A Year at Meadowbrook Manor

by Faith Bleasdale

  She pulled out her phone and dialled. She was intrigued, glad almost of the distraction, as she dried her tears. The five-hour time difference in New York meant she knew she’d find Brad at his desk.

  ‘Brad Fisher.’

  ‘It’s Harriet,’ she said, surprised at the familiarity of his voice despite her months away.

  ‘Oh, Harry, thank fuck you rang.’ The urgency in his voice was also reassuringly recognisable, along with the swearing, which was a prerequisite of the trading floor. Brad was her equivalent at the bank, a VP with a team of unruly traders to control. They got on well, had a mutual respect, as well as a healthy dose of competition. She was also friends with his wife, Macy, who was a high-flying lawyer. They were the definition of power couple.

  ‘What’s wrong?’

  ‘Well, nothing’s actually fucking wrong. But where to start— What the hell are you doing?’

  ‘Who me?’

  ‘No, an idiot broker who’s screaming in my ear. Right, back to you. So, guess what, Harry? Zach’s gone.’

  ‘What do you mean, gone?’ She could hear the trading-floor noise in the background and she felt a slight tug, as if she wanted to run to it.

  ‘Fired. Marched out of the office like a thief.’

  ‘What did he do?’ Harriet felt both interested and also a little cold. Did karma actually exist? If it did, she was going to start making another list, with Mark and Loretta on the top of it.

  ‘Remember that little intern, Fiona, well he did her basically. And yes, Harry, we all knew you were shagging him, but no one cared because you had a career already and were good at your job, but he had been seeing her before you even left. Apparently, according to the stupid girl, he promised her a fast track to the trading floor, in return for – well, let’s say he had quite a few Bill Clinton moments, and most of them in the office. Anyway, they got rumbled, he got fired, she threatened to sue for sexual harassment, but her internship came to an end and she knew she was lucky to get away with a reference. Apparently it was all on CCTV, not that we’ve been able to find the footage – and I’ve got my best men on the job.’

  ‘Wait, Brad, what?’

  ‘Sorry, Harry, but don’t tell me being in the English countryside’s turned you into a fucking prissy.’

  ‘Actually it has rather, but never mind. So what’s the upshot, have you got Zach’s job?’

  ‘Yes, and I’ve promoted Melvin to my old job.’

  ‘Ah, good choice.’ Harriet couldn’t help but think if she’d still been there they might have offered her Zach’s job. Although probably not if everyone knew she was sleeping with him. She suddenly got a sense of clarity about why he’d been so keen to get rid of her. ‘What about my old job?’

  ‘Well we couldn’t fill it because you’d been made redundant and so Zach was trying to figure a way around it, he really was a first-class tosser, but basically I want you to come back.’

  ‘What? To my old job?’

  ‘Yes, and yes you’d have to work for me, but you know we always did work well together. You were one of the best traders in New York, let alone this bank, so what do you say?’

  ‘Christ, I don’t know, Brad. Whatever I decide, I have to stay at Meadowbrook until the end of May, it’s a condition of my father’s will.’

  ‘Yeah I don’t even want to know why, but that’s cool. Look we’ve been covering here without you, but the balance sheet isn’t what it was. I want you back, working with me and making this the most profitable trading floor in New York. Again. If I have to wait for you, I will, but please think about it, Harry. We fucking need you.’

  Harriet felt the thrill of the challenge coursing through her veins. Remembering the buzz of making money, of closing the deal. So since being here she hadn’t missed it as much as she thought she would, but that didn’t mean that she didn’t love it, did it? Besides, Meadowbrook had been taken from her and here she was being offered her old life back on a plate. Maybe her father had got it wrong after all. Maybe she needed to be here to find out that she didn’t belong. She wasn’t like her siblings, she definitely wasn’t going to have a happy ever after with Connor. And the animals, as much as she loved them, well, anyone could do that job. She wasn’t needed, or wanted here, but New York …

  Suddenly she believed in fate.

  Chapter 28

  ‘Right guys,’ Harriet said. She had called a meeting with her siblings, and Connor, in the sanctuary office. She had renewed energy since the job offer which could take her back to New York, but she also wanted to make sure that if she went, she went out with a bang. She no longer felt the overwhelming despair and defeat that had characterised the last couple of weeks. She had brushed off any attempts for Connor to talk to her beyond the usual pleasantries, ditto Pippa and Freddie, and she was going to be polite, civil even, but personal relationships were no longer a priority. She had switched fully into work mode, where she felt safe, and although her father had been wrong about them rebuilding the family this year, she didn’t want him to be wrong when it came to the animal sanctuary. Therefore she was going to put all her efforts into raising the money to ensure that when she left, the animal sanctuary was in safe hands. Meadowbrook and the money, well that was another issue.

  It was the end of February, and Harriet had spent minimal time with both Mark and Loretta who had put on a show of being gracious, apologetic that they may have given her the wrong impression, while at the same time treating her as if she was deranged. Harriet, having decided not to care anymore, just shrugged it off and blocked them out. If Pippa and Freddie were going to be so stupid, then she wasn’t going to stand in their way. Let them lose everything, let them learn the hard way. She didn’t want to be heartless, but they’d made it clear how they felt about her, she was out.

  Gus tried to get through to her but she’d closed herself off from him a little too. She wrapped a cloak around herself to keep all feelings out while she thought about how she just had to survive a few more months before she could leave them all behind. She knew she would miss the way she had felt at Meadowbrook before all the drama but, at the same time, that had gone, she would never get it back again, time to close off the past.

  She managed to avoid Connor, although the glaring reality was that it felt as if he was avoiding her. He stopped dining at the house, and when she was at the animal sanctuary he seemed to be elsewhere. She pulled that cloak a little bit tighter.

  The only person she felt bad about was Gwen. Dear Gwen who kept urging her to keep trying to get through to her siblings, who was so desperate to keep the family together, but Harriet had to explain that it was too late. She hated hurting Gwen who she loved so much, but she couldn’t, she absolutely couldn’t do it anymore. She hadn’t told anyone about the job offer, but she was pretty certain that she was going to take it. The idea of slipping back into her old life – the heels, the salons, her friends, her personal trainer and the job – didn’t exactly have her jumping for joy, but it didn’t feel like such a bad idea either.

  The house was ruptured, she felt it in every room that had been carefully decorated, every glass that had been drunk out of, plate eaten off – their split, their collapsed relationship permeated everything at Meadowbrook. No amount of effort on Pippa and Freddie’s part could fix it, and Gus’s entreaties couldn’t paper over the cracks. Even Fleur had noticed it, and although Harriet felt worse for her than for anyone, there was nothing she could do. It had gone too far, the damage was too severe, the house, the relationships within the house, were nothing more than rubble to her now.

  ‘So what’s the meeting about?’ Gus asked.

  Pippa and Freddie faced her, looking sheepish, and Connor was refusing to meet her eyes. Hilda snored contentedly at her feet. The rest of the sanctuary staff were off dealing with the animals.

  ‘We’re in trouble,’ Harriet stated. She always felt it best to start a little dramatically; it worked – she now had everyone’s attention. Even Connor’s. ‘In the terms of Dad’s
pre-will, or whatever we want to call it, he said we needed to raise twenty-five thousand pounds for the sanctuary this year. This had to be done in any way possible but we weren’t allowed to give any of our money, mainly because we weren’t allowed any. For example, and I’ve checked this with David, Pippa couldn’t give any of her money but if say Mark wanted to donate, then he could, as long as we were sure it wasn’t anything to do with Pippa.’

  ‘Mark hasn’t got any money,’ Pippa said.

  ‘Well, yes, I know that, it was an example. I could have used Loretta.’ Harriet knew she sounded harsh, unsympathetic, but then that was how she was feeling. ‘But I didn’t. My point is that the money had to be raised by us, not from us, and well, at the moment, with only three months to go until our deadline, it’s not looking good.’

  ‘Oh gosh.’ Gus looked genuinely stricken as he always did when things were going wrong. ‘What on earth happens if we don’t raise the money?’

  ‘That I was hoping Connor could tell us.’ Harriet raised an eyebrow at him.

  ‘OK, so here’s the thing, we need that money to pay for next year.’

  ‘But surely twenty-five thousand isn’t enough to keep the sanctuary open for a year?’ Freddie said, sensibly, Harriet thought.

  ‘No, not entirely, but we have other sources. But you see, without that twenty-five thousand the sanctuary could be in trouble.’

  ‘But that makes no sense,’ Pippa said, she sounded suspicious. ‘Because if we fail, all of Dad’s estate goes to the sanctuary. And if we succeed, then we’ll all make sure it stays open, surely?’

  Harriet was impressed, she hadn’t thought of that.

  ‘Yes, well.’ Connor reddened. ‘I don’t know all the legalities, but with probate and all the process that wills have to go through, it could take some time. I think that was why your father was charging you with raising that money. Because otherwise it is going to be hard, maybe even impossible, to keep the sanctuary open next year.’

  ‘I was hoping that you wouldn’t say that,’ Harriet stated. ‘But then, we have to do it to fulfil the terms, regardless of the fate of the sanctuary, which of course I care about, before you say anything. I just don’t believe that Dad would have let anything happen to it no matter what we did.’

  ‘Look,’ Connor said. ‘I agree, H, but you know your father said there was no way that you guys would fail. He had every confidence in you.’

  ‘Enough to put the future of this place in jeopardy?’ Harriet was incredulous. Connor nodded.

  ‘But if we want to fulfil the terms of Dad’s will …’ Gus started.

  ‘Oh say it, Gus, if we want the money and the house, we have only three months to raise just under ten thousand pounds.’

  They all stared at her.

  ‘We all said we’d make Dad proud this year,’ Pippa said. ‘We have to do it.’

  ‘Then let’s do it. Harry, what did you have in mind?’ Freddie asked, just as Jenni ran screaming into the office.

  ‘What is it?’ Connor said, jumping up.

  ‘It’s Elton, bring your bag.’ Jenni, looking wild, grabbed him and they ran out. Harriet, Gus, Pippa and Freddie followed him.

  ‘What happened, Jenni?’ Connor shouted as they ran to the field.

  ‘David was making a racket.’ Jenni could hardly get the words out through her breath. ‘So I went to see, and he’s just on the ground.’

  As they ran into the field, she saw the colour drain from Connor’s face. Even Harriet startled at the noise coming from David. She’d never heard a noise like it, it was loud as a siren, but a wailing which was so filled with pain. Elton was lying on his side. Connor rushed to him. Harriet was rooted to the spot with her siblings at her feet.

  ‘He’s dead, isn’t he?’ Harriet said. Connor nodded, his eyes full of tears as he tried to examine him. David wailed even harder and Jenni tried to comfort him, but he was distraught. Harriet had never seen a dead bull before and she’d never seen a grieving one but she understood how David felt.

  ‘Oh no, poor Elton, poor David.’ Pippa was the first to cry, Harriet held her as her body rocked with sobs. She rubbed her back as she used to do when they were children and she stroked her hair to calm her. Gus put his hand on her shoulder, his eyes full of tears, and Freddie was wiping tears from his eyes.

  Connor, stood up, mud-splattered, shaking his head. He looked at Harriet, and she handed Pippa over to Gus and Freddie before she went to him.

  ‘I can’t believe it,’ he said, voice choked with emotion.

  ‘I am so, so sorry,’ Harriet replied, wrapping her arms around him as he leant down and sobbed into her neck.

  It took hours before Elton was removed. He was a big bull, and they needed a small crane and tractor and a trailer to get him out of the field, while David tried his hardest to go with him, almost taking down the fence. In the end Connor had to sedate him.

  ‘What’s going to happen to David?’ Freddie asked quietly.

  ‘We don’t think he’ll cope without Elton, those two belonged together,’ Connor said, shaking his head.

  ‘They really did,’ Pippa concurred.

  ‘They were the most functional couple at Meadowbrook after all,’ Freddie tried to joke.

  ‘It says something when the most functional couple here were gay cows,’ Gus pointed out.

  ‘Bulls,’ Freddie corrected and they smiled.

  Everyone could see that the love that Elton and David had for each other was something else. And if that sounded crazy then Harriet didn’t care, because that was the magic of Meadowbrook.

  Harriet decided to support Connor the only way she could. She took care of the organisation. Connor wanted Elton buried at Meadowbrook, so Harriet spoke to John the vicar who promised her two gravediggers – they were only part-time, what with cremations being popular, but they were coming up the following day. She also spoke to the others who worked at the sanctuary to see if there was anything to be done about David, but they all agreed that grief, in animals as with people, didn’t have an easy fix.

  As they all sat down to dinner, the atmosphere in the dining room was heavy, but in a different way to how it had been lately. Thankfully Bella wasn’t there, but Mark’s attempts at cheering them up didn’t work and Loretta’s latest wedding ideas were met with even less enthusiasm than usual. Gwen was watching her son closely; Amanda seemed concerned as her eyes darted to each of the siblings; Connor barely ate; Harriet felt so full of pain she didn’t know what to do. It was the first animal loss – death – since they’d been at Meadowbrook and Elton was such a part of the animal sanctuary that it wouldn’t be the same without him. Just like her father. Meadowbrook wasn’t the same without him either, yet it would have to learn to live without them both.

  ‘Can I make a toast,’ Harriet said, realising that the dinner felt more like a disaster by the minute. Everyone mumbled their agreement as she raised a glass. ‘I want to raise a glass for Dad and for Elton. Both missed, both very loved. In fact both who experienced the purest of loves, the most enduring love that most of us can only dream of.’ Harriet fashioned a glance at Connor who was staring at his plate, although his glass was raised. Mark grinned smugly as he took hold of Pippa’s hand, and Loretta blinked, as if she had no idea what Harriet was talking about. Freddie glanced at her and then quickly looked away. Gwen smiled encouragingly and Gus looked at Amanda bashfully. ‘So,’ she continued. ‘My toast is for both man and bull, who should teach us what love is and if we listen to their lesson, then none of us will settle ever again. I would rather be on my own for the rest of my life than have a relationship that doesn’t measure up to theirs. So, to love.’

  Everyone awkwardly toasted as if they didn’t know whether Harriet’s toast was a dig or not – it was. Not at Gus though, Gus and Amanda she believed in.

  ‘To love,’ Gus echoed.

  ‘And I know we’ve had a tricky time lately, but today, well, I felt it bringing us all together again.’ Harriet was emotional she knew,
but it was true, they had bonded over grief, again, and she realised that no matter how angry she was with Freddie and Pippa, they were her family, along with Gus, Gwen and Connor, all she had left. Even when she went back to New York, they would still be her family.

  ‘Harriet,’ Pippa said. ‘Thank you. Thank you for not being angry and for taking care of me today.’

  ‘I’ll always love you, Pip, and I’ll always be here for you.’ She meant it, even if she wouldn’t literally be here. ‘And that goes to all of you.’

  ‘Thank you.’ Amanda tried to smile.

  ‘Thank you,’ Gus repeated, awkwardly. ‘And we would like to share our plans with you.’ He looked at Amanda who nodded, reassuringly. ‘We’ve talked about moving in together, after the year. Into Amanda’s house. Fleur has given her blessing.’

  ‘I think you and Amanda living together is great. You’ll really be happy, I can tell. But what about work?’ Harriet asked.

  ‘Yes, now you will think I’ve lost the plot, but I’m going to retrain as a gardener. I’ve looked into courses and that’s what I want to do.’

  ‘Bloody hell, you’re giving up insurance and going to dig things!’ Freddie exclaimed.

  ‘Yes, Fred, that’s exactly what I’m going to do. I love gardening, really do, and I also love painting, so I am going to do both. Painting will be a hobby, of course, but quite an important one.’

  ‘Well I think that’s wonderful,’ Gwen said. ‘Your father felt he’d suppressed your creative side, Gus, but now you’ve found it again and it isn’t too late. It would be just what he would have wanted.’

  ‘It’s never too late, I think I’ve learnt that,’ Gus said.

  ‘But it will be if we don’t raise this money,’ Harriet pointed out. She felt a stirring of something as she suddenly had a brainwave.

  ‘What’s that?’ Mark asked. Harriet took a moment to take in his greedy eyes.

  ‘By the terms of Dad’s will we only get the money if we raise a certain amount for the sanctuary. And we are quite a way short.’