Winter Magic on Railway Lane, page 15
Libby was shocked. ‘But you always said that they were,’ she reminded him. ‘That education was the be-all and end-all.’
‘May I add a small amendment to my original statement?’ he asked, with a sad smile. ‘Education is necessary and hopefully a good grounding for adult life. But some things are more important. Kindness. Generosity of heart. Vitality of spirit. All of which you have in abundance, my dear daughter.’ He hesitated before carrying on. ‘If I have given you cause to think that I’m not proud of you, then let me state my feelings once and for all. You’ve worked so hard to keep a roof over our heads, taking endless plane journeys at all hours of the day and night. I am very proud to call you my daughter.’
Libby couldn’t hold back the tears any longer. ‘But, Dad, I’ve made such a mess,’ she said, with a sob. ‘I lost my job and now I can’t even use Ethan’s kitchen. I won’t reach my deadline and we won’t get paid!’
‘Don’t worry about that now,’ he told her, squeezing her hand. ‘By the way, you lied to me about where you’ve been. You didn’t tell me that you were making chocolate.’
Her shoulders sagged. ‘I didn’t want to upset you. It was something that Mum always did.’
‘I know and I had no idea that you’ve inherited her talent,’ her dad replied. ‘I wish you’d have told me.’
Libby sighed. She really had made an awful lot of bad decisions lately, she realised.
‘And I just wanted to say…’ His voice drifted off and he frowned to himself.
Figuring that he had lost his train of thought, she said, ‘It doesn’t matter, Dad. It’s late.’
He looked at her with a fierceness in his eyes. ‘It matters very much and I need to say this. Thank you. Thank you for taking care of me all these years.’
She took a sharp intake of breath. ‘I would never have left you,’ she told him. ‘Ever.’
‘I know.’ His eyes softened. ‘Anyway, I’ve spoken to both Ethan and Katy tonight,’ her dad carried on. ‘You’re not alone. You never were, although you obviously felt that you might be. And that’s all on me. My fault. My error. And I’m so very sorry for it. But from tonight, that changes. We both need to start asking for help. Reaching out to people. To stop closing ourselves off from the world. Because it’s not done either of us any good, has it?’
Libby couldn’t speak and so merely shook her head and closed her eyes as the tears streamed down her cheeks.
She suddenly felt herself being pulled gently forward and found herself held against her dad’s chest, his one good arm stretching out around her and patting her on the back.
‘There, there, my dear darling Elizabeth,’ she heard him say. ‘Everything’s going to be different now. Everything’s going to be okay.’
She sighed with something akin to relief as she tried to take in what he was telling her. Perhaps it really was a new beginning for the both of them.
He gently released her and she sank back against the pillows. ‘Now, doctor’s orders were that you rest, so try to get a good night’s sleep.’ He stood up and gave her a sad smile as he looked down at her. ‘By the way, when you’re better, I’d like to taste some of that chocolate of yours.’
‘You would?’ she murmured.
‘Of course,’ he told her. There was a short pause before he added, ‘I love you.’
Libby gulped away more tears at the words so rarely spoken between them.
‘I love you too, Dad,’ she said, her voice croaky from emotion as well as the smoke.
He reached out to give her hand another squeeze before he headed over to the door. ‘We’ll keep this open tonight because I want to keep an eye on you.’
She felt like a little girl but, for once, was grateful not to have to be the strong one, to let someone else take charge.
Suddenly overcome with exhaustion, her eyelids grew heavy. ‘Goodnight, Dad,’ she murmured, snuggling down under the covers.
‘Goodnight, my dear,’ she heard him say, before sleep pulled her into its arms.
Her dad stood watching her for a very long time until he was certain that she was peaceful and asleep before he quietly left the bedroom.
32
Libby woke up late in the morning to find the daylight streaming through a gap in the curtains.
It took her a moment to work out exactly what had happened the previous night to make her feel so groggy and croaky and then she remembered it all. She wondered how bad the smoke damage was in the rest of Ethan’s home and immediately felt a wave of guilt of how she had almost destroyed his kitchen.
She was contemplating getting up, but, despite having slept for twelve hours straight, she still felt absolutely exhausted.
So it was no small relief when she heard footsteps and saw her dad come into the bedroom holding a small tray with his good hand.
‘Good morning,’ he said, with a smile. ‘You’re awake at last.’
‘Morning,’ she replied, sitting up in bed despite it feeling like a real effort. ‘I can’t believe I slept for so long.’
Her dad carefully placed the tray on the bed next to her. Libby looked down to see it was holding a mug of coffee and a couple of delicious-looking muffins, along with various envelopes.
‘I’m glad you slept well,’ he told her. ‘You must have needed it. So I thought it was about time I brought you breakfast in bed.’
‘Thank you,’ she replied.
‘I can’t take credit for the muffins as apparently they’re Helen’s special recipe,’ he said, sitting down on the other side of the bed.
‘Grams made this?’ asked Libby, her stomach growing in anticipation.
Flora’s grandmother’s baking was excellent and so she took a bite almost immediately. The sweet muffin exploded the flavours in her mouth, along with the tangy sharpness of blueberries.
‘Mmm,’ she murmured in pleasure.
‘Helen dropped off a basket this morning crammed full of various pastries and pies to keep us both going,’ her dad told her.
‘How nice of her,’ said Libby, before taking another bite.
‘And the cards are all from our neighbours wishing you well,’ he carried on.
‘Seriously?’ Libby was amazed. ‘How kind.’
‘Indeed.’ Her father studied her carefully. ‘Now, how are you feeling? Any soreness in your chest or throat? Has it got worse?’
His concern touched her. ‘It’s no worse,’ she told him. ‘I still feel a bit parched but just weary after all the excitement, I guess.’
‘Then another day of rest should do you the world of good,’ he said.
Libby immediately began to shake her head before she saw the look in his eyes and shot him a sheepish grin. ‘Old habits die hard,’ she muttered.
‘Yes, they do,’ he said. ‘Anyway, your friends are all due to come and visit you any minute now, so you can’t go anywhere, even if I were to let you.’
‘They’re coming here?’ asked Libby, somewhat alarmed. Her dad had always expressed his dismay at any visitors coming to the cottage so they had stopped arriving many years ago.
‘I invited them.’ Now it was her dad’s turn to look sheepish. ‘You’re not up to going out and they were all expressing their concern for you, according to Helen. So I thought it would cheer you up to see them.’
‘Thank you.’
‘I also got a telling-off,’ he said with a grimace.
Libby giggled. ‘From Grams?’
‘Yes, well, perhaps she felt it was overdue,’ said her dad. ‘Anyway, she told me that as I’m young enough to be her son, she felt that a “good nagging” was necessary to get me to pull my weight around the home.’
‘Gosh.’ Libby cleared her throat. ‘Look, Dad, don’t worry about that. As soon as I’m up and about again, then you can leave all that to me.’
‘But she’s right.’
Libby stared at him. ‘She is?’ she asked tentatively.
‘I’ve been stuck in neutral, I think she said, for so very long. Almost revelling in the misery of the stroke that I’ve let it become more than it should have been.’
‘Yes, but you’re not the same as you were before,’ Libby told him quickly.
He nodded thoughtfully. ‘True, but I’m not sure I should let it define me either. And it was a huge burden on you when I really could do a bit more. I mean, look. I made you a cup of coffee.’ He smiled proudly to himself. ‘When was the last time I did that?’
‘It’s been a while,’ she murmured, with a soft smile which she was pleased to see him return.
Just then, they both heard a knock on the front door.
‘Your adoring masses appear to have arrived,’ he told her. ‘I’ll go and let them in.’
‘Thanks for the coffee,’ she called out as he went.
By the time she had eaten her muffin and drunk half of the coffee, Katy, Harriet and Flora had all climbed the stairs and rushed into the small bedroom, immediately filling it up.
‘Oh, you’ve got more colour today!’ said Katy, rushing over to give her a kiss on the cheek. ‘That’s good.’
‘Yes, only the croaky voice to get rid of,’ replied Libby.
‘I dunno,’ said Flora, next up to give her a kiss. ‘I think husky and quiet suits you.’
‘A quietish Libby? Never,’ said Harriet, giving an exaggerated shudder.
They all sat down on the bed on either side of her and then there was a short silence.
‘You silly sausage,’ said Harriet, eventually breaking the silence and looking tearful.
‘I’ve aged about ten years,’ said Flora, with a heavy sigh.
‘Me too,’ said Katy, checking her dark hair in the camera of her mobile. ‘Do I have any grey hairs? It feels like I should have.’
‘Thank goodness you’re okay,’ said Harriet, reaching out to take her hand.
‘I’m fine,’ Libby told them. ‘Which is more than can be said for Ethan’s kitchen.’ She grimaced at the thought. ‘How bad is it?’ she tentatively asked.
‘Nothing that a bit of scrubbing of walls and a new splash of paint won’t sort out,’ said Katy quickly.
‘The men are all going over there to help clear up the smoke damage,’ said Flora. ‘They’ve all dropped everything to help out.’
Libby blew out a long sigh. ‘Is Ethan very mad?’ she asked.
Katy looked non-plussed. ‘Ethan? No, of course not. Only with the thought of you hurting yourself. You know what he’s like. He doesn’t care about material possessions like that.’
Libby nodded thoughtfully. ‘Yes, but I don’t mean to pile more stress on him when he’s already got so much on his plate with Eddie and the Christmas train.’
‘Oh, that’s all going to be sorted out tomorrow,’ said Katy briskly. ‘Plenty of time yet if we all lend a hand.’
‘Anyway, he’ll be okay,’ said Flora. ‘It’s Ethan. If he were to be any more laid-back, he’d be horizontal most of the time.’
‘From his long list of girlfriends over the years, perhaps he has been!’ added Harriet, laughing.
But Libby didn’t join in. Ethan had had a string of dates over the years. And so had she, she reminded herself. They were equal partners in being footloose and fancy free. But the thought of him being with another woman didn’t sit well with her that morning.
It must just be because you’re so tired, she told herself, before taking a sip of her coffee.
As she relaxed back against the pillows, a dreadful thought occurred to her and she sat bolt upright.
‘The deadline!’ she said, before a bout of coughing took over once more.
Harriet and Flora leaned forward in united concern.
Katy, meanwhile, waited until Libby could catch her breath before she spoke. ‘It’s fine,’ she said.
‘It’s not,’ croaked Libby. ‘I’m running out of days.’
‘We know,’ said Harriet.
‘But you have us,’ added Flora.
Libby blinked at them, trying to comprehend what she was being told.
‘What we’re saying is that we’re all going to help make the truffles, along with Grams and Maggie,’ said Katy. ‘We’re heading over to the old school now to clean everything up ready for your instructions this afternoon. But, for this morning, you’re going to rest. And that’s an order.’
‘We’ll have everything done on time, okay?’ added Flora. ‘So don’t fret. Just rest for now.’
Libby leant back against the pillows once more and smiled at her friends, the tears pricking her eyes. ‘Thank you,’ she whispered.
They all smiled back at her.
‘What are friends for?’ said Harriet, reaching out to squeeze her hand.
33
Ethan was still feeling very rattled by Libby’s near escape.
After a restless night spent in Ryan and Katy’s spare bedroom, he headed back to the old school to survey the damage with his brother.
Ryan whistled as they stared around the lounge. ‘I was hoping it wouldn’t look quite so bad in the daylight,’ he said.
Ethan nodded, feeling quite depressed. ‘Me too.’
The lounge and kitchen, unfortunately, were not looking good, nor smelling great either with the acrid aroma of smoke still in the air. Soot covered the sofa, floor and walls and every surface that it had been able to settle upon. Thankfully, the door into the bedroom had been closed and therefore the smoke hadn’t got in there, but the rest of the mess was almost overwhelming.
‘On the plus side,’ added Ryan. ‘Because you’re such a lazy so-and-so, you hadn’t unpacked, so that’s worked in your favour as most of your decent stuff is still in boxes. So that saves us a bit of work.’
Ethan looked at Ryan. ‘Us?’ he asked. ‘Haven’t you got work to do?’ He glanced at his watch and realised that it was almost opening time at Platform 1.
But, to his surprise, Ryan shook his head. ‘No way,’ he said. ‘Today my brother needs help. So Katy’s put a notice on the door about a family emergency and we’re closed for the day.’
Ethan felt incredibly touched. ‘Great. Cheers, bro.’
Ryan appeared to hesitate before giving him a slap on the shoulder. ‘Some things are more important than profits.’
Ethan nodded. ‘Yes, they are.’ He paused before carrying on. ‘Dad said that the update from the hospital was positive this morning.’
‘Grandad’s got almost all his movement back in his hand which is good news,’ replied Ryan.
‘We should be focused on grandad and not all this,’ said Ethan, waving his hand at the mess in front of them.
‘We can do both,’ Ryan told him. ‘And besides, there’s nothing we can do for Grandad at the moment. He’s in the best hands with the doctors and nurses. So let’s get things straight back here before he gets home.’
‘Okay.’ Ethan blew out a sigh. ‘It’s going to be a busy day.’
‘I agree.’ Ryan gave him a smile. ‘Thankfully, many hands make light work.’
Ethan looked at his brother questioningly, but then he heard the chatter of people outside.
‘Here’s your workforce, right on cue,’ said Ryan, going over to the front door and inviting whoever it was inside.
Ethan was surprised but pleased to see Joe, Nico, Bob and even Dodgy Del all standing outside.
‘We’re free but we come highly recommended,’ Nico told him with a grin as they came inside. Although his smile faded a little when he saw the smoke damage.
‘Thank goodness everyone was okay,’ said Bob, staring around the room before heading over to give Ethan a hug.
‘Blimey,’ added Del. ‘Bit of a mess, ain’t it?’
‘Nothing that a bit of elbow grease won’t sort out,’ said Joe. ‘So it’s just the soot and smoke to clear?’
Ethan nodded. ‘I guess so.’
‘Luckily, I know all about it,’ Dodgy Del told them. ‘Had a few burnt kitchens in my time.’
‘Having tasted your cooking once, that doesn’t surprise me in the least,’ replied Ryan.
‘First thing is to get everything outside, give it a good air,’ carried on Del. ‘Then we need to wash down the ceiling, walls and floor. With all the windows and doors open, this horrible smell will soon shove off as well.’
‘Well, I never thought I’d say this, but we’ll follow our cousin’s plan,’ said Ryan, raising his eyebrows at Ethan.
But Ethan had wandered over to look at the kitchen and was horrified to see all of Libby’s chocolate equipment covered with soot.
‘You’re definitely going to need a new oven,’ said Joe, coming to stand next to him.
‘I was going to replace that old one anyway,’ replied Ethan. ‘But what about all of this?’ He waved his hand towards the work surfaces, piled high with all of Libby’s bowls, mixers and boxes.
‘That’s in hand too,’ Ryan told him, coming to stand next to his brother.
At that moment, Katy, Flora and Harriet arrived at the back door, their eyes clicking wide open at the sooty mess in front of them.
‘Wow,’ said Flora, blowing out a sigh. ‘It could have been so much worse.’
Harriet shook her head. ‘Let’s not talk about it,’ she said with a shudder.
‘Then let’s keep busy,’ said Katy, stepping forward. ‘The chocolate truffle business is temporarily moving to Strawberry Hill Farm, so everything needs to be packed up and delivered there this morning.’
‘I’ve got my van outside,’ announced Dodgy Del. ‘You can get it all in there and it will only take one trip up to the farm.’
For a second, Katy hesitated. They all knew that Del’s smoky, spluttering old van was a health hazard all on its own.
But, to Ethan’s surprise, Katy looked at him and smiled. ‘Del, that would be a great help,’ she told him.
Ethan watched his cousin beam from ear to ear before turning to his brother. ‘Miracles are happening all over the place this morning,’ he murmured.
‘Well, you know what they say,’ murmured Ryan. ‘It takes a village to build a community.’
Ethan nodded thoughtfully. He had automatically pushed against the idea of becoming one of Cranfield’s permanent residents for so long that he had never considered what it would really mean.
