Page 105 of The Merry Christmas Project

‘Sure,’ said Olek. ‘But be sensible.’

‘Unlike Merry,’ Nell muttered. ‘This will cost you a fortune. Of all the spontaneous things you’ve ever done, this takes the crown.’

The thought made me smile. It seemed I hadn’t changed at all. I still acted on the spur of the moment without stopping to consider the consequences.

‘Thanks,’ I grinned. ‘I’ll take that as a compliment.’

She sighed. ‘I thought you might.’

The four of us ran back to the market square as fast as we could and began dishing out candles, instructing people not to light them until I gave the word. I bumped into Astrid and Fred, who’d seen us run off.

‘Hand these around,’ I said to them, passing Fred a box.

He looked at the candles and then up at me. ‘But we need these.’

‘Wetherley needs them more,’ I argued swiftly. ‘This is no time to worry about money. I promised I’d produce a fitting tribute to Benny and that’s what I intend to do.’

‘Yes, boss,’ said Fred.

‘You are an angel,’ declared Astrid.

‘Where’s Otto ?’ I asked, noticing he was missing.

‘Home warming his paws,’ she chuckled, ‘he was getting frostbite.’

‘Where’s Cole ?’ Fred asked, looking over my shoulder.

‘I wish I knew,’ I said, debating whether to tell him about his grandson. I decided against it. I wasn’t sure what the rules were in this situation and anyway it would be better coming from Cole. When he reappeared.

Robin, the journalist, was tapping his watch and so I sent them on their way and within less than two minutes, everyone who could be trusted had been given a candle. I even slipped one into Robin’s pocket so he could relive the story when he got home.

‘Merry ?’ Tom called, his arm around a shaken Mrs Flowers. ‘Shall we get the children back up on stage?’

‘Yes, please.’

I bolted up the steps and picked up the microphone, which thankfully was battery-operated.

‘Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to invite you all to light your candles.’

Murmurs and exclamations and a few muffled expletives followed as people began to light their candles. I breathed a sigh of delighted relief as tiny flames began to glow, dissipating the darkness, and gradually the faces of Wetherley began to reappear again. For an emergency solution, I thought with a rush of pride, it was incredibly effective.

‘And now, please give a big cheer as we welcome back to the stage, the wonderful Wetherley Primary School Choir singing “Silent Night” by candlelight. Thank you.’

The children, hand in hand, filed back onto the stage and I quickly laid down a line of candles at the edge of the stage and lit them.

‘Are we ready, children ?’ Mrs Flowers whispered. ‘Big bright smiles, everyone. One, two, three …’

‘Silent night, holy night,’ chimed the children in harmony, ‘all is calm, all is bright.’

The pure joy of those little voices brought a rush of goosebumps to my skin as I moved off to the edge of the stage. I paused at the top of the steps to cast my eye out across our Christmas-tree-filled space. My Merry and Bright candles had illuminated the town and the effect was magical. The scent of fresh pine, eucalyptus and mint filled my nostrils and for a second or two, I allowed myself to simply breathe it in and enjoy the moment.

A few feet away, I saw Tom again, this time with his arm around Sally who was sobbing with emotion. He caught my eye and grinned.

‘Amazing work, Merry,’ said a familiar voice close to my ear as Daniel placed his hand on my shoulder.

‘Thanks,’ I managed to croak, feeling overwhelmed with emotion.

‘By the way, if you’d like to come to join us on Boxing Day for a buffet, you’re very welcome,’ he said kissing my cheek. ‘You can bring your new friend too.’