Four Silences Broken, page 19
“Mum, please will you keep an eye on Krish for me? Jo fainted and was taken to hospital. They have discharged her and she’s back home, but I want to go and check on her.”
“Oh my goodness! I hope she is okay,” gasped her mother. “You go. Krish will be fine with us.”
“Send her our love,” added her father, who loved children and had been overjoyed when he’d heard Jo was expecting a baby.
“I thought you were going to tell me about this wedding of yours,” huffed Agnes from the other end of the table.
“I don’t think there is anything to say. Ben and I are getting married on Saturday. We want to be surrounded by people who love us and wish us well. If you don’t feel you fit that description then perhaps it might be better for everyone if you didn’t attend.”
Agnes stared at her opened-mouthed, but Meera didn’t wait for a reply. She grabbed her coat and car keys from the kitchen and hurried out the door. As soon as she stepped outside, she saw Ben driving towards her. She couldn’t avoid speaking to him any longer.
He stepped out of his car with an easy smile. “Hello there, where are you off to in such a hurry?”
“Jo’s fainted again. I want to check she’s okay.”
“Crikey! I hope she is. I thought for a minute lunch had gone so badly you were running away,” he joked then seeing Meera wasn’t smiling, asked, “How did it go?”
“Not well.” She took a deep breath. “I overhead your mother tell Belinda that she didn’t think we should have children because and I quote, ‘It would be far too confusing for the wee thing and it wouldn’t know what it was’.”
Ben’s face dropped. He looked completely aghast.
“Meera! I’m so sorry,” he stammered. “I knew her views were old-fashioned, but…” He paused and shook his head. “Did she say this today?”
“No, when she was here before. I should have told you, but well, I think I was hoping I’d been mistaken. I’ve just told her if she isn’t happy for us she shouldn’t come to the wedding. I’m sorry if you think I should have consulted you first, but I was upset after Rachel phoned to tell me about Jo.”
“No of course not. I agree with you completely. Look, give me two minutes and let me see if I can sort this out.”
He took her hand and led her back into the dining room where her parents and Agnes were still sitting in an icy silence. Her mother looked like she was bursting to say something, but Agnes was the first to speak.
“I’ve been told I’m not welcome at your wedding, Benedict. Is that the case?”
“That depends, Mother,” replied Ben evenly. “Meera is under the impression you don’t approve of our relationship, and that you don’t believe we should have children. Is that the case?”
Meera saw her parents exchange a quick glance, then in unison, silently and diplomatically, they left the room. Agnes sat up very straight and placed her hands firmly on the table in front of her.
“It is. I don’t approve of your choice of wife. In my opinion, she is the wrong race, wrong religion and she has already failed at marriage once. I can’t say this wedding is anything to celebrate.”
Meera was surprised she didn’t feel more shocked or upset. Instead, she felt quite calm. At least she now knew that there was nothing she could have ever said or done to make the cold-hearted woman sitting at her dining table like her. Her own parents could be accused of being traditional or old-fashioned. They sometimes need to be cajoled into a more modern way of thinking, but they had experienced the pain of prejudice enough themselves to never subject anyone else to it.
She felt Ben let go of her hand and glanced across at him. She had never seen him angry before. He was always level-headed, reasonable, pragmatic, to the point where it irritated her sometimes. Even now there was no shouting or clenched fists, but his jaw had tensed, and his normally twinkling eyes had become cold with quiet fury. He turned to her and spoke quietly and calmly.
“Meera, you go and see Jo. I know how worried you are about her. I’ll take care of things here. Drive carefully.”
*
As she drove towards Jo’s cottage, she wondered if she should also have told Ben there was a chance she might be pregnant. She knew he would be thrilled. But no, she didn’t want to get his hopes up and today certainly didn’t feel like the right time. She would wait a few more days, then take a test. If she got the result she was longing for she would tell him on their wedding day. It could be her present to him, but until then this was one last secret she would keep to herself.
Meera followed an exhausted-looking Jack up the stairs and into the bedroom. Jo was sat up in bed, with her hair hanging loose around her face. She looked younger and more vulnerable than usual. There was a purple bruise on her forehead and a small plaster on her hand. She smiled when she saw Meera.
“A visitor for you, Jo,” announced Jack.
“Hello,” said Meera giving her a gentle hug.
“I was going to take Baxter for a quick walk. Will you be okay? I’ll only be a few minutes,” Jack said.
Jo gave him an indulgent smile. “I’ve got my best friend who also happens to be a doctor with me. I think I’ll be fine and don’t rush back. Take the poor dog for a decent walk. He’s barely been out—he must have his legs crossed.”
“Yes, boss,” he replied with a grin, then blew her a kiss before closing the door behind him.
“How are you feeling?” asked Meera as she settled into one of the kitchen chairs Jack had placed next to the bed.
“Okay I guess, all things considered.”
“You’ve had quite a time of it, I hear. Rachel called and told me everything,” Meera explained.
“My head is still spinning with it all, but the main thing is the baby is okay.”
“And you can stop stressing about who your parents are,” ventured Meera.
Jo smiled. “Yes, although it still hasn’t really sunk in.” She gestured to a pile of letters on the bedside table. “Sarah came over earlier and dropped off loads of stuff she had about my dad. Those are letters between him and my mum. I’ve asked her to come over and read them with me. Would you like to see a picture of him?” she asked shyly.
She handed Meera a slightly creased photo of a man, who looked to be about thirty. He had light brown hair, an open, smiling face and Jo’s green eyes.
“I can see the resemblance. What a handsome man,” she commented.
“He was clever too. Sarah said he was one of the leading archaeologists of his generation.”
“And if he were still alive, I think he would be very proud of you.”
“Really?”
“Of course. Look at the life you have made for yourself all on your own. You’re a detective, for goodness’ sake.”
“A police officer is meant to uphold the law. I encouraged Lucy to lie to Spencer and the chief constable.”
“You did what you thought was best,” Meera assured her. She was worried now. This wasn’t like Jo. She never doubted herself.
“You wouldn’t have done it. You always do the right thing.”
Meera took a moment before she replied. “Sometimes doing the right thing isn’t as simple as it sounds. I thought about this when I gave conflicting advice to Krish. I’ve always told him to respect his elders, to be polite, but what if his elders have bigoted views? Should he remain silent or speak up? What you did hasn’t caused any harm to anyone, has it? If Caroline and Lucy had told the truth who would have benefitted? Certainly not Freddie, an innocent little boy who might have been deprived of his mother and grandmother. It wouldn’t have brought Rupert back. We both know Lucy has suffered already, and I dare say the same is true of Caroline.”
“Maybe you’re right.” Jo sighed. At that moment, there was a gentle tap on the door and Caroline herself appeared. It had only been a few days since Meera had last seen her, but she thought her face looked a little older but softer.
“I let myself in. I hope that’s all right.” Her smile faded when she saw Meera. “There isn’t anything wrong is there?” she asked anxiously.
“No. I was only making a social call. I heard what happened and wanted to check she was okay,” explained Meera as Caroline sat down in the chair on the other side of the bed.
“I’m fine,” added Jo. “There’s no need to worry. I’ve just been telling Meera about the letters.”
“It was very kind of you to invite me,” replied Caroline. She picked up the piece of paper on top of the pile and, turning pale, gasped. “Oh good Lord, this is the letter I wrote to him when he returned to London. He was only gone for a week, but I missed him dreadfully.”
“It wouldn’t have felt right reading them without you,” said Jo softly, placing her hand on Caroline’s arm. Meera watched the two of them in silent fascination. Both women were normally so detached, confident and self-assured, yet around each other they seemed nervous and vulnerable. They reminded her of Krish when he was trying to get close to a wild animal. They were cautiously tiptoeing along like they were scared of frightening the other one off. Caroline put the letter down and reached into her handbag. She produced a bundle of about thirty envelopes, neatly tied together with a pink ribbon.
“Actually, if you don’t mind, I have some correspondence of my own I wanted to share first. I had asked my solicitor to keep them with my will, but I thought it would be better to give them to you now.”
She gave Meera a quick glance and Meera wondered if the two of them had discussed Caroline’s condition.
“What are they?” asked Jo as she undid the ribbon. Meera could now see each envelope simply read ‘Jo’.
“Birthday cards,” replied Caroline. “It may sound silly, but every year I bought and wrote you a card. I wanted you to have them after I had gone. I wanted you to know that I never forgot you. I thought about you all the time.”
Jo’s eyes filled with tears and Meera’s own throat tightened. All of a sudden, she felt like she was intruding.
“I think I’ll go now and leave the two of you to read together,” she said standing up quickly. Jo brushed a tear away with the back of her hand.
“Sorry, Meera, I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I’ve cried more in these last twenty-four hours than I have in my whole life.”
Meera bent down and hugged her again. “Don’t apologise and don’t be silly. It sounds like the two of you have a lifetime of tears to catch up on and hopefully some laughter too. Take care of yourself and I’ll call in and see you tomorrow.”
“I’ll see you out, Dr Kumar,” offered Caroline rising to her feet and turning to Jo who had begun carefully opening each card. “And I’ll make us both a nice, strong cup of tea before we start on those letters. I have a feeling it’s going to be rather emotional.”
Meera followed Caroline to the front door, but before she stepped outside, Caroline placed her hand on Meera’s arm.
“May I have a word, Dr Kumar?” she asked in hushed tones.
“Of course,” replied Meera wishing for the hundredth time that she would use her first name.
“I hope you don’t mind. I wouldn’t normally bother when you are not at work, but I’ve been thinking about what you said, about the possibility of undergoing treatment. I think I’d like to look at my options, see if something might work for me.”
Meera felt a surge of happiness. “That’s wonderful news,” she whispered. “I’m so pleased. Why don’t you come and see me at the surgery on Monday morning, and we can go through everything then. Or if you prefer, I could arrange a referral and you could visit Mr Charnsworth again instead.”
“No,” replied Caroline glancing back towards the staircase, “thank you, but I don’t want to go to London. I want to stay here in Yorkshire.”
“Of course. I understand,” replied Meera diplomatically.
Meera got into her car and watched in her rear-view mirror as Caroline closed the cottage door. After all these weeks she’d almost given up on Caroline ever accepting treatment. She smiled to herself. Perhaps miracles really did happen.
When she returned to the Grange, she found Ben in the kitchen, loading the dishwasher.
“How’s Jo?” he asked.
“She’s okay. A bit bruised and emotional.”
“And how are you?”
“A bit bruised and emotional too.”
“I’m terribly sorry, Meera. She’s always been difficult, but I never imagined she would be so rude and unpleasant to you of all people. I wish you’d told me.”
“Where is she?”
“On her way back to Inverness. I gave her a choice. Either apologise to you and change her attitude or leave. She chose the latter, so I called her a taxi.”
Meera sat down with a sigh. She felt relieved, but disappointed. “I kept thinking I might be able to win her round.”
Ben shook his head. “I don’t think such a thing is actually possible. She drives everyone away. My dad stuck it out until my sister and I were grown-up, but he left her at the same time I went to university. And why do you think my sister lives on the other side of the world? It was partly to get away from her. She won’t change. She’s stubborn, but in the end, she’s the one who’ll lose out.”
“But you won’t have your mother at your wedding. Are you really okay with that?”
“I know this might sound terrible, but I’m actually relieved. Even before what she said today, I would have been worried she would offend someone. We’ve never been close. Not like you and your mum, or you and Krish.”
“How is he by the way?”
“Watching TV and eating ice cream with your parents. He seems to have made a remarkable recovery since my mother left,” he said with a grin.
Meera smiled back at him. “Maybe I’m not the only one who feels like a dark cloud has lifted.”
“True. Although that could be a bad thing considering you’re hoping it will snow for the wedding.”
Meera groaned. “Oh, Ben, I love you, but I really hope the jokes in your speech are better than that!”
Chapter Twenty-One
Jo walked slowly and steadily behind Meera. By some miracle the dress fitted her, but she didn’t want to risk any sudden movements. She took her seat in the front row of chairs in the ballroom. The bride was stunning and the groom looked as though he might burst with pride. Lucy and Rachel sat on either side of her and behind her were Jack, Shirley and Caroline.
She’d felt three pairs of anxious eyes on her as she made her way down the aisle. This was the first time she’d ventured out of the cottage since she’d been discharged from hospital. Meera had been visiting daily and monitoring her blood pressure to make sure it didn’t drop too low. She had also warned Jo what felt like a hundred times against taking hot baths or standing up too quickly. Meera hadn’t been Jo’s only visitor and the little cottage was crammed full of flowers from friends and colleagues. Dawson had arrived and shyly presented her with a huge box of her favourite chocolates and even the chief constable had paid her a visit.
“Looking forward to having you back when you’re feeling up to it, Ormond,” he’d said cheerfully. “I’m planning on setting up a rural task force. I’d like you to head it up, if you’re staying that is.” He produced an envelope from his inside pocket. “This arrived for you from Inspector Wallace. I imagine she wants you back on her team. Can’t say I blame her—you are an excellent officer.”
Jo took it and murmured her thanks. This was what she’d been waiting for since she’d arrived in Hartwell, the chance to return to London, but now it was in her hand she didn’t feel the expected surge of excitement. Before arriving in Hartwell, her work had been her life, but now everything had changed. She had good friends here, and Jack, she had found her mother and was going to become a mother herself. She had created a new life in more ways than one. Did she really want to give it all up? What for? The chance to work with people like Spencer again? The chief constable had looked around the room as he stood up to leave.
“You’ve got a nice place here. It brings back quite a few memories. I lived in the cottage next door when I was the village bobbie, back in the days when such a thing existed. Strangely enough I was involved in investigating the death of another young man back then. In fact, I discovered the body down by the old well. It was a gunshot wound. The verdict was suicide, but I had my doubts—not that anyone would listen to a young, inexperienced constable. I always wondered what really happened, but I suppose I shall never know the truth, a bit like the Hanley case. It seems Hartwell is a place destined to keep its secrets.”
After he’d gone, Jo slipped the envelope into the drawer of her bedside table without opening it. For the first time in years, she’d barely thought about work. When she’d opened her eyes and found herself in hospital, all she could think about was her baby. The relief she’d felt when the doctors had told her all was well was something she’d never experienced before.
Not wanting to start crying again she pulled her thoughts back to the wedding. Meera and Ben gazed at each other as they exchanged their vows while Krish, who was acting as Ben’s best man, looked on shyly. Jo glanced around the ballroom. The place looked amazing after the film company’s Jane Austen makeover. It was lit entirely by candles that flickered and reflected in the mirror-covered walls. It wasn’t a large gathering, only about fifty people or so. Ben and Meera’s colleagues from work had all dressed in Regency outfits, while Meera’s family were all wearing dazzling jewel colours. Even the colonel, in his bright red dress uniform and minus his crutches, had made it.
“It looks like the early days of the Raj!” she’d heard Lucy gasp under her breath as they walked in. There had been a slightly awkward moment when Reverend Davenport had arrived. He had strode to the front of the room and addressed everyone with ‘dearly beloved, we are gathered here today,’ until Belinda had swiftly ushered him to his seat. The only person missing was Agnes. It seemed that Ben had been unable to get the horrible woman to apologise. Not that it seemed to be bothering him too much.
