by T. M. Payne
Maybe it had not been anything on the scale of what Catherine Stone had done, but a life was changed nevertheless. One life, three lives, the lives of a whole family, was it really that different? Stevie hadn’t killed anyone. She shook her head as if to rid her mind of the tangled thoughts inside.
Laura had forgiven her, she thought. Laura had forgiven her for what she had done. Could Stevie find it within herself to forgive Catherine Stone? Would she one day find the peace that her grandmother had talked of.
She gripped the steering wheel tightly and took a deep breath. Her choice was made, she couldn’t go back now. Pippa’s words went through her mind over and over. Something good.
Then she thought of Adam, did she trust him enough to tell him the truth, would he understand her decision? The answer was there as soon as she asked herself the question. She wished he was there right now, to hold her, to reassure her. She suddenly felt intolerably lonely. She started the engine; she’d go back to the bed and breakfast, have a coffee with Pippa, lie to her and then go to bed. Even the thought of returning home to the Island did little to comfort her.
CHAPTER NINETY TWO
“Ah, here she is now!” Pippa jumped up and went to the front door, greeting Stevie as she walked through it, “Good evening young lady!” She smiled a big smile and put her arms out, “Well, I’m in love, I’ve met the man of my dreams, he’s handsome, funny, kind and he has dimples in his face that just melt me.”
Stevie couldn’t help but smile at Pippa’s enthusiasm, “Good for you.” Stevie decided to skip the idea of a coffee and make her way to her room.
“Good for me?” Pippa threw her arms out, “You simply have to meet him!”
“Pippa, I’d love to but I’m really tired..”
“Nonsense!” Pippa shook her head and steered Stevie into the kitchen where Adam was standing, he grinned and walked directly over to Stevie and put his arms around her. Stevie burst into tears and held him tightly.
Pippa smiled with her head tilted to one side and left them to it, she went into the lounge and lit a cigarette.
“I’m so glad to see you, I can’t believe you’re here.” Stevie pushed her head into his chest.
“Of course I’m here, I missed my girl.” He kissed the top of her head.
“Thank you for coming, you’re wonderful.”
“You’re not so bad yourself.” Adam kissed her cheek and Stevie lifted her face towards his, pressing her lips against his, his heart almost burst out of his chest.
“I love you Stevie.” He said, wondering if he was actually going to have a heart attack.
“I know you do.” Stevie buried her head in his chest again, “And I love you too.”
Pippa smiled to herself as she hovered in the doorway, waving a bottle of champagne around like a pendulum.
Adam and Stevie laughed at her, “Would you two love birds like to join me in a celebration, even though Adam here is clearly the man of my dreams, it appears he has chosen you Miss Stevie, I can’t understand why, I mean look at me I’m fucking gorgeous!”
They all laughed and settled down in the lounge to share the bottle.
“Anyway Stevie, pray tell, did you find the man you seek?” Pippa blew smoke into the air, “Did you find Frank Samuels?” She made a smoke ring and eyed Stevie.
“No, no I didn’t.” Stevie looked at Adam as she answered and Pippa noticed the look she gave him.
“Ah, well, sometimes things don’t work out the way we want them to.” Pippa inhaled again on her cigarette, “So, how long are you staying?”
‘I’ll go home tomorrow.” Stevie smiled at Adam, “Hey, where’s your car?”
“I left it at home, I thought we’d drive home together when you left here, so you didn’t find anything? We can stay longer if you need to, I don’t mind, I can help you.”
“No. I’m done here, really, we’ll go home tomorrow.” She looked at Pippa who gave her a wry smile.
“So Stevie, tell me one thing.” Pippa looked dead into her eyes, “Did something good come of it?”
Stevie thought for a moment and then answered her, “Yeah, it did.”
“Good.” Pippa nodded and raised her glass.
Stevie winked at Adam and they each took a sip from their drinks.
The phone rang and Pippa leant over to answer it, “Hello, Pippa’s bed and breakfast.” She looked at Stevie, “May I ask who’s calling?” She mouthed to Stevie “Are you here, it’s the police?”
Stevie nodded slowly and got up, taking the phone from Pippa. “Hello, yes it is.” Stevie looked into the fireplace, “Oh, no I said I wanted to talk to someone about a plane crash years ago, not a train crash, I’m studying local disasters and I’d heard that there was a plane crash in the area in the 1970’s.” She kept her back turned away from the prying eyes of Pippa and Adam, who were looking at each other.
“Oh, well I’m sorry to have bothered you, thanks for calling me back anyway, okay thanks, bye.” She set the receiver down and turned around, plonked herself down next to Adam and finished her drink.
“Don’t ask.” She said, feeling their eyes on her.
So, they didn’t ask.
CHAPTER NINETY THREE
Three years later
Adam and Stevie pulled up outside Marie’s house.
“What do you think she’ll say?” Adam looked towards the front room window.
“I don’t know.” Stevie undid her seat belt. “Depends if she’s drunk or sober.”
“We could just drop her a note, dear Marie, we’re engaged, something like that.”
“Hardly.” Stevie smiled.
They got out of the car and walked hand in hand up the path.
Marie opened the front door, “What are you doing here?”
“We’ve got some news.” Stevie smiled.
Marie let them in and stood in the middle of the front room with her arms crossed. “Well?” She was sober.
Stevie looked at Adam, “We’re engaged.”
Marie looked at her and then down at the ring that sat glistening on Stevie’s finger. “Well, congratulations, I’m very happy for you.” She looked at Adam. “You’ve got yourself a beauty, make sure you look after her.”
Adam’s jaw clenched, “Oh don’t you worry Marie, I will, I’ll take very good care of her.”
Silence. Marie squinted at him.
“Well, she’s all yours then, I took care of her for long enough, so now it’s your turn I suppose.”
Adam felt the urge to place his hands around her scrawny throat.
“We haven’t set a date yet.” Stevie spoke, her words slicing through the atmosphere.
“Oh. Well I suppose there’s no rush, I mean you’re still young.”
Marie looked at Stevie, “Do you want a cuppa?”
“No, thanks but we have to go, Beth’s cooking us dinner.”
“Oh, very nice, well, it was nice to see you both.” Marie made her way to the front door, she turned before she opened it. “I’m really very happy for you both.” She nodded as she spoke and then opened the door.
“Thanks.” Stevie nodded back. Adam stepped outside.
They got back in the car, looking around to see that Marie had already disappeared inside.
“Well, that’s that done.” Stevie took Adam’s hand. “Our children are going to just love visiting her!” She grinned.
“Children? Have you got something to tell me Miss Buchanan, soon to be Mrs Daniels?”
“Yes, I have.” She leant back and put her head on the headrest.
Adam stared at her, wide eyed, “Really?”
“Yeah.”
“Okay, tell me.” He said, swallowing.
“You’ve got ketchup on the front of that sweater, it’s been there since breakfast, I just didn’t bother telling you.” Stevie grinned. Adam sighed and waited for his stomach to return to it’s normal position.
CHAPTER NINETY FOUR
Dear Marilyn,
We hope this l
etter finds you well. We’ve enclosed a cheque to put towards the running costs of the cat sanctuary, although it sounds like the fundraising is going well.
We’re delighted that you still enjoy running the place for us and in answer to your question, yes of course your daughter can join you, she’ll be a great help around the place by the sounds of it. She could help with the re homing programme?
We’re so pleased we got planning permission to build the second row of pens, Helen is delighted that her old home and land is been used to do something good.
I sold two paintings last month and have made a donation to the Alzheimer’s society in memory of Len. You have been amazingly strong since he passed away, we know that you have thrown yourself into the cat sanctuary but please don’t wear yourself out, if you need to take on more staff, just let us know.
We appear to have adopted several of the local cats, they seem to have some sort of bush telegraph system here in Brittany, one day we may have one or two turn up for dinner, the next it’s five or six. One of them has even wangled his way into the cottage, he sleeps most of the day on the windowsill, he reminds us of Scruffy Boy.
Anyway, I’d better go, Helen is burning something in the kitchen. Smells good!
Take care.
Lots of love C and H.xxx
Marilyn read the letter twice and put it back in the envelope, smiling.
“Marilyn, I’m off, they’re all sorted out. I’ve put the rubbish out for tomorrow.” Joanne Robinson, Marilyn’s faithful volunteer puffed her way through the house, which had been converted into offices and storage.
“Thanks Jo, what would I do without you?’ Marilyn put her hand on Jo’s shoulder, “You get yourself off, I’ll lock up.”
Jo waved as she left, “See you tomorrow, bright and early!”
“Okay.” Marilyn waved to Jo’s back and locked the back door. She looked around and her eyes rested on Scruffy Boy’s portrait that hung proudly on the wall for all to see. “Miss you old boy.” Marilyn reached up and touched his face. “Goodnight, sleep tight.”
She was about to turn out the light when the phone rang, "Hello, Scruffy’s cat sanctuary, how can I help?” Marilyn smiled, “Yes, we do have a ginger and white, in fact she’s been here for a few months now, we’re open at ten in the morning if you’d like to come and see her. Okay, we’ll see you then. Bye.” Marilyn turned off the light and made her way home.
As darkness fell on the sanctuary, the light from the moon shone down on all the residents as they settled for the night. Forty four cats, including nine kittens had found themselves rescued, in a safe place, a warm and loving place, a place that held the secret of what really happened to Frank Samuels. A man who hated cats. He lay, deep in the ground, buried under them, turning in a grave he had inadvertently dug for himself. Buried with him, inside the pocket of his jacket was his mother’s diary. Frank had discovered it the day he died, whilst rummaging in the loft, it was amongst a bundle of her papers stacked inside a large wooden chest. The entry that had got Frank’s attention read:
June 23rd 1947, I watched today as Henry spent hours digging up the back yard, trying to remember where he had buried the jewellery my mother had inherited. I had watched him when he buried it some nine years before, just before war broke out, he didn’t want those ‘German bastards coming over here and getting their grubby hands on it’ he would say. He was swearing terribly to himself, throwing his spade around as if he were a spoiled child. It did amuse me. Heaven knows what will happen if he ever finds this diary, I expect he will do me harm. It would not be the first time. The funny thing was, he dug all around where it is buried, but never quite hitting the spot and he really was not digging deep enough, it must be a hole as deep as he is tall. If only he had walked twenty paces from the back door in a straight line, he would have discovered it. As plain as plain can be.
Her diary, the rest of which remained unread by Frank went on to describe how her husband had died seven weeks later of a heart attack:
I wonder if it was all that digging, Henry had looked positively ill after that day, I think maybe that jewellery is cursed or something, or maybe it was just meant to stay where it is, I shan’t be digging for it, in fact I shall keep its existence a secret. I did chuckle to myself the other day, I remember now it was thirty paces from the back door, not twenty. Funny how your memory plays tricks on you.
Catherine remained haunted by a past that she had almost been forgiven for. But she never came to forgive herself. She lived quietly, privately with Helen in her father’s cottage. She never returned to England.
Helen visited her parents, alone, twice a year.
Marie never remarried. She lived alone. She drank alone. She rarely saw Stevie.
Marilyn dedicated herself to the cat sanctuary that Catherine and Helen had set up. Unaware of what lay beneath her.
Stevie never told her family the truth. She never saw or spoke to Catherine and Helen again.
Laura lived with her mother. Working several dead end jobs she waited for the day when someone would free her from her life. It never came.
Shaun Halliday was stabbed in a prison fight and lost the sight in his right eye. He was released after serving two and a half years of his sentence. He never returned home and never again made contact with his family.
Nick the whisky man continued to receive a hamper every Christmas.
Stevie and Adam were married. Stevie’s grandparents and Beth and Peter Daniels were there to share their special day. And so was Pippa.
THE END