Ben and Rosie met us halfway down the driveway. They had been trudging up to the house as Layla and I were making our way into town. ‘Merry Christmas,’ Ben cried out, planting a kiss on my cheek. ‘We’ve got no power and Mum is having a small breakdown as my oven is electric.’
‘We’ve not got any power either,’ I said, before wishing Rosie a Merry Christmas and high-fiving her. ‘Come to ours for Christmas lunch.’
Ben looked at me. ‘We can’t do that: we put you to enough trouble yesterday.’
I arched my eyebrows. ‘Ben, I love cooking. We have two giant wood-burning Agas and a gas hob. You can be my cooking assistant.’
His face lit up. ‘Really?’
I nodded. ‘Get your mum and come up. Bring candles.’
Rosie cheered. ‘I can give Humph-Wee my present for him.’
‘Okay,’ said Ben, ‘I’ll go get Mum and candles. Are you going to see who else has no power?’
‘Yes, will be back in a bit.’
Layla and I made our way into the village. The snow was deep in places and driving was going to be difficult as the roads had not been cleared. As we walked, we looked out for lights on in houses. To our dismay everywhere looked dark and gloomy.
As we reached the bakery, I saw Darren coming out of the shop door. He looked harassed and was holding the hand of his two emotional twins.
‘Power has gone,’ he snapped. ‘We live above the bakery. Abi is in hospital as the baby came early yesterday and she’s being kept in until tomorrow. The twins are having a meltdown because there is no Christmas TV and at this rate there will be no dinner.’
I staggered towards him and gave him a hug. ‘Come to the manor house. Bring the kids. Rosie is coming so they can all play together. I am cooking. We have more than enough food.’
Frank could stick his wish to keep the locals away from his manor house where the sun doesn’t shine. It was Christmas and people needed us.
Darren’s eyes widened. ‘Seriously?’
I nodded. ‘Definitely. Ben is going up now so he will be there when you arrive.’
Kneeling in the snow I smiled at his two tear-stained twins. ‘Fancy playing hide and seek in a big house today?’
They both cheered. ‘Can we go to Narnia?’
We all laughed, and I stood up. ‘Get yourselves over there.’
Darren smiled. ‘Thanks, Rachel, this means a lot to me.’
Layla and I made our way along the high street. It was eerily quiet. As we were about to turn back, I noticed the blonde woman who was the daughter of Mrs Hall, the lady I had rescued. She was coming along the road. ‘Bloody power cut,’ she snapped. ‘Mum’s home from hospital and we have no bloody power.’
Out of the corner of my eye I noticed Layla flicking her eyes to the floor. The woman stared at me. ‘You’re the woman who rescued Mum – aren’t you?’
I nodded. ‘She’s okay then?’
The woman nodded. ‘Broke her arm but she’s okay. I can’t thank you enough.’ She outstretched her hand and smiled. ‘I’m Vanessa.’
Every part of me clenched. So, this was the infamous Vanessa. She was attractive with bushy blonde hair, a golden tan and sparkling blue eyes. There was no contest on beauty between her and Maddie though: my sister was far superior in terms of looks.
Layla was still looking at the ground and I recalled what Layla had told me about Vanessa and her son Ryan. I thought about Denise, the lies she had spread about Ben, and how her son had made Rosie sad.
‘Rachel,’ I said, ‘I’m Maddie Baxter’s sister.’ My old voice had returned. The tough voice I once used to stop a gang of girls from bullying Maddie at school. The stern voice I used to tell drunken blokes to stop being rude to me when I was serving them hot food at festivals. The powerful voice I used when I told Mum I was going to turn an old van into a mobile kitchen.
The strong and assertive voice that I lost when I started listening to Mum.
An uncomfortable silence descended. Vanessa’s eyes flicked to the snow. She cleared her throat and lifted her gaze to mine. ‘Oh, so you’re her sister. I have been hearing a lot about you. You and an older woman came into my pub looking for trouble.’
‘I have heard a lot about you, Vanessa,’ I said, shifting my weight and leaning on one hip. ‘I knoweverythingso there’s nothing you can say that will shock me.’
