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Chapter Fifteen
Sunday, 19thDecember
For the first time since arriving in Pluckley, Kate was able to enjoy a whole day off. She’d spent the last week finalising the probate forms, ready to send off to the tax office, and she’d entered the final asset into her spreadsheet yesterday. It had taken a month to collate all the information regarding Bert Williams’s estate, but it was finally done. The hard work had paid off.
In celebration, she’d gone for a long walk in the morning and rewarded herself afterwards with a hot bath, followed by two large helpings of Geraldine’s home-made leek and potato soup. She’d even managed to tinker on the piano while the others had been at church. The place wasn’t often empty, and with Hanna safely upstairs tending to Priya, she’d been able to grab an undisturbed twenty minutes before anyone returned.
Pampering herself and getting to play music had felt good, and somehow eased the strange ache that had settled in her chest. She supposed feeling emotional was inevitable. She was exhausted, and hearing the news about Tristan’s latest betrayal was bound to sting, but it was the thought of leaving Pluckley that saddened her most. Strangely, Rose Court had begun to feel like home, even with its weird noises and propensity for opening windows in the middle of the night.
Most of all, she was going to miss Calvin. She’d become accustomed to hanging out with him. She wasn’t foolish enough to believe anything romantic could happen between them, but she liked to think they’d become friends. He was one of the fewpeople in her life she could truly trust, and she was going to miss that.
The alarm sounded on her phone and she rolled off the bed, placing her bookmark between the pages of her romance saga. It was time to get ready for this evening’s Winter Glow event at one of the local mansion houses in the village, Greystones Manor. The temperature had dropped another few degrees, so she layered herself up with warm clothing, picked up her coat and the hat she’d customised, and made her way downstairs to join the others.
When she reached the lobby, she found Geraldine, Esme and Lucky Larry waiting. Esme was looking very chic in a long red coat, and Larry looked like a cool Father Christmas in his green velvet Santa hat.
‘Here you are! We were just coming to find you,’ Geraldine said, looking hilarious in her Christmas-pudding bonnet. ‘Ready to go?’
‘Absolutely.’ Kate looked around the empty lobby. ‘Where’s everyone else?’
‘Calvin went ahead with Rowan, so he can get ready for his performance, and Hanna and Alex are in the staff room, working on next week’s quiz questions.’
‘Is that what they’re calling it these days?’ Esme said, making Larry laugh.
Kate had no idea what they found so amusing, but they were obviously enjoying an in-joke. ‘I assume Nelson’s looking after Deshad and Priya?’ Natalie had gone away for a few days, her first weekend off in months.
‘He is, and doing a sterling job.’ Esme opened the front door. ‘Which just leaves us. The taxi’s outside – shall we head off?’
They exited the building and made their way over to the car. Geraldine climbed in the front seat, and Esme and Larry got inthe back, which left Kate squashed against the door, her knee digging into the handle.
‘Calvin said he’d meet you at the venue,’ Esme said, smelling of expensive perfume and a hint of brandy. ‘Rowan was keen to get there early, so he could “focus on his craft”. He does take these performances rather seriously.’
Kate smiled. ‘It’s nice he has a hobby. When my grandpa went into a home, he just sat there all day, looking miserable and refusing to join in with any of the activities. At least Rowan’s passionate about something, even if it is scaring everyone with his ghost stories.’
Esme laughed. ‘They are rather far-fetched, but I agree it’s better than sitting around, waiting to die. I can think of nothing worse.’
The taxi pulled away and they began the short drive into the village. ‘Fairytale of New York’ played on the car radio, accompanied by Geraldine and Larry singing along.
Esme dipped her head closer to Kate. ‘Calvin tells me you had a similar upbringing to his. Did he mention his father left when he was young?’
Kate drew back, feeling awkward at the direct line of questioning. ‘Er… yes, he did.’
‘I suspected as much. Apart from making my daughter’s life hell, it had rather a negative impact on Calvin. He never cried, you know. But it did change him. My beautiful, smiling, happy grandson became very quiet and withdrawn. He took it upon himself to become the father figure of the family and look after his younger siblings.’
Kate shifted position. ‘It doesn’t surprise me. He’s certainly taken on the responsibility when it comes to dealing with his uncle’s estate.’
‘And that’s my concern,’ Esme said, keeping her voice low. ‘He has a habit of sacrificing himself for others. He has a strongsense of duty, and I’m worried he’s slipped into another period of acute sadness, for want of a better description. When it happened before, he had football to focus on. But without that in his life, I worry for his mental health.’
Kate wished the driver would put his foot down. Talk about an uncomfortable conversation. ‘Why are you telling me this?’
‘I want you to understand that Calvin isn’t as confident as he appears.’
‘Well, I think that’s evident.’
‘Is it?’ Esme seemed surprised. ‘Only, Ainsley never understood that about him. She never really saw Calvin the man, only Calvin the successful footballer. It meant their relationship was rather… how can I put this? Superficial. From her side of things, anyway.’ She rested her hand over Kate’s. ‘He finds it difficult to open up and admit to his inner struggles. But I sense he’s more comfortable talking to you than anyone else, and I wanted to say that whatever you’re doing, thank you, because it’s working. You have no idea how wonderful it is to see him smiling again.’
‘I’m just being a friend,’ she said, feeling increasingly awkward. ‘And he’s helped me a lot more than I’ve helped him.’
Esme squeezed her hand. ‘You’re helping each other, and it’s lovely to see.’
