Village Shepherd

"Don't I know you?" asked the man. He wasn't much to look at, small and quite old. But he had a piercing glance, and it seemed to Darcy that he was looking straight at her. Darcy immediately felt a mixture of guilt and fear. She couldn't remember ever having seen the man before, but that didn't exclude the possibility that he had seen her.

She cast back quickly in her memory to try and discover when he might have seen her.Could it have been that time in the shopping precinct when the whole crowd of them had been so noisy and riotous that they had practically been banned from ever going there again? Darcy shivered, hoping the man didn't know her name, for then he would surely tell her parents. Or might it have been that occasion when she lit up a cigarette in the woods? There'd only been two of them then, and she hadn't noticed anyone watching. But you never knew.

What dark secrets had he discovered about her? Darcy shuddered and felt slightly sick. She had been upto mischief so many times that it was difficult to determine what occasion the man might be thinking about.Darcy turned to her friend.

"Come on," she muttered. "I don't like this. Let's go, let's get away."

Sandy was just as anxious to go as she was. They ran off down the lane, leaving the man staring after them, and the rest of their crowd bewildered by their sudden departure.

"It was me," started Darcy as soon as they were out of earshot."He was looking straight at me, I know he was. What does he know about me?"

"You?" responded Sandy in a tone of amazement. "I don't think so! I think he was looking straight at me, actually."

Darcy frowned. "Perhaps it was both of us then," she said. "Surely it wasn't the smoking in the woods -"

"- or nicking the sweets that time from the newsagent's -"

"- or painting the door handle with treacle -" They both began to giggle at the memory. Then Darcy added, "Perhaps it was his door handle!" And they both fell about laughing.But they soon sobered up as they began to realise the implications.

"If he goes to my parents," began Darcy.

"Or the school," added Sandy, "we're done for!"

It was a miserable evening for them both, contemplating their past misdeeds and wondering which had caught up with them. The next day they avoided the market place where all the youngsters usually gathered and where they had seen the man, and went home from school by a different route.

But to their horror, he was leaning on the gate to the field as they turned the corner.

And he'd seen them. There was no escape.

"Don't I know you?" he asked again.

Both the girls shook their heads.

"I don't think so," said Darcy politely. And just for good measure Sandy added, "People say all teenage girls look alike."

"No," said the man decisively. "I'm sure it was you two. I wouldn't have forgotten a thing like that.I spotted you straight away."

Darcy could feel herself turning pale. "I'm sure you're mistaken," she said firmly.Then she added, "and I'm afraid we're not allowed to talk to strangers. Would you excuse us, please?" And she grabbed Sandy's arm and pulled her away as fast as she could.

The two girls were so troubled by the encounter that they stopped in the coffee shop on the way home. But even a chocolate milk shake each didn't solve their problem. They were no nearer to a solution when they reached home an hour later.

Unusually, Darcy's mother was waiting for them both on the doorstep.Darcy felt her heart sink.She was sure the worst had happened."Would you both come in here, please?" said Darcy's mother. "There's someone I'd like you to meet."

She led them through into the lounge, where Darcy met her worst nightmare. The man was sitting on the settee talking to her father.

Sandy blurted out, “I think I'd better go home. It's awfully late.” But Darcy's mother said firmly, “Oh, this involves you, Sandy. We'll ring your mother.”

The man had jumped to his feet when the girls entered. He peered at them closely then nodded and said, “Yes, it's them. I'd know them anywhere. I knew them as soon as I saw them in the marketplace.”

Darcy didn't say anything. She felt numb. And she didn't know what to say.

Then the man added, “They were so kind to my old mother. I'm afraid she has Alzheimer's, so she does act rather strangely at times. Most children can't cope. When the other children laughed and jeered at her, these two took her arm and led her to a seat and sat with her until she felt safe again. That was months ago, and my mother has since died. But I saw it all from my office window, and I've never forgotten their faces.”

The two girls looked at each other and burst out laughing. Neither of them had remembered the incident until the man spoke.

“And that's another thing,” continued the man. “They're such a happy pair, full of life and full of fun. I definitely want them both in my film.”

The girls could hardly believe their ears. Suddenly life was exciting again, and there was nothing more to worry about.

The man kept his word, and very soon they both started to act as film extras, which kept them so busy they had no more time for mischief. It was the beginning of a wonderful career for both of them, and as Darcy once remarked to Sandy, “I'm glad he knew us! Life wouldn't have been nearly so exciting without him.”