Five
Humidity was rich in the wetland opposite The Dragon. Despite arriving late for lunch, Herbert and Derek were feasting at the quiet bar on the goodwill of Llewellyn and two of his steaks. Derek took a last swig of his beer and pushed his plate away before setting the empty glass down, satisfied.
‘A most pale ale indeed,’ he told Llewellyn, who was sitting at the nearest table to them and finishing his sandwich.
‘That’s why they called it Poppy,’ Llewellyn replied and began gesticulating with his knife. ‘You’ll see stars after a few more of those. Mind you . . .’ He trailed off and got to his feet to pull Derek another beer. ‘Seeing stars isn’t the strangest thing that people have been seeing around here. Do you know what I mean, boys? Seen anything weird in the skies over the last
