It took less time to unload than to load, and half an hour later Beth was waving them off. Wishing she had a nice cup of tea, she sat herself down on the settee to wait. There was little else she could do.
After the excitement of the day, Beth had fallen asleep. The barn was surprisingly warm and cosy, and her settee had always been comfortable, so she was disorientated when she woke to the sound of an engine pulling into the yard.
Blinking owlishly, she heaved herself off the sofa, feeling stiff and not quite with it, knowing that she needed to sharpen up if she was to survive the next few minutes. Peeping warily aroundthe open barn door, she saw Dulcie get out of Otto’s car, and heard her say, ‘That’s my mother’s car. What is she doing here?’
Otto also got out, looking as handsome as ever. Dulcie had done alright for herself, Beth thought with pride. He was a good bloke, was Otto, and Beth was comforted by his presence. He wouldn’t let Dulcie get too mad with her. Hopefully.
‘Mum? Where are you?’
‘In here.’ Beth emerged slowly.
‘What are you doing in the barn? Why didn’t you tell us you were coming?’
Beth didn’t move, and Dulcie walked towards her. It was only when Dulcie got near enough to see inside the barn that she stopped, and her eyes widened.
‘Mum, what’s all that?’
‘My furniture.’
‘Why is it in my barn?’
‘I had nowhere else to put it.’
Dulcie’s eyes widened even further. ‘Please don’t tell me you’ve been evicted.’
‘I haven’t been evicted.’
‘Thank goodness! For a moment—’ Dulcie stopped. ‘What’s going on?’
‘I’ve got something to tell you, but can I have a wee first? And I’m dying for a cuppa. Got any cake, Otto?’
Wordlessly Dulcie opened the farmhouse door and gestured for Beth to go inside. As she hurried into the downstairs loo, she could hear her daughter and Otto having a hushed conversation,but despite putting her ear to the toilet door, she couldn’t make out what was being said.
Nothing good, probably.
She was quite subdued when she entered the kitchen to find a teapot on the table and a slice of cake waiting for her. Despite her bravado, she didn’t have much of an appetite.
Dulcie was leaning against the sink, her arms folded. ‘Well?’
‘I wanted it to be a surprise,’ Beth began, ‘but there was a leak in the hot water tank and the living room ceiling came down, and I had to go somewhere so I came here. My stuff will be alright in the barn, won’t it? I thought if Otto could find some tarpaulin, he could cover it over.’
‘Mum, you’re not making sense. Are you trying to say that you’ve had a leak, and the ceiling has come down?’
‘I’m nottryingto say it – Iamsaying it. That’s exactly what’s happened.’ Beth poured tea into a mug and took a grateful sip. She was parched.
‘But you’ve not got a hot water tank. You’ve had a combi boiler for years.’ Dulcie’s expression was one of puzzlement.
‘My new house has got a back boiler and a hot water tank.’
‘Your new house? Have you moved?’
‘Not quite. I was supposed to move in today, but when I got there, I found the ceiling on the floor and a great big puddle in the middle of the room.’
‘Mum, that’s awful! What does your landlord say?’
‘It’s through an estate agent, and they say they’ll fix it, but it could be a while.’
‘Have they offered you alternative accommodation?’
