“Welcome, everyone,” says Robin, taking up a position in the center of the horseshoe. “Before we start, I have a few announcements. Tomorrow, as you know, is the sponsored endurance hike up Scully Pike. Can we have numbers, please?”
About half the people there put up their hands, including Jess. I’m half tempted to put mine up too, only there’s something about the word endurance that puts me off, not to mention hike.
“Great!” Robin looks around, pleased. “Those of you attempting it, please remember all your gear. I’m afraid the weather forecast is not good. Mist, and possibly rain.”
There’s a unified rueful groan, mixed with laughs.
“But be assured, a welcoming party will be waiting at the end with hot drinks,” he adds. “And good luck to all participants. Now.” He smiles around the room. “I’d like to introduce a new member to the group. Becky comes to us with a specialist knowledge of hedgehogs and…” He looks over at me. “Is it other small endangered creatures, or just hedgehogs?”
“Er…” I clear my throat, aware of Jess’s eyes on me like daggers. “Er… mainly just the hedgehogs.”
“So, a warm welcome to Becky from all of us. OK. The serious business.” He reaches for a leather satchel and pulls out a sheaf of papers. “The proposed Piper’s Hill Shopping Center.”
He pauses as though for effect, and there are murmurs of hostility around the room.
“The council is still playing ignorant. However”—he flips through the sheaf with a flourish—“by hook or by crook, I have managed to get hold of a copy of the plans.” Robin hands the papers to a man on the end of the row, who starts passing them along. “Obviously we have a lot of major objections. If you could all study the material for a few minutes…”
I obediently read the plans along with everyone else, and look at all the drawings. As I glance around, people are shaking their heads in anger and disappointment, which, frankly, doesn’t surprise me.
“Right.” He looks around and his eyes alight on me. “Becky. Maybe we could hear from you first. As an outsider, what’s your initial reaction?”
Everyone turns to look at me, and I feel my cheeks grow hot.
“Er… well, I can see the problems straightaway,” I say tentatively.
“Exactly,” Robin says with satisfaction. “This proves our point. The problems are obvious at first glance, to someone who doesn’t even know the area. Carry on, Becky.”
“Well.” I study the plans for a second, then continue. “For a start, the opening hours are quite restricted. I’d have it open till ten every night. I mean, people have to work during the day! They don’t want to have to rush their shopping!”
As I look around, everyone seems a bit stunned. They probably weren’t expecting me to hit the nail on the head like that. Encouraged, I tap the list of shops. “And these are rubbish shops. You should have Space.NK… Joseph… and definitely an L.K. Bennett!”
No one has moved a muscle.
Except Jess, who has buried her head in her hands.
Robin appears dumbstruck, but makes a valiant attempt to smile.
“Becky… slight confusion here. We’re not protesting about any of the features of the shopping center. We’re protesting about its very existence.”
“I’m sorry?” I peer at him, uncomprehending.
“We don’t want them to build it,” says Jess in extra-slow, sarcastic tones. “They’re planning to ruin an area of natural beauty. That’s what the protest is about.”
“Oh.” My cheeks flame. “Oh. I see. Absolutely. The natural beauty. I was… actually… er… just about to mention that.” Flustered, I start riffling through the plans again. “It’ll probably be quite a danger to hedgehogs, too,” I say at last. “I’ve noticed several hedgehog hazard points. Or HHPs, as we call them.”
I can see Jess rolling her eyes. Maybe I’d better stop now.
“Good point,” says Robin, his smile now a little strained. “So… Becky has shared some valuable hedgehog safety concerns. Any other views?”
As a white-haired man starts to speak abut the desecration of the countryside, I sink back down into my chair, my heart thumping. I’m kind of glad I didn’t mention my other major concern about the shopping center now. Which was that it isn’t big enough.
“My worry is the local economy,” a smartly dressed woman is declaiming. “Out-of-town shopping centers ruin rural life. If they build this, it’ll put the village shop out of business.”