Page 20 of Match Point in Crumbleton
‘Lifesavers!’ breathed Caroline as she slid into one of the empty seats. ‘You guys sure you don’t mind? I don’t want to be a gooseberry!’
Andy snorted and then noticed that Cath had just turned that remarkably pretty shade of pink again.
‘We’re not…’ she stuttered.
‘You’re grand!’ said Andy quickly, wanting to cover Cath’s discomfort. ‘Caroline, this is Cath Walker—she’s our new curator.’
‘Cath!’ said Caroline, her face splitting into a wide smile. ‘I was hoping we’d bump into each other sooner rather than later. I gave the museum a little mention in the paper last week—just to let everyone know it’s due to reopen soon, now that we’ve got you in town!’
‘You did?’ said Cath, sounding slightly panicked.
Andy smiled at her, doing his best to look reassuring. Now that he’d seen the state the museum was in, he couldn’t blame her for looking worried. The idea of reopening to the public anytime soon was almost laughable at this point.
‘I have to say,’ said Caroline, ploughing on as her eyes skimmed down the laminated café menu, ‘I think you’re really brave to take on the job.’
‘I’m not sure about brave,’ said Cath. ‘I mean, the place is in a bit of a state, and there’s loads of rubbish to get rid of, but it’s nothing I can’t handle.’
‘Good for you!’ said Caroline, with an approving nod. ‘To be honest, I’m surprised it hasn’t been closed for good by this point.’
‘Ah now, don’t say that,’ said Andy uncomfortably.
‘Well, haven’t you thought exactly the same thing?’ said Caroline. ‘It doesn’t get many visitors… though maybe that’s a good thing considering it’s a giant health and safety disaster waiting to happen.’
‘Well, it’s not had proper staff for a long time,’ said Andy.
He was aware that he was starting to sound a bit defensive, just like he always did when anyone dared to criticise his beloved town. Caroline did have a point though.
‘No,’ said Caroline. ‘That’s true, Cath’s post was vacant for donkey’s yonks. Problem is, there’s not much in the way of budget for the council to keep it open, is there? And if it doesn’t prove itself…’ she trailed off.
‘Wait,’ said Cath. ‘What do you mean, there’s not much in the budget? I mean, they’ve hired me…’
Caroline bit her lip and glanced uncomfortably at Andy. He let out a long sigh. This was the last thing poor Cath needed to hear. She’d only just started, and there was a vast mountain of work for her to do before she even had a hope of reopening. Still, maybe it was better that she knew what she was up against.
‘The council’s broke,’ said Andy steadily.
‘Yeah,’ Caroline nodded, ‘very. The only reason the curator role was still being advertised is because they’ve still got the money available from last year’s pot. It’s ringfenced, you see? They couldn’t use it for anything else. I’m betting they would have if they could have, though!’
Andy winced as he watched the bad news land, one blow at a time. He could almost see the weight of what they were telling her landing on Cath’s shoulders.
‘I’m… I’m, erm… guessing this is all news to you?’ said Caroline.
Cath nodded silently.
‘Well, it’s better that you know,’ she said, her face serious. ‘As far as I’ve been told, they’ve got enough in the pot to cover your salary for a year, but there’s only about six months’ worth of finances left to run the place. We’re just talking about the basics like keeping the lights on—not all the repairs that need seeing to.’
‘I had no idea things were this bad,’ said Andy, shaking his head. ‘I mean I knew things at the council were tight, but…’
‘The only reason you still have a job is that you cover so many different roles, they can’t work out which bits they can afford to cut!’ said Caroline, trying to catch Mabel’s eye as she zoomed around, serving the heaving tables.
‘Well, that’s comforting,’ muttered Andy. He was only half-listening. Cath was now looking pale and deflated across from him as she pretended to peruse her menu.
‘So,’ she said slowly, not lifting her eyes, ‘you’re saying I might be out of a job in six months—a year, tops?’
‘Don’t quote me on it,’ said Caroline nodding. ‘If you want my advice, you might want to put a rocket under Ruth and make her give you the actual figures. At least then you’ll know exactly what you’ve got to work with… or not, as the case may be.’
‘I will,’ said Cath quietly. ‘Thanks.’
CHAPTER 9
