‘Of course.’
Inside Little Cot, Laura read the will very carefully and handed it to Spencer. He shook his head disbelievingly as he read it. ‘Well, there’s no doubt that unless there’s a later will, half the shop and its income should have gone to Faith Jennings, then Bill, and as Bill’s widow, to you. You’re entitled to a lot of back income, Laura.’
‘I don’t care about that!’ Laura snapped, furious now the full implications of the document had hit her. ‘Don’t you see what this means, Spencer? Bill’s cruel behaviour stemmed from the fact that he baulked against his father being a poor groom. If his mother had owned half the shop and shared half the takings he would have had some standing in the village. He would have felt better with himself. He might not have been so ambitious, so ruthless. He might not have treated me the way he did because he was clawing his way up from feeling like a nobody.’ She was shouting now, rage making her shake from head to foot. ‘No wonder she wanted me to work in the shop. She wanted to salve her conscience! And to think that I once thought of giving her Little Cot. I trusted and loved that woman and now it seems she’s a liar and a thief. This sort of thing is frightening, it rocks your world and turns it upside down.’
‘I have to go back for Vicki soon,’ Spencer said gently. ‘But I’m not leaving you here like this. You can come back to the farm with us and put her to bed. Would you like that?’
‘I’d like nothing more,’ she replied, grateful for his understanding.
For a few moments he held her and she rested in his arms.
Chapter 34
The next day Andrew was knocking on the shop door an hour before it was due to open at eight thirty. Bunty answered in her dressing gown and slippers; she had stayed the night.
‘What do you want, Mr Macarthur?’ she asked warily.
‘I was wondering if the postwoman had called yet. Are you all right, Miss Buzza? How about Mrs Tamblyn? Is there anything I can do?’
‘Everything’s under control, thank you. The postwoman should be here within the next half-hour. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to coax Mrs Tamblyn to eat some breakfast.’
Andrew left, puzzled. He expected Bunty to be upset over what had happened to her friend but she had seemed as jumpy as if she thought he was the burglar come back. He went on to Little Cot, having noticed that lights were on there too.
‘Do you want to join me for breakfast, Andrew, or have you eaten?’ Laura asked, as she carried toast to the kitchen table.
‘You’re another one,’ he exclaimed, ignoring her question. ‘You look as if you’ve seen a ghost. Miss Buzza looked just the same when I called at the shop just now. Anyone would think Mrs Tamblyn had been murdered in her bed. Has something happened that I don’t know about? The constable seemed to think it was a straightforward burglary.’
‘Sit down, Andrew. I’ve got something to tell you.’
He was astonished at the tale of the will and Daisy keeping the contents secret.
‘Daisy had lost her husband and was living in the shop when her parents died. As the elder daughter, she must have taken it upon herself to wind up her parents’ affairs and she lied about the contents of the will.’
‘If there isn’t a later will, are you going to sue her?’
‘I don’t think I could do that. I’ll wait until I’ve spoken to her then I’ll decide what to do.’ She looked Andrew over. He was dressed in what he called his working clothes. ‘Why are you up so early? As if I didn’t know.’
‘I’m hoping to hear from the bank today concerning my offer to buy Tregorlan Farm. Speaking of which, I’d better get back to the pub and wait for the post. Will you be all right alone?’
Laura made a wry face. ‘I’ve coped with everything so far that’s been thrown at me. Run along but make sure I’m the first to know when you have good news.’
Daisy was on the doorstep soon after Andrew left. She had dressed hurriedly, her coat was flapping open and her cardigan was buttoned up wrongly. Her face was twisted in worry. ‘Please let me come in, Laura. I must speak to you. I haven’t slept a wink all night and it had nothing to do with the break-in.’
Laura said nothing and stood aside to let Daisy in. They sat down in the front room. Daisy twisted her hands agitatedly in her lap. ‘My will was taken yesterday. Was it you?’
‘Yes,’ Laura said coolly. She picked up the document she had taken from Daisy’s bedroom. ‘Is there a later one to this one?’
‘No,’ Daisy admitted in a croaky voice. ‘I cheated my sister all those years ago, I cheated Bill and I’ve been cheating you.’
‘Why?’ Laura asked. ‘It seems so unlike you.’
Daisy sobbed into a hanky, looking down at her trembling hands. ‘I-it was jealousy. Although Ron didn’t bring in much money, Faith had everything I wanted. Her own home and a loving husband. My husband, Sidney, didn’t die as people thought. He ran off with another woman. He’d gone off with women all our married life. He left me in debt and I had to come home with my children and live with my parents in the shop. I was left bitter, Laura, and I hated to see how happy Faith and Ron were. I was so lonely. My son and daughters left home at fourteen to work and I’ve hardly seen them since.
‘When my mother died, Father showed me the will so I would know what would happen when he died. Three months later he died and I… I suggested to Faith that they wanted me to have everything, to make up for what I had lost. Faith was happy with her life and didn’t seem too bothered. I sweetened her up by saying she could have free groceries. I gave her some keepsakes and kept the will hidden. Soon afterwards I felt guilty and suggested to Faith that she take over half of the shop, but she wouldn’t hear of it. She said if me being sole owner of the shop was our parents’ wishes she wouldn’t go against them. I desperately wanted to but I couldn’t put things right. I’ve felt so guilty over the years. It’s been a terrible burden on me. All because of a few moments of jealousy.
‘I tried to put things right in small ways. I paid for Faith’s and Ron’s funerals. I paid for Billy to go to London and bought his clothes until he made some money of his own. I was so relieved when he became rich – I didn’t know then that he was taking it from you and your father. A little village shop and sub-post office seemed so little by comparison.’ Daisy’s mouth worked like a cow’s chewing the cud. ‘Well, now the truth is out. What are you going to do, Laura?’
Laura sighed. ‘Nothing for the moment, Daisy. I couldn’t do anything that would get you into trouble, if that’s what you’re worried about.’
‘Well, I was but that isn’t the main issue. I’ll make it up to you as much as I can, of course. I have some savings, that will go part of the way to what I owed Faith and Bill and now you.’
‘I don’t want your money, Daisy,’ Laura said emphatically. The very idea was repugnant to her.
‘Will you disown me?’ Daisy broke into a fresh bout of sobbing. ‘I don’t expect you’ll want to have anything to do with me from now on.’
‘I need a day or two to think about it,’ Laura said. ‘I’ll come up to see you then.’
‘Of course.’ Daisy got up. ‘I must go and get ready to open the shop. I’ve got some post office officials coming later. Thank you, Laura. You’ve been very understanding.’
When she’d gone, Laura was left with the image of Daisy’s distraught face on her mind. It was usually cheerful and kindly. Daisy was a genuinely kind woman. She had been good to Laura from the day of Bill’s funeral. She had supported her through the times she had fallen out with Spencer and when Andrew had been kidnapped. Her story was a sad one and it was easy to see how a moment of weakness had led to years of deceit.
It kept running through Laura’s head that the police, the post office officials and every other villager would be in the shop today asking endless questions. How was Daisy going to cope if Bunty was unable to offer her her usual comfort and support? What Daisy had done had started long ago in the past and Laura had learned that the past sho
uldn’t be allowed to spoil the present and future.
Putting on her coat, she went up the hill and into the shop. Daisy watched uncertainly as she took off her coat and carried it through to the kitchen. Then she came back with her sleeves rolled up and an apron tied round her waist.
‘Come on, Aunty Daisy,’ she said briskly. ‘If we’re going to open on time and get ready for a busy day, we’ve got a lot of clearing up to do.’
* * *
Andrew saw Laura walking up to the shop from the pub window and he sighed in relief. It would have been a shame if there had been a rift between the two women. He moved to another window and rubbed condensation off it.
‘You’ll rub a hole in the glass soon,’ Pat said, coming through to the bar to join him with a duster and carpet sweeper. ‘You’re like a cat on hot bricks this morning, Andrew. What’s the matter with ’ee?’
‘I’m waiting for the postwoman,’ he answered impatiently, gazing up the hill in the direction she would come.
‘So that’s why you’re late going over to Tregorlan this morning. Jacka will be docking your wages,’ Pat joked.
‘Here she comes!’ Andrew whooped and he rushed from the room, almost sweeping Pat off her feet.
He met the postwoman halfway up the hill. ‘Have you got a letter for a Mr A. Macarthur, care of the Tremewan Arms, please?’
‘I might have,’ the postwoman said cagily, free-wheeling down the hill on her bicycle.
Andrew ran to keep up with her. ‘I’m Andrew Macarthur. I’m staying at the pub. Could you stop and see if you’ve got a letter for me?’
‘If I have then I will put it through the letter box as I’m paid to do,’ she said stubbornly.
Andrew stopped running and made a face at her back. Ada Prisk at the water pump had witnessed his fool’s errand and was making her way determinedly towards him.
‘Good morning, Mr Macarthur,’ she called long before she reached him so he would have no choice but to stop and talk to her.
He smiled wider than was necessary. ‘Ah, Mrs Prisk. Good morning to you.’ He edged nearer the pub but she kept coming.
‘It is true what I heard? That poor Mrs Tamblyn had a break-in yesterday? What a shameful affair. I saw the constable talking to you after evensong. Were you able to help him at all?’
She was like a hunter bearing down on wounded prey and he knew he wasn’t going to get away from her until she was satisfied she’d pumped him dry. The postwoman put a handful of letters through the pub letter box. Pat opened the door and they were chatting. He was on tenterhooks to see whether he had a letter.
‘There was very little I could tell Constable Geach, Mrs Prisk. Apparently it was a straightforward burglary.’
‘I see. Off to Tregorlan again, are you? I can’t help but notice how you’re dressed.’
‘Yes, Mrs Prisk.’
‘I thought Jacka was looking well last night. He must be finding you a great help on the farm now he can’t do any work.’
‘I hope so, Mrs Prisk.’
Ada cocked her head to the side and Andrew knew he was going to be asked a very personal question. ‘You interested in Tressa? Is that why you’re still in the village?’
He put his hands behind his back and crossed his fingers. ‘No, I’m not interested in her at all, Mrs Prisk.’
‘That’s not what I heard,’ she returned disbelievingly.
‘Really, Mrs Prisk? How odd.’
Mrs Sparnock was crossing the road for water and Ada left him for fresh pastures. Andrew tore into the pub. Pat was in the bar polishing the tables.
‘Pat! Was there—’
She took two letters out of her apron pocket and waved them in the air. He snatched them out of her hand. One was from London from his old partners and he tossed it on a table unread. The other one had a Launceston postmark. He ripped open the envelope and taking out the letter inside went over to the window to read it. Pat was joined by Mike and they watched him anxiously.
‘I’ve done it!’ The letter was thrown up in the air and deftly caught. ‘They’ve accepted my offer!’ He sat down and became absolutely serious. ‘Give me a small whisky, Mike. I’m going to ask Jacka for Tressa’s hand in marriage.’
* * *
Joan was hanging up washing in the garden and Andrew went to her first. ‘Is Tressa out in the fields, Joan?’
‘Yes,’ she replied, hiding a pair of her voluminous drawers behind her back. ‘She went out with Ince first thing. It’s his turn to help her this morning.’
‘I’m glad she’s not here,’ he said, hopping about nervously. ‘I can do what I’m about to do better without her hanging about looking hopeful. I’ve received good news from the bank. All I’ve got to do now is get Jacka’s approval. Say a prayer for me.’
Jacka was reclining in his chair in front of the range in the kitchen. He had been advised to give up his pipe but he was taking one of his twice daily puffs.
‘You’re here then?’ Jacka said drily.
‘Yes, I’m here.’ Andrew had never felt so nervous. Jacka’s treatment of him varied, depending on his mood. When he was depressed he hardly said a word, unless it was to mutter grumpily. In lighter moods he’d expressed his gratitude for Andrew’s unpaid help and how he was trying to keep the roof over his family’s head, but he never mentioned Tressa and Andrew’s relationship, despite their obvious love for one another. He watched them like hawks, demanding Tressa stay close to him when not in the fields and giving them very little time together. It seemed a long time since Andrew had last kissed her more than hurriedly. But he had been happy to wait patiently for the news he’d received this morning. And if that hadn’t worked out, he would have suggested building another property in Kilgarthen. ‘Do you mind if I sit down for a minute, Jacka?’
Jacka nodded absentmindedly. ‘Free country.’
‘You’re probably wondering why I wasn’t here early enough to go out with Tressa this morning.’
‘No, she’s got enough help. You’ve got your own life to lead.’
‘I was waiting for this letter to arrive from the bank.’ Andrew produced it from his trouser pocket.
‘Oh?’ Jacka leaned forward, more interested now. ‘What does it say then?’
‘Well, as you know, they didn’t receive the postal order you sent them until several days after their deadline, the first of January. Although they acknowledge the postal order itself was dated late December, there is no proof of when you sent it, the postmark is smudged. They were sympathetic but insisted their deadlines must be honoured. They said they had received a good offer for the farm. I told them that whatever they had been offered, I would top it by five hundred pounds. This is what this letter is about. They’ve accepted my offer. Are you following me, Jacka?’
‘Aye, I think so. What does it mean?’
Andrew felt uncomfortable. ‘When I’ve signed the necessary papers, it means that Tregorlan Farm belongs to me.’
Jacka took his pipe out of his mouth and looked down at it dejectedly. ‘So after years of owning me own farm, you’re now my landlord.’
‘Better me than the other person who put in an offer,’ Andrew pointed out.
‘Who was that then?’
‘I don’t know and there’s no way of finding out. The reason why I’ve bought the farm…’ Suddenly Andrew had had enough of pussyfooting around. ‘You know why I’ve bought the farm, Jacka, and why I’ve stayed so long in Kilgarthen. I’m in love with Tressa. I adore her. I worship the ground she walks on. I can’t say it any plainer than that. Against my wildest dreams, she returns my love. We want to get married, Jacka, and we want to have your blessing. Joan knows how we feel and she’s happy for us and wants to see us married. I’ve given up my partnership in London and have taken on a new one in a law firm in Bodmin. I couldn’t leave Kilgarthen now any more than I could give up breathing. If Tressa and I get married, I’m sure we could all live here happily, with a bit of give and take. I’ll provide you, Joan and Tressa with
everything you want.’ As if he had run out of steam, Andrew stopped talking.
‘Have you finished?’ Jacka asked as if he was breathless too.
‘Yes, I—’
‘Thank goodness for that. Ruddy embarrassing listening to all that sort of stuff.’
‘Well? What do you say, Jacka?’
‘Tressa and Joan are all I’ve got.’ He puffed on his pipe and disappeared behind a cloud of smoke. Andrew wanted to wave his arms about and clear the air between them. ‘I wouldn’t give either of ’em up easily. I wasn’t keen on you being interested in my maid. I couldn’t see she leaving her way of life and being happy in London and although you said you might stay down here I was worried you weren’t really serious and you’d come to resent it. But if you’ve already changed your job, well, that shows me you’re determined to do right by Tressa. Like you said, ’tis better you owning the farm than someone else who’d evict us to farm it himself, and it means I haven’t got to move my old bones and start a new life and I won’t have no money worries any more.’
Jacka seemed to have stopped without completing his ruminations and Andrew was still in an agony of doubt. ‘Does that mean you won’t mind if Tressa and I get married?’
Jacka wrinkled up his face and rubbed his stubbly jaw. ‘You might as well, boy. You spend nearly every blinking day and night here anyway.’
Andrew still wasn’t sure until he saw Jacka grin. Then he leaped from his chair and pumped his future father-in-law’s hand. ‘You won’t regret this, Jacka. I’ll make Tressa happy, I promise. I’ll make all of us happy.’
Stopping to give Joan the good news as she came in from the garden, Andrew raced across the fields and moor to where Tressa and Ince were working with the cattle. She stopped working and ran to meet him. He gathered her up in his arms and swung her round and round until they fell over laughing in a dizzy heap.
Tressa held his face in both hands. ‘You’ve heard from the bank? And Dad’s said we can get married?’
Kilgarthen Page 39