Between the Vines (7 page)

The computer chimed on the desk in the corner of Taylor's living room. She glanced at her watch. Even though she'd slept in she still had a few minutes before she needed to be on the road heading to her first job. She walked slowly across the room and moved the mouse to wake up the screen. Her parents had bought the computer before they left so they could talk to each other via Skype. She rubbed a hand across her forehead while she waited, then blinked to clear her vision as the screen came to life. It was Monday morning, a whole twenty-four hours after Rosie's wedding but she still felt hung over.

She scanned the long list of emails. At least with her new phone she wouldn't need to rely on the computer. Most of the emails were junk but there was one from her parents. She sat down at the computer to read it. They were heading to a more remote location in Cambodia and couldn't Skype for a week or so. Her mother gave a brief rundown of the work they'd done that week and asked her to call on Gran and let her know they were okay. They'd tried to ring her and Gran but with no luck.

Taylor closed her eyes and massaged her throbbing temples. She had noticed a missed call from her parents late last week but between her job and the wedding she hadn't called back. Now she wished she had. She could ring her gran but she felt obliged to at least try to visit. She hadn't been there for weeks. Gran wasn't easy to be with. She didn't approve of her parents' life choices, nor Taylor's for that matter.

When Pa was alive they'd lived at Burnside. Gran had sold the big house and built this flat at the back of her parents' more humble
home at West Beach but hadn't enjoyed living there. Especially because there was rarely anyone home. She'd said the granny flat was too lonely but Taylor knew it was also about location. Gran had purchased a place in a retirement village closer to where she used to live.

Taylor's mobile rang. She'd been able to keep her number but not all her contacts. Gino's, of course, was one that hadn't been lost. She glanced at his name on the screen, took a deep breath and answered. She winced as his voice boomed in her ear.

“Settle down, Gino.” Taylor pulled her notepad and pen from her pocket. “Tell me the address again.”

It was mid-afternoon when Taylor pulled into the car park near her gran's apartment. She looked at herself in the rear-view mirror. Her headache had retreated to a dull throb and her face looked pale. Gran was fussy about appearances. Taylor fluffed her flyaway hair and put on some lipstick. That would have to do.

“Coming,” Gran's singsong voice crooned as soon as Taylor pushed the doorbell of her second-floor apartment.

Taylor pulled her face into a bright smile as the door opened.

“How fortuitous. I was going to call you.” Her grandmother gave her a loose hug then held her at arms-length and studied her closely. “You look a bit pasty dear. Are you drinking plenty of water and getting lots of sleep? They're the best maintenance for your body you know.”

Taylor stepped gingerly onto the white carpet as her trim, smartly dressed gran closed the door behind her.

“You're lucky you caught me. I'm going out.” Gran looked at the delicate diamond watch on her arm. “I've got thirty minutes. Would you like a cup of green tea?”

“Just plain tea would be fine, thanks.” Taylor followed her across the small but stylish living room to the kitchen. “Mum's been trying to ring you. They're going somewhere remote again. They'll be out of touch for a while.”

Taylor heard the click of her grandmother's tongue as she turned on the kettle. It grated to think she wasn't proud of her daughter and her generosity. Gran had played the part of the doctor's wife for years, keeping her home immaculate, raising one child, entertaining and travelling overseas. Pa had always been on some committee or other but rarely Gran. She was a firm believer in charity beginning at home. Taylor's mother had followed in Pa's footsteps. Taylor sometimes wished her parents spent a little more time at home but she was used to their absence now and they certainly didn't warrant Gran's disapproval.

“Sit down, dear.” Gran set two pink floral placemats on the table then gave Taylor a gentle pat on the cheek. “Tell me what you've been doing? I hope you've given up that dreadful courier job. You're capable of so much more.”

Taylor sat. Once more she gritted her teeth. “I'm looking for something else,” she said vaguely. It wasn't a lie. Now that the wedding was over she was giving more thought to doing something different.

“Gemma rang me last week.” Gran waved a hand in the air. “She's loving paediatrics.”

“Yes, we Skyped.” Taylor had heard all about her older sister's latest promotion. She was glad for Gemma but she wouldn't want her lifestyle.

“Pity you didn't go into medicine. You were bright enough.” Gran put a cup of tea in front of her. “Still, you must be able to get a decent income from a business degree if you'd only find something suitable. Now, I haven't much time, dear, and I have a favour to ask.”

Taylor studied her gran's immaculately made-up face. She wasn't one to waste time on small talk. “What is it?”

“I have friends coming from the UK. They were going to stay with me but now I find they're staying for a month. My little apartment is too small for us to be together that long. I was hoping you could move back into your parents' house and they could have my flat.”

“There's someone in Mum and Dad's place.”

“I know but it's only one man. The two of you would hardly trip over each other. I'd rather they had the house but I can't expect them to move in with a stranger. My flat would be perfect for them.”

Taylor opened her mouth and closed it. She had a job she no longer liked, no ties and now Gran was suggesting she move out of her home. What was she doing with her life?

“You could have your old room. It wouldn't make much difference to you.”

Taylor looked at the cup of green tea and her feeling of dislocation was replaced by anger. It was as if she was invisible. If she were Gemma, Gran wouldn't be shunting her around. Ed's big smile and his suggestion to come back played in her mind. Damn it, what did she have to lose?

“As it turns out I'll be out of touch for a while too,” she blurted. “I won't need the flat.”

“Oh are you travelling again? Where to this time?”

“Not overseas. I'm going bush.” Coonawarra was hardly the bush but Gran thought bush was any space bigger than the parklands.

“Oh.” Gran's tone wasn't quite disapproving. “Have you found a new job?”

“Possibly. I'm going to check it out.” She knew the vagueness of her reply would annoy her tightly scheduled and organised grandmother.

“Where exactly in the bush?”

“Haven't decided yet.”

“Is that wise?” A tiny frown creased Gran's brow.

“You suggested I should try something new.”

“Not necessarily ‘new', just a job that better suits your qualifications.”

Taylor stood up. “We'll see.”

“Will you do that blab thing again?”

“Blog?”

“Whatever it's called I won't be able to access it. I used to read it on your parents' computer when I lived in the flat. It was quite interesting.”

“Maybe.”

That was high praise coming from Gran. Taylor had set up the blog as a way to keep her family filled in on her travels the first time she'd gone overseas. She'd kept adding to it, although not often when she wasn't travelling, just the odd quirky thing that happened. She had a reasonable number of followers besides her family.

“The computer's still in the flat. You can use that.” She brushed her lips over her gran's cheek. “I'll clear my stuff out of the flat. Nice to see you, Gran. I'll let myself out.” She walked away from the untouched tea and out the front door.

Before she could think about her decision her phone rang. Once more Gino's voice rattled off instructions.
New customer
and
urgent
were repeated several times.

“Okay, okay,” she said. “It's a bit of a drive but I should make it.”

Taylor put the address into her phone and followed the instructions. Traffic was heavy but the car park at the back of the office was almost empty when she got there. Something about that didn't feel right. She made her way down the lane to the front door. A sign was stuck inside the glass saying the company had moved. The new address was back the way she'd come, not that far from her gran's.

“Damn!”

She glanced at her watch. They wanted a parcel delivered to the airport and she was running out of time. She rang the number on the sign, confirmed the address and ran back to her van. Once more she negotiated the heavy traffic and just as she got close to her goal she was stopped by roadworks. Taylor tapped one hand on her knee and gripped the wheel tighter. She was in gridlock with only one lane to take the huge volume of traffic.

“Come on, come on,” she growled under her breath.

Finally she was through and moving along the road glancing at
buildings for numbers. As she approached another intersection the voice from her phone told her she'd reached her destination. Taylor cursed. She'd missed the turn off into the driveway. She pulled into the left-hand turn lane. A horn tooted at her from behind. She ignored it and pulled slowly around the corner peering at the building. There were several different company names but not the one she was looking for. Once more there was a toot from behind. She'd have to go around the block, pull in and try to find the office on foot.

The block was huge. Several dead ends prevented her cutting through. When she finally made it back to the set of offices the tiny car park was full. Once more she cursed, venting her frustration. A woman with a small child walked across in front of the van and opened a car door. Taylor backed up. She watched with increasing frustration as the woman spent an age buckling the child in the back of the car. Finally she was done and her car edged out of the parking space.

Taylor manoeuvred into the tiny park and squeezed out of her van. She scanned the signs on the building. None of the names was what she was looking for. She walked round the corner. Once more the names were not the one she sought. A paper flapped on a glass door in a recessed entrance. Taylor ran up to it and with relief burst through the door. This was it. She followed the passage to a brightly lit reception area.

“I've come to collect a package for the airport.”

The woman behind the counter looked down her nose at Taylor then at the large clock on the wall. “You're too late. The boss has taken it himself. He certainly won't be dealing with your company again.”

“I was given your old address.”

The woman gave her a condescending glare. “Not my problem.”

“Your office has no signage.”

“We only moved last week.”

“And there's no parking.”

“We have a back-lane access.”

The woman's patronising tone was getting under Taylor's skin and the throbbing pain in her head had deepened.

“Once again, no signage,” she snapped.

The woman drew herself up, pursed her lips and glared at Taylor.

“Please do not make excuses for your lack of efficiency. Not only will your company not get any further work from us but I will be informing your boss about your rudeness.” With a sharp nod of her head the woman turned her back and paraded into a back area, closing the door firmly behind her.

Taylor sucked in a breath. Anger surged through her as she spun on her heel and retraced her steps to her van. Once inside she rested her head on her hands gripping the steering wheel. Hot tears rolled down her cheeks.

“Damn it Gino, it wasn't my fault.”

Taylor stood in her driveway. After her melt down in the car park she'd pulled herself together and driven home. She held her new phone away from her ear as Gino's diatribe reverberated from it.

“Will you let me finish?” She tried to get a word in. “The shopfront wasn't clearly marked and…”

His sharp words cut her off.

“What?”

She couldn't believe her ears. Had he actually, finally, fired her? He repeated it with a few foul adjectives thrown in. Yes, he had.

“Well, the same to you,” she blazed into the phone. She pushed end and stared at the screen until it went blank, then she tossed it on the front seat of her van and folded her arms. She'd busted her gut for Gino and where had it got her?

She kicked at her tyre with the toe of her shoe. “Damn, damn, damn!”

“What's up?”

Taylor turned. Cass was walking towards her with a sixpack under her arm.

“What are you doing here?”

“Hair of the dog?” Cass tapped the top of the pack.

“I reckon.” Taylor retrieved her phone and keys from her van and led the way inside her flat.

“Felt a bit worn out after the big wedding,” Cass said. “Assumed you'd be the same but looks like you've got more than that on your mind.”

“Bloody Gino's just sacked me.”

“Doesn't surprise me.”

“Why not?”

“He's a slave driver and a loose cannon.” Cass had gone with Taylor to the staff Christmas party. She'd seen Gino in action. After a few drinks he was even more volatile. “What did he sack you for?”

Taylor thought back over the last two weeks.

“I was late collecting a group from the airport one day. But I made it up and the people were fine about it. Then I lost my phone and he couldn't call me till I got my new one. I did mess up another delivery late last week but today's wasn't my fault.”

Cass expertly flipped the tops off two beers and handed one to Taylor.

“It was a shit job anyway. He's always treated you badly. You should come and work for me.”