wrong with her. Ageing wasn’t a disease, it was just the way it was.
And yet it was getting worse. She was forgetting everything: people who came into the shop – she knew they were familiar but she couldn’t remember their names – suppliers she’d used for a long time and tasks which were once as natural and automatic as breathing. She failed to recognize voices on the telephone, or to keep up with what they were saying. She forgot how to use the computer. She stared at the screen as if seeing it for the first time and yet it was the same screen she’d been looking at for years. And everything took longer. Simple tasks felt like enormous challenges. She couldn’t tell Dennis she was struggling to complete his jigsaw puzzle and yet, it had become an impossible and daunting project. One she feared. The puzzle had become a mirror, reflecting her forgetfulness back at her like a cruel joker. She thought she was hiding these lapses well. She hoped no one had noticed. She didn’t want to worry anyone and she hoped that by keeping them to herself they’d go away. If her blood was healthy, then there was nothing to worry about, was there?
Dennis was at his workbench when there came a knock on his door. He knew it wasn’t Marigold, because she never knocked, but nothing would surprise him nowadays. ‘Come in,’ he called, shouting over the radio. The door opened and Tasha walked in, looking sheepish. ‘Hello, Tasha,’ he said, reaching to turn the music down. He didn’t think she’d appreciate Iron Maiden like he did. He put the block plane to one side and wiped his dusty hands on his T-shirt.
‘I’m sorry to disturb you, Dennis, but I need to talk to you.’
Dennis felt the anxiety squeeze his chest. ‘Oh, okay,’ he mumbled. Mac sensed his uneasiness and hopped onto the workbench, where he sat, staring at Tasha with suspicious eyes.
‘It’s about Marigold,’ she began. ‘She’s forgetting everything. I’m struggling to cope.’ She shrugged. ‘I didn’t want to say anything at first, I mean, there’s nothing wrong with getting old, is there? But it’s more than that. It’s worrying. Has she been to see a doctor?’
‘Yes, she has,’ Dennis replied. ‘She had a blood test, which was normal.’
‘Well, that’s good. Did they give her an MRI?’
‘No, they didn’t.’
‘Typical. The NHS will do everything they can to wriggle out of spending money. You should make a fuss.’ But Dennis never made a fuss about anything. ‘In any case, I wonder whether she should step back a bit and allow me to run things for her. She doesn’t like to delegate.’ Tasha smiled shyly and curled a lanky tentacle of mouse-brown hair behind her ear. A small diamond stud glimmered weakly on her ear lobe. ‘You know what she’s like. She thinks she can do everything herself, but she should rely on me more.’
Dennis frowned. ‘I don’t want to be rude, Tasha, but I didn’t think she could rely on you, because you’re always taking time off.’
Tasha nodded. ‘I know, and I’m sorry about that. I didn’t think she needed me, you see. I thought she was pleased when I left her to it. Now I realize she really can’t cope on her own and it’s not fair on the customers. I could give you a long list of people who have been let down by the post office, and I’m not sure she’s up to the computer either . . .’ She took a breath. The piece of hair had come loose so she curled it around her ear again. ‘I love Marigold. I really don’t want to sneak behind her back like this, but I don’t know what else to do.’
Dennis sighed and shook his head. He didn’t know what to do either, but he knew he had to think of something. ‘I’ll talk to her, Tasha. See if I can convince her to step back a bit.’
‘I don’t think she has a clue that anyone else has noticed, but half the village is talking about it.’
Dennis’s face clouded. ‘They are?’
‘Yes, everyone’s noticed. They think . . .’ Tasha looked embarrassed.
‘What do they think?’ asked Dennis.
But whatever they really thought, Tasha was not willing to say; Dennis’s face was too agonized for her to have the heart to worry him further. ‘That she’s just getting older,’ she said.
Dennis watched her walk back to the house through the garden, where Nan was waiting for her