Passionate Harvest (16 page)

Picking his way between the groups of people waiting for attention, he made his way across to her.

“Lucy?” He sat beside her and took one of her cold hands in his.

She opened her eyes to look at him. “She collapsed. The doctors are with her. They won’t let me in to see her yet.” Tears escaped and ran down her face unchecked. “I’m so scared.” Her voice came out as a whisper.

He longed to reassure her but his gut kept telling him that things didn’t look good if Lucy hadn’t been allowed to stay with Maggie.

“Did you see her at all?”

She shook her head. “No. They, they said the doctors were with her and asked me to wait here.”

He gave her hand a gentle squeeze and settled back in his chair to wait with her. Every time a nurse or doctor appeared Lucy would rise to see if they were looking for her. The hands on the waiting room clock seemed to tick around ever more slowly and still no one appeared.

“Do you want me to ask at the desk to try and find out what’s happening?” he offered as she slumped back in the chair after yet another nurse entered the room and headed for a family who’d arrived long after he’d got there.

“Lucy Morgan?”

A doctor holding a clipboard entered the waiting area before she could reply. Lucy stood and crossed the room to meet him. Dominic followed in her wake, hoping that the news might be better than he feared.

The doctor led them along the corridor into a small office containing a desk and some chairs. When Lucy realised he wasn’t taking her to Maggie, her face crumpled. Dominic wrapped his arm protectively around her shoulders and steered her to one of the vacant seats.

“I’m very sorry, Miss Morgan.” The rest of his words were lost in the low keening moan that came from Lucy.

“There was nothing we could do to save her. We tried everything possible. The condition of her heart was too severe.” The doctor proffered a box of tissues.

Lucy shuddered against Dominic, her sobs wracking her slender frame. “She can’t be gone. She can’t.”

“Would you like me to send in a nurse?” The doctor asked.

Dominic shook his head.

“May I see her?” Lucy asked, suddenly.

The doctor nodded. “Of course. I’ll just go and check with the staff.” He exited the office leaving them alone.

Dominic smoothed Lucy’s wet hair and gently kissed the top of her head as she sobbed out her grief onto his shoulder.

“I can’t believe it. She was so happy this morning when I left. She was going out with her friends, they had a nice day all planned and now she’s gone.” Her voice choked on a sob.

A nervous looking young nurse appeared in the doorway. “Miss Morgan, would you like to come with me to see your aunt?”

They followed the few short steps along the corridor. All around them were green curtained cubicles with various pieces of medical equipment and patients on trolleys accompanied by family and friends.

“Just in here.” The nurse lifted back a curtain for them to enter a cubicle.

Dominic followed Lucy. She stopped short immediately inside the room. Maggie lay on the trolley, her head supported by pillows. Her face was serene and her eyes closed as if she had fallen asleep on the bed. Only the plasters and bruising on her arms told a different tale.

Lucy approached her beloved aunt and took her hand in hers.

“Oh, Maggie. I loved you so much. Thank you for everything.” She kissed Maggie’s forehead, and replaced her hand gently down on the hospital coverlet. She turned and blundered towards Dominic, tears streaming down her cheeks.

The nurse stood aside as he placed his arm around Lucy’s shoulders once more and led her into the corridor.

“She’s gone, Dominic. She’s really gone.” The loss and loneliness in Lucy’s voice were almost more than he could take.

Somehow he managed to thank the nurse and collect the details of what would happen next before walking Lucy out of the hospital.

“You shouldn’t be alone in your house. Come back to the cottage with me.” 

They stood under the great grey stone portico of the entrance. All around them people dashed in and out. The rain had slowed to a steady drizzle and thunder still rumbled in the distance.

Lucy nodded agreement and he led her to his car, relieved to see he hadn’t been ticketed whilst he’d been inside.

“We can come back for your car later. You can tell me where you left it.”

He drove carefully out of the hospital car park.

“Do you want to stop off and collect an overnight bag?”

Her lips trembled. “Would you get something for me? I don’t think I can face going inside the house yet.”

He took her keys and left her in the car while he ran inside the house to grab some of her clothes. He picked up a travel bag from beside her wardrobe, and not wanting to pry amongst her things he shoved some underwear, her make up bag, a couple of tee shirts and a pair of jeans into the bag.

She stared dead ahead through the windscreen avoiding even looking at the house when he rejoined her in the car.

“Please, can we go? I can’t deal with this right now.”

Dominic took her back to the cottage and made her drink a cup of tea while he let Jo know what had happened.

“It’s so unfair. First Uncle Nick, and now Aunt Maggie. I have no one Dominic, no one.”

He held her tight while she cried as his heart asked, ’what about me?’

There was a sweet tenderness to their lovemaking that night even though Dominic lay awake long after Lucy had fallen asleep in his arms. Although he had wanted her to stay overnight with him for weeks now, he had never envisaged it being under these circumstances.

The feelings he had towards her overwhelmed him. He wanted to take away her hurt, to protect from pain. Yet he couldn’t. All he could do was to be there for her.

It was in the small dark hours of the morning with Lucy lying next to him, her head against his shoulder, that he recognised the truth. He loved her.

Lucy woke the next morning having slept far better under the circumstances that she had thought she would. The list of all the things she needed to do buzzed around in her brain like an angry wasp, threatening to overwhelm her.

“Do you want me to do anything for you today?” Dominic asked as they stood together in his kitchen.

“If you drop me off at the hospital, I’ll collect my car and sort out the death certificate.” Her voice wobbled a little.

“Do you want me to come with you?” He offered.

Part of her wanted to say yes. It would be so easy to agree and allow Dominic to look after things, to look after her. But, this was something she had to face on her own. It would make the situation more real. At the moment it all felt like some horrible dream that she was some how floating through.

Much to her relief, Dominic didn’t argue when she refused his help. Unable to stomach any breakfast, she accepted a lift to the hospital and arrived shortly after nine ready to collect Maggie’s belongings and the death certificate.

There was a lump in her throat as she watched Dominic drive away. Perhaps she’d been stupid to do this by herself, but right now it was the only way she felt she could cope with the situation.

Collecting the certificate wasn’t as bad as she’d feared. Fortunately, she’d collected the other documents she’d needed from the house on their way in. It had killed her to enter her home seeing Maggie’s old brown coat on the hook in the hall and her battered blue slippers under the seat where she’d left them.

She managed to hold herself together until they handed over a hospital carrier bag with Maggie’s possessions. Her worn leather handbag, a cheap watch Lucy had given her for Christmas many years ago and a gold locket she had always worn containing a picture of Lucy as a baby.

It wasn’t until she was enclosed in the safety of her car with Maggie’s few things on the seat beside her that Lucy broke down and wept. Unsure of her next steps she made her way to Mr Fullwood’s office.

The elderly solicitor was shocked at the news of Maggie’s death.

“You know you can count on me to assist you.” He patted her hand. “However, on one thing I can set your mind at ease, the house is yours my dear. Nick left it to Maggie in her lifetime and to pass to you when anything should happen to her. Likewise, Maggie also made a will and lodged it here with me. Apart from a few bequests to various charities she also left everything she possessed to you.”

Lucy hadn’t even thought about the house or that she might have been homeless. She would give it all up in an instant if she could have Maggie back.

“I know this is of small comfort to you now.” Mr Fullwood continued. “But Maggie also prearranged her funeral. She was concerned that everything would fall on you after she passed. As you know she had no family.”

Lucy stared at him, trying to take the information in. “When did she arrange all this?”

The solicitor adjusted his glasses and peered at the sheaf of papers in front of him. “She made her will shortly before Nick’s death. The funeral however she organised a few weeks ago.”

Lucy choked back a sob.

“I’m sorry my dear. I think Maggie knew her health was failing fast.”

“I can’t believe she didn’t say anything to me.” Lucy pulled a tissue from her bag and dabbed at her eyes.

Mr Fullwood smiled sympathetically. “She didn’t want to cause you any pain, and of course I think she hoped she might have longer than she actually did.”

Lucy arrived back at the house late in the afternoon after a visit to the funeral director which had confirmed everything that Mr Fullwood had said. Maggie had even arranged for the funeral notices to go to the papers in the event of her death.

Her eyes, puffed and swollen from crying, Lucy sat at her computer and sent an email to her parents. The last time they had called they had been on their way to Patagonia and she had no idea when they were likely to pick up her message. Not that she expected them to do anything when they did. If she were lucky she might get a brief phone call but that would probably be the extent of their assistance.

Dominic texted her several times during the day, asking her if she was okay and if she needed him to do anything. Sitting alone in the study of an empty house she forced herself to reply telling him she was fine.

She tipped the contents of the hospital bag onto the table and stroked Maggie’s locket feeling the soothing coolness of the worn metal against her fingertips. She flicked it open to see her baby picture. A solemn faced toddler with fluffy blonde hair and anxious eyes stared back at her.

Lucy swallowed the lump in her throat and sniffed back her tears. Next she opened Maggie’s bag. An old purse stuffed with coupons and Maggie’s bus pass. Tissues, a comb, throat sweets and a battered tube of lip balm.

She was about to close it back up when she heard the crackle of paper in the inner side pocket of the bag. Sliding her hand inside she drew out a small envelope bearing her name in Maggie’s distinctive crabbed handwriting.

Her heart skipped a beat as she opened the envelope to draw out a slip of paper.

‘Dear Lucy,

If you’re reading this then I can assume I’m dead, or so ill I might as well be. My dearest girl, you have given Nick and I so much joy in our lives, leaving you is the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do. Your parents gave us a great gift when they gave you to us. If I had ever been blessed with a daughter I would have wanted one just like you. Be brave. Follow your heart.

I love you, 

Maggie’

Tears poured down Lucy’s face once more as she read to the end of the note. It had started off in typical Maggie fashion and ended on such a bittersweet note she thought her heart would break.

The ring of the doorbell broke her out of her misery. Stuffing the note back in the envelope she dried her eyes and padded to the front door. She opened it a crack and peered out to find Dominic on her doorstep holding a bunch of pink and lavender flowers.

“Can I come in?” he asked when she continued to stand, staring at him, too exhausted with misery to think straight.

She nodded and opened the door letting him into the hall.

“I was worried about you.” He followed her to the kitchen and placed the flowers on the table.

“I’m okay.” Her response was automatic and neither one of them believed her.

“Have you eaten anything yet today?”

“No.” She hadn’t even thought about food.

He walked across the kitchen to her toaster and popped in two slices of bread. “You need to eat something.”

Lucy sank back down on the kitchen chair. He fixed her buttered toast and made them both a cup of tea before taking the seat opposite hers.

“You don’t have to do this alone, Lucy.”

“I know. It’s all so unreal though, right now.” She crumbled a piece of toast and popped it into her mouth, the scent of the bread reminding her that her stomach was empty.

“Will you come back with me to the cottage tonight?” His face expressed his concern.

She took a sip of tea before answering him. “No, I think I need to be here now for a while. I have to face it sometime and there are messages to take, people keep calling.” She’d dealt with umpteen calls since she’d come home, mostly from Maggie’s church friends and from her neighbours, all expressing their shock and sympathy at her loss.

Lucy knew that wasn’t the answer he wanted to hear, and part of her wanted to reach out and accept his help. It was so tempting to go back to the cottage with him, to the safe comfort of his bed and his arms. 

The other part of her was afraid. She’d lost everyone she’d held dear. Maggie and Nick had been her parents in every meaningful sense of the word. Nick had taught her to ride her first bike, running alongside her in the park until she’d triumphantly wobbled away solo along the path. Maggie had attended her school plays, stuck plasters on her knees when she’d fallen off her roller skates and sat up with her at night when she’d had tonsillitis.

Now they were gone and inside her heart was a big, black empty space.

“Would you like me to stay with you?”

She shook her head, unable to speak.