Divided Loyalties (17 page)

The houses started to thin out and soon they were driving past Dan’s rows of shining glasshouses, and his neatly kept fields that would soon be tilled for spring planting. The sea sparkled
in the sunlight, shimmering and glossy, the sky sapphire. Mediterranean blue almost. A black Labrador bounded exuberantly along the beach, ecstatic with life as his owner threw sticks for him to
catch. Bobby sighed deeply. He was torn between missing the beauty of the place he had grown up in and the desire never to set foot in his village again.

‘Shauna’s not coming to the airport. Chloe’s running a temperature, so we’ll just call for five minutes.’ Carrie broke the silence.

‘OK.’ He shrugged. They didn’t speak again until they got to Malahide.

‘I need to get petrol. I’ll drop you off and get it so we won’t be delayed,’ she said distractedly as they drove into the town.

‘I’ll pay for the petrol,’ he offered hastily.

‘Don’t be daft,’ she retorted but her tone was softer and for that he was relieved.

‘You look the worse for wear, or are you getting the damned bug?’ Shauna said when she opened the door to him. ‘Where’s Carrie going?’

‘To get petrol,’ Bobby said forlornly.

‘What’s wrong with you?’

‘Had a humdinger of a row with Dad. Called him a whited sepulchre and told him he’d make a great Pharisee and got kicked out of the house for good.’ He grimaced. ‘I think
telling him that he’ll never learn compassion kneeling at the altar rails was probably the straw that broke the camel’s back, but at that stage I didn’t care. I wanted to hurt him
for the way he’s hurt me.’

‘Way to go, Bobby,’ Shauna said dryly. ‘What was a Pharisee again, remind me?’

‘They were the self-righteous geeks in the Bible who were always thumping their chests and boasting about how much they gave to charity and saying how wonderful they were and how much they
knew of the word of God.’

‘Oh, Bobby, I bet
that
hit a sore point.’ Shauna grinned.

‘He went ballistic, absolutely ballistic. I thought he was going to croak there and then.’ He shook his head as if trying to get rid of the memory.

‘Does Carrie know?’

‘Yeah. She had to make him a cup of tea, he was allegedly so upset. I say allegedly because I know that he was just mad because I answered him back. He’s not upset, he hasn’t a
heart to be upset.’ Bobby followed his sister into the kitchen. ‘Carrie’s pretty mad with me herself. She said both you and I’d be gone and she’d be left to clean up
the mess. It’s so ironic. That’s what started the bloody row. I was trying to persuade him to get someone in to do his cleaning so Carrie wouldn’t have to,’ he said
plaintively as he lifted Chloe into his arms and cuddled her to him.

‘She’s right and I feel bad about going out to the Gulf, but only because of her. It won’t cause me too much grief to be leaving Dad behind and that’s an awful thing to
say,’ Shauna confessed glumly.

‘He’s reaping what he’s sowed, Shauna, and I feel just like you so either the two of us are horrible people or what we’re feeling is OK because of the way he treated us
when we were growing up.’ Bobby sighed.

‘We’re not horrible people,’ Shauna said stoutly. ‘We’re just trying to deal with . . . with stuff. Will you come out to visit us in the Gulf?’ She hugged
him.

‘You bet I’ll come. I’ll want to bond with this gorgeous scamp.’ He kissed Chloe on top of her head as she lay curled against him, her eyes bright and watery.

‘I don’t know if it’s the bloody bug or a new tooth. I could swing for that Della one. Even Greg’s pissed off about it. He went to a meeting with his accountant feeling
decidedly queasy.’

‘A Christmas to remember.’ Bobby arched an eyebrow.

‘Or one best forgotten, more like it,’ she said caustically as she went to open the door for Carrie who had just rung the doorbell. ‘Sorry about the mess, the van is coming to
take our stuff. Have we time for a drink?’ she asked as her older sister stepped inside.

‘I need to get Bobby dropped off and get back to Olivia and let Dan get to the glasshouses for an hour or so. And I’ve to do a dinner for Dad.’ Carrie glanced at her watch.

‘It’s the last time we’ll be together for a while. How about sharing a split of champagne? We’ll only get a mouthful each,’ Shauna urged, anxious that they not part
in such a gloomy fashion.

‘OK,’ Carrie agreed, stroking Chloe’s cheek.

Shauna poured the golden bubbly liquid into three champagne flutes and poured some apple juice into Chloe’s little cup. ‘To better times,’ she toasted.

‘To better times,’ her siblings echoed dutifully but Shauna knew their hearts weren’t in it and she felt like crying as she hugged Bobby goodbye.

‘Don’t!’ he warned as he saw the tell-tale glitter in her eyes.

‘Right, go on,’ she said hastily. ‘I’ll phone you.’

‘And don’t come to the door,’ Bobby said, wishing this part was over.

Shauna bit her lip as she heard the door close behind them. What a horrible way to part. Thanks to Della and to her dad, the family’s last Christmas together for the foreseeable future had
been ruined.

‘Don’t get out of the car, drive up to the set-down area and I’ll get out there,’ Bobby said as Carrie indicated left off the roundabout and drove into
the airport.

‘Ah no! I’ll park and come in and see you off properly,’ she protested.

‘No, don’t, Carrie. I hate saying goodbye. I’m much better going in on my own, please.’ He turned to her.

‘Are you sure?’

‘Positive.’

‘Sorry about getting mad.’

‘Sorry about leaving you to pick up the pieces,’ he reciprocated as she pulled into a space and cut the engine.

They flung their arms round each other and hugged tightly and then Bobby got out of the car, opened the back door to grab his rucksack and was gone with a quick wave.

Tears welled up in her eyes as she headed for the exit. What a dreadful way to say goodbye. Their family was even more fractured than before and all she wanted to do was go home to Dan and lay
her head on his chest and feel his strong arms round her. If it wasn’t for Dan she’d be sunk, she reflected as she drove out onto the M1 and headed back home.

Bobby wandered into Hughes & Hughes and stared unseeingly at the rows of books adorning the bookshelves. He’d checked in and had half an hour to spare before
boarding. The best thing to do was to not think about it at all, he told himself firmly as a raft of titles made him focus on his reading requirements . . . He needed to concentrate and find a good
thriller to take his mind off everything. He might as well forget about home. London was his home now. There was no going back.

‘The things he said to me, Carrie. They were scurrilous. He has no respect at all. I’m his father. Well I’ll tell you one thing, I’m going to my
solicitor and I’m cutting him out of my will,’ Noel fumed as Carrie set a plate of steamed fish and creamy mashed potatoes in front of him.

‘Oh, Dad, you can’t do that.’ She was horrified.

‘I can and I will,’ he said forcefully. ‘I don’t want ever to set eyes on him again. He’s gone too far this time.’

‘That’s a very unforgiving thing to do, Dad. You might regret it. And you know Mam would be very upset to think that you’d do that to Bobby or to any of us,’ Carrie said
firmly. ‘It’s vengeful and spiteful, Dad, and beneath you,’ she added, trying to appeal to his better nature.

‘I don’t want a lecture from you,’ he retorted, stung by her remarks.

‘Fine. I’m going home to my family; thank God
we
love each other. If you need me, ring me,’ Carrie said pointedly.

Her father maintained a stubborn silence and she let herself out of the house and wished that she, and not Shauna, was heading to foreign parts.

‘That’s it, Mrs Cassidy, just sign this document, please. Good luck in the Gulf.’ The freight van had come to take the clothing, personal possessions and few
belongings they intended bringing to their new home. The young man handed her a pen and indicated where she should sign her name. She did so with a flourish and felt a wave of anticipation. After
the past couple of days she was delighted to be going abroad. Away from her father, away from Della and her manipulative behaviour, away from painful memories, away from
everything
. Greg
was right, they were young, and they should make the most of life. It was her and Greg’s choice to try another lifestyle. There was nothing to stop Dan and Carrie from doing likewise should
they ever want to.

She’d had enough guilt trips laid on her, she told herself fiercely. She wasn’t going to let another one ruin her future.

‘Great party, Shauna,’ Liz Delahunty, an old friend from her Saudi days, congratulated her. ‘I wish I was going back,’ she said wistfully. ‘I
can’t persuade Mick, he says the political situation’s too unstable.’

‘It seems to be OK in the Emirates. If it ever gets really dicey we’ll just come home,’ Shauna said lightly. A few people had brought up the political situation but she
wasn’t too concerned. Greg had friends all over the Gulf and they were keeping him up to date.

It was almost eleven thirty and the house was jam-packed with friends and neighbours. The caterers had done a great job and a huge buffet was laid out on the table in the dining room.

Not even Della and Eddie could ruin her evening. She’d phoned them a few days before the party and told them that they had to find a babysitter for Kathryn if they wanted to come. The
house was to be a baby-free zone. Carrie’s sister-in-law was going to mind Olivia, Davey and Chloe in Whiteshells Bay so that they could party the night through.

Della hadn’t been too happy, but for once Shauna had been adamant. If they were coming they had to leave Kathryn at home. Shauna hoped against hope that they wouldn’t come, but she
knew in her heart and soul that they’d be there.

She’d borrowed the pump-up bed again and made it up and put it in the smaller bedroom. There was a divan in there as well. Della and Eddie could decide whether they wanted to share the
pump-up or Della could have the divan. Carrie and Dan were having the double bed in the guest room with the en suite.

It had given her a small sense of victory to move Eddie and Della into the other room. It was pathetic, she knew, but they made assumptions that the en suite was
their
room to come and
stay in whenever
they
felt like it. Della had been decidedly miffed when they arrived to find that Dan and Carrie were already installed in
their
room. ‘I’ve borrowed
the pump-up bed and it’s made up. If you feel it’s too low for you and your bump you can hop into the divan,’ Shauna said airily to Della and then ordered Eddie to bring their
overnight bag up to the small bedroom.

‘Oh! We’ve been
demoted
!’ Della’s gay laugh was forced, her little cold eyes hard and unsmiling.

‘Go in and mingle and I’ll get Greg to fetch you a drink.’ Shauna completely ignored the sly jibe and ushered her sister-in-law into the crowded lounge. ‘Greg?’ she
called to her husband, who was pouring a glass of wine for their solicitor. ‘Della and Eddie are here. Will you organize a drink for them? Greg will get you a drink, Della. Feel free to help
yourself to the buffet,’ she said politely and left the other woman to her own devices. Della and Eddie knew some of their friends, and Shauna was damned if she was going to spend her
precious party entertaining the in-laws from hell!

For form’s sake she’d invited her father but warned him that it would be crowded and noisy and that Dan and Carrie would be staying over so he’d have to stay over too, unless
he drove himself. Noel had declined the invitation, much to her relief.

‘You young people go and enjoy yourselves. It’s not for the likes of me,’ he assured her and she hadn’t tried to make him change his mind.

The atmosphere was buzzing, and she was enjoying mingling with her friends. Once she’d made the decision to get the caterers in, she’d determined to be a guest at her own party and
it was fun.

‘I think Della’s nose is out of joint. She’s been very cool with me,’ Carrie murmured an hour or so later as they stood side by side at the buffet.

‘Tough.’ Shauna grinned. ‘Try one of these marinated prawns, they’re gorgeous, and make sure to taste a few scallops. Eddie, true to form, has been raiding the buffet all
evening and I swear to God I was getting panicky that there’d be nothing left.’

‘Did they bring anything?’

Shauna gave a dry laugh. ‘Are you mad? Not a sausage.’

‘They’re the pits, aren’t they?’ Carrie always found their meanness incredible.

‘At least they’ll be out of my hair,’ Shauna said cheerfully. No-one was going to spoil her good humour tonight.

It was after five when she got woozily into bed. She was tight, she thought giddily as Greg handed her a pint glass of water and two Solpadeine.

‘Great party, wasn’t it?’ he remarked as he sat down heavily on the bed to take his own tablets. ‘At least neither of us will have to get up too early in the morning.
I’m bunched.’ He got into bed beside her. The bedsprings in Dan and Carrie’s room creaked rhythmically.

Greg grinned. ‘That pair next door are having a ride. I wouldn’t be able to if I tried. Sorry ’bout that, Shauna.’

‘Me neither,’ she yawned. ‘This is their night out. They don’t get away without the kids that often.’

‘Sad bastards,’ Greg muttered and fell asleep instantly.

Lucky, I’d call them, Shauna thought drowsily, remembering how she’d caught them snogging in the kitchen earlier. The passion was still in their marriage, even after all these years.
She wondered whether her and Greg’s relationship would be so enduring, then fell asleep.

‘We’re the only two without hangovers, Carrie,’ Della twittered irritatingly as they all sat round the kitchen table around midday the following morning.

‘Be quiet, Della,’ growled Eddie as he shovelled sausage and bacon into his gob.

‘Well I told you you were drinking too much,’ nagged his wife.

‘Oh, shut up,’ he snapped.

‘Good enough for you,’ she said smugly. Shauna wished she’d put a zip in it. Her head was throbbing. Dan winked at her as he poured her another cup of freshly percolated
coffee.