‘I should hope not, or there’ll be an incident.’ She takes a deep breath again and bellows, ‘OTTO!’
Esther has a powerful set of lungs on her. Haf is pretty sure the windows rattled in their frames, or perhaps they just cowered.
‘Yes, Esther?’ calls a muffled reply.
Both Haf and Esther turn around to see Otto outside, peering through the window, gardening gloves on his hands and terriers bustling at his feet.
‘Don’t yell at me, Otto. I’m not cattle,’ she says, opening the window.
‘I didn’t say or mean to imply that you were cattle, dearest. What’s troubling you?’
‘I’m not troubled, I’m simply trying to ascertain whether you got the carrots.’
‘The carrots?’
‘Yes, did you get thecarrots?’
‘For the cattle?’ Otto asks innocently.
Haf suppresses a laugh.
‘Not for the cattle, thereindeer,Otto.’
‘There’s reindeer now? This is starting to sound like a real menagerie.’
‘Otto, so help me, I will lock you outside and never let you in again if you keep testing me.’
‘Right, right. I’m here, I’m listening, and I’m being very serious. The reindeer? You need carrots for reindeer?’
‘Yes, Otto, that’s what I said. Didn’t I say that?’ she says, suddenly turning to Haf.
‘Yes, carrots!’ squeaks Haf, who was not expecting to be called upon to testify.
‘Carrots, Otto.’
‘I didn’t get any carrots, dear. I don’t think you asked me to.’
‘Are you positive?’
‘I’m pretty sure.’
Esther takes a clipboard from the table and consults a list.
‘Oh dear. I foolishly only asked Aggy Wimlott if she would, but she just rang me in a tizz because she thinks she’s dramatically underestimated how many carrots we might need.’
‘Are we about to be beset by a plague of reindeer?’
‘Surely just nine?’ asks Christopher, who wanders into the room holding a cup of coffee. ‘Eight, if they’re still excluding Rudolph.’
‘Oh, don’t you start too. I’m surrounded by impossible men.’
Esther’s phone buzzes with another call.
‘Hello, Mayor Clarke,’ she says, all sweetness and calm. ‘No, we haven’t solved the carrot issue yet, but I’m on it.’
Despite being irritated by the men in her life and presented with logistical vegetable problems, Esther is clearly a woman who thrives on pressure.
‘Wow, this is really escalating,’ whispers Christopher conspiratorially.
