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Marjorie studied the photo once more. ‘So, it is!’
Mabel said, ‘Oh, how I wish we could meet them again. I’ve always wondered what happened to those girls.’
They both shifted their gaze to the window.
Callum knew he ought to tell them that it was Thea over in the bookshop. They obviously hadn’t been over there yet, but they’d find out soon enough, he imagined. He didn’t know what they’d think when they found out he knew. ‘So they lived in the bookshop with their dad?’
‘Yes, Henry. He took over the bookshop after Father passed away.’
Callum swallowed. They’d said –Henry. Callum stared at the two ladies, thinking,Oh, god, so it is true. They are Henry’s daughters.
He caught a look pass between the sisters that he couldn’t quite fathom – as though there was something more that they wouldn’t say.
Marjorie said, ‘They lived there with their mum and dad.’
Callum frowned. They were a lovely little family,’ said Mabel suddenly eyeing him warily. ‘Where did you get this photo?’
Callum looked at the photo, realising his mistake too late. As soon as Mabel and Marjorie made a visit to the bookshop, and discovered the young woman was Thea, they’d surely mention the photo Callum had of Thea and her sister.
Would the sisters promise not to reveal this conversation, and the photo he had in his possession if he asked them to? They might, but what explanation could he give? They were bound to ask him for one. They were already curious. He’d seen to that by showing them the photo. But he needed more time to get to the bottom of his father’s past, and how it came to be that he had two families. It wasn’t something he wanted to reveal to anyone just yet.
Callum realised he didn’t need to find out from Thea whether Henry was her father. He’d had a lot of questions answered already, apart from one – how had she come by the key? And what was she doing there, cleaning it up, looking as though she was preparing to reopen it?
He reached out and took the photo out of Mabel’s hand, aware that he hadn’t answered the question. He saw Mabel turn to her big sister.
Marjorie, the more forthright of the two, said to Callum bluntly, ‘You’ve met Henry – haven’t you? He gave you that photo, didn’t he?’
Callum stared at them.
Mabel reached over to Callum and put a hand on his forearm. ‘Please. We want … we need to know what happened to him.’
Callum swallowed. They knew Henry, and Thea and her sister. Thea’s mum was most likely still alive somewhere too. He couldn’t tell them who he was, or about Henry, not yet. He just felt he needed more time to get to the bottom of why it came to be that Henry had two families before he told anyone where Henry was.
‘I … look, I can’t. Not yet. Please, you have to give me some time. If I promise to tell you when I’m ready, will you promise me not to tell …anybodyabout this photo.’ He put it back in his wallet. ‘You have to promise me.’ He stared at them. ‘Is it a deal?’
Mabel and Marjorie exchanged a glance. Marjorie said, ‘Can you just tell us one thing?’
Callum pursed his lips, intending to remain tight-lipped.
‘Please just tell us if he is still alive. You don’t have to tell us anything else, what happened to him, not yet, just … just give us that.’
Callum stared at them. He took a deep breath, and said, ‘Yes, he’s still alive, but—’
‘Oh, thank the lord!’ Mabel shouted out, clasping her hands together.
Marjorie and Mabel stood up and hugged each other.
Callum thought it was a bit over the top, their reaction to finding out that the guy who had once run the bookshop was alive. Still, they were old ladies; he thought that this was probably the most exciting thing that had happened to them in years. An age-old mystery of what had happened to the previous owner had partially been solved. He wasn’t dead, as everyone had obviously suspected – including, no doubt, Thea and her sister.
But why had he left his bookshop, along with his other family, never to return? If he’d had two families, why stop a deception that had gone on for years?
It was highly likely that Henry would never be able to answer that question now. But Callum knew who might have the answer – his own mother.
He looked at the two old ladies, who were now doing a little dance around the charity shop. He shook his head and managed a smile. A moment later, they had linked their arms in his, encouraged him off his seat, and he joined them, dancing around the charity shop.
‘Hey, what’s going on?’
They all stopped dancing. Callum’s eyes went wide, like a rabbit in headlights, at the sound of Thea’s voice behind him.
