The Winter Sea

by Morrissey, Di

  ‘The paper’s been around forever. You’re right. You might learn something there,’ said Trixie.

  ‘Okay, that’s my next step,’ said Cassie, excitement in her voice.

  But before Cassie had a chance to go into town to look in the newspaper office, she had a visitor. Just before they closed the lunch service, Hal walked into the restaurant with a smarmy smile and asked for a table. Cassie nearly dropped the plates she was carrying when she saw him.

  ‘Now what? Why are you here, Hal?’

  ‘Passing through. Just thought I’d see what the Blue Boatshed was like. I saw it mentioned in the Sunday paper. I have to say it looks a bit quiet to me. But I hear that things are going much better for you in another department.’ He raised an eyebrow.

  ‘Just what’s that supposed to mean?’ asked Cassie.

  ‘Rumours abound about your not-so-little inheritance. Seems you have struck it lucky down here with those Latin lovers. I didn’t know there was so much money in fishing!’

  Cassie was livid. She lowered her voice so that the few other guests couldn’t hear her and said angrily, ‘Hal, whatever your network has told you, it’s none of your damn business or theirs either, for that matter. Now I’m busy, so order a meal or leave my restaurant.’

  ‘Cassie, Cassie, calm down. I also heard that there was a little bit of animosity over your windfall, so I came down to offer you my assistance. You know I’m a bloody good lawyer.’

  ‘Just keep out of this, Hal. It’s disgusting how you can smell money.’ She turned and walked away.

  ‘Oh well, I guess I’ll grab a hamburger in town.’ He walked out, surreptitiously watched by everyone else in the restaurant.

  Hal’s visit rattled Cassie. Whatever his motives were, he was trouble and she wanted him out of her life. She certainly didn’t want him rocking her relationship with Michael. She hoped he would take the hint and go straight back to Sydney but later that afternoon she heard the sound of his Porsche outside the restaurant.

  ‘Oh, no, it’s Hal again,’ she groaned to Steve.

  ‘Do you want me to stay?’ he asked.

  ‘No, thanks, Steve. I know you have things to do. He’s a pain but I can handle him.’

  ‘If you’re sure. I’m heading down south tonight. Hoping I can pick up some fish from a guy I know on a trawler that’s coming in.’

  ‘Really? Are we having trouble with any of our other suppliers yet?’

  Steve grimaced. ‘I’m afraid so. I didn’t want to worry you, but someone’s put out a story that you don’t pay your bills.’

  ‘What? How dare they! Damn Frank Aquino. He’s making life so difficult. I suppose we’ll have to start paying for our supplies in cash, and that is going to create a huge cash-flow problem. I’m sorry, Steve, thanks for doing your best.’

  ‘No worries. Hey, if you close down, I’m out of a job! See ya,’ he said cheerily. He headed out the door as Bill gave a growl.

  ‘Hal, why are you back?’ asked Cassie in a tired voice.

  ‘Well, Cassie, you might have told me the full story about this messy inheritance thing. Jesus!’ He shook his head.

  ‘Hal, I told you nothing because it has nothing to do with you. I don’t need your help, interference or opinions, thanks.’

  ‘How come you never told me your father was a gaolbird? My family will be thrilled to know the girl I married had a father who’d been to prison. I’m beginning to wonder just what sort of a double life you led while we were together. Just what sort of things did you learn from your father?’

  ‘That’s a horrible thing to say. My father was a wonderful man and he wouldn’t have taught me to do anything that was wrong. If you had known about my father, does that mean you wouldn’t have married me?’

  ‘The best I can say is that it would have given me pause for thought,’ Hal said smugly.

  ‘Hal, go away.’

  ‘First, I’ve got a couple more questions. What’s the deal with this money? Why did this old fellow leave it to you? Why have you kept it a secret? Didn’t want it to come out in the divorce settlement, perhaps?’

  ‘Don’t be ridiculous, Hal. I didn’t know anything about it until a few days ago. You really think this is all about cheating you? Talk about ego. You are not the centre of the universe.’

  ‘I came down here to help you.’

  ‘Rubbish. You came to see if you could get your hands on Ricardo’s money. Listen, Hal, I want you to leave. I am trying to handle this nightmare as best I can and I don’t have to explain anything to you anymore.’ Cassie stood up and rubbed her eyes, feeling close to tears. ‘I have to phone my mother.’ Before she’d finished the sentence she thought, Why did I say that?

  ‘Grow up, Cassie! Holy cow, you and your mother. No wonder I never got a look in.’

  ‘Hal, I’m not going to argue with you. I would just prefer it if you got on with your life without me and I’ll do the same.’

  ‘Good luck with that money. From what I’ve heard around town, you stand a snowball’s chance in hell of making this restaurant work.’ Hal gave her a malicious smile and walked out.

  Cassie watched him saunter away and resisted the temptation to throw something at his retreating back. She wondered whom he’d been talking to in town. Damn him. She flopped into a chair.

  Bill sensed her mood and came over and dropped his head onto her lap and gave her a comforting look before he lovingly licked her hand.

  *

  ‘Oh, that man is a jerk,’ exclaimed Jenny as Cassie related Hal’s visit. ‘I’m sorry I couldn’t get away sooner but I’m leaving first thing in the morning. How’s everything going? Is Michael okay still?’

  ‘Michael’s being brilliant. He’s spoken to his mother and sisters and they understand that I didn’t influence Ricardo to make him include me in his will. Now they are as puzzled as I am as to why he did.’

  ‘I’m glad about Michael. It’s hard for him, too.’

  ‘I’m thinking of marching up to Frank and giving him an earful. Asking him to stop this vendetta against me. It’s so wrong,’ said Cassie angrily.

  ‘I’d sleep on that idea. Or better still, ask Michael what he thinks.’

  ‘You’re probably right,’ said Cassie. ‘I’m planning on going through the newspaper files from that period and seeing if I can find anything that might help us solve this mystery.’

  ‘Good idea.’ Then the brightness seeped from Jenny’s voice. ‘There’s sure to be reports about the trial, I suppose.’ They both paused a minute. ‘Cass, I still just find it so unbelievable . . .’

  ‘I know, Mum. So do I.’

  Cassie felt much better when her mother arrived. Jenny stepped from her car and wrapped her arms around Cassie in a comforting hug. Then she swept into the restaurant, ran a professional eye over things and sat down with Cassie and Steve, who told her of the issues with food suppliers.

  ‘The seafood aside, we used to have a standing deal with the woman who ran the organic markets for our fruit and veg. We’d give her our order and she’d drop it by. Now she says she has too many other commitments to continue doing that.’

  Steve rolled his eyes to indicate how feeble he thought the excuse was.

  ‘This whole thing stinks,’ said Jenny. ‘Cassie had nothing to do with any of this family mystery.’

  ‘You must know how it is in a small town. Everyone seems to think that where there’s smoke, there’s fire. It’s a lot of money that old Ricardo Aquino left Cassie.’

  ‘Is that what you really think, Steve?’ asked Jenny brusquely.

  Steve leaned back and held up his arms in mock surrender. ‘Hey, I’m not saying that. I’m just telling you what other people are saying. All I know is that Cassie has worked hard to get this restaurant up and running, and as far as I’m concerned this place is our number one priority. But we can’t get away from the fact that Ricardo’s will is causing us a lot of problems.’

  ‘I know. Sorry. I didn’t mean to sound so aggressive.
I just feel I have to question everyone and everything.’

  ‘Must be frustrating for you both.’ He looked at Jenny. ‘Cassie told me about your husband. I tried to imagine how it would be if someone I knew and loved suddenly was shown to be the total opposite of what I always believed. Hard one.’

  ‘Yes.’ Jenny took a breath. ‘It’s upset me terribly. And I just don’t believe it. We were married for years and years. I loved Pat so much. I know my husband and none of this makes sense to me.’ She paused and her voice shook. ‘I really want to know the truth. Can you think of anyone I can talk to? Surely one of the Aquinos knows something.’

  Steve passed her a box of tissues. ‘I’d have a word with Ray Aquino, Frank’s father. He’s a reserved man but from all accounts he seems to be a decent bloke. Maybe he could tell you something.’

  ‘Thank you Steve. Hopefully Ray can help me,’ said Jenny, dabbing her eyes with a tissue.

  ‘Mum, it’s worth a try,’ said Cassie, hugging her mother. ‘Will you be okay on your own? I’ve got to take care of the restaurant. I have to deal with these supply shortages. It can’t wait.’

  ‘I won’t be gone long,’ said Jenny, resolutely picking up her keys and heading for the door.

  A couple of hours later Jenny came back. ‘Cassie, is there any way you can leave the restaurant for an hour or so? I think I have a lead on where to find some answers.’

  ‘No worries. It’s still a while before we open. I’ve sorted out the supplies. Trixie’s due any minute,’ Cassie replied. ‘How did you go with Ray Aquino?’

  ‘I’ll tell you while we drive.’

  Cassie didn’t say anything else until they were both sitting in her car.

  ‘Okay, Mum. Where to?’

  ‘The cemetery.’

  ‘I don’t understand.’

  ‘I’m not sure I do either, but I think we will when we get there.’ Jenny could hardly keep the excitement out of her voice.

  ‘Are you going to tell me how things went with Ray?’ said Cassie, bewildered by her mother’s cheerfulness.

  ‘Ray was just lovely. He’s probably a couple of years younger than me and he plays bridge.’

  ‘Mum, you make bridge sound like a secret society,’ said Cassie impatiently.

  ‘It means that we have something in common. I explained to him that I was married to Patrick and that I had no idea about his past. Ray was very kind to me. He told me that the family had been shocked when they found out that Ricardo had left such a large sum of money to someone they considered to be inappropriate. I could see his point.’

  ‘Me too,’ said Cassie. ‘Did you say that to him?’

  ‘Yes, I did. We had a calm and sensible discussion. We both laid our cards on the table, so to speak, and if you interrupt me again you’re never going to find out what he said.’

  ‘Sorry, Mum.’

  ‘I said that your suppliers weren’t supplying and that Mollie had resigned, probably because she thought that her husband might be sacked. Ray said he’d speak to the husband and assure him that no such thing would happen if Mollie came back to work for us. He also said that he would speak to Frank and tell him that a personal vendetta would not solve anything. He did say that Frank was pretty headstrong and would probably continue to speak out against you, and that some people in town would continue to take his side. Still, it’s a start.’

  ‘Mum, you’re a genius. Surely not everyone will be against me. Some people will want to start supplying me again, especially the out-of-towners,’ said Cassie, feeling happier than she had in days.

  ‘I’ll ignore that interruption and go on with what Ray told me,’ said Jenny with mock severity. ‘I asked him if he had any idea why his father had left you all that money and, like everyone else, he didn’t have a clue. Then I asked him if he remembered the incident and the trial. He told me that he’d been about eight or so at the time and remembered nothing specific except there was some family upheaval and the children were kept out of it. He said there had never been any mention of Patrick Sullivan in the Aquino household after that. It was as though he’d been airbrushed from their history. That’s similar to what you learned from Michael’s mother, isn’t it?’

  ‘I don’t suppose that it’s all that surprising. Mum, does Ray remember Dad at all?’ asked Cassie as she turned the car into the road that led up the hill towards the cemetery.

  ‘Not much. He remembers that he liked him and that your father played with him when he was little. I asked him to explain how Patrick was connected to the Aquino family. He told me he couldn’t remember but suggested that we go and look at the headstones in the cemetery. He thinks we might find some answers there. And here we are,’ said Jenny as Cassie stopped her car outside the cemetery gates.

  ‘Where will we start?’ asked Cassie.

  ‘The Catholic section, I guess. Let’s find the Aquinos,’ replied her mother.

  The two women started to wander around the cemetery. For the most part it was a tidily kept place; the grass was clipped and there were very few weeds. Some of the graves had vases of flowers sitting on them. The plots had plenty of room between each other.

  Probably that’s because there’s so much space up here. No need to squash everyone together, thought Cassie. She moved away from her mother, still not sure what she was looking for.

  ‘There’s a beautiful view from up here,’ Jenny called to her. ‘Nice place to spend eternity. Look what I’ve found. This area seems to be full of Aquinos.’

  Cassie hurried over to join her.

  ‘Look,’ said Jenny. ‘There’s Carlo’s grave. And here’s a Giuseppe Aquino. Who was he?’

  ‘I think he must have been Michael’s great grandfather. Everyone called him Joe. What’s on his headstone?’

  ‘Loving husband of Evalina and Bridget. Loved father of Ricardo, Pietro and Carlo. Odd,’ said Jenny. ‘All very Italian, except where did Bridget come from? That’s Irish. Here’s Evalina’s headstone. Look at the date on it. She died a long time ago. Her sons must have been very young, Carlo just a baby. How sad. I suppose that’s why Giuseppe married Bridget.’

  ‘I guess. Keep looking.’

  ‘I’ve just found it.’ Jenny was staring hard at another headstone, set a little apart from the other Aquinos. The inscription on it was faded by the wind and the salt air, but she could still make out what it said. She read it out to her daughter. ‘Bridget Aquino, born February 1901, died May 1945. Beloved wife of Giuseppe Aquino. Loving mother to his sons Ricardo, Pietro and Carlo and adored mother of Patrick Sullivan.’

  ‘I’ll be blowed.’ Tears sprang to Jenny’s eyes. ‘Cassie, I want you to meet your grandmother.’

  Cassie stood looking at the gravestone for quite some time before she said anything. ‘Mum, have I got this right? Dad was Bridget’s son, and that makes her my grandmother. She married Giuseppe Aquino and she became the step-mother of Ricardo, Pietro and Carlo. Is that how it works?’

  ‘That’s my interpretation of what’s written there,’ Jenny replied in a soft voice, almost too emotional to speak at all.

  ‘So does that also mean that Dad was Giuseppe Aquino’s step-son and that the others were his step-brothers?’

  Jenny nodded.

  ‘So Dad didn’t work for the Aquinos. He was a member of their family. When he killed Carlo, he didn’t just kill someone he was working with – he killed his step-brother.’

  Jenny looked at Cassie, her eyes still filled with tears. ‘I know. But Cassie, if he did such a dreadful thing, why the money? Solve one puzzle and we find more intrigue. Come on, let’s get back, Steve will be wondering what’s happened to us.’

  When Cassie told Michael that it was probable that her father had been the step-brother of the Aquino boys, Michael exclaimed, ‘That’s incredible. I bet my mother knows nothing about this. How did Uncle Ray know to send you to the cemetery?’

  ‘According to Mum, who is now his new best friend, when Ray was very young, his grandfather used to take h
im for walks up to the cemetery and linger over Bridget’s grave. He used to mutter to himself in Italian, so Ray knew the place was important to him.’

  ‘The plot certainly thickens! What are you going to do now?’ asked Michael.

  ‘Mum wants to find out when Bridget married Giuseppe by looking up records at Births, Deaths and Marriages. I’m going to see if I can find anything in the old local newspapers about Dad.’

  *

  The Whitby Point News had been housed in a small office in the main street of the town since 1925. It was still essentially a two-person band. The editor was Alison Chambers, the granddaughter of the original proprietor, and she worked with a keen young assistant, James Holden.

  ‘Good morning, Mrs Chambers. I’m Cassandra Holloway. We spoke briefly over the phone about my looking through some of the old files.’

  ‘Oh yes. I’ve made a space for you in our back room. Unfortunately not all our papers have been saved in the new digital format. Some are on microfilm, and some are in the historical society’s museum. I’ve pulled out the papers from around the mid fifties.’

  ‘Do you remember anything about the incident . . . when Carlo Aquino . . . ? Do you remember Patrick Sullivan?’

  ‘No, sorry. I can’t help you there. I wasn’t born at the time,’ Alison replied. She opened the latched half door at the end of the counter and ushered Cassie through. ‘The papers are old paste-up jobs, so they are in books. I’ve found some from the fifties and put them on the table for you,’ Alison explained.

  ‘Thank you.’

  ‘It’s a bit of a job to go through them; would you like a coffee? Instant, I’m afraid.’

  ‘Perhaps a bit later, thanks.’ Cassie eyed the pile of fat bound books with yellowing pages of newspapers sticking out from them.

  She settled herself at the work table and started with a volume labelled ‘1955’. As she slowly turned the pages of the old newspapers she began to get a sense of the community in which her father had lived.