Family Secrets (7 page)

She
felt that odd little shiver of fear again.

“Trouble
- why should I…?” But she took the card he proffered and stowed it carefully in her handbag. “Thanks, I’ll do that.”

Presently,
he got to his feet. “Thanks for the soup, Rhia. It really hit the spot. Now I must dash but I’ll see you at breakfast tomorrow.”

She
felt an unexpected pang of disappointment that he couldn’t accompany them that afternoon. She sat there for a few minutes staring into space and wondering what exactly he had been warning her about.

*

That afternoon was a lovely nostalgic trip down memory lane for Letitia. Periodically, Rhianna parked the car so that her grandmother could point something out to her.

“That
field over there is where Joe had a picnic with his friends on his tenth birthday. We knew the farmer, you see. It was such a happy occasion. It was a sunny July day and the children were in their element. Afterwards, they had a game of rounders.”

As
she looked across the field, Rhianna could almost see the children running about and hear their laughter.

“So,
did Dad go to the local school,” she wanted to know.

“Oh,
yes, and he passed the eleven plus and went to the grammar. He was such a bright child…Oh, look there’s the little stream where the kiddies came to paddle and fish. They caught quantities of those tiny things –
tiddlers
they called them, but they threw them back.”

On
the way to the farm shop they stopped yet again - this time so that Letitia could point out a wood.

“I often used to bring your father here when he was a boy. We had such lovely rambles. It’s abundant in wildlife and your father loved it here. One evening, we stayed out later than we intended and we came across a family of badgers playing beneath the trees.”

In
her mind’s eye, Rhianna could visualise the scene.

“Your
grandfather and I did our courting here,” Letitia confided, her eyes lighting up as the memories flooded back. “In spring there are primroses and later, in May, bluebells like a sea of shimmering blue. You’ll have to come here with your paintbrush, Rhianna.”

“Who needs a paintbrush when you’ve painted such a wonderful word picture,” she told her grandmother with a smile.

“I
taught your father to value the simple things in life.”

“And
he always did,” Rhianna assured her. “Now, I know where he got his love of nature from. He passed it on to me. We went for long country walks too.”

Presently,
they pulled up at the farm shop.

“Now,
the big barn at the back is still used for dances in the summer. That’s where your father used to go when he was a teenager…”

Letitia
trailed off and Rhianna wondered if she had been about to mention who he’d taken to those dances. Her father had been a good-looking man, so it would come as no surprise to her to learn that there had been other girlfriends before he’d met her mother. But, Rhianna knew that from the time he’d met her mother, she had been the one true love of his life.

They
wandered round the shop and Letitia took pleasure in selecting her fruit and vegetables. Rhianna made a few purchases too and stowed them in the boot of her car.

The
café at the farm-shop overlooked an orchard. It was a pleasant place serving traditional afternoon teas.

“I
haven’t been here for ages,” Letitia said, as she buttered her scone.

“I
think Tina and Laurie brought me on one occasion. It was summer and we sat out on the terrace. It’s such a peaceful spot, isn’t it?”

“It
certainly is,” Rhianna agreed, again wondering why Tina and Lawrence had split up. She sounded a restless, discontented sort of person used to getting her own way.

“Life
throws up unexpected surprises sometimes, doesn’t it Rhianna? I’ve had such a delightful few days and I’m going to miss you dreadfully when you go home.”

“Oh,
I’ll miss you too, Letitia,” Rhianna assured her, “But now that we’ve found each other, we’ll keep in touch.”

She
was going to miss Lawrence too, she decided, but that was a different matter entirely.

*

On Wednesday morning, Lawrence encountered Rhianna trundling her suitcase along the corridor towards the stairs.

“Hi,
can I carry that for you or are you one of those independent feminist types who prefer to grit their teeth and carry on - even if it kills them?”

Rhianna
laughed. “I certainly am, but that doesn’t mean to say I don’t appreciate help when it comes to negotiating winding staircases.”

He
picked up the case and carried it effortlessly downstairs and out to her car.

“I hope we’ll be seeing more of each other in the future, Rhia.” And, stooping, he kissed her gently on the cheek.

“Yes,
I hope so too,” she told him, resisting the urge to reach up and touch the spot where his lips had been.

He
stood there waving as she drove away and she fancied her heartbeat quickened.

*

When Rhianna arrived at
Wisteria
Lodge
, Irene whipped open the door.

“Did
you catch up with that guy who was looking for you?” she wanted to know.

Rhianna
stared at her fearfully. “What guy?”

“That
reporter chap. He interviewed Mavis just as she was leaving the hospital and came into the post office and saw Lizzie and me, but we didn’t know where you were.”

Rhianna
gasped with relief. “Irene you nearly gave me a heart attack. I thought you meant someone more sinister.”

“Sorree
– his mate took oceans of pictures. Fame at last! Mind you, I wouldn’t like to go through that again in a hurry!”

“Nor
me,” Rhianna said with a shiver.

Letitia
was in the sitting-room, Tansy on her lap.

“Oh,
I’m so glad you’ve come. I’ve sorted out a couple of keepsakes you might like to have, dear. Things that belonged to your father.”

She handed Rhianna a flat package. “Save it to open until you get home. I wanted to show you his room, but it’ll keep until we’re alone.”

They
chatted about a variety of things and, presently, Irene brought in a tray of coffee. She refused to stay and have a cup with them, saying she needed to pick up Lizzie’s small son from nursery shortly.

“Irene’s
an absolute treasure,” Letitia told Rhianna when she’d gone. “She’s agreed to come up here a couple of mornings a week to help me out, as I believe I told you. I think it’ll work out really well.”

It
was a tearful parting. Letitia hugged Rhianna who told her, “I’ll be back before you know it and - when I come next time - I’ll bring you some prints of the photographs I’ve taken.”

Letitia
smiled and wiped away a tear. “Well, I’ve got Laurie coming to see me this afternoon. I’m so fortunate. Only a short while ago I had no-one in my life and now I’ve got the pair of you.”

Rhianna
hugged her back. “I feel the same way,” she told her sincerely. “I thought I was the last of the line when Dad died, but now I’ve discovered I’ve got a grandmother.”

She kissed the elderly lady and made more promises to come again.

Chapter Six

The drive back to Hertfordshire was uneventful. Rhianna decided to pop into the gallery on the way home.

“Am
I pleased to see you,” Fiona told her. “It’s been manic here.”

Rhianna
poured some coffee and they sat down at one of the tables. Fiona gave her an update on what had been happening during the past few days and filled her in about Friday’s workshop.

“We’ve
still got several boxes of mugs and plates left over from last time and I’ve ordered more eggcups and dishes. The suppliers assure me they’ll be here on time. We’ve been inundated with requests – oh and Matthew’s sold another painting.”

Rhianna’s
eyes widened. “Another one! Wow! He will be pleased. His work is proving popular.”

“Certainly
is…Now, before you tell me all about your trip, you’d better listen to this…We’ve had one or two weird phone calls,” Fiona informed her.

A
shiver ran along Rhianna’s spine. “What sort of weird?”

“Asking
for Ms Soames. I told the first caller firmly that no one of that name was here, but the second one was more persistent so I put the phone down.”

Rhianna gasped. “Oh, my goodness! This is a nightmare! If only Letitia hadn’t called me
Soames
. I’m sure that’s why people keep asking for me.”

“I’m
afraid that’s not all – there was a visitor,” Fiona said dramatically.

Rhianna
frowned. “How d’you mean –
a
visitor
? We often have visitors.”

“This
one was from the press – the chap said he had a friend in Kent who’d obviously tipped him off about the raid – wanted to know where Miss Soames was. Don’t worry; I didn’t give you away – stuck to my story.”

“Thanks
. So those people who phoned up – were they from the press too?”

Fiona
spread her hands. “Possibly – no idea... Anyway, let’s forget about it. Look, why don’t you come round to supper at mine tonight? Dave’s got a darts match with his mates.”

Rhianna
suddenly felt tired. The emotional time of last few days was catching up with her.

“Thanks
but there are a few things I ought to do.”

Seeing
Fiona’s disappointed face she said, “Tell you what – come to me. We’ll have a take-away and some more catch-up time.”

“OK
- and you can tell me all about the gorgeous Laurie.”

*

The gorgeous Laurie was sharing a tray of tea with Letitia, even as Fiona spoke.

“She’s
a truly lovely girl, Laurie,” Letitia told him warmly.

He
nodded, “She certainly seems to be. I’m pleased it’s working out for you.”

“It
seems Joe hadn’t said anything to her about what happened all those years ago,” she said slowly.

“And
I take it you haven’t told her either?” he prompted gently.

She
twisted her hands in her lap. “No, not yet. We need to get to know each other a bit more before then. Our relationship is still rather – fragile.”

He
gave her a searching glance. “And is ours, Tish?”

Her
head shot up. “No, of course not - whatever makes you say that, Laurie? Oh, I think I see where you’re coming from.”

He
nodded. “You didn’t tell myself or Tina what caused the rift between Rhianna’s father and Reg.”

There
was sadness in her eyes. She stroked Tansy absently.

“No
– well, sometimes things are best left unsaid, and it was all a long time ago. There was enough upset then and I don’t want it to happen again.”

He
nodded. “I understand your sentiments, but I suspect that this time you might have to rake up the past in order to move forward.”

Letitia
knew that he was talking sense. She sighed. “Yes, maybe you’re right. Oh, dear some decisions can be very difficult, can’t they?”

“Absolutely
- such as who’s going to have that last scone. Shall we cut it in half?”

*

When Rhianna got home, she had an urge to go upstairs to look at the picture of Anna Soames. It was beginning to hold a strange fascination for her. It was already dark and the attic was not well lit, so she decided to wait for another day.

She unpacked, sorted out a pile of laundry for the wash and leafed through the mail which was mainly junk.

She
was just about to ring her grandmother when she suddenly remembered the keepsake Letitia had given her. It would be better to take a look first so that she could thank her properly.

She made a cup of tea and curled up on the sofa. She opened the package carefully. Inside, she found a sketch-book, a thick school exercise book labelled in bold writing,
Joseph
Delroy
,
Nature
Study
, and a pen and pencil set engraved with her father’s name.

The
tears flowed as she examined them. All these years her grandmother had kept them. Had she hoped that one day she would be reunited with her son?

The
sketches mostly had dates on the bottom and had obviously been from her father’s art college days. There were two or three pencil drawings of a very lovely young woman and Rhianna didn’t need to be told that the model was Anna Soames.

As
she closed the book a photograph fell out. It was of a group of young people all laughing at some joke. She didn’t recognise any of them at first, and then she picked out her father and, standing next to him, an attractive woman who had to be Anna. On the other side of her was Henry Parsons, Rhianna’s godfather.

When she turned the photograph over she discovered a list of names which confirmed she’d guessed accurately.

After
a while, she picked up the phone to her grandmother.

“Hallo,
Letitia. Just to let you know I got back safely.”

“That’s
good. Oh, I’ve had such a lovely afternoon chatting with Laurie – he’s only just gone. I hadn’t realised how late it was. How was your journey, dear?”

“Fine
– Letitia thank you so much for the keepsakes. I’ll really treasure them - especially the photograph?”

“Photograph?
What photograph, dear?” Letitia sounded puzzled.

“The
one that was in the sketchbook. It’s got a number of names on the back, but the only people I recognise are my father, Anna Soames and Henry Parsons.”

“Well,
fancy that. I must have overlooked it. Henry Parsons – I remember him really well. He was one of your father’s friends from Art College. He often came to stay. So they kept in touch, did they?”

“Yes, until I was about twelve. Henry was my godfather – still is, I suppose, but he and his wife live in New Zealand now.”

“Really
– he was such a nice young man. And you say there are names on the back of this photograph. Would you read them out to me, dear?”

Rhianna
obliged and periodically her grandmother stopped her and told her a bit about the people she remembered.

“Well,
of course you already know a bit about Anna. They were all friends together but most of them have moved away from Brookhurst now.”

*

It was a strange feeling, Rhianna thought, as she tidied away and ordered a Chinese takeaway. All these people her father had once known and she had never heard of. Of course, there was Henry Parsons. Perhaps she would email him sometime.

Oh
Dad - if only you were around so that you could tell me what happened all those years ago. It must have been pretty bad to make you pretend to us that you no longer had any parents.

As
they sat over their Chinese meal, Fiona filled her in a bit more about the online business and what else had been going on at the gallery.

“I’ve
had a few enquiries about your decoupage classes. People wanting to make cards for
Mother’s
Day
or
Easter
. It’s a golden opportunity, Rhia. Couldn’t you do a taster class perhaps?”

“That’s
a great idea. You’re a genius, Fi.”

“Now
it’s your turn,” Fiona said when they had finalised the arrangements for Friday and she’d told her friend about a couple of outings she’d had with Dave. “I want a blow by blow account of what happened.”

Rhianna
helped herself to some more sweet and sour chicken and gave her an edited version. Fiona’s eyes widened as she mentioned the CID searching the cottage.

“And
you’re still none the wiser about why your father cut himself off from his parents?” she asked at length.

“Nope.
But I’m just wondering if my god-father in New Zealand might know anything. I was only a small girl when he emigrated and we only contact each other at Christmas usually, but he was a friend of Dad’s.”

“On
the other hand, it might be best to let sleeping dogs lie,” Fiona said cryptically. “But you can tell me about the gorgeous Laurie. Now that you’ve discovered he’s not the enemy… did you see much of him?”

It
was an unfortunate choice of words. A little smile played about Rhianna’s lips, as she thought of her encounter with Lawrence outside the bathroom at
The
White
Unicorn
. She’d seen a fair bit of him then!

“What?”
Fiona demanded, chopsticks suspended on the way to her mouth.

“Well,
there was one incident…”

Fiona
was all agog but Rhianna told her about the episode at the house they went to visit and the woman with the rolling pin

Fiona
gave her knowing look. “Why do I get the feeling you’re holding out on me? You were staying in the same pub. Did you eat with him?"

Rhianna
nodded. “We had a meal at the Vicarage. Tim and Myra Holt are a really great couple.”

Fiona
threw a handful of prawn crackers at her friend in exasperation.

“That
wasn’t what I meant and you know it!”

“Oh,
Laurie and I got on well enough. But we haven’t known each other for more than five minutes.”

Suddenly
Rhianna didn’t want to discuss Laurie. She swept up the empty containers and took them into the kitchen.

When
she returned with coffee and a couple of chocolate mousses that she’d found lurking at the back of the fridge, approaching their sell by date, Fiona was leafing through the sketchbook Letitia had given her.

“These
are quite something, aren’t they Rhia? Would you consider having another exhibition of your father’s work sometime?”

“Possibly,
but that sketchbook wouldn’t be included. It’s too precious.”

She
plucked it from Fiona’s hands and placed it on the table.

Their
conversation turned to lighter topics and, presently, Fiona jumped to her feet. “I said I’d join Dave and the guys for a drink at the pub. Their match should be over by now. Fancy coming with me?”

Rhianna
declined and, after Fiona had left, took yet another look at the sketches of Anna Soames, as if by doing so she could find the answer to the puzzle that seemed to be niggling away at the back of her mind.

Her parents had always had such a good loving relationship and the three of them had been a complete family. She had never had any reason to question anything about her father’s past before, but now one or two doubts were creeping in and she wished they would go away.

*

On Friday morning, Rhianna and Fiona stood looking around them. The gallery was all set up for the workshop. They had sufficient spaces for twenty children and a number of adults.

“Well, we’re all prepared,” Fiona said, peering out of the window. “Stand back ready for take-off. Here they come!”

Rhianna
enjoyed these sessions. It was lovely watching the joy on the children’s’ faces when they’d achieved something creative. Several of the parents, mostly mums, congregated at one end of the gallery for a chat over coffee; others joined in with their offspring.

A
number of the children had been before and, after a brief talk from Rhianna and Fiona, settled busily to their tasks. Most had plenty of ideas and those who got stuck were provided with sheets of designs to trace or copy. It was a noisy, happy atmosphere, well organised and yet informal.

Rhianna
had just come back downstairs with a couple of boxes of supplies. As she reached the bottom step, she saw Fiona settling a small chestnut-haired girl on a stool. Lawrence was smiling down at her.