The Canterbury Tale: Trixiebell Heartswoon, #2

By Maddy Bell

With the extension of Trixie's 'visit', when the chance of trip away to Kent with her new friends comes up, she jumps at the chance. Can she survive the weekend without discovery and what will happen when she returns to Derbyshire?

In this second part of Trixiebell Heartswoon's Gothic Life we follow our protagonist as he or is it she, becomes further immersed into the world of her assumed identity.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Maddy Bell
• Release date: Nov 22, 2023
• ISBN: 9798223328902

Maddy Bell

​M addy Bell, sometimes known as 'Madness', was born in Greenwich, London several years ago. After sampling life in Central and Northern England, gaining a degree in digging holes and becoming a parent and now grandparent, she now lives at the southern extreme of England's largest county. Between writing, digging aforesaid holes and earning a crust, she enjoys reading, travelling, cycling and the odd aperitif! Now a full time writer, this series was her first venture into paper publishing although she has in the past written articles on various diverse subjects from snails to castles and many points in between.

Book preview

Dedicated to

All those fighting the fight against Covid 19 around the world and of course to all those that it has taken.

Maddy Bell

April 2020

Maddy Bell, sometimes known as ‘Madness’, was born in Greenwich, London several years ago. After sampling life in Central and Northern England, gaining a degree in digging holes and becoming a parent and now grandparent, she usually lives at the southern extreme of England’s largest county.

Between writing, digging aforesaid holes and earning a crust, she enjoys reading, travelling, cycling and the odd aperitif!

Now a full time writer, The popular Gaby series was her first venture into paper publishing although she had in the past written articles on various diverse subjects from snails to castles and many points in between.

Gothic Tales

A weekend off? Janey parroted.

Yeah, I defensively replied.

What for? I mean yeah we can sort that but why? my sister pressed.

Remember I told you about Amanda and Ray?

They the ones that brought you back from Whitby?

Yeah, I agreed, Well Amanda rang again yesterday, I think she’s keeping tabs on me, anyway they’ve invited me to go to Canterbury with them.

Canterbury? that’s like Essex or something right?

Geography never was my sisters strong point, Kent.

Whatever for?

The half marathon, why do you think? I posed, I do love her but she can be a bit slow sometimes.

Another Goth thing I guess? she suggested.

Gothic Tales, I agreed, Supposed to be like Whitby on steroids.

Rory’s not said anything.

Well it is like nearly three hundred miles away.

Never stopped him before, he dragged me to Exeter last year remember.

Yeah, that was quite funny, Janey isn’t exactly into the whole Goth / Steampunk thing and to see her attempts at dressing the part was a hoot. Well I thought so, looked more like Stevie Nicks in Doc Martens than Goth, I don’t think her boyfriend even noticed. Okay, the me that's Zak isn’t exactly hardcore either but its easier for a bloke to at least look the part.

So when is this shindig?

Next week?

So our young waif is coming then? Ray asked his wife slunk back down beside him.

Amanda made herself comfortable again, Looks like it.

I’d best let Jace know, we picking her up?

Said she’d get herself to the bus station.

It would’ve been as easy to go there.

I know luv but she was quite adamant.

You sure she’s as old as she told you?

Twenty three? i’d be surprised if she is, more like eighteen if you ask me.

She looks younger, Ray opined.

Amanda shrugged, Yeah, have to set Jas on her, she’ll soon winkle out the truth.

Now you’re being evil! Ray chuckled, starting to tickle his other half.

Don’t be so daft, Janey stated.

I’ll be fine.

Tell you what, i’ll borrow the car and take you over, i’m on lates Friday.

You don’t have to.

What are sisters for? i’m not letting my little sister catch the bus to a strange town to hang about a bus station waiting for a lift.

I let the ‘little sister’ bit go, You sent me to Whitby.

With my boyfriend, she pointed out.

To be honest it will be easier – and cheaper, I might not be destitute but housemaids wages aren’t exactly giving me a Rockafella lifestyle. Not that i’m really complaining, i’ve got work, live in and it’s not the hardest job in the world. Don’t get me wrong, by the time you’ve done twenty rooms, you’ve had enough but its not like there’s a strict time table, as long as the rooms are done by check in time.

So what are you taking to wear? We need to redo your hair, you got enough knickers?

When my sister, as you might recall, gets into a project, she really goes for it.

I set off from ‘home’ armed with a list of stuff Janey insisted I need for the weekend, its not cheap being Trixie! Instead of the more casual look i’ve adopted for work today its full on Trixiebell, my ‘Wednesday’ outfit, well i’m going up to Sheffield. Why Sheffield? Well there’s more shops than Chessy so I should be able to get everything on the list and if I get the X17 its only about half an hour to get there.

The other thing of course is that its more anonymous, I know I don’t look very Zak at the moment but there’s always that fear that i’ll bump into someone I know around Chessy. Okay, so my own mother hasn’t recognised me but I don’t want to push my luck, I mean what do I say, ‘oh hi, yeah its me, thought i’d try out a new look, yeah maybe its a bit extreme, the piercings? Well if its worth doing, do it well.’ Yeah, a conversation I really don’t want.

Its not a long walk to the bus station, well its hardly a station, just a couple of bits of road where the buses stop and a sort