A huge school of pilot whales had breached on the shore on the island of Sanday and it was all-hands-on-deck if they were going to save any of the poor creatures. Kate managed to swallow her disappointment and tell Delima that she understood completely.
“What about the babies? Do you want us to bring them with the girls?”
Delima replied regretfully, “They really are too young for us not to be with them. Just like their father, they get tetchy if their routine is disturbed. Normally, I would ask you or Evie to come over to be with them, but obviously not on the night of Freya’s party. Caroline, one of the volunteers at the sanctuary, is a bit gormless, but she’s done some babysitting for us before and the kids know her, so she has stepped in.”
She hesitated, “Kate, I haven’t heard from Evie since all that upset last week. I keep reaching for the phone to call her and then I realise I don’t know what to say.”
Kate sighed, “Well, if it helps at all she hasn’t been in touch with us either. To be honest, I’m fuming with her. She was totally out of order shouting the odds and upsetting us all like that.”
Delima tutted, “It’s all just so sad. I hate it when friends fall out and this really isn’t like Evie. Although she has been acting so weird lately.” She heard Jack shouting that the boat was ready to set off for Sanday.
“I need to go, Kate. I’m sorry to let Freya down, but this really is a disaster. We are going to do our best, but no one has seen anything like it, and I am so scared we won’t be able to save any of the whales.”
“Don’t worry, Freya will understand. It can’t be helped. Keep in touch and let me know what’s happening. Good luck.”
Delima hung up and rushed off to where Jack was waiting impatiently to set off.
“Fuck!” yelled Kate, when she slammed the phone down. “There will be no one at the bloody party at this rate.”
Her daughter Louise looked at her sternly, “Mammy, that is a very bad word. You should go to your room and think about what you just said.”
“Sorry darling. That was very naughty of mammy, but Uncle Jack won’t be around to be a giant Minion for aunty Freya’s party and mammy doesn’t know what the feck to do.”
“ ‘Feck’ is still a bad word you know,” said Louise, in her best grown-up voice. Kate sighed and then called Maureen, who immediately offered Andrzej’s services. Kate told her, “Well, get here quick so you can alter the costume. No offence Maureen, but Andrzej has a bit more girth than Jack.”
Maureen laughed, “None taken. I love that there’s a lot of Andrzej to go round. He’s my big giant hot-water bottle.”
“Well, just make sure you can stop hugging him in time for him to get his cuddly arse down here.”
Kate hurried down to the hall in Kirkwall where Freya’s party was being held and frenetic last-minute preparations were underway.
Kate surveyed the scene like a general. “Thank the Lord we did so much of this yesterday, or we would have been buggered. We don’t have Sophia or Finn or Delima or Jack, Evie is still AWOL and I swear Patsy has already scoffed most of the Munchies.”
Luckily, young Rory had arrived to set up. He was so excited about the responsibility of being DJ for the night. He asked Kate uncertainly, “Are you sure Freya likes The Clash, Madness, Wham and The Cure as well as all these cheesy boy bands?”
“Absolutely,” said Kate firmly. “Just keep the hits coming and, for the love of God, don’t forget a bit of Kylie or we will never hear the end of it.”
The hall started to fill up with the early birds keen to see Freya’s reaction to her ‘surprise’, to wish her well, eat and drink their fill and dance the night away.
Chapter Forty-One
Evie’s House
Evie sat at home fretting. She had hoped to go to the party with Sophia and Finn, which would have made everything a whole lot easier. She couldn’t believe all the flights had been cancelled on today of all days. Even with the text from Freya asking her to come to the celebrations, she was worried it would be awkward, and she didn’t even have a present to give her.
She’d planned to have Andrzej wrap up the painting and bring it to the hall in his van, and she could have unveiled her work there while everyone sang happy birthday.
‘It’s all been spoiled by Amelia. She might not have vandalised the painting but she has managed to cause a rift between me and Freya.’ Evie stood up. ‘She will be gloating if I don’t turn up. I’m not going to give her the satisfaction.’ She ran upstairs to put on some make-up and slipped on her favourite black dress. It was her suit of armour and always made her feel more confident.
It definitely took all of Evie’s courage to step into the hall, but everyone was too busy enjoying themselves to do more than nod coolly in her direction. Freya was already up dancing in the middle of the floor to ‘Love Cats’ and Evie waved hesitantly in her direction and hoped she’d been spotted.
She backed into a corner, nursing a large glass of white wine, trying not to cry and wishing she could just run away. Eviefelt as though she didn’t belong anymore in the very place that had given her sanctuary. It was nerve-jangling and she could feel a growing anxiety.
Everyone was trying hard to appear perfectly pleasant on the surface so as not to upset Freya’s big night, but they were treating Evie as though she were a stranger. Orkney was a small place and news travelled fast. Thanks to Amelia, they all knew about Evie storming out of Freya’s last weekend.
When Evie had tried to tentatively say hello to people she knew, they simply looked through her, but Amelia, on the other hand, was being treated like a princess.
“I’m surprised they didn’t carry her in here on a sedan chair. She’s getting even more attention than Freya,” Evie muttered to herself.
