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| Short Trips: Companions "The Splintered Gate" Written by Justin Richards Published: 24th April 2003 Read: 2nd March 2016 BUY: Amazon UK  |
It's the Summer of 1963, and Ian has decided to let his hair down and takes a holiday to one of the beautiful seaside towns along the coast of Dorset. Getting caught in a rainstorm while walking along the promenade, Ian rushes back to his accommodation and upon opening the green gate to the property, he gets a splinter in his hand which causes quite a graze.
Weirdly, the rain stopped the minute he touched the gate and so, after extracting the splinter, he decides to turn around and his make his way to the promenade and decides to pay a visit to a palm reader he noticed earlier Rosy Parks. Rosy takes one look at his bleeding palm and takes off in fear and revulsion, leaving the science teacher somewhat baffled.
Some time later, Ian is attending a party held by Barbara Wright and the hostess, keen for Ian to interact with the other guests, introduces a palm reader named Rosemary to him. After a brief conversation, Ian reluctantly agrees to meet up with Rosemary at a later date and have his palm read.
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| Barbara Wright |
At that meeting, things take a turn for the bizarre as brings out her crystal ball and state that Ian will be going on a long journey which will see him face much peril, which, in hindsight, is absolutely true. To add further intrigue, Rosemary gives Ian and parcel and suggests that some years down the line he will be sitting in a cafe very similar to the one they are in and he will have to deliver the package, but not reveal himself. Ian is naturally sceptical and somewhat incensed, feeling he has been ripped off, yet Rosemary quickly snatches her payment from the school teacher and has it away on her toes.
In summary, this is a nice little character piece by Justin Richards. This story is told from the first person perspective and so we are given an insight into Ian's thought processes as the story unfolds. In my mind, he gets the science teacher spot on. After all, it is difficult to imagine Ian truly letting his hair down while on holiday to the coast, probably still walking around in a suit even when it's 25 degrees centigrade! Richards seems to be the same thinking, as he shows Ian wishing he'd saved some money and just sat in his garden at home, with the plus being that he didn't have to eat ice cream.
As the story progresses into darker, mystical territory. Richards is again true to Ian's character as the rational man of science, sceptical and even annoyed at the whole issue of clairvoyance and the charlatans who claim to be psychics just to part people with their hard-earned cash.
My only critique would be that we have no pay off in this particular story to Ian, Rosemary, the crystal ball, and the mysterious package. However, as the story is part of a larger anthology, it's possible that we might find those very answers as the marathon progresses.
7/10
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