The village was in darkness, just a string of pearl like roadside lamps leading the way through a single narrow street. He drove carefully as the road ahead was in darkness and wet from an earlier shower. In the hills above the village a deluge had flooded the road but here the weather had been kinder.
Daniel had spent a few nights staying at a hilltop hotel, which offered breathtaking views across the Derbyshire countryside. A favourite haunt for artists, they seemed to fill the place leaving just a few rooms for Daniel and his business colleagues. The hotel itself was pleasant enough but Daniel was not happy about the treatment he and the other guests had received. The staff, although very young lacked what he would have expected from a luxury hotel. Senior staff members were not much better, in fact he had witnessed a receptionist being very rude to one of the elderly artists and Daniel himself had suffered curt comments from a manager. It was then that he decided that once home he would make a complaint to the head office of the chain who owned the hotel. He was not supposed to check out until the following morning but he was missing Clara so wanted to return home as soon as possible. He made the decision to drive through the night.
Following the gentle curve in the road, he pushed the gear stick forward slowing the car even more. His sat nav told him that once on the motorway the journey time would be just under four hours. He doubted that, closer to five he thought, but at least at this time of night there was less traffic to contend with.
As he approached the last house in the village, his eyes flicked to the darkened space to his left. This was a water meadow, open fields with a river running through the valley. He imagined the view on a summer’s day. Suddenly movement caught his eye and before he had time to react, a car shot out of a small side turning in front of him. It bounced across a narrow pathway completely out of control before disappearing into the darkness. Braking hard, Daniel brought his car to a stop and threw open the driver’s side door. Climbing out he stood in the road hardly able to believe what had just happened, then running to the spot where the car had left the road, he peered out into the night. There was a vague shape in the darkness so moving swiftly over the sodden ground, he approached the car now resting on its roof. Out on the meadow he could see very little so searching his pocket, he found his mobile phone and turning on the torch directed the beam into the car. Air bags had deployed but were now deflated, the limp material filling the space where the driver should have been.
“Hello,” he called out and reaching for the handle, pulled open the door.
It was a small sports car, just two seats but luckily, it had a hard top. A soft top car would have collapsed completely crushing the driver. Leaning in he found a body squashed into the foot well.
“Are you hurt?” He leaned in and reached out.
Strands of dark hair covered the face that peered fearfully back at him and assessing the damage he played the light over the interior.
“We need to get you out,” he said shuffling further into the car.
Taking her carefully by the hand he helped her to wriggle from the cramped space.
“Can you stand?”
“Yes I think so, please help me.” She was struggling with her emotions as shock threatened to overwhelm her.
Daniel supported her gently and groaning with disbelief she collapsed against him. He could feel her heart racing, her body trembling then he caught the aroma of expensive perfume. They stood like this for several moments before he suggested they move. Lights from his car were a welcome beacon in the darkness as they made their way slowly towards it.
“You are hurt,” Daniel said as he helped her into the passenger seat. “I should call for an ambulance.”
“No please.” Alarm filled her face.
“At least let me take you to the nearest hospital.”
“There is no need, please do not concern yourself, it’s only my pride that is injured.”
He doubted that, but doing as she asked he climbed into the driver’s seat.
“My name is Daniel.”
“I’m Sophia,” she replied and laying her head back against the rest she closed her eyes.
“Where would you like me to take you? We should call someone to take care of your car.”
“No please, tell no one. Will you take me with you?”
Looking at her, he frowned. “Surely someone will be worried about you.”
“There is no one.” Pain masked her face but she hid it well then she opened her eyes. “Will you take me with you? I will explain everything later.”
“Is there anything that you would like me to fetch from your car?”
“No, I have everything that I need.”
Daniel hesitated, uncertain about what to do next. What would the consequences be if he did as she asked? Clearly, he had to do something, he could hardly throw her out into the night. He told her where he was going and she simply nodded her head then closing her eyes again, she sighed.
Daniel drove slowly away leaving an overturned sports car in a field on the edge of a village somewhere in Derbyshire.
I woke up one morning with this running through my head so I wrote it down. It turned out to be the beginning of a new novel. My intention was to write in a different genre, but this book soon turned into another crime novel featuring my usual characters.
It is now finished and should be published later this year.
1. Who is Sophie?
2. Who/what is she running away from?
3. Has Daniel done the right thing or should he take her to a hospital or police station?
4. What would you do in the same circumstances?
These are some of the questions that I considered when developing the plot.
