Chaos At Christmas – Episode 21
Chaos At Christmas by Ewan Smith
« Previous Post- 1. Chaos At Christmas: Episode 01
- 1. Chaos At Christmas – Episode 21
He described how he would arrange to have detectors installed around the grounds that very afternoon, sounding full of excitement. He was clearly a person in love with technology. She saved her work on the computer and got to her feet. It was time to visit the sensory garden.
“The trouble is that there’s been a bit of a breeze today,” Geraint said. “Every time the wind picks up, the artificial snow starts blowing about. For the detectors, it seems as if the whole world has begun to move so it sends off an alarm signal.”
“It’s turning out to be a real pain for me,” Ferelith muttered.
“I was chatting to the woman who came to install the detectors yesterday. She said that they’re actually very stupid. They can’t tell the difference between a hoodlum creeping about and some particularly active sparrows.”
He hadn’t been convinced by Lyle’s idea. “Motion detectors work fine inside buildings at night where everything is still. But out here in the real world, things are moving all the time.”
“Anyway, there’s nothing unusual happening here; it’s just another false alarm,” Ferelith sighed. She looked around. “Though this is a really pretty place. You and your staff have done great work here.”
Geraint smiled, clearly pleased by her words. “We’ve gone to a lot of effort to create a garden that engages all of the senses. It’s great if you’re looking for somewhere peaceful to spend a bit of time in.” He looked at her thoughtfully.
I could show you around if you want.
Ferelith felt her heart speeding up. There was something about the way he had made the suggestion, as if it was more than just a casual invitation. “I’d like that,” she said, trying to ignore the flush rising in her cheeks.
“Why don’t we do it this evening? Then you’ll get the benefit of our night-scented plants. They’re amazing.”
She nodded. “OK, Geraint. I look forward to it.”
As she made her way back to the hotel, she decided that visiting the sensory garden definitely counted as a first date between them.
I’m going on a date…I’m going on a date…I’m going on a date
She sang to herself in her head and she did a little skip for no particular reason. But then her phone sounded. It was Erik. “I’ve checked out the sensory garden, Erik. Nothing unusual is going on there.”
“Thank you for that, Miss Ferelith, but I’m afraid I’ve had another alarm – this time from the lily pond.”
She let out an anguished groan. “This is ridiculous! I’m going to speak to my father.”
“But this isn’t something to be disappointed about. The fact that the motion detectors aren’t working perfectly is actually a good thing!” When Ferelith had told her father about the disruption caused by the false alarms, Lionel had contacted Lyle and Franklyn.
However, Lyle didn’t seem put out in the slightest by the news. “This always happens with new technologies. Because they’ve never been used before, no one is quite sure how to make the most of them.
So you try them out and learn from your mistakes.” Lyle held his hands out with a wide smile. “It’s all a bit of an experiment really.”
Ferelith had caught sight of her father’s face. He managed a luxury hotel with an international reputation; he clearly didn’t like the idea of the Manor being used as a science lab to try out the latest technologies from Lyle’s company.
“There’s just too much movement in the grounds for the detectors to cope with,” Ferelith said. “They’re setting off an alarm every couple of minutes.”
Lyle nodded. “You’re right. The technology isn’t appropriate to the situation.” He turned to Franklyn. “You’d better arrange to have the detectors switched off and removed.”
“I’ll see to it straight away,” Franklyn said. “But we’re still left with the problem of security. There’s nothing to stop journalists, paparazzi or whoever just wandering into the hotel’s grounds with no one knowing who they are or why they’re there.
In my opinion, the hotel’s CCTV coverage should be expanded to cover the grounds.”
Lyle grimaced. “I’m not sure that’s the most effective solution. You would need a lot of different cameras as well as someone to keep an eye on all the footage they collected.”
Ferelith’s eyes narrowed; she had an idea who that someone would be. But Lyle was shaking his head. “No, we need something different.”
“What do you have in mind?”
Lyle pondered to himself for a moment, a finger tapping the table. But suddenly his eyes lit up. He looked round at them eagerly.
I have the perfect solution. What we need is an infra-red security system!
Geraint laughed in disbelief. “You’re joking? The movement detectors are being removed after less than 24 hours?”
Ferelith nodded. “Lyle Cranford doesn’t hang about. The infra-red system is already being installed in their place.”
Geraint nodded towards some men working on the roof of the hotel. “I suppose that’s what those guys are up to?”
“According to Lyle, they’re setting up an array of infra-red cameras which will detect heat sources within the grounds. Apparently, the plan is to adjust the cameras’ sensitivity so that they won’t pick up small animals and birds.
However, any people in the grounds will be shown. You won’t be able to recognise them from the images; they’ll just be a yellow and red outline on the screen. But the system will detect people even if they’re hiding in bushes or whatever.”
Geraint looked at her curiously. “So will you be responsible for checking out the images and identifying anyone who shouldn’t be in the grounds?”
“I’ve got no time for that,” Ferelith retorted. “I need to get on with sorting out the signs for the wishing well, for a start. All I need is a bit of time without distraction and I should have the job done.”
“That’s good. It’s already starting to attract interest and I’d like to get it up and running. So who will be responsible for checking the infra-red images?”
“That’s the thing that has got Lyle so excited. He’s setting it up so that the images can be accessed by anyone with a GroupChat phone. If the guests have any suspicions, they can do the checking themselves.”
She grinned. “He says that the system should be handy for children playing Hide-And-Seek in the grounds.”
Geraint shook his head. “It all sounds completely mad to me. But I’d better get on with my work.” He looked at Ferelith uncertainly. “Are you still on for our visit to the night-scented garden?”
Ferelith looked at him with a quiet smile. “I am. And I’m really looking forward to it.”
It wasn’t really like a date at all, Ferelith decided. When two people went on a date, they focussed on each other; at least that was the idea. But all Geraint could think about was his sensory garden.
He was so enthusiastic about it. He told her that he’d got the idea from a visit to the Chelsea Flower Show a couple of years before when he’d been awestruck by something very similar. It had made him determined to create his own version back at the Manor.
