In the town of Scottish Dumfries, Jin Johnstone tries to help people with their problems but that leads to problems of his own.
extract from story:
We didn’t speak again until the car stopped. She parked in front of Rodin’s John the Baptist, and we wandered slowly to the edge of the loch. A black swan floated away to the right and some startled ducks ran over the surface of the water, wings flapping. There was still an edge to the wind as it ruffled across the surface but at least the rain had held off once again. I watched Chiara take a couple of serene breaths of air into her lungs as she gazed out in admiration.
My question broke the quiet with force – it was as if I’d cracked it over my knee.
extract from story:
We didn’t speak again until the car stopped. She parked in front of Rodin’s John the Baptist, and we wandered slowly to the edge of the loch. A black swan floated away to the right and some startled ducks ran over the surface of the water, wings flapping. There was still an edge to the wind as it ruffled across the surface but at least the rain had held off once again. I watched Chiara take a couple of serene breaths of air into her lungs as she gazed out in admiration.
My question broke the quiet with force – it was as if I’d cracked it over my knee.
Rodin's John the Baptist.
High tide at Kingholm Quay - where the pig was found.
extract:
Thankfully the stench had eased by the time I reached the car. I opened the door to go. ‘Tell me this, Chisel, why does everyone round here think this is so blooming funny, eh? What happened to showing a little respect?’
Then it dawned on him. ‘Do you know what you just saw, Jinky?’
I shook my head, sat down, and started up the engine.
He poked his head in. ‘You just saw a dead pig, dressed in an evening suit, wearing a white shirt and black bow-tie, being pulled out of a storm drain in Dumfries. Go and look up on your precious Internet and see how often that has happened before…in the whole world!’
I left shaking my head, not really taking it in, but a mile up the road I had started laughing too. ‘Right then, Chisel, I’ll do just that,’ I said out loud. ‘I’ll look it up.’
So someone had dressed up a pig and dumped it by the river? There had to be a good reason for that. Asa had got it right: I was curious now. But I had Alf’s funeral to attend first.
I cranked the heater up to full.
extract:
Thankfully the stench had eased by the time I reached the car. I opened the door to go. ‘Tell me this, Chisel, why does everyone round here think this is so blooming funny, eh? What happened to showing a little respect?’
Then it dawned on him. ‘Do you know what you just saw, Jinky?’
I shook my head, sat down, and started up the engine.
He poked his head in. ‘You just saw a dead pig, dressed in an evening suit, wearing a white shirt and black bow-tie, being pulled out of a storm drain in Dumfries. Go and look up on your precious Internet and see how often that has happened before…in the whole world!’
I left shaking my head, not really taking it in, but a mile up the road I had started laughing too. ‘Right then, Chisel, I’ll do just that,’ I said out loud. ‘I’ll look it up.’
So someone had dressed up a pig and dumped it by the river? There had to be a good reason for that. Asa had got it right: I was curious now. But I had Alf’s funeral to attend first.
I cranked the heater up to full.
