Page 14 of The Retreat

The gravel crunched under the tyres as they pulled into the sweeping drive of the lodge. It was picturesque as fuck; Imogen had to give it that. Honey-coloured stone, neat hedges, a view that stretched out over green hills, everything a rich company could want out of their silly little retreat.

Talia parked in the car park near the entrance, and for a moment, they just sat. ‘We should go in,’ Talia said gloomily.

‘Hold on,’ Imogen said.

‘What?’

Imogen gave her a look. ‘I’m not getting out of this car until…’

‘Ah.’ Talia took out her phone and tapped around. ‘OK, it’s sent.’

Imogen checked her phone. There it was, five grand, easy as you please.

And that would be the end of any ease for the next few days.

***

The inside of the lodge was old-money countryside chic. There was already a fire lit in the main reception despite the good weather, and the woman at the desk had the kind of accent that said she’d grown up playing croquet and eating scones the size of fists.

‘Are you from the Monroe contingent?’

Talia nodded and approached the desk. Imogen kept back. She wasn’t ready to do this yet. She hadn’t said much on the way over, kept her mouth shut. She didn’t trust herself to sound civil, not yet. Not until she had to be.

She checked her watch. They were early by design. Talia had insisted on that. So the place was empty but for the receptionist.

‘Alex, I’ve got the keys,’ Talia said. ‘Shall we settle in before everyone gets here?’

Imogen turned and gave her a wobbly smile that would have convinced exactly no one that she was Talia’s beau. It was giving hostage situation.

Their room was up a narrow staircase, tucked at the end of a long corridor. The key turned with a soft click, and then they were inside.

Imogen stared. One bed. It was enormous, but still. One bed.

‘Absolutely not,’ she said, throwing her bag down in the corner. ‘You can have the floor.’

Talia opened her mouth to argue but must’ve seen the look on Imogen’s face because she nodded, quick and sheepish. ‘Yeah. Sure. Of course.’

Imogen turned away and busied herself with unpacking the essentials: pyjamas, toothbrush, phone charger. Her hands moved automatically, but her thoughts were thick with resentment.

Everything about Talia grated. The way she took charge. The way she’d tried to play nice in the car. And of course, the way she’d once let Imogen become the scapegoat for everything Flora had done.

But that incident was not supposed to exist in this place. She should stick to disliking Talia for things happening today.

Actually, she wasn’t supposed to resent her at all. There was five grand in her account that had bought a loving and medically informed girlfriend. The other five relied on her carrying that off. Which included a distinct lack of loathing.

She had to at least try to shift the tone. For the sake of the money. For the sake of her own sanity.

She turned to Talia, who was hovering awkwardly near the window.

‘Alright,’ Imogen sighed. ‘We need to not despise each other for the next forty-eight hours, minimum.’

Talia blinked. ‘I don’t—’

Imogen waved away the fake denial she could see coming. ‘Let’s do something. A warm-up exercise. Like, I don’t know, a fake couple trust game.’

Talia tilted her head. Suspicious but curious. ‘What kind of game?’

Imogen thought for a moment. Then shrugged. ‘Quick-fire questions. No lying. The first thing that comes to your mind. Helps us get to know each other. Build… rapport.’

Talia hesitated. Then nodded. ‘Alright. You go first.’

Imogen settled onto the bed and gestured for Talia to sit next to her. Which she did, putting a full foot between them and pulling a decorative cushion off the bed and onto her lap as if she needed a further barrier.

Imogen gave her lap a light slap. ‘Right then. Off we go. Favourite book as a kid?’

‘Northern Lights,’ Talia said.

Imogen liked that one too, but decided not to mention that.

‘Yours?’ Talia asked.

‘The Secret Garden,’ Imogen said.

Talia’s eyebrow went up. ‘Oh.’

‘What?’

‘It’s a good book, that’s all.’

Imogen had to laugh. ‘You thought I’d be more of a Sweet Valley High kind of girl?’ Imogen asked her.

Talia put her hands up in defence. ‘I never said that.’

Imogen looked at her.

‘I wasn’t exactly thinking Sweet Valley High,’ Talia said weakly.

‘But something vapid?’

Talia put her hands down. ‘Fine, you got me.’

Imogen decided not to linger on that point. It was contrary to the spirit of the game to find even more things not to like about each other.

‘Worst date you ever had?’

Talia’s face dropped. ‘Really?’

Imogen nodded.

Talia looked like she was thinking about refusing to answer, but then her shoulders dropped. ‘I once met this woman who brought her ex’s dog on the date and kept crying into its fur.’

Imogen’s mouth went up slightly in one corner, a dimple popping. ‘I was once stood up by someone who said they’d gone into early labour. She wasn’t even pregnant.’

An amused snort escaped Talia, but she was quick to bat it down.

‘Most irrational fear?’ Imogen asked, folding her arms.

Talia hesitated, then said, ‘Pigeons. I know it sounds ridiculous.’

Imogen blinked, surprised. ‘Pigeons?’

‘Yeah,’ Talia admitted, curling her lip slightly. ‘They’re loud, unpredictable, and bloody relentless. One time, a pigeon followed me for about half a mile after I gave it a bit of croissant.’

Imogen cocked her head. ‘It probably wasn’t the same one.’

‘Its markings were very distinct. I still see it outside my office window sometimes.’

Imogen felt herself smiling and stopped. ‘I’m scared of spiders. Completely.’

Talia’s eyes widened. ‘Spiders? That’s a bit obvious, isn’t it?’

‘It doesn’t have the originality of a stalker pigeon, I’ll give you that,’ Imogen said. She thought she might have pushed it a bit with that.

But Talia only gave a dry snort. ‘So… What’s up with spiders? Aside from the obvious.’

Imogen frowned, thoughtful. ‘Did you know they don’t get stuck in their own webs?’

Talia frowned. ‘They don’t?’

‘Some of them coat their legs in this oily stuff, like a wax, so they can walk on the threads without triggering the vibrations.’

Talia pulled a face. ‘That’s grim.’

‘And they’re bloody precise,’ Imogen added, warming to her topic. ‘Like, some species actually count their steps when they go out hunting, so they can find their way back to their web.’

Talia stared at her. ‘That is truly disquieting.’

Imogen shrugged and smiled. ‘Told you. Spiders aren’t just scary. They’re wrong.’

Talia gave a short laugh, looking away. ‘OK, next question.’

Imogen thought. ‘Would you rather fight one horse-sized duck or a hundred duck-sized horses?’

She sort of thought Talia would demand a more serious question, but she considered it carefully. ‘A hundred duck-sized horses sound like a swarm of nightmares.’

Imogen nodded. ‘Exactly.’

‘So, horse-sized duck it is. At least it’s just one thing to focus on.’

Imogen smiled. ‘Looks like we agree on something after all.’

Talia glanced at her sideways, a little reluctant. ‘Seems like it.’

They both fell quiet for a moment, the game bridging the distance more than either expected.

‘Next question,’ Imogen said lightly. ‘Do you snore?’

Talia smiled faintly. ‘Not that I know of. You?’

‘Only when drunk,’ Imogen told her.

‘Then don’t get drunk.’

‘I’m glad you said something. I was planning to be smashed the whole time,’ Imogen said dryly.

‘Actually, I would recommend some drinking this weekend.’

‘You would?’

‘Me personally? I’m gonna need a drink or two this weekend,’ Talia admitted. ‘I’m sure it wouldn’t hurt you to relax a bit, either.’

‘Me? I’m totally relaxed. I’m downright fucking zen,’ Imogen said.

That surprised a laugh out of Talia that she was quick to cut short.

It wasn’t perfect. It wasn’t healed. But maybe it was a start.