She scarcely noticed that summer was over and that the few drab trees she passed each morning on her way to work had begun to shed their grime-encrusted leaves. Grey skies and keener winds were the only outward signals that it would soon be winter. In Beddgelert, as autumn advanced, it was as if an artist had run riot with his palette. The entire countryside donned a mantle of rich colour. Mountainsides flamed as bracken changed from green to gold and then to a burning red. The conifers cresting the skyline swayed like a rolling sea as the October winds sliced across them or gusts of ice-cold rain drenched their dark green branches. As the days grew shorter and colder, the sheep grazed their way down to the lower slopes, as if aware that soon they would need to seek shelter from snow and bitter winds. Once, the changing seasons had been an integral part of Megan’s way of life. Now she had other things to fill her mind. After she’d gained her secretarial diploma with high marks Miss Pearce had given her the opportunity to use her newly acquired skills.
