The Way to a Woman's Heart (8 page)

‘Not a problem for me,’ Ella said, spreading pâté on a chunk of bread.

Ash nodded. ‘Not for me, either.’

And thank goodness for that, Poll exhaled. So far so very good. In a minute she’d be able to tell Ella – and now Ash as well – exactly what her plans were. But not just yet, not while things were going so well. Best stay on safe ground for the time being. Food. She’d stick with food.

Poll smiled at Ella. ‘So, what sort of puddings do you like to cook?’

‘Rich, old-fashioned ones. Huge gooey ones. With oodles of cream and sugar and real custard. I used to drive my size-zero housemates crazy! Eve’s pudding, Midsummer pie, real Victorian trifle, Manchester tart – that sort of thing.’

‘Fantastic.’ Ash raised his eyebrows at Ella. ‘All this retro stuff is very fashionable at the moment, and they’re definitely some of my favourite puds. I can see we’ll all have to join Weight Watchers before long. Are you self-taught?’

‘Yep. My gran taught me how to cook all those, and
more, when I was a kid. I just watched her, then helped, then went solo.’

‘The best way to learn anything.’ Poll slowly buttered another chunk of bread. The butter spread itself amongst her beads as she leaned forwards. Ella was certainly full of surprises. ‘They sound wonderful and, as Ash and I are more savoury cooks, we’re going to make a great cooking combination. And I love old-fashioned recipes. You’ll have to teach me some of your favourites.’

Ella nodded happily. ‘Of course, but will I have time? With everything you want me to do… ? Which is obviously looking after George – but what else exactly? What exactly haven’t you told me about?’

Poll laughed. ‘Ah, yes. I really can’t put it off any longer can I? And maybe it’s as well that Ash is here too as he doesn’t actually know any of this either.’

Reaching under the table, she produced a battered box file.

‘Don’t look so worried, Ella. I only lied by omission. I honestly do want someone to help with George, but not because I intend to be a lady of leisure who lunches while you skivvy – far from it. I know that’s what the ad sounded like, but what I really want is for you to share in my dream.’

‘Dream? What dream? I don’t remember anything about a dream in the advert.’

‘Sorry. I told you I went about everything the wrong way round. Right, well, my inherited money – another long story which I’ll tell you one day – like everyone else’s, has taken a bit of a knock in the credit crunch years, so I know
that I’ll need to make sure there’s plenty left for George. Which means earning some to make up the deficit. As I’m totally unemployable I thought I could do something to earn money while also helping other people. So I decided to marry the two together.’

Ella and Ash exchanged confused frowns.

Poll handed the file to Ella. ‘Maybe if you just look at these first.’

Still completely bemused, Ella flicked through the papers. There were masses of newspaper cuttings, copious notes and dozens of letters. It would take weeks to study them in any depth.

She looked up at Poll. ‘Could you give me a clue about what I’m supposed to be looking for? At a quick glance these all seem to be stories about people who’ve been in the news for various misdemeanours.’

‘Not necessarily,’ Poll said, leaning across the table and lifting out the top sheaf of papers. ‘Some have, of course, and I discarded those. I spent ages collecting this information from news programmes and the press, and even longer sifting out the wrong’uns. And in the end I made my decision, so please read these.’

As the sun spiralled overhead and one of the cats wove its sinuous way round her feet in the table’s shade, Ella skimmed through the papers. Eventually she looked up.

‘OK, so as far as I can see these people have got absolutely nothing in common, except they’ve been in the news this year for, well, for being antisocial… I’m sorry, but I still don’t understand…’

Poll sighed. ‘They do have one thing in common – as have all the poor people in those reports – they’ve lost their lives and their homes. Oh, Ella, you’ve no idea how much heartache there is out there. It was so hard to choose…’

‘Choose?’

‘Mmm.’ Poll nodded. ‘I had so many sleepless nights trying to pick the ones who really, really needed my help. I could only pick three to start with, of course, but hopefully one day, with more income, I’ll be able to expand. Then there was George to consider. I couldn’t expose him to anything or anyone who might cause, well, problems.’

‘No, of course you couldn’t. So, are you going to sponsor them or something? Make a donation to Shelter on their behalf or what? I still don’t understand where I come in.’

‘You will. Don’t you see? These people have lost everything. Through no fault of their own. Which is why I’ve invited them to live here.’

‘
What
?’ Ella nearly fell off her chair. ‘
Live
?
Here
? At Hideaway Farm?’

Poll nodded, smiling hugely. ‘Yes. It’s the one thing I can do. I can make a difference. I’ve got everything I’d ever dreamed of now, but most of my early life was pretty rubbishy and I never thought I’d find this sort of happiness. These people deserve a second chance too. I’ve got all this room here – so now I can give it to them.’

‘Unbelievable,’ Ash breathed.

Ella wasn’t so easily impressed. ‘By taking them in? To live at Hideaway Farm? Are you mad? They’re all weird, and dangerous…’

‘They’re not. I promise you. I’ve met them – so has George and my solicitor.’

Ash looked interested. ‘So am I in there too?’

‘You are.’ Poll nodded. ‘Yours was the first case I found. You were the first person I contacted.’

‘And thank goodness you did. I was at rock bottom. I’ll never stop being grateful to you.’

Ella shook her head. ‘OK, I understand about why Ash lost his home, but who are the others? And why… ?’

‘Just two more to start with, and they’re both lovely.’

‘Two more?’ Ella queried. ‘Ah, right, the mysterious Billy and Trixie?’

Poll beamed. ‘Ten out of ten. And of course I’ve had them properly checked out and vetted – police checks, criminal records and everything. They’re misunderstood and currently unhappy and a bit confused by the bad hand life has dealt them, but not dangerous or weird.’

‘Really? Everyone in this file sounds pretty scarily weird to me.’ Ella glanced quickly at Ash. ‘Present company excepted, of course.’

‘Of course,’ Ash chuckled, filling their glasses with more iced juice.

Ella smiled. ‘Thanks. OK. So, you’re going to turn Hideaway Farm into a refuge, and you want me to… ?’

‘Do exactly what I advertised for. To look after George so that I can make sure I give everyone the best start possible at Hideaway. I don’t want this to disrupt George in any way at all. So, you’re here as a mother’s help – it was only the
reason
I left out of the ad.’

‘Amazing,’ Ash said before Ella could answer. ‘Poll, that’s just wonderful.’

Ella frowned. ‘Well, yes, it is – or at least in theory – but how will it work?’

Poll took a long drink. ‘Easily, I hope. Ash knows this bit. I’m going to let them make Hideaway Farm their new home. I’ll be their landlady and they’ll pay me whatever rent they can afford according to their current circumstances, which will give me the regular income I need, and they can get on with working or whatever, and rebuilding their lives.’

Ella was still in a state of shock. ‘So, let me get this straight – are they moving in with all their stuff? Furniture and things? Lock, stock and barrel?’

‘I’ve fully furnished their rooms because none of them had many possessions, but of course they’ll be bringing whatever bits and pieces they have to make them feel at home. We’ve already discussed what they’d need, and worked all that out.’

‘And is Hideaway going to be their permanent home?’

‘It’ll be whatever they want it to be. My solicitor has dealt with all the tenancy agreements and health and safety and boring legalese stuff. We’ve settled on a six-month period to start with. They may want to stay longer, they may well have found their feet and a new home by that time. Anyone who moves out will be replaced by another poor soul needing my help.’

‘Wow. Like Ash said, you’re amazing… mad, but amazing. Most people would run a mile from doing something like this.’

‘I’m not most people, as you’ve probably gathered,’ Poll
chuckled. ‘And I’m a pretty awful housekeeper so with all these extra people living here I knew I’d have to have some help with George so that his life stayed stable, and I wanted someone who would understand. Someone, like you, who wanted to change their lifestyle too.’

‘Well, I’m relieved that’s all it is. I’d imagined all sorts of things, but certainly not this…’ Ella looked across the table at Poll. ‘So, as well as Ash, you’ve invited Billy, er, Booker – a failed small businessman with kleptomaniac tendencies?’

‘Wrongly accused,’ Poll said stoutly, her eyes growing misty. ‘Poor Billy, such a lovely man. He’s a widower and he had his own small bakery business which went bust in the recession. He was living in social housing. Awful rabbit hutch flats. Stuff went missing from the other residents, and turned up in Billy’s flat. Food mostly. Billy’s an absolute sweetheart so someone obviously planted the things on him. But he was evicted after being branded antisocial – and with no family and no income except his tiny pension and nowhere else to go, he was inches away from living on the streets and simply
needed
me.’

‘Poor bloke.’ Ash looked shocked.

‘Or, ‘ Ella said, ‘he might really be light-fingered, a liar, greedy and unpleasant to boot.’

‘Ella…’ Poll shook her head. ‘You don’t mean that. You wait until you meet him. You’ll adore him.’

‘OK, I’ll suspend judgement.’ Ella smiled at Poll. ‘I just hope you’re not being taken for a ride. So, that’s Billy. What about Trixie?’ She looked down at the next sheaf of papers. ‘Oh, yes – Trixie Pepper, a middle-aged woman who’s –
What
? No way! An
arsonist
… ?’

Ash laughed.

Ella looked at him. ‘It’s not funny. That’s what it says here.’

‘Alleged – nothing proved – and you’ll really like her,’ Poll interrupted quickly. ‘Poor Trixie. She lived in a grace and favour cottage in the grounds of some big house – she was the cook/housekeeper – and sadly let one of her concoctions catch on one night while she was – and this’ll make you laugh – glued to watching
Dewberrys’ Dinners
.’

Ash frowned. ‘
Catch on
?’

‘Oh, yes – poor Trixie – she was absolutely entranced by the latest goings-on between Gabby and Tom Dewberry and took her eye off the ball so to speak. She was lucky to get out alive. The cottage was razed to the ground. Apparently it wasn’t the first time she’d set fire to things by lacking concentration, so they terminated her employment just like that.’

‘Not surprising,’ Ella said sharply. ‘Pyromania is probably not one of the top qualities anyone would be looking for in a cook/housekeeper.’

Poll giggled. ‘I know – maybe we’ll have to keep a discreet eye on her when she’s here if she’s a tad forgetful in the kitchen.’

‘Or be burned alive in our beds.’

‘That won’t happen. I’ve got George to think about. The whole thing was overexaggerated anyway,’ Poll said firmly. ‘Goodness me, haven’t we all done the same thing when we’ve been distracted while cooking?’

‘Not destroyed an entire house, no,’ Ash said doubtfully.

Ella sucked in her breath. ‘Dear God!’

‘What?’ Poll frowned.

Ella’s finger jabbed at the page. ‘This Trixie, not only is she an arsonist – OK,
alleged
arsonist – but it says here in the newspaper cuttings that she blamed the
fairies
for the fire… She must be completely mad.’

‘No, she isn’t. Don’t take things so literally. Just some nasty chit-chat around the village she lived in. Trixie was well known for believing in the little folk… and where’s the harm in that? Plenty of people do. Apparently everyone said she brewed herbal tinctures and experimented with a few fairy-led incantations when she was cooking. When we met, she said that the wicked fairies had given her the wrong measurements which meant her timings were all awry and that’s why the pan caught fire –’

‘Absolute crap!’ Ella exploded.

Poll laughed. ‘Nice to see you’re keeping an open mind. Actually, Trixie also said that she thought a bad elf –’

‘Oh, Poll,’ Ash spluttered, ‘come on. Bad elves and wicked fairies, please…’

‘You and I may not believe in fairies – although I’m not entirely sure about me – but if Trixie does, and it makes her happy, then who are we to point fingers?’

‘But she blamed the fairies for setting fire to her house!’ Ella snorted. ‘Which means she’s totally barking and won’t take any responsibility for anything because she can always blame it on the fairies. I think she sounds like one huge risk.’

‘Which is exactly what everyone once said about Mitzi Blessing in Hazy Hassocks.’

‘Mitzi Blessing?’

‘Oh, you’ll love Mitzi. Everyone does. She’s become quite
a good friend since I moved here. And, come to think of it, she’s got a couple of lovely girls working with her who’re roughly about your age. Amber Flanagan and Cleo Maguire. We’ll have to get you together. You’ll need some youngsters to pal up with locally. I’m sure you’ll be itching to get out on the town before too long.’