Second Time Around (13 page)

“I don’t have a mother,” Halley refuted even as she read the card in her hand identifying the woman as Chantelle Baker, real estate agent.

“Well I didn’t find you under a cabbage,” Chantelle replied with a husky laugh that Halley instantly recognised. She felt suddenly sick and draped her hands protectively over her belly.

“How did you find me? What are you doing here?” she demanded, her face turning ashen.

“Can I come in?” Chantelle asked. “It’s a bit of a long story and you look like you need to sit down.”

Knowing she was right, Halley whispered something to Em who nodded and took off. Taking that as an invitation Chantelle opened the fly screen and stepped inside.

“She’s a very pretty girl. Your hair was that shade of blonde when you were younger,” Chantelle remarked as Em disappeared from sight.

“She’s our neighbour,” Halley informed her.

“Oh.”

The familiar childhood odour of stale cigarette smoke followed Chantelle inside and filled the entry. Casey sniffed then screwed up his face in distaste.

“Smoking kills,” he informed Chantelle self-righteously.

“Then don’t start smoking,” Chantelle retorted.

“This way,” Halley murmured and Chantelle started to follow her deeper into the house.

“Did you know that second hand smoke can also be deadly?” Casey asked, trailing after them.

“So can provoking your elders,” Chantelle muttered under her breath but Halley heard her. She glanced at Casey over her shoulder.

“Go and play now. We’re just going to talk,” she said.

With that information Casey peeled off and joined the others in the lounge.

“Don’t worry. He’s not a blood relation either,” Halley informed Chantelle, knowing how the woman thought.

“Good,” Chantelle said with grim satisfaction.

Halley led her into the dining room, pulled a chair out from the table and sat down. Chantelle sat on the chair that Halley had used as a step to the table.

“So what are you doing here?” Halley asked without preamble.

“What? No how lovely to see you?” Chantelle asked, feigning hurt.

Halley tried to cross her legs then gave up. Instead she settled for crossing her arms across the top of her stomach and waited.

“Oh fine,” Chantelle huffed. She slid her hand inside her jacket pocket.

“No smoking inside the house,” Halley said, knowing what she was reaching for.

Chantelle scowled and withdrew her hand.

“I thought it was long past time I caught up with my daughter and grandchildren,” she told Halley, shrewdly assessing her daughter’s reaction to that information.

Halley picked a piece of lint off her skirt.

“Try again,” she suggested.

Chantelle’s lips pressed into a thin line and Halley was taken by how much Chantelle had aged since she had last seen her. She knew that Chantelle wasn’t yet fifty but she looked a lot older. All the alcohol she had drunk over the years hadn’t done anything to preserve her, Halley observed, taking savage pleasure at the thought.

Chantelle reached into her pocket again. At Halley’s pointed stare she removed her hand again.

“Okay,” she grumbled. “I got a phone call from some lawyer who said that Krystal had died and that there was a will to sort out.”

“When did the lawyer get hold of you?” Halley asked.

“A couple of months ago,” Chantelle said candidly. I would have come sooner but I was in the middle of a few deals and I needed to be around to ensure I got my commission.”

She hadn’t changed at all, Halley thought, trying not to feel too disappointed. True to form Chantelle had put money ahead of the well-being of her orphaned grandchildren.

“Hey, it’s my livelihood,” Chantelle added, seemingly aware of the direction that Halley’s thoughts had headed. “If I don’t have money I don’t eat.”

Halley flicked the business card in her hand.

“So how long have you been doing this?” she asked with interest despite herself. The Chantelle she knew had been a life-long beneficiary with feelings of entitlement.

“Coming up to a decade now,” Chantelle said proudly.

Halley resentfully crumpled the card in her hand. It seemed that Chantelle had been doing well for herself, judging by the jewellery and expensive tailored clothes she wore. Despite that, Halley knew if she asked for financial assistance for the sake of the children until the will was settled Chantelle would cry poverty.

Recognising a few of the ruby and diamond rings on Chantelle’s fingers, Halley squeezed the card in her hand tighter. The rings had been paid by money she had earned from acting in the
Escape from Razxif
trilogy but because she had been a minor at the time her mother had appropriated her earnings for herself. If Krystal hadn’t separately banked the money Halley had earned while they had been under their grandmother’s care Chantelle would have taken it all.

The reminder that she had yet to find the details of the missing account ate at her. With the lawyer still dragging out his work on the will and no access to her savings her financial situation would soon be dire.

Oblivious to Halley’s thoughts, Chantelle continued.

“I had gotten used to having money and it was about the time that house prices started going crazy. Houses were selling as soon as they came on the market. When one of my friends complained about how much commission they were charged despite their house selling before it had even been advertised I took notice.” She gave a raspy laugh. “What other job in the world can have you earning more than a doctor or a lawyer with stuff all training required?”

“I take it you’re a great salesperson?” Halley said dryly.

“I’m one of the best,” Chantelle said with a self-satisfied smile that displayed whitened teeth beyond her red lipstick. “I’ll do whatever it takes to make the sale.”

“Is that how the lawyer found you?” Halley asked. “Through the agency you work for?”

“No. The paralegal got hold of me at the Tata,” she said, abbreviating the name of a well-known pub in the town where she lived. “She said I was the third Chantelle Baker she had tracked down on the electoral roll and by then it was after hours in New Zealand so on her boss’s orders she phoned the local pubs looking for me.”

She gave Halley an admonishing look.

“It wasn’t very nice having to learn of Krystal’s passing from a stranger instead of my own flesh and blood.”

Halley now strongly wished she had never made that suggestion to the lawyer. She could imagine how much extra he was adding to the bill for the calls when he could have waited another day and got her through her office.

“So here I am,” Chantelle finished with a laugh. She rubbed her thumb along her fingers, obviously wanting a cigarette.

“Did the lawyer explain that the will didn’t include you?” Halley asked, not bothering to be polite. “You’ve come a long way for nothing.”

“The lawyer told me that Krystal has three kids. Don’t you think that after coming all this way I could at least meet them?” Chantelle asked gruffly.

Despite now having a career, Halley didn’t think Chantelle had changed much. The lawyer had found her in a pub after all. Was it unreasonable for her to prevent Chantelle from at least meeting her grandchildren? She chewed her top lip in indecision.

“The air fare wasn’t cheap,” Chantelle cajoled, recalling Halley’s obsession over money. “And I came such a long way…”

“All right,” Halley snapped, struggling to her feet. Instead of helping her up Chantelle stood up and smiled in satisfaction as she waited for Halley to rise. “They’re all in the lounge.”

Halley was surprised that Chantelle waited for her to precede her into the hallway but didn’t know why she should be. Chantelle hadn’t been that keen on kids, even her own.

“Only one of them bites,” she warned, smiling to herself at the pencil lines on Chantelle’s head furrowing in concern. “But since she’s teething it’s understandable.”

The pencil lines returned to their surprised state.

Halley entered the lounge and was relieved to see that Em had propped Cassie up with the couch cushions as she had asked and was entertaining Cassie by handing her things to gnaw on as she watched an animated film on television. Cassie seemed happy so Halley decided not to dwell on how Em had managed to drag her there.

A plastic container full of Lego sat in the middle of the floor and Corey sat beside it, picking pieces off the top to add to the robot he was making. Casey sat on the couch with both remotes on his lap, watching the television.

Chantelle’s eyes locked on Corey.

“Is he…?”

“Yes, he’s your grandson,” Halley confirmed, not letting her finish the question.

Chantelle crossed the floor and stopped beside Corey, ignoring protests from Casey and Em telling her that she was blocking their view of the TV.

“Hello…” Chantelle glanced over at Halley and gave her a meaningful look.

“Corey,” Halley supplied.

“Hello Corey,” she said smoothly. “What are you making?”

“A robot,” Corey told her without looking up.

“What does it do?” Chantelle asked after a long pause.

“Stuff,” Corey said, swishing his hand around in the container noisily to search for the next piece he wanted.

“Shush!” Em and Casey hissed from their respective spots on the couch and floor, objecting to the sound. They had already become resigned to listening to the movie until Chantelle decided to move and now they were having difficulty doing that.

“Why don’t you tip that container out on the floor?” Chantelle suggested helpfully, ignoring Em and Casey. “Then it would be easier to find the bit you want.”

“But then Cassie might get hold of a piece and choke,” Corey told her, finally looking up. He inhaled then wrinkled his nose. “What’s that smell?”

“Perfume,” Chantelle told him grandly.

“I thought perfume was supposed to smell nice,” Corey said ingenuously, giving the air another tentative sniff.

“It’s probably cigarette smoke you can smell,” Halley informed him from across the room.

Corey gave a disgusted look.

“Only suckers smoke,” he told Chantelle.

Chantelle’s lips pursed as she looked at Halley in accusation.

Halley shrugged, not bothering to hide the smile that appeared.

“Who am I to disagree with what they learn in school?” she said, enjoying herself.

Corey shuffled on his knees around to the other side of the container, putting more distance between himself and Chantelle. Chantelle got the message. Unwilling to completely give up she spied Cassie on the floor accepting a ring of plastic keys from Em.

“Is she?”

“Yes,” Halley replied reluctantly.

She watched as Chantelle plucked Cassie from the cushions and set the baby on her hip, wishing that she had just fed Cassie. Halley was pretty sure that Chantelle would be in a hurry to give her back if Cassie threw up over her.

“I had to check whether she was one of Krystal’s,” Chantelle said, her gaze taking in the other children in the room meaningfully. “You seem to be collecting them.”

Halley didn’t bother replying. Instead she left the room, hoping that Chantelle would follow and leave the children to watch the movie in peace.

Chantelle unknowingly obliged and followed Halley into the kitchen.

“She looks just like Krystal,” Chantelle gushed, stroking Cassie’s plump cheek while Halley prepared a bottle of formula.

“Except she has blue eyes and fair hair,” Halley couldn’t resist pointing out. Krystal’s eyes had been brown and her hair a darker shade of brown.

“Well, yes. Except for that,” Chantelle conceded.

Halley wasn’t certain why Chantelle seemed determined to hang around when it was clear everyone was indifferent to her presence. She knew Chantelle well enough to know that she was not sentimental or at all maternal. There had to be another reason behind her visit. As far as Halley was concerned the sooner she learned what it was the sooner Chantelle could go.

“I’ll feed her,” Chantelle announced when the bottle was ready. She held out a hand and wiggled her fingers.

“Maybe you should sit down first,” Halley suggested.

One of Chantelle’s brows rose until it was covered by her brassy blonde hair.

“I do know what I’m doing,” she snapped.

“Fine,” Halley retorted and handed the bottle over.

Chantelle backed against the kitchen bench and held the bottle to Cassie’s mouth. The baby latched onto the teat and started sucking vigorously. Chantelle sent Halley a triumphant smirk.

As Cassie continued to drink Chantelle’s eyebrows began to furrow.

“I thought that Krystal had three kids,” she said. “Where’s the other one?”

“Casey’s in the lounge,” Halley told her as she cleaned up.

“The one with red hair like Sideshow Bob?” Chantelle asked after a moment. “There’s no way we’re related.”