size of the bar next door. There was a door and stairs down to the cellar. I did not venture to explore down there. The room looked very neglected, sadly and would need a lot of investment to bring it up to date.
At the far end of the loungeroom bar, was a door that led upstairs. There I found a large function room above the lounge. It looked like it had not been used for many years. Another door led to the residential part of the building at the rear. It looked like it had all the modern amenities one would expect these days, but it had not been lived in since the 1980's judging from the decor.
The living room had a chintzy sofa and two chairs, surrounding a gas fire and a TV that looked tiny in comparison with modern sizes. I carefully walked from room to room, wary that any door I opened could lead to nowhere. If I wasn't careful I would land in the yard outside.
The kitchen had dishwasher, microwave and cooker, with limited storage and benchspace. There was, however an extended larder, big enough for a washer, dryer and all the storage you could want. The door leading outside led off the kitchen. I surmised that there must have been steps outside at some stage.
There was a small formal dining room and stairs leading up to the attic.
Up there, I found two bedrooms with the same over-flowery decoration. A third, smaller bedroom had been converted into a bathroom with a dated pink bathroom suite.
Was this where Beverley intended for me to live? She must be joking! I could not live here! It would take a whole army of people just to clean the place before it was habitable, another army would be needed to bring the place out of the eighties. I only had four thousand pounds! If I'd known I would have transferred a hundred thousand into my account, but I didn't want to appear greedy.

I heard a noise downstairs. I looked at my watch it was just after ten. It was probably the chef arriving to start preparing lunch. I thought I ought to go back downstairs to introduce myself.