The Gardens Secret

“We found a time capsule dated 1975, but the items inside were from 2025”.

A few moments before that statement, Dad shouted up the stairs, “Gardening time!”

“Do I have to?” replied Darcy.

“No, but it would be nice if you could.”

“Okay then, I’ll come down in a few minutes,” said Darcy.

“Thanks darling,” sarcastically replied dad.

Dad put his shoes on and grabbed some gardening gloves. The brambles had taken over the end of the garden again, it needed some work. He grabbed the garden waste bin and walked it down. Whilst walking through the garden, he could already see about a thousand other jobs that needed to be done. It was a painful luxury. Not everyone has a garden, so he knew he was lucky, even if it was arduous work.

Darcy came down with the energy as someone falling into a coma.

“Right dad, what exactly do I have to do? Also, am I getting paid?”

Dad laughed at the cheek, and said,

“If you help out, I’ll cook dinner. I just want to clear this mess at the back.”

Darcy knew that dad always cooks, so it wasn’t much of a deal, and secretly she enjoyed spending time with him. He was kind and helpful, but also silly so he was good fun. Darcy put on her pink gardening gloves and grabbed the secateurs. She was cutting away like Edward Scissorhands, the brambles and small branches were flying off like a missile had just hit its target. Dad was busy picking up the debris and placing it in the bin. After twenty minutes, they stopped for a drink and surveyed the progress. It was looking good; they carried on and eventually made it to the back fence. They found a little silkworm; Darcy picked it up and relocated it to another part of the garden. Dad continued to fill up the bin with the garden waste.

“Are we done yet dad?”

“There a few more things I want to do, but you can go, thanks for your help darling”, said dad.

Dad continued to clear the leaves and brambles from the ground around the shed. It was a one-person job, and Darcy went into the house to relax and see what crucial Snapchat messages she’d missed.

Whilst dad was finishing off, he noticed a wooden panel on the floor. He had never cleared around the back of his shed before, it was one of those jobs that got overlooked by more important jobs in an old house.

The wooden panel was thick and looked heavy. Dad just thought that the previous owners had just dumped it there.

He got a spade to get some purchase underneath it, he wanted to see if the wood was worth cleaning up and using for another project. Dad struggled away and realised that the wood must have been there for years and years. He eventually managed to lift it and as he did it revealed a hole, it was really weird, and a stale rotten smell came from the darkness.

Dad managed to lift the whole piece and slid it to the side, against the fence. He felt really nervous but excited about what was down the hole. He initially thought it was a sewer line but when he put the torch on his phone, he could see that there was more to it. Before he did anything else, he went and got “Trouble” from her bedroom.

“Darcy, I’ve found a secret hole in the back of our garden”.

“Yeah, right dad. You’re just trying to get me to do more work”, she replied.

“Okay Darling, it’s up to you, but it looks exciting”.

“Alright, I’m coming. I hope you’re not tricking me,” replied Darcy suspiciously.

Off they went to the secret hole, dad grabbed a proper torch, and they peered into the gapping mysterious adventure. The house was built in 1915, so was well over one hundred years old. They looked in and at the bottom there was some water layering the floor like a dirty swamp.

“I’m going to get the ladder, then I can get down there and have a proper look,” said dad.

“Be careful dad, it looks dodgy. I’ll get our wellies.”

“Good idea Darcy,” said dad.

Dad put the ladder into the hole and they both put their wellies on. Dad carefully lowered himself in, once at the bottom he made a little splash noise as the water was a couple of inches high. He shone the touch around and he found himself in a small bunker. There wasn’t a great deal inside and at first, he felt a bit scared. He didn’t know if there were any animals or sinister creatures lurking around. The smell was unpleasant but tolerable.

Dad moved around the 12x12 ft room and could see some shelves on the walls. A makeshift bed and loads of rubbish in one of the corners. The bed had collapsed and part of it emerged into the water and there was some ruffled-up blankets on the bed. It was so eerie and peculiar, he thought it must’ve been created in World War Two. The house was on the flight path back to the coast from London. The German bombers were well known for dumping their load on their way back to the continent, so the older houses in the village must’ve made bunkers for protection.

“Dad, what’s going on? Are you alright?” asked Darcy.

“Yes, it’s fine. Come down and have a look.”

Darcy didn’t need to be told twice, and she jumped onto the ladder and slid down like she was at the park. She landed in the water and got dad wet; she didn’t care. She was so excited, looking around everywhere, rummaging through the rubbish. She found some empty tinned food cans which dated back to 1941, it was like going back into time, they were fascinated by everything they could see. They found a diary on one of the shelves, it was difficult to read so dad put it in his pocket to view later. Darcy then saw something odd on the floor, it was some type of metal capsule with a screw top. Dad had a look and brushed the cobwebs off, it said “1975” on the side. They looked at each other and wondered who had left it there. Dad carefully unscrewed it and there was a newspaper page dated 2025 inside, the other items were a picture of a Lancaster Bomber and a picture of a young man. It was truly strange and they didn’t know what it meant.

They carried on searching the bunker and after taking pictures and investigating, Darcy moved to the bed. She didn’t like the smell coming from it so grabbed a stick and started poking around. The blankets were wet and heavy, but she managed to remove the top layer. Dad saw something sticking out, he couldn’t make out what it was, so got closer with the torch.

“Holy cow! Stand back Darcy. It looks like a bone.”

“OMG dad, I think you’re right. How weird. Do you think it’s from an animal?”

Dad took a few moments and then said, “No Darcy, it’s too big, I think it’s a human’s leg bone.”

Dad took a few more pictures and they both returned to the house to discuss their findings. They needed to have a wash and then a cuppa tea, it’s the first thing an English person goes for when things need to calm down. They sat at the dining table and looked at the pictures they had taken and then dad remembered the diary he had pocketed. They carefully opened it up and began to decipher the writing. It was written by a woman; it wasn’t quite The Anne Frank Diary, but it was still a window into life in the 1940s during the Blitz.

The owner of the diary was called Deidre Shelby and had lived on her own at the address in Southwater. There was mention of other people but most of it was about the rations, her vegetables patch, her chickens and various recipes. There were entries about the war but at this time they didn’t have time to read the whole book. Dad thought he’d better contact the police, as a body had been found. He wondered whether the capsule was a clue.

After a few hours the police arrived with SOCO and had a good look around. SOCO took samples and pictures and then the skeleton was taken away. There was one officer called Ben, who was a real-World War Two historian in his spare time. The story fascinated him. He was the last to leave and must’ve had at least three cups of tea whilst they discussed Deidre’s fate. His grandfather was a bomb aimer in a Avro Lancaster, from Bomber Command. Unfortunately, he died on a mission to Berlin. He told them all about it and he was so interested in Deidre’s story he left his personal email and asked for any updates.

Once Deidre had gone, they were free to do as they pleased with the bunker and the rest of her belongings. Dad thought that the best way to investigate further would be to bring everything to the surface where they could divide it into rubbish and items worth keeping. This took quite a while, and they borrowed a pump from a neighbour to clear the water. The local press even turned up to write a story on it, it was big news in the village, and they had their picture taken for the front page.

Gradually they cleared the lot, and the rubbish pile was taken to the dump. The rest of the items were left out to dry, which were some paperwork, tins, games, books and of course, the time capsule.

On reading the diary further they discovered that Deidre had a younger brother, called Charlie. It said Charlie was angry with her over some inheritance. There was an address for him in Sutton Coldfield, but it was unlikely he would still be alive. With nothing else to go on they attended the house, which was around three hours away. They’d booked an Airbnb, so they had a base and could stay overnight.

It was a tidy semi on a nice road. Dad and Darcy were quite nervous as they knocked at the front door. There was no answer, but they could hear a lawnmower coming from the back garden, so they popped their heads around the gate. They waved at a man, startling him a little but he came over to see them. They explained who they were and who they were looking for. The man, called Bill, told them that he had lived at the address all his life, he said his dad bought it from another family. He said he would go and see if his mother had kept a forwarding address.

A while later the hospitable Bill came out with some paperwork. Bill invited them in, and he made some drinks for everyone. They were there for over an hour, discussing their find, Bill was fascinated. Eventually Bill found an address for Charlie Shelby. Luckily, his mother was a bit of a hoarder and had filed everything before she sadly passed away. The address was in Belgium, a country neither dad nor Darcy had been to.

They asked Bill for tips for a decent local restaurant as they were staying at an Airbnb. Bill was a bit of a foodie, and told them about a family run French Bistro, called Bistrot Pierre. Bill knew the owners and gave it a glowing reference. Dad and Darcy had enjoyed their afternoon with Bill, so invited him along for dinner, which he accepted.

After a lovely evening, eating beef bourguignon and escargot’s the father and daughter really clicked with Bill. They learned all about his father who was a pilot for Bomber Command. He evaded the enemies and survived the war after thirty missions in his Lancaster Bomber. Darcy loved to hear the war stories and was excited when Bill showed off his father’s medals.

After meeting a friend for life, they went to their rented rooms and drove home in the morning, whilst discussing their next move. Darcy was still at school so would only be available during the school holidays, and there was five weeks left until half term. This gave dad some time to do some research and try and obtain an email address or phone number so they could actually arrange a meeting.

Unfortunately, after weeks of searching dad couldn’t find any trace, so they were back to square one. In the meantime, the handyman neighbour fitted a proper ladder and waterproof steel cover. He was able to sort out some drainage, air vents, and fit a basic raised floor in the bunker. He was also able to clad the walls and ceiling, so it was a usable space, but for what, they didn’t know. It didn’t have electricity, but dad had a large portable power station he kept down there for lights and a radio. But other than having a few fold-up chairs it was an empty box. Darcy would have the odd sleepover down there with her friends, which they loved.

As half term was approaching, Darcy kept asking her dad if they were going to Belgium. He finally gave in and agreed, he said he would drive and travel through the Euro Tunnel, it would only be a two-hour drive from Calais. They planned their journey and booked their hotel rooms.

On Monday morning they left for mainland Europe. Both were excited but dad was trying to manage Darcy’s expectations. He knew there was only a slim chance that this trip would be successful.

“Dad, where are we going in Belgium?”

“It’s called Ostend, and I’ve booked adjoining rooms at Hotel Du Parc. It should be quite nice, it’s near the seaside, and we’ve got two nights there,” explained dad.

“This is going to be great, I hope we find them,” said Darcy.

They checked in, relaxed for a few hours and then got back in the car to find the address given to them by Bill. It wasn’t too far from the hotel; they found the address, which was a nice, detached house on the outskirts of the city. Unfortunately, there wasn’t any answer, but a neighbour came out and said they’ll be back at 6pm.

Darcy and her father decided to go for a walk and stop somewhere nice for their dinner and then head back to the house around 7pm.

They found a restaurant called Den Artiest, which had amazing architecture inside and out, they both feasted on the restaurant’s specialty, flame grilled spareribs.

They ate so much they waddled to the car and drove to the address they were there for.

Knock, knock, knock on the door. No answer. Knock, knock and then they heard some footsteps coming towards the front door. Darcy grabbed her dad’s hand and held it tightly; she was really nervous. The door was opened and an elderly woman stood there looking confused. Fortunately, she spoke English, and the dad explained to her why they had knocked. As soon as he mentioned the name Charlie Shelby, she smiled and said it was her father. She invited them in and made them cups of milky hot chocolate. Her name was Kim and her son who joined them was called Noah.

They were both intrigued about the story they were told. They looked at the photos of the bunker and dad gave them the bag of Deidre’s belongings, including the diary. They were incredibly grateful; however, Charlie had died. After the Second World War, Charlie had lost contact with his family and had moved to Belgium for work and after he met Kim’s mother, he decided to stay. Noah spoke about his grandfather and their life in Belgium, they knew Charlie had come from England, but they weren’t told too much. Dad showed them the picture from the time capsule and they confirmed that it was a young Charlie.

Noah agreed to take them on a tour of his city the following day and to visit his grandfather’s grave. It was a lovely day.

On their way home back to England, Darcy came up with a wonderful idea.

“Let’s get everyone who has been part of this journey together for a vigil at the bunker. It would be a great way to honour Charlie and especially Deidre who never had a funeral.”

“That’s a lovely idea. We can have a BBQ and toast Deidre in the bunker, I’d better get some more chairs,” said dad.

During the coming weeks, dad had emailed Ben (Police Officer), Bill from Sutton Coldfield, Noah and Kim from Belgium, with an invitation to come over for a night of celebration in the summer. All agreed and dad made sure there was plenty of food and drinks to be enjoyed.

The BBQ started on a Saturday afternoon, and everyone was getting to know each other. It was a lovely event and Bill, Ben, Noah and Kim loved looking around the bunker. As the night went on plenty of alcohol was drunk and Kim said a little prayer for Deidre and Charlie Shelby.

It was a beautiful evening until dad said to Ben,

“What ever happened to Deidre’s skeleton? Was she buried?”

Ben replied with a drunken slur,

“I probably shouldn’t tell you this, but we discovered that there was serious damage to her neck bones.

It’s believed that Deidre was murdered.”

The End.