AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Amy arrived at her dad’s cottage, having parted ways with Steve who carried on towards the shop. She wondered when the best time would be to tell Dad she wanted to stay on in Arran and ask if she could lodge in his spare bedroom for a while. She knocked at the door and waited for him to answer but there was no reply. That was strange; he was usually up and about early in the morning, and it must now be near midday.
Rapping the door again, she noticed that the curtains around the side were still drawn. Perhaps he’d forgotten to open them? He was usually so meticulous about letting the daylight flood into the house . . .
Her heart started to thump in panic. What if he’d fallen and couldn’t get up? Maybe something had happened to him, and he’d been lying on the floor in agony all night? That was the sort of thing that happened to pensioners all the time. She tried to remember who took him home last night and couldn’t. Surely, they didn’t leave him to make his own way back from the wedding? Typically, she hadn’t brought the spare key with her, even though Kirsty had reminded her to do so; she’d left it on the kitchen worktop. Why was she so useless?
She dropped to her knees and pushed the decorative piece of driftwood out of the way so she could check under the doormat in case another key was there. It wasn’t.Think, Amy, think. She pulled her phone from her pocket and dialled Kirsty’s number.
‘Kirsty, you need to come now. It’s Dad, he’s not answering the door. I think something is wrong.’
Chapter Forty-Six
Kirsty dropped what she was doing, jumped in the car and arrived at their dad’s within a few minutes of Amy’s frantic phone call.
‘Hurry!’ Amy cried. ‘I’m so sorry. I can’t believe I forgot the key.’
‘Don’t worry,’ said Kirsty, feeling quite the opposite. ‘I’m here now and I’m sure everything is fine.’
Fortunately, when she opened the door with the spare key and called, ‘Hello,’ their dad came stumbling through to the hallway, bleary-eyed.
‘Good morning, you two,’ he said, scratching his head. ‘Did I miss something? Have I slept in? Where is Emma?’
Kirsty pulled a face. He was clearly exhausted. Usually, he would be energetic and cheerful in the morning. The wedding must have taken more out of him than they could have anticipated. ‘Emma’s at Meadowbank with Max,’ she said. ‘We’re going to have a small lunch for them before the guests start to go.’
His face drained of colour. ‘I think I’ll stay here, girls, if that’s okay. I’m tired.Reallytired.’
‘Do you remember getting home last night, Dad?’ Kirsty gently asked, feeling a flicker of guilt that she should have been the one who brought him back.
He stifled a yawn. ‘Tom brought me in and got me settled. I think?’
She glanced at Amy who looked wary. ‘That’s right, Dad. He and Becky walked back with you. Everyone was talking about what a great speech you did.’
He smiled sadly. ‘Oh, that is nice, dear.’ As he stood there in his pyjamas, he looked a bit forlorn and lost.
‘How about we get you back into bed for a rest, Dad? And Amy will go and make you some tea and toast.’
Amy gave her a thumbs up sign and turned to go into the kitchen.
Once Dad was settled, Kirsty came into the kitchen to find Amy doing the dishes. ‘I tidied up just the other day,’ she said.
‘He’s maybe just not done any for a couple of days after being out of his usual routine,’ said Amy.
Kirsty rolled her shoulders back, trying to ease the growing tension that she could feel. ‘That’s a good point. I don’t think we should make him come to the lunch — what do you think? He’s clearly exhausted.’
Amy nodded in agreement. ‘Let me take this cup of tea through and we can see what he says.’
Once Dad was settled and happy to have a quiet day at home, the girls left him, promising to return later with some leftovers from lunch.
‘This,’ said Amy, ‘is why I need to stay. I could live with Dad and keep an eye on him which would take the pressure off you.’
Kirsty sighed. She was beginning to think that Amy was making a lot of sense. He was such a worry.
‘I could keep an eye on him and then look at doing some yoga classes in the community hall . . .’
Kirsty nodded but was quiet on the way home. Amy had really been thinking about this, it was clear to see. When she pulled into the driveway, she turned to face Amy. ‘Let’s chat properly after the lunch,’ she said.
The lunch guests started to drift off just after three, some keen to explore the island and others needed to catch the departing ferry back to Ardrossan. Emma had already told her sisters that Max would be going to Aberdeen and was leaving for the night. Kirsty was relieved that she didn’t seem upset. And it would give her the opportunity to talk to both the girls at once.
Kirsty noticed James had barely left Amy’s side and she wondered how she could politely ask him to give them some space, so she could talk to Amy. Steve offered to take some food down to their dad and gave her a knowing look. ‘I’ll have a quick word with James and get him to make a graceful exit now too. I’m assuming you want to take the chance to speak to Emma and Amy?’
