‘There’s more,’ Dulcie said. ‘The house she’s supposed to be moving into is in Picklewick. My mother is going to be living just down the road.’
Bloody marvellous, Walter thought. If anything was guaranteed to set his recovery back, it was that.
CHAPTER FOUR
Beth had made herself useful whilst Dulcie and Otto had been fetching Walter from the hospital. She had cleaned the kitchen, the downstairs loo, and the upstairs bathroom, and had put all her clothes away.
Eyeing the view from what was usually her bedroom but was now to be Walter’s for the duration of his stay, she consoled herself with the knowledge that at least she could see up the mountain from the room she had been allocated. She couldn’t see as far as Maisie and Adam’s place, but it was a comfort knowing that her youngest child was just over the horizon.
During this time her phone had rung twice. The first call had been from Nikki, whose opening gambit had been a hissed, ‘What the hell, Mum?’ Apparently she’d heard the news, first from Dulcie who had sent her a message, then from Maisie who had tried to phone her when she had been in class andthensent her a message.
It seemed that Nikki wasn’t pleased for two reasons. One, that Beth had kept it a secret (‘You’re as bad as Maisie. Scratchthat, you’re worse.’) and two, because Maisie had phoned her during a lesson observation. Beth hadn’t helped matters by telling Nikki that if she was so concerned about receiving calls, she should have turned her phone off.
The comment hadn’t gone down well. Nikki had used her ‘teacher voice’ and had told Beth that she would see her later. It had sounded like a threat.
Maisie had accused Beth of being unable to cut the apron strings, and that she needed to let Maisie have a life of her own. Trust Maisie to make it all abouther. Maisie clearly still had some growing up to do. The only person who was pleased that she had moved to Picklewick was her grandson. Sammy had sent her a message with one word in it – ‘Wicked’. She briefly wondered what he was doing using his phone during school (she knew it was strictly against the school’s policies), but she let it go. She needed all the support she could get, even if it was from an eleven-year-old.
Peg, Walter’s gentle Border collie, also seemed pleased to see her and, after Dulcie and Otto had left for the hospital, the dog had followed her from room to room, as though Beth was a rather peculiar sheep that needed rounding up. Beth didn’t mind. She appreciated the company, and it was one more ‘person’ on her side.
After she had done the chores, she made a cup of tea and sat at the kitchen table to await Walter’s arrival.
Beth heard him before she saw him. As usual, he was grumbling, but she supposed this time he had good reason. She had never broken a bone in her life (but then, she hadn’t been prone to going up ladders), but she could imagine how inconvenient it must be. Painful, too. She shuddered at the thought of the metal pin they’d inserted into Walter’s leg, andwondered whether he would beep when he went through airport security, and if so, would the hospital issue him with some kind of letter to explain.
Beth sat up straighter when the kitchen door banged open, and Walter limped in, flanked by Dulcie. She had her hands outstretched, as though expecting to catch him if he toppled over.
Walter didn’t say a word when he saw her, but his lips tightened and Beth guessed he was as unhappy to see her as she was to see him. Living in the same house as him was going to be a challenge, she thought, consoling herself with the hope that his stay at the farmhouse would only be for a few days. As soon as they could see that he could cope on his own, Dulcie and Otto would surely send him home.
Moving slowly, Walter headed for one of the kitchen chairs and lowered himself into it with much grunting and face pulling. His leg was sticking out, and Beth hoped no one would trip over it.
Peg, the traitorous creature, had been waiting patiently by the door, and was now nosing her master, asking to be fussed. So much for Beth thinking that Peg was on her side. Maybe she could get a dog of her own…?
Nah, it would need walking come rain or shine, and although Beth would be happy to take a dog for a walk when it was fine, she wouldn’t be too keen on having to take it out when it was hammering down. And then there was the hair everywhere, and the dog poo that would need picking up. On second thoughts, maybe she would get a cat. Cats were far less trouble – maximum gain for minimum effort.
Whilst all this was going through her mind, she was studying Walter. He didn’t look well. ‘Drawn’ was the best way to describe him. His cheeks were gaunt and his eyes had sunk, and the skin on his face was almost as grey as his hair.
Beth found herself feeling sorry for him. The fall and the subsequent operation had taken its toll.
‘Let me get you a cup of tea,’ Dulcie said. ‘Here, give me your coat.’
Beth watched her daughter fussing around him and wondered whether she should play nice and offer to help. ‘I’ll make it,’ she said, getting to her feet.
Otto had disappeared upstairs with Walter’s bag, but he wasn’t up there long and when he came back down Beth asked him if he also wanted a cup of tea.
‘Not for me thanks. I’m going to the cottage to pack a few things for Dad. Anything in particular you want me to bring, Dad?’
Walter reeled off a list of things he couldn’t live without, and Otto headed off, leaving Beth, Dulcie and Walter to make small talk.
Walter shot the opening volley. ‘I can’t believe you just turned up here out of the blue.’
Beth narrowed her eyes as she poured boiling water into the teapot. So that’s how he was going to play it. ‘I can’t believe you were up a ladder at your age,’ she retorted.
‘Anyone hungry?’ Dulcie asked.
‘No,’ Beth said.
‘Yes.’ That was from Walter. ‘The food in that hospital was dire.’
Dulcie said, ‘If you want something quick, I could heat up some soup or make you an omelette.’
