Exmoor Stories 07: Amyus

Part 1: The Party

Arrangements for Sam and Kate's engagement party had been in full swing for a couple of weeks now and at last the time had come! Guests would be arriving from late afternoon and as usual, Kate had set up dormitory arrangements for those who wished to stay the night. Some musical friends had offered their services for the evening, so the party would look and sound, like parties have all down the years -- there would be fiddle music in the farmhouse for the first time in decades! Sam and Mark had moved the furniture around to make better use of the space. The big table was now on one side of the kitchen and the the soft furnishings in the sitting room had been pushed back to leave room for dancing, if anyone felt in the mood. Now they were both outside, clearing things from the farmyard to allow for guest parking. Laura and Kate had also been hard at work putting the food together, and a delicious looking buffet was laid out on the table. When all was done, they took a coffee break to look over the work done. The farmhouse looked very special tonight, as it should! Mark and Laura had gone upstairs to change and when they came back into the kitchen, Laura was pulling up a brand new pair of maternity jeans.

"I can't get into my favourites any more," She complained, "But these are better than joggers!"

Mark put his arm around her. "All in a good cause, though?"

Laura just smiled and snuggled herself into his side. Kate had never seen them look so happy! Maybe she and Sam would be feeling the same some day? She snapped herself out of her reverie.

"I'd better get changed myself. People will be here soon!" She shot off up the stairs.

The first guests were arriving and the musicians were getting tuned up. Kate had changed into a colourful blouse, straight brown cord skirt and ankle boots. She was intending to have fun tonight and didn't want anything fussy to get in the way of a bit of dancing. Sam chose a favourite shirt and brown moleskin trousers. As more and more people arrived to celebrate their engagement, the happy couple sneaked a kiss in passing. Kate hung on to Sam's lip for a little longer than was really necessary and her eyes had that twinkle they held when she had her mind on something special! Sam grinned at her and for the millionth time felt like the luckiest man around.

People were laughing, the music was swirling and the night was yet young. Kate grabbed Sam and they led the first dances. Before long, their house was full of swaying dancers, slightly disjointed conversation and hugs as friends met each other for the first time in ages. All of the makings for an epic party! When the food was served, the music was paused and it was quiet except for the sound of people eating and the murmur of friends chatting around the house. Suddenly, there was a loud, insistent knock on the front door and Sam went to open it.

A man was standing outside. He was on the short side of average, wore very clean working men's trousers, a greenish-yellow collarless shirt and a waistcoat, worn open as they used to back in the day. He smiled at Sam and spoke politely.

"Please excuse me, Sir," he started in a strong Devonshire accent, "But is this the home of Samuel Wise and his lady?" He held a aged trilby hat in his hands and was turning it around nervously.

"That would be me!" Sam smiled, "How can I help you?"

"Thank You sir," the man said, "My name is Amyus Conybeare, and I think there is a party here tonight." A statement, not a question.

Sam didn't recognise the man, but Kate may have invited him, so Sam welcomed him, stood aside and Amyus walked into the house, looking carefully around him as he went.

Kate met them as they came though the kitchen.

"Hello," she said, "Who do we have here?".

"This is Amyus Conybeare," Sam explained, "He is here for the party!"

Amyus bowed slightly, "Amyus Conybeare at you service, ma'am."

"Hello to you! Well, you're a bit of a surprise to us both, it seems. How do you know about the party, Amyus?" Kate asked lightly. "We invited everybody personally."

"Ah, I wasn't exactly invited," the strange man replied, "but I live over the moor a way and heard the music drifting on the wind. It's been many years since that sound graced the moors, so I came over to see what was going on."

Kate looked him over. He seemed a little strange and old fashioned, but Sam could see that Kate had taken a liking to him, so what came next didn't surprise him.

"As you are here now, would you like to stay," Kate asked, "As a proper guest, that is?"

She smiled brightly at him and he visibly relaxed and smiled back at them both.

"Thank you both, you are very kind," he said, "I appreciate the invitation to your engagement party and accept gladly!"

Kate offered Amyus a plate and glass and told him to help himself from the table. Once again, he was suitably grateful and Kate had to admire his old-worldly manners.

The music started again and Amyus was obviously enjoying it immensely. Kate asked him if he'd like to dance and he leapt to his feet and took her hand. He seemed to be a seasoned dancer, as he didn't need to ask the steps as each dance started. During a pause, Saira came over and Kate introduced her to Amyus.

"It's very nice to meet you Amyus, how do you know Sam and Kate, are you local?"

"Well, I don't really know them m'dear, but I came and was invited and so I'm here!" Amyus spoke as if this was the most natural thing in the world. "As for being local, I live a ways out across the moor. Have done for more years than even I can remember!"

They stood and talked and when Mike came over, Saira introduced Amyus to him and soon they were laughing like old friends. Amyus knew the moor well and his knowledge of Mike and Saira's hotel and it's history filled many gaps in their knowledge. Saira wished that they could make notes!

Meanwhile, Sam had taken Kate to one side, "Did you tell him that this is our engagement party?" asked Sam.

"Nope," Kate smiled and put her arms around his neck, "Perhaps he heard it from one of the other guests?"

"Maybe, but he's a strange one. Gives me the shivers a bit, but he does seem to get on with everybody, doesn't he!" They watched as Amyus moved from group to group, each introducing him to the other as he went. Within an hour, everyone knew his name and had chatted with him. He had become part of their crowd!

It was coming up to midnight and from outside a terrible clamour struck up. Mark's dogs had, as usual, been left out in Sam's workshop and now they were barking and howling at the night as if the devil himself were out there. Sam and Mark went to the door and were just putting coats on to go out into the cold February night when Amyus came up and told them to put their coats back, as he would go and see to the dogs. It was the least he could do after all, he said. Mark protested, but Amyus insisted, so Mark said that he would wait and only come over to the workshop if he was needed. They opened the door and Ozric the cat shot in through their legs and straight upstairs, her fur completely on end. She didn't even stop to check her food bowl, which was a rare thing! Sam just stood back and stared after her.

Amyus strolled out into the yard and a few minutes later, the dogs stopped making their noise and peace was restored. Amyus arrived at the kitchen door again.

"There was no real problem, they were just a bit startled by some night noise or the other, I think!" he exclaimed.

Just to satisfy himself that his beloved dogs really were safe, Mike slipped out into the yard once the others had returned to the party. When he looked inside the workshop, they were both curled up on their blankets, fast asleep. He shrugged and went back indoors.

Shadows moved over the front of the barn, some of which were cast by the light from the house.

About an hour later, Amyus came to Sam and Kate, thanked them for the best evening that he'd had in decades and declared that it was time for him to go home. Sam tried to get him to stay, as it was so late and the moor was treacherous at this time of year, but Amyus told him that he would be missed if he didn't get back tonight. He assured them all that he would be perfectly alright and that he had walked these moors at all hours for many years, so knew his way even in the pitch black. As they couldn't force the fellow to stay, Sam and Kate bade him safe journey and watched as he walked out of the yard and into the night. People were gradually going to bed and a few asked about Amyus and where he had got to. Sam and Kate could do no more than tell them that he had gone home. The little man had certainly been the biggest surprise of the night!

In the morning, breakfast was served to those who wanted it. Kate had cooked up a huge heap of toast, fried eggs and bacon, which most people made into sandwiches washed down with mugs of tea or coffee. Mark went to let his dogs out and in the daylight could see the deep scratches now evident in the woodwork on the barn. As the buildings had been renovated quite recently, the damage was clearly visible. Whatever had caused this was obviously the same thing that had unsettled the animals. He would show Sam later, but perhaps not the ladies, as he wouldn't want Laura to worry about anything in her current state.

When all of the clearing up was complete, Laura and Mark headed homeward and Kate started putting all the extra crockery away. Sam took himself out to the yard to inspect the damage that Mark had mentioned. There were several large scratches on the woodwork, as if someone had tried to break into the workshop, but nothing on any of the other doors nearby. As he worked his way around the buildings, Sam came across all sorts of tracks. He knew the cat's trail, Mark's dogs, deer and several other wild animals, but in some soft mud near the perimeter wall were some large, very smudged prints that he couldn't recognise. They were superficially dog like, but there were no really clear single prints to positively identify. Sam wished he had some plaster of paris to make a cast, but had to satisfy himself with measuring and sketching them instead.

He walked back through the yard and up to the main road, where their post and newspapers were delivered to an old bread bin that had been repurposed for this use. There was no post, but the local paper, The Gazette, had arrived, so Sam wandered back to the house, browsing the headlines as he went. It was lunchtime by now, but neither of them were hungry, so Sam made some coffee and they settled in their big, soft chairs to read for a bit.

Sam was reading the paper, skipping through local news about housing developments, road improvements and the suchlike. He took a bit more interest in the human interest and farming news until he reached one longer piece about the mapping of the moor that had been going on for years. Most of the time, it was just detailed mapping work, but at times -- as in this story -- something of interest would be found.

Sam read it aloud to Kate, paraphrasing heavily. 'Out on the highest part of the moor, not far from Dunkery Beacon, a massive standing stone had been found. It was covered in inscriptions, which the archaeological team had found difficult to read. After recording every detail of it, they had decided to stand it upright again and leave it as a marker'. Sam was surprised, as this wasn't common practice, but thought that the experts must have their reasons. Reading on, Sam picked out more interesting nuggets of news to share. As usual, there was a lot about the recent storms and another long item about some missing livestock out on the coast. 'Four sheep were found with their necks broken, while a fifth was severely gored. At least two others were completely missing and the farmer was baffled by the wholesale slaughter'. Sam wondered if somebody had a grudge against the farmer, as otherwise it seemed an odd thing to happen out in the middle of nowhere. Kate said that she felt more concerned for the sheep, as they only had short lives anyway and this didn't sound like a good way to go! Despite trying to concentrate on their reading, they both fell asleep very quickly and woke up just in time to grab a snack and get an early night. They snuggled into each other in their warm bed.

"Sam," said Kate, "I think the party was a success!" But Sam was already asleep.

---~~---

Part 2: The Moor

"How would I know if it was a leopard or a tiger?" Saira was not amused. "I'm not a zoo keeper!" She put the phone down hard.

Several guests had reported seeing 'something big' near the road to the hotel and on one occasion, actually in the hotel grounds. Saira was trying to get someone 'official' onto the case and had started with the local police station. So much for that!

Mike had tried to escape before she finished the call, but she saw him as he went through the hallway.

"Where are you going?" Saira shouted.

"Got to check the car park, who knows what is lurking out there!" Mike grinned around the door and vanished.

He knew from experience that it was best to stay out of Saira's way at times like this, so walked around the building and out into the gardens. It was a bit chilly and a heavy cloud cover made the air feel oppressive and damp, but he felt warm enough in his light jacket. Going across the lawns and out towards the moor, he mentally noted anything out of place that might need some attention. Mostly it was fine, due to the great team of ground staff they had in place. Mike asked himself what exactly he was doing out here. If he thought he would confront this beast that people were reportedly seeing, then why hadn't he brought any form of protection with him? Even a walking pole would be something! Although he enjoyed some sport and did a bit of running to keep himself in trim, Mike knew that his slight build wasn't that of a fighter. Dismissing the thoughts, he continued on his way.

Meanwhile, Saira was still stalking around the hotel. What was the idiot on the phone thinking? That she had made it all up? Didn't he know what this could mean to them and their business? No, he just shrugged it off, saying that there were lots of sightings of big cats out on Exmoor and that he would add it to the long list of reports he had on file. She wanted it captured and taken out of the way before any damage was done to their family, staff or everything that they had worked so hard to keep going, but the police just didn't seem interested!

Saira made a cup of tea in their private kitchen and sat back for a while. When they had only just opened the hotel, it was immediately closed down by the Covid pandemic. Through the lockdown they lived on the vegetables they had grown for the hotel kitchens, plus the rental cash from the couple of fields they owned. Wood from their log store had kept them warm and they had generally battened down the hatches to weather the global storm. Now they were starting to live a little, were making friends with their neighbours and exploring the beautiful countryside. It was so nice to just get out and about normally again! Now this... cat and the idiot from the local police who she had been speaking to, were making her cross and she was not going to let it rest!

Mike had continued across the hotel grounds and had followed the perimeter wall back to the road. All of the roads on this part of the moor were single track and this had once been the access to the iron ore mine that occupied the site before they had redeveloped the buildings. Now, their home was the last occupied building before the road petered out into a rough track on the high moor. Mike reached their gateway and stopped for a breather as he looked around at the moor. It was truly breathtaking in it's wild beauty.

As he took in the scene, Mike thought he heard something moving nearby. He walked a little way down the road and stood still again. He couldn't hear anything now, but the hairs on his neck were all standing up. He KNEW that something was close. After a few more moments though, he gave a shrug, turned and strolled back up the drive to the warmth of the hotel itself.

---~~---

Down the empty road a short way, at the edge of the longer moorland grass, a rabbit was hopping slowly along the bank. It was so intent on picking out the particularly tasty shoots that grew there, that it didn't see or hear anything of the rush and low growl that signalled it's violent, but mercifully quick demise!

---~~---

Saira had calmed down a bit when Mike got back and she left the day to day running of the hotel to the staff while they took a break together. These times together, when the children were at school, were precious to both of them. It was a time for talking and hugs and making love. Something they had to fit in when they could these days. They lay in their huge bed, wrapped in each others arms. Their love making had been gentle, slow and tender and Saira always enjoyed being this close to Mike in the warmth that followed. Mike snuggled up to Saira's back and held her against him. For a few minutes, they just lay there and enjoyed the physical contact, then Mike rolled back and pulled Saira over, so that her head was cradled into his shoulder.

"When I took my walk today, I went around the top of the wood and back to the main gate." He paused, as if assessing how much he should say, "While I was standing there, I thought I heard something unusual. I couldn't identify the sound and when I walked towards where I thought it had come from, I couldn't hear a thing."

"What sort of sound?" Saira asked, lifting her head up from their hug.

"Well, that's just it. I know that there are a lot of noises out on the moor and I certainly don't know what all of them are, but this was... weird! It sounded like something heavy and low, moving in the grass, but I really don't know. Perhaps I was just spooked by all this talk of big cats in the area?"

Saira looked closely at her husband.

"Hmmm. I'm going to talk to some people who may have actually seen one of these cats, to see if the sightings should be considered real or not," mused Saira, "I had a chat with Mark, Laura's husband from one of the farms out on the moor and he gave me the phone numbers of a couple of locals who may have more information. He also gave me the details of a place called The Centre for Fortean Zoology, in a village near Bideford called Woolfardisworthy." She pronounced each syllable.

"Is that a real thing?" asked Mark, with a bit of a smile on his face.

"Seems to be, but I'll know more when I've spoken to them. If the police can't do anything, perhaps they can?"

They cuddled some more, took a shower and drove over to collect their children from the local primary school.

---~~---

Saira greeted the men who Mark had recommended and they now sat in the hotel bar with drinks all round. One of the men was probably in his sixties and very out of condition. He wore camouflaged trousers and an ex-army T shirt. The other looked to be around 40 and more physically able. He had a camo jacket, worn over more normal jeans and a collared shirt and Saira got the feeling that he may have dressed up especially for this meeting. They chatted about things in general before getting around to the real purpose of their visit.

"So, Henry," Saira addressed the older man, "What can you tell me about these big cat rumours? I've heard that they're not recent things."

Henry shifted in his seat, "Well Miss," he began.

"Please. Call me Saira," she smiled.

"Well Saira," Henry continued, "These stories have been around since the 1970's or 80's. They do say that when the government made it illegal to keep wild animals, then people just let them go on the moor." Henry took a drink. "I don't know the truth of it, but there are certainly signs around to show that something large and fierce is about. Dead animals -- both wild and domestic -- and a load of witness sightings." He paused again, looking slightly embarrassed.