‘Let me have a copy of the doctors’ report to take to the trust and I will see what can be done. No promises, mind. There’s always some maintenance work to be done on houses new and old, and that has to be paid for somehow.’
Diana nodded. She didn’t say ‘thank you’. As far as she was concerned, she had made a sensible proposal and Ellie had agreed to it. ‘I’m afraid I won’t have time to join the trust.’
Ellie said, ‘You have two beautiful children, a lovely house and plenty of work to do. You’ll manage.’
‘You’ll help me out if I get into difficulties? Not that I expect to do so, of course.’
Silence. Ellie didn’t know how to answer that.
Diana flushed. ‘Oh, isn’t that typical of you? Just when I could do with some support.’
‘I think,’ said Ellie, feeling her way towards the truth, ‘that you are a remarkable woman with many talents. You have proved your worth as a wife and as a mother. You are courageous. You are making the right decisions for the future. You have made mistakes in the past but you have learned from them, which a lot of people never do. I don’t think you need me or the trust to fall back on. Realistically it’s not going to be helpful for you to think you can always call on me to help you out of trouble. You have to accept that the trust has been set up in such a way that that is not possible. You can ask us for advice, but don’t ask us to bail you out if you make another misjudgement. In my opinion, you have reached a point where you are ready to fly all by yourself.’
Diana almost spat the words, ‘Some mother you are!’
‘Yes,’ said Ellie. ‘I am the mother hen who is pushing her daughter out of the nest, as you will have to do for your own children eventually.’
Diana wept, open-mouthed and ugly. ‘Everything is so …!’
Again Ellie lifted her arm to give Diana a hug and dropped it, knowing Diana would not welcome the caress.
Diana sniffed. She used her handkerchief and said, ‘Well, time and tide wait for no one. I must go. Busy, busy. People to see. Children to collect from this place and that.’
She made for the door only to be met in the hall by Susan with Fifi in her arms.
Diana said, ‘What! What is she doing here?’
Ellie said, ‘Living here. Thomas is finding someone to take over the magazine. He and I are retiring, going on a long visit to Canada. I’m making the house over to the trust, though Thomas and I have the right to live here or elsewhere rent-free for the rest of our lives. The trust will pay for builders to divide the house into two, with separate plumbing and wiring. Architects have been contacted and are working on the plans as we speak. There’ll be a new entrance and stairs for next door, our old Quiet Room will become Susan’s kitchen, and the top flat will be let out separately, with its own new outside stair and entrance.’
Diana gasped. ‘You’d never get planning permission for all that.’
‘As the pressure on the housing list increases, so permission is easier to get. Legitimately with no hidden fees. You, of all people, should know that.’
Mm, that was a blow below the belt, wasn’t it? But well deserved.
Diana clutched at her head. ‘But … what happens to the other half? Can I have an option on that? It ought to come to me, anyway.’
‘Rafael and Susan will be paying rent and living there for as long as they wish.’
Diana froze, her gaze fixed on Susan and the baby in her arms. Finally, she said, ‘You’re Susie, yes? With a baby, too. And you have a husband who is able to support you? I suppose I should offer my congratulations. You’ve managed to worm your way in here where I have failed.’
Diana let herself out of the house, closing the door quietly behind her.
Susan said, ‘Ellie, are you all right? Here, hold Fifi for a moment while I put the kettle on.’
Ellie took the warm little bundle and began to sway from one foot to the other. It was very calming, nursing the baby.
Fifi opened her eyes and yawned. Her tiny fingers clutched the air. She smiled up at Ellie … or perhaps it was just wind.
Ellie began to sing, ‘Rock a bye, baby …’
Fifi loved to be sung to. She didn’t care whose voice it was. It could be Ellie’s soprano, Susan’s alto, Rafael’s tenor or Thomas’s bass. If she had a preference, it might be for Thomas’s double bass. Rafael said he’d heard there was an opera singer in his family somewhere along the line, a great aunt or something like that. Perhaps Fifi had a musical bent.
Ellie recalled that Diana had never wanted anyone to sing to her. What a shame. But that was all in the past. Of course Ellie would keep in touch with Diana and all her beloved grandchildren, but the future was Thomas in a more manageable house. The future included more people to love and worry about: Rafael, Susan and Fifi. It was looking bright.
Susan called out, ‘I’m making egg and cress sandwiches for lunch with some of my home-made leek soup. Also, I think we’ve still got some chocolate cake left over. You’d like some?’
Silly question. Of course she would.
Murder for Good Page 26