Before the Storm

by Di Morrissey

  Ellie nodded. ‘Yes. He was complaining to me about not being able to see her at Craigmore, and I suppose Mrs O’Neill doesn’t come into town often.’

  ‘You’re right. Kathryn doesn’t drive anymore, and she can’t get a lift unless it’s convenient for Susan,’ said Heather.

  Ellie checked her notes. ‘So tell me, how did you come to know Kathryn?’

  Heather grinned. ‘Would you believe me if I said we both had golf lessons at the same time? We were partners in a comp and, well, we hit it off, so to speak. We were terrible players then but we had a lot of laughs. I found her such easy company, the two of us with two other ladies in a foursome slicing and slashing our way through eighteen holes. We bonded very quickly.’

  ‘Here? At the local club?’ asked Ellie.

  ‘Yes, that’s right. It was quite the thing for young ladies to take up. Really, though, we were complete amateurs with no proper idea how to play. But we did improve once we’d had a few lessons, and eventually we played in a comp at Royal Melbourne. Even Boyd O’Neill was impressed at that. He was a member, of course.’

  ‘What else did you get up to? Did you mix socially, or visit Craigmore?’

  ‘Not really. Kathryn and Boyd seemed to have a close bond, which I found unusual for those days. Heaven forbid a man should be affectionate in public! And they kept to a very tight circle of family and their friends. After Kathryn had Seamus she got involved in charity committees and gave away prizes at shows and things. She even set up a creche for the wives of workers on the local farms, which became important for the whole area,’ Heather said proudly. ‘Her heart was really in gardening, though. She brought in an excellent landscape designer, Hayden, his name was. He did so much at Craigmore. And then came the Botanic Gardens, her passion in life. Anyway, you should ask her about that.’

  ‘I will. The Gardens are a beautiful and precious part of the town,’ Ellie said.

  ‘Absolutely, we are so fortunate to have them.’ Heather smiled. ‘Kathryn and I have always kept in touch, although it’s a bit harder these days since the family have taken to treating her with kid gloves. I tell her they must think she’s like a fragile piece of glass that’s kept in the good china cabinet and only brought out on special occasions.’

  The two women laughed, but then Heather continued more seriously, ‘I don’t think she realises how under the family’s thumb she is. I’m just glad she speaks her mind occasionally and comes to visit. It was her idea that the family commission me to do her portrait for her birthday, though Ronan thinks it was his idea. But really we just have a few laughs and reminisce.’

  Heather began laying out her brushes as they noticed a car pull up outside.

  ‘I’ll go to the door. Maybe you could take the mugs into the kitchen, just inside the house,’ Heather said diplomatically.

  Ellie took the hint and disappeared into the house as she heard the murmur of voices at the front door. She waited till Susan had left and Heather called her to come and join them.

  The contrast between the woman Ellie had met in the sitting room at Craigmore and the one sitting in the chair on the platform could not have been starker. Today Kathryn looked relaxed and happy instead of formal and slightly on edge as she’d been when Ellie had first met her.

  ‘Kathryn, you remember Ellie Conlan? I called you when Ellie asked if she could join us today,’ Heather said.

  ‘Yes, of course. It’s lovely to see you, Ellie.’

  ‘Thank you, Mrs O’Neill. It’s so kind of you and Heather to let me come. I’m afraid we didn’t have much time at our last meeting.’

  Kathryn waved her hand vaguely. ‘Susan keeps me to some silly schedule, although it’s not like I’m in a hurry anymore.’ She turned her bright, amused eyes towards Heather, who smiled. ‘Sometimes I like to escape her clutches, for sheer amusement.’

  Kathryn’s silver hair was cut neatly and she wore a tailored black jacket over a rose silk blouse with the collar standing up. Diamonds sparkled in her ears and a strand of pearls shone against the blouse, which was tucked into black velvet trousers. She was possibly too thin, but whether it was her bearing, her self-confidence, or just knowing she was Mrs Kathryn O’Neill, something gave her an air one could have considered imperious, Ellie thought, if it wasn’t for her warm smile.

  ‘Ellie’s hoping you could reminisce a bit about the olden days for her article,’ said Heather. ‘I suspect she doesn’t believe we were great golfers!’

  Kathryn chuckled. ‘Weren’t we just? Remember how horrified the club was the day we turned up in golfing trousers?’

  ‘They wouldn’t let us into the dining room, until they saw it was you,’ added Heather. ‘We broke down a few barriers in our time. Broke a few rules, too,’ she added, lifting the cloth from the half-finished painting as she spoke. ‘Now, no one is to look, it’s bad luck to gaze on an unfinished portrait.’

  ‘She just made that up,’ said Kathryn calmly. ‘So, tell me, Ellie, are you writing for the Chronicle fulltime?’

  ‘Yes, but just for a while. I normally work in IT, computer coding projects and so on.’ She wondered how up to speed these ladies were with modern technology. ‘But I enjoy writing. And I’m sure you have a wonderful story to share. Did you ever keep a diary?’

  Kathryn shook her head. ‘No. Only the common garden variety appointment diary, that is; I’m not much of a writer. But Heather did. And she gets on that Facebook

  place.’

  ‘Just to promote my work,’ said Heather. ‘Now, get comfortable, Kathryn, and don’t jig around too much.’

  ‘My jigging days are over,’ said Kathryn, smiling at Ellie. ‘You’re very pretty. Are you living in town?’

  ‘No, I’ve been living in Melbourne. My parents are there, too, but Storm Harbour feels like my home now.’

  ‘Are you going to stay here then? You’re not married.’ She glanced at Ellie’s ringless fingers.

  ‘You know what the girls say nowadays about the men here,’ broke in Heather. ‘They’re either taken or terrible!’

  Ellie laughed. ‘I’m divorced, actually. No kids. I’m just here helping my grandfather, checking up on him. Not that he needs it. The paper keeps him young.’

  ‘I don’t read the newspaper regularly anymore,’ Kathryn said. ‘I find much of the news so depressing I prefer to read a book.’

  ‘You’re not alone there,’ said Heather with a chuckle.

  Ellie decided to steer the conversation away from herself. ‘Can you tell me about your special memories as a little girl, Mrs O’Neill? Where did you grow up?’

  Kathryn paused a moment, then waved a hand dismissively. ‘Oh, you’re not going back that far, surely?’

  Heather leaned in to study the painting, wincing slightly. ‘I’m not as strong as I used to be, some brushstrokes are a bit shaky. Kathryn, tell Ellie how you met Boyd.’

  Kathryn’s face lit up. ‘It was the war years. Such a strange time, looking back on it,’ she began. ‘Tragedy and laughter. Freedom and fear. Many women took on men’s work, so there were opportunities to learn new things and prove that women could do the same tasks. Not that we were paid anywhere the same amount, though.’

  ‘That’s often still the case, unfortunately,’ said Ellie. ‘What did you do?’

  ‘I worked as a typist in a solicitor’s office in Melbourne. Rather a good one too. There were five of us. So many men and women in uniform. Some women I knew joined the services and the Women’s Land Army.’

  ‘Did you live with your family?’

  ‘No. I lived in a house in Camberwell with two other girls. Families took in boarders in their spare rooms for a modest rent in those days. I’d catch the tram to work in the city centre each day.’

  ‘How did you meet your husband, Boyd?’

  Kathryn looked away, a soft smile on her face.

  ‘One day, m
y boss sent me over to the Windsor Hotel to deliver some papers that had to be signed. The hotel was such a landmark; only people with means stayed there. I remember I felt rather overcome when I walked up the steps and into the foyer, because it seemed so quiet and prestigious.

  ‘The concierge offered to deliver the papers for me but I insisted that I had to hand them over in person, as this had been my instruction. So a porter escorted me up to a suite. Boyd opened the door and I delivered the papers, and explained I would come back later that day to collect them if it was convenient. I knew my boss was anxious to have them signed. Well, Boyd asked me to come in and wait. Said he’d look through them on the spot.’

  ‘He always was a considerate man,’ commented Heather with a smile.

  Kathryn nodded. ‘I do remember feeling relieved. So I went in and sat down while he took the papers to his desk in the main room and started to go through them. It was quite a thick pile of documents, so I thought he was going to just skim them and sign, or else I’d be there all day. So I picked up The Age newspaper and asked if I could read it. Well, he found some small problems in the documents and scribbled a note and then asked me to have them adjusted by the solicitor and returned the next day.

  ‘The following day I brought a book with me! I gave him the papers and said I’d read in the lobby. So I sat and read, and after an hour he came down and ordered tea for us. He sat opposite me while the waiter poured our tea and he picked up my book and asked me why I was reading about the gardens of Europe. I told him I loved gardens and that I walked through the Botanic Gardens every day. Then to my surprise he leaped up and said he hadn’t been out of this hotel for ages, and would I fancy a walk in the Gardens right then?’

  ‘Really? How romantic,’ said Ellie, finding herself completely engrossed in the story.

  Kathryn smiled. ‘I didn’t know what to do. He was an important client, though, so I agreed. I decided that as it was daylight, I couldn’t come to any harm walking. And I knew the Gardens like the back of my hand.

  ‘Well, we walked and talked. He told me he was a woolgrower so he couldn’t join up, as he was in an essential service. Then he asked me all about the plants I liked. I told him I dreamed of having my own gardens one day. We ended up talking for a long time, and it was late in the day when I took the papers back to the office.’

  ‘Kathryn, your memory amazes me,’ said Heather, standing back from the canvas and regarding it closely.

  ‘Well, it was an important time in my life. I suppose that’s why I can recall it so well. Anyway, the next day he rang and asked me out to dinner at the Windsor,’ Kathryn said, laughing. ‘It was a lovely meal and we talked so easily together; it felt like we were friends. Even though he was much older than me, I felt safe with him. At the end of the evening he hailed a taxi for me and paid for it to take me home. He was a gentleman.’

  Kathryn gave a small shrug and a smile. ‘That was the beginning. Neither of us knew anything about each other. No ties. No issues. I didn’t think of him in a romantic way at first, but I enjoyed his company and friendship. In the following weeks whenever he came to Melbourne he took me to dinner and to the theatre and lovely places. We walked in the Gardens regularly, just talking. Sometimes we had afternoon tea. And when he was back at Craigmore he wrote me letters. In retrospect I realised he was visiting Melbourne more often than he needed to for business!’

  ‘Of course he was,’ said Heather with a grin. ‘I remember you telling me how concerned he was that you were boarding in town, away from your family. I suppose he wasn’t to know that you had little other option.’

  ‘Oh?’ said Ellie, turning back to Kathryn. ‘Why was that?’

  Kathryn waved a hand in the air. ‘I was an only child and quite independent by then. My mother had died when I was young, and I was estranged from my father.’

  This was interesting, but Ellie suspected she should let it lie for now as Kathryn seemed rather reluctant to discuss it further. ‘And the rest of your courtship? Engagement?’ she asked. ‘Being wartime, was it a whirlwind romance?’

  ‘Maybe in a different time, we would never have fallen in love or even been an item. This was an era where many couples were rushing into marriage before the men went overseas. Boyd was different – he was older, very sophisticated and running a large enterprise, and seemed to be in no hurry to settle down. Indeed, he told me he had avoided the persistence of society matrons trying to inveigle their daughters into his orbit. Romance had been the farthest thing from his mind.’

  ‘Well, maybe not entirely,’ said Heather with a smile. ‘Maybe he just wanted to do things on his own terms, not be dictated to by society.’

  Kathryn nodded. ‘You might be right about that.’ She paused. ‘When my boss found out that Boyd was taking me to dinner and spending time with me, he gave me a bit of a fatherly lecture along the lines of not getting my hopes up. I nodded but ignored him. I felt Boyd was lonely and I was too, when I think about it.

  ‘When we got a bit more serious, he gave me some lovely gifts; kid gloves, perfume, chocolates, things you couldn’t find in those war years and things I could not afford.

  ‘And then he kissed me. It was under a tree in the Fitzroy Gardens by moonlight as we were strolling back to the hotel to get a taxi to take me home. A few days later he proposed. I was so overwhelmed I didn’t give him an answer for a couple of days, which later he teased me about.’ Kathryn laughed softly.

  ‘We were married at the church here in Storm Harbour. I wore the most beautiful dress and our photo was printed in the social pages, would you believe?’ she said. ‘However, as the war was still on, Boyd and I decided to keep it quite small. My boss gave me away and a girlfriend of mine was my bridesmaid. Immediately afterwards, Boyd had some duties in Sydney that he had to attend to, concerning our wool industry here and exports to the UK. So we went there soon after our wedding. We took our honeymoon later, after the war years.’

  Kathryn stopped, deep in thought for a few moments. Heather painted on, and a companionable silence enveloped them as Ellie made a few notes. Then, glancing up, Ellie thought she caught a glimpse of what Kathryn would have looked like as a young bride. A smile had brightened the older woman’s face.

  ‘We went to Paris,’ Kathryn said at last. ‘It was an exhilarating time, and so romantic. Then we came home and I settled into married life at Craigmore, which I loved,’ she added.

  ‘Did you spend much time with your husband’s family, his parents? Did he have brothers and sisters?’ asked Ellie.

  Kathryn looked at her but answered as if she hadn’t heard the question.

  ‘Boyd always made me feel like a princess. He never once made me feel that I was any less than him when it came to social standing when we first married.’ She gave a slight smile. ‘I suspect there was a lot of gossip, but it didn’t bother us. We were truly a love match and we enjoyed spending time with each other, talking about the world as well as plans for Craigmore. And once Seamus came along, we were very wrapped up in our little family life. Sadly, I couldn’t have another child. That’s one reason why I am so devoted to my beautiful grandchildren.’ She looked away for a moment, then, straightening up, she continued, ‘For a special surprise one wedding anniversary, Boyd presented me with the “blank canvas” at the river, as he called it.’

  Ellie glanced up. ‘The land where the Botanic Gardens and caravan park are?’ she asked, grateful that the subject had come up without her having to guide the conversation in that direction.

  ‘Yes. We always talked about the beautiful Botanic Gardens where we courted. And Boyd suggested I oversee the Gardens as a contribution to the town, in a way. It was the most rewarding thing I have ever done.’

  Ellie saw her opening. ‘Actually, I’ve been wondering about the site, as I heard on the radio that some land near the river may be developed,’ she said carefully. ‘I knew your family had some land in that ar
ea.’

  ‘Well, they wouldn’t be talking about our land,’ said Kathryn firmly. ‘Have you heard this, Heather?’ she asked the artist, who was frowning as she concentrated on some detail on the canvas.

  ‘No, can’t say I have, though you know me: head in the clouds! People are always threatening developments these days, aren’t they? Anyway, stop asking questions, Kathryn, Ellie is supposed to be interviewing you!’ added Heather.

  Ellie didn’t want to upset Kathryn, but she didn’t want to lose her chance, either. She pushed on.

  ‘Well, while I was looking into the story I found out a lot about the Botanic Gardens. I was wondering, why didn’t you plant out the whole strip of land next to the Gardens?’ she asked.

  Kathryn smiled as if she were looking back in time. ‘I had great plans for the whole site, but the Botanic Gardens was a huge undertaking. I planted a lot of trees, which are lovely and tall now, and I so enjoyed working with Mr Hayden, the landscaper and botanist. In fact, so many clever people helped me. Mr Hayden also laid out the gardens at Craigmore.’

  ‘So you planned to do something with the rest of the land but weren’t able to?’ Ellie hedged.

  ‘Oh, we thought about it – I would have loved to – but by then we had young Seamus and a full life. Boyd was busy diversifying into cattle in Queensland and had also got into polo in a big way, both playing and breeding the ponies and such. Also, I had my charity work and fundraising for the creche we set up,’ she said. ‘People started coming to the river to camp and Boyd saw how much they enjoyed it, so he let them do so. In the end, we thought it would be a shame to stop the visitors. As it grew more popular it became too much for Boyd to manage, so he let the council run it and they have done so ever since.’