‘I think we did all right there, don’t you?’ Felicity gave Esme a high five and smiled before taking a look at the video.
‘What do you think?’ Felicity showed Esme who grinned from ear to ear.
‘I take it you approve?’ laughed Felicity, as she logged onto the Facebook fundraising page. She was just about to upload the video when she thought of Fergus, and she knew she’d better check with him first before posting it.
‘Felicity, where are you?’ shouted Rona from the teashop.
‘Just coming,’ bellowed Felicity, placing the phone on the table. ‘I’ll just use the bathroom and I’d best get back to work. Can you put the pens back for me?’
Esme bobbed her head with approval and they shared the same gleeful expression.
Back in the living room Rona was standing in the doorway with a frown on her face when Felicity arrived back from the bathroom.
‘What’s taken you so long? Jessica was wondering where you’d both got to. Come on … we need help out here, the next sitting will be along shortly,’ she insisted, hurrying them both along.
Felicity slid the poster down the side of the dresser before grabbing Esme’s hand as they walked back into the teashop.
‘There she is,’ said Jessica. ‘We were just about to send out a search party. Did you get lost?’
Esme obviously took this cue to try and explain in great detail, ‘No … we were trying to save Heartcross.’ But before Esme could explain any further the teashop door swung open and the next lot of villagers began bustling through the door.
‘You can tell me later,’ answered Jessica, ushering Finn and Esme through the crowd of hungry villagers.
‘What took you so long?’ Rona said in a hushed voice, narrowing her eyes at Felicity who quickly slid her phone into her apron pocket.
‘What do you mean?’ asked Felicity, knowing full well what her mum was insinuating.
‘You, Esme…’
‘We were talking about the bridge … and…’
‘And?’
Felicity felt her shoulders tense. ‘And time just ran away with us,’ she answered, a little on the defensive side.
Felicity didn’t know why but she didn’t want to tell her mum about the video just yet, she wasn’t sure how she was going to react knowing Esme was in the video and Felicity didn’t want to antagonise her any more. She already looked a little stressed. And Felicity needed to check Fergus was happy with it, before she posted it online. He might hate the idea.
‘Well, no more sloping off and get these bowls of stew on the tables.’ Rona’s tone was firm as Felicity took the steaming bowls from her hands.
She placed the bowls down on the table in front of Aida and George, who had lived right at the other end of Love Heart Lane in Butterfly Cottage for over fifty years. George had been the caretaker at the school all his working life until he’d retired and Aida had been the school cook.
‘We could do with your help in the kitchen, Aida.’ Felicity smiled, nodding towards her mum, Meredith and Allie who were busy dishing up the stew and pouring cups of tea.
‘I cooked for the masses day in and day out, it’s nice to be waited on even though not under the best circumstances … but I’m always here dear, you tell me when and I’ll be there. At times like this we need to pull together.’
George leant across the table and squeezed Aida’s hand. ‘We do; remember the floods over forty years ago? It was Glensheil that was affected then. Homes were evacuated and families actually moved across the river and lodged with families of Heartcross for months until the houses by the riverbank were renovated and refurbished. I’m surprised it’s not happened more over the years. Those river banks are fit for bursting every time there’s a spot of rain.’
‘We had that lovely family come and live with us, didn’t we George, but we lost touch over the years, they moved out of Glensheil,’ chipped in Aida.
Felicity smiled at Aida and George and turned to see Allie looking down at her mobile phone much to Meredith’s dissatisfaction. ‘What is it with you youngsters and mobile phones … put it down, we’ve got work to do here.’
‘It’s just … actually you aren’t going to believe this…’ Allie locked eyes with Felicity.
‘What is it?’ she asked, pulling a strained face.
Rona and Meredith were now standing by her side looking intrigued.
‘According to Rory, who’s just texted me … you just posted a video on the Facebook page and it’s spreading like wildfire.’
Felicity stopped dead in her tracks. ‘What are you talking about? I haven’t posted anything.’
‘Wildfire,’ repeated Allie. ‘Yes, apparently a few hundred shares already.’
‘Stop winding me up.’
‘I’m not … here, look.’ Allie handed over her phone to Felicity.
‘Bloody hell, I didn’t post this.’ Felicity’s voice was heavy with worry as the video she’d taken played out right in front of her very eyes.
‘Seriously, everyone seems to be smitten with Esme’s contribution. They want to reunite her with her grandmother. Everyone seems to have taken pity that her grandma is in the hospital on the opposite side of the river. Rory said donations have already come flooding in.’
‘I hope you ran it past Fergus before putting his daughter on the internet?’ said an alarmed Meredith. ‘You can’t be too careful with kids on the internet these days.’
Suddenly, a wave of panic hit Felicity, ‘Fergus…’ she said out loud. ‘He won’t be happy, but I didn’t post this.’
Felicity had a very uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach.
Allie’s phone was still in her hand and it began to beep. Sure enough, as the Facebook page moderator her notifications exploded. She pressed on the video once more and gasped.
Rory was right, the video was being shared and donations were already coming into the fundraising page to support the temporary bridge with lots of goodwill messages wanting to reunite Esme with her grandma.
Felicity looked up, alarmed.
‘You haven’t asked him, have you?’ said Allie, clearly sensing a modicum of awkwardness and taking the phone from her hand.
‘What am I going to do?’ stuttered Felicity. ‘I didn’t post it … honestly, I don’t know how…’
Then she stopped in her tracks. She’d left her phone on the coffee table when she went to use the bathroom, leaving only Esme in the room. Surely she hadn’t posted it?
‘I wouldn’t like to be in your shoes when Fergus finds out,’ said Allie.
Felicity hadn’t anticipated it would find its way on to Facebook before she’d spoken to Fergus or that the video would have escalated so quickly. To her dismay, Allie’s phone was still pinging with notifications and the video was still being shared to the masses.
‘There’s another residents’ meeting here early evening, but you need to tell Fergus about this before he sees it for himself,’ suggested Rona, with a look that knew best.
‘It’s going to be okay, isn’t it?’ Felicity didn’t know who she was trying to convince.
No one spoke.
A nagging doubt told Felicity her mum was right, she needed to tell Fergus – but even though this wasn’t her fault, she wasn’t sure that he would believe her. And by the time she’d finished here today it would be time for the meeting. She just prayed Fergus wouldn’t stumble over the video before she spoke to him.
Chapter 20
Felicity busied herself in the kitchen all afternoon and early evening until the last villager had been fed and watered, but her mind wasn’t really on the job. Her mobile phone had been permanently attached to her hand and she couldn’t believe the video was still being shared such a ridiculous amount of times. She’d thought about deleting the video but it had already been shared that many times that even the hashtag #SaveHeartcross was now trending on Twitter too. The collapse of the bridge was getting more attention than any international popstar releasing their latest song, and the
donations were flooding in. Already in one afternoon the fundraising page had received over five thousand pounds to help fund a temporary bridge to connect them back to Glensheil. It was unbelievable.
Felicity glanced up at the clock; it was just before 7 p.m., and the residents would start to arrive very soon. She looked over at her mum who for the umpteenth time today was making the tea ready for the villagers. With a sodden tea towel resting on her shoulder, Felicity noticed how tired her mum looked. She hadn’t stopped all day and hearing the bell tinkle above the teashop door Rona automatically sprang into action once more, plastering a huge beam on her face.
Felicity was amazed to see Isla walking through the door with both Finn and Esme clutching the side of the pram.
‘Wait there, let me help you.’ Felicity rushed to hold the door open. ‘What are you doing here?’
‘It’s our very first outing and we thought we’d come and see you and what state of crisis the village is in,’ said Isla. ‘Even though I’m absolutely shattered – this little one kept me up all night and now look at him.’
Felicity peeped into the pram to see Angus all bundled up in a tight woollen blanket wearing a blue hat and mittens. ‘He is absolute gorgeous,’ said Felicity softly stroking his mitten.
‘Oh he is, especially when he’s asleep,’ smiled Isla.
Felicity chuckled before turning to Finn and Esme. ‘And would you like a hot chocolate? I’m sure if you ask my mum nicely…’ Before Felicity had time to finish her sentence they both ran off towards the counter.
‘Here, sit down.’ Felicity gestured towards the table in the corner which had space to park the pram. ‘Can I get you a drink?’
‘I’ve already got Isla one,’ said Rona, placing a steaming mug of tea down on the table alongside a plate of biscuits before taking a peep at sleeping Angus. ‘He’s got that baby smell, smells of newness. Congratulations … he’s gorgeous.’
‘Thank you. It already feels like I’ve had him forever,’ replied Isla, breaking a biscuit in two and popping it into her mouth after dunking it in her tea.
Rona walked back to the counter, clapping her hands. ‘When you’ve finished those hot chocolates—’ she playfully swiped them with the tea towel ‘—I’ve a few jobs for you children.’
They both nodded eagerly, as they spooned cream and marshmallows into their mouths.
‘I didn’t get to thank you properly,’ said Isla with a smile. ‘Thanks for everything you did at the birth. I couldn’t have done it without you and I know it must have been difficult for you with everything…’
‘Honestly, anyone would have done the same, well, except…’
‘Allie,’ they both said in unison then laughed.
‘Are my ears burning?’ said Allie, walking into the tearoom at that very moment. She sat down opposite Isla.
‘I’m saying nothing.’ Felicity giggled then stood up. ‘I’d best go and help Mum before the masses begin to arrive.’ She shot a glance out of the window and could already see the villagers trudging up Love Heart Lane towards the teashop. ‘Here we go again.’
‘I bet you’ve been run off your feet feeding the villagers. I don’t envy you at all.’
‘Yes busy, but it was great to reconnect with the community. I saw some faces today I’ve not seen for a while.’
‘I’m thinking there’s going to be a big turnout tonight especially after your little stunt today.’
‘Huh?’ said Isla, oblivious to all the fuss that Felicity had created online. She shot a glance at them both while gently rocking the pram.
‘Is Fergus still up at the farm?’ asked Felicity with caution.
‘Yes,’ replied Isla, sipping her tea. ‘He’ll be here soon, why?’
‘No reason,’ replied Felicity, as the teashop door swung open and she hurried back behind the counter.
One by one the villagers filed through the door, and Felicity began to busy herself to try and take her mind off Fergus’s arrival. A shiver ran down her spine and she closed her eyes for a brief second.
‘I’m not sure we are going to fit everyone in here,’ exclaimed Rona with a hint of worry in her voice. The tables were already packed and people were shuffling themselves into any space they could find.
‘I was thinking the same,’ chipped in Meredith who appeared by Rona’s side behind the counter. ‘We can see how it goes and if need be, we can swap the meetings to the pub.’
As the door opened, one last time Felicity heard the church bells in the background chime seven o’clock.
‘We’ve seen the post on Facebook and we don’t understand,’ a voice shouted from the back of the room. ‘Are we getting a new bridge?’
She looked up to see Ethan, the owner of the local skip hire firm, staring back at her and by the look on his face he was spoiling for a fight.
‘Our businesses are suffering here.’
There was a mumble of agreement around the room before everyone hushed and all eyes were on Felicity, leaving her completely on the spot.
‘As you all know, this morning I virtually attended the council meeting regarding Heartcross and I’m pleased to say it was all very positive,’ spouted Felicity, trying to forget Councillor Smith’s comments and his unhelpful manner as she tried to put a confident spin on the situation.
‘How can it be positive?’ Alfie, a construction contractor, shouted. ‘And why have you set up a fundraising page unless that means the council aren’t prepared to fund a temporary bridge?’
There were disgruntled mutterings all around the room.
‘The Environmental Minister Annie Boyd has deemed a temporary bridge a must.’
‘So, what’s with the fundraising page if a temporary bridge has been given the go ahead?’
Felicity stared at him; he had always been a sanctimonious idiot at school.
‘They really want to reconnect us as soon as possible.’
‘So, basically what you are saying is you have nothing to tell us. We could be stranded here for weeks before there’s any hint of a temporary bridge being built?’ His voice was raw and he emphasised each word which signalled fury beyond his control. He leaned back in his seat, a smirk curving on his lips. He was enjoying putting Felicity on the spot and now the whole village seemed to be nodding in agreement with him.
She felt under pressure, her heart was thumping. ‘Can we just all calm down? I can’t physically build the bridge myself.’ The annoyance now showed in her voice.
All eyes were fixed on Felicity, and she rubbed her sweaty palms on the side of her jeans, her body a jumble of nerves.
‘And as some of you will have noticed, every little helps … and that is why I set up the fundraising page.’
Felicity spotted Allie out of the corner of her eye waving her mobile phone in the air, trying to catch her attention.
‘The video is still spreading like wildfire. Everyone seems to be jumping on the #SaveHeartcross bandwagon. The donations today alone have already reached just under ten thousand pounds,’ Allie shouted.
Felicity’s jaw fell to somewhere around her knees. ‘No way … that’s absolutely amazing!’
‘What video?’ asked Isla, unknowingly.
But Felicity didn’t answer; she shivered and her skin prickled as she spotted Fergus strolling up Love Heart Lane towards the teashop. Time felt like it had slowed for her and she was rooted to the spot, waiting. Did he know or didn’t he? She’d no idea what to expect, but in approximately three seconds she would have her answer.
Fergus burst through the door. Her heart sped up and she tried to slither discreetly behind the counter but there was no escaping.
‘Felicity!’ he bellowed, and she was more than confident that he was fully aware of the video.
She reluctantly turned around. Fergus looked dishevelled, his eyes were bloodshot. He’d come straight from the farm, his overalls were dirty and his wellington boots left a muddy trail over the white tiled floor.
‘Sorry … sorry Rona,’ he mut
tered, looking down at his feet before catching Rona’s eye.
‘Don’t you worry about that, I’ll clean it up later.’
After muttering further apologies, he turned his attention back towards Felicity.
‘We need to talk now. For God’s sake, what did you think you were doing?’
The pink flush to Felicity’s cheeks ramped up to cerise.
‘Come through to the cottage.’ She glanced at her mum who nodded; no one wanted to air their dirty laundry in public and judging by the sudden hush in the teashop everyone was waiting to see what would happen next.
Felicity felt herself shaking as Fergus quickly took off his boots and left them by the side of the counter. As soon as they were inside the kitchen, she closed the door to the teashop behind her.
‘Well?’ he said impatiently.
The silence hung between them, and what seemed like minutes passed.
‘I didn’t know anything about it, I promise.’ Felicity was hoping her voice sounded convincing.
‘Well, you were in the video unless you are about to tell me you’ve had a twin sister hidden away all these years?’
‘No … I mean, I didn’t post it … I was going to ask you first then the next thing I know it’s ended up on…’
‘And you expect me to believe that?’ Fergus interrupted her.
‘Honestly, I’m telling the truth.’
Anger was carved in Fergus’s face. ‘My phone hasn’t stopped ringing. I’ve had newspapers and radio stations all asking for interviews with me and Esme,’ he said, thrusting his hands in the back pockets of his overalls and staring at Felicity.
‘You’ve put my daughter on the internet, the video has gone viral and now the whole world wants to see her reunited with her grandmother.’
‘Fergus, I’m sorry, but surely it’s not that bad? Look at the donations that have already come flooding in.’ Felicity knew those were the wrong words as soon as they’d left her mouth.
Fergus locked eyes with Felicity, who could see the fury in his eyes, ‘You posted a video of my daughter on the internet without parental permission.’
Love Heart Lane Page 18