Viridian Tears Read Online Free PDF Page B

her in the garden, like?”
    “Yes. That’s the beauty of the process, sir.” Eden smiled. She’d already spotted his fingernails worn down to the quick with dirt ingrained beneath them, a sure sign he was a keen gardener. “They’ll keep indefinitely if they’re kept dry but if buried they’ll rot away to nothing in three to six months. That’s why the process is loosely termed ‘composting’.”
    Mrs. Johns gripped her father’s arm. “But there are plots here, aren’t there? If we wanted one.”
    “Of course, both for composting and traditional funeral. Either way, we have a huge variety available as we’re so new.” She patted his arm. “Bury her in the garden by all means, Mr. Claremont. There’s no law against it. Plant something over the top of her, perhaps. Did she like roses?”
    “She did, but she won’t be there to appreciate them. Besides, I want to grow potatoes there now. Would that be all right, do you think?”
    “Dad!” Mrs. Johns let go of his arm as if he’d given her an electric shock. “Don’t be awful.”
    “The remains are perfectly sterile.” Eden clasped both her hands in front of her. “However, for decency’s sake I’d suggest you avoid root vegetable for the first year.” She gave what she hoped was a reassuring smile. “I’ll leave you to talk about it, shall I?”
    She left through the staff-only door and cross the hall to the small kitchen. She poured herself a coffee from the pot and leaned back against the sink, inhaling the aroma while it cooled enough for her to sip.
    The door opened and Emily stuck her head in. “Are you done with your clients?”
    “Not yet. I’m just giving them five minutes to talk it over, why?”
    “There’s a couple at reception asking about plots.”
    “So?”
    Emily fidgeted. “It’s a bit weird, to be honest. They want to buy plots for themselves.”
    “So? A lot of people arrange their own funerals. We can accommodate them. We’re not even at ten percent capacity yet.”
    “It’s just a bit odd. She’s a lot older than him and from the way he’s talking it sounds like he intends to do her in.”
    Eden stifled a yawn. “Sorry. All right, I’ll have a word with them. Would you take a pot of tea in to the Claremont party and give them my apologies? I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
    “Thanks.” Emily showed such a degree of relief that Eden felt slightly guilty about leaving her to deal with the front-of-house guests to begin with. The number of staff was too small not to have everyone covering all the work but honestly, Emily was rubbish on the front desk. She was, however, an absolute genius with make-up and taxidermist’s putty.
    She went through to reception where a young man of twenty-something was studying a plan of the cemetery while an older lady she assumed was his mother studied the paintings on the walls. Eden was pleased to see her smiling at the Portrait of a Suffocation . It really was one of her best pieces of the previous year. “Hello. I’m Eden Maguire, the owner of Eden Gardens. Can I help you?”
    “Yes please.” The young man smiled at her. He was really rather handsome, in a Johnny Depp sort of way. “We want two burial plots and one burial plan.”
    “Just one?” Eden pulled out her folder of burial options. “May I enquire what you were thinking of?”
    “Nothing too expensive.” The young man pointed to the cemetery plan. “Which are the cheaper plots? The ones fathest from the amenities?”
    “More or less. It also depends upon how long you want to rent the plot for. If you want to rent it in perpetuity it’s obviously more expensive than renting it for a few years.”
    “Renting?” He turned up the corner of his mouth. “I though you bought plots in perpetuity. You know…in the ground for ever.”
    “There’s certainly that option, sir.” Eden turned to the relevant page in her catalogue. “But many of our clients aren’t exceptionally wealthy and wish to only rent