Written in the Stars (19 page)

‘I don’t tan, I burn. I had to keep covered most of the time. But you should see Charlize; she’s as brown as a nut.’ Then she laughed softly. ‘And hey, you’ll never guess what happened… she’s fallen in love.’

‘Charlize in love? I don’t believe it,’ Mark said, incredulously. ‘She’s the last of the great bachelor girls.’

‘Well, someone has finally got under her skin’ Over the next ten minutes Suzi filled him in on all the details of Charlize’s romance with Lloyd. ‘They seem irresistibly drawn to each other. It’s quite incredible.’ She sighed. ‘I’m so happy for her.’

It only took a few days to settle back into the job. Narelle had managed very well in her absence, but was happy to relinquish the role of hostess. Everything seemed as it had always been, but there was one thing that caused her real concern, and that was Mark’s obsession with horse racing. He spent all his spare time between the end of the luncheon period, until it was time to prepare for the evening meal, hunched over the table by the window, studying the racing section of the newspaper and making copious notes.

When she questioned him, he just smiled.

‘It’ll pay off, you’ll see.’

*

Mark had recouped some of his losses two days before Suzi returned from Australia, but he needed a good win to put him in front again. At last he appeared to have found the horse to change his luck. Golden Shadow fitted the picture perfectly. The horse won comfortably, but its price had shortened as the race time neared and so he didn’t win as much as he expected.

‘Oh, well,’ he muttered, pocketing the money and walking out of the betting shop. ‘At least I’ve proved I can pick winners, so there’s no limit to how much I can win.’

Two days later another horse fulfilled all the requirements, and once again he slipped out to place a bet. Like Golden Shadow, it won easily, but this time the dividend was far greater. Now he had a sizeable bank to play with, and he was determined to push his luck and reap the rewards of his efforts.

As soon as everything was back to normal, Mark suggested a day out. He bowed to Suzi’s wishes to spend the day poking around country lanes and visiting some of the picturesque places nearby. In as much as she enjoyed the holiday in Australia, she had disliked the harshness of the land and the excessive heat. Now all she wanted to do was revel in the sight of gently rolling hills and the lush green fields of her native Wales.

They headed north along the road that wound through the Wye Valley, turning off into the side roads that took their fancy, until they found a delightful little pub that served a good lunch. When they returned home mid-evening, Suzi was tempted to invite him to stay for evening meal, but then thought better of it, and gently eased him out through the door again.

Why do I feel threatened by him?
, she mused, as she watched him drive away. It was not as if he had caused her any problems, and so far he hadn’t said anything about getting engaged. If only she could be like Charlize. Her friend was still floating on air and singing Lloyd’s praises to everyone and anyone who would listen.

‘I’ll give her a call,’ she murmured picking up the phone, but the number was engaged. A few minutes later she picked it up again and hesitated, finger poised over the automatic redial button. Then she replaced the receiver and nodded an answer to her silent question. ‘Yes, I’ll pop over and see her instead.’

Chapter Twenty Three

Charlize opened the door and looked at Suzi in amazement. ‘What on earth...?’ she began, ‘I’ve been trying to ring you.’

‘Well, I’ve been trying to ring you as well, but your phone was engaged so I decided to pop over instead.’ She dropped down onto the sofa. ‘So what’s new? You seem rather excited about something.’

‘I’ve just been talking to Lloyd.’

‘That’s nice.’

‘Better than that, he’s on his way over. He was calling from Auckland airport to say his flight has been delayed.’

‘But…’

‘He rang a couple of hours ago to say that he’d manage to arrange some time off and he’d be on the first available plane.’ Charlize gave a little giggle. ‘Apparently his partners didn’t mind him taking a couple of weeks off at short notice.

‘I didn’t know he was a partner.’

‘Neither did I until a few days ago. He didn’t say anything while we were in Queensland, because he was concerned that I’d think he was just trying impress me.’ She gave another little giggle. ‘He said he didn’t want to skite.’

‘Skite? What do you mean skite?’

‘Oh, it’s one of those funny expressions they use in that part of the world. It means to boast, swank, or show-off. Anyway it turns out that he’s quite wealthy, has a luxury apartment overlooking Auckland harbour, and a batch, whatever that is, somewhere up north.’

Suzi shook her head.

‘Well, how about you then? So what are you going to do, now?’

‘Oh, just wait and see what happens when he gets here.’

As she drove home Suzi thought about her friend’s revelation. She had known Charlize for many years, and this was the first time she could ever recall her being excited about a man. Normally she treated most of them with disdain, as if they were not worthy of her attention. The occasional one that managed to capture her interest usually did not stay around for long, and very few made it to the bedroom, so Lloyd had to be extra special.

Then she thought of Steve. Would it possible to find out if he had been on the Whitsunday Coast the day she fell off the boat? Airlie Beach was only a small resort town and there were only a handful of places that offered accommodation. But whom could she approach to find out? And was it important? Yes, it was, she decided, but there were still too many unanswered questions surrounding the whole episode. She hesitated; maybe it would be better to leave it alone.

The morning mail contained a letter from Mr Duncan, the solicitor. In stiff legal terms it stated that Steve Pardoe was against the proposal to use Caxton Manor as a restaurant and venue for receptions. He would not consider allowing it to be mortgaged but he would consider selling his share of the property.

So much for that, thought Suzi. Then she continued to read. The solicitor stated that there were no objections to her occupying the building. The letter stated:

Mr Pardoe has informed me that he is conscious of the need to protect the property
,
and has agreed to your wish to reside at Caxton Manor until such time as everything has been finalised
.
Well, that’s something at least, she mused.

Suzi dropped the letter back onto the table and stared into space. It was quite evident that Steve had very little interest in the building itself, or in its heritage. She found it hard to understand such an attitude, but then she reminded herself that he lived on the opposite side of the world, where values were different, and ancient buildings were hard to come by. Caxton Manor had no charm as far as he was concerned—it was just another old building.

She showed the letter to Mark.

‘Well that seems pretty straight forward, doesn’t it? His eyes lit up as he looked at her. ‘If you move in we could use the conservatory whenever we need to cater for something special.’

‘But that wouldn’t be right,’ Suzi protested. ‘I can’t pretend it’s mine and do just what I like as soon as I move into the place.’

Unwilling to upset her, Mark hesitated before speaking.

‘No, of course not, but surely there would be nothing against your hiring a room to The Stow Restaurant occasionally. If you tell Pardoe that you’re willing to share the profits he’ll probably agree. It would achieve two things. Firstly, it could provide an income from the place and secondly it would prove that your idea was feasible.’

‘That’s brilliant, Mark. I’ll give Duncan a call straight away.’

‘What will you do with the bungalow?’

‘I’ll put it on the market eventually, of course. But I can’t do that until I know exactly what’s happening about Caxton Manor, or I could find myself without a permanent home. The bungalow should fetch a good price… enough to sort out all my financial problems.’ She sighed. ‘It would be nice to be free of debt.’

As winter gave way to spring the tourist numbers began to increase and the restaurant trade reacted accordingly. It was too early to predict whether the catering side of the business would follow suit, so Suzi maintained her stance and refused to consider leasing a bigger property.

‘We might get it wrong. It’s too risky,’ she said, the last time they discussed the matter. ‘We could bite off more than we can chew and lose everything.’

Eventually, as Suzi made plans to move into Caxton Manor, Mark began to wonder whether it had been a good idea to suggest it in the first place. If he had realised that she was prepared to sell her bungalow eventually, he would have offered to let her share his flat. It would have made things a lot easier for him in the long run, and one thing could lead to another if they were living together under the same roof.

If only he could raise enough money himself to buy the New Zealander’s share. As half owner he could take up residence and from that point onward he would be in the driving seat. But in the meantime, he had to concentrate on picking another winner.

‘Hello all,’ announced Gary Hyland’s animated arrival. He had recently returned from an extended holiday in America and looked more prosperous and tanned than usual. He clapped Mark on the back. ‘So, how’s it going? Are you still betting?’

‘Yes, but I’m not doing as well as I’d like to, I’m afraid.’

‘Hang in there, you’ll be okay.’

‘Yeah, I need a break.’ He explained the situation to his friend. ‘I want to come up with the cash before Suzi gets settled into the Manor on her own.’

‘Yeah, fine, but don’t be in a rush. If you try too hard you’ll make mistakes.’ He glanced at the clock on the wall. ‘Look, I must go. I might slip in later in the week and see how you’re doing, okay?’

*

Steve scanned the faces on the other side of the barrier when he walked into the main concourse and gave a sigh of relief when he saw his father. He had dreaded the thought of returning to an empty house.

‘How are you son?’ Vince said grasping his hand. ‘Is everything under control?’

‘I’m okay, but how about you and Norah?’

‘We’re coping… just. The funeral went off without a hitch, thank goodness.’ He sniffed noisily. Big

‘Did you…?’

‘It’s all right, I made a point of talking to the Ruawhane clan. I said that we couldn’t notify you in time to come home. I said you sent your condolences… you know all the usual stuff. They were okay about it.’

‘Thanks Vince.’

As they drove home, Steve filled in some of the missing gaps of his dealings with Tony Randall and their former employee, Nick Bolte. Then he spoke about his visit to the Proserpine mill and his conversation with the engineer in charge. He concluded by saying,

‘Nick’s definitely interested in looking after things for us in North Queensland.’

‘And you reckon that Randall’s promised to talk to some his colleagues at the other mills?’

‘Yes, and he’s a pretty genuine bloke. All the mills stick together… it’s a tight community.’

Vince brought the car to a halt outside the house and turned to Steve. ‘Now are you going to be okay?’

Steve shrugged his shoulders.

‘You mean about Kirsty? Yeah, I guess so. I’ve had time to think about things, and although I feel badly about the way she died, I believe she did the right thing in going. We may not have liked the idea of her taking up with Joey Ruawhane, but it’s what she wanted.’

‘Yes, but she’d still be alive if…’ Vince stopped, as Steve laid a hand on his arm.

‘Yes, alive, but not happy. I couldn’t provide what she wanted, nor could you or Norah.’ Steve hesitated before continuing. ‘I know it sounds a bit callous, but she had some time with the man she really loved, even if it killed her in the end.’

Vince just looked at him for a moment and then stepped out of the car. ‘Come on, Norah’s waiting for you.’

Tears welled up in Norah’s eyes as he kissed her cheek.

‘It’s so good to have you home, Steve.’ She held him close for a few minutes and then broke away. ‘I’ll make some coffee.’ The atmosphere at the evening meal was rather subdued, and it wasn’t until they had settled into the lounge that it improved. Both Norah and Vince were keen to hear of Steve’s experiences in Queensland, and when he finished relating the episode at Airlie Beach they looked at each other in amazement.

‘And you think it really was the woman who is associated with the inheritance?’

‘Yes, I do. Crazy isn’t it?’ Then he told them about the conversation he’d had with the woman on the boat. ‘I keep wondering what would have happened if we’d met up again.’

‘It’s probably better that you didn’t,’ Norah remarked quietly. ‘You’ve enough to cope with at the moment without adding another problem.’ When Vince went to the bathroom, she laid a hand on Steve’s arm. ‘This woman is more to you than just the other claimant , isn’t she?’

‘What makes you think th…?’ He stopped when he saw the look on his mother’s face. ‘How do you know?’

‘Call it woman’s intuition or whatever, but I think she’s important to you. Am I right?’

‘Yes, and no. I’ll tell you about it later,’ he said, as Vince came back into the room.

As soon as he finished work the next day, Steve drove out to the cemetery where Kirsty had been laid to rest. The two mounds of earth were heaped high with flowers and bouquets, and someone had placed a small cross on each grave. He stood looking at them for a long moment and then bowed his head in prayer. Unsure of what he should say, he wondered what Kirsty would have wanted to hear. Thoughts whirled around in his head until they took form. There was nothing to forgive and nothing to ask forgiveness for, either. They had both made mistakes, but they had shared a common bond and loved each other.

As he straightened up Steve became aware of someone behind him. He turned to see a middle-aged Maori woman gazing at him intently.

‘You must be Steve Pardoe,’ she said, without any preamble. When he nodded his head, she continued. ‘I’m Kathy Ruawhane, Joey’s mother. I had a feeling you’d be here today.’

‘I’m sorry I wasn’t at…’

‘It’s okay, your father explained,’ Kathy said, quietly. ‘Maybe it was better that you weren’t here.’ She gestured at the graves. ‘They’re at peace now.’ Then she sniffed noisily. ‘They didn’t have much time together, but they were very happy for a short while.’ A soft breeze tugged at the massed flowers causing some of the petals to fall to the ground. Then as quickly as it had come, it went.

Steve cleared his throat.

‘I’m sad that things turned out the way they have, Mrs Ruawhane. My own relationship with Kirsty was very special, but I know that your son, Joey, had more to offer than I could ever give her. She always felt that she should have been born a Maori, a full blood Maori, not half Pakeha.’

‘She told me that too.’

‘Vince and Norah, and myself as well, we never really understood how important your culture was to her.’ He choked back a sob and then spoke of their life together. He recounted his reaction to Kirsty the day Norah brought her home and explained that the little girl was now a part of the family. Steve paused as he recalled Kirsty’s efforts to fit into their society. ‘My folks should have let her go when she wanted to.’ He paused again. ‘And I was just as much to blame that she wasn’t allowed to leave freely.’

‘We all do the wrong thing for what we think are the right reasons,’ the woman said.

Steve looked at the woman for a long time without speaking. There seemed nothing to say, and yet there was so much that needed to be said. There was a need to communicate, to bridge the gap that had existed between their respective cultures for so many generations. He reached out tentatively for the woman’s hand and then sighed deeply as she clasped it warmly between her own.

‘I don’t know what more to say.’ He stifled another sob. ‘I’m pleased that I was finally able to let her go.’

‘That must be a load off your shoulders.’

‘Yes. Yes it is.’ He paused and then added, ‘Please extend my sympathy to the rest of your family, Mrs Ruawhane.’

As he drove away from the cemetery, Steve thought about their conversation and the words he had offered as a prayer by the graveside. He had difficulty with the concept that a person never really dies, but that they just move out of their body to inhabit another dimension, and yet he was convinced that Kirsty had heard his words. And not only that she had heard them, but he felt she had forgiven him for his misunderstanding of her.