A Village Deception (Turnham Malpas 15) (22 page)

Tamsin’s lovely green eyes sparkled with laughter. ‘I shall have to let it play second fiddle for a few years.’

They both burst out laughing. Then Paddy sobered up and said hesitantly, ‘I’m not sure about what Greta said.’

‘About your mother? I should love her to come, for your sake, but it’s up to you. Only you can decide.’

‘Would you
really
like her to come?’

‘Yes.’

‘Then I’ll think about it. Goodnight, and thank you for making me the happiest man alive tonight. I never thought you felt the same.’ Paddy kissed his index finger and placed it on her lips as a goodnight salute, then he went off home doing the Sailor’s Hornpipe with his heart full of joy.

While Paddy was dancing down Shepherd’s Hill, Greta was saying. ‘Isn’t it lovely? Paddy and Tamsin, I’m so pleased.’ She dashed a tear away from her eye, ‘It’s lovely. We’ll have to give them a right royal send-off. And I’m proud of them for not living together, it shows how much they care about each other. I know everyone does it nowadays, but somehow their decision feels good through and through.’

‘Exactly,’ said Vince, shaking the last drops of champagne out of the bottle into his glass. ‘Better than those other two, Venetia and Harry. I mean, fancy Peter, of all people, finding them at it! At least our two know how to behave decent, like.’

‘It is funny though, her disappearing like she has. Harry says
he hasn’t heard from her, which is odd, don’t you think? He confronted Jeremy, would you believe, and all he’ll say is that she’s gone to stay with her mother. I didn’t even know she had a mother.’

‘That’s plain daft, she must have. Venetia didn’t just materialise!’

‘No, I know, but you see what I mean? It is funny. Harry being mad about her and her disappearing without any warning, and him not hearing from her, what with all this text business and mobiles and that, to say nothing of emails.’

Vince answered by saying, ‘He’ll have murdered ’er.’

Greta asked, ‘Who will have?’

‘Harry. He’s been away to get rid of the body somewhere.’

‘Sometimes you can be absolutely daft. Talk about way off the mark. Listen, that’s Paddy back. Perhaps he’ll want to talk about wedding plans. We’re in the kitchen, Paddy!’

Vince wasn’t the only one who had macabre thoughts about Venetia’s disappearance. It did seem very odd. Harry disappears without a word to anyone and then, the very next day, everyone finds out that Venetia has also disappeared. But, and this was the big but, if they had gone away together, they wouldn’t have taken both their cars, now would they? It didn’t make sense. So … Maybe it was right what Jeremy had said. Venetia really had gone to see her mother. But considering the way her and Harry had carried on before they both disappeared, why had she not communicated? On the other hand,
he
hadn’t communicated to anyone either, except he’d come back with this tale about a family funeral. But don’t forget that he’d never said whose funeral it was. And what was wrong with saying, ‘Shan’t be here for a few days, I’ve got a funeral to go to.’

These and dozens of other explanations were being discussed everywhere anyone met. In the store, in the church hall at the embroidery group meeting on Monday afternoons, in the bar,
after church, and even eventually at the school, when the mothers collected together at going-home time. The more they all talked about it, the more mysterious the whole matter became.

Even Kate Fitch discussed the matter that week over dinner. ‘The mothers are all talking about it. It really is odd. How does Jeremy seem?’

‘Honestly, Kate! As if I know how he’s coping. He’s probably glad to have her off his back for a while. You know I don’t get involved in my employees’ private affairs. He certainly doesn’t appear upset, not like I’d be if you’d gone off.’

‘Ask him. And if you won’t, I will.’

‘It’s none of our business.’

‘She is one of your employees.’

‘One of
our
employees, you mean.’

‘Put like that, then I shall ask. After school tomorrow, as soon as I get back.’

As good as her word, Kate went straight to Jeremy’s office after school. She knew immediately he was upset because he was just finishing a Mars bar, and he hadn’t munched Mars bars since he’d had that heart attack and made a big effort to lose his excess weight.

Jeremy hastily popped the wrapper in his bin. ‘Hello, Kate, what can I do for you?’

Kate thought, he might sound jolly and welcoming, but he didn’t look it, anything but. ‘Just thought I’d pop in and see how you were faring with Venetia still away. I’m assuming she isn’t home yet?’

‘No. Another week, she thinks. Her mother’s not at all well.’

‘I see. How about if you come for dinner one night, it must be lonely without her.’

Jeremy hesitated. ‘Well … most kind, but I won’t intrude. Mr Fitch sees enough of me during working hours.’

‘No, please come if you wish, we’d be delighted.’

Jeremy got up and wandered over to the window and she
noticed his hands were trembling as he clasped them behind his back. ‘Thank you all the same, but no. Very kind.’

‘If you’re sure?’

‘Absolutely.’

‘She’ll be back soon then, you think?’

He nodded and Kate left, bewildered. She’d noticed his trembling hands; maybe he missed her more than any of them could possibly imagine. Love could affect people in very different ways. So she reported back to Craddock that Jeremy was expecting her back in about a week. Rather sceptically, Craddock replied, ‘Mmm. Only time will tell.’

‘Are you thinking she’s left him for good?’

‘Frankly, I don’t care.’

‘You should. You’ve known him for a long time, you’ve finally knocked him into shape, and he is very useful to you. You’ve said so yourself.’

Craddock blew a circle of cigar smoke into the air and remarked very coldly, ‘He’s a fool to care for her. She’s worthless. Not worth anyone’s devotion.’

‘Harry must think a lot of her.’

‘He’s equally worthless.’

‘Harry? But everybody likes him, what makes you say that?’

‘It seems to me that there’s a lot more to Harry Dickinson than meets the eye.’

‘Yes. He’s a nice, decent, friendly chap doing a good job for Jimbo.’

‘Believe that if you wish.’

‘Is there something I don’t know, and you do? Something Jimbo should know?’

‘To be honest, Kate, my darling, I know nothing. It’s simply my gut instinct. That’s absolutely all.’

‘I see.’ Kate decided to let the subject drop for the moment, but the whole matter of the Harry, Venetia and Jeremy triangle would not go away. But at least her conversation with Craddock
had confirmed, once and for all, that at one time, long before she and Craddock married, there had been something going on between Venetia and him. Otherwise why should his voice sound so venomous when he spoke of her?

From his front window, if he glanced across to his left, Harry had a full view of the daily improvements to Sir Ralph’s old house. The work progressed slowly, but provided an interesting object for contemplation. Imagine having so much money that one owned a house of that size and could also afford to live somewhere else while the fire damage was repaired. Never in the whole of his life had he had money on that scale. He stopped once or twice and talked to the builder, who was there every day, but he found out absolutely nothing about the current owner from him. The same story was told to anyone who enquired. The house was being restored under instructions from a solicitor in London.

Everyone in the village was curious to know and no one more so than Harry. He knew he was curious simply because he had nothing else to do, his life had suddenly become a complete blank filled with pointless drinking in the pub and doing Jimbo’s accounts while he waited. Waited? For what? For whom? Venetia Mayer, that was what. Another week and he would be gone because he could not wait any longer. He missed her in a way he’d never, in all his life, missed anyone. When he’d been turned out by his family for his thieving ways he’d thought good riddance to his mother, his father, and his two sisters. But Venetia, she was different, he’d found out he needed her. As a last, desperate measure, he’d taken great pains to compose a letter to her, talking of his love for her, how much he missed her, and asking for her to reply. No, begging her to reply would
be more accurate, and he’d taken it to Jeremy’s office yesterday to ask him to let her have it. Not having her address, he’d simply written
Mrs V. Mayer
on the envelope.

He’d forced his way into Jeremy’s office. ‘She hasn’t phoned me, texted me or emailed me and I don’t know why. Is she all right? Have you spoken to her?’

‘Yes.’

‘Please, for the sake of my peace of mind, will you send this letter to her?’

‘You’re only one of a string of men she’s had, you know. I can’t imagine why you think you are any different from the others.’ Jeremy pushed the letter to one side and ignored Harry.

‘But I am, and so is she for me. You just don’t understand how much we love each other. It’s for real, believe me.’

‘How can you stand there and ask me, her husband, for help? Just get out and don’t darken my door again.’ Again, Jeremy ignored Harry and carried on tapping briskly on his computer, making scores of typographical errors which he didn’t bother to correct.

‘Please.’ Getting no response, Harry had suggested that he’d post it himself if Jeremy would give him the address. It was as if Harry had not spoken.

So he leaned across the desk and grabbed Jeremy’s tie in one tight fist and put pressure on his jaw with the other. ‘Answer me! Do as I say. Answer me. Or else …’

Jeremy sat completely still, which enraged Harry. The tight rein he’d had on his temper these last weeks snapped and he landed a solid punch on his victim’s jaw.

Jeremy’s head shot back and then forward again, but he didn’t protest. He did nothing to retaliate, simply sat there, immobile, a heavy sweat gleaming on his ashen face.

‘Send it to her. Please. Even if you don’t care about her, I do. She loves me and I love her, and we want to be together.’ Appalled by his foolish outburst, Harry stood back. He was being
an idiot. What did Jeremy care? Not one iota and, what was worse, he was shaken by how pathetic he sounded, like some feeble teenager with his first love. But she was his first love, that was why he felt so deeply about her, why he was so bold.

Jeremy straightened his tie and his jacket. ‘Love? She doesn’t know the meaning of it. I feel nothing but pity for you, loving her. She’s not worth it. Believe me, Harry, I know. She’s not worth your anguish. I’ll send the letter for you, but don’t expect too much from her, she’s more than likely gone to her mother’s to escape you.’

Totally defeated by Jeremy’s intransigence, Harry could see no further point in pleading with him and he’d gone home, his heart shattered, his whole being defeated.

So he didn’t see Jeremy drop Venetia’s envelope in the bin where the words
Mrs V. Mayer
stuck to the wrapper of the last Mars bar Jeremy had consumed. Harry didn’t see Jeremy wipe the sweat from his face, nor see him drink a whole glass of water because fear had made him desperately thirsty.

The news of Paddy and Tamsin deciding to get married spread round Turnham Malpas like wildfire. The store, in particular, was the main distributer of the news and Paddy was overwhelmed with calls on his mobile and with people ‘by chance’ popping by the gardens and congratulating him. They’d all known there was something in the wind but they had never imagined it would come to anything. Out of his hearing, more than a few said what a strange marriage it would be, they weren’t a bit suited, but neither Paddy nor Tamsin heard these remarks and remained blissfully unaware.

They were far too busy anyway, organising the wedding, and far too happy at the reception their news got from Peter and Caroline when they went to arrange a date.

‘I am so delighted! What lovely news! Let me go and tell Caroline, she’ll be thrilled.’

Paddy and Tamsin waited in the study, hoping Caroline would come to see them. They weren’t disappointed. She arrived with a great rush and kissed and hugged them both. ‘I am so delighted. I’d no idea.’

Tamsin disengaged herself from Caroline’s hug. ‘You must be the only one who hadn’t realised then!’

‘I honestly didn’t know. So when’s the date? Have you decided on it yet?’

‘Not yet, but as soon as possible.’

‘Oh! Wonderful! I love summer weddings. I wonder, would you … I don’t want to interfere, or make you feel you’re being
organised when you’re both perfectly able to organise yourselves, but would you let me, well, Peter and I, pay for your wedding cake? As our present to you both? Please?’

Tamsin hesitated and Caroline encouraged her compliance by adding, ‘Of course Jimbo and Harriet would make it to your design, not ours. Mmm?’

Paddy said, ‘We didn’t expect … We thought …’ He glanced at Tamsin. ‘It is most kind of you both, we didn’t expect people would be so pleased for us.’

‘Of course we are! All of us will be. You belong, didn’t you know that? You try and stop us being interested.’