Tagan's Child (57 page)

I arrived back
home early Tuesday evening having spent an enjoyable second day
with Halsan, Leylana and Toby showing me around Dinara. The King
and Queen were easy company and I felt that after our conversation
Leylana and I had become friends. Although we didn’t speak of Ahran
again I got the impression the Queen was giving me space to come to
my own decision. Once or twice she held my arm as we walked and it
was as if she was silently offering her support. However, I was
resolute that Ahran and I did not have a future together. I had not
followed her advice about looking inside my heart. I had locked it
up and thrown away the key. My head ruled this decision. So once
again I imposed the ‘no thinking about Ahran’ rule and that evening
went to the shop to get it ready for opening the next day. Keeping
busy and not allowing myself to think, was the only way
forward.

I spent the
whole evening cleaning and making sure the shop was in a more
suitable condition. It had been left untouched since Audrey’s
attack and the place smelt stale. I cleared out the fridges,
scrubbed the coffee machine and washed the floor throughout. By the
time I left, it was gone midnight and I felt satisfied that the
shop had returned to its usual state of cleanliness. The following
morning Sandie arrived for work and once we had put away the
deliveries, I concentrated on running my business.

The weeks went
by and I fell into a predictable routine. The police kept in
contact and I received cards and flowers from well-wishers. My
guilt at deceiving everyone lessened knowing I was doing the right
thing protecting Toby. I visited him every weekend and even some
evenings when I didn’t have any paperwork to do. We agreed I would
have Mungo for the time being. I needed him for security reasons,
apparently, although we both knew Mungo was a useless guard dog. I
had my suspicions Toby felt less guilty about being in Ramia and
enjoying it knowing I had Mungo for company.

My heart and
the fragile emotions contained within it were a ‘restricted access’
area and I managed to exist by operating on a superficial level.
Outwardly, the new Sophie was a clever replica of the old Sophie.
She was pleasant and as cheerful as she could be under the
circumstances, keeping busy was her way of dealing with Toby’s
disappearance. Inwardly, well I didn’t venture inwards. Somehow I’d
managed to detach myself from myself. If anyone noticed any
difference, they didn’t say and I never gave myself a second where
any kind of introspection could take place. When I wasn’t working
or visiting my nephew, I was out running with my iPod stuffed
firmly in my ears. On the odd occasion I fleetingly allowed myself
to gauge the state of my inner self, I discovered I wasn’t happy
but I wasn’t unhappy either. I was existing fairly successfully on
a plain of mediocrity where I didn’t allow myself to feel anything
too deeply. I had settled into living a double life and no longer
agonised over Toby being in Ramia, he was happy and thriving and
that was all I could ask for. I enjoyed my time with him and felt
comfortable in the company of the King and Queen, but whenever I
was on my own I did my best to keep my mind occupied and away from
the business of feeling.

The coffee shop
was busy leading up to Christmas and I employed one of the school
mums temporarily to cope whilst Audrey recuperated. She was making
a good recovery. I took her out shopping and helped her as much as
I could, trying to make up for not being there when she had needed
me most. Marcus and I had formally split after a very awkward
meeting at the local pub. He wanted to try for a reconciliation but
as hard as it was to see him hurting there was no going back for me
and I did my best to let him down gently. I wasn’t sure I ever
wanted to enter into another relationship again.

It was the
Friday before Christmas and I closed up the shop looking forward to
spending a week of annual holiday in Ramia. Even though Christmas
wasn’t celebrated there, Leylana and I were excited about the
festive celebrations we had planned for Toby’s sake.

The phone was
ringing when I got back home from my evening run.

“Hi Sophe,”
Bennie said when I picked up.

“Hi Ben, you
okay?”

“Yeah, I’m
fine. You okay? You sound out of breath.”

“I’ve just come
in from a run,” I said, picking up the free local newspaper lying
on the mat and shutting the front door with my behind. I hadn’t
seen Bennie for a few weeks but she had called me from Mexico. Not
a work trip I had found out later, much to my dismay, but a dirty
week away with her non-committal bed partner Matt, who also
happened to be her boss and the love of her life. Although it was
perfectly clear to me, that she was not his.

“You haven’t
forgotten my parent’s golden wedding anniversary lunch tomorrow
have you?”

I hadn’t
forgotten. I’d told Toby I wouldn’t be arriving until Sunday. He
didn’t seem to mind, it meant that he would be able to visit the
royal race yard with the King in the morning.

“No. What time
does it start?”

“Can you come
about ten thirty? The guests aren’t arriving until midday but I
think I’ll need some moral support before then.”

“Yeah, that’s
fine. Are your Aunt Flora and Uncle George coming?” Flora was
Bennie’s mum’s younger sister and was a gentle, long suffering
woman. Her husband reminded me of Prince Phillip. A man who always
harked back to the past, which according to him, was when things
were so much better than they are today. He also had a tendency to
say the most outrageous things in company and often had me and
Bennie in stitches.

“Yes, they
arrived this afternoon. You’ll be pleased to know Uncle George is
on fine form,” Bennie said cheerfully.

“Excellent!
Looking forward to it. What are you wearing?” I mentally searched
through my wardrobe for something suitable.

“A pair of
tailored black trousers and a grey cashmere sweater.” Bennie’s
clothes were always beautiful and expensive.

“Right,” I
thought aloud. If I had thought about it I could have borrowed
something from the palace.

“What are you
doing this evening?” I asked

“We’re going to
The Oak for dinner. Do you want to join us?”

I contemplated
spending the evening with Bennie and her family but I had some
paperwork to do and I wasn’t sure I could stomach an evening and a
day with her relatives.

“Sorry Ben, I
must get my VAT return done.”

“Are you sure?”
she asked doubtfully.

“Yes but thanks
for the invite. I’ll see you in the morning.”

“Okay then
lovey. Have fun.”

“I doubt
it.”

I put the phone
down and ran upstairs to have a shower. I always looked forward to
the prospect of seeing my best friend and I hadn’t heard the low
down from her trip away with Matt yet. Once I’d showered and had a
bite to eat I sat at the bureau at the bottom end of the lounge and
switched on my laptop. I logged on to the HMRC’s website and got on
with the tedious task ahead of me.

*****

The next
morning I got up and walked Mungo and then met a local producer at
the shop who was delivering some cheeses for me to try. I dashed
back home to get ready so that I could be at Bennie’s for ten
thirty. I was cutting it fine and nearly didn’t answer the phone on
my way out of the door.

“Hello?”

“Sophie it’s
me,” Bennie said, sounding shaky.

“Bennie, are
you alright?”

“It’s Dad. He
had a heart attack in the night.”

“Oh my God,
Ben!” I sat on the bottom step of the stairs. “Is he going to be
alright?” Bennie’s father was a tall striking man, but he wasn’t
the fittest of 76 year olds and not helped by a penchant for cigars
and brandy.

“Mum and I are
at the hospital. He is fairly bright and the doctors don’t think it
was too serious but they are keeping him in for monitoring.”

“Oh. Well,
that’s a relief. Is there anything I can do? Do you want me to come
to the hospital?”

“No, its fine.
Mum and I are staying here until they’ve found him a room. Would
you mind going to the house? We are cancelling the lunch obviously,
but I wondered whether you could help Aunt Flora phone round the
guests and tell them what’s happened?”

“Yeah sure, no
problem. Send your mum and dad my love.”

“Thanks Sophe.
Sorry, I’ve got to go. I’ll phone you later.”

“Okay, bye.” I
put the phone down. Poor Ben’s parents. What a horrible thing to
have happened on the eve of their golden wedding anniversary. I
grabbed my bag, drove to the Old Vicarage and parked on the large
gravel drive in front of the house, next to the catering company’s
van. I didn’t recognise the girl who opened the front door. I went
in and found Aunt Flora sat next to the phone in the drawing room
with the guest list in her hand.

She got up when
she saw me. “Hello Sophie, it’s nice to see you again.”

I gave her a
peck on each cheek. “Hello, Mrs Highbridge. What a dreadful thing
to have happened.”

“Yes, not
something we really planned for,” she replied.

“It was the
brandy in that place last night,” said a booming voice from the
other side of the room.

Bennie’s Uncle
George was sat beside the fire reading the paper.

“Oh hello Mr
Highbridge. I didn’t see you sitting there.” I went over and
formally shook his hand. I was never quite sure how to greet him, a
kiss on the cheek seemed over familiar somehow.

“I said to
Flora it didn’t taste right and sure enough it gave the old bugger
a heart attack,” he grumbled.

“Oh George, it
was nothing to do with the brandy,” Flora said, chastising her
husband.

He muttered
something and rustled his paper in disagreement.

“How are you my
dear? Gwen told me the terrible news,” she said, turning her
attention back to me.

“It’s been
difficult,” I answered noncommittally.

“Are they still
no closer to finding him?”

I shook my
head. “No, the police are doing everything they can.” I trotted out
the well-rehearsed answer I used if anyone asked me how the search
was going. In true British fashion, most people didn’t know what
else to say once they had said, ‘It must be awful. I hope they find
him soon’. Usually, I was then safe to change the subject.

“It must be
awful for you dear, I can’t imagine what you must be going through.
I hope they find him soon,” she said.

“Yes, thank
you.”

She smiled at
me sympathetically.

“How are you
getting on there?” I asked and with the change of subject swiftly
executed, I pointed to the list of names she had in her hand.

“I’m making
progress.”

“Do you want me
to call a few?”

“Would you mind
dear? That would be helpful.” She handed me the second sheet of
paper she was holding.

“You can use
the phone upstairs in Gwen’s bedroom. It will be quieter than the
one in the kitchen. The caterers are just clearing up.”

I made my way
upstairs passing a young girl carrying a box of glasses in the
hallway. It was such a shame, the Blythe-Smiths must have spent a
fortune on this lunch.

I went into
Bennie’s mother’s bedroom. I knew her mother and father hadn’t
shared a room for years. It was large with a floor to ceiling bay
window making the most of the weak morning light, there was
expensive floral wallpaper on the walls and it smelt of Chanel No
5., which I was fairly certain she showered in. I sat on the edge
of her bed and picked up the handset. I dialled the first number
and looked at the picture of Bennie on her mother’s bedside table.
It must have been taken when Bennie was about seventeen. She had
the same jet black hair but it was long and in a ponytail. It was
some time before she’d had it cut into the blunt bob she now wore.
Bennie sat there smiling at me whilst I waited for a ‘Mrs
Boothroyd-Jones’ to answer.

“Oh hello, is
that Mrs Boothroyd-Jones?”

“Yes,” the
voice on the other end answered.

“This is Sophie
McAllister, I’m a family friend of the Blythe-Smiths. I’m sorry to
have to report that Mr Blythe-Smith has been taken ill and their
anniversary lunch has been cancelled.”

After making
the same call ten times and fielding the questions the guests asked
about Bennie’s father’s condition I went back downstairs to find
Aunt Flora to see if there was anything else I could do. She was
sat opposite Mr Highbridge in the drawing room, sipping from a
porcelain teacup and saucer.

“Ah there you
are dear, how did you get on?” she asked.

“Fine. I
managed to get hold of everyone except,” I referred back to my
piece of paper checking the name of the person who hadn’t answered
the phone. “A Colonel Havers.”

“He’s as deaf
as a post, he probably didn’t hear the phone,” Uncle George piped
up.

Flora gave her
husband a withering look. “Never mind dear, we are staying here so
if anyone turns up we can tell them what has happened.”

“Do you want me
to stay here with you?” I was hoping she would say no, I’d already
thought I would visit Toby early and use the pool before they got
back from the stables.

“No it’s
alright, you go on. Thank you for your help.”

I gave Aunt
Flora a peck on the cheek and gave Uncle George a little awkward
wave as I said goodbye.

When I got
home, I tried Bennie’s mobile but it went straight to answer phone.
She must have still been at the hospital. I swallowed a travel
sickness pill and took Mungo round to Sandie’s for the week. Once I
had changed and packed a bag, I slipped out the back and headed
into the woods just as I’d done many times over the last few weeks.
Thanks to the pills, I was able to travel through the portal now
pretty much none the worse for wear.