by Di Morrissey
Ned shuddered. ‘Bella, this is way beyond anything that I am capable of doing. I’m not sure I would even know where to start. Let’s face it, I’m not good at that sort of organisation,’ he said, and realised with some embarrassment that he could hear the negativity and desperation in his voice. But it was true. The mere thought of having to contact industry people and set up meetings sent a chill down his spine. He was about to protest further when he saw Bella suddenly freeze. She stood perfectly still, just staring into space, lost in thought.
‘Bella?’ Ned asked, peering at her. ‘Earth to Bella?’ He waved his hand in front of her face and she blinked.
‘You’re right, Ned. You’re not good at organisation,’ she said slowly. ‘But I am. Ned – I should be your manager.’
Ned stared at her quizzically, but then it was like something suddenly clicked and the puzzle pieces finally fell into place. Of course, Ned thought. He opened his mouth, but Bella rushed on.
‘I want to be entrepreneurial. I like selling ideas. Heavens, I’ve sold the story of Tennyson quite successfully for a number of years now, but I want to spread my wings. I’ve been stuck between a rock and a hard place: I don’t want to go back to the tourism scene in Tennyson, but I’ve been thinking a lot about Antony’s ideas and I think they have a lot of holes in them. Maybe they’re just not workable.’ Bella gave Ned a lopsided grin and then shook her head. ‘Ned, I know I would be really good at being your manager, if you’ll let me. I could research the music market and the stage business and find the right people, and then sell them the whole package. Believe me, they’ll be begging to sign you up.’ Bella grinned, her eyes sparkling. Ned could see she was on a roll and hugely excited about the idea, but he didn’t want her to rush into such a big commitment.
‘Bella . . . slow down,’ he said, holding up his hands. ‘You want to manage me? You’re not serious!’
‘Deadly serious. I know that if you are ever going to get this project off the ground you have to have a manager who believes in you.’ Ned looked at her doubtfully, but she went on. ‘The music business can be a bit of a minefield, and I know that sometimes you feel you’ve been ripped off, but I’m smart, Ned, and I can deal with people. You won’t be cheated if I’m your manager.’
‘Wow. You really are serious.’ He smiled at her cautiously, and for the first time allowed himself to consider the idea as a genuine possibility. ‘Well, I think it all comes down to trust, Bell. I’ve always been reluctant to put my music into a stranger’s hands. There are terrible stories around about musos being cheated by managers and agents and I’ve already had a couple of unhappy experiences with record companies, but if you’re doing things . . . Well, you’re my sister. I can trust you.’ Ned felt a sudden surge of excitement, a sense that his musical dreams might actually turn into something real. ‘But will you leave your job, Bell? Am I something that you would just do on the side?’ he asked dubiously.
‘Don’t worry, Ned, you’ll be my only priority. It’s a gamble, perhaps, but when I know something is the right thing to do, I just know.’ She gave her brother a broad smile and stuck out her hand. ‘Do we have a deal?’
Ned was stunned by Bella’s suggestion, but he knew it made sense. Sometimes the way his sister stormed her way through life irritated him, but now he could see that her cheerful, positive, savvy approach would make her the very person to have in his corner. If Bella couldn’t make this musical happen, then, he thought, no one could. How wonderful it would be to be able to let go of the business side of things, and just focus on creating music.
‘What are you going to do about Antony?’ he asked.
‘I’ll meet up with him in Cairns. I’ll explain to him that I’ve had a better offer. These things have to be done face to face.’
‘Won’t he try to persuade you back round to his idea, though?’ said Ned with a raised eyebrow.
Bella grinned. ‘He might, but my mind is made up. Even if he were to offer me something amazing, I’d much rather do this thing with you.’
‘I don’t know how I’d pay you.’
‘Ned, I see this as an investment. A partnership, so I’m prepared to put up with working for free for the time being. I’ve still got some savings and I’m due for long-service leave at the end of the year, too, so there’s that bit of income as well. I’ll stay in Tennyson – it’s easy enough to travel down to Melbourne from there – so I’ll be fine until we get a deal.’
Hearing Bella talk about reducing her income to take a punt on him made Ned feel concerned. ‘And if we don’t make this work?’
Bella held up her hand. ‘Don’t even think like that. You have talent. Terrific talent. You’ve got a great idea. I know we can make it work.’ Bella’s face was glowing with excitement, but Ned felt the old stirrings of doubt in his stomach.
‘Can we do it, Bell? Work together? I trust you and I know that you really want this to succeed, but what about our differences . . . ?’ he said hesitantly. ‘You know that we don’t see eye to eye about everything.’
Bella put a hand on his shoulder. ‘I know, but we don’t have to be in each other’s pockets all the time – and our roles will be quite different. I have to do my homework and then get out there and talk to people.’ She was thoughtful for a moment. ‘Maybe you’ll need to make up a bit of a demo to give me something to pitch to them,’ she added. ‘Anyway, you’ll need your own space to finish writing the show. You won’t want me hanging around all the time.’ She continued to beam at him and, despite himself, Ned grinned back. Impulsively he wrapped his arms around her and gave her a bear hug. Bella laughed and hugged him back.
Releasing her, Ned suddenly couldn’t wait to get back to his music. He felt the adrenalin begin to pump through his body, in the same way it did right before a show. He grasped Bella’s hand. ‘It’s a deal, Sis.’
Bella’s eyes were gleaming with excitement. ‘Bro, you will now refer to me as your manager, thank you very much. And no matter what anyone says to you from now on, just say, “Speak to my manager, please, she’ll sort it.” Got that?’
*
They spent the rest of the day under lowering skies, moving furniture from the bottom terrace and securing it in the shed or on the higher terraces. They locked up the cool room and began tying down the awnings and putting away any tools and other loose objects that had been left lying around the house. Bella picked the last of the fruit and herbs from the garden, giving the greens to the chickens.
Ned checked that there were no dangerous branches which could fall or be blown against the house, but with its corrugated-iron shutters, its stonework and log stanchions, the home was sturdy.
‘This place has been built to survive a few rainy seasons, for sure,’ said Ned.
By late afternoon they were ready for a break. Ned was packing up the bar and held up a bottle of wine.
‘I reckon we’ve earned a drink. What’ve you found for tonight’s meal?’ he asked.
‘Spaghetti and a can of marinara sauce, the last of the fresh herbs, a few rather overripe tomatoes and some parmesan cheese. Pasta à la Bella, and I can toast the last of the stale banana bread for dessert.’
‘Maybe we should give that to the girls. We’ll have to take them to the roadhouse and leave them with Frederick, I suppose. Can’t leave them here. Still, I think I’ll miss them.’
Bella looked amused. ‘You weren’t so keen on chooks and country life when we were growing up. You’re absolutely sure you don’t fancy settling down with chickens and someone lovely and . . . ?’
‘A baby? In Cooktown? Just when I’m starting out with a hotshot manager and a project I’m feeling quietly confident about? But it’s a conundrum,’ said Ned. ‘I think that Toni is special. I really love being with her, but I don’t know where our relationship is headed when she won’t speak to me.’ He was quiet for a moment.
Bella peered at him. ‘That’s
because you didn’t tell her about you and Ash. I’ve never understood what caused you to break it all off with Ashleigh and move away from us so suddenly. It seemed such a cruel thing to do to her so close to the wedding, and you’re not a cruel person. It rocked all of us that you sort of went off the rails, that you ran away, essentially, and I really think there has to be some other reason, because you’ve never been a coward. I hope I’m right.’
Ned shifted uncomfortably. ‘That’s quite a speech. There was a reason, but trust me, you don’t want to know what it is.’
‘But I do,’ Bella pushed. ‘How can I understand if you won’t explain it to me? When I think back to the wedding, all those plans . . . and then just days before it was supposed to happen, you call everything off. No one should humiliate anyone the way you did Ash. I know Dad was really disappointed in you.’
‘Disappointed, was he?’ said Ned bitterly. ‘Well, that’s rich coming from him. Look, Bella, all I can say is that I’ve learned things about marriage that make me very wary of that institution.’
‘So you’re saying that Dad was right when he said he thought that you were afraid of commitment?’
Ned ’s face flushed with rage. ‘Dad had no damn right to say that about me. He made himself out to be so bloody perfect, the model husband and father, the man the whole town could look up to. But believe me, he was not at all what you or anyone else thinks!’ snapped Ned. ‘He wasn’t always perfect, he wasn’t perfect at all.’
‘What are you talking about, Ned?’ Bella glared at him in anger. ‘Dad was wonderful. Everyone who knew him says so, and yet it seems you want to bring him down to excuse your own behaviour.’
Ned was silent, biting his lip. A voice in his head whispered, Leave it . . . leave it, don’t get into this. It’s not worth it.
‘Forget it, Bella,’ Ned almost shouted at her. ‘Let’s just move on. It’s my issue to deal with, not yours. I’m sorry I mentioned it.’ Ned suddenly buried his head in his hands, trying to contain all that was churning inside him.
Bella’s voice softened. ‘Ned, there is clearly something causing you a lot of grief. I’m your sister! We’re going to be working together and I think I need to know what is going on. Bottling it all up inside you isn’t good. We need to get things out in the open, so that we’ll be able to start our working relationship on the right footing. Heavens, how bad can it be?’
He gave her a despairing look. ‘Perhaps even worse than you can possibly imagine.’
Ned was about to turn away, but he was suddenly overcome with a desire to unburden himself. Although he had his reasons for having kept this secret from her in the past, he knew in his heart that Bella was right. Their relationship, both working and personal, was never going to work unless he told her the truth. Still, a small part of him was not sure that in this case honesty was the best policy. Bella would be shocked and hurt when she learned the real reason for the aborted wedding; what if she would not forgive him? Then their new bond would not even have lasted the day. But the stronger part of him said, If I don’t share this now, it will always hang over us. He knew then with certainty that he would never feel at peace or secure or open with his sister unless he told her what had happened.
Bella sat, staring at him, half curious but also looking fearful, as if she were no longer sure she wanted to hear what Ned was about to tell her.
Ned took a deep breath. ‘You won’t like what I have to say. You may not even believe me, but I know that we can’t work together while there are secrets between us,’ said Ned in a rush.
‘What could possibly change our relationship?’ Bella leaned forward. ‘Please, Ned. I feel we’ve got to a point where, whatever it is, we need to be honest with each other. You need to tell me what is going on, because whatever you’re hiding is making you very unhappy.’
‘You’re right.’ He noticed that Bella stiffened slightly, straightening her back as she waited for him to drop his bombshell. Change your mind, make something up. Don’t ruin her illusions.
But he drew another breath and braced himself. Now was the time for the truth.
‘I guess I always thought marriage to Ash was inevitable. It was the next step. We had been together forever and she really wanted to get married, settle down, have kids, and I suppose I thought it was time, too. I looked at our parents’ marriage and thought, this is what marriage is. Maybe I didn’t want my wife to be quite as acquiescent as Mum was, but then I was never going to be as authoritarian as Dad. Like everyone, I thought they had a rock-solid relationship, an example to be very much admired and copied.’
Bella went to say something, but Ned held up his hand. ‘No. Let me finish. I know you can’t accept any criticism of Dad and you think that I can never measure up to his standards, but he was a hypocrite, Bella. It was all a lie.’
Bella frowned at him and Ned drew a breath. Okay, here it comes. ‘Bella, I found out that Dad had been having an affair.’
Bella stared at her brother and sat stunned for a moment. Then she started vigorously shaking her head. ‘No way, Ned. No way. You’re wrong!’
‘Just hear me out, Bell, and then you can tell me what you think. Believe me, it’s very hard to tell you this, but here goes.’ He drew another breath. ‘A while before Dad died, I was in Melbourne doing a gig. As you know, Dad was always driving back and forth to Melbourne because he was on so many medical boards. He always seemed to have meetings.’
‘Yes, he was involved in lots of those sorts of things in Melbourne. Mum said that the car could find its own way there and back, he went so often,’ said Bella, still frowning. ‘So?’
‘Well, the day after the gig, the guy who’d arranged it was so pleased with the show that he took me out to lunch. A very posh place, not the sort of place I usually go to, so imagine my surprise and pleasure to see Dad at one of the tables. I was about to go up to him and say hi, when a very attractive woman, quite a bit younger than Dad by the look of things, came over to his table. Dad stood up and greeted her and then he kissed her on the cheek and they both sat down together.’
Bella’s hand flew to her mouth, but before she could protest, Ned raised his hand once more to stop her. ‘Before you tell me that she could have been any old acquaintance, I can assure you I thought that as well, at first. But then I saw the way that they started to talk, each so comfortable with the other, and I just knew they were more than casual friends. Then he touched her hand in a way that was very intimate. So I ducked away where Dad couldn’t see me and apologised to the guy I was supposed to have lunch with, telling him that something had just come up and I had to leave. I got out of there before Dad spotted me.’
Bella narrowed her eyes. ‘Ned, I think you were rather jumping to conclusions. She could have been anybody. Just because a woman is young and attractive doesn’t mean you can paint her as a scarlet woman! There are plenty of good-looking professional young women about. Why didn’t you go straight up to Dad and say hello and ask to be introduced?’ she said hotly.
‘I wanted to think that way, too,’ said Ned miserably. ‘And maybe I should have been up-front with him. But it was perfectly clear to me that Dad and this woman were more than just friends. And I was just so shocked. It bothered me so much, I did some digging.’
Bella looked aghast. ‘So you went behind Dad’s back? Spied on him? What if he’d found out you were prying, with only your suspicions to go on? I think it’s pretty appalling behaviour on your part, Ned,’ said Bella in a choked voice.
‘Bella! Just listen to what I have to say about our supposedly perfect father before you jump on me.’
Bella leaped to her feet. ‘Ned, I don’t believe you, and I think it’s unfair and unkind of you to try to destroy Dad’s name and what he meant to us all, especially now that he’s gone and he can’t defend himself!’ Bella looked as if she was going to cry.
‘Bella, just give me a chance to tell you what
I know!’ Ned shouted at her in frustration.
Bella glared at her brother, but she sat back down, her arms folded defiantly.
Why did I start this? thought Ned. But he was in too deep now. He knew he had to push on or Bella was never going to believe him, and that would certainly mean the end of their relationship. He tried to speak calmly. ‘Look, Bella, part of me didn’t want to believe anything bad about Dad, despite what you think, but I felt I had to try to find out what was going on. I couldn’t just front up to him and ask him who the woman was that he was making goo-goo eyes with over lunch, could I? He would simply have denied my assertions.’
Bella turned her head away and refused to look at him.
‘Well, I mentioned it to Ashleigh and, like you, she dismissed the whole thing. But I couldn’t let it go, so over the next few weeks I started to make a few discreet inquiries. I asked at the restaurant where I’d first seen them. Evidently the two of them met there regularly and sometimes the woman made the booking. The maître d’ was obliging and told me the woman’s name was Dr Frances Barnes and that she worked in a medical laboratory.’
‘I don’t believe you. I bet you paid him. Then he’d say anything,’ said Bella stubbornly.