Lightning flashed, followed by a crash of thunder so powerful it rattled the kitchen windows. The storm began not with a sprinkle or drizzle but with a sudden downpour, as if clouds were hollow structures that could shatter like eggshells and spill their entire contents at once. So far, July was proving far less flaming than June.
"Blimey," Reverend Morris said, as the rain made him look up from his laptop. "Not a good start to Mia's first day in her new job, is it?"
"A bit of summer rain won't bother her," Jenna replied. "Her mind's probably fixated on Gordon."
"Heh, give her some credit, Jen. She's shown initiative. I think she'll work hard and be a good cleaner for the church. She did an excellent job tidying up our kitchen."
"That's true. She should be about finished in around twenty minutes. Ten hours a week isn't much. I wonder what her long-term plans are? I mean, she can't clean the church hall toilets for the rest of her life can she? And I must phone Aunt Kathleen...I keep putting it off. She'll go berserk when she finds out what's happened."
Reverend Morris sipped his coffee. "Have faith in her, Jen. She's chosen this path for herself. And as my dad always says, never put off until tomorrow what can be done today. Right, I have to pop over to the church. I'll check in on Mia and see if she's okay with setting the alarm system. Don't know if she wants some lunch with us or if she has plans of her own?"
Jenna picked up the phone. "She didn't say. Okay, I'm going to bite the bullet and phone Aunt Kathleen."
In the church hall, Jenna had finished using the floor-polishing machine on the wooden floor. The two hours had flown by. As well as making the floor spotless after this morning's yoga class, she'd cleaned the toilets and emptied the bins. The work was boring, as the vicar had warned her, but an absolute doddle. For £12 an hour, she couldn't complain. It was the easiest cash she'd ever earned. It was far better than stacking shelves in Asda and having to deal with abusive members of the public. The church toilets hadn't been the horror show she'd braced herself for - even the gents were reasonable. The good chaps of St Michaels had good manners and good aim it would seem!
Outside, more thunder boomed. The sound of the rain. The rain. The cold merciless sound of the rain.
"Ugh," Mia muttered, looking out of the window. "I hate weather like this."
It was typical British weather. The storm had washed all the colour out of the day. The sky was as charry as burnt-out ruins. Wind-driven rain, grey as iron nails, hammered every surface, and road gutters overflowed with filthy water.
Mia returned the machine to the store cupboard and locked it. She checked her phone. Nearly 1 o'clock.
The sound of the main door opening made her jump.
"Oh Reverend Simon!"
"Hello Mia. Just checking to see how you're getting on. Have you finished?"
"Yes, I'm done. I was just going to set the alarm thingy." She noticed how wet his black shirt was.
"Great stuff, you're okay with setting it?"
"Oh no worries there."
"Little tip if you're working in the hall by yourself, be sure to lock the main door. Anyone could walk in. We're lucky we don't get a lot of crime round here, but for your own safety, it's best to lock yourself in. There are lots of places someone could hide. Right, well I'm just heading into the church to sort a few things out ready for the curate's ordination on Sunday. Jenna's prepared some lunch if you're hungry, oh and be warned, she's phoning your mum."
"What? Oh no! Why's she doing that?" Mia pouted.
"Look, don't panic, she's just letting her know that your safe and well and staying with us. You don't want your poor parents to be worrying themselves to death not knowing where you've gone do you?"
"Well no. But I don't want Mum turning up."
"I don't think you need to worry. Your mum lives in Buxton doesn't she? That's a good fifty miles from here. I don't think she'll drive up here today. But at some point you'll have to speak to her."
Mia looked down. "I like it here. I don't want to go back to my parents. Of course, I don't want to be a burden to you..."
"You're no burden Mia, please don't think that. If you want to talk, why not join me in the church when you've finished locking up?" He left the hall and Mia took that as an open invitation.
"Oh I'll join you, Vicar...but I want to do more than talk!"
A few minutes later, having successfully set the alarm, Mia dashed over to the church, trying to avoid getting soaked by the rain. The ancient oak door's handle turned stubbornly. She wondered why Reverend Morris hadn't bothered to lock himself in either, then she remembered something Jenna had said about the church "always having to be open for those in need."
And Mia was in need all right.
Reverend Morris was in the vestry, having just changed out of his damp shirt and into a dry one. He'd donned his regular cassock and surplice, as he always did when in the church, even though he was off duty. He inspected the row of church vestments on the clothes rail. Some items were missing. Some members of the choir weren't the tidiest, and often neglected to hang their surplices back up after the services.
Mia walked down the aisle of St Michael's church, glancing round. The incessant pounding of rain on the roof seemed magnified here in this old, airy building. Then the organ pipes to the right of the altar caught her eye. The highly-polished silver coloured pipes reflected what little light was shining through the stained glass windows.
"Impressive," she muttered, admiring the many pipes. "But where are its...keyboards? No wait, manuals. He called them manuals." She looked round, and noticed the organ console behind the pulpit.
"Ah!"
Mia walked over to it. She ran her hand down the wooden stool. "So this is where Gordy-pie sits." Giving a little mischievous giggle, she looked round. There was no sign of Reverend Morris anywhere, so she slid herself onto the stool.
"Look at this thing. It's like...unreal. All these buttons and stuff It's like a flight deck." Her feet touched the organ's pedalboard. "How the hell does he remember all these? She looked closely at some of the stops. They all had weird-sounding names on them. Diapason, Mixture, Gemshorn.
"I wonder what these knobs do?" She switched on the small lamp above the manuals, in order to get a better look.
Curiosity got the better of her and she fiddled with a couple of stops and pressed a few keys on the lower manual. Nothing happened, seeing as the organ was switched off.
"Hmm, must be like an electronic piano." She idly pressed down several more keys, pretending to play.
"Witness the great maestro Mia at work," she said out loud, putting on a fake Geordie accent to mimic presenters, Ant and Dec. "Here on Britain's Got Talent, Mia will now play some of her fave songs for the audience. Starting with Titanium by David Guetta!" She flung her arms around, as though conducting an orchestra, and accidentally hit the red on/off button above the manuals.
"This is being live-streamed. Be sure to vote!" Mia slammed her fingers down hard on the middle manual. "I am Titanium!"
The organ responded at once, with a deep, radiant sound that seemed to rattle the entire foundations of the church. It was so loud, the stool seemed to vibrate.
"Shit!!" Mia gasped as she got the shock of her life. Fearing she'd damaged the organ, she panicked and froze on the spot.
In the vestry, Reverend Morris had finished re-arranging the vestments, when the booming note from the organ shattered his peace and quiet.
"What the...?" He almost jumped out of his skin. "Bloody hell, Gordon. You sure pick your moments to come and practice."
When nothing but silence followed that ear-splitting note, he headed out of the vestry to investigate.
Mia's fingers were trembling. "Fuck, what did I do?"
"Well, well. What do we have here?" Reverend Morris chuckled as he appeared beside the console.
"Eep! I didn't mean to, Simon. I was just...I..."
"Ha, it's alright, don't panic!" He said.
"I caught something and it made that noise."
"You managed to switch it on, that's all!" He indicated the red button.
"Oh, so it's not broken then?" Mia said, getting her breath back.
"No, of course not. It's seen a lot of heavy use. It can cope with a lot!"
"It looks so complicated. How does Gordon play it?"
"With ease, because he's had years of practice. Jenna's just learned to play it, and said how hard it was. No use asking me. I haven't a clue. I'm not musically talented it all. In fact I'll tell you something. I can't even read music."
"Really?" Mia replied.
"I'm hopeless," the vicar continued. "Jenna's tried to introduce me to the piano, but I've got poor co-ordination. My fingers go all over the place. My attempts sounded like Les Dawson."
Mia blinked. "Who?"
"Never mind. He's from before your time." He pressed down a couple of the organ's keys and made a feeble attempt at playing a few notes.
"Gordon says you have to use your whole body when playing a pipe organ." Mia said, giving him a dreamy grin.
"He's right, you do."
"Do you have to use your whole body when preaching to the congregation, Simon?"
"Ahh, well that depends," he said, switching off the organ and the lamp. "I definitely have to keep my mind focused. Especially during the sermon."
"I can imagine. I bet you're amazing. I like your church robes."
"Oh thanks! It's called a cassock and surplice. Um, why not come to the Sunday service if you're curious? You don't need to take communion if you're not comfortable."
"I've been confirmed," Mia replied. "I'm okay with that."
"It's the curate's ordination service on Sunday afternoon too. "That will be quite a spectacle. The Bishop will be performing the ceremony. We're expecting lots of people to attend. Afterwards there'll be a buffet in the hall. Nice social occasion. There'll be more people your own age there."
Mia shrugged. "I'm not mad keen on people my own age," she said.
"I see. Well, Gordon will be there, so that's a reason to attend, surely?" Reverend Morris cleared his throat. "You like him a lot, don't you?"
"Oh yes. He is lovely. He's really sexy! But you know what? You're sexy too. I hope it's not a sin to compliment a vicar in church?"
The flustered reverend's cheeks turned pink. "Oh not at all! Very kind of you to say, Mia.
"Yes, very sexy..." she purred, and without hesitating, stood up and kissed him on the lips.
"M-Mia, what are you doing?" Reverend Morris spluttered, backing away.
She ignored his question and slipped her arms round his shoulders. "I am worshipping you, Reverend Simon. Like I said, I think you're really sexy..."
